Four Seasons Brocade – CH 162

Chapter 162 ☆、

Ah Wu tried hard to control her blushing, but she could not. Her face burned again, her fingers gripped the blanket tightly, and she still slightly opened her mouth.

Chu Mao fed her the medicine spoonful by spoonful, then personally helped her rinse her mouth. From the celadon porcelain box containing candied fruit, he picked out a rose-stained cherry preserve and put it in Ah Wu’s mouth.

Ah Wu reflexively tried to clench her teeth to stop Chu Mao from putting the preserve in her mouth. She was used to bitter medicine and did not need preserves to mask the real bitterness. However, she was not as fast as Chu Mao. As soon as she closed her teeth, she bit down on Chu Mao’s index finger, which he had not had time to withdraw.

Ah Wu was caught between a rock and a hard place. She did not want to spit it out, but Chu Mao’s eyebrows twitched, and he smiled radiantly. Ah Wu felt her tongue being touched, and she could not bear it any longer.

Ah Wu gritted her teeth and bit down hard. Her finger, already thin, went straight to bone, as hard as an iron rod. Ah Wu complained of a toothache, but looking at Chu Mao, his face showed none of the expected pain; instead, he smiled even more broadly. “Alright, be careful not to break your teeth.”

Ah Wu sheepishly released her grip. Chu Mao’s magnanimity made her feel too embarrassed to continue acting childishly.

Chu Mao paused, slightly embarrassed, and said, “I will feel bad.”

Ah Wu stared blankly as Chu Mao put his index finger, which he had taken from her mouth, into his mouth. If it had bled from being bitten, his actions would have been understandable, but Ah Wu clearly only saw two teeth marks.

Ah Wu naturally could not understand this kind of flirtatious teasing between lovers; she just thought it was too, too indecent. But then again, had Chu Mao not done enough indecent things these past few days?

Putting herself in Chu Mao’s shoes, Ah Wu thought that even if she were Chu Mao’s wife, she would not personally serve him, even if he were immobile. She could not stand the filth involved in urination.

A thought flashed through Ah Wu’s mind. She stared at Chu Mao in disbelief. Could it be that Chu Mao, like her, had also been possessed? This thought stunned Ah Wu. She felt like crying. She still wanted the Prince Qi, who needed eight maids to serve him, even when he went to the bathing room. The more Ah Wu thought about it, the more frightened she became. Could it be that some spoiled, dissolute young man had taken advantage of Prince Qi? Would he still be able to ascend the throne? If he could not ascend the throne…

Ah Wu dared not think any further.

“I want to eat,” Ah Wu blurted out. It was not without reason; Ah Wu felt weak and sore all over, all because she had not eaten for days. Who could be lively and energetic after seven or eight days of starvation? She needed to eat to regain her strength and find out what was going on.

“You just took your medicine; you cannot eat right now. Lie down for a while,” Chu Mao said, already noticing Lu Ruoxing’s boots peeking out from under the curtain.

Chu Mao got up and helped Ah Wu lie down, tucking her in. Then he leaned down and kissed her forehead. “I will be right back. If you need anything, just call me.”

After Chu Mao left, Wen-Mei came in.

Ah Wu used all her strength to prop herself up. Seeing this, Wen-Mei quickly came forward to help her lean against something. Ah Wu lifted her arm uncomfortably, and Wen-Mei quickly released her grip. She still was not used to being touched. As for Chu Mao, tears welled in Ah Wu’s eyes again; she could not resist anyway.

“Has His Highness been injured these past few days?” Ah Wu asked anxiously.

Wen-Mei was taken aback by Ah Wu’s abrupt question, then shook her head.

“Has he been sick?” Ah Wu asked again.

“No, these past few days, while the Princess was unconscious, His Highness has been taking care of you tirelessly, and he’s lost weight,” Wen-Mei said. If Chu Mao heard this, he would surely praise her, “Good girl.”

Just as she feared, Wen-Mei’s words shattered Ah Wu’s last shred of hope. Sure enough, Chu Mao had been personally… well, serving her these past few days. But if Chu Mao had not changed his ways, Ah Wu could not help but worry.

“How are the people at Yulan Hall? How is Nanny Sang’s health?” Ah Wu asked again; this was what she cared about most now.

“His Highness has invited Imperial Physician He to examine Nanny Sang, so Your Highness need not worry. As for the situation at Yulan Hall, this servant is unaware of it; this servant has been serving her at Bingxue Forest these past few days,” Wen-Mei said softly.

Hearing that an imperial physician was looking after Nanny Sang relieved Ah Wu somewhat. Although she was annoyed by Nanny Sang’s nagging, it did not mean she did not care about her. However, Wen-Mei clearly knew about the situation at Yulan Hall, yet she was giving her the runaround. Although her limbs were weak, her mind was perfectly clear.

Ah Wu laughed in exasperation. Chu Mao and Wen-Mei’s silence only made her more worried. She only hated her own body for being so weak. But this Wen-Mei, she had originally thought she had won her over; otherwise, she would not have helped her turn the tables on Mei-Ying in that matter. But now it seemed that in this girl’s eyes, her master was still only His Highness Prince Qi.

Ah Wu’s gaze towards Wen-Mei hardened slightly. She could not help but wonder how much Chu Mao knew about Mei-Ying’s affair—probably everything. Did he see through her schemes? She could not help but curse herself for her own despicable heart.

Thinking this, Ah Wu felt a pang of guilt. Although Mei-Ying and the others had started the trouble, her methods were not exactly honorable.

The more Ah Wu thought about it, the more listless she felt. She lay down for a while, half-closing her eyes, when she heard Chu Mao call her, “Ah Wu, get up and have some porridge.”

Chu Mao helped Ah Wu sit up. He placed a cloth under her chin before picking up a spoonful of perfectly warm millet porridge and feeding her. Ah Wu wanted Wen-Mei to serve her, but she had something to ask Chu Mao, so she did not ask.

Millet porridge with lightly diced cucumber and bamboo shoots finally gave Ah Wu some flavor. Perhaps due to prolonged hunger, her appetite was not as large as she had expected, but she was determined to regain her strength, so she forced herself to eat even when she could not finish.

Chu Mao did not indulge Ah Wu. After finishing most of the porridge, he put down his chopsticks. Seeing Ah Wu still looking like she wanted to eat, he gave her water to rinse her mouth. “You’ve only just woken up; your stomach is still weak. You cannot eat too much. If you feel better, I will take you to Jufang Garden for a meal.”

Jufang Garden was a famous restaurant in the capital. To dine there, you had to book seven or eight days in advance. Moreover, they never did takeout. Whether it was royalty, high-ranking officials, or wealthy merchants wanting to book a banquet, they would not give face. If you wanted to eat at Jufang Garden, you had to go there.

The wealthy and powerful in the capital also had their pride; they were afraid of scaring away the chefs by showing off, leaving everyone unable to enjoy the delicious food and becoming the target of public criticism. Therefore, even though Ah Wu was the Princess of Kangning in her previous life, she never had the chance to eat at Jufang Garden.

Unsurprisingly, Chu Mao’s words hit the nail on the head. Ah Wu, having been fed, softened her expression.

However, Ah Wu still had to say what she needed to say. “Your Highness, what exactly did Zi-Shan and the others do wrong?”

Ah Wu blinked her large, watery eyes, filled with anxiety and pity. Her eyelashes trembled like butterflies in the wind. She knew very well how to use her appearance. To put it nicely, Ah Wu was clever and knew how to be pragmatic; to put it bluntly, Ah Wu was spineless in front of Chu Mao, completely unable to stand up for herself. Even with how Chu Mao treated her, she would not dare say a single harsh word.

From the beginning, Chu Mao had used Yulan Hall to control Ah Wu’s weakness.

“They failed to protect their master,” Chu Mao replied succinctly. But what actually angered him was far more than that. After Ah Wu fell ill, they did not even inform him immediately, not even Li Yanguang. It was not until He Nianfang was asked to come that Nanny Hao contacted him.

Chu Mao knew he had never suppressed Yulan Hall, yet the maids there did not know how to protect their mistress and were manipulated by Nanny Hao—this was one reason.

Secondly, Zi-Shan’s unauthorized decision to go to the Rong Mansion violated Chu Mao’s taboo. In any case, this should not have been a decision a maid could make. Of course, Chu Mao had to admit he was somewhat afraid that his in-laws would know Ah Wu’s condition, fearing it would hurt their feelings and make him a less suitable son-in-law. Of course, this was all predicated on the fact that Chu Mao had never considered the possibility of Ah Wu’s death.

As for the most serious offense, Ah Wu had already realized it.

“It was not Zi-Shan and the others’ fault. How could they possibly overpower Yuan-Chun?” Ah Wu exclaimed, her mind involuntarily replaying the scene from that day, the cracking sound of the cane.

Chu Mao quickly covered Ah Wu’s wide, fear-filled eyes, pulling her into his arms. He rested his chin on the top of her head, gently comforting her. “Do not think about it, do not think about it anymore. It’s all in the past; it will not happen again; it will not happen again…”

Seeing Ah Wu so frightened, Chu Mao felt even more resentment towards the maids of Yulan Hall. He had not known Ah Wu would be so afraid, but surely the maids who had served her since childhood knew? Even if Yuan-Chun was highly skilled in martial arts, in Chu Mao’s eyes, Zi-Shan and the others should have died rather than let Ah Wu be in such a situation.

Ah Wu calmed down under Chu Mao’s comforting embrace. It must be said that at this moment, a strong and warm embrace did indeed make her feel much better. And Ah Wu had her own recovery mechanism: choosing to forget everything. Forget what happened at the Hongyao Villa that day; forget the terrible things Chu Mao did to her. If she could not forget without a care in the world, given her stubborn nature, she’d be tormented to death.

Failing to protect her master was no small matter.

Ah Wu tugged at Chu Mao’s sleeve. “They’ve served me since they were little.”

Chu Mao said, “I will release them once you’ve recovered. After all, they are your maids.”

Ah Wu did not dare plead for Zi-Shan and the others anymore, fearing it would backfire. Of course, she would recover quickly.

Ah Wu wanted to ask one more question: Zi-Shan and the others were punished, but what about Nanny Hao and Xiangsi? But fearing Chu Mao and also afraid she would explode with anger, she opened her mouth but did not ask.

“Your Highness, why have I been unconscious for so long? What happened to me?”