Travels of a Female Physician in the Ming Dynasty

The news of the secret passage in the cold palace spread throughout the palace like wings.

Before I could fully digest Defei's implication that "this game is not over yet", a new mystery came to the fore.

A secret passage? Leading outside the palace? This is a deadly taboo in the palace!

At this time, the atmosphere in the Imperial Hospital became extremely tense.

"Yang Yuanpan, what on earth is this Consort De doing? If she could leave the palace through the secret passage, why would she deliberately stay near the cold palace? Isn't that just asking for trouble?" Zhu Yuan scratched his head in annoyance as he sorted the herbs. "I'm really getting more and more confused by her!"

I sighed, my heart in a mess.

The actions of Concubine De are indeed puzzling, but I know that since she dares to do this, there must be a deeper purpose behind it.

"Zhu Yuan, some things may seem absurd, but there must be a clue behind them. We have to follow this clue and search slowly to see the overall situation." As I spoke, I looked through the recent records of medicinal materials and thought quickly in my mind.

Zhu Yuan sighed, "You make it sound easy, but this thread is too complicated! Concubine De, secret passages, forces outside the palace... How did our imperial physician get involved with all this? Now I just want to quietly make my medicine and cure my illness."

"I wish I could do that, too." I smiled wryly and shook my head. "Unfortunately, the hearts of people in the palace are much more complicated than the illnesses themselves. Sometimes, our imperial physicians treat more than just physical ailments."

Just as we were discussing this, a young eunuch rushed in. "President Yang, the Emperor has summoned you to the Imperial Study immediately! The secret passage incident has alarmed the Emperor, and he wants you to question him!"

My heart tightened and I immediately stood up: "Zhu Yuan, you continue to investigate the medicinal materials. I will go to see the emperor."

In the imperial study, the emperor's face was so gloomy that water could drip out of it.

"President Yang, have you heard about the secret passage in the cold palace?" The emperor's tone was cold, and he was obviously trying hard to suppress his anger.

I quickly knelt and saluted. "Your Majesty, I have heard of this matter. However, I was not aware of it. The fact of the secret passage is truly incredible, and I am deeply shocked."

The Emperor frowned and remained silent for a moment, a trace of deep thought flashing in his eyes. "What do you think of Concubine De's situation? Why did she appear near the cold palace? Coupled with this secret passage, I cannot help but suspect that she is colluding with forces outside the palace."

I was thinking quickly about how to deal with this. I couldn't let the emperor think that the Imperial Hospital was involved in this matter, nor could I let Concubine De take all the blame. After all, there were unpredictable forces hidden behind her.

"Your Majesty, I dare to speculate that Concubine De's behavior is indeed strange. She may be using secret passages to communicate with the outside world. However, Concubine De has limited manpower around her. If she is really colluding with people outside the palace, I am afraid there are other forces behind the scenes manipulating it." I said cautiously, trying not to say anything final.

The Emperor nodded slightly, his expression still grim. "You are right. Although Concubine De is scheming, she alone is not enough to complete such a complex scheme. I suspect there are undercurrents surging within the palace, and Concubine De is just the tip of the iceberg."

I lowered my head and said nothing, but secretly sighed in my heart: The emperor is indeed meticulous and has already noticed the conspiracy behind this.

However, even the emperor himself may not fully understand how deep the water in this palace is.

"President Yang, I order you to continue to secretly investigate whether the Imperial Hospital and Concubine De have any other connections. If there is anything suspicious, you must report it immediately." The emperor's tone left no room for doubt.

I immediately saluted: "I obey your order."

When I came out of the imperial study, I felt much heavier in my heart.

"Who is the power behind Concubine De?" I thought as I walked, feeling a little uneasy.

The discovery of the secret passage has made the situation even more complicated. Although the emperor did not say it explicitly, I can feel that his trust in the entire harem is gradually eroding.

Just as I was about to return to the Imperial Hospital to continue my investigation, a familiar figure blocked my way.

"President Yang." The voice was low and calm. It was Eunuch Fu.

My heart tightened. Eunuch Fu was the emperor's senior eunuch and a famous right-hand man in the palace.

It must not be a good thing that he came to me suddenly.

"What advice do you have, Eunuch Fu?" I bowed and tried to remain calm.

Eunuch Fu smiled faintly, but his eyes held no warmth. "The Emperor has asked me to pass on a message. You need to pay more attention to Concubine De's affairs. The palace has been very tense lately, and the Emperor hopes that the Imperial Hospital will not be involved in unnecessary trouble."

I was startled. Although Eunuch Fu's words seemed to be understated, they revealed a strong warning.

The emperor has obviously become suspicious of Concubine De's affairs, and the Imperial Medical Bureau, as an important part of the palace, is inevitably involved.

"Please rest assured, Eunuch Fu, I will investigate thoroughly and will never let the Imperial Hospital be involved." I answered respectfully, but I was quickly thinking about the next countermeasures in my mind.

Eunuch Fu glanced at me with a half-smile, turned and left, leaving me standing there with a bad feeling in my heart.

After returning to the Imperial Hospital, Zhu Yuan came up to him with a nervous look on his face.

"President Yang, you're back! I just checked the records of medicinal materials coming in and out, and indeed found a problem!" He said mysteriously, with a bit of pride on his face.

I raised my eyebrows. "Oh? What's the problem?"

Zhu Yuan pulled out a thick account book and pointed to a page. "Look," he said, "among the herbs that Concubine De recently imported, there's one called 'Snow Lotus,' and it came from the border region. This herb is extremely rare and we don't normally use it in the palace."

"Snow Lotus?" I frowned. "Although this thing is valuable, it's not some miracle drug. Why would Concubine De specially bring it from the border?"

Zhu Yuan shook his head. "I don't know either. But I checked the records, and the time this batch of herbs was transferred in almost coincided with the time when Concubine De's condition worsened! Moreover, this batch of herbs was transferred in through a eunuch serving in the outer palace, and his identity and origin are relatively vague."

My heart suddenly tightened. "Eunuchs serving in the outer palace? Could it be that there really is a force outside the palace manipulating this?"

Zhu Yuan nodded: "It seems that Concubine De doesn't just rely on secret passages, she has even greater supporters behind her."

I sighed. "This is troublesome. Concubine De's power is more complicated than we imagined. The things involved behind the scenes are probably far more than the struggles in the harem."

While we were discussing, an unexpected person suddenly broke in.

"President Yang, are you there?" Xiao Xing ran in hurriedly, looking a little panicked.

"Did Empress Shufei ask you to come?" I asked hurriedly. My intuition told me that something was wrong.

Xiao Xing nodded and said breathlessly, "Yes, Judge Yang, the Third Prince has suddenly had a fever again! The Empress was very worried and asked me to come to you immediately!"

My heart sank. The Third Prince had just recovered, so why was he feverish again? This wasn't just a relapse; there had to be something fishy going on!

"Let's go! Take the medicine box and go to the third prince's bedroom!" I immediately took Zhu Yuan to the bedroom of Concubine Shu, but I had a feeling in my heart that this matter might not be that simple.

When I arrived at the Third Prince's bedroom, I saw Concubine Shu standing by the bed with an anxious look on her face.

The third prince's face was flushed and his breathing was rapid, obviously his high fever had relapsed.

When Concubine Shu saw me come in, she immediately stood up and said in a trembling voice, "Yang Yuanpan, please save my child! He just recovered, how could he suddenly have a fever again?"

I hurried forward to take the Third Prince's pulse, quickly analyzing his symptoms in my mind.

The pulse was floating and rapid, exactly the same as last time, but this time the condition was more serious and came on more quickly.

"Empress Shufei, the Third Prince's condition this time is the same as last time. It should be a high fever caused by an external cold. But the strange thing is that the Third Prince is not weak. Logically, he should not have a fever repeatedly." I frowned and said, with some doubts in my heart.

Concubine Shu's face turned pale, her eyes filled with anxiety. "Yang Yuanpan, you must save him! He is my only child, I can't lose him!"

I nodded, immediately wrote out a new prescription, and asked Zhu Yuan to decoct the medicine.

At the same time, I continued to cool down the Third Prince, but I was secretly thinking in my heart: This illness is definitely not simple, and the Third Prince's fever is likely to be man-made.

After the medicine was boiled, I asked the palace maids to feed it to the third prince and wait for his high fever to subside.

Empress Shufei sat by the bed, holding the Third Prince's hand tightly, her face full of anxiety.

I looked at her expression, and a complex emotion suddenly surged in my heart: Although Concubine Shu is in the harem, her love for the Third Prince is sincere, and she is completely different from other concubines who only care about power and status.

"President Yang, the Third Prince...will he be okay?" Concubine Shu's voice trembled, tears glistening in her eyes.

"Don't worry, Your Majesty. The Third Prince's condition has temporarily stabilized. As long as he takes his medicine on time, he shouldn't be in any serious trouble." I comforted him, but I still felt uneasy in my heart.

Just when we thought things were over for the time being, there was a sudden commotion outside.

A young eunuch rushed in, his face horrified, "Yang Yuanpan! This is bad! Something happened in the cold palace again!"

"Another incident?" My brows jumped. "What is it this time?"

The young eunuch gasped and said, "Several bodies were found in the secret passage of the cold palace!"