Chapter 109: New Jade Candle (VI)
On the nineteenth day of the winter month, Emperor Zhengyuan issued an imperial decree to posthumously confer the title of Huaihua Langjiang on Master Ni, who had killed the enemy general Yelu Zhen in Yongzhou. However, no one knew Master Ni's origins. Only the Privy Councilor Huang Zongyu learned from Ni Su that his real name was Xu Jing'an.
Mr. Ni is just a pseudonym.
No one in the court knew whether he had any surviving relatives or where his hometown was, and the memorial submitted by Yongzhou governor Shen Tongchuan did not mention it either.
"The emperor said that since Miss Ni is engaged to Master Ni and has agreed to remain faithful to him for three years, the posthumous award should be accepted by you."
The eunuch who had just read out the emperor's will looked at the young woman in front of him with a smile on his face.
"yes."
Ni Su held the imperial edict in both hands and bowed his head in response.
After the angels left, Ni Su finally stood up. The other people in the Imperial Medical Bureau who were listening to the imperial edict dispersed. Old Doctor Qin walked to the door and saw her still standing there, so he called out, "Miss Ni, come in quickly, don't get cold."
"good."
Ni Su turned around and responded.
She unfolded the imperial edict, and goose-feather-like snowflakes fell between the lines of ink.
Xu Jingan.
She stared at the name.
Ni Su received the imperial edict and returned to the main hall. The students who had just competed with her in pharmacy were silent. Old Medical Officer Qin held a piece of paper and looked at the scroll in his hand. "You are now an official's wife after all, and you have just received a reward from the government. Naturally, they dare not trouble you anymore. It's good that you will have a quiet time in the Imperial Medical Bureau in the future."
Some of the students in the bureau were born in medical families. Many of their families looked down on female doctors, believing that they made many mistakes. Some even made family rules that forbade female doctors to enter their homes.
She is the only woman in the Imperial Medical Bureau, so naturally she will face many questions.
"You are right."
Ni Su sat down beside the charcoal brazier, wanting to warm her sleeves that were soaked by the snow water, but her eyes fell on the mist and she couldn't help but touch the gold hairpin beside her bun.
The door curtain was suddenly pulled open, and the cold wind made the tasseled curtain flutter. Ni Su looked up and saw the middle-aged man walking in, brushing off the snow particles on his body with a sullen face.
"Doctor Wang, what's wrong with you?"
A doctor sitting in front of the long desk saw his expression and asked.
Doctor Wang was silent when the heavy door curtain was lifted again. It was a palace maid. She came in and only glanced inside. Suddenly, she stared at Ni Su behind the tassel curtain at the innermost side. "Miss Ni."
Those were the maids beside the imperial concubine.
Ni Su recognized her.
Doctor Wang was packing his medicine box when he saw Ni Su lift the tassel curtain and come out. He glanced at her and his face didn't look very good.
"Her Majesty has given you permission to enter the Wu residence to treat the old master."
When the maid saw Ni Su following, she walked out and stood outside, "But the queen wants you to treat the old master together with this doctor Wang."
Doctor Wang was carrying a medicine box and had walked to Ni Su's side, but he kept his chin up and didn't look at her.
"But let me be frank with you. If the old master has any problem..." The maids were the ones who served the imperial concubine closely, so they spoke to them with the demeanor of a master. "You two should take care of your lives."
"yes."
Ni Su nodded.
As soon as the imperial concubine's maid left, Ni Su turned around to pack her medicine box. She gave the old doctor Qin a packet of candy that she and Xu Hexue bought at the night market last night, "Eat less. Give it to your granddaughter."
Doctor Qin didn't know when she discovered his candy habit. He smiled and took the candy bag. "Be careful. Doctor Wang is narrow-minded. He was originally treating the mother's father. If you suddenly interfere, he will be unhappy. Don't provoke him."
"I've made a note of that."
Ni Su nodded, then went out with the medicine box.
It was cold and snowing heavily, and Doctor Wang was not walking fast. Ni Su caught up with him in a short while. He said nothing, but just glanced at her and silently quickened his pace.
"Isn't that Miss Ni?"
Zhou Ting had just stepped out of the palace when he heard Chao Yisong suddenly say.
He turned around and saw heavy snow falling. Two figures were walking towards the palace gate, one in front and one behind. The one in front was a doctor in official uniform. Zhou Ting did not recognize him. The man quickly passed by him. Zhou Ting only glanced at him and called out before the woman came close, "Ni Su."
As soon as Ni Su saw Zhou Ting, she stepped forward and said, "Young Master Zhou."
"What are you going to do?"
Zhou Ting knew that she was studying medicine in the Imperial Medical Bureau.
"I am following the orders of the Queen Mother to treat his father."
Queen?
Zhou Ting was startled when he heard the voice. Who else could it be? He frowned and asked, "You want to go to Wu's house? To treat Wu Dai?"
"yes."
Ni Su had no intention of hiding it.
Zhou Ting took her to a quiet place and asked, "What do you want to do?"
"Ni Su," he stared at the woman in front of him, "Since you have escaped the Queen's plan in the name of chastity, why do you still want to get in front of her? I don't care what your purpose is, how can the Queen really believe you? How do you know she is not setting a trap for you again?"
The word "chastity" made Zhou Ting feel bitter.
She would rather remain faithful to that man than accept his help.
"Master Xiao Zhou should also know that he is an old member of the Jing'an Army, right?"
Ni Su suddenly asked him back.
Zhou Ting was silent for a moment.
"Now that you know, you should understand what I want to do," Ni Su said calmly, "Today the emperor issued an edict to posthumously confer the title of Xu Jing'an. Lord Xiao Zhou, do you know why I said he was called Xu Jing'an?"
With the preconceived notion that he was an old member of the Jing'an Army, the name Xu Jing'an became particularly heavy.
How could Zhou Ting not know?
"If he dies, I will be the last person in the Jing'an Army."
The cold wind blew the fur edge of Ni Su's cloak. "In fact, even if I didn't meet you here today, I would still look for you before going to Wu's house."
"Master Xiao Zhou, let's go together."
She said.
Zhou Ting was stunned.
"Is Prince Jia still on a hunger strike?"
Ni Su has not heard any news about Prince Jia in the Imperial Medical Bureau today.
"……yes."
Zhou Ting shouldn't have told her about this, but what she said at this moment made him feel ashamed.
"Then we have to hurry."
Ni Su nodded, "The queen is pregnant with the heir of the dragon. If she doesn't let go, His Royal Highness Prince Jia can't lift the ban."
"I mentioned to the queen before that I gave you two silver needles at the gate of Wu's mansion. I think she must have asked someone in your night office to ask about it, so I have the opportunity to see Wu Dai today."
"Let's work together to get through this winter."
Zhou Ting didn't say anything, just looked at her. The snowflakes were all over her shoulders and temples. He noticed that she had a gold hairpin with pearls, flowers and birds in her hair.
It suits her very well.
Ni Su bowed to him, then turned and walked out of the palace gate.
Outside the palace gate corridor, there was wind and snow.
Chao Yisong walked over to Zhou Ting. Since the day he brought the betrothal gifts back, he no longer dared to mention this young lady in front of Zhou Ting. Now, looking at Ni Su's back, he couldn't help but said, "I don't know what this young lady is thinking. Why is she willing to remain faithful to someone rather than..."
“She is a clean person.”
Zhou Ting held the handle of the knife with one hand and said.
The carriage from the Wu Mansion took away Doctor Wang, but did not wait for Ni Su. Perhaps Doctor Wang did not want to sit with her. She did not care and walked towards the Wu Mansion by herself.
The light mist condensed into the shape of a person beside her, and Ni Su turned her head to look at him.
He wore a white cross-collared inner robe and a light blue round-collared outer robe. Unlike the pedestrians on the street who were wearing bulky clothes, he was dressed lightly, and every step he took was graceful.
A white jade bamboo hairpin was pinned between her neatly combed hair.
“It’s really beautiful.”
Ni Su said with a smile.
Xu Hexue didn't expect her to say such a thing as the first sentence. He pursed his lips a little uncomfortably, but took her hand.
"What I said to Lord Xiao Zhou is the same as what I said to Mr. Meng." Ni Su said as he walked.
"Um."
Xu Hexue nodded.
"I don't know how long His Royal Highness Prince Jia can hold on."
This is the third day that Prince Jia has refused to eat.
"The emperor will not watch him starve to death," Xu Hexue followed her in the palace. Although he could not gather his body, he could still hear those people talking. He also knew something about the situation in the court, and based on this, he made some guesses in his mind, "We don't know whether the baby in the imperial concubine's belly is a boy or a girl. Duke Lu and Pan Youfang will never bet on her alone. But even so, the court has been divided into factions because of the debate on the succession."
"Whether it's because of me or because of our teacher, Duke Lu and Pan Youfang will never allow Yonggeng to have the chance to be the crown prince. No matter who they support, the old party will support him, and the new party will have no choice. Once the person supported by the old party becomes the crown prince, their official careers will be over."
"So, these people will do their best to protect His Royal Highness Prince Jia."
Ni Su saw the situation in the court clearly from his few words.
The New Party is protecting Prince Jia to protect themselves. For the sake of their careers and even their lives, they will spare no effort. If the emperor watches Prince Jia go on a hunger strike at this time, it will definitely not be a good thing for his reputation as an emperor.
"Today, they will definitely force Yong Geng to eat."
Xu Hexue paused for a moment, then raised his head: "I hope he won't disobey his father and king."
…
Chongming Palace.
The porcelain cup fell to the ground, making a crisp and sharp sound.
When Miao Jingzhen, the chief eunuch of the palace guards, heard the noise, he immediately stepped into the palace and saw several eunuchs holding Prince Jia's arms and pressing him down. One of them was pinching Prince Jia's chin and stuffing food into his mouth.
"How dare you treat His Highness like this?"
Miao Jingzhen frowned and said sternly.
"Master Miao, do you think we, the servants, dare to do that?" An eunuch walked up to Miao Jingzhen, looking embarrassed, "But His Highness just refuses to eat!"
Miao Jingzhen forced them to let Prince Jia go. He walked forward and found broken porcelain all over the floor. Prince Jia was barefoot, without shoes or socks, and his soles were covered in blood.
Just as he was about to get closer, he saw Prince Jia lying on the ground, vomiting uncontrollably.
"Your Highness!"
Miao Jingzhen immediately went to find a bowl of water, but when Prince Jia saw the bowl of water in his hand, his body immediately tensed up like a fully drawn bow.
He ignored the broken porcelain and spilled food under him, and lay on his back gasping for breath, his eyes half open. He looked dazed, and his gaze swept past Miao Jingzhen and the eunuchs who were standing on the side with indifferent and contemptuous expressions.
"you……"
His voice trembled, "You all want to hurt me."
"Your Highness, no one is trying to hurt you," Miao Jingzhen wanted to help him up, but he pushed her away fiercely. He had no choice but to drink a sip of water himself. "Your Highness, look, I drank it, and I'm fine."
Prince Jia didn't speak or look at him.
Miao Jingzhen had heard of the Gelsemium elegans case. He knew that Prince Jia was suffering from a mental illness and he must be unable to sleep or eat well being imprisoned here.
But it was impossible to persuade him to eat at the moment.
Miao Jingzhen had no choice but to stand up. He wanted to say something, but he couldn't. The eunuchs were all watching him. He had no choice but to ask someone to bandage the wound on Prince Jia's foot and then leave.
The palace door closed, blocking out a large area of sunlight.
Prince Jia sat on the ground in a daze.
"Your Highness."
A weak female voice came from inside, and Prince Jia woke up as if from a dream. He stood up and staggered to the door without caring about the wound on his foot.
The inner hall was locked; he couldn't get in, and the people inside couldn't get out.
"I have caused trouble for Your Highness."
Princess Jia Li Xizhen was speaking inside.
"No, Xizhen..."
Prince Jia put his hands on the door and said, "No..."
He had no strength left in his body, and soon he slid down and leaned against the door.
"Your Highness, don't be afraid. At this moment, the more serious the commotion ahead, the less likely it is that the food is poisonous."
"I know,"
Prince Jia's throat felt dry, "But I can't eat anymore, Xizhen, I can't eat anymore..."
" You have to eat."
Princess Jia's voice became more forceful, "Your Highness, we are still alive now, so don't cut off your own life first. No matter how the queen treats me, or how the emperor treats you, we have to hold on."
Prince Jia covered his mouth, his eyelids wet.
"Are you alright?"
He asked, "Are you okay, Xizhen?"
"Still alive."
Princess Jia leaned on the soft pillow. She had stopped taking medicine, and no one from the Imperial Medical Bureau came to treat her without the permission of the emperor or the empress.
"Your Highness, at this time, you should remember your teacher and him even more."
She coughed for a long time, took a deep breath, and said, "They are all watching you from the grave. You must not give up. You have to eat , and you have to eat for them."
"Who will remember them if you are not here?"
The muscles in Prince Jia's hands, which were supporting him on the ground, trembled. He could not forget the sight of his teacher's head falling to the ground, nor could he forget the 136 cuts that man had suffered in Yongzhou.
Tears suddenly welled up in my eyes.
"I eat, I eat..."
Prince Jia barely supported himself and walked back, picking up the food from the broken porcelain pieces. He suppressed the gloom in his heart and the urge to vomit, and forced himself to swallow the food mouthful by mouthful.
He knelt on the ground, his hair disheveled and his clothes stained, and he desperately stuffed broken cakes into his mouth.
Suddenly, he raised his head and through the gaps in the vermilion window frame, he saw heavy snow falling outside, and the sky and the earth were all white.
Another winter has passed, and all his teachers and friends are gone, leaving him alone alive.
The dense needles pierced his heart fiercely, and a voice suddenly rang in his ears:
"They're bullying you by giving you leftovers. I won't help you this time. Beat them up yourself."
"Zhao Yonggeng, you can't be a coward."
