Chapter 130
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Xue Yuan shouldn’t have shown such an expression.
Whether it was cruel or arrogant, gentle or ruthless, Xue Yuan shouldn’t have shown such an expression.
Pitiful, heart-wrenching, as if he was about to die, making it hard for people to breathe, unable to say anything harsh.
Gu Yuanbai closed his eyes, sleeping an uneasy sleep amidst his turmoil.
The next day, he received the monks from Jinchan Temple in Hebei.
Among them, Xue Yuan saw the monk who had hesitated to enter the Emperor’s courtyard three times before. With a slight gesture, Xue Yuan directed the Emperor’s gaze towards him. The young monk stiffened all over, too nervous to move.
The Emperor smiled slightly. “Don’t be so formal, come forward and speak.”
The young monk swallowed nervously, approached, and bowed, saying, “This humble monk is Hui Li, paying respects to Your Majesty.”
“No need to be so polite,” Gu Yuanbai smiled gently, completely different from the strict Emperor in the monk’s mind who abolished Buddhism without hesitation, “You look young, but are you already in your twenties?”
The monk replied stiffly, “This humble monk is twenty-one.”
Gu Yuanbai chuckled and casually asked, “When you were at Jingchen Temple, you hesitated to enter my courtyard three times. Did you recognize the wrong person?”
“This humble monk only just found out that the pilgrims there were Your Majesty,” Hui Li hesitated, “Please forgive me, Your Majesty. This humble monk didn’t mean to offend. This humble monk didn’t realize it was Your Majesty, I just… I just heard a few female donors mentioning a name that seemed to be the same as the name of my master’s family when he was young, so I hesitated to enter your courtyard three times.”
Gu Yuanbai lifted the teacup and took a sip of warm tea. “What a coincidence. Whose name is it?”
“Jiang Bajiao,” Hui Li smiled nervously, “My master’s secular surname before he was ordained was Jiang. When my master was young, he had an older brother who once said to him that if he ever had a daughter, the child would be named Bajiao or Ercha.”
Gu Yuanbai’s hand holding the tea suddenly trembled, and he looked up abruptly at the monk. Just then, there was a loud “bang” as Tian Fusheng’s teapot suddenly fell, spilling tea all over the floor. The old eunuch looked shocked, his lips trembling uncontrollably.
***
At noon, the Donglingwei rode out of the palace, and once out of the capital, they urged their horses forward, raising splashes of wet mud as they hurried towards Hebei.
This was the greatest hope for saving the Emperor, and there absolutely could not be any problems. Inside the palace, the monks from Jinchan Temple were placed in a state of confusion by Tian Fusheng. A crowd gathered around Hui Li, asking, “Hui Li, what’s the matter with your master?”
“Why is the Emperor treating us so kindly?”
The young monks of similar age kept asking one after another, scratching his head, Hui Li shook his head honestly, “I don’t know.”
The monks from Jinchan Temple were clueless, but those who knew the reason had already started to get excited.
Tian Fusheng’s hands were trembling as he served tea to the Emperor. Seeing him like this, Gu Yuanbai couldn’t help but smile teasingly, “With you so flustered, if that monk wasn’t Female Physician Jiang’s uncle, or if he had already lost his medical skills, wouldn’t you be happy for nothing?”
Tian Fusheng’s breath caught. “Your Majesty, please don’t joke about this!”
Gu Yuanbai shook his head with a smile.
He was initially surprised when he first heard it, but soon Gu Yuanbai suppressed his surprise. He began to think of the worst-case scenario, preparing for the worst. Only by doing so could he maintain his composure when reality turned unfavorable.
Jinchan Temple was deep in Hebei Province, much farther than the Summer Palace. A round trip would take about half a month.
During this half month, the guards responsible for the forced withdrawal of Heqin Wang also reported that the withdrawal reactions of Heqin Wang were quite strong. But Heqin Wang gritted his teeth and persevered through it all. With his current determination, he should be able to completely quit in about a year.
Gu Yuanbai remained silent for a long time before saying, “Before he successfully quits the incense, don’t mention anything about him to me.”
The guards acknowledged.
Except for state affairs, Gu Yuanbai’s entire attention was focused on Jinchan Temple in Hebei. Not even Xue Yuan standing in front of him with his chest bared could distract him for a moment.
Xue Yuan’s face turned ugly. He thought, is he trying to seduce me?
Besides the Emperor, Female Physician Jiang also received the news. She eagerly awaited news of the monk from Jinchan Temple, hoping he was indeed her uncle and that he had a way to save the Emperor’s life.
In the palace, the monks from Jinchan Temple were accompanied by elders from the temple. These elders knew much more than the young monks did. Tian Fusheng personally came to them several times to inquire. The more he inquired, the more convinced he became. He believed that Female Physician Jiang’s uncle must have become a monk at Jinchan Temple!
No wonder they couldn’t find him in Hebei!
During the famine, starvation was rampant. At that time, Jinchan Temple released its monks, using the temple’s food to save as many people as possible. Jinchan Temple was small, built into the mountains, and remote. It was precisely because of this that it was able to preserve some food. When the chaos ended, Jinchan Temple became a famous temple in Hebei, greatly admired by everyone.
The elders in the temple told Tian Fusheng that Kong Xing, Hui Li’s master, had entered the temple alone as a disaster victim.
Originally filled with coldness, where even the cold wind could howl in one’s heart, now that there was definite news, Tian Fusheng had already cried several times secretly, clutching his clothes in the night, his heart full of joy.
When he occasionally woke up in the morning, he saw that Lord Zhang across from him also had red eyes.
In this anxious wait, finally, the Donglingwei returning from Jinchan Temple with a middle-aged monk and several bundles of medical books, dusty and weary, returning to the capital.
***
When it came to the crunch, Gu Yuanbai wasn’t in a hurry.
He just smiled faintly and said, “After traveling for several days, how can we force someone to come and check my pulse at this time? The Donglingwei and the monk have both worked hard. Go back and rest for two days. Come see me in the palace after you’ve recovered.”
“Oh, Your Majesty,” Tian Fusheng was anxious, “Can’t you let someone check it now?”
It seems the eunuch is more anxious than the emperor. Gu Yuanbai glanced at him and said, “No looking, we’ll discuss it in two days.”
No matter who was in a hurry, Gu Yuanbai was not concerned about a day or two. He had a good dinner and a restful sleep, and to his surprise, the next morning, the monk Kong Xing, who had been brought in by the Donglingwei after a long journey, came voluntarily to request an audience with the emperor.
Gu Yuanbai raised an eyebrow and said leisurely, “Invite him in!”
After a moment, a lean, resolute-looking middle-aged monk entered, prostrating himself and greeting, “This humble monk Kong Xing pays respects to Your Majesty.”
The emperor, seated behind the table, responded in a clear voice, “Rise.”
Kong Xing stood up, clasping his hands and lowering his head. Dressed in his monk’s robes, though he was a humble monk, he exuded an extraordinary aura, truly resembling a high monk detached from worldly affairs.
“This humble monk understands why Your Majesty has summoned me,” Kong Xing said frankly. “Since separating from my brother, I have treasured our ancestral medical texts as precious. I have never neglected them for a moment. However, the Jinchan Temple is in a remote location, and apart from treating the monks’ colds and stomach ailments, I have not diagnosed anyone else.”
Gu Yuanbai smiled gracefully, “Whether you can treat it or not, I will not hold you accountable.”
Kong Xing’s expression became serious as he solemnly replied, “This humble monk will do his utmost.”
Despite maintaining a calm and composed demeanor, when Kong Xing took his pulse, Gu Yuanbai couldn’t help but hold his breath. Realizing this, he found it amusing and gradually relaxed his body. Glancing around, he noticed that everyone around him was staring intently at Kong Xing, holding their breath, slightly trembling with tension, and their faces flushed.
What would Xue Jiuyao be like?
Gu Yuanbai turned his head to the other side, and Xue Yuan was also looking at Kong Xing. He seemed to sense Gu Yuanbai’s gaze and met the Emperor’s eyes. He smiled stiffly, silently comforting Gu Yuanbai, “Don’t be nervous.”
It’s you who’s nervous, Xue Jiuyao.
The sound of the pulse throbbed slowly, as if it had only been a moment, yet also as if it had been a long time. Kong Xing stood up, “Your Majesty, I have offended.”
He pressed down on several acupoints on Gu Yuanbai’s body, causing some pain, but also some numbness. After a diagnosis and treatment, Kong Xing had a rough idea in his mind. His complexion relaxed slightly, but he didn’t dare to be too confident in his words, “It seems that there is a prescription in my medical skills that can cure Your Majesty, but I dare not fully believe what the book says. If the imperial physician is also present, I can bring out the medical books and study them together.”
As soon as these words came out, the tense atmosphere in the hall changed instantly, and joy filled the air.
Gu Yuanbai’s pupils contracted for a moment, but he forced a calm smile and said, “In that case, I must trouble you.”
“How can this be considered a trouble?” Kong Xing smiled bitterly, “You don’t know. Since I heard about Your Majesty’s illness, I have been worried day and night, wanting to come to the capital. A year ago, I compiled the medical books into five volumes and wanted to send them to you in the capital. However, the person I entrusted with them brought them back intact two months later. That’s when I realized I was being too naive. How could everything be delivered to Your Majesty’s hands?”
Gu Yuanbai was taken aback and asked, “Last year? When last year?”
“Early June last year,” Kong Xing sighed and shook his head, “The officials in the capital refused to accept gifts from the common people. They were truly upright and incorruptible.”
Gu Yuanbai understood. It was during the anti-corruption campaign, and all the officials were scared stiff. Indeed, no one dared to accept anything under his nose.
It was a moment of mixed feelings. The anti-corruption campaign inadvertently led to the advantage of the locust plague, but he had pushed away an opportunity to cure himself.
But in the end, fate favored him.
Gu Yuanbai asked the chief eunuch of the Imperial Hospital to take care of Kong Xing and to work together with the staff of the Imperial Hospital to develop a regimen that could cure his symptoms.
Until the end of the month, Gu Yuanbai had never urged the Imperial Hospital, but the imperial physicians and Kong Xing were very anxious. They pondered over the prescription countless times. Due to the Emperor’s weak body and long-term use of various medications, they had many concerns. They had to balance the prescription to avoid compromising its efficacy. They worked tirelessly until August when the Imperial Hospital finally presented a comprehensive regimen.
Gu Yuanbai felt that this speed was already considered fast.
By this time, Gu Yuanbai had been mourning for Wan Taifei for over two months.
Time passed quickly, and Wan Taifei had already been gone for a long time. Occasionally, when Gu Yuanbai thought of her, he felt sorrowful yet warm. Holding the regimen from the Imperial Hospital in his hand, he suddenly realized that even though Wan Taifei had passed away, she had still brought him a great gift. It was among the monks she sent to the capital, one of them had found a chance to cure Gu Yuanbai.
In the midst of summer, the sound of cicadas and birds chirping incessantly, and the ice in the hall emitted a faint coolness. When the Emperor heard Xue Yuan’s anxious call, he realized that tears were streaming down his face unknowingly.
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