The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 1111 - 199: Sudden Illness (Extra update as a reward for the book friend "Laughing at the World")

Chapter 1111: Chapter 199: Sudden Illness (Extra update as a reward for the book friend "Laughing at the World")

Manbao withdrew her hand and said to the Empress, "Your Majesty, may I examine you thoroughly?"

The Empress was momentarily startled but nodded, "Of course."

She turned her head to look at Sister Shang, and also saw the Emperor standing below. Just as she was about to rise to perform a curtsy, the Emperor gestured with his hand for her not to.

The Empress then smiled and leaned back down.

Sister Shang let the canopy down but did not leave; instead, she stood to the side watching Manbao.

Young Manager Zheng had cleverly stepped back two steps, standing to the side with his head bowed.

Manbao reached out to touch the Empress’s neck. Sister Shang was startled, leaning forward involuntarily; but after the Empress gave her a faint glance, she stood up straight again, her back stiff as she watched Manbao closely.

Manbao felt her way along the neck, inch by inch asking, "Does it hurt here?"

Sometimes the Empress said it did not hurt, sometimes she said it did. Manbao found the uncomfortable spot, gently placed her fingers on it, and asked, "What does it feel like when the illness strikes here?"

The Empress carefully recalled the sensation and began to answer in detail.

Manbao said, "Please open your mouth, I want to look at your throat. Like this—ah, do we have a candle?"

The light from the candle was limited, but she used all the diagnostic methods available to her, such as inspection, listening and smelling, questioning, and palpation, as Manbao looked at the Empress thoughtfully.

The Imperial Physicians waiting outside the canopy couldn’t help but slightly lift their heads to peek and pricked up their ears to listen.

Manbao hesitated but eventually could not help asking, "Your Majesty, may I touch your abdomen and chest?"

The Imperial Physicians: ...

The Empress was also taken aback for a moment, then chuckled softly and said, "You may."

Manbao gently pressed on her stomach and asked, "Does this hurt?"

The Empress cried out in pain, saying, "It hurts after I cough too much."

Manbao nodded slightly, after examining the stomach, she touched the Empress’s chest and asked about her feelings when she coughed and when it was hard to breathe.

After asking all these questions, Manbao waited for the Empress to adjust her clothes. Seeing the Empress’s face flush and her coughing incessant, Manbao hurried to rub her back. After thinking for a moment, Manbao asked Sister Shang to open the canopy and then turned around, gesturing to Young Manager Zheng, "Bring the needle bag."

Young Manager Zheng gave her significant looks while moving his hands slowly; treating a noble person like this wasn’t proper, diagnosis should come first before any action, and even if acupuncture was needed, it required approval from the Imperial Hospital.

The Crown Prince, already anxious, stepped forward to support his continuously coughing mother, and behind him, a group of younger princes hurriedly followed. Even the Emperor could not restrain his concern and moved closer. Turning his head and seeing Young Manager Zheng moving so slowly, he could not help frowning and ordered, "Give it to her!"

Young Manager Zheng looked up at him. Since the Emperor was dressed in regular clothes and he had not seen the Emperor before, Young Manager Zheng did not recognize him.

Since he did not recognize him, although his position in the palace was definitely higher than his own, he was not going to listen to him.

Manbao, of course, noticed his expression and got up to look for the needle bag herself, explaining softly, "I’m just going to needle two acupoints, that’s all, to make her breathing smoother."

Manbao took the needle bag, drew out a needle, and slightly pulled open the Empress’s collar before inserting the needle.

Sister Shang opened her mouth, quickly let the canopy down again, covering only the Crown Prince and the Emperor inside, while the rest were excluded on the outside.

The Second Prince and the others stepped back when Manbao pulled open the Empress’s collar, whereas the Third Prince was not deterred and even lifted the canopy to squeeze in.

Father and sons together watched the Empress with concern.

Manbao inserted two needles into the Empress, and her breathing gradually smoothed out, causing her cough to stop.

Manbao said, "Bring some warm water to moisten her mouth."

Auntie Shang hurried to fetch a cup of tea, but Manbao frowned upon seeing it, "She’s coughing badly, don’t drink tea, she needs plain boiled water."

Auntie Shang glanced at her, quickly went out and got some warm water, and after seeing Manbao nod, she fed it to the Empress.

After moistening her throat and breathing more smoothly, the Empress stopped coughing. She smiled at Manbao, "Truly a divine physician, I feel better already."

But Manbao shook her head, "It’s just temporary relief, the Imperial Physicians can certainly do the same."

It’s just that they might not be able to do it easily.

The Crown Prince promptly asked, "Can it be completely cured?"

Manbao paused before shaking her head, "At least I cannot cure it right now."

The Crown Prince, frustrated, questioned, "What do you mean you cannot cure it now?"

"I haven’t learned how to yet."

The Crown Prince said, "Then go learn it now!"

"With whom shall I learn?" Manbao said, "It’s not even certain if such medical techniques exist."

The Crown Prince was suddenly at a loss for words.

Manbao quickly tried to calm him, "Don’t worry, I will go back and consult medical texts. By the way, do the Imperial Physicians have any way to treat it?"

Manbao decided to go out and consult with the Imperial Physicians. She turned around to leave but found herself making eye contact with the Emperor.

Manbao always had a good memory, and even though it wasn’t infallible, she certainly had an impression of someone she had seen several times, especially after spending an evening together.

She uttered a startled "huh" when she saw this familiar person slightly turn his head to avoid her gaze, and she craned her neck to look up at him from below.

The Emperor cleared his throat softly and looked up at the canopy of the tent.

Manbao tilted her head to look at him, and finally realized something was amiss, "Why are you also in the tent?"

Auntie Shang wanted to scold her but seeing the Emperor’s expression, she also guessed something and immediately stood aside in silence.

Not being foolish, Manbao glanced at the Crown Prince and the chubby man beside him, and then again at Li Erlang, who looked slightly like them, and couldn’t help but blink.

Manbao stood up from the bed and hesitated before bowing respectfully, "Your Majesty?"

The Emperor coughed lightly and slightly raised his hand, "Dispensed with the formalities. So what illness does the Empress have? If it cannot be cured completely, can’t we still temporarily treat it?"

Manbao looked at him, then looked at him again and nodded, "It can still be controlled. The Empress is suffering from a condition of vital energy, only it’s been left too long and isn’t easy to treat."

The Imperial Physicians waiting outside overheard and involuntarily clenched their fists; exactly, it wasn’t easy to treat indeed.

Two years ago, the Empress had already been seriously ill once, and they had luckily saved her then. Who knew that after this spring, she would fall ill again, and the symptoms kept recurring and never fully healed, and these days it had been growing more severe.

Unable to stop herself, Manbao looked at the Emperor again before exiting the tent to consult with the Imperial Physicians about the illness.

With the outsider gone, the Crown Prince unceremoniously looked at his father, "Does Father know this Zhou Man?"

The Emperor glanced at him but did not answer, instead, he sat by the bed, took the Empress’s hand, and asked softly, "How does Zitong feel now?"

The Empress smiled at him lightly, "Much better, at least I’m not coughing anymore."

The Emperor sighed, "If I had known she was useful, I would have summoned her to the palace earlier. I don’t know what the Imperial Hospital is doing treating the illness; they are not even as good as a young woman."

"It’s not their fault," the Empress said softly, "There are many inconveniences, and many methods they probably find difficult to use."

The Emperor looked at the two needles pinned in her clothing and said nothing more.