Travels of a Female Physician in the Ming Dynasty

As I walked out of the Prince's Mansion, I was thinking about Zhu Biao's condition.

To be honest, the future crown prince looks very healthy. Apart from being depressed, there is nothing wrong with his health.

But the question is, in ancient times, how do you explain something like psychological burden to others?

If I said "I'm under a lot of psychological pressure", they would probably think I was a charlatan.

"Oh, it's not easy to be a psychologist in ancient times." I sighed.

As soon as I returned to the Miracle Doctor Conference, I saw Zhu Yuan running towards me with excitement on his face. In his hand, he was holding a bag of "pills" that he had bought from somewhere. His eyes were shining, "Doctor Yang, guess what I just bought?"

I glanced at the bag in his hand, and my heart sank. Oh no, this silly boy must have been cheated.

"What is this?" I asked doubtfully.

Zhu Yuan came over mysteriously and whispered, "This is the 'miracle medicine for all diseases.' There's an old man over there who says it can cure all kinds of ailments! Just take one pill and you'll be cured of headaches, backaches, and even colds and fevers!"

I nearly choked on my own saliva. "'A cure-all'? Zhu Yuan, are you serious? He hasn't even told you that this medicine can make you immortal!"

Zhu Yuan blinked his eyes: "Oh, you don't understand, this is the secret weapon of the legendary doctor, one pill that can cure all diseases!"

I couldn't help it, so I reached out and took the bag of medicine, opened it and smelled it. Sure enough, it was just a sugar pill.

I’m afraid this old doctor is giving out candy to everyone?

"Zhu Yuan, I really admire you. Are you buying candy or medicine?" I returned the bag to him with a helpless smile.

Zhu Yuan was stunned for a moment, his expression instantly turning grim. "What? Sugar? That's impossible! The old man even said this was a secret recipe passed down from his ancestors!"

"It's possible it's a sugar recipe handed down from my ancestors." I suppressed my laughter and patted his shoulder. "This is a classic placebo effect. You feel it works psychologically, but it actually has no effect on your body."

Zhu Yuan looked at the bag of sugar pills with a look of disbelief on his face. "But I just heard someone say that these pills really cured his headache!"

"He just scared himself and got better." I shook my head. "If you want to be cured, don't count on these quack doctors. If you really have a problem, I can prescribe medicine for you for free."

After hearing this, Zhu Yuan immediately lost his temper. He stuffed the candy pill into his pocket dejectedly, muttering, "I thought I could get a bargain..."

We were just about to leave this miracle doctor conference full of "swindlers" when suddenly a heated argument broke out on the stage.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out that two "miracle doctors" were arguing about whose treatment was better.

One of them wore a white robe, his hair neatly combed, and his face was serious. "I mainly use acupuncture. Needles can cure diseases immediately. It is definitely more effective than your messy herbal medicine!"

The other was a middle-aged man in a black Taoist robe, holding a cane in his hand and a scornful smile on his face. "Humph, herbs are godsend medicine. What good are those little needles of yours? If I hadn't learned the secret herbal formula in the mountains in my early years, you wouldn't even be able to tell what's wrong with you!"

The audience below the stage gathered in three layers, discussing whose medical skills were better.

I stood in the crowd, secretly laughing in my heart: These two are really funny. Acupuncture and herbal medicine actually have their own advantages and disadvantages, but when they talk about them, it's like they are going to fight to the death.

Zhu Yuan was watching with great interest. He pulled me aside and said, "Imperial Physician Yang, who do you think is right?"

I shrugged. "Acupuncture and herbal medicine don't conflict with each other. The key is to look at the cause of the disease. You can't generalize. But the way they're arguing now is purely about saving face."

At this moment, the man in the white robe suddenly slammed the table and said excitedly, "How about this, let's have a competition! You and I each find a patient, and see who can cure them!"

The black-robed man snorted coldly: "Let's compete! I'm not afraid of you!"

The audience immediately became excited and applauded, as if they were about to see a wonderful "medical skills showdown".

I was just planning to be a bystander, but I didn't expect things to suddenly develop in an uncontrollable direction - the man in white robe glanced around and actually looked directly at me!

"Miss, you have an extraordinary temperament. I believe you are also from a medical family. Why don't you be our judge?"

Me? Judge? I subconsciously took a step back, thinking, these two big brothers can just quarrel, why drag me into it?

Zhu Yuan reacted before me and gave me a push. "Imperial Physician Yang, you are the most famous doctor in Yingtian Prefecture! You are the most suitable person for this!"

I looked at Zhu Yuan helplessly and thought to myself, aren't you afraid of getting into trouble?

But then again, since I've been called out, I can't refuse too awkwardly.

Besides, if these two do something weird, I can take the opportunity to stop them so that they don’t cause any real problems.

"Okay, then I'll be a judge reluctantly." I walked onto the stage with a smile.

The man in white robe and the man in black robe looked at each other, their eyes full of dissatisfaction.

The man in the white robe spoke first: "In that case, let's each find a patient and see whose treatment is more effective!"

The man in black robe nodded: "Okay, let's get started!"

The competition began, and the two miracle doctors each pulled a "patient" from the audience.

The man in the white robe was holding a middle-aged man. After the man stood on the stage, he covered his stomach with a look of pain on his face and said, "Doctor, my stomach hurts so badly. I ate something last night, and I feel uncomfortable this morning."

The man in the white robe nodded with a confident look on his face: "Don't worry, I'll use acupuncture to treat you, and you'll be well soon."

The man in black robe pulled an old lady onto the stage.

The old lady held her waist and said slowly, "Doctor, I have had back pain for several years. Please treat me."

The black-robed man laughed heartily. "I'm the best at treating this disease! This herbal remedy is a miracle cure for bone diseases. I guarantee you'll see immediate results after taking it!"

The audience held their breath, looking forward to the next "magic treatment".

The man in white robe made the first move. He took out a number of silver needles and quickly and skillfully inserted them into the middle-aged man's abdomen.

At the same time, he continued to explain: "Acupuncture is about unblocking the meridians and regulating qi and blood. As long as you pierce the right acupuncture points, the pain will naturally be relieved."

Watching his smooth operation, I nodded secretly.

This man in white robe does have some real skills, and his acupuncture techniques are very sophisticated.

Not long after, the middle-aged man actually showed a relieved expression and said gratefully, "Doctor, my stomach doesn't hurt as much anymore!"

The audience erupted in applause. The man in the white robe raised his eyebrows proudly at the man in the black robe and said, "Look, my acupuncture works instantly!"

The black-robed man snorted coldly, then, unwilling to be outdone, he took out a packet of herbs and handed it to the old lady: "This is my homemade 'wind-repelling grass'. Just soak it in water and drink it, and I guarantee your back pain will disappear immediately!"

The old lady took the herbs with a hesitant look on her face, but at the urging of the man in black robe, she soaked the herbs in water and drank it.

After a while, the old lady frowned, then stretched her body a little, and suddenly exclaimed in surprise: "Oh, my waist doesn't hurt anymore!"

There was another round of applause from the audience. The man in black robe looked at the man in white robe triumphantly: "How is it? My herbal medicine is not bad, right?"

The man in the white robe said unconvincedly, "It's just a temporary relief. The real cure depends on my acupuncture!"

The two began to argue again, and the audience in the audience watched with great interest, discussing whose medical skills were better.

I stood aside, feeling helpless.

Neither of them is willing to give in to the other, but the problem is that this kind of competition makes it impossible to determine the winner!

Just as I was thinking about how to smooth things over, I suddenly heard someone shout from the audience: "Old lady, are you okay?"

I turned around and saw that the old lady who had just drunk the herbal medicine had a pale face, her hands covering her stomach, and she looked very uncomfortable.

Oh no! There's something wrong with this herb!

I immediately rushed over, supported the old lady, and quickly felt her pulse. Sure enough, she was showing symptoms of poisoning.

The black-robed man's herbal medicine seemed to have cured her back pain, but it actually contained some toxic ingredients, causing her to suffer severe abdominal pain.

"Hurry! Give me water!" I shouted.

Zhu Yuan was quick to hand over a pot of water. I quickly asked the old lady to drink it to help dilute the toxins in her body.

The audience was in an uproar, talking among themselves. The man in white robe looked at the man in black robe with a gloating look: "Your magic medicine is really 'magical', it almost sent someone to the west!"

The black-robed man's face turned pale and blue, and he obviously didn't expect that there would be any problems with his herbs.

He hesitantly explained: "This... this may be because the medicine is too strong..."

I glanced at him angrily. "The medicine is too strong? You mean it's too toxic! Don't give other people any 'miracle medicine' like that anymore!"

The man in black robe looked embarrassed and lowered his head, not daring to speak anymore.

In the end, this so-called "miracle doctor competition" ended with the victory of the man in white robe, and the man in black robe fled the stage in disgrace.

As for me, I have completely lost interest in these charlatans.

"Zhu Yuan, let's go. I've had enough of today's excitement." I said helplessly.

Zhu Yuan followed me with a grin, "Imperial Physician Yang, you're truly amazing! Even these legendary doctors can't compare to you. Next time, show off your skills on stage. Maybe you'll be even more amazing!"

I sighed helplessly, "Forget it. Instead of messing around with these people, I might as well just stay in the clinic and get treated."