Married to a Villainous Minister - Chapter 13

“Meng girl, hurry and get up. Go draw some water from the vat outside to wash up, then come with me to the kitchen to cook,” Madam Song urged.

Yu Jiao sat up, still groggy and half-asleep, momentarily confused about where she was. Madam Song handed her a clean set of clothes and placed them at the head of the bed. “Work a bit more diligently and the Old Madam won’t find fault with you so easily. She might even treat you a little better.”

Yu Jiao changed clothes and climbed out of bed. She understood well enough, if she wanted to stay in the Yu household, she’d have to learn to live under Old Madam Yu’s watchful eye. 

When Yu Jiao stepped out of the room, Madam Song was helping Yu Mengshan wash up. Yu Jiao glanced at Yu Mengshan’s half-amputated leg. The wound had started to scab over. Luckily, the weather wasn’t too hot yet, otherwise, the injury would’ve been even harder to bear.

Yu Qizhe walked out from the inner room. As he passed Yu Jiao, he didn’t spare her a glance. Yu Jiao didn’t mind and followed him out of the east wing into the courtyard. 

At the large water vat, Yu Qizhe scooped up water, dipped a willow twig in some salt, and began rinsing his mouth. Yu Jiao watched and copied him, breaking off a twig from the courtyard’s willow tree, dipping it in salt, and curiously trying this local tooth-cleaning method.

As soon as the salty twig touched her mouth, the overwhelming saltiness hit her hard. She winced, her face scrunching up, and quickly took a big gulp of water to rinse her mouth.

Yu Qizhe caught this out of the corner of his eye. The corners of his lips lifted slightly, just for a second, before he went back to quietly splashing water on his face.

Yu Jiao took a while to rid her mouth of the salty taste. Just as she turned to scoop some water to wash her face, she froze. In the soft morning light, golden rays fell gently on Yu Qizhe’s sharp, youthful profile. The sight was so striking it made her heart skip a beat.

Even much later, Yu Jiao would still vividly remember the way the crystal-clear water rolled down Yu Qizhe’s slim jaw, it was dazzling.

Yu Qizhe wiped his face with a cloth and glanced at the dazed Yu Jiao. Without saying a word, he walked past her in silence. Yu Jiao snapped out of it, finished washing up, and was just about to head into the kitchen when she was stopped by Yu Ruhai.

“Meng girl, come here,” he called.

Yu Jiao glanced toward the kitchen, where Madam Song was busy preparing breakfast. Madam Song gave her a smile and said, “I can handle it on my own. Your grandfather is calling you, go on now!”

Yu Jiao walked toward the main hall.

Yu Ruhai was speaking with a few villagers who had come early in the morning for a consultation and some medicine. When he saw Yu Jiao enter, he smiled warmly and said, “Meng girl, you’re remarkably talented in medicine. From now on, follow me when I see patients and learn as much as you can.”

The villagers only knew Yu Jiao as the bride bought to ward off misfortune for the sickly Yu Qizhe. None of them had paid her much attention before. Now that Yu Ruhai wanted this young girl to learn medicine from him, they were shocked.

Yu Jiao kept her expression calm and stood quietly behind Yu Ruhai. The first to be examined was a middle-aged man who looked weak and weary. “I’ve had diarrhea since the night before last,” he said. “At first, I didn’t think much of it, but it hasn’t stopped for three days. I can’t eat anything and keep running to the latrine.”

Yu Ruhai asked, “What did you eat the night it started?”

The man replied, “Just the usual. Nothing out of the ordinary. The whole family ate the same food, but I’m the only one with diarrhea…”

While he was still speaking, his face suddenly changed. He stood up in a rush and bolted outside, shouting as he went, “Uncle Yu, I’m borrowing your latrine!”

Yu Ruhai turned to Yu Jiao. “What prescription would you suggest?”

He was clearly testing her. Yu Jiao understood this, but she had no reason to hide her abilities. If she wanted to hold her ground in the Yu family, she had to prove her worth.

“Without feeling the pulse, I can’t say for certain what caused the diarrhea. But if it’s due to eating unclean food, then I’d prescribe agastache, areca peel, aged tangerine peel, magnolia bark, angelica dahurica, medicated leaven, perilla leaf, poria, jujube, and fresh ginger.” 

“Boil them in water for the time it takes two incense sticks to burn. Strain the liquid and boil it again. Drink warm, twice daily, morning and evening.” She said clearly and methodically.

Yu Ruhai was stunned for a moment, then his eyes lit up. He looked at Yu Jiao with keen interest, silently thinking that she must’ve had an excellent teacher back in the capital. This prescription was not only precise but also quite refined, much more effective than the ones passed down through the Yu family.

A moment later, the man returned, pale-faced and weak. “Uncle Yu, please give me the medicine. This diarrhea is killing me.”

Yu Ruhai picked up his brush to write the prescription when Yu Jiao asked, “Have you been burping these past few days?”

The man nodded. “Yes, I was, but after drinking a bit of vinegar, it stopped.”

Yu Jiao spoke again, “Then your diarrhea may be due to a chill. Even though it’s May and the weather is warming, the temperature still drops significantly at night.”

The man looked puzzled. “I thought catching a chill usually causes a fever? But now that you mention it… the night it started, I did leave the window open while I slept, thinking it was cooler.”

“For some people, catching a chill does lead to diarrhea,” Yu Ruhai said thoughtfully. Then he asked again to test her, “So what would you prescribe for cold-induced diarrhea?”

“Kudzu root, scutellaria, coptis, white peony, poria, atractylodes, talc, stir-fried hyacinth bean, dried tangerine peel, plantain seed, charred black plum, charred hawthorn, and raw licorice. Boil in water for two incense sticks’ time and drink warm.” Yu Jiao replied evenly.

As she finished speaking, Yu Ruhai had already started writing down the prescription she’d just recited, pretending to praise her as he said, “You’ve clearly been studying hard. You’ve remembered everything I’ve taught you.”

Yu Jiao couldn’t help the slight twitch at the corner of her mouth. What a shameless old man.

Yu Ruhai picked up the prescription, “I’ll take him to get the medicine. You go ahead and check the pulses of the others waiting.”

The remaining villagers were skeptical. “Doctor Yu, she’s just a young girl, can she even read pulses properly? What if she misdiagnoses us?”

Yu Ruhai reassured them with a smile. “Don’t worry. I’m just letting Meng girl practice reading pulses and learn the techniques. Once I’m done with the medicine, I’ll examine all of you myself.”

Only then did the villagers quiet down.

Yu Ruhai led the patient to the west side of the hall to fetch the herbs. Yu Jiao sat down and began checking pulses one by one, occasionally asking a question or two.

At that moment, Old Madam Yu walked out from the east side of the house. When she saw Yu Jiao sitting in the very chair where Yu Ruhai normally treated patients, acting as if she were a real physician, she was instantly furious.

Old Madam Yu gave the villagers a polite smile, then turned to Yu Jiao with a scowl. She yanked Yu Jiao up from the chair and hissed through gritted teeth, “What do you think you’re doing here? There’s plenty of work to do around the house, and you’re just sitting here playing doctor?”

Yu Jiao brushed her hand off and replied coolly, “The old master told me to check their pulses.”

Dropping Yu Ruhai’s name made Old Madam Yu fume even more. She clenched her teeth, seething inside.

Just then, Yu Ruhai returned from the west side with the medicine. Old Madam Yu instantly changed her demeanor, putting on a warm smile. “Master, how could you let Meng girl examine patients? She’s just a girl, it really isn’t appropriate.”