Delicate Beauty Steals the Spring [Transmigration into a Book] - Chapter 20

The next morning, Yu Luo couldn’t get out of bed.

Her whole body was burning with fever, completely weak and drained of strength.

Ziming touched Yu Luo’s forehead and was instantly startled.
“Why is your temperature so high?”

“I just want to sleep a bit longer.” Yu Luo buried her face into the quilt.
“Ziming, go tell Madam that I won’t be going to pay my respects today.”

Bitong, hearing Ziming’s voice, also came over and felt Yu Luo’s forehead.

“So hot! How can she still pay respects?” Bitong hurried out.
“I’ll go tell Madam right now and ask her to call a physician.”

Madam Yu had already woken up that morning and was chatting casually with Liu Yanran.

Liu Yanran, jealous of the white fox fur cloak Yu Luo had received, was trying to coax Madam Yu into giving her the purple fox fur one she’d heard the Madam owned.

They were in the middle of a pleasant conversation when Bitong, Yu Luo’s senior maid, arrived.

Madam Yu noticed Bitong had come alone, without Yu Luo, and found it odd.
“Where’s your young lady?”

Bitong bowed and said,
“Last night, the young lady took a walk in the courtyard and probably caught a chill. This morning she’s burning up with fever and can’t get out of bed.”

Liu Yanran said casually,
“Headaches and fevers are common. Just take a couple doses of medicine and she’ll be fine.”

But Madam Yu was extremely worried. While preparing to go check on Yu Luo herself, she ordered Huixiang to call a physician.

Liu Yanran exchanged a quick glance with Huixiang.

Huixiang, understanding that Liu Yanran had something to say, waited in a secluded spot after Madam Yu had left for Yu Luo’s residence.

Sure enough, Liu Yanran sneaked over shortly.

Huixiang whispered,
“What are your orders, cousin?”

Liu Yanran took out two gold ingots from her pouch and whispered something into Huixiang’s ear.

Huixiang nodded.
“With this much gold, Doctor Zhao will definitely do as we ask.”

Liu Yanran emphasized her instructions again and slipped a jade hairpin into Huixiang’s hand before quietly leaving.

Meanwhile, Madam Yu had arrived at Yu Luo’s place. Seeing her daughter’s feverish cheeks and sweat-soaked body, her heart ached.

Bitong and Ziming were serving in the room, and Madam Yu, naturally, scolded them harshly for not taking better care of Yu Luo.

But before she could say much, Yu Luo, struggling to sit up, interrupted,
“Mother, it’s not their fault.”

Bitong and Ziming were both surprised.

Truthfully, getting scolded for failing to care for their mistress was normal in this household.

They both felt terribly guilty.

Yu Luo coughed and gasped for breath. Seeing her daughter in such a state, Madam Yu quickly supported her.
“My poor Luo’er, lie back down, don’t exhaust yourself.”

“It was me who insisted on going out last night. How could they disobey my orders?” Yu Luo said.
“Ziming and Bitong have taken good care of me.”

Hearing her daughter speak like that, Madam Yu gently wiped the sweat off Yu Luo’s forehead.
“Alright, I’ll listen to you. I won’t punish them.”

The physician soon arrived.

Madam Yu was surprised to see that it was Doctor Zhao and not Doctor Liu, who usually treated her.

Huixiang explained,
“Doctor Zhao often treats Miss Liu. His medical skills are excellent. We tried to get Doctor Liu, but he wasn’t available today.”

Madam Yu nodded.
“Alright then, let him take a look.”

Doctor Zhao examined Yu Luo’s pulse and prescribed some herbal medicine, which the servants quickly set about preparing.

At the Jishui Courtyard, everyone was rushing around trying to help.

By noon, the medicine was finally ready and brought to Yu Luo’s bedside.

Just the scent of the herbs made Yu Luo’s head pound.

She had never liked herbal medicine. The taste was bitter and sour worse than undiluted, unsweetened, black coffee.

After just one sip, she couldn’t bear to drink more.

Yu Luo told Ziming to leave the medicine on the side, saying it was too hot for now, and asked everyone to leave so she could rest more comfortably.

Drowsy from the fever, Yu Luo drifted off into a half-conscious sleep.

Suddenly, she heard a noise near the window.

Burning with fever and dazed, Yu Luo thought it was just a hallucination.

But the next moment, a figure climbed through the window.

Li Xiao stood at her bedside and reached out to touch her forehead.

Her skin was scorching.

Yu Luo had been craving something cold to bring down her fever, and she instinctively grabbed Li Xiao’s hand and pressed it to her flushed face.

Li Xiao’s expression was indifferent as he clamped his fingers under Yu Luo’s delicate chin.

Her beautiful face twisted in pain and discomfort.

She looked pitiful in her illness.

So much more fragile than usual.

This expression was something he had never seen on the arrogant young Miss Yu before.

Even her frailty now was a stark contrast to the woman she used to be.

Yu Luo, delirious with fever, had no idea someone was gripping her chin.

She only knew that his hand was cool, and the chill against her burning skin felt like sweet relief.

So she gently nuzzled into his palm.

Li Xiao picked up the nearby bowl of medicine.

It had cooled now not so scalding anymore.

Just before he fed it to her, he tasted it himself.

The next moment, he poured the medicine out of the window and set the empty bowl aside.

Yu Luo lay quietly on her pillow, her dark hair damp with sweat clinging to her temples. Her skin was pale and almost translucent, cheeks tinged with feverish red, her elegant features almost heartbreakingly beautiful.

It was the same face.

But in Li Xiao’s eyes, Yu Luo had become a captivating little beauty.

Even though he had no particular interest in women, he couldn’t deny that her face was truly stunning.

He took her wrist in his hand.

Her wrist was tiny, a stark contrast to his large palm.

After checking her pulse, Li Xiao took a silver needle and pricked her fingertip, drawing a bead of fresh bl00d.

The sharp pain finally woke Yu Luo up.

The first thing she saw upon opening her eyes was Li Xiao’s face so close.

Li Xiao quickly covered her mouth.
“There are maids outside. If you make a sound, they’ll discover me.”

Yu Luo felt like crying.

Why would this man come when she was sick?

Was he trying to take her life while she was weak?

A fresh wave of pain radiated from her finger. Looking down, she saw it was bleeding.

She couldn’t hold back anymore tears began to fall from her eyes, one after another.

Seeing her cry, Li Xiao paused, momentarily stunned.

Outside, Ziming’s voice rang out.
“Miss, have you drunk your medicine?”

Yu Luo didn’t respond.

Ziming pushed the door open and entered. Seeing the empty bowl, she sighed in relief.
“I was so worried you wouldn’t take your medicine.”

The room appeared empty, the window open.

Somehow, after that bloodletting, Yu Luo felt significantly better.

Her body didn’t feel as heavy as before.