“Brother Nianghuan, why aren’t you eating?” Li Weiheng asked after finishing her portion.
“I don’t eat things that aren’t fresh to avoid stomach troubles,” Xi Zhaoting said, secretly harboring resentment. How dare Wei Linxia! Yesterday, he was exhausted and nearly drowned, yet she didn’t give him a lotus pod. Now, she was offering them to this wheelchair-bound fellow. Hmph.
After the four left, Xi Linxuan folded the paper on the table, glancing at the still-steaming lotus seed and red bean soup.
He beckoned a young eunuch to push his wheelchair and asked, “How is Young Lady Wei’s condition?”
The eunuch replied, “Your Highness, I met Maid Yu Mo. She said the Young Lady had a severe fever last night, was cold in the morning, took several doses of medicine, and is slightly better, but not eating much.”
“This is serious!” Xi Linxuan frowned, recalling Xi Zhaoting’s words about breaking a stone pillar.
Could Wei Linxia have fallen into the water? This would explain her alternating pale and flushed expressions. Furthermore, Xi Zhaoting claimed he saw her fall in the lotus pond, which raises further questions.
Wei Linxia remained ill through the Mid-Autumn Festival, missing the palace’s moon-viewing banquet. Lady Wei returned with the Empress Dowager’s reward and message to be delivered upon Wei Linxia’s recovery.
By the time Wei Linxia recovered, half a month after Mid-Autumn, the weather grew increasingly cold. When she went to the palace to pay her respects, Xi Zhaoting was there, leisurely cracking walnuts with a golden hammer.
“You’ve lost so much weight; your chin has become sharp! What happened?” the old empress dowager asked.
“It was nothing serious. My mother was just worried, which is why it took so long,” Wei Linxia softly replied.
The empress dowager cautioned her, “This illness, if not treated gradually, will accumulate and worsen. Go back and let the doctor take a look, and recuperate for a few days.”
Wei Linxia responded affirmatively, but the empress dowager then asked about Xi Linxuan.
“I heard from Princess Yan that you’re teaching the Thirteenth Prince acupuncture techniques? Have there been any developments?” the empress dowager asked.
Wei Linxia furrowed her brow slightly. “His Highness seems uninterested, and he hasn’t fully memorized the acupoint diagram, so there hasn’t been much progress,” Wei Linxia replied.
