Song Ruotang frowned slightly, her face full of worry. Uncle Pei sized up her complexion but didn't detect anything unusual. Then he bowed respectfully and said, "Master's cough is indeed an old ailment. But he's been busy with official duties and forgot to take his medicine recently, which is why it has gotten worse. There's already medicine prepared in the mansion. I'll have someone boil it right away."
Song Ruotang nodded. "I see. Thank you, Uncle Pei, for telling me."
Uncle Pei waved his hand. After he left, Song Ruotang went into the inner room and changed into some thick clothes. Since she had just arrived at the mansion and didn't have a cloak, she could only put on the snow - colored fox fur she had worn the previous night.
Xiaoxi happily stepped into the inner room. Seeing Song Ruotang's attire, she was a bit confused. "Where are you going, Madam?"
"I'm going out. What do you want, Xiaoxi?" Song Ruotang asked while tidying up her cloak.
Xiaoxi then smiled and said, "Madam, there are quite a few people in the yard. They've brought a lot of things and said it was ordered by Master. Madam, go and take a look."
Song Ruotang's eyebrows twitched slightly. She followed Xiaoxi out. Just as she reached the corridor, she saw a group of servants carrying boxes in. An older maid bowed respectfully to her. "Madam, Master ordered us to bring you some daily necessities before he went out. Please have a look."
Song Ruotang took a glance. Without getting closer, she could tell that the things in the boxes were of the finest quality. It seemed that last night's conversation had indeed had some effect.
However, what was more urgent now was not to look at these things. Song Ruotang tightened the collar of her cloak to prevent the cold wind from getting in. She just nodded slightly, thanked the old maid with a gentle look in her eyes, and said, "Thank you for coming here in person."
Then she motioned for Xiaoxi behind her to give some silver as a tip. Xiaoxi understood and stepped forward to hand some loose silver to the old maid. The old maid quickly declined, but Song Ruotang smiled and said, "Take it, Maid. It's snowing so hard. You've come all the way to deliver these things. Use it to buy some wine to warm yourself up."
Seeing this, the old maid didn't decline anymore. Noticing Song Ruotang's cloak, she asked with concern, "Are you going out, Madam?"
"Master coughed badly last night. I heard that the abbot of Qingshan Temple is very good at medicine, so I thought I'd go and give it a try." Song Ruotang said calmly.
The old maid sighed. "Master has had this illness for quite a few years. But he's so busy with official duties that he doesn't have time to treat it properly. Madam, you're really caring."
Song Ruotang smiled. Seeing that it was getting late, she dismissed the servants and took Xiaoxi with her to Qingshan Temple.
The carriage slowly stopped at the foot of Qingshan Temple. Xiaoxi lifted the curtain and got out. A gust of cold air hit her, making her shiver involuntarily. She rubbed her hands and then reached into the carriage.
Song Ruotang took Xiaoxi's hand and got out of the carriage. She looked up at the 3,800 - step staircase of Qingshan Temple covered in snow, her eyes turning slightly cold.
This was her second time here. But different from last time, there was a snow - sweeping monk who came forward to inquire. Seeing her expensive clothes, he was very eager to lead the way.
Originally, Xiaoxi wanted to have a sedan chair carry Song Ruotang up, but she stopped her. "I heard before that believers who walk up the 3,800 - step staircase are more likely to be blessed by the Buddha. Now that I'm here, I'm sincerely seeking medicine. How can I let others carry me up to the temple?"
As Song Ruotang said this, she slowly stepped onto the snow - covered staircase. The once - eager monk now reluctantly swept the snow in front of her to prevent her from slipping.
Song Ruotang stared firmly at the eaves of the mountain temple shrouded in mist above the staircase, ignoring the slightly resentful look from the snow - sweeping monk beside her.
By the time Song Ruotang finished climbing the staircase, frost had formed on her hair, which was messily stuck behind her ears. Her cheeks were pale from the mountain wind. Only her red lips were slightly parted as she gasped for breath, looking extremely endearing.
Xiaoxi was also a bit tired, but she still insisted on supporting Song Ruotang. The two of them entered the temple and found the old abbot, asking him to prescribe a medicine.
But it was not so easy to get his medicine. After listening to Song Ruotang's description, the old abbot stroked his gray beard and sighed. "There is a cure for this illness, but I don't have the medicine - guide here for the time being. And I can't leave for a while..."
The abbot's tone was a bit hesitant. "Why don't you come another day..."
Song Ruotang shook her head. "Where can I find the medicine - guide you mentioned? I'll go and get it."
"The herb is not far. It can be found on the back mountain. But the terrain there is steep. I'll send some young monks to get it another day." The abbot didn't want to make things difficult for Song Ruotang, seeing that she was a weak woman.
But Song Ruotang said, "It's okay. I'll give it a try. I also want to help my husband get rid of his illness as soon as possible."
Seeing that he couldn't persuade her, the old abbot didn't say any more. He just nodded and arranged for someone to lead Song Ruotang to the back mountain to collect the medicine.
Xiaoxi was a bit worried. She pulled at the corner of Song Ruotang's clothes. "Madam, the mountain is covered in snow. We don't know if there's the medicine - guide. Why don't we go back first..."
"We've come this far. There's no reason to go back. Let's go and have a look." Song Ruotang looked up at the white snow behind the temple, her tone calm.
The abbot had already told her that the medicine - guide only grew in the coldest days of winter, hidden under the snow. Once it was obtained, it couldn't be delayed and had to be used in the medicine within a day, or its medicinal effect would be lost.
The young monk led them to the back mountain and then searched with them. Several people used shovels to turn over the snow on the ground, carefully checking for the Snow Heart Herb the abbot had mentioned.
But after searching the whole area, they didn't find it. Xiaoxi was so tired that she massaged her waist with her hands and walked over to sit on a stone. Song Ruotang was also out of breath, but she didn't stop. She just looked around at the scenery.
The old abbot had said that this was the most likely place for the Snow Heart Herb to grow, but they had searched everywhere and still couldn't find it. It had snowed so heavily in the past few days that nothing should have grown on the ground. However...
She looked at the crevices of some rocks near the cliff. Although they were filled with snow, there should be no snow inside, and it would be relatively warmer.
Song Ruotang carefully walked over to the rocks. The terrain here was uneven, and it had a tendency to tilt towards the cliff. She carefully leaned over and used the shovel to dig out the snow in the rock crevice.
Two snow - colored grass shoots with glistening water droplets emerged from the rock crevice. Song Ruotang was a bit delighted. After digging out the two Snow Heart Herbs, she was about to turn back when she stepped on the soft snow and suddenly lost her footing. The sudden sense of weightlessness made her panic. She tightly held the Snow Heart Herbs in her hand and fell to the ground.
Her commotion made Xiaoxi shout. Song Ruotang felt her body slowly sliding towards the cliff. Her clothes were soaked by the snow - water, and the cold invaded her, making her hands and feet cold.
Seeing that she was about to slide off the cliff, Song Ruotang didn't care how thick the snow was. She forcefully embedded the shovel in the ground. The sound of metal hitting the stone rang out, and finally, she managed to stabilize her body.