Having received this signal, Xue Yan practically wanted to pack up his bedding and luggage and move straight into the Jun family’s residence.
Of course, that was only a thought. After all, the person in charge of the Duke of Yongning’s residence was still Madam Jun, not Jun Huailang.
Every day, he behaved like a young man who had just fallen head over heels for someone. As soon as morning court ended, he would have someone bundle up the memorials on the imperial desk and send them home, then head straight for the Duke of Yongning’s residence.
Jun Huailang spent his days at home reading, so Xue Yan would keep him company. Occasionally, he would deliberately misbehave, cornering Jun Huailang somewhere in the residence and forcibly stealing several kisses.
Jun Huailang could not get away. After being kissed until his face turned bright red, all he could do was scold Xue Yan a few times, though his reprimands were never particularly fierce.
Xue Yan had always been thick-skinned. Even when Jun Huailang scolded him, he could not stop smiling.
Jun Huailang simply had no way to deal with him.
However, staying at the Duke of Yongning’s residence for an extended period was not as easy as Xue Yan had hoped.
Madam Jun often had nothing particular to occupy her time. Sometimes, right in the middle of one of his amorous advances, she would appear to inspect what they were doing.
Xue Yan was not afraid of making Jun Huailang angry, but he was very much afraid of being caught by Madam Jun.
On several occasions, he had hurriedly released Jun Huailang and hastily adopted an utterly solemn expression to face Madam Jun. His frantic attempts to look respectable never failed to make Jun Huailang laugh.
After Madam Jun had scrutinized the two of them, questioned them about this and that, and subtly reminded Xue Yan not to overstay his welcome in her home, Jun Huailang would invariably tease him afterward.
“What happened? You’re a complete rogue when you’re alone with me. Why are you afraid of letting my mother see?”
Only after Madam Jun had gone some distance away would Xue Yan move closer to him.
“What sort of behavior would that be in front of my mother-in-law?” he said with a grin.
Jun Huailang’s face flushed. “What nonsense are you talking about?!”
Xue Yan continued teasing him until he was nearly annoyed, then finally grinned shamelessly.
“All right, whether you call her my mother-in-law or my mother, isn’t she my mother either way?”
Jun Huailang gritted his teeth, yet could not find a single argument to refute him.
Still, even though Xue Yan managed to find plenty of time every day to linger at the Duke of Yongning’s residence, there remained a great many matters in the palace that required his attention.
Xue Yunhong had occupied the throne for only a few days, yet in his efforts to clear the Xu family of their crimes and reward those who had assisted them, he had made sweeping changes to the administration. The entire imperial court had been thrown into chaos.
Xue Yan had to clean up not only the mess his younger brother had left behind, but also keep an eye on Emperor Qingping’s condition.
The Imperial Medical Academy was completely helpless. All the physicians could do was keep Emperor Qingping going with precious medicinal ingredients day after day.
Xue Yan had already dispatched people south to summon the renowned physician who had been sent to Jiangnan, and to invite the legendary doctor from Yangzhou to emerge from seclusion and accompany them back to Chang’an.
That divine physician had originally been extremely difficult to find. However, ever since Xue Yan had gone to Jiangnan, he had dragged the man out of his mountain retreat several times. After a while, the physician had grown too weary to keep putting on airs with him.
Five or six days later, the carriage from Jiangnan finally arrived in the capital. It did not stop along the way, passing straight through Xuanwu Gate and entering the imperial city.
As it happened, Xue Yan was in a particularly bad mood that day.
He had been visiting the Jun family so frequently that, although Madam Jun still had plenty of reservations about him, she had generally refrained from saying much.
But this day was different.
He had been holding Jun Huailang in his arms in the latter’s room, taking liberties with him, when Madam Jun walked in on them.
Although his advances had not gone too far, he had indeed been embracing the eldest son of the household right in front of Madam Jun. Her expression had darkened on the spot, and she had promptly shown him the door, completely disregarding the fact that he was now His Highness Prince Guangling, the man commanding the entire imperial court.
She even forbade him from entering through the family’s main gate again.
This was not much of a problem for Xue Yan. If he was not allowed to use the gate, he could simply climb over the wall.
But just then, someone from the palace arrived with a report: the divine physician from Jiangnan had entered Chang’an and was on his way to the imperial city.
Xue Yan’s expression immediately turned unpleasant, and he returned to the imperial city in a foul mood.
The front hall of Yonghe Palace had always been where the emperor received his court officials.
When Xue Yan returned to Yonghe Palace, he found the divine physician sitting leisurely in a chair, drinking tea and eating pastries.
Seeing Xue Yan arrive, the physician gave him a slow nod without bothering to rise and pay his respects.
“The food in your palace really is delicious,” he said cheerfully. “I’ve decided not to live in seclusion anymore. Just arrange some idle position for me at the Imperial Medical Academy. I think I’d quite like that.”
The physician had always been eccentric. The fact that he was being so amiable toward Xue Yan already counted as a considerable concession.
Yet Xue Yan’s face was dark as he immediately snapped, “You came back so quickly. Couldn’t stand living in your precious mountain wilderness anymore?”
The physician froze. The pastry in his hand nearly made him choke so badly that his eyes rolled back.
He had rarely been so pleasant toward anyone, only to be met with such a sharp, unpleasant barb.
Now his expression darkened too.
“You summoned me all this way just to insult me?” the physician demanded, his face turning sour.
“Come on, then. Where’s the patient? I’ll examine him, and then I can hurry back to my mountains.”
——
Thus, when Emperor Qingping woke that day, he was greeted by two thoroughly displeased faces.
Xue Yan was in a terrible mood. He stood to one side with his arms crossed, not a trace of a smile on his face. The divine physician, having been abruptly angered by him, had yet to recover his composure. He sat down beside the imperial bed with an equally sour expression.
Emperor Qingping looked at one, then the other. He wanted nothing more than to give them both a thorough tongue-lashing and order someone to drag them outside for a sound beating.
Unfortunately, he could neither move nor speak. All he could do was lie there and watch himself suffer this indignity.
The physician grabbed his arm and immediately placed his fingers against his pulse.
Xue Yan stood nearby.
The physician felt his pulse for a while. Gradually, his expression began to change.
He pondered for a moment but said nothing.
Xue Yan noticed the change in his mood and pushed himself away from the pillar he had been leaning against.
“What is it?” he asked.
The physician frowned and released Emperor Qingping’s wrist.
“It is indeed poisoning,” he said. “The dose was substantial. Even with treatment, it will be impossible to cure him completely.”
Xue Yan asked, “How much can you accomplish?”
The physician considered the question.
“If he takes medicine for three to five years, he may be able to speak haltingly and move his limbs a little. His lifespan should not be affected. But there is no possibility of him ever recovering to the point where he can live like a normal person.”
Xue Yan frowned.
He understood what this meant: he would have to spend a long time cleaning up Emperor Qingping’s messes on his behalf.
Naturally, he was reluctant. But he had already given Emperor Qingping his word.
“Do everything you can to treat him,” he said. “Also, what kind of poison is this?”
“His pulse alone isn’t enough to identify it.”
As he spoke, the physician stood and retrieved the bundle he had brought with him. From it, he took out the silver needles he used in his daily practice.
“This poison has penetrated the bones. If I administer acupuncture, I may be able to uncover some clues,” he explained.
Xue Yan nodded and let him proceed as he saw fit.
The acupuncture treatment took nearly an entire shichen—almost two hours.
Xue Yan withdrew to the outer room and had Jinbao bring over the remaining memorials that still needed to be processed. It was not until dusk, when the sky had darkened, that the physician finally emerged from Emperor Qingping’s bedchamber.
Xue Yan looked up and saw him stop in front of him.
“Have you found anything?” Xue Yan asked.
The physician nodded.
“This poison is extremely potent, and it is so well concealed that it could not have originated in the Central Plains,” he said.
Xue Yan asked, “Jiangxi?”
After all, the Xu family had connections with the Prince of Yunnan. The mountainous forests of Jiangxi were remote and secluded, and the region had long been home to people skilled in poisons and gu magic. It seemed likely that the Prince of Yunnan had supplied the poison.
But the physician shook his head.
“No,” he replied. “This poison can only be found in the far northern lands bordering the Turks.”
Xue Yan raised his head and looked at him.
The physician continued, “I have read extensively through medical texts and miscellaneous records. The last time this same poison appeared was more than ten years ago.”
Xue Yan asked, “Where?”
The physician looked at him.
“Yan Commandery,” he said.