Palace Fighting Naive Concubines’ Ascent to Power
Chapter 250: Dawdling

Chapter 250: Chapter 250: Dawdling

There was no choice, but Huang Zude also had to follow them outside.

Once outside, to his surprise, it was two maids arm wrestling to see who was stronger!

The chubby one was called Pang Ya, and the tall, sturdy one was Xiao Qing, both of whom he recognized.

What was there to see in this? The medical texts were far more interesting.

He really didn’t understand.

Initially, upon seeing so many spectators, the two maids had apologized and dared not continue.

But who knew Master Lian would insist on continuing the contest, declaring that today she must establish who the strongest warrior of Canglan Court was.

She then started raucously encouraging bets, not even sparing him.

Nanny Qi had placed her bet, so what could he do? He reluctantly decided to join in.

Aside from his medicine box and a book of medical techniques he carried, he had nothing else to bet, so he finally dug out a thick silver needle from his medicine box, typically used for detecting toxins, barely managing to place his bet.

Master Lian was really too boisterous, the loudest cheerer and the happiest laugher being none other than her.

Finally, when the competition concluded, he hurried over to her to request to take her pulse.

She looked at him with a mix of reluctance and disdain, and asked in confusion, "Eh, Charcoal Head, why are you still here?"

He wanted to say that if it weren’t for this master running off on her own, he would have completed the pulse-taking much earlier, and it would not have dragged on till now.

He then sternly said, "Master Lian, taking the Pulse of Peace is not mere formality and should not be taken lightly. If there are any illnesses, they can be discovered and treated promptly. Do not let a remedy of five doses turn into ten!"

After hearing this, Nanny Qi also offered some advice, and only then did the master reluctantly go back inside to let him take her pulse.

He had never seen someone so uncooperative; a task that should have taken just a quarter of an hour ended up taking a whole shichen (chinese time unit equivalent to 2 hours).

His Majesty must indeed be a wise ruler to endure such a consort; His Majesty showed no sign of distress, truly a benevolent ruler!

Huang Zude silently admired the Emperor, then turned and firmly said, "Master Lian, please extend your right hand."

Lian Hua hesitated and fussed before reluctantly extending a hand, with His Majesty and Nanny Qi watching worriedly; she could not refuse.

Once she extended it, Xiao Qing timely covered it with a handkerchief.

Huang Zude touched his chin with one hand and took her pulse with the other, his expression solemn.

After a while, he said calmly, "Switch hands."

He repeated the process with the other hand.

After taking her pulse, Huang Zude asked, "Master Lian, do you feel any discomfort?"

Lian Hua nervously said, "Not really..."

After speaking, she glanced at the Emperor and Nanny Qi, both watching her, and added, "Just that my stomach feels empty, a bit hungry..."

The Emperor thought to himself that his Little Concubine was really like making an excuse to avoid blame, speaking without occasion.

He and Nanny Qi exchanged glances, seeing the helplessness in each other’s eyes, both sighed in resignation, and thought, of course she’d be hungry after all that, but at least she knew she was hungry.

Huang Zude’s frown deepened, annoyed by the irrelevant answer, and he said in a stern tone, "Master Lian, just mention any abnormalities."

Lian Hua, seeing the wrinkles on Charcoal Head’s forehead resemble two caterpillars, grew even more nervous and whispered, "If there’s one abnormality, it’s that..."

At this point, she couldn’t help but look up at the Emperor, appearing pitiful, very afraid that speaking out would mean having to take medicine...

When she said this, several people immediately became tense.

The Emperor held her hand and spoke softly, "Nannan, sweetheart, if you feel uncomfortable anywhere, tell Doctor Huang about it."

Nanny Qi also said anxiously, "Little girl, quickly speak up, don’t be afraid."

Huang Zude’s heart skipped a beat; he had always felt that there was something off about this master, but he couldn’t quite pinpoint it.

He had gone back and discussed it with his father, who, after stroking his beard for a moment, said that if a person could eat and drink and wasn’t feeling particularly unwell, then there was likely nothing seriously wrong. It wasn’t necessary to concern oneself, as the true situation still had to be assessed by him.

Could it be an onset now?

Lian Hua clutched the Emperor’s hand tightly, obediently saying, "My head feels dizzy, and my eyelids want to fight..."

What are these symptoms? Both the Emperor and Nanny Qi were completely baffled and felt something was amiss.

Huang Zude was the first to understand. His expression hardened, and he lectured, "Master Lian is merely tired. It is normal for you to feel sleepy during pregnancy. You must rest regularly, and try not to be too rowdy."

In his heart, he silently added a note; this master also had a flaw, which was being very fond of sleep, almost making him doubt his own medical skills.

Lian Hua disagreed, but didn’t dare to retort loudly. She just muttered to herself softly, "Didn’t you ask about anything unusual? It’s still early for this Shichen, I usually wouldn’t feel sleepy yet. But now I am a bit, isn’t that unusual..."

Nanny Qi’s initially raised heart was put to rest, this constant alarming was too much for her heart.

With dissatisfaction, the Emperor then pinched her hand. "Haven’t you rested this afternoon at Huaying Hall"

Lian Hua shook her head. Sister Zhaoyi’s storytelling was just too funny, not sleepy at all.

Everyone understood then.

Afterwards, Huang Zude asked a few more questions. The process of inspection through observation, listening, and questioning was finally completed.

He had his suspicions all along, but was still afraid of missing something. Now he could finally confirm, he stood up, and bowed to both the Emperor and Nanny Qi separately: "Your Majesty, Nanny Qi, Master Lian is healthy, there is no need to worry."

The pulse was strong. It wasn’t the day to request the Pulse of Peace, and after asking for a while, nothing special was found which could justify why he was summoned.

However, he was still very pleased to see His Majesty.

Upon hearing this, Lian Hua laughed heartily, very happy to say, "Ah, sir, madam, look, I’m fine!"

No need for medicine, that’s wonderful.

"Who just threw up then?" Nanny Qi glared at her, causing her to fall silent out of guilt.

Nanny Qi then said sternly, "If you feel unwell, you must speak up. Don’t worry others, understand?"

The little girl was very afraid of seeing the Imperial Physician, something Nanny Qi had personally experienced. This girl could sometimes be naive, yet clever when it came to things she wanted to do. Last time, she clearly saw through her excuse to delay the Pulse of Peace.

Therefore, even though she knew it was just morning sickness, Nanny Qi still had to scold her a bit. Even if she didn’t hit the mark like just now, it was still better than her concealing her illness and later being too scared to speak up when feeling unwell.

"Understood, Nanny..." Lian Hua obediently nodded, daring not to say anything else.

The Emperor finally truly relaxed, realizing it was indeed morning sickness, but was it a bit delayed?

Uneasily, he then asked Huang Zude, "Doctor Huang, she just threw up violently. I fear it may have harmed her body. Do you know of any method to stop vomiting?"

So it could be used when needed in the future.

Although Huang Zude hadn’t been in the Imperial Medical Bureau for long, the Emperor had already started to trust him.

Ever since Cao De had brought Huang Zude back, his background had been thoroughly checked. His family had been medical practitioners for generations. His ancestors used their medical skills to save many lives and had achieved considerable merit, truly a household dedicated to sparing lives through medicine.