Travels of a Female Physician in the Ming Dynasty

In Concubine De's bedroom, the air seemed to be frozen.

A thin layer of sweat appeared on my forehead. My mind was rapidly turning over countermeasures, but I had to maintain a calm smile on the surface.

"Your Majesty, are you saying... someone is secretly investigating the Third Prince's condition?" I feigned surprise, pretending to be innocent. "This is extremely disrespectful! I wonder which blind imperial physician dared to doubt Your Majesty's good intentions?"

Consort De's eyes remained icy, but the corners of her mouth curled up slightly, clearly not intending to be fooled by my acting. "Yang Yuanpan, I know you're a smart person. The Third Prince's affairs concern the future of the imperial family. I'm deeply grateful for your hard work and concern for his condition these days."

I quickly lowered my head humbly and said, "Your Majesty, I am only doing my duty."

At this moment, Consort De sighed softly, her tone suddenly softening. "Actually, I know the Third Prince hasn't been in good health. I've put so much thought into his recovery, and I wonder which villain actually doubted my intentions."

Although her voice was gentle, every word seemed to be stinging, as if hinting at something.

I felt a chill in my heart. It was clear that his words were an attack on me!

Empress Defei already knows that I am investigating her, and she is now testing me to see if I will reveal my true identity.

"Your Majesty, the Third Prince is truly blessed to have a mother like you." I continued, bracing myself. "As the Imperial Physician, I will naturally give my all and will never allow any villain to smear Your Majesty's good intentions."

Concubine De stared at me for a moment, then suddenly laughed: "Court Judge Yang is indeed a wonderful man, he really knows how to talk."

Her smile gave me chills, and I secretly groaned in my heart, thinking that this lady was indeed not easy to deal with.

She was obviously suspicious of me, but she had no solid evidence, so she was testing my attitude.

"Yang Yuanpan." Empress Defei suddenly stood up and slowly walked in front of me, looking down at me with a cold glint in her eyes. "I heard something recently and I'm a little curious."

My heart tightened: "Your Majesty, please explain clearly."

"Some people are saying...some people in the Imperial Hospital have recently been critical of my prescriptions, even suspecting there's something wrong with the medicine I gave the Third Prince." Her voice was slow and cold, and every word seemed to hammer at my heart. "Counselor Yang, what do you think?"

Here comes the real topic of the test!

My heart skipped a beat, but I maintained a smile. "Your Majesty, I dare not speculate about your prescription. I believe that Your Majesty is taking such careful care of the Third Prince for his recovery. As for those idle rumors, I believe they are nothing more than the nonsense of ignorant people."

Empress Defei stared at me, her eyes seeming to see through my soul.

I suppressed my panic and tried my best to stay calm.

"Yang Yuanpan is indeed clever." Empress Defei suddenly chuckled, turned back to the main seat, and waved her hand, "I was just asking casually, you don't have to worry too much."

I secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that I had finally passed this level.

"However," Empress Defei suddenly changed the subject, a faint smile on her face, "I still hope that you can continue to devote yourself to the Third Prince and not let those unnecessary rumors affect your judgment."

I quickly bowed and said, "I will do my best to live up to your trust."

Consort De nodded slightly, her eyes still filled with deep meaning: "Okay. Judge Yang, you may leave now."

Although I was still nervous, I knew that saying anything more would only make her more suspicious, so I quickly said goodbye and left.

After walking out of Concubine De's bedroom, my head was still buzzing.

She had obviously begun to suspect me and might even have known that I was investigating her.

The situation is very dangerous now. If there is any more trouble, she will definitely get rid of me without hesitation.

"President Yang, are you okay?" Zhu Yuan had been waiting outside the palace for a long time. When he saw me come out, he immediately came up to me with a face full of concern.

I rubbed my temples and sighed. "It's okay for now, but Concubine De has begun to doubt us. From now on, we have to be more careful with every step we take."

Zhu Yuan's face turned pale. "Then what should we do? Or...or should we take sick leave?"

I glared at him. "Is asking for leave the only thing on your mind? Can asking for leave solve the problem? Do you think Concubine De will let us go?"

Zhu Yuan shrank his neck and muttered softly, "Then...then should we just continue to do this and wait?"

I sighed and patted his shoulder. "No, we can't just wait and die. We must gather evidence faster and expose Concubine De's conspiracy. Otherwise, we'll be dragged into it sooner or later."

Zhu Yuan nodded. Although he still looked terrified, he obviously realized the seriousness of the matter.

After returning to the Imperial Medical Service, I immediately began to organize the prescriptions provided by Doctor Li.

Many of the herbs in these prescriptions are not common tonic ingredients, especially those that are highly toxic, which are obviously the key for Concubine De to control the Third Prince's illness.

But these prescriptions alone may not be enough to convince the emperor.

Empress Defei has enormous power. If you want to bring her down, you must have more solid evidence.

Just as I was pondering and flipping through the prescription, Zhu Yuan suddenly rushed in from outside, looking panicked: "Yang Yuanpan, this is bad! Doctor Li is in trouble!"

My heart sank. “What happened?”

Zhu Yuan gasped and said, "Someone just found Doctor Li collapsed in his room. It seems...it seems that he was poisoned!"

My head buzzed and my whole body froze.

Doctor Li was poisoned? What happened? Could it be that... Concubine De had already taken action?

I stood up immediately: "Quick! Take me to see it!"

The residence of Doctor Li.

When I arrived, Doctor Li had already been carried to the bed. He was dying, his face was blue and purple, and it was obvious that he had been poisoned.

"Doctor Li!" I hurried forward to check his pulse. Sure enough, his pulse was disordered and his breath was weak.

This is a typical poisoning reaction, and it is highly toxic!

"How could this happen?" I gritted my teeth, feeling confused. Doctor Li must know too much, and Concubine De must have sent someone to poison him in order to silence him.

"President Yang, can Doctor Li still be saved?" Zhu Yuan asked cautiously from the side.

I took a deep breath and forced myself to calm down: "There's still a glimmer of hope. I need to use medicine immediately!"

I quickly took out the detoxifying herbs from the medicine box and began to treat Doctor Li.

At the same time, my mind was racing with my next move.

Empress Defei has begun to eliminate those who know the truth, which means that her conspiracy is about to be exposed, and she will not give us much time.

If Doctor Li dies, our clue will be lost.

We must act quickly to expose Concubine De's conspiracy, otherwise, I might be the next to fall.

After emergency treatment, Doctor Li's breathing gradually stabilized, but he was still unconscious.

I wiped the sweat from my forehead and breathed a sigh of relief: "He's stable for now, but he still needs time to recover."

Zhu Yuan breathed a sigh of relief: "It's okay, it's okay, I was almost scared to death."

I sat aside and pondered for a moment before saying, "Zhu Yuan, we have to be more careful from now on. Concubine De has already taken action, and the situation is more serious than we imagined."

Zhu Yuan nodded. "President Yang, I understand. What should we do next?"

I stood up, my eyes determined. "We can't wait any longer. Concubine De's conspiracy must be exposed as soon as possible, otherwise we will all be in danger."

Zhu Yuan was stunned for a moment: "But...but we haven't found any conclusive evidence yet."

I took a deep breath. "The evidence isn't far away. Imperial Physician Li's poisoning indicates that Concubine De is beginning to panic. As long as we find the person she sent to poison us, we can expose her true colors."

Zhu Yuan's eyes widened and he asked in surprise, "Then where can we find the person who poisoned us?"

"Start with the people around her," I said calmly. "It's impossible for Empress Defei's people to be completely flawless. We have to keep a close eye on her maids and eunuchs, especially those who have been coming in and out frequently recently."

Zhu Yuan nodded, a hint of determination finally showing on his face: "Okay, Judge Yang, I will immediately arrange for someone to keep a close eye on her palace."

As night fell, the lights of the Imperial Hospital swayed slightly in the wind.

I stood in front of the window, but I didn't feel relaxed at all.

The conspiracy of Concubine De has reached a critical moment. If we are not careful, we will be in an irretrievable situation.

"I hope everything goes well." I whispered to myself with a determined look.