Prefect Nie was lying on his sickbed, fuming with rage. A sinister and cold glint shot out from his eyes. He had lost his right arm last night and was almost crippled! He didn't know how many months he would have to lie in bed before the wound would gradually heal a bit.
From now on, his sleeve would be empty. Such humiliation was more unbearable to him than being killed!
Prefect Nie slapped the bedboard hard with his only left hand and roared, "He even dared to touch my men? Very well! I'll make his life a living hell! Someone! Thoroughly investigate this matter for me!"
Everyone took their orders and left.
The west city gate had already been locked, and no one was allowed to leave the city. By tracing along the way, that person would surely leave some clues. Prefect Nie was determined. He would spare no effort to catch that stunningly beautiful man from last night. Even if he had to break his bones, he would make him obediently become a male concubine and be slowly tortured to death!
Early the next morning, just as dawn was breaking, Wu Luoluo rolled over and woke up. She had something on her mind and woke up early, afraid that the servants of the Ouyang family would discover Shangguan Yun, who had sneaked into the room last night and hadn't left yet.
Unexpectedly, the quilt was empty! Wu Luoluo felt the still-warm quilt on the other side and knew that the young master had left not long ago.
She wondered if the bruises on his back were better. When having breakfast later, she had to find a way to send him some hot food.
Wu Luoluo got up to get dressed and was surprised to find that the belt of her inner clothes had been untied for no reason. Even the belt of her light-colored bellyband had been undone! Without a doubt, the young master must have taken liberties with her while she was asleep last night! Since they were in the Ouyang family, she guessed he had just groped her and didn't dare to go too far.
Wu Luoluo's pretty face flushed red. She silently spat out the word "hooligan" but then shyly buried her head in the quilt and sniffed the faint smell of medicinal herbs on it.
The young master had taken medicinal baths for many days and always had a smell of medicinal herbs on him. This smell made Wu Luoluo, who had dealt with traditional Chinese medicine for a long time, feel quite secure. Soon, she lay on the quilt and dozed off quietly.
When the sun was high in the sky, after the cleaning maids had swept the snow in the yard, they knocked on Wu Luoluo's door. Hearing a drowsy response from inside, the maid outside softly called out, "Miss Wu! The old ancestor woke up early this morning and was overjoyed when she heard you had come. I guess she's had her breakfast and can't wait to see you now."
"Ah?" There was an exclamation from inside the room. Wu Luoluo scrambled to get up and get dressed in a hurry.
The maid brought in hot water. After Wu Luoluo got dressed and washed up, the old lady of the Ouyang family, surrounded by many people, stepped into the yard. From afar, they could hear her asking the cleaning maid, "Is Miss Luoluo awake?"
Wu Luoluo quickly opened the door and greeted her. She bowed and said, "I, Wu Luoluo, pay my respects to the old madam of the Ouyang family! It should be me who goes to check your pulse. Please forgive my rudeness for getting up late. I hope the old madam won't take offense!"
The old lady of the Ouyang family quickly stepped forward to support her, patted the back of Wu Luoluo's hand, and softly said, "It's just that I'm old and wake up early. As soon as I heard you were in the mansion, I couldn't wait to come and see you. Luoluo, did you sleep well last night? Haven't you had breakfast yet?" The old lady quickly told the servant to serve breakfast for Wu Luoluo.
Wu Luoluo nodded and smiled. "Thanks to your blessing, I slept very well last night. Let me check your pulse first?"
The old lady pulled Wu Luoluo's hand and sat down at the table. She was quite obedient and let her check the pulse.
Wu Luoluo carefully checked the pulse for a long time, then raised her eyebrows and said, "The old madam is not seriously ill. It's just that there's some stagnation of liver qi. This illness is mostly caused by a heartache. I'll prescribe two doses of traditional Chinese medicine to soothe the liver and regulate qi, and you'll be fine after taking them for a few days."
The maid beside the old lady nodded and said, "The doctor in the mansion also said so."
Wu Luoluo added, "I see that your filial sons and grandsons are very considerate. If the old madam has something on her mind, you might as well talk to your family more. It will relieve some of your worries. If not, you can also talk to me more. I'll surely help you share your burdens."
The old lady of the Ouyang family grabbed Wu Luoluo's hand. Her eyes were slightly red, and she sighed, "It's naturally because I'm worried about my children."
The old lady of the Ouyang family had many children and grandchildren in her life. All six of her sons were successful. The eldest son had been doing business in the capital for many years and had been quite smooth. It wasn't until he was fifty that he handed over the business to his grandson and brought his old mother back to the hometown of Phoenix City to spend his remaining years in comfort.
Who would have thought that the grandson was still too young. The failure in business had led to a loss of most of the family property this year. The second son had been an official in the capital for many years, but this year, for some unknown reason, he had been demoted repeatedly. Coincidentally, the youngest daughter, who had married far away, was seriously ill. A while ago, the old lady missed her daughter so much that she traveled thousands of miles to see her. Only then did she find out that her daughter, who had married far away, was actually not living a happy life. Her illness had been recurring and hadn't improved for a long time.
The old lady was so anxious that she fell ill.
Seeing the old lady's eyes well up with tears when she talked about her daughter, Wu Luoluo felt a bit sad. She grabbed the old lady's hand and asked, "Old madam, where did your daughter marry?"
The old lady sighed and replied, "Luoluo is so stubborn. Back then, she didn't listen to our advice and insisted on marrying far away to the capital of the Heavenly Dynasty. These years, we've exchanged many letters, but she hasn't come back much! Who would have thought that she only reported the good news in her letters and never mentioned the bad. Her husband's family didn't treat her well! If I had known this, I would rather have died than let her go to the capital!" At this point, the old lady was overcome with grief and couldn't help crying.
Wu Luoluo comforted her in a low voice for a long time. It wasn't until the servant knocked on the door and brought in the breakfast that the old lady quickly wiped the corners of her eyes and said, "I've made you laugh, Miss Luoluo! Have your breakfast first! I'll come to see you later." With that, the old lady got up and led the people back first. She was a strong-willed person all her life and naturally didn't want others to easily know about these emotions.
Wu Luoluo sighed silently in her heart. Besides prescribing a few doses of traditional Chinese medicine to soothe the liver and regulate qi for the old lady, she seemed unable to help much. Looking at the steaming millet porridge and several desserts on the table, Wu Luoluo silently thought: The Ouyang family also has someone who is an official in the court. I wonder if they have any connection with that disgusting Prefect Nie?
She casually grabbed some desserts and stuffed them into her clothes, planning to send them to the young master to fill his stomach. Suddenly, she heard someone cough softly on the beam. Wu Luoluo was startled and quickly looked up. She saw someone sitting upright on the beam. His long legs were swaying leisurely, making her eyes dizzy. Wu Luoluo asked in surprise, "Young master, didn't you go out?" She had always thought that Shangguan Yun had hidden in the carriage early in the morning, and she was still planning to send him something to eat. Unexpectedly, he had been hiding on the beam all the time!
Shangguan Yun raised his eyebrows and said, "We're not completely unable to help. My family is from the capital! If her husband's family dares to treat the people of the Ouyang family badly, we can just find someone to beat him up." If all else failed, he could go home and ask his mother to get closer to that woman. With the support of the prince's mansion, her husband's family wouldn't dare to act rashly.
Wu Luoluo: It's not appropriate for us to always talk about fighting and killing, right? We might cause trouble for others.