A thousand-year-old family begins with one fighting against ten thousand.

Emperor Taizong was overjoyed, but before he could enjoy his happiness for long, news came from the inner palace that Empress Zhangsun had fallen ill again.

Li Shimin's joyful expression turned somber. He waved for Fang Xuanling to leave, and then went to the inner palace to visit Empress Zhangsun.

"Has Prince An arrived yet?"

Li Shimin asked the eunuch beside him.

"Your Majesty, we have just received news from the Thousand Cavalry that Prince An will arrive in Chang'an in a few more days."

The eunuch replied.

"That's good, that's good."

Li Shimin nodded repeatedly. Empress Zhangsun suddenly fell ill, suffering from chest tightness, shortness of breath, and persistent wheezing.

He is getting thinner and thinner, has a poor appetite, and is becoming increasingly weak.

Seeing this, Li Shimin felt deeply pained and immediately requested the Prince of Yan to contact the Prince of An to come to court to treat Empress Zhangsun.

"Guanyinbi, how are you?"

Li Shimin grasped Empress Zhangsun's hand and asked with concern.

Empress Zhangsun pushed away Li Shimin's hand and said with difficulty, "Your Majesty, I am fine. This is just an old ailment of mine. There is no need to worry."

"Your Majesty, matters of state are of utmost importance."

Empress Zhangsun was a wise and virtuous empress who knew Li Shimin's ambitions well. Naturally, she did not want Li Shimin to be delayed in his political affairs because of her illness.

"All political affairs have been settled. Now that I have some free time, I'd like to spend some time with the Empress."

Li Shimin tucked the blanket around Empress Zhangsun and said softly.

"Your Majesty, rest assured, Prince An will enter the palace in a few days. With Prince An here, you will surely recover quickly."

A glint flashed in Empress Zhangsun's beautiful eyes. "Could it be the lineage of Prince An of Wei, who became the foremost physician since the Han Dynasty?"

Li Shimin smiled and said, "That's right, exactly."

"So Your Majesty, please rest assured, you will recover quickly."

Empress Zhangsun nodded slightly. The Anwang lineage, which had been passed down for thousands of years, possessed superb medical skills and was known as the revival of the dead and the restoration of flesh and bone.

Legend has it that Prince An once successfully brought a dead person back to life, and Prince Ai humbly said that it was a case of feigned death.

But if a person isn't even breathing, how could they not know if they're just pretending to be dead?

Empress Zhangsun had long admired Prince An's extraordinary medical skills.

Upon hearing that Li Shimin had specifically requested Prince An's help regarding her illness, Empress Zhangsun felt a surge of emotion.

"Your Majesty, I thank you for your great concern and efforts regarding my illness. I am very grateful."

"What are you saying, Guanyinbi? You are my Empress, how can you say I'm worrying about your affairs?"

"I'm still waiting to eat the porridge you've cooked for me, Guanyinbi. And Chengqian, Qingque, Lizhi, Changle, and Jinyang are all still young and need your careful care as their mother."

"Um."

Empress Zhangsun smiled gently, her gaze tender.

Several days later, Prince An, Wei Ning, finally arrived in Luoyang.

He had barely arrived in Luoyang when he was escorted to the palace by the imperial guards arranged by Li Shimin at the city gate.

"Your Majesty, I have come to pay my respects."

When Wei Ning arrived at the palace, Li Shimin had already finished dealing with state affairs and was waiting at the palace gate.

"Sir, you've finally arrived! Let's hurry to the inner palace to treat Guanyinbi's illness."

Li Shimin took Wei Ning's hand and walked towards the inner palace.

As Wei Ning approached the Lizheng Hall of Taiji Palace, his brows furrowed.

However, Li Shimin was anxious and led Wei Ning forward without finding anything.

Upon entering the room, surrounded by the incense in the Lizheng Hall, Wei Ning frowned again.

Li Shimin pulled Wei Ning to the bedside, saying, "Guanyinbi, Prince An is here. Your illness will be cured soon."

Empress Zhangsun nodded slightly to Wei Ning and said weakly, "Thank you for your trouble, Prince An."

Li Chengqian followed a few steps later to the Lizheng Hall, tiptoed in, and stared intently at Wei Ning.

"It's no trouble at all; it's my duty."

Wei Ning smiled gently. "I apologize for the intrusion, Your Majesty the Empress."

Wei Ning gently reached out and grasped Empress Zhangsun's wrist, concentrating on taking her pulse.

After about half a cup of tea's time, Wei Ning finally released his grip, then grabbed Empress Zhangsun's other wrist and continued to take her pulse.

The time it takes to drink a cup of tea felt like an eternity to Li Shimin.

Only after Wei Ning released his grip did Li Shimin hurriedly ask, "Prince An, how is it?"

"Her Majesty the Empress suffers from damage to her heart and lung meridians. The heart is the root of essence, and the lungs are the root of qi, so Her Majesty the Empress is deficient in both essence and qi."

"According to my diagnosis, Her Majesty the Empress's kidney and lung meridians are damaged. This is likely due to exposure to cold in her childhood, which left her with this chronic condition."

"After giving birth to several children, my vital energy was depleted and my body was exhausted. Then, I was overworked and worried too much, which further aggravated my condition."

"Now it has almost reached the point of no return. I can only alleviate it and carefully treat it. If she does not have any more children in the future and there are no accidents, she may be able to enjoy a normal lifespan."

Wei Ning said slowly.

Li Shimin was shocked. He had never imagined that Empress Zhangsun's serious illness was partly due to him.

Empress Zhangsun has already given birth to seven children for him, averaging one every two years.

She gave birth almost immediately, and after a year of rest, she gave birth again.

"Guanyinbi..."

Li Shimin held Empress Zhangsun's hand tightly, his eyes filled with apology.

Empress Zhangsun comforted Li Shimin with her eyes, then indicated that Prince An was still there.

"Please, Prince An, treat Guanyinbi."

Li Shimin bowed to Wei Ning, who was shocked by the relationship between Li Shimin and Empress Zhangsun.

"Your Majesty, please rest assured, I will do my best."

After saying this, Wei Ning picked up a pen and wrote down a prescription, which he handed to the eunuch beside Li Shimin. At the same time, he instructed, "Empress Zhangsun has developed a chronic illness and complications. Her throat and trachea are extremely fragile."

"The pollen around Risjeongjeon Hall needs to be removed as soon as possible. After removal, windows should be opened for ventilation."

"The incense in the room, the various perfumes and powders used by Empress Zhangsun for makeup, and the perfumes used on the clothes of all people entering and leaving the Lizheng Palace must all be stopped."

"These things can cause Empress Zhangsun to have difficulty breathing."

After hearing Wei Ning's words, Li Shimin immediately ordered: "As Prince An said, remove all these flowers and incense immediately."

"In addition, clean a palace thoroughly, ensuring there are no unpleasant odors, and have the Empress move in."

"Guanyinbi, wait for me a moment while I go change my clothes."

"From now on, none of my clothes, including my dragon robes, shall be scented."

As emperor, Li Shimin naturally wore clothes infused with various spices, which gave them an excellent fragrance. His dragon robes, in particular, were extremely difficult to make. Although he only wore them for important court assemblies, they could not be washed and could only be covered up with incense.

Unexpectedly, this also harmed Empress Zhangsun's condition.

Li Shimin hurriedly left to change his clothes, but when he turned around, he found Li Chengqian standing there the whole time.

"Chengqian, when did you arrive?"

"Your subject arrived long ago."

Li Chengqian bowed to Prince An, Wei Ning, and said, "Thank you, Prince An, for treating my mother. I am deeply grateful."