Chapter Text
“Father! Father! You must help Maomao,” cried the young boy as he ran to his father.
“What’s wrong?” The man answered.
“Maomao is ill. Mother and Grandfather will not call a doctor,” said the young boy urgently.
“She’s probably not ill enough to call a doctor,” reasoned the man.
“No, Father, they said the daughter of a courtesan was not worth the price of a doctor,” said the boy’s younger brother.
Kan Lakou was not a good man. He had known that his little niece had been neglected since her parents had been sent to the Western Capital by the Crown Prince.
His brother had wanted to take his child with him, but his father had said that “A princess of a clan should be raised in the clan” and promptly handed the child’s care to Lakou’s wife, who then passed the care to their sons’ nursemaid.
The nursemaid that looked after his sons, did not want to look after the child of a courtesan. She would let Maomao cry and cry, until one day she learnt no one would come and she stopped.
As soon as Maomao was able, she was set to work as a maid serving the precious sons of the La clan. He knew that Maomao didn’t get a lot to eat, as he had caught both of his boys saving their snacks for her.
Neither his wife, nor father cared much for the child. They only cared about her future worth on the marriage market and turning a blind eye to the neglect, instead arguing about which future marriage arrangements would most benefit the clan.
But he had done nothing about it. He had allowed an innocent girl to suffer so that his father and wife wouldn’t turn their ire on him.
Kan Lakou was not a good man. But he wasn’t enough of a bad man to allow her to die.
He couldn’t call a doctor to the house. He would have no money to pay him. Whilst he had a small allowance, that had already been spent on seeds and new gardening tools. His father controlled the clan’s finances, and whilst his wife had come with a large dowry, she did not allow him to access it.
He couldn’t write to her parents; they’d never get back from the Western Capital in time to save her.
So he did the only thing he could do. Lakou called for a carriage to take his niece to the Imperial Palace, where the only person who could help, would be.
He made sure he had his jade name tablet, proving himself a member of the La clan, and prayed to Guan Yin to take pity on the poor girl that he should have done more for.
The carriage came to the entrance of the imperial palace. Kan Lakou threw himself on the floor and begged the guards to bring Dr Kan to the gates. The guards looked confused to see a noble bowing to them.
“Please tell him that Lakan’s little girl needs him,” giving his name tablet into the hands of the bemused guards.
Dr Kan came to the guard post a little while later. “Nephew, what’s wrong?” he said kindly.
“Uncle! It’s Maomao; she has a fever and my father wouldn’t send for a doctor. Please, you must help her. She’s in the carriage. Please! I couldn’t leave her there any longer.”
Dr Kan stepped into the carriage to see a tiny child shivering whilst covered in blankets. He touched her forehead; it was hot. She looked much smaller than a child of six should look; she must not have been fed well. The princess of a named clan should not struggle to eat enough.
“How long has she been like this?” Dr Kan asked.
“I don’t know, a few days, I think,” Lakou answered.
Dr Kan stepped outside to speak to the guards and bowed low.
“Please send a message to the Crown Prince and ask for permission for me to bring my niece to the medical office. She is gravely ill and I need to treat her urgently. I will take any punishment gladly if I can try and save her.”
Dr Kan administered some medication to the girl to help reduce her fever. He hoped it would be enough to help her if he couldn’t bring her to the medical office. Though if this child had already been like this for a few days, then maybe she would be strong enough to survive.
A messenger arrived; the crown prince has given his permission for the girl to enter but not Kan Lakou. He asks Dr Kan to come to his palace once the girl is stable.
Dr Kan pulled his nephew aside.
“Tell your father that you have taken the girl to her kin in the pleasure district. So that her illness is not passed to the precious sons of the La clan.”
Lakou looked shocked. “Uncle, I could never say that. The boys love her. They’re the ones who begged me to intervene!”
“Nephew, it is a convenient story that will stop my brother from looking for Maomao and thus keep her safe. I will write to Lakan to tell him what has happened. In the meantime, say nothing to anyone else.”
“Thank you, Uncle,” Lakou bowed deeply and left in the carriage.
A few days later, once Maomao was out of immediate danger, Dr Kan went to the Crown Prince’s residence in the inner palace to give his report.
He was shown into a sitting room where the Crown Prince and his consort, Lady Ah Duo, were seated.
“Dr Kan, how is your great-niece?” asked the Crown Prince.
“Better, thanks to your generosity and grace, Your Highness.”
“Please, Dr Kan, think nothing of it,” replied the Crown Prince. “If you hadn’t cut me out of my Empress Mother’s womb, neither she nor I would be here now.”
“Dr Kan, can you tell us what happened to the girl?” asked Lady Ah Duo.
“Maomao’s uncle brought her to me because her grandfather refused to send for a doctor to treat her fever. It seems that Maomao has been neglected and is malnourished.”
“The poor child.” Ah Duo’s heart ached for her.
“I had been considering bringing Lakan back from the Western Capital, so I will write to him immediately,” the Crown Prince added.
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
“What will happen to Maomao now? Will you return her to her grandfather?” Ah Duo asked.
“I would like to keep her with me if possible, at least until she is stronger,” Dr Kan replied.
Ah Duo looked at the Crown Prince, silently asking a question, and he nodded.
“May I suggest that Maomao stays with me in the rear palace? I can take care of her whilst you are carrying out your duties.”
“It would be very grateful if you could, my lady. But I think we have a long road ahead of us with this little one; she is clearly malnourished, but we’ll have to see when she wakes up whether there are any emotional or behavioural issues.”
“I understand, Dr Kan. I will prepare a room for Maomao and please give your instructions for her care to myself and my ladies.”
Maomao woke up in a strange bed. She remembered being ill and now she was here. Wherever here is.
The room was lit by a small lantern, so it must be nighttime. Maomao had never been afraid of the dark; in fact, she enjoyed the night when everyone was asleep. It usually meant that no one was awake to bother her.
She quietly walked to the window and opened it slowly. Outside the window, bathed in moonlight, was the most beautiful garden she had ever seen. There was a garden at the house she had been staying at, but she wasn’t able to spend much time in it.
Her chores serving the young masters of the house took up most of her time.
First Young Master Kan was always nice to her and he would secretly give her snacks when their nursemaid wasn’t around. Second Young Master Kan was weird, always talking about numbers. But he generally left her alone, so they got on fine.
She checked how high up the room was. As she was on the ground floor, she could easily drop down, but she’d probably not be able to climb back up the window.
It’s best I go back to bed and explore in the morning. She thought whilst yawning.
She closed the windows and returned to the bed.