Chapter 96: Understanding

After finishing everything, Xu the physician instructed, “That’s all for now. The medicine must be changed in three days. Young Master, remember this—do not move your left leg under any circumstances. If there’s another mishap this time, even the tendon-repairing muscle-regenerating powder won’t help.”

“I understand.” Whether it was due to the miraculous effects of the powder or a psychological effect, Li Jiancheng felt that the pain had lessened after its application. Though being immobile for a month would be difficult, he believed that curing his foot ailment was worth any hardship.

Xu prescribed a blood-activating and bruise-dissolving medicine for the servants to prepare, gave detailed instructions on what to watch for, and then excused himself. Ji Rong gazed at Li Jiancheng’s tightly bandaged left leg and said, “I will pray daily before the Buddha for Young Master’s swift recovery from this old ailment. May you regain your health and live in peace from now on!”

Li Jiancheng looked at her and replied, “Rest assured. If I recover, I will never forget your contributions.”

Ji Rong smiled faintly. “The most important thing is Young Master’s well-being. My role is insignificant.” She knelt slightly and added, “If Young Master has no further orders, I’ll return to prepare more medicine. Although I’ve finalized the formula for the tendon-repairing muscle-regenerating powder, making it is still quite labor-intensive.”

Just as Li Jiancheng was about to agree, he noticed the handkerchief wrapped around her hand. “What happened here?”

“N-nothing… It’s just a small injury I accidentally caused myself.” As she spoke, Ji Rong tried to hide her hand behind her back. Her evasive behavior aroused Li Jiancheng’s suspicion. “Come here.”

When Ji Rong reluctantly stepped forward, Li Jiancheng grabbed her injured hand and unwrapped the handkerchief. His brow furrowed as he asked, “How did this happen?”

Ji Rong recounted the events that had transpired earlier, concluding with, “Lady Two suspected me of being involved in Ah Mu’s death and summoned me for questioning.”

Li Jiancheng scoffed coldly. “It’s just a dog, not a person. Dead is dead. Why make such a fuss?” He paused, then asked sharply, “Did she injure you?”

Ji Rong shook her head. “No, Lady Two later questioned me about my frequent visits to the pharmacy to fetch medicine.” Seeing Li Jiancheng’s brows knit together slightly, she quickly reassured him, waving her hands. “Young Master, rest assured. I didn’t mention anything about you to Lady Two—not a single word.”

Li Jiancheng nodded. “And then?”

Ji Rong’s expression darkened. “When I refused to answer, Lady Two became enraged and smashed a teacup. While I was cleaning up the broken shards, I accidentally cut my hand.”

“Why did you bother cleaning it up? Let her smash whatever she wants.” After a brief silence, Li Jiancheng continued, “If she asks again next time, just tell her the truth.”

Ji Rong hesitated. “But wouldn’t that cause trouble for Young Master?”

Seeing her genuine concern for him, Li Jiancheng’s expression softened. “I’ve already broken my leg and can’t walk. She’ll find out sooner or later. There’s no point in hiding it anymore.”

“I understand,” Ji Rong replied softly. Observing her timid demeanor, Li Jiancheng reassured her, “You don’t need to fear her. As long as I’m here, she won’t dare harm you.”

“Thank you, Young Master!” A subtle smile crept across Ji Rong’s lips. She had always understood exactly whom she needed to win over.

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Word of Ji Rong’s efforts to develop the tendon-repairing muscle-regenerating powder to treat Li Jiancheng’s foot ailment spread quickly throughout the governor’s residence. The household was never short of opportunists eager to curry favor with those in power. Seeing Ji Rong gain Li Jiancheng’s trust, many rushed to ingratiate themselves with her. Even Chunxiu benefited indirectly, as people in the firewood shed vied to do her work for her, hoping to use her as a stepping stone to Ji Rong.

The room where Ji Rong resided also became lively, with visitors frequently dropping by. Some even brought gifts to show their goodwill.

Despite all this attention, Ji Rong remained humble and unassuming, treating everyone with kindness and politeness as she always had. In no time, she earned a reputation for being approachable and gracious.

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That evening, Yunyi took the food container Jiang Caiping had fetched from the kitchen and began removing the dishes. Frowning, she remarked, “Why are there so few dishes today?”

Though the usual four dishes and one soup were present, the portions were drastically reduced—only about half of what they normally received. Most egregiously, the mapo tofu dish was nearly empty after just a few scoops.

Jiang Caiping angrily distributed the bowls and chopsticks. “This is considered generous! If it weren’t for Li Niang intervening, the steward would have only given us three dishes.”

“Why is that?” Yunyi asked.

Jiang Caiping recounted what had happened in the kitchen earlier. She had arrived late, after most others had already taken their meals, leaving limited supplies. However, there was still enough for them—until Chunxiu walked in. Upon seeing them serving food, Chunxiu claimed that Ji Rong was hungry and demanded an additional portion. Given Ji Rong’s current popularity in the residence, the steward dared not refuse and forcibly allocated part of their meal to her. But Chunxiu wasn’t satisfied, insisting that Ji Rong particularly liked mapo tofu and demanding the entire dish. Only after Li Niang intervened did the steward leave them a small portion—but it was pitifully scant.

“That Feng Chunxiu is doing this deliberately. Even if they ate an hour ago, they couldn’t possibly be hungry by now. This is clearly intentional harassment. And that steward—he used to fawn over you when you were close to Second Young Master. Now that he sees Ji Rong helping First Young Master with his foot ailment, he immediately switches sides. He has no principles whatsoever.”

Yunyi washed her hands and responded indifferently, “Chunxiu has always been like that. There’s no point getting angry over her. As for the steward, how he chooses to behave is his own business—it has nothing to do with us. Let’s eat.”

Jiang Caiping managed to eat a few bites but grew increasingly resentful. Biting her chopsticks, she muttered, “That Ji Rong is incredibly lucky. Not only did she manage to create the formula for the tendon-repairing muscle-regenerating powder, but she also ingratiated herself with both First Young Master and Lady Two through that Yimucao Facial Recipe. I thought she’d never succeed in making the powder.”

Yunyi placed a piece of vegetable in her bowl. “Being able to please everyone is her talent. We can’t compete with that.”

“I’m not envious of her! I…” Jiang Caiping trailed off, unsure of what else to say. Lowering her head, she angrily bit into the vegetable. “If she fails to cure First Young Master’s foot ailment, I want to see how she’ll handle the consequences.”

Yunyi chuckled lightly. “Enough. You’ve been complaining about this since we came in. If you keep talking, the food will get cold.”

“I’m upset! Has Sister forgotten how she falsely accused us in front of Lady Two? If Third Lady hadn’t passed by, we’d have been doomed.” Seeing Yunyi remain silent, she grumbled, “I don’t understand how you can stay so calm when people bully us like this.”

“Are you lecturing me now?” Yunyi teased with a raised eyebrow. “I believe that evil deeds will eventually bring retribution. Ji Rong wronged us unjustly, and karma will catch up with her.”

“I just hope it doesn’t come too late,” Jiang Caiping retorted sulkily. Still, she stopped talking and focused on eating in silence.