Jiang Chun had been strong since young, so Jiang Wan, who came in to help, did not take over carrying Song Shi’an, and only helped with things like opening and closing doors.
She placed Song Shi’an in the back bed of the mule cart, climbed up herself, then reached out to pull him into her arms, so that he wouldn’t sit unsteadily and fall over onto the railing and hit his head until it was bleeding.
Song Shi’an, muddle-headed and dazed, leaned against Jiang Chun’s bosom. He wanted to object with words, but since he had already been carried out horizontally by her, then what was just being pulled over the shoulder on top of that?
He closed his eyes.
In the end, he didn’t say anything.
Jiang Wan saw that they were seated properly, quickly jumped onto the cart shaft, raised the whip, and drove the mule cart.
The mule cart stopped at the door of the medical hall. Jiang Chun reached out to carry Song Shi’an down, and rushed inside in a hurry.
Charging into the main hall, with a single glance she saw Doctor Xiao Qi, Qi Wenli, standing in front of the medicine cabinet, examining the herbs inside the drawers.
Jiang Chun felt joy inside—what luck, Doctor Xiao Qi actually hadn’t left yet.
She immediately said loudly: “Doctor Xiao Qi, please be troubled to take a look at my husband, he’s burning up badly and coughing nonstop.”
Qi Wenli turned his head at the sound, and saw a man in a dark indigo long robe being horizontally carried in a woman’s arms, and couldn’t help but be stunned.
When he saw that the woman was Pork Meat Xi Shi Jiang Chun, he immediately understood.
Although he had studied medicine with his master in Daming Prefecture all year round, he would return to Qizhou Prefecture to visit family during holidays. Hongye Town was just this tiny bit big, and he hadn’t heard little of the idle gossip in town either.
The matter of Butcher Jiang buying a sickly son-in-law for his daughter, he had long heard about. He originally thought the words “sickly seedling” were the town folk exaggerating things.
He swept a glance at the man curled up like a cooked shrimp in her arms. Looking at it now, it didn’t seem to be false gossip after all.
“Bring the person here,” Qi Wenli raised his sleeve, guiding Jiang Chun into the inner room, letting her place the person on the bamboo bed on the north side.
Then he sat down on a chair by the bedside, lifted his hand and placed it on Song Shi’an’s right wrist.
After a moment, he changed to the other hand to take the pulse again, the more he examined, the tighter his brows furrowed.
This made Jiang Chun nervous along with him.
In theory, this male supporting character Song Shi’an should still be alive until the end of the story; he shouldn’t just collapse midway from a case of wind-cold.
But everything has a just-in-case.
After all, even she, the author, had transmigrated into the story—what butterfly effects she brought, it was hard to say.
Qi Wenli withdrew his hand and said to Jiang Chun, “Wind-cold has entered the body. Your husband was already weak-bodied to begin with, so it came fiercely.”
After saying this, he got up and left the inner room to write the prescription outside.
Jiang Chun followed him out.
Just in time, Jiang Wan had also tied up the mule, and came in with large strides. Seeing Jiang Chun, she immediately opened her mouth and asked, “What did the doctor say?”
Jiang Chun glanced toward Qi Wenli’s side, and replied, “Doctor Xiao Qi said wind-cold has entered the body, and he’s writing the prescription now.”
As soon as Jiang Wan heard the words “Doctor Xiao Qi,” joy immediately showed on his face: “Doctor Xiao Qi is here, that’s great! Nephew-in-law’s illness will definitely get better quickly.”
The people of Hongye Town had great trust in Qi Wenli’s medical skill. He wasn’t like his grandfather, who could only treat things like headaches and fevers—when the illness was a little more complicated, they all had to make a fuss of going to the county city medical hall to find a doctor.
Qi Wenli finished writing the prescription, opened the medicine cabinet and fetched the herbs—there were five doses in total.
He handed one of the doses to his little servant, letting him go decoct the medicine.
Only then did he explain to Jiang Chun: “Your husband is too severely ill, so after using the medicine here to recuperate a bit, then go back.”
While speaking, he tied the remaining four packs of medicine with hemp rope, handed them to her, and instructed: “Take medicine for five days and see. These four doses you take back, one per day, boil three bowls of water into one bowl, take it before bed. During the period of taking medicine, one must avoid meat and fish.”
Jiang Chun listened seriously, nodded and agreed, then took the initiative to ask: “Doctor Xiao Qi, please calculate the bill.”
Qi Wenli pulled over the abacus, and with a pi-li-pa-la sound calculated, and said: “Fair price, fifty-five wen.”
Jiang Wan leaned in, and whispered: “Chun-niang, did you bring money? If not, Uncle will front it for you first.”
Since she planned to bring Song Shi’an to see the doctor, Jiang Chun naturally brought a money pouch, and quickly said: “Uncle, I brought it.”
She counted out fifty-five copper coins from the pouch and placed them on the counter, saying: “Doctor Xiao Qi, please count them.”
Qi Wenli also didn’t put on any false courtesy, counted them one by one, and nodded: “Not one more, not one less, exactly fifty-five wen.”
—
After fetching the medicine and settling the bill, Jiang Wan said she had something to do outside and left. Jiang Chun carried the medicine into the inner room.
She placed the medicine packets on the table by the bedside, sat down on the chair beside the bed, and placed the back of her hand on Song Shi’an’s forehead to check.
Then was scalded into a shiver—it was noticeably hotter than at home. No wonder Doctor Xiao Qi had urgently sent someone to decoct the medicine.
She took out a handkerchief and wiped the fine beads of sweat from his forehead, and said: “Husband, are you feeling very unwell? Bear with it for now—Doctor Xiao Qi has already sent someone to decoct the medicine.”
Song Shi’an’s head was burning so badly he was dizzy and his brain bloated; he felt like the whole world was spinning. In a haze, he vaguely felt her press the back of her hand against his forehead, and then muttered a bunch by his ear.
He tried hard to listen clearly, but his ears felt stuffed with cotton—he couldn’t hear a single word distinctly.
Song Shi’an could only use all his strength and let out a difficult “mm.”
Even if he didn’t know what she said, responding with a sound could never be wrong.
Jiang Chun saw he couldn’t even speak, and couldn’t help but grow worried.
Though there was no thermometer, she estimated that his body temperature was at least 40 degrees.
Burning this badly—could it burn the person silly?
Wouldn’t all her previous investment be flushed down the drain then?
She was just about to get up and head to the backyard, to pressure the Qi family servant a little, and get him to hurry up with decocting the medicine—don’t dawdle and put on a show of working hard.
When suddenly, a familiar voice sounded from outside: “Doctor Xiao Qi, since you haven’t gone back to Daming Prefecture yet, I brought Lady Wang to have her follow-up consultation.”
The person wasn’t anyone else—it was her “good second uncle” Jiang Hu.
Before Qi Wenli could speak, Jiang Hu, acting like he knew the place well, carried Matchmaker Wang in and ran into the inner room in a small trot.
And then ended up in a stare-off with Jiang Chun—big eyes versus small eyes.
The big eyes were Jiang Chun’s.
She inherited them from her mother Zheng shi—almond-shaped eyes, big and round, with clear black and white. When she looked at people, there was a natural aura of innocence and cluelessness.
Premise being—don’t speak, and don’t make any movements.
As for Jiang Hu, he inherited Li shi’s small eyes—whether open or closed, there wasn’t much difference.
In the whole family, he was the only one like this. Jiang He and Jiang Xi both took after their father Jiang Zhaofeng—big eyes with double eyelids.
“Chun-niang, how come you’re here?” Jiang Hu asked subconsciously.
His line of sight moved to Song Shi’an on the bamboo bed. Seeing his face red like a monkey’s butt, clearly burning badly, he gave an understanding “Mm.”
Inside the inner room were two bamboo beds. Jiang Hu placed the blanket-wrapped Matchmaker Wang onto the empty bed next to it.
He himself sat down on the chair by the bed, fanning himself while shooting his mouth off: “Chun-niang, your father really is something else, isn’t he—so lacking in foresight, actually went and got you a door-in son-in-law who topples over at a mere gust of wind. What use is he?”
Jiang Chun originally didn’t want to bother with him, but since he was speaking ill of Song Shi’an, that she could not endure. She immediately shot back: “Second Uncle, have you scraped together fifty taels of silver yet? If you haven’t, Second Aunt is going to land in the county jail.”
At these words, Jiang Hu smugly lifted his chin: “Scrape together what? The debt Ma shi owes has nothing to do with me, Jiang Erlang.”
Jiang Chun feigned confusion: “How can it have nothing to do with you? Second Aunt is your wife.”
Jiang Hu snorted lightly: “Soon won’t be anymore.”
Jiang Chun said in surprise: “Soon won’t be? Don’t tell me, Second Uncle, you’re going to divorce Second Aunt?”
Jiang Hu wasn’t afraid of his niece knowing, and nodded: “Exactly. Otherwise, do you expect me to repay that fifty taels of silver debt for her? She’s dreaming!”
Before Jiang Chun could respond, Matchmaker Wang flipped up from the bed in one swift motion and questioned Jiang Hu: “What? You’re going to divorce Ma shi?”
Jiang Hu grinned cheekily: “Yep. I divorce her, and marry you as my proper first wife—how’s that not good?”
Of course it’s not good!
Even if Matchmaker Wang were to marry, she’d marry someone like Jiang He—able to earn money and honest to boot.
What kind of thing was Jiang Hu? He actually dared to harbor the thought of her marrying him? He was absolutely daydreaming in broad daylight!
Matchmaker Wang immediately let out a cold laugh: “Divorce Ma shi, then marry me as your proper first wife? You people are setting up a scheme to trick me, trying to swindle me out of those fifty taels of silver, aren’t you?”
“Jiang Erlang, I’m telling you—I’ll give you three more days. If within three days I don’t get those fifty taels of silver in my hands, I’ll go to the county yamen and accuse your wife Ma Shi and your old mother Li shi of conspiring to harm the child in my belly—make the magistrate chop their heads off!”
Jiang Chun “tsk”-ed once and gave Matchmaker Wang a thumbs-up in her heart.
High—truly high! [“高，实在是高！” is a common phrase meaning “brilliant, absolutely brilliant!” — often said in admiration of someone’s cunning.]
Originally, she had only said she’d sue Ma shi. But now that Jiang Hu wanted to divorce Ma shi, once she was a cast-off woman, neither her husband’s family nor her maiden family would likely help her pay off those fifty taels.
Matchmaker Wang, at this moment, dragged Li shi into it too.
Li shi was Jiang Hu’s own mother. He could divorce Ma shi, his wife, but he couldn’t ignore his own mother.
What’s more, who didn’t know that the second branch of the Jiang family was managed by Li shi?
Even if Jiang Hu hardened his heart and refused to care about Li shi, Li shi herself would still be able to handle herself.