Practicing Medicine in the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 52

"Kneel down."

Taiping had heard this sentence countless times from her father, mother, brother and even herself.

As long as they utter these two simple words, those flustered or calm figures will bend their legs, use their knees instead of toes, replace their shoes with gorgeous clothes, bend their waists or straighten their backs , to complete this action that can have many meanings.

Taiping has seen many people kneeling before, but he rarely kneels himself.

Even when worshiping the heroic spirits of her ancestors in Taichang Temple, someone covered her legs with a finely woven brown straw mat and covered it with a layer of soft embroidered brocade to prevent her delicate knees from protruding from the green stone slabs. trace.

But now, her mother, the only woman in the whole world who is more powerful than her, is holding a cold smile like the cold wind in early spring, softly uttering these two words that would never appear in the conversation between mother and daughter.

The warm summer evening breeze brushed over the little princess's slender eyelashes, and wiped a little hot sweat at the end of Junxiu's eyes.This bit of sweat obstructed her vision a little, preventing her from seeing the seriousness and heaviness in her mother's eyes.

"Mother, what are you talking about?" She shook Empress Wu's hand, acting like a baby in confusion.

"I make you kneel."

Empress Wu slowly took her hand away, and the pair of carved white jade bracelets on the mother and daughter's wrists made a crisp sound, like a slap that was neither light nor hard, making the young and ignorant princess blush.

She secretly raised her eyes to look at her mother's expression carefully, and finally found the bitter anger in the corners of her raised lips. She hurriedly lifted the corner of her skirt and carefully covered her knees, and carefully bent her legs down.

Empress Wu patiently waited for her to complete these small movements: "Do you know why I made you kneel down?"

Taiping thought about it, she didn't sneak out of the palace, she didn't make trouble in the imperial medical office, and she didn't steal the fruit from the imperial dining room, where did she make her mother angry?

Seeing that she seemed to be ignorant, Empress Wu just smiled slowly, her gaze sank slightly, and she called back: "Wei He, come out and say it."

Wei He slowly walked out from behind a huge embroidered screen behind Empress Wu, with a small chin lowered into the lock socket, wishing to drop his head to the ground.

"Report to Empress Empress, Her Royal Highness... Yang, she was humiliated and humiliated when she was gathering in He Lanmin's house, she had already hung a three-foot white silk... to go."

The words were so vague that Taiping, who was only in his early years, was ignorant of what he heard. At the end of the hearing, he suddenly understood one thing——Si Wei Shaoqing, Yang Shaojian's daughter, Yang Shi, the concubine originally appointed by Brother Hong. , her future sister-in-law had hanged herself.

She couldn't help secretly rejoicing in her heart. She originally thought of giving Yang Shi medicine to make her sick, so that she would lose the blessing of being in the East Palace, and his brother Hong wouldn't have to have an unfamiliar The woman came to arrest him, and she was still her best brother Hong.

Now that Mrs. Yang has hanged herself, Brother Hong will also have to refrain from marrying a wife for two or three years to show his grief and respect for his fiancée who left earlier.

Empress Wu looked on coldly, Taiping heard the news of Yang's death, instead of being shocked or sad, his brows were filled with joy, his bright eyes were full of smiles, without any trace of remorse or guilt.

She couldn't help feeling a little sad in her heart. Her most beloved princess was like the most tender peony in the Daming Palace. She grew up slowly under the care of her and Li Zhi, the most noble parents in the world, and never experienced any hardships. The baptism of rain and dew.

What they give her is always good, kind, and beautiful, but they are often not true, so at this age, she is like a piece of clean rice paper, only knowing what she wants, but never knowing what is "" evil".

This belated lesson came really heavy.

Empress Wu's expression darkened: "Do you know why Mrs. Yang was humiliated?"

Taiping shook her head honestly, she still didn't understand the meaning of the vague word "humiliating".

"Wei He, you tell the princess."

Wei He lowered his head and answered in a low voice: "Because Mrs. Yang ate the lily jujube tea sent by the princess every day, she was drowsy all day long. That day... also fell asleep at the banquet of the ladies of the official family. , when she was sent to bed in the wing room of the mansion, He Lanmin told her..."

At this point, a cry was blocked in his throat, Wei He restrained his face and sobbed, wiping his eyes with the corner of his sleeve from time to time.

She was born delicate and charming, but when she cried, she felt pitiful: "It's all He'er's fault, He'er shouldn't have instigated the princess to do such a thing, otherwise the Yang family might not be defiled by that thief, I also ask the empress to punish..."

Taiping was startled, and hurriedly tried to explain: "This is not He'er's business, it's me..."

Empress Wu interrupted her coldly: "Wei He, you instigated the princess to do such an unrighteous thing. You should have been expelled from the palace. Since you are young and ignorant, and know how to repent, I will punish you for copying "The Rules for Women" thirty times. After copying, you are not allowed to see the princess!"

She turned her eyes and looked in the direction of the Imperial Medical Office: "As for Li Jing who taught you prescriptions, I have ordered Dr. Shen to teach you a lesson. You are not allowed to see him again, and you are not allowed to go to the Imperial Medical Office to make trouble. , except for the daily peace pulse, you are not allowed to see the imperial physicians."

Finally, he turned his attention to Taiping's ignorant face: "Although this matter is mainly caused by He Lanmin's lust and he committed a heinous crime, if you hadn't given Mrs. Yang sleeping pills, you definitely wouldn't have given him sleeping pills." An opportunity to take advantage of. Therefore, I must punish these people who instigated you to do bad things."

It was only at this time that Taiping realized that it was his own momentary misconception that caused the catastrophe.

"Mother, Taiping knew it was wrong." She calmed down, bent down and kowtowed, and then raised her head, with tears in her eyes.

She said slowly: "It is said among the people that one person does the work and the other is responsible. This matter is Taiping's own idea. He'er and Jing'er don't know about it, so I ask the mother to punish the daughter alone. The daughter is willing to copy "Women's Rules" thirty times , please don't anger He'er and Jing'er."

When Empress Wu heard this, not only was she not angry, but a three-point smile appeared on her lips.

The words that come out are like the coldest blizzard in the deep winter: "Even if you copy "The Women's Regulations" three hundred times, you still can't save Yang's life. I just want to tell you today that you are the most honorable princess in my dynasty." , no matter what you do wrong, someone will take care of it for you, not only will you not be punished, but you can continue to eat, play, and do wrong things."

Empress Wu's words were sarcasm, like a handsome knife, deeply piercing Taiping's fragile self-esteem.

"But..." Empress Wu changed the subject, her slightly frowned brows relaxed, revealing the shallow wrinkles that a woman of this age should have, "Are you willing to do this? You are willing to take another life because of your own fault, because your decision made you lose your life." Are people around you implicated?"

Taiping shook his head blankly, and murmured: "I don't want to, mother, I don't want to."

Only then did Empress Wu lean down, embrace Taiping into a warm embrace, and wrap her most precious treasure with her wings.

"This lesson, you must always remember it, and never forget it—you are the princess of Tang Dynasty, you can never make mistakes, if you make mistakes, someone will make mistakes for you, do you understand?"

Taiping huddled tightly in his mother's arms, and finally couldn't help but choked. After a while, he knocked his chin on Empress Wu's shoulder, and replied wearily but firmly: "I understand, I will always remember it. .”

Empress Wu gave Taiping a harsh lesson, but after all, it was just a few words of instruction.

After all, it is a piece of flesh on the tip of her heart, and it hurts her body every time she touches it, not to mention such a bloody lesson. This knife pierced Taiping's heart a few inches, right in her scarred heart Added a long scar on it.

She hugged Taiping tightly, unwilling to let go even for a moment.

-

The lesson Taiping learned was like a downpour in summer, which came with great force and went away cleanly.

On Li Jing's side, before he recovered from Wu Yi's cold "kneel down", he was already shocked by Yang's suicide by hanging himself, his chest seemed to be squeezed hard in the palm of his hand, The pain was too great to speak.

He joined the medical profession not only to follow Wu Yi, but also to treat more people and become a good doctor who can help the world.

From Meizhou and his party, seeing Shen Hanshan and others doing their best to turn the tide, stop the spread of smallpox, and save the lives of thousands of people, while admiring him, a faint idea came to Fei Tang's heart.

He wants to become a powerful doctor like Dr. Shen and brother Wu Yi, who can save people from fire and water, prevent disasters before they happen, save innocent people all over the world, and stop all diseases from raging.

Unexpectedly, the first prescription he prescribed in his life cost Yang's innocent life.

This incident was something that he never expected, and it was also unexpected by Wu Yi.

Medical students in this era do not need to recite the Hippocratic oath, do not know the rule of "I shall not give dangerous drugs to others", and do not need to practice the professionalism of "checking all depraved and harmful behaviors".

There are far more shady things in the imperial medical office than Yang's case, buried deeper, and done more ruthlessly.

Li Jing just obeyed Princess Taiping's oral order and gave an ordinary prescription, but no matter how ordinary the prescription is, it can become a deadly weapon when used on the blade.

He called himself Li Jing's master, and thought he should have the responsibility to teach him medical ethics. Now that he has committed such a thing, Taiping is [-]% at fault, and he is also [-]% at fault for not taking good care of him.

I can't help but ask myself, can he really be Li Jing's master?