Chapter 26: Partridge Sky (Part 1)
The boat ride, the fresh fish, the painting… Xu He Xue, after so long in Youdu, finally felt like he was truly among the living again.
That night, in the brightly lit room, he remembered fragments of his past.
Not about his teacher or his brother and sister-in-law, but carefree memories of his youth, spent with friends.
Lost in thought, he unfolded the painting.
Willow trees, egrets, water ripples, mountains, and the red-lacquered Xie Chun Pavilion. But the figures Ni Su had requested were missing.
He gazed at the painting for a long time, then put it away.
He couldn’t bring himself to paint his teacher, or Ni Su.
“Xu Zi Ling,” a slender shadow appeared on the window screen.
Xu He Xue stood up from his desk and turned, seeing the shadow. “Mmm,” he replied.
“I’ve chosen a white satin with light gold embroidery for your new clothes. Do you like it?” Ni Su asked from outside, unable to see inside through the screen.
He hadn’t expected her to choose the fabric so quickly. His voice weak at night, he went to the window. “Yes,” he said.
“Don’t you want to see it?” she asked.
He opened the door, and she unfurled the smooth, white satin before him. The lantern light on the porch made the gold embroidery shimmer.
The satin lowered, revealing her bright, smiling eyes.
“Is it beautiful?” she asked.
“It’s beautiful,” he replied, looking at the fabric. Seeing her turn to go to the next room, he called out, “Ni Su, don’t strain your eyes sewing at night.”
“I know,” she nodded, carrying the satin inside.
For several days, Ni Su busied herself with sewing and setting up the shop. She bought herbs and laid them out to dry in the courtyard, enjoying their fragrance.
Nan Huai Street was full of herbal shops. Moreover, she was running a clinic, not a pharmacy. Although she had been open for several days, few people entered. Those who did, seeing a female physician, quickly left.
Only Zhou Ting, accompanied by an injured Yin Ye Si officer, had visited, and a young waiter named A-Zhou from the Xiang Feng Restaurant, who advertised their menu on Nan Huai Street every evening. Ni Su always ordered food from him.
They had become acquainted, and yesterday, A-Zhou had mentioned his pregnant mother’s recent stomach pains. Ni Su had visited his home, diagnosed his mother, and prepared medicine for her, refusing payment due to their poverty.
Today, Cai Chun Xu had invited Ni Su to a teahouse to listen to music. A light gauze screen partially concealed the elegant figure of a woman playing the zheng, her dark hair adorned with jade ornaments and tassels.
The music was beautiful, flowing and melodious.
“Sister A-Xi, why don’t you make incense pills and medicinal ointments and open a pharmacy? You could say they’re made from secret family recipes. Then you’ll have no shortage of customers,” Cai Chun Xu said, fanning herself. “That way, they’ll be less concerned about your gender.”
“I opened a clinic not just for profit,” Ni Su replied.
“Then what for?” Cai Chun Xu turned from the musician to look at Ni Su.
“When I studied medicine with my brother, I had a wish,” Ni Su said, taking a sip of tea. “My father told me that daughters couldn’t inherit the family skills, that no woman could ever earn respect as a physician.”
“I want to establish myself here. If people come, I’ll treat them. If not, I’ll show my father and brother, and everyone who doesn’t believe a woman can be a good physician, that they’re wrong.”
Since childhood, Ni Su had understood that because of the saying “a married daughter is like spilled water,” women were excluded from inheriting family businesses. Medical expertise was often passed down through families, while medicine women’s knowledge was often considered dubious, with many cases of malpractice. These prejudices fueled the distrust and disdain towards female physicians.
“This isn’t the first time you’ve mentioned your brother,” Cai Chun Xu said, leaning on the table. “The Yin Ye Si’s investigation of the winter examination case is causing quite a stir. I heard that your brother’s essay on the new policies has been reprinted by bookstores. Even Lady Cao from our poetry society said her husband, the Guangning Prefecture magistrate, read it and praised it highly…”
She sighed. “If your brother were still alive, he would have achieved great things. My husband has been feigning illness and confining himself to the residence, which has prevented me from going out. Do you know how the Yin Ye Si’s investigation is progressing? Any leads?”
Ni Su shook her head. “The Yin Ye Si is very discreet. I met with Commander Zhou, and he only said they’ve made some progress. I don’t know any details.”
She had been anxiously waiting for news.
“Don’t worry, Sister A-Xi. The truth will come out soon,” Cai Chun Xu said, then, noticing the handkerchief around Ni Su’s neck, added, “But that injury on your neck is serious. You should use some scar-reducing ointment. I injured my hand a while ago and used an ointment from the pharmacy at the entrance of Nan Huai Street. It was very effective.”
“Thank you, Sister Cai. I’ll remember that,” Ni Su nodded.
It had been raining frequently lately. While they were at the teahouse, the rain started again. Ni Su bought an oil-paper umbrella. People hurried along the street, but she and the figure beside her walked slowly through the rain.
“Ni Su, buy medicine,” Xu He Xue said, stopping as she passed a pharmacy.
Ni Su turned and saw his misty form outside the umbrella, raindrops clinging to his long eyelashes, his gaze fixed on the pharmacy.
“Are you still bothered by the mark?” she asked, stepping closer and tilting the umbrella towards him, a gesture that looked strange to passersby.
“Let’s visit A-Zhou’s mother first, then buy the medicine on our way back.” Ni Su had promised to visit A-Zhou’s mother again today. If her stomach pains hadn’t subsided, she would need a new prescription.
A-Zhou lived in a dilapidated alley in the west of the city, a hidden pocket of poverty amidst Yun Jing’s prosperity. The rain made the narrow alley even damper, moss clinging to the brick walls.
A commotion came from the alley’s depths, muffled by the rain. Ni Su couldn’t hear clearly, but Xu He Xue’s senses were sharper.
As they approached, Ni Su saw Guangning Prefecture constables in uniform, their swords at their waists, and a green-robed official leading them.
A crowd of people huddled in the rain before a peeling door at the end of the alley, peering inside.
It was A-Zhou’s house.
“Make way!” the official shouted, leading the constables forward.
The crowd parted.
“Your Honor! Please help me! Please arrest the murderer on Nan Huai Street!” a young man cried, his voice hoarse with grief.
Ni Su recognized the voice. Xu He Xue did too. “Ni Su,” he said, “will you be alright here alone?”
Hearing the young man shout “Nan Huai Street,” Ni Su knew something was wrong. She looked at Xu He Xue. “Xu Zi Ling, don’t…”
But he had already vanished into mist.
At the same moment, several people emerged from the house. The official, his face raised in the rain, his eyes met Ni Su’s across the distance.
“Ni Su,” he said, recognizing her.
It was Investigator Tian Qi Zhong, the one who had arrested her at Qingyuan Mountain.
The constables behind him immediately surrounded Ni Su, blocking her escape.
All eyes were on her.
Ni Su dropped her umbrella and entered the house. The small, dilapidated courtyard was crowded. The young man weeping on the porch was A-Zhou, the waiter from the Xiang Feng Restaurant.
Beside him, on a straw mat, lay a woman covered in blood, her face pale, her eyes closed, seemingly lifeless. But her abdomen was swollen.
Ni Su had seen her just yesterday. It was A-Zhou’s mother.
“You murderer! You killed my mother!” A-Zhou cried, lunging at Ni Su.
A constable restrained him. Tian Qi Zhong entered the courtyard. “Ni Su,” he said coldly, “you were punished for your absurd claims at the Guangning Prefecture Yamen. Now you’ve resorted to quackery and killed someone!”
The crowd murmured, words like “medicine woman,” “murderer,” and “evil” thrown at Ni Su.
“The medicine I prescribed wouldn’t kill anyone,” Ni Su met Tian Qi Zhong’s gaze.
“Then why did my mother die after taking your medicine?” A-Zhou cried, his eyes red and swollen. “You vile medicine woman! You killed two lives!”
Accusations and insults rained down on Ni Su. She remained silent, crouching down to examine the dead woman.
A-Zhou pushed her away. “Don’t touch my mother!”
Ni Su fell to the ground, her clothes stained with mud, her hand scraping against the stone steps.
“Licensed physicians keep records. Your mother’s condition, the medicine I prescribed, the dosage—it’s all recorded,” Ni Su said, standing up, rainwater dripping from her skirt. She looked at A-Zhou. “If you insist that my medicine killed your mother, where are the dregs? Where’s the prescription? What’s your proof?”
Blood trickled down Ni Su’s hand. A-Zhou, watching the blood mix with the rainwater, looked up, unable to meet her gaze.
“He’s already sent the dregs to the Guangning Prefecture Yamen. Our coroner has examined them,” Tian Qi Zhong said sharply. “You claim to be a physician, yet you don’t know that Sheng Di Huang and Chuan Wu are incompatible!”
What?
Ni Su was stunned. Chuan Wu?
Irritated by the rain and the crowd, Tian Qi Zhong said to his men, “Arrest this woman! Take her back to the Guangning Prefecture Yamen!”
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