Shen Wan's heart suddenly tightened.
Damn, could she have jinxed things? Had something really happened to that great scholar?
Without another thought, she rushed out from her Space, carrying her belongings, and hurried toward the source of the sound.
There sat Wang Qi amidst the overgrown weeds, clutching a small bunch of Huoxiang in his left hand while his right hand gripped his ankle, his face drenched in sweat from the pain.
"What happened?" Shen Wan asked as she quickly approached.
Wang Qi frowned, gritting his teeth. "I twisted my ankle."
Hearing this, Shen Wan couldn't help but regret bringing him up the mountain.
This great scholar might excel at writing and painting, but such manual labor was clearly beyond him.
And why did Xie Mubai agree to let him come along anyway?
Her mind racing with these thoughts, she set down the items she was carrying.
Gently rolling up his dirt-stained trousers, she revealed a section of his calf, smooth as jade.
Wang Qi's face flushed red.
He started to protest, but she cut him off.
"Do you want to keep this leg or not?" Shen Wan threatened. "I'm the Lang Zhong—you have to listen to me!"
Wang Qi hesitated for a moment before reluctantly giving in.
After examining his ankle, Shen Wan was relieved to find no damage to the bones or tendons.
Since using ice from her Space wasn't feasible, she randomly pulled out a bottle of Hong Hua Oil. "It's fine. Just apply some medicine and it'll be okay."
As she prepared to open the bottle, Wang Qi took it from her. "I'll do it myself."
He didn't like women, and he especially disliked being touched by them.
Allowing this ugly woman to examine him was already pushing his limits.
Once he finished applying the medicine, Shen Wan reached out to help him up.
Wang Qi tried to refuse again, but she grew impatient. "If I don't help you, how will you get down the mountain?"
"There are patients waiting below! They don't have time for you to dawdle here!"
Ignoring whether Wang Qi was willing or not, she picked up her things with one hand and hauled the great scholar to his feet with the other.
By now, Big Beard had led the group to a shaded spot.
The Yamen runner had set up a pot, and green bean porridge was steaming vigorously over the fire.
"Go gather more firewood!" Hu Dahai shouted at Zhou Yiniang and the other women as he added another log to the flames.
Zhou Yiniang, already lazy by nature, felt even less inclined to move in the heat.
Lying on the ground, she weakly replied, "I think I have heatstroke too… I really can't move…"
Since she wasn't actually suffering from heatstroke, she didn't care whether she got any green bean porridge or not.
Qian Shi and Li Shi sighed helplessly and forced themselves to stand up.
They had been the ones to fetch water earlier, and now they were being sent to gather firewood again!
Just as Hu Dahai was about to scold them for their sluggishness, he saw Shen Wan supporting Wang Qi as they returned.
Noticing how Wang Qi was leaning his full weight on the ugly girl, Xie Mubai, who was resting by the roadside, darkened his expression.
"What happened here?" Hu Dahai quickly stepped forward to support Wang Qi.
Shen Wan smiled. "It's nothing, just a twisted ankle."
"By the way, I've gathered the herbs. We can start decocting them now."
Only then did Hu Dahai notice what she was holding.
His eyes widened in surprise at the sight of the watermelon. "Where did that come from?"
"I found it on the mountain. There was only this one," Shen Wan said casually. "I'll decoct the medicine first, then we can eat the melon."
Everyone stared at the large, round watermelon, their mouths watering.
Sun Shi, in particular, seemed unable to tear her eyes away from the fruit.
In this sweltering heat, nothing would be better than cooling off with some watermelon.
After finishing the decoction, Shen Wan had Hu Dahai distribute the medicine to the patients.
Although Da Niu didn’t need medicine for the time being, Wang Qi still asked for a bowl for his sister-in-law.
Shen Wan ignored them and borrowed Hu Dahai’s knife to start cutting the melon.
With the first cut, there was a crisp “crack,” and the round watermelon split into two halves, revealing its juicy, crimson flesh.
Shen Wan gave one half to Hu Dahai. From the remaining half, she scooped out some of the flesh with a small spoon, placed it in a small bowl, and then handed it to Xie Mubai with a clean bamboo skewer.
“You must have cultivated good karma in your past life to marry such a wonderful wife!” Hu Dahai remarked thoughtfully, glancing at Xie Mubai. “You must treat her well from now on.”
Xie Mubai remained silent.
He wanted to treat her well but didn’t know how.
If he acted, he feared giving her hope.
If he didn’t, he felt guilty.
“My husband is shy, so don’t tease him,” Shen Wan said with a laugh, noticing the unusual look in the big villain’s eyes. “Go enjoy your melon.”
Hu Dahai chuckled and took his melon to find the other Yamen runners.
Noticing Da Niu’s pale complexion, Shen Wan cut another piece and brought it over.
Seeing so many people eating watermelon, Da Bao burst into tears with a loud wail.
“Mom, I want some too!” He tugged at Zhao Shi’s arm, throwing a tantrum and howling.
Flustered, Zhao Shi quickly picked him up and soothed him, “Alright, when we get to town, I’ll have your third aunt buy you one.”
“No, I want it now!” Da Bao beat Zhao Shi’s shoulders frantically, crying and shouting, “That’s Xie Jia’s melon! Why are they giving it to outsiders but not me?”
“I’m Xie Jia’s eldest grandson! The entire Guo Gong Fu will be mine someday!”
“If that ugly woman dares to refuse me, I’ll drive her out of the house!”
Hearing this, Xie Mubai’s hand, holding the bamboo skewer, paused slightly.
He had thought Zhao Shi was a sensible person, but he never expected her to raise her child like this!
“Don’t talk nonsense!” Zhao Shi’s face turned pale with fright, and she quickly covered Da Bao’s mouth.
Da Bao wasn’t the only one craving watermelon; Zhou Yiniang, Sun Shi, and Xie Murong were also among those eyeing the fruit.
After a moment’s thought, Zhou Yiniang mustered her courage and looked at Xie Mubai. “You don’t have to take a child’s words seriously.”
“It doesn’t matter if it’s true or not,” Xie Mubai replied without even lifting his eyelids, his expression cold. “The Guo Gong Fu has already been confiscated. If it’s all his, so be it.”
Zhou Yiniang’s face paled.
She let out a few cold laughs and said meaningfully, “Shizi Ye, your heartlessness will chill the hearts of us widows and orphans.”
What did it matter if the family was divided?
As long as she held the status of an elder, she could still assert her authority over him.
“Chilled your hearts?” Shen Wan sneered at this. “Good!”
“I was going to share some melon with you to cool off in this heat, but now it seems unnecessary.”
Hearing this, Zhou Yiniang’s face turned white with anger.
“Shen Wan, how dare you strut around in front of me!” She rolled her eyes and sneered sarcastically. “Let me ask you, as a married woman, how could you hug and cling to a strange man in front of everyone?”
“Who knows what else you might do in private?”
“Shizi Ye, I must say, I admire you.”
“Your own woman has committed such a disgraceful act, and you haven’t even uttered a word of protest!”
Wang Qi’s expression darkened upon hearing this.
Just as he was about to erupt, Shen Wan let out a cold laugh. “When it comes to tarnishing reputations, how could I ever compare to you, Yiniang?”
"I heard that when Tai Furen was arranging your marriage, you despised the other family's poor status and climbed into Guo Gong Ye's bed before the Duchess even entered the household."
These words caused an uproar among the crowd, even making Sun Shi and the other daughters-in-law change their expressions.
Zhou Yiniang flushed crimson and retorted furiously, "You're talking nonsense!"
"Am I really?" Shen Wan sneered coldly. "Wasn't the eldest young master already born right after the Duchess entered the household?"
"N-no… that's not…" Zhou Yiniang's eyes darted nervously as she stammered, "This matter was decided by Tai Furen…"
"If it was truly Tai Furen's decision, why has she never required you to pay respects or attend to her during illnesses all these years?" Shen Wan continued coldly, voicing what she had read in the books. "And what about the Duchess? Why has she remained childless for years after marriage? Dare you say this has nothing to do with you?"
Though spoken lightly, these words fell like a massive rock into calm waters, immediately stirring up towering waves.
The crowd exchanged glances, seemingly understanding why the Duchess had only borne one son despite years in the household.
So this old woman had been meddling all along!
"Shen Wan, stop spouting such slander!" Xie Mubai's face darkened as if could wring water from it, and he shouted sternly, "You've only been married into this household for a few days—how could you possibly know about these family matters?"