Lin Shi sent a maid to make inquiries while she brought her two daughters to see the old madam.

The old madam hadn’t made any special preparations—after all, her daughter lived nearby and visited often. But no matter how frequently she came, seeing her daughter and granddaughters still made her especially happy.

“Mother, have you been sleeping well these past few days?”

“Very well indeed.” The old madam couldn’t be bothered with her daughter and grasped Wen Hao’s hand. “Ah Hao, does your foot still hurt?”

“Grandmother, don’t worry. My foot healed long ago.”

“That’s good. In the future, be more careful—don’t climb such high walls.” The old madam smiled and advised, her eyes never leaving Wen Hao.

How wonderful it was to hear Ah Hao call her Grandmother.

Lin Shi couldn’t stand watching anymore. “Mother, are you planning to stare flowers into blooming on Ah Hao?”

The old madam shot her a look. “She’s my own granddaughter. I’ll look at her as long as I want.”

“I never saw you look at me like this before.”

The old madam rolled her eyes. “When you were little, you only knew how to vex me. How could you compare to how well-behaved Chan’er and Ah Hao are?”

Back in those days, the old master had been a mountain bandit king, and she his wife. Their daughter had run all over the mountains every day, occasionally even participating in a robbery to gain experience.

Who could have imagined that when chaos came, the old master became Duke Dingguo, she became the Duke’s wife, and their wild tomboy of a daughter became a noble young lady.

But she had always known that their family was different from those centuries-old aristocratic clans, and her daughter was a different kind of noble lady from the others.

When her daughter reached marriageable age, she had actually taken a fancy to a newly successful presented scholar.

She and the old master had originally planned to betroth their daughter to a military family, but their daughter was adamant in her choice, so in the end they could only comply.

Fortunately, her son-in-law came from a humble background and his household didn’t have so many rules, so their daughter didn’t have to suppress her nature.

Her son-in-law had one greatest virtue—he was handsome, which gave her two granddaughters as beautiful as flowers and jade.

Thinking of how her daughter and son-in-law had treated each other with respect all these years, and of her two delightful granddaughters, the old madam’s worries from back then had long since dissipated like smoke.

The three generations were chatting happily when Fangfei, the maid Lin Shi had entrusted with the important task, came in.

“Did you find out?” Lin Shi asked eagerly.

The old madam was completely confused. “Find out what?”

Lin Shi smiled. “When we got out of the carriage, I noticed Prince Jing’s estate had opened its main gates. I saw a white-bearded old man in ordinary clothing being invited inside. Your daughter was quite curious about the old man’s identity, so I had Fangfei go inquire.”

The main gates of noble households were rarely opened—people usually came and went through the side gates.

“When will you ever change this habit of yours, child?” The old madam sighed helplessly.

Lin Shi pointed at Wen Hao with a smile. “Ah Hao was curious too.”

Suddenly dragged into this by her mother, Wen Hao momentarily forgot to speak.

The old madam said matter-of-factly, “Ah Hao is still young, of course she’s curious.”

Lin Shi choked and turned her gaze back to Fangfei.

Fangfei quickly said, “It’s a renowned physician specially invited by Prince Jing’s estate for the Prince Jing’s heir.”

Lin Shi immediately became concerned. “What happened to Prince Jing’s heir?”

“They say he suddenly experienced chest tightness and heart pain some days ago. This renowned physician is most skilled in such matters and was invited from out of town by Prince Jing’s estate with great difficulty.”

Upon hearing this, Lin Shi grew angry. “Prince Jing’s estate has gone too far!”

The old madam looked at Lin Shi disapprovingly. “Their son fell ill, so they sought medical treatment—what’s normal about that? How is it going too far?”

“Mother, you don’t know—” Lin Shi started to speak, then remembered her eldest daughter was present.

“Know what?”

Lin Shi was straightforward by nature. Thinking that her eldest daughter was steady and composed, she couldn’t hold back. “Some days ago, Prince Jing’s estate sent someone to sound me out, wanting to seek Ah Hao’s hand in marriage for Prince Jing’s heir.”

“Prince Jing’s heir seeks Ah Hao’s hand in marriage?” The old madam was so shocked she nearly dropped her teacup. “Even if he were seeking marriage, shouldn’t he seek Chan’er’s hand?”

Chan’er was the elder sister, two years older than Ah Hao.

Wen Chan: “…”

Lin Shi felt suffocated. “Mother, does it matter which one he seeks? What matters is that Prince Jing’s estate is being dishonest, wanting to seek our daughter’s hand for their sickly son!”

“That is dishonest.” The old madam had already rapidly reviewed Prince Jing’s heir’s height, appearance, temperament, and character in her mind, and couldn’t help but feel some regret. “I’d only heard that Prince Jing’s heir was somewhat frail, but never heard he had a heart ailment.”

Lin Shi nodded repeatedly. “Exactly! When I first heard about it, I was somewhat tempted too. Fortunately Ah Hao reminded me. Thank goodness Ah Hao was observant and knew that Prince Jing’s heir had a heart ailment.”

Wen Hao: “…” When had she known this?

Did Prince Jing’s heir have a heart ailment?

She remembered that before long, Prince Jing’s heir had left on a long journey. Would Prince Jing and his wife have allowed their son to endure the hardships of travel so soon after consulting a renowned physician?

Or could it be that the renowned physician had great powers and immediately cured Prince Jing’s heir’s heart ailment?

If that were the case—Wen Hao’s eyes lit up.

Grandmother had died from an attack of anxious rage. Perhaps her heart and spleen already had hidden problems. Having that renowned physician examine her certainly couldn’t hurt.

Wen Hao was thinking along these lines when she heard Lin Shi say, “Mother, didn’t you also mention some time ago that you felt some tightness in your chest? Since Prince Jing’s estate has invited this renowned physician, once he’s finished examining Prince Jing’s heir, we’ll also invite the physician to examine you.”

The old madam waved her hand dismissively. “There’s no need. When people get on in years, they inevitably experience chest tightness and shortness of breath. The regular physician who examines me hasn’t said anything is wrong.”

A hand reached over and grasped her sleeve.

“Grandmother, please let the renowned physician examine you.”

The young lady with still some baby fat tilted her head slightly upward, her autumn-clear eyes full of worry and entreaty.

The old madam’s heart immediately softened, and she agreed.

Since Ah Hao had been born unable to speak, she was naturally more sensitive than ordinary young ladies. Best not to let this girl worry.

Lin Shi mentally grumbled about her mother’s favoritism, then, thinking of Prince Jing’s estate’s regard for the renowned physician, personally made a trip to the prince’s estate.

At this moment, the renowned physician was taking Prince Jing’s heir Qi Shuo’s pulse.

“Divine Physician, how is Shuo’er?”

“This—” Physician Zhu pondered as he looked at Qi Shuo.

Qi Shuo silently looked back at him.

Seeing Physician Zhu remain silent for so long, the Princess Consort of Jing grew anxious. “Divine Physician, please just speak plainly. I can bear it. Could it be that—”

No, she was going to faint!

Prince Jing quickly supported the swaying Princess Consort, his expression extremely grave. “Divine Physician, please examine more carefully. Shuo’er… Shuo’er should be all right, shouldn’t he?”

Qi Shuo coughed lightly.

In the suffocating silence, Physician Zhu finally spoke. “The heir’s heart ailment… is not serious.”

The Princess Consort didn’t believe it. “If it’s not serious, why was the Divine Physician hesitating so much?”

Physician Zhu looked deeply at Qi Shuo.

The young man appeared utterly innocent, sitting quietly.

“This old physician was merely being cautious and could not make a diagnosis lightly.”

“That’s good, that’s good.” The Princess Consort breathed a sigh of relief, then suddenly tensed again. “But this is still an ailment of the heart and spleen. Even if it’s not serious, we cannot be careless, can we? May I ask the Divine Physician how he should be cared for in the future?”

Physician Zhu stroked his beard and said methodically, “The Princess Consort’s concern is warranted. Heart ailments often arise from overwork, excessive thinking, and stagnant qi. This old physician will write a prescription. Follow it for medication in the future, and additionally, try to keep his spirits content.”

“Keep his spirits content?” The Princess Consort seized on the key point.

She didn’t understand medical matters, but making her son content was something she could do.