Yet Hua Zhi did not, in the end, sleep soundly.

Unsettled by the events of the day, she slept fitfully. The moment she heard voices outside, she drifted groggily awake. Not long after, she heard the sound of the door opening, and Nian Qiu’s voice came close to her ear. “Miss, the Old Madam is not well…”

Hua Zhi was instantly alert. She shot upright and threw back the covers, swinging her legs off the bed as she asked, “Who brought the message? Get them in here at once.”

Nian Qiu helped her dress while Ying Chun ushered in Nanny Chen from the Old Madam’s side, who, the moment she laid eyes on Hua Zhi, looked as though she had found the pillar she needed to lean against. She said in a rush: “Eldest young miss, please go and see the Old Madam at once. She has been speaking incoherently, and her whole body is burning with fever…”

“What hour is it now?”

“It is a quarter past the second night watch.”

Only the second watch. Hua Zhi furrowed her brow as she stepped outside. “Is Liu Xiang here?”

Liu Xiang answered from outside the door. “Miss, this servant is here.”

“Go and wait at the inner gate. The moment dawn comes, have the inner gate unlocked early. Tell your father to go and fetch Doctor Chu.”

“Yes.”

Liu Xiang was a family-born servant. Her parents both worked in the outer compound, and she had a younger brother of eight who served as Hua Bailin’s page boy. She herself was a second-rank maidservant in the eldest young miss’s chamber, working mostly under Bao Chun’s direction — for times such as these, she was the most fitting person to send.

Lamps blazed in every corner of the Old Madam’s courtyard. Maids and servants moved back and forth, every face etched with anxiety.

Hua Zhi walked briskly to the bedside and sat down. She pressed her fingers to the large artery at her grandmother’s neck. The heat beneath her hand was alarming — she estimated it was near forty degrees. This would not do. If an elderly person ran such a fever through the night, it could easily spiral into a serious illness.

She pulled aside the two quilts that had been piled on top of the Old Madam and made room. “Take these quilts away. Bring a thin blanket.”

“Eldest young miss…”

“Do as I say.” Blanketing her in heavy quilts would not bring out a sweat — if this continued, her condition would only worsen.

Nanny Su steeled herself and had the quilts removed. Nanny Chen quickly fetched the light blanket the Old Madam used in ordinary times and covered her with it.

“Go and find some strong liquor. If there is none in the inner quarters, look outside.”

“But eldest young miss, at this hour…”

“Her life is what matters.” Noticing that the others all wore expressions of clear disapproval, Hua Zhi did not press the matter. In an age where reputation was held above life itself, even if Grandmother were awake she likely would not permit such a method to be used on her person. “Go and look in Fourth Madam’s courtyard. Fourth Uncle has stayed on this side of the compound before.”

“Yes, yes, of course — the Fourth Master was always fond of that yellow brew. There is bound to be some.” Nanny Chen clapped her knee, and was off at a trot before her other foot had even landed.

“Bring several basins of warm water, and a few strips of soft cloth as well. Remove all of Grandmother’s clothing.”

Hua Zhi’s composure steadied everyone around her. With tasks to attend to, no one was left circling about in helpless anxiety. They set to work with nimble efficiency.

Once everything was in readiness, Hua Zhi adjusted the blanket, tucking it carefully to cover what needed covering, then rolled up her sleeves. “Watch my movements.”

The neck, the chest, the armpits, the arms, the centers of the palms, the centers of the soles — Hua Zhi took the soft cloth and worked her way through each position with a gentle, circular pressure. “Have you committed this to memory?”

The watching maids all nodded. Nanny Su said, “The movements are not difficult — but how much force should be applied?”

“Gentle pressure. Continue until the fever breaks, then stop.”

“Understood.” Nanny Su spoke without hesitation, and immediately designated several maids to take over from Hua Zhi’s hands. Their movements were even more careful and thorough than Hua Zhi’s own.

“The liquor has been found.” Nanny Chen came in at a brisk pace hugging a wine jar. “How is it to be used?”

The jar had not yet been unsealed. Hua Zhi broke open the seal, and a rich wave of liquor fragrance rushed out. She dipped a fingertip in and placed it to her tongue — she estimated it was around forty degrees of alcohol strength. By any standard of this era, that was already quite high. It did not quite meet the required potency, but using more would compensate.

She poured a measure into each of the basins, and in moments the whole room was steeped in the smell of liquor.

“How is Mother-in-law doing?” Wu Shi was helped in by a maid. She had not been sleeping deeply, and when she heard Nanny Chen asking a maid for liquor, she had known something was amiss. Among all the women in this household, who would have any use for liquor?

When she learned it was the Old Madam who had fallen ill, she could not possibly remain in bed. She threw a robe over her shoulders and came at once.

“Fourth Aunt, please go back and rest — you should not risk catching whatever has taken hold.”

Looking at the room — busy with people, yet not in chaos — Wu Shi pressed a hand to her wildly thumping chest and let out a breath of relief. The Hua Family absolutely could not afford another calamity.

She withdrew to wait outside, unwilling to add to the commotion inside. Worried the liquor might not be enough, she had her maid go back and bring another jar. Knowing that her mother-in-law was ill yet going off to sleep on her own — the Wu Family had not raised their daughter that way.

Basin after basin of water was changed through the night. After half a night of effort, the temperature had at last come down. Not long after dawn, Doctor Chu was ushered into the residence. Accompanied by Steward Xu and several senior serving women, he was led into the Old Madam’s courtyard.

The Old Madam’s clothes had already been put back on and her bed curtains lowered. Doctor Chu sniffed — the smell of liquor was rather strong.

Hua Zhi gave a slight bow. “Doctor Chu, thank you for the trouble.”

“Eldest young miss, you are too courteous.”

Chu Shitang was the proprietor of the Chu Family’s medicine hall. The Chu Family had practiced medicine for generations, and from his father’s time had been attending to the Hua Family’s ailments. Upon hearing that the Old Madam had fallen ill, he had come without a moment’s delay, fearing that another blow to the Old Madam’s health might pile suffering upon suffering for the Hua Family.

After feeling her pulse for a considerable time, Chu Shitang began to ask about the Old Madam’s condition.

Nanny Su answered each question in turn. When Chu Shitang asked what measures had been taken, she glanced at Hua Zhi, waited for her nod, and then gave a thorough account of everything that had been done through the night.

Chu Shitang looked at the Hua Family’s eldest young miss, who had kept such a low profile all these years. “May I ask, eldest young miss — what is the reasoning behind using liquor to wipe down those particular areas?”

Hua Zhi naturally could not speak of alcohol evaporation drawing away heat. She said only: “I have always been fond of reading miscellaneous books, and I seem to have a vague recollection of it being recorded somewhere. At the time, Grandmother was burning with fever and had lost consciousness, and it was impossible to send for a doctor. I steeled myself and tried it on the chance that it might work — I did not expect it to truly take effect.”

Chu Shitang asked no further, but quietly filed everything away with the intention of researching it further upon returning home.

“Doctor Chu, what is my grandmother’s condition?”

“The Old Madam has been struck down by the fire of acute distress. The onset was fierce and sudden. Fortunately you employed this method — had you not, it is uncertain whether she could have held on until I arrived. The most critical moment has passed. As this old physician sees it, she has stabilized for now. What remains is rest and careful tending.”

“I understand. Thank you so much for making the journey so early in the morning.”

“It was the right thing to do.”

After writing out a prescription and handing it to the steward and packing up his medicine kit, Chu Shitang hesitated, then said: “If this old physician were to teach this method of the eldest young miss to others, I wonder whether that would be acceptable. Many households cannot afford to bring in a doctor, and this method requires very little — it may well save a life.”

“This method was not of my own invention. There is no reason only I should be permitted to use it and not others. Doctor Chu, please use it freely.”

“The eldest young miss is kind-hearted. Surely good fortune will follow.”

“I am grateful for your kind words.”

Watching the poised and gracious eldest young miss of the Hua Family, Chu Shitang felt genuinely glad on the family’s behalf. He allowed Steward Xu to take his medicine kit, made a slow and dignified bow, and walked toward the gate.

Hua Zhi looked back for a moment, then followed him out.