“I’m going to check your pulse. Don’t move.”
Shen Yu looked at the little ball of fluff in her arms.
She wanted to move a clean table over to examine her slowly, but the little girl huddled in her arms and refused to leave, leaving Shen Yu with no choice.
She let the girl stay nestled against her, feeling the rhythmic rise and fall of her breath.
Shen Yu held her own breath and focused, her expression solemn.
The others around them grew tense as well.
Shen Yu did not know who Xiao Yue truly was, but the sisters Yun Wei and Yun Xiang, the maid Xiao Tao, and the eunuchs disguised as laborers knew.
They were well aware that Xiao Yue’s condition could not be cured even with the strength of the entire nation.
Shen Yu was her only chance for relief.
Thus, Shen Yu’s judgment—and even her slightest expression—held the weight of the nation’s future.
“Your breathing is much steadier. Yin Qiu, bring me my stethoscope.”
As soon as Shen Yu finished speaking, Yin Qiu nimbly handed a simple metal stethoscope to her.
This was something crafted in Qingfeng Village.
Though rudimentary, it was perfectly functional.
It might not have been as exquisite as a modern one, but it served its purpose well.
“Unfasten the buttons of your ruqun first.”
“You must not!”
The moment Shen Yu spoke, Xiao Tao raised her voice to stop her.
Nearby, Yun Wei and Yun Xiang also turned pale.
“W-what’s wrong?”
Shen Yu was startled, nearly dropping the little girl in her shock.
Fortunately, she was quick enough to catch Xiao Yue by her slender waist, preventing her from falling to the floor.
“N-no, I meant… Physician Attendant Shen, my young lady is pure and untainted. She cannot be touched casually by anyone.”
Xiao Tao noticed a sharp glint in her mistress’s eyes.
In fact, if Shen Yu hadn’t tightened her embrace in her panic—a sensation the little girl quite enjoyed—Xiao Tao’s outburst might have been labeled as an offense against the crown.
“Yes, Shen Yu, why is the usage of this thing so strange? Why do you need to unfasten the buttons on her bodice?”
Yun Wei stepped in to smooth things over.
She understood the weight of the Grand Princess’s status as a Body of a Thousand Gold all too well.
She possessed a most sacred, noble, and pure body that even members of the same sex could not view or touch as they pleased.
Even Xiao Tao, the Grand Princess’s personal maid, had to close her eyes and keep her movements strictly disciplined while helping her dress.
On the side, Yun Xiang hesitated and did not dare to speak.
She had experienced Shen Yu’s strange medical requirements before.
She had even made quite a fool of herself once…
The Grand Princess was only being asked to unfasten a few buttons.
Back then, Shen Yu had bluntly told her to take off her undergarments!
“I’m not doing anything bad; I’m treating her illness. Little sister, I can tell you’re from a prominent family, but are the rules always this strict? How do you usually have a physician examine you?”
Shen Yu asked curiously.
If even a stethoscope couldn’t be used, then aged physicians likely weren’t allowed to touch her wrists either.
How would they check her pulse?
And what about acupuncture?
What happened when needles had to be inserted into acupoints on the body?
When someone was on the brink of death, surely they couldn’t be worrying about propriety and forbidden sights.
“Pulse Diagnosis by Silk Thread,” Xiao Tao spoke up on Xiao Yue’s behalf.
“Pulse Diagnosis by Silk Thread?”
Shen Yu was dumbfounded.
‘Wasn’t that something that only happened in TV shows? What could anyone possibly hear through a piece of silk thread?’
Properly checking a pulse required pressing down firmly with the fingers and closing one’s eyes to focus intently on every detail.
‘Pulse Diagnosis by Silk Thread… how is that different from fortune-telling?’
“What about acupuncture then?”
“Doesn’t acupuncture only need to be focused on the hands?”
Xiao Tao’s matter-of-fact expression sent Shen Yu into deep thought.
“No wonder your illness is so severe at such a young age. In my opinion, it’s because you’ve delayed treatment for too long, allowing it to become chronic.”
Shen Yu sighed helplessly.
Since they had their rules, she couldn’t say much more.
As the saying went, everyone had their own fate; one had to respect the choices and destinies of others.
“Xiao Tao! Physician Attendant Shen has her own methods of treatment. Why are you meddling? Haven’t you seen her skills with your own eyes?”
Xiao Yue, who had been silent until now, finally spoke.
Her voice carried an innate, awe-inspiring dignity and composure.
Xiao Tao’s delicate frame trembled in fear.
“But… but Miss, you are of noble birth. Your Body of a Thousand Gold cannot simply let an outsider…”
“Shut up!”
Xiao Yue instinctively raised her voice.
Even Shen Yu couldn’t help but pause.
Though the little girl had a lung condition, that “shut up” was shouted with full strength and authority.
It inexplicably reminded Shen Yu of her grandpa when he was angry; his scoldings possessed that same kind of aura.
“Didn’t I tell you to bring the celebratory gifts for Physician Attendant Shen? Are they ready? If you have nothing better to do, go help the men carry them inside.”
“Sister, ignore her. Treat me however you need to. I need to unfasten the buttons of my ruqun, right? I’ll cooperate!”
When Xiao Yue turned to Shen Yu, her attitude underwent a 180-degree turn.
She even reached up herself to unfasten the buttons on her chest.
In truth, the little girl wasn’t wearing nothing beneath her ruqun; there was a thin, plain white shirt underneath.
But at that moment, Xiao Tao, Yun Wei, and Yun Xiang all instinctively looked away, not daring to glance in that direction.
As for the eunuchs dressed as laborers, they were so terrified they didn’t even dare to lift their heads.
Bowing their heads, they carried in the gifts prepared for Shen Yu one by one: bolts of cloth, silk, tea, pastries, wine, gold jewelry, silver notes, and… half a side of a pig.
The more Shen Yu looked, the more familiar it seemed.
‘These items… the Yun Estate sent a set exactly like this.’
Shen Yu found it strange, yet she didn’t stop.
She held the stethoscope and moved it toward Xiao Yue’s chest without hesitation.
In her view, it was good that the little girl had the courage to break social taboos.
After all, treating the illness was the priority.
Rules and modesty were nothing compared to one’s life.
At the same time, Shen Yu couldn’t help but wonder.
‘Is this why the current Grand Princess’s illness has never been cured? If a young lady like Xiao Yue has so many rules, wouldn’t the Grand Princess in the Imperial Palace be even more restricted?’
“Mhm, breath sounds are clear and normal. No wheezing or dry and wet rales.”
Shen Yu listened carefully, nodding from time to time.
“Then… Sister, does this mean my illness is cured?”
“No, it doesn’t. This is actually a major characteristic of your lung disease! It has variability and reversibility. When there’s no flare-up, the airway spasms relax, inflammation levels might be low, and airflow returns to normal. That’s why a physical exam might not find any abnormalities.”
“However, this does mean your symptoms are being managed very well. Our goal for treatment is to reach and maintain this state.”
Shen Yu picked up a nearby brush and jotted down a few notes in her book.
She needed to record the girl’s breath sounds clearly.
Once she gained enough experience, she would be able to judge if the girl was at a critical point for a flare-up based on changes in her breathing.
“Does Sister mean… my illness can never be fully cured?”