The Splendid Brocade of the Painting Physician – Chapter 60

Chapter 60: Miraculous

“Ru-furen” originally referred to the beloved consort of Liu Bang, the Han Gaozu Emperor, and later became a specific term for concubines.

Hearing Xiao Jinyu address Princess Yunyin in such a manner, Xiao Jian, though angered, dared not show it. At the moment, treating his son’s injuries was paramount.

“Alright!”

After suppressing his anger for a while, he finally left with Steward Zhao and hurried back to the Xiao Residence.

Upon learning of Xiao Jinyu’s demand, Princess Yunyin, already on edge, erupted in a furious roar.

“Impossible! To have this Princess apologize to that wretched servant girl? Absolutely impossible!”

Xiao Jian also felt helpless, and even somewhat impatient, saying, “This matter was your fault in the first place. If you hadn’t insisted on sending people to assassinate her, repeatedly trying to put her to death, Eighth Young Master wouldn’t be in this state now. It’s not like my Xiao family can’t afford to raise one more child. What difference does it make if she returns? It’s just one more mouth to feed. Can you truly not tolerate the existence of A’luan and her daughter?”

Princess Yunyin gave a bitter laugh, then sneered, “When I said I wanted to kill her, you didn’t object. Now you’re blaming me! Xiao Jian, my Chen Imperial Family allowed you to enter the court as an official and enjoy peace, but this imperial favor can be taken back!”

These words were a clear threat. Although aristocratic families possessed a thousand years of heritage, far exceeding that of a humble, military-originated imperial family, ultimately, for a family to maintain its glory forever, relying solely on the prestige accumulated by their ancestors wasn’t enough. Without officials serving in the court, or rather, without a descendant holding an important position in the court, the family would eventually decline. Even if he didn’t want to admit it, this was an undeniable fact.

Like the Langya Wang Clan of today, they were no longer the force they were during the Jin Dynasty, when “the Wang and the Sima shared the world.” They had even vanished from Jiankang City after the Hou Jing Rebellion.

“Then do as you please. If something were to happen to Eighth Young Master, don’t blame me, his father, for not fulfilling my responsibility!”

Xiao Jian flung his sleeve and was about to leave when Princess Yunyin suddenly grabbed him.

“Wait, you really saw Xiao Xian standing up? He’s recovered?”

“Yes, he’s recovered! Completely recovered. He looks refreshed, elegant, and handsome. His appearance and demeanor resemble my father’s back in the day. Even his eyes and brows bear some resemblance to A’luan… It’s just a pity that all these years… I’ve wronged him!”

As he spoke, a hint of sorrow and regret crept into Xiao Jian’s tone.

“You regret it?” Princess Yunyin asked with a cold laugh, seeming to sense his guilt.

“Forget it. Think it over carefully! Do you want to abandon Eighth Young Master for your pride and self-respect, or…”

“No, I can’t abandon Eighth Young Master! He’s the son I carried for ten months, my only son. How could I possibly abandon him?”

✿✿✿

After having an audience with the new Southern Chen Emperor, Chen Xu, alongside Xu Ling, it wasn’t until the third quarter of the hour of the Horse （around 1:15 PM） that Gao Changgong emerged from Tai City.

Seeing his figure approaching the palace gate, Lu Yu immediately drove the carriage forward. Only after Gao Changgong had boarded the carriage did he ask, “Your Highness, why did the new Southern Chen Emperor summon you for an audience so urgently?”

The Northern Zhou envoys were still three days away from arriving in Jiankang. If Gao Changgong hadn’t come to Jiankang to investigate personal matters, he wouldn’t have arrived so early.

“This new emperor has quite some ambition. He has aspirations to unify the land under his rule. He summoned me today to try and recruit me to serve the Southern Chen.”

“But Your Highness is a member of our Great Qi’s imperial clan, and besides, the Southerners are so weak…”

In this era, whether it was the Southern Chen, the Northern Qi, or the Northern Zhou, their rulers were all eager to recruit talented individuals from all over the world to serve them. Therefore, there was no concept of absolute loyalty to a particular monarch, even for descendants of the imperial clan. During the reign of Emperor Wu of Liang, his sons Xiao Zhengde and Xiao Zong had successively betrayed the Southern Liang and defected to the Northern Wei. Xiao Zong even changed his name to Xiao Zan, married Princess Shouyang, the elder sister of Emperor Xiaozhuang of Northern Wei, and rose to the position of Grand Commandant, establishing a separate residence and administration, and serving as the Inspector of Qizhou.

Thinking of this, Gao Changgong smiled and said, “This new emperor is not weak. He knows that our Qi ruler is muddleheaded and tyrannical, favoring treacherous officials and unjustly killing loyal ones. And now that I have achieved fame in a single battle, my reputation has soared, and I’m bound to become a thorn in the side of Empress Hu and His Majesty.”

At this point, Lu Yu became somewhat anxious and said, “Then what will Your Highness do? If Empress Hu truly intends to kill you, then…” He then changed his question, “Will you agree to serve this new Southern Chen Emperor?”

Gao Changgong remained silent for a moment, then shook his head. “Naturally not. However, we could form an alliance with the Southern Chen to jointly resist the Northern Zhou. The Northern Zhou is growing increasingly powerful and might harbor ambitions to join forces with the Turks to destroy our Qi State. And also…”

After a pause, Gao Changgong said in a deep voice, “This new emperor, he seems to know quite a bit about my background. He might even know something about my mother…”

✿✿✿

“What?” Lu Yu exclaimed in astonishment, staring at Gao Changgong intently. “You’ve been searching for your mother for so many years without any leads, and he, an emperor of the Southern Chen, actually knows something about your background?”

Gao Changgong also had doubts, but Emperor Chen Xu’s suggestive words clearly held a deeper meaning.

“Changgong, your visit to Jiankang isn’t solely for the purpose of delivering the national letter and forming an alliance with my Southern Chen, is it? I’ve heard that your mother’s identity is unknown, and you’ve been searching for her.

Changgong, why don’t you reconsider what I said today? Perhaps I can help you resolve this matter that weighs on your heart!”

As he pondered, Lu Yu wondered aloud, “Could it be that Changgong’s mother is in Northern Zhou territory? This new emperor, when he was still the Prince of Shixing, was held hostage in the Northern Zhou. Did he perhaps meet your mother? But how would a Southern Chen emperor know who your mother is?”

Gao Changgong remained silent. His childhood memories were a blank slate. He only had a feeling that he might have come to the Southern Chen with his mother, but he couldn’t recall anything specific.

Rubbing his aching forehead, he suddenly changed the subject and asked, “By the way, how is the person you were assigned to watch?”

“Your Highness is referring to the young lady, or Young Master Xiao Xian?”

“What do you think?”

Lu Yu had initially intended to tease him further, but seeing the threatening look on his Highness’s face, he caved in without needing to be told.

“Speaking of Young Master Xiao Xian, Your Highness, let me tell you, it’s miraculous. Our men kept watch there all night, and as you predicted, Princess Yunyin sent four or five assassins to kill him. But they were all dealt with by a single person. And today, at the hour of the Dragon （around 7:00 AM）, just as dawn broke, Young Master Xiao Xian walked out of his room!

Your Highness, he walked out! Without a wheelchair!

Now, the entire Jiankang City is probably buzzing about this most handsome and talented man in Jiankang, Xiao Xian!

Oh, and of course, the young lady!”

He chuckled, and Gao Changgong looked at him, asking, “Dealt with by a single person? Who?”

“That, I don’t know. But to be able to single-handedly take down five top-notch assassins, this person must be extraordinary!”

Gao Changgong’s handsome face turned cold, as if to say, “No kidding.” After a while, he said, “Forget it, since they have such a skilled protector by their side, let’s withdraw our men.”

“Changgong, don’t you want to know how the young lady is doing now?” Lu Yu asked with a tempting, low laugh.

“She cured Xiao Xian?”

“Yes! This divine physician is truly miraculous. A man who had been paralyzed for over ten years was cured by her in one night! And this morning, something even more interesting happened. The head of the Xiao family, Xiao Jian, went to the Elegant Poetry Pavilion. Guess what happened next?”

Gao Changgong didn’t speak, but a flicker of curiosity appeared in his eyes as he looked at Lu Yu.

Seeing that he had finally piqued his interest, Lu Yu proudly declared, “That young lady drove away the head of the Xiao family! And before he left, she even extorted five thousand strings of cash from him. Your Highness, you should have seen how sharp-tongued she was! She refuted the head of the Xiao family until he was red-faced and utterly humiliated. He must have gone back to plead with his “Ru-furen” by now!”

“Ru-furen?”

“Yes, the young lady called Princess Yunyin a concubine! Isn’t “Ru-furen” just another word for concubine?”

Then, Lu Yu added, “Your Highness, should we go and have a look? See how she negotiates with that “Ru-furen,” Princess Yunyin?”