Chapter 005: Rain Bell (V)
The sound of night rain crushes the flowers into the mud.
Ni Mizhi and her maid walked through the corridor. Before they reached the study, she turned around, took the hot soup from the maid, walked forward a few steps and stopped in front of the door.
"Our Great Qi laws allow women to remarry, but Cen Zishu coveted our Ni family's wealth and was willing to be a chaste wife for many years. Even the county magistrate praised her and built a chastity arch for her! She lives in our Ni family's ancestral home, but it's hard for me to even step into the door now!"
There were sounds of banging cups and angry roars in the room. Ni Mizhi's shoulders trembled, and she pursed her lips, somewhat afraid to knock on the door.
"Master, why are you angry? These days, I've been seeing the doctor in the clinic go to her frequently. In the past, even if she didn't like you, she would still invite you in for tea. But now she's been shutting the door to you for several times. I'm afraid she's too sick to get up," Neizhi said flatteringly while bending down to pick up the broken porcelain pieces. "She's too sick to get up, and Mr. Qinglan is nowhere to be found. Isn't this a chance for you to take back your family business in a fair and square manner?"
The Ni family originally had a rich fortune and was once considered prosperous in Zezhou. However, when the brothers Ni Zhun and Ni Zong were in their teens, their father Ni Zhiguang mismanaged the family business, and the war in the north caused him to lose most of the family fortune.
The clinic was the foundation of the Ni family's ancestors. If Ni Zhiguang had not been greedy and interfered in other businesses, he would not have lost so much. Ni Zhiguang learned from his mistakes and brought his family back to his old home in Que County from Zezhou. He used his remaining wealth to reopen several clinics and added a cloth shop business.
Although Ni Zong was a bastard's son, Ni Zhiguang allowed him to study medicine with Ni Zhun. However, Ni Zong did not learn well and often made mistakes. Ni Zhiguang believed that this path was not feasible for him, so before his death, he let the two brothers separate the family property. The Ni family's ancestral home and the clinic were given to the legitimate son Ni Zhun, while the cloth shop business was given to Ni Zong.
But how can the cloth shop business compare to the time-honored Ni Family Clinic?
Over the years, Ni Zong has been dissatisfied with this.
Especially after Ni Zhun's death, the Ni family's medical clinic business was in the hands of a widow. Every time he visited her, his widowed sister-in-law always acted superior, which made him very angry.
"That stubborn little concubine Ni Su is also a thorny problem," Ni Zong sat back on the folding chair, turned his head to face the dim light of the candle on the table, "Does Cen Zishu really dare to hand over our Ni family's clinic to such a girl..."
"My Lord, how can that be? It doesn't make sense. Besides," Neizhi offered him a cup of tea attentively, "women will eventually get married. Once they get married, they will be considered outsiders."
Ni Zong took the tea bowl, the hot mist stained the wrinkles on his face. He paused, raised his head, and squinted his eyes, "That's right, let her Ni Su learn from her mother's noble style and choose a husband early."
He suddenly sneered: "Now, she can't choose even if she wants to."
The rain on a summer night was not cold, but Ni Mizhi felt a frightening chill from her father's vague words through the thin doors and windows. She almost couldn't hold the porcelain bowl steadily. When she came to her senses, she realized that the bowl wall was no longer so hot. She grabbed the maid's hand and walked back in a hurry.
What does it mean if you can’t choose?
Ni Mizhi thought and thought on her way back to her room. She suddenly stopped and the maid following behind her almost bumped into her back. She called her in confusion, "Miss?"
The cold light of lightning flashed into the corridor, and the rain and fog intertwined. Ni Mizhi struggled for a while, but finally turned around and said to her: "Go to your aunt's house quietly to find Ni Su, and tell her, just tell her..."
She pursed her lips and said, "Tell her not to go out these days, for fear that someone might slander her innocence."
"yes."
The maid bowed, found a paper umbrella, and hurried into the rain.
The Ni family’s ancestral home.
Mother Qian had already arranged for people to pack their luggage onto the carriage. It was raining now, and it was night time. The servants that Ni Zong had sent to keep an eye on them had all gone to hide from the rain under the oilcloth awning of the food stall. No one was paying attention to the alley at the back door of the Ni family's ancestral home. It was a good time for Ni Su to leave.
"Don't look at the old groom named Zhang. He was also a bodyguard when he was young and learned martial arts. That's why Madam is confident in letting him take you to the capital."
Mother Qian held an umbrella for the girl in front of her and wiped away the water droplets on her cloak. Her eyes were a little sour. "Girl, you have to be well when you go to Beijing alone."
When Ni Su was a child, it was mostly Qian's mother who took care of her. She held Qian's mother's hand and said, "I am not alone. Zhang Bo and Xingzhu are with me. Don't worry, Qian's mother. Please..."
Ni Su endured the pain, her throat became even drier, "Please take good care of my mother, and take good care of yourself."
"Don't worry, young lady, I'm here with you, Madam."
Mother Qian patted the back of her hand and then helped her to get into the car, but Ni Su stepped on the stool and looked back into the half-open door. There was a misty courtyard and dim light shadows.
She suddenly let go of Mother Qian's hand, walked out from under the umbrella, took a few steps forward and knelt down on the steps.
Her skirt was soaked, and raindrops hit Ni Su's eyelashes. She leaned over and kowtowed heavily.
Mother Qian covered her mouth, turned her face away and shed tears silently.
"Why hasn't Xingzhu come back yet?" The old coachman harnessed the carriage and looked towards the entrance of the alley.
Ni Su was helped onto the carriage by Mama Qian. Xingzhu had not returned yet, and she felt uneasy, so she said to the coachman, "Let's go to the study to look for her."
In the past, it was inconvenient for Ni Qinglan to teach Ni Su medicine at home, so he used the money he had saved to buy a very small courtyard in the east of the city to use as a study.
It was getting dark, and Cen, seeing the rain, suddenly decided to let Ni Su leave at night. In a hurry, she didn't have time to get a pair of golden needles and several medical books that Ni Su had left in the study. The family also had to pack up their luggage, so Xingzhu volunteered to go to the study to get them for her.
Xingzhu had followed Ni Su since she was a child, and she knew where she kept the things. Ni Su called one or two servants to accompany her.
The night rain was getting heavier, dripping on the hood of the car. The old coachman drove the car, and the wheels quickly rolled through the mud and water towards the east of the city.
The rain extinguished many lanterns, and the streets were dark. It was even darker in the alleys. The old coachman relied on the lantern swaying under the hood of the carriage to see a few young servants in straw raincoats huddled under the wall outside the gate of the study, laughing. When they saw the carriage approaching, they immediately stopped laughing, their faces became tense, and they pushed the people around them .
"Oh, is that the carriage of the master?"
Some people peeped at the lantern with the word "Ni" on it on the carriage.
When the two servants who were tied up like dumplings in the dark heard the sound, they immediately struggled and rolled under the shadow of the lamp, and their mouths stuffed with sackcloth kept making "wuwu" sounds.
The old groom recognized the two people who were tied up, and also identified one of the servants as the one who often followed Ni Zong's illegitimate son Ni Qingwen. He turned around and said, "Miss, this is Qingwen's man!"
Ni Su lifted the curtain, and the servant's eyes met hers. He was terrified and turned around to run into the courtyard to inform the police, but the old coachman got off the carriage swiftly and blocked his way.
"Uncle Zhang, hit me!"
The rain was getting heavier, drowning out all the sounds. Ni Su felt even more uneasy. She didn't even bother to hold an umbrella. There was no stool, so she lifted her skirt and jumped out of the car, spraining her ankle.
The people who followed Ni Qingwen were like skinny chickens. Uncle Zhang pushed them into the water and beat them. Ni Su endured the pain and walked quickly into the yard.
"Help, help..."
There were mournful cries from behind the tightly closed doors and windows.
The young man with thin eyebrows and fine eyes pressed the woman's shoulder and said with a smile: "Good Xingzhu, you should be more sensible. Instead of being Ni Su's maid, you might as well follow me. She has lost her brother, and her aunt is also seriously ill. Sooner or later, the Ni family's property will be mine!"
Xingzhu's eyes were filled with tears. She screamed and tried to avoid his hand, but she couldn't struggle free due to the disparity in strength between the man and the woman. The man tore open the collar of her clothes and half-removed her silk pants. He grinned and was about to lean over.
With a "bang", the door was kicked open with great force.
Ni Qingwen was startled. There was thunder and lightning. He turned his head impatiently: "Who the hell is that..."
Cold lights intertwined, and a stick hit him in the face. Ni Qingwen's nose bone hurt so much that warm blood flowed out. He screamed in pain and saw the face covered in rain.
"Ni Su!"
Ni Qingwen recognized her and immediately rushed towards her with a sullen face to snatch the stick from her hand. Ni Su dodged him in time, and Zhang Bo ran in, stopped Ni Qingwen, and started fighting with him.
Xingzhu lay on the ground motionless until a soaked person lifted her up and held her in his arms. The tears accumulated in her eyes fell out and she burst into tears: "Girl, girl..."
In order to prevent Xingzhu from escaping, Ni Qingwen even instigated the servant to break her right leg.
Ni Qingwen was an uneducated prodigal son, not even as strong as Zhang Bo, a fifty-year-old man, and was beaten by Zhang Bo until he screamed in pain.
Ni Su turned a deaf ear to him, helped Xingzhu put away her clothes, touched her joints, and said gently, "Xingzhu, bear with it."
As soon as he finished speaking, without waiting for Xingzhu to react, he suddenly exerted force on his hand. There was a sound, and Xingzhu screamed in pain, with red eyes.
Xingzhu was trembling all over. The shame of being touched made it difficult for her to suppress the urge to vomit. Ni Su coaxed her softly. Ni Qingwen was bruised and swollen, and was pressed to the ground by Zhang Bo. He shouted, "Ni Su! What are you so proud of! Your mother is dying. The ancestral home and the clinic will belong to us sooner or later! Who do you think you are? You dare to hit me instead of begging for mercy in front of me!"
Ni Su let go of the star bead, stood up and walked to Ni Qingwen, staring at him condescendingly.
Drops of water fell along the pearl flower on one side of her black bun, and another crystal drop condensed on her earlobe. She leaned over and slapped Ni Qingwen hard.
"Even if I were willing to beg for mercy from you, my cousin, I'm afraid you wouldn't be so generous as to let me go."
Ni Qingwen was stunned by the slap. He heard her voice again and raised his eyes slowly. The girl in front of him was dressed in a wet dress, with wet light hair sticking to her ears. Her eyes were clear and gentle, and her fair cheeks were wet.
Ni Qingwen watched her stand up again and take the stick from Uncle Zhang. He widened his eyes and said, "Ni Su, you..."
A stick hit him on the back of the head and he stopped talking abruptly.
Zhang Bo saw Ni Su had lost her stick, so he went outside to search in the medicine basket for a while, and came in with a bunch of tender green flower-shaped stems and leaves wrapped in an embroidered handkerchief. He called out, "Girl, what are you doing?"
"Uncle Zhang, Xingzhu has been through this and her leg is injured. I'm afraid it's inconvenient for her to go to the capital with me, let alone stay in Que County," Ni Su threw the handkerchief and the grass leaves wrapped in it into Ni Qingwen's right hand, "So, I have a favor to ask of you."
Zhang Bo saw her raise her foot and stepped on Ni Qingwen's hand with her embroidered shoe, crushing it hard. White juice from the rhizome flowed out and covered Ni Qingwen's hand.
"Xingzhu's hometown, Luanzhen, suffered a flood many years ago. Xingzhu fled here with her mother when she was young. After her mother passed away, she had no livelihood, so she came to my house to be my maid. I heard that she has a relative in Luanzhen. I will leave some money for you and her. Please send her back to Luanzhen. It's best for you to stay in Luanzhen and don't come back yet to avoid the limelight."
Ni Qingwen has an extremely powerful and domineering wife, and his family business has only gotten better with the help of his wife's family. Even if he suffered a loss here tonight, he would not dare to speak out. And Ni Zong's newly married concubine is pregnant again, and Ni Qingwen is afraid that the concubine is pregnant with a boy. Ni Zong does not allow Ni Qingwen to take a concubine for the sake of his daughter-in-law's family, and he hates Ni Qingwen's ignorant and playful behavior. At this critical juncture, Ni Qingwen does not dare to complain to Ni Zong, but he will definitely retaliate in private.
When the dazed Xingzhu heard what Ni Su said, she moved and shifted her gaze, but she first saw the stems and leaves falling out of the embroidered handkerchief.
Wufenglingzhi, also known as Qi Ze in Chinese medicine, can clear away heat and detoxify, relieve cough and eliminate phlegm, and treat ringworms, but the fresh juice of its rhizome is poisonous and can cause skin ulcers if it comes into contact with it.
Xingzhu has been following Ni Su for so many years, and has been exposed to it all the time, so how could she not recognize this thing?
The herbs in the medicine basket outside that had not yet been dried were all collected by her from the herbal farmers.
"girl……"
Xingzhu murmured.
She was a slave, not to mention that Ni Qingwen had not yet succeeded. Even if he succeeded, there was no law in Da Qi that could bring her justice.
The rain and fog were thick and thin under the light outside the door. The wind blew Ni Su's sleeves. She turned around and met Xingzhu's red and swollen eyes:
"Xingzhu, don't be afraid. If he touches you with his hand, I will make his hand rot."
The branches and leaves of the locust tree in the courtyard looked as good as new after being washed by the rain. In the thick shadow, the young man had a pale face.
He was leaning against a tree, wearing a dark black cloak with a fox fur collar that was out of place in midsummer. The snow-white sleeves inside were hanging down, and his shadow fell under the shallow and dim light, but it was a ball of bright light that no one noticed.
He looked silently into the door through the gaps between the branches and leaves.
Between the cold eyebrows and eyes, there is the feeling of snow in the severe winter.
