But it was all right; time would tell.

He Yanxiu thought to himself.

—

For the next few days, He Yanxiu stayed there to recuperate.

He drank the herbal medicine three times a day, received acupuncture every morning, and soaked his feet every evening, but He Yanxiu’s cough symptoms did not improve.

In fact, the cough was more severe than when He Yanxiu first arrived.

Su Yujin carefully took He Yanxiu’s pulse again, her brows furrowing even more deeply than before, and she shook her head repeatedly. “This shouldn’t be.”

“Is my illness very difficult to treat?” He Yanxiu asked anxiously.

“It’s not that it’s difficult to treat; on the contrary, it should be easy to treat. The prescription is also appropriate. It shouldn’t be that after taking the medicine for so many days, your condition is getting worse.”

Su Yujin said, then lowered her head in thought.

Could it be that He Yanxiu had tuberculosis?

But judging from his pulse, there was nothing wrong.

Furthermore, He Yanxiu’s cough sounded different from usual. His throat wasn’t red or swollen, and there were no unusual sounds in his lungs, yet He Yanxiu was coughing like this…

Something was wrong!

After thinking for a long time, Su Yujin’s face turned grave. “I suppose my medical skills are too shallow to see the root of the problem. Perhaps Second Master should return to the capital and consult an imperial physician?”

Traditional Chinese medicine was profound and had a long history. It had been developed and continuously improved over thousands of years to reach its modern form. However, even with abundant historical records and experience, it didn’t mean that modern people were necessarily better than ancient people.

Su Yujin was aware of her own limited medical skills and had great respect for the medical masters of the time.

Imperial physicians were selected through rigorous processes, and every few years, those with mediocre skills were dismissed, and those with exceptional skills were chosen to enter the Imperial Medical Academy. Presumably, all the imperial physicians were outstanding. If an imperial physician examined He Yanxiu, they could probably discern the problem.

He Yanxiu, “…”

He felt he could still be saved.

“No need for that.” He Yanxiu coughed lightly twice and said slowly, “Although I can’t stop coughing, today when I coughed, I only felt a slight itch in my throat, and I don’t feel uncomfortable otherwise. It’s not like the chest tightness and lung pain I felt the past two days.”

“I suppose it’s just because I’ve gotten used to coughing lately, which is why it’s hard to stop for a while. I’m trying to see if I can suppress it.”

Sending him back to see the imperial physician was absolutely out of the question.

Su Yujin nodded upon hearing this. “That makes sense.” Many times, physical ailments were also psychological.

It was like when someone had a fishbone stuck in their throat; even after the fishbone had been completely removed, it still felt like there was a foreign object in the throat, and swallowing was still somewhat difficult.

“Then let’s wait and see for another day or two.”

“Yes,” He Yanxiu nodded repeatedly.

After the second day, He Yanxiu’s cough did indeed lessen somewhat; the cough was not as loud, and even the frequency decreased slightly.

Seeing this, Su Yujin was slightly relieved, realizing that it was indeed as He Yanxiu had said, probably due to psychological factors.

However, while He Yanxiu’s cough symptoms had significantly lessened, a new symptom had appeared—migraines.

It wasn’t a constant pain, but rather an intermittent, sharp, needle-like pain that was quite uncomfortable.

Su Yujin took his pulse and prescribed a calming and pain-relieving herbal decoction. She also instructed him to use the herbal powder to fumigate the area before bed each night, hoping to help He Yanxiu sleep more comfortably.

So, besides the cough-suppressing medicine, He Yanxiu had to drink a bowl of this three times a day, feeling his mouth was full of bitterness, and even eating several candied fruits didn’t help.

His migraine wasn’t completely cured, and now He Yanxiu complained of feeling weak…

Su Yujin, “…”

When did He Yanxiu become so weak?

With his foundation in martial arts and his consistent practice, he shouldn’t be suffering from aches and pains from a slight cold.

And He Yanxiu seemed determined to stay here…

Probably because something was going on in the capital, forcing him to hide and find some excuse to enjoy some peace and quiet.

The more Su Yujin observed, the more convinced she became, so she decided to forgo the strong medicine and instead use mild tonics, letting He Yanxiu drink them slowly each day.

After having morning mushroom and assorted buns and a bowl of hot tofu pudding, Zhou Ruoyi arrived.

“Sister Su, are you free to come to our house for lunch?” After exchanging a few pleasantries, Zhou Ruoyi explained his purpose.

Ever since she had agreed to have lunch at Zhou Ruoyi’s house, Zhou Ruoyi had invited her several times, and Su Yujin had gone once or twice.

Seeing Zhou Ruoyi’s dimples peeking out from his smile, Su Yujin reached out and patted his head. “Tell me first, what’s the reason for coming to your house for lunch today?”

Zhou Ruoyi puffed out his chest, speaking with equal confidence, “Today is my birthday! My mother asked me what gift I wanted, and I said I didn’t want anything else, just inviting Sister Su to my house for lunch to celebrate my birthday. That would be enough for me. My mother agreed and only asked me to invite Sister Su.”

“So you’re the birthday star today.” Su Yujin smiled. “Then I absolutely have to go for this meal to celebrate your birthday, little birthday star.”

“You go back first; I’ll prepare something, and then I’ll come over later.”

“Okay.” Zhou Ruoyi nodded excitedly, “I’ll go back and ask my mother to arrange it to prepare Sister Su’s favorite sweet and sour fish and crystal shrimp dumplings.”

Su Yujin usually preferred a lighter diet and loved fish and shrimp.

Zhou Ruoyi remembered this very clearly.

“Okay,” Su Yujin drawled, her smile overflowing, her eyes filled with doting affection as she looked at Zhou Ruoyi.

He was such a sensible and lovable child, truly delightful.

He Yanxiu raised an eyebrow, approached Zhou Ruoyi, and bowed slightly. “Since it’s your birthday, more people will make it more lively. May I come along?”

“More people are always better, something I’d love to do, but I don’t know who you are…” Zhou Ruoyi looked at the unfamiliar He Yanxiu, her small eyes filled with confusion.

“I…” He Yanxiu paused. “I’m your Sister Su’s Second Biǎojiù.”

Su Yujin, “…”

This was truly unacceptable!

Zhou Ruoyi was delighted. “Since you’re Sister Su’s Second Biǎojiù, then you’re an elder. From Sister Su’s perspective, I should also call you Second Biǎojiù.”

“It’s my honor to have you here, Biǎojiù. Then, Second Biǎojiù, please come with Sister Su later.”

Zhou Ruoyi thought for a moment, then added, “Does Second Biǎojiù have any favorite dishes? I’ll ask my mother to prepare some when I get back.”

“I’m not picky; anything is fine,” He Yanxiu replied with a smile.

(End of Chapter)

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