Chapter 46: Tearing Flesh to Patch a Wound

The two of them shifted their moods and stepped into Brocade-Like Courtyard.

Inside the courtyard, Chi Guiwan had already woken up. At that moment, she was standing amidst the sea of blossoms, watching the gardeners tend to the rare and precious flowers, her eyes filled with pure innocence and tranquility.

Such delicate things naturally required careful nurturing.

Just like her mother, Chi Guiwan.

...

In the small courtyard.

Madam Lü had finally washed up thoroughly, feeling as though she had returned to the world of the living. Having starved for several days, she lacked even the strength to eat properly, so she managed only a few sips of nourishing porridge before retiring to bed.

In contrast, the situation next door with Lü Yi was far more severe. The wounds on his arm, his calf, and his neck were all deteriorating to varying degrees. Particularly the wound on his arm—punctured by a hairpin and left improperly treated—was already swollen, black, and purple.

His entire arm was too stiff to lift.

After three or four maidservants and pages helped clean him up, the physician was finally summoned to examine him.

The physician inspected the injuries and said with a solemn expression, "If the Young Master's arm is to heal completely, we have no choice but to excise the rotting flesh and patch the wound. I did not bring any anesthetic powder with me today, so we must proceed by brute force. Can you endure this?"

"What? Excise the flesh and patch the wound?!"

Now that he was cleaned up, Lü Yi looked once more like a handsome young scholar of fair complexion, though his haggard expression diminished his usual allure. Upon hearing that flesh had to be cut away, his face flushed crimson in an instant, and the agitation immediately reignited his agony.

"There is no other way. If we do not do this, you risk losing the arm entirely. The Young Master must bear with it; I am about to begin!"

"What? So soon?"

The physician possessed a stern and uncompromising temperament. He instructed the attendants to hold Lü Yi down firmly before starting. Wherever his blade fell, pus and blood welled forth, causing Lü Yi to shriek in agonizing pain. Hearing the commotion from next door, Madam Lü burst through her door in a panic, only to be blocked by an elderly servant woman.

"The physician is treating the Young Master's injuries. It is best if Madam does not go in to watch. Should any disturbance delay the treatment and affect the Young Master's condition, the loss would outweigh the gain, would it not?"

"But how can medical treatment be this agonizing? Are you people deliberately seeking revenge?"

"Madam Lü, such words are too heavy for us to bear! The Second Son-in-law was personally chosen by the master himself; how could we dare to slight him? We still value our lives. Rest assured, the physician is a renowned master of his craft, and his medicine is guaranteed to cure the ailment!"

"Is that so?" Madam Lü remained doubtful and suspicious.

Yet she dared not truly interrupt, fearing it might hinder her son's recovery. She could only stand outside, listening to the continuous screams echoing one after another, her heart heavy with anxiety.

After a long while, the cries subsided.

Lü Yi's face was completely drained of color from the pain, and sweat drenched his entire body as if he had just been hauled out of water. The attendants busied themselves wiping him down and changing his garments, and it took a long while before he was tidied up.

By the time Madam Lü arrived, Lü Yi was already lying in bed.

The bandages were neatly wrapped, but the visible weakness in his person was undeniable. Heartache gripping her, Madam Lü stroked his cheek and murmured, "My poor boy has suffered."

"It's nothing. The physician said the infected matter has been drained. As long as the dressings are changed properly, my arm will be fine."

"That's good, that's good."

Now that his illness was treated and his clothes were changed, she longed to leave the Vice Minister's estate and return home for peace of mind, yet she did not know how to broach the subject.

Just then, Aunt Zhao—the very person who had helped them earlier—returned.

"The Master considers that Madam Lü might be homesick, so he specifically instructed this concubine to prepare a carriage. That way, the Young Master can endure less hardship on the journey and properly recover at home. Furthermore, since the marriage is to be advanced, we can dispense with the cumbersome formalities and hollow rituals. If feasible, how about setting the date for the thirteenth of the eighth month?"

The thirteenth of the eighth month?

That was merely a month away. Was that enough time?

Madam Lü was deeply skeptical.

Aunt Zhao perceived her reservations and immediately added, "Madam Lü can rest easy. Though the Second Young Miss's marriage is somewhat rushed, all the necessary items have long been prepared, and no ceremonial rites will be omitted. After all... since they have already shared the intimacy of husband and wife, some matters are difficult to speak of openly. It is better to have the ceremony sooner for peace of mind."

Her words suddenly reminded Madam Lü of a crucial matter.

Since the marriage was inevitable, the Lü family's reputation had to be safeguarded. If her son had indeed conceived a child with the girl, an earlier wedding would at least help conceal the timeline, making a month or two difference appear unremarkable.

If the matter dragged on, however, both families would lose all dignity.

Glancing at her son and seeing no objection from him, she nodded in consent. "Very well. We shall return quickly to make preparations, and send over the betrothal gifts in a couple of days."

"Wonderful. Externally, we will simply announce that Madam of the Vice Minister's household contracted a sudden illness and feared her time was short, wishing to witness the Second Young Miss's marriage before passing, which is why the ceremony was expedited. In this way, both our houses will save face."

"Aunt Zhao has arranged everything impeccably. We shall do as you say!"

"Splendid, splendid. Madam Lü truly possesses a Bodhisattva's heart; this concubine knew you would not make things difficult for the two young people."

Everyone loves to hear flattery, especially when spoken by Aunt Zhao.

Although she was part of the Vice Minister's household, her status remained that of a concubine. Therefore, whenever Madam Lü spoke with her, she invariably experienced a subtle sense of elevation and reverence—a feeling she deeply relished, making her quite willing to cultivate a favorable relationship with Aunt Zhao.

Before long, the mother and son of the Lü family departed under discreet cover, yet the turbulence within the Vice Minister's estate refused to settle.

In the courtyard of Joyful Ascent.

Madam Guo lay unconscious, her head tightly wrapped in thick bandages, bearing the lifeless aura of the near-dead.

Ever since the day she had been carried back, the servants in the courtyard had either been sold off or reassigned elsewhere. Aside from two left behind to keep a faint breath in her body, no one else remained to serve in this dwelling.

The former Madam of the Vice Minister had become a permanent figure of the past; what awaited Madam Guo was nothing less than death—it was merely postponed until after Chi Guiying's wedding!

Ultimately, the news could not be kept from Chi Guiwan.

When she arrived at the courtyard of Joyful Ascent, the once grand and cozy dwelling had fallen into abrupt desolation. Inside the room, looking at Madam Guo, who possessed scarcely any vitality left on the bed, Chi Guiwan felt an inexpressibly complex swirl of emotions.

Chi Guiwan knew that Madam Guo had indeed harbored malicious intentions toward her, yet within those deceitful years, perhaps a tiny fraction of genuine affection had also been cast her way. She retained very few memories of her mother, who had passed away from illness many years ago. Throughout her dozen or so years of life, Madam Guo before her—or rather, the skillfully disguised Madam Guo—had been her mother.

With a soft sigh, she turned to the two elderly maids attending to her and said, "I have brought some restorative herbs. Find a chance to see if they can be administered to Mother. Let us prolong her days by even one more day, if possible."

"Thank you, Eldest Young Miss!"

"Furthermore, here are two hundred taels of fragmented silver. You should... use them sparingly; otherwise, life may prove difficult for you both."

The two maids had served by Madam Guo's side for many years, and knowing that Chi Guiwan's gesture stemmed from sincere kindness, they looked at her with eyes filled with guilt.

Not a single one of the children whom their mistress had once cradled in her palm had shown up, yet this very Eldest Young Miss, whom she had schemed against for years, still held her in concern. As they wiped the tears from the corners of their eyes, they wondered: if Madam Guo were to wake up at this moment, would she too regret not having treated her with a genuine heart all these years?