Chapter 14: Return From the Dead

 

 

⊹₊⋆☁︎⋆⁺₊⋆ ☀︎ ⋆⁺₊⋆☁︎⋆₊ ⊹

The wheels creaked as the horse-drawn carriage sped down the official road of Chang’an after the curfew.

On the way, Li Yifang was both concerned about his mother’s safety and curious about Ruan An’s past, but they couldn’t afford to talk much.

Soon, they arrived at the Li residence. Ruan An carried a medicine box, and along with Ruan Xi, they quickly entered Li’s mother’s bedroom with Li Yifang. To their surprise, they heard the maidservant’s sobbing from inside.

Seeing Li Yifang return, the old maidservant knelt down with a thud and choked out, “Young Master, Madam… Madam has passed away…”

Li Yifang’s expression changed drastically. When he approached the bed and saw his mother lifeless, he struggled to accept the news of her death and called out with a trembling voice, “Mother…”

In the previous life, on this night, Ruan An was deceived by the false appearance of Li Shuying. She entered the Prime Minister’s Mansion with her child, and that night, Li Shuying warmly invited her to stay. That same night, Li Yifang also came to the residence in Guangde Lane to find her, but she was not there.

Ruan An remembered that on that night, Li Yifang’s mother had indeed passed away.

But since she had been reborn, why couldn’t she change the course of her previous life?

She clenched her fists, not wanting to watch the patient’s life slip away in front of her.

The stifled cries continued inside the room. Ruan An furrowed her brows and instructed Ruan Xi to sit in the hall outside. The boy obediently nodded.

Ruan An then approached the bed and carefully examined Li’s mother’s complexion.

Although men are not supposed to shed tears easily, Li Yifang lost his father at a young age, and his bond with his widowed mother was deep. At this moment, tears were welling up in his eyes.

Maintaining his usual composure, Li Yifang didn’t forget to express his gratitude to Ruan An, “Thank you, Miss Ruan, for accompanying me on this journey. Unfortunately… my mother has passed away.”

Seeing the darkened complexion of Li Yifang’s mother, Ruan An said to him, “Mr. Li, don’t worry. I believe there is still a chance to save Madam.”

The maid on the side cried, “Miss, our lady passed away before the incense stick burned out.”

However, Li Yifang somehow felt a great deal of trust in Ruan An. He nodded towards her and said, “Please, Miss Ruan, give it a try.”

After obtaining Li Yifang’s permission, Ruan An first used her fingers to open Li’s mother’s eyelids and observed the color of her pupils, which had a faint tinge of green.

As the saying goes, if the face is pale and the eyes are white, they are dead; if the face is pale and the eyes are yellow, they are also dead. But if the face is dark and the eyes are blue, there is still a chance of survival.

Therefore, Ruan An extended her delicate hand to check Li’s mother’s breath. She indeed had no breath, but when she examined the pulse, she detected a weak heartbeat.

“Lady Li, I’m going to administer acupuncture now, and it should be able to save your mother’s life.”

As Ruan An spoke these words, her gaze was very calm, a confidence that belonged to an experienced physician.

In this situation, no matter what, Li Yifang had to give it a try.

He quickly agreed to Ruan An’s suggestion, his heart hanging in suspense.

Ruan An took a set of acupuncture tools from the medicine box suspended from a tiger-headed copper bell. Then, she brought her hands together and expertly began needling various acupoints on Lady Li’s body, including Taiyang, Shaoyang, Baihui, and Xionghui.

While she was needling, she also commanded the panicking maidservant on the side, “Madam has a deficiency in heart and kidney, and she needs to be nourished with ginseng and Aconitum. I gave your master a thousand-year mountain ginseng before. I wonder if that ginseng is still there?”

The maidservant hurriedly replied, “It’s there, it’s there. The servant just had the ginseng soup prepared, but as soon as it was ready, madam passed away…”

After completing the full set of acupuncture, Ruan An’s eyes narrowed, and in a moment, Lady Li indeed coughed painfully, as if she had regained some consciousness.

“Mother!”

“Madam!”

Ruan An, despite her young age, possessed such extraordinary medical skills that she seemed to have the miraculous ability to revive the dead!

Both Li Yifang and the servant were greatly astonished.

Ruan An’s warm and pure gaze, however, remained calm as she commanded, “Quickly bring the ginseng soup and feed it to Madam.”

“Yes, I’ll go get it right away!”

Tears of joy welled up in the maidservant’s eyes, and she also grew curious about Ruan An’s identity.

How did their young master come to know this young lady?

She was so beautifully born, with such advanced medical skills, and there was also a three or four-year-old boy by her side. What was the relationship between the boy and her?

After the maidservant fed Lady Li the ginseng soup, her breathing gradually returned to normal, and her pulse grew stronger than before.

Li Yifang’s tense nerves slightly relaxed, and he couldn’t help but think that Ruan An was like a goddess who had descended from the heavens. If it weren’t for her entering the city of Chang’an with the child, and if she hadn’t given him that ginseng, his mother would definitely not have survived the night.

Ruan An’s emotions also slightly eased. Li’s mother was the first life she had saved after her rebirth. In her view, all of this symbolizes her farewell to her past self. Things were developing in a positive direction, and she and the child would surely return to Jiazhou safely.

“Miss Ruan, I can never repay your life-saving grace, and I am willing to use up all my family’s wealth, turning all the gold and silver into a medical fee to give to Miss Ruan. Please accept my offer.”

Ruan An shook her head at Li Yifang and said in a gentle voice, “I don’t need the medical, fee that you, sir, generously offer, but there is another matter I’d like to ask for your help with.”

Li Yifang lowered his head to look at her, his gaze slightly dazed.

Setting aside her identity as a physician, Ruan An’s appearance was stunning, with an ethereal beauty that could be described as otherworldly. Her features were clear and captivating.

Li Yifang’s mother had always wanted him to marry early, but he always used the excuse of being busy in official duties to decline. Occasionally, for socializing, Li Yifang would join his colleagues to listen to music in the entertainment districts. Many charming young ladies had tried to win his favor, but he showed no interest.

They were beautiful, but none of them compared to Ruan An.

Or perhaps, none compared to Ruan An’s demeanor and temperament that stirred his heart even more.

Sometimes, he even wondered if he was indifferent to romantic feelings between men and women.

However, it wasn’t until he met Ruan An that Li Yifang suddenly realized he was a normal man, capable of appreciating a beautiful woman, and even developing a budding admiration.

“Miss, please speak freely. I will do my best to help you achieve your wish.”

Li Yifang could confirm that Ruan Xi was indeed Ruan An’s biological child, and she wouldn’t come to Chang’an City without reason.

Perhaps, the man who had abandoned her was a local in Chang’an, and she brought the child here to find his biological father.

Thinking of this, a fleeting sense of discomfort crossed Li Yifang’s handsome brows. A faint bitterness surged in his heart, even a tenderness towards Ruan An and her son.

The man Ruan An was looking for should have a high status. Li Yifang was curious about Ruan Xi’s biological father’s identity and felt that he might not be someone trustworthy.

As the magistrate responsible for the people, Li Yifang naturally wanted to uphold justice for Ruan An. The scoundrel who took advantage of this gentle and kind girl, impregnated her, and then ignored them for so many years was truly despicable!

Ruan An’s gentle words pulled Li Yifang back from his scattered thoughts:

“Madam still needs a few days of recuperation. Will the master take leave from the official duties to take care of the ailing mother?”

In Li Kingdom, filial piety was a top priority, and taking a leave of absence was possible. Li Yifang nodded in response.

However, he wasn’t quite sure what she wanted to do.

---

Please don’t believe the medical information here, it is NOT accurate. This is a fantasy/fictional novel.

And can Li Yifang get out of the scene now? I don’t like these flies.