Chapter 622: Seeking Medical Treatment, Not Just Asking for Medicine

There were many physicians in the Imperial Medical Academy, but few held official ranks that qualified them as medical officials. Under the dynasty’s system, there was one head of the academy, two deputy heads, and four imperial physicians, each with different ranks; the rest were merely called physicians without any formal rank. Although the current head of the academy was highly skilled in medicine, he was already quite old. As a result, all affairs in the academy were actually handled by Shi Quan and another deputy head. Though there were also reclusive experts among the common people, compared to those noble families whose medical skills had been passed down through generations, he was already at the pinnacle.

With such a high position came great busyness. Aside from the emperor and his favored concubines, Zhu Di also took great care of those nobles who had fought alongside him. Whenever someone fell seriously ill, he would often send imperial physicians to treat them. Add to this the princes and dukes who sought medical help, and Shi Quan hardly had any free time throughout the year, spending most of it traveling far and wide. Previously, due to the serious illness of the King of Shu, he even went to Sichuan, returning just a few months later. These days, he had been attending to Zhu Di day and night, focusing entirely on formulating treatments. His exhaustion was evident in his sunken eyes set deep within his high cheekbones. Now that he finally had some free time, to be cautious, he made sure to have someone thoroughly inspect the herbal medicine store.

To ensure nothing went wrong, taking the emperor’s pulse required great care—usually, several people would watch as one person took the pulse. When selecting medicines, eunuchs would supervise, and all details about the medicine’s properties and treatment methods had to be recorded in official documents. Even boiling the medicines was complicated, requiring one deputy head and two eunuchs to oversee the process, all to prevent any tampering. Despite such precautions, he knew well that dealing with an obstinate emperor made it extremely difficult to ensure a cure.

At that moment, working with him in the herbal medicine store was a middle-aged imperial physician of the eighth rank. After finishing their work under the watchful eyes of two eunuchs, Shi Quan stepped out beside him. Once they passed around the corner, he heard a low voice behind him.

“Sir, can the emperor’s illness really be cured? If… we don’t take action soon, our fate may be dire.”

Any renowned physician aspired to one day join the Imperial Medical Academy, but only those who were there knew what it was like to live in constant fear of losing their heads, especially since Zhu Di was never known for his kindness. But this thought flashed through his mind for only a moment before Shi Quan stopped in his tracks and turned to glare coldly at the man.

“Don’t speak such things again. This is not something you or I can discuss.”

However, seeing the imperial physician bowing his head in silence, he turned away, though his heart was filled with irritation. Zhu Di, who had spent his life in military campaigns and prided himself on his strong physique, was unaware of the severe weakness he suffered. Moreover, spending most of last year fighting outside the Great Wall had exacerbated his existing arthralgia and triggered other illnesses. At his age, he dared not use many strong medicinal herbs. If he could merely rest quietly from now on, it might be manageable, but if he were to engage in further strenuous expeditions, the consequences would be even worse.

Even if the emperor could stay in the palace, such days would likely be few and far between.

The Imperial Medical Academy was located south of the Guanglu Temple, outside the Donghua Gate of the palace complex, consisting of just over a dozen rooms and two courtyards, with no more than thirty people including servants. For convenience in entering and leaving the palace, everyone used the Dong’an Gate, separate from the officials of the civil and military branches. Apart from the officials from the Guanglu Temple and the Eastern Palace, he rarely encountered anyone else. Having finished his tasks in the morning, Shi Quan returned there and, taking advantage of some free time, began sorting through old medical records. As he flipped through them, he suddenly stopped.

The imperial physician Feng Yuanming had secretly taken herbs from the medicine store to make pills. Considering his past efforts in treating the empress and sparing her life, he was spared punishment and removed from the list of officials.

As he reminisced about the past, the door curtain suddenly rustled. Looking up, he saw Liu Yongcheng rushing in with two attendants. Before he could ask anything, Liu Yongcheng hurriedly said, “The legitimate son of the Duke of Ying is ill. The emperor orders you to go and treat him. I have other matters to attend to, so hurry up. Return as soon as you’re done—there might be urgent needs on the emperor’s end.”

Since it was an imperial order, Shi Quan quickly packed his medicine box and, along with a servant, rushed to the Duke of Ying’s residence. Ever since he had cured the Duke of Ying last time, he had not only been promoted but also received additional benefits. After all, the favor of the top military official was not something to be taken lightly. Later, he learned that the Duke of Ying’s legitimate son was weak from birth and had a fragile constitution. He had tried to treat him before, but as he was not skilled in pediatrics, his efforts yielded little results. It was only when he heard that someone had recommended his senior brother and that the young boy had improved through some unknown methods that he was truly astonished.

It should be noted that although Feng Yuanming was scolded by his master for his obsession with alchemy, his medical skills were top-notch. If it weren’t for someone who couldn’t stand him curing the crown prince’s sudden phlegm disorder and using that as an excuse to drive him away, his position would likely have been his. From then on, Feng Yuanming developed a deep hatred for the powerful and elite. Who would have thought he would end up returning to such a prestigious family as the Duke of Yingguo’s household? Yet, with Feng Yuanming around, how could the young master of the Duke of Yingguo’s household’s illness fail to attract the emperor’s attention, leading to him being summoned to treat the patient?

Shi Quan was certainly familiar with the Duke of Yingguo’s household in Qingshui Hutong, but he had been there less frequently in recent years. As soon as he stepped through the gate adorned with golden plum blossom studs, he felt that familiar sense returning. This was the inner courtyard; aside from a few old women, the maids stood neatly in line, and silence reigned everywhere. When he was led to wait in front of the silver-red curtain, he heard faint voices coming from inside. Before he could hear clearly, the curtain was pulled back abruptly.

Stepping over the threshold, he saw a middle-aged woman sitting in the main seat. She wore a golden crown and a long robe of fragrant Lu silk embroidered with twin lotus flowers. Her complexion was rosy, and she had a plump figure, yet her gaze carried an air of authority—she was Lady Wang. Noticing a shadowy figure behind the curtain, he wondered who it could be. The Duke of Yingguo’s eldest daughter was still young, concubines would not appear in such an occasion, and the maids certainly didn’t need to follow strict rules—so who was this person?

As he pondered, he stepped forward to pay his respects. Before he could bow, an old woman came over to help him up, and someone brought over a brocade cushion for him to sit on. Lady Wang had dealt with Shi Quan several times before. After he sat down and they exchanged a few polite words, she sent her nurse to bring her son, Tianci. Though he had appeared extremely thin and frail when he was first brought in, Tianci now seemed only slightly thinner than children of the same age, with a rather rosy complexion. He glanced at Shi Quan with his shiny black eyes, immediately scrunching up his little face.

“Mother, he… he won’t mess with people like Doctor Feng will, right? I want Sister Wu!”
“Your Sister Wu is about to become a bride now; she doesn’t have time to deal with you!” Lady Wang pulled her son over impatiently and sent him to let Shi Quan take his pulse. Then, with a sigh, she said, “This little guy has been scared by Doctor Feng since he was young. Only Sister Wu can calm him down. He’s had night terrors these past few days. I merely mentioned it to the crown princess yesterday afternoon, and it ended up troubling Lord Shi. I’m truly sorry. Please take a look—childhood night terrors are quite frightening after all.”

This night terror disorder is a trouble for adults, but it is quite common in children. Therefore, hearing about this rather than some other complicated illness, Shi Quan naturally felt relieved. After carefully examining the pulse, he thought for a moment before smiling and signaling to the nurse to take the child away. However, to his surprise, Lady Wang sent even the maids away, leaving only a young woman dressed as a housekeeper.

Thinking it was merely the mother’s concern being overheard, he explained carefully, “The young master has a weak constitution; his liver and gallbladder are insufficient, so the liver fails to retain the soul, and the gallbladder lacks decisiveness, making him prone to this disorder. In the future, when the nurse and maids watch over him at night, they should pay close attention and note down exactly when the night terror occurs. If they can figure out the pattern over a few days, they should wake him up before the episode starts. This should show results after a few days.”

Lady Wang had originally only been worried about her son waking up at night due to the terror. Hearing such a simple and effective solution, she was overjoyed and immediately agreed. However, she had called Shi Quan here for a far more important reason than this trivial matter. She first talked about her son’s condition before gradually shifting to other topics: “Back then, it was also the emperor who asked Lord Shi to diagnose my husband’s illness, which shows just how skilled you are as a doctor and how highly trusted you are by the emperor. You must also know that it was Dr. Feng who did the most to keep my family healthy at home. We originally asked him to treat the illness, so it wouldn’t have disturbed you. But he hasn’t been seen for several days, and the room he used to live in seems unoccupied for a long time. That’s why I wanted to ask Lord Shi—do you know if he has anyone else in the capital?”

Unexpectingly, Lady Wang was asking about Feng Yuanming. Shi Quan was stunned for a moment before asking, “He always likes to go gather herbs in person. Could he have gone to some small hill in the suburbs?”

Under normal circumstances, Lady Wang wouldn’t have been so concerned about this, but since those inside said it required careful attention, she certainly couldn’t afford to take it lightly. She shook her head and said, “That’s absolutely impossible. If Dr. Feng were to go out, he would always inform his apprentice, Xiao Wu. But this time he disappeared without even leaving a word—it’s really very suspicious.”

Faced with such anxious tone, Shi Quan grew even more suspicious. Having spent a long time in the palace, even though he usually didn’t interfere in politics or other people’s affairs, he had heard and seen too much. He quickly restrained his wild thoughts, recalled everything carefully, and then said firmly, “He has no relatives or friends in the capital. After cutting off contact with me, he went far away to Shandong. As for whether he has any friends after returning, I don’t know. Madam, please be relieved. I think he will surely return in a few days.”

With such an answer, even though Lady Wang was very disappointed, she knew further questioning would be fruitless. She kept Shi Quan for a while, then ordered Bi Luo to see him out. After that, she stood up, passed through the gauzy curtain, and went to the inner room. As soon as she saw Du Wan, she became impatient.

“He doesn’t even know where he is. There’s nothing we can do now!” Seeing Du Wan’s furrowed brows as well, she couldn’t help but sigh deeply. “I think you’re overthinking it. Maybe he really just went out to gather herbs. It’s not the first time—he often disappears for days. He’s getting older and might have forgotten the date. There’s really no need to worry. Besides, what’s the point of anyone scheming against him?”

Yet Du Wan’s frown never lifted. Yesterday, when Xiao Wu mentioned that Feng Yuanming had disappeared without reason, she went there again and found that most of the clothes in the cabinet were missing. After discussing it with Zhang Yue that night, both of them found the matter strange.

After all, Feng Yuanming loved Xiao Wu very much and would never disappear without a word just before her marriage. If it wasn’t coercion, then there must be another reason—after all, he was Tang Sair’s master!