An Imperial Physician with advanced medical thinking, willing to break free from traditional shackles—how rare that was.
If possible, Shen Yu would want to enter the Imperial Palace tomorrow and ask the Empress for that person.
“That… that Imperial Physician has probably been executed by now. As you know, the Imperial Physicians treated Princess Yulan poorly the other night, and His Majesty punished a large number of them.”
Wen Shuhe’s gaze flickered.
“I do know about that. What a pity.”
Shen Yu nodded.
The Empress had killed them using her hands.
After the Princess Yulan incident, the Empress directly executed all the Imperial Physicians she had long disliked, replacing them with more obedient and convenient people.
She also stripped the Imperial Physicians of all their privileges—no killing without cause, increased salary and status—all of it was canceled.
They were on probation.
They said it was to observe their future performance, but everyone knew in their hearts whether those privileges would ever return.
“Then! Then does my illness really have a chance of being cured?”
Wen Shuhe’s eyes sparkled.
The look she gave Shen Yu was full of hope.
Shen Yu couldn’t bear to shatter the newly kindled hope in her heart.
She might as well treat it as trying anything even with slim chances…
If she treated it conventionally, she would die.
If she didn’t treat it, she would also die.
Better to die in hope, so she could feel a little better.
Moreover, even if the probability of curing her was extremely low, it didn’t mean there was no chance at all, right?
“There is. I’ll try.”
Shen Yu nodded solemnly.
“Then! Then let’s pinky promise! As long as you can cure me, I’ll do anything you ask.”
Wen Shuhe extended her pinky finger with great seriousness.
Seeing Shen Yu hesitate, she thought Shen Yu didn’t understand what a pinky promise was.
“Oh, my mother taught me this. Since I was little, before we agreed to accomplish something, we always pinky promised. Liars turn into puppies.”
Wen Shuhe was in high spirits.
She had seen so many Imperial Physicians, and the results were all the same.
But now, learning from Shen Yu that her illness still had hope, Wen Shuhe regained her fighting spirit for life.
“Alright. Liars turn into puppies.”
Shen Yu reached out and gently hooked Wen Shuhe’s pinky.
Sure enough, she was a proper young lady—her fingers were soft, boneless, with an excellent texture.
But Shen Yu was heavy-hearted and not in the mood to appreciate it.
“I’ll prescribe you several doses of medicine. You must take them diligently. It might be a bit bitter.”
Saying this, Shen Yu took out a small pouch from her medicine box.
Opening it revealed all kinds of colorful candies.
They were crystal clear, as beautiful as gemstones.
“What’s this?”
“A little snack I make myself. It’s sweet. When the medicine tastes bitter, you can hold one in your mouth.”
Shen Yu took out a wild grape-flavored candy and put it in her mouth, demonstrating how to eat it.
“Just hold it in your mouth. There are various flavors. This one is wild grape—sour and sweet, very tasty.”
“Wow! No wonder my father said you’re different from other Imperial Physicians. So attentive… In the entire Imperial Academy of Medicine, probably only you could do this.”
“Those old fossils only say things like… ‘Good medicine tastes bitter.'”
Wen Shuhe imitated the tone of the senior Imperial Physicians, deepening her voice and stroking her non-existent long white beard as she spoke in a low voice.
She had to admit she mimicked them quite well.
Even Shen Yu laughed out loud.
For a moment, the room was filled with cheerful atmosphere.
“‘Good medicine tastes bitter’ is correct. But medicine is medicine, and people are people. Medicine serves to cure illness and save people. Taking medicine is to alleviate suffering. Everything should be people-centered.”
Shen Yu chatted with Wen Shuhe for a while longer, while also observing her condition.
As expected, she was unwell.
Just talking with Shen Yu for this short time had severely depleted her energy.
From her reactions and state, Shen Yu could tell that Wen Shuhe’s condition was not good.
“I’ll take the prescription out now for your father to get the medicine. After you drink it today, rest early. Get plenty of sleep and eat nutritious food.”
“Will that help me recover faster?”
“It definitely will.”
“Okay!”
Wen Shuhe nodded obediently.
Her actively cooperative attitude toward treatment made Shen Yu take her a bit more seriously.
When Shen Yu got up to leave, Wen Shuhe lay down obediently to rest.
She even remembered to tuck herself in with her small blanket.
Shen Yu stood at the doorway, half of her body already out, but as she watched Wen Shuhe close her eyes with a smile, as if imagining what her life would be like after recovery…
Shen Yu’s feet felt as if they were filled with lead, unable to move another inch.
“Imperial Physician Shen, how is my daughter?”
As soon as Shen Yu stepped out, Wen Zheng immediately approached, asking anxiously.
“The situation… isn’t too good, Minister Wen. You should prepare yourself mentally.”
For the patient’s family, Shen Yu had nothing to hide.
She said what needed to be said.
Shen Yu explained Wen Shuhe’s symptoms from beginning to end, also clarifying the severity of the problem and the treatment plan Shen Yu might consider later.
“Currently, the only possibility for a complete cure is to operate on the lungs, directly removing the lesion.”
“What?”
Shen Yu’s words drained the color from Wen Zheng’s face.
He had imagined his daughter’s illness was serious, but he had never imagined it was this serious.
“Cutting into the body, how… how can this be done? Imperial Physician Shen, you…”
Wen Zheng didn’t know what to say at this moment.
Shen Yu understood his state, so she gave him enough time to react, until he finally calmed down completely.
“I’m sorry, Imperial Physician Shen. I… I got a bit anxious and lost my composure. Cutting into the lungs—I’ve never heard of such a thing. But I have heard before that you used the knife method to save the Marquis of Wuding, who had intestinal abscess.”
Wen Zheng was a literary man at heart.
He had studied the Four Books and Five Classics and the words of the sages since childhood.
He even held himself to the high standards of a sage.
In those ancient classics, descriptions concerning the body were the most stringent.
Whether it was the distinction between men and women or damage to skin and hair, the ancient classics had clear regulations.
In his view, the human body was a perfectly functioning machine under the Five Elements, not allowing any deviation.
Shen Yu’s method of cutting with a knife—to be honest, if he hadn’t seen that Shen Yu truly had skill, and if His Majesty hadn’t personally recommended her, Wen Zheng might have already started cursing.
This was absolutely a rebellious act against the ancient classics and the words of the sages!
“Imperial Physician Shen, I understand your concern for my daughter. I also know you are young and a practical person with many ideas. But these words… you must not speak them casually outside.”
Out of concern for Shen Yu, and to prevent those noble families from using the ancient classics and sage sayings as moral high ground to attack Shen Yu, Wen Zheng couldn’t help but kindly remind her.
After all, those noble families held the Right of Interpretation of Classics.
The ancient classics and sage sayings were passed down from their ancestors.
They could interpret them however they wished.
These ancient classics and sage sayings, if slightly twisted, could have completely different meanings.
And the Right of Interpretation of Classics had always been the ultimate trump card controlling the entire Imperial Court, the civil and military officials, and even the Emperor.
The noble families used decrepit thinking to control everyone, including the Imperial Court.
The Right of Interpretation of Classics had always been in the hands of noble families and scholar-officials.
They turned those feudal classics into weapons, distorting them, making too many people believe in confusion, thereby achieving the goal of controlling their thoughts.
Wen Zheng had done considerable research on this.
He knew very well how powerful the deterrent effect of these things was.
One could even say… this was the basic rule of operation of this feudal dynasty.
Once you step outside this framework, the nation ceases to be a nation.
“I understand. But this is the only way. At least, it’s the only way I can think of at the moment.”
Shen Yu shook her head.
As a staunch materialist, she certainly didn’t believe in this set of feudal, decadent classics.
“Ordinary herbs have minimal effect on Miss Wen. Her illness has been worsening over the past two years. I’m sure you’re well aware of this.”
Shen Yu’s words left Wen Zheng in silence.
Of course, he knew that ordinary decoctions had long lost their effect on his daughter.
In fact, he knew it even more deeply than Shen Yu.
All these years, in order to save his daughter, Wen Zheng had to worry about state affairs while also studying medicine and pharmacology.
He had almost turned himself into half a doctor.
His colleagues even joked that on his desk in the Ministry of Personnel, there were only books from the Imperial Academy of Medicine.
But the more he understood, the more terrified he became.
Wen Zheng discovered that the methods he had used his entire life—diligent study and hard work—had completely lost their effect in the face of his daughter’s illness.
In the past, through diligent study, he had risen all the way to the position of Heavenly Official of the Ministry of Personnel.
He thought that if he picked up medical books and studied diligently, he could also find a way to cure his daughter.
But the reality was…
He, who could recite the classics backwards, was unable to use his most proud learning method to thoroughly understand his daughter’s illness.
Instead, it made him more and more clearly realize how vast the world’s knowledge was, how narrow their vision was.
Those classics seemed unable to embrace all rivers… And he himself seemed… truly unable to keep his daughter.
“Imperial Physician Shen! Is there really no other way?”
“As I said earlier, this disease fears delay the most.”
“Then… if we don’t operate, how long can my daughter still live?”
Wen Zheng clenched his fists.
He was unwilling to let his daughter die like this.
She was so obedient, so sensible.
She was still young…
“Uncertain. At best, five years? At worst, three months?”
“Moreover, this disease is very painful. In the end, she won’t be killed by the disease itself, but by the pain. That feeling is no less than being cut by a thousand knives.”
Shen Yu’s words made darkness flash before Wen Zheng’s eyes.
He almost fainted the next second.
“We’ll operate, we’ll operate. Even if it’s to let her leave peacefully, we can’t let her be tortured to death by pain.”
At this moment, Wen Zheng wished he could bear all this for his daughter.
A dignified seven-foot man, the Heavenly Official of the Ministry of Personnel, the pillar of the Imperial Court, the head of the Wen Mansion—he was already sobbing uncontrollably.
“My He’er, how can you be so cruel? If you leave, leaving your father and mother alone in this world, how can we go on living?”
“Father…”
“Please… please don’t be sad. I’m still here.”
At this moment, Wen Boyan heard the commotion and carefully approached.
He intended to comfort his father, but he didn’t expect that when his father saw him, his face immediately turned red.
Based on Shen Yu’s many years of clinical experience, it probably wasn’t the kind of silent emotion under the Chinese father-son relationship, but rather from being red with anger.
“You brat! Just seeing you makes me furious! You useless thing! Your sister is this sick, and just two days ago you were causing trouble at Yi Hong Yuan with your gang of no-good friends! You’ve disgraced your father!”
“Your father has never given a single coin to a prostitute in his entire life, but because of you, our family had to pay Yi Hong Yuan fifty taels of silver in compensation.”
Shen Yu’s eyes widened.
At this moment, she felt like a badger jumping into a melon patch—she couldn’t finish eating all the melons.
Was this family affair of the Wen Mansion something she, an outsider, should be listening to?
How embarrassing…
What a shame she didn’t have some melon seeds or peanuts to snack on right now.
Speaking of which, melon seeds and peanuts hadn’t been introduced to the Empire yet.
Next time she should ask the Empress to help find them.
“Fifty taels! How much is your father’s monthly salary? How much does your sister’s medicine cost each month!?”
“At this rate, even the ancestral mansion will have to be mortgaged! I’m going to beat this unfilial son to death today!”
The suppressed Wen Zheng had finally found an outlet for his anger.
At this moment, he didn’t care about being some refined gentleman.
He grabbed a branch from the ground and furiously whipped Wen Boyan’s backside.
It was only now that Shen Yu realized civil officials weren’t any less combat-capable than military generals.
“Minister Wen, don’t hit his head. Hit him there—it hurts but doesn’t injure vital points.”
“Thank you for the advice, Imperial Physician Shen.”
Wen Zheng paused his actions and gave a slight bow to Shen Yu.
Then his gaze regained its ferocity.
“Boy! Get over here!”
“Dad! Dad, stop! I was wrong! I know I was wrong!”
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