Chapter 63: Dealing with Old Folks

Tao sighed, “In truth, Third Young Madam’s health isn’t great either. She’s always ailing, yet she goes to pay her respects to the old Marquis with gritted teeth. Oh, Third Young Madam’s life is so tough. As soon as she married in, she caused trouble, and on the day of the betrothal, she was scolded by the elders…”. Realizing she might have said too much, Tao quickly stopped talking, handed the silver coins to Ling’s mother, and anxiously said, “Please, in light of the fact that Hong Ling and I are good friends, do me a favor and forget everything I just said. Don’t get me in trouble.”

Ling’s mother smiled reassuringly, her face full of wrinkles, and hastily promised, “I won’t say a word, I promise.” With that, she happily left.

Upon hearing Tao’s report, Lu Man praised her for doing well and rewarded her with two silver coins.

Internally tormented, Lu Man anxiously awaited Jiang Zhanwei’s return, hoping he could assist in retrieving Mama Wang’s family. If he didn’t return by June, she would have no choice but to swallow her pride and seek help from the Princess.

Apart from mustering courage to handle the elderly couple at the Crane Pavilion, Lu Man spent her time preparing cooling foods, setting aside practices like pulse reading and acupuncture, which required a calm mind.

Before she knew it, it was May 30th, and the entire family was resting.

When Lu Man and Lu Ying arrived at the Crane Pavilion, the three Masters, the Young Master Zhanju, and the Fourth and Fifth Young Master were already standing in line by the old Marquis’s bedside, with Princess Changting seated nearby.

Lu Man respectfully greeted the Princess, the three Masters, and Young Master Zhanju, while the Fourth and Fifth Young Master also bowed to her.

With the presence of the men, Lu Man refrained from her usual banter with the old Marquis. Instead, she greeted him briefly before moving aside to listen to the Imperial physicians and the night attendants discuss the old Marquis’s condition from the previous night.

At that moment, the Fourth Young Master exclaimed in surprise, “Heavens, Grandfather seems displeased.”

The Fifth Young Master added, “Indeed, when Grandfather is unhappy, his mustache curls upwards. Look, a few hairs are already standing on end.”

Princess Changting and the Masters all lowered their heads to carefully observe, expressing their disbelief, “Indeed!”

Zhanju, puzzled, asked, “Why is Grandfather upset?”

After a moment of thought, Princess Changting chuckled knowingly and said, “Zhanwei’s wife, you’re still lazing there. Your grandfather is annoyed with you.”

Lu Man hurriedly approached and jokingly said, “Oh, I haven’t offended you, why would you be upset with me?”

Princess Changting pretended to be angry, saying, “Usually, you come and act all sweet and silly with the old folks, but today, you hardly said a word. That’s why he’s upset.”

Lu Man noticed the slightly curled hairs on the old man’s left side and couldn’t help but chuckle. What a playful old man!

Bending down, she assisted the old man by the arm, chuckling, “I didn’t realize, Grandfather, you’re quite impatient. I wasn’t avoiding you, I was just discussing your condition with the Imperial physicians. Oh, please don’t be angry. Yesterday, I prepared something delicious, and I’ll bring it for you to smell later…”

With Lu Man’s gentle and affectionate words, the few slightly curled hairs of the old man indeed relaxed.

Witnessing this, the men burst into laughter, surprised by the scene. The old man turned out to be meticulous, apart from his pleasant demeanor with the Princess, he was quite serious with younger family members.

Marquis Jiang seemed a bit stuttered in his speech, “F-Father, F-Father, this… this…”

Princess Changting explained with a smile, “When the elderly fall ill, they become like children, needing to be coaxed. Zhanwei’s wife is doing well, keeping this old child happy every day.” She added, “Even I feel delighted hearing about it.”

The Third Master chuckled, “Zhanwei’s wife is doing a great job.”

The Fifth Young Master nodded his head towards Lu Man, bowed slightly, and said, “Sister-in-law, you’ve worked hard.”

Lu Man politely exchanged a few more words with them before taking her leave once Xiao Cai arrived.

Yesterday afternoon, Third Madam sent a basket of peaches to Orchid Pavilion, along with a bowl of sugar-soaked peaches. These were gifts from her family, shared with each courtyard.

Lu Man tasted the bowl of sugar-soaked peaches and found them lacking compared to the canned peaches from her past life. Realizing they were missing key steps, such as lemon juice for freshness and refrigeration for the sugar to infuse fully, she decided to make canned peaches herself.

Early the next morning, she selected ripe peaches, washed, peeled, pitted, and cut them into quarters, then boiled them with sugar and a pinch of salt before adding lemon juice and letting them simmer.

Upon returning to Orchid Pavilion, Lu Man had the peaches and syrup scooped into a large jar, then instructed Liu Ya and the maid to take the jar to the outer courtyard for chilling in the ice cellar for half an hour before retrieval.

Not long after lunch, the jar of sugar-soaked peaches was brought back.

She tasted a piece and found it delicious, much better than the ones sent by Third Madam the previous day. She had a few maids sample it too and sent two bowls to the children at Qingfeng Courtyard. The rest was taken to the Crane Pavilion, where most of the family would gather that day.

Lu Man planned to massage the oldd Marquis early, intending to prepare a meal afterward for the young siblings. She didn’t want Jiang Jiu to feel betrayed by her showing favoritism to the “legitimate children” and couldn’t bear to see their eyes filled with abandonment.

Except for the Fifth Young Master, who went back to rest due to poor health, the other men stayed at the Crane Pavilion after lunch, reverently attending to the old Marquis without taking a nap, acting as filial sons by his bedside.

The jar of sugar-soaked peaches pleased Princess Changting, and even the gentlemen who weren’t fond of sweets finished it all.

The Fourth Young Master wanted more, but Princess Changting decided to save some for the younger children. His playful reaction amused everyone and led to some light teasing.

After the massage, Lu Man politely declined the Princess’s invitation, citing the need to prepare dinner for Jiang Zhankui and Jiang Jiu at Orchid Pavilion.

She hoped the Princess would invite the young siblings over.

The Princess suddenly remembered her grandchildren and suggested, “Let Zhankui and little Jiu come here. It has been a while since I saw them, and I miss them dearly.”

Lu Man felt joyful at the suggestion.

However, the Second Master looked displeased and quickly interjected, “Mother, Father is in a critical condition now, it’s best not to have them come and cause him any trouble.”