The Lucky Farmgirl

Second Madam, Fourth Madam, and Fifth Madam all had their heads lowered. They had seen this Imperial Doctor Zhou before; every time, she was delicate and amiable. Who knew she had such a strong temperament and boldness to directly leave all the masters of the State Duke’s residence waiting for an hour and a half over a trivial matter, causing such a commotion.

As soon as the carriage stopped, Manbao jumped off and rushed into the house, shouting, "Dad, Mom, I’m back—"

Liu Sanniang chased after her, "Master, I forgot to tell you, Grandpa and Grandma are not home; they’ve gone to Pu Village."

Manbao was disappointed upon hearing this and asked, "It’s not time for transplanting rice seedlings yet. What are they going to Pu Village for?"

"Grandma went to choose a plot of land to grow vegetables," Liu Sanniang said, a little embarrassed. "Lichong and Fifth Uncle took on a business from the palace, so Grandpa and Grandma want to clear a plot of land to farm themselves."

Manbao thought the idea was good.

Old Zhou and Ms. Qian were not home, and even Junior Ms. Qian was out, while the sisters-in-law were busy with their own affairs, some earning money, others studying. So, after walking around, Manbao dragged Liu Sanniang to find Old Madam Liu for a meal.

Old Madam Liu had just heard the servant’s report and stood at the door waiting for her. As soon as Manbao arrived, Old Madam Liu waved and smiled, "I guessed you would come over. Have you eaten yet? Bai Shan and others have gone to the Ministry of Rites to get their examination identity cards. The Ministry of Personnel exam is set for the 20th of next month..."

Manbao was taken aback, "Scheduled so late? That’s still thirty-eight days away."

She continued, "I haven’t eaten. That’s why I came to ask for food."

"You’re quite mischievous. What begging for food in our family?" Old Madam Liu looked at the time and felt distressed. They usually had their lunch, but Manbao hadn’t eaten yet, surely she was hungry, so she asked the kitchen to prepare food.

Manbao said, "Let’s have noodles; making dishes now is too troublesome."

"The stove in the kitchen is still lit, they will be ready soon. We shouldn’t compromise on lunch."

Thus, Manbao enjoyed a sumptuous lunch and felt very happy, "It’s really good to be home."

Old Madam Liu smiled, while Ms. Zheng couldn’t help but ask, "Did the State Duke Zhao’s residence not even serve lunch?"

Manbao waved her hand, "I didn’t want to eat at their place; I wanted to come home and eat, besides I could see Grandma Liu and Auntie Zheng."

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law duo loved her sweet-talking and were delighted. They gently patted her head and said, "If you like, next time when you come out, just have Sanniang inform us beforehand. We’ll prepare a meal for you, so you can eat right away."

Manbao happily agreed, thought for a moment, and said, "Probably change the medicine once every ten days; I’ll certainly be able to come out again in ten days."

As for going to the Tang Residence for medical consultation, that could only be done during the lunch break, it was too tight, and she couldn’t return home.

Old Madam Liu couldn’t help but ask, "How’s the smallpox vaccine going?"

Manbao said, "It all depends on this experiment; in three to five days, there should be results."

Tomorrow is vaccination day; generally it takes two to five days for the symptoms to fully show, then the situation could be roughly estimated.

Old Madam Liu let out a sigh of relief and nodded, "That’s good."

When the time came, Old Madam Liu and Ms. Zheng sent Manbao to the front courtyard. She couldn’t help but hold Manbao’s hand and smile, "Manbao, there are many laborious things in this world. Just do what you need to do, and there’s no need to overly mind others’ opinions and views."

Manbao was stunned for a moment, then smiled brightly, "I know Grandma Liu, don’t worry. I haven’t been wronged."

Even if she was angry, after such a comfortable hair wash and bath, any anger dissipated.

In this matter, who was humiliated wasn’t certain.

Manbao cheerfully went back to State Duke Zhao’s residence. She was still wearing the same set of clothes and shoes from the morning, not even the hairpin flowers on her head had been changed.

She leisurely followed the steward towards the backyard, standing at the entrance of the side gate asking, "Oh dear, I’m still wearing the clothes from when I came out of the Imperial Villa this morning. Should I not go change?"

The steward madam didn’t dare, bowed her head and stooped down, "Imperial Doctor Zhou, you embarrass me. This morning I acted on my own, please don’t be offended; I’ll kowtow to you."

Manbao only spoke when she went down on her knees, "No need for you to kowtow to me. If no change is necessary, let’s go, State Duchess Zhao is still waiting for us."

The steward madam breathed a sigh of relief, quickly responded, and led Zhou Man to the main courtyard.

The Zhao Family had already prepared the medicinal materials. After Manbao checked the medicines, she wrapped the medicine packets and then taught them how to boil and steam the medicine packets.

Then she had the Zhao Family’s servants watch the fire while she took Liu Sanniang to perform acupuncture on State Duchess Zhao.

After removing the needles, the medicine packets were taken out, squeezed to remove the water, and brought up hot for a warm compress; there were moxibustion stones soaking in the medicine pot.

Manbao used a clamp to pick up a moxibustion stone and wrapped it in cloth, first showing Liu Sanniang how to moxibustion the acupuncture point.

After she finished moxibustion, Liu Sanniang also picked up a medicine stone, followed the direction Zhou Man moxibustioned, and did another round.

When State Duchess Zhao was touched near her lower back, she relaxed, the pain in her waist that had been alleviated by the warm compress subsided halfway; with the addition of the moxibustion stone’s heat, she felt a surge of warmth rising in her waist and couldn’t help but moan comfortably, then she fell drowsily asleep holding a pillow.

Initially, she thought of mentioning the matter from this morning after the acupuncture and apologizing to Zhou Man, offering her some compensation for the children’s misunderstanding. Who knew she would sleep, and when she opened her eyes, it was already evening.

By then, Zhou Man had returned to the Imperial Villa.

The State Duchess Zhao’s waist pain was no longer obvious, and she could get out of bed and walk without assistance. She reached out to press her lower back and couldn’t help but exclaim, "No wonder all the ladies in the capital want to invite her. Indeed, the medicine brings immediate relief, not just the back; I feel comfortable all over."

The old madam laughed, "Why else would she be called the little miracle doctor?"

The State Duchess sighed and quickly asked, "Who escorted Imperial Doctor Zhou out this afternoon?"

"It was Sixth Young Master, who ran back hurriedly from outside to escort her out, apologizing profusely. Since it was under imperial orders that she came, we offered silver, but Imperial Doctor Zhou didn’t accept. Sixth Young Master said he would have several of the residence’s medical books copied as a gift, regardless of whether she needed them or not, which allows us to apologize."

The State Duchess said, "Old Sixth has improved, hasn’t he?"

"Indeed, that’s what us servants say too. Previously, Sixth Young Master only thought about horse riding and drinking, never considering such things. But this year, he has matured considerably, and it’s said he’s even made quite a bit of money."

"Hmph, what money could he earn? He used his wife’s dowry for his expenses; did he make it up to her? Such a useless thing, you’ve never seen a man spend his wife’s dowry."

"Sixth Madam willingly spends on him. If you ask me, it’s just their relationship is good, spending on one another is normal. If Third Madam hadn’t been petty and brought it up loudly, outsiders wouldn’t have known."

Mentioning her, the State Duchess got angry, not only at Third Madam but also at the heir’s wife, grumbling, "They’re all spoiled; there was no good choice for the daughter-in-law. I blame myself. Back then, I shouldn’t have been so hasty. Waiting a few more years would have been better."

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