Against the Current - Chapter 285

Chapter 285 - Medicine (Part 2)

Jiang Danyun walked over to the stove, gently pushed the lid of the clay pot open by a crack, and brought her other hand forward. With a slight shake, seven or eight pitch-black pills tumbled out of her sleeve and dropped straight into the medicinal broth. Jiang Danyun felt her mouth go dry and her limbs grow numb. At that exact moment, an object flew in from outside the window, landing with a sharp slap right at her feet. Startled, Jiang Danyun let out a cry of alarm, her legs turning weak and trembling violently as she nearly toppled to the ground, while a single pill fell from her sleeve and rolled off into some unknown corner.

Both Jiang Xiyun and Chunling were startled.

They saw Chaolu poke her head in from outside the window, drawing back timidly as she muttered, "My shuttlecock..."

Chunling flew into a rage, chasing after her with a scolding, "You ill-omened little wench, kicking it right into the house! If it had landed in the medicine pot and gotten ruined, you'd have hell to pay!"

Without even picking up her shuttlecock, Chaolu bolted away in a flash.

Jiang Xiyun hurried into the room, grabbed Jiang Danyun's arm, and smiled, "Fourth sister was quite startled just now—look at all this sweat on your forehead." She saw that Jiang Danyun was trembling all over, her face the color of beaten gold, and when she touched her hand, it felt icy cold. Jiang Xiyun then said, "Since Sister Xianglan isn't here, we'll head back. We can come back another day to chat with her." With that, she tugged Jiang Danyun away.

Hesitating and glancing back repeatedly at the medicine pot, Jiang Danyun watched from the window as Chunling lifted the lid of the clay pot and strained the contents with a gauze cloth, slowly pouring the dark medicinal liquid into a green-glazed lotus-leaf bowl. Jiang Danyun felt her heart pounding frantically, accompanied by a sudden wave of exhaustion. Though her conscience was still locked in struggle, her mind felt utterly blank and dazed as she drifted away in the wake of Jiang Xiyun.

Meanwhile, because Chunling's heart was set on currying favor with Jiang Xiyun, she hadn't paid meticulous attention to her task at hand. The medicine, which ought to have simmered for a full two quarter-hours, was poured out after barely the space of a single cup of tea to finish the job and be done with it. Placing it on a lacquered tray, she delivered it to the chambers. As it happened, Xianglan was just leading De'er back from the garden. With a flower in his hand, De'er hurried off to arrange it in a vase, while Xiaojuan took the medicine bowl and asked, "Is it done already?" Chunling lowered her eyelids, muttered an acknowledgment, and turned to leave.

Xiaojuan gave a cold snort and brought the medicine over to Xianglan. Previously, Shuran had always personally supervised Xianglan taking her medicine. Later on, seeing that Xianglan was docile and willingly took her medicine every time, Shuran gradually delegated the task to Xiaojuan and the others. Careless by nature, Xiaojuan—knowing the other maids didn't dare closely monitor Xianglan's medication—would sometimes quietly pour the medicine into a flowerpot or a spit-toon, administering it haphazardly. Thus, today she had also intended to find a way to dispatch Xiaojuan and pour the medicine out.

Unexpectedly, hearing the door curtain rustle, Lin Jinlou walked in to retrieve something. Upon seeing him, De'er bounded over and piped up crisply, "Uncle Lin." Lin Jinlou patted his head and smiled, "Good lad." Then, raising his gaze to look at Xianglan, his eyes swept over and caught sight of the medicine on the table, prompting him to say, "Why haven't you drunk it up quickly? It'll get cold in a moment." With that, he handed it to Xianglan himself.

With no other choice, Xianglan had to take it. Lin Jinlou personally opened a chest to select a sword, and as he turned to leave, seeing that Xianglan was still standing there holding the medicine bowl in a daze, he frowned and said, "Why aren't you drinking it?"

Xianglan had no choice but to take a few sips. As Lin Jinlou walked out, he muttered half to himself, "Silly girl, you really don't know how to keep me from worrying." Seeing him depart, Xianglan immediately put the bowl down and poured the remaining half-bowl of medicine into the spittoon. Noticing De'er watching her with bright, sparkling eyes, she blinked at him and whispered with a smile, "This medicine is much too bitter, and Aunt Lan doesn't like to drink it. Don't mention this to anyone else, all right?"

De'er immediately dug into the small sachet at his waist, emptied everything inside onto the bed in one go, picked out a slender-necked porcelain bottle, and held it out. "I have pine nut candies here. Eat one and it won't be bitter anymore."

Warmth and softness flooded Xianglan's heart in an instant. She pulled De'er into her embrace and kissed the top of his head.

Back in Mengfang Courtyard, Jiang Danyun walked in a daze, her spirit shattered and her mind utterly blank, sitting aimlessly on the edge of her bed in a trance. She was not truly a malicious person by nature; having committed such an act, she found it brought none of the satisfaction she had imagined, but instead left her trembling with terror. Tears involuntarily welled up and spilled over as she sat rigidly staring ahead, her mind churning with a thousand anxious thoughts, utterly at a loss as to what to do. At that moment, Qingfen walked in carrying her needlework and said, "The embroidery pattern you asked for, Milady, is finished." Seeing Jiang Danyun staring blankly with wide, glassy eyes and a purplish flush across her face, she asked in alarm, "Milady, what is wrong?" Stepping forward to touch Jiang Danyun's forehead, she felt a palm full of cold sweat and was thoroughly frightened. She shook Jiang Danyun fiercely a few times and cried out, "Milady! Milady! What has happened to you?"

Only then did Jiang Danyun snap back to her senses. Unable to hold back a cry of "Ah," she threw her arms around Qingfen's arm and burst into tears—though that will be left aside for the moment.

As for Jiang Xiyun, she went straight to Madam Jiang's rooms. Madam Jiang had already seen her eldest grandson earlier and felt she had a reliable pillar of support in her heart. Furthermore, since Jiang Shuxian had come calling specifically regarding Jiang Xiyun's marriage, it was clear that the matter was nine-tenths settled. Though a mixture of joy and sorrow stirred within her, the color in her face had already grown rosy. Sitting cross-legged on the kang with her eyes closed, she was turning Buddhist prayer beads in her hand while chanting silently under her breath. Jiang Xiyun kicked off her shoes, climbed onto the kang, and buried herself directly into Madam Jiang's embrace. Madam Jiang opened both arms to hug her, patting her back in a steady rhythm.

Jiang Xiyun's muffled voice came out, "Grandmother, I... my chest feels so stifled and heavy... Have I turned bad? I heard Lusu say long ago that fourth sister had acquired a child-destroying drug from the second cousin's wife. Fourth sister is naturally prone to jealousy and envious of my marriage; I was terrified she might slip it to me, so I kept strict guard against her day and night, and several times she failed to find an opening. Eldest cousin is desperately elevating Xianglan, and naturally I am unhappy about it! What is more, cousin-mother also protects her, so even if I marry in later, I might not be able to subdue her, and I'm afraid my days would be thwarted at every turn, living like a puppet. I... I deliberately dropped hints to fourth sister, mentioning that Xianglan takes medicine every day, and specifically led her there when Chunling was on duty. Since fourth sister couldn't drug me and had nowhere to vent the pent-up malice in her heart, with her vengeful and vindictive temperament, she would surely drug Xianglan to frame me and ruin this marriage. I borrowed a knife to kill... I, I schemed against someone, yet... yet I never wanted to do it!" As she spoke, tears rolled down in a torrent, and she wept uncontrollably with sobbing wails.

With maternal affection, Madam Jiang stroked Jiang Xiyun's shoulder, soothing her in a low voice, "Xi'er, cry no more, my good granddaughter... Grandmother knows everything, knows it all... Lusu told me early this morning." Lifting the tear-streaked, flower-like face of her little granddaughter, she said, "In this world, who doesn't want to live an upright life, and who doesn't want peace and tranquility? But how many people are actually able to do so?"

Jiang Xiyun stared blankly at Madam Jiang, seeing the weathered lines and newly etched wrinkles that made her look all the more aged. A pang struck her heart, and her tears tumbled down like beads from a broken string. Ever since she had realized Chen Xianglan's transcendent position, she had been unable to stop turning plans over in her head. That girl was striking in appearance and well-versed in the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting; though Jiang Xiyun felt those sentimental romantic pastimes were entirely worthless, Lin Jinlou happened to like them, and moreover, Xianglan's strengths happened to be her own weaknesses. How could such a high-ranking concubine fail to make her feel as though she were sitting on pins and needles? She had originally planned to bide her time and slowly deal with her after marrying in, but Madam Qin's words defending Xianglan that day had poured a bucket of icy water over her head, completely crushing her hope. That was why she had devised this method...

Filled with internal anguish and hating herself for leading Jiang Danyun into such an act, Jiang Xiyun wept, "There must be an accounting for this matter. If we are to preserve the Jiang family's reputation, Chunling will have to be pushed out to take the blame. She was originally utterly loyal to me, yet I... I schemed against her..."

Madam Jiang said with utter detachment, "There is no other way."

Jiang Xiyun was startled.

A sharp light flashed in Madam Jiang's eyes as she asked, "Let me ask you, if Chunling had not betrayed her master, would you have acted this way? With a disposition like Chunling's, would you dare employ her in the future? And if our Jiang family's standing were on par with the Lin family's, would a mere concubine ever cause you such anxiety?"

Jiang Xiyun choked out, "Naturally not. Among Xianglan's maids, she was the only one who proactively cozied up to us; such a person is naturally someone granddaughter would not dare use... If our family were like the Lin family, Grandmother would naturally speak to the Lin mistress, and even if we didn't banish Chen Xianglan, we wouldn't let her be elevated to such a status."

With a calm expression, Madam Jiang spoke slowly, "At least your wits are still about you. Our Jiang family was already somewhat inferior to the Lin family, and now we have suffered a severe blow. You are a daughter born of a concubine; your maiden family lacks sufficient clout, your legitimate mother is not close to you, your birth mother's status is humble, and your own full brother is far away in Zhejiang. I am already an old pile of bones, and your father is still counting on using your connection to befriend the Lin family so he can pull the whole family up in the future. Layer upon layer of these stakes are things you should understand in your heart. Once you marry into the Lin family in the future, if you want to live comfortably, you must keep your eyes wide open."

Jiang Xiyun was stunned, forgetting even to wipe the tears from her cheeks as she sat there blankly.

Madam Jiang reached out and slowly wiped the tears from her little granddaughter's face, her gaze full of affection as she said, "Lin Jinlou is infatuated with Chen Xianglan and single-mindedly intends to let her bear a child, completely disregarding our family's dignity. If she bears the eldest son by a concubine in the future, how deeply awkward your position will be. If you do not scheme, but instead live out your days swallowing your grievances, yielding at every turn, and bowing your head submissively, would you be willing?"

Jiang Xiyun's lips trembled, unable to utter a word.

With a long sigh, Madam Jiang suddenly rallied her spirit, her voice turning cold as she said, "There is nothing to feel guilty about when scheming against people. The medicine was administered by your fourth sister, and has nothing much to do with you. You didn't deliberately try to harm anyone; in the end, it's just that maid Chunling, and that Chen Xianglan—nobody else is losing a piece of flesh over it... Hmph, you have more wits than Chen Xianglan, and your comprehension is higher than hers. Since childhood, you've known how to read people's expressions and how to make connections. What is she capable of? Aside from burying herself in her room to scribble a few characters, paint a few wretched pictures, shed a few tears against the wind, acting all aggrieved and timid, stubborn and obstinate—so what if she's honest and simple-minded? Even if she were a young lady of noble birth as well, ask yourself which wealthy aristocratic family would willingly seek such a woman as a wife? Let me ask you, if you have a daughter in the future, would you want her to be like Chen Xianglan or like yourself? If you have a son in the future and seek a daughter-in-law for him, would you rather marry one like Chen Xianglan, or one like you?"

Jiang Xiyun was struck dumb with astonishment, stammering without a single sound escaping her lips.

Madam Jiang continued slowly, "It's just that this Chen Xianglan is rather adept at winning people over. You must think carefully about how to keep her in check after you marry in."

Jiang Xiyun said in a daze, "I'm afraid she won't even be able to bear offspring in the future; she's nothing more than a vase..."