Chapter 365: Poisoning

The next day, everyone got up early. Ancestor worship was a top priority and no one dared to neglect it.

The winter mornings were particularly cold. Xia Chunyu asked Ye Jiayao to wear suede cotton boots and a fox fur coat. He also asked Qiao Xi to fill a hot water bottle for her to hold in her hands. She was wrapped up like a bear, and then he took her out with satisfaction.

Ye Jiayao obediently let him lead her, and from time to time she stole glances at his cold profile. It seemed that he had changed a lot since returning this time, becoming more considerate. He even became gentle in that aspect, and would consider her feelings instead of just seeking his own happiness.

Uh... we have to go to worship our ancestors now, so it doesn't seem appropriate to think about these things. Ye Jiayao took a breath of cold air, letting the chill dispel those beautiful thoughts.

"Why is your face so red? What are you thinking about?" I heard his joking whisper in my ear.

Ye Jiayao retorted: "What are you thinking? What do you think I'm thinking? I'm just too warm because of you wrapping me up. It's hot, okay?"

Xia Chunyu raised his eyebrows and tilted the corners of his mouth, expressing deep doubt.

Ye Jiayao wrinkled her nose in dismay and deliberately took off the hood of her cloak. Xia Chunyu immediately put it on her: "Just pretend I didn't ask. You don't have to take off your hat to prove it."

Ye Jiayao glared at him, and there was a smug smile in his dark eyes. He couldn't help but feel discouraged, as his ability to keep a straight face seemed to have declined.

Unexpectedly, the first person to arrive today was Chunli. He was probably scared by the Marquis's scolding these past two days and wanted to perform well. The servants were already placing the offerings. After waiting for a while, the Marquis and his wife arrived. It was Chunfeng and Liuli who came first. The Third Uncle's family lived so close but were so late. The Marquis snorted and was very unhappy.

Liuli only greeted Youshi and Zhoushi and ignored everyone else.

Still very proud, Ye Jiayao was deeply skeptical of Liuli's claim that she liked Chunfeng. If she really liked him, would she be stingy with a smile? The last thing Chunfeng wanted to see was her being so cold and arrogant in front of his family!
After worshiping the heavens and offering sacrifices to ancestors, the sky became bright with a sunny day. According to custom, this day had to be a day of house sweeping, and the whole house was mobilized to clean the house thoroughly inside and out.

Yu Shi took care of all the ancestor worship, and Jiayao felt embarrassed to let Yu Shi worry about the house sweeping. Anyway, Chunyu had to go to the palace to report, so she didn't need to accompany him. Therefore, after the sacrifice, Ye Jiayao got busy.

Liuli went to Qiao's house, sat there for a cup of tea and then left. Later, Ye Jiayao heard from the servants that Liuli went to Zhou's house and sat there for most of the day before coming back.

Honestly speaking, Ye Jiayao was a little afraid that Liuli and Zhou would stick together. Nothing good would happen if these two met. It was New Year's Day, so she shouldn't make trouble again.

Xiangtao said that Doctor Jiang was going back and would come every seven days from now on.

Ye Jiayao thought that the other party also had to go back home to celebrate the New Year, and the young master was not seriously injured, so she ordered Qiao Xi to go to the accounting office and withdraw fifty taels of silver to give to Doctor Jiang.

After a while, Qiao Xi came back and brought back thirty taels, saying that Doctor Jiang only accepted that much and he refused to take even a cent more.

Ye Jiayao thought to herself that Doctor Jiang was too noble and upright, and such people were trustworthy. She wondered if Doctor Jiang had any research on gynecology. The effect of Doctor Renhetang's medicine was too slow, and changing a doctor might make a difference.

"Has the person left?" Ye Jiayao asked.

Qiao Xi replied: "Not yet, I'm packing my things."

Ye Jiayao immediately stopped what she was doing: "Qiao Xi, I'm going to see Doctor Jiang now, you go prepare a generous gift and send it over immediately."

Ye Jiayao came to Doctor Jiang's room, where Doctor Jiang was giving instructions to the wet nurse.

"Here is the medicine for seven days. Take it once at noon and once at night. Boil three bowls of water into one small bowl. You don't have to drink it all. Five or six spoons will be enough. The eldest young lady's breast milk is not enough, so goat milk is still needed. However, it must be heated thoroughly before drinking, otherwise it is easy to have diarrhea. Forget other foods. The child's digestive ability is not good now. It will be very troublesome if he gets sick from eating..."

The wet nurse wrote down everything.

Doctor Jiang thought for a moment and added, "Try to take the baby out as little as possible, and don't take him to crowded places."

After thinking for a while, it seemed that there was nothing to add, so Doctor Jiang said, "Let's leave it at that for now. If you have any questions, feel free to come to me. I probably won't be seeing patients during the Chinese New Year."

As he said this, he picked up the medicine box and was about to leave.

"Doctor Jiang..." Ye Jiayao walked in with a smile and motioned for the wet nurse to leave first.

"Does the Second Young Madam have any other instructions?" Doctor Jiang kept a calm expression, showing no emotion on his face.

There was no need to beat around the bush with this kind of person, just be straightforward, Ye Jiayao simply said, "There is something."

Doctor Jiang didn't say anything, waiting for Ye Jiayao to speak.

"I want to ask Dr. Jiang, can I see the gynecology department?"

Doctor Jiang looked her over for a while and said, "Your lips are pale, which means you are not getting enough blood. Will your period be regular?"

As he said this, he put down the medicine box, opened it, and took out a pulse pillow.

Ye Jiayao thought to herself: There is a way.

He sat down and stretched out his hand to feel her pulse. Doctor Jiang was not like the doctor at Renhetang, who squinted his eyes and stroked his beard every time he felt her pulse. He took her pulse for a long time. She just concentrated for a short while and said, "You have cold poison in your body, and the cold poison has accumulated for many years. Let me think... at least four or five years. It's a chronic poison. If my diagnosis is correct, it has been two years since the onset."

Ye Jiayao was confused. Wasn't it because of the cold entering her body? She thought it was the root of the disease from the night she spent floating in Yanxia Lake last time. How could it become a chronic cold poison? Four or five years, when she was at home!

"Do you feel excruciating pain every time you have your period? As if your intestines are twisted together?" asked Doctor Jiang.

Ye Jiayao nodded in surprise: "Yes, it started like this in April last year."

Doctor Jiang understood and said, "That's right. It's a good thing you came to see me today. In a few months, it will be too late and you won't be able to have children in this life."

Ye Jiayao was at a loss, this was too horrifying.

"But the doctors said I just had a cold and I've been taking medicine to recuperate."

Doctor Jiang snorted with a slight sneer: "You are poisoned, not suffering from a cold. It is useless to treat it."

"Think about it carefully. Have you been eating something in the past few years?"

Those were the memories of the original owner in the past few years. Ye Jiayao didn't explore the original owner's memories very much, or to be more precise, she didn't actively explore them, so she seldom thought about the past. Now that Doctor Jiang reminded her of this, Ye Jiayao concentrated and thought about it, and it seemed that it was true.

It should have been the winter when she was thirteen years old. She had an argument with Jinrong. It seemed that Jinrong scolded her mother, and she was so angry that she retorted. As a result, she was punished by Ning to kneel in the yard. The heavy snow almost froze her into a snowman. No matter how Su's mother cried and begged, Ning would not let her get up. Later, she fell ill and was about to die of a fever. Ye Binghuai said a few words to Ning, and Ning called a doctor for her. Later, the doctor prescribed a dose of pills, saying that she should take one pill every day. She took it for about half a year, but she didn't continue to take it because it was too troublesome. Could there be something wrong with the pill?

Doctor Jiang had already sat down to write a prescription, and he sighed: "Poor medical skills can harm lives. If you follow my prescription, seven doses of medicine would be enough if it is discovered early. Now, you need to take it for at least half a month. In addition, I will prescribe a dose for you to soak in, once every three days, for an hour each time. The water should be as hot as possible to open all the pores of the body so that the medicinal properties can penetrate better. With two-pronged approach, the cold poison in the body will definitely be removed."

Ye Jiayao took the prescription. She trusted Dr. Jiang's medical skills, and Dr. Jiang was so confident in what he said. However, this discovery was shocking, and she was a little dazed.

Just then, Qiao Xi brought the gift box over.

Ye Jiayao stood up and said gently, "Doctor Jiang, this time it's all thanks to you. I don't know how to thank you. You didn't want more for the consultation fee, so you must accept this gift box."

Doctor Jiang said calmly, "I don't need this kind of thing, Madam Second Young Master, you should keep it and give it to someone else!"

Having said that, he closed the medicine box and left.

Ye Jiayao was stunned, this Doctor Jiang's temper was so weird. It was his duty to cure diseases and save lives, but it was also normal for the patients' families to express their gratitude. They didn't steal or rob. Is there anyone in the world who can't get along with money?

Qiao Xi said, "Doctor Jiang has this temper. She refused the cloth given to her by the eldest young lady. With her medical skills, if she was willing to charge money, she would have become rich and opened a clinic long ago."

Ye Jiayao thought for a moment: "Doesn't she have a clinic at home?"

"No, that's it. She used all the money she earned from consultations to give medicine. She is a well-known philanthropist."

Ye Jiayao was filled with awe. This kind of person was so great. In comparison, Ye Jiayao felt that she was too inferior. She earned so much money and had thought about doing good deeds, but in the end she earned more than she gave.

An idea came to my mind. I just got some money from Zuo Qingyun, so I might as well open a charity to help those who can't afford medical treatment because they have no money. I believe Doctor Jiang will be happy to do this.

Looking at the two prescriptions in her hand, Ye Jiayao felt anxious. After all this time, it turned out to be poisoning. All the medicines she had taken for half a year were in vain. The most depressing thing was that all the pills were gone. Otherwise, she would have asked Doctor Jiang to verify it. However, the doctor should still be there. What was his last name?

Ye Jiayao thought for a while before she remembered that his last name was Gu.

This matter must be investigated thoroughly.

In fact, there is no need to investigate to know that it was Ning who did it. At that time, Jinrong was only twelve years old and would not have such thoughts. However, she likes to speak with facts.

When Xia Chunyu came back after completing his assignment, he saw that every corner of the mansion had been cleaned and looked brand new, except for the lack of red lanterns and festive window decorations, which made the place lack the festive atmosphere.

After asking the servants, they said that the second young lady was in the room, so Xia Chunyu went straight back to his room.

As soon as I entered the room, I saw her sitting on the bed in a daze.

Xia Chunyu took off his cloak, Qiao Xi took it and hung it on the phoenix-wing clothes hanger, then went out to make tea.

"What are you thinking about? So engrossed?" Xia Chunyu walked over and pinched her nose.

Ye Jiayao was not in the mood and was too lazy to move or hide, so she let him pinch her.

"Chun Yu, sit down. I have something to tell you." Ye Jiayao patted the edge of the bed.

(End of this chapter)