Madam Xie went to find the Second Lady. Although the Second Lady had become strange and bitter since the divorce incident, Madam Xie still remembered her illness and didn’t say anything too harsh.

“What does your family mean by this? Playing games with our family?” Madam Xie said angrily.

The Second Lady lay on the bed covered with a thin blanket, expressionless.

“Madam has forgotten – my surname is Chen, not Rao. It’s not my daughter either, so how would I know?” she said indifferently.

“Not your daughter? Weren’t you the one who made the connection back then?” Madam Xie slammed the table and shouted.

The maids and servants in the room became displeased.

“Madam, our mistress is still ill,” an older servant said coolly.

The Second Lady coughed twice on cue.

“So, should I be the one to compensate?” she asked, looking at Madam Xie.

Seeing the Second Lady’s completely bloodless face, Madam Xie felt a lump in her throat and couldn’t say anything.

What was the Rao family anyway? A girl like that with dead parents and a hard life – if you hadn’t pushed to send her to our door, we wouldn’t have cared for her at all!

Madam Xie swept her sleeves and left.

At this moment, Chang Yuncheng looked at the message slip in his hands, also trembling.

Drinking wine and talking happily at night with Wang Qian…

Drinking wine and talking happily at night…

What kind of ghost was this Wang Qian? Where did he come from?

Chang Yuncheng took a deep breath to calm himself down.

She must be very unhappy, having lost her favorite thing…

Otherwise, why would she drink?

If someone could accompany her drinking and make her happy, then… then that would be best.

Chang Yuncheng slowly walked out of the room.

If she could be a little happier, as long as she could be joyful, it didn’t matter who she talked with…

If she was happy, he would be happy with her.

Yes, I’m also happy, very… happy…

Outside, the cavalry was assembled. The guards on horseback looked at Chang Yuncheng walking out step by step, their faces shocked.

This… this, why did the Prince look like he wanted to devour someone?

Chang Yuncheng mounted his horse.

Before his eyes appeared the image of that woman drinking and laughing heartily…

Was she about to… belong to someone else…

As long as she was happy.

Chang Yuncheng gripped the reins tightly.

As long as she was happy! If someone could bring her happiness, I should be happy…

He repeated this in his heart over and over, I should…

I can’t do it!

Chang Yuncheng suddenly let out a roar and spurred his horse. The startled horse neighed and galloped wildly.

I can’t do it! I can’t do it!

Accompanied by Chang Yuncheng’s roaring gallop, the remaining guards naturally didn’t want to fall behind. They drew their swords, spurred their horses, and put all their strength into roaring as they charged out.

Seeing this team of hot-blooded men and horses charging out of the city, the city guards were startled.

“Are the Eastern barbarians attacking?” everyone asked.

Yongqing Prefecture entered the hot summer. After a rumble of thunder, heavy rain poured down, and the streets quickly emptied.

This weather was perfect for the disciples’ classes. After finishing a lesson and letting them discuss and practice freely, Qi Yue walked out of the room. Without taking an umbrella, she ran a few steps to the ward.

The ward housed a man who had been gored by a bull. It was now the fifth day after surgery, and his recovery was going well.

Walking to the door, Qi Yue heard someone sobbing inside. She couldn’t help but stop.

“…Why are you crying? The child is cured now…”

“…We sold the bull but don’t know if the medical fees will be enough… How can we do farm work when we go back… Without the bull, and he can’t work in the fields… How can we survive…”

Qi Yue sighed, stopped in her tracks, and turned to walk away.

Learning that Qi Yue had waived the patient’s surgery and hospitalization fees, only symbolically collecting some consultation fees, Hu San, who served as the financial manager, came looking for her in distress.

“Master, I know you’re kind-hearted,” he said with a bitter expression. “But you don’t know how expensive rice and firewood are until you run a household. Since we renovated until now, we’ve been losing money – big losses.”

“Huh?” Qi Yue frowned. “Didn’t I have A’Ru go to the money house to get my money? Is it still not enough?”

Hu San stomped his foot.

“That’s your money, your money,” he said.

Qi Yue’s ears rang from his shouting.

“Alright, alright, I know, I know,” she said with a bitter smile. “But who told us that our current techniques are shocking to the world and haven’t been widely accepted yet? Those who are willing to let us treat them now are giving us free advertising, or rather, they’re already throwing people here who can’t be cured and must die. Hu San, think about it – if they really had money and other options, they definitely wouldn’t come to us.”

Hu San also sighed.

That’s right. Only these already poor and lowly people would be willing to let Qianjin Hall cut them open. To them, their lives were cheap and worthless, so naturally their bodies received from their parents were also worthless and didn’t matter. But those wealthy and precious people were different.

“So what we need to do isn’t figure out how to make money from these poor people, but find ways to expand the market and get more people to accept our treatment methods. Only then can we achieve both fame and profit,” Qi Yue said, spinning her quill pen. “Besides, these people now are our advertisements – living advertisements. It’s good enough we don’t pay them advertising fees. We should reduce medical fees where we can.”

Hu San made a sound of understanding and nodded.

“Then I’ll go print more advertisements and distribute them to wealthy families this time,” he said with bright eyes.

“Don’t you dare! Who goes door-to-door selling medical services? That’s taboo – be careful or they’ll beat you,” Qi Yue quickly stopped him. “All beginnings are difficult. Don’t be anxious. Our techniques are here – there will definitely be a time when they shine and gain more recognition.”

“Definitely,” Hu San nodded while suggesting, “How about we go pray at the Great Buddha Temple?”

Qi Yue laughed heartily.

“You have no confidence in your master,” she threw the pen in her hand at Hu San. “Go busy yourself with your work.”

Hu San ran off laughing.

After a day’s work, Qi Yue went straight to bed when she got home.

My arms are so sore…

Qi Yue couldn’t help but call out.

“Alright, alright, I’ll massage your arms,” Chang Yuncheng said, reaching from behind to pound on her arms.

Qi Yue turned her head and saw herself leaning against him.

“Too gentle,” she said.

Chang Yuncheng quickly increased the pressure.

“I’m exhausted,” Qi Yue shifted a couple of times to find a more comfortable position and said, “Why do I work so hard?”

“Because it’s meaningful,” Chang Yuncheng said without thinking. “Living like this is so vigorous.”

Qi Yue smiled and wrinkled her nose, turning her face up to kiss his chin. As she touched his skin, she froze.

Something seemed… wrong…

They were now… already… broken up…

Qi Yue suddenly felt very awkward. Acting like this after breaking up was a bit like being a rogue…

She quickly sat up and moved away, but Chang Yuncheng grabbed her hand.

“Yueniang, my arm was cut off. Help me sew it back on,” he said.

Qi Yue was shocked and looked at the hand holding hers – it was Chang Yuncheng’s right hand.

At some point, blood was gushing like a spring. She followed the hand upward and saw that this hand was actually being held by Chang Yuncheng with his left hand.

“Look, it’s broken,” he said, handing over half an arm.

Qi Yue let out a heart-wrenching scream and sat up abruptly.

The setting sun was like fire, reddening half the room. Outside came the voice of some disciple calling for bandaging cloth, and the sounds of carriages, horses, and people intertwined on the street.

Qi Yue covered her chest, feeling short of breath, chest tightness, and waves of nausea.

A dream?

Just a dream…

Thank goodness, just a dream.

Just then, a firecracker exploded outside. The sudden sound made her scream again.

“What’s wrong?” A’Ru pushed the door open and entered, and dense firecracker sounds also rang out.

“What’s wrong?” Qi Yue covered her ears and asked loudly.

A’Ru went outside and came back shortly. The firecracker sounds moved away, faintly rising and falling.

“The Prince has achieved new merit!” A’Ru shouted excitedly. “Just received the imperial announcement – the Marquis mansion is expressing gratitude for the Emperor’s grace!”

Achieved merit?

Qi Yue couldn’t help but stand up, her face showing joy. This kid did well! Then she froze again.

“Is he injured?” she asked urgently.

Injured? A’Ru was startled.

“I’ll go ask,” she hurried out.

The two workers who appeared to be drying medicine but were actually guarding Qi Yue’s door were called over by A’Ru.

“Is the Prince injured?” she asked quietly.

The two workers shook their heads.

“No?” A’Ru was overjoyed and turned to leave.

The two guards quickly called her back.

“No, we don’t know,” they said in low voices. “We only have single-line contact with the Prince – just reporting whether the lady is safe or not. We don’t discuss other matters, and the Prince never writes back to us…”

A’Ru looked worried.

“You quickly go ask people you know at the Marquis mansion…” she urged, glancing at Qi Yue’s room. “She’s worried.”

The guards responded and hurried away.

For the Marquis Dingxi mansion, this imperial commendation was like timely rain after a long drought. Since that woman’s divorce, because of the imperial edict, their mansion had been disgraced.

They hadn’t expected Chang Yuncheng to achieve merit at this time, with the court personally commending him.

Such honor – looking at all the earls, marquises, and nobles in Great Xia, there weren’t many who had received it. To sweep away the recent bad luck and restore the prestige of the Marquis Dingxi mansion, they would make as much of a spectacle as possible.

Opera troupes would perform for three consecutive days, they would donate incense oil worth a thousand gold to the Great Buddha Temple, and the banquets would continue for three days. Besides firecrackers from the city gate to the mansion, they also arranged fireworks displays in the evening.

In short, they wanted the world to know what kind of marquis mansion theirs was and what kind of existence they were in the court’s eyes!

For the first opera performance, all the women, children, and elderly of the mansion came out to the already crowded area to receive the envious gazes of the entire city’s people.

Marquis Dingxi and Madam Xie walked at the front, wearing their noble rank ceremonial robes. Along with the prefect and other officials big and small, they first bowed to the Emperor’s edict and publicly received the Emperor’s rewards. Although it was just silk and satin plus official gold and silver – an amount less than what Madam Xie spent on incense oil once – this honor was something few marquis mansions could receive.

With gongs and drums resounding, the opera troupe naturally knew what they were there for. They performed the most lively plays, with comic interludes, flattery, somersaults, and fire-ring jumping – using every trick. The entire Guanmiao Street was ten times more lively than New Year’s.

Madam Xie sat in front, feeling countless admiring gazes, her heart blooming with joy. But she maintained a calm and composed appearance on the surface. Her eyes surveyed those behind her – all the illegitimate sons and daughters were there, each dressed up magnificently.

All of you people can enjoy today’s glory because my son earned it. Madam Xie cast a somewhat disdainful glance over these children. Wherever her gaze fell, the young masters and misses all bowed respectfully, not to mention the concubines, servant girls, and old women.

These days of wealth and splendor are all given to you by my son.

Madam Xie raised her chin higher. Suddenly her gaze stopped – in the chaotic crowd separated by government runners, a familiar figure was pushing through.

Qi Yue’s ears were full of chaotic sounds – gongs and drums, cheers, applause, whistles. She struggled to push forward. At first she had gone to the mansion, but there was no one there – they had all come here, so she hurried over.

“Stop, you cannot approach,” a runner blocked her with his staff and shouted.

“I’m looking for someone,” Qi Yue said hurriedly, standing on her toes to look toward the high platform, then meeting Madam Xie’s gaze.

Madam Xie gave her a mocking smile.

Originally, you too could have sat on this high platform, enjoying the people’s admiration, but you insisted on not living the good life.

At this moment, one high and one low, one above and one below – heaven and earth, a world of difference.