Chapter 40: Heart Sutra (Part 1)

  Mrs. Lai hurried to the second young lady's place and, before entering the door, heard a severe coughing fit. Inside, Xiang Zhu was anxiously saying: "What can be done? What can be done?" Her words were mixed with sobs. "Miss, don't scare us."

  "What's the panic?" The mistress took three steps and strode into the warm pavilion, her heart anxious at this moment, and her liver fire was burning, looking at Xiang Zhu's helpless appearance, her anger suddenly surged, and she didn't care about anything else, scolding Xiang Zhu loudly.

  Yao Hua coughed for a while, her face was originally as white as snow, but now an unusual flush appeared. Chu Xiao hurriedly went forward to massage Yao Hua's chest, and the old lady also said softly: "Just get through this breath and it will be fine."

  Yao Hua coughed several times before finally stopping.

  The old lady asked the jade in the house, "Where's the medicine? Bring it quickly."

  Jade hastily scooped some of the well-cooked medicinal paste and brought it over, Madame took the bowl and personally fed the medicine to Yuhua, after eating, Yuhua leaned against the headboard, took a deep breath, her cough weakened, and she finally recovered.

  Yao Hua slowly opened her eyes, looking weak and guilty, "Mother, I've worried you again."

  The old lady patted Yuhua's hand, "The imperial physician told you to rest quietly, you can't disobey him. If you continue to make a fuss like this, I'll truly have wasted my efforts on you." Her gaze shifted to Chuxiao.

  "If the maids in your house are of no use, I'll replace them with two capable ones, so they won't be gossiping around you all day."

  Yao Hua couldn't help but hold the old lady's hand tightly, "Mother, don't blame them anymore, it was I who forced them to speak, my heart is really concerned about elder sister. She encountered such a thing, how could I not think about it?" As she spoke, she coughed several times, leaning against the pillow, her long hair falling down from the pillow, her chest weakly rising and falling, as if she didn't even have the strength to breathe, looking pitiful and making people reluctant to blame her.

  "Sister is not easy in the Hou Mansion, only a few accompanying rooms are more reliable, my sister and I are hard to meet, some words can't be said to me, I'm anxious but can't do anything. I'm recuperating here, usually thinking about parents and sisters is fine, if even these can't be thought of, the heart will be too quiet."

  The tip of her nose was filled with the thick smell of medicine, and thinking about Yao Hua made her wonder how many bitter medicinal soups she had to drink every day. Her heart suddenly felt desolate. Yao Hua had always been ill, but she never forgot to show a smile in front of her, that kind of gentle and comforting smile always touched her.

  There is no other daughter in the mansion who would show such a soft smile in front of her. Nor is there anyone who really worries about the affairs of the mansion.

  Yao Hua, due to the favor of the elder madam, spoke without restraint. She pulled her mother close and whispered softly to her. The elder madam listened to these considerate words, and the tension in her nerves gradually dissipated.

  "Speaking of Ronghua, Yao Hua said: "This time I'm much better, Eighth Sister sent Jinxiu to bring me things," she said with a faint smile. "The gifts she brought were all very much to my liking. Eighth Sister just arrived at the mansion, and I didn't know what she liked, nor did I have anything to give her. I was thinking of waiting for Mother to come and tell her to take care of Eighth Sister more. I heard that Eighth Sister's side has few maids, only one second-class maid, one maid who is almost as good as a second-class maid, and several third-class maids, but not having a few reliable ones is also not good." She covered her mouth with her handkerchief again and coughed a few times. "I have taken up three or four more on my side, and most of the time they are idle. Mother can't favor me too much."

  "Calling out to Feicui, 'This girl is also temporarily borrowed from her mother for needlework. Now that I've learned her skills, and Xiangzhu has taken over, Feicui can return to her mother's place.'"

  The madam nodded, "You're still so thoughtful, you care about all the sisters in this house, how many hearts do you have? I'm afraid you'll exhaust yourself, otherwise there are some things that I really want to talk to you about."

  The old lady said: "You've always been good at judging people, what do you think of your eighth sister?"

  Yao Hua thought for a moment, and a determined smile appeared on her face. "Perhaps, as the Buddha said, all things have their own destiny. Previously, our household lacked Fifth Sister, and Mother was extremely heartbroken. Now, we can't send back Eighth Sister. I've always gotten along well with Fifth Sister, and it's clear that Eighth Sister is just like Fifth Sister - clever and perceptive. Mother will also have to be more fond of Eighth Sister for Fifth Sister's sake."

  The old lady suddenly remembered the fifth young lady's beauty and her expression changed, but she didn't say a word. She chatted with Yaohua for a while, "As soon as winter solstice arrives, it will be busier than New Year's in the mansion. You should take good care of yourself on your side too. On the day of ancestor worship, you can get to know those relatives you've never met before. That would be proper and let people know that our second young lady has fully recovered from her illness."

  Yao Hua smiled slightly and replied, "My illness is getting better day by day, and even if it gets worse occasionally, it's nothing to worry about."

  Madam saw Yao Hua's appearance, which seemed to be stronger than before, and her heart suddenly felt relieved. Just as she was speaking, Dong Rui came in and said, "The old master is back."

  Madam just came out of Yao Hua's place.

  Out of Yao Hua's courtyard, Dong Rui whispered on the side: "The old master looks unhappy, and he went to find his wife as soon as he entered the mansion."

  The old lady was startled and quickened her pace.

  As soon as they entered the house, they saw the old master changing clothes in his room. The mistress hurriedly walked in and replaced the two maidservants who were attending to him, saying softly: "You've returned to the mansion so early today."

  The old master did not utter a word.

  The old lady handed a deep blue velvet cloak to the old gentleman, who changed into it while she helped him with the buttons. She glanced at his face from time to time, but he remained gloomy, clutching an envelope in his hand. He walked straight out of the suite and into the warm pavilion, sat down without a word, and slapped the letter onto the table.

  Dongui quickly poured tea and then retreated with the other maids.

  The lady picked up the tea from the table and handed it to the old man, "Have some tea first."

  The old master took the tea bowl, brought it to his mouth, and then didn't feel like drinking anymore. He directly threw the tea bowl on the table, instantly splashing a whole table of tea water.

  The lady of the house was busy picking up the letters on the table, "What's this?" She looked down at the words on the envelope and saw that it was a letter from Tao Zhengchuan. The lady didn't know whether she should open it to read or not.

  The old master has said: "Take a look!"

  The lady immediately took out the letter and her face suddenly showed a few points of embarrassment.

  The old master was furious, "After spending a lot of money to get him the position of Zhili Prefecture governor, he can take office after the new year. I don't know who instigated him to return and participate in next year's autumn examination. How much water is in his belly, I still don't know. He looks down on this seventh-rank official, I think his father-in-law can give him a good future."

  "It sounds good, saying that our Tao family's ancestral home is in the capital, and only then wanting to move the whole family from Chaoyang Prefecture over here. Don't the third brother and sister's maternal family also live in the capital? Thinking I wouldn't notice."

  Mrs. Dai endured the old master's outburst, not daring to say a word. Tao Zhengchuan had always been weak-willed, and it was likely that he spoke up because of his new wife, Liao Shi. The old master's anger was also directed at the Liao family. At the time, she had strongly advocated for this marriage, and if she wasn't careful, the old master's wrath would be turned on her.

  The lady could only carefully persuade, "Since the official has already been donated, if Third Uncle is not willing to give it to Second Uncle, it's not a waste of money. Besides, although Third Uncle's learning is not as good as yours, it's not very bad either. There's still a year left, who knows, with hard work, he might pass the exam too."

  The old master glanced at the old lady, "What do you know? How difficult is it to pass the imperial examination now? Ordinary family children don't even dare to think about it."

  Madam Wang said: "Our family is not an ordinary family either. Besides, isn't there still the Liao family..."

  "Liao's family?" The old master suddenly widened his eyes, "If Liao's family could be in charge, why not directly grant him a Beijing official position? Didn't your father only become a lecturer at the Hanlin Academy and was transferred to Chunfang this year? Although the Chunfang official is a stepping stone for Hanlin officials, it's not something that can produce results in just a year or two."

  But at this time, they couldn't afford to offend the Liao family, so the old lady could only persuade again, "Third Uncle can make such a decision, it's probably because the Liao family has also given their word. As long as the Liao family is willing to take care of her, waiting for another year or two would be fine too... Besides, Third Brother and Sister entering the capital and having more interactions with the Liao family would also be a good thing..."

  The old master glanced at the old lady, and the gentle gaze of the old lady finally made him suppress the anger in his chest. Speaking of official business, "His Majesty has already approved, capturing and bringing to justice Sichuan-Shaanxi Governor and General Su Xiyao for trial in Beijing on thirty-two charges including embezzlement of military funds."

  The lady couldn't help but be surprised, "Didn't Master say before that this matter wouldn't be investigated?"

  The old master sighed and said, "Who can guess the thoughts of the emperor? The case of Su Xiyao was handled by Prince Zhuang, who is known as the harmonious prince. The nobles involved in the case were relieved, but before half a day had passed, the emperor appointed another person to assist with the case."

  The old master's eyes gleamed with intensity, "Guess who that person is?"

  "Who?" asked the lady.

  The old master's eyes flickered, "Wu Mu Hou."

  My neck hurts, my neck hurts.

  Dinner didn't eat, ate ten bags of Weidong bird food, knowing that small foods are not good for you, but still can't control the urge to eat...

  Sweet and spicy, wholesale 35 cents a bag.