Being a second wife is difficult

When the gatekeeper came to report, Jiang Wan was changing the water for the orchid in the corridor.

Qinghe walked faster than usual, and upon entering the courtyard, she didn't greet anyone loudly as she usually did. Instead, she went directly to the porch and whispered something.

"Madam, the gatekeeper sent word that a doctor surnamed Li has arrived with a letter. The gatekeeper noticed that the letter looked like it was sent out from our residence, so he quickly sent someone in to announce it."

Jiang Wan put down the kettle, wiped her hands, and looked up at Qing He: "Where's the post?"

"I didn't see the invitation. The doorman said the doctor kept it in his pocket, saying he wouldn't let go until he handed it to the lady in person."

Qinghe paused for a moment, then added, "The gatekeeper said he looked to be in his fifties, wearing a blue cloth long gown, and didn't talk much. He didn't seem like a shady character."

Jiang Wan nodded, already knowing who it was.

She had calculated the days; Dr. Li had arrived two days later than expected, but it wasn't too unexpected.

She draped the handkerchief she had used to wipe her hands over the edge of the basin and, without delay, headed straight for the second gate.

Qinghe followed behind, and after walking a while, she asked, "Madam, should we inform the old lady first?"

Jiang Wan didn't stop walking: "Send someone to tell him. I want to see him first. It wouldn't be good if there were any complications along the way."

Qinghe responded and called the maidservant beside her to announce the news.

Sure enough, a man in a blue cloth robe was standing at the second gate. Old Chen, the gatekeeper, was talking to him. The man had his back to the door and was looking up at the plaque above the door, so engrossed that he didn't even hear footsteps.

Jiang Wan walked closer and then saw clearly what he looked like when he turned around.

He was in his fifties, rather thin, with the marks of years of travel on the road on his face. His jawline was strong, but his eyes were bright, as if he had been looking at medicinal herbs for many years. When his gaze fell on you, it was with a slow and deliberate scrutiny.

Old Chen saw Jiang Wan first and quickly called out "Madam," then turned to Dr. Li and said, "This is our first wife."

Dr. Li cupped his hands in a gesture that wasn't perfectly formal, but it exuded a composure unique to a doctor.

He didn't rush to speak. He first glanced at Jiang Wan's expression before taking out a letter from his pocket and handing it over: "My surname is Li. I am from Qingzhou. In my early years, I accompanied my master to the Earl's mansion to treat the late Madam."

"A few days ago, Madam Cheng sent someone to deliver a message, and I dared not delay, so I rushed over overnight."

Jiang Wan took the letter and glanced at it. It was indeed the letter that the manager of Juxian Teahouse had sent out according to her instructions. The sealing wax was intact and there were no signs of it being opened.

She didn't open it on the spot, but put the invitation into her sleeve and stepped aside to let him pass: "Dr. Li, you must be tired from your journey. Please come in and have a cup of tea to rest your feet."

Dr. Li thanked her and followed her inside. Qinghe lagged two steps behind and closed the second door.

Jiang Wan led Doctor Li through the front yard, around the screen wall, and into the flower hall.

The flower hall wasn't large, but the windows faced south, letting in plenty of light that made the room bright and airy.

She asked Dr. Li to sit down in the guest seat. Qinghe had already brought out tea. The tea was freshly brewed, still steaming, and carried a faint jasmine fragrance.

Doctor Li took the tea, but didn't drink it right away. He first picked it up and smelled it before taking a sip. When he put the teacup down, he looked up at Jiang Wan and said, "Madam probably wants to ask about that jar of dregs."

Jiang Wan did not deny it. She sat down opposite him and her tone was calmer than before: "The letter was not detailed enough. There are some things I would like to confirm with Dr. Li in person."

Dr. Li nodded, as if he had expected her to say that.

He placed the teacup back on the table, ran his finger along the rim, and then spoke: "Regarding that jar of dregs, I only gave a rough outline in my letter. Now that you're here, there are some things I need to clarify in person."

He paused for a moment, as if gathering his thoughts.

"Back then, I followed my master to your residence to treat my late wife. She had been ill for more than half a year. At that time, her health was already quite poor. My master would administer acupuncture and prescribe medicine every day, and the medicine would be freshly prepared and brewed according to the prescription. I was young at that time and assisted my master, doing all sorts of miscellaneous tasks."

Jiang Wan didn't interrupt him and listened to him. Doctor Li continued, "One day, my master prescribed a new medicine and asked me to get it. When I returned with the medicine, I ran into one of the maids who served my late wife in the corridor."

"That maid was named Lianxin. She said she was also from Qingzhou, and that we were from the same hometown. When I was away from home, it was not easy to meet someone from my hometown, so we chatted for a bit."

Jiang Wan lightly pressed her fingertips on the table. When the name Lianxin came out of Dr. Li's mouth, she felt calmer than she had expected, as if something she had been waiting for for a long time had finally come to fruition.

"A few days later," Dr. Li continued, "Lianxin came to see me again. This time she didn't say much, but just handed me a cloth bag, saying that it contained her old belongings that she had packed up, and asked me to take them back to Qingzhou so that I could return them to her when I had the chance."

"I found it strange at the time, but she spoke so earnestly that I accepted it."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Wan asked, "When she gave you this cloth bag, did she say anything else?"

Dr. Li was silent for a moment, as if recalling any details he might have overlooked from that day's scene. After a few breaths, he spoke: "She said something that I still remember to this day. She said, 'If anyone ever asks about this package, please tell me the truth.'"

Jiang Wan did not respond.

This sentence sounds like a request, but upon closer examination, it's more like a sentence that was prepared long ago, waiting for someone to ask it.

Doctor Li continued, "At the time, I didn't think much of it and assumed it was just some old clothes. But when I got back to Qingzhou and opened it, I found it was a ceramic jar containing some dregs of medicine."

"I had already been learning medicine from my master for several years at that time. Although I am not as experienced as my master, I can still recognize some of the ingredients in the dregs of medicine."

He raised his eyes, his gaze falling on Jiang Wan's face, his tone a shade deeper than before: "However, at that time, my medical skills were limited, and I had accepted bribes, so I did not bother to identify her."

"But after I finished my studies, I opened this porcelain jar by chance and looked at it carefully. I felt that the dregs were not right. There was something that shouldn't be there."

Jiang Wan didn't press him further and waited for him to continue.

Dr. Li bent down and opened an old cloth bundle he had brought with him. He took out a palm-sized ceramic jar from it. The mouth of the jar was sealed with wax, and it was clear that it had been there for many years.

He slowly peeled off the wax seal. Inside the jar was a layer of dried medicinal residue, brownish in color, and the smell had mostly dissipated.

"This jar of stuff," Dr. Li said, pointing to the pile of dregs, "was something I spent a long time identifying back then, and finally determined that the extra herb was bitter root."

"Bitter root is a common plant in the Qingzhou area. It grows mostly in valleys and along riverbanks. It is everywhere. It can be found in other places as well, but it is most abundant in Qingzhou."

"But it has one important point: it is divided into male and female."

"The male root is extremely poisonous; even a small amount can be fatal. The female root can be used in medicine, but the dosage must be extremely careful. A small amount of the female root can treat insect diseases, but a slightly larger amount will also cause poisoning."

"Back then, Mrs. Gu was ill for a long time and her body became thinner and thinner. My master suspected that she had worms in her stomach, so he prescribed this medicine, which used female root."

"When I examined that dregs of medicine many years later, I remembered this separation. So I first set aside a small portion to make soup and fed it to a few small animals to try. As a result, those small animals died not long after they drank it."

"After examining it several times, I confirmed that the bitter root in the dregs was not a female root, but a male root. In other words, what Mrs. Gu took back then was probably not medicine to cure her illness, but poison that accumulated little by little."

"She grew increasingly thin and her illness persisted for a long time. She did not die from the disease itself, but from chronic poisoning."

Jiang Wan's gaze fell on the dried medicine dregs, but she didn't reach out to touch them. "You mean, the late Madam's illness for the past six months wasn't due to weakness, but because someone poisoned her medicine?"

Doctor Li did not answer immediately. He first resealed the lid of the earthenware jar, placed it back on the table, and then said four words: "This old man dares not make a judgment, but that portion of dregs was personally given to me by Lianxin. If she had nothing to hide, why would she have kept the dregs separately and had someone bring them back to Qingzhou and hidden them for so many years?"

The flower hall fell silent for a moment.

Jiang Wan looked at the earthenware jar on the table. A dark brown old stain was visible through the crack in the wax seal on the jar's mouth, as if something had been trapped inside for a long time and was finally seeing the light.

Just as she was about to speak, Gui Mama's voice came from the doorway: "The old lady has arrived."

Jiang Wan got up and took a few steps to greet her. Granny Gui had already helped the old lady step into the threshold of the flower hall.

The old lady was wearing a dark brown plain jacket today, her hair was neatly combed, and she looked more energetic than a few days ago.

She didn't look at Jiang Wan; her gaze first fell on the person in the blue cloth robe sitting in the guest seat. Without stopping, she walked to the head seat and sat down before asking, "Is this Doctor Li from Qingzhou?"

Doctor Li rose and bowed: "I am Li Yuanqing, greetings to the old lady."

The old lady raised her hand and said, "No need for formalities, please sit down."

She glanced at Jiang Wan, who didn't say anything, but gently pushed the earthenware jar on the table toward the old lady.

The old lady's gaze lingered on the earthenware jar for a long while before she looked up at Doctor Li: "The contents of this jar, were they left for you by Lianxin?"

Dr. Li nodded and briefly repeated what he had just said to Jiang Wan.

After listening, the old lady remained silent for a while before asking, "Why didn't you examine this medicine residue immediately when you received it?"

Doctor Li lowered his head, his voice becoming even deeper: "Replying to the old lady, I was still young at the time, and had only been practicing medicine with my master for two or three years. I couldn't discern the intricacies of this matter."

"Moreover, when Lianxin handed it over, she only said it was a sample of medicinal herbs. I didn't think much of it and just regarded it as an ordinary item, so I sealed it away. It wasn't until many years later, when I had some experience in practicing medicine, that I accidentally remembered to open it and found something was wrong."

After hearing his words, the old lady's gaze lingered on his face for a moment before she asked, "Now that you've agreed to come, have you already made arrangements for your escape route?"

Without hesitation, Doctor Li nodded directly: "Before I came, I had already made arrangements for my wife and children at home and the apprentices at the pharmacy. I have no intention of leaving empty-handed after this trip."

The old lady looked at him for a long time, as if she had discerned something from his words, and finally said only one sentence: "Now that you're here, this household will not mistreat you."

"I've already had the guest room prepared. You can stay here for now. If you need anything, just tell Granny Gui. As for this matter, since you're so concerned, please investigate it thoroughly for me."

She paused, a chill creeping into her voice: "Money is no problem. As long as the truth is uncovered, I will give you every penny of the reward you are due."

Doctor Li did not refuse, but simply bowed and said, "This old man accepts the order."

The old lady didn't say anything more and let Granny Gui help her walk out.

Only Jiang Wan and Doctor Li remained in the flower hall. Jiang Wan stood up, carefully put the ceramic jar on the table into a clean wooden box, and placed it on a high shelf in the cabinet.

"Dr. Li, you must be tired from your long journey. Let me take you to the guest quarters to settle in first."

Dr. Li thanked her, picked up the bundle at his feet, and followed Jiang Wan out of the flower hall.

The guest house is on the east side, not far away; you can reach it in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea by walking along the covered walkway.

Jiang Wan walked slowly, with Doctor Li following half a step behind her, not in a hurry either, as if he was surveying the layout of the mansion.

As they passed through a moon gate, Doctor Li suddenly said, "Madam, although that bitter root can be found everywhere, it is most abundant in Qingzhou."

"Qingzhou is low-lying and has a dense network of rivers. Bitter roots grow along the riverbanks and can grow in large patches. Local people in Qingzhou mostly collect medicinal herbs from the mountains and rarely dig up bitter roots from the riverbanks. However, if someone is specifically looking for this, it is actually easier to find it in Qingzhou."

Jiang Wan paused for a moment, then resumed her normal pace.

She didn't turn around, but simply asked, "In your opinion, could the bitter root in that dregs have been brought from Qingzhou?"

After a moment of silence, Dr. Li replied, "I dare not make a guarantee, but the bitter root in that dregs was of excellent quality, with intact roots. It was clearly freshly dug up and used in medicine, unlike stale goods that had been stored in a pharmacy."

"The people who can obtain this quality of bitter root outside of Qingzhou either bring it from Qingzhou specifically, or someone regularly sends it from Qingzhou here."

He didn't say anything more.