Married to a Villainous Minister - Chapter 5

Yu Qizhe thought of how Meng Yujiao had just looked at him, her eyes bright and clear, not a trace of guilt, calmly meeting his gaze. He was reluctant, but he knew his mother would continue to secretly keep food for Meng Yujiao. So, with a sigh, he set down his book and stood up, walking out of his room.

Tall and straight, Yu Qizhe stood at the doorway. He pushed the door open again, not sparing a glance at Yujiao lying on the floor, and went straight to pick up the bowl and chopsticks on the ground. Seeing the food nearly untouched, he finally spoke.

“I’m not going to bring you food for every single meal.”

From the moment Yu Qizhe entered, Yujiao had been watching him closely. Hearing his cold words, she gave a faint smile, her eyes curving sweetly as she put on a pitiful expression.

“My legs hurt badly, and my ribs feel broken. I really can’t eat. Could you find me some herbs?” Her watery eyes locked onto him, full of hopeful light.

From Meng Yujiao’s memories, she knew the Yu family’s old man was a village healer. He often treated headaches, fevers, and injuries for the villagers. The Yu family also dried and stored many herbs.

Yu Qizhe might dislike her, but he’d still brought her food and water, clearly, a soft heart beneath the harsh words. That’s why Yujiao chose to plead gently.

Sure enough, Yu Qizhe didn’t immediately reject her. Instead, he said, “I don’t know anything about medicine.”

“I know a little about traditional healing methods,” Yu Jiao continued softly. “You just need to help me gather a few herbs.”

Yu Qizhe was suspicious, how could Meng Yujiao know medicine? But he didn’t dig further. With a cold tone, he asked, “What herbs do you need?”

Seeing that he was at least asking, Yu Jiao quickly replied, “Eclipta, false daisy, pine resin, soap tree leaves, five qian (approximately 25 grams) each, ground into powder.”

Yu Qizhe listened. She sounded convincing, like she actually knew what she was talking about. His suspicion deepened, but he had already decided, once she recovered, he would send her away.

As he turned to leave, Yu Jiao quickly added, “And please bring me some medicinal wine too.” Yu Qizhe didn’t respond, but she knew he’d heard. He might seem cold and unapproachable, but inside, he was still soft-hearted.

All she needed were external remedies. She had formulas for internal medicine too, but judging by the Yu family’s attitude, there was no way they’d let Yu Qizhe decoct herbs for her.

Old Madam Yu and the third wife, Madam Zhao, usually took midday naps. Right now, only the first branch couple was still in the courtyard, weaving grain baskets from rattan. Seeing Yu Qizhe come out of the small room, they said nothing.

Old Madam Yu was the old man’s second wife. The first and second branches were born of his late first wife, while the third branch was born to her, the current wife. Naturally, the first and second branches were closer to each other.

Yu Qizhe walked through the courtyard, searching the drying racks for the herbs Yu Jiao had requested. Although he didn’t study medicine, growing up around the old man’s practice had made the family familiar with common herbs. They often gathered them from the mountains and sold them to clinics in town. It’s one of their main sources of income besides farming.

Seeing him gathering herbs, Madam Zhang from the first branch quietly asked, “Wulang, what are you doing with those herbs?”

Yu Qizhe respected the first branch. A while ago, Yu Mengshan was bitten by a wild animal while foraging and broke a leg. It was Yu Qiaoshan who carried him back. Since then, the couple had helped the second branch a lot.

He answered in a low voice, “Looking for herbs to treat her injuries.”

Who “her” referred to was obvious.

Madam Zhang whispered in protest, “Why bother? Wulang, someone like her, just let her suffer.”

Even though Meng Yujiao and Yu Qizhe had never actually consummated their marriage, nor had they gone through formal rites, she had entered the household as his bride to ward off bad luck. And yet, she had crawled naked into his cousin’s bed. Disgraceful! What man could tolerate that?

Yu Qizhe didn’t respond. He kept his head down, continuing to search. It wasn’t that he felt no resentment, what she’d done was indeed outrageous. But at the end of the day, it was his own frail health that had wasted a girl’s youth.

He was used to the cold stares and ridicule by now. Meng Yujiao’s stunt didn’t matter much anymore. He had opposed the marriage from the beginning, but the old man had believed a fortune-teller.

“Don’t say more,” Yu Qiaoshan gently nudged Madam Zhang with his elbow. “Men need their dignity. He’s young, and something like this has to sting.”

Madam Zhang was only speaking out for the second branch. It was the old man who insisted on marrying in that Meng girl. Now that a scandal had happened, they were blaming it all on the second branch. How unfair!

Madam Zhang is sharp-tongued but soft-hearted. Worried that Yu Qizhe might get caught by the third branch or the old lady, she put down her rattan strips and walked over to the herb racks.

“Which ones are you still missing?” she whispered.

“False daisy,” Yu Qizhe replied.

“I think Father stored some dried ones in the west room. I’ll go look,” Madam Zhang said, heading inside.

The herbal storeroom is next to the third branch’s living quarters. Madam Zhang stepped lightly, carefully searching the west room for a while before finally finding the herb. Just as she was about to leave, she bumped right into Yu Hanshan, the third son, emerging from his room.

Seeing her sneaky posture, he asked, “Big sister-in-law, what are you doing, skulking around?”

Madam Zhang hid the herb under her sleeve and shot back without fear, “Who’s sneaking? My throat hurts. I grabbed some herbs to brew tea, what’s sneaky about that?”

Yu Hanshan stared at her hand. “Your throat? You don’t know much about herbs. Be careful you don’t take the wrong one.”

Madam Zhang had been in the Yu family for nearly twenty years and knew the basics. Walking past him, she replied, “It’s just inflammation. I picked some honeysuckle. It’s not worth anything. What’s with you watching me like I’m a thief?”

Yu Qiaoshan had heard the noise and chimed in, “Didn’t find honeysuckle? Want me to wake Father and have him write a prescription?”

Madam Zhang picked up the cue. “He loves his naps. It’s nothing serious, I just need a cup of honeysuckle to cool down.” With that, she headed to the kitchen, looking like she was really about to make tea.

Seeing Yu Qizhe still in the courtyard, she called out, “Wulang, help me grab a medicine pot.”

Yu Qizhe brought the pot into the kitchen. Madam Zhang quickly stuffed the false daisy into his hands and whispered, “Is this enough?”

“Plenty.” She’d given him much more than five qian, more than enough.

“I’ll brew it,” she offered while rinsing the pot. She had already told Yu Hanshan she was making tea, so she might as well prepare the medicine too.

Yu Qizhe shook his head. “Thank you, Aunt, but these herbs are for external use. No need to brew them.”