My father ordered me to kill the emperor, but His Majesty bestowed a princess upon me instead.

There are still two hours until the hour of Mao (5-7 AM).

The Imperial Medical Academy was closed.

There was no seal on the door.

There were only two Imperial Guards.

The imperial guards said that they were preparing emergency medicine for the emperor in the courtyard and that no one was allowed to enter.

I asked, "Whose orders?"

"The imperial decree."

"Which Wei Zhi passed the ball?"

The two guards exchanged a glance.

This issue is now becoming popular in the palace.

In two days, when people in the capital buy tofu, they might ask which Wei Zhi ground it.

The guard on the left said, "It's not Eunuch Wei."

"Who is that?"

"Zhao, the Imperial Physician."

At least it's the name of a living person.

temporary.

I asked Han Feng to show me the Imperial Guard's order to seal off the compound.

The Imperial Guards still refused to open the gates.

"Judge Zhao said that if the third dose of medicine is taken at the wrong time, His Majesty's health will be harmed."

"What is the third dose?"

"have no idea."

"Who knows?"

"Judge Zhao."

"Then let him come out."

Judge Zhao did not come out.

First, the sound of things being moved came from inside.

It's not a medicine grinder.

Like a wooden cabinet mopping the floor.

I looked at Yan Xiaoyi.

He looked up.

The walls of the Imperial Medical Academy were not high.

Before I could say anything, he had already disappeared.

The guards' expressions changed.

"Lord Shen!"

"I didn't allow it."

"He trespassed into the Imperial Hospital—"

"We'll deal with it once they're caught."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a muffled thud came from inside the courtyard.

Immediately afterwards, a wooden door opened from the inside.

Yan Xiaoyi stood behind the door.

Two young apprentices lay at his feet.

He didn't die.

One of them was holding half a bronze box in his hand.

"They're moving cabinets."

Yan Xiaoyi said.

I looked at the Imperial Guards.

"Can we go in now?"

The two did not stop them.

The East Pharmacy of the Imperial Medical Academy was in a mess.

A dozen or so medical officers stood on both sides.

No one was available to dispense the medication.

On the medicine counter, however, lay a sealed medicine box.

Judge Zhao stood in front of them.

"Lord Shen."

"His Majesty's condition is critical."

"This medicine cannot be delayed."

"Drug name."

"Return to Ming Soup".

"What are you doing?"

"To refresh and revitalize."

"Who prescribed it?"

"Consultation by the Imperial Medical Academy."

"Which ones?"

Judge Zhao reported five names.

The three stood in the courtyard.

The two were not there.

"What about the other two?"

"He has passed away."

I looked at him.

"Even dead people participate in consultations?"

"The old prescription was left by a deceased doctor."

"When the Imperial Medical Academy uses old prescriptions, it must still record the name of the person who originally prescribed the prescription."

There is precedent for this statement.

It's not entirely wrong.

Many palace recipes have been passed down through generations, and the original creators have long since died.

His name will be used by future generations and will continue to be remembered.

The problem is, the dead only left behind Fang.

The decision on how much medicine to add will not be made today.

When Bai Zhi arrived, she was carrying the imperial medicine tent that she had just brought from Changning Palace.

She glanced at the seal on the medicine box.

"Zhao Qi".

"Who?"

"The original prescription for Huiming Tang was prepared by a person."

The physician, Zhao, said, "It is the old imperial physician, Zhao Qi."

"When will you die?"

"The fourteenth year of Chengxi."

It was that year again.

Angelica dahurica turns over the curtain.

"Today's prescription will be written by Zhao Qi."

"The medicinal herbs were received under Zhao Qi's name."

"The box was also sealed with Zhao Qi's medical seal."

She looked up.

"A man who has been dead for eleven years."

"His Majesty will need to be given medicine at 5:00 AM today."

Judge Zhao's expression was not good.

"It's just using the old seal."

Who built it?

"Building on behalf of the duty officer".

"Who is on duty?"

"On a rotating basis as usual."

"Whose turn is it today?"

No one answered.

Bai Zhi then asked, "Under whose name should the medicine money be recorded?"

"Internal Treasury".

Who approved the internal treasury?

"Imperial medicines do not require detailed records..."

"Who approved it?"

Judge Zhao remained silent for a moment.

"Chen Ping."

It's Chen Ping again.

Bai Zhi closed the curtain.

"Chen Ping reported his illness three months ago."

"Yesterday he entered Changning Palace again disguised as Wei Zhi."

"Judge Zhao."

"Prescriptions for the dead."

"The patient approves the payment."

"You people in the Imperial Hospital are only responsible for boiling the medicine?"

Judge Zhao's lips moved slightly.

"This is an old example."

"Which precedent?"

"Palace secret recipes should not be altered lightly."

"We can only continue to act according to the old methods."

"Why is the third dose called the third dose?"

I asked.

"Are there still first and second doses of the old prescription?"

Judge Zhao said, "The Changning Tranquilizer Formula will be administered in three doses."

"The first two doses will calm the nerves."

"The third dose will wake you up."

"How often do you rotate?"

"Five days."

"How long did the emperor wear these clothes?"

"Three months."

"Even earlier?"

He did not answer.

Pei Shen walked in from the back.

"Eleven years."

Judge Zhao's face turned pale instantly.

I looked at Pei Shen.

"How did you know?"

"The old prescription from Changning has been used since the late Empress's illness."

"It stopped for half a year after the late empress died."

"His Majesty's old illness flared up for the first time, and he has been reinstated."

"Who made that decision?"

"His Majesty."

"Did you know that the formula contains a dream-locking drug?"

"I didn't know at first."

"You found out later?"

"I know part of it."

Judge Zhao hurriedly said, "Locking dreams is just a colloquial term!"

"The dosage of the medicine in the prescription is extremely light."

"Used to calm the nerves and relieve palpitations."

"It's not poison!"

I nodded.

"Where's Huiming Soup?"

"It's also for emergencies."

"Not poison?"

"no."

What happens if it's used in combination with the previous two doses?

He stopped talking.

I asked someone to bring me paper and pen.

"Write."

"What?"

"After taking the first two doses, use Huiming Decoction."

"What will happen to people?"

"Lord Shen, pharmacology is complex—"

"So write slowly."

"There is still one and a half hours until the hour of Mao (5-7 AM)."

"If I can't finish writing, I don't need to."

Judge Zhao's forehead began to sweat.

Another young medical officer suddenly knelt down.

"Lord Shen."

"Your subject writes."

Judge Zhao suddenly looked at him.

The young medical officer kept his head down.

"The first two doses of Changning Anshen Fang will induce deep sleep and slow the heartbeat."

"The third dose of Huiming Decoction uses a strong, invigorating medicine to forcefully stimulate qi and blood."

"It can temporarily revive the patient."

"It may also cause palpitations, irritability, and impaired judgment."

"If the patient was originally weak..."

"Will I die?"

"possible."

How likely is it?

"I dare not say."

"Why are you still using it?"

The young medical officer's voice trembled.

"This is how the old prescription has always been used."

It's the same old prescription again.

A prescription left by a dead person.

The living dare not change it.

The emperor was suppressed every five days.

I forcibly woke him up again.

When he was in a daze, all the verbal instructions were interpreted by those around him.

Upon waking, I felt palpitations, irritability, and a rush of blood to my head.

As long as the appropriate folding paper, evidence, and person are placed before you at that time.

The emperor might then personally do something he wouldn't normally do immediately.

The medicine wasn't meant to kill him.

It was to ensure that he was sufficiently alert at a certain time.

Not clear-headed enough.

I looked at the medicine box.

"Has the third dose been sent out today?"

Judge Zhao replied, "Not yet."

"Why is the box sealed here?"

"Deliver it at dawn."

Yan Xiaoyi picked up the copper box that the medicine boy had dropped from the ground.

There was no medicine in the box.

All of them are old medical seals.

Seventeen in a row.

Each one has a name engraved on it.

Twelve of them have died.

Three people have gone missing.

Both men retired from their official posts.

Zhao Qi's medical seal is at the very top.

The inkpad is still wet.

Bai Zhi counted them.

"Six pieces short."

Judge Zhao said, "Old medical seals from the palace are sometimes borrowed into the Imperial Pharmacy."

"Where's the IOU?"

"Old prints are not included in the regular borrowing register."

Why?

"No liability should be pursued for cases involving the deceased."

He was stunned after he finished speaking.

That's usually how the truth comes out.

After going around in circles for a long time.

He said the last sentence too quickly.

No liability needs to be pursued if the name is on the deceased.

That's why it's so easy to use.

Which dose went wrong?

Write down the old prescription first.

I will write about the old doctor again.

In the end, all the living people were simply following the established procedure.

I opened Zhao Qi's death file.

Cause of death written as:

In July of the fourteenth year of Chengxi, he suddenly fell ill.

The family moved to Qingzhou.

The file contained a very thin medicine receipt.

Today is Mao hour.

Changning Palace Huiming Soup.

Two medicine boxes.

I asked, "Why two portions?"

Judge Zhao's expression changed.

There should only be one copy.

Bai Zhi flipped the ticket over.

The destination for the second document is written as follows:

Royal tea room.

The emperor only drank one bowl of medicine.

The other one is not a spare.

It should be mixed with water, tea, or ginseng soup.

Even though we intercepted the medicine box from the Imperial Hospital.

One copy has already been sent out.

I turned around.

"Han Feng was appointed to the Imperial Tea Room."

"Yan Xiaoyi will go to Changning Palace first."

"Stop all drinking water, tea, and soup from entering the body."

Imperial Physician Zhao said urgently, "His Majesty is frail and cannot be deprived of water!"

"It's okay to drink."

I said, "Let three living people examine it first."

Bai Zhi pulled out another hard object from the hidden compartment of Zhao Qi's death file.

It is not a medical seal.

It's a bronze medal.

front:

Settle old accounts.

The back features a herbal pattern.

The fourth real card.

The edges of the card were covered in fresh wax.

It has obviously been used recently.

"Is this a medicine tag?"

When Judge Zhao saw this, his eyes were blank.

"I have never seen it before."

"It has always been in Zhao Qi's file."

Bai Zhi said, "We can retrieve it every time we access the old prescription files."

There is also a line of very small characters engraved on the back of the card.

Three prescriptions were tested.

Do not write "令".

Only write the verification.

The late empress left behind a medicine token so that the three parties could oversee the use of the medicine.

It's not about having licensed people prescribe medicine for the dead.

But nowadays, medicine tags are placed together with the medical seals of the deceased.

A genuine card.

An old genuine seal.

That's enough to make a newly prepared dose of medicine look like something that was decided eleven years ago.

Guards rushed in from outside the door.

"Lord Shen!"

"The second dose of medicine from the Imperial Tea Room has been delivered to Changning Palace."

"Who sent it?"

"An old medicine master."

"name?"

"Lu Qiu".

Where are they?

"He has been captured by Yan Xiaoyi."

"Where's the medicine?"

"His Majesty did not drink."

I just breathed a sigh of relief.

The guard added:

"But three urgent imperial edicts arrived outside Changning Palace."

"They said that His Majesty must use the imperial seal immediately after regaining consciousness."

"What edict?"

"Slay Shen An."

"You Zhaoning".

"Seal off the old grievances between Jiangbei and Changning."

really.

The third dose was not intended to kill the emperor.

It was so that the emperor would personally lock us all up again.