Chapter 110 Humiliation
"This..." The imperial physician inwardly lamented his misfortune, but under the stern gaze of the instructing matron, he withdrew his pulse-taking hand and forced himself to say: "The princess's pulse is gentle and harmonious, like spring water beginning to melt. Your noble body should be largely unharmed..."
When the instructing matron heard this, she felt she finally had grounds to make a scene. Just as she lifted her chin to interrogate further, Wen Yu preempted her with a light, almost casual question: "Is that so?"
Her slender, pale fingers pressed against the book cover as she closed the volume, raising her eyes with an authority that required no anger: "But I feel extremely unwell."
Hearing this, the imperial physician's heart sank, and cold sweat drenched his robes like seepage.
But Wen Yu didn't look at him. Her gaze, neither warm nor cold, settled on the instructing matron as she spoke in a tone that seemed open to discussion: "Since this physician cannot diagnose my ailment, perhaps you should report back to the Empress Dowager and request another physician to examine me?"
The instructing matron's face nearly turned green with rage, yet she found herself unable to retort.
The physician had declared her perfectly healthy, but if she insisted she felt unwell, how could the matron outright accuse this Liang woman of feigning illness?
What infuriated her even more, making her chest ache with frustration, was that this Liang woman hadn't even bothered to pretend—yet she forced their Chen Kingdom to swallow this insult and acknowledge her as genuinely ill.
The Empress Dowager had sent her with the physician to pressure this Liang woman, intending to blunt her defiance and prevent her from using illness as an excuse to avoid learning etiquette.
But the Liang woman's move was undoubtedly a slap in the face—one that stung their own Chen Kingdom instead.
Having served in the palace for over twenty years, the instructing matron had never felt so humiliated and enraged as she did today. She struggled to contain herself, but the resentment choked her, aching deep within her organs.
She turned with a livid face to berate the physician: "The Empress Dowager trusted your medical skills specifically to send you to diagnose the princess. Yet you cannot even determine what ails her? You are a quack, unworthy of the years of salary you've received! Guards, drag this incompetent out and execute him by caning!"
Though the physician had anticipated disaster today, he never expected the matron to be so merciless. Terrified and wronged, he knelt and begged tearfully: "It is my inadequate skill that led to misdiagnosing the princess, but I have a three-year-old child below and a seventy-year-old mother above. I beg the matron and the princess to spare my life..."
The instructing matron snapped: "What are you waiting for? Hurry and drag him out before he offends the princess's ears!"
Two guards from the Chen royal palace immediately stepped forward to seize the physician. He wept and kowtowed, pleading for mercy, but they gripped his arms and began dragging him away.
It was only then that Wen Yu, who had been calmly observing the entire scene, spoke up: "Wait."
The two guards didn't dare ignore Wen Yu's command, yet they couldn't blindly obey her either. They looked to the instructing matron for instruction.
The matron had already guessed what Wen Yu might say. Clasping her hands tightly in front of her, she forced a stiff smile and asked Wen Yu: "What further instructions does the princess have?"
Wen Yu said lightly: "Since this is a physician valued by the Empress Dowager, how can he be dealt with so rashly? Allow him to take my pulse once more."
The matron's strained smile froze on her face as she objected: "How can we permit such a quack to examine the princess again..."Wen Yu interrupted the other party calmly yet leaving no room for negotiation: "Would Her Majesty the Empress Dowager dispatch an incompetent physician to treat me? I cannot misinterpret Her Majesty's thoughtful intentions, can I?"
The instructing matron was rendered speechless by Wen Yu's rebuttal, though inwardly she was nearly grinding her silver teeth to dust, her heart aching with suppressed fury.
Another pulse diagnosis, forcing the imperial physician to declare her genuinely ill?
Wouldn't that be like letting this Liang woman strike their Chen Kingdom's left cheek, only for them to eagerly offer the right cheek for another slap?
Yet Wen Yu had cleverly used the Empress Dowager's goodwill as a shield, thoroughly blocking all possible excuses the matron could use to politely refuse.
The two guards from King Chen's palace, having received no instruction from the matron for some time, hesitated about whether to release the physician. But the physician, realizing his survival now entirely depended on Wen Yu, struggled internally before his will to live prevailed. Shouting "Thank you, Princess!" he wrestled free from the guards' restraint, scrambling to the gauze curtain before Wen Yu. With trembling hands that betrayed his relief at surviving, he once again took her pulse.
Witnessing this, the instructing matron closed her eyes as if resigned to her fate.
Zhao Bai and Tong Que stood on either side of Wen Yu. While Zhao Bai remained expressionless as usual, Tong Que visibly straightened her posture, slightly raising her chin with evident satisfaction as she watched the matron and her entourage who had come specifically to cause trouble.
Before long, the physician delivered a new diagnosis: "The Princess's pulse appears calm and steady at first glance, but upon closer examination, reveals a subtle weakness beneath the stability. This indicates stagnant energy in the spleen and lungs, combined with excessive heart fire. Coupled with accumulated fatigue damaging the constitution, it explains the frequent sensations of physical weakness and shortness of breath. Treatment requires nourishing yin, regulating the spleen, soothing liver energy, and careful warm nourishment."
Thus, the slap to the right cheek had ultimately landed on their Chen Kingdom's face.
Relying on decades of palace-honed composure, the instructing matron barely maintained final decorum instead of immediately turning to leave. Addressing Wen Yu with strained civility, she said: "In that case, the Princess should focus on recuperating properly."
As she prepared to depart with her entourage of palace maids and guards, Wen Yu stopped her: "The matron has visited multiple times to inquire after my health, and the Empress Dowager even sent a physician to examine me. I'm aware the auspicious date calculated by the Imperial Astronomers approaches. Both the matron and Her Majesty are concerned about the grand ceremony, but my health remains uncertain as to when it might improve."
Her gaze remained serene, her tone gentle, yet her words carried no trace of softness or vulnerability: "Since the matron has brought so many palace maids today, to alleviate the Empress Dowager's continued concern and to facilitate the matron's report, perhaps you could instruct these maids in etiquette while I observe from the sidelines."
The matron's expression in that moment transcended mere displeasure—this constituted outright humiliation against their Chen Kingdom.
Overwhelmed by fury, the matron lost control of her tone. Turning to stare at Wen Yu with disbelief and bitter amusement, she retorted: "The Princess jests. The etiquette of King Chen's palace has never been taught in such manner."
Wen Yu responded with unruffled composure: "Well, now it has."
Trembling with rage, the matron failed to conceal the fire in her eyes as she insisted stiffly: "Since the Princess makes this request, this old servant will report it to the Empress Dowager."Wen Yu propped her chin on one hand, flipping through the pages of a book absentmindedly. "Very well," she said. "However, I am receiving guests despite my illness and already feel rather dizzy. My condition may worsen hereafter. If I cannot learn the rules today while I still have some energy, I fear I may not even be able to leave my sickbed before the wedding ceremony. Yet if I do not learn the royal palace etiquette, I worry I might act inappropriately afterward and offend the King or the Empress Dowager."
This was a blatant threat.
Either the instructing matron could discipline King Chen's own palace maids today to "teach" the rules, or the matter of instruction would never be raised again.
But if Wen Yu later "failed to understand" the rules and showed disrespect to King Chen or the Empress Dowager, it would be excused as ignorance due to never having been taught.
The instructing matron was so enraged she saw spots before her eyes, her legs going so weak that the palace maid behind had to steady her.
After collecting herself, she gritted her teeth and suppressed her anger. "Fine," she said. "This old servant will teach Your Highness the rules today."
Humiliated, the matron hastily drilled the palace maids on etiquette before retreating in defeat. The physician who was supposed to accompany her back to report on Wen Yu's condition to the Empress Dowager was detained by Wen Yu on the pretext of her illness, remaining at the guesthouse for immediate consultation.
Zhao Bai saw the guests out on Wen Yu's behalf. The instructing matron strode stiffly from the guesthouse but reportedly collapsed from fury the moment she entered her carriage.
When Zhao Bai returned to report, the gauze curtains in the main hall had not yet been removed. Besides Tong Que standing beside Wen Yu, the physician still knelt outside, kowtowing repeatedly to her. "This humble official thanks Your Highness for saving my life..."
Wen Yu continued reading her book, seemingly uninterested in the person beyond the curtain. "Rise."
The physician stopped kowtowing and stood, not daring to look at the figure behind the curtain. He hunched slightly, appearing somewhat at a loss.
Fortunately, Wen Yu's voice soon came from behind the curtain again. "How long have you served in the Imperial Medical Bureau?"
The physician bowed respectfully. "Seven... seven and a half years."
"Who else is in your family?"
The physician grew even more apprehensive. "A seventy-year-old mother, a three-year-old child, and my humble wife."
Wen Yu instructed Zhao Bai, "Send someone to bring them all to the guesthouse for now."
Zhao Bai cupped his fist in acknowledgment.
Hearing this, the physician knew Wen Yu intended to protect his entire family and was overcome with gratitude. "Your Highness's great kindness—I could never repay it even as an ox or horse in my next life..."
Wen Yu's tone remained calm. "I have only just arrived in Chen and am unfamiliar with many aspects of the royal court. I shall require your assistance from time to time hereafter."
The physician understood that after today's events, even if the Empress Dowager didn't have him killed, her wrath would ensure he wasn't let off lightly. His career in the Imperial Medical Bureau was effectively over.
Wen Yu was the new mistress of King Chen's palace. Since she was willing to protect his family and had extended an olive branch, he had to cling tightly to this lifeline. He bowed deeply to her, tears streaming down his face. "Your Highness has given me a second chance at life. I will devote myself utterly to you, even at the cost of my life..."
Zhao Bai cut him off. "Her Highness is tired from receiving guests. If you would kindly step aside with me and provide your address."
The physician continued thanking her profusely as he followed Zhao Bai out of the main hall, overflowing with gratitude.Tong Que could no longer contain her delight. As soon as the imperial physician left, she lifted the bed curtains on both sides for Wen Yu and said with evident satisfaction, "Your Highness, you didn't see the expressions on the faces of King Chen's palace staff before they left. If Empress Dowager Jiang learns what happened today, wouldn't she be furious enough to spit blood?"
Wen Yu closed her book, picked up a white chess piece between her index and middle fingers, and placed it on the unfinished game beside her. Her tone was indifferent, but her gaze was sharp and cold: "Throwing a stone to test the path. Empress Dowager Jiang's urgent pressure isn't merely to gauge my attitude after entering Chen. She's also probing to see how many of my father's agents remain in Southern Chen."
Royal Palace of King Chen.
After listening to the instructing matron's ashamed report of the afternoon's events, Empress Dowager Jiang closed her eyes, rotating her bodhi beads without speaking.
The instructing matron's disheveled hair framed her face as she kowtowed with her forehead touching the ground, miserable and terrified: "I beg Your Majesty to punish me."
In the dimly lit Buddhist hall where incense smoke curled upward, Empress Dowager Jiang completed another rotation of her bodhi beads before finally saying with closed eyes: "You may leave."
After another kowtow, the instructing matron retreated from the Buddhist hall.
Empress Dowager Jiang continued calmly rotating her beads, but at one point she suddenly swept her arm, knocking the incense burner from the small table onto the floor.
The bronze lotus-shaped incense burner hit the floor with a dull thud. None of the palace maids waiting outside dared to enter and investigate.
The curtain in the adjacent room was lifted as a pair of black brocade boots stepped onto the carpet. Jiang Yu knelt to pick up the incense burner, then carefully wiped the scattered ashes from the floor with a handkerchief. His handsome face wore a slight smile: "Aunt, why such great anger?"
Empress Dowager Jiang opened her eyes and looked at the nephew she had raised as her own son: "I indeed underestimated that Liang woman. I originally thought all her schemes in Pingzhou came from her Liang ministers. Now it appears she herself is made of stern stuff."
Jiang Yu gathered the ash-stained handkerchief, his profile becoming more defined in the dim light. Lowering his eyelashes, he said: "Our campaign against Liang territory and the expedition against Pei Song have already begun. Now is the time for unity against external threats. Why must you insist on making her submit in this manner at such a time?"
This prompted Empress Dowager Jiang to look down at him, her gaze sharp and imperious: "I'm making her submit? Her Liang state is no longer a proper kingdom. Yet she still acts so imperiously in this marriage alliance with our Chen. When your cousin went to Liang to borrow troops from Changlian Wang, how low did he have to bow his head?"
Jiang Yu didn't continue the argument, instead pouring a cup of tea for Empress Dowager Jiang: "Don't anger yourself. What would become of us if you damage your health?"
Empress Dowager Jiang accepted the tea but continued scrutinizing Jiang Yu with undiminished sharpness: "Yu'er, you speak so much for that Liang woman. When I sent you to approach her, could it be you've already been captivated by her beauty..."
"Aunt!"
Jiang Yu interrupted sharply, his young, handsome face showing rare embarrassment and resentment. He bowed his head, staring at the iron archer's ring on his thumb marked with bowstring grooves, like an eagle with clipped wings: "I want to go to the battlefield, not participate in wedding processions, not remain in the royal court."
Pressing his lips together, he left unsaid what they both understood, adding only: "Once the royal court is secure, I can join the military campaign."
With these words, he replaced the incense burner and rose to leave the Buddhist hall.Empress Dowager Jiang watched his retreating figure, her lips twitching slightly before she ultimately said nothing, her expression hardening back into its usual sternness.
Author's Note: Next chapter will feature classmate Xiao Huan~
Special thanks to the little angels who voted for me or provided nutrient solutions between 2024-07-15 23:58:56~2024-07-19 23:59:06~
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