Free Web NovelChapter 218: Chapter 218: Ill Omen, Black-Hearted
Ji Qingwu looked at him and said, "I can treat illnesses, but I can’t find people. You should find someone more qualified, Sir. You’ll have better luck with the fortune-teller next door, Zhang Daxian, than with a physician like me."
Yu Wen Tianqing said, "Five Divine Doctors, please hear me out before you make a decision."
Ji Qingwu said, "I understand you’re worried about your younger sister, but how could I possibly help you find her?"
Yu Wen Tianqing said, "The men I sent out discovered that she once appeared in Nanchu. And you, Five Divine Doctors, have also lived in a small town in Nanchu."
Ji Qingwu raised an eyebrow. "You’re not suggesting your younger sister has something to do with me, are you?"
Yu Wen Tianqing chuckled. "If I had a sister as beautiful and capable as you, I would wake up smiling from my dreams."
"What I mean is, Five Divine Doctors, you may have seen her. She has a congenital disorder, one that’s hidden deep within. It doesn’t cause physical pain, but it makes her different from other women."
Ji Qingwu lowered her eyes in thought. ’I already know what his sister’s problem is. For him to seek me out, it must be a rare and difficult gynecological condition.’
’Such a condition is very rare; I’ve only ever encountered one case.’
Yu Wen Tianqing asked, "Five Divine Doctors, have you ever treated a woman with a congenital absence of the uterus?"
’Just as I expected.’ Ji Qingwu lowered her lashes.
Back when Ji Changlin was dispatched to Nanchu as an envoy, his personal female guard, Lan Ling, had this very condition.
Now, her older brother was stationed at the embassy in Nanchu, and Lan Ling had gone with him.
Ji Qingwu asked, "Why did your sister go missing?"
The gray in Yu Wen Tianqing’s eyes darkened. He said in a low voice, "She was diagnosed with this condition right after she was born. My fa... father believed it was an unlucky omen and sent her to be raised by another family."
"But the foster family was negligent. They didn’t even know when she disappeared."
’Abandoned just because she couldn’t have children. What kind of decent family does that?’
Ji Qingwu frowned and said, "I have never met such a girl. Since you’re only starting to look for her now, Sir, it’s possible she’s no longer alive."
It was a possibility he had considered. A deep blue shimmered in Yu Wen Tianqing’s eyes.
"Miss Ji, have you truly never seen her?"
It was as if that light in his eyes could pull a person in. Ji Qingwu averted her gaze.
"No."
As Yu Wen Tianqing passed by Duan Mingfeng on his way out, the blue in his eyes had faded, and he looked just as he had when he first came in.
Ji Qingwu walked out of the inner room, and Mo Lingling hurried over with a ledger. "Miss Ji, should I chase after him and make him pay the consultation fee?"
"There’s no need."
’I should write a letter to Ji Changlin when I get back.’
Before she left, Ji Qingwu said, "Mr. Duan."
Duan Mingfeng had been standing by the window, watching the direction Yu Wen Tianqing had left. He turned at the sound of her voice and said, "Yes, Miss Ji? What is it?"
Ji Qingwu pointed to the inner room and reminded him, "Mr. Duan, before you leave, don’t forget to settle the bill with Miss Mo for the cost of the damaged cups and saucers."
Duan Mingfeng: "..."
Mo Lingling quickly jotted down a few notes in her ledger.
After leaving the clinic, Ji Qingwu didn’t head straight home. Instead, she made a stop at Prince Yong’s Mansion, as it was on her way.
Her carriage had just stopped at the entrance of the Prince Mansion when she ran right into Prince Yong.
Ji Qingwu looked at Zhao Minghong’s bruised and swollen face, puzzled. "Your Highness, you’re..."
’His face wasn’t injured when I saw him at the palace yesterday.’
Zhao Minghong said furiously, "I knew it! That Wei Ting is a black-hearted bastard!"
The movement of speaking pulled at the wounds on his face, making him grimace in pain.
Ji Qingwu racked her brain but couldn’t think of anyone who would dare to lay a hand on Prince Yong. She asked, "Did you get into another fight with Wei Ting?"
Zhao Minghong said resentfully, "Fifth Cousin, you and I are on the same page! It must have been that scoundrel!"
Ji Qingwu was completely confused, so the little eunuch explained.
"On his way back from court, His Highness was suddenly surrounded by a dozen masked thugs, dragged into an alley, and beaten up."
’Who would dare attack a Prince? Besides Wei Ting, there was no one else.’
’But something was strange. Wei Ting wouldn’t be so reckless as to brazenly attack Prince Yong the day after being reprimanded.’
’It would inevitably make people suspect that Wei Ting was dissatisfied with the Emperor’s decree.’
Ji Qingwu thought about it carefully. ’Ever since returning to Lin’an, Wei Ting’s actions have been unusual. I can’t seem to understand him at all. Then again, maybe I never truly did.’
She asked, "How does Your Highness intend to handle this?"
Zhao Minghong closed his eyes, then opened them. "I’ll bide my time. For a gentleman, ten years is not too late for revenge."
Prince Yong had just been warned by Emperor Wu Su that if he caused any more trouble, Tao Wanxin would be sent back to Anle Hall.
He had no choice but to swallow this loss.
Ji Qingwu followed Prince Yong into the mansion, arriving first at the study.
She asked, "Your Highness, where is the Princess Consort?"
After sitting down, Zhao Minghong tilted his face up and said, "Fifth Cousin, aren’t you going to consider treating the injuries on my face first?"
Ji Qingwu said innocently, "Your Highness, I only brought abortion prevention pills. If you don’t mind, you could take a few. They can also replenish your qi and blood and improve your complexion."
As soon as he heard the abortion prevention pills were for Princess Yong, Zhao Minghong waved his hand and had the little eunuch quickly take her to Tao Wanxin’s quarters.
Jinmo Residence was the closest to Prince Yong’s study, just a short walk away.
Upon entering the courtyard gate, she saw a dense grove of tall bamboo complemented by a small bridge over a flowing stream, creating an elegant and tranquil scene.
Ji Qingwu felt as if she had stepped into the residence of a refined scholar. ’It’s quite rare to find such a secluded and serene spot within a Prince Mansion.’
However, it was too quiet, and no one came out to greet them.
Ji Qingwu asked, "Are there no servants to attend to the Princess Consort in this courtyard?"
The little eunuch replied, "Fifth Missy, His Highness gave orders yesterday that no one is to be assigned to serve here openly."
Ji Qingwu thought she must have misheard. "Not openly?"
The little eunuch scratched the back of his head and said, "Yes, that’s what His Highness said. All the provisions befitting the Princess Consort’s rank must be provided, but only in secret. He wants Her Highness to reflect on her mistakes, and once she realizes she was wrong, things will return to normal."
Ji Qingwu suppressed a laugh and nodded. "What a brilliant plan from His Highness."
Just as she reached the window, she heard a woman crying from inside.
Ji Qingwu hurried into the room and saw a woman in magnificent light pink robes, her belly swollen with pregnancy, sitting on a chair and sobbing.
Tao Wanxin, who was in the main seat, saw someone enter and assumed it was another of Prince Yong’s concubines. She rubbed her aching temples.
When she saw clearly that it was Ji Qingwu, she quickly stood up and came over to greet her.
Tao Wanxin’s expression relaxed. "Qingwu, why have you come today? I thought it would be a few more days before I saw you again."
The woman in pink stopped crying and looked up at Ji Qingwu, tear tracks half-dry on her face.
Tao Wanxin said, "This is His Highness’s cousin, the Fifth Missy of the Ji Family. Concubine Du, you should greet her."
Du Yufang was the most favored concubine in Prince Yong’s Mansion. She had already borne him a son and was now pregnant with another child. She was several months further along than Tao Wanxin, and her pregnancy was already showing.
Because Prince Yong hadn’t visited her courtyard for many days, she had come to the Princess Consort’s residence to cry and complain.
Although this Princess Consort was not favored, it just so happened that whenever she put in a good word, the Prince would be willing to visit her.
She had heard that this magnificently beautiful woman before her was the famous Ji Wu of Lin’an.
Du Yufang did not rise. She stroked her belly, remaining seated securely in her chair.
"What are you talking about, Princess Consort?"
