Chapter 116: Recovering from Illness
Wen Mingqian finally opened her eyes on the morning of the third day.
Sang Er and Gong Changan were both asleep, propped up on either side of her bed.
A ray of morning light shone in, illuminating the fluff on Gong Changan’s ear, reminding Wen Mingqian of him when he was just born. She couldn’t help but reach out and gently touch it.
Gong Changan woke up instantly. Seeing Wen Mingqian looking at him, he was overjoyed. “Mother, you’re finally awake! You scared me to death.”
“How long have I slept?” Wen Mingqian’s voice was hoarse.
“You’ve slept for three days. I was so worried I thought I would die,” Gong Changan said, his voice choked with emotion.
“Mother, you’re awake!” Sang Er also woke up, too happy to know what to do.
“You’ve both lost weight,” Wen Mingqian said, looking at the two children with heartache. “You must not have eaten or slept properly these past few days. I’ll make sure you get proper nourishment later.”
Gong Changan reached out and touched Wen Mingqian’s forehead. He had done this action hundreds of times while she was unconscious.
“That’s great, you don’t have a fever anymore,” Gong Changan said, relieved. “The imperial physician’s skills are truly extraordinary.”
“The Duke Feng’s Family knows you’re back, right?” Wen Mingqian asked.
“They knew the day I returned. My sworn brother and their little madam even came to visit, but you were already ill then,” Gong Changan said. “These past few days while you were sick, their family sent people to inquire about your health twice a day and sent many gifts.”
It wasn’t just their mansion; several other families also sent people to check on you when they heard you were ill.
Wen Mingqian knew this was all goodwill. Once she recovered, she would naturally thank them all one by one.
“Mother, have some tea to moisten your throat,” Gong Changan propped up a pillow behind Wen Mingqian, while Sang Er brought a cup of tea that was just right for her.
Wen Mingqian felt lightheaded, with only her head feeling heavy.
She hadn’t been this seriously ill in many years. The last time she was this sick was when she was a child.
Then Zhang Ma came in with people carrying noodle soup. “Miss hasn’t had anything to eat or drink for three days, which is not good. The weather is too hot now, and using only tonics can actually harm the body. This noodle soup is best. Drink half a bowl slowly, and if you have an appetite, have some dim sum.”
Wen Mingqian drank half a bowl of noodle soup and felt a slight sweat on her forehead. She was still weak and just wanted to lie down.
At this time, Wei Shi had also finished serving the old madam her breakfast and came to see Wen Mingqian. She was very happy to see her awake.
“Amitabha, you’re finally awake. You scared us all. The old madam was still asking about you. I was afraid she would worry too much if she knew the truth, so I had to cover it up,” Wei Shi said, chanting Buddhist prayers.
“Sister-in-law, you’ve worked hard these past few days. I heard from Zhang Ma and the others. Thank you for helping me manage things in this courtyard,” Wen Mingqian said gratefully.
To be honest, in this home, it was never Gong Xu who made her feel the warmest.
“Why be so formal among family? Besides, I only came here to put in an appearance. All the matters were handled perfectly by your people, so there was no need for me to worry,” Wei Shi said. “No wonder people say that a strong general has no weak soldiers.”
She continued, “Do you have an appetite? What do you want to eat? Even if we can’t make it at home, I’ll send someone to buy it for you.”
“First Madam truly dotes on our Madam like a younger sister,” Sang Er said. Ever since she entered this mansion, she truly felt that Wei Shi was a rare good person. “It makes us so envious to watch.”
“Silly girl, if I don’t dote on your Madam, who else should I dote on? We are in the same family, so aren’t we like sisters?” Wei Shi said. “Those who are not mothers don’t understand your Madam’s feelings. If a child is lost, it’s like losing a mother’s heart and liver.
Mingqian is very resilient. Anyone else would have died on the spot. She was just holding on. Once Changan returned, she couldn’t bear it anymore.”
“Have they caught all those people?” Wen Mingqian was very concerned about this.
“They’ve all been caught. Shao Si, Ma Daguang, and the two mute men who escaped have all been brought back,” Wei Shi said. “No matter what, they must be severely punished!”
“Have they not implicated anyone else?” Wen Mingqian frowned.
“I haven’t heard of that. Ma Daguang is sticking to his story, saying he was the mastermind and wanted to kidnap Changan to extort money from our family,” Wei Shi said. “Who else do you suspect?”
“To be honest, Sister-in-law, I’ve always suspected that Song Xiang was behind this,” Wen Mingqian said. “They dared to kidnap someone in broad daylight and kept Changan without food. Does this look like a normal kidnapping?
This time, it’s thanks to Changan’s quick thinking that he escaped on his own. If anything had gone wrong, I fear…”
“What you’re saying isn’t unreasonable. Song Xiulian is dead, so Song Xiang is naturally unwilling. He must also resent our family,” Wei Shi sighed. “But even under torture, Ma Daguang won’t confess anyone else, and we don’t have concrete evidence to prove Song Xiang was involved.”
“The city plans of this Song brother and sister are not ordinary. I imagine Song Xiang had already devised a plan to escape before he acted,” Wen Mingqian said with a slight, cold sneer. “I’m afraid he won’t rest easy in the future.”
“If that’s the case, it’s truly worrying! He always harbors malicious intentions towards us and might strike at any time,” Wei Shi said with a worried expression. “I must tell Jing’an and Yu’an to always take Changan with them when going to or from school, and never leave him alone.”
“I heard the Second Madam has woken up, so I came specifically to see her,” Granny Xu, who served the old madam, said as she entered with a young maid. “I know the First Madam is also here.”
“Granny Xu, please have a seat.” Everyone quickly made way for her. After all, she was an elder who served the old madam, and the younger generation had to respect her.
“The old madam doesn’t know the Second Madam is so seriously ill, but we all know and are very concerned. Now that we hear you’re awake, she’s overjoyed and insisted on coming to see you,” Granny Xu said with a smile after sitting down.
“Thank you for your concern, Granny. In another day or two, when I can get out of bed, I will go to the old madam to pay my respects, and then she will naturally be at ease,” Wen Mingqian said.
“Alas! Being sick is such a torment. In just a few days, the Second Madam looks like she’s lost a lot of weight,” Granny Xu said. “The weather is hot and not conducive to recovery, so please be careful. There’s no need to rush to pay respects to the old madam; she’s very understanding of her juniors.”
As they were speaking, the doctor arrived to take her pulse. He was also very happy to see Wen Mingqian awake. “Yesterday I said you were out of danger, and how are you? You’ve woken up today as expected! I’ll prescribe a few more doses of a milder formula. Take them for a few days, and you’ll be completely fine.”
Wen Mingqian naturally thanked the doctor again.
