Chapter 144: Leaving the Palace

Upon seeing this, Li Chenqian’s mood improved vastly. He felt that the wound on his foot was no longer all that painful, and his gaze towards Liu Yitiao carried an extra layer of gratitude and admiration.

He felt that this Liu Yitiao was practically a blessing sent to him by the heavens. Not only had he saved his life and cured his foot ailment, but even his mother the Empress’s illness had been alleviated under his hands. Now, with a mere flick of his wrist, this man had wiped out Prefect Wang—whom he had long wished to deal with but could not—along with the shadowy figure standing behind Prefect Wang.

"Wonderful! Excellent!" Li Chenqian cheered inwardly, while also resolving that for today’s events alone, he must never treat this Liu Yitiao poorly in the future, and yes, not to mention his brother who was eager to become an official.

Li Shimin returned to the edge of the bed and sat down, patting Li Chenqian’s hand as he said, "Rest assured, Qian'er. Having suffered this unprovoked disaster, Your Father will surely secure justice for you. I want to see precisely who dares to plot against the Crown Prince of our Great Tang?!"

His expression was exceptionally stern. And understandably so; now that there were people bold enough to plot against both the Crown Prince and the Empress, there was no guarantee that one day Li Shimin himself might not become the target of that person's machinations. He would never allow such a thing to happen.

"This son thanks Your Majesty!" Li Chenqian sat up straight in excitement, ignoring the pain in his foot as he bowed deeply to Li Shimin—grateful for Li Shimin’s concern, and equally for that title of Crown Prince spoken from Li Shimin's lips.

"Well, well, alright, lie back down quickly, and do not agitate the wound." Li Shimin gently helped Li Chenqian back down, a trace of paternal tenderness filling his eyes as he looked at him.

Seeing this, Empress Zhangsun’s pale face also broke into a hint of a smile—the kind that was deeply comforting and reassuring.

"Your Majesty, Qian'er has just undergone surgery involving bone and flesh, leaving him severely depleted in vital energy and blood and physically weak. Let us allow him to rest a bit longer," Empress Zhangsun said softly to Li Shimin.

"Indeed, what the Empress says is reasonable!" Hearing this, Li Shimin stood up and instructed Li Ran, who had been following closely by his side: "Go and give instructions to the imperial kitchens later; henceforth, the Crown Prince's meals must primarily focus on replenishing blood and vital energy. And have the Imperial Medical Bureau draw up some decoctions for the same purpose. We must nourish the Crown Prince back to health as early as possible. There are still numerous affairs in the court that require the Crown Prince to handle; lying in bed like this indefinitely will not do."

"Understood, Your Majesty, this servant will go attend to it right away!" Li Ran bowed deeply in greeting and then withdrew from the room.

"Thank Your Majesty!" He did not know what day it was today, but right beside Li Chenqian's ears, magpies seemed to be constantly calling. Numerous affairs in the court? Did this mean that once his foot healed, His Majesty would heavily employ and trust him?

"Alright," Li Shimin gave Li Chenqian a deep, lingering look before saying gently, "Qian'er has injuries on his body and requires ample rest and recuperation. Your Mother and I will not stay here to disturb you any longer; get some good rest!" With that, Li Shimin turned and walked out.

"Rest well, Qian'er. Mother will come to see you again tomorrow." Empress Zhangsun nodded gently at Li Chenqian, then had attendants lift her wheeled armchair, following Li Shimin out of the bedchamber. Liu Yitiao and the others closely followed behind.

"This son respectfully sends off Your Majesty and Mother!" Li Chenqian bowed to their departing backs, after which his heart relaxed completely. A wave of drowsiness washed over him, causing him to lean sideways on the couch and instantly fall asleep.

Returning to the main hall of the Eastern Palace, Li Shimin and the Empress sat at the head. Liu Yitiao, Sun Simiao, and Daoist Changmei stood in the middle, while the assisting imperial physicians had already been kindly dismissed by Li Shimin.

"Please take a seat, Master Liu and Daoist Master Sun!" Li Shimin raised a hand in gesture. After Liu Yitiao and the others sat down sideways, he continued, "That the Crown Prince's foot ailment could be completely cured this time is entirely due to the tremendous assistance of you two divine physicians. The Empress and I are deeply grateful, and hereby specially reward Master Liu and Daoist Master Sun with three hundred strings of cash and two hundred bolts of silk each. We hope the two divine physicians will graciously accept."

"Thank you for the generous reward, Your Majesty, Your Highness the Empress!" Liu Yitiao accepted it straightforwardly without any false modesty. However, his little heart thumped wildly against his ribs. Three hundred strings of cash, two hundred bolts of silk—that was an enormous fortune! If he converted all of this into modern currency, would he now be considered a millionaire?

"Many thanks, Your Majesty, Your Highness the Empress." Old Daoist Sun also made a Daoist obeisance and accepted the reward. Well, worldly wealth was after all just an external possession, but, ahem, having a bit more of this external possession certainly did no harm.

"Very well," Li Shimin nodded, and then instructed them, "Both divine physicians have been busy all morning and must be tired. There is no need to wait here any longer; you should both return and rest."

"Ah, well, Your Majesty, this commoner has a matter to report!" Liu Yitiao stood up, bowed deeply to Li Shimin and Empress Zhangsun, and said, "Presently, Her Majesty the Empress's condition has basically stabilized, and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's foot injury only requires quiet recuperation. This commoner's continued stay within the imperial palace serves little further purpose, so this commoner wishes to request Your Majesty's permission to leave the palace."

"This," Li Shimin mused for a moment, and seeing Empress Zhangsun gently nod in agreement, he said to Liu Yitiao, "Very well then. Once Master Liu leaves the palace, you shall temporarily reside at General Gongsun's estate. If any unforeseen developments arise in the future, it will be convenient to summon you once more."

"Thank you, Your Majesty. This commoner obeys the decree." Liu Yitiao bowed in farewell.

Inwardly, however, he was offering a wry smile. Was this old Li trying to tether him for life? He had to stay at General Gongsun's estate—could he not even return home for a visit?

"Little Brother Liu!" Sun Simiao hurried forward a couple of steps to catch up from behind, making a Daoist salute to Liu Yitiao. "Watching Little Brother Liu's surgical techniques today has left this poor Daoist deeply moved. There are some matters I wish to seek guidance on from Little Brother Liu, and I earnestly hope Little Brother Liu will not withhold your instruction!"

"Daoist Master Sun is too polite," Liu Yitiao returned the salute. "Daoist Master Sun's acupuncture techniques are likewise deeply fascinating to this junior. Compared to the Daoist Master's medical arts, these methods of mine are merely external surface-level tricks, hardly worth mentioning."

"No, no, no, Little Brother Liu is being too modest," Sun Simiao said. "Little Brother Liu's surgery involving cutting flesh and bone is something this poor Daoist has only witnessed in his entire life; it is truly wondrous and extraordinary. Especially that final step where Little Brother Liu sewed up the wound—it is nothing short of miraculous. This poor Daoist never imagined that wounds on a human body could actually be mended just like sewing clothes. Moreover, this poor Daoist observed that Little Brother Liu's surgical techniques were highly proficient, with every movement of the blade and every pause exceptionally crisp and devoid of any fear. It is evident that this is not your first time performing such a procedure. This poor Daoist is truly full of admiration!"

"Daoist Master Sun flatters me." Praised in such a manner by the 'King of Medicine', Liu Yitiao could not help feeling a slight swell of pride. In this era, medical science had not yet been divided into internal medicine and surgery; traditional physicians generally practiced across the board, handling both internal and external ailments—comprehensive yet lacking in specialization.

Furthermore, the majority of physicians had severe biases, heavily favoring internal medicine over external treatments. When encountering severe trauma or bone injuries, most would simply apply some healing powder and wrap it up, leaving the patient's survival entirely to fate.

Therefore, when Sun Simiao, a grand master in the world of traditional Chinese medicine, witnessed Liu Yitiao applying professional surgical treatment methods, it was only natural that his heart would be deeply stirred.

Liu Yitiao led Sun Simiao to his small room and began discussing various concepts with him: the idea of disinfection, the circulation of blood, wound infection, and several crucial precautions during surgery.

This discussion lasted until around three or four in the afternoon. Seeing that the day was growing late, Sun Simiao reluctantly rose to take his leave, scheduling to continue their conversation the next day.

It was evident that regarding Liu Yitiao's theories and insights on surgery, Sun Simiao was already thoroughly convinced.

"Master Liu!" Feng Xiaoyi arrived at the courtyard carrying a flagon of clear wine, shouting loudly at Liu Yitiao's door before pushing it open. Seeing that Liu Yitiao was busy packing his clothes, he smiled and said, "Master Liu, you should leave such trivial tasks to Xiao Suo and the others! Come, come, hearing that you are leaving today, Feng has specially brought along some fine wine and dishes to see you off!"

Signaling his attendants to set out the food and wine, Feng Xiaoyi pulled Liu Yitiao down to sit at a chair, personally poured a cup of wine, and handed it to him. "Here, Master, Feng will propose a toast to you first! Please forgive me if there has been any lack of proper hospitality over these past few days!"

"Commander Feng is too courteous," Liu Yitiao accepted the cup with both hands and smiled. "Thanks to Commander Feng's care these past few days, everything has been fine for me here. It is only right that I should toast Commander Feng. Come, let me drain my cup first!"

Raising the cup with both hands, Liu Yitiao tilted his head back and downed the wine in one go.

"Master Liu, oh—Commander Feng!" At that moment, Wang Dacheng also walked in carrying a small flagon of wine. Seeing that Feng Xiaoyi was present as well, he flashed a grin at him, then bowed in greeting to both Liu Yitiao and Feng Xiaoyi. "Hearing that Master Liu is leaving today, Dacheng also wanted to come and see Master off."

"Oh, Dacheng is it?" Seeing this, Liu Yitiao felt a small pang of warmth and began to inwardly reproach himself: had he perhaps been a bit too harsh with him before? He stood up and warmly pulled Wang Dacheng to sit at the table, smiling. "Come, come, sit down and have a couple of cups with us."

Wang Dacheng placed his flagon on the table, bowed with a grin, and said, "Thank you, Master Liu, thank you Commander Feng! Then this junior won't stand on ceremony." With that, he eagerly took a seat right beside Feng Xiaoyi.

"You rascal, you certainly are quick-witted," Feng Xiaoyi patted Wang Dacheng on the shoulder and chided with a smile, "Knowing how to latch onto Master Liu as a towering tree of support. Your martial arts have improved so rapidly these past few days—I wager it's entirely thanks to Master Liu's guidance, isn't it?"

"Commander Feng, your insight is brilliant," Wang Dacheng fawned with a smile. "If not for Master Liu's pointers these past few days, this subordinate wouldn't have made any progress at all. So hearing that Master is leaving now, this subordinate truly feels a bit reluctant to see him go."

"Get lost! Don't put on those girlish airs and disgrace me!" Feng Xiaoyi slapped Wang Dacheng on the head again and said, "What reluctant to see him go? It's not a parting of life and death; if you have free time in the future, you can simply go visit Master!"

"Hehe, Commander Feng sees further after all; it was just Dacheng being sentimental. Come, I'll penalize myself with a cup!" Wang Dacheng poured himself a drink from his flagon, raised his cup to gesture towards Liu Yitiao and Feng Xiaoyi, and then tilted his head back and drank it down.