Chapter 154
When Eldest Sister-in-law saw He Zhiran had a thoughtful look, she said, "Ninth younger sister-in-law, Sixth younger sister-in-law may have really caught a cold."
Ever since I married into the Mo family, whenever I catch a cold, it's much more severe than before, and I've had experiences of fainting like Sixth younger sister-in-law.
Second Sister-in-law also said, "Listening to Eldest sister-in-law's words, it seems to be the case. After I married into the Mo family, I also caught a cold once. Although I didn't faint, it was more severe than any previous colds I've had."
Their words made He Zhiran realize a problem first.
That is, both sisters-in-law said that after marrying into the Mo family, catching a cold would be more severe than before.
This reminded He Zhiran of something Nan Heng had confessed.
The Queen bribed servants of the Mo family that Liu Auntie would slip something into the tea of any new daughter-in-law who entered, which was to make the Mo family daughters-in-law unable to get pregnant.
In other words, it was adding contraceptive medicine into the tea.
He Zhiran frowned in thought.
Could the unusually severe cold Sisters-in-law had be related to the contraceptives they had taken?
This was only her initial suspicion. To further confirm, she would need to draw blood for testing, as that would allow a more accurate diagnosis.
With so many people gathered outside Sixth Sister-in-law's tent now, it was not convenient to immediately draw her blood.
So He Zhiran wanted to take this opportunity to first check the condition of the other Sisters-in-law.
She held Eldest Sister-in-law's wrist first to feel her pulse.
Although Eldest Sister-in-law did not have a cold, the slight abnormality in her pulse let He Zhiran confirm that her pulse was similar to Sixth Sister-in-law's.
Second Sister-in-law did not know why Ninth younger sister-in-law wanted to check Eldest Sister-in-law's pulse. Thinking she was making some comparison, Second Sister-in-law took the initiative to offer her own wrist.
Sure enough, the abnormal condition in all three Sisters-in-laws pulses were similar.
If she had not heard from Nan Heng that medicine had been given to the Sisters-in-law, she might not have noticed such subtle abnormalities.
This could also explain why no one in the Mo family had discovered the crux of why they were infertile.
Since this matter was not trivial, He Zhiran did not plan to speak openly before fully confirming it.
Seeing her check the pulse without saying anything afterwards, Second Sister-in-law asked,
"Ninth younger sister-in-law, is there something wrong with our health?"
After changing all the medicine into oil paper packaging, she returned to Sixth Sister-in-law's tent.
Eldest Sister-in-law brought a bowl of water. He Zhiran propped up Sixth Sister-in-law to sit up and take the medicine.
"Sixth Sister-in-law, these medicines were all gifted by a master to me. They are very effective in treating colds. Please take this one first."
The first medicine He Zhiran gave Sixth Sister-in-law was the fever reducer. As for the other two, they needed to be taken at intervals.
Hearing that these oddly shaped pills were made by a master's hands, they must be precious indeed. Sixth Sister-in-law hesitated a bit.
"Ninth younger sister-in-law, this is too precious."
He Zhiran smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry Sixth Sister-in-law. I've already learned how to make these pills. As long as there are medicinal ingredients, I can produce them. So you don't need to feel burdened."
Hearing her say this, Sixth Sister-in-law indeed felt less burdened.
She followed He Zhiran's instructions, putting the pill in her mouth and washing it down with a big gulp of water.
Mo Hanyue stared at the pills in He Zhiran's hands, increasingly intrigued.
When she walked out of the tent, Mo Hanyue squeezed over.
"Ninth sister-in-law, I've been following you to gather herbs recently and can now recognize many types. Could you teach me to produce these pills too? If I succeed, I can also earn some silver for the family."
He Zhiran had noticed for a while that this girl was very interested in medicine.
But learning medicine was not something that could be accomplished overnight.
Besides, in her past life she had specialized in Western surgery, and was not the most proficient in Chinese medicine.
She was able to check pulses and perform acupuncture for others after learning the basics from the old director at the military hospital.
Although her level in Chinese medicine had not reached mastery, she was quite familiar with pharmacology. And she also had prescriptions for many Chinese patent medicines.
Rather than slowly teaching Mo Hanyue Chinese medicine theory, it would be better to teach her how to produce Chinese patent medicine.
Being able to produce effective Chinese patent medicines in this era would definitely be a lucrative business.
Thinking of this, He Zhiran patted Mo Hanyue's head. "If Hanyue likes learning medicine, let's start with pharmacology! I'll find a book on Chinese materia medica for you later. Get familiar with the medicinal properties of various Chinese medicines first."
Mo Hanyue nodded excitedly. "Alright, Hanyue will study diligently!"
He Zhiran was anxious to distribute wages for making the dolls and also concerned about testing Sixth Sister-in-law's blood sample. After saying a few words to Mo Hanyue, she gathered the women on the open grounds.
The women were all aware that He Zhiran gathering them was probably to distribute wages. The excitement in their eyes could not be concealed.