Song Xingzhi lived during the reign of Emperor Huizong

Chapter 1, Fever

Zhou Geyin's parents divorced early in her life, and she lived with her grandmother, who lived alone. Her grandmother, surnamed Zhao, was described by her family as a very intelligent old woman. As a child, she was the daughter of a landlord and had studied classical Chinese literature (such as the *Youxue Qionglin*, the Four Books and Five Classics). After marrying, she lived for thirty or forty years under the strict rule of her mother-in-law, managing all the household affairs in their impoverished state. She was adept at navigating social interactions and was quite fortunate. Currently, she is a Buddhist.

Faced with something so completely incomprehensible and unacceptable, Zhou Geyin immediately panicked. She had been independent since childhood, but she always consulted her grandmother when she encountered problems she couldn't solve. However, even her grandmother probably couldn't offer any acceptable explanation in this situation; most likely, she would say, "Amitabha, everything has its own destiny, don't overthink it."

Bullshit "Don't overthink it"! Can someone tell me what actually happened?!

Just as she was filled with fear, she suddenly heard a "snap," and a dim candlelight suddenly illuminated the room. A woman dressed as an old woman hurriedly entered, carrying a lantern. She shone the lantern on Zhou Geyin's face and saw that her eyes were half-open and she was in a daze, not saying a word. She couldn't help but sigh. Her eyes darkened, and she suddenly kicked the ground.

A cry of "Ouch!" was heard, and a girl of about eleven or twelve years old, dressed in a pale yellow dress, sat up abruptly from the floor. She happened to be sleeping slightly off to the side of the bed, in Zhou Geyin's blind spot, which was why she hadn't noticed there was someone else in the room. The girl rubbed her sleepy eyes and asked, "Why is Granny Sun here? Has the fever gone down, Miss?"

Seeing her like this, Granny Sun became somewhat annoyed and said, "You silly girl! The young master has been burning up for three or four days, and instead of keeping watch and changing the ice pillow, you're just sleeping here. If something really happens, even ten of you couldn't afford to pay for it!"

The girl protested, "Granny, you've misunderstood. I just changed the wet towel and you came in after I'd only been lying down for a bit. Look, the young lady seems to have a bit less fever." Granny Sun touched Zhou Geyin's head and found that her fever had indeed subsided, so her expression softened a little.

Seeing that Zhou Geyin was still in a daze, she sighed again, put down the lantern, and lit the lamp in the room. Only then did Zhou Geyin notice that the old woman was carrying a food box. She took out a bowl of porridge from the food box, fed Zhou Geyin, and then said to the maid, "My lord, your dinner is on the lower floor. The maids in the courtyard are all locked up by the mistress and haven't had time to bring it over. Please make do with this."

The magistrate placed a bowl on the table and began to eat with braised chicken wings and boiled pumpkin. As she ate, she asked, "Miss, you've had a fever for three or four days, and you still don't seem to be feeling well. Could it be that the fever has damaged your brain?"

She regretted it as soon as she finished speaking, knowing that Granny Sun hated it most when maids talked nonsense, so she quickly lowered her head and ate her rice, waiting to be scolded.

The room remained quiet for a long time. She looked up and saw Granny Sun holding a bowl of half-eaten bird's nest porridge in her left hand and wiping away tears with a handkerchief in her right. Startled, she quickly put down the bowl and said, "Granny, what's wrong? Did I say something wrong again? I was wrong, Granny, please punish me."

Granny Sun wiped away her tears and forced a smile: "What are you saying? I was just thinking that before Grandma went to the capital, she entrusted the young lady to my care. Now that something like this has happened, I really have no face to see her."

She sighed again: "What if it really damages the brain..." Before she could finish speaking, tears fell again.

She raised the girl's mother from a young age, and now she's taking care of the girl herself. Her own children live far away, and she's long considered herself a member of the family. Seeing the child like this now, her heart is breaking. She also thinks that if the girl really has brain damage from the fever, her mother will be heartbroken. How can she be at ease?

She was an experienced old nanny, and after a moment of confusion, she regained her composure and said to the magistrate, "Go quickly and tell the eldest mistress that the young lady has woken up and ask for a doctor to come as soon as possible." Before she finished speaking, she hurriedly added, "Never mind, I'll go myself. You take good care of the young lady." With that, she grabbed the lantern and left in a hurry.

After finishing his meal and clearing away the dishes, the magistrate went to the bedside and tucked Zhou Geyin in. He sighed and said, "Young mistress, I don't know if you can pull through. If you can't, all the maids in our household will probably be severely punished."

Not long after, Granny Sun indeed led a group of people over. The doctor carefully examined her pulse, turned her eyelids over, looked at her tongue, and said to a woman who looked to be about thirty years old, "The fever has subsided, so it should be nothing serious."

The woman hurriedly asked, "Did you hear from her nanny that the child is just blank, not speaking or moving? Could it be that the fever has damaged her brain?"

As the doctor wrote the prescription, he replied, "That's hard to say. This child has had a fever for three or four days; it's a miracle she's still alive." He handed over the prescription, saying, "I've written a formula to calm the mind and clear the brain. You can try decocting it. See if she's still like this in a couple of days. If she is, then send someone to call me over."

The woman instructed her maid to fetch some silver, which she then personally presented to the doctor, saying, "Manager Fu, thank you for your trouble. You've stayed here for so long; I imagine your household must be quite anxious." She then sent a servant to prepare the carriage, but Manager Fu quickly replied, "It's alright, my shop isn't far from here; I can walk there." Nevertheless, he still took the carriage back.

The woman glanced at Zhou Geyin's complexion and said, "She seems better. Take good care of her these next two days, and if anything seems amiss, immediately have someone tell me." Granny Sun quickly agreed, then asked, "Has Third Madam come to see the young lady these past few days? Where are her Yuanfang and Yuanrou?"

Granny Sun replied, "Third Madam hasn't come since the last time she came with Eldest Madam. She only sent someone over yesterday to inquire about the situation. Eldest Miss and Third Miss haven't come either. I suppose they've been frightened and are still calming down."

When the eldest wife, Madam Zhang, heard about the third branch of the family's actions, her face changed. She said, "I will come over often when I have time. Once the little girl can speak, I will have Yongjiao come over to keep her company. If there is anything wrong with the little girl, I will write a letter to your grandmother immediately. In any case, it is my fault for not taking good care of her. It's a pity about this child."

After she finished speaking, she gave a few more instructions, which were met by both Granny Sun and the magistrate. She then said to the people behind her, "Alright, we still need someone to look after this place. Release the two maids and two or three other young maids who are locked in the woodshed and give them a good scolding. Tell them that if the young lady causes any more trouble, I will kick them all out."

Chapter Two: The Origins

The "Propaganda Officer" function is now open! What are you waiting for? Join now!!! Zhang sat for a while

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