Chapter 508: Fourth Brother’s Past
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“Alright, let’s go see An Xiaogu and the others.” Mingzhu interrupted Tang Chunlai’s rambling and instructed him, “Miss An has injuries, and Miss Li was the first to fall into the water. Both have suffered a lot. You must take good care of them.”
An Xiaogu and Li Shumei were placed in a room in the Feiyan Pavilion. They had just taken a hot bath, changed into clean clothes, and were sitting by the charcoal basin, holding bowls of hot ginger soup to drink. Their maidservants were twisting their hair while holding towels.
Li Shumei was calm, but An Xiaogu looked miserable. Her forehead and face were swollen and bruised, with some cuts, and her eyes were swollen as she leaned dejectedly in the arms of the old Momo, looking on the verge of tears.
When Mingzhu and Changhua entered, both of them stood up and asked Mingzhu, “Are you alright?”
Mingzhu quickly gestured for them to sit down. “You two saw me being carried in and were probably frightened. It wasn’t as scary as it seemed; it was just a precaution. The doctor didn’t come over earlier, and I also felt uncomfortable, so I didn’t dare to come and see you. I’m really sorry for what happened today. I invited you to be my guests, but I didn’t take care of you properly, and I made you suffer.”
Li Shumei bowed respectfully. “It’s not Wangfei’s fault. I chose to stay.”
An Xiaogu choked up as well. “It’s not your fault. It was my fault for getting you into trouble. If it weren’t for your sacrifice, I would have been doomed today. Fortunately, you’re safe. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to face you in the future.” With that, she couldn’t help but cry again, not because she was in pain, but simply out of fear.
Hua Momo felt extremely distressed and kept comforting An Xiaogu softly, patting her chest. “Good girl, good girl, don’t be scared, it’s all over now. The Wangfei is lucky and she’s protecting you.”
When An Xiaogu heard the old lady’s words, she blushed and became annoyed. “Stop coaxing me like a child. I’m not a child anymore.”
Hua Momo was puzzled and felt wronged. “Miss didn’t say she didn’t like it when I used to comfort you like this. Didn’t I have to comfort you like this when you couldn’t sleep at night?”
Mingzhu couldn’t help but burst into laughter. “Xiaogu, don’t pretend anymore. We’re all so familiar with each other, we won’t laugh at you.”
An Xiaogu blushed and pushed the old lady away. “Go away, go away, go away.”
Hua Momo refused to leave and asked Tang Chunlai to take good care of An Xiaogu. “…Don’t leave any lingering illness.”
After a careful examination, Tang Chunlai said, “The wounds are not deep or serious. Apply some bruise ointment and avoid getting the broken skin wet. The main issue is the cold and shock. Take two doses of medicine, rest for a few days, and you’ll be fine.” He then looked at Li Shumei and said, “The same symptoms apply to you, adjust the dosage accordingly.”
Li Shumei said, “I’m fine. I don’t need to take medicine.”
Mingzhu said, “You must take it. Women can’t withstand the cold as well as men. Listen to Doctor Tang, you can’t go wrong.”
Li Shumei no longer insisted. After a while, Tang Chunlai wrote the prescription, had someone fetch the herbs and boil the medicine. A strong medicinal scent wafted through the Feiyan Pavilion. Mingzhu stayed with An Xiaogu and Li Shumei until they took the medicine, then arranged for someone to escort them back. She was afraid they wouldn’t be able to explain the situation to those who came with them, so she specially arranged for Su Lan and Zheng Momo to accompany them.
Knowing her own condition wasn’t good and that staying here would trouble Mingzhu, An Xiaogu said her farewells decisively and grabbed Changhua’s hand. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to come out the day you leave. If I can, I’ll definitely set up a farewell wine for you at the Ten Li Pavilion. If not, you must remember that I’m thinking of you. When you arrive at Ji Kingdom, you must write to us.” With tears in her eyes, she added, “I originally embroidered a sachet for you and Mingzhu each to carry with you, but it was ruined by the water just now.”
Changhua hugged her and said, “Even if it’s ruined, give it to me. I’ll keep it as a memento.” Knowing they might not see each other again, both of them had teary eyes and barely managed to hold back from crying out loud.
An Xiaogu bid farewell to Li Shumei again, “Thank you so much for helping me today. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t know how much dirty water I would have to swallow, and my eyes might have been gouged out. My condition isn’t very good today, and I’m in someone else’s house, so I shouldn’t say too much thank you. When I’m feeling better, I’ll come to thank you in person.”
Li Shumei smiled slightly, “It’s nothing. You are both very good people, so it’s only natural.”
Mingzhu listened with some confusion. Did Li Shumei help An Xiaogu in the pond before? She was busy arranging for people to rescue others and dealing with Yuwen Bai at the time, so she didn’t see the situation in the pond clearly and didn’t know what exactly happened.
An Xiaogu explained, “I don’t know how to swim, and that person kept hitting me with the fishing rod, aiming for my eyes to blind me. I was in pain, scared, and panicked, almost choked to death. Sister Li kept pulling my belt, pulling me away to avoid him, so I didn’t suffer too much. Later, didn’t you go and grab that person’s hand to stop him? Sister Li took the opportunity to pull me away.”
Mingzhu suddenly realized and admired Li Shumei. She bowed to her, “Thank you very much.”
Li Shumei returned the gesture and said quietly, “I stayed today originally to help you, but unfortunately, I didn’t help much.”
Intentionally staying behind to help her? Mingzhu was increasingly curious about Li Shumei. After seeing off An Xiaogu, she asked Li Shumei, “If Sister Li isn’t in a hurry to leave, please tell me what happened.”
Li Shumei glanced at Changhua and smiled faintly, “I know why the Wangfei invited me here in a roundabout way.”
“I’ll go and check if your porridge is ready.” Changhua immediately understood and left the room, leaving Mingzhu and Li Shumei to talk.
Mingzhu kept Donghui nearby to take care of things and admitted openly, “Indeed, I asked Wenwen to find a way to invite you over because I wanted to know what happened between you and my fourth brother. I know Li Haixing is you.”
Li Shumei smiled with some melancholy, “That’s right, the Li Haixing the Wangfei saw that day was me. I used my eldest brother’s name to wander around the capital looking for someone.”
That person is Fourth Brother. Mingzhu immediately thought this, but she couldn’t ask so bluntly to an unmarried girl. She cautiously asked, “So, did Sister find that person?”
“I found him.” Li Shumei replied succinctly, “He is Wangfei’s fourth brother, Fu Mingzheng.” But she didn’t say more and stood up with a smile, apologizing, “I’ve troubled the Wangfei for too long today. There are many things to attend to at home, and you need to rest. I shouldn’t disturb you any longer. Please excuse me.”
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