Tang Dynasty: Slacking off in the Imperial Kitchen, exposed by Si Zi

Chapter 220 Miraculous Healing

It's past midnight.

The candlelight inside the hall had dimmed, and the wax dripped down the bronze stand, congealing on the base.

Su Mu withdrew his hand from Empress Zhangsun's wrist.

The pulse has stabilized.

Although the pulse is still weak at the cun, guan, and chi positions, the rhythm is continuous and the beat is even.

He glanced down at Empress Zhangsun's face.

The color of her lips changed from light pink to dark pink, and the hollows of her eye sockets were still there, but the bluish-gray layer had faded completely.

The rise and fall of his chest was visible to the naked eye, neither hurried nor rapid. With each breath, his throat was clean and clear, without any wheezing.

Su Mu's back was soaked with sweat, and his undershirt clung to his spine, feeling chilly.

He stood up, supporting himself on the edge of the couch, but his knees ached so much that he stumbled.

I squatted for too long, and my legs went numb.

The system panel flickered.

[Lung vascular repair progress: 52%]

[Vital signs: Stable]

[Effects of using papaya as a medicinal guide: 78% clearance of blood stasis in the lungs, unblocking of the pericardium meridian, and termination of the chain reaction of organ failure]

[Note: The root cause of the qi stagnation has not been eliminated, and continued dietary therapy is still necessary. The current crisis has been resolved.]

Su Mu swiped the panel.

enough.

The rest can be raised slowly.

Li Shimin stood up from the round-backed chair.

He sat in that chair for nearly two hours without moving.

He clenched the folds of his robe into shape, and his ten fingernails dug crescent-shaped marks into the armrest.

He walked to the bedside, bent down, and put his ear close to Empress Zhangsun's nose.

He listened for a long time.

Then straighten up.

Li Shimin turned to Su Mu.

Su Mu was bent over, pounding his knees, grimacing, and unable to stand up straight.

Li Shimin took a step forward.

The man in the dragon robe was about to bow, his hands already clasped in a gesture of respect.

Su Mu dodged to the side and grabbed Li Shimin's elbow.

"His Majesty!"

Su Mu had a strong grip and pulled the person back with considerable force.

"useless."

Li Shimin's Adam's apple bobbed.

His lips moved slightly, but he didn't say anything.

Su Mu released his arm and took a step back.

"Your Majesty, what will the court say tomorrow if you bow like this? The Emperor bowing to a kitchen servant? The censors will be burying the Taiji Palace in their petitions!"

Li Shimin clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white.

"Su Mu, I—"

"Alright."

Su Mu waved his hand and patted the dust off his trousers.

"If you really feel bad about it, just bring more good ingredients next time."

Li Shimin was stunned for a moment.

His lips twitched; he didn't know whether to be angry or amused.

Su Mu had already walked to the small table and was tidying up the stew pot.

The papaya slices are all used up, and there is still a layer of fermentation liquid left at the bottom.

He covered the pot with the lid and wrapped it with a cloth.

"This time, Her Majesty suffered from a combination of qi stagnation and heart failure. The blood stasis in her lungs caused a chain reaction of problems in her internal organs."

Su Mu tucked the stew pot under his arm and turned to look at Li Shimin.

"The medicinal guide of papaya cleared away most of the blood stasis, and the fermented liquid stabilized the internal organs. However, the root cause of the qi stagnation remains, and the lung meridian repair is only a little over halfway done, not yet complete."

"Does that mean—there will be another one?"

"As long as you take good care of yourself, it won't happen."

Su Mu held up one finger.

"But there's a condition: you must have a bowl of cloud cake every day from now on, and the original liquid must be kept. Stop all the bitter and cold medicines prescribed by the imperial physician. I will make a new list of dietary supplements, and you can have the Imperial Kitchen follow it."

Li Shimin's fingers were still trembling, but his mind was already working.

"You list them out. I order the Imperial Kitchen to follow them exactly as instructed. Anyone who dares to change even a single ingredient or alter a single remedy will have their head chopped off!"

Su Mu nodded.

"Also, let the Empress get plenty of sleep. She shouldn't see any outsiders, read any memorials, or worry about state affairs these next few days. Her body can't withstand any more stress; a quiet two weeks of rest will be more effective than any medicine."

He walked towards the palace gate.

After taking a couple of steps, I remembered something and turned back.

"By the way, don't let Sizi know the details. Just say that Mother took a nap, woke up, and is fine."

Li Shimin didn't say anything, but he nodded.

Su Mu opened the palace door.

The cold wind blowing in from outside made him cough.

Two people were squatting on the threshold.

Little Sizi nestled in Li Lizhi's arms, her head resting on her elder sister's shoulder, her legs curled up, her feet icy cold. The tear stains on her face were still wet, and the red of chili powder lingered at the corners of her mouth.

I was clutching half a spicy strip in my hand, unwilling to throw it away.

Fell asleep.

But he didn't sleep soundly, his brows were furrowed, and his lips kept pursing.

Li Lizhi did not sleep.

She leaned against the doorframe, one arm around Xiao Sizi, the other hanging at her side. The gauze on her fingers had loosened, and the blisters from yesterday's burns clung to the cold stone surface of the doorframe.

Upon seeing Su Mu emerge, her body stiffened abruptly.

His mouth was open, but no sound came out.

Su Mu squatted down.

He reached out and pulled the half-eaten spicy strip from Xiao Sizi's hand, then stuffed it into his sleeve. He then wiped the chili powder off the little girl's mouth with his sleeve.

"It's alright now."

Three words.

Li Lizhi's shoulders slumped.

He leaned back against the door frame, his chin resting on the top of Xiao Sizi's head, his Adam's apple bobbing twice.

Her fingers gripped the edge of the door frame, then slowly loosened.

"Su Mu—Mother—"

"I'll feel better after I wake up than before. This time, most of the stuff that was blocking my lungs has been cleared, and my breathing will be smoother than it has been in the past few years."

Li Lizhi closed her eyes briefly; her eyelashes were wet.

She didn't reply, but lowered her head and buried her face in Xiao Sizi's hair.

Su Mu stood up and walked down the steps.

After climbing three steps, Li Lizhi's voice came from behind.

"Your hand."

Su Mu stopped and looked down at his hands.

The index and middle fingers of my right hand are trembling.

It's not tension, it's muscle fatigue.

After taking his pulse for two hours and pressing three acupoints, my fingers were completely exhausted.

"It's okay, you'll be fine after a good night's sleep."

He didn't turn around and continued walking down.

Chen Yao and six imperial physicians stood at the bottom of the steps.

The expressions on their faces were hard to tell—whether it was shame or shock—and their legs went weak when they saw Su Mu come out.

Chen Yao came forward, his lips trembling.

"Mr. Su, Her Majesty—"

"It's stable now. Go in and keep watch. After he wakes up, feed him half a bowl of rice porridge, only let him drink the rice oil."

Su Mu walked past him, leaving behind a comment.

"Also, withdraw all those prescriptions you wrote. I'll send over a new list of dietary supplements tomorrow."

Chen Yao stood still, his two legs rooted to the bricks.

He practiced medicine for thirty years, treating the royal family for most of his life.

Tonight, he watched as a bowl of stew, a few slices of papaya, and a few spoonfuls of the original liquid pulled his patient, who had been given a death sentence, back from the brink of death.

There were no silver needles, no herbal decoctions, and no methods recorded in the Imperial Medical Bureau.

He squatted down, supporting himself on his knees with his hands, beads of sweat dripping down his forehead.

The passageway was empty.

Su Mu walked alone, his bare feet stepping on the bluestone slabs, a chill creeping up from the soles of his feet.

The pale white line on the horizon was much wider than when we arrived, and the top of the palace wall to the east was tinged with orange-red.

The birds are chirping.

I don't know which tree it's from, but it's chirping and chattering so loudly.

Su Mu switched the stew pot to his other hand and shook his aching right arm.

The system panel floated quietly at the edge of the field of view.

【The Mission to Defy Fate (Empress Zhangsun's Story)】

[Current progress: Lung vascular repair 52%, continued dietary therapy is still needed to complete the task]

[Remaining time: 52 days]

[Mission Status: Crisis resolved, entering stable repair phase]

Su Mu turned off the control panel.

Stable repair.

These four words seem simple, but they actually mean that for the next fifty days or so, the cloud cake cannot be missing for a single day, the original liquid cannot be missing a single spoonful, and the amount of each ingredient must be precise to the centimeter.

However, the most difficult hurdle has been overcome.

Historically, Empress Zhangsun died in the Lizheng Palace in June of the tenth year of the Zhenguan era.

He suffered from a chronic illness for more than ten years, eventually leading to the failure of both his heart and lungs.

Tonight's events are like the wheels of history rolling over us ahead of schedule.

He forcefully stopped the wheels.

The wheel stopped, but it didn't break.

We'll have to push it back little by little from now on.