Imperial Physician Li lowered his head and fell silent.
Consort Li took the Emperor’s hand, tears glistening in her eyes.
“Your Majesty, Imperial Physician Li was only thinking of your health!”
“Your Majesty, you cannot fall ill. If anything were to happen to you, what would I do?”
The Emperor gazed at Consort Li, who was crying like a drenched blossom, lost in thought.
He raised his hand and gently wiped away her tears.
“What are you afraid of? I am not dead yet!”
“These physicians are nothing but alarmists with their dire warnings.”
“My health is perfectly fine!”
As he spoke, the Emperor leaned back against the soft bolster, as though drained of all strength.
He waved his hand faintly.
“That will be all, I am tired. You may take your leave.”
At this, Consort Li wiped her tears, took Prince Ling’s arm, and rose to her feet.
“Then, Your Majesty, please rest well. I will take my leave for now.”
“I will return tomorrow to keep you company for a while.”
The Emperor gave a slight nod.
Prince Ling bowed to the Emperor. “Father, your son hereby takes his leave.”
The Emperor studied Prince Ling with a probing gaze. “Has your health fully recovered?”
Upon hearing his father’s concern, Prince Ling’s face lit up with gratitude.
“To answer your question, Father, my lower back has healed completely.”
The Emperor’s eyes flickered, and he nodded.
“Xiao Lizi, take the memorials on the left side of the table and give them to Prince Ling.”
Eunuch Li responded promptly and hurried to retrieve the documents.
A gleam of surprise and joy burst forth from Prince Ling’s eyes.
“Father… you mean…”
The Emperor looked at Prince Ling with solemnity.
“These memorials are urgent matters requiring attention.”
“Take them back, review and approve them, and then send them back to me for final review.”
Prince Ling knelt excitedly and knocked his head heavily on the floor.
“Your son—accepts the imperial decree!”
After bowing, he rose, took the memorials from Eunuch Li’s hands, and departed with Consort Li, beaming.
The Emperor stared after their retreating figures, lost in thought for a moment.
A short while later, he turned his gaze to Imperial Physician Li, who was still kneeling on the ground.
“Rise.”
“Yes, thank you, Your Majesty!” Imperial Physician Li bowed and stood up.
“What were you about to say earlier?” the Emperor hesitated.
“Has my condition… taken a turn for the worse?”
The Emperor frowned. He actually felt lighter and more at ease than usual.
Imperial Physician Li clasped his hands in salute.
“In response to Your Majesty, it is not worse.”
“From the pulse I just took, I actually feel that Your Majesty’s health has improved.”
“Did Your Majesty sleep very deeply last night?”
The Emperor nodded slowly.
“Yes, I felt I slept very soundly.”
Eunuch Li interjected from the side, “Your Majesty did not even turn over once last night. He slept straight through until the hour of Chen.”
Imperial Physician Li stroked his beard and nodded slightly.
“Your Majesty’s heart ailment primarily requires rest.”
“When rest is adequate, all aspects of the body will show improvement.”
“I will prescribe some remedies to regulate the damaged heart meridians and help you recuperate. In this way, Your Majesty will soon be restored to full health!”
Noticing Eunuch Li’s hesitant expression, the Emperor frowned.
“What do you wish to say? Speak plainly—why dawdle?”
Eunuch Li hastily explained.
“Your Majesty, did Princess Changle not urge you yesterday to show the medicine to Imperial Physician Li for his examination?”
Only then did the Emperor recall the matter.
He shot Eunuch Li a glare. “Meddlesome!”
Upon hearing that the Emperor had taken medicine not prescribed by him, Imperial Physician Li grew curious.
“Your Majesty, would you be so kind as to allow me to have a look at the medicine?”
The emperor paused, then reached from the bedside to retrieve a small porcelain bottle, handing it to Imperial Physician Li.
Imperial Physician Li took it respectfully with both hands.
He pulled out the stopper and sniffed it first.
A rich, sweet fragrance made him involuntarily take a deep breath.
Noticing the emperor watching him, Imperial Physician Li quickly poured out a single pill.
He picked up the pill, sniffed it carefully, and tried to discern its ingredients.
He could only identify a few common herbs; a couple of them were unclear to him.
“Your Majesty, may I taste a little?”
Imperial Physician Li asked cautiously.
The emperor looked at him. “First, tell me—is this medicine poisonous?”
Imperial Physician Li quickly shook his head.
“By your leave, no, Your Majesty!”
“On the contrary, this medicine is beneficial to your health.”
Hearing this, the emperor took the bottle back from Imperial Physician Li’s hand.
He also retrieved the pill from him.
“Since it’s beneficial, there’s no need to taste it.”
“I already took one last night...”
The emperor stopped mid-sentence.
Last night, he had slept deeply—could it be because of this pill?
Imperial Physician Li looked reluctantly at the pill still in the emperor’s hand.
“Your Majesty, if I could identify the ingredients, I might be able to make a pill more suited to you.”
“That way, you could recover from your heart condition sooner.”
“And the Imperial Academy of Medicine would gain a new prescription—two birds with one stone, wouldn’t it?”
The emperor knew that Imperial Physician Li was a medical enthusiast with exceptional skill.
For Li to covet a pill, it must be rare indeed.
“Not necessary. Changle gave this to me. Ask her for it!”
The emperor refused without hesitation, placing the pill back into the bottle.
“By the way, Changle is very interested in medicine. Would you be willing to take her as a disciple?”
Upon hearing this, Imperial Physician Li froze for a moment, then immediately bowed.
“I thank Your Majesty for this honor!”
The emperor gave him a sidelong glance.
“No need for thanks. But this matter must not be publicized.”
“Only you, I, and she will know.”
Imperial Physician Li looked surprised.
Did the emperor mean that Princess Changle’s apprenticeship with him must be kept secret?
Not to be announced publicly?
Seeing Imperial Physician Li’s expression, the emperor rubbed the porcelain bottle in his hand.
“I am protecting her.”
Imperial Physician Li quickly understood at that.
He clasped his hands in salute. “I obey Your Majesty’s command!”
The emperor waved his hand dismissively. Just as Imperial Physician Li was about to leave, Eunuch Li added a question:
“Imperial Physician Li, does His Majesty still need to continue taking the prescription you prescribed?”
Imperial Physician Li paused, then waved his hand.
“This pill is more effective than the prescription I wrote.”
“Taking one of these daily should suffice—but it must not be taken in excess.”
The emperor was taken aback.
As he recalled, Changle had said that he could take it whenever he felt unwell?
Seeing the emperor’s expression, Imperial Physician Li guessed what he might be thinking.
He reminded the emperor, “Your Majesty, heart conditions should be nurtured slowly—treated with patience and care.”
“Also, there are not many pills in this bottle.”
“If you finish them too quickly before your heart meridian is fully healed, you’ll have to return to my prescribed medicine.”
The emperor shot him a cold look.
Imperial Physician Li fell silent, thinking it a pity to consume such fine medicine like candy.
“Enough. Spare me the lectures.” The emperor waved his hand impatiently.
Imperial Physician Li lowered his head. "Your Majesty, may I ask if I can now go and see Princess Changle?"
