Shuse Jinjia

Xie Zhaotang didn't notice Huo Ling's expression. As soon as her hand touched Huo Beiyu's wrist, she felt the abnormal temperature of his body.

Although Huo Beiyu's temperature was not as high as Duan Chengyu's, it was obvious that he also had a fever.

"Don't you know you have a fever?"

Xie Zhaotang frowned: "Having a fever while injured is no small matter. Don't think you can just tough it out..."

She glared at Huo Beiyu, then calmed down to take his pulse.

Huo Beiyu lowered his gaze, watching her slender fingers press against his wrist.

The little girl is scolding me?

Her hand was as light as a feather, her fingertips slightly cool. It felt weightless on his wrist, yet it gave him a strange sensation.

"Your situation is better than Duan Shizi's."

Xie Zhaotang took Huo Beiyu's pulse, then handed him a packet of medicine powder: "Take this, drink plenty of water, and get a good night's sleep; your fever should break when you wake up!"

"I don't think you need any more servants at home. Let them watch over Prince Duan while you go and rest. Don't worry, Prince Duan won't die. You don't need to stay with him. You'll be better able to take care of the wounded if you're well-rested."

Seeing Doctor Qiu and Huo Ling standing to one side, Xie Zhaotang instructed, "Xiao Ling, pour your brother a glass of water."

"Oh..." Huo Ling woke up and quickly went to pour water.

Wasn't Duan Chengyu feeding Xie Zhaotang her medicine just now?

She thought Xie Zhaotang would personally help her older brother take his medicine!

Huo Beiyu stared silently at Xie Zhaotang. Could he say that he thought so too?

This is blatant discrimination against this little girl!

He didn't ask her to personally feed him the medicine, but did he need to avoid suspicion even when pouring him a glass of water?

"Young Master, I had an idea earlier. Your wine is substandard for disinfection. Could we build a distillery to produce medical-grade alcohol?"

As soon as Xie Zhaotang finished speaking, he saw Huo Beiyu raise his eyes and glare at him.

"..."

Xie Zhaotang stopped and awkwardly shut up.

The pharmaceutical factory hasn't even been built yet, and she's already talking about building a paper mill; now she's proposing to build a winery...

Does Huo Beiyu feel that he is fickle and acts on a whim?

"I'm going to rest..."

Xie Zhaotang quickly walked out.

Huo Ling smiled and handed the water glass to her eldest brother, saying softly, "Brother, I think she's great... She's not afraid of you, she's capable, and she'd be perfect as your sister-in-law!"

Huo Ling was also worried about her elder brother's marriage. He had been on more than ten blind dates, but none of the young ladies could get along with Huo Beiyu. It was rare to find someone who wasn't afraid of her elder brother, and she was afraid that he wouldn't cherish her and would miss out!

After Huo Ling finished speaking, she ran out to chase after Xie Zhaotang.

Huo Beiyu held a water glass. "Sister-in-law?"

Could this cunning girl, who's obsessed with marrying into a wealthy family, possibly become his wife?

Moreover, she and Zhu Feng...

Huo Beiyu stopped himself from letting his mind wander, poured the powder into his mouth, and took a big gulp of water.

The medicine powder tastes so bitter...

……

This bed is so hard!

When Xie Zhaotang woke up, the sun was already high in the sky. The first thing that flashed through her mind was how difficult the Huo family's education of their children was.

The bed was a hard board bed with a blanket on it, which made her back ache.

She looked to the side, and Huo Ling, who had slept with her last night, was gone.

Xie Zhaotang saw the sunlight streaming through the window and quickly got up.

It's incredibly rude to be a guest in someone's home and still be asleep.

She had just finished dressing and combing her hair when Huo Ling walked in. She was dressed in a light blue outfit and looked very dashing.

"Sister Tangtang, I thought you should be up by now, so I brought you breakfast. We eat simple breakfasts, and if you don't like it, I'll have someone make it for you again."

Huo Ling was carrying a plate with two steamed buns and a bowl of porridge.

"No need, this is fine with me! Where's the washing area? I'll wash up first."

Xie Zhaotang smiled.

"Outside, I'll take you... In my family, everyone does their own thing. Unless someone is an adult, we don't provide maids."

Huo Ling explained why there were no maids to serve her.

Xie Zhaotang nodded understandingly. She had been in contact with the Huo family children before, and they knew martial arts. Using their skills would also be a form of training.

Huo Ling took a clean handkerchief, found Xie Zhaotang a wooden basin and a cup, and gave her some coarse salt and willow branches before leading her to the well.

As Xie Zhaotang rinsed his mouth with coarse salt and willow twigs, another idea came to mind.

Their pharmaceutical factory can also produce toothbrushes and toothpaste, which can further enrich their product range.

This time, however, she wasn't so impulsive. She didn't rush to express her thoughts, lest Huo Ling think she was fickle.

She'll make them herself first so her family can use them, and then bring them out once the pharmaceutical factory is built!

"Fourth sister, I just went to my eldest brother's courtyard. Doctor Qiu said that he and Prince Duan's fevers have subsided, so we don't need to go over there! After you've had breakfast, we'll go check out the pharmaceutical factory, and then come back for dinner."

Huo Ling said enthusiastically, "My grandmother invited Madam Duan, Old Madam Pei, and Miss Pei to stay overnight. They will stay here until Young Master Duan is able to get out of bed. We apologize for the poor hospitality last night. My grandmother's idea is to invite Sister Li and Sister Xue over for dinner tonight so they can have a proper meal."

Xie Zhaotang's face twitched. Was this Xue Jintong trying to make up for her failed match with Huo Beiyu yesterday?

"Xiao Ling, I won't come. My aunt isn't well, and it wouldn't be right for me to be running around all day," Xie Zhaotang refused.

Huo Ling smiled and said, "It's alright. I'll go to your house later and invite your aunt and sister over for a meal. Don't worry, our family doesn't discriminate based on social status, and no one will look down on your aunt."

Unable to refuse such hospitality, Xie Zhaotang said, "Never mind, I'll do it myself. My aunt doesn't like socializing. If there's anything good to eat in the kitchen, please save some for me and I'll take it back with me."

Xie Zhaotang didn't want to bring Aunt Shen and Xie Tiantian to the Huo family to cause trouble; she just wanted them to live a simple and peaceful life.

After having breakfast, Xie Zhaotang and Huo Ling went to inspect the pharmaceutical factory.

The injuries to Duan Chengyu and Huo Beiyu did not affect Manager Huang. He had already hired dozens of villagers and was busily acquiring land and laying foundations.

"Miss Ling, how are the young master and Prince Duan injured?"

Huo Ling grew up in the village, and the villagers all knew her well. Whenever they saw her, they would chatter on and on about her.

"My older brother and the others are fine now. They can go out after resting for a couple of days!"

Huo Ling greeted them with a smile, "Did your families get their share of the wild boar meat from yesterday's hunt?"

A village woman working there smiled and said, "We've been assigned a share! Thank you so much, Miss Ling. The Huo family still remembered us even though the young marquis was injured. We're all very grateful!"

Another village woman excitedly said, "The young master is going to build a medicine factory in Baohua Village and is even willing to hire us. He treats us like his own people! Miss Ling, go back and tell the young master that we will definitely work hard and build the medicine factory as soon as possible."

Xie Zhaotang was very happy to see that the villagers were working so hard. She also had a share in the pharmaceutical factory, and once it was completed, she would have a steady stream of money to spend.

"Miss Ling, is the young lady beside you the fourth daughter of Consort Shen?"

A woman in her twenties came over and looked Xie Zhaotang up and down.

Xie Zhaotang looked at her and saw that the woman was very tall, with a slightly protruding jawbone and upturned eyes, looking at him diagonally as she rolled over.

She was wearing a faded coarse cloth blouse, with the cuffs and trouser legs rolled up.

Seeing her approach, Huo Ling had no choice but to nod and say, "Yes, Fourth Sister is Aunt Shen's daughter."

"Fourth Sister, this is Aunt Hong, Brother Zhu's sister-in-law."

Xie Zhaotang suddenly understood why Aunt Hong was looking at him like that; she was vetting him on behalf of Zhu Feng…