novelraw Chapter 731 - 720: The Substitute Younger Sister
Chapter 731 - 720: The Substitute Younger Sister
Ye Xia watched her sister being carefully looked after by the servants, feeling guilty for having stolen the nutrients from her sister in their mother’s womb, which resulted in her sister’s frail body. Yet, she also resented her sister for capturing all the family’s attention and love. Isn’t she the legitimate eldest daughter of the Ye Residence? Isn’t she also a daughter of their parents? Why is everyone always worried about her sister?
Ye Xia wrung her handkerchief continuously, thinking to herself, if her sister were gone, would she then be the only daughter in the family?
As soon as this thought emerged, she immediately scolded herself silently, but then she felt immensely wronged. She was just yearning for her family’s attention and affection, was that really so wrong?
"Lady is here!" Some servant called out, and both Ye Qiu and Ye Xia looked towards the door.
A lady with lavish makeup entered through the door, surrounded by servants. But the first thing she saw was not Ye Qiu, the patient, but Ye Xia, who had worry written all over her face.
"Don’t worry, this isn’t the first time your sister has been like this, Doctor Liu will be here soon," Ye Wangshi said, patting her eldest daughter’s hand.
Seeing this, Ye Xia pouted and pulled on Ye Wangshi’s arm, acting coquettishly: "Mother, it was not intentional, I just wanted to take my younger sister out for a stroll, who knew it would startle the horse."
"Mother knows Xiaxia didn’t do it on purpose, so don’t blame yourself. It’s your sister’s own poor health," Ye Wangshi soothed her, then took Ye Xia’s hand and approached Ye Qiu’s sickbed.
Then she sternly reprimanded the wet nurse and maids: "How have you been serving her? If something happens to the second miss this time, be careful of your skins."
This was always the case, whenever something happened, she would scold her wet nurse and maids. Ye Qiu looked down, a hint of cold light flashing through her eyes. How could they possibly know how deep her bond was with the wet nurse and maids who had cared for her since she was young?
"Mother, it’s not their fault, it’s my own poor health," Ye Qiu gently coughed, her breathing growing heavier.
Yet, such a cough, rather than making Ye Wangshi personally care for her, scared her into stepping back a little.
Perhaps feeling somewhat inappropriate about the step back, she said with a motherly face: "You are frail, don’t worry about these things. Just focus on getting better, and once you are, mother will have the Fengling Building send over the most fashionable Jewelry."
Hearing Ye Wangshi’s words, Ye Xia felt discontent and stamped her foot jealously: "Mother only loves the younger sister, it’s not fair. Am I not your daughter? I want Jewelry from Fengling Building too."
As soon as Ye Xia acted coquettishly, Ye Wangshi couldn’t resist, her eyes filled with laughter. Unlike the formal consolation she had for Ye Qiu, she doted: "Alright, mother will also buy for our Xiaxia, don’t you love rubies the most? You’ll have a set and your sister will have a set."
Despite not being the unique one, Ye Xia was still somewhat dissatisfied but sweetly said, "Thank you, mother. You are the best."
"You should thank your sister, this is all thanks to your sister’s grace," Ye Wangshi said as she glanced towards Ye Qiu, but turned her head away as soon as she met Ye Qiu’s clear eyes.
Ye Xia pouted and grunted, "Thanks, second sister."
Still feeling discontent, she leaned her head on Ye Wangshi’s shoulder: "Mother only knows to care for the younger sister."
Ye Wangshi tapped her forehead, reprimanding with her words but affectionate in tone: "Your younger sister is weak, you should be considerate of her."
"But it’s just not fair, I would rather be the one who is sick so that I could receive all the love from father and mother. I don’t want to yield; I want others to yield to me." Ye Xia grumbled discontentedly.
Ye Wangshi smiled at her: "You silly child, speaking nonsense again."
Watching their tender mother-daughter affection, Ye Qiu closed her eyes, fearing she couldn’t help but show her resentment.
Favored?
When have father and mother ever favored her? If it were true affection, would they have ever held her since she could speak? Have they ever personally fed her medicine? Have they ever understood her true preferences?
Ruby was what Ye Xia wanted, not her; she never said she liked rubies. Such vibrant jewelry like ruby only suits vibrant and healthy people like Ye Xia. Being frail with a perennially pale complexion, wearing ruby jewelry would only make her a laughingstock.
If they truly wanted to give her jewelry, why not first ask what she wanted? It was always Ye Xia who spoke first, and then she was given something as an afterthought, and yet they claimed it was bought out of affection for her. Their affection was only ever verbal. Since it wasn’t genuine, why give everyone such a false impression?
And it was precisely such behavior that fueled Ye Xia and Ye Zhixing’s jealousy, constantly directing malice towards her because they felt she had stolen their parents’ affection. But did she really steal it?
Under the covers, Ye Qiu clenched her fists tightly, breathing heavily, each breath accompanied by intense pain.
Ye Wangshi felt uneasy seeing her second daughter in this state and couldn’t bear to look too long, only to scold the servants: "Where are the people who went to call the Imperial Physician? Why haven’t they arrived yet?"
"They’ve arrived, they’ve arrived, Doctor Liu is here."
Seeing the limping Doctor Liu, Ye Wangshi breathed a sigh of relief, as if easing a task in her heart. She took Ye Xia’s hand and said, "Let’s go to the outer room, don’t delay Doctor Liu in treating your sister."
Ye Xia discontentedly said: "Mother only cares about my younger sister."
Ye Qiu inwardly sneered with irony, is it really caring for her? Or is it just fear of facing the situation?
After a brief examination, Doctor Liu looked at Ye Qiu with pity and sighed, "Try not to walk around too much, stay out of the wind, and the weather is getting colder. Wear more clothes. I’ll prescribe two sets of medicine for you, taking them should ease the pain from being as severe as now."
"Thank you, Grandpa Liu, it’s okay, I’m used to it," Ye Qiu said to him, smiling with no hint of gloom on her face.
Seeing this, Doctor Liu felt even more pity; such a nice girl, why has she been dealt such a frail body by fate?
"Eat what you like, and although it’s best not to move too much, occasionally going out to see the scenery can also be good for your condition. Just take more people with you, and if anything, come to my residence to call me anytime."
Although Doctor Liu is an Imperial Physician, he no longer has duties at the Imperial Hospital due to his age. His offer to come at any time was sincere, not merely polite.
"I know, but it always troubles Grandpa Liu every time, I feel somewhat guilty," Ye Qiu said remorsefully.
Doctor Liu smiled kindly: "There’s no need to feel guilty. As doctors, we must have a compassionate heart; we can’t just stand by and watch someone suffer. Rest well and don’t stress too much."
After Ye Qiu rested, the wet nurse and maids gathered around Doctor Liu to ask about some precautions. Hearing that Ye Qiu was not in critical condition for the time being, they all breathed a sigh of relief.