“Physician Attendant Shen, I meet you once again. The Former Emperor established a rule that Her Majesty cannot meet outsiders after midnight. I must trouble you to wait outside the Hall of Mental Cultivation for a while.”
“However, Her Majesty is concerned for your health, Physician Attendant Shen. She specifically ordered me to bring you a Brocade Robe. Please put it on so you do not catch a cold.”
At this moment, Shen Yu, who was kneeling outside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, kept her head lowered.
Eunuch Li and several Palace Maids holding trays stood beside her.
Feeling the cold wind of the late autumn night, her face was filled with helplessness, yet she still had to kowtow and thank the ruler for her grace.
“I appreciate the trouble, Eunuch Li.”
She had originally thought Cao Xiangning was joking with her.
After all, seeing the Empress in the middle of the night was something even the current Chancellor could not achieve.
Even if the Barbarians outside the pass attacked, unless they reached the Capital City that very night, they could forget about seeing the Empress after midnight.
This made Shen Yu quite indignant.
After all, the Mu’en Hall she had taken over was supposed to receive patients twenty-four hours a day, but the Empress herself seemed obsessed with finishing work on time.
Of course, the Empress did not treat Shen Yu poorly.
According to the rules, Shen Yu only held the position of an Eighth Rank Medical Officer and did not have the right to meet the Emperor.
Furthermore, the timing was special; the Empress had already retired for the evening, making it even more impossible to receive her.
There were many rules in the Imperial Palace.
One could say that for low-ranking officials, entering the palace was like going to a gym—every day was leg day.
You had to kneel if you saw the Emperor, and you had to kneel even if you did not.
You had to kneel when meeting Princes, and you had to kneel when meeting the high officials of the Grand Secretariat or the Six Ministries.
Shen Yu felt that her legs had not been straight once since she entered the Imperial Palace.
Outside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Shen Yu could not wait standing up; she could only kneel on the freezing stone tiles.
However, the Empress had at least provided a delicate cushion for her and ordered several Palace Maids to bring her some refreshments.
If this were any of those ministers from the Grand Secretariat or the high officials from the Six Ministries, they would likely have been moved to tears of gratitude.
But for Shen Yu, she was already secretly cursing ‘Dog Emperor’ several times in her heart.
After all, having been influenced by her Grandpa since childhood, she had no rose-tinted glasses when it came to the Emperor.
Setting aside her experiences from her previous life, the hardships she had witnessed at the Border alone were enough to make her scoff at the high-and-mighty Son of Heaven.
“Physician Attendant Shen, it is quite a coincidence. Her Majesty has been feeling depressed lately, often unable to sleep or get up, and she is exhausted by state affairs all day long. As a servant watching her… oh, it truly pains my heart.”
“Since Physician Attendant Shen is here, this old servant will be bold enough to ask you for a prescription to present to Her Majesty. If this succeeds and Her Majesty can sleep peacefully, it would be a great thing for you, for me, and even for the Imperial Court!”
Eunuch Li had finally found an opportunity to make good use of Shen Yu’s value.
Currently, the hottest topic in the Imperial Court was Shen Yu.
After all, being personally promoted three ranks by Her Majesty was a rare achievement in the entire history of the Empire.
Those Civil Officials, Military Nobles, students of the Imperial Academy, and Physicians who had come to the Capital to take the exams hardly spoke three sentences without mentioning her name.
They were all curious about what kind of ability this Physician Attendant, handpicked by Her Majesty, truly possessed.
Naturally, as a member of the Directorate of Ceremonial who served in the Imperial Court daily, Eunuch Li had also conducted a bit of an investigation into Shen Yu.
Her family background was clean, with no great clans or vested interests behind her.
No one in the Imperial Court knew her, yet her skills were the real deal.
Although she was currently just a lowly Physician Attendant, Eunuch Li had spent many years in the palace and knew that a talent like her would not remain in a lowly position for long.
Since she was favored by Her Majesty, her future promotion was certain.
Furthermore, Her Majesty had high hopes for the new candidates from the Medical Recruitment Exam.
It could be said that the Directorate of Ceremonial, the Imperial Academy of Medicine, the Imperial Academy, the Six Ministries, the Grand Secretariat, the Fenglin Guards, and the Military Merit Group were all eagerly looking for a way to curry favor with Shen Yu.
After all, the Empress’s purpose for the Medical Recruitment Exam was to reshuffle the deck, which meant the interests of all parties would be damaged.
In this situation, whoever could win over Shen Yu could minimize their losses during Her Majesty’s reshuffle.
If everyone else lost half their life and most of their interests while you only suffered a few itchy scratches, then it was essentially no loss at all—it was a massive gain!
In the Imperial Court, who wouldn’t want to hold the absolute right to speak?
It was true for the Six Ministries, the Grand Secretariat, and even for eunuchs like them.
Thus, Eunuch Li, who had the advantage of being close, was naturally willing to give Shen Yu a push.
Since the outcome was already certain, it was better to do her a favor and accumulate some goodwill with her now.
“Naturally, I have some. However, when it comes to medicine, I must see the patient first to give an accurate diagnosis. Hmm… I will write a mild prescription for Her Majesty to try first. If it does not work, we will make other plans.”
The reason Shen Yu said this was not because she was considering the rules of the palace; she simply wanted to go home early.
‘If I have to treat the Empress in the middle of the night, will I even get to sleep? The Empress can’t sleep? What does that have to do with me? She’s just being difficult; if I gave her a whack with a club, she would sleep better than anyone.’
Of course, Shen Yu only dared to grumble these words in her heart.
On the surface, she remained the obedient Physician Attendant Shen.
“Follow this prescription and take it before bed.”
“Oh, Physician Attendant Shen, I will definitely put in a few good words for you to Her Majesty. Rest assured, we who serve by Her Majesty’s side are most familiar with saying the right things.”
“Yes, yes, yes…”
Shen Yu nodded.
She understood; they were just flattering her.
Eunuchs were indeed experts at that.
Shen Yu did not know how long she had been waiting, but Cao Xiangning had yet to come out.
Seeing that it was getting colder and her eyelids were beginning to fight each other, she drifted off.
“Physician Attendant Shen.”
Just as Shen Yu was about to fall asleep, a soft voice sounded by her ear.
In her half-asleep state, she subconsciously opened her eyes just a crack—a tiny, tiny crack.
“Hmm? Is it over? What did Her Majesty say?”
In her daze, Shen Yu felt a very soft and warm little hand help her wipe the drool from the corner of her mouth.
“Her Majesty said that she cannot count on anyone else for this matter; she can only count on you. If you do it well, no request will be denied.”
“This official… thanks the ruler for her grace.”
Shen Yu kept her head lowered.
She could not tell if she was dreaming or not.
She had been exhausted all day and was now truly at her limit.
“Send Physician Attendant Shen back to rest properly. Tomorrow, Her Majesty will send someone to assist you. Don’t worry, with her by your side, you can proceed without fear. If you do well, nothing will be denied.”
“Yes! Goodnight, Your Majesty…”
Shen Yu was already starting to talk nonsense.
She had this habit since she was a child: when she was extremely exhausted, her mind was filled with nothing but sleep.
At such times, Shen Yu was at her most submissive and adorable.
She would subconsciously agree to almost anything anyone said.
“Oh, Your Highness, why have you come out? The weather is so cold.”
“It matters not. I heard that refugees are gathering outside the city, so naturally, I am unable to rest easy. I also heard that Cao Zhen’s daughter, Cao Xiangning, and the Eighth Rank Physician Attendant Shen Yu were kneeling before the gates of the Hall of Mental Cultivation at midnight to beg Her Majesty to provide relief for the refugees, so I came specifically to take a look.”
“Physician Attendant Shen seems too exhausted; she has already fallen asleep. Send her back. Additionally… I will go to Mu’en Hall tomorrow and accompany Physician Attendant Shen to provide relief to the refugees.”
“Ah!?”