Chapter 214: Please Her for Treatment

"My Lord, if Qingrong does not marry the Crown Prince, what is she to do in the future? Who else would dare to take her as a wife?"

"Qingrong has always entered and exited the Crown Prince's Residence through the back door and has never been discovered. Even if she were discovered, she wears a veiled hat—no one would know her identity." Meng Hui's casual remark sent Liu Yiniang's heart sinking completely.

"But…"

"What exactly are you trying to say? The residence is already in chaos, yet you are still fixating on these trivial details."

His tone was clearly already very impatient.

Liu Yiniang did not dare say anything more and could only offer an awkward smile, soothing softly, "The Second Miss has reached the age to discuss marriage. I was thinking of her marriage matters and lost my head a little."

Meng Hui, as the Left Minister of the current court, was naturally exceedingly clever. Liu Yiniang's unspoken calculations were entirely transparent in his eyes.

"I will think of something regarding Qingrong's matter. If she wishes to marry the Crown Prince, I will mention it to him. But given her status, she can at most become a serving concubine—she should not even dream of the position of side consort." As Meng Hui finished speaking, he nodded slightly: "If she can enter the Crown Prince's Residence, even as a serving concubine, that would be fine."

Liu Yiniang's face brightened with joy, but just as she was about to agree, she heard him mutter to himself, "This way, when Nanyi enters the residence as consort, she'll have someone to look after her."

The smile on Liu Yiniang's face froze instantly.

Once again, making her daughter a stepping stone!

She had spent her whole life in the Minister's Residence at the mercy of the Jiang Clan; now it had come to her children, and they still had to serve others as slaves and servants.

No!

Absolutely not!

Liu Yiniang lowered her eyes, a flash of anger crossing them.

From the corner of her eye she gazed at the tightly shut door, silently clenching her fist.

Before long, the residence physician emerged from the room, wiping the sweat from his brow, and said in a low voice, "My Lord, the Madam has awakened and is out of danger. It is merely a case of distress from sudden anger. With a good two days' rest, she will recover. But as for the injuries of the Eldest Young Master and the Eldest Miss, my medical skills are too shallow—I am truly powerless."

Meng Hui's expression darkened, his eyes full of fury: "Who! Who exactly did this?"

Having navigated the officialdom for many years, he did not believe in such coincidences.

"Find them! I will flay him alive and tear out his sinews!"

Just then, a servant boy ran in, panting heavily, and said, "Master, we've found out—the young lady who clashed with the Eldest Miss today appears to be from the Chi Family."

"The Chi Family?" Meng Hui's heart sank: "The Chi Family that recently returned from Nanpu?"

"Exactly."

The blazing fury that had been burning just moments ago was instantly extinguished.

The Chi Family… such a great noble house—even with his current high position, he could not shake them.

Meng Qinghe, that fool!

How could she have offended them?

"Has anyone come from the Chi Family?"

The servant boy shook his head: "No."

"Good, then. Good."

"My Lord." The residence physician thought for a moment, then said respectfully, "If you wish to heal the Eldest Young Master and the Eldest Miss, it is not impossible. I once heard tell of two Divine Doctors. One is Divine Doctor Xiao, and the other is a rising star known as the Southern First Young Master. Divine Doctor Xiao's whereabouts are unpredictable and very few can find him. But this Southern First Young Master appeared in Nanpu some time ago, and his medical skills are exceedingly brilliant. I heard that when the Princess of Yuqin Guo was gravely ill, summoning famous doctors from all over the land was of no avail, but once the Southern First Young Master intervened, she fully recovered within a few days."

The Southern First Young Master?

Why did that name sound so familiar?

"Is this Southern First Young Master not the shopkeeper of the Number One Manor Under Heaven?"

"The Number One Manor Under Heaven?" Hearing Liu Yiniang's words, Meng Hui frowned deeply: "The Number One Manor Under Heaven?"

Was that not the shop that had received the Emperor's commendation and had a grudge with their Meng Family?

And the origin of that grudge was also related to Meng Qinghe, that fool.

Liu Yiniang's eyes darted, and she sighed softly: "Master, if he truly is a Divine Doctor, then even at the cost of losing face, we must invite her here! Otherwise, what is to become of the Eldest Young Master and the Eldest Miss?"

The moment she heard mention of losing face, Meng Hui's expression turned extremely ugly.

Liu Yiniang had been by his side for many years and naturally knew where his weakness lay.

Face and the reputation of the Minister's Residence mattered more to Meng Hui than anything else.

Meng Hui's expression was dark and brooding; he did not nod.

A flash of complacency crossed Liu Yiniang's eyes.

Now, without Meng Hui's approval, not even the Jiang Clan could invite that Southern First Young Master back. After all, to invite her would be to tell everyone that Minister Meng had need of her—for the Left Minister's Residence to bow its head to a merchant was, to Meng Hui, simply a profound humiliation.

Without treatment, even if the two people in the room kept their lives, they would be cripples.

Even if Meng Nanyi were brought back, this vast Minister's Residence would not fall to her to inherit—in the end, it would all belong to her own son.

At this thought, Liu Yiniang's lips curved slightly, her eyes brimming with satisfaction, as if she could already see the moment her son inherited the Minister's Residence.

Just then, the Jiang Clan stumbled out of the room and knelt directly at Meng Hui's feet, her face covered in tear stains. She cried, "Master, you must save Jue'er and Qinghe! You cannot just stand by and watch them become cripples! Master, I beg you—they are your own flesh and blood, you cannot abandon them! They are the legitimate son and legitimate daughter!"

Seeing her like this, Meng Hui frowned even more tightly, his eyes full of hesitation.

Liu Yiniang, seeing this, hastily said, "Indeed, Master. Though we have a grudge with the Southern First Young Master, we cannot abandon the Eldest Miss and the Eldest Young Master. It is just that it will be hard on Master to set aside face and go beg her. We are at odds with her, and who knows whether she will agree."

Set aside face and go beg her? Meng Hui's expression darkened, and he shook off the Jiang Clan's hand.

Seeing this, the Jiang Clan's heart sank.

Was the Master no longer willing to save them?

The Jiang Clan's eyes were bloodshot as she glared venomously at Liu Yiniang, raised her hand without hesitation, and struck Liu Yiniang hard across the face: "You wretch! What right does a lowly concubine like you have to give orders here? You lowborn creature, to actually incite the Master into not saving his own children! Do you know that if this matter gets out, how outsiders will talk? How they will point fingers at the Master's spine? If the Emperor were to learn that the Master does not even care about his own children's lives, what punishment would be handed down?"

When it came to scheming, the Jiang Clan was naturally superior—otherwise she would not have had the ability to sit securely in the position of First Madam for so many years.

Meng Hui's pupils contracted, a wave of belated fear rising in his heart, and he glared fiercely at Liu Yiniang: "Why are you still standing here? Get back to your own courtyard!"

Liu Yiniang shrank her neck timidly and turned to leave with reddened eyes.

Meng Hui turned to the servant boy and said, "Take my personal letter and go to the Number One Manor Under Heaven."

"Yes."

By the time Chi Nan Yi received the servant's report, it was already the next morning.

Looking at Meng Hui's letter, Chi Nan Yi let out a cold laugh and tossed the letter aside: "Tell the messenger, just say that this young master has not yet returned to the capital."

Healing those two damn things wouldn't be impossible, but it would require something.