Since it was still early, Manbao finished tidying everything up, but no one returned yet. She wandered around the courtyard for a while and, in the end, feeling at a loss, she decided to find Xiang Mingxue for a chat.
Of course, she didn’t go empty-handed; she brought her needle pouch along with her.
Manbao perford acupuncture on him to stimulate his foot tendons and then asked, "How have you been feeling these past two days?"
Xiang Mingxue smiled and replied, "Following your instructions, I’ve been trying to move my toes every day. Now, my big toe has so sensation, though it’s still not very responsive."
Manbao encouraged him, saying, "Take it slow. Rehabilitation usually takes over three months, so there’s no rushing it."
After checking Xiang Mingxue’s rehabilitation progress and recording everything carefully, Manbao found herself idle once again.
Seeing her unable to sit still, Xiang Mingxue proactively asked, "Was the open abdominal procedure successful?"
Manbao’s eyes lit up with excitent, and she imdiately began animatedly telling him about it. Naturally, though, there wasn’t much she could say, since she couldn’t describe the details of the surgery in a way that would violate the patient’s privacy.
What she could share was that the baby had been safely delivered, and she discussed what modifications she might need to make when encountering similar cases in the future...
Performing surgeries in real life was very different from practicing them in her system, especially in so finer details.
Though she didn’t show it outwardly, she knew what shortcomings had already occurred in practice.
Considering the Han and Li Families’ wealth and extended preparation ti, she doubted she would ever encounter such perfectly controlled surgical environnts again.
If she t expectant mothers in the future who couldn’t deliver naturally and required cesarean sections, the survival rate would likely be much lower compared to this surgery.
This was because the mothers’ conditions and surrounding circumstances would probably be much worse. After all, not every family could afford to call in renowned doctors and imperial physicians months ahead, as the Han and Li Families had done. When faced with dire circumstances, they were even able to co to her for help.
In this world, far more people might find themselves like Second Sister Fu, discovering only at the mont of childbirth that the baby’s position was wrong, making natural delivery impossible.
Many more might even realize their predicant too late, with no ans to afford a doctor or no way to find one to take the risk to save a life.
Thinking of this, Manbao sighed softly with a trace of lancholy.
Xiang Mingxue, hearing her talk about surgery for the first ti, couldn’t keep up with her train of thought. He couldn’t understand why she started sighing midway through the conversation.
He thought about asking more questions, but before he could open his mouth, the sound of running footsteps echoed from the courtyard.
He looked outside and saw Bai Shan and Bai Cheng rushing into the courtyard, glancing around before shouting loudly, "Manbao!"
The previously sighing figure sprang up imdiately, answering with a joyful, "I’m here!" Then, she dashed out to them.
The three t up in the courtyard. Bai Shan laughed heartily as he said, "We just got off the carriage, and the doorkeeper told us you were back, so we rushed over to find you."
Bai Erlang asked, "If you were back, why didn’t you co to the Imperial Academy to pick us up?"
Manbao replied, "You were still in class. The Li Family’s carriage sent straight ho, and Daji isn’t here, my fourth brother isn’t here, and even the teacher isn’t around."
Bai Shan explained, "While you were away, your fourth brother discussed a business deal with Shopkeeper Zheng involving several carts of dicinal herbs stuck in Qizhou due to the heavy snow. Your fourth brother headed there with Sanzi to assist and might not return until tomorrow or the day after."
He chuckled and asked, "Judging by your happy expression, has Han Wuniang’s illness stabilized?"
Manbao replied, "More or less. She’s able to eat now. I couldn’t do much there anymore, so I ca back first."
"Can’t we talk inside? Why stay outside when it’s so cold?" Bai Erlang finally chipped in.
The three of them moved into the study to continue their conversation, while Daji went to the kitchen to prepare so warm refreshnts.
Upon entering the study, Bai Shan imdiately noticed sothing different. He walked over to two pots of peonies in the corner and asked, "Are these a gift from the Li Family?"
Manbao sighed and replied, "They’re from Eldest Lady Han. Soone out there has been spreading rumors that I like exotic plants, so Eldest Lady Han selected two quality peonies to gift ."
Upon hearing this, Bai Erlang burst into laughter, saying, "They don’t know you prefer wildflowers and weeds!"
Manbao retorted, "Rubbish! I like all flowers and plants."
Bai Shan laughed and said, "But you only ever get excited about the plants you encounter for the first ti. After that, your enthusiasm wanes."
Manbao replied, "But I still like them! I feel the sa toward them as I always have. It’s just that the first ti I see them, my excitent might be a little more apparent because of Keke."
Bai Shan squatted in front of the peonies, examined them closely, and remarked, "This one seems to be yaohuang. However, its leaves are much smaller than the ones you brought back before, so its flowers might not bloom as large."
Manbao comnted, "That’s the real yaohuang. The ones I brought back are fleeting generation hybrids with unreliable genetics, almost like fake flowers."
Manbao added, "I’m planning to give one pot to the teacher and another to Auntie Zheng. Doesn’t Auntie Zheng also love flowers?"
Bai Shan nodded, then thought for a mont before suggesting, "Can you still find more special plants? Why don’t you buy a few more pots? My mother really enjoys cultivating flowers."
Manbao scratched the back of her neck and murmured, "That wouldn’t be appropriate... better not."
Bai Shan suddenly rembered sothing. "Oh, right, those flowers you sold had issues."
He stared thoughtfully at the two pots of peonies and said, "Manbao, an idea just ca to ."
"What is it?"
Bai Shan replied, "You often provide consultations to wealthy nobles and gain quite a reputation. If they try to win favor by catering to your tastes, do you think the flowers you sold last sumr might end up passing through various hands only to return to you?"
Manbao froze.
Bai Erlang crouched by the peonies as well, touching his chin contemplatively. "Now that you ntion it, Ji Hao seed to have ntioned sothing. When their family returned to the capital, his mother brought back so rare flowers she bought in Yizhou City. That white peony..."
Bai Shan and Bai Erlang simultaneously turned to look at Manbao.
Manbao: ...
Feeling slightly guilty, she said, "White peonies weren’t expensive. Even if they only lasted one season, they were absolutely worth the price."
"True," Bai Shan nodded thoughtfully, "But where are the flowers held by the Princess Consort of Yizhou now? Speaking of which, wasn’t Prince of Yizhou’s estate confiscated?"
Indeed, Prince of Yizhou’s residence had been seized. Most of his gold and treasures were transported to the national treasury, but fragile items like flowers and plants, prone to breakage and death, were naturally categorized as losses.
As such, local officials and aristocrats divided them among themselves.
The estate in the capital was also confiscated. At the ti, the Empress Dowager was gravely ill and focused on protecting Prince of Yizhou’s remaining relatives, so she wasn’t paying attention. Most confiscated goods entered the national treasury, but others either decayed or ended up in the palace.
Things like flowers and plants, lacking admirers in the palace, were neglected—until recently, when the palace staff guarding the estate heard that the Crown Princess had developed an interest in botany. They sent so of the fine plants from the estate to her.
The staff didn’t have ulterior motives; they simply wanted a transfer, even if only to imperial estates. Staying at Prince of Yizhou’s residence ant eventually following the Commandery Prince Xinqing to his fiefdom.
For a servant, following the son of a rebel prince to a fief seed grim. Their prospects weren’t the main concern anymore; survival was.
If the Emperor decided to exact further punishnt in the future, what fate awaited palace staff relegated to such duties?
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