He has been in a deep slumber lethargically all day, unable to eat anything. The doctor came and gave him some medicine, but it had no effect and his condition worsened. Madame heard of his illness and sent Hongniang to take a look at him and inquire what medicine he took, adding that she would find an imperial doctor to come and diagnose him. Hongniang related all this to Yingying.
Ever since that night in the garden, Yingying had been wracked with guilt. Upon hearing of his illness, she became even more anxious. She pressed Hongniang for details, but the latter told her that even the doctor couldn’t make heads or tails of it, though he did say that Zhang Sheng was terribly ill and might not recover. These words caused tears to well up in Yingying’s eyes, and she knew she was at fault. She was the cause of this illness and might be the only cure for it.
She told Hongniang, “I know of a folk prescription that might help him. I’ll write it down and you take it to him – don’t let anyone else see it.”
“Oh, my sister. Please have some mercy on him. Is this prescription of yours a real medicine, or is it yet more of a poison?”
“Rest assured, this is the real deal.”
“If it could save his life, then I’ll take it to him.”
After she wrote down the “prescription”, Yingying again warned that no one else was to see it. Hongniang didn’t quite understand what all the precautions were for, but she took Yingying’s confidence in the remedy as an indication of its efficacy, and she scurried over to give it to Zhang Sheng.
The sight of him truly shocked her. What once a handsome young scholar was now a pale and emaciated skeleton of a man who might be blown over by the slightest breeze.
“How did you come to this condition so quickly?” she asked. “I’m afraid these are my last days and I shan’t see you again.
Just remember the role you’ve played in my death.”
“This world has seen many lovesick people, but none of them as ridiculous and foolish as yourself.”
“I saved many lives, yet my own life is taken. The old proverb says about the infatuated women and disloyal men. But for me, it is just the opposite.”
“Don’t you worry. Madame has sent me to inquire what other medicine you might need. And my mistress has written down a remedy meant only for you.”
At this, Zhang Sheng rose up in excitement, “Where is this remedy?”
“It’s quite complicated, there are several ingredients that have to be mixed together just so. It goes like this: sweet-scented osmanthus flowers swinging their shadows late at night while the ‘angelica’ is immersed in vinegar.”
Zhang Sheng replied, “Osmanthus flower is ‘warm-natured’ and angelica is used for promoting circulation of the blood. How can these two be mixed together?”
Hongniang continued reading, “This remedy is most difficult to create for the ingredients are hidden away in obscure corners by the lake and rockery. You may take one or two doses as you like.”
“Are there any contraindications?”
“Yes, the contraindications say that ‘anemarrhena’ is not yet asleep and fears that ‘Ladybird’ would make a scene. If you feel better after administering one or two doses, you should take ‘quisqualis indica’ and a little bit of ginseng.”
“Did Yingying write this herself?”
“Yes.”
Despite his frail state, Zhang Sheng could not help but to burst into laughter. Now he understood everything, though it was clear that Hongniang didn’t know a thing about all these strange ingredients. Therefore, she couldn’t know that they had nothing to do with his illness. Yingying’s “prescription” was actually telling him to meet her late that night but she was afraid her mother might still be awake and that Hongniang might mess things up.[Many ingredients in Chinese traditional medicine have the names that can also be used to refer to people and things in daily life. In Yingying’s “prescription”, “osmanthus flowers” indicates the season of fall, “vinegar” refers to Zhang Sheng who was poor and pedantic. and the Chinese name for “angelica” name literally means “time for going back home”, indicating the hour of their meeting. As for the warnings, there are also four ingredients. The Chinese name of “anemarrhena” literally means “knowing the mother”, that of “ladybird” is “Hongniang”, that of “quisqualis indica” means “son of a gentleman”, and ginseng in China stands for “full recovery”.]
She was telling Zhang Sheng that if his love was true, his wish could still be fulfilled.
Zhang Sheng said, “My dear friend, would you believe that your mistress is writing to set up another meeting with me?”
“You silly bookworm! You’re reading too much into it again. Didn’t you learn your lesson last time?
“But look, there is a poem in the letter – let me decipher it for you.”
Disturbed not by these idle things, Wasted not your god-given talent.
You realized my order and protected me, Yet never thought this predicted disaster for you.
It’s hard for me to trade my love for etiquette And I will give you this letter as a token of love.
I’ll follow the ancients in their deeds rather than their poems And meet you tonight to fulfill our dream of love.
Zhang Sheng understood the meaning of this poem clearly. Yingying would visit and spend the night together with him. This is the ultimate cure for his illness. Already, he felt almost fully recovered.
Now knowing the meaning of her mistress’ letter, Hongniang said to him, “This is great news for you two. But you look so poor and humble and your bed is not presentable. Just look at this shabby old quilt and the lute you use as your pillow? Do you think my delicate lady can sleep on this? How could you both enjoy the night if you’re freezing cold?”
“You’ve got a point – my place is indeed shabby. Look, I’ve got some silver taels here. Can I buy a set of bedding from you?”
“Nonsense! The pillows and quilts I keep for my lady were made for her wedding night, they’re not for sale! But don’t worry. I’ll make sure that everything is up to her standards.”
Zhang Sheng was elated as the prospect of spending the night with his true love. However, he couldn’t help but worry about her mother’s oversight and the possibility that she somehow might foil their plan.
Hongniang told him, “It all depends on the young lady’s will; if she wants to come badly enough she’ll walk through the walls to get here. From my perspective, it looks like she’s pretty serious. Don’t mess this up!”
