northernbook Chapter 9 Feigning Illness
Chapter 9 Feigning Illness
Jia Huan would give a slap followed by a sweet treat, and after reprimanding someone, he would reward them, and that would be the end of it.
It's just a formality. After all, it's just a few words. Honest people will naturally do their jobs well, and those who are truly interested won't genuinely submit based on just a few words. However, Jia Huan doesn't care about that. As he said before, he doesn't need clever and quick-witted people right now, nor does he intend to have any deep emotional entanglements with them. He just needs them to be obedient and well-behaved. If they disobey, Jia Huan has ways to punish them.
Make your attitude and rules clear now, so that if anyone breaks the rules in the future, don't blame them for being ruthless.
The maids and servants in the courtyard were naturally happy to receive the reward money. The original staff of Qingfeng Courtyard dared not be negligent when they heard Jia Huan's reprimand. While happy, they all kept the rules in mind and engraved them in their heads, for fear of offending him in the future.
The newcomers didn't take Jia Huan's reprimand seriously. The Jia family was always lenient with their servants, especially the young masters and ladies. They were young, thin-skinned, and inexperienced. They rarely punished servants who made mistakes severely. At most, they would say a few words to them. Nobody took it seriously.
But people tend to follow the crowd. When they first arrive, these newcomers observe how the veterans handle things.
The people in Qingfeng Courtyard had long been disciplined by Jia Huan. Although these newcomers were frivolous, they were unconsciously influenced by others. In addition, the strict supervision of the head maids made them gradually change their minds over time, and their behavior became very different from before.
Lady Wang had been secretly keeping an eye on Qingfeng Courtyard, and at first she did suspect that Jia Huan was faking his illness.
After all, she only wanted him to miss the Imperial Concubine's visit home, and she didn't do anything after that. But Jia Huan's prolonged illness inevitably made her wonder if he was faking his illness and secretly plotting something.
However, Jia Huan had a special ability to feign illness, which was so perfect that there were no flaws. In addition, she had personally witnessed Jia Huan's current state of being seriously ill.
He consulted the doctor who had treated Jia Huan and learned that his illness had severely damaged his health, and even if he recovered, he would be extremely weak and would inevitably die young. At that moment, all his doubts vanished.
In addition, Aunt Zhao seems to have calmed down a lot now, and is no longer as arrogant as before, which makes her feel even more at ease. She was so happy with both things that she laughed half the night under the covers and became too lazy to pay attention to Qingfeng Courtyard.
Without Lady Wang's secret sabotage, Jia Huan's life became much more comfortable.
When you're in a good mood, you're more inclined to do things.
He doesn't have any grand ambitions these days; he's content as long as he has enough to eat and wear and lives a good life.
Thinking back to the day before yesterday, I didn't even have a single accessory to carry with me when I went out. It was incredibly shabby.
Previously, Jia Huan lived with Aunt Zhao in Rongxi Hall. Aunt Zhao managed his monthly allowance and valuables, and they weren't sent over after he moved. Not wanting to cause trouble, he didn't accept them and simply bought them himself.
Jia Huan had several maids tidy up his belongings. His clothes were neither new nor old, and since he was still growing, his old clothes were no longer suitable for him and needed to be replaced.
Although the household receives a stipend every season, it's uncertain when it will be his turn, especially now that he's ill.
Besides, he's not short of money now, and he doesn't rely on the things in the mansion.
The needlework for clothes, shoes, purses, and the like was given to Xiuyun and Xiuyu. The two sisters were good at needlework, so they also assigned two or three maids to help them.
However, the gold, silver, and jade ornaments you wear will have to be bought or custom-made when you go out.
Although he doesn't go out now, having something to wear while staying home is one thing, and having nothing to wear when going out is another.
As the saying goes: "Respect the clothes before respecting the person." Your image must come before your appearance!
In this era, the most important accessory for men was jade pendants.
The Book of Rites, in the chapter "Yuzao", records: "In ancient times, gentlemen always wore jade. A gentleman would not remove his jade from his person without good reason."
Wearing jade is a symbol of a virtuous gentleman and an indispensable item for men!
However, there was no rush. It was a good time to save up some money and buy a few more good items. So Jia Huan asked the servants outside to find out which shops had good quality and reputation. Once they had some information, they would send word in.
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"Doctor Wang, how am I feeling now?" Jia Huan asked nervously, pulling his arm back and holding a few melon seeds that had turned into gold in his other hand.
"Young master, there's no need to worry. Your health has improved a lot compared to before. It's just that illness comes like a landslide and recovery is slow and gradual. It's normal for you to be weak right now. You can take some nourishing pills to regulate your body in the future." Looking at the pale-faced young man in front of him, Physician Wang felt a faint pity and comforted him gently.
Upon hearing this, Jia Huan, like other patients who had been declared cured by the doctor, was very happy and had someone properly escort Physician Wang back to Jia Zheng.
Jia Huan now lives a very regular life. He reads, writes, paints, and plays chess. When he gets bored staying indoors, he walks around in the yard and looks at the flowers and plants. If he wants to eat something, he tells the kitchen to make it.
However, Aunt Zhao would come over every now and then after she left that day, chattering on and on. He would just let it go in one ear and out the other, neither responding nor taking it to heart. After a while, Aunt Zhao got bored and stopped talking nonsense in front of him. She would only sit for a short while before leaving, focusing on how to please Jia Zheng and get more good things.
Since Jia Zheng noticed that Jia Huan looked unwell last time, he had been concerned about him. During this period, he specially ordered someone to invite Physician Wang to examine him, and Jia Huan performed the same procedure as before.
The imperial physician was puzzled as to why the patient's body remained weak and lingering despite having recovered from his illness long ago. He tentatively prescribed two doses of tonic medicine, but after two days it was ineffective. He then changed the medicine several times, but still there was no improvement. He tried another treatment method, but still there was no improvement.
Physician Wang was perplexed!
The imperial physician was puzzled!
The imperial physician Wang privately consulted with several colleagues from the Imperial Hospital, but still, refusing to believe in such omens, he prescribed more medicine, which proved ineffective.
Whether I take medication or not, my condition remains unchanged; my body is still weak.
The imperial physician was convinced!
Physician Wang had never seen such a bizarre illness in his decades of medical practice, but he was unwilling to admit that it was due to his lack of medical skills.
When Jia Huan returned to Jia Zheng, he was only vaguely answered when asked about it. He said that Jia Huan's body had been weakened by this serious illness and that he would not recover for a while. He said that there was no need for medicine, but that he could only take care of himself and not worry about him. He said that he might be able to live a normal life.
His words almost made Jia Zheng think that Jia Huan was dying.
He now has two sons and really doesn't want to outlive his children, so he told Jia Huan to rest and recuperate without worrying about anything else, and he certainly wouldn't force him to do anything that would drain his energy, like studying.
He could only sigh silently to himself: If he's not good enough, he's not good enough. Anyway, his family can afford to support him.
The servant who was sent to visit Jia Huan found him looking gloomy and sighing. He comforted him, saying that although Jia Huan was weak, he seemed to be in good spirits and that he was always reading whenever he saw him.