However, Hai Ling knew that Shen Ruoxuan was doing it on purpose. Normally, he would not call himself "Master" in front of outsiders, but now he did so in front of the Lady of Ningnan Marquis. He clearly wanted to let the Lady of Ningnan Marquis know that he was not an ordinary person. Hai Ling was both amused and annoyed, but naturally she could not blame Shen Ruoxuan, so she nodded.
"The daughter-in-law of the Marquis of Ningnan's family has a growth in her abdomen. Go and check it out to see if there is any way to treat it?"
"Yes, let's go."
Saving a life is like putting out a fire. Shen Ruoxuan did not actually not want to save his daughter-in-law. He did this to let the Lady of Ningnan know that not everyone can be offended. He also wanted to let the people of Beilu know that his master was not only famous for his beauty, but also had superb medical skills.
Lady Ningnan was full of surprise. She thanked Hailing repeatedly and then followed Shen Ruoxuan back to the Ningnan Marquis's residence.
Hailing led Shimei and Shilan back to Xiangwu Courtyard to rest.
As evening fell, the gates of the Ji residence were pounded on. The guards opened the gates and found that it was the Ningnan Marquis's residence. Not only was it the Ningnan Marquis's wife, but even the Ningnan Marquis himself had come. Ji Shaocheng received them. He was surprised to hear that they wanted to see his sister. He entertained the Ningnan Marquis and his wife in front and then sent his men to Xiangwu Courtyard to invite the young lady.
Hai Ling wasn't asleep; she was reading under the lamp because she suspected that the daughter-in-law of the Marquis of Ningnan's household was going to have surgery, so she was waiting.
Upon hearing the report, he knew that it was indeed as he had guessed. He got up and left the room, leading his two maids, Shimei and Shilan, to the front. He left Fuyue to guard Xiangwu Courtyard, and several other maids carrying lanterns led the way. The group marched in a grand procession to the main hall.
In the main hall, Marquis Ningnan and his wife sat upright.
This Marquis of Ningnan was in his forties. Although his face was somewhat plump and round, he was definitely not a bloated or shrewish person. His eyes were wise and bright, and he was calm and dignified. When he saw Hailin, he still looked puzzled.
The renowned Shen Ruoxuan told the couple that if they wanted to cure his daughter-in-law, besides his master Ji Hailing, there was probably no one else in the world who could save her.
So Marquis Ningnan and his wife personally went to invite Hailing. However, Marquis Ningnan found it hard to believe that such a beautiful woman had such superb medical skills that even Shen Ruoxuan couldn't cure her, yet this woman had a way to save his daughter-in-law's life.
Despite their doubts, their daughter-in-law's life was still their life. Since Shen Ruoxuan had spoken, he would certainly not lie. Therefore, the hopes of the Ningnan Marquis's mansion rested entirely on this young lady from the Ji family.
As soon as Ji Shaocheng saw his younger sister coming over, he beckoned her to sit down and then spoke with a serious expression.
"The Marquis of Ningnan wants to ask you to save his daughter-in-law, what do you say?"
Although Ji Shaocheng knew that Shen Ruoxuan had become Hai Ling's apprentice, he had never seen Hai Ling use her medical skills, so he found it hard to believe. In the past, he had only thought that Shen Ruoxuan and his sister were joking around, but he did not expect that the Ningnan Marquis's mansion would actually come to invite his sister. This was no joke; it was a matter of life and death. Although the Ji family was not afraid of the Ningnan Marquis's mansion, as officials of the same court, the Ningnan Marquis's power was not to be underestimated. Therefore, Ji Shaocheng was afraid that if his sister could not do anything, she would end up harming the Ningnan Marquis's daughter-in-law, and his sister would suffer.
"Let's go, or we might really be too late?"
Hai Ling knew that this daughter-in-law of the Ningnan Marquis's mansion would definitely need surgery. Although Shen Ruoxuan could save her life with medicine there, she didn't know what was growing in her stomach. If it festered and flowed into her abdominal cavity, it would be troublesome.
Seeing Hai Ling's words, Ji Shaocheng knew she must know medicine, and probably her skills were truly superb. So he felt relieved and said gently, "I'll take you there."
"Um."
The Marquis of Ningnan and his wife were moved to tears, and the Marquis's wife wiped away her tears as they followed Ji Shaocheng and Hailing into the carriage outside the mansion. The large group of people then headed to the Marquis of Ningnan's mansion.
As for the Ningnan Marquis's mansion, many people inside and outside the capital know that the Ningnan Marquis only has one eldest son, born to the Marquis's wife. All the others are daughters. Therefore, this young master was raised in luxury from a young age. Unfortunately, the Marquis's wife was old when she gave birth to him, so he was weak and sickly from childhood. Later, when he came of age, the young master was arranged to get married. Despite his weak health, he was very opinionated and unwilling to marry just anyone. He insisted on marrying only the woman he liked.
Later, he indeed took a liking to someone, who was the beloved daughter of the Prefect of the Capital. This girl was beautiful and virtuous, and more importantly, she had a very kind heart. She served her parents-in-law and treated her husband with gentleness and politeness. The couple had a daughter and had a very good relationship.
Last night, the Crown Prince's wife was found to have a growth in her stomach. The Crown Prince didn't sleep or eat all night. Seeing that the Crown Prince's wife was still alive, he was almost half dead. So the Marquis of Ningnan and his wife were terrified and panicked. If something happened to their daughter-in-law, their son might also die. If their son died, the Marquis of Ningnan's mansion would have no successor.
When Hai Ling and the others rushed to the Ningnan Marquis's residence, the room was in a state of utter desolation.
The woman sleeping soundly on the bed was the wife of the Marquis of Ningnan, young and beautiful, but her face was pale with a hint of yellow. A man sat in front of the bed, refined and elegant, his face pale and bloodless. It seemed that this man was the Marquis of Ningnan, and he was quite affectionate. Hailing sighed, "To have such a man, the wife of the Marquis is truly blessed."
Hai Ling walked over, and Lady Ningnan quickly pulled her son to his feet: "Quick, let Miss Ji take a look, is there any hope?"
The young master in front of the bed raised his head, his face full of expectation. He got up and made way for her. Hailing walked over and looked at Shen Ruoxuan by the bedside.
"What happened?"
Shen Ruoxuan frankly admitted, "Besides my master, I'm afraid no one else can save him?"
Hailin nodded, knowing that surgery was definitely necessary. In ancient times, people in such a situation could only resign themselves to fate and wait to die.
She bent down and began to examine the Crown Prince's wife. When she finally reached her abdomen, she felt a hard lump that slid up and down. It was soft and had a slightly sticky feel. Her expression changed slightly, and she looked at the Lady of Ningnan Marquis to the side.
"The Crown Prince's wife has a tumor in her abdomen, and it has now become infected and is oozing pus, which is why she is in so much pain. We must take immediate action, or she will be beyond help. All of you, please leave."
Everyone in the Ningnan Marquis's mansion changed their expressions. They hadn't expected that this Miss Ji was indeed skilled in medicine. Even the imperial physicians hadn't been able to diagnose that the thing in her stomach was a tumor. Everyone's eyes were filled with hope, and they all stepped back.
Hai Ling gestured for Shen Ruoxuan and Shi Mei to stay and help, while Shi Lan stood outside the door, forbidding anyone from disturbing them. In fact, she was afraid that someone would barge in, because she was performing surgery, and ordinary people would not be able to accept it if they saw it. That's why she gave such an order. Shi Lan obeyed and forbade anyone from entering. Marquis Ningnan invited Ji Shaocheng to have tea in the main hall of the Marquis's residence, while the others stood guard outside the door.
Inside the room, Hailing had taken out all the equipment, then looked at Shimei to the side and instructed, "Let's begin."
In fact, Hai Ling had explained things too simply to the people from the Ningnan Marquis's residence. The young master's wife had a cyst in her belly, and it was growing on her ovary. Now it had become infected and could be fatal. In addition, it was growing on one ovary. If it were on both ovaries, she would have difficulty conceiving in the future.
However, now is not the time to talk about that; the priority is to start the surgery first.
At Hai Ling's command, Shi Mei and Shen Ruoxuan began to work, and the room fell silent.
Because it was a growth inside only one ovary, the surgery was not long. The growth was removed in less than an hour. It was not only suppurating but also ulcerated. The growth was about the size of a fist and was quite horrifying. Shi Mei put it in a container and placed it aside. Hai Ling then applied medicine and sutured it.
The surgery was successful, and since it involved dissection rather than direct excision, the fertility of the wife of the Marquis of Ningnan will not be significantly affected.
While sewing, Hailing asked Shen Ruoxuan and Shimei questions.
“You can see it very clearly.”
"Okay, I understand."
Hai Ling nodded and said nothing more. Then she gestured to Shen Ruoxuan to get some medicine to replenish the spirit and energy for the young master's wife. After a while, she finished sewing up the stitches and then applied some anti-inflammatory medicine to the young master's wife. These medicines were specially researched by Shen Ruoxuan and were not much worse than those modern special medicines.
"alright."
Hai Ling let out a long breath. Shi Mei then bandaged the Crown Prince's wife's wound with a white cloth, so that no one would see her surgical wound. Shi Mei would be responsible for changing the Crown Prince's wife's dressing from now on, and once her wound was completely healed, no one would care.
This approach is to avoid misunderstandings among people of this era and to prevent unnecessary trouble.
Once everything was tidied up, Shen Ruoxuan opened the door and breathed a sigh of relief at the person outside: "All done."