Chapter 135

Having said that, Jia Jing paused.

He held little affection for Jia Jing, regardless of why he resigned office to pursue the Dao, but Ning Guo Fu was indeed a den of iniquity during his lifetime.

This old gentleman of his is not even comparable to Grandmother Jia!

His son Jia Zhen and grandson Jia Rong—not a single one of them amounts to anything, and each is more wanton than the last; even his daughter Xichun is neglected.

Although Jia She and Jia Lian of Rongguo Mansion are also licentious, they have not gone so far as to commit the scandal of digging up ashes; Jia Zheng, though pedantic and inept, is not a hypocrite.

But what about Jia Zhen and Jia Rong?

Their conduct is debauched, father and son both depraved, digging up ashes, acting lawlessly, with no bottom line.

Thinking of this, Jia Jing's eyes grew sharp, and he said in a low voice:

"If Grandfather Jing truly dares to ignore this, then I, the Marquis, cannot be blamed for forcibly intervening in Dong Fu's affairs when the time comes!"

"By then, not only will Jia Zhen be punished, but even this Dao‑practicing uncle of his won't escape!"

"In short, no matter what, our Jia family will absolutely not allow such shameless conduct to tarnish our reputation!"

Jia Jing intended to first use Jia Jing to discipline Jia Zhen, then, when he found a suitable opportunity later, thoroughly eradicate Jia Zhen, this malignant tumor.

As the highest‑ranking marquis of the Jia household now, he spoke, believing that Jia Jing would sense the times and handle the matter prudently.

Upon hearing this, Qin Keqing felt somewhat relieved; if the marquis were willing to intervene, she thought Grandfather Jing would not dare to neglect the matter.

Moreover, as long as Grandfather Jing is willing to step forward, how could Eldest Master Jia's son dare to defy his father!

This scheme not only avoids making a big scene and sparing his own reputation, but can also completely subdue Eldest Master Jia—truly a win‑win.

He had merely wanted the marquis to rebuke Eldest Master Jia, but he hadn't expected the marquis to think far deeper and farther than he did.

The marquis is truly the Jia family's main pillar; this time he finally found the right person.

Qin Keqing gradually stopped her sobbing, knelt down again, and said solemnly:

"Uncle, your great kindness is unforgettable to me, your niece‑in‑law; if I ever get the chance, I will surely repay you…"

Jia Jing waved his hand, gave Qin Keqing no further glance, and said lightly:

"What repayment! I merely don't want to see the Jia family produce such scandal again!"

"It's getting late; you should go back. For the next few days I'll be in the mansion—if anything comes up, send your maid to find me."

"After you return, quickly write down everything in detail; I'll have someone come collect it. This matter should not be delayed…"

Qin Keqing nodded and said:

"Your niece‑in‑law will remember!"

Having finished with this matter, Jia Jing led the way out of the artificial stone hills; by then the sun had set and dusk was deepening.

Jia Jing lingered no longer, hurrying toward Daiyu's quarters.

When Qin Keqing had tidied her attire, dried her tears, and stepped out, lanterns were already lit throughout the Jia mansion.

Qin Keqing gave Lin Daiyu's quarters a deep look, pulled her fox‑fur cloak tighter, summoned Baozhu and Rui Zhu, and headed for Ning Guo Fu, her steps much lighter and steadier than when she had come.

…………

Arriving at Daiyu's quarters, Yuan‑yang was no longer there; presumably she had finished her visit and returned to report to Grandmother Jia.

"Marquis!"

Zi Juan and Xueyan, who were attending Daiyu in her quarters, saw Jia Jing enter, bowed in unison, and their expressions now carried a restraint they had not shown before.

Since such a major event had occurred in the mansion, they had naturally heard of it; just now Yuan‑yang had come by, and they had asked her for details.

Learning that the influential stewards of the Jia household—'Grandfather Lai' and the Zhou Rui household—had either been killed or punished by the marquis, they felt a lingering sorrow.

Although Yuan‑yang explained that the marquis acted for the family's good, they could not at once conceal their fear.

Zi Juan, however, was relatively fine; though her manner was somewhat restrained, her expression remained normal.

Xueyan, on the other hand, showed a degree of fear, keeping her head lowered and daring not to look at Jia Jing.

Besides them, there was an elderly physician with white hair and beard inside, feeling Daiyu's pulse, accompanied by a female physician carrying a medicine case.

This was not an ordinary imperial physician summoned by the Jia household to treat Daiyu and Jia Zheng, but rather, before returning from Bashang Daying, Jia Jing had specially sent someone with his calling card to summon the famed Han‑Dynasty physician, Judge Wu Qian of the Imperial Medical Institute, and his female disciple.

Wu Qian was renowned throughout the Han Dynasty, having cured countless difficult and miscellaneous ailments over the years.

He also compiled, under imperial edict of Emperor Jing Sheng, the 'Golden Mirror of Medicine,' a richly illustrated work that has greatly influenced contemporary medical circles.

Wu Qian was likewise appointed Judge of the Imperial Medical Institute by Emperor Jing Sheng for his almost divine medical skill, and together with Zhang Lu and Yu Jiayan he is famed as one of the Three Great Physicians of the Han.

Naturally, physicians of such stature normally attend to nobles in the palace; given the Jia family's status, they could usually only hire an ordinary imperial physician, and could not have such a luminary come to their door.

This time, too, it was only because Jia Jing sent someone with his own calling card to request his presence that Wu Qian managed to free up time to treat Lin Daiyu.

Jia Jing harbored doubts about the medical skill of the physician who had previously treated Lin Daiyu.

Since his ennoblement and return to the mansion over three months ago, Lin Daiyu has also been ill on and off for more than three months.

Not only has she shown no improvement, but this time she even vomited blood and fainted; her condition seems somewhat worse, indicating that the earlier treatment and medication were ineffective.

Therefore, this time Jia Jing deliberately summoned the renowned physician Wu Qian to treat Lin Daiyu, hoping to find a fundamental cure for her ailment.

At this moment, Wu Qian had finished his diagnosis; seeing Jia Jing standing silently to one side, his expression grew stern, and he rose to perform a salute:

"Greetings, Marquis Jingwu!"

Jia Jing lightly supported him with a hand and said courteously:

"Thank you for making the trip, Judge Wu; my sister has been unwell these past days, and today she even vomited blood and fainted."

"My maternal uncle's family has only this one daughter; I fear any mishap."

"I have long heard of your exalted medical skill, Judge Wu, so I invited you to examine her and see whether there is any way to eradicate the root of her illness."

Upon hearing Jia Jing's words, Wu Qian sensed his earnestness, stroked his beard, and pondered:

"Your sister's ailment stems from a congenital insufficiency, a condition she carried from her mother's womb."

"Compound this with prolonged physical weakness and emotional depression, which cause liver qi stagnation, subsequently damaging liver yin, heart and spleen, resulting in liver qi stagnation with deficiency of lung and kidney."

"Moreover, the earlier medication was inappropriate; these multiple complex factors together have prevented a cure thus far."

This time, vomiting blood and fainting was also due to excessive worry and agitated emotions.

This illness is both physical and mental; relying solely on medication won't work; one must also relieve emotional burdens and improve one's mood for it to be effective.

Jia Jing heard this and furrowed his brows; later generations have various theories about Lin Daiyu's illness.

Lin Daiyu's illness symptoms mainly manifest as coughing, coughing up blood, emaciation, insomnia, etc.; these symptoms highly correspond to tuberculosis.

If viewed from a modern medical perspective, her 'deficiency syndrome' may be due to innate constitutional weakness, while symptoms like coughing up blood are manifestations of secondary tuberculosis.

Furthermore, some opinions hold that she might have chronic bronchitis or congenital heart disease, but tuberculosis remains the mainstream interpretation.