Travels of a Female Physician in the Ming Dynasty

That afternoon, I was sitting in the yard sorting medicinal herbs when I suddenly heard a noisy sound of footsteps outside.

I looked up and saw that it was a group of palace guards entering the yard in a mighty procession.

The chief guard was a burly man with a stern expression on his face.

He walked up to me and clasped his hands together slightly. "Doctor Yang, His Majesty has ordered that you enter the palace immediately."

My heart suddenly skipped a beat. Why did I have to go into the palace again?

I don’t want to hang around the palace every day!

However, facing these guards, I couldn't refuse, so I nodded and agreed: "Okay, I'll go right away."

Zhu Yuan appeared out of nowhere and came over immediately after hearing this: "Oh, Miss Yang, you've been summoned by the Emperor again? It seems like you're really being 'used by the Emperor' this time!"

I glared at him and said, "Don't make trouble for me. Can't you see that I'm almost dying of exhaustion?"

Zhu Yuan looked very proud, as if he was the one who was summoned to the palace. "Do you want me to go with you? I'm very good at handling this kind of big occasion."

"You?" I shook my head, my eyes full of disgust. "Can you please stop trying to join in the fun? I'm going there to get treatment, not to see a circus."

Zhu Yuan waved his hand, his face full of confidence: "It's okay, I'm free anyway, what if you need help?"

Before I could refuse, Zhu Yuan followed me into the sedan chair.

This guy is really thick-skinned!

Along the way, Zhu Yuan kept telling me about all the "palace gossip" he had heard recently, such as which lady from which family was flirting with which prince, or which eunuch fell in the imperial garden.

I rolled my eyes when I heard that and thought: You are so gossipy, why not just become a storyteller!

"Where did you hear this palace gossip?" I couldn't help but ask, "Are you immersed in this kind of news every day?"

Zhu Yuan smiled smugly and said, "Miss Yang, you don't know that what Yingtian Prefecture lacks most is well-informed people. What do you want to know? I can find out for you!"

"I'm not interested in all that nonsense." I rolled my eyes. "I only care about which lady is sick this time."

Zhu Yuan approached mysteriously and lowered his voice, "I heard that this time you are going to treat a favored beauty by His Majesty's side."

"Beauty?" I raised my eyebrows, and in an instant, scenes from various palace fighting dramas emerged in my mind, and alarm bells suddenly rang in my heart.

Could this be an upgraded version of palace fighting?

"I heard that this beauty is weak and often faints. His Majesty is very worried about her health." Zhu Yuan continued to exaggerate, "If you can cure it this time, maybe His Majesty will even reward you with a title!"

My heart tightened, and I quickly interrupted him: "Zhu Yuan, stop talking nonsense! I'm just a doctor. It's my duty to treat patients and save lives. Don't give me these nonsense."

Zhu Yuan chuckled: "I'm happy for you too."

When I arrived at the palace, it was just as Zhu Yuan said. The person who wanted me to treat this time was a lady named "Concubine Shen".

She looked to be in her twenties and was indeed a beauty, but unfortunately her face was pale and she looked a little haggard.

I bowed and asked about her condition.

Lady Shen replied weakly, "I've been feeling dizzy and weak lately. Sometimes I see black spots in front of my eyes and can barely stand."

Fatigue, dizziness, and blacking out? Isn't this typical hypoglycemia and anemia? I immediately understood what was happening and went over to take her pulse.

Sure enough, the pulse was weak and the qi and blood were insufficient.

In modern medicine, this condition is mostly caused by malnutrition or anemia, but in ancient times, malnutrition was not uncommon.

"My Lady, your symptoms are due to insufficient Qi and blood. I'm afraid your diet isn't nourishing enough," I said, trying to figure out how to explain it using ancient sayings. "I'll prescribe some Qi-tonifying and blood-nourishing herbs for you. You should also eat more foods like red dates and longans."

Lady Shen nodded slightly and said weakly, "Then I'll have to trouble Doctor Yang."

I breathed a sigh of relief and thought: This time it’s quite simple. It’s just about replenishing qi and nourishing blood, which is still my old job.

However, just as I was about to leave, Lady Shen suddenly grabbed my hand, her eyes pleading: "Doctor Yang, could you please stay a little longer? I... I'm a little scared."

I was stunned for a moment: "What are you afraid of, Madam?"

She pursed her lips, her eyes a little evasive: "The palace... There have been a lot of strange things happening in the palace recently. I always feel like someone is watching me."

Staring at you? This made my spine go cold. Is there something else going on in the palace?

However, I knew in my heart that I couldn't talk too much about this kind of thing, so I comforted her: "Don't be afraid, my lady. You should get more rest and take good care of your body. When your energy and blood are sufficient, you will feel much better."

Lady Shen seemed to want to say something, but when she saw the maids serving beside her were there, she bit her lip and said nothing more.

After leaving Lady Shen's bedroom, I kept thinking about what she had just said.

Strange things keep happening? Is someone in the palace watching her?

This doesn't sound good. Could this be the prelude to another palace fight?

Zhu Yuan saw that I looked unhappy and quickly came over to me: "Miss Yang, what's wrong? Are you cured?"

"She's been cured, but..." I lowered my voice, "She just told me that someone in the palace is watching her."

When Zhu Yuan heard this, his eyes immediately widened like bells: "What? Staring at her? Is there such a thing in the palace?"

I nodded, feeling a little heavy in my heart. "She looks very scared. Although I can't see any problem, I still feel that this matter is not simple."

Zhu Yuan frowned, his expression becoming serious. "This palace has always been a place where people are eaten without leaving any bones. Who knows what conspiracy is behind this?"

I sighed. "I just hope this time I'm just going there to get treatment and not get into any trouble."

Zhu Yuan patted my shoulder and said comfortingly, "Don't worry, I'm here! At worst, I can run away with you!"

I burst out laughing: "Do you think this is a drama about escaping from the underworld?"

Zhu Yuan said seriously, "Miss Yang, don't underestimate me. If anything really happens, I have a way to protect you!"

"Come on, you'd better keep your distance from me. If something really happens one day, I don't want to carry you with me."

When I returned home, the doubts in my heart still lingered.

Lady Shen’s words “someone is watching me” kept echoing in my ears, making it difficult for me to sleep well at night.

Sure enough, the next morning, before I even left the house, another messenger from the palace came hurriedly to my house.

"Doctor Yang, His Majesty has summoned you to the palace regarding Concubine Shen!"

I knew it wouldn't be that simple!