Housekeeper of the Hundred Blossom Palace

Mei Na was in the kitchen when Yui Mei arrived.

“Ah Mei, I heard about it, was hard on you.”

Mei Na approached Yui Mei as soon as she saw her, and she patted her shoulder.

Apparently, Mei Na also knew the story about how Yui Mei rescued the consort who drowned. There were a lot of rubberneckers, so it was only natural that the story spread in a blink of an eye.

“I was involved in something remarkable. Oh, since you already knew about it, does that mean Mei Na was the one who sent that manju?”

Mei Na beamed broadly at Yui Mei’s question.

“Yeah, nursing a patient makes one hungry, after all.”

Yui Mei thanked Mei Na, and she relayed her agenda.

“I would like to have some soup suitable for a sick person, and can we have breakfast for two along with it, please?”

“Alright, got it. By the way, Ah-Mei, isn’t it difficult to breathe with that cloth on?”

Mei Na nodded, then she peered at Yui Mei.

Indeed, Yui Mei did not remove her mask. She cannot remove it. Although she took the medicine from Ziliang, a nurse in her previous world, she did not want to be a source of infection.

“It’s not like that once you get used to it.”

Yui Mei waved her hand.

“Hmmm. Alright, wait a bit for your breakfast takeaway.”

Needless to say, Yui Mei disinfected Mei Na’s hands with the sprayer containing the antiseptic solution, before she returned to the kitchen. Currently, Yui Mei was a walking pathogen.

When Yui Mei returned to the clinic, Yu Xiu was already sitting and drinking the oral rehydration solution by herself.

“Please pardon me for being late.”

Yui Mei placed their breakfast on the table, and then she moved to hand the tray with the soup bowl when it struck her.

“Ah, does your Ladyship need a poison tester?”

Yui Mei suddenly remembered that dignitaries had poison testers, so she asked Yu Xiu.

“No need. I want to have something warm, just this for this occasion.”

Yu Xiu received the warm bowl of soup with a smile. She took her time and finished the soup. She did not vomit, so it seemed they passed the critical stage. Yui Mei was relieved from her duty, since Yu Xiu could already eat on her own. When they informed the crown prince that she woke up, he sent an announcement that someone would take over to care for her while she was at the clinic.

“I heard from Doctor Chen earlier that it was Yui Mei who saved me when I drowned in the stream. You have my utmost gratitude.”

Yu Xiu bowed her head deeply as she said those words. Bowing towards a court lady was something that a prideful consort could never do.

‘Maybe this is the reason why she was the prime candidate for the crown prince’s future empress.’

Certainly, beauty alone was not enough. On the contrary, it might be a point that would irritate and annoy the other concubines who were fighting for the empress’s position.

If Yu Xiu would stand in the pinnacle of the harem in the future, then the Inner Palace would become a pleasant place to live in. Yui Mei was convinced that Yu Xiu must not be discouraged and should continue striving.

“Tomorrow, I will visit and bring some snacks.”

“Well, I am looking forward to that.”

Yu Xiu looked genuinely happy when Yui Mei said those words. This would warrant a careful selection of snacks.

‘Let’s consult Mei Na.’

Aunty Yang was waiting for Yui Mei when she returned from the clinic.

“Thanks for your hard work, Xiao Mei. Did Honored Consort Jiang recover?”

Aunty Yang rushed through her greeting, and asked about Yu Xiu.

“Yes. Her fever went down, and she ate her soup by herself when she woke up in the morning.”

“Ah, what a relief. The crown prince’s palace managed to evade a storm.”

Aunty Yang looked relieved when she heard Yui Mei’s story.

“Xiao Mei, you stayed up all night, right? Rest, you don’t have to work today and tomorrow.”

She also said gratifying words.

“Thank you very much.”

‘Hurray! It’s my first day-off!’

Yui Mei was so happy she was practically skipping on her way back to the lodging room, despite her lack of sleep.

“Hmmmm….”

Yui Mei’s happiness withered away when she reached the place.

The few court ladies, who were in the room when they first came here, were still sleeping.

‘This…They’re not night-shift court ladies, I guess.’

She already had her doubts the other day, and it was confirmed after she listened to Ziliang’s story.

They were sleeping because they had influenza.

Since this large room was dedicated for the low ranking court ladies, then it might have been discreetly converted into a quarantine room. In any case, if they were left sleeping this way, then their body condition would probably worsen.

“I should clean first before sleeping.”

And so, Yui Mei quietly cleaned the room without disturbing the sleeping people. She opened the window to improve ventilation.

Though it was being partitioned by folding screens, this room was way smaller than the concubine’s residence.

She hurriedly swept with a broom, and she sprayed the disinfectant on the surroundings of her sleeping space. Of course, she did not forget to get some hot water to increase the humidity. Incidentally, she also checked the condition of the sleeping women. There were three of them. She had a feeling the numbers decreased, but it was possible that they got better so they went out.

‘As I thought.’

To avoid unpleasant conjectures, Yui Mei softly peeked through the gaps in the folding screen.

“Would you like me to bring you some water?”

“…Dunno who you are, but water, please.”

She called out to one of them. The person replied in a hoarse voice, so she might have been slightly dehydrated, but at least she was conscious. The other two also answered in the same way, so Yui Mei went to the kitchen to make some oral rehydrating solution. She used a teapot in lieu of a feeding cup, and brought it over.

“I’ll help you, can you drink it?”

She tipped the teapot to gradually pour water, but the three women unexpectedly finished all.

It was not enough, so she went to the kitchen to make another batch.

“What are you doing instead of sleeping?”

Mei Na was exasperated to see her.

After everything was done, it was finally time to turn in.

‘Ahh, I’m beat.’

Needless to say, she fell asleep the moment she curled in her blanket.