Ch. 088.1: Searching for Medicine in the North (1)
Ch. 088.1: Searching for Medicine in the North (1)
Translator: MoonWhisperer, TWIP Editor: TWIP
The news of Beiling Yu falling sick spread very quickly throughout the courtyard, and all the young ladies there made their way over. Upon seeing Beiling Yi Cheng by the entrance, they all went up to him to ask about the situation.
However, Beiling Yi Cheng got all the ladies to return and then continued to guard the entrance worriedly, pacing to and fro outside.
At this moment, a boy servant rushed over hurriedly with Du Yun Han, Han Ming Yi, and an imperial physician. When he saw Beiling Cheng Yi, the boy blurted out, "Master, why are you out here?"
Despite that, Beiling Yi Cheng looked straight at the imperial physical and asked, "You're an imperial physician?"
"Yes," the imperial physical answered. "If I may ask 7th Prince, how is the Princess' condition right now? If I don't examine her, I won't be able to prescribe the right medicine for her illness."
Thinking about how Du Xiao Li had said that it was necessary for one to take off their clothes in order to receive acupuncture treatment, Beiling Yi Cheng hurriedly blocked the imperial physician: "You can't go in right now."
"7th Prince?" Du Yun Han looked at Beiling Yi Cheng suspiciously. Hadn't the prince said that the princess' illness was very severe? So why wasn't he allowing the imperial physician to go in and examine her?
"Prime Minister Du, your daughter is inside. She said that she wanted to give my younger sister acupuncture treatment, so it's likely my sister isn't properly dressed right now. That's why you can't go in," Beiling Yi Cheng said.
"Imperial Physician Du is inside? Then there shouldn't be any problems." The imperial physician let out a heavy sigh of relief when he heard Imperial Physician Du's name being mentioned.
"Imperial Physician Du...? But the one inside is Miss Du though?" Beiling Yi Cheng asked.
"7th Prince, this Miss Du is precisely Imperial Physician Du. She was bestowed with the position of imperial physician by His Majesty the Emperor. The rest of us aren't even able to reach her level of medical expertise. So if Imperial Physician Du is inside, the Princess will certainly be fine," the imperial physician explained.
"Really?" Beiling Yi Cheng found it somewhat hard to believe. No matter how he looked at this Du Xiao Li, she was clearly still a young girl who had yet to even reach 15 years of age. How could she possibly have such a high level of medical expertise?
"It's absolutely true," a female voice rang out. Following that, Lu Jun Qi walked into the scene.
"Why are you here?" Beiling Yi Cheng asked when he saw her.
"I heard Cousin-Sister fell sick, so I've come to visit her," Lu Jun Qi said.
In the past, Eastern Li's princess, also known as Lu Jun Qi's aunt, married into Northern Qi and entered its palace as an imperial consort. She gave birth to both Beiling Yi Cheng and Beiling Yu, so the two of them were cousins with Lu Jun Qi.
"You know this Miss Du?" Beiling Yi Cheng asked.
"Mm. That time when I nearly died from being poisoned, it was she who saved me. Her medical expertise in acupuncture is really amazing, so you can relax. Cousin-Sister will be fine," Lu Jun Qi calmed him down.
Unexpectedly, Du Xiao Li had been the one who saved Lu Jun Qi's life. Beiling Yi Cheng didn't know the details of the matter, but just hearing Lu Jun Qi confirm Du Xiao Li's skills eased some of his worries.
Knowing that Du Xiao Li was inside administering acupuncture, everyone waited in the courtyard until Xia Yuan opened the doors and said they could go inside.
Beiling Yi Cheng was the first to go in, and he saw that Beiling Yu was already a lot more lucid than before. Although she still appeared to be quite weak, her complexion was not as pale as it had been just earlier, and she was no longer yelling that her stomach hurt.
"Little Sister, how are you feeling?" Beiling Yi Cheng asked.
"I'm much better now. It doesn't hurt much anymore," Beiling Yu said weakly.
"Miss Du, what's wrong with my cousin?" Lu Jun Qi asked as she looked at Du Xiao Li.
Du Xiao Li didn't expect Beiling Yu and Lu Jun Qi to be cousins. Nevertheless, thinking of familial relations, she didn't find this something to be particularly astonished about. Taking the handkerchief that Xia Yuan offered her, Du Xiao Li wiped away her sweat and said: "I can only say that her illness is temporarily under control."
"Temporarily? Then what must be done for her to be cured?" Beiling Yi Cheng asked anxiously after hearing Du Xiao Li's words.
"7th Prince, please stay calm. In order to determine the definitive situation, we'll have to wait and see what happens after the princess takes the medicine," Du Xiao Li said. "I've already gotten someone to brew it."
Hearing Du Xiao Li's words, Beiling Yi Cheng once again shifted his attention to Beiling Yu.
Han Ming Yi pulled the handkerchief out from Du Xiao Li's hand and helped her wipe her sweat. He asked softly, "Are you really tired?"
"I'm still okay," Du Xiao Li answered, shaking her head gently. "I hope the result we'll see in a while will be good. Otherwise, that will truly be tiring!"
From the side, Lu Jun Qi watched Han Ming Yi's gentle appearance, and tears slowly filled her eyes. So, it turned out there really were times when he was gentle. It's just that his gentle side wasn't for her but for another woman.
If the other woman were someone else, Lu Jun Qi would definitely think of a scheme to get rid of her. However, this was Du Xiao Li. Although Lu Jun Qi was jealous of her, she also acknowledged her. Du Xiao Li was indeed a woman who was capable of standing by Han Ming Yi's side.
"Cousin-Brother, since Cousin-Sister is fine, I'll go back for now and come visit her again later," Lu Jun Qi told Beiling Yi Cheng. She then glanced at Han Ming Yi, the man who hadn't even looked at her once since she arrived, and ran out before her tears rolled down her face.
When Du Xiao Li saw Lu Jun Qi's departing figure, she sighed inwardly. Since time immemorial, feelings have always been things that tortured people!
After a while, Ying Ge brought the medicine over, and Beiling Yi Cheng fed it to Beiling Yu personally. It was clear he cared for his younger sister greatly.
"It's so bitter. I want to eat candied fruit [1]." Beiling Yu took a sip of the medicine and gazed at Beiling Yi Cheng with a scrunched-up face.
"Miss Du..." Beiling Yi Cheng turned around to look at Du Xiao Li.
Du Xiao Li shook her head and rose to walk over to the princess' bedside. Gazing at Beiling Yu, Du Xiao Li said, “This medicine is more bitter than most, but you cannot eat any candied fruit. The sugar will reduce the medicine's effectiveness. Princess, just drink up the medicine all at once. Then drink some water to rinse your mouth, and it'll be fine."
"Okay..." Beiling Yu looked at the murky black medicine in the bowl and took in a deep breath. She didn't want Beiling Yi Cheng to feed her anymore, so she took the bowl with both hands and downed the medicine in one shot.
Du Xiao Li had Xia Yuan prepare some cold water in advance, so she now waited for Beiling Yu to finish drinking the medicine before handing the water over for her to rinse her mouth.
"Miss Du, earlier you said that you'd be able to determine my sister's condition after she took the medicine. She has already drunk it now, so examine her quickly," Beiling Yi Cheng urged.
References
1.1 - Also known as crystallized fruit or glacé fruit