The Tao family was indeed a prominent clan renowned for its porcelain. Several large porcelain pieces were displayed in the hall, lending it an air of dignified elegance. Furthermore, the attention to detail was meticulous, even to the point of being nitpicky, which made Feng Fei somewhat reserved.
However, Feng Fei was not someone who had never seen anything like it, and his initial restraint soon disappeared, replaced by composure and calmness.
Seated at the head of the table was a beautiful woman in a long brocade dress, but her eyebrows were slightly raised, giving her a somewhat stern look. This must be Tao Wan, the patriarch of the Tao clan.
Tao Wan is only thirty years old, but she looks like she is only twenty. She must take very good care of herself.
After Feng Fei and the other two bowed to Tao Wan, Tao Wan introduced the identities of the people in the hall to them.
"I am Tao Wan, the head of the Tao clan, as you all surely know," Tao Wan said with a hearty laugh. Pointing to Tao Lan standing at the door, she continued, "You all certainly recognize Tao Lan too. She's the head steward of our household. If we ever need anything in the future, we'll have to rely on her. I myself often ask her for favors."
"I can't accept that! When did I ever ask the clan chief to beg me to do something? If I did, wouldn't I be cursed to death by those people who are watching me?" Tao Lan immediately objected, laughing as she retorted.
"Look, she can't even do that anymore. Sigh, she's really been spoiled."
"This old servant dares not."
Feng Fei watched Tao Wan and Tao Lan's back-and-forth banter and sensed no tension whatsoever, so he knew that the two were just joking around.
Looking at Feng Fei and the other two who were standing to the side smiling at them, Tao Wan's eyes flashed with a subtle, obscure emotion, but she quickly smiled and said, "Look at me, I've forgotten the important matter." She then pointed to the person on her left and introduced him to Feng Fei, "This is my doctor, Su Zai." She then pulled over a young man in bright red clothes and said, "This is my second husband, Qing Yan."
Su Zai was a scholar-like man with a very gentle expression. Although his appearance wasn't particularly outstanding, it was quite pleasing to the eye. Qing Yan, on the other hand, was an exceptionally charming man, making it difficult to discern his gender.
After Tao Wan introduced herself, Su nodded slightly to Feng Fei and then stood quietly behind Tao Wan.
Qingyan, beaming, stepped forward and took Tao Wan's arm, then smiled sweetly at Feng Fei and said, "We still don't know who these three are."
Seeing Qingyan's rude behavior, Tao Wan and Su Zai did not react at all, so Feng Fei knew that this was something they were used to.
“It was our fault. My name is Feng Fei, this is my good friend Yuan Jue, and he is my younger brother Ming Feng.”
"So it's Miss Fengfei." Qingyan chuckled, deliberately ignoring Yuanjue and Mingfeng: "What brings you to our Tao residence?"
Feng Fei didn't rush to answer. Instead, he glanced at Tao Wan with a faint smile and an indifferent expression.
At that glance, Tao Wan knew that Feng Fei had something important to tell her. She immediately dismissed the servants in the hall and said to Tao Lan, "Keep an eye on the surroundings and don't let anyone get close."
Tao Lan responded and then left.
"Now that everyone in the room is reliable, Miss Fengfei, please make the decision."
Feng Fei hadn't expected that Su Zai and Qing Yan were reliable people, but since this was their family matter, he didn't want to interfere, so he said, "This is what happened."
Feng Fei then recounted the whole story of Yuan Qing and Xuan Lang, but omitted the details about the bamboo with its special origins and Old Man Lü.
After listening to Feng Fei's account, Tao Wan remained expressionless and asked, "What does this have to do with our Tao family?"
Qingyan glanced at Su Zai smugly.
Feng Fei was taken aback. No, Su Cheng was Su Zai's younger brother. Just the fact that Yuan Qing had frightened Tao Wan's daughter into a daze was clearly connected to the Tao family.
“This…isn’t your young lady…”
Before she could finish speaking, Qingyan interrupted her: "Miss Fengfei, you're reopening our wounds! We also want Hui'er to get better, but the doctor said it's a lifelong condition, there's no cure. Please, Miss Fengfei, don't give up. Waaah..."
Qingyan burst into tears.
However, Feng Fei noticed that Qing Yan gave Su Zai a provocative look.
Feng Fei couldn't help but look in Su Zai's direction. Seeing that he was only slightly paler than before, she knew that this matter was not something he didn't care about.
Feng Fei pondered the relationships between these people for a while before speaking to Tao Wan again: "Su Zai is the doctor you married through proper channels, so Miss Tao Hui is the legitimate daughter of your family. As far as I know, your family has no other young masters or young ladies besides Miss Tao Hui. I imagine the clan leader cares deeply for Miss Tao Hui."
Although these words did not cause Tao Wan's expression to change, they did anger Qing Yan.
Qingyan suddenly stood up and rushed to Fengfei, practically pointing her finger at Fengfei's nose and yelling, "Miss Fengfei, are you trying to harm the Tao family's offspring? Miss Fengfei, you have such a vicious mind! I have no grudge against you, why are you slandering me like this? Are you trying to kill me?"
After finishing her rant, she wiped her tears with a handkerchief and then, extremely heartbroken, leaned close to Tao Wan to plead her case: "Wan'er, you must stand up for me! Don't you know what kind of person I am? I long for a child that belongs to both of us! Even Hui'er, I cherished her like my own heart and soul. Today, I'm being framed by some inexplicable person for plotting to murder Hui'er. I really don't want to live anymore!"
"Alright, others only said one thing to you, but you've gone on and on," Tao Wan scolded Qingyan in a low voice, then said apologetically to Feng Fei, "I have many things to attend to at home, please leave, Miss Feng Fei and the other two."
They were actually trying to drive them away.
Feng Fei immediately stood up and explained to Tao Wan, "We did not mean to frame Mr. Qingyan."
Seeing that Tao Wan didn't seem to want to hear her explanation, he dropped a bombshell: "We can take a look at Miss Tao Hui; perhaps we can help her recover."
Upon hearing this, Su Zai was no longer calm. He immediately stood up and bowed deeply to Feng Fei: "Please, Miss Feng Fei, save my daughter!" (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit (.). Your support is my greatest motivation.)
Chapter Thirty-Three: Huiming Garden
Su bowed deeply to Feng Fei, something that none of the three of them had expected.
"Please rise, sir." Feng Fei offered a helping hand, and only after Su Zai straightened up did he continue, "We came here specifically to visit Miss Tao Hui..."
Before she could finish speaking, Qingyan interrupted her again: "Oh my, which doctor are you? I had no idea that such a remarkable person came from our Yangzi Town, someone who can even cure patients with intellectual disabilities."
Qingyan's words did not anger Fengfei, but they made Su Zai's face turn red immediately.
Su Zai, his face grim and filled with resentment, rebuked Qing Yan: "As expected of someone accustomed to being a male prostitute, you're so cold-blooded and heartless! Even if there's only a sliver of hope, you should at least try to find a way to save Hui-jie. But look at the things you're saying! Hmm? Are you trying to wipe out Hui-jie's hopes? What are you up to? Besides, you're just a concubine. What right do you have to speak here? Shut up and step back!"
Su Zai must have never spoken such heavy words in the Tao family before, which made Qingyan and Tao Wan freeze in place.
After a long while, Qingyan, enraged and embarrassed, pointed at Su Zaidi's nose and cried out, "If you ask me what your intentions are, these three people only said 'maybe' and got Hui'er, and you're already targeting me like this? Yes, yes, you've disliked me for a long time. You hate that I married into the Tao family and stole Wan'er's favor from you, don't you? You hate that I stole your limelight, and you wish you could get rid of me, don't you?"
As she spoke, Qingyan turned and hugged Tao Wan, sobbing against Tao Wan's shoulder, "Wan'er, he wants me to die! I don't care if I die, but what will you do? I can't bear to part with you, and I can't bear to see you sad and heartbroken because of me."
Tao Wan gently patted Qingyan's back, her expression remaining completely unchanged.
Before long, Tao Wan spoke up, "Please, Miss Fengfei, go back. I'm afraid you cannot cure my daughter's illness."
After finishing, he prepared to leave with Qingyan in the backyard.
Su Zai, however, refused.
He immediately blocked Tao Wan's path, looking directly into her eyes, and slowly said, "Since I married into the Tao family ten years ago, we have always loved each other dearly. Unfortunately, we had no children. Finally, Hui'er was born. You don't know how happy I was. Just because it was our child. But not long after, Qingyan was taken into the Tao family by you, becoming their second husband. It was from that time that we drifted apart. I tried to hold on, but to no avail. Gradually, I gave up, but only because I still had Hui'er. But now you don't even want to leave Hui'er to me. Do you actually want me to die?"
Every word Su Zai spoke struck Tao Wan's heart like a heavy blow, and with each word, her face paled a little more. Yet, she stubbornly held her head high, coldly staring at Su Zai.
Feng Fei noticed the heavy sorrow in Tao Wan's eyes; perhaps only Su Zai overlooked the bitterness in Tao Wan's heart.
Qingyan clearly understood Su Zai's importance to Tao Wan. She immediately began to plead, "Wan'er, I've been married into the Tao family for seven years now! I also want a child that belongs to both of us, but..."
"Enough." Tao Wanping interrupted Qingyan's words with a flat tone, and then looked deeply at Su Zai and said, "Alright, since you believe them, let them go and see Hui'er. If it still doesn't work, then you will stay in the backyard forever and will not be allowed to come out. If you can agree to this request, then you can go back to your own courtyard now."
"Okay." I thought Su Zai would still consider it. But I didn't expect him to agree immediately: "If we can let them take a look at Hui'er's condition, I would even accept it if they never leave the backyard again from now on."
After saying this, Su stared at Tao Wan for a moment, then flicked her sleeves and walked towards the backyard.
Qingyan's expression immediately became interesting.
He seemed to want Su Zaike to never leave the backyard again, yet he was somewhat preventing Feng Fei and the other two from going to see Hui Jie'er for medical treatment.
However, none of the other four people in the room noticed Qingyan's expression.
"Qingyan, take Fengfei and the other two to Hui'er's courtyard." Tao Wan only gave this instruction to Qingyan before stepping out of the hall. As soon as she stepped across the threshold, Tao Lan returned to Tao Wan's side and left with her.
Watching Tao Wan's departing figure, Qingyan couldn't help but stomp her foot in frustration. Finally, she said helplessly to Feng Fei and the other two, "Then come with me."
Without waiting to see if Feng Fei and the other two could keep up with him, he went out of the hall and beckoned a maid to whisper a few instructions in her ear.
Qingyan showed no intention of waiting. Fengfei and the other two exchanged glances, all seeing the smiles in each other's eyes, before lifting their robes and following her.
Tao Hui, the daughter of the Tao family, lived in the Huiming Garden. Huiming Garden was one of the largest courtyards in the entire Tao family mansion, and also the most beautiful. Because Huiming Garden was some distance from the main hall in the front courtyard, Qingyan gradually slowed down and began to chat with Feng Fei.
Along the way, Qingyan intentionally or unintentionally spoke ill of Su Zai, such as "going to great lengths to keep Hui Jie'er's courtyard unlocked" and "petty and jealous of Wan'er's kindness to him," but Feng Fei just smiled and ignored her.
"The scenery in Hui'er's courtyard is the most beautiful in our mansion. There are pavilions and waterside terraces, and behind it is a small garden. Hui'er used to love planting some precious flowers and plants in the garden. This Hui'er is really good at growing flowers and plants, even the professional gardeners can't compare to her."
On the surface, Qingyan's words seemed to be praising Tao Hui for her skill and dexterity, but in reality, they implied that Tao Hui was not learning good things but instead learning crooked and evil ways. Moreover, she compared Tao Hui to the servants in the mansion, revealing her utter disdain for Tao Hui.
Feng Fei could only smile faintly and remain silent in response to Qing Yan's complaints.
Qingyan was extremely disappointed to see that she was the only one talking.
"Tch, what a silent type. Any man who ends up with you will be crying his eyes out," Qingyan secretly rolled her eyes at Fengfei, her lips moving as she muttered to herself.
Qingyan, thinking she hadn't been heard by Feng Fei and the other two, and seeing their still smiling faces, immediately said smugly, "Oh dear. We're almost at Huiming Garden!"
Looking at Qingyan walking ahead, swaying her tail, Fengfei was filled with hatred: This person was clearly depressed and would cry to death if she followed her man. Thinking of this, Fengfei couldn't help but glance at Yuanjue and saw that he still looked indifferent, which made her very annoyed.
This Yuanjue really doesn't even know how to comfort himself.
Feng Fei kicked a pebble by the roadside angrily, unaware of the amusement hidden in Yuan Jue's gaze.
"Hurry up!"
Qingyan stood in front of a courtyard gate and impatiently called out to Fengfei, "Why are you dawdling like this? Hurry up and treat Hui-jie'er. Then leave quickly. I have things to do to find Wan'er."
Feng Fei didn't believe that Qing Yan had anything important to do, but he still quickened his pace and stepped into Huiming Garden.
After Feng Fei and the other two entered Huiming Garden, Qing Yan gave them a strange and inexplicable smile as they walked away.
But the next moment, she reverted to her original radiant and charming smiling face.
"Wenwen, Wenqin! I've found a skilled doctor for your young lady! Quickly come out and lead the doctor into Hui'er's room to examine her!" Qingyan shouted as soon as she stepped into the courtyard.
Two maids immediately ran out from the embroidered tower on the left side of the courtyard.
Qingyan pointed to the maid in the turquoise dress and said, "That's Wenshu, the head maid in charge of the money in Huiming Garden." Then she pointed to another maid in the light pink dress, "That's Wenqin. She's the head maid in charge of clothes and accessories in Huiming Garden. The two of them are very capable people in Hui'er's life. You should get to know them better."
Before long, Wenqin, the clerk, came closer.
Wenqin first bowed to Qingyan. However, she didn't immediately return the courtesy to Fengfei and the other two, but instead carefully examined them: "Are you truly here to treat our young lady?"
Feng Fei nodded gently.
The clerk then asked, "Are you confident?"
Feng Fei thought for a moment and said, "This is not something we can guarantee, after all, we haven't personally examined Miss Tao Hui's condition."
Upon hearing this, Wenqin nodded in satisfaction.
"Then please come with us."
Wen Shu and Wen Qin led the way, and Feng Fei and the other two followed. However, none of the five of them noticed that Qing Yan, who had been extremely talkative, had suddenly disappeared.