Chapter 2645 - 2578: One Step Away

Director Xiao visited Wei Zhi alone in the evening, and the next day he invited Imperial Doctor Liu.

Imperial Doctor Liu reached the same conclusion as Director Xiao, diagnosing excessive fatigue with symptoms of exhaustion and qi deficiency.

Thus Director Xiao pondered and requested an audience with the emperor, hoping to invite his mentor, the already retired Imperial Doctor Tan, to come for a consultation.

The emperor raised his eyebrows and said, "Lord Wei is also unwilling to rest, and is planning to resume official duties tomorrow."

Director Xiao bowed his head and said, "It’s precisely for this reason that diagnosing the illness is crucial before prescribing medicine. If it’s merely exhaustion, reducing some official business and resting for a few days would suffice."

But if it’s truly as Zhou Man suggested, then a few days of medication would not be sufficient.

The emperor contemplated and asked, "Has Zhou Man’s medical expertise surpassed yours?"

Director Xiao lowered his head and replied, "Your Majesty, Imperial Doctor Zhou is incredibly talented. Even without examining her treatments, one can discern her abilities through the medical texts she has compiled. If she were not accomplished in medicine, even existing medical books would be challenging to integrate and summarize."

Although Director Xiao has read few books, he understands the difficulty of compiling one. Zhou Man’s ability to do so effortlessly demonstrates her talent and capability.

The emperor slightly nodded, saying, "I am feeling unwell, so let’s invite Imperial Doctor Tan for a visit to the palace."

Imperial Doctor Tan has been retired for years, and the palace seldom summons him, making this request quite startling.

Not only did this news stir those in the capital, but even in the palace, apart from the empress in the harem and Minister Han outside, everyone assumed that the emperor was ill, instantly making the atmosphere solemn and quieter than usual.

The crown prince in the capital was also surprised and immediately stood up, grabbing his whip to head to the palace, only to be stopped by Minister Guo, "Your Highness, the documents returned still bear the emperor’s handwriting, indicating he is still responding to them. If it were a severe illness, the emperor certainly wouldn’t be able to continue approving them."

"You are the regent. Without an imperial decree, you cannot leave the capital."

The crown prince frowned, "Father is ill, and you’re still concerned about these matters? If I don’t inquire, father might later accuse me of being unfilial."

"Why doesn’t Your Highness write to inquire about his health?"

Though anxious, the crown prince wanted to see the situation in the palace himself. Without seeing his father personally, he felt uneasy.

Minister Guo stopped him and whispered, "Your Highness, the empress and Princess Mingda are in the palace. Nothing will happen."

The crown prince pursed his lips, held his whip tightly, and said nothing.

The emperor’s health is extremely important to the crown prince.

While both were in a stalemate, Mr. Zhuang happened to pass by, seemingly heading to the Chongwen Pavilion after just returning from outside.

Minister Guo narrowed his eyes, called Mr. Zhuang, and asked, "Assistant Lecturer Zhuang, have you received any recent letters from Lord Zhou?"

Mr. Zhuang hesitated for a moment, then seeing the crown prince standing nearby, quickly understood, and after making a salute, replied, "I haven’t received any letters."

Minister Guo furrowed his brows and asked, "How often does Lord Zhou typically send letters home?"

Mr. Zhuang replied, "She just went to Yongzhou, not far away, and since there’s no family matter, if there’s nothing extra to report, she naturally wouldn’t send a letter."

Minister Guo and the crown prince pondered upon this revelation.

Mr. Zhuang made a farewell gesture and departed.

Watching Mr. Zhuang leave, Minister Guo looked at the crown prince, "Your Highness, besides Yin Li, no one else might understand the situation in the palace better than Zhou Man. It’s unwise for you to act rashly now. You are the regent in the capital, while the palace is filled with old princes, and Prince Gong isn’t there, so you needn’t worry."

The crown prince turned and walked away, "I understand."

The crown prince went directly to find Mr. Zhuang.

Mr. Zhuang was making tea in the teahouse. Seeing the crown prince enter, he swiftly stood and saluted.

The crown prince sat down heavily in a chair, speaking frankly, "Sir, you should know why I’m here, right?"

Mr. Zhuang sighed and said, "Your Highness is too impatient."

The crown prince responded irritably, "Minister Guo misunderstood my intentions. Don’t you understand either? I..."

"I understand," Mr. Zhuang suddenly interrupted, "I understand the emperor is your father, and you are his son. It’s a son’s duty to be concerned for his father; if you were indifferent, that would be truly treacherous."

The crown prince’s demeanor calmed a bit.

"But Your Highness, you are not only a son but also the crown prince," Mr. Zhuang said, "I believe the emperor would prefer you to behave more like a crown prince now, which means you must not act impulsively."

The crown prince frowned.

Mr. Zhuang smiled to reassure him, "The emperor should be fine; otherwise, neither Wei Zhi nor Minister Li would remain silent regarding the situation."

Both Wei Zhi and Minister Li staunchly support the legitimate heir system. Even when the crown prince was once reckless, Minister Li steadfastly stood by him, and while Wei Zhi didn’t involve himself in the conflict between the crown prince and Prince Gong, he continually opposed the emperor’s excessive favoritism towards Prince Gong, seeking any chance to correct the emperor’s stance.

If anything were truly wrong with the emperor, these two would surely send word back to the capital.

If the rumors are false, Mr. Zhuang inclined to think this was a test for the crown prince.

Thus he said, "Your Highness should fulfill the dual role of a crown prince and a son."

So what should a crown prince and a son do now?

Firstly, ensure stability in the capital and in the court; secondly, quickly send confidents to inquire after the emperor’s health, whether he is truly ill, whether he needs his son to attend to him, expressing his concern...

Following Mr. Zhuang’s guidance, the crown prince composed a deeply heartfelt and worried letter to the emperor.

The crown prince’s letter arrived at the palace a step later than Imperial Doctor Tan.

When his letter was presented to the Longevity Palace, the emperor was sitting in Wei Zhi’s courtyard watching Imperial Doctor Tan diagnose Wei Zhi.

Director Xiao stood with Zhou Man and Imperial Doctor Liu, observing.

Imperial Doctor Tan was quite elderly; his beard had turned completely white over the past two or three years, evenly and attractively, yet it retained a nice sheen and his complexion was rosy, catching Manbao’s gaze several times.

Imperial Doctor Tan had one hand on Wei Zhi’s pulse, the other stroking his beard, his eyes slightly closed but his senses sharp. Opening his eyes, he turned to Zhou Man.

Manbao caught his gaze and sheepishly smiled at him.

Imperial Doctor Tan smiled faintly, withdrawing his gaze, then examined Lord Wei’s complexion and afterward the emperor’s, going back and forth between them for a long while. He finally said to Lord Wei, "Lord Wei, please open your mouth; I want to examine your tongue coating."

Wei Zhi cooperated by sticking out his tongue for inspection.

Imperial Doctor Tan asked several questions, mostly overlapping with Zhou Man’s initial inquiries, about sleeping habits, waking frequency, difficulty in falling asleep, daily diet, any bodily discomfort...

Wei Zhi had repeated these questions quite a bit over the past two days, allowing him to pay special attention recently, thus he answered more accurately and thoroughly.

Imperial Doctor Tan noted everything down, forming a clear idea.

He withdrew his hand, saluted the emperor, and said, "Your Majesty, Lord Wei is indeed ill down to the bones, just a step away from being incurable."

Emperor: ...

Lord Wei: ...

This sounded even more terrifying than Zhou Man’s assessment.