Somewhat annoyed, Kangxi dismissed the imperial physicians and kept Dr. Liu alone, clinging to a sliver of hope and unwilling to give up, wanting to continue asking questions.
"Academician Liu, you are a veteran of the Imperial Medical Academy, born into a family of physicians, and your medical skills are the most superb. Tell me honestly, is there really no other way?"
With his head bowed, Governor Liu felt conflicted upon hearing Kangxi's question. He did have a solution, but the risk was simply too great, so he hesitated.
After a moment of internal struggle, Dean Liu pondered for a while before slowly speaking.
“Your Majesty, this servant does indeed possess a family-inherited acupuncture technique that can save critically ill patients, but…”
At this point, Dean Liu paused for a moment.
“This is extremely dangerous. The slightest mistake could endanger the patient’s life, and I cannot guarantee how effective this method will be for Her Majesty the Empress.”
Upon hearing the answer he wanted, Kangxi's eyes lit up, but the implication in Liu's words suggested that this method was very dangerous, and Kangxi had to consider it carefully.
"If the Empress does not use this method, how much time does she have left?"
Dean Liu lowered his head and answered in a deep voice.
"Her Majesty's lung disease has reached a critical stage. Even with the combined efforts of the Imperial Hospital, we can only keep her alive for a few more days. Any longer and she will not survive."
Upon hearing this again, Kangxi felt very heavy-hearted. He continued to ask, "How confident are you about this?"
"Your Majesty, this servant... this servant can only be fifty percent certain."
After answering the question with clasped hands, Dean Liu explained the side effects of this method.
"Even if this acupuncture technique is effective for Her Majesty the Empress, after she recovers, her body will be weaker than before, and she will need to take good care of herself and rely on herbal medicine."
"A fifty percent chance? That's still too low," Kangxi murmured, hesitating as he considered the implications of the matter.
Empress Niohuru was the new empress, and had only been conferred the title for less than a year. If this were to happen at this time... there would be much discussion both inside and outside the court, which would be detrimental to important state affairs.
After thinking about it for a long time, Kangxi decided that the Empress could not be harmed at this time. He made up his mind and, looking at the kneeling Imperial Physician Liu, gave him an order.
"It's alright, Imperial Physician Liu. Go and make preparations to administer acupuncture to the Empress! You must do your best in this matter. I want to ensure the Empress's safety."
In his final words, Kangxi whispered to Imperial Physician Liu, "No matter what method you use, you must ensure that the Empress survives this year."
After speaking, Kangxi stood up with his hands behind his back, exuding immense pressure. He glanced at the other person with a meaningful look in his eyes.
"Yes, Your Majesty! This servant obeys." Under immense pressure, Imperial Physician Liu responded in a low voice.
Soon, everything was ready, and Imperial Physician Liu, carrying his medicine chest, entered the Empress's bedchamber.
Standing before the bed, with Emperor Kangxi beside him, Imperial Physician Liu felt immense pressure and dared not make the slightest mistake.
Taking a deep breath and forcing himself to calm down, Doctor Liu opened his medicine box and took out the gold needles passed down in his family.
Using acupuncture needles to stimulate acupoints can also increase the success rate of this method.
Granny Wu, along with four other palace maids including Xia He, stood guard at the door. Just moments before, they had learned what Imperial Physician Liu was planning to do and were aware of the dangers involved.
Among the people present, they had the closest relationship with Niohuru, which is why they were the most nervous at this moment.
Inside, Imperial Physician Liu's hand fell quickly and steadily, and the golden needle was immediately inserted into the acupoint on Niohuru's head.
As time went on, Dean Liu's hands moved slower and slower, his expression became more and more cautious, and fine beads of sweat gradually appeared on his forehead.
It is evident that this was an extremely difficult task. Even the most skilled physician in the Imperial Medical Academy, Dr. Liu, had to be extremely cautious and could only carry out the operation under a state of high tension.
After several needles were inserted, the Empress's complexion did not change. Doctor Liu was getting anxious, but he forced himself to calm down and continued to insert the needles.
Time passed slowly, and with Dr. Liu's movements, one golden needle after another was inserted into the acupoints, and now there was only one needle left to be inserted.
After wiping the sweat from his face with a handkerchief, Dean Liu paused for a moment.
The effect would be visible after the last injection. Dr. Liu was uneasy, so he paused for a moment and continued after calming himself down.
After a moment, Dr. Liu took another deep breath, picked up the last gold needle, and inserted it into the acupoint.
Niohuru remained unconscious, lying on the bed with a pale face, no different from before the acupuncture.
Seeing this, Dean Liu's heart sank to the bottom. He was greatly alarmed, realizing that he had ultimately failed.
Emperor Kangxi was not knowledgeable in medicine, but judging from the Empress's reaction, he could guess that the outcome was probably not good.
In my memory, Empress Niohuru was a model of elegance, grace, gentleness, and virtue. Since being made empress, she had never made a mistake and managed the harem in an orderly manner. Now, she is only twenty years old and is about to leave me?
Emperor Kangxi was filled with sorrow, and couldn't help but think of his first empress, Empress Hesheli, who also died in childbirth at a similar age.
Both empresses died young, and Kangxi suddenly began to doubt himself. Could it be that I am cursed to bring misfortune to my wives?
Just as Imperial Physician Liu was feeling uneasy and Emperor Kangxi was doubting himself, a shout from a young eunuch outside the palace interrupted their thoughts.
"Your Majesty, Consort Tong of Chengqian Palace has given birth to twins, a boy and a girl. Both mother and children are safe and sound. The arrival of twins is an auspicious sign, and this servant congratulates Your Majesty on this occasion."
As soon as the words fell, Empress Niohuru, who had been unresponsive on the bed, suddenly coughed up a mouthful of dark red blood. Before Kangxi could react to his cousin's childbirth, he disregarded the filth and embraced the empress who was still vomiting blood.
"Academician Liu, what's going on? Why is the Empress suddenly vomiting blood again?"
Unlike Kangxi's panicked and angry expression, Imperial Physician Liu appeared unusually happy and congratulated Kangxi with a smile.
"Your Majesty, please don't be angry. This is a good thing! Only by expelling the black blood accumulated in Her Majesty's lungs can the lesions in her body be removed. Only in this way can Her Majesty truly recover. Afterwards, Her Majesty only needs to rest in bed for a period of time and take good care of herself to fully recover her health."
Hearing this, Kangxi finally felt relieved. He couldn't help but feel thankful that the Empress had pulled through.
After spitting out the last bit of dark blood, Niohuru's complexion visibly became a little rosier. Although it wasn't much, it was still much better than before.
Seeing that it was about time, Kangxi released his embrace and carefully and gently laid Niohuru down, letting her lie flat on the bed.
Imperial Physician Liu stepped forward, took out a gold needle, and felt the Empress's pulse. After confirming that the lesions had been removed and that vitality was gradually returning to her body, Emperor Kangxi was finally relieved.
He called out to the palace maids and nannies waiting at the door to come in. Kangxi told them to take good care of the Empress and gave them some more detailed instructions before leaving for Chengqian Palace.
After seeing Emperor Kangxi off, Granny Wu was filled with tears and joy. She pulled the Imperial Physician Liu aside and asked him all sorts of questions before she was finally relieved.
When Emperor Kangxi arrived at Chengqian Palace, he happened to see a midwife carrying a baby out.
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