Plotting with You: The Forensic Scientist in Ancient Times!-Chapter 109 - 108: Another Falls Ill

"Madam, what have you discerned?" Lu Qing asked with a smile.

Zhu Yu shook her head, secretly adjusting her breathing to calm herself once more.

"Everyone outside knows that when I was eight, there was a great drought, so the Holy Emperor sent me to Shanqing Temple to pray on his behalf. But few know how I was taken there." Lu Qing didn’t tease her further, nor did he hold back the truth. "I was carried all the way from the Capital to Shanqing Temple, and by the time I got there, I was barely alive. If I had arrived a day later, I might have been gone."

This was indeed something Zhu Yu had never heard before. The rumors outside were that Lu Qing back then, being referred to as the lucky star by Emperor Jin, went with immense honor and care to the temple.

But she never really believed that.

Although she was just a concubine’s daughter in the Prince Shuo Mansion and not given much attention, she could very well see how her elder sister was cherished and pampered by their father.

No matter if the child was one’s own blood, genuinely loving a child meant no elder would let an eight-year-old endure such hardship and travel to an isolated Daoist Temple to transcribe sutras and pray for them!

She just didn’t expect that he, at such a tender age, was caught in a life-and-death situation.

"Poisoned?" Zhu Yu guessed. She knew that before going to Shanqing Temple, Lu Qing was raised in the palace. With all those filthy palace intrigues, one could guess with half a brain.

Sure enough, Lu Qing nodded: "Initially, when I was raised alongside the Empress, everything was fine. But later, the Empress started to get weaker day by day.

The Holy Emperor cherished his wife deeply and had me sent to be raised in another concubine’s palace to avoid stressing the Empress.

After that, I would occasionally fall ill. Initially, it was just minor ailments, so the Emperor didn’t pay much heed, as it’s common for children to have fevers and minor injuries.

Until one day, I was struck by a severe illness. Even the most skilled Imperial Attendant from the Pharmacy Bureau, who typically only treated the Emperor, was at a loss. Various decoctions and pills were administered, but nothing improved; instead, my breath became weaker by the day.

That Imperial Attendant told the Emperor that if even he couldn’t heal me, the only person capable might be the Qi Yun Mountain People at Shanqing Temple.

The Qi Yun Mountain People’s medical skills were profound, and it was said that he could snatch people back from the Yama Hall. However, whether he was willing to help depended on fate.

Upon hearing this, the Emperor immediately wrote a personal letter, pleading with the Qi Yun Mountain People for help and dispatched a team of imperial guards to carry me to Shanqing Temple day and night."

Zhu Yu was slightly surprised, unable to mask her astonishment, which was evident on her face.

Since she knew Lu Qing, all she saw were Emperor Jin’s calculations, manipulations, and precautions, yet never any genuine affection.

Unexpectedly, this person once personally wrote a letter, earnestly asking the reclusive and masterly Qi Yun Mountain People to treat Lu Qing!

"So, did the Qi Yun Mountain People see the Emperor’s letter and decide to save you?" she asked.

But Lu Qing shook his head: "My master merely glanced at it and threw the letter away."

Zhu Yu admitted her skills were still too shallow, letting her earlier astonishment show too soon.

She knew that having such god-like medical skills was extraordinary but didn’t expect the Qi Yun Mountain People to disregard even the Emperor’s personal letter!

It’s worth noting that if it were anyone else, they would’ve housed it in a lavishly decorated silver box, inlaid with the most precious gems, preserving the Emperor’s letter as a family heirloom to be passed down through generations.

Zhu Yu also noticed how naturally Lu Qing addressed the Qi Yun Mountain People, showing trust and kinship.

"Then why did the master later agree to treat you and even accept you as a disciple?" she asked Lu Qing.

"My master discarded the letter and refused to treat me. In a panic, the imperial guards accidentally tilted my sedan chair, causing me to fall out and land at my master’s feet. He glanced at me and suddenly changed his mind. However, as to why he changed his mind, he never told me.

In any case, I narrowly escaped death by sheer fortune."

Lu Qing spoke of this past with a hint of sigh on his face, then regained composure and returned to the matter at hand: "To regulate my body, my master taught me the method of Inner Strength, and I had to practice breathing exercises daily according to his instructions. Over time, my health started to recover.

As I gradually gained mastery of Inner Strength, sealing acupoints became easy.

When acupoints are blocked, blood circulation is naturally hindered, affecting complexion and causing either pallor or redness, depending on which acupoint is sealed.

Poor blood circulation naturally leads to chaotic pulse patterns."

Zhu Yu suddenly realized.

Earlier in Qingshui County, when Lu Qing led people to capture the mute and Dou Dajiang, he found the Fu Lu too conspicuous and left it to watch over Zhu Yu. Zhu Yu saw him practicing martial arts and praised his skills, and the Fu Lu shyly mentioned that his skills were nothing compared to their Prince.

At that time, Zhu Yu thought it might have been a compliment for their master from Fu Lu. But on reflection, she felt it didn’t align with Fu Lu’s character.

Today, witnessing how Lu Qing astonished that elderly Medical Officer opened her eyes.

After a while, Lu Qing’s complexion returned to normal. He got up from the bed and moved around a bit in the bedroom.

The two of them sat at the table, talking for a while before the rune returned.

"Master, Madam!" He seemed a bit hurried, even though he had ridden back, his breath was uneven, as if he had rushed in right after entering, "Just now, when I escorted the Medical Officer back to the Pharmacy Bureau, as soon as we arrived, we saw several people hurrying out.

The Medical Officer quickly asked what was happening, and then..."

He paused for a moment, lowering his voice slightly: "Then those people said that Prince Shu suddenly fainted, unconscious, as stiff and cold as a stone, and no one knows why.

The Princess Consort Duan wept like pears in the rain upon hearing the news in the palace, almost fainting, so the Emperor sent a constable to the Pharmacy Bureau, requesting the Imperial Attendant himself to look into the matter.

The Medical Officer was startled when he heard this and told them you had also suddenly fallen ill here. I saw the Imperial Attendant was quite troubled by the news."

Lu Qing seemed quite satisfied after listening to the rune’s report, nodding: "It looks like acting quickly was the right choice to seize the opportunity.

Otherwise, with Lu Ze making such a big show, my earlier endeavor might not have been enough."