Chapter 26: Seven Days

 Chapter 26: Seven Days

Shen Shi spoke gently to the siblings, saying, "Chen'er, stay here and play with your fourth brother."

She gave an eye signal to Chen Mama.

Chen Mama immediately understood, calling two servant girls to take Jiannian out. As soon as they left, they covered her mouth.

Shen Shi also left, leaving the two siblings alone in the room. The curtain swayed slightly in the air, rustling softly.

Chu Qianchen stood to see Shen Shi off, her long eyelashes fluttering lightly.

Jiannian, relying on being Yunmu's wet nurse, had dared to act this way because she knew Yunmu was at the age where he was stubborn and competitive.

If this dragged on a few more days, the broken bone would have healed completely, and it would be harder to treat.

At that time, even if Chu Qianchen could fix it, Yunmu would have to endure immense pain, and if left even longer, she might not be able to help at all.

"Mu Ge’er, has anyone touched your right leg?" Chu Qianchen sat back down by the bed, looking at Chu Yunmu and asking.

"No," Chu Yunmu shook his head, then added, "Jiannian didn’t touch it either."

Looking at the swaying curtain, Chu Yunmu asked, "Second Sister, did Jiannian do something wrong?"

"Yes." Chu Qianchen knew that Shen Shi had purposely avoided letting Yunmu hear the interrogation of Jiannian. "Mu Ge’er, your leg hurts, and Jiannian should have told Mother, not let you hide it. Jiannian made a mistake."

"You were born by Mother. She is the one you should trust the most, not a wet nurse."

"Think about it. If Mother were sick, would you be worried?"

Chu Yunmu thought for a moment, his phoenix eyes blinking, then nodded, saying, "I was wrong."

Chu Qianchen rubbed his head gently, her eyes filled with tenderness.

If no one had touched Chu Yunmu's broken bone in the past few days, then the only possibility left was that Physician Li had misaligned the bone during the setting. Physician Li was a renowned physician in the capital, having practiced for decades—could he really have made such a mistake? 

In this dynasty, the law stated that anyone with a disability could not hold an official position or inherit a title...

Was this a deliberate plot, or was it just an accident?

In just a few days, Mu Ge’er had first "accidentally" fallen from the rockery, and then his bone had been "accidentally" set wrong. Calling it an "accident," these "accidents" seemed a little too much.

"Mu Ge’er, lie here and be good. I’ll go speak with Mother," Chu Qianchen said.

Chu Yunmu obediently responded and lay back down.

Chu Qianchen instructed the maid to watch over Chu Yunmu and left, heading straight for the East Wing.

When she entered the hall, she heard Shen Shi questioning Jiannian. She couldn’t make out the details, but Jiannian’s sobs and muffled voice were clear.

After the maid guarding the door reported to Shen Shi, Chu Qianchen entered and whispered to Shen Shi the words Chu Yunmu had just spoken. Shen Shi fell into thought and raised her hand to signal for Jiannian to be taken away by the maids.

Chu Qianchen stood with her hands at her sides, her gaze shifting to Chen Mama. Her eyes scanned her face, then her chin and neck, her brows slightly furrowing.

Chen Mama, feeling uneasy under Chu Qianchen’s gaze, cautiously asked, "Second Miss, why do you keep looking at me?"

Shen Shi, hearing this, also looked up at Chu Qianchen.

Chu Qianchen, who had intended to ask this directly, spoke plainly, "Chen Mama, a few days ago, you didn’t have rashes on your face and neck."

Upon hearing this, Chen Mama’s face darkened, and she awkwardly replied, "They appeared just yesterday."

She woke up to find that she had inexplicably developed these red rashes.

Normally, if she had rashes, she wouldn't have gone to serve the mistress, as it would be unpleasant for the mistress. But since the Fourth Young Master's recent accident was still under investigation, and the mistress was short on help, she hadn’t taken the day off.

At this moment, being directly addressed by Chu Qianchen in front of everyone made Chen Mama feel uneasy. She assumed Chu Qianchen was mocking her and replied in a harsh tone, "Perhaps it was a bite from some insect. Thank you for your concern, Second Miss."

As she spoke, she felt an itch on her face and instinctively raised her hand to scratch it.

"Wait, don't scratch." Chu Qianchen spoke to stop her. "Chen Mama, do you feel the rashes are hot, your throat itchy, and your stomach churning, with a strong urge to vomit?"

Chen Mama initially thought little of it, but as she listened, her face began to pale.

She had all of these symptoms!

How did the Second Miss know?

Seeing Chen Mama's expression, Chu Qianchen knew she had guessed correctly. Her brows furrowed deeper as she asked, "Chen Mama, do you have any wounds on your body?"

Chen Mama instinctively looked at her right hand. There was a small cut on her palm, which had already scabbed over. "This was from five days ago when I accidentally cut myself with a piece of a broken cup."

Chu Qianchen’s usually bright and exquisite face revealed a rare serious expression as she spoke to Shen Shi: "Mother, please step outside."

"Don't let anyone enter this room for now. Also, have everyone in the courtyard wash their bodies with mugwort water, and then have the old women carefully checked to see if they have any wounds or rashes."

Shen Shi also sensed that something was wrong, so she immediately instructed the head maid to handle it and then asked, "Chen’er, what's going on?"

Chu Qianchen replied, "Mother, Chen Mama is very likely suffering from 'Seven-Day Fever.'"

"Seven-Day Fever?!" Shen Shi clutched her handkerchief, her face changing instantly. "You mean the 'Seven-Day Fever' that spread in Ruxian a few years ago, which almost wiped out entire households?"

Her voice trembled as she spoke.

"Yes, that's the one." Chu Qianchen was somewhat surprised that Shen Shi had heard of Seven-Day Fever. She nodded and said, "Mother, please step outside first. Follow my instructions and have everyone in the courtyard checked thoroughly. Be very careful."

Chen Mama didn’t know what Seven-Day Fever was, but from Shen Shi’s tone, she understood it was no small matter. Not only was it contagious, but it could also be fatal.

Chen Mama was drenched in sweat and panicked. She quickly urged, "Madam, please leave!"

She regretted coming to work today. If she infected the mistress and the Fourth Young Master, what would happen?

The more she thought about it, the more terrified she became. Her face turned as pale as death, and she nearly staggered.

Chu Qianchen repeated to Shen Shi, "Yes, Mother, please step outside."

Shen Shi didn’t respond right away. Instead, she asked, "What about you?"

Chu Qianchen froze for a moment.

She didn’t expect Shen Shi to be concerned about her at this time. She smiled and said directly, "I’ll take Chen Mama’s pulse first to confirm if it's Seven-Day Fever. If it is, we need to figure out where she got infected from."

For someone like Chen Mama, who was in charge of the household, she would usually only stay in the mansion. If she was infected here, the source should be easy to track down.

Chu Qianchen reassured her, "Mother, don’t worry. Chen Mama's rashes haven't broken open, so the illness shouldn't be severe. There's no need to worry about her life."

Seven-Day Fever, as the name suggests, lasts for seven days from infection to recovery. If one doesn’t survive, they will die. The disease is not highly contagious, but if untreated, the chances of survival are slim.

Chen Mama likely got infected on the day she was cut. Now it was the fifth day.

Shen Shi nodded. "Chen’er, continue with what you're doing."

She elegantly sat in the armchair, seemingly unwilling to leave.

"Mother?" Chu Qianchen called out again.

Shen Shi replied naturally, "This is the main courtyard, my courtyard. There's no reason for you to stay and have me leave as a mother. You should do your work without worrying about me."

Shen Shi looked at Chu Qianchen with a calm expression, as steady as a mountain.

Chu Qianchen: "…"

Chu Qianchen knew in her heart that Shen Shi was unwilling to leave because she had stayed. A strange feeling stirred in her.

In her memories, her legitimate mother, Shen Shi, had always been graceful, rational, and dignified.

In her previous life, she had listened to Concubine Jiang's words and stayed far away from Shen Shi, never noticing that beneath Shen Shi's elegant and graceful exterior, there was also a side of her that was unrestrained.

Chu Qianchen smiled helplessly and compromised. "Then you can stay for now."

She was always decisive and didn’t argue further. She had Chen Mama sit down and extended her wrist.

Chu Qianchen quickly checked Chen Mama’s pulse, her expression serious.

She confirmed that Chen Mama indeed had Seven-Day Fever.

As expected, Chen Mama wasn’t seriously ill.

Chu Qianchen was already thinking about the appropriate remedy as she put down her right hand and cleaned her hands. She then asked, "Chen Mama, in the days following your injury, where have you been? Have you come into contact with anyone else's blood?"

Chen Mama was usually working in the main courtyard, and she mostly accompanied Shen Shi to the Old Madam’s place for morning and evening salutations or took walks in the garden. People like her rarely got injured.

Chen Mama thought back over the past few days and suddenly her eyes widened. She blurted out, "Madam, I just remembered! It was Mei’er!"

"Mei’er?" Chu Qianchen certainly remembered the name.

Mei’er was the little maid who had reported to Rongfu Hall six days ago when Chu Yunmu had fallen from the rockery.

"It was her." Chen Mama nodded urgently. "She asked for leave and went home. Five days ago, I visited her house…"

(The chapter ends here.)