Chapter 64 Drinking the Medicine

"Aside from a few letters from Princess Zhenning and the young miss of the Li family, there really isn't much else."

Baolan presented the stack of letters to Jing Hu. "However, not a single letter has arrived from the Eighth Young Miss of the Esteemed Duke's Estate. Could the little princess have had a falling out with her?"

Ever since the day of Jing Xun's wedding, when Jing Hu inadvertently caught a glimpse of Qingrou's hidden feelings, up until now at the end of October, the two of them had indeed hardly been in contact for over two months.

She did not know how to handle such a situation, as it was her first time experiencing it. Besides, it was not something everyone would encounter.

She and Qingrou were very good friends. Whatever Qingrou wanted, as long as she was able to do it and give it—even her most prized possessions—she could willingly part with it.

Yet Ke Mingxu was different. She could not suppress her affection for him, nor could she urge Qingrou to let him go. She truly had no idea what to do for the best.

Jing Hu first unwrapped the letter from Zhenning. For this trip to the Jianye Temporary Imperial Palace, Princess Zhenjing was the only princess selected to accompany the emperor. Zhenning had never particularly favored by His Majesty, so this was entirely normal.

The previous letters also had nothing of note to share; finding herself bored within the palace, she had merely jotted down some trivial daily occurrences.

However, the final few letters did mention Qingrou. Unaware of what had transpired between them, Zhenning only noted that Qingrou had seemed rather unhappy lately.

At first, she assumed Qingrou's demeanor stemmed from family matters, but gradually she realized that whenever the topic turned to Jing Hu, Qingrou would consistently avoid responding.

Qingrou had always been delicate and perceptive. Before her family underwent those drastic changes, she had devoted her heart to her studies; afterwards, things shifted to this state. By now, her relationship with Jing Hu had turned awkward.

With things having reached such an impasse with Qingrou, Jing Hu—possessing a relatively carefree disposition and frequent encounters with Ke Mingxu of late—at least had her own distractions. Yet Qingrou, burdened simultaneously by domestic worries and the grief of losing a friendship and a friend, must undoubtedly be suffering far more than she was.

Jing Hu pondered for a moment. "Baolan, send a visiting card to the Esteemed Duke's Estate and announce that I will be calling on the Eighth Young Miss tomorrow."

Baolan acknowledged the instruction with a soft "Understood," then turned to seek out Ganqing. Among the four personal maids, Ganqing was the most well-read, and whenever Jing Hu had correspondence to draft for social calls, she was always the one who handled it.

Next, Jing Hu unsealed the letter from Li Yi. Beyond the customary greetings, it too mentioned the Esteemed Duke's Estate. According to Li Yi's letter, her third older brother was very likely to take Qingrou's sixth older sister as his bride.

Qingrou's sixth sister was named Xu Murou, a daughter born to a concubine of their fourth grand-uncle, and she possessed a twin sister. Jing Hu retained an impression of her; she was quite pleasant in appearance, singularly talented, and seemingly skilled in painting.

Nevertheless, Li Yi's third brother was the son of the primary wife. As Li Yi had previously mentioned, he had already entered the palace imperial guards to serve as a vice commander, which was considered an admirable post already.

The House of the Loyal and Martial Marquis Li could not quite compare to the Prince of Yongning's Estate; even her own Crown Prince elder brother currently held no higher a rank than a vice commander within the imperial guards.

Should one judge this union strictly by matching social standing, the Esteemed Duke's Estate might be considered to be reaching somewhat high.

Jing Hu proceeded to open Li Yi's final letter. It stated that the Grand Matriarch of the Esteemed Duke's Estate had floated tentative marriage inquiries, only for the Esteemed Duke's Estate to ultimately decline the match with polite tact.

Jing Hu could almost picture the anger radiating from Li Yi as she penned those words, splashing ink across several full pages solely to denounce the Sixth Young Miss of the Esteemed Duke's Estate in every possible negative light.

Jing Hu remained uncertain of what to make of it. Li Yi's third brother, both in talent and family background, should have qualified as an exemplary husband by any measure. How could the other girl's standards be so extraordinarily high? Or perhaps her heart had already been claimed by someone else entirely.

When the Sixth Miss of the Xu family eventually married, she resolved to secure a front-row seat to observe the spectacle.

Having finished reading the correspondence, Baolan entered carrying a bowl of steaming medicine. "I didn't have the chance to ask the little princess earlier: where did this medical prescription come from, and what is this decoction meant to treat?"

Jing Hu took the bowl, picked up the porcelain spoon, and stirred it. A heavy, pungent medicinal odor immediately assailed her senses, almost strong enough to make her swoon.

She detested drinking herbal medicine above all else. When she was small and her health was delicate, her birth mother had grown nearly gray-haired with worry just trying to coax her into taking her doses.

Her initial resistance and dread toward her eldest brother had originated precisely from this. Her mother was gentle and never raised her voice; upon seeing her ill, she grew all the more tender and sympathetic.

Yet her eldest brother was cast like an iron-faced judge. Under normal circumstances, he rarely spoke softly to her, let alone when she dissolved into crying and tantrums and refused her medicine.

Even as a small child, Jing Hu had possessed enough survival instinct to recognize the reality of the situation: the moment he stepped across her threshold, she would obediently take the bowl and drain it to the last drop.

Compared to having her nursemaid feed her spoonful by spoonful, a quick sharp pain was better than a prolonged one, and she preferred to swallow it in one gulp.

She had behaved much the same way when she first learned to drink alcohol. Even the lightly sweetened fruit wines crafted for female guests would start with a pleasant flavor before revealing their true alcoholic bite. Thus, she had approached wine just as she approached medicine at first, until she grew accustomed to the taste and found it gradually tolerable.

Although she had requested this medicine herself today, and the prescription had been personally penned by Ke Mingxu, she still felt a lingering reluctance.

She answered Baolan's inquiry: "This medical formula came from a renowned physician. He mentioned that my constitution is somewhat frail, and I need to nourish it with medicinal supplements."

In Jing Hu's mind, Ke Mingxu was naturally more extraordinary than the finest physician in the entire world. Yet she could not help wondering why the finest physician in the world still prescribed remedies that smelled quite this repulsive.

Baolan pressed further, "The little princess is actually willing to take her medicine now. However, before beginning this treatment, have you mentioned it to Consort Dowager?"

Naturally, she had not. Knowing her own stubborn habits, she wanted to test it out for herself first. Moreover, there was another matter she had yet to figure out how to broach with her mother and father.

Since it was a tonic meant to strengthen the body, it would have to be taken over a long period. Perhaps she could try sipping it slowly and eventually grow accustomed to the flavor? Jing Hu deliberated, mustered her courage, scooped up a spoonful of the dark liquid, and brought it to her lips.

The moment it neared her mouth, the acrid vapors enveloped her. Her hand trembled, splashing a few drops onto her overgarment, rendering the piece of clothing effectively ruined.

Struck by hesitation and dread, Jing Hu summoned her resolve once more, scooped a spoonful into her mouth, and swallowed—promptly nearly gagging it back up.

It was utterly bitter! This was a taste she could never, under any circumstances, grow used to.

A large bowl remained before her. Incapable of speech, Jing Hu frantically pointed toward the cabinet in the adjoining parlor. Baolan grasped her intention at once and hurried over to retrieve the preserved candied fruits stored inside.

With reinforcements successfully deployed to the battlefield, Jing Hu hardened her heart and downed the remaining bowl in a single breath. Without consuming a few candied plums, her tongue would surely cease to feel like her own.

It seemed she had overestimated her fortitude. Even the medicine prescribed by Ke Mingxu remained abominably bitter, and she simply refused to drink it anymore. If she secretly disobeyed him and skipped the medication, he surely would not find out, right?