Chapter 107 New Jade Candle (IV)
An imperial city dominates the rise and fall of the world, and the construction of the imperial city has always been hidden with Taoist magic. As a ghost, Xu Hexue cannot easily set foot here.
Even if he followed Ni Su, the necromancer, he could only transform into the mist between her sleeves but could not condense his body into a physical form.
This winter was colder than any other year. The young eunuch who led Ni Su to the Imperial Medical Bureau bent his body all the way, wishing he could hide his neck and hands in his winter clothes. The wind and snow were so strong that they covered people's heads and shoulders along the way.
When they arrived at the Imperial Medical Bureau, the eunuch stretched out his frozen red hands and lifted the door curtain. The charcoal brazier inside was not burning enough and not very warm. Few of the chief doctors were sitting. They were standing and walking around, writing medical records and thinking about prescriptions.
"How can we do anything with such little charcoal?" An old medical officer with a white beard was complaining inside.
"Old Qin, this year's snowstorm is severe and it's very cold. There are not enough supplies for other places in the palace. It's great that we can get these."
Professor Feng Ke, who was talking to the student, heard this and turned around and said something.
"Your Excellencies."
The young eunuch brought Ni Su into the room. He rubbed his hands and saw that everyone in the room was looking at him. He smiled and said, "My lords, I have been ordered by the emperor to send this young lady to the Imperial Medical Bureau to seek advice from you."
His unpredictable gaze fell on the woman behind him again.
They had already known the official's oral order yesterday.
But the hall was silent for a while, and no one spoke. Ni Su was not at a loss. She took two steps forward and bowed to the medical officers in official uniforms in the hall, "My daughter Ni Su greets you all."
The eunuch hurriedly retreated with a smile, and the door curtain was lowered to block the wind and snow outside. A doctor put down the scroll in his hand and walked forward, "I heard that Miss Ni was in Yongzhou to treat soldiers and civilians. Now that you have received the inscription from Mr. Huang, I think your clinic should be very busy. Why did you come to the Imperial Medical Bureau?"
"The way of medicine is endless. I am still young and still have some shortcomings. Fortunately, the government has granted me the grace to enter the Imperial Medical Bureau to seek advice from the elders. If I can get your guidance, I will benefit from it for the rest of my life."
She spoke humbly and politely, and the doctor nodded and asked her, "Which master does Miss Ni want to follow?"
"I heard that Doctor Qin often diagnoses the ladies in the imperial harem. Ni Su doesn't expect to make great achievements in this life, and only has one ambition: to specialize in gynecology."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone immediately looked at the old medical officer who was sitting quietly nearby.
The old medical officer Qin's expression did not change. He just stared at Ni Su with a calm look. However, the wind professor left his students behind and examined Ni Su. "Young lady, you want to follow Old Qin as soon as you get here?"
There was a hint of unknowing contempt in his tone.
"Not only obstetrics, Mr. Qin is proficient in pharmacy and acupuncture. Do you know how many of our students want to follow Mr. Qin?"
"Gynecology is not just about obstetrics,"
Ni Su looked at him and said, "Since you said so, it proves that what I thought is correct. Since I came here to seek advice, why should I be timid? This is a rare opportunity for me."
Professor Feng Ke was stunned for a moment. He did not expect that this woman could be so sharp.
"I'm going to Chaoyun Palace to check the Empress' pulse."
Doctor Qin suddenly spoke. He stood up slowly and looked at Ni Su again. "Do you want to go with me?"
Ni Su was stunned for a moment, then said, "Go."
Old Doctor Qin paused, took the crutch handed to him by the officer beside him, looked her up and down, with a strange look on his face, but said nothing, wrapped himself in a cloak, and went outside.
Ni Su followed him out. The ground, which the palace servants had just swept, was covered with a thin layer of snow again. There were icicles on the trees, and some places on the ground were very wet, with a thin layer of ice condensing. The wind and snow were strong. Ni Su saw that the old medical officer Qin was hunched over and walking very slowly with a crutch, so she quickly stepped forward and held his arm.
Doctor Qin turned around and saw that her hood had been blown down by the wind. Her hair was covered with snowflakes. She was wearing a very plain dress. "I heard that you want to remain faithful to Master Ni for three years?"
"yes."
Ni Su nodded.
"Three years as a girl is not a short time."
As the old medical officer Qin walked forward, he said, "In this case , do you still dare to follow me to Chaoyun Palace?"
He often took the imperial concubine's pulse, and had been doing so even more frequently recently. He also knew something about the Empress's intention to arrange a marriage for her. This woman dared to offend the Empress by claiming to be faithful to her husband, yet she still dared to follow him to Chaoyun Palace.
"The emperor only allows me to work in the Imperial Medical Bureau. I don't have the right to prescribe medicine. I am just following you. There is nothing to be afraid of."
"Go back."
Doctor Qin said to her, "I don't really want you to go with me."
"If I go back,"
Ni Su paused and asked, "Master Qin, are you still willing to teach me?"
Doctor Qin also stopped. It was freezing cold and his legs and feet were stiff. He looked at the woman and said, "The government has given you the order and you are eager to learn. If I can teach you, I will teach you."
Ni Su had not expected that he would agree so decisively. She was still a little slow to react. Seeing her like this, the old doctor Qin couldn't help but smile, "Whether in this palace or outside, it is always harder for women to practice medicine than men. You have already established yourself in Yunjing with your own abilities, but you are still so humble and eager to learn. This is already very rare."
"Some people don't deny your medical skills, but they admit your medical skills and lose their face," said the old doctor Qin to her as they walked away. "So you don't have to care about some people or some words."
"yes."
Ni Su lowered her eyes, "Thank you, Mr. Qin."
"Are you really going?"
Doctor Qin saw that she had no intention of going back.
"Um."
Ni Su nodded.
She couldn't get in touch with the imprisoned Prince Jia and his wife in the Imperial Medical Bureau, so since she had the chance to meet the Imperial Concubine, she didn't want to miss it.
It was very warm in Chaoyun Palace. After sitting in the inner palace for a while, the snow particles on the body of the old doctor Qin melted into wet water marks. The imperial concubine stared at the young woman standing behind the old doctor Qin from behind the curtain. She was quite surprised. "Miss Ni, I thought you would never appear in front of me again."
"Your Majesty, she is now in the Imperial Medical Bureau, following me." After taking my pulse, old doctor Qin stood up with the help of crutches and said respectfully.
"You go first."
The imperial concubine just glanced at him and said calmly.
Old Doctor Qin couldn't say any more. When he turned and passed by Ni Su, he couldn't help but glance at her with concern.
"Being chaste for others?"
The imperial concubine stood up and came out from behind the curtain with the help of the palace maids beside her. She had black hair and wore a pearl crown. Although she was already thirty years old, her face was still beautiful. "Ni Su, do you know how good a marriage you missed?"
She seemed to sigh.
"I was engaged to Master Ni in Yongzhou. He died for his country. As a living person, I should do something for him," Ni Su bowed her head, "Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty."
The imperial concubine looked at her seemingly docile appearance, her face changing from gloomy to bright, "I'm afraid that even if you can escape today, you may not be able to escape tomorrow."
Hearing this, Ni Su raised her head and said, "My lady, I will not hide."
The imperial concubine was startled.
"I dare to come to Chaoyun Palace to see the queen today, not to make enemies with her. I have said before that whoever is guilty will be punished. I dare not look down on the queen."
She looked at the imperial concubine and said, "I am willing to cure your father's epilepsy in order to gain your forgiveness."
The imperial concubine was really caught off guard. She took a few steps forward in disbelief and stared at the woman in front of her. "Do you know what you are talking about? You cured my father's epilepsy?"
She sneered, "Am I confused? Why do you think I would believe you?"
"Ni Su is an orphan girl, now she has no one to rely on,"
Ni Su said calmly, "But I also want to live well. The Ni family has a unique skill of acupuncture. I was influenced by my father when I was young and have achieved some success. What I said today is true. I beg you, Madam, to give me this opportunity."
This is a sign of weakness and also an attempt to please.
She is an orphan with no one to rely on, and she is seeking a chance to live a safe and stable life from a noble person.
The imperial concubine said nothing, she looked at the woman coldly.
She could avoid this marriage, but she could not necessarily avoid anything that happened next. She looked like a person with nowhere else to go.
However, no one in the Imperial Medical Bureau has been able to truly cure Wu Dai's epilepsy so far, and this has always been a concern for the imperial concubine.
"Your Highness, don't you want to hear the whole story from your father?" Ni Su suddenly spoke again, interrupting the imperial concubine's speculation, "I have no one to turn to, I only hope to be forgiven by your Highness."
Ni Su left Chaoyun Palace and walked back to the Imperial Physician's Office. Before she lifted the heavy door curtain, she heard a chilly voice from inside, "His Royal Highness Prince Jia has refused to eat and has been fasting for two days. Now he has caught a cold. Even if I want to use medicine, he must be willing to drink it..."
Ni Su suddenly withdrew her hand.
"Doesn't Princess Jia have a close relationship with Prince Jia? Let her persuade him..."
"Princess Jia is also ill and has hardly any lucid moments. How can we persuade her? I heard that the emperor sent someone to interrogate Prince Jia yesterday, and today he is in a trance and can't speak."
Ni Su listened quietly for a while before lifting the curtain and going in. She didn't care about the many looks she received. She just walked up to the old medical officer Qin and bowed, "Old Qin."
Seeing that she was fine and didn't seem to have suffered any pain, the old doctor Qin smiled and said, "You are here, which is equivalent to the doctor of our Imperial Medical Bureau. It's not easy to be a doctor, do you know?"
"Know."
Ni Su said.
Doctor Qin nodded. "Okay, come with me. I'll ask you what you've learned."
Ni Su stayed in the Imperial Medical Bureau until dusk before leaving the palace.
The mist that had been clinging to her sleeves finally condensed into a thin figure that only she could see.
"The Queen will probably let me cure her father's epilepsy."
Ni Su held her cape tightly together, and walked forward on the thin snow, saying to him, "I really want to kill him with one shot."
"Your hands are for saving people."
Xu Hexue stood shoulder to shoulder with her.
The thin sunlight was wrapped in the cold mist. Ni Su looked up at him and said, "I won't save everyone."
But she couldn't kill Wu Dai.
Even if the imperial concubine agreed to her request, she would not completely trust her. She might not be able to kill Wu Dai, but the imperial concubine would definitely be able to kill her.
"Did you hear about Prince Jia's hunger strike?"
She asked.
Xu Hexue was silent for a moment, and then said "hmm".
"Why is he on a hunger strike? Could it be that he is so worried that he..." Ni Su paused, but she did not say the word "wanting to die".
"no."
Xu Hexue said calmly, "On the contrary, he wants to live."
"……What's the meaning?"
"Not long after Yonggeng was adopted by the emperor, a case of Gelsemium occurred in the palace. An eunuch secretly put Gelsemium in Yonggeng's food because he was dissatisfied with Yonggeng being chosen as the prince."
"If someone accidentally eats Gelsemium elegans, drinking cold water will kill him. Fortunately, it was winter, Yonggeng was afraid of the cold, and he was also reprimanded by the late queen, so he only ate a few mouthfuls of food and did not drink any water. The Imperial Medical Bureau treated him in time, and he was able to save his life."
Ni Su didn't know about the hook kiss case. She just felt incredible when she heard it. "What kind of eunuch would have such evil intentions?"
Xu Hexue stopped suddenly.
He raised his eyes to look at her, "After the incident, the government immediately questioned the eunuch and executed him on the same day without taking any confession. The Dali Temple closed the case before the trial."
"you mean……"
Ni Su's hands and feet were almost stiff and cold. It was hard for her not to think about the deeper meaning revealed in Xu Hexue's words.
Why did the emperor go against his usual practice and personally interrogate the eunuch for a foster son he disliked? Why did the Dali Temple close the case so hastily?
If the emperor had really intended to poison Prince Jia, then Prince Jia's hunger strike today was just as Xu Hexue said, it was not a request for death, but a request for life.
"Yong Geng was forced into the emperor's family by the court officials. He was caught between the court officials and the emperor when he was young. If he offends either of them by mistake, he will not be well off."
Xu Hexue took her hand and continued walking forward. "Any game between the emperor and his ministers in the court can burn him, the adopted son of the emperor. The court officials hope that he can be a qualified candidate for the crown prince, but the emperor hates him and suppresses him. He can never satisfy either the emperor or his ministers, and the pressure from these two sides has not diminished at all."
The Hook-mouthed Case reminded Zhao Yonggeng of his father's dislike for him at all times.
He was afraid of this, and also of the fights that would arise because of him in the court and the harem. He dared not eat or drink too much water in the palace. The pressure from court officials made him dare not be lazy, while the suspicion of the emperor and his father made him dare not stand out too much.
It is fortunate that such a person did not become an insane madman under the tearing between the two sides.
"If he goes on a hunger strike again, I'm afraid..."
Ni Su felt complicated.
It's not like she hadn't heard some of the things that happened in the court while at the Imperial Medical Bureau. Some officials in the court were discussing that the baby in the Imperial Concubine's belly was still unknown as to its gender, but Prince Jia was destined to be the prince a long time ago.
The battle for the crown prince has already begun, and Prince Jia's fear is not groundless.
"I failed to protect the teacher before,"
Goose-feather-like snowflakes brushed against Xu Hexue's sleeves. He held Ni Su's hand tightly and said, "Now, I must protect Yong Geng."
The two of them braved the wind and snow and returned to Nanhuai Street. The clinic was closed today, so Ni Su went in and closed the door. Qingqiong was in the back corridor, his chin supported by his hands, staring at a book.
"What are you looking at?"
Ni Su asked curiously.
"Miss Ni, General Xu."
Qing Qiong sat up straight, a little embarrassed, "I'm reading your medical book, but I can't recognize all the characters and can't understand it."
"Why do you suddenly want to read medical books?"
Xu Hexue sat down, took the reed dew he handed over, and thanked him.
"I always feel uncomfortable, so I want to see if I can find a way to solve it. I can't always trouble Miss Ni..." Qingqiong said.
"What do you mean by trouble?"
Ni Su took a sip of hot tea and said, "I promised your father that I would always take care of you. Do you still want to go somewhere alone?"
"without……"
Qingqiong whispered.
"But both of us can teach you to read," Ni Su saw that he was wrapped up thickly, and looked very honest and cute. "If you still want to study medicine, I can also teach you."
"OK!"
Qingqiong smiled.
"I cooked wontons and let you try some!" Although his facial features were dull, one could tell that he was happy. He got up and went to the kitchen, and soon brought back two bowls of wontons.
"You don't want to eat?"
Ni Su never saw him hold the bowl.
"Mine has just been put into the pot. I'll go and take a look." Qingqiong said, and slowly walked towards the kitchen.
"This is Qingqiong's first time making wontons. You should try it too."
Ni Su held the spoon and smiled at Xu Hexue.
"Um."
Xu Hexue lowered his eyes, and hot mist blew towards his face. He smelled a faint fragrance and reached out to pick up the spoon.
The Imperial Medical Bureau also had meals, but this was Ni Su's first time back, and the palace had not prepared anything for her. Old Doctor Qin gave her a bowl of porridge and some cakes, but she didn't use much. Only when she saw the bowl of wontons did she feel hungry.
Ni Su blew away the hot air and took a bite, only to find that the filling was very salty.
She looked up and was about to speak, but saw Xu Hexue with an expressionless face. He took a bite without any pause.
"Miss Ni, please don't eat it! I think I put too much salt in it!"
Qingqiong came out from the kitchen.
At this moment, Xu Hexue's hand holding the spoon froze.
He raised his eyes and met Ni Su's gaze.
Outside the eaves, snow was falling like goose feathers. There was a crunching sound as Qingqiong stepped on the snow. Ni Su looked at him, suddenly took his bowl, scooped up the wontons, and took a bite.
The taste was so salty that her eyes felt sore.
"Qingqiong."
She put the bowl down.
"ah?"
Qingqiong didn't know what was going on, so he wiped the snow particles off his headscarf.
"Have you ever heard your father tell you whether you eat when your mother is around?"
"Although my mother doesn't need it, she eats it sometimes."
Qingqiong answered truthfully.
"Then, can your mother taste it?"
Ni Su's throat tightened.
"If she can't taste it, why would my mother eat it? She is a ghost, she won't be hungry. Isn't eating these just to taste it?"
Qingqiong was confused.
Ni Su's hand, which was pressing against the wall of the bowl, trembled.
She remembered that when she left the Night Palace after being interrogated, she asked the coachman of the Taiwei Mansion to buy some sweet cakes, and she shared the sweet cakes with the man in front of her in the Taiwei Mansion.
She remembered every meal he had eaten with her, and the candy she fed him after she had examined Miss Zhang's mother.
I remember the word "sweet" every time he said it.
Tears filled my eyes and almost fell out in an instant.
Xu Hexue stood up with one hand on the corner of the table. He was caught off guard and saw her suddenly burst into tears. Without thinking, he walked over to her and squatted down.
The light blue hem of the dress brushed the ground lightly.
"sorry."
He said, flexing his knuckles to wipe the tears from her cheeks.
Ni Su suddenly grabbed his wrist. She endured it again and again, but she couldn't ask why he lied to her, because she could probably understand why a person like him would hide things from her.
He was a man who was good at forbearance. Ni Su didn't know whether it was his family tradition or his teacher that made him have such character, not afraid of pain, nor resentful of pain.
"Why?"
Ni Su's eyes were blurred with tears, and she could hardly see his face clearly. "Why do you have no sense of taste? Qingqiong has it, and so does Qingqiong's mother. Why... only you don't have it?"
It's not like all five of his senses have declined.
He had a sense of smell, he could hear voices, he could feel her touch.
Only his eyes.
Ni Su remembered that he said that his eyes were injured during his lifetime and his soul was damaged after his death and had not yet been repaired, so he needed her to light the lamp at night in the world of the living.
So, what about his sense of taste?
"Xu Ziling, tell me, why didn't you have it?"
