Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 160 Diagnosis and Treatment
Whenever Xichun had time, she would go to Longcui Temple to look for Miaoyu. Some time ago, Yunxiang had told Chen Siyuan about this matter. However, Chen Siyuan was busy with the monthly examination of the Imperial College a few days ago, so Xichun knew better than to disturb him, so she mentioned it now.

Little Xichun turned her head, tilted her head upward, and nodded, saying, "I went to chat with Miaoyu and drink some fragrant tea. Although she is a bit aloof, it's not too difficult to get along with her. Yes, she also gave me a copy of the Mahaprajnaparamita Sutra."

Chen Siyuan couldn't help but frown. Thinking of Ri Xichun becoming a nun to avoid disaster, he couldn't help but feel even more pity for her. He said, "Fourth sister is still young and mentally retarded. Buddhist scriptures like these are very powerful in changing people's minds. If she reads them for a long time, her personality will inevitably change and she will become even less popular."

Xichun forced a stern smile, then looked into the water and said, "So what if my heart has changed? Maybe it's a blessing in disguise."

Chen Siyuan sneered and said, "You're so young, why would you have so many concerns? I know what Fourth Sister is thinking. She has Second and Third Sisters looking after her. If things get worse, she can always come to me. Why would she be thinking of some ridiculous way out now?"

Xichun frowned and said, "Second sister, your heart is as clear as a mirror, but you are also like a wooden man who doesn't care about anything. Isn't she just a clay Buddha? As for third sister... Aunt Zhao and Third Brother Huan are dragging her down, how can she care about me?"

As she was talking, she suddenly felt a large hand covering her head. She looked up and saw Chen Siyuan saying seriously, "In that case, just come to my place often when you visit me. I dare not say too much, but at least you won't let your fourth sister get bullied."

Xichun was deeply moved, and a rare smile appeared on her face. She said, "Brother Yuan still has to take the imperial examinations, so it's not easy for me to go there often."

"It won't delay me. I can't study every day, right? Even if I have a strong body, I won't be able to endure it."

Knowing Chen Siyuan's sincere love and care for her, Xichun nodded in response.

Chen Siyuan handed the fish food over again, and the little girl picked up the fish food with a bamboo clip and threw it into the water, causing the lake water to surge and the fish to scramble for it.

After a while, when all the fish food in the small bag was scattered, the maid Ruhua came over and said that Sister Feng and the Third Miss were worried about Xichun, so she asked her to go back.

It was a rare opportunity to go out for a stroll, so Chen Siyuan didn't want to turn back yet, so he simply walked along the goldfish pond. After a while, he turned southeast of the goldfish pond and saw a familiar figure parked in the pavilion.

She wore a pale yellow double-breasted jacket with a pink floral pattern, a tea-white tube top underneath, and a long skirt embroidered with pink orchids. A simple pearl hairpin adorned her hair, and pomegranate blossoms adorn her temples, with multicolored ribbons dangling from them. The mottled lake light reflected off her face, making it appear even more radiant and fair.

Chen Siyuan paused and smiled. He hadn't met Daiyu, but had bumped into Baochai instead. He started towards the pavilion. Ying'er, a maid inside, caught sight of him and spoke to Baochai, who was watching the dragon boat race. Baochai turned around and nodded at Chen Siyuan with a quick smile.

Chen Siyuan walked with his hands behind his back, and soon arrived at the pavilion. He held up a folding fan and bowed, saying, "Sister Xue."

Baochai bowed and returned the greeting: "Greetings, Brother Yuan."

Chen Siyuan walked into the pavilion and said with a smile, "Just now I heard from Brother Bao that Sister Xue didn't want to go out for a walk. Why did she come to the pavilion by herself now?"

Baochai said casually, "We've been on such a bumpy ride, we need to rest a bit."

In fact, just now Baoyu kept inviting Daiyu to go out for a walk. Although Baojie didn't show it on her face, she was annoyed in her heart, so she simply refused.

Chen Siyuan nodded, pointed at the water with his folding fan, and said, "I guess Sister Xue must be thinking of Mochou Lake."

Baochai covered her mouth and smiled, saying, "Seeing things reminds me of home. Brother Yuan really guessed it right." After a pause, she continued, "When my father was alive, he would take me to Mochou Lake every year during the Dragon Boat Festival... Yes, my family has a small house by Mochou Lake, and we would move there to escape the heat in the summer."

Ying'er, who was standing by, also fell into thought and said with a smile, "Not only that, I remember that time I followed the girl to watch people picking lotus seeds."

Baochai glanced at Ying'er, and Ying'er tactfully shut up and slowly stepped back a few steps.

Chen Siyuan nodded and said, "Compared to Mochou Lake, this goldfish pond is a bit cramped."

As the saying goes, the speaker may not mean it, but the listener may take it to heart. Baochai had just been angry with Baoyu, and because Chen Siyuan was a habitual offender, she wondered if he was using the scene to describe people, saying that brother Bao was not worthy of her?
This was not a good thing to say, and Baochai became more cautious. Chen Siyuan was puzzled when he saw that Baochai did not respond, so he turned and said, "Yes, how is the concubine?"

It would have been fine if we hadn't mentioned this, but when she did, Baochai couldn't help but frown. It would have been fine if Mother had just come home and scolded Brother, but then at night she did it again... and it took quite a while before she finally stopped. You know, Mother hadn't been drinking that day, so it couldn't be that she was drunk and couldn't control herself this time, could it?

The next day, Baochai went to find Tongxi and Tonggui to ask about their mother indirectly, but she heard that her mother had only been hanging around in the Rongguo Mansion the day before. Apart from talking with her aunt Mrs. Wang for a while and bumping into Brother Lian in the morning, she stayed at home for the rest of the time.

There can't be something going on between Mom and Second Brother Lian, right?

That would have been fine, but I don't know what's wrong with my brother Xue Pan these past few days. He keeps yelling every morning. It's summer now, and the doors and windows are not closed. Liu Yan'er's yelling can be heard everywhere, so Aunt Xue tossed and turned several times at night!

One or two times would be fine, but how could it be a coincidence if it happened several times in a row? Sister Bao was so worried that Aunt Xue would do something out of the ordinary that she hadn't even visited Baoyu these past few days. She simply stayed with Aunt Xue day and night, fearing that one misstep would cause trouble!

Seeing Baochai's increasingly strange expression, Chen Siyuan couldn't help but ask, "Sister Xue?"

"Ah?" Baochai came back to her senses and said angrily, "I was just distracted... Brother Yuan was talking about my mother? It's just a sprained ankle. I've been applying medicine for the past two days and I can walk now."

"Oh, all right."

Before Chen Siyuan could say anything else, Baochai suddenly said, "Yes, Brother Yuan, did you see anything strange in the garden that day?"

"Strange?" Chen Siyuan thought to himself, himself and Siqi... are they considered strange? "Not really, what does Sister Xue want to ask?"

Baochai pondered and said, "After Mother came back that day, she was quite distracted. I don't know what happened to her... Perhaps Auntie said something to Mother."

Distracted? Chen Siyuan pondered to himself, this unemployed widow had stumbled upon a live pornographic scene, so it was inevitable that she would be agitated, so it was normal for her to be distracted afterwards, right?
At that moment, the two of them, each with their own thoughts, gazed at the scenery of the lake from a distance of half a step. The maid Ying'er paused outside the pavilion, observing the two figures from behind, and suddenly felt that this was what a perfect match was like. It was a pity that this Mr. Yuan came from a rather humble background, otherwise he and his daughter would have been a perfect match.

While he was thinking, another maid came to look for him. It turned out that it was time for dinner, and Sister Feng had sent someone to ask everyone to go back for dinner.

The two of them walked around the lake together. After a while, they were near the curtain and could hear the chattering inside from afar. It was very lively.

After entering, Baoyu took a quick look and said, "Just now we were going to shoot arrows at the willows, but unfortunately, Sister Bao... and Brother Yuan were missing."

Feng Jieer said, "There's plenty of time to play. The old lady has said that we should be back before nightfall. Now the important thing is to eat first. Even if you aren't hungry, I'm starving."

Tanchun suddenly clapped her hands and said, "Yes, I heard that they've prepared eggplant and dried fish tonight?"

Sister Feng smiled and said, "I prepared it a few days ago."

When these words were spoken, Lian Xichun also smiled and said, "It's been quite a while since I've had eggplant fish, and now I really want to have it."

The maid immediately moved the tables and chairs, and fetched clean water from a nearby well. She helped everyone wash their hands, and then they gathered around and sat down.

According to seniority and age, Feng Jieer naturally sat in the first seat, and on her left were the second girl, Baochai, Daiyu, Tanchun, Xichun, and then Chen Siyuan who was sitting next to Feng Jieer.

Huh? Why isn't Jia Huan here? Looking carefully, Ping'er isn't here either.

Chen Siyuan didn't know how to ask questions at the moment, so he just waited silently for the dishes to be served.

The first dish is eggplant fish, followed by pressed duck, southern leg, chicken and seaweed, chicken paste, roasted crispy meat, cold bean sprouts, smoked tofu, and the staple food is a bowl of watery Yi noodles.

Chen Siyuan first tasted the eggplant fritters. The diced eggplant was very chewy and the flavor grew with each chew, truly living up to its reputation. He then tried the other dishes; everything was delicious. As he took a bite of bean sprouts, Chen Siyuan was immediately amazed. The translucent bean sprouts, even with the heads and tails cut off, still managed to taste the fresh aroma of fish.

Unable to hold back any longer, he turned around and asked Sister Feng, "Second sister-in-law, these bean sprouts are probably not simple, are they?"

Feng Jieer smiled and said, "It's not that difficult. Just pinch off the heads and tails of the bean sprouts and hollow out the middle. Then, mash the fresh yellow croaker into a paste, mix it with seasonings and stuff it in. When cooking, stir-fry it over high heat for twelve times and serve.

Actually, this dish was made after your second brother had eaten it outside and came back to ask the kitchen to make it over and over again.

Chen Siyuan secretly sighed at the extravagance of the Jia family, but he showed admiration on his face.

Seeing Chen Siyuan about to eat the noodles, Xichun said, "Brother Yuan, these noodles are tasteless. They need to be mixed with eggplant and dried fish to be better."

"I see." Chen Siyuan scooped a few spoonfuls of dried eggplant and mixed it with the noodles. The dried eggplant also contained chicken breast, shiitake mushrooms, new bamboo shoots, mushrooms, five-spiced dried tofu, and various dried fruits. It tasted really good when mixed with the noodles.

After the meal, a maid served them fragrant tea. Everyone rested for a while, talked and laughed for a while, and then Baoyu shouted about shooting willows.

The servants immediately cleared the table, found some willow branches, removed the green leaves and stuck them into the ground, then made a mechanism out of the bamboo pigeon cage and the willow branches, and tied a colorful scarf on it.

Chen Siyuan was puzzled when Xichun approached and said, "The archery at the Jia family is different from that outside. Brother Yuan just needs to shoot the handkerchief, which will move the willow branches and the pigeon cage will open. The pigeons inside will have their wings clipped and fly up to see whose pigeon flies highest."

This is a really fun thing!
Chen Siyuan was shocked and asked in a low voice, "Is this the rule set by the old Duke?"

Xichun shook her head and whispered, "They say the old lady brought it from the Shi family."

Chen Siyuan nodded silently. Then another maid handed over a soft bow, and each person also had three short arrows wrapped in red cloth.

The second girl Yingchun said: "Let's follow the custom of previous years..."

Baoyu retorted, "Just cheering isn't fun. Why don't we add some prizes?" He pulled off his jade pendant and said with a smile, "Whoever wins the first prize will have my jade pendant."

Everyone agreed, and Feng Jieer pawned a filigree gold bracelet, while the rest of the sisters either gave a hairpin, a lilac, or a handkerchief.

Chen Siyuan also joined in the fun and handed over the folding fan in his hand.

Everyone rolled the dice again to decide the order, and it was Sister Feng who shot first, followed by the second girl Yingchun, the fourth girl Xichun, Daiyu, Baochai, Chen Siyuan, and Tanchun. Baoyu, the monkey who had been anxious for a long time, got the last turn.

At that moment, Sister Feng held up the bow and said with a sweet smile: "Oh, you guys can just play around. At my age -"

Before she could finish, Tanchun said, "Sister Feng is only a little old. She should play with us."

Sister Feng smiled and said, "How did you come up with this rule?"

Xichun said, "If you hit two of your three arrows, you can choose one object. If you hit three, you can choose two objects, and you can also choose the object whose pigeon flies the highest."

Feng Jieer did not shirk her responsibility. She stood outside the line, raised her bow and took a quick aim. The first arrow flew out but went more than a foot off the target.

Feng Jieer said angrily, "Oh, it missed. I haven't shot for many years and I completely forgot about it." But her face became serious as she spoke. She raised the bow and aimed for a long time. When she let go, the arrow flew off the string and hit a handkerchief right on target.

The mechanism started, and the bamboo cage opened, but the pigeon inside didn't take off for a long time. Feng Jieer became more serious, and when she shot her next arrow, it hit the peeling strips, causing the cage to suddenly open. The pigeon inside was frightened and fluttered into the air, attracting everyone's applause!
Chen Siyuan said: "Second sister-in-law is as brave as a man, she is worthy of being the daughter of a general."

Wang Xifeng dropped her bow and covered her mouth with her hands, laughing, "How can I be considered a daughter of a general? I rode a lot when I was little, but I rarely touched a bow and arrow. I did, however, practice tossing pots and shooting willows in my boudoir."

Everyone praised her, and Little Xichun urged, "Sister Feng, please pick a lucky number."

Wang Xifeng agreed, and after a moment's thought, she picked up Xichun's dark red agate bracelet and said, "It just so happens that my eldest sister just dropped a bracelet. Consider this a gift from Fourth Aunt to her."

Xichun smiled and nodded. Although she was happy that her item was chosen first, she felt sorry that the person chosen was not Chen Siyuan.

After Fengjie shot at the willow, it was Yingchun's turn. However, Yingchun's archery skills were poor, and all three arrows missed. It was just a joke, so Yingchun didn't care. After everyone calmed her down, it was Xiao Xichun's turn.

Xichun's face was tense. She raised the bow and squinted her eyes to see what was happening. However, she was weak at the moment and only one of the three arrows hit the target.

When it comes to Daiyu, she is exactly the same as Xichun.

Then it was Bao Sister's turn. She hit the target with the first two arrows. When she shot the third arrow, Chen Siyuan saw the bow tremble slightly when Bao Sister let go, and the third arrow flew past a handkerchief.

Tanchun said, "What a pity! If Baojie had aimed carefully, she might have hit three arrows in a row."

Baochai smiled and said, "My hands are sore. It's a great honor to hit two arrows. I don't dare to hope to hit them all." When she handed the bow to the maid Ying'er, her eyes met with Chen Siyuan's. Although Baochai hurried to avoid him, Chen Siyuan had already seen through her thoughts - to hide her incompetence.

Feng Jieer had just been hit by two arrows, so Baochai naturally couldn't afford to overtake Feng Jieer and take the first prize. Everyone urged Bao Jieer to choose the prize. Under everyone's gaze, she picked out the prizes and picked up Baoyu's jade pendant. She smiled and said, "After looking at it, Brother Bao's jade pendant is the most valuable. I'll take it."

Everyone laughed and joked, "I think even if Second Brother Bao keeps a ribbon, Sister Bao will also choose it, right?" "You want a beating!" Baochai scolded and started quarreling with Tanchun. Tanchun giggled and dodged back and forth, finally hiding behind Chen Siyuan and said, "Sister Bao, please forgive me this time. I won't dare to do it again!"

Baochai pretended to be angry, but accidentally met Chen Siyuan's eyes. She suddenly felt aggrieved, but pretended to be fine and scolded Tanchun with a smile.

After the commotion, it was Chen Siyuan's turn. Hongyu quickly handed the bow to Chen Siyuan and said, "Sir, at least you were hit by two arrows. Otherwise, wouldn't you have lost the fan for nothing?"

Siqi, who was standing by, covered her mouth and laughed, "That's true. Everyone knows that Master Yuan is very wealthy, but now he can't even afford a fan."

Chen Siyuan picked up the bow and laughed, saying, "It's a gift, it's a loss, how can they be the same?"

He concentrated his attention, squinting his eyes to observe the situation, and in a moment he let go, but it was a hit! The cage opened, and the pigeon inside was frightened. It flapped its wings and flew more than ten feet high before falling into the distance.

Little Xichun leaned on her hands and looked up, exclaiming, "Huh? Brother Yuan's pigeons are flying so high!"

Pigeons with clipped wings can't fly very high. Just now, Feng Jieer and Baochai had a total of three pigeons, and the highest they flew was only seven or eight feet.

Chen Siyuan breathed a sigh of relief. He had been hanging around in the underworld with the old swindler, and was best at the tricks of the rich kids, such as flying eagles and riding horses, and throwing pots and shooting willows.

He then shot two more arrows, neither of which missed. Seeing two more pigeons take off into the air, the crowd cheered.

Everyone urged Chen Siyuan to choose the prize. Chen Siyuan did not refuse. After a quick look, he took Daiyu's lilac and Baochai's gold hairpin.

Sister Feng and Tanchun were joking and telling jokes, saying that Chen Siyuan was good at archery, but Daiyu and Baochai had their own thoughts.

When she saw the two arrows hit her, Daiyu knew that her daughter, Dingxiang, might have been taken away by Chen Siyuan. This was completely within his expectations.

As for Baojie's hairpin, although Daiyu didn't think much about it, Baojie couldn't help but think a little more about it.

Although Mrs. Wang had not said it explicitly before, her words and deeds hinted at her intention to bring them together. Baochai was still unmarried and had read many stories about talented men and beautiful women since she was a child. How could she not think too much about it?
With Aunt Xue's constant annoyance these past few days, Baochai couldn't help but have a few late-night dreams... That big brother Yuan's character and appearance are impeccable, his only drawback being his family background. But he's also a rare self-motivated man. He studies hard every day, often topping the Imperial College exams. Given time, who knows if he won't rise to prominence?
Even Aunt Xue was troubled by such a person, let alone Baochai. However, when she thought about it carefully during the day, she knew that although Chen Siyuan had a promising future, the Xue family could not wait!

Baochai inevitably sighed, "Everything is determined by fate, nothing is in our control," but she later calmed her feelings, suppressing them in her heart, never revealing them. But then, Chen Siyuan chose the item she and Daiyu had... Since Lin Daiyu was already engaged, she should have taken the lilac, but why did he take her own gold hairpin?
Sister Bao was puzzled and forced herself not to look at Chen Siyuan.

Meanwhile, Baoyu, seeing Chen Siyuan snatch the two items, lost his spirits and said with a dull expression, "This archery game isn't very interesting. Why don't we go boating on the lake?"

Tanchun was unhappy and said angrily, "Second Brother Bao, it's my turn now. I also want Sister Feng's filigree bracelet!"

Baoyu fell silent, and then saw that Tanchun had also hit two out of three, and happily took Fengjie's bracelet.

When it was Baoyu's turn, he was in such a bad mood that he couldn't help but lose his composure. He only hit one of the three arrows and didn't get any prize.

Tanchun couldn't help but feel happy again and joked, "Second Brother Bao must have known that I was short of money, so he returned my hairpin!"

Baoyu smiled awkwardly and did not answer.

Daiyu, who was not far away, smiled and said, "Third sister, have you forgotten? Brother Yuan can still choose one."

Tanchun suddenly realized and said with a smile, "Yes, I almost forgot. Then, Brother Yuan, please choose quickly."

Because the pigeon released by Chen Siyuan flew the highest, he could choose another lucky number, so he chose the second girl Yingchun Xiangyun.

Tanchun was surprised and asked, "Why didn't Brother Yuan take my hairpin?"

Chen Siyuan smiled and said, "Third sister, aren't you short of money?"

Tanchun feigned annoyance and said, "Brother Yuan is deliberately teasing me. You all know what I mean by joking. Brother Fanli is here to tease me."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone burst into laughter.

However, Siqi, who was standing by, was very proud. She nudged Yingchun and whispered, "Master Yuan has chosen the girl's favorite."

The second girl, Yingchun, recalled the scene at the waterside pavilion and felt extremely ashamed. Her face flushed and she whispered, "Don't talk nonsense!"

Siqi, however, didn't care at all. She smiled and whispered, "Who knows, Master Yuan wanted to choose a girl just now."

Yingchun turned her head away and glanced at Chen Siyuan again, but Chen Siyuan was looking at her. The two looked at each other, and Yingchun's heart was suddenly filled with turbulence. She was so embarrassed that she quickly hid in the shed.

Seeing that the archery was over, Baoyu shouted, "The dragon boat race won't be resumed until an hour later. Why don't we rent a boat and have a go?"

Everyone responded in unison.

At that moment, Feng Jieer sent the steward to look for a boat. She rented a pleasure boat and went for a tour with everyone. However, she found that there were no idle pleasure boats at that time, and there were only three black-sailed boats left.

The black-sailed boat was not big, and it was lucky enough to accommodate two masters and two servants. Feng Jieer was afraid that someone would fall into the water, so she put a servant who was good at swimming on each boat. Since they were a group of people, they could only travel in batches.

Baoyu invited Daiyu to join him in the boat, but Daiyu, feeling a little tired, declined, saying, "I just saw the sun, and I feel a little dizzy now. You can go for a stroll by yourself. I need to rest for a while."

Baoyu had no choice but to ask Baochai to go with him. Then Yingchun led Xichun, and Fengjie led Tanchun. The three black-sailed boats left the shore one after another and slowly circled the goldfish pond.

Seeing that no one was around, Hongyu hurried over and whispered, "Second Madam just scolded Third Master Huan, but Third Master Huan insisted that he had accidentally sprained his ankle. Second Madam was so angry that she sent someone to send Third Master Huan back."

Chen Siyuan nodded, but his mind was all on Daiyu under the awning.

Xiangling brought over some warm tea and frowned, saying, "That Huan-ge doesn't look like a good person... He's at the waterside pavilion, and if he bumps into him, he might end up in the water."

Hongyu despised Aunt Zhao. Every time Aunt Zhao came, she would act like an elder and order them around. So she snorted and said, "Maybe it was Aunt Zhao who taught her that."

This was not wrong. Aunt Zhao had often whispered in Jia Zheng's ear, and she had probably told Jia Huan even more about Lady Wang and Baoyu. Jia Huan was only nine years old at the time, barely understanding what was said, so wouldn't he have believed it?

Seeing that Chen Siyuan was distracted, Xiangling tugged at Hongyu and pointed towards the pergola. Hongyu immediately understood and said with a smile, "Master, why don't you go to the pergola and talk to Miss Lin for a while?"

"Yeah." Chen Siyuan responded in a deep voice, stood up and was about to walk towards the shed, when suddenly someone called out to him from a distance.

"Huh? It's indeed Master Chen. I just took a quick look from a distance and couldn't make it out, so I came up to take a closer look."

Chen Siyuan turned his head, feeling annoyed at first, but then he was overjoyed - the person who came was actually Ding Daojian, the doctor from Heniantang!

Chen Siyuan stepped forward with a smile on his face and bowed, "Doctor Ding, I'm honored!"

"Mr. Chen, you're welcome."

The two men exchanged greetings, and Ding Daojian lowered his voice and said, "I tested another prescription yesterday. This one is the best for warming and nourishing. Take one pill a day and you'll see results in a month."

Chen Siyuan had some knowledge of pharmacology, so he asked, "But is there any herb called shilazhi?"

"That's right." Ding Daojian was about to talk about the exquisiteness of this recipe when he was interrupted by Chen Siyuan, who said, "Brother Ding, I have a favor to ask of you."

"Oh?" Regardless of anything else, the one thousand taels of silver alone was enough to make Ding Daojian grateful, so he hurriedly said, "Mr. Chen, why bother talking nonsense? If you have something to say, just speak directly."

Chen Siyuan tilted his head slightly toward the awning and said, "This is Miss Lin, the daughter of Lin Ruhai, the Yangzhou Salt Administrator. She is engaged to me. Miss Lin has been frail and sickly since childhood. Doctors and doctors alike have said it's just a sign of frailty. Every time the seasons change, she suffers a relapse, coughing incessantly... sometimes with blood in her cough."

Hoping that we don't meet by chance, I would like to ask Brother Ding to treat Sister Lin."

Ding Daojian agreed, "Okay, okay. Treating illnesses and saving lives is my duty."

The two of them walked towards the pavilion together. Zijuan saw Chen Siyuan leading a strange man and hurriedly stopped him: "Uncle Yuan, what are you doing——"

Chen Siyuan looked at Daiyu who turned her head and said with a smile, "This is the famous doctor of Heniantang. We have a deep friendship. I didn't expect to meet you today. I also remembered that Sister Lin has a chronic illness, so I took the liberty to ask Brother Ding to examine Sister Lin."

Before Zijuan could say anything, Xueyan hurried over and pushed Zijuan aside, saying with a smile, "I know that Master Yuan is thinking about our young lady. In that case—" She smiled and turned back, "Young lady, Heniantang is a time-honored hospital in the capital. Why don't we ask Doctor Ding to take a look at you?"

If it were any other time, Daiyu would probably have said, "There's nothing to treat my illness. I can't die, but I can't live well either." But now it was Chen Siyuan who brought the doctor to see her, and he meant well, so she couldn't be too harsh as usual.

Daiyu stood up and bowed to the two of them: "Thank you, Brother Yuan, for your concern. I am sorry to trouble Doctor Ding."

"It's easy to talk about."

At that moment Chen Siyuan led Ding Daojian into the inner room. Xueyan hurriedly moved a stool over. Ding Daojian sat down opposite Daiyu, and Zijuan presented him with a silk handkerchief.

The silk handkerchief was placed on Daiyu's wrist. Ding Daojian said "I'm sorry" and reached out to diagnose her. He felt the pulse on her right hand and then on her left hand.

At this moment, Zijuan didn't care that this person was invited by Chen Siyuan. She was only worried about Daiyu's condition. Seeing Ding Daojian frown and put away his hand, she hurriedly asked: "Excuse me, doctor, my girl——"

Ding Daojian waved his hand and then carefully asked Daiyu about her daily symptoms and diet. After Daiyu explained everything, Ding Daojian pondered and said, "Lung qi deficiency, blood stasis, phlegm turbidity, and water retention. This is a symptom of lung distension—" He suddenly took a breath of cold air and said, "But Miss Lin's figure seems to be delicate and her body qi is not yet fully developed."

Chen Siyuan had some knowledge of pharmacology. He could not recall what Ding Daojian said earlier, but he did remember what he said later: this was a disease of underdeveloped lungs.

Ding Daojian asked again, "I wonder what prescriptions the young lady usually takes?"

Before Lin Daiyu could say anything, Xueyan interrupted, "Our girl has consulted countless doctors and tried countless medicines since she was little, but nothing worked. Finally, the famous Yangzhou doctor, Wei Daqing, prescribed ginseng nourishing pills. Now she takes one pill every three days, and if she gets sick again, she has to take two pills daily."

Ding Daojian nodded and said, "It is appropriate for the condition, but ginseng is a tonic. I think Miss Lin is too weak to take it. You shouldn't take too much of these ginseng nourishing pills."

Chen Siyuan said at this time: "Brother Ding, please prescribe a prescription."

Ding Daojian stroked his beard and pondered for a while before saying, "First, take a dose of Zhimu Decoction every ten days. I'll also prescribe a dose of Qishu Pills... Yes," he turned to Chen Siyuan and said, "Young Master Chen has quite a bit of Cordyceps. It's mild in nature, so why not take more Cordyceps?"

Daiyu raised her delicate head and glanced at Chen Siyuan, feeling a surge of gratitude. "Some cordyceps had been sent over a while ago; three roots a day would be enough for two months. I'm afraid Brother Yuan had been concerned about my illness from the beginning, so he eagerly sent it over when he got it."

Chen Siyuan bowed and thanked him: "Okay, thank you very much, Brother Ding."

Ding Daojian waved his hand: "No need."

Daiyu glanced again, and Zijuan found two silver coins to offer. But Ding Daojian firmly refused to accept them. He stood up and left the pavilion with Chen Siyuan. They talked for a while under the weeping willows on the embankment before taking their leave.

Chen Siyuan turned around and Xueyan came over. She said with a smile, "Uncle Yuan, our girls said the sun is scorching right now. Why don't you come to the pavilion to cool off? I'm afraid it will take a while for them to come back."

"it is good."

Chen Siyuan agreed, strode into the pavilion with his head held high, greeted Daiyu again, then lifted up his robe and sat down next to Daiyu three feet away.

Daiyu whispered, "Thank you, Brother Yuan."

Chen Siyuan smiled and shook his head without saying anything.

This was Daiyu's first time being alone with a man other than Baoyu, with whom she had lived since childhood, and she felt extremely shy. She lowered her head and was about to say something else when she suddenly noticed a number of items hanging from Chen Siyuan's waist. She immediately felt displeased and couldn't help but say, "Brother Yuan is really popular."

(End of this chapter)