Prime Minister

Chapter 184, Section 183: [Miraculous Healers and Compassionate Hearts]

The wealthiest places in Jiangnan are Suzhou and Hangzhou, and there is a saying among the people: "Above is heaven, below are Suzhou and Hangzhou."

Suzhou, under the rule of the Great Yan, was the seat of the Jiangsu Provincial Governor's Office, while Hangzhou was the seat of the Zhejiang Provincial Administration Commission and the Zhejiang Provincial Governor's Office.

After a thousand years of development, Hangzhou is now the most prosperous and wealthy city in Jiangnan. On the one hand, it is the southern terminus of the Grand Canal and a distribution center for goods such as grain, silk, tea and porcelain from Jiangnan. On the other hand, it connects with coastal trade in Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong through sea transport, and its overseas trade has also developed in recent years.

In addition, Hangzhou is the center of the silk weaving industry in Jiangnan, with thriving handicraft workshops and commerce, and is also a place for the inheritance of Jiangnan culture.

Today, Hangzhou covers an area of ​​more than 20 li in circumference and has a permanent population of over 700,000. With such a large scale, it is natural that all sorts of people are mixed together, especially in the area of ​​Dadou Road in the north of the city. This area is close to the canal wharf and is the location of trading places such as fish market, rice market, and paper market. It has always attracted all kinds of transient people from all walks of life, including notorious bandits, roving salt smugglers, and folk preachers.

Even though the government was aware of these circumstances, it lacked sufficient manpower to conduct strict supervision. Over time, it could only let the area run its course and maintain only superficial inspections.

In the past few days, a dozen or so strange men have arrived in a cluster of low and crowded bungalows east of the Fish Selling Bridge. One of them seems to be seriously ill. Such a situation is common in this area, and no one is interested in finding out where they came from.

Inside the main room, a man in his thirties lay on the bed, his face ashen and his eyes filled with resentment.

"Xue Huai!"

He forced out two words through gritted teeth, wishing he could skin that Yangzhou prefect alive.

"Second Master, please calm down. The doctor will be here soon. It is said that the doctor's medical skills are very good. If it weren't for the favor Yao San had done for him, I'm afraid we wouldn't have been able to get him to come."

A man with a ferocious appearance stood nearby, offering a conciliatory smile. His humble expression, combined with his somewhat eerie appearance, made him seem even more unsettling.

The man lying in bed was none other than Liu Yi, the former second master of the Liu family.

Rewind to a month earlier, on the eve of Xue Huai's all-out attack, Liu Fu, who had spent his life navigating intrigue, keenly sensed the impending danger. He ordered Liu Yi to secretly leave Yangzhou with his hidden men.

As the saying goes, a cunning rabbit has three burrows. With the wealth and resources accumulated by the Liu family over decades, Liu Yi could naturally live a very comfortable life. However, he couldn't bear to leave his elderly father and so many relatives behind. Even though he could have escaped quietly, he secretly returned to check the situation and try to rescue his family. As a result, he was caught by a team of canal soldiers responsible for the search.

Liu Yi managed to escape with the help of a group of desperados, but he was accidentally shot by an arrow and subsequently caught a cold, nearly dying during his escape.

Some people advised him to hide in the countryside for the time being, but Liu Yi finally regained his senses and decisively rejected the suggestion, allowing everyone to escort him directly south to Hangzhou.

He can receive timely medical treatment here, and since Hangzhou is under the jurisdiction of the Zhejiang Provincial Administration Commission, the officials in Yangzhou cannot extend their reach that far. This large city is enough for him to hide for a while, and once he has recovered from his injuries, he can recruit his old subordinates and give Xue Huai a surprise.

Hearing his subordinate Guo Hui's remark, Liu Yi said coldly, "That doctor charges very high consultation fees?"

"That's not true."

Guo Hui shook his head and said, "I heard from Yao San that the doctor is a bit strange. He likes to treat the poor and only charges a small fee or even nothing at all. If a commoner or a powerful person seeks her medical help, as long as... as long as they haven't done any good deeds, it will be very difficult to find her."

"Playing tricks and deceiving people is nothing more than a scheme to bewitch them."

Liu Yi coughed twice and said sarcastically, "How does he know that poor people are necessarily good people? Are those wicked idlers rich people?"

Guo Hui chuckled dryly, "Hey, who can argue with that? It's just that this doctor's medical skills are truly remarkable. Even if she's just putting on an act, many people still seek her treatment."

"Is it?"

Liu Yi slowly sat up and leaned against the headboard, a look of confusion in his eyes. He asked, "He's just a doctor, after all. Can't the powerful and influential people here find him?"

"That's another strange thing."

Guo Hui thought for a moment and said, "Yao San said that the doctor's identity is very mysterious and must have some background. No one has ever seen her real appearance. All that is known is that she is a relatively young woman. I wonder where she learned such superb medical skills and what kind of backer she has that can keep her identity so well hidden."

"A female doctor?"

Liu Yi was quite knowledgeable, but he had only heard that there were a few female physicians in the imperial palace in the capital who served the noble ladies in the harem. He had never heard of such a goddess physician in the Jiangnan region.

Guo Hui nodded and said, "That's right, she's a female doctor, but she only appeared in the last six months, so it's normal that Second Master doesn't know about her."

Liu Yi nodded, no longer dwelling on the doctor's secret, and instead asked, "Has any news come back from Yangzhou these past few days?"

Although Xue Huai investigated and dealt with Xu Guanlan, Liu Fu and other main culprits with lightning speed, these forces had been rooted in the Huai River region for decades, and they were not so easy to eradicate.

When Liu Yi fled south, he had already put most of his previously secretly cultivated men into hiding. The salt smugglers who only obeyed his orders had long since gone into hiding. In addition, he left some spies to keep an eye on the movements in Yangzhou.

Guo Hui carefully chose his words and replied, "Second Master, the Old Master, the Eldest Master, the Third Master, and the Fourth Master are all imprisoned in the death row of the Yangzhou Prefecture government. Other members of the other branches have also been arrested by the government. However, there are rumors from the government that Xue Huai intends to only question the main culprit and will not implicate others. In addition, he plans to divide our family property, but those who receive a share of the property will have to pay a huge sum of money as a redemption."

"Good, that's ruthless!"

Liu Yi's face was contorted with rage, his eyes almost spitting fire. This aggravated his injuries, making his face look like a demon from the pain.

"Second Master! Don't be angry!" Guo Hui hurriedly stepped forward.

Liu Yi waved his hand and asked in a low voice, "How many people usually surround Xue Huai?"

By now, he knew very well that it was impossible to bring down Xue Huai through official channels. With Xu Guanlan and others imprisoned, the bigwigs in the court would not risk the emperor's wrath to rescue the Liu family. People like Chen Yan, the governor of Jiangsu, would probably be in trouble themselves.

With the canal troops and garrison soldiers stationed in Yangzhou, he had no hope of rescuing his parents and brothers and could only watch helplessly as they were punished by the government.

In short, Liu Yi has no other concerns now; he only wants to find an opportunity to kill Xue Huai to vent his hatred.

Guo Hui replied, "Second Master, according to the brothers who stayed there, Xue Huai is extremely cautious and always has at least ten elite guards with him when he goes out. It would be very difficult to assassinate him in public."

"Not urgent."

Liu Yi took a deep breath and said slowly, "I don't believe he can be this cautious forever. Let me recover first."

Just then, footsteps sounded outside.

Guo got up and opened the door. Yao San's ugly face came into view, followed by several people. The first person he saw was a slender woman wearing a veil, only her eyes were visible.

"Is this the miracle doctor?"

Guo approached with a forced smile, but before he could get close, two men in their forties standing between the woman and him blocked their way.

"Where is the patient?"

The woman spoke calmly, her tone neither sad nor happy.

Guo Hui quickly led the way, and after the mysterious female doctor and her entourage entered the room, he tugged at Yao San's sleeve and whispered, "This doctor sounds very young. Are you really sure there's no problem?"

Yao San rolled his eyes at him and said, "Do you know what a divine doctor is? Even if you're blind to talent, you should be able to see that those two men are both highly skilled martial arts masters. How could an ordinary person have such followers?"

Guo Hui dared not say another word.

Inside the room, after only a short while, the female doctor said to Liu Yi, "You have a wound that has penetrated to the skin, and the pathogenic wind has invaded inside, causing a struggle between cold and heat. The symptoms are that the wound is ulcerated and purulent, you feel cold and have a high fever, and your head feels like it's being split open. This is a critical condition of wound poisoning and deficiency of the body's defensive qi, which is a combination of wound and typhoid fever."

Liu Yi was greatly surprised, and his contempt quickly disappeared. He nodded repeatedly and said, "Indeed, you are indeed a divine physician!"

The female doctor immediately wrote down three prescriptions: the first was to apply calcined Cibotium barometz ash mixed with sesame oil as a poultice to draw out toxins and promote tissue regeneration; the second was to take a modified Xiao Qinglong Decoction orally; and the third was to take Yu Ping Feng San orally to strengthen the exterior.

The entire treatment process took less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, leaving Guo Hui and Yao San utterly astonished.

“Yao San, you saved that poor mother and child that day, and I admire your chivalrous heart, so I promised to help you with something. Today I will treat their illness without charging a penny, which is to fulfill my previous promise. You don’t need to come looking for me again.”

The doctor placed the three prescriptions on the table and prepared to leave.

"and many more."

Liu Yi knew the value of such a divine doctor. He had long forgotten his previous complaints and said with utmost sincerity, "I know the rules of a divine doctor, but I am deeply grateful for your help. I have no way to repay you, so I would like to offer you a hundred taels of medical fees. Please accept this as a token of my gratitude."

He could easily have taken out a thousand taels of gold, but that would have made it too easy to expose his identity, so he only wanted to make a good connection.

However, the young woman merely glanced at him indifferently, her gaze as cold as the winter wind, and uttered two words: "No need."

Watching her leave calmly under the protection of her attendants, a hint of anger flashed in Liu Yi's eyes. If it were before, how dare a mere itinerant doctor act like this in front of him?
"Xue Huai, I will personally skin you alive!"

Liu Yi spat out a sentence through gritted teeth, filled with intense resentment.

On the other side, the female doctor and her two attendants walked out of the maze-like alley. Before boarding the carriage, she suddenly said to the man on her left, "Uncle Li, try to find out the identity of that patient from earlier."

Uncle Li asked curiously, "Zhiwei, what's wrong?"

The young woman, named Xu Zhiwei, calmly said, "This man speaks with a Yangzhou accent, and the arrow wounds on his body were likely inflicted by standard-issue military arrows. He is most likely related to the recent uproar over the Lianghuai salt case. Finding out his background might be useful in the future."

Uncle Li nodded and said, "Okay, I'll have someone take care of it."

Xu Zhiwei said no more and boarded the simple carriage.

She placed the medicine box aside, raised her hand to remove her veil, revealing a face as cold as ice.

(End of this chapter)