I Can't Bear the Hardships of Marriage

Half an hour soon passed. Madam Wang's headache gradually eased, and before long, she could no longer feel it at all.

Madam Wang was so excited that she stood up and bounced twice on the spot. Her head did not hurt in the slightest.

In the past, once a headache started, it would last for several days.

When the pain was severe, it felt as though two stones had been stuffed into her skull, unbearably heavy. Feeling sick enough to vomit from the pain was an everyday occurrence.

The moment she stood up, the stones inside her head would start crashing into each other, and her eyeballs felt as though something were pressing down on them. It was agonizing.

Even medicine from the Imperial Medical Academy could only ease the pain, not cure it.

Yet less than half an hour after taking this medicine, her symptoms had begun to ease. Once half an hour had passed, her headache disappeared entirely. Madam Wang felt as light as a swallow. She had never felt so full of life.

"Fifth Miss, you're a miracle physician!" Madam Wang looked at Jian Ruonan with gratitude shining in her eyes.

Madam Wang had never taken Ibuprofen before, so it worked quickly and effectively. Still, Jian Ruonan did not know what was causing her headaches. To cure them, she would have to identify the underlying cause.

Jian Ruonan said modestly, "It only relieves the pain. You'll have another headache eventually. My medicine treats the symptoms, not the root cause. Take the two remaining pills the next time it hurts."

Moved to tears, Madam Wang said, "Being able to ease the pain is already wonderful. Nan Nan, how much of this medicine do you have left? Could you sell me some more? I know it's your secret formula. I'll pay triple—no, five times the price."

Madam Wang held on to Jian Ruonan, insisting on paying a handsome sum for the medicine.

The other ladies who had headache sufferers at home wanted to buy a few pills too.

After discussing it among themselves, the ladies even settled on a price for her: ten taels of silver per pill. They still felt they were getting a bargain at her expense.

In this dynasty, an ordinary family's expenses for an entire year came to only three or four taels of silver.

Jian Ruonan: ??!!

Was making money really this easy?

If she earned more points to draw cards, she could sell not just medicine but other things too. Wouldn't she make an absolute fortune?!!!

[Come, money! Come from every direction, come flooding down from the heavens! Come from east, west, north, and south! Money, come into my arms!!]

[Bless me, ancestors!!]

Min: "..."

Jian Ruonan thought for a moment. "I'll go back and ask my master whether I can sell this medicine. Once I've checked, I'll send someone to let you know, madam."

Madam Wang clasped Jian Ruonan's hand, finding her even more pleasing than her own daughter. "There's no hurry. It's best to make sure first. I certainly won't take advantage of you."

"Fifth Miss, what marvelous medical skill!! A miracle physician's successor!!"

"Fifth Miss, could you take a look at me too? My legs have been aching so often lately..."

Everyone crowded around Jian Ruonan, showering her with praise. Madam Wang was especially enthusiastic. With her headache gone, the whole world seemed beautiful and fresh.

Jian Ruonan's reputation as a miracle physician immediately began to spread. Within three days, surely the entire capital would know that the Fifth Miss of the Jinyang Marquis's Residence was virtuous, well-mannered, and versed in medicine-a model among young ladies.

By then, matchmakers would trample the threshold of the Jinyang Marquis's Residence to pieces.

"Fifth Miss is such a fresh-faced beauty. Has she been promised to anyone?" A fine daughter drew suitors from a hundred households, and someone immediately took Min aside to ask.

Min had originally worried that Nannan would have difficulty finding a match if her background came to light. Now, with things going so well, Nannan was sure to marry into a good family.

In excellent spirits, Min warmly chatted with the officials' wives about the outstanding young men in their families.

The banquet at the Duke of Pingguo Residence was essentially a matchmaking gathering in disguise. The officials' wives brought their sons and daughters along, using the pretext of paying their respects to let everyone have a look. If anyone caught their eye, they could make further inquiries in private.

Jian Ruonan finally managed to squeeze out of the crowd of patients, only for Min to pull her over to greet the various ladies.

Jian Ruonan whispered to Jian Xilu, "What's Mother doing?"

Jian Xilu drew her younger sister aside and whispered in her ear, "She's looking for a match for you."

Jian Ruonan: !!

"I'm only ten! Am I supposed to get married already?"

"She's just looking for now. Even if there's someone suitable, there's no rush to settle anything. We can take our time choosing. Once a match is finally decided, preparing your dowry will take several years too. That way, we won't be scrambling when the time comes." Jian Xilu smiled as she explained to her sister, "Don't worry. Mother will pick out a few young gentlemen and arrange for you to see them first. She won't agree unless you're happy with the match."

Jian Ruonan's spirits instantly sank. Even the peanut brittle in her mouth seemed to lose its flavor. "Sister, can I just not get married?"

"Who doesn't get married?" Jian Xilu teased with a smile. "Are you feeling shy?"

Jian Xilu had also been terribly shy when prospective matches were being considered for her. Her younger sister was probably just like she had been at that age. Once she grew more accustomed to it, she would be fine.

[I'm not shy! I just can't bear the hardships of marriage!]

Jian Xilu: ??

What hardships were there in getting married?

Her sister had been raised by Concubine Zhou. Had Concubine Zhou influenced her?

"Don't worry, little sister. Mother will choose an excellent family. She won't let you become anyone's concubine."

[It's the hardships of being the mistress of the household that I can't bear!]

Jian Ruonan grew even more despondent.

Jian Xilu was even more bewildered. What hardships were there in being the mistress of a household?

[Being the mistress is even harder! You have to run the household, manage the concubines and their children, and get up early and work late serving your parents-in-law every day. Your husband might even be a whoremonger... If I end up with a rotten cucumber, I'll draw a knife!]

Jian Xilu: "..."

What were whoremongers and rotten cucumbers?

Why would she end up with a whoremonger or a rotten cucumber?

[I don't want children either. Giving birth in this dynasty can literally kill you! There's no anesthesia, so you can't have a C-section. Mother and child can both die just like that, and then there's the pressure to give birth to a son!]

[Could I shave my head and leave home to become a nun?]

[I wonder if there's a Sweet Dew Temple here... Sigh, no, that won't work. Nuns can't eat meat, and they have to work too. I can't bear the hardship of going without meat either!]

[Oh, right! I can have Mother choose someone who'll croak before I even marry him!]

[Then I'll be a widow as soon as I marry into his family. Seeing that I'm widowed, my husband's family will surely treat me well, and I can keep lazing around!!!]

[Nan Nan, you clever little thing!]

Jian Ruonan: [System, hurry and check for me! Which of these young gentlemen comes from a well-off family but has a short lifespan?!]

Jian Xilu: "..."

Her sister's ideas were so... unconventional.

What was anesthesia? And what was a C-section?

From the sound of it, it seemed to mean opening the belly during childbirth... Had the miracle physician taught her that?

As for the idea that being the mistress of a household was hard, it sounded rather absurd, but on closer consideration, there seemed to be some truth to it.

Jian Xilu had studied household management under her mother since childhood. She had watched her mother dutifully serve her parents-in-law, treat her husband's younger brother kindly, care for her children, and look after all the fluttering beauties in her father's rear courtyard. Her life was indeed exhausting, but everyone seemed to live that way.

And marrying a man destined for an early grave seemed to make a little sense too...

Min had been chatting with the officials' wives nearby. When she heard Nannan's thoughts, she nearly choked on her tea.

Abandoning the conversation, she immediately went over to her two daughters.

If she did not intervene now, her eldest daughter would soon be led astray!