Travels of a Female Physician in the Ming Dynasty

"She wants to kill me..."

The Third Prince's weak voice came from my ears. Although it was as light as a feather, every word was like a heavy hammer, hitting my heart.

She? Is she the Empress Defei?

My heart trembled, and my mind was racing.

The poisoning of the Third Prince was already unbelievable enough, and now he said it himself, "She wants to kill me." Things are obviously more complicated than I thought.

Could it be that Concubine De really wanted to kill her own son?

Zhu Yuan stood aside, clearly terrified, his lips trembling. "Third Prince... who are you talking about? Could it really be Consort De? This is too terrifying!"

Ignoring Zhu Yuan's ramblings, I quickly approached the Third Prince and asked softly, "Third Prince, could you please explain more clearly? Who is 'she'?"

The third prince took a few weak breaths, his eyelids felt as heavy as if they weighed a thousand pounds, and he seemed to have no strength to speak anymore.

I suddenly felt helpless. The key information was just missing one sentence, but the connection was cut off at the most critical moment.

"President Yang, the Third Prince...can he be saved?" the butler asked anxiously, with a hint of pleading in his eyes.

I took a deep breath, reached out to continue taking his pulse, and after a moment I breathed a sigh of relief: "Fortunately, although the poison has taken effect, it is not fatal.

It's just that... the poison seems to have changed, and the antidote's effect has been suppressed."

"This... How is this possible?" The butler's eyes widened. "Hasn't the antidote already started to take effect? ​​How could it suddenly be suppressed?"

I frowned, feeling somewhat confused.

Logically speaking, the antidote was prepared by me personally, so there should be no problem.

Unless...someone is doing something secretly.

"Who has the third prince been in contact with recently?" I asked.

The housekeeper scratched his head and recalled: "Apart from the maids and guards, recently... Her Majesty the Virtuous Consort has come a few times."

It really is Concubine De! I sneered in my heart. It seems that what the Third Prince said just now was not groundless.

Empress Defei did act in secret, but the poison she used was so subtle that even I didn't notice it for a while.

But...why did she poison her own son?

This is what I have never been able to figure out.

Although the Third Prince is sickly and weak, he is still her blood after all. Does she have any bigger plans?

"President Yang, what should we do next?" Zhu Yuan pulled my sleeve, a hint of panic in his voice.

"What else can we do?" I glared at him angrily. "Of course, we have to save him first. The Third Prince can't die yet."

"Right, right, right, save the people first!" Zhu Yuan nodded quickly, patting his chest and saying, "President Yang, I believe in you! You can do it!"

I didn't have time to deal with his nonsense, my mind was racing.

The most urgent task at the moment is to find out what kind of poison Concubine De used so that we can prescribe the right medicine.

I returned to the Imperial Hospital and buried myself in sorting out prescriptions. I almost pulled my hair out.

"Empress Defei's poison..." I muttered to myself. A thick stack of medical books was spread out on the table, all of which recorded various strange poisons.

Zhu Yuan stood aside, sweating profusely as he read. "President Yang, there are so many books, are you going to read them all?"

"Nonsense!" I rolled my eyes. "I'm not a god, so of course I have to search page by page for clues."

Zhu Yuan nodded. Although he didn't say anything else, his expression clearly said, "Judge Yang, you've worked so hard."

He tiptoed over to the side and brought me a cup of tea, saying in a flattering tone, "Why don't you take a break first? Have some tea to moisten your throat?"

I took the teacup and was about to drink it when suddenly an idea flashed in my mind. I put the cup down and slammed the table: "I know!"

Zhu Yuan was startled, and the teacup almost flew out: "You...you know what?"

"The Empress Defei poisoned me!" I stood up excitedly, my mind quickly piecing together a picture. "The poison she used wasn't some rare and deadly poison, but something called 'Zhenyu Powder'!"

"Zhen Yu San?" Zhu Yuan blinked his eyes, obviously he had never heard of this thing.

I nodded, a hint of pride in my tone. "Zhenyu Powder is an ancient poison. It's mild and won't be immediately fatal, but it has a terrifying characteristic—it can blend with other poisons, enhancing the potency of the original poison. It was this poison that Concubine De gave the Third Prince. It was because of its presence that my previous antidote was ineffective!"

Zhu Yuan suddenly realized: "No wonder the Third Prince's poison became more severe after taking the antidote!"

"That's right," I said, searching for herbs in the medicine cabinet. "I need to prepare a new antidote now to neutralize the toxicity of the Zunyu Powder. Only then can the original antidote take effect."

After working all night, I finally made a new antidote.

I carried the medicine box and took Zhu Yuan with me and hurried to the Third Prince's Mansion.

As soon as the butler saw us coming, he immediately came forward, his face filled with anxiety, "President Yang, the Third Prince's condition is becoming increasingly critical. The imperial physicians say he won't be able to hold on any longer!"

"Don't worry, I brought a new antidote." I said in a deep voice and walked quickly to the bedside of the third prince.

At this time, the third prince's face was pale, his breathing was weak, and he was in a semi-comatose state.

I quickly took out the antidote and carefully fed it to him.

"Slow down, slow down..." As I fed him the medicine, I kept a close eye on his reaction and prayed silently in my heart: Don't let anything go wrong again.

Time seemed to be stretched countless times, and the room was dead silent. Everyone held their breath and stared nervously at the third prince on the bed.

A moment later, a miracle happened!

The Third Prince's originally pale face gradually regained a hint of redness, and his breathing became steady.

His eyelids trembled slightly, and then he slowly opened his eyes.

"Great! The third prince has woken up!" The butler was so excited that he almost knelt down.

I heaved a sigh of relief, finally feeling at ease. This time, I'd finally pulled the Third Prince back from the brink of death.

The Third Prince raised his hand weakly and said softly, "Thank you...Yang Yuanpan..."

His voice was faint, but it warmed my heart. This was a prince, and he actually thanked me personally. Even if it was just a few words, it meant so much.

"Your Highness, you're welcome." I smiled faintly. "It's my duty to save you."

The third prince nodded, with a hint of complex emotion in his eyes, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he just sighed, closed his eyes and continued to rest.

After leaving the Third Prince's Mansion, I felt a little complicated.

Although the third prince's life was temporarily saved, the shadow of Concubine De still loomed over this struggle.

What was she planning? Why did she poison her own son? The truth behind this is probably far more complicated than I imagined.

"President Yang, what should we do next?" Zhu Yuan asked cautiously.

"What's next?" I rubbed my brow and sighed. "Next... of course, we need to find out the true purpose of Concubine De."

Zhu Yuan had a bitter look on his face: "This Empress Defei's mind is unfathomable. If we want to deal with her, isn't it like hitting a rock with an egg?"

"Don't be so pessimistic." I patted his shoulder. "Don't we still have the Third Prince? As long as he's on our side, no matter how powerful Concubine De is, she may not be able to cover everything with one hand."

"That's right." Zhu Yuan nodded, a glimmer of hope in his eyes.

Just as we were about to return to the Imperial Hospital, we suddenly heard hurried footsteps behind us.

Looking back, I saw the third prince's personal guard running towards me, panting, his face full of anxiety.

"Yang Yuanpan! Yang Yuanpan! Concubine De is calling you into the palace!"