Old Mrs. Sun let out a cold sneer, “Are you implying that you resent my Xuan Ge’er for still being alive? That he didn’t stop breathing completely as you wished? Or are you saying my Xuan Ge’er actually died and is now possessed by some wandering ghost? You’re the one who disregards human life and lacks medical skill, endangering others! Now you even dare to slander my Xuan Ge’er—what exactly are you plotting? Do you only feel satisfied if my Xuan Ge’er dies? How can you be so vicious? Could it be that all your previous talk of caring for the world was just an act?”
Humiliated and questioned like this by Old Mrs. Sun, Shen Yuanwu’s body swayed unsteadily, and her eyes reddened.
She looked utterly pitiful. “Old Madam, no, I, I…” She stammered for a long time but couldn’t get anything out.
If she tried to defend herself by saying Xuan Ge’er had no pulse, it would only make Old Mrs. Sun angrier and more disgusted.
At this moment, Shen Yuanwu hated Jiang Yao to the core.
She didn’t understand how Jiang Yao could tell that Xuan Ge’er still had a breath left.
She had brought her to this miserable state.
All she knew was that after today, this incident would quickly spread throughout the capital.
She had no idea how people would talk about her then—she would become the laughingstock of the capital.
Just thinking about this scenario made Shen Yuanwu want to break down and sob.
Seeing her still putting on this pitiful act, Old Mrs. Sun was truly furious.
She had nearly delayed Xuan Ge’er’s treatment.
That was a human life at stake.
Who was she trying to fool by pretending to be innocent now?
Old Mrs. Sun was so enraged that she had her daughter-in-law hold Xuan Ge’er, stood up, rushed over to Shen Yuanwu, and slapped her across the face.
“Shen Yuanwu, this slap is to make you remember—if your skills are inadequate, don’t casually pronounce life or death on others!”
Old Mrs. Sun truly detested Shen Yuanwu and put all her strength into that slap.
The Sun family came from humble origins. Old Mrs. Sun had been an ordinary common woman in her youth. As a widow, she had done all kinds of work to support her son and daughter, even carrying goods at the docks.
Even though her son was now an official and she lived comfortably, she couldn’t stay idle and often did manual labor, so she still had considerable strength.
With that one slap, Shen Yuanwu’s face quickly swelled and reddened.
The force of the blow even sent Shen Yuanwu tumbling to the ground.
Shen Yuanwu clutched her cheek and let out a miserable cry, trembling all over from the pain.
The crowd around them was also startled.
“Old Madam hit her well! If your skills are lacking, you shouldn’t casually diagnose others—that’s endangering lives.”
“Exactly, I never thought Miss Shen was such a person.”
“I think the old madam went a bit too far. Miss Shen didn’t do it on purpose.”
Some still couldn’t help but defend Shen Yuanwu, relying on her past reputation to believe she wasn’t the type to disregard human life—she must have just been unskilled.
Someone scoffed, “Alright, alright, Old Mrs. Sun went too far. I hope the next time your family member has an emergency, they run into Shen Yuanwu—when there’s still a breath left to save, she declares them dead and untreatable, so you just take the body home.”
Those who had been defending Shen Yuanwu were left speechless.
Thinking it over carefully, if their own family members were in such a situation and encountered Shen Yuanwu…
Well, that would really be unlucky!
After that, no one else spoke up for Shen Yuanwu.
Shen Yuanwu lay disheveled on the ground, weeping softly and pitifully.
Old Mrs. Sun paid no attention to Shen Yuanwu’s state. She turned around and went to thank Jiang Yao.
“Pei Shaofuren, I truly cannot thank you enough.”
Jiang Yao said, “Old Madam, you should quickly take Xuan Ge’er to the pharmacy to have a Langzhong examine him. Xuan Ge’er will require ongoing treatment.”
She observed that Xuan Ge’er’s condition appeared stable, with only minor brain injury that wasn’t severe enough to cause mental impairment. It could be gradually treated with proper care.
Old Mrs. Sun’s face showed deep gratitude. “Very well, we will certainly visit to express our thanks another day.”
Old Mrs. Sun and her daughter-in-law hurriedly carried Xuan Ge’er, intending to go to the Medicine Hall.
Jiang Fu had been standing at the side gate for some time, having witnessed the entire incident. He was somewhat astonished by his daughter’s rescue of Xuan Ge’er.
Moreover, he had instructed servants to prepare a carriage earlier, concerned that something might happen and they would need to quickly transport the Sun family’s child to the Medicine Hall. In any case, seeing a doctor was essential.
Jiang Fu said, “Old Madam, let me have our family’s coachman drive you there. It will be faster. Yao Yao said you need to get to the Medicine Hall quickly.”
“Thank you, Master Jiang.” Old Mrs. Sun expressed her gratitude without standing on ceremony with the Jiang family. She and her daughter-in-law boarded the carriage with Xuan Ge’er.
After Old Mrs. Sun departed, the surrounding crowd gradually dispersed.
No one paid any attention to Shen Yuanwu, who remained half-collapsed on the ground.
Shen Yuanwu felt too ashamed to face anyone and stayed there quietly sobbing.
Jiang Yao said to Jiang Fu, “Father, I’ll go inside first to tidy up before returning to the Pei family.”
Since Shen Yuanwu was her parents’ biological daughter and was still lying outside, she naturally needed to maintain some distance, allowing her father to bring Shen Yuanwu inside to compose herself.
Jiang Fu said, “Why return so early? Stay for dinner before going back.”
Jiang Yao smiled and nodded, then entered the Jiang residence through the side gate.
In a nearby alley stood an inconspicuous black-lacquered carriage with a flat roof.
Inside sat a tall, handsome young man dressed in dark brocade robes.
This was Ning Wang Dianxia.
Ning Wang’s handsome face was covered with frost-like severity, veins bulging slightly on his forehead, his brow furrowed.
He pressed firmly against his temple – his headache had returned.
“Dianxia.” The similarly black-clad man beside him looked concerned. “Should I go invite Pei Shaofuren over?”
This was Zhuifeng, Ning Wang’s Anwei, who had been rescued by Ning Wang when they were both children.
Since then, he had followed Ning Wang, growing up alongside him, becoming Ning Wang’s most trusted right-hand man.
He was also aware of the incident when Pei Shaofuren had barged into the bamboo forest house at Dingguo Duke Manor.
Today, he had accompanied Ning Wang to see Divine Doctor Xue.
They knew of Divine Doctor Xue’s whereabouts, and Ning Wang’s headache had already been treated by him several times.
But Divine Doctor Xue said Ning Wang’s headache wasn’t a physical ailment – it was Xin Ji, beyond the reach of medicine.
Knowing that Divine Doctor Xue had come to the capital, Zhuifeng still didn’t want to give up, hoping to ask Divine Doctor Xue to examine Ning Wang again.
Unexpectedly, Divine Doctor Xue himself was nearing the end of his life, with only days remaining. When Divine Doctor Xue saw them, he lay semi-reclined on his bamboo chair and calmly said:
“Dianxia, please return. Your headache stems from Xin Ji that you must overcome yourself. Even if I perform acupuncture, it will only temporarily relieve your pain. If you cannot conquer your Xin Ji, your headaches will become increasingly severe, with longer durations of pain. Moreover, as time passes, it will interfere with your consciousness, breeding inner demons that may cause you to reject even your closest kin, descending into madness and demonic possession, ultimately falling into hell.”
Afterward, he and Ning Wang left Divine Doctor Xue’s residence, then encountered this remarkable scene.
This Pei Shaofuren is truly a rare talent. Having merely studied medical texts for a few years, she could tell at a glance that the child of Sun Jia hadn’t yet stopped breathing.
She must have a natural aptitude in this area—just as some with extraordinary bone structure are prodigies in martial arts, or those with photographic memories are born for scholarly pursuits.
Back then, His Highness did not disclose what exactly happened in the forest cabin, only telling him that this lady close to Zhuangyuan Lang could alleviate his headache.
Now, seeing His Highness in such agony, Zhuifeng thought it might be better to invite Pei Shaofuren over to help his lord.
Moreover, he had already investigated the matter at Dingguo Duke Manor thoroughly.
It was Pei Muzheng and Shen Yuanwu who conspired together to ruin Pei Shaofuren’s reputation.
What a petty and vile man, scheming against his own wife!
If he wanted to marry the woman he loved, couldn’t he have sought a divorce before doing so?
To destroy the reputation of his lawful wife like this…
And that Shen Yuanwu is no good either, ordering a maid to administer an aphrodisiac to the young mistress, only to suffer the consequences herself.
“No need. Return to the manor,” Prince Ning said calmly.
Zhuifeng hesitated but dared not disobey His Highness’s command. He could only jump down from the carriage and drive it back to the manor.