Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 378: A Place of Right and Wrong (asking for monthly ticket)

Too hospital.

Zhang Yuan was sitting there, with Liu Wentai and Zheng Wengui standing next to him.

"Your Majesty's condition is not optimistic. We alone are powerless to save him."

Zhang Yuan said, "We have tried all the medicines that can be prescribed. Right now, the only medicine that Your Majesty can take is the medicine presented by Minister of Rites Zhang Luan. The rest are... Alas!"

Liu Wentai asked: "Then...what's the worst case scenario...?"

Zhang Yuan glared at him and said, "If there were such patients among the people, what do you think would happen?"

Liu Wentai said helplessly: "Ordinary patients can't get so many good medicines. I'm afraid they have already... By the way, let me mention something. Since Concubine Wan and His Majesty have been bedridden one after another, the expenses of the Imperial Hospital this year are much higher than in previous years. Especially during the period from the end of the year to the beginning of the year... Because a lot of money was spent on treating the noble's illness, until now, the inner court has not allocated the corresponding funds."

Zheng Wengui also said: "This matter is true, do you want to... mention it to His Majesty in person?"

"This is all Liang Fang's fault."

Zhang Yuan said, "Besides, we are not qualified to directly report to His Majesty. If we have any questions, we should first talk to Zhang Luan, the Minister of the Ministry of Rites."

"But he..."

Liu Wentai said with a bitter face, "It seems that since he took charge of the Imperial Hospital, he has not taken us seriously. He rarely comes here. Where can we talk to him?"

Zhang Yuan frowned and said, "Zhang Luan has been busy treating His Majesty recently, so it is understandable that he does not come to the Imperial Hospital. Besides, he is the Minister of the Ministry of Rites after all, so it is impossible for him to only be in charge of our place.

"And I heard that when he was in the Honglu Temple, he often didn't go to the government office. What's more, he is now also a lecturer in the Eastern Palace. With the work of the Hanlin Academy, I'm afraid he can't get away."

Zheng Wengui shook his head: "This person is quite special. He was just a student, but he relied on his marriage relationship with the prince to climb to the position of a third-rank civil official in the court in just half a year... People who are lucky enough to get promoted like this are afraid of climbing high and falling hard."

Zhang Yuan glared at Zheng Wengui and said, "How high he climbs and whether he will fall down, is that something you and I should care about?

"Now let's talk about the expenses of the Imperial Hospital this year. Should we think of a way to solve it?"

"If it doesn't work, why don't we go to his home?" Zheng Wengui suggested.

Liu Wentai said, "I do have an idea. How about... we go directly to ask for help from Li Shangshu of the Yintai Division?"

Zhang Yuan and Zheng Wengui looked over at the same time.

They both seemed surprised.

Previously, Liu Wentai was targeted by Li Zisheng and was tragically imprisoned. Why was he so respectful to Li Zisheng after he came out?
Knowing that Li Zisheng was not in charge of the Imperial Medical Bureau's affairs, why did he encounter such trouble and take the initiative to report and ask for instructions?

The former wolf has become a loyal dog?

"As of now, Judge Shi has not returned. It is impossible for us to ask him for help on this matter."

When Zheng Wengui mentioned Li Zisheng, he gritted his teeth and said depressedly, "At worst, we can go to the eunuch Wei of the Imperial Household Department and bring it up with him."

Zhang Yuan sighed, "It's no use telling anyone. Even if I tell His Majesty, His Majesty may not take it seriously. Just think about it, how many medicinal materials did His Majesty use in the Imperial Hospital to treat his illness recently?"

"This……"

Zheng Wengui was speechless for a moment.

Zhang Yuan said, "If I say that I used some precious herbs to treat your majesty before, but recently I have been using ordinary herbs according to Zhang Taichang's prescriptions, it is really hard to say that I can increase expenses based on this reason."

"But our expenses have indeed increased this year, and the price of medicinal materials has also risen by one or two levels. The cost is huge. Are we supposed to fill this hole ourselves?"

Zheng Wengui asked somewhat unwillingly.

Zhang Yuan asked with a dark face: "Why will the expenses increase? You know better than anyone else."

In just one sentence, the internal affairs of the Imperial Medical Service were exposed.

The purchase of medicinal materials seemed to be the responsibility of the eunuchs in the inner court who were in charge of the Imperial Medical Bureau, but in fact, these imperial doctors had the final say on which herbs to use and how much to buy.

After all, they are the professionals and have the right to decide which medicinal materials are of the best quality.

The imperial palace never purchased inferior medicinal materials.

This will lead to a lot of tricks.

In previous years, no one cared about this kind of thing. However, this year, because Concubine Wan and the emperor fell ill one after another, and the chief steward Liang Fang fell from power, the Imperial Medical Service began to run out of money.

Zhang Yuan said, "We should ask whoever we need help from. Even if we can't save face, we have to admit that we are far inferior to Zhang Taichang in treating your majesty's liver disease. Your majesty has ordered that all matters of the Imperial Hospital be under its jurisdiction, so even if we have to be thick-skinned, we have to come and ask for advice!"

……

……

For several days in a row, Zhu Youtang ran out of the palace.

At this time, it was time for the emperor to confer titles of king on several princes.

Emperor Chenghua's health seems to have fluctuated slightly recently.

On that day, Zhang Luan was not summoned to enter the palace. Only Li Zisheng and Wei Tai were allowed to enter the inner hall of the Qianqing Palace. Facing Zhu Jianshen lying on the sickbed, Li Zisheng was somewhat helpless.

"These past two days, I feel that the effect of the medicine is not as good as it was a few days ago."

Zhu Jianshen frowned and said.

Wei Tai quickly looked at Li Zisheng, meaning that you should think of a solution as soon as possible, after all, it was you who brought Zhang Luan into the palace.

Li Zisheng asked, "I wonder how your majesty feels about the dragon's health these days?"

Zhu Jianshen sighed, "It's not that good, nor that bad, but I've been very anxious these past few days. The relaxed mood I had a few days ago is gone, and I've returned to a state of weakness and powerlessness, with no interest in anything."

Li Zisheng thought to himself, I thought Laizhan’s medicine was ineffective.

It seems that you are in a bad mood, so you blame Zhang Laizhan?
If you think the medicine is ineffective, then you might as well call Zhang Laizhan and ask him to change the medicine for you. Why do you come to me to complain?
"Your Majesty...I...I have also been looking for a folk remedy recently, but...I haven't found it." Li Zisheng said with a somewhat sad look on his face.

"Ugh!"

Zhu Jianshen sighed deeply, shook his head and said, "Is this my fate?"

Li Zisheng thought, Zhang Laizhan was initially determined not to come out to treat the emperor, doesn’t that mean that this disease is incurable?
Not only can he cure diseases, but he can also see into the secrets of heaven. If he knew that Your Majesty's illness would eventually worsen, or even that you would die this year, then it would be reasonable for him to avoid you.

As for being pulled out by me and forcibly prolonging Your Majesty's life, it was only because of the situation. Although Your Majesty's condition has improved in the meantime, I think your final fate will not change.

The more Li Zisheng thought about it, the heavier his mood became, and his eyes unconsciously turned red.

"I don't want to care about the affairs of the court lately." Zhu Jianshen said weakly, "Li Qing, I want to make some of my sons kings as soon as possible... just in the next few days, I really can't wait!"

"Yes."

Li Zisheng bowed respectfully with a sad tone in his words.

Unfortunately, no matter how worried he was, he was helpless against the emperor's illness and could only leave with a sad face.

……

……

Li Zisheng came out of the Qianqing Palace, and Wei Tai followed him out.

Wei Tai looked extremely serious and asked sternly, "Master Li, with the situation now, is it possible that Doctor Zhang still has something to hide?"

"What does he have to hide?"

Li Zisheng said helplessly, "Eunuch Wei, I just want to ask you one question. Do you think Zhang Laizhan did not do his best to treat His Majesty?"

Wei Tai thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "At this time, he is still willing to come forward to diagnose your majesty, and he has brought out some miraculous medicines whose origins are unknown. This is actually very rare.

"The people in the Imperial Hospital have not even come up with a replacement prescription yet. They are just sitting back and watching your Majesty's condition worsen. In comparison, Zhang Laizhan is a model minister."

Li Zisheng sighed, "That's it. We all hope that His Majesty's condition will improve soon, but some things are beyond our control... Now we can only pray for God's blessing." Wei Tai glanced at the palace and said in embarrassment, "But now..."

"Does Eunuch Wei have any better ideas?"

Li Zisheng's eyes were red, and he asked with a hint of tears, "If there really is a miracle doctor who can come to the palace to diagnose your majesty, I think both your majesty and Zhang Taichang would understand. And from what I know about Lai Zhan, he never wants to compete for this great achievement."

Wei Tai smiled bitterly and thought to himself, who would dare to jump out and treat the emperor at this moment?

Your Majesty is obviously terminally ill, anyone who fights is an idiot!
However, Wei Tai was unwilling to let Li Zisheng off easily, and continued to question: "Master Li, have you ever thought about one thing? The officials in the court may not think the same way as we do... If the emperor's condition changes, he will definitely put the blame on you and Zhang Taichang. How will you deal with it then?"

"Actually...I had expected this day to come."

Li Zisheng looked pale, shaking his head, his face full of frustration and helplessness, "In fact, no one will reward me for my meritorious service in treating His Majesty, but if I make the slightest mistake, I'm afraid everyone will criticize me. I don't know what those people are thinking. They are helpless in treating His Majesty's illness, but they always want to bring others down..."

Wei Tai said: "You and Zhang Taichang are both loyal to His Majesty, and I can understand this, and even His Majesty himself can understand it.

"But people in the court would think that it is against the rules to skip the Imperial Hospital to diagnose the emperor, and the civil officials in the court have always been very concerned about the rules."

Li Zisheng said coldly: "You might as well say that I have conflicts with Wan'an, Liu Ji and others now, and they can take the opportunity to impeach me, or even put the blame for His Majesty's serious illness on me. Wouldn't it be more appropriate to say that?"

"This……"

Wei Tai said helplessly, "We have no such intention."

"Alas! I know that you, Eunuch Wei, are thinking of His Majesty. You kindly reminded me, and I will naturally keep it in mind. However, the wind will not stop even if the tree wants to be quiet. Those villains always like to make up stories and slander others behind their backs. This is not Eunuch Wei's fault. I will handle it carefully."

After Li Zisheng finished speaking, he was too lazy to argue with Wei Tai anymore and went straight towards the palace gate.

……

……

Li Zisheng returned home, sat on the armchair in the main hall, and began to sigh.

He didn't even notice Pang Qing coming into the room.

"Master Dao?"

Pang Qing gave a reminder.

Li Zisheng had no grudge against Pang Qing. Even when he suddenly heard Pang Qing's voice, he was not surprised. He muttered to himself, "Is it right or wrong for me to cooperate with Lai Zhan?"

"Again."

Pang Qing said helplessly, "Master Dao, aren't you doing this for the future?"

Li Zisheng understood and said, "You are right. I am doing this for the future, not for the present. After all, Lai Zhan and the prince are... Hey, when did you come in?"

Pang Qing rolled his eyes and retorted, "Does Daoist Master like to pay attention to such trivial matters?"

"cut!"

Li Zisheng rolled his eyes at Pang Qing, "But now I have let Lai Zhan get stuck in this and he can't extricate himself. If your majesty's condition changes, even if your majesty doesn't blame me, Wan'an and Liu Ji will stir up trouble in the court and push the blame onto Lai Zhan to suppress me. How can this be for the future? I am just asking for trouble."

Pang Qing pursed his lips and said, "You are loyal."

"Of course I am loyal."

Li Zisheng replied casually, and then asked in confusion, "What do you mean by that?"

Pang Qing said: "I am not asking you, but stating the truth. It is because of your loyalty that you do not care about being cursed by the world, and you stand up and go to the tiger mountain even though you know there is a tiger there..."

"speak nicely!"

Li Zisheng frowned.

"When you asked Zhang Laizhan to diagnose His Majesty, didn't you think about what would happen today?" Pang Qing said, "That Zhang Hanlin explained the situation to you early in the morning, but you insisted on recommending him to His Majesty, and said that His Majesty would not vent his anger on anyone who helped him. How come you regret it now?"

"I……"

Li Zisheng felt helpless and was speechless.

Pang Qing continued, "At this point, unless Zhang Hanlin can get away and stop treating your majesty, he will definitely be held responsible if something goes wrong. Even if the crown prince protects you, do you think Zhang Hanlin will be unable to protect himself and will still be willing to help you consolidate your position with the crown prince?"

Li Zisheng's face immediately changed, and he said, "What you said... makes sense. I have tied Lai Zhan so closely to His Majesty's illness. Once His Majesty's condition changes, or even becomes the same as Concubine Wan's, the people in the court will definitely be angry with him. By then, he will definitely think about how to get away, so how can he care about me?"

Pang Qing said: "So, now you should help him find a way to leave the Imperial Hospital, a place of trouble, instead of trying to find a cure from him. If he really had a way to cure Your Majesty, he wouldn't have tried so hard to dodge from the beginning."

Li Zisheng said helplessly: "It's true that a bystander can see more clearly... Why didn't you remind me earlier?"

"Didn't I mention that earlier?"

Pang Qing said helplessly, "Master Dao, we can't turn the tables. I have already analyzed these things with you very thoroughly. You think that your identity and status are brought by the current emperor, and you want to help the emperor... prolong his life. But no one forced you to do this."

Li Zisheng sighed, "Isn't it that I am afraid of losing my position in the Chenghua Dynasty? If I don't take the initiative, Deng Changen and others will rush forward. I am riding a tiger and it is difficult to get off! What loyalty? If I were to choose again, I would not care about the affairs of the Imperial Hospital from the beginning. Why... I have ended up like this now?"

Pang Qing asked: "What are you going to do now?"

"I'll go find a miracle doctor, or let Deng Changen re-enter the game," Li Zisheng said. "For the sake of the future, if I sacrifice myself now to gain some benefits, he will definitely accept it with pleasure."

Pang Qing shook his head and said, "I'm afraid that it won't be that easy for you two to get out now. His Majesty will force you two to continue to find ways to cure him."

Li Zisheng said: "Everything depends on human effort. I need to discuss this matter with Lai Zhan again."

……

……

into the night.

Li Zisheng invited Zhang Luan to his villa for a drink, during which he talked about his troubles.

Zhang Luan said, "Minister Li, I have long wanted to withdraw. I am willing to do so even if I have to be freed from my duties. I am even willing to be imprisoned and punished."

"what?"

Li Zisheng was shocked and asked, "Laizhan, you are not still trying to say that His Majesty's condition has not improved at all, are you?"

"Ugh!"

Zhang Luan shook his head and sighed, "It will only take a month or two. Most likely, it will only take... ten days or half a month..."

Li Zisheng was so frightened that his hands and feet were shaking. He asked tremblingly, "Why...why didn't you...say it...earlier?"

Zhang Luan smiled bitterly and said, "Minister Li, didn't I mention this to you? You didn't care at all and insisted on pushing me in front of His Majesty. I couldn't avoid it no matter how hard I tried..."

Li Zisheng was startled, then he thought of something and slapped his thigh: "Oh, you told me about half a year earlier, I thought it was something else."

"hehe."

Zhang Luan looked unconvinced and said teasingly, "No way? Do you really think it's something else?"

Li Zisheng's face turned ugly.

"Laizhan, I want to tell you something. You said you knew it was impossible, so why did you insist on following me into the palace?" Li Zisheng scolded, "And why did you bring out the medicine? Medicine from outside the palace? What if others say that your medicine is of unknown origin, or even that His Majesty got hurt because of your medicine? What will you do?"

Zhang Luan said aggrievedly: "I didn't think so much. You asked me to produce the medicine, so I did. I used all my life's knowledge and tried my best."

Li Zisheng frowned and said, "You are such a real person. Can't you just give me a prescription and just deal with it casually like before, with only a prescription but no medicine?"

Zhang Luan stared at Li Zisheng with eyes wide open, looking at him in disbelief. Then he asked in surprise, "So you asked me to come to the palace to diagnose His Majesty just to fool His Majesty?"

"me……"

Li Zisheng didn't know how to respond to Zhang Luan's question for a moment. After a long while, he said, "Okay, there's no point in us blaming each other here. We need to come up with a plan as soon as possible."

(I will continue to ask for monthly tickets at the end of the month, thank you!)
(End of this chapter)