dognovel Chapter 52 Recuperation in the Northern Desert
Chapter 52 Recuperation in the Northern Desert
Su Yuning never expected that she would catch a cold so soon after reuniting with her husband. The environment here was very harsh and there were not many herbs, so she could only drink ginger soup to dispel the cold and sweat.
As Ye Beichen fed her ginger soup, he said with a tender reproach, "Silly wife, why didn't you dress warmly for the journey? Or you could have written to me and come to pick you up."
Su Yuning smiled slightly and explained, "I was in Xinghua Village at the time, and there were no carrier pigeons there, so I couldn't contact you. I had to come all by myself."
"Alright, I understand. Drink all the ginger soup, then lie down and sleep for a while," Ye Beichen gently instructed. After watching Su Yuning finish the soup, he went to another tent to handle official business.
When the old lord learned that his daughter-in-law had come here, he was very happy. However, being a father, he lacked the thoughtfulness of a mother and simply ordered some jewelry and beef and mutton to be sent over.
Afterwards, the servants informed the old lord that Miss Su had caught a cold on her way here. The old lord was very worried and hurriedly sent over all the medicines he had prepared, including ginseng, lingzhi, and diaphoretic herbs.
At this moment, Ye Beichen couldn't help but complain to his father, "Why didn't you send over such precious medicinal herbs sooner?"
The old lord replied helplessly, "I didn't know about this before. If I had, I would have sent it over."
"Alright, thank you for your hard work. Go home early." Ye Beichen replied perfunctorily, then took the herbs for dispelling cold and inducing sweating to the kitchen to brew the medicine.
After Su Yuning finished drinking the medicinal soup, she suddenly felt unbearable abdominal pain and then fainted. When the doctor came to examine her, he found that she had symptoms of poisoning. So Ye Beichen quickly took the remaining dregs to the doctor for examination and found that several of the medicinal ingredients were poisonous.
Now, Ye Beichen panicked. He grabbed the doctor's hand and pleaded, "Doctor, please, you must save her no matter what! She's the most important person to me!"
The doctor nodded, then hurriedly went back to prepare the antidote.
At this moment, Ye Beichen stormed into his father's tent, his face stern as he questioned him.
"What exactly did Su Yuning do to upset you? Why did you send her poison?"
The old lord was completely bewildered and didn't know what was going on. "That's impossible! Those are all herbs that dispel cold and induce sweating. Besides, ginseng and lingzhi are tonics. How could they be poisonous?"
"But she's been poisoned! The doctor found poison in the dregs of the medicine. How do you explain that?" Ye Beichen asked seriously.
The old lord muttered to himself, "These medicinal herbs were given to me by the Nangong family. Could it be that Master Nangong wants to harm me?"
"This is a one-time exception, and it won't happen again!" Ye Beichen ignored him and left after saying that.
Afterwards, the doctor brought Su Yuning an antidote, which Ye Beichen carefully fed to her. However, she remained unconscious, and the doctor waved his hand in response, "I am powerless to help."
"Doctor, you must see this through to the end! You can't give up halfway! Please, tell me what medicinal herbs can save her?" Ye Beichen asked anxiously.
The doctor was silent for a moment, then replied, "Only by combining the Nine Deaths Resurrection Grass, the Thousand Gold Life-Sustaining Pill, and the Snow Lotus to make a medicine can Miss Su have a chance of survival. These rare medicinal materials can only be transported by camel caravans or by Master Nangong, given his extensive connections and abundant funds."
"Alright, I'll try to find her some medicine." Ye Beichen nodded in agreement and then saw the doctor off.
Afterwards, Ye Beichen rode at full speed to the school to seek Xiao Doukou's help.
"Little Doukou, there's something I need your help with."
"Brother Ye, please tell me. As long as Doukou can help, I will do my best." Doukou readily nodded in agreement.
"Please go back to the manor and help me find a few medicinal herbs: the Nine Deaths Resurrection Grass, the Thousand Gold Life-Sustaining Pill, and the Snow Lotus. After it's done, Brother Ye will give you gold and silver treasures," Ye Beichen pleaded.
"Father is very strict about the medicinal herbs, but I will find a way to get them for you," Xiaodoukou replied confidently.
"Thank you! Be careful." Ye Beichen said with concern.
Little Cardamom winked playfully, then skipped and hopped home.
In Xinghua Village, a woman felt a tightness in her chest and her eyelids kept twitching, so she called Old Su over. "I feel a bit unwell. Could it be that something happened to my daughter? Why don't we go to the northern desert together to look for her?"
Old Su nodded in agreement, "Alright, let's set off as soon as possible!"
The next day, the two elderly people, both over fifty, went to town to rent a car and then hurriedly headed towards the northern desert.
In the capital, Nangong Xue'er and Young Master Zhao moved to a new house together. They did not inform their relatives and friends, but only brought Nangong Xue'er's mother with them.
A lush bamboo grove stretched out in front of the new house, with a cobblestone path leading through it to the Zhao residence. The steward was already waiting at the door, greeting them warmly.
"Welcome home, Your Highness and Princess! Welcome home, Madam!"
Zhao Shouyi nodded, and Nangong Xue'er and her mother responded with smiles. Then the butler walked ahead with a smile and led the way for them.
The mansion has a nice environment, with artificial hills and fish ponds, as well as a long corridor for resting. Red lanterns are hung at the corner of the corridor. Continuing forward, a row of tall and large houses comes into view. The house in the middle is the living room, and the two houses on the sides are side rooms and bedrooms.
The housekeeper first arranged for Zhao Shouyi, the old lady, and Nangong Xue'er to rest in the living room, while he went to the backyard to instruct the kitchen staff to prepare lunch.
At the dinner table, the old lady gently instructed, "My daughter is pregnant, and her mood fluctuates. Young Master Zhao, please don't take it to heart."
Zhao Shouyi smiled and nodded, "Mother-in-law, I understand. Don't worry."
Then, the old lady scolded her daughter, "You used to sleep in late all the time. Now that you're a mother, you can't be lazy anymore. Go to bed early and get up early, and take good care of your child and yourself."
Nangong Xue'er asked, looking bewildered, "Mother, why are you talking so strangely today?"
Nangong Xue'er's mother responded gently, "I'm going back to Mobei. After all, that's where I've lived most of my life. I can't help much here, and I feel quite lonely. You and Young Master Zhao should support and tolerate each other and live a good life together."
At this, tears welled up in Nangong Xue'er's eyes. "Mother, I can't bear to see you leave! Who will help take care of the children? Who will take care of me? You live such a humble life in the Nangong mansion, why do you want to go back there?"
Zhao Shouyi was also anxious. He tried to persuade her gently, "Mother-in-law, that Master Nangong seems to have a bad temper, and I heard from Xue'er that his wife is quite unreasonable and everyone in the mansion is afraid of her. Now that Xue'er and I have settled down here, we are worried about you going back alone. Please stay, I beg you."
The old lady was determined to leave. She smiled kindly and replied, "I'm getting old and just want to go back to my hometown to live out my remaining years. I'm relieved to see that you two are doing well. Please don't stop me this time. I really intend to go back."
Nangong Xue'er replied reluctantly, "Then please stay with me for one more day. Let's have a good talk, and Zhao Shouyi will take you home tomorrow, okay?"
"Alright then," the old lady nodded in agreement.
Because Su Yuning was severely poisoned, she was shivering and unconscious. Ye Beichen, who was guarding her, was almost in tears. He kept comforting her, "Yuning, you must hold on! The antidote will be here soon! You are the only one for me in this life. You must hold on!"
In the darkness, Su Yuning seemed to hear Ye Beichen's plea, and her heartbeat gradually calmed down.
After returning home, Xiaodoukou took the initiative to reconcile with her parents and even agreed to marry a man more than ten years her senior. She even asked her father to invite the man to the mansion so that she could meet him and get to know him better.
Seeing his youngest daughter's attitude completely change, Master Nangong nodded happily, "Good, good, good! It's so good that you're so obedient. Your mother and I don't have to worry about you anymore! You wait at home, I'll go invite some guests over right away!"
Little Doukou nodded obediently, "Okay, Father, take care!"
No sooner had Master Nangong left than Madam Nangong also left the mansion. She wasn't going out for the sake of the children, but rather dressed up beautifully to meet the steward.
As for Xiaodoukou, she naturally took advantage of this precious time to rummage through the Tibetan medicine pavilion looking for medicinal herbs.
Fortunately, neither the steward nor Madam Nangong were at the mansion, and fortunately, the cabinets storing the medicinal herbs were labeled with names, so Xiaodoukou obtained the three herbs without any effort and then ran out to deliver them as fast as she could.
When Master Nangong and his guests returned, they immediately discovered that the door to the Tibetan medicine pavilion had been pried open. Without even greeting his guests, he rushed into the pavilion, only to find that many medicinal herbs were carelessly thrown on the ground, and several rare herbs were missing. After careful consideration, he concluded that it must have been Xiaodoukou's doing. He then ordered his servants to search the entire mansion, but after searching every nook and cranny, they still couldn't find her.
Master Nangong was furious and roared in the courtyard, "That little brat is too hateful! If I catch her, I'll beat her to a pulp!"
The guest standing nearby trembled with fear and replied in a low voice, "Master Nangong, this has nothing to do with me."
Master Nangong was annoyed with everyone at this moment, and angrily retorted, "Get back here! I don't want to see you!"
The guest nodded in agreement and then quickened his pace to leave the Nangong residence.
Master Nangong asked the maid, "Where is the steward? Where did he go?"
The maid shook her head, indicating she didn't know.
At this moment, Master Nangong asked again, "Where is Madam? She was just here a moment ago, where did she go now?"
The maid replied, "They probably went shopping."
Master Nangong pointed at the maid and gave her a good scolding, "Why didn't you go shopping with Madam?" The maid was so frightened that she didn't say a word and let the master scold her.
As luck would have it, Madam Nangong and the steward returned to the mansion hand in hand, just in time to run into Master Nangong. Master Nangong immediately grabbed a broom and started beating Madam Nangong and the steward. In an instant, the Nangong mansion was in chaos. The steward protected Madam Nangong, while Madam Nangong dodged and weaved. Master Nangong cursed and raised the broom as the three of them played hide-and-seek.
"Butler, what's wrong with you? Why are you protecting her?" Master Nangong asked angrily. "What's your relationship with her?"
At this moment, the butler bravely replied, "My wife and I are deeply in love, of course we are a couple!"
This made Master Nangong so angry that he vomited blood. He ordered the guards to arrest the two men, and then, according to family rules, he severely beat his wife with thirty strokes of the cane and the steward with thirty lashes.
Afterwards, Master Nangong wrote a letter of divorce with a serious expression and threw it at Madam Nangong, then drove her and the steward out of the mansion.
Having obtained the rare medicinal herbs, Ye Beichen didn't dare to delay for a moment. He immediately invited a doctor to brew the medicine and then fed it to Su Yuning.
While Su Yuning was still unconscious, Ye Beichen was extremely anxious, fearing that something might have happened to his beloved woman. At this moment, Xiao Doukou comforted him warmly.
"Brother Ye, don't worry, Sister Su will definitely get better. Didn't the doctor say that with these medicinal herbs, he is absolutely confident that he can save her life?"
Ye Beichen nodded. "I hope so. Xiao Doukou, it's getting dark, why aren't you going home yet?"
Little Bean was both amused and exasperated. "I've made a huge mistake. I took my father's medicinal herbs without permission. Do you think I can ever go back?"
Ye Beichen replied with a guilty expression, "I'm sorry, it was all for our sake that you risked your life like this. Since you can't go back to the Nangong Mansion, then you can move into the dormitory at the academy. I'll cover your tuition and accommodation costs."
"Okay, thank you, Brother Ye," Little Bean replied, and then happily went to the school.
After driving away Madam Nangong and the steward, and losing the priceless medicinal herbs, Master Nangong fainted from anger.
When the doctor arrived to treat him, it was too late. Although he was saved, Master Nangong was paralyzed on one side and would have to use a wheelchair from now on.
"Doctor, I have a lot of medicinal herbs. Can you cure my illness? Will I be able to move around freely like before?" Master Nangong asked anxiously.
The doctor was silent for a moment, then sighed and replied, "Alas, the situation is not very optimistic. Don't worry or get anxious. Take the herbal medicine and get plenty of rest. Starting tomorrow, I will come over every noon to give you acupuncture. Let's try one course of treatment first."
"Alright then, thank you, doctor." Master Nangong replied helplessly, then arranged for a maid to see the doctor off.
To Master Nangong's surprise, the steward secretly slipped back in the middle of the night. He packed the gold and silver treasures in the mansion into a bundle, threw it over the wall, then climbed out through the dog hole. He and Madam Nangong then happily left for distant lands with the treasures!
When Master Nangong learned that his treasure had been stolen, he was so angry that he fainted on the spot. He didn't wake up until three days later.