The cruel little princess

Shen Youyou sat in the carriage and quickly began to administer first aid to the woman. She had just taken her pulse and discovered she suffered from congenital heart disease, what is now known as heart disease. Unfortunately, this condition is currently incurable through surgery, and the necessary treatment equipment is lacking here.

Originally, Shen Youyou planned to give her acupuncture, but because the space in the carriage was small and the woman was curled up and unable to lie flat, she was unable to accurately find the acupuncture points, so acupuncture could not be performed.

In desperation, Shen Youyou pulled a small, milky-white porcelain bottle from her medicine collection and carefully poured out a pill, placing it with extraordinary care into the woman's mouth. She'd made these pills on a whim a few days ago, after suddenly remembering my country's four life-saving traditional Chinese medicine pills. She'd planned to keep them at the pharmacy for emergencies. Unexpectedly, the pills had already been used before they were even stored away! And the one she'd just fed the young woman was the Quick-Acting Heart Pill.

After taking the pill, the young lady's complexion seemed to improve, no longer as pale as paper. Furthermore, the carriage wasn't as cold as outside, so her body temperature gradually returned to normal. However, she was still not out of danger. "Uncle Li, hurry up!" Shen Youyou urged Uncle Li, who was driving the carriage outside.

"Okay! Miss, please sit tight!" Upon hearing the voice, Uncle Li whipped his horsewhip to speed up and soon arrived at the door of the herbal medicine shop.

Uncle Li saw that there were many people in front of the shop, and many servants came to get the medicinal food before their masters woke up. To avoid suspicion, he quickly called a few cooks to bring quilts, wrapped the young lady tightly in the quilt, and carried her into the backyard. The maid named Xiaolan also hurriedly followed in.

Shen Youyou arrived at the backyard, where a room was reserved for her to rest. She instructed the cook to quickly light several charcoal braziers, using the finest silver charcoal, the kind that produced virtually no smoke. Then, she ordered the others to boil water. Fortunately, a fire had been burning under the medicinal stove, and the braziers were quickly delivered. The room gradually grew warmer, but the delicate girl lying in bed remained unaware. Her fingers were pale, and her body was cold. This was clearly due to poor circulation; she needed to be warmed up as quickly as possible.

Shen Youyou ordered people to put up screens to block the view, and then asked everyone to leave the room, leaving only Chuntao and Xiaolan to serve in the room. "Chuntao, you and this..." Shen Youyou was speechless for a moment, forgetting what her name was just now.

"Xiao Lan! To the Ruian County Lady, this is my daughter, Zuo Qingqing. Her master is the Minister of Works, Zuo Yunting," Xiao Lan replied quickly. At first, she hadn't known who the kindhearted lady who had saved her mistress was, but now that she was in front of the Rejuvenating Herbal Diet Shop, what was there left for her to understand? Furthermore, she and her daughter had secretly left today to visit the shop in search of the Ruian County Lady!

Her mistress had been frail and sickly since childhood, and the master and mistress were deeply concerned. They sought medical advice everywhere, but could never find an effective treatment. The imperial physicians were helpless, and could only advise the young lady to reduce her exercise and avoid excessive fatigue and mental stimulation. Consequently, the young lady spent her days at home, feeling depressed.

However, in recent days, the servants in the palace have been spreading rumors about a new shop called "Rejuvenating Medicinal Diet" that has opened in the capital, and the owner is surprisingly the recently returned Rui'an County Master! It's said that this county master not only prepares delicious medicinal meals, but is also an expert in pulse diagnosis and treatment, prescribing personalized medicinal recipes based on each individual's physical condition. This news piqued the young lady's interest, and she longed to meet this amazing county master and seek treatment.

However, the young lady hesitated. She worried about not being able to meet the county lady in person, and even if she did, whether she would be willing to prescribe the medicine. Therefore, she decided not to tell her parents, lest they wait hopefully, only to be plunged into deep disappointment. So, the young lady resolutely decided to sneak out of the house early in the morning with her personal maid, hoping to secretly visit the rejuvenation herbal remedy shop, hoping for a miracle.

However, the young lady's health was so poor, and coupled with the inclement weather and biting cold, she suddenly developed a flare-up mid-journey! Since it was still early, the streets were nearly deserted. Despite her desperate attempts to scream for help, no one came to her aid, let alone save her young lady! The young lady's face turned pale as paper, her lips turning a dark blue, as if her life was about to fade away in the icy streets. Just then, luck favored them: Shen Youyou's carriage happened to pass by. It truly is true that there is always a way out!

Thinking of this, Xiaolan knelt down in front of Shen Youyou without hesitation, and pleaded with tears in her eyes: "Please, Princess Rui'an, save my young lady! Please, Princess Rui'an, save my young lady! I am willing to be an ox or a horse in my next life, and I will definitely repay the Princess's great kindness!"

Seeing this, Shen Youyou quickly asked Chuntao to help Xiaolan up and comforted her: "Xiaolan, don't cry, your young lady is in urgent need of your help now!" These words were like a gust of spring breeze, instantly stopping Xiaolan's crying and begging.

Xiaolan quickly wiped away her tears, looked at Shen Youyou with anticipation, and said firmly: "Xiaolan is at the county lord's disposal!"

"You and Chuntao should undress your young lady first, then wipe her body with slightly hot water. I'll have someone prepare the things we'll need later. After you've wiped her down and restored her body temperature, I'll give her acupuncture," Shen Youyou instructed methodically. Xiaolan immediately stepped forward and deftly undressed and wiped her young lady. Chuntao found herself unable to help, wanting to help. Xiaolan was too skilled at this; it seemed her young lady often fell ill at home, so Xiaolan was very familiar with the process. Chuntao could only help by changing the hot water and wringing out the towel.

Shen Youyou quickly ordered An Er, who was waiting outside, to return to the mansion to retrieve her medicine box, which contained all the tools she needed. She also quickly wrote a handwritten letter, sealed it in an envelope, and sent someone to the Minister of Works' Zuo Mansion to inform them, so that they wouldn't wake up early and discover that the young lady was missing, causing chaos.

Indeed, the Zuo Mansion was in turmoil. With the exception of Lord Zuo, who had attended court and had yet to return home, everyone else in the household knew their young lady and her trusted maid had disappeared. However, there were no signs of a struggle in the room. Concerned about her daughter's reputation, Madam Zuo dared not report them to the authorities. Instead, she quietly sent her sons and servants out to search, stating only that Xiaolan, a servant girl, had gone missing.

At this moment, the waiter from Huichun Medicinal Food arrived with a letter. He didn't tell the doorman what the matter was, only that it was from the Rui'an County Lady, who had sent a letter and that it would only be delivered to Madam Zuo in person. So the doorman reported the matter. Madam Zuo was already extremely worried about her daughter's disappearance, and now she had encountered someone who insisted on seeing her. If she hadn't heard that it was the Rui'an County Lady who sent the letter, and if her master hadn't praised her for her ingenuity and skill, she would never have bothered to see her!

Madam Zuo patiently summoned the waiter to the front yard and said, "I am the waiter of Huichun Medicinal Food Shop. On the orders of my young lady, I have come to deliver a handwritten letter to you, Madam. Please take a look at it." The waiter respectfully took out the letter from his bosom and presented it to her.

The housekeeper immediately took the letter and handed it to his wife. Madam Zuo took a deep breath. She had no idea what the Rui'an County Lady was up to. They had no personal relationship, and her family had never ordered medicinal food from her shop. Why did she suddenly send a letter without even sending a single letter? Could it be that she was trying to promote her medicinal food and get her family to order it as well? Madam Zuo didn't want to read this letter. She just wanted to go out and find her daughter! It was freezing cold, and she didn't know where her daughter had gone! The imperial physician had clearly told her not to run around and get stimulated by the cold. What if she fell ill outside? !

But the waiter refused to leave, waiting for a reply. So Madam Zuo quickly opened the letter. After she finished reading it quickly, she suddenly stood up. Not caring about her own gaffe, she said, "Thank your Lady County Master for me! You go back and report. I'll be at the Rejuvenating Herb Clinic right away!" She sent the waiter away and immediately instructed the housekeeper to tell the young masters and others outside who were looking for someone to leave and go to the Rejuvenating Herb Clinic right away. Their lady was right there!