Travels of a Female Physician in the Ming Dynasty

Ever since the last “health lecture” I gave to the ladies, my “Ren Xin Tang” has become more and more famous.

There was a constant stream of people coming to seek medical treatment, and the apprentices were kept very busy.

But this is also good. Being busy means that I am valuable, and I quite enjoy this collision of "modern medicine + ancient patients".

But just when I thought I had it under control, a "strange thing" broke the peace.

That evening, just as Renxin Hall was about to close, a young man in ornate clothes stumbled in, followed by two servants. His face was pale, sweat dripping from his forehead, and he seemed to be in great pain.

I hurried forward to support him, "Sir, what's wrong with you?"

He gasped weakly: "I... chest tightness, shortness of breath, dizziness... Quick, help me..."

My heart tightened, and I quickly asked him to sit down and prepared to take his pulse. As soon as I put my hand on him, I realized something was wrong: This pulse... why is it so weak?

——The weakness he felt was not like that of a sick patient, but rather...how should I put it, it seemed like he was "pretending to be weak".

It's strange. This young man doesn't look like he's seriously ill, so why is his pulse so weak?

I was a little confused, but I remained calm on the surface. After all, as a doctor, I have to be knowledgeable.

While trying to calm the man down, I secretly observed him: although his face was pale, his eyes flickered from time to time, which seemed a little unnatural.

Could it be that... this young master is feigning illness? But what is his purpose in feigning illness?

Seeing that he was about to faint in front of me, I decided to give it a try.

"Sir, your condition is serious. I'm afraid you need acupuncture to clear your meridians."

Sure enough, just as he finished speaking, the "dying" young man suddenly opened his eyes and waved his hands quickly: "Acupuncture? No... forget it, I... I'm not that seriously ill."

I laughed secretly: It turns out that he is pretending.

But pretending to be sick is no small matter, especially for a young man from an aristocratic family. He wouldn't come to me to "act" without a purpose.

So, I said calmly, "Sir, if you think the problem is not serious, then why are you so distressed?"

I pretended to be serious, with a hint of teasing in my eyes. When the gentleman heard this, his face suddenly turned pale and he coughed twice to cover up his embarrassment.

"Well, actually, I..." He seemed a little hesitant, his eyes wandering between me and the servant outside the door. Finally, he sighed, as if he had made a great decision, and forced a haggard smile, "Miss Yang, this is a long story. I... I'm not here to treat illness."

I was shocked: If you're not here to get treatment, then why are you here?

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes and maintained a compassionate expression: "The young master looks so weak, is it because..."

He lowered his head, hesitated for a moment, and finally whispered: "Actually, I'm here to avoid marriage."

"What?" I almost dropped my jaw. "Hiding from marriage?!"

"Shh—" He quickly made a gesture to silence the voice, his face full of anxiety, "Keep your voice down! This can't be spread out."

I withdrew my shocked expression and sighed silently inwardly: How could it be so popular among young men in ancient times to avoid marriage? This plot is so melodramatic.

Under my questioning, the "patient" finally told me the whole story in detail.

It turned out that this young man's surname was Li, and he was the only son of a powerful official in Yingtian Prefecture.

Some time ago, his father arranged a marriage for him with the daughter of a minister in the court.

Logically speaking, this kind of marriage between people of equal social status should be a happy event.

But Mr. Li was unwilling to do so. "I heard that the daughter has a hot temper and a fiery nature. How could I dare to marry her? It would be like jumping into a fire pit!"

I almost laughed out loud after hearing this: "So you're pretending to be sick to use this opportunity to cancel the marriage?"

Young Master Li nodded and lowered his head in shame: "I originally wanted to get sicker so that my father would not force me to get married."

I held my forehead in my hand: What kind of train of thought is this? The nobles of ancient times really were... quite thoughtful.

"Then why did you come to me pretending to be sick? There are so many doctors in your house, can't any one of them give you a fake diagnosis?" I asked curiously.

Master Li sighed, "The doctors in the mansion have long been bribed by my father, so how could they dare to help me? I heard that Miss Yang is an excellent doctor and never shows favoritism, so I came here to try my luck."

I was at a loss for words: Am I being treated as the "messenger of justice in the medical field"?

Just when I was thinking about how to deal with this "young man who is avoiding marriage", I suddenly heard hurried footsteps outside the door.

Then, a middle-aged man in gorgeous official robes rushed in aggressively.

When Master Li saw that man, his face turned pale and he stood up immediately: "Dad, you...why are you here?"

It’s over, now the big show is about to begin.

The man was obviously Mr. Li's father. His beard stood on end with rage. "You unfilial son! How dare you run here and feign illness to escape your marriage?! I'll break your legs!"

Young Master Li was so frightened that he stepped back repeatedly: "Dad, please listen to my explanation. I... I really don't want to marry that hot-tempered young lady!"

I stood by, watching as the father and son were about to engage in a domestic violence scene, and quickly tried to smooth things over: "Mr. Li, calm down. Let's talk it over. Hitting people won't solve the problem."

Master Li glared at me, but obviously knowing that I was Yang Shiqi's daughter, he didn't dare to get angry with me. He turned around and continued to roar at Master Li: "Don't you want to live? This marriage was granted by the emperor, how dare you disobey his order?!"

When I heard this, my heart skipped a beat: This marriage was actually granted by the Emperor? No wonder this guy was so scared that he was looking for places to pretend to be sick.

Young Master Li was obviously frightened by the word "disobeying the imperial order" and hurriedly explained: "Dad, I...I'm not disobeying the imperial order, I just feel that...that fiancée may not be suitable for me..."

Master Li snorted coldly, "Not suitable? The emperor has granted me a marriage, and you say it's not suitable? Do you think this is like choosing melons when buying vegetables?"

I sighed inwardly: The conversation between the father and son is quite modern. It seems that "freedom of marriage" is really a luxury in this era.

Seeing that Master Li was about to be scolded by his father and was humiliated, I knew in my heart that if the stalemate continued, this kid's marriage would definitely not be postponed.

So, I had an idea and decided to use a little trick.

"Ahem, Mr. Li, please be patient. Let me examine the young master again to see if he is 'faking illness'." I said mysteriously.

Mr. Li was stunned: "Do you have a solution?"

I nodded. "Of course, if you are truly ill, I will diagnose and treat you. If you are faking it, I can naturally tell."

Mr. Li's face turned pale immediately, and he looked at me with horror, as if to say, "Miss Yang, you are not really going to sell me out, are you?"

I winked at him: "Don't worry, I know my limits."

So, I took out a silver needle and began to gently prick Mr. Li's wrist a few times. Then I took his pulse and finally said solemnly, "Mr. Li, your illness is indeed not fake."

When Master Li heard this, his expression suddenly brightened, but he still asked suspiciously, "So what disease does he have?"

I sighed and said in a solemn tone, "Young Master, this is a typical case of 'heart disease'. To put it bluntly, it's caused by depression and long-term repression. If you force him to do something he doesn't want to do, I'm afraid it will only aggravate his condition."

Mr. Li looked puzzled: "Heart disease? How can I cure it?"

I pretended to be serious. "A disease of the heart needs a heart medicine. The young master's heart is tied to marriage. Perhaps you can try to communicate with him and see if you can find a compromise. If you force a marriage, I'm afraid it will be more trouble than it's worth."

Mr. Li frowned, obviously hesitant.

When Master Li heard this, his eyes lit up instantly, and he quickly took the opportunity to say, "Dad, look, Miss Yang said that I need to slowly recover from my illness. Can we postpone the wedding for a while?"

Mr. Li was silent for a moment, then glared at his son fiercely. "Hmph! You're lucky. Since Miss Yang says so, I'll spare your life for now. However, you can't refuse this marriage. Wait until you recover!"

Master Li nodded as if he had been granted amnesty: "Okay, okay, let's talk about it after I recover!"

Mr. Li left angrily, leaving Mr. Li breathing a sigh of relief.

"Miss Yang, thank you so much for today!" Mr. Li said gratefully.

I smiled and said, "Next time, don't try to avoid trouble by pretending to be sick. That trick doesn't work."

He touched the back of his head awkwardly: "Yes, yes, you are right, I will never dare to do it again."

After seeing off this "strange father and son," I finally breathed a sigh of relief. Although the farce was over, I couldn't help but sigh: in ancient times, the matter of marriage was even more complicated than treating an illness!

However, sometimes medical skills are not just about curing diseases and saving lives, but also about curing "heart disease".

It seems that as a "modern doctor", I have a lot of room to play in ancient times!