The Fallen Medicine Woman: The Daily Life of Chun Nuan-Chapter 433 - 255:

"Young mistress, the young master has sent a letter."

Bai Zhi cheerfully entered the courtyard holding a family letter.

"Young mistress, let me take care of the little brother so you can read the letter."

"Alright." Chun Nuan handed her son Yuanyuan to Bai Zhi: "He might get hungry soon; let the wet nurse feed him."

"Yes."

Bai Zhi carried the little brother to the adjoining room where she saw the wet nurse folding clothes for him.

"Sister Chen, the young mistress said the little brother might be hungry."

"Alright, right away."

Sister Chen immediately set down the clothes to wash her hands, then took the child from Bai Zhi’s arms, lovingly stroking his face.

In six months, this child had been nursed into a plump and well-behaved baby.

"Sister Chen, you should feed the little brother; I’ll head out now."

"Go ahead, the little fellow will fall asleep while eating."

Bai Zhi nodded; this wet nurse was reliable, and she felt at ease leaving the little brother in her care.

After Bai Zhi left, Sister Chen cleaned the child’s diaper area before washing him, then proceeded to feed him.

While feeding, watching the little one suckle earnestly, she felt that the young mistress from a wealthy family was indeed extraordinary.

This young mistress was so amiable, speaking gently, and her only requirement was to keep things clean.

In the courtyard, Chun Nuan looked at Zhao Minghua’s family letter, her face slightly flushed, laughing embarrassedly.

Men, forever youthful at heart, was this how the letter should be written?

Did he not fear anyone seeing this and having a laugh?

However, his previous efforts finally paid off.

This Zhao family’s third young master, seen by the world as spoiled, suddenly transformed into a Righteous Merchant and became an Imperial Merchant. How astonished would the Zhao family be upon hearing this news?

Hm, quite looking forward to the expressions of Mrs. Zhao and the others.

Oh, Second Young Master Zhao Minglang found someone he fancies?

When Chun Nuan read this news, she sighed: Qiu Yan still couldn’t become sisters-in-law with her.

She felt anxious for her: Qiu Yan’s situation in the Capital was quite worrisome.

She just hoped that Qiu Yan could succeed in her match-making endeavors.

Sometimes, one needs to take a leap of faith instead of fearing every possible mishap and ending up with nothing.

"Young mistress, today’s lunch..."

"Go tell the main kitchen in the front courtyard; I’ll be dining with mother today."

Life at the Zhao family for Chun Nuan was as comfortable as could be, freely switching between the small and main kitchens.

People said that once married, a woman must serve her in-laws, but the Zhao family’s in-laws never made her serve them for a day.

Even her visits to pay respects were according to her own mood.

Of course, it’s not that Chun Nuan was impolite and didn’t visit the elders, but she was sometimes truly busy, losing track of time when researching medicine and fragrances, neglecting even her own child, let alone her in-laws.

"Yes, young mistress."

Upon hearing Chun Nuan would join for lunch in the front hall, Mrs. Zhao Zhou was naturally delighted.

"Where’s little brother Yuan?"

Seeing Chun Nuan had arrived alone, Zhou quickly asked.

"The wet nurse fed him, and he fell asleep."

"This child knows how to sleep well." Zhou nodded: "Nuannuan, you really know how to nurture his body; just look at little brother Yuan, he’s like a little plump pig, sleeping and eating every day, changing from one day to the next, dramatically different every three days."

Regarding this grandson, Zhou couldn’t love him enough.

She would carry him for one or two hours daily, despite the aching back and sore waist.

Her comment came from seeing her eldest grandson Zhao Yongfu frequently falling ill.

The household ran a pharmacy, and generations of them had been doctors, yet they couldn’t prevent the child from developing sores or illnesses, his body too weak.

Over the years, Zhou had tried to find the cause, but always to no avail.

Until Chun Nuan was pregnant and gave birth to Yuanyuan, Zhou finally understood: the daughter-in-law was too frail to nurture him properly.

The saying goes: a strong mother begets a sturdy child.

The eldest daughter-in-law was very delicate, unable to eat well during pregnancy, often lying down for hours, and becoming severely anxious late in pregnancy, eating less and moving even less, suffering greatly during childbirth along with the child.

Later, during confinement, the daughter-in-law recovered somewhat, but the eldest grandson still couldn’t nurse properly; several wet nurses were changed without any success.

The old master, who was an experienced doctor, had seen countless cases but was at a loss with his great-grandson.

To be unreserved, the eldest grandson, even at one year old, didn’t weigh as much as Yuanyuan at half a year, and wasn’t as appealing.

Ah, better not think like that, as their grandmother, she ought to treat them equally.

However, truthfully, Zhou felt her satisfaction with Chun Nuan as her daughter-in-law far surpassed that of the eldest daughter-in-law.

"Children at this age do eat and sleep a lot."

Chun Nuan humbly replied: "Mother, isn’t father coming back for lunch?"

"He should be going to Changzhou today." Zhou replied: "I heard there’s a problem with the medicinal materials over there."

"What kind of problem?"

"Inferior goods being passed off as good ones." Zhou sighed: "I didn’t expect that even after so many years in business we’d still encounter this kind of issue; these medicinal merchants are truly unscrupulous, after all, they are dealing with medicine, and one mistake could result in a murder trial."

"Yes, people’s hearts aren’t what they used to be."

Chun Nuan thought of how no merchant is without deceit; the term ’deceitful merchant’ was never unfounded.

"This is also why we don’t let Old Third engage in business." Zhou said: "The old master always said that businesspeople are crafty, some money can be made, and some shouldn’t be, we should keep our name clean and not engage in shady dealings..."

Chun Nuan reached into her sleeve before drawing her hand out again.

Experiencing her mother-in-law’s insistence on staying out of business, she wondered how she would react upon learning her good son-in-law had ascended to the status of an Imperial Merchant.

Perhaps it was best to tell her father-in-law first since men have a stronger ability to handle things.

No, Zhao Minghua hadn’t written a family letter to report this to his parents?

Only leaving her to break the news, acting as the messenger?

Imagining this possibility, Chun Nuan felt a mix of emotions.

This man really did have the potential to be a deceitful merchant, actually calculating on her!

Accompanying her mother-in-law for lunch, Chun Nuan focused on being present.

"Nuannuan, are these dishes to your liking?"

Zhou, knowing Chun Nuan would join for lunch, had instructed the main kitchen to prepare her favorite dishes.

"Very good, thank you, Mother."

"What for? Many of these dishes were taught by the cooks in your small kitchen."

The cook in Chun Nuan’s small kitchen often learned new dishes and brought them for her to taste, leading to Zhou sharing the same taste over time.

"That’s great; they share recipes, so they can make whatever dish we want."

Chun Nuan preferred milder flavors, while Zhou, despite her age, loved intense flavors and couldn’t do without chili, which Chun Nuan couldn’t quite appreciate.

A small kitchen was truly convenient for her. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

Unexpectedly, her mother-in-law’s palate had adjusted differently too, which was an unexpected gain.

"By the way, Nuannuan, Old Third has been in the Capital for quite some time; has he sent any letters?"

Chun Nuan... truly couldn’t escape this; she still had to personally tell her mother-in-law.