The ceremonial procession led the emperor through the long streets of Yongdu. The carriages pressed on the official road that had been swept with flower petals, leaving deep ruts. They marched forward in a mighty procession towards Yishan, a solitary peak east of Yongdu.
The day of Fengshan has finally arrived.
Wen Qingci and Yu Guanlin accompanied him as imperial physician.
—Just like in modern times, when there are major events, there will be ambulances waiting nearby, Wen Qingci and the others played such a role today.
At this time, it was still dark and the emperor was building an altar to worship heaven and earth.
There were sounds of bells and drums in front and a canopy covering the sky, it was so lively.
However, the Fengshan ceremony had never been related to the imperial physician. Wen Qingci and the others only had to stand at the end of the crowd and act as spectators.
"… The previous emperor Ai was born weak and had no power to handle court affairs. Fortunately, Your Majesty saved the country from collapse!" Yu Guanlin stroked his beard and exclaimed, "Not only did you quell the civil strife, but you also built a canal to connect the north and the south, and established a great cause that will last for generations!"
After saying that, he couldn't help but bow towards the altar.
Yu Guanlin not only spoke sincerely, but his actions were also extremely exaggerated.
In order to choose an auspicious time, they set out from Yongdu at around four o'clock this morning.
Ancient wheels had no rubber, and after bumping along the way, Wen Qingci felt like his bones were about to fall apart.
He originally wanted to take this opportunity to rest up, but he didn't expect that the elderly Yu Guanlin was so energetic and even a little talkative.
Over there the emperor was reporting his great achievements to God.
On this side, Yu Guanlin kept retelling all this to him.
"Eh? I remember that you, Doctor Wen, seem to be from Songxiu Prefecture? You must be familiar with the Yinchuan Grand Canal, which flows through Songxiu Prefecture!"
After his name was called, Wen Qingci, who had been listening with one ear and out the other, finally came to his senses a little.
“…Yes.” He paused and nodded. The original owner was indeed from Songxiu Mansion.
"Okay, Songxiu Mansion is a good place, no wonder there is a miracle doctor like you," he looked at Wen Qingci and said with interest, "If Doctor Wen is free in the future, please take me there for a walk."
Songxiu Prefecture was a famous "medicine capital" of the dynasty. It was normal for Yu Guanlin, an imperial physician, to want to go there for a visit.
Wen Qingci agreed with a smile.
Before I knew it, it was already Chen time and the sun had risen to the top of Mount Yi.
The white snow that has not yet melted is coated with a layer of gold foil by the morning sun, which is truly stunning when viewed from a distance.
The crowd in front gradually became clearer.
"Ah... I feel like the Third Prince can't hold on any longer." Yu Guanlin said abruptly.
Wen Qingci followed his gaze and looked forward.
The third prince, dressed in red, had a pale face and stood there swaying.
Theoretically speaking, the third prince's confinement has not yet ended.
However, for such a major event as Fengshan, all the royal descendants had to attend, so the emperor finally showed leniency temporarily and released him.
"The Third Prince's injuries have not yet healed. It is not easy for him to survive until this time." Wen Qingci's words were very tactful.
The third prince was beaten with a lot of boards a while ago. If he wasn't fat and had some meat to protect himself, he would probably have not been able to survive it.
The Fengshan ceremony had been going on for two hours. The Third Prince was sweating all over and staggered several times, almost falling to the ground.
Fearing that he might disturb the emperor, the eunuchs rushed over to support him.
Yu Guanlin looked up at the sky and said, "In half a cup of tea, we can rest."
The Fengshan Ceremony involves many steps, and not only the injured Third Prince, but also the Emperor himself and those elderly ministers will be tired.
Sure enough, not long after Yu Guanlin finished speaking, there were bursts of bell sounds coming from the front.
The ceremony was temporarily suspended and everyone rested on the spot.
Wen Qingci was just about to sit back in the carriage to catch up on some sleep when he turned around and was stopped by someone.
"Doctor Wen—"
The man was wearing purple clothes and twirling Buddhist beads. He looked to be in his fifties or sixties, with a plump figure and a wealthy face.
"This is the Secretary of the Central Secretariat Ge Deqiu, Lord Ge." Yu Guanlin reminded with a smile.
Wen Qingci paused, turned around and saluted the visitor: "Greetings, Lord Ge."
"Hahaha, Lord Wen, please don't be so polite. I've heard of your great name for a long time, but I didn't expect to have the chance to meet you today." Ge Deqiu walked up quickly and patted Wen Qingci's shoulder in a very familiar manner.
Wen Qingci is a little bit of a germaphobe and doesn't like others touching him easily.
He subconsciously moved his shoulders back.
Ge Deqiu did not notice this subtle movement, but it was all seen by Xie Bufeng who was not far away.
The young man paused, stood still and looked over here.
"Mr. Wen is indeed a hero born young!" Ge Deqiu continued to sigh, "After seeing you today, I realized that you are even younger than I thought. The cinnabar between your eyebrows is even more beautiful. I can tell at a glance that you have a connection with Buddhism."
This person is complimenting himself.
Wen Qingci could only bite the bullet and say, "You are too kind."
"Oh, no, no!" Ge Deqiu waved his hand and said, "To be honest, I came to see Mr. Wen today to ask for a favor."
Wen Qingci looked at him with a little confusion.
The Secretary of the Central Secretariat needs help from an imperial physician
"Well, it just so happens that my family has been feeling unwell recently... Today I was fortunate to meet Mr. Wen in Yishan, so I wanted to ask if you have time to come to my humble abode?"
Ge Deqiu's face was flushed, how could he look like his family member was sick
Obviously he was using this as an excuse to get closer to me.
Although Wen Qingci had always stayed in the Imperial Medical Bureau, his name had already spread throughout Yongdu.
Wen Qingci was just about to make up a reason to reject Ge Deqiu, but the other party seemed to have guessed his thoughts and turned to look at Yu Guanlin, and said half-jokingly: "Master Yuanling, why don't you introduce me to someone?"
"Lord Ge, you really flatter me," Yu Guanlin hurriedly stepped forward and saluted. He stroked his beard and smiled, "Of course I would like to make an introduction, but right now both His Majesty and Concubine Lan cannot be short of people. Even a great doctor would be unable to handle all the tasks!" Judging from the tone, Yu Guanlin and Ge Deqiu should be old friends.
Ge Deqiu paused with the hand that was twisting the Buddhist beads.
The imperial physician was an extremely special existence as he could frequently enter and leave the palace and often dealt with the emperor and concubines.
Inviting imperial physicians to come back to treat patients in the name of getting closer to them has long been the default social method used by the high-ranking officials and nobles in Yongcheng.
Even Yu Guanlin himself has often taken the opportunity to accept gifts or help others "make connections".
So why did he start to refuse on behalf of Wen Qingci today
"... Indeed, indeed," Yu Guanlin pulled the emperor out, and Ge Deqiu had to bury his doubts in his heart for the time being, "In that case, let's wait until Doctor Wen is done with his work." As he said this, he habitually patted Wen Qingci's shoulder.
After being rejected, Ge Deqiu was still unwilling to leave and continued to stand here and greet Wen Qingci.
Xie Bufeng, who was not far away, frowned tightly.
The hand that Ge Deqiu placed on Wen Qingci's shoulder was extremely annoying to him.
Xie Bufeng's gaze suddenly turned to the side—
The person who was feeling the most uncomfortable standing at the foot of Mount Yi was the Third Prince Xie Yinshang, whose injuries had not yet healed.
When the bell rang, he wanted to find a place to lie down and rest.
But he was badly injured and felt pain all over his body with the slightest movement. He could only move forward slowly with the help of the eunuchs.
Noticing Xie Bufeng's gaze, the Third Prince gritted his teeth and said in his heart: "What are you looking at? The next one is you!"
"It's all your fault that I'm in this situation today. One day, you will pay me back double—"
repay
Hearing this, the young man smiled disdainfully.
Xie Bufeng's gaze slowly fell on the third prince's legs.
His legs were a little lame. Although the board hit his buttocks, it affected his entire body, and after the injury, it became difficult for him to move.
It was obvious that the third prince had fallen not long ago.
Xie Bufeng lowered his eyes and smiled slowly, then suddenly walked towards the direction where the third prince was.
The next second, they passed each other by.
With just a slight push, the already limping Third Prince immediately lost his balance.
“Ouch—”
"Your Highness?!"
With a loud bang, the third prince, who was being supported by the eunuch with difficulty, fell heavily to the ground.
He subconsciously used his elbows to support himself.
“Ah… It hurts! My arm…” The third prince lay on the ground, grimacing and screaming, attracting the attention of everyone around him.
The young eunuch tried to pull him up, but the Third Prince's weight was too great, and even with all his strength he was unable to move the young man on the ground even a little bit.
At this time, Xie Bufeng had already disappeared into the crowd.
"Oh... It hurts so much! Come, come and have a look at my arm!" The third prince was afraid that his arm was really broken, so he covered his arm and wailed.
The guards rushed forward, helped him up, and ran to summon the imperial physician.
After taking a look at the place from a distance, Yu Guanlin turned around and said to Wen Qingci, "I am afraid that my old bones cannot take care of the Third Prince's injuries. Let Imperial Doctor Wen take a look."
Yu Guanlin always uses this reason to push his work to others.
But today, Wen Qingci, who was trapped here by Ge Deqiu, really needed his "help".
"Yes, Lord Yu," Wen Qingci turned around and saluted Ge Deqiu, saying, "I'm sorry, Lord Ge, the Third Prince seems to be in some trouble, I need to go see him."
"Of course, of course." Ge Deqiu finally took a half step back. He made a "please" gesture to Wen Qingci and said, "Doctor Wen, please go and do your work. We will meet again another day!"
Wen Qingci turned around and walked towards the third prince with the medicine box.
In a trance, he suddenly realized that he seemed to have seen Xie Bufeng's figure just now
I don’t know if it’s an illusion or not.
The third prince's fall caused quite a commotion.
In a blink of an eye, everyone around turned their eyes over.
They were not looking at Xie Yinshang who was baring his teeth and shouting, but Wen Qingci...
The golden light of the morning kissed down, coating Wen Qingci's body with a layer of gold.
He is as delicate and otherworldly as a character walking out of a temple mural.
Either appreciation or contempt.
Everyone was looking at this overly young imperial physician with various gazes, unscrupulously.
If I had known this, I wouldn’t have bumped into Xie Yinshang.
Noticing all this, Xie Bufeng suddenly felt a little unhappy and regretful.
It was as if the lamb that belonged to him alone had been touched by someone else.
(End of this chapter)