"My illness is actually hemorrhoids, but I never treated them, and I have wasted my time until now. Recently, your doctor Zhao Yu treated me, and he did get rid of the root of the disease. But for an old man, even if the root of the hemorrhoids is gone, his vitality is greatly damaged, his spleen and stomach are weak, he cannot eat, and he is almost unable to get up."

From this letter written by Zhang Juzheng to Xu Jie in the ninth year of Wanli, we can learn that Mr. Zhang had been suffering from hemorrhoids for several years at that time, but the doctors had always treated it as another disease.

It was not until the 9th year of the Wanli reign that the hemorrhoids were diagnosed by a doctor recommended by Xu Jie. However, Zhang Juzheng's health was completely destroyed by the treatment and he died the following year.

Why can someone die from treating hemorrhoids? Zhao Hao consulted Li Shizhen, who told him that Jiangnan Hospital adopted conservative treatment for hemorrhoids and generally did not "eradicate the root cause".

Because eradication does not require surgical removal as Zhao Hao imagined, but rather the "drying method", which is to apply a medicine called "Kuzhi Powder" on the hemorrhoids, causing them to dry up, necrotize and eventually fall off.

So what are the main ingredients of "Kuzhi Powder"? Alum, toad venom, calomel, arsenic, and the top of a boy's head.

Regardless of what the last one is, the first four are all poisonous. Arsenic is a must-have poison for murder and robbery, and poisoning one's husband in this era...Pan Jinlian and Cixi both said it was good after using it.

So the so-called "drying method" is to apply poison on the hemorrhoids, causing them to dry up, necrotize and eventually fall off.

Moreover, Mr. Zhang's hemorrhoids were diagnosed several years ago, which were basically hidden internal hemorrhoids, so the poison had to be stuffed into the rectum. The absorption function of the rectal mucosa is better than oral administration!

The doctor recommended by Xu Ge Lao treated Mr. Zhang's hemorrhoids by stuffing poison into his penis three times a day for several months. The hemorrhoids were cured, but Mr. Zhang's vitality was greatly damaged, his spleen and stomach were weak, he could not eat, and he was almost unable to get up. These were the symptoms of arsenic poisoning...

Therefore, Zhao Hao speculated that Mr. Zhang might have died of arsenic poisoning.

At that time, he often fantasized that if Mr. Zhang had not used Xu Jie's doctor to treat his hemorrhoids, even if he had delayed treatment, he could have lived another ten years.

Then Qi Jiguang would not be implicated, and Li Chengliang would not be saddened by the death of the rabbit and would not engage in the practice of raising the enemy to protect himself. Then there would be no Wild Boar Skin.

Without wild boar skin, the Qing Dynasty would not have entered the Central Plains, China would not have closed its doors to the outside world again, the sprouts of capitalism at that time would not have been nipped in the bud, and Xu Guangqi, Wang Zheng, and Li Zhizao would have been able to make Western science a prominent subject in the Ming Dynasty.

Even if the Ming Dynasty was not the first to complete the Industrial Revolution, it would at least keep up with the West. As long as there was no generation gap, there would be no Opium War, the Eight-Nation Alliance, the Japanese invasion of China, and other centuries of national humiliation.

At worst, East Asia and Southeast Asia still belong to the Ming Dynasty. With our huge population, it is very possible to immigrate to Australia, New Zealand, or even the west coast of America.

That way at least future generations won’t have to suffer so much. They finally stood up, but then rolled into a ball again…

As a result, all this became a fantasy because Mr. Zhang met a quack doctor. What a huge loss it caused to the Chinese nation!

So this time Zhao Hao must give his father-in-law the best treatment and must not let the tragedy happen again!

Moreover, the timing of my father-in-law's attack this time was really coincidental.

It would be unjustifiable not to make good use of it.

~~

In any case, the first step of putting the elephant in the refrigerator has been completed.

Zhang Xianggong has not only reached the limit of submission, but has simply broken off...

Although Master Zhao was very concerned about his father-in-law's health and was prepared to take care of him by his bedside without taking off his clothes, he did not delay for a moment in taking the second step - removing the fuel from the fire!

That night, as soon as Mr. Zhang woke up, he asked Zhao Hao to send Zhang Xiaojing, who had come after hearing the news, home. On the one hand, he felt sorry for his daughter, but more importantly, as a father, he had to save face.

On the way home in the carriage, the couple talked privately.

"For the sake of the Ming Dynasty, not only has my father's reputation been shattered, but now even his body has collapsed. It's not worth it." Xiao Zhuzi snuggled in her husband's arms and murmured, "But I also understand why my father is unwilling to leave... This is his life's work, and in his heart it is more important than reputation, health, and family..."

"Yeah." Zhao Hao nodded, hugged Xiao Zhuzi tightly, and warmed her cold hands and face.

"How can I have the best of both worlds, not disappointing the Tathagata and not disappointing you..." Zhang Xiaojing felt warm, thinking of her support, she looked up at Zhao Hao and said, "Husband, with your talent, you can definitely come up with a solution that will satisfy both of us, right?"

"My lady has said so, so we have to make it." Zhao Hao kissed her little hand and said, "Leave it to me."

"Well, it's great to have you." Zhang Xiaojing hugged him, put her head tightly against his chest, and listened carefully to his heartbeat.

Fortunately, I was wearing thick clothes in winter, so I couldn’t hear Zhao Hao’s evil thoughts…

It was already ten o'clock in the evening when I got home, and I didn't expect there were guests at home.

It was Wang Xijue. He had caused trouble in the prime minister's residence and was chased out by the servants, so he came to the Zhao family. It was he who told Zhang Xiaojing that Prime Minister Zhang had fainted.

Zhao Shouzheng originally planned to go to the Grand Princess's mansion for dinner and pay his taxes, but this guy refused to leave, so Zhao Shouzheng could only "regrettably" let Xiaohong tell Ning An that he would not be going there tonight.

Recently, the court was in chaos, and the Ministry of Rites had nothing to do, but he was overworked and had been yawning since he sat there. Seeing Zhao Hao coming back, Master Zhao stood up as if he had been pardoned, and let them chat while he went into the room to sleep.

Zhao Hao also asked Xiao Jing to go back to the west yard to look after the children first, while he sat in the old man's seat just now. He pressed the carved brass cigarette case on the table, and a cigarette popped out of the box.

Zhao Hao picked up a cigarette and tapped it on the table, looking at Wang Xijue who was feeling uneasy.

"How is my husband?" Wang Xijue quickly picked up the lighter and lit it for him.

"Fortunately, I wasn't mad at you to death." Zhao Hao rolled his eyes at him.

"That's good, that's good." Wang Xijue breathed a sigh of relief, "I was so scared. When I saw my sister-in-law just now, I wanted to find a hole in the ground to crawl into."

"Old Wang, Old Wang, you are already this old, can you be more reliable?" Young Master Zhao shook his head helplessly. This guy can become the Prime Minister in the future? It's really weird.

Well, even after he became the Prime Minister, I didn’t see him improve much…

"Alas, I didn't expect that Mr. Zhang was on the verge of collapse." Wang Xijue also lit a cigarette and smoked it fiercely. "I bear the huge blame. Who made me the last straw that broke the camel's back?"

"Don't try to avoid the main point. Is that straw? It's heavier than a stone tablet carried by a turtle!" Zhao Hao sneered and said to Wang Xijue, "Now you know that the root of the love affair is not my father-in-law, right? He just had no choice but to take the blame for others. Why are all people staring at him?"

"Yes." Wang Xijue nodded honestly and said, "We all wronged my husband and made him suffer so much. Otherwise, he wouldn't be so angry that he bled profusely."

"That's exactly what's going on!" Zhao Hao put out the remaining two-thirds of his cigarette and clapped his hands, "Why were the previous appeals ineffective? Because we chose the wrong target. The decision-making power is not in my father-in-law's hands, so no matter how hard you push, you can't solve the problem!"

"I understand." Wang Xijue finished a cigarette in three or two puffs, put the cigarette butt into the ashtray, and stood up suddenly and said, "I will take people to another place to petition tomorrow!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he quickly held the edge of the table with one hand and covered his head with the other hand and said, "Why do I feel a little dizzy?"

"Who told you to smoke so fast? Two puffs on a cigarette, even Yu Qian'er would feel dizzy!" Zhao Hao wanted to kick him in the butt.

~~

The next day, the wind changed direction.

As expected, Wang Xijue brought more than 50 Hanlin scholars including Zhao Zhigao, Zhang Wei, Yu Shensi, Yu Shenxing, and Tian Yajun to the outside of the Meridian Gate to submit a petition.

I beg the emperor to spare the five people, and also spare Mr. Zhang who is grief-stricken, seriously ill and unconscious...

When the news reached the Qianqing Palace, the little emperor was having breakfast with his mother, and the mother and daughter were also shocked when they heard the news.

Especially Empress Li, she was so soft-hearted that she burst into tears when she heard that Mr. Zhang was seriously ill and unconscious.

"Didn't you say last night that it was nothing serious? Why hasn't he woken up yet?" Li Caifeng said wiping her tears.

"Not really. I heard that he was just angry." Feng Bao was also confused and asked, "Could it be that he got sick again overnight?"

"Why don't you go and ask!" Empress Dowager Li stamped her feet and said, "Go in person!"

She wanted to bring the imperial physician, but she swallowed her words back. The medical skills of Jiangnan Hospital are much better than those of the Imperial Hospital...

"I'll go right away." Feng Bao was also worried about Mr. Zhang, so he hurried out of the palace.

When he arrived at Dashamao Hutong, he saw Zhang Xianggong lying limply on the ground with his buttocks raised high. He looked a bit like the divine tortoise in Xiyuan.

Mr. Zhang did wake up. But his face was pale, sweaty, and he was groaning, and he couldn't speak clearly...

Eunuch Feng's eyes immediately turned red. He had known his uncle for almost twenty years, and in his impression, his uncle was always elegant and handsome. How could he have been so embarrassed before?

How could Mr. Zhang not be embarrassed? Yesterday, he stuffed a cotton cloth with anti-inflammatory stuff into the hemorrhoid that burst, and he had to pull it out and disinfect it with iodine every once in a while. Every time, it hurt like his penis was burst open and his intestines were dragged out. And iodine is not iodine tincture, it contains alcohol...

Because the young master had specifically instructed him to do so, Pang Xian changed the dressing changes from once a day to three times a day. This would ensure that there would be no infection, and would also allow Mr. Zhang to pay more attention to his illness... Well, there was absolutely no other intention.

Mr. Zhang didn't faint from the pain, he is really a hero!

According to the doctor's advice, he could only receive intravenous drips before his wound healed, and could not eat anything to prevent his feces from contaminating the wound... Zhang Juzheng was so hungry that he felt dizzy and could not speak. He became the horrible look that Eunuch Feng saw...

In fact, Mr. Zhang's real condition was not that serious. As long as the wound did not get inflamed and he had a few good meals after it healed, he would be a good man again.

However, Zhao Hao had given the attending physician Pang Xian a gag order. If he didn't say anything, who would know how the disease would develop next?

When Zhang saw Pang Xian not saying a word while changing the medicine just now, he was very discouraged and thought he had some serious illness.

As soon as this person got sick, his thoughts changed immediately. He threw all his thoughts about his great achievements and his loyalty to the emperor and his country behind his mind, and his hometown and his parents became extremely vivid...

When Eunuch Feng saw Mr. Zhang's lips moving, he quickly moved over to listen.

"I... want... to go home..." Then I heard my uncle utter these four words with great difficulty.

After saying this, Zhang Juzheng closed his eyes and fell asleep.

Oh, by the way, starting from this morning, I added roasted Pinellia ternata, Albizzia julibrissin, and Ziziphus jujuba seeds to the medicine I boiled for him... It is specially used to treat 'insomnia due to weakness and restlessness after a serious illness', and it has a great sleeping-inducing effect.

It makes sense, right? Sleep can help patients relieve pain and recover faster.

ps. I think the latest chapter is really important, the ending depends entirely on this plot...