Chapter 165: Domestic Affairs of the Zhao Estate

"Useless trash! You can't even handle a single commoner, what use are you?" Zhao Kaifang clutched his crotch, narrowing his eyes as he roared furiously at Zhang Anshan and Li Tiexian.

The spot where Liu Ertiao had scratched him that morning still burned with a sharp pain.

Yet, compared to the physical sting, the humiliation bottled up inside him was far more unbearable.

He had actually been thrashed by the son of a mere farmer? And the one who beat him was none other than the spineless, honest pushover he usually bullied at will.

"Liu Ertiao!" Zhao Ying glared, his eyes wide, brimming with boundless fury, unwillingness, and a thirst for vengeance.

"Shut your mouth!" Zhao Kaifang rebuked angrily. Sending Zhang Anshan and his men to the Liu household to issue a warning had been his wife's idea. Though he hadn't agreed at the time, he hadn't voiced any opposition either.

After all, his son had been beaten, and the injuries were sustained in a man's two most vital regions; it would be a lie to say he felt no distress. Yet, he knew his son's nature well—always looking to stir up trouble out of nothing. Without even guessing, he knew who was in the right and who was in the wrong.

Thus, regarding his wife's plan, while Zhao Kaifang didn't approve, he hadn't explicitly objected.

This was Sanyuan, not Chang'an. A mere farmer—a warning would do no harm. That had been Zhao Kaifang's true thought at the time.

A farmer should stay in a farmer's place, and not provoke those he shouldn't.

Yet now, looking at Zhang Anshan's right arm, which had yet to be reset, Zhao Kaifang realized that this peasant family might not be as easy to bully as he had imagined.

Although Zhang Anshan's martial arts were not top-tier, among the many servants in the Zhao estate, he was considered a solid upper-middle hand. To have his arm effortlessly dislocated in a single exchange—how could that person possibly be a simple character?

Zhao Kaifang slowly sat down, waving a hand to instruct the steward, Zhao Xian: "Ah-Xian, take the young master back to his quarters. I do not wish to see him right now."

"Father!" Zhao Ying cried out in grievance, wanting to say more, but a single glare from Zhao Kaifang forced him to swallow his words.

The old man was furious.

Zhao Ying shrank his neck submissively. Out of a habitual, unnameable fear of Zhao Kaifang cultivated since childhood, he obediently closed his mouth, lowered his head, and followed Zhao Xian into the inner hall.

Once Zhao Ying had left, Zhao Kaifang glanced down at Zhang Anshan and Li Tiexian standing before him. Taking a sip of tea, he spoke softly, "You two, tell me what truly happened. What went on at that farmer's house? I want the absolute truth, every single word, every single detail. You had better not lie, or you know the rules of this household."

"This subordinate wouldn't dare!" Zhang Anshan and Li Tiexian exchanged glances, and then Li Tiexian stepped forward to speak.

"Reporting to Master, it was like this. This morning, per the mistress's instructions, we went..."

Though small in stature, Li Tiexian was remarkably eloquent. In just a few sentences, he laid out clearly what they had done at the Liu residence and the reactions of the three members of the Liu family.

They had not lied, nor did they dare to lie, because some things their master could easily deduce on his own, and they could not bear the consequences of a falsehood being exposed.

"Hmm," Zhao Kaifang nodded slightly. The actions of Zhang Anshan and Li Tiexian were entirely in character. A mere peasant household—had he gone himself, the outcome probably wouldn't have been much better.

"You mentioned earlier that the head of the Liu household is named Liu Yitiao?" Zhao Kaifang frowned involuntarily. Why did that name sound so familiar? It felt as though someone had mentioned it to him before.

"Liu Yitiao? Liu Yitiao?" Zhao Kaifang stood up, repeatedly murmuring the three characters 'Liu Yitiao'. Suddenly, as if recalling something, he turned his head and instructed Zhao Xian, who had just returned: "Ah-Xian! Go quickly and fetch the letter the eldest young master sent back a short while ago! Hurry!"

Could this Liu Yitiao be the miraculous physician mentioned in Zhao Gui's letter? Zhao Kaifang began to pray silently. If that were truly the case, then the disaster Zhao Ying had courted this time was colossal.

"Master, all the letters from the eldest young master over the past month are right here. Please review them, Master." Zhao Xian walked over to Zhao Kaifang with a stack of letters and bowed.

"Hand them here quickly!" Zhao Kaifang snatched the letters and began searching through them sheet by sheet.

In one of the letters, he finally found the passage concerning Liu Yitiao:

*In recent days, Her Majesty the Empress's condition has vastly improved, and His Highness the Crown Prince's foot ailment has also been treated. Both owe this to the miraculous physician Liu Yitiao and the Medicine King Sun Simiao. His Highness and Her Majesty are deeply grateful, and whenever they visit the Imperial Son-in-Law's estate, they frequently bring up Gui.*

*Recalling Grandmother's recurring chest tightness, these two divine physicians surely possess a remedy. Gui intends to visit Physician Liu and Daoist Sun in the coming days, striving to invite them back to treat Grandmother's affliction.*

*Additionally, Physician Liu is a native of Sanyuan, sharing the same hometown. I hope Father can make inquiries. Should you encounter his family, remember to treat them with utmost courtesy.*

He checked the date at the bottom of the letter: yesterday.

"This..." Could things truly be this coincidental? He had learned of him only yesterday, and today they had already tangled into a feud.

Zhao Kaifang put down the letter, raised his head, and asked Zhao Xian, "Ah-Xian, last night I tasked you with investigating news regarding Physician Liu. Is there already a result?"

"Answering Master," Zhao Xian glanced at Zhao Kaifang and said submissively, "Just a moment ago, this subordinate received a reply. The place where Physician Liu resides appears to be the very same household Old Zhang and the others visited today. That Liu Ertiao, who came into conflict with the young master, is Physician Liu's younger brother."

"No wonder!" Zhao Kaifang collapsed back into his chair behind him. No wonder they dared to strike Zhang Anshan; no wonder they held his Zhao estate in complete disregard.

"Master, we subordinates deserve death! Please punish us!" Zhang Anshan and Li Tiexian dropped to their knees side by side.

By now, even a fool would understand that they had provoked someone they shouldn't—someone they could never afford to cross.

"Enough, this matter has nothing to do with you. You may withdraw first!" Zhao Kaifang waved his hand, dismissing them.

He did not have the habit of using his servants as scapegoats. Furthermore, that divine physician was no fool; he would naturally understand the origin of this affair.

"Ah-Xian, go quickly and prepare some gifts. Have the carriage ready as well. This afternoon, I am going to Gutian Village in person." Zhao Kaifang began to harbor a secret sense of relief. Fortunately, they had only sent men to issue a warning rather than directly seizing or harming anyone, otherwise, there truly would have been no room for redemption.

"Understood, Master. This subordinate will see to it immediately." Zhao Xian acknowledged the order, bowed, and withdrew.

"Oh, and another thing," Zhao Kaifang called out as Zhao Xian reached the doorway, "Go tell the boy that he will accompany me this afternoon."

"Yes, Master." Zhao Xian responded once more before backing out.

After pondering for a moment, Zhao Kaifang stood up, headed to the back courtyard, and approached the chambers of his mother, Madam Zhao Liu.

"Mother, your son has come to see you." Zhao Kaifang called out softly at the door. Hearing a response from within, he gently pushed open the door and stepped inside.

Madam Zhao Liu was sixty-six years old, nearing the age of seventy, yet her health was still robust—her eyes were clear and her hearing sharp. However, she occasionally suffered from bouts of chest tightness, shortness of breath, chest pain, and breathlessness.

Many renowned physicians had been invited to diagnose her, but all of them were left entirely helpless.

Fortunately, the old lady's ailment only flared up occasionally; normally, she was no different from a healthy person.

Just like now, when Zhao Kaifang entered, she was still holding a pair of scissors, tailoring clothing for her young grandson.

"Mother, why are you doing this again? Haven't I told you to leave such tasks to the servants? You are advanced in years now; it is time to rest and enjoy your remaining years in peace." Zhao Kaifang stepped forward to take the scissors from Madam Zhao Liu's hands and gently helped the old lady sit down properly.

"Hehe, Mother doesn't care for the clothes the servants make. Besides, with these old bones of mine, what else is there for me to do besides mending and sewing? Having worked hard my whole life, I simply can't stay idle." The old lady took a sip of the tea her son handed her and smiled at Zhao Kaifang.

"Even so, Mother must take care not to tire yourself." Seeing the old lady in such high spirits, Zhao Kaifang couldn't bear to dampen her mood. He sat down beside her on a lower chair and said softly, "Mother, earlier today I managed to find another divine physician for you. This afternoon, I will invite him here to treat your illness."

"You have a filial heart, Fang'er." Madam Zhao Liu's expression dimmed slightly as she told him, "Yet Mother's illness is truly beyond saving. Over the past two years, the renowned doctors you've invited number at least a hundred, but the outcome has always been the same. Mother is sixty-six this year; having lived this long, I am content. From now on, you needn't worry yourself over this anymore."

Seeing the old lady speak thus, Zhao Kaifang hastily persuaded her, "Mother, you must not let your mind wander. Those previous physicians were useless! The one I've invited this time is a true divine physician. You know of Her Majesty the Empress's asthma and the Crown Prince's foot affliction—those were considered terminal illnesses given up by the imperial physicians themselves. Yet look at them now, both cured by this very divine physician!"

"Cured?!" The old lady's eyes brightened, a spark of hope emerging on her face. As the saying goes, even a humble worm clings to life, let alone a human being. And in this world, who truly wishes to die?