Nie Qingyue returned to the hall.
While she was still struggling with Yan Shu's intense gaze, she suddenly noticed that only the little princess was sitting at the empty round table, looking intently at the ink painting hanging next to the cabinet.
Feeling a strange sense of unease, Nie Qingyue walked over and asked, "Your neck is healed so quickly?"
The young princess was stunned, her neck still stiffly facing the direction of the ink painting without turning away at all.
Nie Qingyue squatted down in front of her and looked up to observe her: "But I remember you were leaning to the right just now." The little princess didn't speak, and in the blink of an eye, her delicate face quickly stiffened again, turning to the right and refusing to move an inch.
Is this... faking illness? It's a bit too obvious. Nie Qingyue's expression fell, and suddenly a hand slapped down on her shoulder: "What are you doing here?" It was little Yu Che, holding several thick ancient books.
"Princess, just now..." Before she could finish speaking, little Yu Che waved her hand dismissively, saying, "Don't be nosy bystanders. You're such a grown-up, yet you're so ignorant."
Nie Qingyue was devastated, feeling a surge of anger, and ran to the lotus pond to squat down, hugging her knees and gazing at the koi carp.
"What's wrong?" Yan Shu came out and saw her, squatting down beside her and asking with amusement.
"Your apprentice said I am just some random person."
Yan Shu pondered for a moment: "Do you know medicine?"
"Won't."
"Are you sick?" he coaxed gently.
"No."
"Is he/she just some random person?" The answer came naturally.
"...miscellaneous." = =
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Good fortune never comes in pairs, but misfortunes never come singly (Part 1)
Behind the screen, a misty vapor mingled with the fragrance of flower petals.
Nie Qingyue leaned against the screen, watching that delicate, youthful face rest against the large yellow wooden bathtub, its head still tilted at an angle. The special flower petals were delivered by the people guarding outside the mansion, and even the bathtub was transported from the prince's mansion several streets away, wrapped in layers of silk. It was no exaggeration to say that she was the apple of his eye.
"If you soak it any longer, your skin will peel off." Nie Qingyue pulled off the soft silk scarf draped over the screen and walked in with a smile.
Princess Mo Yu helped Nie Qingyue slowly climb out of the large bathtub, supporting her outstretched hand. A silk towel was quickly wrapped around her, and Nie Qingyue gently wiped her down a few times: "Can you dress yourself?"
Mo Yu hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded.
Half an incense stick's time later, Nie Qingyue stepped back behind the screen. The exquisitely beautiful little girl was looking down at the tangled tassel ribbon in her hands, wearing a single garment askew. Hearing Nie Qingyue enter, her dark eyes widened and stared at her.
Nie Qingyue chuckled and went over to help her untie the knot: "Tie the belt on your left waist first, then fasten the knot on your collar. Do it one piece at a time, from thin to thick." Squatting in front of Mo Yu, Nie Qingyue guided her while resting her hand on her chin and watching her awkwardly put on her clothes.
Even if you are waited on hand and foot your whole life, there are still some things you have to learn to do.
Mo Yu paused for a moment without speaking, but nodded slightly and earnestly. Nie Qingyue looked at her neck, which she could turn freely, and suppressed his doubts, deliberately not pointing it out: "Let's go out, Yu Che seems to have finished brewing the medicine."
The small hand she held in hers was warm and soft after her bath. Nie Qingyue led Mo Yu into the main hall, where several servants from the Prince's mansion were already seated. Before she could speak, two servants and an honest-looking man came forward, explaining to Nie Qingyue while their eyes scrutinized Mo Yu. "We came in to deliver pillows and blankets; Miss is used to them and won't be able to sleep if we change them."
Mo Yu's hand visibly stiffened. Nie Qingyue turned her head to look, and as expected, Mo Yu's eyes, which had been able to look straight ahead, were now looking away as her head stiffened and turned away.
"Uncle, please leave after you've delivered the things. It's really not good for you to stay." Little Yu Che walked in carrying a porcelain bowl, his delicate brows furrowed with a hint of dissatisfaction.
The man in the lead responded and led his servants out.
Nie Qingyue glared at Yu Che: "So I want to withdraw too, right?"
Yu Che was about to nod when he saw Mo Yu's calm expression shift. Nie Qingyue felt her hand suddenly tighten, and looked down at Mo Yu, but Mo Shu still had her face turned away.
"You should stay with her." Yu Che's eyes darted around, he put the medicine on the table, and then turned and walked behind the carved wooden screen.
The clear medicine exuded the fragrance of lotus seeds and gardenias. Nie Qingyue pushed the bowl in front of Mo Yu, gesturing for her to drink it.
Mo Yu didn't move, sitting quietly, but suddenly turned his head and became engrossed in conversation. It wasn't until a while later that Nie Qingyue belatedly realized that the master and disciple's voices were clearly coming from behind the wooden screen:
"The lotus seed stamen and gardenia, supplemented with roasted licorice root, ophiopogon japonicus, jujube, lily bulb, and rehmannia root, are the main prescription that my master used to cure that Imperial Censor Chen who had been ill for eight years."
"Add some calamus and fleeceflower vine," Yan Shu said calmly.
"Know."
What are your plans for the future?
"Acupuncture. The main acupoints are Ximen and Yongquan, and the auxiliary acupoints are Zusanli and Quchi."
"Intervals and needlework techniques?"
“Once every other day, and then…” Yu Che’s confident voice suddenly dropped.
Yan Shu didn't give him many chances: "The needle tip of the Ximen acupoint should be pointing upwards. Today, you should use multiple strong needles twice and retain the needles for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea. Then, reduce the number of acupoints and use scraping needles every other day or every day."
Yu Che was silent for a while: "Master, why don't you take charge of the treatment this time?"
"Lack of confidence?"
“My master has cured many patients like this in Mojing before. So I think this time the focus should be on observation and learning, and gaining more experience.”
"Very well, the Prince's mansion is in a hurry to send her back. I will reconsider the prescription and acupuncture method, and try to send the princess back within three days."
Nie Qingyue suddenly felt a subtle sense of unease as she listened, and turned to see Mo Yu listening intently. After discussing it, the master and disciple strolled out. Yu Che took the bowl from the table and solemnly said to Mo Yu, "Master will come to give you acupuncture later, and the medicine will be brewed again."
Mo Yu still didn't answer, but the hand that was holding Nie Qingyue slowly loosened.
"Spend more time with her if you have nothing else to do." Yan Shu sat down, resting his chin on his hand, and looked at Mo Yu with a gentle and warm smile: "They said they wanted to find a maid to sleep with you tonight, but I refused. Princess, you're all grown up, you must be able to sleep alone, right?"
Mo Yu was slightly taken aback, turned around and tilted her head to look at Yan Shu, and replied softly, "Dare."
"Hmm, very brave. Yu Che is ten years old and still doesn't dare to do that." Yan Shu's bright eyes curved into a smile of admiration that spread to the corners of his eyes and brows.
Mo Yu actually answered. Nie Qingyue glanced at Yan Shu, then at Mo Yu's flushed face, and the sense of incongruity intensified. Yu Che clearly sleeps alone every day, for goodness sake! Would Yu Che cry if he heard his beloved master belittling him like this?
"Sweetie, I'll give you acupuncture after dinner." Yan Shujun's smile, which resembled that of someone trying to woo a child, continued to widen.
The next day, use silver needles to insert, twist, and rotate the needles, applying short strokes for a longer duration. This is combined with a decoction of licorice, gardenia, and rehmannia root to clear the mind, relieve depression, and nourish the liver and kidneys.
Five days later, Mo Yu was able to speak and communicate with them, but her illness still hadn't improved.
Yan Shu refused to let anyone from the Prince's residence in, not even half a cup of tea.
"Is Mo Yu really not faking illness?" Nie Qingyue couldn't help but go to Yan Shu when she accidentally saw Mo Yu turning his head nimbly by himself in the room again.
At that moment, Yan Shu was sleeping on a bench in the courtyard, basking in the sun, when he suddenly felt a shadow fall in front of him. He looked up and saw Nie Qingyue frowning with a puzzled and concerned expression. He reached out and pulled, and the person who had been looking down at him had fallen off the narrow bench, leaning against him with his hands on his shoulders, his cheeks slightly flushed.
A few strands of soft hair fell beside his face, tickling him. Yan Shu reached out and brushed them away, then turned over to find a comfortable position, wrapped his arms around her, and closed his eyes, wanting to fall asleep.
"Answer me." Nie Qingyue tugged at his hair, afraid of hurting him if she pulled too hard or letting him continue sleeping if she pulled too softly.
Yan Shu buried his face in the crook of her neck, his voice muffled: "It wasn't before, it is now."
"What do you mean?" = = The patient hasn't even been cured yet, don't be so idle.
"The warm winter sun is meant for sleeping." As if he could hear the sarcasm in her heart, he said matter-of-factly, with a mix of roguishness and languor, his calloused fingers lightly pressing against her red lips, "Try making a fuss again."
Nie Qingyue's breath hitched, and she fell silent, staring blankly into her bright eyes.
"I was going to say that if we kept arguing, I would explain slowly," Yan Shu chuckled, pushing his luck.
The person trapped in his arms finally snapped, trying to push away with both hands, but the hand on his waist suddenly tightened, and Yan Shu's deep and elegant voice was right next to his ear: "I told you, every inch you run away is a foot closer."
The warm winter sun made her cheeks feel hot, and the fragrance of the early-blooming plum blossoms wafted from afar, blending with the sweet scent emanating from Yan Shu, making her dizzy and unable to distinguish between them.
She couldn't tell whether the fleeting, delicate fragrance that had brushed against her lips just moments before was merely a hallucination from her drowsy afternoon.
Early that morning, Nie Qingyue grabbed a vegetable basket and ran out the door.
Although Mo Yu didn't explicitly express her pickiness about the food, she could tell from the way the other person was bathing and sleeping that they couldn't be easily fooled. As a "dispensable person" in the courtyard who had no medical skills and no serious illness, she had to fulfill her duty as a host to demonstrate her value.
As soon as the door opened, all the servants of the Prince's mansion stood eagerly at the entrance to watch her.
"Not yet, don't rush, don't rush." Nie Qingyue waved her hand to comfort her, protecting the crack in the door behind her until she closed it behind her.
"It's been so many days, and it's still not cured?" The heavily made-up woman's makeup seemed to have faded considerably due to her worry and concern. Following her principle of not asking too many questions or gossiping, Nie Qingyue chuckled twice and tried to slip away.
Her arm was grabbed by fate, and the woman, while complaining to her, wiped her wet eyes: "Miss Nie, just let us in for a peek would be fine. You've never been away from home for so long in your life."
“The prince has never lost his temper with the young lady before. He has always been very accommodating and gentle with her since she was a child. This time, the young lady must be feeling very upset, especially with this strange illness. Please let me go in and keep her company.”
Nie Qingyue's hand was held tightly, and several pairs of eyes were fixed on her. She swallowed hard, sighed resignedly, and asked, "What's all the arguing about?"
The woman began to sob softly, choking back tears: "It's all because of the eldest young lady. The young lady has always been close to the eldest young lady since childhood. She was unhappy with the prince's arrangements for the eldest young lady's marriage, so she went to plead with him. They were talking and everything was fine, but the prince suddenly lost his temper. The young lady was stubborn and refused to shed a tear."
Nie Qingyue felt a headache coming on. She held up four fingers as if to swear, "I will definitely give your young lady some good advice." She moved her feet and continued to walk outside, but unfortunately, she still didn't let go of the hand on her sleeve.
The sound of a door opening came from behind, and the woman's sobbing quickly stopped.
The group turned around, and standing behind the door was Yan Shu.
Yan Shu glanced at her briefly, his eyebrows slightly raised, before his calm gaze finally settled on the hand the heavily made-up woman was holding onto Nie Qingyue. Unable to withstand the pressure, the heavily made-up woman released her grip and awkwardly retreated.
"Let's go together." Yan Shu took the basket from Nie Qingyue's hand and took her hand with his left hand.
Nie Qingyue's thoughts were still on the scene from earlier: "When will I be able to scare away demons and monsters with just a glare?"
"Well, after I glared at him."
“…= =" Nie Qingyue shook Yan Shu’s hand forcefully to express her contempt for him, and said thoughtfully, “I think I understand what ‘before’ means now.’
After the divine doctor Yan finished speaking that day, she went to ask Yu Che, and the little Yu Che gave her a profound answer: "Hysteria is a mental illness." Now, judging from the woman's words, it should be that Mo Yu's illness was caused by an emotional outburst after arguing with his father.
Is it similar to modern-day hysteria? That's why we made sure Mo Yu heard about Yan Shu's past cures, and that's why we encouraged her to chat with Mo Yu more often, even though she mostly just stood there talking to herself.
"This young man is teachable," Yan Shu nodded in approval.
Nie Qingyue didn't want to bother herself by wanting to know more. She just wanted to know why Mo Yu was still pretending to be sick even though he had recovered: "Should we talk to Mo Yu when we get back? It's not good for him to stay here for a long time."
"Yes, it's about time."
During dinner, Nie Qingyue was still thinking about how to tactfully steer the conversation back to the main topic when Yan Shu simply said, "If we don't go back soon, the eldest daughter of the Mo family will be getting married."
Mo Yu, who had been eating quietly, suddenly stopped pretending to be sick, threw down her chopsticks, and burst into tears.
Nie Qingyue patted her shoulder with a hint of pity: "Sister will eventually get married, but she can still come back to visit you during her homecoming."