After the morning court the next day, in the memorial of the court discussion, Xu Shangshu asked about the matter of Concubine Xu in the inner palace. He first expressed his concern for the emperor's family affairs as a court official, and then expressed his grief as the father of Concubine Xu. The sad voice
　　on the paper made people unbearable to read. But in stark contrast to this humble statement, Xu Shangshu rejected several items that had been agreed upon in the court discussion. He delayed the construction of the Changtai Palace on the grounds that the Ministry of Revenue had no money.
　　This was another test of the emperor's power by Xu Shangshu. He wanted to guess the emperor's mind and wanted to peek at how the new emperor, who had been on the throne for less than a year, would respond? Was it compromise, appeasement, and the usual behavior, or was he immediately ruthless and angry.
　　In this minister's speculation about the emperor, Xu Shangshu did not get to the bottom of it. Because only half a day later, the Cining Palace summoned Wen Haolan, the assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue, to the palace and explained the internal affairs of the Ministry of Revenue to the Empress Dowager through the screen. The Empress Dowager praised Wen and talked about Xu Shangshu's old age and whether he had students.
　　When these words blew out of the palace like the wind, Xu Shangshu immediately thought of the old things in Xining. When Emperor Mingde was in power, Dong Lingjiu had already recruited a group of cruel officials. Among the three government offices, the Censorate, the Censorate... Which one did not have young people promoted by her?
　　During the Xining period, the most easily mentioned and most obscure criticism of Dong Lingjiu in the writings of historians was that she controlled the judiciary, supervision, and interrogation. From the inner prison to the Dali Temple, her tentacles were everywhere. Many censors impeached and fabricated charges, and the criminal officials who were favored by her could be brought to trial and interrogation according to the Empress's handwritten order.
　　Xu Shangshu broke out in a cold sweat and quickly opened the mouth of the Ministry of Revenue. The funds for the Changtai Palace were allocated as expected. His attempt to test the imperial power this time also ended in vain.
　　In the letter of greeting from Minister Xu, Empress Dowager Dong also comforted him, sympathized with him, and everything seemed to be the same.
　　Zheng Yuheng was still serving medicine in the Cining Palace. He only went home twice during this period. Zheng's father never asked about the affairs of the palace. Instead, his half-brothers, who had been indifferent to him before, came to ask about his well-being. Even the stepmother sent people to send a lot of things.
　　After Concubine Xu woke up, she sent people to thank the imperial physician Zheng and wanted to give Zheng Yuheng a garden in the suburbs of Beijing, which was the private property that the family gave to Concubine Xu when she entered the palace.
　　Zheng Yuheng politely refused, took nothing, and returned to the Imperial Hospital with nothing. The rest of the people in the Imperial Hospital should have been punished for "mediocrity", but they were exempted from the fine because of the empress dowager
　　's amnesty. His situation was slightly better because of this, and he was even bribed and flattered by the eunuchs. Zheng Yuheng was unable to avoid it, and dodged in a panic, which made him look a little embarrassed.
　　It was late spring and early summer, and it rained a while ago, but the air was not fresh after the rain. It was so stuffy that it was hard to breathe. The ground was damp, and the wet water beads were connected into one piece.
　　"Oh, Master Zheng, how can I trouble you with this matter?" The maid of Cining Palace came forward and took the palm-leaf fan from Zheng Yuheng's hand, "You'd better go to the front to read and write, and serve ink for the queen. In fact, you shouldn't do these things, but it's better than hanging around in front of the stove all day, right?"
　　There were four or five people standing in the medicine room, including female doctors and maids in the palace. The originally large space seemed cramped.
　　He looked at the white smoke overflowing from the medicine stove: "I always make her worry, it's enough that the Queen Mother doesn't dislike me."
　　"What a lie." The maid laughed, "The Queen Mother loves you the most. Although I was angry and hurt you a few days ago, it was also because of my love. I was afraid that it would break if I held you up, so I did that, so that you would take care of yourself."
　　Zheng Yuheng's ears were hot when he heard her speak frankly: "My dear, the inner noble..."
　　"Or is it that Master Zheng is angry?"
　　Zheng Yuheng looked up and defended helplessly: "How could I be angry?"
　　The maid laughed and urged: "Why don't you go and see the Queen Mother? Prince Zhaoye has no one to supervise him, and he runs around all day. The other day he scratched the paper that Aunt copied the documents on, and I'm waiting for you to deal with it."
　　Zheng Yuheng then stood up hesitantly.
　　He washed his hands, tidied his clothes, and then went to the palace.
　　He really didn't resent the Queen Mother for being slapped. On the contrary, he almost understood what the maid said. But the warmth of Dong Lingjiu's last hug made Zheng Yuheng's upright heart tremble suddenly. Such a contact that broke the limit made him feel faintly timid.
　　In the past few days, he repeatedly sorted out his thoughts and finally came to a conclusion: he did not resist that kind of contact. In fact, he was afraid that he could not bear such favor and pity. And if Dong Lingjiu was willing, no one could resist her wishes.
　　Zheng Yuheng stepped into the hall. The blue-clothed eunuch at the door was kneeling. Seeing him coming, he hurriedly stopped him. He was so nervous that veins popped out on his forehead. He suppressed his throat and whispered: "My lord, don't go, inside..."
　　Before he said it, Zheng Yuheng was frightened by the solemn and silent atmosphere inside, and couldn't help asking in a low voice: "Who is inside?"
　　The eunuch did not answer him. However, Dong Lingjiu's voice sounded flat and it sounded a little vague at the door.
　　"...When your father was teaching you in the past, I told the prince that you should not be too merciful when observing politics, and should punish people for their mistakes and then correct them after being punished. However, Meng Zhen never thought so. He just pointed out the pros and cons and urged you to correct your mistakes. As a result, you have been observing politics and regulating the country for three years, but you have not made any progress."
　　Another person said, "Please punish me, mother."
　　"You are already in this position. How can I punish you so that you can understand and still maintain your dignity?" Dong Lingjiu said indifferently, "The emperor's dignity is the majesty of heaven. You are my son and the emperor, and you are the majesty of heaven. I will only reprimand you as a mother, and there is no need to mention the word punishment in the future." When
　　she said this, the new emperor was frightened instead. He did not speak for a long time, but just said, "...I am sorry to disappoint you, mother, but..." "
　　But you are not your father after all." Dong Lingjiu seemed to see through his thoughts, "You have things you cannot tolerate, feelings you cannot give, and things you cannot sacrifice. It is actually a harsh criticism for me to ask you by the standards of your father, right?"
　　The other party did not speak.
　　"In this position, your every move, every like and dislike, even if it is just a small willfulness, will affect and destroy more people." Dong Lingjiu said here, seeing that Meng Cheng's finger bones were already tense, as if he could not bear it, she softened her tone and said much kinder, "When a person has tasted the power of life and death, without suppression from above and supervision from below, it is very easy to look down on human life and compare it to ants. Your views and practices towards Concubine Xu are too cruel."
　　Meng Cheng was puzzled, because in his heart, Dong Lingjiu had experienced more cruel things under his hands. He pondered for a while and said, "My son knows he is wrong, but I am the emperor. Can't I deal with a concubine who relies on her mother's family to coerce and gain pity?"
　　"Then you should start with the people who coerce you, and solve it from the root. Don't be short-sighted."
　　Dong Lingjiu knew that Meng Cheng was actually brought up to be very filial, so she often treated him kindly, and even more so after Meng Cheng ascended the throne, but her patience ended there.
　　Sometimes, Dong Lingjiu's worries about his immaturity were even greater than his cold heart, which was born to represent the imperial power.
　　"If you don't want to see Concubine Xu, that's fine. I will send her to Kunning Palace in a few days and let Concubine Xu recuperate."
　　Meng Cheng's face showed a clear look of relief, but he hesitated: "This way, won't let the Xu family think that it is you, the queen mother..."
　　"They already think so." Dong Lingjiu said, "Some things, if it happens to me, are just a light touch, but if it happens to you, it is like knocking open a crack in the porcelain, which is easy to damage the relationship between you and your subjects."
　　She didn't want to say more, so she raised her hand and asked Ruixue to send the people out. Meng Cheng stood up and bowed to the empress dowager again. The little emperor was tall and thin, and under the layers of gorgeous clothes, he showed a kind of precious splendor.
　　He was a child who rolled out of a pile of gold and jade, a child loved by his parents. His shoulders were tender and he couldn't bear the weight of the people. This solemn imperial dress was still a little inappropriate on Meng Cheng. When he was about to leave, he heard his mother say again: "Don't blame the queen."
　　Meng Cheng paused, "I know."
　　When Ruixue led him out of the hall, the eunuchs were still kneeling on the ground. But in addition to the eunuchs, there was a very young man kneeling at the door of the Cining Palace, who was not wearing palace clothes.
　　Meng Cheng's eyes turned, paused on the official hat of the imperial physician, turned his head and asked: "Li Neiren, is this the imperial physician who serves the queen mother's head disease?"
　　Ruixue's common name is Li, so she can be called Li Neiren. She replied, "Yes, Doctor Zheng is very dedicated to serving the Empress."
　　With her words, Meng Cheng's sudden alertness subsided a lot. He had just been criticized and his face was not good. He slowly pulled out a smile and said casually, "Unlike the imperial physician, he is so young, can he be reliable?" Ruixue said
　　, "Imperial Physician Zheng is cautious and has excellent medical skills. The Empress thinks he is very rare."
　　Meng Cheng nodded and said to Zheng Yuheng, "Stand up and answer."
　　Zheng Yuheng stood up as ordered. When Meng Cheng saw the face of the imperial physician, his mood, which had just been temporarily relaxed, suddenly tensed up again. This person is really born too well. Under the simple clothes, he has such a clear and gentle appearance and demeanor.
　　He stared at Zheng Yuheng, and the smile on his lips disappeared: "Look up."
　　The two looked at each other. Meng Cheng's hand twitched a few times in his sleeve. From a son's understanding of his mother, from a person in power's understanding of another person in power, and even from the internal competition between men, he could feel a strong threat from Zheng Yuheng.
　　He said, "Does the Queen Mother think you are rare?"
　　Zheng Yuheng bowed and said, "I dare not. The Queen Mother just took pity on me because I am young, so she didn't treat me harshly." Meng
　　Cheng gritted his teeth and disagreed with the word "pity", but he had just received training today and didn't dare to get angry under Dong Lingjiu's nose. He just took two steps closer and helped Zheng Yuheng up with his own hands.
　　"I know." He said, "The Queen Mother always has pity on the humble. Doctor Zheng, you have to take good care of the Queen Mother's illness for me to repay her kindness to you."
　　Zheng Yuheng said meekly, "I obey your order."
　　Thanks to his superficial meekness that he had cultivated for many years, Meng Cheng relaxed his hands lightly, just stared at him again, and turned around and left without saying anything.
　　After the emperor left, Zheng Yuheng relaxed and came to Dong Lingjiu.
　　The meal was being served in the palace. It was clearly time for the meal, but Dong Lingjiu did not keep the emperor, which showed that she was in a bad mood. At this time, the cat was favored and stretched on the empress dowager's lap. Zheng Yuheng could actually read a kind of show-off in its crystal clear cat eyes.
　　The young imperial physician Zheng walked forward expressionlessly, took Aiai out, handed it to the palace servant beside him, and said, "It sheds a lot of hair, especially at this time of year. It is not good for the queen. Don't let it make such a fuss to win favor."
　　After the palace servant took the cat prince away, Zheng Yuheng looked back and saw Dong Lingjiu looking at him. He silently explained, "What I said is right."
　　Dong Lingjiu smiled and said, "I don't blame you."
　　She didn't say anything, but Zheng Yuheng was already uneasy just by looking at her. He came to Dong Lingjiu, covered her with a silk handkerchief as usual, and took her pulse.
　　A moment later, the meal in the palace was served. Zheng Yuheng also withdrew his hand and repeated the words that advised her to rest more and worry less. Before he finished, Dong Lingjiu suddenly said, "Your family is full of poetry and literature."
　　This was too sudden. Zheng Yuheng was stunned for a moment, and then answered after a while: "Ah... yes."
　　"I have heard that the ancestors of the Zheng family did not pursue power and were strong and upright." Dong Lingjiu smiled and said, "A few years ago, when admonishing the emperor, there was a suspicious case of smuggling salt. The court officials jointly submitted a petition, which caused a sensation. Two censors were killed by the Panlong Dan Pillar in the court discussion. One of them was from the Zheng family. It seems that he was your father's brother, your uncle."
　　Zheng Yuheng: "Yes."
　　"What a loyal heart." Dong Lingjiu sighed, "I heard that such a family cannot be bribed by gold, silver, or overwhelming power. What about you? What can bribe you?"
　　Zheng Yuheng vaguely realized that he seemed to be facing a choice with unclear boundaries. If he answered wrong, Dong Lingjiu would give up that sinful wish, release him into the wild, and never interfere in his life again.
　　It's like releasing a deer back to the garden.
　　He was silent for a moment, and a sense of irrationality took over. He said almost without hesitation: "I hope that Your Majesty will listen to my medical advice in the future. I want to cure you."
　　For a doctor, this is really a simple wish and a very simple way of "bribing".
　　"Is that it?" she asked.
　　"Yes," Zheng Yuheng said softly, "that's it."