Doctors at Huichuntang do not make house calls at night.
But money talks, and the doctor eventually came.
As soon as he arrived, Madam Song showed him the medicine.
The doctor at Huichuntang was quite experienced. He took some of the medicine on his fingertip, sniffed it carefully, and then his eyes lit up.
“This is ‘Ten Thousand Bone Fragments,’ a miraculous medicine for treating leg ailments! It can heal not only fresh wounds but also old ones. Madam, such a precious medicine is truly rare. Where did you obtain it?”
Madam Song did not answer him, but only asked, “Will this medicine be effective for my son’s leg?”
“It works! It’s the perfect medicine!”
“Then why did my son’s flesh begin to rot after this medicine was applied?”
“Let me see.”
The doctor had never used such a precious medicine before; he had only heard of it but did not know its specific properties.
After his diagnosis, he still couldn’t find a specific cause.
In the end, we could only come to a guess: “This medicine is very good, but it’s also very potent, so some side effects are normal. It doesn’t matter if the flesh rots; what’s important is that the bones inside heal as soon as possible.”
“Then my son…do you want to continue using this medicine?”
“If you want his leg to heal sooner, then continue using it.”
“But what about his flesh?”
“After scraping away the rotten flesh and applying medicine to promote new flesh growth, the flesh and bones will heal quickly.”
“Please, doctor, save my son…”
“rest assured.”
The doctor nodded and instructed Ruan Changzheng to bite on the cork while he scraped away the rotten flesh.
The screams rang out again, louder and more agonizing than the previous ones.
He fainted several times, and even contemplated suicide.
It hurts, it hurts so much!
Three-quarters of an hour later, the rotten flesh was finally scraped clean. Ruan Changzheng had already fainted several times, and now his whole body was covered in sweat, as if he had just been pulled out of the water.
But what the doctor said next terrified him so much that he fainted.
The doctor said, “You’ll need to have the flesh scraped at least three more times.”
Ruan Changzheng fainted, and the First Madam cried with heartache.
“My son!!”
After seeing the doctor off, Ruan Yunzheng spent a long time comforting him.
But looking at the half-dead Ruan Changzheng, a chill ran down his spine for no reason.
She wondered, though this miraculous medicine was wonderful, its side effects were so terrible. If the medicine Ruan Liuzheng had begged for today were hers, would she also…?
Once this thought crossed Ruan Yunzheng’s mind, she couldn’t help but suspect that Liuzheng had tampered with the medicine.
But she had no evidence.
I’ll have to find an opportunity to verify this later.
In Aunt Su’s courtyard.
Listening to the screams and cries from the bamboo courtyard, Master Ruan was fast asleep, not making a sound.
The reason was simple: Aunt Su had already received Liuzheng’s message and put sleeping pills in Master Ruan’s tea.
Knowing that Madam Song would cause trouble, Liuzheng used Aunt Su to drug Master Ruan in advance to prevent any further problems.
She instructed Doctor Chen to add a poison to Ruan Changzheng’s medicine that promotes the growth of rotten flesh.
Applying it to healthy flesh will not cause any reaction, but applying it to flesh that already has wounds will cause the flesh to rot.
Although she used Ruan Changzheng as an excuse when she went to the Princess’s residence, she was actually asking for medicine for Uncle Jiang.
But inevitably, a portion of the score had to be given to Ruan Changzheng.
But she didn’t want Ruan Changzheng to recover from her leg so easily, so she came up with this plan.
Ruan Changzheng would be in so much pain that she would want to die.
Although Ruan Hanmo seems to love Liuzheng now, his heart still leans towards Ruan Changzheng.
If she is provoked at this time and witnesses her son’s delighted expression, Liuzheng will be in serious trouble.
Sure enough, Aunt Su was efficient and the place was quiet.
The plan is going smoothly.
Liuzheng was relieved.
She asked someone to close the courtyard gate, and prepared to go to sleep.
At that moment, the wet nurse knelt down in front of her bed.
“We, your family of three, will never forget your great kindness and are willing to do anything for us!”
She only learned after Doctor Chen left that Liuzheng had willingly gone to the Princess’s mansion for the sake of Uncle Jiang’s leg.
However, this matter was kept secret, and only after closing the door did they dare to kowtow and express their gratitude.
“Nanny, get up quickly.” Liuzheng helped her up and said, “We are family, let’s not talk about these things. The fact that you and Uncle Jiang are willing to come back is a great help.”
The wet nurse nodded, her eyes red.
Liuzheng said, “Let’s rest early. When Grandmother comes back tomorrow, we’ll clean the main courtyard thoroughly. It will take some hard work.”
“yes!”
However, when Liuzheng got back to bed, she inexplicably couldn’t fall asleep.
Perhaps because her grandmother was coming back tomorrow, she was too excited and didn’t fall asleep until late at night.
The next morning, just after Liuzheng finished her breakfast, a servant came to report that Master Ruan wanted her to go to Tingzhu Courtyard.
“Understood, I’ll be there right away.”
On the way, Liuzheng had already guessed why Master Ruan wanted to see her.
He simply wanted to know what happened last night and ask her for details.
Therefore, as soon as Liuzheng entered the door, she immediately knelt down.
“Father, after much thought, Liuzheng believes that the medicine given by the Princess might really be problematic. If you agree, I will go to the Princess’s residence right now. Even if it costs me my military merits, I will seek justice for my elder brother!”
Before Master Ruan could utter his accusatory words, they were choked back down.
“Don’t talk nonsense! How could there be a problem with the medicine bestowed by the Princess? The medicine itself is fine; it’s just that your elder brother is weak and can’t handle such a strong medicine. Besides, your military achievements were hard-earned; how can you give them up so easily? You must never speak nonsense again. Get up now!”
He personally helped Liuzheng up.
The anger stirred up by Song and Ruan Yunzheng vanished, leaving only fear.
She feared that Liuzheng would actually question the eldest princess.
That could be a fatal disaster, bringing ruin to the whole family.
“No one should mention this matter again,” Master Ruan said, addressing not only Liuzheng but also the First Madam.
Song wanted to say something, but a glare from Master Ruan made her swallow it back.
She thought so too; Liuzheng wasn’t that bold and ruthless, and wouldn’t do something like poisoning the medicine.
But he couldn’t swallow his anger, so he used Master Ruan’s hand to vent it.
Unexpectedly, after Liuzheng said just a few words, Master Ruan not only didn’t get angry, but also directly concluded that there was no problem with the medicine.
She clenched her back teeth tightly.
The way Liuzheng looked at him was like a venomous snake flicking its tongue.
Liuzheng pretended not to see it and obediently said to Master Ruan, “Daughter will listen to Father.”
Seeing that the matter of the “miracle drug” had come to nothing, Song brought up another matter.
“Master, what about Xinniang…”
Xinniang was the wife of the top scholar.
Master Ruan remembered this matter.
Song told her that yesterday, Liuzheng went to the Princess’s residence to make excuses and offended the top scholar’s wife in her words.
He frowned slightly and said, “Yaoyao, did you upset Xinniang yesterday?”
Liuzheng asked knowingly, “Who is Xin Niang?”
“The wife of the top scholar.”
When did my daughter ever upset her?
Madam Song spoke first, saying, “You speak so quickly, you probably don’t think you’ve said anything wrong, but someone sent me a letter yesterday criticizing you, so you should prepare some apology gifts and send them over.”
This is because they realized they couldn’t suppress her, so they brought up the wife of the top scholar again.
Liuzheng said, “This is not appropriate.”
“What’s wrong again? Is it that you won’t listen to anything I tell you? You don’t give me face, and you don’t even give your father face?”
Master Ruan looked up at Liuzheng, waiting for her to give her an answer.
Unexpectedly, Liuzheng still said, “Father, this is not appropriate. I cannot go to the Zhuangyuan Mansion.”
Master Ruan was furious.
“You won’t listen to me?”
Liuzheng had them move their whole family to Wuyi Lane, and he was very happy and willing to smile at Liuzheng.
But once Liuzheng disobeys him, he completely forgets all the good things about her.
“Father, it’s not that I don’t listen to you, but the situation in the court is chaotic right now. If I go to any mansion without any reason, it will not be good for the Ruan family.”
Song added fuel to the fire at the opportune moment.
“Hmph, I think you’re just relying on your military merits to look down on me and your father.”
“There is no Liuzheng.”
“You still dare to say you didn’t!”
Master Ruan said with a dark face, “Enough! Shut up!”
Both of them fell silent.
Just then, Ruan Yunzheng entered.
She always manages to show up at just the right time.
“Father, Mother, please don’t be angry. If my sister doesn’t want to go, Yun’er is willing to do it for her. Anyway, I know Sister Xin well, so it will be easier for us to talk. If I go over and apologize on my sister’s behalf, Mother Xin will probably stop being angry.”
Master Ruan’s gaze softened considerably when he looked at Ruan Yunzheng.
He said coldly to Liuzheng, “Why don’t you hurry up and thank your sister?”
Liuzheng said, “Father, I think it’s best if Sister Yun’er doesn’t go either.”
Master Ruan’s anger snowballed, growing ever larger.
“You don’t want to go, so she goes in your place, and you’re still not satisfied?!”
“daughter……”
“Enough! This matter is settled! Since you don’t want to go out, then go back to your Tinglan Garden and reflect on your actions for three days! During these three days, no one in Tinglan Garden is allowed to step out of the courtyard!”
Liuzheng pursed her lips, seemingly very dissatisfied.
But in the end, she said helplessly, “Yes, daughter will listen to her father. I will go back and reflect on my mistakes at home.”
She turned and left.
But after leaving Tingzhu Courtyard, a gentle smile appeared on her lips.
Taking the opportunity, Madam Song said, “Yun’er is so sensible, I really can’t live without her. But she’s currently living in the outer courtyard, so it’s very inconvenient for her to come to my Tingzhu Courtyard. Master, why don’t I clean out the west wing of Tingzhu Courtyard and make room for Yun’er?”
Master Ruan nodded: “Do as you please. Xinniang’s matter needs to be resolved as soon as possible.”
Although he was the teacher of the top scholar, this small amount of teacherly kindness was not enough for a woman to whisper sweet nothings in his ear.
“Father, rest assured, I will definitely persuade Sister Xin.”
Master Ruan gave a satisfied “hmm”.
Liuzheng is a good person, but she seems to be covered in thorns. Even when he talks to Liuzheng, he subconsciously speaks softly, which makes him very uncomfortable.
Ruan Yunzheng, his adopted daughter, was different; she looked at him with admiration and respect.
Thus, Ruan Yunzheng successfully moved to Tingzhu Courtyard.
At the same time, Liuzheng also returned to Tinglan Garden.
The entire Tinglan Garden community soon learned that Liuzheng and everyone in the garden were under house arrest, but the third young lady, Ruan Yunzheng, was able to move to Tingzhu Courtyard, the best courtyard besides the main courtyard.
When it was lunchtime, someone came to deliver the food.
The wet nurse reached out and took it, quickly realizing that it was a cold dish.
Moreover, although it was supposed to be three dishes and one soup, they were all vegetarian.
The broth, though called broth, contained not a single speck of meat.
Her face darkened as she demanded, “Why is the food all cold?”
The servant immediately put on a smiling face: “Granny Jiang, please forgive us. There are only two stoves in the kitchen, and we are short-handed. We are really too busy… We hope you and Miss will be understanding.”
The words were very polite, but there was no indication that they wanted to reheat it.
The wet nurse was so angry she had a headache.
She carried the lunchbox into the room: “Miss, look at this food!”
Liuzheng put down the military treatise and looked up.
“These sycophantic lackeys! You’ve only been confined to your quarters, Miss, and they’re already humiliating you like this! You’ve only been here a few days, and they’ve already forgotten who won this General’s Mansion!”