Chapter 2367 Ice and Fire
Manbao took the money and followed the Su family's steward to the Duke of Pi's mansion to give Su Jian another acupuncture session. After checking his pulse, she left him a prescription, the same one she had written with Doctor Ding at the horse farm. She said, "It's for clearing the bowels and relieving heat. This prescription is currently the most suitable for his symptoms, so take it first."
Manbao calculated the time since his illness began and nodded, "I see he's not in as much pain as before, so he should be getting better. Continue with the medication and acupuncture, but he should eat a light diet for the next few days, eat less meat and fish, and avoid alcohol."
The wife of the Duke of Pi quickly agreed and personally escorted Manbao to the courtyard. She asked, "Doctor Zhou, I heard that you gave my son some medical advice at the horse farm."
Manbao said embarrassedly, "Please forgive me, Madam. I just couldn't help but say a few more words because I saw the young master drinking without restraint."
She said, "Young Master has been seriously injured. He looks like an ordinary person, but his internal organs are actually weaker than those of ordinary people, so you must be more careful. Eat less meat. If you do eat, it should be steamed or boiled. Avoid roasted or grilled foods, not to mention alcohol."
Man Bao said, "It's not good for most people to drink too much, let alone the young master who has suffered such an injury."
Lady Pi immediately thought of the Crown Prince. Doesn’t the Crown Prince also have to quit drinking when he is treating infertility?
She suddenly became ruthless and said to Manbao, "Don't worry, Doctor Zhou. I will keep a close eye on him from now on."
Su Jian's illness is not serious, but it is not small either. It sounds like just abdominal pain, but it can be fatal in an emergency.
So when Doctor Tan returned to the palace, he recorded Su Jian's pulse condition and filed it in the files, and also reported it to Dean Xiao.
The emperor caught a cold and summoned Xiao Yuanzheng to see a doctor. Xiao Yuanzheng informed the emperor of this and stated that the Su family had privately invited Zhou Man to see the doctor.
The emperor had a good relationship with the Duke of Pi, so he was quite concerned about Su Jian's health. So he said, "Since Zhou Man is more proficient in this disease, let her take over Su Jian's illness."
This is a shift change for Zhou Man to go out for medical consultations.
Xiao Yuanzheng smiled and replied yes.
The emperor was concerned about Su Jian's health, but he was even more concerned about the loyal ministers who assisted the crown prince. So after the reunion dinner, the emperor called the crown prince aside and said, "Su Jian is not fit for important tasks. Even if you grant grace to the crown princess's family, don't send him on important matters."
Prince: ...We were enjoying our meal, why were we talking about his brother-in-law?
The emperor raised his eyes and glanced at the prince. "Why, you can't bear to let go?"
The prince asked, "What did Su Jian do to make father angry?"
"No, it's not me who's angry, it's the Duke of Pi and his wife," the emperor said coldly. "Su Jian can't even stop drinking, so he's obviously not a man of great self-control. I think he's useless besides being obedient. So you can use him for small matters, but not for big ones."
Prince: "Isn't it good to be obedient?"
The emperor glanced at him and said, "As a king, you need good and capable ministers, not obedient and mediocre ones. Of course, there's nothing wrong with keeping one or two of them around. It makes you feel comfortable and shows your loyalty. But if you use them too much, you'll inevitably take up the position of other good ministers, which is naturally not good."
"I know that Su Jian is your study partner and you have feelings for him, but we shouldn't let our emotions get in the way of important matters of state. It's time to replace the people around you." The emperor said, "I don't want to interfere with your confidants. You can make the decision on who to use, but Su Jian can't stay with me. Find an opportunity to send him away."
Su Jian's companion was different from the others. For example, Bai Shan and the others were also companions of the prince, but after they entered school, the prince only had five classes in Chongwenguan, one of which was taught individually by Mr. Zhuang. At the beginning, he would find opportunities to take his companions to the martial arts field to play, but later, when his son was born, his position became stable and he basically stopped playing with them.
Su Jian was different. Su Jian had been accompanying the prince in his studies since he was young. Among the five study companions around the prince, two of them did not study with him in the end. They chose to remain neutral when he was in the most difficult time. The remaining three, except Su Jian, were sent away early.
The one who has always been by the prince's side is Su Jian.
With the relationship with the Crown Princess, the relationship between the Crown Prince and Su Jian is even better.
So after hearing the emperor's comments on Su Jian, the prince was very angry. He felt that his father's belittling of his friends and subordinates was the same as belittling himself.
In the end, the prince brought his wife and children back to the East Palace with a gloomy face.
When the empress saw this, she said to the emperor, "You can coax Sanlang into submission with your words, but can't you be a little softer with Dalang?"
The emperor said, "If you want to be an emperor, you have to get used to this kind of anger. I'm still being tactful. If Wei Zhi and the others were to say it, they would be even more ruthless. He can't stand it now. When I'm gone, won't he have to fight with the whole court every day?"
Moreover, the emperor thought he was gentle enough and even let him choose his own replacement. Not only did he not interfere, he didn't even make any suggestions. How tolerant was he?
The Crown Prince returned to the Eastern Palace in anger. The Crown Princess also learned the truth. She was somewhat disappointed by the Emperor's comments about her brother, but she still said to the Crown Prince, "Your Highness, what Father said is not without reason. My brother doesn't even care about such a serious matter as his own life and death. It's so difficult for him to quit drinking. How can he shoulder the heavy responsibility given to him by Your Highness in the future?"
The prince had also given up drinking before and knew how uncomfortable it was, so he said, "Things like quitting drinking should be done slowly. He loves drinking, and it would be very uncomfortable for him to quit suddenly..."
"Your Highness, he's been injured for three years now. Zhou Man told him a long time ago that he shouldn't drink alcohol with this injury. Even if he fully recovers, he should drink less. But look at him, he just collapsed from drinking this time. I've consulted the imperial physician, and he's found that most of this illness stems from an unhealthy diet."
The Crown Princess said, "No matter how difficult it is to quit drinking, His Highness has also quit, hasn't he? Even on major holidays like Chinese New Year, His Highness only dabbled in it. Why can't he quit?"
The prince opened his mouth and asked after a while, "Are you willing to give it up?"
The Crown Princess said, "I'm reluctant, but I'll eat as much as I can from the biggest bowl. Third brother doesn't have enough ability, and even if he's in the position, he won't be able to do it well. It would be bad if he ended up neglecting his duties and getting into trouble."
The prince fell into deep thought.
The Crown Princess took the opportunity to say, "Your Highness, if you can find a good place for Third Brother, you'll be fulfilling your duty as ruler and subject. It would be a good idea to send him out. Perhaps a few years of experience out there will help him improve."
This was just the Crown Princess's extravagant hope. Both she and the Crown Prince knew that Su Jian was already old and his temperament could not be changed, but as long as he was more sensible after he got out, the Duke of Pi and his wife would be satisfied.
The prince rapped his hands on the table and pondered, "But who can take over his job at Chongwenguan?"
The Crown Princess lowered her eyes and thought for a moment before saying, "Your Highness, what do you think of Bai Shan?"
See you at 6pm
(End of this chapter)
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