A Great Big Pot Landed with a Clang

Matron Jin and Lady Wei were both startled outside.

Matron Jin quickly turned back into the room and saw the old lady leaning against a chair, her eyes closed, her mouth crooked and eyes slanted, motionless. Daimao shook her body while crying incessantly.

Matron Jin immediately rushed over and started crying and screaming along with the Daimao.

When Lady Wei saw that the old lady was motionless and her mouth was slightly crooked, she began to panic. She had seen people who had strokes before. The old lady's condition clearly indicated that she had suffered a stroke.

She quickly called out to Chunfen, "Quick, let's go!" As she spoke, she lifted her skirt and tried to go down the steps.

As Liuli was leaving, she gave the two maids a few instructions. The moment Lady Wei made a move, the two maids immediately stepped forward and blocked Lady Wei path. "Second Madam has angered the Old Madam to the point of illness, and instead of thinking of treating her, she's trying to leave. This old servant has lived a whole life and has never seen a daughter-in-law like this."

Liuli was worried that the two rough-looking old women wouldn't be able to stop Lady Wei, so she ran all the way there, asking for help from every servant she saw. At this time, servants kept entering Rongxi Hall, blocking the entrance.

Upon hearing the old woman's words, everyone looked at Lady Wei with strange eyes and helped the old woman stop Lady Wei.

Everyone receives their monthly allowance from the First Madam, so they aren't afraid of Lady Wei.

Upon seeing this situation, Lady Wei knew she couldn't leave.

No one noticed her beforehand; she left quietly and then denied everything. With the power of the Wei Family, as long as she wasn't in the wrong, the Marquis's mansion couldn't do anything to her, nor could they pin the old lady's illness on her.

But now the old woman won't let her leave. So many servants have seen it all. She can't leave even if she wants to. Even if she does leave, she'll be branded as "unfilial."

She had no choice but to shout, "I'm not leaving, I'm going to fetch a doctor!"

"Liuli has gone to fetch her, so there's no need to trouble Second Madam. Second Madam, you'd better stay here obediently. You, as a mere concubine, dared to search the Old Madam's room, and the Old Madam was so angry that she had a stroke. You can't go anywhere; just wait for the Marquis and Madam to come and question you."

Following Liuli's instructions, the maidservant slammed a large pot over Lady Wei's head with a loud bang.

"I didn't, how could I..." Lady Wei naturally had to argue.

Matron Jin wiped away her tears inside the room, rushed out, and shouted at Lady Wei, "You still want to deny it? You knew perfectly well that the Old Madam was unwell, yet you ignored her advice and ordered a search of her courtyard. I've never seen such an overbearing daughter-in-law. Are you trying to kill the Old Madam? Old Madam..."

As she spoke, she went back to the old lady and burst into tears.

Matron Jin was unaware of the truth. She and the old lady had a deep bond; though nominally mistress and servant, they were practically like sisters. Now, filled with anxiety and anger, she became emotional, cried a couple of times, and then fainted.

The old lady knew she had to keep a straight face, and despite her worry for Matron Jin, she dutifully pretended to have a stroke with her mouth twitching.

With Matron Jin fainting, the room descended into chaos once more.

After Matron Jin fainted, the large pot that Lady Wei had placed on her head before she fainted was now impossible for Lady Wei to remove.

Despite the Hou family's tight finances, they were still able to maintain a physician within the household because the First Madam worried that her mother-in-law was getting old and, if anything happened to her, there wouldn't be enough time to call a doctor.

Therefore, she arranged for Physician Shi to stay in a small courtyard not far from the main courtyard. There was a gate in the middle that separated it from the inner courtyard. It didn't take long to get there from the small gate, so Physician Shi arrived very quickly.

He came in, saw the old lady, took her pulse, and began to shoo people out. "Except for Matron Jin and one maid, everyone else, get out. Staying here won't do the patient any good."

Matron Jin woke up after being pinched on the philtrum and is now weeping in front of the old lady.

"Physician Shi, what's wrong with the old lady...?" Lady Wei didn't move, wanting to find out what was going on.

She didn't suspect the old lady was faking illness, but she worried that if the old lady was too ill, it would be difficult for her to clear her name of the blame.

"A stroke," said Physician Shi. "I need to give her acupuncture; if she doesn't receive timely treatment, she might not recover."

As he spoke, he waved his hand again. "Get out of here quickly. If you delay and fail to save the old lady, you will bear the consequences."

"What else do you want? What else do you want? Are you only satisfied when you see the old lady die?" When Matron Jin saw Lady Wei like this, her eyes immediately flashed with ferocity, and she wished she could pounce on her and strangle her to death.

Seeing that Matron Jin looked like she wanted to devour someone, and that everyone else was looking at her with disgust, Lady Wei became increasingly flustered. She dared not stay in the room any longer and could only follow everyone else out.

"When administering acupuncture, it is crucial to avoid being disturbed. Liuli, close the door, and have the other servants stand guard at the entrance. No one is allowed to enter without my permission," Physician Shi instructed.

Liuli knew the truth and quickly went to close the door. Lady Wei was peeking in from the doorway, almost got hit on the head by the door.

She glared at Liuli, but knew she couldn't lose her temper now. She could only swallow her anger and secretly vowed that she would find a chance to punish that brat Liuli once this matter was over.

Hearing the door close, the old lady, who couldn't move because her mouth was crooked, finally breathed a sigh of relief and opened her eyes normally.

Pretending to faint must be exhausting, right? Especially having to make your mouth and eyes crooked, which adds to the difficulty.

Worried that Matron Jin would cry out, Daimao had already covered Matron Jin's mouth with lightning speed the moment the old lady moved.

Matron Jin almost cried out.

Physician Shi was invited into the household by the First Madam. He was a man of good character, and since he was able to serve as the family physician, he was very familiar with the various methods of intrigue and backstabbing within the grand mansion. Therefore, he was not surprised at all by this.

He had been living in the Marquis's residence for five years and knew the people and affairs there very well. He had long disliked Lady Wei. When he learned that the old lady was going to feign illness to punish Lady Wei, he was very happy to see it happen. That's why he cooperated so readily just now.

"The old lady still has some minor health issues. I'll give you a couple of acupuncture treatments. I'll also prescribe some medicine for stroke and have it decocted, so no one will find out," Physician Shi said softly.

The old lady nodded gratefully at him.

The Physician Shi several acupuncture needles to her.

The old lady suffers from migraines, but it's not very serious. The acupuncture that Physician Shi now is to treat that. Seven or eight silver needles are stuck in her head, and it looks quite convincing.

Normally, the old lady never allowed the second and third wives to serve her. The two would only come to pay their respects on the first and fifteenth of the lunar month and leave, so they weren't familiar with the old lady's condition. With her head full of silver needles, it would be enough to fool Lady Wei.

With the needles in his head, Physician Shi wrote out a prescription for stroke and said to Liuli in a normal voice, "Take the prescription and go get the medicine quickly."

Liuli responded and opened the door, only to see the Marquis, his first wife, and his second wife standing at the entrance. The Marquis and his first wife looked anxious.

"How is the old lady?" As soon as the door opened, Zhao Yuanxun and his wife asked as they walked inside.

The two were unaware that the old lady was faking her illness.