Page 197

The next day, inside the Star Palace.

Huang Zude had already spent a day and a night there, daring not to leave, and no one had come to give him instructions; it seemed as if everyone had forgotten about him.

Sitting cross-legged, he had recited medical texts all night long, his mouth parched and his legs numb from sitting.

At dawn, the young eunuchs and little palace maids of the Star Palace, well-trained as they were, carried out their tasks quietly, whether sweeping or dusting bottles, barely making a sound.

No one came to bother him. It was as though they were used to it, treating him as if he didn’t exist; he recited his texts, and others went about their work.

When he could no longer bear his thirst, he called over a young eunuch cleaning nearby to pour him some water.

After the eunuchs and palace maids had finished cleaning, he was left alone in the hall again, feeling very solitary.

He didn’t feel that it was a big deal, akin to a devout vigil before an ancestral shrine. If one wished to see His Majesty, they must be sincere.

There he sat in the hall, mumbling continuously as he continued to recite from the medical texts, feeling sleepy and quite tired after a night without sleep.

When Cao De entered, that was the scene he saw: a dark figure sitting cross-legged in the middle of the hall, his head tilted to one side, humming something under his breath.

Upon recognizing the figure, Cao De clicked his tongue—it wasn’t the filial and wise son who had repaired the graves?

Oh, they had all forgotten about him. Had this fool really been waiting here all night?

Indeed, with the master of the Star Palace and the important servants gone, who would be in charge of him? With no orders from above, no one below dared to make decisions lightly.

With interest, Cao De strolled over. Whether the fellow was overly tired or overly focused, he showed no reaction to Cao De’s presence, his lips still moving with barely discernible words.

Curious about what the fool was murmuring, Cao De squatted down and listened closely.

Finally, he made out the words, "...the Lone Bee, commonly known as the Seven-mile Bee, is indeed fierce in its venom.

..the Honeydew Room...as a Yang-brightening medicine.

..all are used to treat poison with poison, and also to kill vermin. .."

After squatting and listening for a while, Cao De secretly marveled. Others left in this situation would be anxious and restless, but this filial and wise son, truly a fool, was actually reciting medical texts—a complete fool indeed.

Perhaps it was precisely because he was a fool that he had such strong focus.

Cao De had listened enough and rose to his feet, walking around the man, looking for a spot to aim his foot and deciding that the buttocks were the best option.

He lifted his leg and kicked Huang Zude, saying, "Get up."

Huang Zude, who had been reciting until he was nearly dozing off, was suddenly jolted by the force of the kick, nearly losing his balance and falling.

Bracing himself with his hands on the ground, he steadied himself and looked toward the source of the kick: "Sir?"

Wasn’t the person in front of him the Noble Lady who had led him to the Star Palace to see His Majesty the day before?

"Yes, you can leave now." Seeing that Huang Zude had awakened, Cao De yawned and casually found a chair to sit in.

Standing up, Huang Zude asked in surprise, "Ah? His Majesty will not meet with this official anymore?"

Cao De reclined in the chair, his hand resting on the armrest, slumping into it as he gave Huang Zude a scrutinizing look. The more he looked at this dark lump in front of him, the sillier he seemed; there was no reason for the Emperor to meet such a man.

"What, what was your name again?"

"This official’s family name is Huang, given name Zude, styled..."

Cao De waved his hand to interrupt him: "Alright, just go back."

With that, he closed his eyes. Capitalizing on the Emperor not having finished court yet, he wanted to catch a nap; he was also quite sleepy.

He had spent the previous night dealing with people, and only this morning had some things started to take shape. Just returning from a bath, he was now waiting to report to the Emperor post-court.

Cao De hadn’t heard any movement in the hall for a while and thought Huang Zude had already left. Just as he was about to drift off, he heard a voice near his ear: "Sir, will His Majesty summon this official again?"

The voice was kept very low, as if afraid to wake him.

Cao De’s brow furrowed. He didn’t want to deal with it and continued trying to sleep.

Regardless, the voice persisted like a buzzing fly, asking breathlessly, "Sir, His Majesty seriously will not see this official anymore?"

It’s so noisy, Cao De opened one eye impatiently and saw this dark figure getting close to his face, staring at him very seriously as if confirming some important matter, hesitant to leave.

It’s no wonder Huang Zude, filled with anticipation, had been sitting in the palace for a day and a night, calming his excitement only by keeping his back to medical texts and materia medica.

But just now they suddenly told him to go back, let his full heart of anticipation be disappointed, and he had to confirm it repeatedly.

After all, this important person had brought him from afar, His Majesty had only seen him briefly, and before saying anything, had hurried away.

It didn’t make sense, just like treating an illness, after seeing the patient one has to prescribe medicine and doctor’s orders, from start to finish, only then is it complete.

They brought him here without saying what for, starting without finishing, he believed that it wasn’t over yet, His Majesty would still summon him, so he had to make sure everything was clear.

He didn’t want to disturb the Noble Lady’s sleep, but other than him there was only her in the palace, and she seemed like she could make decisions, which is why he felt compelled to inquire.

Cao De narrowed his eyes, his tone becoming impatient:

"What?" Want to eat prison food?

Huang Zude bowed and said, "This official just wants to ask if His Majesty summoned me for anything?"

If he was needed to treat someone, it would need to be sooner rather than later, illness cannot be delayed.

Cao De, finding this man needlessly verbose, lost his patience: "Someone come, this filial son... what’s your name again?"

He almost called out ’filial son, virtuous grandchild’, but the Cao family is full of no-gooders, a family without any such filial sons or virtuous grandchildren.

Huang Zude answered with deference, "This official’s surname is Huang, name..."

"Get this Huang out of here, throw him out of the palace." Not guilty of any crime yet still wanting to stay, dilly-dallying around, really don’t know if he’s stupid or foolish, tsk!

After shouting orders, Cao De adjusted his position and closed his eyes again, paying no further attention to the person before him.

Two people came in quickly from outside, silently gesturing Huang Zude to follow them with an attitude indicating that if he didn’t leave, they would actually force him out.

Huang Zude was taken aback, he looked at the person sitting there, then at the two who had arrived. So they really weren’t going to see him?

Alas... it seems sincerity is lacking, not getting to see His Majesty today.

Huang Zude, his heart filled with disappointment, followed the people out, looking back every three steps.

Finally, the palace grew quiet, and Cao De drifted back to sleep peacefully.

...

Somewhere else.

While it was bright daylight outside, the inner chamber here was dark and without light.

A dark shadow inside noticed movement on the bed and asked with concern, "Master, are you awake? Are you feeling better?"

"Mm, have things been taken care of neatly?" The person on the bed slowly sat up.

The dark shadow answered respectfully, "Everything is taken care of, rest assured." Saying this, the shadow came to the bed, pulled back the curtains, and propped a pillow behind the person sitting up.

"What does father say?"

"The master says to take care of your health, he’ll handle everything outside."

The person on the bed became agitated, "Heh, take care, how can one take care of a dying body? Cough, cough, cough..." The agitation triggered a severe coughing fit.

The dark shadow hurriedly patted their back, consoling, "Master, don’t be agitated, the master is just concerned about you."

After a bout of coughing, the person on the bed gradually calmed down, "I understand, bring the medicine." In their eyes, aside from hatred, there wasn’t a trace of interest in life...