Before Xie Nanyou had even finished eating three sweet rice dumplings, Xiao Si walked in looking dejected, standing by the table and casting a guilty glance at her.
Before he could even speak, Xie Nanyou pointed to the nearby chair. "Sit down, Xiao Si, and try the dumplings Ansheng made. See if they taste as good as the ones Xiao Liu makes."
Xiao Si pulled out a chair and sat down. Xu Ansheng placed the filled bowl in front of him, smiled at him, and turned to leave the dining room.
Watching Xiao Si eat a dumpling, Xie Nanyou noticed his expression remained shrouded in gloom. "What? Are they not good?"
Xiao Si hurriedly swallowed the dumpling. "They're very good." With that, he patted his chest with one hand; if not for the fact that the thing wasn't all that big, he almost would have become the first person to choke to death on a sweet rice dumpling.
"Enough of that. Tell us about the situation with the Zhang Family Patriarch," Xie Nanyou said, looking at Zhang Rishan. "Give our President Zhang some peace of mind."
Xiao Si put down his spoon. "When we found him, he was unconscious. I checked his pulse at the time—he was suffering from severe blood deficiency. But looking at the needle marks on his arm, it shouldn't have been caused by having blood drawn for testing."
"There were obvious scabs from wounds on his palms, and more than one. The wounds looked like they went from the outside in, proving he inflicted them on himself," Xiao Si said, gesturing with his hands as he spoke, before glancing at the others.
Seeing that everyone was staring at him, he continued, "I followed along the whole way back. He was originally supposed to wake up in two days, but to help him recover physically, I gave him a decoction."
"It would relax his mind while making him sleep for a good half month, combined with acupuncture and herbal medicine every day. If nothing unexpected happens, he should wake up tomorrow," Xiao Si said, unable to suppress a silent sigh. He was fine for now, but he had no idea if he was going to be in trouble later.
Xie Nanyou pushed her bowl away. "You heard that? Tomorrow when he wakes up, you can take him away. In the future, if I have business, I'll have Xiao Jiu contact you. President Rishan won't refuse, will he?"
She certainly didn't believe that just because Buddha told someone to listen to her, that person would actually obey her instructions in good faith. He was an old fox, crafty to the core.
Zhang Rishan put down his spoon, looking at Xie Nanyou with complete earnestness in his eyes. "Young Miss Nanyou, just give the order whenever you need anything."
Given Buddha's instructions, and the fact that this woman had now seen their family patriarch completely naked, he was currently quite conflicted about whether or not to tell the patriarch when he woke up.
The Head of the Xie Family watched the two of them with a smile and stood up. "We've had our late-night snack, so Yaoyao should head back to rest. I'll see the Adjutant out." With that, he patted Zhang Rishan, who was still sitting there, adopting the expression of someone wondering what on earth he was waiting for since he'd finished eating.
Zhang Rishan hurriedly stood up, picked up a handkerchief from the side, and wiped his mouth. "Then I'll be heading back first."
Xie Nanyou watched Zhang Rishan flee as if for his life, pulled a handkerchief over, and wiped her mouth. "Xiao Si, thanks to you, Great-Aunt actually got to take advantage of the Zhang Family Patriarch."
With that, she stood up, walked past Xiao Si, and said leisurely, "What a real feast for the eyes." After murmuring that softly, she walked out of the dining room.
Leaving only Xiao Si sitting alone in the chair, feeling anxious and uneasy as he stared at the sweet rice dumplings in his bowl and swallowed hard. He shoveled the dumplings into his mouth in two or three bites, wiped his mouth haphazardly, and bolted out of the dining room to run back and check on his patient—and by the way, find him a new set of clothes to wear.
Two months later, dark clouds hung heavy over the Xie Residence, and the entire estate was filled with oppressive sighs and sobs.
Xie Nanyou wore a black high-collared qipao, her long hair pinned up with a white jade hairpin. In the mourning hall, Xie Yuchen knelt on one side to return bows to those coming to offer condolences. Behind Xie Yuchen, a beaded curtain obscured Xie Nanyou, who sat in the inner room.
"Xiao Jiu, go to the kitchen to prepare some clear congee, and send someone over to relieve Xiaohua so he can go eat something," Xie Nanyou said, sitting upright in her chair with neither joy nor sorrow in her eyes. She stared at Xie Yuchen's back, watching one mourner after another come to pay their respects, taking in everyone's expressions.
Xiao Jiu acknowledged the order with a nod, walked out to murmur a few words in Xu Ansheng's ear, and watched Xu Ansheng leave. Then Xiao Jiu walked into the mourning hall, pulled Xie Yuchen up, picked up the child who was crying his eyes out, and walked out of the mourning hall toward the dining room.
Xie Nanyou watched Xiao Si, who stood off to one side wearing a black robe with a strip of white showing at the cuffs and white silk tied around his arm, bow to return the greetings of the incoming visitors.
She picked up her teacup, drained the tea which had already gone completely cold, and set the cup down just as she was about to leave, when she heard the sound of commotion and weeping drawing closer from outside.
Her stepping-out foot moved back, and she sat down in her chair once more. She was quite curious to see who dared come to the Xie Residence to cause a scene today.
Watching the group shoving and wrestling their way into the mourning hall, even Xiao Si, who had been returning bows, frowned slightly as he watched them throw themselves onto the kneeling mats, their crying and shouting loud enough to tear the mourning hall apart.
Turning her head slightly to look at the people standing outside sizing up the situation, Xiao Si stepped forward. "Gentlemen, the Head of the Family passed away peacefully. Please try not to grieve too excessively. If the Head knew his descendants were this heartbroken after his passing, I'm sure he could rest in peace."