Red Mansion: Seizing Jiangdong, starting with pirates

Chapter 366, Jia Lian Receives a Son

The retired emperor is in trouble.

When someone gets a serious illness, they might be perfectly fine one second, but the next second they become completely immobile, their body stiffens, drools uncontrollably, and even speaking becomes difficult.

Emperor Longqing hurriedly summoned the imperial physician, but like the humiliation of every last emperor, he had no power left, not even the right to summon the imperial physician.

The Imperial Guards on duty reported the matter to Fang Yong, who then decided whether to summon the imperial physician.

"You've fallen ill? Then please have the imperial physician examine you."

Fang Yong said this.

He didn't know whether the retired emperor was faking it or was truly ill.

However, no matter which one it is, they won't have much of a chance to resist him.

Before long, Physician Hu arrived leisurely.

Since this involved the Longqing Emperor and the Retired Emperor, the other imperial physicians dared not set out easily. Only Physician Hu, who was greedy for money, was willing to come.

In a previous life, someone commented that Physician Hu was a quack because in the original story, Jia Lian asked him to examine You Erjie's pulse and check her pregnancy. Physician Hu said it was due to irregular menstruation and blood stasis, prescribed some medicine, and that very night he aborted You Erjie's already formed fetus.

Jia Lian angrily went to find Physician Hu, but Physician Hu, as if he had foreseen the whole thing, had already run away. Such a misdiagnosis clearly shows that he was indeed an incompetent doctor.

However, after Fang Yong took control of the palace, he had already sent people to screen all the imperial physicians to ensure that there were no quacks among them. Physician Hu not only did not show any signs of being a quack during the screening, but even ranked in the middle to upper range among all the imperial physicians. It is unknown why.

Physician Hu came to examine the Emperor Emeritus's pulse, but instead of going to the Hall of Mental Cultivation first, he went to pay his respects to Fang Yong.

This was not at Fang Yong's request, but rather Physician Hu came voluntarily.

It seems this person is quite adept at maneuvering.

When Fang Yong met him, Physician Hu knelt down to pay his respects, then looked around carefully before cautiously asking Fang Yong for instructions:

"Your Highness, may I ask how I should diagnose the Emperor Emeritus's illness?"

Fang Yong found this interesting and asked:

What's your opinion?

Physician Hu said:

"I will obey Your Highness's orders. Whatever illness Your Highness desires, I will provide it, and whatever treatment you desire, I will provide."

Fang Yong said, "Birth, aging, sickness, and death are all ordained by Heaven. How can I, as the King, decide them?"

Physician Hu said, "Although the diagnosis is determined by fate, the basis for diagnosis and pulse examination is in my hands. I follow Your Highness's instructions in everything, big or small, and I have no ulterior motives."

Upon hearing this, Fang Yong took a closer look at Physician Hu.

This person may have medical skills, but lacks medical ethics.

Fang Yong spoke up:
"Just do your best, there's no need to do anything extra."

Fang Yong had a hundred ways to get rid of the retired emperor; he didn't need to focus on this matter.

Physician Hu received the order and went to treat the patient.

Nearly an hour had passed since the retired emperor fell ill, and Emperor Longqing was extremely anxious, but there was nothing he could do. Having lost power, he was powerless to influence anything.

Finally, Physician Hu entered the Hall of Mental Cultivation, accompanied by the Imperial Guards.

"Only you?"

Emperor Longqing was dissatisfied, but he couldn't care less about that at the moment and hurriedly pulled Physician Hu to the front of the retired emperor.

Emperor Longqing had some conflicts with the retired emperor in the past, but now their circumstances were different. They were both in danger, and he naturally did not want the retired emperor to die at this time.

Upon entering the inner room, only Song Yun was taking care of the retired emperor.

The retired emperor's mouth was agape, his whole body trembling, his breathing heavy like a rag bag, and his eyes bloodshot.

Upon seeing this, Physician Hu's expression changed. He quickly stepped forward, grabbed the Emperor Emeritus's wrist to take his pulse, and released him after a moment, saying, "Quickly, bring a brazier."

Before long, the brazier was brought over, and Physician Hu took out a peculiar silver needle, about half a foot long and three or four ordinary silver needles wide. Its material was unknown, whether it was silver or iron, and it was heated red-hot in the brazier.

Physician Hu ordered Song Yun to help the Emperor Emeritus up, and after pulling open his shirt, he seized the opportunity, quickly pulled out a silver needle, inserted it into an acupoint under the Emperor Emeritus's ribs, and then quickly withdrew it.

The retired emperor glared and spat out a breath, along with a mouthful of bloody phlegm.

Physician Hu had anticipated this, so he stepped aside in advance.

The anxiously watching Emperor Longqing from behind...

A moment later, the retired emperor lay down on the soft couch and fell into a deep sleep.

After coughing up the phlegm, the Emperor Emeritus felt much better and his breathing returned to normal, but he still had difficulty moving around, half of his body was immobile, and he could not speak very fluently.

Moreover, the retired emperor had suffered greatly from the battle and fell into a deep sleep. Emperor Longqing changed his clothes and then inquired about the cause of his illness from Physician Hu.

Despite being the emperor, Physician Hu outwardly showed him respect.

He explained earnestly, “Your Majesty, the Emperor Emeritus suffered from phlegm and qi stagnation, which blocked his lungs and caused breathing difficulties. The pathogenic factors have now been removed, however…”

The Longqing Emperor asked, "But what?"

Physician Hu paused for a moment, then said:

"Your Majesty, although the phlegm has been removed, the Emperor Emeritus still suffers from hemiplegia, a difficult condition to treat. Those afflicted with it experience atrophy of the meridians, difficulty in movement, and the condition is worsening. I fear... his days are numbered."

The Longqing Emperor's face was grim: "Hemiplegia..."

The retired emperor had had this symptom for a long time. It was because of this symptom that the retired emperor often fell into a coma, which allowed him to seize back power. At the time, he was even happy about it, but he never expected that things would turn out this way...

The Longqing Emperor said to Physician Hu:

"Is there no cure? If you can cure the Emperor Emeritus, I will bestow upon you a reward of ten thousand gold pieces and a family heirloom!"

The Longqing Emperor made empty promises, since he no longer had any power anyway, and he decided to focus on curing the retired emperor first.

Physician Hu shook his head.

He was tempted by the promises made by the Longqing Emperor, but he was powerless to do anything about it.

The retired emperor is too old.

He is now 97 years old.

His body's meridians have dried up, his functions have deteriorated, and he can no longer absorb even the best medicine. His lifespan will not exceed six months at most; in short, he will die of old age.

Physician Hu can cure the illness, but what can he do when his life is nearing its end?
The Emperor Emeritus is already blessed with a life of great age, the greatest among all emperors throughout history. What more could one ask for?
Physician Hu does have a few prescriptions that can treat hemiplegia. By using large amounts of strong medicine to stimulate the body, he might be able to help the Emperor Emeritus stand up again and regain his mobility.

However, every medicine has its side effects. Given the Emperor Emeritus's current physical condition, he might not be able to withstand the effects of the strong medicine before it is cured.

Physician Hu was afraid of taking responsibility, so he did not reveal the prescriptions. He simply wrote a few mild, nourishing prescriptions and then took his leave.

Seeing this situation, the Longqing Emperor sighed inwardly.

If the retired emperor dies, his already slim chances of winning will be even slimmer.

After Physician Hu left, he went to report to Fang Yong before returning to the Imperial Medical Academy.

Fang Yong learned of the Emperor Emeritus's condition but didn't pay much attention to it.

Lifespan is limited. The retired emperor has lived for so long, it's normal for him to die of old age.

Recently, a few things have happened. First, Sophia and Xiao Rong'er are pregnant one after another. Their pregnancies are close, only a day or two apart, and they may even give birth at the same time.

In addition, Jia Lian of Hezhou was overjoyed to have a son, but he was very worried at the time.

The reason is that the woman who gave birth was the daughter of a Shanxi merchant.

Although Hezhou's commerce has gradually opened up, in the beginning, trade in Hezhou was monopolized by the Xue Clan Chamber of Commerce and was not open to the outside world. Many large merchants from the surrounding areas were extremely envious of this lucrative opportunity, the most numerous of whom were the Jin merchants from Shanxi.

One of the merchants, surnamed Qiao, approached Jia Lian, offering him money and even his beloved daughter in exchange for his help in smuggling.

Jia Lian was not afraid of the visitors and generously accepted the money and women. He then asked them to help transport stones and build the city walls, promising to help with smuggling after the city was initially completed.

The Qiao family believed it to be true and contributed money and effort to help build the city.

Jia Lian accepted bribes and gifts, but after the city wall was completed, he resolutely refused to participate in smuggling.

The merchant surnamed Qiao was furious, but he was helpless because the Jia family was so powerful and he had no way to seek help. Moreover, he himself was also involved in something unsavory, so he could only swallow this bitter pill.

However, things are different now. The Qiao family has joined Shen Tu's trading company, giving them a powerful backer and boosting their confidence.

Qiao's daughter bore Jia Lian a son, but she had no official status and was merely a mistress.

Previously, the Qiao family was just a merchant family, and their status was far inferior to that of Jia Lian, a nobleman's son who held a high position, so they did not have many extravagant desires.

Now that the Qiao family's status has risen and they have an heir to threaten them, they are naturally unwilling to accept their previous position. Therefore, the Qiao family demands that Jia Lian divorce his original wife and marry a woman from the Qiao family.

If she doesn't marry him, she'll go to the capital to accuse Jia Lian of immoral conduct and having an affair that resulted in pregnancy.

Keeping mistresses is not uncommon among officials, but it is illegal. Keeping them in private is one thing, but being exposed is another.

Jia Lian was therefore very distressed.

He dared not divorce Wang Xifeng.

But he was also afraid that the Qiao family would report him.

Moreover, the crucial point is that Lady Qiao has given birth to his only child, which Jia Lian is unwilling to give up.

(End of this chapter)