From street beggar to high-ranking official

Chapter 49 The crux of the matter

The hour of Wei (1-3 PM).

The last stop for the Lu official delivering letters to the various palaces was Jingyang Palace.

With the backing of Jingyang Palace and his godfather, Lu Li had already gained some fame in the various palaces of the inner palace. Or rather, there was just so much news among the six palaces of the east and west, and as long as it was spread a little, Lu Li's reputation would eventually be known to others.

Now, walking down the street, who wouldn't know that the ugly-looking but kind-hearted eunuch in blue is Eunuch Lu?

Of course, he may have a fierce appearance, but whether he is kind-hearted is another matter.

Unlike usual, this time Lu Li brought an extra person. After informing the gatekeeper, he entered the palace with a letter from home, but this time he did not kneel obediently. Instead, he waited until Consort Wu's expression softened before reporting, "Your Majesty, I have a method to cure insomnia at night."

This is Lu Li's line of thinking.

Before coming to Jingyang Palace, he went to the Imperial Hospital to see Physician Zhang—or rather, Imperial Physician Zhang.

Some time ago, Physician Zhang passed the Imperial Medical Academy's examination and officially became an eighth-rank imperial physician.

In the past, when the imperial physicians diagnosed the Empress, they did ask about her sleep at night. However, no one dared to make a sound when the Empress was sleeping at night, so there was no such thing as being awakened at night. At most, she would fall asleep more slowly.

But after the sound woke the Empress at night, Lu Li immediately realized the root of the problem. He also had similar symptoms, but his physical condition had improved a lot after cultivation. However, he still used cotton to plug his ears every night to prevent sound from disturbing him.

"You're not an imperial physician, where did you get these folk remedies from?" Consort Wu was about to reprimand her, but then she changed her mind and asked.

The shock of waking up last night left her in a bad mood all morning, even as she washed up. Her words were tinged with resentment as she asked Qiu Rong if the palace maid had been dealt with.

His mood improved after hearing that the palace maid could not withstand the caning and was killed, but he also felt some dissatisfaction with Qiu Rong.

The people you led, the mistakes you made.

"I was on duty last night and saw Her Majesty wake up in shock. It must be because mother and child are of one mind. Her heart and liver are not being nourished and her spirit is not at peace... It can be seen that calming the mind is to ensure a safe pregnancy, and nourishing the heart is to nourish the child." Lu Li wrote down Zhang the Imperial Physician's words.

Hearing Lu Li speak so eloquently, Consort Wu nodded and asked Lu Li to continue.

"I am not familiar with the principles of traditional Chinese medicine, such as the roles of monarch, minister, assistant, and guide, or the concepts of ascending, descending, floating, sinking, cold, heat, warmth, and coolness, but I have invited the imperial physician to examine Your Majesty again," Lu Li continued.

"But is she a female doctor?"

coming!

Lu Li knew that the most troublesome part of this matter was that it was not difficult to persuade the Empress to re-diagnose; the difficulty lay in choosing the right person.

"It's a male doctor..." Lu Li hurriedly said, "But this Imperial Physician Zhang is a disciple of the Divine Physician Su Shou, and he only entered the palace a few days ago. We can avoid direct contact through the curtain, brocade gauze, silk cloth, and handkerchief."

,

The first sentence made Consort Wu want to reprimand her immediately, but the second sentence made her think for a moment. The reputation of the "Divine Physician with Fair Hands" was known even in the deep palace. As his son entered the palace, his medical skills must be extraordinary.

"Then let the imperial physician in."

Lu Li kowtowed and obeyed, completely ignoring the murderous glare from the maid Qiu Rong.

"Eunuch Lu, you've really put me in a terrible situation," the imperial physician Zhang complained bitterly upon entering the palace.

"Our family has found you a great job, Imperial Physician Zhang. As long as you cure the Empress's illness, why worry about promotion and rewards?" Lu Li comforted him. "Besides, if something really happens, we'll both die together."

"Alright, alright." Imperial Physician Zhang patted his medicine box. "Let me finish the diagnosis first."

The imperial physician Zhang's diagnosis was brief. Traditional Chinese medicine diagnosis emphasizes observation, auscultation, inquiry, and palpation, but observation through a curtain is impossible. However, a female painter from the Wuying Hall was on-site to paint a picture, followed by questioning and pulse diagnosis.

Lu Li waited not far away, and only came forward after Imperial Physician Zhang spoke a few words softly and bowed to take his leave.

"how?"

"Your Majesty is pregnant and needs both medical treatment and a safe pregnancy. Therefore, the medicine should be mild. My idea is not to use medicine directly. I suggest that Your Majesty take lily and lotus seed soup and use a medicinal pillow as an aid. Acupressure massage is not possible. First, we will treat you to a few more medicines. There are other things that I need to trouble Eunuch Lu with."

Physician Zhang then stated his requirements.

Upon hearing this, Lu Li frowned slightly: "That's not difficult. Tomorrow I'll just have the eunuchs from the Incense Cleansing Department leave the chamber pots from Jingyang Palace. What is Imperial Physician Zhang doing?"

"Has Eunuch Lu not seen the story of Goujian?" Imperial Physician Zhang asked in return.

Lu Li really didn't know, and thought to himself that he would check it out later.

Physician Zhang immediately felt discouraged, thinking that chatting with a semi-literate person was really tiring.

That night, after Consort Wu finished her meal and rested, Lu Li followed orders and waited in the side room. It seemed to be the same as the previous night; tonight, no one dared to make a sound, and even their breathing was extremely quiet.

For several days in a row, Consort Wu ate jujube seed porridge in the morning and lily and lotus seed soup in the evening. She also used a medicinal pillow and listened to music on the advice of Imperial Physician Zhang. Her mental state improved significantly.

"I slept even better tonight!"

'

Consort Wu's words completely shattered the maid Qiu Rong's idea of ​​framing Eunuch Lu.

A few days later, today was the day when Imperial Physician Zhang was on duty at the palace. After Lu Li invited him over, Imperial Physician Zhang handed over a prescription: "How is Your Majesty doing these days?"

"

"That's excellent." Lu Li glanced at the prescription, then, realizing he didn't quite understand it, asked directly, "Did Imperial Physician Zhang find anything?"

"I can't say we've found anything, I can only say we've made some progress," Physician Zhang said carefully. "Your Majesty's worries are a matter of the heart."

"A mental illness?" Lu Li asked, puzzled.

"I have checked all the prescriptions that Consort Wu had taken before. The prescriptions given by the imperial physicians were all correct. They were all prescriptions for calming the fetus and nourishing the spirit. I also asked the eunuchs of the Imperial Kitchen to find out which food the problem should be caused by."

""

"Was it that fish sashimi?" Lu asked immediately.

Imperial Physician Zhang wanted to say no, but he dared not. The waters of the inner palace were far deeper than he had imagined, so he quickly changed the subject: "In any case, the problem lies in the excess of the medicinal diet for nourishing the spirit, which is the first symptom. The Empress is also worried about the birth of the imperial heir, which is the second symptom."

"Every medicine has some toxicity, and excessive dietary supplements can also be harmful. Therefore, I suggest making changes to your diet and using food instead of medicine, which can also be effective. Secondly, if you have any ideas, you can find a fortune teller."

"A fortune teller who reads faces?"

'

"I just want peace of mind!"

Lu Li pondered Zhang Yuyi's words and roughly understood what he meant. Consort Wu had developed a heart condition from eating too much medicinal food. Ordinary peasant women do not have the same privileged conditions as imperial concubines, yet they can still give birth to children. Consort Wu received all sorts of meticulous care, with restrictions on her eating and walking, all to ensure the birth of the imperial heir. But in other words, without these things, does that mean there would be no chance?

Lu Li didn't quite understand how Imperial Physician Zhang had arrived at this conclusion, but Imperial Physician Zhang's last sentence was clear: he only wanted peace of mind.

"Looking at faces..." Lu Li stroked his beardless chin. "We need to find a way to invite someone from the Imperial Observatory."

"The Imperial Observatory was not located within the palace, nor was it subordinate to the Twelve Directorates of the Inner Palace. Instead, it was specifically responsible for astronomical divination and monitoring the weather throughout the four seasons. It had branches and personnel in various parts of the Great Qian Dynasty, and naturally, it also undertook tasks related to physiognomy and fortune telling."

So Lu Li used his godfather's connections to spend money to invite one over.