Chapter 8: Fourth Grandma is Still the Reliable One

Ye Qianning also leaned in to take a look. The little girl lying on the bed was at most six or seven years old. Her cheeks were flushed red, and her lips were covered in blisters from the fever. Fourth Granny lifted her clothes, revealing a body covered in red rashes and pustules; some had been scratched open, with pus staining her clothes.

Even Fourth Granny was shocked. She had seen rashes before, but she had never seen a child’s body in such a state.

"Fourth Granny, look at her back," Ye Qianning said.

Fourth Granny gently turned the little Princess over. On one side of her back, there were patches of red rash, but no pustules had formed there.

Ye Qianning found it strange. Generally speaking, at her young age, she shouldn't have contracted spider rashes; most adults were the ones who got them. Some of the marks on her body looked like spider rashes, but others were a different kind of rash entirely.

"How is it? Can it be cured?" the Princess Consort asked anxiously.

Sweat dripped from Fourth Granny’s forehead. Cure it? How could she cure this? This wasn't an ordinary rash at all; she had never even seen anything like it.

"It can be cured. Prepare hot water, silver needles, alcohol, ink, and a calligraphy brush," Ye Qianning said.

Fourth Granny froze and looked back at her.

The Princess Consort was burning with anxiety. Hearing that it could be cured, she didn't care about anything else. "Quick, go and prepare them!"

Several maidservants hurried out the door to prepare the items.

"Mother... I'm itchy, it's itchy..." The Princess continued to cry and fuss restlessly.

The Princess Consort couldn't hold back her tears. She sat at the head of the bed, stroking the little Princess's head to soothe her. "Xiang'er, be good. The doctor says it can be cured, and soon we won't be in pain or itchy anymore."

"Your Highness, the medicine is here," a maidservant said, entering the room with a freshly brewed decoction.

"Doctor, this is the medicine prescribed by the imperial physician. Can she take it?" the Princess Consort asked.

Fourth Granny didn't understand medicine at all, and she had no idea if it was safe. However, since she was already here, she had to keep up the act.

"Does it relieve the symptoms after she drinks it?" she asked, imitating the tone of the old village doctor when he treated patients.

"It only provides temporary relief. After a while, the itching starts again. The imperial physicians all said it was just a common rash, but she has been taking the medicine for seven or eight days, and the rashes on her body are only getting worse," the Princess Consort lamented.

"Bring the medicine here for me to see."

The maidservant handed over the decoction.

Fourth Granny took it and, looking the part, leaned in to sniff it. This medicine was better than what she usually brewed, and the smell wasn't as pungent.

Ye Qianning sniffed the thick medicinal scent and immediately knew which herbs were in the decoction. The little Princess had two types of rashes, and the treatments for them were almost contradictory.

Although the imperial physician's prescription could delay some symptoms, it made the other type of rash flare up even more violently. Therefore, this rash had to be treated entirely through external application, reducing internal consumption.

"Do not give her this medicine for now," Fourth Granny said, handing the bowl back to the maidservant. She thought to herself that since it was getting worse with every dose, it clearly wasn't working.

Ye Qianning couldn't help but praise her silently. At a critical moment, Fourth Granny was truly reliable; even though her hands were sweating from nervousness, she didn't stutter at all when she spoke.

"Your Highness, everything the doctor requested has been prepared," the maidservants said as they filed in.

Ye Qianning walked over to inspect the row of items. They were acceptable. She then said, "Your Highness, Fourth Granny needs quiet to administer the needles."

"The doctor may proceed; I certainly won't disturb you," the Princess Consort said, still uneasy.

"With Your Highness here, Fourth Granny will be nervous. If she gets nervous, her hands won't be steady."

"That's right, that's right. This old woman is seeing a Princess Consort for the first time. As soon as Your Highness looks at me, I get so nervous that I can't place the needles properly," Fourth Granny said, truly feeling the pressure.

Hearing this, the maidservant supported the Princess Consort and urged, "Your Highness, let's go outside and wait. I'm afraid you won't be able to bear watching the doctor administer the needles."