Jiang Ning carried Nangong Muyan to the bed and stood beside her with a solemn expression.
Was Nangong Muyan's body really this fragile? She had fainted just from being thrown down once?
While Jiang Ning was considering whether to give her a cup of spiritual spring water, Nangong Ya entered with Jin Yao. They rushed to the bedside and stared motionlessly at Nangong Muyan.
"Why were you two fighting?" Nangong Ya asked in a deep voice.
Jiang Ning continued looking at Nangong Muyan, ignoring him.
After waiting a while without getting an answer, Nangong Ya's anger rose. Just as he was about to scold them harshly, Luo Siyi's anxious voice sounded from outside: "Yan'er!"
Turning around, they saw Luo Siyi and her maid Aunt Ying rushing in, hurrying to the bedside. Behind them, Jin Hui arrived with Li Jiu.
"Yan'er, what happened to you? Don't scare your mother like this, Yan'er..."
Tears welled up in Luo Siyi's eyes as she carefully reached out to touch Nangong Muyan's face, calling her name repeatedly.
"Siyi, don't panic. Let Li Jiu examine Yan'er first," Nangong Ya said, helping Luo Siyi up and comforting her in a gentle voice. Then he urged Li Jiu, who was carrying a medicine box: "Hurry!"
Li Jiu nodded and walked to the bedside, crouching down. He opened his medicine box and first took out a pulse diagnosis pad, placing it under Nangong Muyan's wrist. After covering her hand with a thin gauze, he extended his fingers and began to carefully take her pulse.
Jin Hui was curiously looking on when Jin Yao tugged at his clothes and asked in a low voice, "Why did the madam come?"
"When Li Jiu and I were coming over, we ran into her. She saw us running to the second young miss's courtyard with the medicine box and insisted on asking. What could I do but tell her?" Jin Hui replied.
Jin Yao rubbed his brow, his right eyelid twitching. He had a feeling that something big was about to happen.
Jiang Ning watched Li Jiu taking the pulse, somewhat surprised that this foolish-looking guard possessed such skill.
Several pairs of eyes fell on Li Jiu as he placed his fingers on Nangong Muyan's wrist. The next moment, his eyes widened in disbelief.
"What's wrong? What's wrong with Yan'er?" Nangong Ya's heart tightened as he hurriedly asked.
"I-I-I..." Li Jiu's mind was in turmoil, and he could only stammer: "I need to take a good look, let me feel again..."
Li Jiu's expression became much more serious. He took a deep breath and once again placed his fingers on Nangong Muyan's wrist. After feeling for a long time, his brows furrowed deeper, his eyes full of shock and trepidation.
"What did you find? Speak up!" Nangong Ya, who had been on tenterhooks for so long, lost his patience and shouted at Li Jiu.
This shout woke up the unconscious Nangong Muyan.
Jiang Ning was the first to notice. She walked to the bedside and helped her sit up, placing a pillow behind her back so she could lean against the bed.
"Yan'er, you're finally awake. You had your mother so worried!" Luo Siyi sat on the edge of the bed, holding Nangong Muyan's hand and speaking with deep concern.
"Mother, I'm fine," Nangong Muyan replied to Luo Siyi. Then, turning her head and noticing so many people crowded in her room, she raised an eyebrow: "What are you all doing here?"
"We came to see what's wrong with you," Jiang Ning helpfully explained.
"What could be wrong with me?" Nangong Muyan asked, puzzled.
"Would you suddenly faint if nothing was wrong?" Jiang Ning pointed at Li Jiu: "Ask him, he took your pulse."
Nangong Muyan pondered for a moment. Her fainting earlier was indeed unusual, so she turned to Li Jiu: "Tell me, what's wrong with me?"
All eyes fell on Li Jiu. He stammered for a long time before finally saying, "Maybe... we should call another doctor to take a look?"
"Speak!" Nangong Ya and Nangong Muyan said in unison.
Li Jiu was still hesitating when Luo Siyi looked at him gently and said, "Little Jiu, just tell us what pulse you felt. Even if you're mistaken later, the master won't punish you. Your hesitation is only making us more anxious."
Li Jiu swallowed hard, his head bowed low, not daring to look at anyone.
Everyone waited patiently for a while longer before hearing Li Jiu slowly say, "What I felt was... a pregnancy pulse! About a month along!"
Jiang Ning suddenly looked at Nangong Muyan, only to see her eyes flash fiercely, looking as if she had been struck by lightning.
Something's off, Jiang Ning thought.
"Ah!" Luo Siyi cried out, then her eyes rolled back, and she fainted.
"Siyi! Siyi!" Nangong Ya hurriedly embraced her, then angrily kicked Li Jiu: "What nonsense are you spouting! How could you detect a pregnancy pulse in an unmarried young lady? What kind of doctor are you!"
"I-I-I... It really was a pregnancy pulse, I checked several times, and it was always a pregnancy pulse..." Li Jiu was on the verge of tears. His family had been doctors for three generations, and he had grown up immersed in medical knowledge. He wouldn't make such a basic mistake in pulse-taking.
But it was precisely because he had detected a pregnancy pulse in an unmarried young lady that he had been so hesitant to speak earlier.
Nangong Ya's chest heaved uncontrollably. He looked at Nangong Muyan, trying hard to soften his tone: "Yan'er, Li Jiu's skills are inadequate. He's talking nonsense, isn't he?"
Nangong Muyan was stunned for a moment, then laughed lightly: "Of course, how could I possibly be pregnant?"
Nangong Ya felt as if he had come back to life in an instant, feeling immensely relieved. He was about to say, "Father will find a good doctor to check your pulse again," when Nangong Muyan spoke again: "I clearly drank the Contraceptive Decoction..."
Heavens! What sin have I committed to deserve this?
This was Nangong Ya's last thought before he fainted.
"Master!"
"Master!"
...
The scene instantly descended into chaos. Jiang Ning looked at the dazed Nangong Muyan with a complex expression, then reluctantly spoke up to stabilize the situation: "Take my father and the madam back to their room and take good care of them. Li Jiu, go with them and see if they need any calming medicine. I'll have a good talk with Second Sister. Don't disturb us."
"Yes," everyone responded, relieved to have found someone to take charge.
Li Jiu, being the last to leave as he had to pack up his medicine box, hesitated at the door. In the end, his medical conscience compelled him to turn back and say a few words: "Second Young Miss, your pregnancy seems unstable. You should rest and take care—"
Before he could finish, a pillow flew towards Li Jiu's face, accompanied by a shout of "Get out!"
Li Jiu shrank his neck and scurried away.
Jiang Ning closed the door, walked to the table to pour a cup of water, added some spiritual spring to it, and handed it to Nangong Muyan, her voice unusually gentle: "Drink some water first."
Nangong Muyan woodenly accepted it and drank it all at once, unaware that she had just consumed a pregnancy-stabilizing medicine.
Jiang Ning pulled a stool from the table and sat by the bed, looking at Nangong Muyan. She had a good guess of what had happened.
"It's Zhou Yi's, isn't it?" Jiang Ning asked.
Nangong Muyan carelessly threw the teacup on the ground. A crisp "crack" echoed in the room. She closed her eyes, and for the first time, Jiang Ning saw a look of dejection on her face.