To a blind person who had endured years of darkness, the hope of recovering their sight possessed a fatal, irresistible attraction.
Longzhou also noticed that the Prince’s breathing had grown more rapid, his chest rising and falling uncontrollably, revealing a rare display of agitation.
By this point, he had already perceived the situation; at that instant, he was perhaps even more excited than the Prince of Jing. “Your Highness, y-you can see something?”
Ji Shuo nodded.
At this, the ones who grew even more excited were the imperial physicians, who, having just witnessed a medical miracle, swarmed forward one after another, asking in astonished wonder whether the Prince could truly see now.
One of them, emboldened, reached out and waved his hand before Ji Shuo’s eyes.
Afterimages flickered across his vision continuously, and Ji Shuo frowned, pressing the back of his head. “Take your hand away.”
Just as the physician was about to look up and laugh aloud that His Highness could indeed see, Ji Shuo poured a basin of cold water over him: “When this Prince was blind, I could also judge positions by sound. Besides, the force of your palm-wind already brushed against my face.”
The smile on the physician’s stiffness froze.
Ji Shuo had recognized the voice of the Chief Physician just moments before. The old man’s breathing was different from ordinary people; his breath-control and inner cultivation were extremely profound, and he was also the most unflappable person present. At that moment, he should be standing in the corner.
Turning his face in that direction, he asked: “My light perception has been deteriorating over these past two years, to the point where I could no longer distinguish day from night. After being ambushed, light suddenly fell back into my pupils once more, and I could even faintly outline the shape of flames, even though it was merely a fleeting flash. Chief Physician, is there still hope for my eyes to recover their sight? You may speak plainly; this Prince can bear the truth.”
Having practiced medicine for many years, the Chief Physician was well-traveled, deeply experienced, and the author of numerous medical volumes. Instead of swarming forward blindly like the other physicians to treat the Prince of Jing as a living specimen for observation, he remained seated far away on a sandalwood stool.
When the Prince of Jing had fainted just moments earlier, it was also his skillful acupuncture that allowed Ji Shuo to wake up so swiftly.
“Regarding His Highness’s eyes, this old man has stated previously that there is indeed hope of recovery. I once heard of a case where a patient who had lost his sight accidentally fell from the eaves of a house while working, and recovered his sight due to a violent collision.”
Ji Shuo took a deep breath, lowering his voice: “Why did you not mention this in the past?”
The Chief Physician sighed with aggrieved helplessness: “Such a method is supremely perilous—one might call it walking a tightrope over an abyss, where the slightest misstep costs a life. Moreover, that case of recovery was merely hearsay;臣 (this subject) did not experience it firsthand, and dared not wager with Your Highness’s life. Given Your Highness’s craving for restored sight back then, once this old minister spoke of it, Your Highness would surely have attempted it.”
Losing one’s eyes was naturally distressing, but it wasn’t yet a state worse than death. A wretched life was better than a clean death; if he had gone about slamming his head against the ground in pursuit of recovery and injured himself severely, the old man would have been guilty of a crime for which ten thousand deaths could not atone.
In short, this old fellow possessed quite a bit of cunning. Deciding not to settle accounts with him for the moment, Ji Shuo frowned and said: “My eyes could briefly glimpse light just moments ago, yet now they are dark again.”
At this, both Longzhou and Li Mao felt their hearts leap into their throats, looking toward the Chief Physician in a panic, hoping he could give a reassuring reply—ideally that His Highness’s sight would be restored very soon.
Living up to his status as the head of the Imperial Medical Academy, the Chief Physician indeed possessed genuine skill. Stroking his beard, he replied: “Since Your Highness was able to briefly regain your vision, it means the clotted blood blocking Your Highness’s channels has already begun to disperse. This old minister will administer acupuncture for Your Highness later and supplement it with medicinal treatments; that should prove beneficial. Perhaps it won’t be long before Your Highness reclaims the light.”
The words reclaiming the light landed upon Ji Shuo’s brows and eyelashes, causing them to tremble slightly.
It had been so long since anyone told him he could still reclaim the light.
For more than two years, the two characters for light had gradually become an unmentionable taboo in front of Ji Shuo, and everyone consciously avoided the term around him.
Until today.
A person who had long since ceased to harbor hope was like someone drowning who suddenly grasped the sole floating log of survival. Ji Shuo felt a wave of stunned realization: he actually still possessed the possibility of recovering his sight!
He was practically too impatient to wait even a single moment: “Then please administer the acupuncture!”
He longed to see the sun once more, to behold the clouds, mist, mountains, and rivers, the blossoming flora and running fauna between heaven and earth, to gaze upon the manor where he had lived for several years, to see his Consort Mother, and to finally witness the true countenance of the Princess Consort—a face he had never truly laid eyes upon.
His entire body and bones were being scoured and scorched by a torrent of blazing, molten magma.
His decaying, sealed heart felt like withered bones growing flesh, dead wood sprouting branches, and a dry well filling with spring water, surging outward uncontrollably.
The Chief Physician consented, stating they would perform the acupuncture after His Highness had rested and regained his strength.
However, he also made one point clear beforehand: although the Prince of Jing’s eyes still held the possibility of recovery, and the current hope of regaining sight appeared very high, having been blind for so long meant some of the blockages might prove stubbornly difficult to clear. Therefore, the process of recovery could be brief or it might consume a long time, and he hoped His Highness would prepare himself mentally ahead of time.
Ji Shuo understood this in his heart. Even if complete recovery proved impossible this time, he would at least be able to restore a certain degree of light perception.
The Emperor soon heard the news that the Prince of Jing might recover his sight. Overjoyed, he unceremoniously kept his younger brother behind in the Palace of Wenhua, dispatching the finest imperial physicians to accompany Hanguang Hall and tend to the Prince.
Before his external injuries healed completely, it was best he remained within the palace to prevent the assassins from leaving behind any contingency plans.
That evening, the Emperor held a private conversation with the Prince of Jing, asking whether His Highness had any inkling of the assassins’ origins. Ji Shuo frowned and said: “Weaving and manufacturing are lucrative postings. When Your Majesty established the female academy, you touched the foundations of certain people; when I excised the corrupt flesh, I touched the foundations of others yet. Previously, the woman of the imperial merchant Xu clan from Yangzhou was punished for bribing examiners and sentenced to exile, cutting off the path for latecomers. These people who came seeking death are likely seeking revenge. But killing me serves no purpose other than venting anger; as long as Your Majesty’s determination to foster the female academy remains unshaken, followers will arrive like carp crossing a river. It is the prevailing trend—how can a mantis stop a chariot with its arms?”
The Emperor drew a deep breath, smiling as he said: “Naturally, I am resolute regarding the female academy; otherwise, I would not have appointed you to oversee it. Heqiu’s abilities are clear to Me. If you can recover your sight this time, I will grant you permission to deeply cultivate the literary world and serve as the teacher of all female scholars under heaven. How does that sound?”
The reigning sovereign’s intentions were transparently obvious, and he harbored no intention of concealing them from him.
Although they were brothers by blood, sovereign and subject now occupied distinct positions. If Ji Shuo wielded battle-axes and held military authority as a formidable general, that would arouse excessive apprehension in the Son of Heaven. It was far better for him to quietly and peacefully serve as the master teacher of the female academy—gaining both fame and fortune, what could possibly be wrong with that?
Ji Shuo ground his upper lip against his lower one, maintaining a calm countenance.
“This younger brother expresses his gratitude for Your Majesty’s grace.”
Taking advantage of the fact that his younger brother still could not see, the Emperor could not resist observing him closely once more. Seeing that he indeed showed no signs of dissatisfaction, he himself felt somewhat reassured.
He had feared this younger brother might overthink things.
The sixth brother had been outstanding since childhood; if not for the principle of primogeniture and strict order of succession, who the imperial throne might have fallen to would truly be hard to say. The former Emperor had also doted on the sixth brother immensely back then, bestowing boundless favor upon his mother, allowing her to command the utmost prominence among the six palaces.
Aside from fondness, the reigning sovereign harbored an even greater measure of apprehension toward this younger brother of his, who could fight and conquer well, having successively pacified the Liaodong and Liaoxi rebellions. Even if spoken of openly, he could bare this sentiment to the sixth brother without the slightest burden, believing that if they exchanged places, the sixth brother would hold the exact same mindset toward him. Affection and human ethics within the imperial family could never be compared to those of ordinary commoner households.
As long as the sixth brother remained obedient, understood the larger picture, and comprehended matters of sentiment and tact, he would peacefully stay within the circle drawn for him, safely acting as his uncontentious Prince of Jing without causing his imperial brother difficulties.
Raising his hand, the Emperor patted the shoulder of the sixth brother—whose expression was somewhat pale from sitting long upon the sickbed: “That is for the best. Since you have been injured, peaceably rest and recuperate here in My Hanguang Hall. As for the Prince’s Manor, the Consort Dowager has already made inquiries, and I helped block it for you. You need not worry; return to the Prince’s Manor only after you have fully restored your physical constitution.”
Ji Shuo nodded, expressing his gratitude once more.
Reaching this point in the conversation, the Emperor recalled that his younger brother was currently newly wed. To have him separated from his Princess Consort like this, leaving a youthful and vibrant consort to wait in empty solitude, was somewhat improper. He thus inquired tactfully whether the Princess Consort needed to be kept in the dark about his condition.
Ji Shuo replied: “She is offering prayers at the temple; she is not in the manor.”
The Emperor was immensely surprised: “The sixth sister-in-law already knows?”
“Before I was injured, she had already gone to the temple, engaging in vegetarian fasting, burning incense, and chanting scriptures,” Ji Shuo paused for a fraction of a second, a light flicker suddenly appearing within his pitch-black pupils, “to pray for blessings for me.”
The Emperor drew out his voice meaningfully, nodding. “Today, the sixth brother has not only turned misfortune into a blessing, but your eyes also hold the hope of recovery. One might call it surviving disaster to meet with auspicious fortune; perhaps this is the merit of your sister-in-law. Seeing that you husband and wife are of one heart and mind, I am also reassured. It’s just that you keep hiding her away—one of these days, bring her to see Me. After bestowing your marriage, I believe I have yet to lay eyes on the sixth sister-in-law.”
The Prince of Jing pressed his lips together in silence, his expression sinking.
When a new bride enters the household, her name is engraved upon the ancestral temple; according to ritual, she ought to enter the palace to pay her respects to the Emperor. Ji Shuo had consistently resisted and obstructed this, driven by his possessive obsession over Shen Lizhuang as one of the primary reasons.
The reigning sovereign, Ji Sheng, had ascended the throne the year before last, and had once summoned Lady Wang—the wife of the imprisoned Imperial Censor of Meizhou—into the palace quarters for a nocturnal talk by candlelight.
Following that night, Lady Wang never emerged from Wenhua Hall again, while within the palace, a Consort Wang suddenly materialized overnight.
To so openly and forcibly seize a subject’s wife without the slightest concealment! One had to wonder whether that Magistrate of Meizhou, who was thrown into prison over a corruption case, had truly embezzled massive sums of money or had simply fallen victim to the framing of someone coveting his wife.
When all the officials left court, they exchanged sideways glances and meaningful looks along the way, yet each kept their lips tightly sealed.
Everyone harbored their own speculations. Simply because the current sovereign could be considered diligent, conscientious, and solicitous of the people in state governance, they suppressed much of their dissatisfaction and refrained from offering excessive commentary on the matter for the time being. However, rumors constantly swirled among the common folk, spreading far and wide. That the reigning Emperor was fond of his subjects’ wives, engaged in forcible abduction, and concealed golden houses was something people dared not discuss openly, yet they dared to tinker and tamper with this romantic anecdote, writing it subtextually into the popular storytelling scripts sung across the Great Qi dynasty.
In short, the reigning sovereign’s penchant for subjects’ wives was ultimately tacitly sealed and agreed upon by everyone.
During festival banquets within the palace—occasions meant to reflect grace upon the inner quarters of the officials’ estates—the terror-stricken civil and military officials had households where female relatives fell ill one after another.
“Ahem, answering Your Majesty: my younger brother’s wife within my household is physically delicate, suffering from accumulated fatigue and chronic illness.”
“Spare me,” the Emperor laughed and scolded him. “I am not yet beastly enough to harbor any improper thoughts toward my sister-in-law. You know full well how deeply devoted I am to your sister-in-law!”
Ji Shuo made no further reply, though the wariness and impatience in his gaze remained unmistakable.
The Emperor choked back a retort. Just as he wanted to discipline him somewhat, he remembered that this younger brother of his was already blind and pitiful enough. The hand he had raised to rap him on the head like in their childhood remained suspended halfway in the air, before he silently and wordlessly put it back down.
Pay proper attention to your recovery; I will come to check on you another day.
With that, the Emperor sighed, braced his knees to stand, and walked out the door.
Resting for a night, Ji Shuo invited the Chief Physician to administer acupuncture for him early the next morning.
The Chief Physician brought along his entire set of professional instruments accumulated over many years, bringing no fewer than a hundred silver needles just for piercing acupuncture points.
The old man selected a medium-thick silver needle, passed it over a flame, and spoke as he heated it: “The initial healing will indeed involve some pain, but since Your Highness comes from a military background, you should be able to endure it. If Your Highness does not recover your vision following the treatment, there is no need to lose heart immediately. Recovering from three years of blindness requires time; this subject will naturally exert all his strength to cure Your Highness’s eye affliction.”
Ji Shuo nodded: “Go ahead and do what you must; it is mere pain.”
Still unable to set his mind at ease, the Chief Physician explained that the pain caused by needles piercing neural pathways was accompanied by tingling numbness and involuntary physical reactions that the human body could not restrain. The Prince of Jing was the God of War who had pacified Liaodong back in the day; even though he had now beaten his sword into a plowshare and recuperated for two years, his strength was still not something an old man like him could match.
For safety’s sake, the Chief Physician summoned the two retainers under the Prince of Jing’s command and issued detailed instructions.
“You must not relax your vigilance for a single second throughout the entire process. If His Highness swings a fist at this old man due to an inability to control his physical reactions, the acupuncture points pierced by the silver needles will be deflected, causing more harm than good.”
Li Mao and Longzhou exchanged glances, locked eyes, and nodded heavily. Uniting their efforts, they pressed down upon Ji Shuo’s shoulders from left and right.
The moment the silver needle pierced down, the veins at Ji Shuo’s temples throbbed violently and abruptly. The tense meridians were jarred by a hair-thin silver needle into excruciating agony—a pain genuinely harder to bear than facing blades and halberds.
Ji Shuo’s palms clenched tight, raising deep, bulging veins. Due to his excessive force, even the pure-silver-as-moon rings upon his knuckles trembled.
As the silver needle drove deeper into the acupuncture point, the intense, throbbing pain abruptly transformed into an even more intense tingling numbness, causing his body to lift upward uncontrollably.
Fortunately, Li Mao and Longzhou seized the exact timing to press downward with all their might, forcing the Prince’s body back against the soft chair.
Ji Shuo’s forward momentum originated from his body’s uncontrollable natural reaction rather than a deliberate struggle against the two men. Subconsciously, he also attempted to restrain his own posture, allowing Li Mao and Longzhou to succeed with extreme ease.
By the time this single needle was driven home, a fine layer of sweat had already beaded across the Chief Physician’s forehead, rolling down his temples in thick drops.
His graying beard trembled, and the flesh of his lips concealed beneath the beard twitched intermittently.
“Is there any change in His Highness’s body?”
“There is.”
This statement was too inspiring. Overjoyed, Li Mao looked toward Longzhou, whose face was likewise beaming with delight.
With Ji Shuo’s shoulders and arms pinned down so that he could move neither of them, he did not pull his hands away: “There is some light perception at the base of my eyes.”
Li Mao said with pleasant surprise: “This must be the precursor to recovery!”
Longzhou shared this thought.
Yet after a few more needles were administered, this apparent improvement seemed to have exhausted its momentum right from the first needle, showing no further signs of clinical progression.
Thus, the hearts that had been hoisted high dropped back down like deflated balls. Out of consideration for the patient, however, no one voiced their disappointment; instead, they all stepped forward to comfort the Prince of Jing.
After all, His Highness’s injury had occurred nearly three years ago, making the duration of the illness prolonged. Wanting recovery to materialize overnight was indeed difficult.
Yet the following several days proved to be identical without exception. No matter how painstakingly the Chief Physician studied the acupuncture points and applied his precise technique, the Prince’s eye affliction showed not the slightest trace of further improvement.
Meanwhile, Ji Shuo’s external physical injuries were recovering at a rapid pace. Over these past few days, the Prince of Jing’s Manor sent several more urging messages, with the Consort Dowager advising him not to linger indefinitely within the imperial court and to return to the manor at the earliest opportunity.
Furthermore, his Princess Consort, Jiaojiaz, was due to return from the Buddhist temple.
Not a trace of frustration over his intractable eye affliction could be discerned on Ji Shuo’s face. Twirling the ring on his thumb, he said to the Chief Physician who had painstakingly administered acupuncture for him over such a long period: “Thank you, Elder, for your needlework. My injuries can now be concealed; tomorrow, I shall set off to return to the Prince of Jing’s Manor.”
Astonished, the Chief Physician urged him to stay, stating that opportunities remained and begging His Highness never to surrender to despair.
“Your Highness, ‘he who travels a hundred miles counts ninety as the half-way point’; perhaps tomorrow, perhaps the day after…”
“Perhaps it will never recover its sight,” Ji Shuo interrupted him. “It is no fault of yours. Over these past days, though my eyes have not regained their sight, they have recovered a certain degree of light perception. Elder, your marvelous hands saved me, and this Prince keeps it engraved in my heart; there will be generous rewards in the future. However, the female members of my household, worried endlessly because I spent a few days recovering from injuries within the imperial palace, make it impossible for me to bear their continued anxiety. If there should be an opportunity in the future, I shall come once more to invite Elder to administer acupuncture for me.”
The Prince of Jing’s words could actually be considered polite formulas, but the Chief Physician heard the underlying message: the Prince had grown somewhat weary and disheartened regarding the acupuncture and no longer wished to proceed with it.
After all, flesh and blood were not cast of iron; having to endure this torment day after day, repeating it thrice over without seeing results, losing heart was inevitable.
“Very well, since His Highness has spoken thus, this old minister dares not be presumptuous.” The Chief Physician sighed.
Aside from shame over failing to cure the patient, this sigh also held a measure of lingering regret that an opportunity to enter medical history had slipped completely away.
The miracle occurred on the day following the Prince of Jing’s departure.
Ji Shuo had always believed that if the elder’s treatment of his eyes were to take effect, it would happen during the acupuncture process, where he would feel his vision suddenly return with dazzling brilliance and clarity. Yet because such divine favor never arrived, he had gradually ceased anticipating it.
Until this very morning, waking from his slumber, his slightly drowsy phoenix eyes welcomed a brilliant flood of radiance. He saw clearly the embroidered dragon patterns traced upon the gold gauze bed-curtains of his sleeping couch.
Ji Shuo’s body remained in the semi-stiff state of early morning awakening, failing to give an immediate reaction.
He did not blink either.
He gazed straight toward the golden dragon coiled amidst auspicious cloud clusters upon that gauze curtain; the lifelike dragon patterns proudly swam across the swaying golden waves, appearing almost ready to leap forth.
The longer he looked, the clearer it became—the texture of the dragon’s body, the piercing eyes on its dragon head, and its fluttering white whiskers were all distinctly visible.
He had completely recovered his sight.
Confirming that his sight had returned, Ji Shuo sat up. As daylight parted the shadows across his gaze, he squinted slightly against the stimulation of the strong light, turning his vision toward everything within the sleeping hall. Every single luxurious yet archaic furnishing etched clear, well-defined outlines upon the base of his eyes.
The Prince of Jing had regained his sight. The first to learn of it were Li Mao and Longzhou, both of whom were wild with joy; had they not been inside the palace, they would have turned cartwheels on the spot.
Following them came the imperial physicians who came to check on the Prince of Jing, each staring with eyes as wide as copper bells, struck completely dumb in the face of a medical miracle rarely witnessed in this human world.
Finally came Emperor Ji Sheng, who was monitoring the movements of Hanguang Hall. Unfortunately, being entangled with a favorite consort, he was unable to break away immediately. Just as the meal-serving hour arrived, the Emperor waved his hand to instruct the imperial kitchens to prepare two extra bowls of rice, eating until the bottom of his bowl shone like a mirror.
As for Ji Shuo, alongside the joy of recovering his sight and the full-hearted delight of knowing his mother would undoubtedly rejoice upon hearing this wonderful news, there remained one final component—a lingering, unspoken anticipation.
Today, apart from being the day he returned to his manor, was also the day she returned from the Buddhist temple.