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Even if the odds were against her, Shun Shufen was taking her task seriously, no matter what others expectations about that task may be. She noted down the symptoms of the prince, wrote the disease that happened to have those symptoms and then she tried to check with the books in her father's library which disease she should erase from the list. At first, she thought it would have been easy to cross and certainly, the only one that would be left in the list would be what ailed the prince. Who knew that after spending from morning until the night, she was still left with seven different illnesses that matched the prince's state and each illness had a different treatment. With things as they were, how could she proceed?
Coming home to learn that his daughter didn't eat or rest since morning, stubbornly trying to find the answer in his books, physician Shun sighed and had her come out to eat with him. Who knew that the little girl who usually was chatty asking this and that about his day and then hers would this time be uncharacteristically silent, eating her plate as though she couldn't finish it quicker, almost choking herself. In the fastest speed, she was finished and returned back to his library. The old man could only sigh. Well, maybe that task would teach her about patience.
When night came and she was still reading those books, her father personally came to close them and shooed her to her room. Shufen reluctantly slept, dreaming that she found the right illness for the prince.
The day that followed was the start of her official function as the prince's physician. The little child mimicked her father. The man laughed a bit, opening his back for her to see its content. She noted down every medical tool it had and proceed to fill her small bag the same way.
She was still an apprentice, so she couldn't have other apprentices hold her bag as her father had, but she wouldn't have wanted it anyway. The small child was all smile while carrying her bag, walking ahead of her father, even ushering him to walk faster, as she almost ran her way to the carriage that was parked to bring them to the palace. Physician Shun had a happy smile on his face as he obliged, making the servants smile at the sight of their masters almost running to catch up with his little girl.
The concubine's anger was perfectly reasonable but that she didn't try to mask it more annoyed the two servants accompanying Shufen. What would this concubine have their mistress do? Defy imperial orders? If the woman had the power, then she should directly go and complain to the emperor instead! But these all were still battle of hearts and not a word had been uttered.
The prince who in the beginning wouldn't utter a word, after a couple of days, took the initiative to talk to her,
"Will you be able to cure this prince?"
His voice had been feeble and Shufen had to strain her ears to hear him. If she had to be honest, she really didn't know, but those words, her father had said that one shouldn't utter them casually.
"This subject will try her best."
He gave a wry smile, apparently not believing her and turned his head to the side.
Although her father wasn't given permission to enter concubine's Han's quarters, it didn't mean Shufen couldn't describe the symptoms to him. These days they had discussed it a bit, not as much as physician Shun would have wanted for three days after assigning the prince to his daughter, the emperor had the chief physician leave the capital to go east, to his brother, Prince Li's manor, whose child was said to be ill. So, although father and daughter were communicating, the interval of waits between one letter to the other took at best three days and when it rained and the roads were unpraticable, it could even extend to a week. Between asking some questions and details on certain things, the little girl had also confided in her bafflement, wondering with her dad why a prince was treated so. Why was a royal concubine only with one servant, even she, had more servants and she wasn't anywhere near part of the royal family! Her father had rebuked her for asking these in letters and also said that he would explain more when she grew up and for now, she should wait for his return for any other question like that.
Besides her father, she also tried to ask other people on their expertise. The other elder physicians didn't want to give her the time of the day when she had a question and it was pointless to ask the younger generations. If they weren't giving her the cold shoulders they were trying to bully her.
Just what was ailing the eleventh prince? Although she was slowly treating the appearing symptoms and he appeared better, she knew it was far from enough.
The prince was called Da Zhihao and was the twelfth prince. Since the emperor had yet to bestow an honorary name upon him, he was called twelfth prince for the time being. As he started slowly regaining his strength, the prince smiled quite a lot and him who previously was indifferent upon seeing Shufn started smiling widely each time she entered his room to treat him. So happy was he actually that he directly expressed it,
"You are this prince luck bringer, do you want to be friends?"
Maybe it was because he had been in the cold palace since he was a child of mere months, but there was very little bearing of a prince in him. Apart from the fact that he called himself by 'this prince' then he was exactly like the children in the medicinal hall, displaying his joy, anger, disappointment, every emotion was easy to read.
Since her father had warned her repeatedly, Shufen had tried to talk as less as possible to him, only opening her mouth to ask about his current state, or if he was hurting where exactly. But now that the other party had openly asked for her friendship, how was she to decline tactfully?
He was fast to continue, "there are so few people coming, won't you accompany this prince more?"
Remembering the shabby entrance and how this vast courtyard had only three people leaving in it, Shufen swallowed back the polite refusal at the tip of her tongue and instead, encouragingly said, to lift back the mood of the other person who seemed to have grown morose,"As long as you don’t disdain this subject for being a girl, her friendship will always follow you.”
Coming home to learn that his daughter didn't eat or rest since morning, stubbornly trying to find the answer in his books, physician Shun sighed and had her come out to eat with him. Who knew that the little girl who usually was chatty asking this and that about his day and then hers would this time be uncharacteristically silent, eating her plate as though she couldn't finish it quicker, almost choking herself. In the fastest speed, she was finished and returned back to his library. The old man could only sigh. Well, maybe that task would teach her about patience.
When night came and she was still reading those books, her father personally came to close them and shooed her to her room. Shufen reluctantly slept, dreaming that she found the right illness for the prince.
***
The day that followed was the start of her official function as the prince's physician. The little child mimicked her father. The man laughed a bit, opening his back for her to see its content. She noted down every medical tool it had and proceed to fill her small bag the same way.
She was still an apprentice, so she couldn't have other apprentices hold her bag as her father had, but she wouldn't have wanted it anyway. The small child was all smile while carrying her bag, walking ahead of her father, even ushering him to walk faster, as she almost ran her way to the carriage that was parked to bring them to the palace. Physician Shun had a happy smile on his face as he obliged, making the servants smile at the sight of their masters almost running to catch up with his little girl.
Although Shufen was young, she was still a girl and the prince was a boy. For propriety sake, her father arranged two servants-girls to follow her around her rounds in the palace. Hua and Jiu. They were both around the same age, sixteen. These past few days, they had gone through intense training to adapt to the etiquettes of the palace, at the time, physician Shun simply wanted these girls to be with his daughter when he would go on his rounds in the palace but now that Shufen had been selected to attend to the prince, he couldn't be more glad of his foresight.
So, father and daughter went different ways after entering the palace. The chief physician going to his apprentices while Shufen went in the direction of the cold palace.
Along the way, no matter what the girls did to help their mistress carry her bag, the little girl was unwilling, so they could only sigh and resignedly followed behind their mistress, who herself was following behind a palace's servant. It took a long time, but once they reached, Shufen reluctantly passed her bag to Hua for the little girl still wanted to look professional and in her mind, her father wasn't the one holding his medicinal bag when meetings his patients.
Concubine Han and her servant received them with a strained smile. One still had to remember that the emperor gave her son to a child-physician to treat back to health. What kind of joke was this? However, she wasn't in a position to refuse. She could only clench her hands and cursed in her heart.
So, father and daughter went different ways after entering the palace. The chief physician going to his apprentices while Shufen went in the direction of the cold palace.
Along the way, no matter what the girls did to help their mistress carry her bag, the little girl was unwilling, so they could only sigh and resignedly followed behind their mistress, who herself was following behind a palace's servant. It took a long time, but once they reached, Shufen reluctantly passed her bag to Hua for the little girl still wanted to look professional and in her mind, her father wasn't the one holding his medicinal bag when meetings his patients.
Concubine Han and her servant received them with a strained smile. One still had to remember that the emperor gave her son to a child-physician to treat back to health. What kind of joke was this? However, she wasn't in a position to refuse. She could only clench her hands and cursed in her heart.
The concubine's anger was perfectly reasonable but that she didn't try to mask it more annoyed the two servants accompanying Shufen. What would this concubine have their mistress do? Defy imperial orders? If the woman had the power, then she should directly go and complain to the emperor instead! But these all were still battle of hearts and not a word had been uttered.
The prince who in the beginning wouldn't utter a word, after a couple of days, took the initiative to talk to her,
"Will you be able to cure this prince?"
His voice had been feeble and Shufen had to strain her ears to hear him. If she had to be honest, she really didn't know, but those words, her father had said that one shouldn't utter them casually.
"This subject will try her best."
He gave a wry smile, apparently not believing her and turned his head to the side.
Although her father wasn't given permission to enter concubine's Han's quarters, it didn't mean Shufen couldn't describe the symptoms to him. These days they had discussed it a bit, not as much as physician Shun would have wanted for three days after assigning the prince to his daughter, the emperor had the chief physician leave the capital to go east, to his brother, Prince Li's manor, whose child was said to be ill. So, although father and daughter were communicating, the interval of waits between one letter to the other took at best three days and when it rained and the roads were unpraticable, it could even extend to a week. Between asking some questions and details on certain things, the little girl had also confided in her bafflement, wondering with her dad why a prince was treated so. Why was a royal concubine only with one servant, even she, had more servants and she wasn't anywhere near part of the royal family! Her father had rebuked her for asking these in letters and also said that he would explain more when she grew up and for now, she should wait for his return for any other question like that.
Besides her father, she also tried to ask other people on their expertise. The other elder physicians didn't want to give her the time of the day when she had a question and it was pointless to ask the younger generations. If they weren't giving her the cold shoulders they were trying to bully her.
Just what was ailing the eleventh prince? Although she was slowly treating the appearing symptoms and he appeared better, she knew it was far from enough.
The prince was called Da Zhihao and was the twelfth prince. Since the emperor had yet to bestow an honorary name upon him, he was called twelfth prince for the time being. As he started slowly regaining his strength, the prince smiled quite a lot and him who previously was indifferent upon seeing Shufn started smiling widely each time she entered his room to treat him. So happy was he actually that he directly expressed it,
"You are this prince luck bringer, do you want to be friends?"
Maybe it was because he had been in the cold palace since he was a child of mere months, but there was very little bearing of a prince in him. Apart from the fact that he called himself by 'this prince' then he was exactly like the children in the medicinal hall, displaying his joy, anger, disappointment, every emotion was easy to read.
Since her father had warned her repeatedly, Shufen had tried to talk as less as possible to him, only opening her mouth to ask about his current state, or if he was hurting where exactly. But now that the other party had openly asked for her friendship, how was she to decline tactfully?
He was fast to continue, "there are so few people coming, won't you accompany this prince more?"
Remembering the shabby entrance and how this vast courtyard had only three people leaving in it, Shufen swallowed back the polite refusal at the tip of her tongue and instead, encouragingly said, to lift back the mood of the other person who seemed to have grown morose,"As long as you don’t disdain this subject for being a girl, her friendship will always follow you.”
The prince smiled and
answered, “En, friends then”
And so, Shufen started to prolong her stay and actually started coming, instead of every two days, she was entering the palace every day.
They would talk about the books Shufen read and she would bring him some since he didn't have access to them here.
One day, he asked of her to describe for him how was the life outside this courtyard, the life outside the palace and listening to her, he would seem to daydream then and his longing face sometimes made Shufen wondered if she could somehow sneak him outside and let him see the world for himself.
And so, Shufen started to prolong her stay and actually started coming, instead of every two days, she was entering the palace every day.
They would talk about the books Shufen read and she would bring him some since he didn't have access to them here.
One day, he asked of her to describe for him how was the life outside this courtyard, the life outside the palace and listening to her, he would seem to daydream then and his longing face sometimes made Shufen wondered if she could somehow sneak him outside and let him see the world for himself.
***
Shufen was an oddity in the palace and although the first month went by without any incident, the start of the second him since the prince had been assigned to her, she met with one of the princesses. To say that it was a coincidence would have been false, instead, the other person deliberately waited for her at one point in the road going to concubine Han's cold palace.
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