Chapter 169 – Doctor Ming Was Captured Red-Handed
“Yes, when I reached the kitchen, the pastry was almost done. It looked very beautiful, like flowers. The kitchen was filled with a very fragrant smell. Many maids and old maidservants gathered there watching the beautiful pastry!” Shufei nodded. When she was in the kitchen, she looked at the pastry a few more times. It indeed looked very nice.
Excellent pastry? Wei Yuewu frowned slightly and took a deep breath. Needless to say, Wei Yuejiao had put in so much effort to make the pastry to set her up.
“Miss, is there something wrong?” Sensing Wei Yuewu’s silence, Shufei asked cautiously.
Wei Yuewu raised her eyes and shook her head with a smile, “Not yet. We’ll talk about it later when the pastry is delivered from the kitchen.”
“Yes, I understand.” Shufei nodded in agreement.
The kitchen did deliver the pastry very quickly. When Wei Yuewu just finished taking the medicine, an old maidservant from the kitchen came over carrying a food box. There was a potful of pastry in the shape of flowers that looked like exquisite handicrafts. Before having a taste of the pastry, Wei Yuewu had already felt that the fragrance was overwhelming. The smell was really appetizing.
“Was this made by the cook brought by the Third Young Lady?” Wei Yuewu asked.
Shufei washed her hands, she used a clean handkerchief to pick up a piece of pastry and handed it to Wei Yuewu. Wei Yuewu took it and took a bite. The pastry was made and then distributed to various courtyards. Wei Yuejiao would not be so stupid as to put drug in it.
The pastry had a smooth and attractive taste, and while she was still chewing, she was already enjoying the aftertaste, and it also carried the fragrance of flowers.
“It’s nice!” Wei Yuewu also praised.
“It was made by Third Young Lady’s cook. According to that cook, the most important ingredient is a certain dew. Without this dew, the entire pastry will lose much of its taste.” The old maidservant from the kitchen smiled and replied.
“Is there still flower dew at this time?” Wei Yuewu glanced at her indifferently and put down the pastry in her hand.
Shufei hurriedly brought over a wet towel for Wei Yuewu to wipe her hands.
“This flower dew was previously collected by the Third Young Lady when she was in the mansion. It was all plum blossom dew. She had to pick fresh plum blossoms and steam them. Besides, she had to add some other ingredients to prevent the flower fragrance from disappearing. I am not quite clear about the detail. It is said that this flower dew was personally made by the Third Young Lady.”
Hearing Wei Yuewu’s question, the maidservant hurriedly explained.
“Sounds like it really takes a lot of work?” Wei Yuewu raised her eyes.
“Yes, I also think so. I’m afraid it’s really not simple. Only someone as smart as the Third Young Lady would be able to do this. People like me who is neither smart nor skilled can only do menial work. I really can’t do this kind of work.” The maidservant was a clever talker.
“Give her money reward! If there’s any news about the pastry, remember to report to me.” Wei Yuewu smiled.
The maidservant was overjoyed. She took the purse from Shufei’s hand and thanked repeatedly. She promised that she would report to Wei Yuewu as soon as she found out about the pastry. Then, she retreated.
“Although Second Uncle is not going to celebrate his birthday extravagantly, there will be at least some theatrical performance in the mansion. Go and find out which performers were invited this time and what they are going to perform.” Wei Yuewu raised her head and said after a few orderly flicks of her tender fingers on the table.
Since guests were coming to the mansion, they had to set up a platform to have some fun. This was something that the various mansions in the capital often did.
Young people might not like this kind of activity, but some old madams who came must like it. It was inevitable to invite a theatrical troupe to perform, so there should be the most people watching the performance on the day of the birthday banquet.
News about this matter was actually very easy to obtain. Shufei returned not long after she left. The news she brought back was that the mansion had invited an extraordinary Seven Spin Troupe, which was famous because of their leading performer, the Drunken Peony, who was not only good-looking, but also extremely adept at the Seven Spin Dance. When she spun seven circles in the dance, her dress would flutter in such a way that all the audience couldn’t help but admire her.
Wei Yuewu pondered for a moment before standing up. “Go and report to the Madam Dowager. Tell her that we will go out of the mansion to prepare some congratulatory gifts for Second Uncle.”
Huamo went to the Madam Dowager’s place and soon came back with the Madam Dowager’s consent.
Wei Yuewu brought Jin Ling and Huamo with her to board a carriage of the mansion. The carriage circled the streets a few times. After Wei Yuewu visited a few shops, she finally went into the Brocade Clothing Shop.
When the shopkeeper heard that Wei Yuewu was here, he hurriedly came to the door to receive her and led her to his office upstairs. Then, he asked a shop assistant to serve some nice tea.
“Shopkeeper, do you have any dancing dress in the shop?” Wei Yuewu took a sip of tea and put down the teacup. She went straight to the point. Time was running out, and it was basically too late to make a dancing dress.
“Mistress Cousin, our shop mainly sells ready-made clothes for young ladies of aristocratic families. Normally, very few people would order dancing dresses here.” The shopkeeper said awkwardly.
Indeed, dancing dresses were often made by the young ladies of aristocratic families in their own inner courtyards, because such clothes were worn close to the skin and the wearer’s body must be precisely measured.
As for ordinary dancers, it was impossible for them to come to such a place selling high-quality clothes, so the shopkeeper was in a difficult situation for a moment.
“Shopkeeper, our shop has a set of dancing dress.” The shop assistant who brought the tea in was a smart person. Upon hearing their conversation, he suddenly thought of something. He pulled the shopkeeper’s sleeve and said, “There was a set of dancing dress in the warehouse. No one has ever come to take them after such a long time.”
This reminded the shopkeeper. He reached out and patted his own head and laughed loudly, “Mistress Cousin, I remembered it. The dancing dress was ordered by a female guest half a year ago. Originally, she said that she would take the dress away ten days later. I didn’t expect that half a year has gone by since she left. We didn’t know where to find her. Therefore, the dress has been kept in the warehouse all the time.”
“Go get it and let me take a look.” Wei Yuewu nodded. Actually, it didn’t matter if the dancing dress was of her size or not. She only needed to wear it.
After a while, the dancing dress was placed in front of Wei Yuewu. It was an extremely beautiful dress. The large eight-folded hem flew up easily with a slight movement of the wearer.
The dress was basically of the same size as Wei Yuewu, which made Wei Yuewu very satisfied. She nodded and asked for some information about her grandmother before leaving.
The three of them boarded the carriage again. Wei Yuewu instructed the coachman to drive slowly on the street. She asked the coachman, Old Li, to tell her when he saw a big jade shop. Since she had come out to pick a gift for Wei Luowu, she must pick a suitable gift.
Wei Luowu liked this kind of jade handicrafts very much.
The carriage stopped in front of a large jade shop. Wei Yuewu put on her veil. Jin Ling jumped out of the carriage first, and then Huamo got off. The two of them supported Wei Yuewu on each side.
When the three of them were all out of the carriage, the carriage turned around and waited in a nearby alley.
Coincidentally, a person in front of them hurriedly cut in from the side and happened to be walking in front of them towards the jade shop.
This person seemed to have something on his mind. He did not look sideways and therefore did not notice Wei Yuewu and the two maids at all. He placed his hands on his chest and walked to the door of the jade shop, hesitating.
After circling around twice, he gritted his teeth and was about to lift his leg and walk in. However, the moment he raised his leg, he became diffident again. He then circled around, as if something had happened and made him unable to make up his mind to go in.
Seeing this person, Wei Yuewu paused and stopped the two maids beside her. Her eyes under the veil were cold. Why did this person come here?
The three of them stood where they were and watched as the man hesitated over whether to get in. Because he was possessed with something on his mind, that person did not realize that Wei Yuewu and the two maids were standing at the side and had watched him for a long time.
In the end, he stamped his feet and made his final decision. Just as he was about to lift his leg and enter, someone patted him on the shoulder and a woman’s voice sounded. He turned around, and his face immediately was pale with fear. He supported himself by holding the door frame and almost fell down. The hand on his chest brought out a small parcel, which fell to the ground and items in it scattered…
“Sixth…Miss…Miss Wei!”
“It’s not the Sixth Young Lady, it’s me!” Jin Ling looked innocently at Doctor Ming in front of her. Then she squatted on the ground and picked up the parcel that had fallen on the ground, but she did not return it to him.
“You are… the Sixth Young Lady’s servant!” Doctor Ming was still in shock. He reached out trying to take back the parcel from Jin Ling, but failed.
“Doctor Ming, you have quite a few valuable things. This pair of jade bracelets are worth a lot of money. There are also a few jade hairpins!” Jin Ling unfolded the parcel in her hand and cried out in surprise. “I didn’t expect a doctor to be so rich and actually have so many valuable things. Only the masters of a mansion can possess jade of such quality.”
As their voices grew louder, some passers-by stopped. When they heard that the man in front of them was a doctor and saw the jade bracelets and hairpins in Jin Ling’s hand, they couldn’t help but widen their eyes.
Almost all of the people who came here were keen-eyed. They could tell at a glance that the jade articles in Doctor Ming’s hand were indeed of high quality. Was a doctor really able to afford such valuable things?
“No… these do not belong to your Miss, they are… mine!” When Doctor Ming saw the surrounding people gathering around him, he became very anxious. He quickly reached out and grabbed the small parcel in Jin Ling’s hand. He no longer remembered that he was going into the jade shop and ran away in a panic.
So, there really seemed to be a problem with Doctor Ming.
“Was it possible that the doctor stole something from some mansion when treating patients there?”
“It is highly likely. Otherwise, why did he run away in such a hurry before he finished his sentence?”
“These days, even doctors who treat patients and save lives can’t be trusted!”
Some shook their heads, some sighed, and some became suspicious. Even the clerk in the jade shop poked his head out to see what was happening. Some keen-eyed people even recognized Doctor Ming, who had a good reputation on East Street.
Wei Yuewu stayed in the corner, and her eyes looked quite cold.
This position was on Doctor Ming’s left side. In his state of panic, Doctor Ming would definitely not see her, but she could carefully observe Doctor Ming.
She noticed Doctor Ming’s frightened look upon seeing Jin Ling and his panic state when he snatched back his parcel. All these indicated that there was something wrong with the origin of the jade items, and they were even related to her.
“Jin Ling, go and find out what happened to Doctor Ming’s family.” Wei Yuewu said to Jin Ling, who was walking back. Doctor Ming had his own clinic and was quite well off. Furthermore, he had been hired by the mansion of Marquis Hua Yang as a chief doctor. Every time he came to the mansion, he would be generously rewarded. At this time, he came in with these jade articles, and it seemed that he was going to sell them. It must be because of some unexpected incident.
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