The fool has become a spirit, and she can speak

Shang Xi pulled Yu Hua aside and gently persuaded her, "Yu Hua, take a rest. Don't get upset. I'll scold Cheng Feng later to get revenge for you."

Yu Hua turned to look at Shang Xi, her anger rising even more, "You and Cheng Feng are in cahoots, you're no better than him."

Shang Xi protested, "Yu Hua, we're the ones who're inseparable. Everyone says we're as close as brothers. Don't worry, I'll deal with Cheng Feng and get revenge for you in a bit."

"I don't believe you for a second." Yu Hua shoved Shang Xi aside and stormed off. She left the palace, presumably to go home.

Yu Hua returned just in time. Several matchmakers were surrounding Chen Qingsheng, trying to use their powers on him. Chen Qingsheng was huddled in the innermost corner of the bed like a wounded chick, helpless against the people in front of him. Yu Hua, along with two of her household helpers, pushed the four famous matchmakers from the capital out and even verbally intimidated them before they stopped.

Back in the house, Chen Qingsheng was still panting heavily, completely terrified, when Yu Hua immediately said, "I don't approve of your relationship with He Ye."

Chen Qingsheng raised his right hand and swore to the heavens, "Sister-in-law, He Ye's feelings for me are definitely one-sided. If I had even the slightest bit of those feelings for her, may I be struck by lightning."

"Don't even mention four matchmakers, even if forty or four hundred come, even if they talk the dead back to life and break the sky, you still can't waver in your stance." Shang Xi's words were full of warning.

Chen Qingsheng's face was a mix of laughter and tears. "Sister-in-law, what are you saying? He Ye is crazy. How could I dare to get involved with her? I can't even avoid her. In the end, this is all because of you. You asked He Ye to bring me food, and you asked her to set up a stall next to me. Now look what's happened, she's got her eye on me."

Yu Hua was also filled with regret: "Who knew she was after you? If I had known, I would have let you starve to death on the street rather than let her bring you food!"

"Sister-in-law, don't blame yourself. I'll just avoid seeing her in the future."

……

As dusk settled and night fell, Su Aixiu paced back and forth in front of her house for a long time without seeing He Bao. "Mother, I'll go out and look for He Bao."

No one knows a daughter better than her mother. Liu Dalan hadn't spoken all day, and she hadn't touched the dinner that Su Aixiu served. Since Liu Dalan didn't say anything, how could Su Aixiu dare to make the decision to go out and find Hebao on her own?

"Mother, didn't Hebao go to get your medicine? Where did she go to get the medicine? She hasn't come back all day. Do you know where she went? It's getting darker and darker. It's easy for a girl like her to run into bad people. Should I go out and look for her?"

Liu Dalan is truly composed; Su Aixiu is no match for her. All the things she said were rendered meaningless by her mother-in-law, who never gave her a single response.

As the sky gradually darkened, the frugal Su Aisu lit a few candles in Liu Dalan's room. "Mother, I'll go heat up the food."

Seeing that her mother-in-law ignored her, Su Aixiu picked up the food and left with the cold dishes. As she went into the kitchen, someone came back humming a little tune. Who else could it be but He Bao?

Su Aixiu dropped the food she was holding and chased after Hebao. Seeing the large bags and small packages in Hebao's hands, she asked her for the things, "Little sister, where are the medicinal herbs you got for Mother? I've been waiting for you all day. Mother didn't drink the tonic herbs at noon. Hurry up and give me the tonic herbs. I'll brew them for Mother to drink after lunch."

He Bao was taken aback. "I don't have any medicinal herbs!"

"Didn't you say you were going to get medicine when you left? Where's the medicine? You have so many things in your hands, don't you have any medicine for your mother?" Su Aixiu really wanted to know what her sister-in-law had been doing all day. Her mother-in-law was still waiting for the best medicinal herbs to nourish her body.

He Bao let out a burp, and a mixed meaty smell wafted into Su Aixiu's nose. Since she wasn't home, everyone else hadn't eaten yet, but she had gone out to eat alone.

"If the Prince's Mansion won't give me medicine, where am I supposed to get it from!" He Bao said matter-of-factly, showing no concern for how important the tonic was to her mother's health.

“If the Prince’s Mansion won’t give you medicine, then go to the pharmacy to buy it. Are you going to stop giving me medicine just because the Prince’s Mansion won’t give me medicine?” If He Bao didn’t look like Liu Da Lan, she would suspect that this person was not Liu Da Lan’s biological daughter.

“Sister-in-law, if you really care about your mother, go buy her some medicine. What’s the point of arguing with me? I don’t own a pharmacy.”

"Do I have any silver? If I had silver, could I stop giving my mother her medicine? And the Prince's Mansion gave us so many medicinal herbs that we couldn't use them all in a year. Why did you sell them all?" Su Aixiu was the one who did the most work in the family and was also the poorest. Apart from money for buying groceries, she could hardly find a single tael of silver on her.

“That’s what my mother told me to sell. If you don’t like it, go talk to my mother. I don’t have the money from the sale, so I can’t buy medicine for her if she doesn’t give me the money.”

"You have no money, so where did you get all these things? These are all clothes, aren't they?" Su Aixiu was being a bit unreasonable again today because Liu Dalan would scold her if she didn't get her medicine. At noon, Hebao didn't come back, and her mother-in-law, who valued her life, didn't get her tonic herbs, so she scolded her.

As the daughter-in-law of the Cheng family, Su Aixiu was treated like a slave, and she felt very wronged.

"Sister-in-law, I'm a young woman about to get married. If you won't buy me some new clothes, can't I at least buy myself a few outfits?"

Just then, Liu Dalan's shout came from inside the house, "He Bao, you come in here!"

He Bao had already turned her toes towards her west wing when Liu Da Lan called out to her. She turned around angrily and glared at her sister-in-law, cursing her for being so meddlesome.

He Ye and Su Aixiu entered the main room one after the other. Liu Dalan sat on the bed like an old monster, her gloomy face covered with a layer of frost.

She questioned He Bao: "Where is my medicine? Where is the imperial physician who came to treat me?"

"Mother, I went to the Prince's mansion. It was my uncle and that stupid fool who were heartless and said you weren't worthy of the imperial physician..."

After He Bao exaggerated and downplayed the severity of the situation, Liu Dalan's eyes blazed with fury, and her face turned murderous. Looking at the large bags and bundles in He Bao's hands, she questioned again, "Then surely it's time to prepare for the New Year's feast?"

"Mother... there's no money... no money..." He Bao's eyes darted around, her expression panicked, and she stammered out a lie that was obvious to everyone.

Liu Dalan roared, "Where's the money?"

He Bao dropped the bundle in her hands to the ground, revealing the colorful clothes. She hurriedly took out her money bag, walked quickly to the bedside, and placed it on her mother's lap through the blanket.