Chapter 26: Pouring Away the Medicine

The heavy rain arrived as expected. The sky was oppressively dark, with thunder roaring as if to destroy everything under heaven. Fierce winds howled ferociously, making the old house as cold as an ice cellar.

Yu Tingwan lit some dried branches and added more firewood. The dancing flames drove away the cold clinging to her body. In the pot, radishes from the Wei family were boiling, cut into chunks and sprinkled with wild mountain chives she had gathered. Though the taste wasn’t great, after drinking the hot soup, some color returned to the young woman’s pale face.

A dull ache in her lower abdomen signaled her period was approaching. Yu Tingwan’s cycles were always irregular, but each time they nearly took half her life. She lay on the bed, pulling the blanket tightly around herself, and stared ahead as the howling wind raged outside.

In her past life, it was during these few days that Xiao Xu had gone into labor. Though it wasn’t yet time, the rainy weather made the roads slippery and she had fallen. The baby’s position was already unstable, and with the shock of the fall, there were signs of a difficult delivery.

There was blood everywhere.

Madam Wang rushed out at the commotion and, terrified by the scene, harshly ordered Yu Tingwan to fetch the village midwife.

Outside, the snow was deep – one step would sink up to the calf. The oil lamp Yu Tingwan carried was quickly extinguished by the wind. Back then, how could she have known that Madam Wang had already struck a deal with the Dong family, and was just waiting to choose an auspicious day to send her away?

Out of gratitude to the Hu family, she stumbled forward through the bone-chilling cold, groping her way in darkness. By the time she brought the midwife back to the Hu house, she was soaked through, and the pain in her abdomen left her unable to stand upright.

All she could hear were Xiao Xu’s cries of pain mingled with Madam Wang’s scolding: “Stop crying! What’s there to cry about? You’re so capable you can’t even walk without falling? If anything happens to my precious grandchild, see how I’ll deal with you.”

Xiao Xu was in so much pain she could barely breathe, her forehead was drenched in sweat, and her hands gripped the bedding until her veins stood out.

“But Mother, it hurts so much…”

“Which woman doesn’t give birth? You’re the only one making such a fuss!” Seeing her deathly pale face, Madam Wang frowned and said directly to the midwife: “If something goes wrong, save the child at all costs.”

Thinking of the silver promised by the Dong family, Madam Wang’s face lit up with glee. Completely disregarding Xiao Xu still in labor, she said smugly, “Afterward, I’ll find another wife for my eldest son.”

What kind of talk was this? And from the mother of a scholar?

The midwife, finding her presence bothersome, chased Madam Wang out. “What chaos are you adding here? Do you want this birth to happen or not? If you have nothing better to do, go boil some water in the kitchen.”

Madam Wang, unhappy with the gloomy atmosphere in the room, left reluctantly. Her gaze swept over Yu Tingwan, who stood unsteadily against the wall biting her lip.

“Didn’t you hear? Why are you standing here? Go boil the water!”

Yu Tingwan spoke softly, her voice almost drowned out by Xiao Xu’s moans: “Aunt, I’m unwell, I might…”

But Madam Wang looked down at her condescendingly. “Is it really that painful? Why hasn’t it killed you yet? Are you just pretending so you can slack off? Go when I tell you to go! Am I not worthy of giving you orders?”

Yu Tingwan didn’t want to remember, yet these scenes burrowed into her memory inch by inch against her will. She turned over, a cold smile escaping her lips. She wanted to see just how chaotic the Hu household would become without her this time. After all… Xiao Xu had given birth to a girl.

Yu Tingwan suddenly remembered something more pressing. The New Year was just over ten days away, and she still hadn’t gotten herself married. Would her New Year’s dinner just be vegetables and radishes again? Unable to lie still anymore, she felt particularly melancholic.

*

The rain showed no signs of letting up, seemingly capable of punching holes through the roof.

Next door, Wei Zhao was also awake, his eyelids drooping. He didn’t care that news of his “death” had reached the capital, throwing the court into chaos. The Wei Family Army was the Great Jin’s finest elite force, earning their reputation through real ability. What enemy didn’t fear them? But with Wei Zhao’s mishap, who could take command of the Wei army? Those soldiers only followed him.

Wei Zhao also didn’t care if other countries took advantage of the chaos to invade. The Jin Dynasty didn’t share his surname – what did it matter to him? Why should he protect it for the Emperor? His eyes flashed coldly, his lips curling in derision.

Just then, Hui Niang brought over his medicine. “We have plenty of beans at home, and with this frightening rain outside and the mountain paths all muddy, your father and I won’t go out tomorrow. We’ll stay home and make tofu for you to eat,” she said casually. “We’ll also send some to Miss Wan, along with more vegetables. The countryside doesn’t lack these things, but when she moved out, that aunt of hers didn’t give her anything. The things she bought today couldn’t have cost four coins – we can’t let a young girl suffer losses.”

As she spoke, she placed the medicine by the bed. Just then, Wei Shouzhong’s voice called from outside: “Hui Niang, the kitchen is flooding!”

The kitchen was full of firewood – Hui Niang could no longer focus on talking to Wei Zhao and turned to leave. But as she left the room, she didn’t forget to call out: “The medicine is by your bed – don’t forget to drink it after it cools!”

Wei Zhao glanced at the bowl of medicine with a bland expression. The medicinal smell was pungent and obviously bitter. He picked it up and walked slowly to the window, opening it. The fierce wind blew in, bringing raindrops that pelted his body.

The last time it had rained this heavily, he was still in the capital. That was two years ago. At that time, the Duke of Shun’s residence was somber, with servants barely daring to breathe, all moving cautiously.

Wei Zhao had attended to the Duke’s wife, who had caught a cold, with a respectful attitude.

“Gui Zhi, I dreamed of your father again.” Gui Zhi was his courtesy name.

The Duke’s wife said softly, “It’s been three years since he passed, and you were his greatest worry at the end. Look at you, insisting on going to the frontier to fight – wouldn’t staying in the capital be better? You’re the Duke’s only heir. If anything happened to you, how could I face your father?”

“I went to the palace to beg His Majesty to recall you to the capital…”

These words remained vivid to Wei Zhao. Yet somehow, the Duke’s wife’s face had become blurry and unfamiliar over time.

Wei Zhao’s gaze remained lifeless.

But then Hui Niang’s voice pulled him back to reality from his memories. “Husband, quick, bring the firewood into our room. If it all gets wet, we’ll be in trouble. How did the roof start leaking? We’ll need to remove the tiles and repair it once the rain stops.”

Wei Shouzhong put on a rain cape and hugged the firewood to his chest, trying to save as much as he could. As soon as he rushed out of the kitchen, he saw Wei Zhao standing in a daze with the medicine bowl in his hands, and had an inexplicable bad feeling.

Wei Zhao saw him too. His gaze drifted over lightly, then returned indifferently. Remembering why he had opened the window, he turned his wrist and poured out the medicine.

Wei Shouzhong: ??

I’m watching you!!

“You…”

He wanted to scold but couldn’t bring himself to. After all, his son wasn’t in his right mind now. Compared to the foolish nephew of Granny Fan, who was the same age as Wei Zhao yet couldn’t even take care of himself, his son was still far better.

Wei Zhao showed no guilt and saw nothing wrong with his actions. After pouring out the medicine, he prepared to leave.

Oh, and he made sure to close the window before he left.

Wei Shouzhong: …

Well, at least he didn’t let himself get cold.