Eagle-eyed and wolf-watching

Chapter 1774 Ye Mingsheng's Quirks
Composing herself, Bae Jisoo calmly asked:

Do I know the person you like?

Upon hearing this, Han Rui's already shy face turned even redder. After fidgeting for a couple of seconds, she whispered in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz:
"It's Xu Hetu!"

"Xu Hetu?"

Now that her name had been revealed, An Rui didn't hide anything and nodded, saying:
“Our two families have been neighbors since we were little. He Tu has always taken good care of me, and he has always been outstanding. He was the one who recommended me to medical school, so I like him a lot!”

After saying all this, the girl suddenly looked troubled and said:
"Brother Hetu said he didn't like being a royal physician, and he didn't like treating only high-ranking officials and nobles. He hoped to travel all over the country like Li Shizhen, collecting medicinal specimens and prescriptions from all over the country. He also said he wanted to write a great medical book like the Compendium of Materia Medica to benefit all people!"

By the end, the little girl's face was full of admiration. Clearly, Han Rui was captivated by Xu Hetu's lofty ambitions and ideals.

Hearing Han Rui say this, Pei Zhixiu was also somewhat surprised. Although she had been teaching female students at the medical school, she still had some impression of Xu Hetu, the male student who had once sneaked into the classroom.

Bae Ji-soo remembered that she had also treated his mother, whose gynecological problems had been neglected for too long and were still quite serious.

Pei Zhixiu had a rather ordinary impression of Xu Hetu, but she thought he was quite filial, which was why she had his mother examined.

But Pei Zhixiu never expected that Han Rui would actually like Xu Hetu, and that Xu Hetu would have such lofty ambitions...
Seeing that her mentor still didn't quite believe her, Han Rui defended her beloved, saying:
"Brother Hetu is very outstanding. His medical skills are among the top three in the entire medical school. Even Dean Li has praised him and intends for him to become a royal physician after graduation!"

"Oh?"

Hearing Han Rui's words, Pei Zhixiu became even more interested. The medical school was a sacred medical institution of the Great Qian Dynasty, built by Ye Mingsheng at great expense. It could be said to have gathered the best medical resources in the entire world. The medical school had a five-year program, admitting only about five hundred students each year. These five hundred students were mostly outstanding individuals, including children from medical families who had been exposed to medicine from a young age. Therefore, although they were young, their medical skills were quite high...
Therefore, if Xu Hetu can truly stand out among thousands of students and rank among the top three, and Dean Li is even prepared to let him stay at the school to become a royal physician, then Xu Hetu's medical skills must indeed be excellent, and he can even be called a dragon among men, with unlimited potential in the future!
It's important to know that it's not easy for medical students to stay on as faculty. The professors at medical schools are basically all imperial physicians, each with considerable wealth and enjoying very high salaries. Because becoming an imperial physician has so many benefits, the competition for a place on campus is extremely fierce every year. You need to have exceptional medical skills to have even the slightest chance.

Most importantly, the quota for staying on as a faculty member is not available every year. It depends on whether each graduating class has truly outstanding talents. If there are no outstanding talents, the academy would rather not keep any than allow some mediocre individuals to stay on as imperial physicians.

So if Xu Hetu really had such abilities, and if he really had the ambition not to treat only the powerful and wealthy, but to travel all over the country to search for prescriptions and compile medical books, then that would be extremely rare!

Bae Ji-soo had met many brilliant doctors at the medical school. In terms of medical skills alone, these people were all very skilled. However, what made Bae Ji-soo feel regretful was that in Yi-kyung, a melting pot of power and temptation, even the medical school, which was originally a sacred place of medicine, could not escape the temptation and gradually became a place of fame and fortune!

Rather than continuing to study medicine, people now prefer to research whose house is bigger and in a better location, whose carriage is more comfortable and luxurious, whose woman is younger and more beautiful, and whose powerful and influential connections they have.

Every time she saw these things, Bae Ji-soo felt very regretful and even heartbroken, but she was helpless and could only watch as the atmosphere of the medical school gradually deteriorated and the royal physicians rushed to pursue fame and fortune!

Just as Bae Ji-soo was surprised, Han Rui continued, somewhat troubled:
"If I become the imperial physician, but Brother Hetu wanders the world, won't we have to separate?"

"Sir, what should I do? Should I apply to become a royal physician...?"

Listening to Han Rui's distress, Pei Zhixiu thought for a moment and said:
Does Xu Hetu know you like him? Does he have any feelings for you?

Han Rui thought for a moment and then said:

"Brother Hetu probably doesn't know that he treats me very well, but only like a younger sister!"

Bae Ji-soo frowned slightly upon hearing this, and then asked again:
"Han Rui, how much do you like Xu Hetu?"

"Sir, I really like Brother Hetu!"

"Let me ask you another way. What kind of sacrifice are you willing to make for him if you really want to be with him, and if he really is wandering the world in pursuit of more advanced medical skills? Are you willing to live a life of hardship and wander the world with him?"

Upon hearing this, Han Rui's expression first froze, then became complicated. Just then, Pei Zhixiu continued:

"Han Rui, you don't need to answer my question in a hurry. I want to ask you another question: Have you really decided to become an imperial physician?"

"Sir, what do you mean by that? I don't quite understand!"

"I know that becoming a royal physician can earn you a lot of money, allowing you to live a better life, which is very tempting for you. However, as your teacher, I want to tell you a principle: in this world, most of the time, risk and reward are equal; the higher the income, the greater the risk!" "Becoming a royal physician to treat those high-ranking officials and nobles can indeed earn you a lot of money, but doing so is also like walking on thin ice. If you cure them and make them heal, you may become their benefactor. But if you fail to cure them, these high-ranking officials and nobles will take their anger out on you, making you their punching bag, and you will have to bear their wrath..."

"There are plenty of examples like this in medical school. Take Imperial Physician Li and Imperial Physician Dong, for instance. You can go and find out how they fell from grace, Han Rui!"

Upon hearing Bae Ji-soo's words, Han Rui froze for a moment, while Bae Ji-soo continued seriously:
"Han Rui, I'm not exaggerating. I just want to tell you that becoming a royal physician can bring you a life of luxury, but it can also push you into an abyss of no return. So you must think it over carefully!"

Seeing Bae Ji-soo's serious expression, Han Rui gradually came to her senses, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke:
"Sir, what you've said is making me a little scared!"

"Don't be afraid. As long as you don't make mistakes and are careful enough, the medical school can still protect you, but the risks are real!"

Han Rui nodded, seemingly understanding, while Pei Zhixiu continued:

"You've probably heard the saying 'Serving a ruler is like serving a tiger,' right? The same applies to being a royal physician. So, if you want to become a royal physician and live out the rest of your life peacefully, you must be extremely cautious. Otherwise, you may enjoy the benefits that power brings, but you will also suffer the backlash that power brings!"

"Han Rui, I don't think I can answer the question that's troubling you. Only you can answer it yourself; it's difficult for anyone else to give you a precise answer!"

"You need to ask yourself a question: Are you willing to be with Xu Hetu, and is Xu Hetu willing to be with you? Is your affection for him enough to make you give up the comfortable life you would have as a royal physician? Are you willing to make such a great sacrifice for him?"

Pei Zhixiu's three questions were all insightful and pointed, making Han Rui increasingly clear-headed. After a moment of contemplation, the young girl's expression gradually hardened as she said:
"Mr. Pei, thank you for your guidance..."

Bae Ji-soo nodded slightly and said:
What are you planning to do now?

"I want to find Brother Hetu and ask him if he has any feelings for me! If he likes me too, I won't become the imperial physician, but if he doesn't want to be with me, I'll sign up to participate!"

Hearing that Han Rui still prioritized love over her career, Bae Ji-soo nodded in agreement.
"Since you've already made up your mind, then go for it! The only thing I can tell you is not to do anything you'll regret!"

"Yes! Thank you very much, Mr. Pei!"

After saying that, Han Rui left the classroom, intending to find Xu Hetu to ask for clarification. Watching Han Rui's departing figure, Pei Zhixiu felt a mix of emotions. From her perspective, Han Rui becoming a royal physician was not a good thing. On the one hand, it would increase the risk of her identity being exposed. On the other hand, if Ye Mingsheng knew that Han Rui was his student, he would definitely be concerned about her, given his personality.

Ye Mingsheng has a peculiar fetish, particularly enjoying the idea of ​​one man with multiple women, such as the sister pairings of Murong Qingwu and Murong Xinyun, the master-servant pairing of Murong Qingwu and Ying'er, and the master-servant pairing of An Miaoyi and Qiqige, etc.

Therefore, Pei Xiu was almost certain that once Han Rui entered the palace, her relationship with him would definitely excite Ye Mingsheng, and it was easy to imagine what would happen.

Although Ye Mingsheng always respects me and will ask for my opinion, and will not force me to do things I don't want to do, can I really refuse Ye Mingsheng in this kind of situation?

Thinking of this, Pei Zhixiu sighed helplessly. Although it wasn't the first time she'd been paired with someone; she'd previously worked with Bai Yuanyuan and Jinyu under Ye Mingsheng's arrangement...
However, the sense of immorality she felt about being with Han Rui was still somewhat unacceptable to her, so Pei Zhixiu did not want Han Rui to enter the palace. Ultimately, though, it depended on Han Rui's own decision.

After composing herself, Pei Zhixiu boarded the carriage to return to the palace. However, just as the carriage was about to leave the medical school, Pei Zhixiu, who had been resting with her eyes closed, seemed to hear some familiar voices. This made her expression change. After a brief hesitation, she opened the curtain of the carriage window and looked outside. She saw two men and one woman entering the medical school under the guidance of Deputy Director Wang of the Academic Affairs Office.

The strange clothing and hairstyles of the two men and one woman also attracted the attention of some medical students. These students had curious glints in their eyes, and although they did not speak, they seemed to be secretly trying to figure out where the three of them came from.

However, Bae Ji-soo immediately recognized that these three people came from Dong-do, a thousand miles away!

Upon recognizing the three individuals, Bae Ji-soo's expression turned wary. Although An Miao-yi had never expressed it, Bae Ji-soo knew that An Miao-yi had investigated her background. Therefore, Bae Ji-soo felt that An Miao-yi must know her identity. So, the appearance of three people from Dongdao at the medical school at this time was quite intriguing!
Thinking of this, Bae Ji-soo couldn't help but touch the breast in her arms, feeling its hardness inside, which eased her worries somewhat...
This contains the token given to him by Ye Mingsheng, which can mobilize the inner guards, the command center, and even the imperial guards. This is the confidence Ye Mingsheng left for himself before going out on inspections!
An Miaoyi originally thought that Ye Mingsheng's move was unnecessary and that there was no need to go to such lengths.

Therefore, after Ye Mingsheng left, she left the token in the palace and did not carry it with her.

However, until that day when An Miaoyi pointed out the existence of the token, Pei Zhixiu knew that there was a mole in An Miaoyi's circle, and she also knew who this mole was. But she also knew that Ye Mingsheng and An Miaoyi couldn't be two different people sleeping in the same bed. An Miaoyi was just as suspicious as Ye Mingsheng, so she didn't get rid of the mole in her circle, but kept her by her side.

However, when Ye Mingsheng handed her the token, there were only the two of them in the room, and Pei Zhixiu was quite certain that no one could be eavesdropping on them.

Therefore, Pei Zhixiu was very curious and puzzled as to how An Miaoyi knew that Ye Mingsheng had entrusted this crucial token to her!
But since An Miaoyi already knew about it, Pei Zhixiu had no choice but to hand over the token. However, just as Pei Zhixiu had expected, although An Miaoyi knew that the token was in her hands, she did not dare to act rashly, let alone take back the token from her without Ye Mingsheng's consent.

After this incident, Bae Ji-soo changed her previous practice of leaving the token in the palace. Instead, she carried it close to her body, just in case. She wanted to ensure that no one could take the token from her.
(End of this chapter)