Far from being afraid, the woman looked up at Song Jingyang with a fawning smile and said in a melodious voice, "Brother, I am ill and would like to see the divine physician. Please do me a favor."
Xiu'er pulled Song Jingyang behind her and said sarcastically, "Hehehe, I haven't seen you lay an egg! This place only provides free medical care for disaster victims. With your delicate skin, what kind of disaster victim are you?"
The woman's exposed face and wrists were indeed meticulously maintained; the flaws were immediately apparent.
Suddenly, the woman shoved something into Xiu'er's hand, pleading, "Good sister, please, I've heard there's a divine physician here, so I..."
He was scolded, but instead of getting angry, he's being so ingratiating?
Xiu'er looked down and saw that it was a silver note.
Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be twenty taels!
Is this some serious generosity?
"Seeking medical help isn't out of the question, but how do I know if someone is a good person or a bad person?" Xiu'er said, scanning her up and down.
"I am from the Leaning on Emerald Pavilion..." the woman pleaded, looking at Tang Zhuyun. "Please help me, Miss! I really have no other choice..."
Tang Zhuyun said, "Come and sit down."
Nanxing immediately stood beside Tang Zhuyun, ready for battle.
The woman was very obedient; she kept her body at a distance and only stretched out her arm.
Tang Zhuyun took her pulse and immediately understood the situation—she wasn't lying; her illness might indeed be quite troublesome for the doctors here.
"Girl, I..." the woman said hopefully.
"I understand. I'll prescribe two medicines for you. Follow them strictly and come back in three days," Tang Zhuyun said calmly. "It's nothing serious, but don't do business recently."
She spoke cryptically, and the woman was extremely grateful. She took the prescription written by Nanxing and left. Tang Zhuyun's handwriting had already become presentable, but she would not easily reveal her work.
"How come a prescription was missing?" Xiu'er asked curiously as she came over to wipe the table, then exclaimed in surprise, "One hundred taels of silver!"
Tang Zhuyun: "... You can keep it."
This woman, though a woman of the night, was quite sensible.
Tang Zhuyun quickly forgot about it, but a few days later she discovered that this former top courtesan of the Leaning on Emerald Pavilion named Qin Sang was bringing her a lot of "business".
Qin Sang was originally the top courtesan, but due to illness, she was abandoned.
She was unwilling to give up, and later she accidentally heard about a goddess doctor who treated disaster victims, so she sought help with the attitude of "dead end".
Surprisingly, it actually cured me.
Later, after they got to know each other better and realized she wasn't a bad person, Xiu'er even asked her, "You're down on your luck, why are you still so generous?"
Qin Sang laughed and said, "If you don't want to live anymore, and you still have some silver left, you can give it to whomever you want. Since you're a philanthropist, I'm willing to give it to you; if you heal me, the money will come back even if it's gone."
As she said this, she deftly led the women she had brought to wash their hands, saying, "After you wash your hands, then go see Miss Tangbao. If Miss Tangbao doesn't mind, we must know our place."
Because of her self-awareness and straightforwardness, Xiu'er treated her much better.
She didn't want to cause Tang Zhuyun any trouble, and the women she brought were all dressed very modestly, none of them were flashy.
Qin Sang scoffed at those noble ladies who braved wind and rain to wait for Zong Heng, and complained to Xiu'er, "The girls at the Leaning on Emerald Pavilion are much more reserved than them."
Her sharp tongue was the second reason why she and Xiu'er grew closer.
However, considering Tang Zhuyun's past, Xiu'er didn't respond to this.
When no one was around, Qin Sang would talk to Tang Zhuyun.
"Don't worry, young lady. After you get married, I'll put in a good word for you! If your husband goes to Zhangtai Road, I guarantee no one will be there to receive him!"
Tang Zhuyun: Oh, thank you!
My man is dead!
She couldn't even imagine what it would be like for the Prince of Jin to frequent brothels... He'd practically have an ice-inducing ability; who wouldn't avoid him?
Song Jingyang: "It's terrible, Your Highness! All the brothels in the capital are going to beat you up!"
After hearing the whole story, the Prince of Jin smiled and said arrogantly, "All she does is associate with these lowlifes, people of all kinds. Where can't I go?"
As she said this, Xiu'er was sitting at the door making knots. Upon hearing this, she said, "You're so capable, why don't you try to win the Princess's heart?"
"Does this king... find it rare?"
"You only say you don't care after you've already got it; that's true indifference. Saying you don't care when you can't get it sounds like you've drunk a whole jar of vinegar."
The Prince of Jin ordered Song Jingyang to get out and take care of Xiu'er, but before he could leave, he called him back and said in a deep voice, "What's the background of Qin Sang...?"
Song Jingyang hurriedly replied, "It's been investigated, and so far there seem to be no problems."
The Prince of Jin said, "Don't underestimate her; she's too naive and too honest."
Song Jingyang understood and solemnly replied, "I will take it to heart!"
That evening, Tang Zhuyun was examining the account books under the lamp.
The daily cost of distributing porridge was around one hundred taels of silver, while the cost of medicine was several dozen taels. Qin Sang, along with the sisters she brought, donated a total of over three hundred taels of silver, enough for two days' expenses...
The Prince of Jin said, "That little bit of money, no need to calculate it, or you'll go blind."
Tang Zhuyun replied without looking up, "If we provide porridge for a month, that's five thousand taels of silver, no small sum."
The Prince of Jin teased her, "What's wrong? Are you reluctant to part with me?"
"Yes, there is some, but it's money that needs to be spent," Tang Zhuyun said honestly. "And we can comfort ourselves that this Zidu being spent wisely, without any embezzlement or misappropriation."
After reviewing the account books, Tang Zhuyun stretched when she heard Xiu'er say, "Where did the invitation go? I seem to remember that when I came back today, the maid outside told me that an invitation was delivered to you today?"
"What invitation? I'm currently observing mourning for my parents, how could I possibly attend any event?" Tang Zhuyun was baffled.
Xiu'er rummaged through the desk and quickly found it. "Look at this!"
The Prince of Jin coldly replied, "Ignore it."
He hadn't originally intended to tell Tang Zhuyun, but Xiu'er found out.
Tang Zhuyun opened the invitation, glanced at it, and tossed it aside, sneering, "She's dreaming! Getting everyone to gather firewood for her. Trying to take advantage of a widow? Doesn't she fear being knocked on the door in the middle of the night?"
Prince of Jin: "..."
That mouth of hers can really talk!
Xiu'er rolled up her sleeves and said aggressively, "Who is it? Who's so shameless!"
"Crown Princess," Tang Zhuyun said, "We must summon the ladies of all the households to raise funds for the disaster victims."
The Prince of Jin ignored the Eastern Palace when he was alive, so why would he cooperate now that he's dead?
If this money could actually be spent on the disaster victims, that would be fine; but the fear is that it will end up being used for the crown prince's "election campaign".
Is she stupid? Giving money to others only to have them arm themselves and attack her?
"Then shall we not go?" Xiu'er asked.
"Of course I'm not going. What, you want to go?" Tang Zhuyun said irritably.
"Just a little bit... Maybe Zong Heng is here too, wanting to see if his hair has split open." Xiu'er muttered, "If he doesn't split open, it'll be an injustice."