Just as Yan Shu expected, starting with the absurd deeds of Zhang Shengkang and his son, and gradually revealing this man's true face, the Empress Dowager was much more receptive. After the Emperor issued the decree to arrest this man, the Empress Dowager's emotions did not fluctuate much.
However, it is said that Zhang Shengkang's apprentice in prison was very angry when he saw his wife being humiliated. After confessing the truth about the substitution of drugs, he also confessed many unknown things about Zhang Shengkang, such as that he used his status as an imperial physician to recruit apprentices and open pharmacies in various parts of the capital, and he also teamed up with drug dealers to raise drug prices and drive away other clinics in an attempt to monopolize the medical industry in the capital; he also sold inferior drugs as good ones in his pharmacy, only cared about charging high drug fees and consultation fees, and did not care about the lives of poor patients, etc.
Because it was a case personally instructed by the emperor, the Ministry of Justice did not dare to neglect it. After receiving these reports, it immediately continued to investigate, and the more it dug, the more it found.
In just a few days, the news of Zhang's family had spread all over the capital. Officials and civilians had all heard about Zhang Shengkang's evil deeds, and the streets were full of discussions.
Yan Shu was not idle either, and took this opportunity to rush to Ci'an Palace to share the biggest news about Zhang Shengkang with the Queen Mother.
At that time, the Queen Mother had just finished acupuncture, but Doctor Jiang was pulling out the silver needles from the Queen Mother's head one by one and putting them into the needle bag one by one.
Yan Shu thought that she had come at the right time, so she said to the Queen Mother who was lying on the couch, "Your Majesty, I heard that Master Xiaoyao has published a new storybook. I have just finished reading it.
May I tell you about it?" The Queen Mother was bored at the time, and immediately said, "Okay, tell me what the story is about this time?"
Yan Shu sat down beside the couch, watching Doctor Jiang withdraw the needle, and said, "What a coincidence, Master Xiaoyao is telling you the story of the doctor this time." It is said that there was a doctor in the capital city a long time ago. He was famous for his superb medical skills and could cure all kinds of difficult and complicated diseases. He saved countless lives and healed the wounded, so he was revered as a miracle doctor by the people. This miracle doctor had a son and also took in an apprentice. The son was younger and talented, but a little playful. In contrast, the older apprentice was calm and steady, and very hardworking. "Having said
this, Yan Shu deliberately paused and looked away, but saw that the action of Doctor Jiang removing the needle was obviously paused.
In her heart, [This... is he talking about my father? 】
Yan Shu thought that since she had heard it, she should continue, and then she added, "This miracle doctor has a broad mind, and never treats his apprentice differently from his son. Instead, he teaches his studious apprentice everything he knows without any selfish motives. He only hopes that after he finishes his studies, he will be able to help the world and heal the people like himself."
Hearing this, the empress dowager nodded and said, "He is indeed a good doctor and a good master."
Looking at Doctor Jiang again, although she did not pause, she sighed in her heart. Yes, his father was indeed such a person. He had put all his trust in Zhang Shengkang. Unfortunately...
At this moment, Yan Shu's voice rang in my ears again, "It's a pity that the old doctor made a mistake. His apprentice is actually a person who covets power. He has always been jealous because his junior fellow apprentice is more talented than himself, and he thinks that his master is holding back on him."
"After completing his apprenticeship, this man entered a prominent family as a court physician. With the medical skills taught by his master, he quickly won the appreciation of the head of the family. However, the master's level was higher than his, and this man was afraid that his master would threaten his position, so he resorted to a vicious scheme. He first secretly replaced the medicine prescribed by the master, causing the patient's condition to worsen after taking it and causing his death. Then he instigated the victim's family to carry the corpse to the door of the master's clinic to cause trouble, slandering the master for killing someone."
Upon hearing this, Doctor Jiang frowned, and the Queen Mother was shocked, "Oh my God! , how could this person do such a bad thing? This is the master who has been so kind to him!"
But Yan Shu said, "Because this disciple is determined to become the person with the most superb medical skills in the family master's heart. But the master's medical skills are always better than his, and even if the master has no intention of clinging to wealth, there is still the talented junior brother. He is afraid that the junior brother will grow up and become a master in the future and will take his job, so he forces the master to leave the capital to prevent him from future troubles."
Hearing this, Doctor Jiang couldn't help but snort in his heart. That old thief Zhang thought everyone was like him. The
Queen Mother could not help but scold, "This man is really as cruel as a wolf! What happened later?"
Yan Shu said, "The old doctor saved people all his life, but he never thought that one day, his reputation would be ruined by that ungrateful disciple. He was angry and sad, and he couldn't get over it for a while. He became sick from the depression in his heart. Not long after leaving the capital, he vomited blood and died."
"After his father passed away, his son grew up overnight, calmed down, and began to plot revenge for his father. He first studied medicine diligently, carefully studied all the medical books and files left by his father, and then traveled around, seeing all kinds of difficult and complicated diseases, and humbly asked colleagues from all over the world to expand his horizons. After a few years, he has become a famous doctor."
Hearing this, Doctor Jiang was stunned again.
- How did this free and easy gentleman know so clearly?
But Yan Shu continued, "And that evil disciple with evil intentions has become more greedy and selfish. There have been many times when the masters in the mansion were sick, and he could have cured them, but he kept them to himself, just to make the masters rely on him. He turned around and used his position as the mansion doctor to open many clinics outside, raising the price of medicine to oppress his colleagues, completely disregarding the nature of a doctor to save the dying and the wounded. It can be said that he has turned bad things into bad things. Fortunately, his evil deeds were finally discovered by the wise master of the house, who angrily handed him over to the government." After
the words fell, the empress dowager raised her eyebrows, but before she could say anything, she saw that Doctor Jiang, who had collected the silver needles, bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, your acupuncture today is over. Just remember to take the medicine later. I will take my leave first." The empress dowager
did not think much about it, so she nodded and said okay, and let him go.
Soon, there were no outsiders in the palace. The Queen Mother asked Yan Shu, "The apprentice in this story is Zhang Shengkang, right?"
Yan Shu was surprised and asked, "How did you guess it, Your Majesty?
" The Queen Mother smiled, "The way he slandered the master in the story is exactly the same as the way he harmed Doctor Jiang before?"
Yan Shu nodded
and flattered her, "Your Majesty is wise." The Queen Mother smiled bitterly and sighed, "How could I have trusted such a despicable man? I can't be called wise."
Hearing this, Yan Shu comforted her, "This is not It's your Majesty's fault, it's all Zhang Shengkang's fault! You must not get angry."
But the Queen Mother sighed again and said, "I'm not angry, it's not worth it for such a person, this matter is entirely up to Your Majesty, let it be as it is. But then again, where is his master's child now, and what is he doing?"
Yan Shu paused, but did not answer directly, but said, "This... probably will have an answer soon."
Then she hurriedly asked the system quietly, [General, where is Doctor Jiang these days?]
But I heard the system say, [Of course he went to Qianming Palace.]
Yan Shu had an idea, and thought to herself that it would be up to the emperor next.
~~
Qianming Palace.
At that time, Yuwen Lan was reviewing memorials when he heard Fu Hai enter the palace and report, "Your Majesty, Imperial Physician Jiang wants to see you."
Without stopping his pen, he said, "Come in."
Fu Hai responded and went out to call for help. A moment later, Imperial Physician Jiang entered the palace and knelt down before him, saying, "Your Majesty."
Yuwen Lan stood up and asked, "How is the Queen Mother today?"
Imperial Physician Jiang hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, the Queen Mother's first course of treatment has been completed, and she no longer has obvious symptoms of headache. You need to continue taking the medicine for a month, and then you should be fine."
Yuwen Lan nodded and said, "You have made an invaluable contribution to this."
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Doctor Jiang, who had just stood up, kneeling down again and said, "I am ashamed to accept this position. I am here to apologize to Your Majesty today."
Yuwen Lan said, "Oh," and finally stopped writing and looked at him, saying, "What crime have I committed?"
But he said, "My surname is Xun, and my father's name is Xun Ji. My family once opened a clinic in Dama Street in the capital. After my father was framed by his apprentice Zhang Shengkang, he was forced to leave the capital. After my father died, I changed my name to avoid Zhang Shengkang's persecution and wandered around. Later, when the Imperial Medical College was recruiting, I passed the exam under my changed name. I did not report the matter to Your Majesty before, which is a crime worthy of death. "
After the voice fell, Yuwen Lan said, "Changing your name to enter the palace is indeed a crime of deceiving the emperor, but considering your medical merits, your crime can be offset. "
Doctor Jiang was startled and hurriedly He kowtowed and said, "Your Majesty, I thank you for your grace." But
after saying that, he added, "But I have one more thing."
Yuwen Lan then said, "Go ahead." But he heard him say, "I want to sue Zhang Shengkang for betraying his teacher and ancestors, and slandering my father." Yuwen Lan's answer was simple and clear, "Zhang Shengkang's case has been handed over to the Ministry of Justice for trial. You can go to the Ministry of Justice and tell them that it is my will." Doctor Jiang was determined and kowtowed in response, then stood up and took his leave, and strode to the Ministry of Justice. ~~ In Ci'an Palace, Yan Shu followed the system to understand the situation and was relieved. It was almost noon, and the empress dowager had taken the medicine, so she planned to take her leave. But before she could get up, she saw a palace maid coming over and reporting, "Your Majesty, Wang Zhaoyi is here." Wang Zhaoyi? Yan Shu was stunned. Was it the one who had been on night watch before? Tsk, I haven't seen her for a long time. But the empress dowager nodded and said, "Let her come in." The palace maid agreed and walked out of the palace gate. Soon, she saw Wang Zhaoyi coming into the palace. Speaking of which, since she angered the emperor last year, this Wang Zhaoyi had been on night watch for several months in a row, from winter to almost summer. Later, it was the empress dowager who told her to rest. Since then, she almost never went to banquets, big or small, claiming to be sick, so Yan Shu hadn't seen her for a long time. Seeing her enter the palace, she bowed to the two of them and said, "Your servant comes to see the Empress Dowager and Concubine Yi. I heard that the Empress Dowager has been unwell recently, and I was very worried. I was also afraid that my visit a few days ago would disturb the Empress Dowager's rest, so I had to come here just now. Please forgive me. I wonder how the Empress Dowager is feeling now?" The Empress Dowager nodded and said, "If you had come two days later, I would have been completely well." Yan Shu, "..." Hey, her boss is really humorous. However, Wang Zhaoyi was very embarrassed and could only quickly say, "Your servant is ashamed." Yan Shu thought to herself, what's the use of feeling ashamed? The Empress Dowager came here after the first course of treatment was over. How could she not be angry? As a loyal younger brother of the boss, she could only hurriedly persuade from the side, "Please be at ease, Your Majesty. Doctor Jiang said that you are no longer in serious condition. You just need to continue taking the medicine for another month." The Queen Mother nodded and said nothing. However, Yan Shu's ears were flooded with Wang Zhaoyi's inner thoughts - [It's almost lunchtime, why is Concubine Yi still here? Everyone in the harem has been killed by her. If she sees it this time, will there be a way for me to survive? Is she going to kill me next? Wuwuwu, I don't want to come but I have no choice. God must be trying to kill me on purpose! ] Yan Shu, "???" What do you mean everyone has been killed by her? So Wang Zhaoyi blamed her for the suicides of Concubine Zhou, Concubine Ning, Concubine An and Concubine Li? She was speechless and amused for a moment, and couldn't help but say to him, "Wang Zhaoyi, long time no see. Have you been doing well these days?" But she saw Wang Zhaoyi shivered and said hurriedly, "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I'm fine." But she was afraid in her heart, [Oh no! She actually took the initiative to talk to me. She must want to punish me! ] Yan Shu listened silently in her heart, and couldn't help but feel bad for a moment, and said, "Thank you for working such a long time recently. I always heard that you were not feeling well before. Are you tired? ] But she saw Wang Zhaoyi shivered, and immediately said, "I dare not. I have been weak since I was young. I caught a cold and had stomach discomfort recently. It has nothing to do with working the night watch. " But she thought in her heart, [This vicious woman, is she trying to put the blame on me in front of the empress dowager? God wish she a miserable death!] Yan Shu listened silently, but smiled and said, "Then take good care of yourself. It's winter now and the weather is getting cold." Wang Zhaoyi nodded hurriedly, but she was already crying in her heart, [Is she planning to ask me to continue to be the night watchman? This woman is really cruel!] Yan Shu raised her eyebrows secretly, she didn't think so. Anyway, since this woman has already determined that she is a bad person, no matter what she says, the other party will think the worst. She didn't want to waste words with her anymore, so she said to the empress dowager, "It's almost noon, I won't disturb your majesty anymore, I'll take my leave first." The empress dowager nodded, "Go back and rest. " Then he turned to Wang Zhaoyi and said, "I don't have anything here, you can go back too." The two of them agreed and left the palace together. ~~ Yan Shu didn't bother to pay attention to Wang Zhaoyi. She got on the sedan chair and went back to Ganlu Palace first, and then asked Rendong to send the story she had just told the empress dowager to Qianming Palace. ——Just now she just used an excuse to urge Imperial Physician Jiang to file a complaint, but in fact the story was not sent out. Now that the emperor has pardoned Imperial Physician Jiang and Imperial Physician Jiang has filed a complaint with the Ministry of Justice, she no longer has to worry about it and can generously share it with the readers.
And just as she expected, after reading the story, readers combined it with the rumors in the city and guessed that the villain in the story was Zhang Shengkang, and they cursed him non-stop.
Under such pressure, the Ministry of Justice naturally worked hard to handle the case and did not dare to neglect it.
Yan Shu was very relieved.
But within two days, she heard Ren Dong say to her, "Master, I heard that Wang Zhaoyi is sick again."
Yan Shu, "??? Sick again? Is it true?"
Tsk, is it an excuse for fear of night watch?
Before Ren Dong could answer, she heard the system say, [The illness is real, she is afraid that you will make her sick. ]
Yan Shu, "???"
When has she been able to scare people into illness?
Is it so powerful?
But the system said, "This is called paranoia. In the eyes of such people, the leaves falling from the roadside trees are intended to kill her."
Yan Shu, "……"
Tsk, is this a sequelae of night watch?
Forget it, she was too lazy to care. Now she only cared about when the verdict of Zhang Shengkang's case would be announced.
But the system said, "It just came out, it's still hot."
Yan Shu's eyes lit up and she hurriedly said, "Tell me quickly!"
Then the system said, "Zhang Shengkang has been sentenced to death and will be executed in half a month. His son and his disciples have been sentenced to prison for helping him to bully the market. His wife has been seriously ill two days ago. I don't know if she can hold on after hearing the news this time; but the new daughter-in-law has obtained the emperor's grace and has divorced and returned to her parents' home.
Yan Shu nodded when she heard this, [This verdict is very satisfying. That old thief Zhang has done so many evil things, and he finally gets his retribution!] Well
, now we just have to wait for the old thief Zhang to be executed in half a month.
Anyway, the Queen Mother has already said it, and no one will save him!
~~
Half a month later.
It was past noon, and the unforgivable Zhang Shengkang was executed. The onlookers all vented their anger and returned home satisfied.
The Jinyiwei hurried into the palace, took out a letter and reported to the king, "Your Majesty, before Zhang Shengkang was escorted to the execution ground, he gave a handwritten letter to the supervisor, saying that he wanted to give it to Doctor Xun."
- Yes, since the truth of Zhang Shengkang's case was revealed one by one, Doctor Jiang, who had been hiding his identity for many years, also changed his original name back to his original name - Xun Lan.
Therefore, now it is Doctor Xun.
When Yuwen Lan heard this for the first time, he just thought that Zhang Shengkang repented before his death and wanted to write a letter to Xun Lan to confess.
However, he changed his mind and felt that it was not right.
Would Zhang Shengkang be a person who would easily repent?
So out of curiosity, he took the letter and tried to unfold it and take a look.
However, there were only a few lines written on it -
"Before the death of the late emperor, he was obsessed with practicing Taoism and had no appetite. He only liked to drink kelp soup every day. During that time, the empress dowager asked me for Yuebai Powder.
Less than half a month later, the late emperor died.
Do you know why, junior brother?"
...
After reading the letter, Yuwen Lan was a little confused at first -
he vaguely knew that "Yuebai Powder" was used to treat various scabies.
But why did this person mention the death of the late emperor?
And wrote a letter to Xun Lan?
The more he thought about it, the more uncertain he felt.
So he put the letter away first and asked someone to summon Xun Lan to his side.
After a moment, Xun Lan hurried over.
Probably thinking that he was not feeling well, he was holding a medicine box in his hand.
Yuwen Lan remained calm, waved away the idle people, and asked Xun Lan, "I was reading a book two days ago, and there are some things about medicine that I don't understand, so I want to ask you."
Doctor Xun hurriedly bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, please tell me."
Yuwen Lan said, "What will happen if moon cakes are taken with kelp?"
But Xun Lan bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, moon cakes are for external use and cannot be taken internally. This medicine contains mercury powder. If it is taken with kelp, it may cause poisoning."
Poisoning?
Yuwen Lan paused, still calmly asked, "What kind of poison is it?"
Xun Lan said, "It's like taking mercury, which will make people feel chest tightness, shortness of breath, and fatigue. If the dose is large, it will cause convulsions, coma, bleeding teeth, blood in the urine, and even vomiting blood and death."
Yuwen Lan was stunned.
——When the late emperor died, weren’t these the symptoms he showed?