Chapter 235: Divergence
Crown Prince’s Palace
A pair of lanterns were hung above the platform that led to the mansion. A pair of soldiers stood still as they guarded the entrance. At this point, an oxcart stopped outside, as a forty-year-old woman disembarked.
A jade pin stuck out from her hair, as her face was filled with a certain calmness. She had several wrinkles between her brows and a young serving maid accompanied her. After the serving maid gave several instructions, a second oxcart halted behind the first, where men removed items from it. These were toys for children.
As she looked upon the scene, the middle-aged woman asked, "Has everything been taken?"
"Madam, everything for the little Prince and for the Imperial Concubine has been taken." The serving maid checked once more. At this point, everything around them was grey as the lights from the lantern flickered brightly. An old serving maid came out and welcomed them, "Madam Cheng, please come this way. The Imperial Concubine is waiting for you. She has ordered me to invite you in."
"We have to trouble you then, Granny Chen." Madam Cheng spoke.
"This way, Madam." Granny Chen led the way into the hall and didn’t speak much. She started to walk faster, as she navigated her way through several walkways and finally arrived at a side chamber.
There were several scented candles being lit within the chambers. Today, the young Prince wasn’t feeling well and was thus left within the recuperation room. A doctor had already been to see him.
Since her mother was coming today, the Imperial Concubine decided to slip away from the recuperation room for a little while and welcomed her mother.
"Respects to the Concubine." Madam Cheng bowed deeply, seeing her daughter before her.
"Mother!" The Imperial Concubine pulled her mother in close.
Madam Cheng then spoke, "My good daughter is pregnant once again. Slow down."
Madam Cheng held onto her daughter as she spoke, allowing her daughter to sit down before she scanned her surroundings. There were an additional pair of maids dressed in the servant"s garb, along with an older granny servant.
There was a total of seven servants waiting on her daughter. Seeing that she was treated so well, Madam Cheng was content.
"Today, I’ve come to see the little Prince. Why didn’t you take him along with you to see me?" Madam Cheng asked.
Hearing her mother’s words, the Concubine’s expression froze before it turned downcast, "Mother, my little child isn’t feeling too well, and shouldn’t meet anyone since he has a cold. I’ve already called on a doctor to look at him."
"My daughter, this is an embroidery which I’ve made for you to wear. Since the little Prince isn’t in good health, I shan’t see him today in case I worsen his condition." Madam Cheng replied. Since she couldn’t come to the Crown Prince Palace every day, she could only come by every once in awhile. "Remember that these clothes have to be washed several times and dried several more times before you can wear them."
"Mother, you’re the best." The Concubine’s expression was one of warmth as she leaned onto the shoulders of her mother. She hadn’t been sleeping well the past few days and was feeling rather down. Having her mother by her side gave her immense comfort.
At this point, a serving maid came to pour some tea for them. After leaning against her mother’s shoulder for some time, she then spoke to the servants, "Leave us. I wish to speak with Madam Cheng!"
"Yes, Concubine." The young serving maids all left, leaving only the granny maid behind.
"Great, we can have mother and daughter talk." Madam Cheng stroked her daughte
r’s hair as she spoke. At this point, another young serving maid walked in hurriedly which left Madam Cheng feeling surprised. The maid walked over to the Concubine and whispered several words into her ears.
The Concubine’s face fell as she heard the maid tell her, "Concubine, the doctor has already arrived and has diagnosed the little Prince’s condition."
This serving maid was dressed in green and red garbs and looked very neat. It must be that she was of a higher rank than most other maids. When she spoke, her voice trembled as if in discomfort and unease.
The Imperial Concubine’s expression turned as she stood up, "Mother, I am going to see my child now and see what the doctor has to say. Come again tomorrow, and we can speak further."
"Granny Cheng, escort my mother to the oxcart. I am going to see the little Prince."
"Yes, Concubine." The granny acknowledged.
When Madam Cheng saw such a situation, her eyes and mouth were opened wide as her face turned pale. Could something have happened to her grandson?
In the olden days, the infant mortality rate was extremely high. Out of ten children, at least four or five would die in their childhood.
At this point, she didn’t wish to speculate as to what condition her grandson might have, and thus followed the granny out. The entire chamber was now empty. After several moments, she left the chamber, where she saw someone scribble down the names of everyone who entered and left it.
Recuperation Room
Several guards stood before the entrance and guarded it alertly. At this point, the Imperial Concubine and several other serving maids walked over.
All the serving maids were refused entry except one serving maid along with the Imperial Concubine.
Before long, the maid and Imperial Concubine were brought to Doctor Sun. The Imperial Concubine’s eyes were bloodshot from crying the night before. Doctor Sun was about forty years old with an extremely high and shrill voice, "Concubine, you don’t have to worry. I’ve already checked his condition. The little prince just has a poor appet.i.te and an occasional cough. His pulse is normal, nothing is wrong with him."
"If that’s the case, that’s good..." The Concubine spoke, "Have ten taels of silver."
When she returned to her own chambers, she sat by the table and had a frown on her face. A serving maid then brought some tea over for her. The Concubine looked extremely distracted as she picked up the cup to take sip, but in her moment of distraction, knocked the cup over.
The teacup shattered into fragments and tea splashed all over. The serving maid was startled by the sound but hurriedly fell to her knees to check if the Concubine had been scalded by the boiling water. She started screaming in fear, "Please pardon me, Concubine. Please pardon me."
"You even manage to burn me while serving tea, such a small thing and you can’t get it done right." The Concubine raged out in anger before she shouted, "Drag her down for punishment."
A pair of guards standing by the door hurriedly walked over to the serving maid and dragged her out.
"Have mercy Concubine, spare my life." The young serving maid was terrified. The Concubine hasn’t even mentioned how many strokes she shall receive, which usually meant to beat her until she was dead. At this point she kowtowed until the skin on her forehead split, and blood oozed out from the wound.
"Concubine." The old granny whispered, "Concubine, the little Prince isn’t well. It’s not worth it to kill a serving maid over something like this. Death brings calamity to a household."
Hearing these words, the concubine then reconsidered before she came around. She was extremely tired but managed to instruct, "Take her out and give her five strokes as a warning to everyone else."
"Thank you Concubine, thank you Concubine." The serving maid continued to kowtow.
Seeing such a scene unfold, the rest of the serving maids were astonished, clearly afraid of making the Concubine angry, and risk losing their lives.
The Concubine rested her head within her hands, as her face was still pale. The granny beside her looked at her, and was about to speak, but decided against it. After sometime, the Concubine seemed to regain her senses as she looked up and spoke to the serving maid on the floor, "Go back!"
As soon as the guards and serving maid left the chambers, someone outside the door focused before writing down the records of the people who left the room.
At this point, the sun had just set and Madam Cheng alighted from the oxcart, and was received by several serving maids. When she walked into the palace, she saw that her daughter was extremely thin and haggard. She spoke to her daughter before hurriedly leaving once again.
Indeed, the Imperial Concubine looked rather haggard and was stumped by her mother’s reaction. After exchanging several words, Madam Cheng had turned pale and hurriedly left.
Madam Cheng arrived at an alley and walked into an old house.
After sometime, a middle-aged man turned by the corner and stayed outside. At this point the weather was freezing. He looked around, but didn’t enter. Instead, he walked into a restaurant nearby. This restaurant wasn’t very big, there were several tables laid out. Several customers were having their meals and as they chatted.
Seeing that someone came in, a lady welcomed him enthusiastically, "Guest, what would you like to order?"
"Get me a jug of wine, and bring it to that table!" The middle-aged man pointed to a table by the corner and spoke, "Also bring me some dishes."
"Mapo tofu and chili chicken. What about some minced lamb?"
Seeing that he agreed, the woman hurriedly called for a waiter to get busy. Seeing that the waiter who replied her was her own son, she didn’t have to speak further.
This middle-aged man drank a sip before asking, "Are there any good doctors around here, I’m looking for a doctor."
The lady who took his orders spoke, "Are you looking for Doctor Yi? That’s a very reputable doctor, who’s kind hearted and capable."
"A capable doctor? Has his family been doctors for generations and pa.s.sed the skills down to him as well?" The middle-aged man asked.
"No, he wasn’t from a family of doctors, but he’s really extremely effective. My second son was ill once, and I took him to several doctors, who failed to treat him. When I brought my son to this doctor, all it took was some prescriptions and he was well again!"
The middle-aged man was glad when he heard this. He took out a tael of silver, "Don’t get busy now lady boss. My nephew back home is feeling rather unwell. After seeing several doctors, he’s still not getting better. Hence, I’m here to find an effective doctor. When it comes to getting the right doctor, a person must be very careful. The most important thing is whether this doctor is learned and experienced. The worst thing that can happen is to be treated by a quack doctor, for when a life is lost, n.o.body will be able to bear the consequences!"
"Tell me the truth, and don’t exaggerate the facts. This silver is for you."
"Thank you. Bless you with many healthy offspring!" The lady boss was extremely glad as she received the silver, "This doctor is extremely capable. He truly is. We’ve been neighbors for decades!"
"In actual fact, this person wasn’t a doctor all his life. When he was younger, he was severely ill, and was saved by a doctor in his village. Since then, he’s decided to learn the ways of treating patients."
"He’s extremely driven to learn. After just a few years, he completely mastered the art of healing the sick, and even made a name for himself. Just like that, he learnt several decades worth of healing knowledge."
"He’s only 25 years old, and yet he’s already seeing patients. Although it sounds strange to think about such a young doctor, he’s saved at least a hundred lives over these few years."
"Everyone who lives around this area has heard of his famous reputation."
"What is he specialized in then?" The middle-aged man asked.
"He specializes in treating kids, especially when it comes to treating the pox. I don’t dare to say that he’s good with every illness, but there at least seven or eight which he is high proficient." The lady boss slapped her leg and spoke.
The middle-aged man stopped speaking as he ate his dishes and watched the oxcart outside. After he was almost done, he saw a group of people walk out.
The person leading the group was Madam Cheng, who didn’t look too well. Someone was holding a box of medication behind. He then pointed at the man and asked, "Isn’t that the doctor?"
"Yes, that’s Doctor Yi. I’ve seen him for decades, just by looking at his back I can be sure."
The middle-aged man stood up and walked over. However, the oxcart with Madam Cheng and the doctor wasn’t going in the direction of the Crown Prince’s Palace. Instead, it turned the opposite direction. His heart sank before he called for an oxcart to follow them.
It snowed once again, at this point, as the oxcart cruised ahead. There weren’t many people on the roads, and it wasn’t hard to tail the oxcart in front. The hoofs of the oxen in the snow could be heard. Before long, they arrived at a cl.u.s.ter of houses. The middle-aged man then exclaimed, "Indeed you’re going back to your house."
After waiting for some time, they saw another oxcart without any markings leave. The middle-aged man then instructed, "Follow that oxcart!"
This time, the oxcart returned towards the Crown Prince mansion, but turned into a side door instead. As soon as the oxcart approached, the side door swung open but n.o.body could be seen inside.
"Hm, you tried to take a detour and use a divergence to trick me, but did you think it would work?"
"The Crown Prince Mansion has many rules. Even entering would require a person’s particulars to be recorded. How can the door open just like this?" The middle-aged man sn.i.g.g.e.red coldly as he considered his thoughts. After waiting for some time, he realized that n.o.body was coming, before he turned to leave and disappeared into the snow…