nucmednet Chapter 371: The Mother of the Bomen Raises Her Stepson 38
Chapter 371: The Mother of the Bomen Raises Her Stepson 38
The old emperor's health has been deteriorating in recent years.
One day, while reviewing memorials in the imperial study, he actually fainted.
The eunuch Li who served carefully was the eldest princess's man. After receiving the news, she entered the palace overnight.
Late at night, candlelight flickered inside the Imperial Hospital.
Imperial Physician Zhang knelt on the ground, his forehead resting on the cold blue bricks. He lowered his voice to a whisper, "Your Majesty's body is weak. If you continue to work hard, I'm afraid... I'm afraid you won't survive more than three years."
The eldest princess's fingertips trembled, and the teacup made a soft "ding" sound.
"Three years?" She slowly raised her eyes.
Doctor Zhang's throat was churning, and cold sweat was dripping down his face. "If Your Majesty continues to visit the harem and review memorials until three o'clock in the morning, perhaps..."
"What could it be?"
"At most... a year and a half." Doctor Zhang finished his words tremblingly.
The eldest princess's slender fingers gently opened the celadon teacup, and the bottom of the cup touched the sandalwood table top, making an almost inaudible sound.
She raised her eyes slightly, and her icy gaze swept over Doctor Zhang who was kneeling on the ground: "Who else knows about this matter?"
Doctor Zhang's forehead was pressed against the cold floor tiles, and cold sweat was running down his temples.
His Adam's apple rolled, and his voice trembled slightly. "Your Highness, apart from Eunuch Li who is by the Emperor's side, I dare not tell anyone about this, not even Your Majesty..."
The eldest princess tapped the table with her fingertips, and her gilded armor shone coldly in the candlelight.
She was silent for a moment, then said calmly, "Get up and talk."
"Thank you... thank you for your grace, Princess."
Doctor Zhang stood up tremblingly, but still did not dare to look up, just staring at the small space on the ground.
The back of his official uniform was soaked, revealing dark water marks in the candlelight.
"Don't let anyone else know about this for now. I'm sorry for worrying about my brother's health."
The princess' fingertips gently stroked the edge of the teacup, her eyes narrowed slightly: "The cold has not yet healed, and you need to rest and recuperate to recover for your brother.
"She paused, her tone slightly cold, "Is this the pulse case?"
Doctor Zhang bowed his head and said in a low and cautious voice, "I will transcribe the pulse records of the Imperial Hospital myself, leaving no trace."
The princess nodded slightly, her eyes fixed on his tense shoulders. She said calmly, "Thank you for your hard work." She raised her fingertips slightly, indicating that he could leave. "Go ahead, don't let anyone get suspicious."
Doctor Zhang bowed deeply, took two steps back, and then turned to leave. His figure gradually disappeared into the night outside the palace gate.
The eldest princess stared at the flickering candlelight, her eyes filled with gloomy emotions.
Doctor Zhang is indeed a man of few words.
Whether it was the maid in the Queen's palace who came to sound out the situation under the pretext of delivering tonic soup, or the trusted imperial physicians sent by several princes who "accidentally" came to ask for medical advice.
He just kept his eyelids down, and repeated the same words respectfully but distantly: "Your Majesty has just caught a cold, and he will be fine after resting for a while."
Any slight disturbance in the palace will cause turmoil outside.
The queen sent a secret letter to the prince, asking him to return to the capital as soon as possible. Several princes in the capital gathered around the old emperor and served him medicine.
Everyone in the palace knows the Third Prince's filial piety.
Before dawn, he knelt before the dragon bed, holding the medicine in his own hands, his brows filled with worry. "Father, drink this medicine while it's hot." The old emperor's cloudy gaze fell on his face, and he nodded slowly. Only when the bowl of medicine was empty did the Third Prince respectfully withdraw.
But as soon as he stepped out of the palace, the warmth in his eyes froze instantly.
"Go check," he lowered his voice and said to his confidant behind him, "Every ingredient in the Imperial Hospital's prescription must be carefully checked."
The second prince's "filial piety" is even more prominent.
He ordered a hundred-year-old snow ginseng to be brought from the northern border at top speed, and personally boiled it in front of the imperial physicians. The charcoal fire in the medicine cauldron reflected his sincere face: "Your son only wishes your father a speedy recovery."
No one noticed that he had a handwritten secret letter to the governor of the Northern Camp hidden in his sleeve.
The fifth prince's "immortal pill" glowed with a strange golden light in the sunlight.
"This pill was refined by the Taoist priest in my son's house for 9981 days," he knelt on the ground, "I hope it will add to my father's longevity." The old emperor stroked the pill with his skinny fingers and let out a vague laugh in his throat.
When he returned home at night, he and his sorcerers would study the sky to see when the Emperor Star would fall.
The prince also rushed back day and night. After visiting the old emperor, he returned to his mansion to discuss the next step with his followers.
Fortunately, Doctor Zhang was an excellent doctor. After taking a few doses of medicine, the old emperor recovered to his previous state and was able to attend court as usual without any problems.
The eldest princess also went to see the old emperor at this time, and brought along the imperial physician Zhang to tactfully reveal some of his physical conditions, so that he could have an idea of his own body and pay more attention to some things that needed to be restrained.
When the eldest princess stepped into the Qianqing Palace, the smell of ambergris in the palace was stronger than usual.
The old emperor was leaning on the couch reviewing memorials. When he saw her come in, his brows furrowed slightly. "Why, you've come to visit me too?"
The princess bowed gracefully, a smile on her lips. "I'm naturally happy to hear that my royal brother is in good health. However, Imperial Physician Zhang said that although you are fine now, age is not forgiving after all. Some things... you need to be more restrained."
The old emperor paused slightly as he was holding the pen, and the cinnabar spread a dark red color on the memorial.
He raised his eyes to look at Doctor Zhang, who was standing beside him. Doctor Zhang immediately bowed his head and said in a respectful but unavoidable voice, "Your Majesty's pulse is stable, but your liver fire is still strong. If you stay up all night reviewing memorials, you may damage your health."
The old emperor smiled and perfunctorily passed it off, promising that he would pay attention, and that his sister was still very much in his favor.
The first one to get restless was the second prince. He and the crown prince fought the most fiercely. The second prince's mother's family was also powerful, and he was rich and had bribed a large number of officials to speak for him.
His influence in the court is comparable to that of the crown prince.
Today, the two of them had another big argument in court about who would be the regent.
The celadon teacup in his hand fell to the ground with a "bang" and broke into pieces.
"What a prince!" The second prince sneered, "When my father was seriously ill, he was not seen serving medicine, but now that he has just recovered, he is eager to come back to show his filial piety!"
The staff member beside him whispered, "Your Highness, when the prince returned to the capital this time, he brought back the tax account books of the three states in the south of the Yangtze River. It is said that..." He hesitated to speak.
"explain!"
"It is said that our people have been found to be involved in the canal transportation."
The prince's eyes suddenly darkened. He walked to the window and looked towards the palace. There, the lights were brightly lit; it was the scene of the Crown Prince entering the palace for an audience.
"Prepare the sedan." He turned suddenly. "I want to see my uncle."
Inside the Minister of War's residence, candles were brightly lit.
"Stupid!" The current Minister of War, the Second Prince's uncle, slammed the table and stood up. "You want to touch the Crown Prince now? Do you think you're going to die?"
The Second Prince smiled. "Uncle, what do you think is the reason why the Crown Prince is in such a hurry to come back?" He drew a circle on the table with his tea. "I've read the pulse records from the Imperial Hospital. Father's illness...isn't that simple."