“Your seventh aunt is seriously ill, return quickly.”
This short sentence stirred up a huge wave of emotions in Yuanxi’s heart. Seventh Aunt had been as close to her as a mother, the person she relied on the most during her time in the Prime Minister’s Mansion. How could she suddenly fall ill, and what kind of illness was it?
Yuanxi’s hand holding the letter slowly drooped down, as worry, fear, and doubt crept into her heart. She understood that although the Marquis’ Mansion seemed calm on the surface, it was facing numerous crises. Since the moment Xiaodu learned about his true identity, he had been seeking a solution every day, trying to find a way out for the Marquis’ Army and the mansion.
But why did her father choose this moment to send her such a letter? He knew how important Seventh Aunt was to her, and whether the illness was real or not, she would go back to see her. But what if this was a trap? Would her father use her to deal with Xiaodu?
Seeing the doubt in her eyes, Xiaodu looked at the letter again and gently held her shoulder, saying, “It’s okay, I’ll go with you.”
Yuanxi turned her head suddenly, saying, “No, you can’t go!”
Xiaodu leaned her head against his chest and said softly, “You once told me that Seventh Aunt treated you like her own daughter since you were young. I think she would want to see what kind of person her daughter-in-law’s husband is.”
Yuanxi suddenly felt her eyes welling up with tears, feeling a warm sense of pride in her heart. She had indeed thought about this before. Seventh Aunt was always worried about her in the mansion. If she could see how Xiaodu treated her with her own eyes, she would surely feel more at ease. But the Left Prime Minister’s Mansion was not a place where he could easily go. Moreover, his identity was special now, and he couldn’t afford to make any mistakes.
Seeing her thoughts, Xiaodu wiped away the tears on her cheeks gently and smiled, saying, “Don’t worry, it’s your home, not a dangerous place. I’ll just walk in openly and aboveboard. Your father-in-law wouldn’t dare to do anything to me.”
Yuanxi leaned her head against his chest, listening to his steady heartbeat, suddenly feeling a sense of pride. This was her husband, not some prince or nobleman, just someone who held her dear to his heart, someone who cared for her in every possible way.
The next day, they made some preparations and went to the Left Prime Minister’s Mansion together. When Xiaodu’s tall figure appeared in the flower hall with Yuanxi, the steward of the mansion, Du Guangping, was genuinely surprised. He had only received news that the young lady might return to the mansion, but he didn’t expect her to be accompanied by such a nobleman.
As an excellent steward of the Prime Minister’s Mansion, Du Guangping took pride in his ability to handle any situation, whether it was dealing with guests or hosting banquets. But this time, he was a bit dumbfounded. Xiaodu and the Master of the mansion had always had a strained relationship, but he was still the young master of the mansion. In terms of status, he was extremely noble. How should he greet him? He thought for a moment and decided that since the Master of the mansion was not present, it was better to be extra courteous.
He bowed respectfully and said, “Welcome, Marquis, to our humble mansion. It is truly an honor for me to meet you today.”
Xiaodu seemed to be in a good mood and smiled as he looked at him, saying, “I’ve heard of Steward Du’s great name before. You’ve done a lot for Yuanxi during her time in the mansion.”
Du Guangping thought about the past few days of turmoil and felt that Xiaodu’s smile seemed a bit malicious. He couldn’t help but swallow nervously and was about to say a few more words of flattery when he suddenly felt a chill behind him. Turning his head, he saw Xia Mingyuan’s tall figure blocking the door. His flattering smile froze on his face, not knowing whether to continue or stop. He cursed himself for letting slip his true feelings. He looked at the two people, one with a gloomy face and the other with a smiling face, and felt that he couldn’t handle this task anymore. He quickly found an excuse and slipped away.
Xia Mingyuan’s eyes swept over Xiaodu’s body, not expecting him to dare to enter his mansion so openly, and he smiled with a hint of malice as if he had come just to visit his father-in-law. Then he looked at Yuanxi, who stood beside him with a nervous expression and sneered, “You’re finally here. Your seventh aunt probably won’t last much longer. Go and see her quickly.”
Yuanxi’s eyes widened, and her hand trembled, causing the teacup to slip and fall to the ground.
What she didn’t expect was that Seventh Aunt was ill, and her condition was serious.
It was still the familiar room, but now it was filled with the smell of medicine, bitter and penetrating. The person who had raised her and shown her the most kindness lay weakly on the bed. Just a few months ago, she had seen her, but now she was as thin as a skeleton, her face worn with suffering, with only a pair of empty eyes staring upwards.
Yuanxi felt as if her heart had been struck hard, covering her mouth as she cried, unable to speak. She hurried to Seventh Aunt’s bedside and trembled as she called out, “Seventh Aunt, I’m here.”
Seventh Aunt moved her cloudy eyes to look at her, then suddenly saw a strange light in them. Tears flowed down her face, and she reached out to grab Yuanxi’s wrist, trembling as she held her hand and said, “Yuanxi, you’re finally here. Seventh Aunt never thought she would see you again.”
Yuanxi was speechless with tears streaming down her face, shaking her head repeatedly and saying, “I’m sorry, I’m unfilial. I only came to see you now.”
Seventh Aunt cried out miserably, “No, it’s Seventh Aunt who’s sorry for you, sorry for you…” She wanted to say more, but suddenly saw Xia Mingyuan’s tall figure blocking the door, and her words stopped abruptly.
Yuanxi was immersed in grief and didn’t notice her strange behavior. At this moment, Xiaodu had already walked over, gently holding Seventh Aunt’s hand and saying, “Seventh Aunt, I’m Yuanxi’s husband. I came here today specifically to see you with her.”
七姨娘 was suddenly overwhelmed with excitement. She never imagined that this person was the legendary Marquis Xuan Yuan. She struggled to get up to pay her respects, but Xiaodu firmly held her down, saying, “Yuanxi has always told me how much care and love you’ve shown her since she was young, even more than her mother. Since she sees you as a mother, then you’re also my mother. Today, I only come to see you as a son-in-law, no need for any formalities.”
七姨娘 trembled all over with excitement. She could hear how much this legendary figure cherished Yuanxi, and she could see the intense emotion between the two when they looked at each other. The weight on her heart finally lifted a bit, but at the same time, another kind of fear grew stronger. She glanced toward Xia Mingyuan and said hoarsely, “Master, the slave, and a maidservant would like to speak privately with Yuanxi for a moment, may we have some time alone?”
But Xia Mingyuan didn’t move at all, only coldly saying, “You can say whatever you want. You don’t need to mind me.”
The light in 七姨娘’s eyes dimmed, and even when Yuanxi spoke to her, she couldn’t muster any interest. Seeing her looking tired, Yuanxi thought she was just overworked and didn’t want their meeting to be rushed. So, she boldly asked Xia Mingyuan to let 七姨娘 return to the Marquis’ Mansion. However, Xia Mingyuan flatly refused, saying that since 七姨娘 was a member of the Prime Minister’s Mansion, it would be unwise for her to leave when she was seriously ill, as it would allow others to gossip.
Yuanxi’s eyes showed disappointment, but Xiaodu gently reassured her with a pat on the shoulder, indicating that they could make plans slowly. Yuanxi nodded, understanding that this was the best course of action. At this moment, Xia Mingyuan said, “Alright, your seventh aunt is not in a condition to talk much now. You’ve seen her, so you should leave now.”
Yuanxi held onto 七姨娘’s hand unwilling to let go, but 七姨娘’s eyes suddenly lit up with a startling brightness. She reached out and grabbed Yuanxi’s clothes, saying, “Yuanxi, don’t forget about Seventh Aunt, don’t forget how you used to stay in my room every day.”
Yuanxi couldn’t stop her tears from flowing, feeling a deep pain in her heart. At that moment, she felt something being stuffed into her clothes. She looked at 七姨娘 in amazement and saw a mixture of sadness, expectation, and despair in her eyes. She reached out and touched her face, whispering in a barely audible voice, “Don’t blame Seventh Aunt, don’t blame me. Auntie had no choice.”
“Enough!” Xia Mingyuan finally lost his patience and stood between them, saying, “If you stay any longer, she won’t be able to hold on. If you don’t mind, you can stay for lunch in the mansion before leaving.”
Yuanxi was still in shock from earlier, but she noticed the look of resentment in 七姨娘’s eyes when she looked at her father. Thinking of the item in her arms, she naturally didn’t dare to delay any longer. She hurriedly bid farewell to Xiaodu and left in the carriage.
On the carriage, Yuanxi took out the object from her clothes and found it to be a tightly wrapped medicine packet. She found it even more strange, so she opened the packet and found black medicine residue inside. She suddenly remembered what 七姨娘 had said to her. When she was eight years old, she often had to stay in 七姨娘’s room because she had to take medicine every day.
She exclaimed, “This! This seems to be the medicine residues I used to take when I was young.”
Xiaodu frowned and asked, “What medicine? Why did you have to take medicine?”
Yuanxi said, “It seems that I had a strange illness when I was eight years old. Father found a doctor for me and said that I could only fully recover if I took this medicine until I reached adulthood.”
Xiaodu suddenly felt a twinge in his heart. Why did 七姨娘 leave behind medicine residues, and why did she secretly give them to Yuanxi at the last minute? He held Yuanxi’s hand and reassured her, “It’s okay. Let’s go back and find the Prime Minister’s Physician to get to the bottom of this.”
In the main hall of the Marquis’ Mansion, Zuo Qiao carefully examined the medicine residues for a long time. Suddenly, his face turned pale, and then he turned to Yuanxi and asked, “Madam, how long did you take this medicine?”
Yuanxi was stunned and replied, “For about six years.”
Zuo Qiao’s expression became even more solemn, and he quickly went to her side, saying, “Madam, please let me check your pulse again.”
He placed his fingers on Yuanxi’s wrist for a moment, but suddenly his fingers began to tremble uncontrollably. Xiaodu and Yuanxi looked at him in shock, and Xiaodu urged, “What’s the matter? Tell us quickly!”
The experienced physician sighed helplessly, finally mustering the courage to say, “If I’m not mistaken, this medicine is extremely cold. If a woman takes it for a long time, it might… it might…”
Xiaodu stood up abruptly, saying, “Might what? Speak!”
The physician, who had seen much in his life, couldn’t help but sigh deeply before finally saying, “If a woman takes this medicine for a long time, it will cause severe coldness in the palace, making it impossible… impossible to conceive.”