Chapter 5: Diagnosing the Heir

The slender figure slowly collapsed.

"Shizi." Qing Yu, the guard who had stood silently behind him from beginning to end, anxiously supported Baili Rongjin. He cursed inwardly; the Shizi's condition had flared up again. What was to be done?

Xia Tingning had just dismissed the annoying Wang Yujiao, and she felt as though the dark clouds hovering over her head had finally drifted away, making her mood much better.

Suddenly, she heard an anxious cry from behind her. Turning around, she saw that the elegant man who had just saved her had, for some reason, fainted. A man dressed as a guard was anxiously supporting him, his expression looking quite panicked.

Xia Tingning had no time to think. Out of professional habit as a doctor, she instinctively took a few steps forward and reached out to check his pulse. She then gave a low-voiced command to the guard supporting Baili Rongjin to move him onto the couch in the private room to lie down.

Seeing that the woman who had just been saved by the Shizi appeared composed and was calmly checking his pulse, the extremely anxious Qing Yu knew she must possess some medical knowledge.

He did not dare delay for even a moment, immediately following her instructions to help the Shizi into the private room to lie down properly, fearing that any delay might worsen the Shizi's condition.

At that moment, a series of hurried "thump, thump" sounds came from the stairs. A man dressed as a servant ran up panting. Seeing his master had fainted, he immediately let out a loud cry of alarm.

However, Qing Yu interrupted him with a frown: "Stop shouting! Come over here and help us carry the Shizi inside to lie down."

The servant hurriedly shut his mouth, nodded, and hurried over to lend a hand, helping to carry Baili Rongjin into the private room.

Xia Tingning did not find this strange. She figured he was likely the groom who had been guarding the carriage downstairs; hearing the guard's shout, he must have rushed up to see what was happening.

Though she had guessed that the person who saved her held a high status, she hadn't expected him to be a Shizi. Such a status was indeed quite noble.

On the couch in the private room, Baili Rongjin lay quietly. He looked as if he were merely asleep.

His ink-black hair was scattered across the couch, faintly shimmering with a flowing luster, making his entire person appear even more ethereal.

As her slender hand reached into the smooth, snow-white silk, Xia Tingning checked Baili Rongjin's pulse while the guard asked about his basic condition: "Has he ever fainted like this before? Has he seen a doctor, and what did the doctor say?"

Qing Yu stood to the side and explained in detail: "The Shizi has fainted like this twice before, but he always woke up after resting for a while. We have invited doctors to examine him, but they could never figure out the cause." The Prince and Princess had been incredibly anxious and distressed over this matter.

Xia Tingning nodded. His complexion was pale, his pulse was racing, and he was starting to break out in a cold sweat. Upon checking further, she found that his body temperature had also dropped slightly.

It looked like hypoglycemia. Fortunately, the situation wasn't severe. She looked up and instructed Wan Yu: "Go and bring the honey and honeycomb from the carriage."

Hearing this, Wan Yu hurried downstairs to fetch them. Xia Tingning then instructed the guard standing nearby, Qing Yu: "Go ask the waiter for a bowl of warm water and a spoon."

Qing Yu walked a few steps to the door to call the waiter, telling him to quickly bring a bowl of warm water and a spoon.

After taking the tray from the waiter, he thought for a moment and then instructed him to hurry to the Jing Prince's Mansion to report the news and request the manor's physician to come immediately.

Qing Yu thought to himself: Although the young lady checking the Shizi's pulse seems to know some medicine, it would be more reassuring to have the manor's physician come to diagnose him.

Soon, Wan Yu returned with both the honey and the honeycomb.

Xia Tingning opened the wooden lid of the honey jar, used the spoon to scoop some honey into the warm water, and stirred it thoroughly.

Picking up the bowl, she placed one hand behind Baili Rongjin's neck to gently lift him up, while using the other hand to slowly feed the honey water into his mouth.

Watching his instinctive swallowing motion, Xia Tingning revealed a faint smile. Fortunately, the symptoms were mild; he had not lost consciousness and still knew how to swallow the honey water.

After carefully feeding him the entire bowl of honey water, Xia Tingning estimated that he should wake up in a short while.

She handed the empty bowl to Wan Yu. Xia Tingning sat down at the table, lightly dipped her pen in ink, and after a brief moment of thought, began to write a prescription.

After checking his pulse just now, she realized his body was severely depleted. He was likely a premature baby suffering from a deficiency.

Logically speaking, someone with such innate deficiencies could still be as healthy as a normal person if they were carefully nurtured from a young age.

There was no reason for him to end up like this—deficient in both Qi and blood, exhausted in both heart and spirit, with such a frail constitution.

She truly wondered how those doctors were treating him to make his body this weak. If left to develop like this, she feared he would be called by the Lord of Death in just a few years.

Xia Tingning shook her head as she wrote the prescription. The medical skills of this dynasty were truly unimpressive; it was lucky he had encountered her.

Qing Yu stood to the side looking very anxious. He desperately wanted to ask what exactly was wrong with the Shizi and if it was serious, but seeing Xia Tingning focused intently on writing the prescription, he didn't want to disturb her. He could only fret in silence.

The groom was also silently praying in his heart for the Shizi to wake up quickly. Otherwise, if something truly happened, his own little life would likely be forfeit.

As if heaven had truly heard his prayer, Baili Rongjin's hand moved slightly, his thick, curled eyelashes fluttered, and then he slowly opened his eyes.

Seeing this, the groom immediately cried out in joy: "The Shizi is awake!" *Namo Amitabha, thank you, Guanyin Bodhisattva, my life is finally saved.*

Qing Yu hurried forward a few steps, seeing that his master had indeed woken up. He truly hadn't expected this young lady's medical skills to be so good; after just one bowl of water, the Shizi woke up in the blink of an eye.

Hearing this, Xia Tingning turned her head and saw that he had indeed opened his eyes and was awake.

She couldn't help but set down her pen, took the honeycomb from the table, and walked toward him. Qing Yu hurriedly made way for Xia Tingning so she could check if there was anything else wrong with his lordship.

Having just regained consciousness, Baili Rongjin saw the woman he had just saved walking slowly toward him. He propped himself up with his hands on the couch, sitting up somewhat weakly.

He was about to ask a few questions, but as soon as he opened his mouth, before he could even utter a sound, something hard was suddenly fed into it.

It turned out that seeing him awake, Xia Tingning wanted to supplement his sugar levels, so she had taken a small piece of honeycomb and brought it to his lips.

With a slender and nimble index finger, she gently pressed the piece of honeycomb into his mouth.

Xia Tingning said with a light smile, "It's good that you're awake. Have another piece of honeycomb to replenish your sugar."

Baili Rongjin looked at her in a daze. She was feeding him so intimately, her actions so natural, that it didn't feel improper at all.

The two were so close that he could even smell a faint fragrance on her—not strong, but a very fresh scent.

By nature, he did not like others approaching him. To this day, aside from his mother, he had never been this close to another woman. Although some maidservants had tried to approach him by leveraging their beauty, it only made him feel a deep sense of repulsion.

It was not like now. This radiant woman before him—her touch and proximity did not cause him even a shred of resentment.

Seeing Baili Rongjin's dazed expression, Xia Tingning mistakenly thought he didn't know how to eat honeycomb, so she carefully instructed him: "Suck out the honey inside, chew it, and then spit out the wax residue."

Baili Rongjin did as he was told. With a gentle suck, the rich, sweet honey slid into his stomach; it was indeed that sweet. After chewing, he hesitated for a moment before slightly opening his mouth to spit the wax residue onto the handkerchief Xia Tingning had handed him.

At this moment, Qing Yu, standing to the side, asked urgently, "Miss, is there anything else wrong with my Shizi?"

Hearing this, Baili Rongjin looked at Xia Tingning once more. So she understood medicine; looking at it this way, was it she who had saved him just now?

"Of course there is. His body is so severely depleted that he needs careful nourishment," Xia Tingning said, gesturing for Wan Yu to bring the several prescriptions from the table.

She then turned to Baili Rongjin and said, "You fainted this time because of hypoglycemia. Although it's not a major illness, you must pay close attention in your daily life. Eat more fruit and sweets. If you feel dizzy or your limbs feel weak, you must quickly eat something sweet. If you go out, carry some sugar with you. Also, I'll leave that jar of honey on the table for you; eat some every day, or you can mix it with warm water."

Baili Rongjin nodded slightly to indicate his understanding. He hadn't expected her to be able to diagnose his cause and treat it. This increased his curiosity about her.

Xia Tingning reached out and handed the prescriptions to him: "These are several medicinal meal recipes I've written specifically for your body. Once you return to the manor, have someone prepare them for you every day to nourish your constitution. I have also written down other things you should eat more of or avoid; you must pay attention to them yourself."

Just as Xia Tingning finished her instructions and Baili Rongjin was about to say something...

A commotion was heard from outside the door, followed by the door to the private room being pushed open forcefully.