◎Get a doctor for Yunsui—she’s about to be in serious trouble!◎

After Yunsui left, Meng Mama lifted Madam Wu’s tea cup and refilled it, urging: “Madam, don’t be angry. I see that Second Miss may be a little foolish, but she is still respectful toward you. She’s really not the type to tattle. Besides, she’s not particularly close to Old Madam Wei, so how could she have gone to her directly?”

“So, according to you, it was all just a coincidence?” Madam Wu frowned.

“Yes. And even if it weren’t, it’s not too serious. It’s freezing outside, and the charcoal was halved. Second Miss was recently ill, and her body hasn’t fully recovered yet. She was unwilling to burn more charcoal, so how could she have endured?” Meng Mama explained.

Madam Wu’s displeasure showed as she arched her brows: “So it’s still my fault?”

Meng Mama had served Madam Wu for twenty years and knew her temperament well. With a hint in her tone, she said: “Madam, it’s no fault of yours that you manage the household strictly. You asked Zhuyu Courtyard to be frugal—that’s fine. The mistake lies with Liao Po, the storehouse matron, who doesn’t know her limits. Ordinary items like candles or lamp oil are one thing, but halving the charcoal allocation? That’s what caused all this trouble.”

Madam Wu’s face darkened. “Someone who doesn’t know her limits—yet she’s an elder of this household! This afternoon, give her twenty slaps as punishment, then transfer her to the kitchen. Let Old Madam Wei know I handled it.”

“Yes, Madam.” Meng Mama nodded. “How would you like to handle Zhuyu Courtyard itself?”

Madam Wu’s anger flared: “What else can I do? Old Madam Wei has already spoken. Everything that needs to be replenished must be. Take a bolt of plain brocade from my storehouse and send it there as well.” The little maid Yunsui is young but causes so much trouble—these matters ultimately stem from Second Miss. She really is costing me effort for nothing.

Seeing Madam Wu’s expression, Meng Mama realized she was blaming Second Miss and carefully said: “Madam, don’t be angry. In at most half a year, Second Miss will be married off, so she won’t trouble you anymore. Besides, this really isn’t her fault—she’s honest and obedient. All the blame lies with that old Liao Po.”

Madam Wu said nothing, but her slight nod showed agreement. Over the past year, Second Miss hadn’t done anything out of line and even tried to please Madam Wu. Considering the foolishness at the Li family chrysanthemum banquet, she really wasn’t cunning or manipulative. Madam Wu’s earlier anger had been momentary.

Yunsui, covering her face, cried all the way to Yunxi Hall. The cold wind made her swollen face even more painful. She wanted to return to the maid’s quarters, but didn’t want anyone to see her in such a humiliating state. Unconsciously, her feet carried her back to Zhuyu Courtyard.

Lan Zhu had injured her forehead slightly when she kowtowed that morning. Applying medicine in the maid’s room, she looked up to see Yunsui stumbling in, tears streaming and face red.

“W-what happened to you? Who bullied you?” Lan Zhu whispered, careful not to wake the young mistress next door.

Yunsui said nothing, cast her a glance, and flopped onto the table, burying her face to cry. Even as she sobbed, she bit her lips white to keep quiet, knowing the young mistress was resting. Lan Zhu blinked in surprise, waited until Yunsui’s cries quieted, then placed the ointment on the table and pushed it toward her.

“This is a bruising ointment. Use it—it’ll stop the pain.”

Yunsui looked up, sniffling, and took the jar. “Thank you,” she whispered, tears streaming.

Lan Zhu sat across from her, frowning: “What exactly happened?”

“I-it’s Madam Wu,” Yunsui sobbed, unable to hold it in. “She said I didn’t report bringing Cousin over to see Second Miss back to Yunxi Hall, so… so—sob—” Her tears fell again uncontrollably.

Not reporting Second Miss’s matter to Yunxi Hall?

Lan Zhu’s expression softened as she looked at Yunsui’s swollen, blue-red face. She sighed: “Alright, I’ll apply the ointment. Stop crying.”

…

Chu Yufu slept until the afternoon, waking only from hunger. The room was dimly lit, the charcoal burning warmly—spring-like. Outside, faint voices and sounds of moving objects could be heard. Listening closely, it seemed someone from the storehouse had come to deliver more charcoal.

She chuckled softly, rolled under the covers, and for the first time in many days, felt a sense of victory after enduring all the hardship quietly.

When it quieted down outside, she quietly called Lan Zhu into the room, sat up, and asked: “Was it someone from the storehouse?”

“Yes,” Lan Zhu nodded happily.

Chu Yufu smiled, touched her flushed forehead, and softly scolded: “Next time, don’t be so honest…”

Lan Zhu waved her off, laughing: “I was just too nervous! Besides, if I’m not a little vigorous, it doesn’t look real!”

At dinner, the dishes were noticeably better than the previous days. Chu Yufu picked up a piece of steamed fish, listening as Lan Zhu relayed the news from the afternoon: “I heard Old Madam Wei was furious. Madam Wu left Yunxi Hall looking extremely unhappy. She punished Liao Po and replenished everything missing. She didn’t come to see you personally, but she sent a bolt of plain brocade.”

“And also…” Lan Zhu set a bowl of meatball soup in front of her, “Yunsui was scolded thoroughly by Madam Wu and even hit.”

Chu Yufu paused mid-bite, silent for a moment, then sighed: “Let her rest more these few days.”

The next morning, Cousin Lu and Yang Mama came to see her. She thanked them politely. In the afternoon, Fourth Miss Chu Linglan heard about her elder sister’s illness and brought a box of pastries to visit. Eldest Miss and Third Young Master, however, hadn’t sent anyone at all—not even a semblance of concern.

Chu Yufu didn’t mind. She spent her convalescence lazing in her room, eating, sleeping, and reading. Three days later, Lan Zhu used the excuse of going out to fetch medicine and went to the apothecary again.

This time, Lan Zhu brought back two pieces of news: First, the elder at the drink stall confirmed that Third Young Master Li goes to the temple without fail on the first and fifteenth of each month. Second, many people in the capital were now ill, and the apothecary was crowded with patients.

A few days earlier, Chu Yufu had mixed mugwort, cangzhu, and acorus together, burned them, and fumigated the entire small courtyard, inside and out. She instructed the little maids to wear cotton masks whenever they went out and to drink preventive herbal decoctions beforehand.

By mid-October, on this particular morning, the sky was gray and snowflakes drifted gently. Chu Yufu was lazily nestled in bed when she was suddenly awakened by a series of urgent knocks on the door. She was shocked to learn that Yunsui was in critical condition!

The messenger was Yunsui’s roommate maid, Yun Xing, her face streaked with tears and snot. Seeing Chu Yufu, she fell to her knees with a thud and cried: “Please, Second Miss, have mercy! Advance some monthly allowance to hire a doctor for Yunsui—she’s about to be lost!”

Lan Zhu was taken aback. “How could it get this bad? Did you go to find Gu Mama?”

Yun Xing replied, “We did, but Gu Mama said she couldn’t cure her!”

Whenever a maid fell ill, the first person they would turn to was a Madam Gu in the household, who knew a little medicine and specialized in colds or toothaches. If Gu Mama couldn’t handle it, they would seek a traveling doctor, a “Ling doctor,” who carried a medicine box and shook a small bell, visiting households in need for a lower fee.

On a snowy day like this, with the epidemic raging, it was impossible for the little maid to find a Ling doctor. They had no choice but to hire a more expensive doctor from an apothecary. That was how they ended up at Zhuyu Courtyard—but Chu Yufu knew that given the current situation, even visiting the apothecary might not guarantee results.

So, after hearing this, she did not rush to discuss silver coins. She simply nodded slightly to indicate she understood and had Yun Xing take her to see Yunsui. Walking along, she asked: “Tell me first, what exactly happened?”

Yun Xing said, “Yesterday during the day, Yunsui complained of a sore throat and chills. By night, she had a fever. I gave her some hot water and wrapped her up tightly to sweat it out, but this morning she’s even worse. Her face and body are covered in dense red rashes!”

Rashes? Chu Yufu frowned.

According to her judgment, the recent epidemic in the capital was influenza, called fengwen (wind pestilence) in Chinese medicine. In severe cases, it could develop into pneumonia or heart failure, but red rashes were not part of it.

At the maid’s room, she donned her mask and covered her mouth and nose with a silk handkerchief before pushing the door open.

It was a rectangular room with a long kang (brick bed) along the window side, covered with bedding, enough for four people to sleep.

Yunsui was curled in the far right corner, half-asleep, her cheeks flushed, her exposed face, neck, and hands covered in red spots. Standing beside her was a fifty-something-year-old maid, her expression grave. Yun Xing hurried forward and asked, “Gu Mama! How is Yunsui?”

Gu Mama looked back, first noticing Chu Yufu in her pale blue satin jacket, and quickly bowed. Then she said, “I cannot treat Yunsui. The sore throat, fever, and aversion to wind are typical wind-cold symptoms, but the pulse… it doesn’t quite match.”

Her medical skills were limited to minor ailments. She had never seen Yunsui’s condition before. Seeing Second Miss personally come to examine the girl gave her the courage to urge: “Miss, you should quickly seek a doctor from outside!”

Yun Xing burst into tears and begged Chu Yufu again: “Please, Second Miss, save Yunsui!”

Yun Xing and Yunsui were the same age, sold into the household by the same person on the same day, and had always been close as sisters. Seeing her friend fall suddenly ill was terrifying and urgent.

Chu Yufu stepped forward, carefully inspecting the rashes and, through the silk handkerchief, felt Yunsui’s pulse at her wrist. Pressing lightly, it was clear; pressing harder, it slightly diminished. After a few moments, she exhaled and spoke gently: “Do not be afraid. Yunsui’s condition looks serious, but it is not life-threatening.”

“R-really?” Yun Xing looked up at her. Gu Mama, standing nearby, was secretly surprised—Second Miss knew medicine?

“She hasn’t contracted wind pestilence; it’s wind rash—wind-heat invading externally with strong heat-toxin. With so many patients throughout the capital, even if you go to the apothecary, it will be crowded. Even with silver, you may not see a doctor. Fortunately, I have some herbs here. I’ll prepare a prescription for Lan Zhu to bring, and after taking it twice, she will recover.”

“Thank you, Second Miss!” Yun Xing cried with joy, her fingers trembling. She looked at Second Miss, standing in the light, silver hair to skirt glimmering like a fairy. No wonder Yunsui always praised her so much. That’s why she had come to Zhuyu Courtyard and not to Yunxi Hall’s Meng Mama!

Gu Mama, unlike Yun Xing, was more thoughtful. Folding her sleeves, she remained silent.

She was the household elder in charge of the courtyard’s flowers and plants and knew Second Miss a little. Usually, this young mistress didn’t seem clever—pretty face aside, no one had heard of any outstanding talents. Now she suddenly claimed she could treat a complex illness—Gu Mama was skeptical, but as mistress, her words were final.

Chu Yufu noted Gu Mama’s expression but ignored it. After glancing at Yunsui, she returned to Zhuyu Courtyard and prepared a dose of Xiaofeng San. She was missing one ingredient—cicada slough—which relieves wind and itching, but it was not essential, and the rest was enough.

When Lan Zhu went to deliver the medicine, Chu Yufu carefully instructed: “Wind rash is contagious. Inform the housekeeper and move Yunsui to a separate room to recover. I don’t have much medicine, so this single dose will have to suffice. When boiling, add extra water and divide into three doses.”

Lan Zhu nodded diligently and delivered the medicine. She watched Yun Xing prepare it and feed it to Yunsui before returning. Then, like a little bird, she hurried to Chu Yufu and blurted out the questions she had been holding back for two hours: “Miss! When did you learn to treat patients? Is Yunsui really alright?!”

Chu Yufu extended her index finger, poking her forehead with a smile: “Do you think all my medical books are for nothing?”

“Ah, that’s true,” Lan Zhu said, covering her forehead.

Recently, the young mistress had been reading medical books every day, sometimes staying up half the night, taking notes diligently. Her maternal family were all skilled in medicine, so she likely had inherited medical talent. Thinking this way, it wasn’t surprising that the young mistress could practice medicine at all.