Yun Si focused her gaze on the surroundings. Apart from the rustling of leaves stirred by the breeze, there was no other sound. Perhaps she was simply too tense.
Letting out a soft breath, Yun Si quickly forced herself to calm down. She pushed open the door and looked into the room. Although the Marquis Manor had been confiscated and everything valuable had been stripped away, the room’s most basic furnishings remained.
Yun Si stepped inside. Once her eyes adjusted to the darkness, it was easy to see that only a few places could hide anything. After searching them one by one, she finally discovered a shabby little box beneath the bed.
The box was so worn and battered that even if it had been placed in the most conspicuous spot in the room, no one would have spared it a second glance.
But Yun Si knew this battered little box did not belong in her room. She opened it and found a book inside. A Woman’s Precepts? She frowned. Something wasn’t right. Her fingers brushed across the dust-covered book, and sure enough, beneath the cover she felt an unusual thickness. She gently pulled it out and discovered it was an old notebook disguised as A Woman’s Precepts.
The notebook felt surprisingly heavy in her hands, and the edges of its parchment pages had already yellowed and curled with age. No light filled the room, making it impossible to see what was written inside, but it seemed many other things had been tucked between its pages.
Suppressing her excitement, Yun Si hid the notebook inside her robe and hurried back to Prince Xiao’s residence before dawn. As soon as she returned to her room, she eagerly opened the thick notebook. The first section was filled with records related to medicine and healing arts. Though her body was exhausted, her mind grew unusually excited as she read. She read incredibly fast. No matter what kind of book it was, she could skim ten lines at a glance, and once she read something, it would imprint itself deeply in her memory. This condition was known as eidetic memory, the ability to remember something perfectly after seeing it once.
If what she read was too complex or difficult to understand, she could still memorize it first and analyze it gradually later. Yet for some reason, the more she read this notebook, the more she felt an eerie sense of familiarity, as if she could truly master it without a teacher.
Yun Si became so absorbed that she forgot to eat or sleep, reading through the entire medical section of the notebook in one sitting. Although she had committed everything to memory, many strange characters, mysterious symbols, and even the names of certain medicinal herbs remained beyond her understanding. But there was no hurry. She could study them carefully in the future.
Rubbing her sore eyes, Yun Si suddenly came up with a plan for restoring her health despite the drowsiness clouding her mind. Because she had been born prematurely, her health had always been poor. She had survived only by relying on expensive medicinal ingredients, and every physician had said that her condition could never be completely cured.
Only after reading the notebook did she learn that her body could, in fact, be gradually healed. It would simply require some special medicinal herbs and a great deal of effort.
If she hadn’t been such a fool in her previous life, blindly believing Shen Qian’s words and driving her master away, she probably would have recovered long ago…
“Lan Xin.” After carefully putting the notebook away, Yun Si picked up a brush and wrote out a list.
Opening the door, she instructed Lan Xin, “Go to the storeroom and withdraw some silver. Help me buy all the medicinal ingredients on this list.”
Lan Xin took the list and glanced at it. A puzzled expression appeared on her face, but she did not ask any questions. “This servant will go at once.”
After her divorce, Yun Si had not taken her dowry with her. It had remained stored in the warehouse of Qiwu Courtyard. Now that she had returned, no one stopped her from using the things inside.
Looking back, during the years and more that she had been married into Prince Xiao’s residence, Qin Ye had truly given her ample freedom and respect. How could she have failed to see what a good man he was in her previous life?
Instead, she had placed her trust in Shen Qian, that sanctimonious bastard. She hadn’t just been blind in the eyes; she’d been blind in the heart as well.
After Lan Xin left, Yun Si instructed Lu Yu to clear out the empty room next to hers and turn it into an apothecary.
Lu Yu thought she must have heard wrong. Her mistress wanted to set up her own pharmacy? Where had this sudden idea come from?
Lu Yu couldn’t quite understand, but like Lan Xin, she obeyed without question. Whatever her mistress ordered, she would do.
After giving her instructions, Yun Si washed up, ate a little, and finally went to catch up on sleep. She was so exhausted that she slept straight through until nightfall.
When she woke up, Lan Xin had already returned with all the medicinal ingredients listed on the prescription and placed them in the room Lu Yu had prepared.
The room was quite spacious. Yun Si planned to furnish it properly and purchase every medicine and tool mentioned in the notebook. Reading alone wasn’t enough. No matter how thoroughly she understood the theories, it would still amount to nothing more than armchair knowledge. Besides healing her body, she also needed to prepare medicines and weapons for self-defense.
She could not allow herself to repeat the mistakes of her previous life, when she had faced danger with no ability to protect herself and had been at others’ mercy.
The previous night, if she hadn’t been more familiar with Marquis Manor than Shen Qian and knew about the hidden mechanism chamber in her father’s study, she never would have been able to kill the guard at Shen Qian’s side.
Of course, that guard had also been far too arrogant. He had never regarded her, a seemingly frail young woman, as any sort of threat. The next time she encountered someone even more dangerous, or found herself facing Shen Qian directly, she needed the ability to protect herself and, if necessary, strike back and kill her enemy.
After dinner, Yun Si suddenly realized that she hadn’t gone to see Qin Ye all day. This man was acting incredibly cold toward her now. There was no way he would come to see her on his own initiative.
The previous night, she had slipped out of the manor in the middle of the night. Although she avoided the patrolling guards, she knew many hidden guards were stationed throughout Prince Xiao’s residence. She had no idea whether any of them had noticed her. Yet Qin Ye had shown no reaction whatsoever up to this point, which likely meant he hadn’t discovered anything. After all, during her previous life as a “ghost,” she had learned the locations of those hidden guards like the back of her hand. When she left the residence last night, she had deliberately avoided those areas.
Yun Si didn’t want to hide things from Qin Ye. The problem was that even if she told him the truth now, he probably wouldn’t believe her so easily. Rather than forcing the issue, it would be more convincing if he gradually discovered the truth for himself.
Yun Si went to the main courtyard, where Nanny Qian informed her coldly, “His Highness is not in the residence.”
Yun Si asked, “Then do you know where he went?”
Nanny Qian replied, “Lady Yun, surely you’re joking. His Highness is the master, while I am merely a servant. How would a servant dare inquire about the master’s whereabouts?”
“Very well, I understand.” Yun Si gave a slight nod and turned to leave. She neither lost her temper nor rebuked the old woman.
Seeing this, a trace of surprise flashed across Nanny Qian’s eyes. If this had happened in the past, Yun Si would already have flown into a rage.
Ever since the divorce, however, she really had changed quite a bit. But so what? She had only lowered her head because she had run out of options. As far as temperament and character were concerned, she still wasn’t even half the woman Miss Lin was. Alas.
She truly could not understand what His Highness was thinking. Miss Lin was such a gentle and kind woman, wholly devoted to him. How could he possibly not like her?
After returning to Qiwu Courtyard, Yun Si went into the apothecary and carefully sorted the medicinal ingredients into categories. Following the instructions recorded in the notebook, she first tried making a simple wound-healing powder.
The notebook contained detailed formulas and proportions. After just one attempt, she successfully produced two bottles of the medicine. As for how effective it actually was, that remained to be seen.
While Yun Si busied herself in the apothecary, Lan Xin and Lu Yu stood guard outside the door. Watching her skillfully handle the herbs, both women looked on in astonishment. Was their mistress actually serious about this? And when had she learned medicine? The two exchanged glances, then both shook their heads.
…
The next day.
Yun Si rose early, got dressed, finished breakfast, and immediately plunged back into the apothecary next door.
Lan Xin and Lu Yu were bursting with questions. Ever since Yun Si had returned from the Shen family estate, she had changed tremendously. But why buy so many ordinary medicinal herbs? Their mistress had been frail since childhood and had needed various medicinal soups year-round. The ingredients she used were always rare and expensive.
As her personal maids, Lan Xin and Lu Yu had studied quite a few medical texts themselves so that they could better care for her. They both possessed a basic understanding of medicinal principles. As far as they knew, these ordinary herbs were of little use to their mistress.
“Some time ago, I had the good fortune to meet a miraculous physician. She gave me some guidance and even gifted me a medical text, teaching me how to restore my health. Don’t underestimate these common herbs. When combined properly, they can be made into extraordinary medicines with many different effects.”
Noticing their confusion, Yun Si knew she had to offer some sort of explanation. Otherwise, none of this would make sense, even if the explanation wasn’t particularly convincing.
As she spoke, Yun Si poured the ground medicinal powder into a clay pot, then skillfully added water and stirred. Before long, the fragrance of herbs spread throughout the room.
Lan Xin and Lu Yu watched in amazement. The two exchanged a glance. Although they still had their doubts, since their mistress had said so, all they needed to do as servants was listen. Besides, this was a good thing. They were thrilled for her.
Lan Xin stepped forward and said softly, “Mistress, is there anything else that needs to be done? Leave it to us. Don’t overexert yourself.”
“Alright.” Yun Si looked up and began giving instructions in an orderly manner. “First, help me prepare some clean bandages and porcelain bottles. Boil them in water and let them dry. I also need some additional medicinal ingredients. Later, I’ll have to trouble you to make several trips and purchase them from different pharmacies. When you go, disguise yourselves a little and don’t let anyone recognize you.”
“Yes.” The two acknowledged the order and withdrew.
Yun Si picked up the grinding tool again and continued pulverizing the herbs. Afterward, she carefully sifted the powder and stored it in separate clay jars. While her hands remained busy, her mind was equally occupied.
At this point in her previous life, Qin Ye had suffered severe injuries while trying to reclaim her corpse. Now that she had altered the course of events, he should no longer have to endure that calamity.
As evening approached, the sky gradually darkened.
Yun Si had spent the entire day working in the apothecary. The table was covered with carefully measured medicine boxes. She had also prepared a medicinal bath decoction using mugwort leaves and dried ginger.
At the same time, she drafted a dietary plan to warm and strengthen her spleen and stomach, pairing it with a breathing and movement exercise system she had created. From medicines and food to physical conditioning, every aspect complemented the others. Given enough time, she would be able to eradicate the chronic illness that had plagued her for years, root and all. She was far too eager to restore her health. After an entire day of hard work, exhaustion weighed heavily on her body. After a simple dinner, she took a medicinal bath that night. Only then did the tension in her body ease slightly. Perhaps because of the medicine, she slept especially soundly that night.
In her hazy sleep, she heard someone knocking urgently on her door. “Mistress, wake up! Something’s happened!”