Chapter 2641 - 2574: Medical Consultation

The light in Imperial Doctor Zheng’s eyes dimmed; isn’t this akin to resigning and retiring?

Not to mention whether the emperor would agree, wouldn’t Wei Zhi be unwilling too?

He shook his head, sighed, and put the matter behind him.

Manbao, on the other hand, sat on the chair deep in thought. Illness comes like a mountain collapsing, but goes away like silk being drawn, especially for a laborious illness like Wei Zhi’s, which needs rest.

If he cannot rest...

Manbao was pondering how they should treat it.

Before she could come up with a clue, Eunuch Gu personally came over to invite Manbao to the Longevity Palace. He looked around, then leaned in close and whispered, "My master said his Majesty is in a very bad mood today and hasn’t mentioned that he needs rest for his illness. Various officials have been scolded several times today for not responding well."

"Now the officials have dispersed, and his Majesty only kept Lord Wei. They’re about to have lunch together, but they’re waiting for Imperial Doctor Zhou to examine before eating."

Manbao indicated her understanding and thanked him for the reminder.

Eunuch Gu chuckled softly, "I must thank Lord Zhou today. If it weren’t for Lord Zhou resolving the situation, my master wouldn’t have avoided a scolding."

Manbao quietly said, "It was Lord Bai who resolved it; you should thank him."

"Yes, Lord Bai should be thanked, but Lord Zhou should be too."

Manbao, carrying the medicine box, headed to the Longevity Palace.

The emperor had obediently put on his clothes and shoes and was sitting at the table playing chess with Wei Zhi.

Wei Zhi was not one to let others win, and his chess skills were slightly better than Bai Shan’s, making the emperor play rather unhappily.

Seeing Zhou Man, the emperor, who was about to lose, immediately dropped the chess piece he was holding, messing up the board. He told Wei Zhi, "Let Courtier Zhou examine Courtier Wei first."

Wei Zhi glanced at the chessboard, also set down his piece, and smiled slightly at Zhou Man.

Gu Zhong immediately brought the inner attendants forward to put away the chessboard and clear the table.

Manbao stepped forward, opened the medicine box, and placed the pulse pillow on the table.

Wei Zhi rolled up his sleeve and placed his hand on the pulse pillow.

Manbao’s fingers rested on his pulse, and she lowered her eyes to listen carefully.

After a while, she looked up and asked, "Do you usually feel any discomfort, my lord?"

Wei Zhi shook his head with a smile, "There is no discomfort."

Manbao then looked at his complexion, the cyan beneath his eyes, and the droop of his shoulders...

Manbao carefully recalled the Wei Da she had seen over this past year.

She had a good memory, being an imperial doctor, skilled at reading people’s faces. Honestly, there had been quite a change in Lord Wei over the past year.

Manbao’s gaze swept past the white hair at his temples, then looked at his complexion...

Wei Zhi was much younger than her teacher, but his complexion wasn’t as good as Mr. Zhuang’s, who had a rosy, healthy glow.

Hmm, her teacher seemed to be getting healthier over the years, not any worse than when she was young, so people’s bodies are strange; they can age prematurely or maintain a youthful appearance.

The emperor, waiting impatiently at the side but seeing Zhou Man’s wide, blinking eyes fixed on Wei Zhi, calmed himself to wait.

After a while, with no response from her, the emperor couldn’t help but turn and examine Wei Zhi’s face.

Wei Zhi, who normally remained unperturbed even if Mount Tai collapsed in front of him, felt embarrassed and, slightly uncomfortable, turned his gaze away, wanting to withdraw his hand, but Zhou Man pressed it down firmly, making him stay still.

The emperor glanced at Wei Zhi, then at Zhou Man, and couldn’t help snickering internally. If Wei Zhi weren’t just an old man, he might have thought Zhou Man was interested in him.

The emperor thought for a moment and felt he needed a handsome young man for eye candy—or rather, a beautiful youth—so he turned to Gu Zhong and instructed, "Isn’t Bai Shiren still at the Longevity Palace? Bring him here."

Wei Zhi: ...

Finally recalling the last time she saw Wei Zhi at the grand court meeting, Manbao withdrew her hand and couldn’t help rubbing her chin, "Lord Wei, do you experience back aches and soreness that become unbearable when sitting upright for over half an hour?"

Wei Zhi smiled slightly and was about to say "No," when Manbao suddenly said, "Lord Wei, being able to diagnose is the most fundamental ability of an imperial doctor. If I can’t even get this right, I shouldn’t be an imperial doctor at all."

So are you sure you want to accuse me of being unprofessional?

Wei Zhi was left speechless.

Manbao continued, "You should just speak honestly; it will help me diagnose."

The emperor immediately snapped back to his senses and said to Wei Zhi, "Courtier Wei, I’m reliant on you, but not through misdiagnosis, so be truthful with Zhou Man, and don’t hide the illness and avoid treatment."

He paused and then added, "These are words you have advised me on; you should apply them to yourself, or how else can you advise me?"

Wei Zhi finally sighed and nodded to Zhou Man.

Manbao immediately asked further, "Where else do you feel uncomfortable?"

"Just aches and soreness in the body, nothing else really," seeing Manbao’s skeptical face, he assured, "I’m telling the truth, and I haven’t taken the aches seriously. As one ages, the body naturally has some ailments."

Manbao simply asked proactively, "Do you sleep well at night?"

Wei Zhi: "...quite okay."

"Generally, how many hours can you sleep at night? Hmm, when did you fall asleep last night, and when did you wake up? Did you get up at night or wake up..."

Her inquiries were meticulous, like the Ministry of Justice interrogating a criminal.

Wei Zhi opened his mouth, but under the emperor’s watchful gaze, he answered honestly.

Manbao went from asking about sleep to diet, then to daytime energy levels, and she roughly got an idea.

The emperor remained silent.

Wei Zhi’s daily routine was actually quite similar to the emperor’s; however, the emperor occasionally visited the West Inner Court to see the imperial guards and moved around a bit. He was inherently playful and always sneaked in a little fun wherever he could, unlike Wei Zhi, who thought about state affairs even in sleep and awake.

As Zhou Man said, a person’s spirit is the essence of the blood, and with such exhaustion, even the emperor didn’t believe Wei Zhi wasn’t ill.

Since spring, he had been busy wanting to fake an illness to rest for two days. Empathizing with Wei Zhi, he felt Wei Zhi was too tired too.

Manbao mentally reviewed Wei Zhi’s pulse case once again, then sighed, "How should your Majesty and Lord Wei be treated?"

The emperor frowned at her, "You are the imperial doctor, yet you ask me how to treat?"

Manbao wasn’t a fool. This morning, when Wei Zhi glared at her, and Bai Shan intervened on her behalf, she realized that Wei Zhi might be unwilling to rest and heal, and even the emperor might not be, so she said, "As an imperial doctor, my recommendation is to rest and recuperate, gradually recovering over these two to three years."

Wei Zhi immediately told the emperor, "Your Majesty, I don’t feel any discomfort."

That was his stance.

The emperor pondered for a while, and then, seeing Bai Shan arriving as summoned, he stood up and said, "Bai Shiren, you came just in time. Today, let you witness Lord Wei’s chess skills. Come, you two play a round here."

Thus, he let Bai Shan and Wei Zhi play chess, while he led Zhou Man away.

Wei Zhi and Bai Shan: ...

What a brilliant move.

Manbao took it in stride and followed the emperor with her medicine box.