In the following days, the Emperor’s condition grew increasingly stable, and even the violent recurrent high fevers that always struck during the night subsided.
Because of the previous incidents involving Shun’an and the Imperial Hospital director’s sudden death, Zhu Qingyu remained wary. She did not want to drag more innocent people into the matter, so she discussed with Eunuch Qiu:
“Eunuch Qiu, please don’t arrange for anyone else to test the medicine. They’re targeting me. Since that’s the case, I’ll test it myself.”
Eunuch Qiu chuckled:
“Oh, Doctor Zhu, there’s no need to worry about that. Times have changed. Now there are plenty of people eager to take on this task to show their loyalty to the Emperor. You’ve already made significant contributions. We don’t need to hog all the credit. Let others have these minor opportunities.”
Zhu Qingyu thought to herself, That’s true. Gu Zhao personally tested the medicine himself. Anyone with eyes can see the medicine is safe now.
So testing the medicine had transformed from a high-risk, deadly task into a low-risk, face-revealing opportunity. At this point, anyone with ambition would be competing to show off, hoping to earn merit in front of the Emperor when he woke up.
Indeed, these past few days, every time it was time to test the Emperor’s medicine, eunuchs and maids from the Qianqing Palace would line up outside the tea room, all vying for the task.
One evening, as Zhu Qingyu finished decocting the medicine, two eunuchs got into a physical brawl right outside the tea room over the chance to test it.
Their eagerness to earn merit was boundless. One young eunuch, pushed to his limit, knocked down a taller and stronger eunuch, straddled him, grabbed a nearby potted flower, and was about to smash it on the other man.
The young eunuch’s movements were swift and sharp—no one could understand how his small frame possessed such explosive strength. He nearly succeeded before others pulled him back in the nick of time.
During her time diagnosing the Emperor in Qianqing Palace, Zhu Qingyu had always seen the eunuchs and maids there behave with extreme caution and restraint—almost as if measured by a ruler or programmed like robots. This was her first encounter with such a lively, human scene, and she stood in the tea room, utterly stunned.
The commotion only ended when Eunuch Qiu came to take charge. He punished both eunuchs with ten beatings each, then addressed the noisy crowd:
“Everyone, disperse. I’ll test the medicine myself.”
After the crowd scattered, Zhu Qingyu handed the bowl of medicine to Eunuch Qiu. He drank it in one go, as casually as if it were plain water.
After finishing the medicine, Eunuch Qiu couldn’t leave. He had to stay in the tea room for two quarters of an hour to ensure there were no adverse reactions before Zhu Qingyu could take the medicine to the Emperor.
Not wanting to sit in silence for that long, Eunuch Qiu struck up a conversation with Zhu Qingyu:
“You must have found today’s spectacle amusing, Doctor Zhu. Ah, it’s hard to get ahead in the palace. These young lads haven’t mastered their temper yet—it’s inevitable they get a little rash.”
Hearing this, Zhu Qingyu understood that Eunuch Qiu wanted to downplay the incident, brush it aside, and prevent it from escalating.
Because of this, she felt that Eunuch Qiu was actually quite kind to his subordinates, willing to shield them from trouble.
She smiled:
“They’re just kids. A little impulsiveness is understandable. Thank you for all your trouble these past two days, Eunuch Qiu. You’ve been very busy, yet you’ve still accompanied me back and forth to fetch the medicine.”
Seeing that Doctor Zhu was cooperative and unlikely to make a fuss, Eunuch Qiu’s eyes crinkled with a smile:
“We’re all serving the Emperor. It’s only right. Now that you bear the responsibility for the Emperor’s safety, we can’t afford any carelessness.”
These past few days, Shen Xu and Gu Zhao had both been extremely busy. Shen Xu had been absent entirely for several days, while Gu Zhao hadn’t been seen since yesterday afternoon.
Shen Xu’s workload had surged because the Imperial Prison (Zhaoyu) had numerous cases to try. The day after Shun’an’s sudden death, the Empress Dowager issued an edict to seal off the Tan and Liu residences. The Tan Grand Secretary, who had been suspended pending investigation by imperial order, was also taken into custody at the prison.
Whether it was the case of the Tan Grand Secretary’s possible involvement in regicide or Commander Han’s alleged illicit relationship with Consort Tan, both cases involved imperial family secrets and scandals, requiring Shen Xu’s personal trial.
As for Gu Zhao, the joint court trial for the military supplies counterfeit medicine case was about to begin.
The Tan Grand Secretary had been entrenched in the imperial court for years with numerous disciples.
Moreover, news that Consort Tan was pregnant had somehow leaked. With the Emperor currently ill, if the worst were to happen, the child in Consort Tan’s womb could very well become the future Son of Heaven.
Given this delicate situation, some individuals involved in the trial were restless. In an attempt to curry favor for the future, they harbored ill intentions, hoping to set the Tan family free and secure merit for supporting the next emperor.
The Empress Dowager sent Gu Zhao to oversee the military supplies counterfeit medicine case to keep control, ensuring the case sealed the Tan family’s fate and prevented further scandal from erupting.
Before leaving, Gu Zhao was uneasy. He entrusted Zhu Qingyu to Eunuch Qiu’s care and cautioned her:
“Although the Tan Grand Secretary is in prison, the case hasn’t been decided yet, and the Emperor hasn’t woken. We’re not at the final stage yet. Out of the thousands in the palace, there are bound to be those with ulterior motives, desperate enough for a last-ditch effort to turn things around for the Tan family. Neither Chongshu nor I will be in the palace. You must be even more cautious. Under no circumstances should you walk alone in the palace. If you need to leave Qianqing Palace, make sure Eunuch Qiu arranges everything.”
So, these past two days, wherever Zhu Qingyu went, Eunuch Qiu surrounded her with a crowd of attendants.
She couldn’t very well take such a large entourage to the Eastern Palace to rest. So she hadn’t returned to her side room there. Instead, she catnapped on the tea room counter during the Emperor’s medication breaks or leaned against the footrest of his bed to doze off.
Zhu Qingyu and Eunuch Qiu chatted idly about this and that until the two quarters of an hour passed.
Eunuch Qiu remained unaffected, so Zhu Qingyu carried the medicine to the Emperor’s bedchamber.
After giving the Emperor his medicine, Zhu Qingyu had to stay in the bedchamber all night to monitor him, mainly to prevent another high fever or any complications.
Ever since entering the palace, she had endured so much with mostly fragmented sleep that she was already utterly exhausted.
The dim, quiet bedchamber was the perfect environment for sleep. Zhu Qingyu curled up on the footrest, leaning against the bedside edge, and fell asleep in no time.
Half-asleep, she heard someone whisper by her ear:
“Doctor Zhu, I’ve come to wipe the Emperor’s body.”
Zhu Qingyu had prescribed the Emperor medicine three times a day, along with herb baths and wiping to reduce fever. Judging by the schedule, it was indeed time for the wiping.
She was so drowsy that she couldn’t even muster a simple “Mm.” The visitor called her three times, but she didn’t respond, unwilling to get up.
A presence drew near, and then she felt fabric brush against her face.
Annoyed at being disturbed, Zhu Qingyu instinctively tried to push the fabric away, but her hand met something solid—like she had touched someone’s leg.
Startled awake, she opened her eyes just in time to see a young eunuch climbing onto the Emperor’s dragon bed. He was straddling the Emperor, pressing a pillow tightly over his face.
Zhu Qingyu had accidentally bumped into him, so the attacker turned and looked straight at her.
The moment she opened her eyes, she witnessed a murder scene—someone was assassinating the sovereign. And the culprit was someone she recognized: it was that young eunuch who, earlier that evening, had been publicly brawling over a trial drug opportunity he had failed to secure.
Even in the dim light, Zhu Qingyu could see clearly the unguarded viciousness and murderous intent in the young eunuch’s eyes as he looked at her.
Without giving her a chance to scream or flee, the young eunuch lunged at her with a speed and agility even greater than during his brawl earlier. In an instant, he pinned her to the ground, his hands already locked around her throat.
Zhu Qingyu’s head hit the floor, the impact leaving her mind blank and her ears ringing with a sharp buzz. With her throat constricted, she could neither cry out nor breathe. At that critical moment between life and death, driven almost by instinct, her hand fumbled for the dagger hidden in her sleeve. She pulled it out and thrust it forward.
