Travels of a Female Physician in the Ming Dynasty

Zhu Yuan's brain never stops.

The palace sports meeting had just ended, and his restless heart began to beat again. Especially after learning that the emperor was satisfied with the event, Zhu Yuan's ambition instantly expanded to a whole new height.

Early that morning, Zhu Yuan came to me with a mysterious look on his face, holding a large roll of paper in his hand, and his eyes gleamed with the light of "the next big plan".

I had a bad feeling and quickly interrupted him: "What do you want to do? Don't tell me you're really planning to organize a 'transnational sports meeting'."

Zhu Yuan's eyes widened in disbelief. "Hey? How did you know?! I haven't even told you yet!"

I sighed helplessly: "You mentioned it last time, but I thought you were joking at the time."

"Who's kidding?" Zhu Yuan waved his hand seriously, as if he had become the Ming Dynasty's sports ambassador. "Miss Yang, this is a serious plan! Think about it, our Ming Dynasty is so majestic and majestic. When foreign envoys come to pay tribute, they always sit upright and formally, which is too rigid. If we can take advantage of their stay in the palace and hold a grand sports meeting, with everyone playing shuttlecock, tug-of-war, and running races together, wouldn't it promote international exchange?"

I nearly choked on my tea. "You mean, you want to let the foreign envoys play shuttlecock with you? Do you think they're just little palace maids in the imperial garden?!"

Zhu Yuan continued excitedly, "That's right! I'm thinking even further! Not only shuttlecock kicking, but we can also organize a 'cross-border tug-of-war competition'. Just imagine, our Ming warriors on one side and foreign envoys on the other. What a spectacular scene it would be!"

I shook my head, trying hard to stifle a laugh. "That's quite a bold idea... but are you sure the foreign envoys would be willing to participate in such a noisy event?"

Zhu Yuan didn't flinch at all. He pulled out the large piece of paper and spread it on the table. "So I've already started designing the project! Look, here's the 'Pitching Pot Competition'. This can showcase the cultural heritage of our Ming Dynasty and appear more elegant. Then there's the 'Cross-Country Marathon'—of course, the distance won't be too long. It'll just circle the palace twice, symbolizing lasting friendship. As for the tug-of-war, we can slightly improve the rules to ensure fairness."

I couldn't help but cover my forehead and thought: This guy's imagination is really sky-high.

However, seeing how serious and excited he looked, I didn't want to pour cold water on him.

"How do you plan to get the emperor to agree to this plan?" I asked tentatively, secretly feeling that this was the most difficult part.

Zhu Yuan, however, was confident and waved his hand, saying, "Don't worry! The Emperor was full of praise for the last sports meet! Let's make it a little more formal this time, and with the added meaning of 'promoting international friendship', the Emperor will surely be interested."

As expected, Zhu Yuan's shameless plan succeeded.

A few days later, the emperor was actually persuaded by him and decided to hold a "cross-border sports meeting" when the next foreign envoys visited.

Of course, the emperor was obviously not as "radical" as Zhu Yuan. He only agreed to hold a small competition to symbolically allow each country to showcase its own "characteristic sports."

Zhu Yuan was very satisfied with this and felt that this was his first step towards becoming a "world-class planner."

"Miss Yang, see, didn't I tell you? The emperor is very interested in this plan!" Zhu Yuan boasted proudly while busy preparing the details of the event.

I smiled helplessly. "You're a natural born lobbyist. Well, since the Emperor has agreed, I'll wait and see how you manage this 'grand event'."

Zhu Yuan chuckled, his eyes gleaming with endless confidence: "Don't worry! This time I will definitely impress everyone!"

Preparations for the transnational games have begun.

Zhu Yuan was not only busy designing the competition items, he also brought in many eunuchs and maids from the palace to help.

He even borrowed a few large pots from the imperial kitchen, planning to hold a "transnational banquet" after the game so that everyone could eat happily and have fun.

"Are you still planning a big banquet?" I asked in surprise.

Zhu Yuan nodded rapidly, "Of course! It's a sports meet, so after the games, we should eat! And this is a multinational event, so we have to make the foreign envoys feel the hospitality of the Ming Dynasty. The chefs in the imperial kitchen have already agreed to prepare several international specialties."

"Specialties from various countries?" I widened my eyes. "Are you sure the imperial kitchen can make them?"

Zhu Yuan chuckled: "Don't worry about it. Anyway, they said they can handle it, so let's just wait and eat!"

The day of the sports meet has finally arrived.

In the morning, the Imperial Garden was decorated with great liveliness, with colorful flags and garlands hanging everywhere. A small viewing platform was also set up in the center of the venue, specially prepared for the Emperor and the Empress.

Several foreign envoys also arrived at the scene early. Although they looked a little confused, they were obviously curious about this "transnational event".

Zhu Yuan, in high spirits, stood in the center of the venue in his specially made "sportswear," holding his signature "loudspeaker," and confidently announced, "Dear envoys, dear friends of the Ming Dynasty, welcome to the first International Palace Games! Today, we will not only showcase the talents of our respective nations, but also promote friendship through sports!"

The palace maids and eunuchs in the audience chuckled, as if they were already used to Zhu Yuan's "inspiring" lines.

Several foreign envoys also smiled and seemed to be looking forward to the event.

The first competition was pot throwing.

This was prepared for foreign envoys, who were obviously curious about the traditional sport of throwing pots.

Zhu Yuan specially placed several exquisite pots in the center of the venue, and then demonstrated it himself - of course, Zhu Yuan's pot-throwing technique was as "unreliable" as ever. When he threw the first pot, it hit the stone next to the pot directly, making a crisp sound, which made everyone in the audience laugh.

"Oops, mistake, mistake!" Zhu Yuan scratched his head awkwardly. "But this is just a demonstration, don't be nervous!"

Next, the foreign envoys took turns to come on stage.

Although they were not proficient in the technique of throwing pots, it was a symbolic game after all, and everyone had a lot of fun.

Especially the envoy from the Western Regions. When he played the game of tossing pot for the first time, he was so strong that he flipped the pot to the ground. Everyone around him laughed so hard that they fell over.

"This envoy's strength is astonishing!" Zhu Yuan quickly tried to smooth things over. "It seems that pitching pots requires more skill and patience."

The next competition is "Cross-border Tug of War".

Zhu Yuan specially arranged a friendly match between the Ming Dynasty's eunuch team and the foreign envoy team, and the scene was extremely lively for a time.

The young eunuchs in the imperial kitchen were all strong and sturdy, and they were obviously full of confidence in the "physical work" of tug-of-war.

However, although the foreign envoys did not look as "professional" as the eunuchs in the palace, each country had its own "unique skills", especially the envoy from Mongolia, who looked like a tug-of-war champion.

"Everyone! Get ready - start!" Zhu Yuan gave an order and the competition began tensely.

Both teams tried their best and the rope kept swinging in the middle.

The young eunuchs in the palace were obviously very strong, but the foreign envoys were not to be outdone, especially the Mongolian envoy, who seemed to have a special talent for tug-of-war. He could always exert force at the critical moment and pull the rope back to his side.

After a fierce competition, the foreign envoy team finally won the tug-of-war.

Zhu Yuan ran forward, waving his loud speaker excitedly. "Congratulations! Congratulations to the foreign envoy team for their victory! It seems our friends in the Ming Dynasty are truly formidable!"

The audience in the stands cheered continuously and the atmosphere reached a climax.

The last event is the "Cross-border Fun Race".

Zhu Yuan insisted on keeping this "noisy" project because he felt it was the best way to show "easy friendship".

The competition requires the contestants to run around the field first, then jump rope while holding a shuttlecock, and finally kick a shuttlecock to complete the competition.

At the beginning of the competition, the foreign envoys were obviously a little flustered, especially in the "skipping rope" segment, several envoys almost fell head over heels, causing laughter from the audience.

The shuttlecock segment was even more hilarious. Many envoys had no idea how to control the shuttlecock. They either kicked it away or stepped on it directly. The scene was extremely funny.

Zhu Yuan was laughing so hard that he couldn't help but demonstrate it himself. As a result, he kicked the shuttlecock away and almost hit the eunuch next to him. The situation was out of control for a while.

After the competition, Zhu Yuan specially arranged a small award ceremony to present medals to "athletes" from various countries. Of course, these medals were still wooden plaques made by Zhu Yuan himself, engraved with the words "Friendship first, competition second".

Although the foreign envoys did not achieve much in the way of “athletic achievements”, they were obviously full of curiosity and fun in this unique sports meeting.

The Emperor and the Empress were also very satisfied with this event, believing that it indeed promoted friendly relations between the Ming Dynasty and other countries.

In the evening, Zhu Yuan returned to the pharmacy with a tired face. He sat down on a chair and breathed a sigh of relief: "Miss Yang, I'm really exhausted this time!"

I smiled and handed him a cup of tea. "You too, who told you to organize a transnational sports meeting?"

Zhu Yuan took a big sip of tea and said with a smug smile, "Hey, isn't this also for the international reputation of the Ming Dynasty? But to be honest, this was a huge success. Even the emperor praised me!"

"Really?" I looked at him and smiled. "So what are you going to do next? Are you going to organize another 'world-class sports meeting'?"

Zhu Yuan blinked and suddenly revealed a mischievous smile: "Hey, you're right. I've already started thinking about it. Next, we have to hold this sports meeting abroad!"

I almost spit out my tea: "How dare you!"

Zhu Yuan laughed heartily, then leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, and said softly, "Miss Yang, life is short. Isn't it nice to have the opportunity to do something that makes people happy?"

Looking at his tired but satisfied look, I suddenly felt a little emotional: Although this guy always comes up with all kinds of ridiculous plans, his desire to make everyone happy has never changed.