Chapter 1: Visiting the Mother

Early in the morning, before daybreak outside, in the grey sky two horse-drawn carriages could be vaguely seen hurrying into East Street Hutong.

Anyone with a discerning eye could tell at a glance that these two carriages were not ordinary. The wheels were made of red sandalwood, and one of them could buy a large house in the county. However, at this hour, no one was awake yet. Only the guarding animals were awakened by the sound of the wheels and barked wildly across the courtyard wall.

The person in the car was probably annoyed by the noise of the dog, and asked in a hoarse voice: "What time is it?"

"It's just past three quarters past the hour of the Chou, sir, we're home!" The coachman stopped the carriage in front of the gate of a large courtyard. Two paper lanterns were hung high on the vermilion gate, illuminating the two large characters "Song's House" written in iron pen and gold hooks on the plaque outside the door.

"The master is back, the master is back!" The gatekeeper ran to report as soon as he saw the carriage.

Soon four or five well-dressed men came out, asked the servant to bring the stirrups, helped the man in the cart get off, and then went to the back to pick up his family. The group of people gathered and entered the yard.

The house was brightly lit, and the old lady of the Song family sat at the top, straining her neck to look outside again and again. The second daughter-in-law Qin, who was standing next to her, covered her mouth and yawned secretly, wiping away the tears from the corners of her eyes, feeling a little dissatisfied.

It’s not like my uncle’s family hasn’t come back before, but why did they make such a big fuss this time? The whole family had to stay up late to welcome them. If you didn’t know, you would think that the current saint was on a secret visit.

The third daughter-in-law, Jiang, had her eyes wide open and was not sleepy at all. It turned out that she was secretly holding the mint sachet given by her son in her hand to refresh herself, so she was not sleepy.

Yesterday afternoon, Jiang Rong heard from her husband that her uncle and his family were coming back to visit, and asked her to make preparations in advance. She was puzzled as to why they suddenly came back from Beijing during the New Year holidays.

It’s no wonder that the two of them are weird. Even Old Mrs. Song doesn’t know what her eldest son is up to.

The Song family is a medical family. There are three sons in this generation. The eldest son, Song Lin, is thirty-eight years old this year and serves as the head of the Imperial Medical Academy in Shangjing. On weekdays, he is responsible for the pulse cases of the emperor, empress and concubines. He is not allowed to leave Beijing unless it is an important matter. So it is really surprising that he suddenly came back to visit his family this time.

The maid changed the water in the teapot again, and suddenly there was a noisy sound of footsteps outside the door.

Old Mrs. Song immediately stood up with the help of a chair, and Qin and Jiang followed behind to support her.

Soon, the eldest, second, and third uncles of the Song family, along with their families, arrived.

"Mom, I'm back."

Old Mrs. Song grabbed her eldest son's hand and looked him up and down, her eyes full of love and affection. "You must have been tired on the journey. I have already asked people to prepare hot water and food. Go wash up first, eat and then have a sleep."

"No hurry, mother, please sit down first." Song Lin helped the old lady back to the top seat, and the servant next to them swiftly moved a stool for Grandpa Song and placed it next to him, and the group sat down one after another.

Song Lin did not come back alone this time, but with his wife and children. His wife Yang was about the same age as him, and they had two daughters and one son. The daughters had grown up and married, but the youngest son Song Yumin was only thirteen years old this year, still a half-grown child.

"Yumin, come here quickly and let grandma see if you have grown taller." The old lady smiled and waved to the little fat boy.

Song Yumin walked up to her in small steps and called out softly, "Grandma."

Old Mrs. Song happily touched the child's round face and said, "He has grown a lot. He is almost as tall as your brother Yuzhu."

When Jiang heard the old lady mention her son, she quickly said, "He's about the same height. When Yuzhu wakes up, I'll let him play with you."

Song Yumin nodded silently, then ran back to his mother.

Qin covered her mouth with a handkerchief and laughed secretly. How could such a handsome master give birth to such an unpresentable son who couldn't even speak when meeting people? I really don't know how he was brought up.

Old Madam Song looked at her eldest son and asked, "Lin'er, what's the matter with you coming back from Beijing so suddenly?"

When Song Lin mentioned this, his expression immediately became serious. He first waved his hand to dismiss all the servants and maids, and then asked his third brother Song Bai to close the door tightly.

Everyone became nervous when they saw his look, and Song Lin spoke only after all the outsiders were cleared out.

"Saint...I'm afraid it won't work."

"Ah?!" There was a sudden roar like thunder, and everyone gasped almost at the same time.

The second brother Song Qiao quickly asked: "Is he suffering from some disease?"

The current emperor is only in his early forties this year, how could he suddenly become ill?

Song Lin shook his head with an unpleasant expression: "If the disease can still be cured, the saint's body has been hollowed out."

Everyone in the room fell silent instantly. It was a well-known fact that the emperor loved beauties. He had been extremely licentious over the years and put almost all his energy on women, which led to his body becoming hollow at an early age.

"Since there is no one in the room, I will tell you the truth. Now the emperor can no longer get out of bed, and he is hanging on by a mouthful of old ginseng. I think he will only live for four or five days. By then, I am afraid that I...will not be able to save myself either."

The Chief Imperial Physician is the highest official position among medical officers. Seeing the emperor every day is a height that many medical officers cannot reach in their lifetime.

But benefits are often mixed with disadvantages. Before the death of saints in every dynasty, they were almost always sent off by the imperial physician Yuan Yuanshou. Many palace secrets were involved. In order to keep the secrets, even if Song Lin was innocent, he still could not escape the fate of being buried with the emperor.

When Mrs. Song heard this, she immediately reacted, holding her son's arm, tears streaming down her face: "How could this be, how could this be..."

Song Lin also shed tears and held Old Lady Song's hand. "I thought that since the Saint was young, it wouldn't matter if he was promoted to the head of the Imperial Medical Academy. I didn't expect that it would become my death warrant. Now there is no other way. I can only send Xianglan and Yumin back and entrust them to my mother and two brothers to help take care of them."

Song Qiao and Song Bai hurriedly said, "What are you talking about, brother? We are a family, we will definitely take good care of sister-in-law and Yumin!"

Song Bai said again: "Brother, why don't you just go back? Wouldn't it be better for you to stay at home with your sister-in-law and Yumin and escape the disaster?"

Song Lin smiled bitterly and shook his head: "How can it be so easy? I came back secretly this time because of the favor of Commander Yang Tianguang. I have to go back immediately. If I don't go back, it will hurt more than one or two people. Our entire Song family will be buried with me."

After hearing this, Qin and Jiang finally understood that their uncle was going to die, and that he had come back to take care of his son...

When Jiang looked at Song Yumin, she thought of her own son and her heart was filled with love. It was a pity that the child was going to be without a father at such a young age.

Qin didn't think so much. She was just worried that if her uncle was gone, would she still be able to use his connections in the capital in the future? Her husband had just established a connection with a merchant from Goguryeo and was preparing to import another batch of Goryeo ginseng before the New Year. Now that her uncle was gone, she didn't know how much money she would have to pay for the checkpoints along the way. It hurt to think about it.

After all, she had seen many storms and waves. After crying, Old Lady Song calmed down and asked, "Does anyone else know about the emperor's health?"

"The Queen and the Prime Minister both know about it."

"Where are the other princes?"

"They don't know yet." Some princes had approached Song Lin privately to find out the news, but he evaded them all. Having practiced medicine in the palace for so many years, he knew better than anyone what to say and what not to say.

Song Lin waved his hand and asked his wife to hand over a box. "This is the silver I have saved over the years. I exchanged it for silver notes of 100 taels, a total of 130,000 taels. Now I give it to mother to use. Just provide them with food and shelter for the orphan and widow."

When Qin heard that this word actually contained so much silver, she cried out in surprise.

Everyone looked at her. Qin was so embarrassed that her face turned red and her neck became thick. She covered her face with a handkerchief and dared not look up.

Old Lady Song snorted coldly and said, "Don't worry, Lin'er. I will keep this money safe for you. I will buy land and shops for Yumin in the future and protect them and their mother for the rest of their lives."

"Then I feel relieved." He knew that his wife was weak and his son was young and introverted. Putting such a large sum of money in their care would be like a child carrying gold in a busy city. It would probably be a disaster rather than a blessing.

"I have already made arrangements for going to Beijing. After I leave..." Song Lin choked up, causing Old Lady Song to cry again.

"After I leave, someone will secretly send my body back. Please bury me next to my father, my second and third brothers."

Song Qiao and Song Bai finally couldn't hold back their tears. The three brothers hugged each other and cried like they were children.

Jiang and Qin also took out their handkerchiefs to wipe their tears. How could this happen out of the blue?

Yang Xianglan had cried till her tears dried up, and she just hugged her son blankly with a haggard face. She could do nothing and could not help, and could only watch her husband die.

After Song Lin gave his last words, he knelt down and kowtowed three times to the old lady.

"Mom, please take care of yourself. The unfilial son Song Lin is gone." After saying that, he stood up and walked out.

Old Mrs. Song beat her chest in pain: "Oh, my son! Oh, my son!" Qin and Jiang hurriedly supported her, fearing that the old lady would faint from excitement.

Song Yuzhu, who lived not far from the front hall, was awakened by the sound of grief and sat up abruptly from the bed.

Song Quan, the servant on duty outside, hurried in with a sheep-horn lamp to serve.

The orange candlelight illuminated the bedroom, revealing the figure on the bed. The boy was no more than fourteen or fifteen years old, not yet fully grown, with translucent white skin. His eyebrows were lightly raised, his eyes were slightly upturned, and under his straight nose was a pair of thin lips.

"What time is it, brother Quan?"

"It's just past the hour of Yin, young master, please sleep a little longer."

Song Yuzhu took the clothes and put them on and said, "I don't want to sleep anymore. Why do I hear crying in the front yard?"

Song Quan helped him tie his clothes: "I heard from Baoning that the master and his family are back." Baoning is a servant working in the old lady's yard, and he has a good relationship with Song Quan.

"Uncle is back?" Song Yuzhu was a little surprised. She didn't expect him to arrive so early.

Song Quan helped him put his clothes in order and said, "He only came back for a quarter of an hour and just left again, leaving behind the Madam and Young Master Yumin."

Song Yuzhu felt that something was not right, so he stood up and walked towards the front yard.

As soon as I reached the flower wall, I heard a cry: "I don't want to stay here, I want to go with Dad!"

(End of this chapter)