"Alas!" The old lady sighed softly, sat up straight, and her eyes dimmed. "I've had this illness for more than a year or two. I've invited at least seventy or eighty doctors from all over the country, but none of them can cure me. Don't waste your energy inviting more doctors!"
One doctor after another came, bringing hope only to be dashed in an instant. After this back and forth of gains and losses, the old lady had given up all hope for her illness.
“Mother-in-law, those are all quacks, not worth mentioning. There are always miracle doctors in this world who can cure your illness, don’t be discouraged.” The beautiful young woman glanced at the slender white figure in the outer room through the window: “That miracle doctor is already waiting in the courtyard. It’s not appropriate for us to just send him away without letting him take our pulse!”
The old lady sighed again: "Then please invite him in. However, this is the last one. You are not allowed to seek out any more miracle doctors in the future."
"Yes!" The beautiful young woman replied with a smile, helping the old lady to sit on the bed, while calling out to the outside, "Young master, please come in!"
Shen Lixue stood in the outer room, her cool gaze piercing through the wide-open door as she admired the crabapple blossoms in the courtyard. Hearing the beautiful young woman's call, she lifted the curtain and went inside.
Looking up, she met the old lady's scrutinizing gaze: "Young master, it's you!" Upon seeing Shen Lixue's face, the old lady was overjoyed. Indeed, she was the old lady who had been saved by Shen Lixue once on the main road.
"Madam!" Shen Lixue was also surprised. She never expected that the person she saved would be the old lady of the Zhenguo Marquis's mansion. Recalling the carriage at that time, it was very ordinary and had no noble insignia on it.
The beautiful young woman was slightly taken aback: "You two know each other?"
"This young master is my savior!" The old lady hurriedly instructed the maid beside her, "Quickly bring the young master a chair and serve him tea!"
"Really?" The beautiful young woman was taken aback, then smiled and said, "What a coincidence! May I ask your name, my benefactor?" The debt of saving a life is greater than heaven, and they must treat the old lady's benefactor well.
"My surname is Shen, and my given name is Li!" Shen Lixue smiled as she sat down in front of the bed, her slender fingers touching the old lady's pulse: "Old Madam, let me take your pulse first!"
The old lady was originally unwilling to see a doctor, but since the visitor was Shen Lixue, she made an exception. Seeing her earnest expression, she said with delight, "I thought I could never repay your life-saving grace, but I never expected that Young Master Shen would be such a divine physician, and you even happened to have posted a notice to treat my illness!"
"Madam, you flatter me. It was nothing, please don't take it to heart!" Shen Lixue smiled slightly, carefully taking the pulse and feeling the gentle throbbing of the pulse under her fingers. Her eyebrows furrowed slightly.
"Young Master Shen, how is Grandma's condition?" The beautiful young woman's heart skipped a beat when she saw Shen Lixue's slightly furrowed brows.
Shen Lixue withdrew her finger, her gaze fixed on her, and said in a deep voice, "Forgive my bluntness, but the old lady's headaches are caused by stagnation of qi and blood. Unblocking the qi and blood will solve the problem, and it is not difficult to treat. Why can't the doctors cure it?"
Instantly, the entire room fell silent. The maids glanced at the old lady, their eyes filled with helplessness. Looking at the old lady again, they saw her brows furrowed, silent, with a hint of anger in her eyes.
The beautiful young woman glanced at the old lady, walked to Shen Lixue's side, and quietly lowered her voice: "Young Master Shen, you may not know, but my mother-in-law is afraid of needles..."
Shen Lixue was taken aback and looked at the old lady in surprise. To clear the blood and qi in the head, one needs to take Chinese medicine orally and use acupuncture with silver needles as an auxiliary treatment. It would take at least half a month to a month to cure the illness. She was afraid of needles and refused to have acupuncture, no wonder she couldn't be cured.
"Just thinking about having silver needles stuck in my head gives me a headache, how could it possibly cure my headaches!" The old lady retorted confidently. Seeing that the beautiful young woman, maids, and nannies had all lowered their heads and remained silent, her gaze shifted to Shen Lixue, her assertiveness turning into a hint of fear: "Young Master Shen, you wouldn't be going to give me acupuncture too, would you?"
"Of course...no!" The old lady was afraid of needles, and if she mentioned acupuncture, there would be no need to treat the illness anymore. "My family's ancestral method is scraping (gua sha). I can use scraping instead of acupuncture. What do you think, old lady?"
The descendants of this family are truly filial. The old lady was afraid of pain and refused to have acupuncture, but they did not force her. They simply followed her wishes and searched everywhere for a miracle doctor who could cure her illness without acupuncture.
"Gua sha is fine, gua sha is fine!" The old lady nodded repeatedly, as long as acupuncture was not used, she would treat him however she pleased.
"Then it's settled. I'll write a prescription and have the servants brew the medicine. After the old lady drinks the medicine, I'll give you gua sha!"
Shen Lixue sat down at the table, wrote a prescription, blew on the ink to dry it, and handed it to the beautiful young woman: "These medicinal herbs must be added in a certain order. I will personally decoct them and let the maids watch carefully!"
"Thank you for your trouble, Young Master Shen!" The beautiful young woman carefully examined the various medicinal herbs on the list and handed it to the nanny beside her: "I will immediately have someone prepare the herbs. Xiao Tao, take Young Master Shen to the medicine shop!"
The old lady had been suffering from headaches for several years and had to take medicine every day, so the Marquis's mansion specially set aside a small courtyard to brew the medicine for her.
Shen Lixue left the old lady's courtyard and walked along the bluestone path, looking at the layout and scenery of the mansion as she went. She didn't see a young man walking on the side path. When she realized that someone was nearby, the man was already close by and brushed past her.
The man's light blue robes fluttered gently, carrying a faint scent of crabapple blossoms. The fabric was exquisite cloud-patterned brocade, indicating his noble status.
Just as Shen Lixue was about to turn around to see who it was, a gentle male voice sounded from behind her: "Miss, you dropped something!"
Shen Lixue was startled and quickly turned around to look. The man's jet-black hair, as black as brocade, was simply tied up. His elegant face was handsome and extraordinary, with a faint smile on his face. His light blue robes fluttered lightly, like a graceful young gentleman in a turbid world, with a unique and outstanding demeanor. He held a jade pendant in his slender hand and looked at her with a gentle smile.
Shen Lixue was shocked. She looked down and saw that the jade pendant at her waist was indeed gone. However, she was clearly dressed as a man, yet this man was calling her "Miss." Had he seen through her disguise? Or was he just suspicious of her identity?
She came to the Marquis's residence as a man to treat the old lady. Judging from the man's gaze, he was probably just suspicious. She absolutely could not admit it.
"Which eye of yours saw that I am a girl?" Shen Lixue shouted angrily, her cold voice filled with rage.
The man's smile faltered slightly, and he said gently, "You're not a girl? I'm sorry, I made a mistake."
Shen Lixue frowned as she looked at the man. He had seen her for a while now. She was dressed as a man. If he hadn't suspected that she was a woman, he should have corrected his mistake long ago. Why did he only believe that she wasn't a girl and apologize to her after she yelled at him?
Under the sunlight, the man smiled and walked step by step toward Shen Lixue, his eyes looking straight ahead, as deep as a dark pool, but unfocused!
Shen Lixue was startled. The man was blind; in other words, he couldn't see!
"Young master, the jade pendant!" The man held the jade pendant in his slender fingers and placed it in front of Shen Lixue.
"Thank you!" Shen Lixue took the jade pendant and gently waved her fair hand in front of the man's eyes. The man did not react at all; he really couldn't see anything.
"Third Young Master, Madam requests your presence at the Pear Garden!" A maidservant approached slowly and announced softly.
Third Young Master! Shen Lixue's gaze sharpened as she carefully examined the man; he was the master of the Marquis's mansion.
"Alright!" The man smiled, turned around, and walked towards the pear orchard. Without needing anyone to lead him, he walked alone along the winding road, moving gracefully and slowly.
“Young Master Shen…” Tao’er, who was standing in front, walked over, patted her chest, and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"Is your third young master...?" Shen Lixue pointed to her eyes. Although she knew the truth, she still wanted to hear Tao'er tell the details.
Tao'er made a shushing gesture and lowered her voice, saying, "When the Third Young Master was three years old, he had a high fever that damaged his eyes. He can't see anything. Everyone in the manor is very sensitive to words like 'eyes,' 'seeing,' and 'not seeing,' and they never talk about them in front of him!"
When Shen Lixue shouted, "Which eye of yours saw that I am a girl?" Tao'er was terrified. She thought the Third Young Master would be angry and lose his temper, but he didn't say anything and even politely returned the jade pendant to Shen Lixue.
Shen Lixue knew that people suffering from illnesses were very sensitive to their ailments, and that mentioning them would only provoke them. If she had known the man was blind, she wouldn't have said, "Your third young master doesn't seem to be blind."
The paths in the courtyard were so complicated, yet he walked alone, methodically and steadily. When he returned from outside, he hadn't brought a servant to guide him.
Tao'er covered her mouth and smiled: "Young Master Shen, you may not know this, but after the Third Young Master went blind, his hearing and sense of smell became extremely sharp. He eats, writes, and walks just like a normal person. People who don't know the truth can't tell that he is blind at all!"