The Splendid Brocade of the Painting Physician – Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Treating the Illness

Two servants carried the person in on a thin board, a group of people panting and rushing to set the person on the board down in front of the door.

Seeing the young man on the board still convulsing, his face contorted in pain and turning blue, saliva constantly dripping from his mouth and wetting his lapel, the servant women couldn’t help but avoid him with disgust.

Where was the “handsome and elegant, graceful and carefree” demeanor of the past? Even if he was a concubine’s son, their Zheng Clan’s Fourteenth Young Master was still unmatched by other aristocratic sons in the entire Yingyang Commandery. But if today’s appearance were to spread… The Old Madam muttered to herself, her heart also twitching.

“Quickly carry him inside! Quickly carry him inside!” she said repeatedly.

“Yes!” The two servants responded, rolling up their sleeves and preparing to lift the board again, rushing forward. But the young boy standing in front of the door suddenly blocked their path, looked at the Old Madam, and asked seriously, “Where are the things my Qing Gege asked for? Did you bring them all?”

One hand delivers the goods, the other hand delivers the person. This boy really wasn’t that easy to fool.

Under the Old Madam’s gaze, a senior servant woman, holding a black lacquer box with gold tracing and filling, walked out and said repeatedly, “Here, here.” She then deliberately reported to the Old Madam, “This old servant found this box in Fourteenth Young Master’s room. This old servant also asked the young servant by Fourteenth Young Master’s side, and he said the things inside were indeed found by Fourteenth Young Master from this village a few days ago.”

The Old Madam reached out to open the box, but as if considering something, she quickly withdrew her hand and put on a heartbroken expression, “This wicked child, he really stole someone else’s things. It’s all this old woman’s fault for failing to teach him properly.” She then instructed the old servant woman, “Quickly, send the box to the Young Master!”

The old servant woman bowed her head in response, quickly carrying the box respectfully to the young boy, “Please, Young Master, convey to your master that this old woman begs her to forgive our young master’s transgression and save his life. Once our young master recovers, this Old Madam will definitely offer a generous reward.”

The young boy snatched the black lacquer box, opened it, and looked through it before saying coldly and lazily, “Then carry him in!”

“Yes, yes!” The servant women were overjoyed, and the Old Madam also breathed a sigh of relief.

The two servants once again lifted the board, carrying the person into the room. As soon as they set down the board and were about to retreat, they looked up and saw the “youth” sitting on one side of the screen. They felt as if the person before their eyes was unreal, like someone who had walked out of a painting, causing their hearts to tremble unconsciously.

Is this the Divine Physician? Even calling him a celestial being wouldn’t be an exaggeration!

The two servants sighed inwardly, stunned for a long while before reluctantly leaving under the young boy’s urging.

“How was it? Did you see the Divine Physician? What does he look like?” Lady Li asked eagerly as the two servants came out.

The two servants were still somewhat dazed. After hesitating for a long time, one of them replied, “This servant didn’t see his face clearly, but I felt that the Divine Physician’s demeanor and temperament were like those of a celestial being.”

“A celestial being! A celestial being is good. In that case, it’s my Fourteenth’s fortune. He should be saved.” The Old Madam sighed with joy upon hearing this, while Lady Li pursed her lips in disapproval.

Who said a celestial being could definitely cure that wretched son’s illness? Maybe it was just a trick these two were playing.

“Then, Mother, what should we do now?” Lady Li asked. They couldn’t just stand here in the cold wind forever. Seeing the “Divine Physician’s” attitude, it didn’t seem like he intended to invite them inside to sit.

“Naturally, we wait here. We’ll go back when my grandson comes out.” The Old Madam saw through Lady Li’s thoughts at a glance and said with a stern expression, not in a good mood.

As it was early spring, with the weather fluctuating between cold and warm, the night wind was still quite chilly. The group of people had long been shivering, hugging themselves and shrinking their necks.

Who knew when this Fourteenth Young Master would come out? What if he didn’t come out, would they have to wait forever?

Outside, the night wind was blowing, but inside the room, there was a joyful and harmonious atmosphere.

“Qing Gege, that’s right, it’s all here. These are the things your aunt… that is, your mother left for you.” The young boy pushed the box in front of Xiao Jinyu and said happily.

Xiao Jinyu also reached out and looked through the things in the box: there were fertile fields and shops, deeds of sale for personal troops, some precious ornaments like rhinoceros horns and agates, as well as some calligraphy and paintings. Although not much, they didn’t look like ordinary items.

“What kind of person was my mother?” Xiao Jinyu suddenly murmured.

The young boy was about to answer when he saw Zheng Fourteenth Young Master, who was still trembling on the ground, and his face darkened. He turned to Xiao Jinyu and said, “Qing Gege, this Zheng Fourteenth Young Master has already been delivered to us. What should we do now?”

Xiao Jinyu didn’t answer, so the young boy leaned closer and said mysteriously, “How about we feed him some shit first? This guy is used to fine clothes and delicacies, he’s eaten everything in his life, but he probably hasn’t eaten shit.” As he spoke, his bright eyes were already filled with the excitement of wanting to try it.

Zheng Fourteenth Young Master, lying on the ground, suddenly widened his eyes and screamed, shaking all over. However, because he couldn’t speak, no one could understand what he was shouting or why.

✿✿✿

The Old Madam outside, hearing the scream, felt a pang in her heart and wanted to go in to have a look. But Lady Li stopped her and said, “Mother, I heard that patients often suffer some pain during treatment. Fourteenth Young Master is so ill, it’s inevitable that he’ll endure some hardship. Don’t worry.”

The Old Madam thought to herself: That’s true, perhaps the Divine Physician has started applying acupuncture. Fourteenth has never suffered much in his life, but to have to endure this kind of illness and pain, it’s quite pitiful to think about. But when she thought of his current appearance, she hardened her heart. If this illness could be cured, this little pain was nothing. It was better than being ridiculed by others.

Zheng Fourteenth Young Master’s mood at this moment was naturally indescribable. Seeing the young boy walking towards him, his peach blossom-like face smiling brightly and smugly, he felt indignant and wanted to punch him. However, his trembling hands were completely out of control. In the end, he could only stare at the young boy with all his might, wishing his eyes could turn into sharp swords and kill him with a stare.

But fantasies are just fantasies, after all, and they will eventually shatter in the face of reality.

The young boy had already bent down, patting Zheng Fourteenth Young Master’s face lightly and saying with a smile, “How is it, Zheng Fourteenth Young Master? I told you before, heaven is fair. If you do too many bad things, there will always be retribution. It’s not that there’s no retribution, it’s just that the time hasn’t come yet. Even if you’re the young master of the Yingyang Zheng Clan, what can you do? You look so pathetic now, even ghosts would despise you!” After saying that, the young boy raised his hand and slapped Zheng Fourteenth Young Master hard across the face, making his nose and eyes crooked, blood flowing freely. He wanted to cry but couldn’t.

Hearing this crisp sound, the Old Madam’s heart skipped a beat again. She couldn’t help but take a step forward and was about to enter the room. But because the young boy had warned them not to enter before, she suppressed her uneasy heart again.

“I told you to bully my Qing Gege! I told you to bully my Qing Gege!”

The young boy vented his anger by punching and kicking Zheng Fourteenth Young Master. Finally, tired, he sat down on the ground, panting.

“Qing Gege, I’m done hitting him. I’ll go get some horse urine or something to feed him as medicine, and that’ll be the end of it. Then we’ll slip away from the back door!” he said.

Xiao Jinyu shook her head, “No, there are too many people outside, we can’t leave. You hold his limbs down, I’ll apply the needles.”

“Apply needles?”

The young boy jumped up in surprise, “Qing Gege, you’re not really going to treat him, are you? Curing this kind of person is like releasing a wolf back into the mountains, it’ll bring endless trouble!”

Releasing a wolf back into the mountains, endless trouble?

Xiao Jinyu’s expression became somewhat dazed again. Had she done such a foolish thing before?

“But if we don’t treat him, we can’t escape this Yingyang Commandery. Even if we cure him, we still can’t escape this Yingyang Commandery,” she murmured, a hint of unease flickering in her dark pupils.

Not good, Qing Gege seems to be recalling something sad again.

The young boy quickly changed his tune and nodded, “Okay, then we’ll treat him, treat him until he’s half-dead, to buy us some time to escape.”

After saying that, the young boy grinned brightly again.

Xiao Jinyu also smiled. With her smile, her eyes, which were like a deep pool of clear water, instantly came alive with brilliance, making her already beautiful and porcelain-white face radiate a captivating light.

The young boy stared blankly for a moment, then suddenly said, “Qing Gege, you look so beautiful when you smile.”

Xiao Jinyu was stunned again. There seemed to be a man’s voice in her mind saying, “You look beautiful when you smile. All the splendor in the world can’t compare to the brilliance in your eyes when you smile.”

Is that so? Were those words sincere?

After pondering for a moment, she picked up the medicine chest and walked over to Zheng Fourteenth Young Master, squatting down beside him.

“Let’s start applying the needles!”