“Yang Yan!” Yue Xingchen glared wide-eyed at the steward, glancing once at Feng Jiu’er. “You dare disobey even my mother and me?”

The steward remained bent at the waist, not raising his head, showing no sign of stepping aside. “Madam, Young Master, I truly am sorry!”

“You—” Yue Xingchen clenched his fists tightly. “Do you think you’re a match for me?”

“This lowly one wouldn’t dare!” The steward stayed where he was, head still bowed.

“Yang Yan, you—”

“Xingchen.” Tang Xiaohua cut him off, looking at the steward. “When your father returns, talk to him — tell him Miss Long’s treatment for my father has had very good results.”

“Once he agrees, I’ll invite Miss Long back again.”

“Don’t lock the door, though. If the old master finds out, it certainly won’t sit well with him. If the master doesn’t agree, we simply won’t go in — that’s fine.”

Tang Xiaohua sighed softly and turned back to look at Feng Jiu’er.

“Miss Long, I’m sorry! We’ve made you come all this way for nothing.”

Feng Jiu’er could see the helplessness in Tang Xiaohua and shook her head. “It’s no matter.”

Tang Xiaohua forced a smile and waved a hand.

Feng Jiu’er nodded and walked back alongside her.

Yue Xingchen shot the steward one more glare before turning to leave.

Once Feng Jiu’er and Tang Xiaohua had left the main hall together, Feng Jiu’er asked softly, “Madam, what exactly is going on here?”

Tang Xiaohua sighed quietly, turned her head, and patted Feng Jiu’er’s shoulder.

“Miss Long, today really has been a wasted trip for you. This matter, ah… I can’t explain it in just a few words.”

“It’s all just household troubles. I’m sorry to trouble you with it.”

Feng Jiu’er met Tang Xiaohua’s gaze and pressed her lips together lightly. “If it’s inconvenient for you to share, Madam, I won’t ask further.”

“Besides, I hear there’s a Physician Yang currently treating the old master. If the master is willing to let her treat him, she must have some advantage of her own.”

“Madam, don’t worry. Whatever the case, the master only wants what’s best for the old master — after all, the old master is his father. You can leave this matter to him with peace of mind.”

“That woman — what does she even understand?” Yue Xingchen said coldly, coming up beside the two of them.

“It’s been nearly half a year now. Aside from a brief improvement at the very start, has anything changed for Grandfather since?”

“That woman is scheming. Getting close to my father — her intentions toward Grandfather’s treatment are not what they seem.”

“Xingchen.” Tang Xiaohua shot him a glare.

“What’s there to be afraid of?” Yue Xingchen’s expression softened the moment he looked at Feng Jiu’er. “Didn’t you say yourself, Mother, that Miss Long is both a physician and a friend?”

“Since Miss Long is one of us, there’s nothing that can’t be said.”

Feng Jiu’er would certainly have been happy to be a friend of Yue Jianfei’s wife — but really, just one shared meal, and she was already “one of us”? The Yue family’s eldest son was a bit too quick to familiarity, wasn’t he?

“Xingchen, mind your manners.” Tang Xiaohua glared at him again. “By the way, Miss Long, if you’re not too busy, would you be willing to offer me a bit of advice?”

“I hear that aside from treating illness, you’ve also developed some recipes for health and beauty. I’m rather interested.”

“Don’t worry — I’ll still pay according to your house-call rate. And if I need any herbs from your shop, I’ll pay for those in real silver too.”

Feng Jiu’er had been trying to think of a way to stay and learn more about the situation, and now here was Madam Yue offering on her own to have her stay.

Having finally gotten into the Yue residence, only to have to leave without even seeing Yue Jianfei — she was reluctant to give up so easily.

“Madam, you’ve already called us friends, so this shouldn’t be calculated that way.” Feng Jiu’er looked at Tang Xiaohua with a faint smile.

[Translator’s note: a garbled watermark line, “⑻вοоＫ．cоｍ,” has been omitted as unrelated to the text.]

“If the old master doesn’t need my treatment, I’ll return in full the three hundred taels the young master paid as deposit.”

“If you have time, Madam, I can certainly offer some suggestions — though you already take good care of yourself, so my advice would only be for reference.”

Tang Xiaohua touched her own face, smiling with a touch of pleasure. “I’m already old and faded — how is it that in Miss Long’s eyes, I still take good care of myself?”

“We who are older really can’t compare to the young.” Tang Xiaohua sighed softly, a touch of wistfulness in her expression.

But her moment of melancholy passed quickly, and her smile soon returned.

“These days I just want to live comfortably for myself. And of course, looking a bit younger does lift the spirits as well,” Tang Xiaohua went on.

At that moment, Feng Jiu’er realized that beneath Madam Yue’s carefree, easygoing exterior, there were unspoken troubles hidden in her heart.

“Madam, your son is already so grown — how old are you now, if I may ask?” Feng Jiu’er asked with a faint smile.

“I just turned forty today.” Tang Xiaohua said it with a kind of indifference.

“Madam, you’re already forty? I really couldn’t tell.” Xiao Yingtao chimed in with a smile.

“Nor could I.” Feng Jiu’er pressed her lips together and nodded. “You look no older than thirty-five at most — and that’s not flattery.”

“Exactly, exactly — I also thought you were only in your early thirties.” Xiao Yingtao nodded fervently.

Tang Xiaohua looked at the two young women beside her, her smile growing even more genuine.

“Thank you both.”

She turned her head toward a nearby pavilion. “Miss Long, why don’t we sit together under that pavilion?”

“Your shop must be doing good business — I don’t want to waste your time.”

“All right.” Feng Jiu’er nodded.

She glanced back; both Jian Yi and Yu Jingfeng had already stopped in their tracks.

Feng Jiu’er, Tang Xiaohua, Xiao Yingtao, and Yue Xingchen sat down in the pavilion, and a maidservant brought them tea and snacks.

Tang Xiaohua waved a hand, and the two maids bowed and withdrew.

“Miss Long, what advice do you have for me?” Tang Xiaohua asked with a smile, looking at Feng Jiu’er.

Feng Jiu’er glanced around once, then brought her gaze back to Tang Xiaohua.

She studied Tang Xiaohua carefully for a moment, then took her hand and rested it on the table.

“Madam, no amount of health care compares to getting enough sleep each night. Have you not been sleeping well these past few days?”

Tang Xiaohua smiled faintly but offered no response.

“Father went off with that woman — how could my mother possibly sleep well?” Yue Xingchen said with a cold snort.

“Xingchen.” Tang Xiaohua glared at him.

“I’m only speaking the truth, Mother. You’re devoted to curing Grandfather, and yet Father keeps misunderstanding you.” Yue Xingchen said indignantly.

“It’s all that woman’s doing — putting on a show in front of Father every day. Now Father trusts her completely, and you’re still not taking this seriously?”

“Since Miss Long has the ability to cure Grandfather, why shouldn’t we let her help? Only once Grandfather recovers will Father let go of his resentment toward you.”

Feng Jiu’er’s fingers settled on Tang Xiaohua’s pulse, but her gaze shifted to Yue Xingchen.

She was a healer; whenever she saw a patient in need of treatment, she could never simply walk away.

What’s more, the real reason she’d come to set up her practice again was to build a connection with Yue Jianfei, so he might help with certain matters.

“Xingchen.” Tang Xiaohua gave him a warning look. “You’re a man — getting involved in these trivial matters, aren’t you afraid of looking foolish?”

“Go on, go tend to your own affairs.”