Travels of a Female Physician in the Ming Dynasty

The atmosphere in the Imperial Hospital is always busy and a little tense.

I sat at the desk, holding a prescription in my hand, but my mind had already flown outside the palace.

Empress Defei's conspiracy is far from over, and the clues provided by Imperial Physician Li after he woke up made me feel that this palace struggle might be more complicated than I had previously imagined.

"Empress Defei doesn't just want to control the Third Prince's illness...she is planning a bigger game." I whispered to myself.

"President Yang, what are you talking about?" Zhu Yuan suddenly poked his head in from the door, holding a large plate in his hands, with a grain of rice still left at the corner of his mouth.

As soon as I saw it, I covered my face and sighed, "Zhu Yuan, are you stealing food from the imperial kitchen?"

"Hehe, Judge Yang, don't worry! I just passed by the imperial kitchen and saw that they made a few extra servings, so I... took some with me." Zhu Yuan put the plate on the table while speaking, with the words "I am innocent" written all over his face.

I shook my head helplessly, always feeling that this guy's honesty and cleverness were proportional.

But his heartlessness has become a bright spot in my busy life.

"Alright, go ahead and eat." I waved my hand, motioning him to sit down. "But you have to be careful. The atmosphere in the palace has been a little off lately, especially in the imperial kitchen. Don't eat anything you want."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuan's eyes widened and he almost spit out the food in his mouth: "You're right! I almost forgot about the poisonous cook... Could I be poisoned too?"

I couldn't help but laugh out loud: "If you were really poisoned, you would have been lying down long ago."

Zhu Yuan touched his round belly and looked relaxed: "That's right! With my physique, I guess the poison will have to stay away from me!"

Zhu Yuan's words made me feel a little relieved, but on second thought, Concubine De's secret plan should not be underestimated.

I have to find out what she is planning behind this as soon as possible.

In the afternoon, I returned to my room, still thinking about what Doctor Li had revealed.

"The Empress Defei is very close to some ministers in the court..." I muttered to myself, and suddenly an idea flashed on my mind. "Could it be that she is not only making arrangements in the palace, but also cultivating power in the court?"

If this is true, then her target is definitely not just the Third Prince.

Could she be planning a greater power transition, or even... seizing the throne?

As I was thinking, there was a sudden knock on the door.

"President Yang, open the door quickly! Something terrible has happened!" Zhu Yuan's voice was filled with obvious panic.

My heart tightened and I quickly got up and opened the door.

Zhu Yuan stood at the door, breathless, his face filled with anxiety. "Something happened! Doctor Li... Doctor Li, he's missing!"

"What?!" I was shocked. "Isn't Doctor Li still recovering from his injuries? How could he suddenly disappear?"

"I don't know either!" Zhu Yuan grabbed his hair, spinning around anxiously. "I just went to visit him, and he was gone! Even the bedding on the bed was still warm! He must have been taken away just now!"

Things suddenly became difficult.

Doctor Li knows many secrets of Concubine De. If he falls into Concubine De's hands, his life will be in danger.

And if it was done by other forces in the palace, it means that there is an undercurrent brewing in the palace.

"We have to find him quickly." I made a quick decision. "Zhu Yuan, you go to the gate of the Imperial Hospital and guard it immediately to see if there are any suspicious people coming in or out. I will go to a few reliable eunuchs in the palace to inquire about the news."

Zhu Yuan nodded rapidly and immediately ran out in a hurry.

I walked quickly towards the Imperial Garden, my mind racing as I searched for clues.

Doctor Li disappeared so suddenly, it was obvious that someone didn't want him to live anymore.

Combined with the information previously revealed by Imperial Physician Li, it is very likely that Concubine De has already noticed that we are secretly investigating her, so she decided to take action in advance.

"But she's too impatient..." I frowned, feeling a little confused. Logically, Concubine De shouldn't be so eager for quick success. Could she be under some pressure?

Just as I was thinking about it, suddenly, I heard a quarrel in front of me.

I looked up and saw several guards in front of me surrounding a young eunuch and scolding him. The young eunuch knelt on the ground with a look of grievance on his face, kowtowing repeatedly: "My lords, please spare me! I know nothing!"

My heart moved and I hurried over: "What's going on?"

The leading guard saw me and immediately bowed. "Yang Yuanpan, this young eunuch has been sneaking around the Imperial Garden. We suspect he might be involved in the disappearance of Imperial Doctor Li."

My eyes fixed on the young eunuch. "Which palace are you from? Why are you sneaking around here?"

The young eunuch raised his head, and when he saw me, a trace of panic flashed in his eyes. He quickly knelt down and kowtowed, "To answer the question, Yang Yuanpan, I am a servant in the imperial kitchen. I was just passing by and I definitely didn't do anything wrong!"

"The Imperial Kitchen?" I frowned. "If you work in the Imperial Kitchen, why are you in the Imperial Garden?"

The young eunuch was suddenly speechless, and the sweat on his forehead flowed down his cheeks.

I already had some idea in my mind. It seemed that this little eunuch knew something.

"Take him back and interrogate him thoroughly," I said to the guard. "He must know something."

The guards immediately took the young eunuch away, and I continued to rush towards the Imperial Hospital.

Things are becoming more and more complicated. The disappearance of Doctor Li is by no means accidental, and the appearance of this little eunuch is probably not a coincidence either.

At night, I returned to my room, thinking about the clues from the day while waiting for news from Zhu Yuan.

After a while, Zhu Yuan hurried back, his face full of excitement: "President Yang, we found a clue!"

"Hurry up and tell me!" I asked quickly.

Zhu Yuan took a few breaths and lowered his voice to say, "I was guarding the gate of the Imperial Hospital just now, and I saw two palace maids hurriedly leaving the palace, acting stealthily. I followed them and found that they finally entered the bedroom of Concubine De!"

My eyes lit up. "It really is Consort De! She must be afraid that Imperial Doctor Li will reveal more secrets, so she sent someone to capture him!"

Zhu Yuan nodded: "That's right! We have to find a way to rescue Doctor Li quickly, otherwise he might not survive tonight!"

I was thinking quickly in my mind, "The Empress Defei has clearly made every possible preparation. Saving someone from her clutches will be no easy task. But Imperial Physician Li holds the key evidence to bring her down. I absolutely cannot let her succeed."

"Zhu Yuan, we have to take a risk tonight." I said in a deep voice, "Go and prepare some disguises. We have to sneak into the Empress Defei's bedroom and act at night."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yuan's expression suddenly changed. "Yang Yuanpan, are we going to sneak into Concubine De's bedroom? This could cost us our lives!"

I smiled and said, "It's a matter of losing our heads, but if we don't do it, our heads might fall off even faster."

Zhu Yuan gritted his teeth and nodded heavily: "Okay! I'll go prepare things!"

As the night deepened, the entire palace was shrouded in silence.

Zhu Yuan and I, dressed in eunuchs' clothes, quietly sneaked into the vicinity of Concubine De's bedroom.

There are obviously a lot more guards around than usual. It seems that Concubine De is indeed doing something shameful.

"President Yang, are we really going in?" Zhu Yuan was so nervous that he was sweating.

"Don't worry, just follow me." I lowered my voice and tried to appear calm, even though my heart was beating fast.

After all, this was my first time sneaking into someone else's bedroom, and the other party was a dangerous person like Concubine De.

We bypassed several guards and finally arrived at a side door at the back of the palace.

I was just about to push the door open when I heard low voices of conversation coming from inside.

"Your Majesty, Doctor Li has fallen into a coma. What should we do next?"

"For now, let's keep him alive. I still have use for him. When the time is right, let him die of illness."

It’s the voice of Concubine De!

Zhu Yuan and I looked at each other and felt a chill in our hearts: It seems that Doctor Li is still alive, but his condition is critical.