Chapter 89: Testing the Medicine

The little dog, of course, couldn’t answer her. It simply extended its pink tongue to lick her fingers. Ji Rong glanced around and, seeing no one nearby, picked up the puppy and whispered softly, “Little one, be a good boy and don’t move. I’ll take you to eat some meat bones.”

Having lived in the residence for so long, she had never heard of any of the ladies keeping a dog, nor could any of the young masters possibly own one. Therefore, this dog’s owner must be one of the servants. If a servant’s dog went missing, it wouldn’t cause much trouble—it certainly wouldn’t stir up a storm.

Whether or not the puppy truly understood her words, it remained still as she cradled it in her arms. The dog was small to begin with, and with the cover of her sleeves, no one noticed as they made their way back.

Upon returning to her room, Chunxiu happened to be there as well. Today, there was less work in the firewood shed, so she had come back to rest and have lunch here. The meals provided to the firewood shed were coarse and rough, far inferior to what was available here.

Seeing Ji Rong enter, Chunxiu smiled. “Sister, you’ve returned just in time. Today I’m free, so I’ll accompany you to the kitchen to fetch our meal.”

“Not yet!” After closing the door, Ji Rong placed the puppy on the ground. Chunxiu looked surprised. “Whose dog is this? Are you planning to keep it, Sister? But... will Aunty Yang approve?”

“No approval needed.” As she spoke, Ji Rong retrieved a small silver knife from the medicine box under her bed. Her voice turned cold. “Find a rope to tie it up, and bind its mouth too, so it doesn’t make any noise.”

Her demeanor startled Chunxiu, who exclaimed in horror, “What are you going to do, Sister?”

Ji Rong’s expression remained emotionless. “Obviously, we’re testing the medicine. Tomorrow, I have to present the medicine to the Young Master, but my arm wound has already healed. So, I’ll use this dog for the test.”

Chunxiu looked down at the tiny puppy, which was now trying its best to lick her feet. Reluctantly, she said, “It’s so small. One cut might kill it. Why don’t we… skip the test?”

“Skip it?” Ji Rong sneered. “And if something goes wrong tomorrow, will you take responsibility? Or have you grown accustomed to your duties in the firewood shed and no longer wish to return to the music hall?”

“That’s not what I meant.” Before she could finish, Ji Rong had already thrown a rope at her. “If that’s not the case, then hurry up and tie it.”

Reluctantly, Chunxiu followed her instructions and bound the unsuspecting puppy. Once its limbs and mouth were tied, the puppy finally realized something was wrong and began to struggle desperately—but it was too late. Unable to make a sound, it trembled in fear.

As the silver knife sliced through its belly, bright red blood immediately gushed out, staining the nearby fur. The puppy let out weak whimpers.

Ji Rong’s hand trembled as she took out the tendon-repairing muscle-regenerating powder she had painstakingly created over forty days, after consulting countless medical texts and handwritten notes. She murmured, “Please… please let it work.”

Tilting the bottle, she sprinkled the powder evenly over the puppy’s wound. After a while, the blood that had been flowing profusely began to slow and eventually stopped. Though not as fast as the original powder left by her grandfather, it wasn’t far off.

Seeing this, Chunxiu exclaimed joyfully, “It worked! Sister, it worked!”

A faint smile appeared on Ji Rong’s face as she nodded. “Finally, all these days of hard work haven’t been in vain. The tendon-repairing muscle-regenerating powder…” She didn’t finish her sentence but instead stared intently at the porcelain bottle in her hand. The unassuming powder inside would change her fate. The declining Ji family would not only be revived under her hands but would rise to even greater prosperity than before!

After the initial excitement, Chunxiu remembered the puppy and looked down, only to find that it had died. Although the tendon-repairing muscle-regenerating powder had stopped the bleeding quickly, the dog was too small, and Ji Rong’s cut had been rather deep, damaging its internal organs. It hadn’t survived. Panicking, Chunxiu stammered, “Sister, it’s dead. What should we do now?”

Ji Rong wiped the blood off the silver knife and calmly replied, “Dead is dead. There’s no need to make such a fuss. Wrap it in an old piece of clothing, and when it gets dark, bury it in the back. Make sure no one sees you. If anyone asks later, just say you’ve never seen it. Don’t slip up or panic.”

Chunxiu nodded nervously and did as instructed, wrapping the puppy in an old cloth. Still uneasy, she stuffed it into the cabinet.

Seeing her still looking anxious, Ji Rong patted her shoulder reassuringly. “It’s just a little dog, not a person. What’s there to be afraid of?”

Chunxiu’s expression remained uneasy. “That’s true, but what if this dog belongs to one of the masters and they trace it back to us? That would be trouble.”

Ji Rong smiled faintly. “Don’t worry. None of the masters in the residence keep dogs. Besides, as long as neither of us speaks, who could possibly trace it back to us?” Without waiting for Chunxiu to respond, she added, “The most important thing now is to cure the Young Master’s foot ailment. Once that’s done, I can ask him to intervene and get you transferred back to the music hall.”

Chunxiu thought about it and nodded. “I leave everything in your hands, Sister.”

Ji Rong smiled. “Alright. Think about it—have I ever stood idly by when it came to your matters?”

After tidying up the room, the two went to the kitchen to fetch their lunch. While passing through the back garden, Ji Rong unexpectedly spotted Li Zhiyun and a few servants searching frantically.

Ji Rong approached and asked, “Young Master Two, what are you looking for?”

Li Zhiyun replied anxiously, “Ah Mu is missing.”

“Ah Mu?” Ji Rong repeated, puzzled. No one in the residence seemed to go by that name. Before she could ask further, one of the servants explained, “Ah Mu is the puppy Fifth Young Master brought back. It was in Yuxiu Pavilion earlier, but we lost sight of it for a moment, and now we don’t know where it’s gone.” He eyed Ji Rong suspiciously. “By the way, weren’t you also in Yuxiu Pavilion earlier? Did you see Ah Mu?”

Ji Rong’s eyelid twitched slightly as she shook her head. “I didn’t see any puppy when I left.” Carefully, she asked, “Fifth Young Master, what does Ah Mu look like? We can help look for it.”

“Ah Mu is only two months old, very small, with yellow-and-white fur.” Before Li Zhiyun could finish, a loud “clang” interrupted them. Turning toward the sound, they saw Chunxiu drop the food container she was holding, spilling the contents all over the ground.

You useless fool! Ji Rong cursed inwardly, but outwardly, she expressed concern as she steadied Chunxiu. “I told you earlier—if you’re feeling unwell, stay in the room and rest. Don’t run around. Where do you feel uncomfortable? Is it serious?”

The sharp pain in her arm snapped Chunxiu back to her senses. Regaining some composure, she said weakly, “I’m fine. My hands and feet just feel weak. I think I caught a chill last night because I didn’t cover myself properly.”

“You always fail to take care of yourself,” Ji Rong scolded gently. “When we get back, I’ll make you some ginger tea. As long as you sweat it out, you’ll be fine.” Then she added, “Rest here for a while. After I help Fifth Young Master find Ah Mu, I’ll accompany you back.”