Feng Fei and her group of five were still some distance from the embroidered pavilion, so they walked and looked around. Feng Fei then asked, "When did Hui'er contract this mental illness?"
About three years ago.
Feng Fei nodded, which perfectly matched the sentiments of Yuan Qing.
"Has anything improved since then?"
"Yes, it is. But it always gets worse the next day."
"Oh? What do you mean?"
"At first, Miss wasn't completely mentally impaired. She could still recognize the Madam and the Doctor, and even the two of us maids. But later, she gradually stopped recognizing us. Once, the two husbands came to visit Miss, and she liked them very much, which improved her spirits considerably. However, every time the two husbands left, Miss would become listless again. But every time the two husbands came, it would make Miss happy, only because her condition would worsen afterward. Because of Miss's illness, the two husbands would only come to the courtyard for a short while, but would no longer see Miss."
"Although Miss's condition has not worsened, we have never seen her smile again." Wenshu and Wenqin explained everything clearly in turn.
Upon hearing this, Feng Fei couldn't help but look at Yuan Jue: Is there something wrong with Qing Yan?
Yuan Jue slowly shook his head; he did not sense anything amiss with Qing Yan.
"Oh, we've arrived at the embroidered pavilion. Please come in with us, young lady."
Just as Feng Fei was about to step into the embroidered tower, Ming Feng suddenly spoke up: "Sister Fei Fei, something strange is going on in this courtyard."
Feng Fei was taken aback, and even Yuan Jue looked surprised.
"how?"
Mingfeng couldn't explain why, but he truly felt that strangeness, and he jumped up and down anxiously: "I won't come up, but I really can feel it..."
Wenqin, the scribe, stopped in her tracks. Hearing Mingfeng's words, she was somewhat annoyed: "How can you say such things, child? We've lived in this courtyard for seven or eight years, and nothing has ever happened. Don't talk nonsense."
While criticizing, they also blamed Feng Fei for not teaching the children properly.
Feng Fei believed that Ming Feng wouldn't speak without reason, so he immediately said to Yuan Jue, "Should we take a look first?"
Before Yuanjue could reply, the scribe said angrily, "Miss, I respectfully led you to the boudoir because I respect you as a doctor, yet you show such distrust towards us. Please leave immediately; a doctor of such character is likely incompetent."
These were extremely harsh words, but Feng Fei wasn't angry. However, he could only reluctantly agree: "Alright, I'll go check on Hui-jie's condition first before making any plans." (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit (.). Your support is my greatest motivation.)
Chapter 34: Documents and the Qin
"snort"
Upon hearing Feng Fei's words, the clerk arrogantly turned his head away.
Seeing that the atmosphere was a bit awkward, Wenqin said somewhat embarrassedly, "Please don't take offense, Miss. That's just how Wenshu is, but she means no harm." With that, Wenqin lifted the curtain and said, "Please come in, Miss. However, your two friends will probably have to wait in the side room with me."
Feng Fei had just stepped across the threshold when he heard this and said, "Your clan leader has agreed that the three of us can treat Miss Tao Hui together."
Actually, Tao Wan didn't say anything like that, but she didn't stop Yuan Jue and Ming Feng from going with Feng Fei, so Feng Fei took advantage of the situation.
Wenqin's expression froze slightly, but she smiled nonchalantly and said, "It seems I've been meddling."
Feng Fei and the other two said no more and went into the inner room one after another.
Wenqin Wenshu, however, called over a maid in the courtyard and whispered a few words to her before following her into the house.
Upon entering the room, Feng Fei felt a warmth permeated with cool air.
This strange feeling made Feng Fei look at Yuan Jue and Ming Feng. He saw Ming Feng shiver slightly, her face full of discomfort; while Yuan Jue seemed to be quite comfortable.
Wenqin, however, was used to it and did not react at all when she entered the room.
The clerk went into the inner room to serve Tao Hui, while Wenqin stayed behind to entertain Feng Fei and the other two.
Before long, another maid brought over a tray with tea.
"Please, all of you, have some water. This is a fine tea that our clan chief specially found for Miss." Wenqin smiled and placed the tea in front of Fengfei, her eyes full of expectation.
Feng Fei politely declined, saying, "I am not in good health and cannot drink tea."
It wasn't that she was afraid there was something wrong with the tea, but rather that the courtyard and the house had an eerie atmosphere. She had to be careful.
Wenqin didn't seem to care much. She simply placed the tea on the small table next to Fengfei and the other two, then stepped back and stood aside.
A short while later, the clerk came out again.
"Miss is already up. Please follow me." Perhaps still harboring resentment towards Feng Fei, her words remained sharp.
Feng Fei smiled calmly. She straightened her dress, stood up, and said in a refined manner, "Please lead the way, Miss Wenqin."
Wenqin turned her head slightly and went into the inner room first.
As soon as Feng Fei entered the room, he saw Tao Hui, who had become mentally impaired.
Logically, Tao Hui was already eight years old, yet she looked much thinner and weaker than a five- or six-year-old child, which was extremely unusual in a large family like the Tao clan. Tao Hui was wearing a bright red dress, but it was covered in white powder. Looking at Tao Hui's face, it was clean, but her eyes were extremely dull. It seemed that her mental disability was indeed true.
At that moment, Tao Hui was happily eating a box of flour, and the white powder scattered on her clothes was from this flour.
Tao Hui grabbed a handful of powder with her tiny hands and stuffed it directly into her mouth. The clerk standing to the side could only watch helplessly, unable to do anything about it.
Feng Fei turned his head and whispered to Wen Qin beside him, "What is Miss Tao Hui eating?"
Wenqin glanced quickly at Tao Hui before turning to Fengfei with a wry smile and saying, "What Miss is holding is cooked lotus root starch." She didn't explain why Tao Hui was only given cooked lotus root starch. But considering Tao Hui's mental disability, they were probably helpless.
Feng Fei nodded slightly and stepped forward.
"Miss Tao Hui, would you please extend your hand to me?"
Upon hearing this, Tao Hui slowly raised her head, carefully scrutinizing Feng Fei for a while, then tilted her head and asked the clerk in a muffled voice, "Who is this pretty lady?"
Feng Fei was startled, feeling that Tao Hui's words were very logical and reasonable, and she didn't seem like a fool.
Yuan Jue also raised an eyebrow. Without waiting for Feng Fei to speak, he stepped forward and took Tao Hui's wrist, holding it gently.
The people inside seemed completely taken aback by Yuan Jue's reaction. They were all stunned.
The first to react were the clerks.
Suddenly, the clerk rushed forward and tried to pull Yuan Jue away. If Wen Qin hadn't reacted in time and grabbed the clerk, the clerk's fingernails would probably have already scratched Yuan Jue's face.
The clerk, being held back by Wenqin, couldn't exert force on her subordinates, so he could only shout, "Wenqin, what are you doing? Didn't you see this lecherous man grabbing the young lady's hand?"
Wenqin immediately frowned and snapped, "Shut up! Look at what you're saying! The three young ladies have come here for a medical consultation!"
The document writer paused, his stubbornness loosening slightly, but he still protested, "This person suddenly rushed at us... who knows if he just wanted medical help or if he wanted to kill us?"
Wenqin glared at him as he retorted to his last words.
Yuan Jue showed no reaction to Wen Qinwen's actions, but his brows furrowed more and more as he held Tao Hui's wrist.
Feng Fei watched with extreme tension, while Tao Hui observed Yuan Jue with an innocent expression.
"Big brother is a good person, he'll give you some to eat," Tao Hui said with a silly grin, grabbing a handful of cooked lotus root starch and trying to stuff it into Yuan Jue's mouth.
Wenqin, the clerk, was so frightened that she quickly pulled Tao Hui back, but Wenqin apologized to Yuan Jue first.
Yuan Jue nodded indifferently, thinking to himself: Yuan Qing must have been somewhat conscious when she attacked that day, so she didn't kill her. Therefore, Tao Hui retains some of her sanity. Judging from the two maids' words, Tao Hui wasn't initially so mentally impaired that she wouldn't recognize people. Her condition only worsened as Qing Yan's visits increased. Qing Yan must have a very serious problem.
However, Yuan Jue had no intention of getting involved in this matter. Originally, he only wanted to find out the reason for Tao Hui's mental disability and then help her out as well. Just as he was about to explain his intentions to Feng Fei, Yuan Jue noticed that the light in the room suddenly dimmed.
A sense of unease flashed through Yuan Jue's mind, but before he could figure out what was going on, a strange laugh indeed came from outside.
"Heh heh, you meddlesome fools who tried to ruin my plans, then you'll all be buried with me!"
Hearing this voice, Feng Fei looked at Yuan Jue in surprise: "How come it sounds like Tao Wan's second husband, Qing Yan?"
Yuan Jue nodded slowly, indicating that he had confirmed it was Qing Yan's voice.
What is he trying to do?
However, no one could answer Feng Fei's question.
Wenshu carried Tao Hui and followed Fengfei and the other two out of the courtyard. They saw that the courtyard was completely dark, as if it had been swallowed up by a terrifying monster.
Just as she was about to scream, Wenqin covered her mouth: "Don't scream, we..."
Wenqin whispered her plan to the clerk, who immediately nodded. But then hesitated, "What about Miss?"
Wenqin seemed to have not considered this either. After pondering for a while, she said, "Just find a maid to keep an eye on things. The two of us can go and come back quickly."
Seeing that Wenqin's suggestion was very practical, the clerk nodded without hesitation: "Then go find a maid. It's inconvenient for me to carry Miss."
Wenqin nodded and walked towards the side room next door. Usually, there were maids resting and waiting to be served in the side room.
But after taking only two steps, Wenqin retreated in a panic, bumping into the scribe's back. She screamed loudly, "Ah—!"
Feng Fei and the others couldn't help but turn their gazes to the screaming Wen Qin.
Holding Tao Hui's documents, Wenqin asked anxiously and worriedly, "What's wrong, Wenqin?"
"A ghost—a ghost!"
Then, Wenqin got up and ran into the inner room, slamming the door shut behind her.
Even now, the clerk still refused to abandon Tao Hui. He held her tightly with one arm while pounding on the door with the other, shouting, "Wenqin, open the door and let Miss and me in!"
"No—no—the ghost will follow you in! Get out of here, get out of here right now!"
Seemingly not expecting Wenqin to say such a thing, Wenshu stumbled while holding Tao Hui. If Fengfei hadn't caught him quickly, Wenshu and Tao Hui would probably have fallen to the ground together.
Feng Fei frowned and looked at Yuan Jue: "What should we do?"
Yuan Jue pondered for a moment before slowly saying, "Let's wait and see what Qing Yan plans to do."
At that moment, Qingyan's voice drifted in from outside the courtyard.
"Scared? Heh heh. I've prepared a big gift for you." The voice, which had started off as Lang Jun, turned sinister in the next moment. "Hmph, didn't you want to treat Sister Hui? Why did you insist on coming in? I've generously let you in, so you'd better treat Sister Hui properly."
Suddenly, her voice turned sorrowful: "Hui-jie, Hui-jie, how lovely, lively, and charming you used to be! But now you've been tormented like this. I really can't bear to see you suffer such cruelty. How have you been? Haven't I been good to you?"
Tao Hui, however, still looked completely oblivious. Upon hearing Qingyan's voice, she cheerfully called out "Uncle Yan" and then twisted her body to try and break free from the scribe's embrace.
The clerk quickly hugged Tao Hui tighter, but before anything could happen, Qingyan spoke again.
"You're just relying on having Hui-jie'er with Wan'er. Wan'er and I will have one sooner or later too!" Feng Fei knew that Su Zai was outside the courtyard.