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Imperial Physician Huang had always disdained those who used back-door connections, which was why his relationship with Imperial Physician Sun was poor. In any case, he found the man displeasing in every way.
Of course, the palace was rife with schemes and calculations, and he was not a brainless man.
The reason he dared to glare so coldly at Imperial Physician Sun was that he was favored by the Emperor and possessed outstanding medical skills of his own.
Imperial Physician Huang thought for a moment, then continued, "Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager's body did not get this way overnight. According to my diagnosis, it has been like this for about twenty to thirty years."
"The damage to her five viscera and six bowels is extremely severe. She has been sustained by precious medicinal herbs daily, which is why her complexion appears normal and no one could see anything amiss with her health."
"However, this only treats the symptoms, not the root cause. The Empress Dowager is now a spent force. No amount of medicine can cure her. In short, she doesn't have many years…"
At this point, Imperial Physician Huang wisely shut his mouth.
An emperor as intelligent as this one would surely understand his meaning.
Oh, my goodness. Being too good at medicine was a problem.
See?
He had inadvertently diagnosed another major issue, one that could very well cost him his head!
But he wasn't afraid. He never formed cliques and always spoke his mind, which was why he had earned the Emperor's deep trust. He believed the Emperor would protect him.
Hehe! (ˉˉ)
Just as he thought, Emperor Luo instantly understood Imperial Physician Huang's unspoken words.
Shocked, he thought, The Empress Dowager only has a few years left?
What on earth was going on?
Emperor Luo's eyes darkened as he sank into contemplation. After a long while, he turned to look at Nanny Hua, whose eyes were wide with terror and disbelief.
"Nanny Hua, tell Us, was Imperial Physician Sun recommended to the Empress Dowager by the Third Prince?"
He wouldn't believe for a second that Luo Fangjin had nothing to do with this. (ì _ í)
Nanny Hua shook her head vigorously, then slapped herself a few times to snap out of her daze. Only then did she drop to her knees with a thud, her eyes red.
Her voice choked with sobs, she said, "Your Majesty, Imperial Physician Sun was indeed personally recommended by the Third Prince. The Third Prince also said that Imperial Physician Sun was the direct disciple of the former Chief Administrator of the Imperial Medical Academy."
"The Empress Dowager trusted the Third Prince's judgment. For the past ten years, she has only summoned Imperial Physician Sun to take her pulse. She has refused to see any other imperial physicians from the Imperial Medical Academy."
Hearing this, a chill spread through Emperor Luo's deep eyes.
Nearly ten years!
The former Chief Administrator of the Imperial Medical Academy!
Counting the days, it had been exactly ten years since he ascended the throne.
The transition of power back then had been a turbulent time. The Imperial Medical Academy had also experienced an upheaval, during which many people had died or been injured.
The former Chief Administrator of the Imperial Medical Academy had died in that turmoil. Not just him, but almost all the other high-ranking Senior Imperial Physicians had perished, leaving only a few junior imperial physicians.
Since then, the staff of the Imperial Medical Academy had been greatly reduced.
It was only after he ascended the throne that he gradually recruited highly skilled physicians from among the common people. Imperial Physician Huang was one of them.
And now, the Imperial Medical Academy had no Chief Administrator or Senior Imperial Physician, only the rank of Imperial Physician.
Mainly because…
He felt the positions of Chief Administrator and Senior Imperial Physician were too unlucky and belonged to a high-risk group. He didn't dare to promote anyone lightly, fearing they would just die unexpectedly again.
Imperial Physician Huang was the physician he valued most.
Based on his abilities, he was more than qualified for the position of Chief Administrator, but the Emperor had not promoted him. However, his salary and authority were basically on par with that of a Chief Administrator.
Thus, Imperial Physician Huang was now in charge of the Imperial Medical Academy.
Emperor Luo's gaze was profound, his fists clenching so tightly they cracked. "Nanny Hua, recall carefully. Ten years ago, who were the people who took the Empress Dowager's pulse?"
Nanny Hua thought hard, her brows furrowed so tightly they almost tied into a knot.
"Your Majesty, ten years ago, many people took the Empress Dowager's pulse. There was the Chief Administrator at the time, the Senior Imperial Physicians, and the Imperial Physicians. Basically, more than half of the entire Imperial Medical Academy had examined the Empress Dowager."
At this, Nanny Hua's expression changed drastically.
If Imperial Physician Huang's diagnosis was correct, then all those previous imperial physicians had been deceiving the Empress Dowager.
How could they be so audacious!
And how could she have been so blind as to not notice anything was wrong!
Filled with both self-reproach and fury, Nanny Hua looked at Emperor Luo with tears streaming down her face.
"Your Majesty, sob… it's all my fault for being blind and foolish. I failed to take good care of the Empress Dowager, allowing her to be deceived by those with ill intentions, causing her health to deteriorate so severely. I beg Your Majesty to seek justice for the Empress Dowager and severely punish Imperial Physician Sun."
"As for the physicians who examined the Empress Dowager ten years ago, they all died in the turmoil of that year."
"I strongly suspect that someone orchestrated this entire affair against the Empress Dowager. Otherwise, why would all these people, who just so happened to be connected to the Empress Dowager, be conveniently silenced by death?"
"It must be that the person behind this feared that Your Majesty would discover the anomaly and launch a full investigation, so they decided to be ruthless and kill all the physicians who knew the truth."
"That way, aside from the physicians who died back then, only Imperial Physician Sun, who currently treats the Empress Dowager, would know the truth."
"Therefore, I implore Your Majesty to seek justice for the Empress Dowager! You must have Imperial Physician Sun arrested, find out his true motives, and clear the Empress Dowager's name!"
The more Nanny Hua thought about it, the angrier she became.
Oh, Empress Dowager, how could you be so muddled? How could you trust the Third Prince so much?
If he truly had your well-being at heart, he would never have specially recommended an imperial physician with ulterior motives like Sun.
Even a vicious tiger will not eat its cubs, but who would have thought a son could be so ruthless as to deceive his own loving and doting mother? It was simply abominable.
A murderous glint flashed in Emperor Luo's eyes. He immediately commanded the commander of the Imperial Guards, "Commander Wang, send men to surround the Imperial Medical Academy. Don't let even a fly escape. Then, throw Imperial Physician Sun into the Heavenly Prison and interrogate him under torture."
"Yes, Your Majesty," Commander Wang replied respectfully, accepting the order.
Emperor Luo looked at the Empress Dowager, who lay on the bed with her eyes closed and her face pale. Complex emotions colored his gaze, and a pang of heartache showed at the corners of his eyes.
Wait.
Imperial Physician Huang had just said that the Empress Dowager's body had not weakened overnight, but over a period of twenty to thirty years.
Twenty to thirty years!
If he remembered correctly, his Third Imperial Brother was exactly thirty years old this year.
He truly couldn't understand why his mother's health would begin to decline and weaken right around the time his brother was born.
If someone were to say this whole affair had nothing to do with him, not even a ghost would believe it.
But why would he have the imperial physicians conceal the Empress Dowager's condition? Was he afraid she would notice something was wrong with her body? Or did he not want her to live for many more years?
Could it be…
Emperor Luo's pupils suddenly constricted.
Could it be that there was something unusual about Luo Fangjin's birth?
"Nanny Hua, if We recall correctly, Our Third Imperial Brother is exactly thirty years old this year."
Nanny Hua froze. "Your Majesty, the Third Prince is indeed thirty years old."
She even remembered that when the Third Prince turned thirty, the Empress Dowager had specially left the palace to go to his residence to celebrate his birthday.
Wait a minute.
Nanny Hua's eyes widened, and her heart skipped a beat.
The Emperor wouldn't ask about the Third Prince's age for no reason, and the Third Prince's age happened to match the time when the Empress Dowager's health problems began.
Heavens!
What… what on earth was going on?
Seeing Nanny Hua's expression of utter disbelief and shock, Emperor Luo's lips curved into a slight smile.
He knew it. Although the Empress Dowager was muddled, the Nanny Hua by her side was exceptionally intelligent.
There were some things he didn't need to say aloud for Nanny Hua to understand their implications.