Travels of a Female Physician in the Ming Dynasty

The Third Prince and I looked at each other for a moment, and the atmosphere in the bedroom became tense.

The secret passage in the palace has been discovered, this is a big deal!

You know, secret passages are not common things in the imperial palace. They are often key tools in power struggles.

Thinking of this, a cold sweat broke out on my back.

The Third Prince clearly realized the seriousness of the situation, his face turning pale. "Lord Yang, what should we do? Could it be that my map has been discovered?"

I patted his shoulder and soothed him, "Don't panic, Third Prince. We can't afford to lose our composure until the truth is revealed. The most important thing right now is to figure out how this secret passage was discovered and who's behind it."

Yuan Bao also came over at this time and asked in a low voice: "Master Yang, should we go and check the situation of the secret passage?"

I originally refused in my heart. After all, it was the middle of the night, who would want to go to the secret passage in the dark?

But then I thought, since this matter involves the third prince, if I don't intervene, if something goes wrong, the responsibility will definitely not fall on others.

"Let's go. I can't sleep tonight anyway, so I might as well go and take a look." I sighed and prayed in my heart that things wouldn't be too complicated.

The three of us tiptoed through the backyard of the palace, bypassed several heavily guarded areas, and finally arrived at the entrance to the secret passage that the third prince mentioned.

The entrance was hidden very secretly, right near the roots of an ancient tree. If it weren't for the third prince leading the way, no one would have found it.

I looked at the dark entrance and felt a little scared.

Ancient secret passages were mostly dark and damp places, and there might be rats or poisonous snakes.

"Master Yang, please go first." Yuanbao said attentively, but there was a hint of gloating in his eyes.

This guy obviously wants me to be the "vanguard officer". I cursed in my heart, but there was nothing I could do. I could only bite the bullet and be the first to go in.

The secret passage was indeed a bit damp, with a musty smell in the air, and even some spider webs could be seen on the surrounding walls.

The Third Prince followed me and whispered, "Master Yang, the other end of the secret passage leads to the Imperial Garden. There are few guards there at night. We can get out from there."

"I hope so." I responded in a low voice, but I always had a bad feeling in my heart.

After walking for about a quarter of an hour, we finally reached the other end of the secret passage.

The Third Prince was right. This place indeed led to a remote corner of the Imperial Garden.

But when I just stepped out of the secret passage, the scene in front of me made me stunned——

In the imperial garden, there were actually several figures gathered together stealthily, seemingly discussing something.

In the faint moonlight, I could vaguely see that they were not wearing the uniforms of palace guards, but the clothes of ordinary people.

"Lord Yang, who are those people?" The third prince also saw it and nervously pulled my sleeve.

I motioned him to be quiet and thought to myself.

These people are obviously not from the palace, so how come they appear in the imperial garden?

Could it be that he came in through the secret passage?

Just as I was about to get closer to listen to what they were saying, a gust of wind suddenly blew by, bringing with it some fragmented conversations:

"...We must be careful this time. Tomorrow is the Queen Mother's birthday, and we can't make any mistakes..."

"Don't worry, the secret passage has been opened. Once our people come in from outside, everything will be successful..."

The Queen Mother's birthday? What kind of action? What on earth are these people trying to do?!

Countless thoughts flashed through my mind in an instant, as if a huge conspiracy was quietly unfolding.

Just as I was about to move closer, I suddenly heard a slight cough behind me.

My heart tightened and I turned around to see that it was Mr. Sun, the third prince's teacher. He had appeared here at some point.

"Mr. Sun?!" The third prince exclaimed in a low voice. Obviously, he did not expect Mr. Sun to appear in such a place.

Mr. Sun gestured for us to be quiet, then walked over quietly and said in a low voice, "Master Yang, Third Prince, please don't panic. Things are not that serious yet."

I frowned, puzzled. "Mr. Sun, why are you here? Do you know who those people are?"

Mr. Sun nodded, his expression solemn. "These people are assassins from outside. They planned to take advantage of the Queen Mother's birthday to sneak into the palace and assassinate her. They originally planned to use the secret passage, but fortunately, I noticed it early and made arrangements in advance."

Hearing this, I felt a little relieved. It seemed that Mr. Sun had known about these people's plans for a long time and had already taken measures.

The Third Prince was still a little nervous: "Then...what should we do now?"

Mr. Sun smiled and patted the Third Prince on the shoulder. "Don't worry, Third Prince. I already know what happened this time. I just came to confirm the situation of the secret passage. As for these assassins, they have already been targeted by the palace guards under my secret orders. They will be captured tomorrow morning."

After hearing this, the stone in my heart finally fell to the ground.

It turns out that the situation was not as bad as we imagined. Mr. Sun had already set up the plan, and we just happened to run into it.

But then again, Mr. Sun is indeed not an ordinary person.

He usually appears to be gentle and courteous, but I never expected that he has so many tricks up his sleeve.

It was already late at night when I returned to the bedroom.

The third prince sat on the chair, a hint of tension still lingering on his face.

He whispered, "Master Yang, do you think I was too reckless? If Mr. Sun hadn't shown up in time, I'm afraid we would have been exposed tonight."

I looked at the third prince and felt a little emotional.

Although he was smart, he was still young after all. Faced with the complicated situation in the palace, he was inevitably at a loss.

"You've done nothing wrong, Third Prince," I said softly. "You're simply curious about the goings-on in the palace, which is not inherently problematic. It's just that the struggles within and beyond the palace are far more complex than you imagine. You must slowly learn how to discern true danger and shoulder your responsibilities in the future."

The Third Prince nodded, his expression still somewhat complicated. "I understand. Lord Yang, I will work hard to grow. In the future, I will definitely be able to protect Mother and this country."

Looking at his serious look, I suddenly felt touched.

Although the third prince is young, he is slowly taking on his responsibilities.

Perhaps one day, he can really become a wise monarch.

Just when I thought that tonight's events could come to an end, suddenly, a palace maid ran over hurriedly, her face pale and her voice trembling: "Oh no! Something happened in the Empress Dowager's bedroom!"

The Third Prince and I looked at each other, and my heart sank.

We just solved the assassin issue, how come something happened again?

"Let's go and take a look first!" I immediately stood up and motioned for the third prince to follow.

Outside the Empress Dowager's chambers, the atmosphere was tense. Guards had already surrounded the chambers, and several imperial physicians were constantly coming in and out, their faces filled with anxious expressions.

"Master Yang, the Third Prince!" A young eunuch rushed over to us, his face panicking. "The Empress Dowager has suddenly fainted, and the imperial physicians are trying to save her."

I frowned and suddenly had a bad feeling.

The Empress Dowager has always been in good health, how could she suddenly faint?

The Third Prince anxiously asked, "What did the Imperial Physician say? What happened to the Empress Dowager?"

The young eunuch shook his head: "We don't know yet. The doctors said they need to conduct further examinations..."

I had a vague feeling that things were not that simple.

The assassin had just been dealt with, but the Queen Mother suddenly fainted. Could there be any connection between them?