Chapter 89: Chapter 61 Visiting Fan Mansion_2

Zhao sneered, "Indeed, only a country bumpkin would be so ignorant of the rules."

The long days of summer irritated her, and she put away her smile, saying coldly, "Send someone to the medical hall again with my visiting card, and say that I need medicine. She must deliver it within three days."

"Yes."

...

When the visiting card from the Fan Mansion arrived, it was in the afternoon.

With summer having just passed its peak, the days grew even longer. On West Street, the tradesmen selling bamboo mats were doing good business as waves of heat rolled down the street. At noon, nobody dared to venture out during this time, instead staying inside chanting silently that a calm mind naturally cools the body.

Du Changqing was back from buying fresh peaches at the government lane fruit stand, which Yin Zheng had cooled in well water, making them ice-cold. Cut into halves with a knife, they looked like the tender cheeks of young girls, deliciously crisp and sweet, instantly juicy in the mouth, refreshing in the sweltering heat.

"What do you think, Doctor Lu?" Du Changqing fanned himself with a bamboo fan, looking at her triumphantly, "Aren’t our Shengjing peaches better than those from your area?"

Was this also a matter for competition? Yin Zheng couldn’t help but roll her eyes.

But Lu Tong laughed.

Although there were peach trees on Luomei Peak, the wild peaches there were sour and astringent, small, and sparsely scattered, hardly palatable.

Lady Yun never bothered picking those peaches, leaving them on the branches. During the summer heat, occasionally birds and sparrows would peck at them, but not many. If the trees bore sweet peaches like the ones before her, Luomei Peak might have been livelier.

Ah Cheng entered from outside, handing a visiting card to Lu Tong, "Miss Lu, the people from the Fan Family are here again with a visiting card, asking you to deliver ’Xianxian’ within three days."

In these past days, people from the Fan Mansion had been purchasing medicinal tea. Unfortunately, ’Xianxian’ had been out of stock these last few days and Lu Tong had not yet produced a new batch. Thus, the Fan Family had been urging her every few days, unsettling her.

Du Changqing spat out a peach pit with a "ptui" and eyed Lu Tong skeptically, "Doctor Lu, why has your tea-making slowed down so much in these past few days? Is it because you’re short on silver for ingredients?"

Lu Tong reached out for the visiting card, tucking it away, "The medicinal tea is ready."

This caught everyone off guard, causing Du Changqing to pause before saying moments later, "Then what are we waiting for? Ah Cheng, tell them to come pick it up quickly!"

Lu Tong interrupted him, "Wait."

"What now?"

"It seems Lady Fan is quite angry, merely delivering the medicinal tea may not be enough to quell her wrath."

Du Changqing holding the peach pit, appeared bewildered, "So, what are you suggesting? Are you planning to go and apologize in person, appearing at their door?"

"Good idea."

Du Changqing: "..."

Lu Tong stood up, "It’s all about showing our sincerity."

...

It was not even an hour since Zhao’s servant had sent the visiting card when the response from Renxin Medical Hall was promptly presented.

The maid Cui’er spoke softly in front of Zhao, "... The resident doctor from the medical hall is waiting outside the mansion gates—besides bringing the medicine, she also hopes to see you in person, perhaps knowing she has offended and wishing to apologize face to face."

With a teacup in hand, Zhao looked down upon the doctor with increased disdain, "Now she knows to be afraid."

"Would you like to see her, madam?"

Zhao furrowed her brow, considered for a moment, and then replied, "Let her wait at the gate for a while, then call her in to see me."

Lu Tong and Yin Zheng waited outside the Fan Mansion for about the time it takes an incense stick to burn before a servant finally arrived late, leading them inside.

The show of power was clear enough, and so Lu Tong remained silent, following the servant into the compound, and while walking, she discreetly surveyed her surroundings.

The Fan Mansion was immense.

She had thought the Ke Family’s estate was already spacious, but the Fan Mansion was even more luxurious by comparison. With springs, stones, and woods arranged among pavilions and terraces, elegance and attention to detail were evident everywhere.

Lu Tong’s gaze lingered for a moment on a ruby crystal bonsai in the garden, then she lowered her head with an enigmatic expression.

Information uncovered by Lord Cao revealed that the judicial commissioner, Fan Zhenglian, originally came from a family of minor officials. Roughly six or seven years ago, he was granted the same standing as a successful imperial exam candidate and appointed magistrate of Yuan’an County.

Fan Zhenglian served as a magistrate for three years, solving several longstanding wrongful cases with excellence and gaining the support of the locals. With his reputation reaching the imperial court, the emperor promoted him, transferring him back to Shengjing.

In just a few short years, Fan Zhenglian had risen from a minor magistrate to a doctor in the Ministry of Justice, then to vice minister, and now a judicial commissioner. His meteoric rise was unmatched.

Further, Fan Zhenglian was well-esteemed, commonly known among the people as "astute in judgment and unwavering in law enforcement," bearing the honorable nickname ’Fan Qingtian.’

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read