The family saw Manbao off as she got into the carriage. It was the first ti the Zhou family had encountered such a situation, and they were a little anxious, "Is everything alright?"
Mr. Zhuang stroked his beard with a smile and said, "It’s alright. It’s just like when there’s an ergency case in the pharmacy, and they need to call a doctor. There’s no need to worry, sir."
He continued, "Didn’t Manbao also stay in the palace to see patients during others’ days off before?"
With this comparison, Old Zhou and the others felt relieved, "That’s good, that’s good."
Old Master Bai sighed, "Just that she can’t see us off tomorrow."
"It’s alright, it’s alright," Old Zhou said cheerfully, "We’ll just co back after the New Year. It’s not like we won’t see each other anymore."
Ms. Qian also shared this view.
Zhou Lijun, however, looked at Old Madam Liu anxiously and asked, "Old Madam, what’s wrong?"
Old Madam Liu patted her hand to reassure her, "It’s nothing, just that we need to prepare so white hemp cloth in the estate."
Old Master Bai sighed too and asked, "Is there enough in the storeroom? We should also bring so on the road, in case we encounter strict officials."
"I’m afraid not," Old Madam Liu said, "Fortunately, today is the sixteenth, and the fabric shops at the night market are open. I’ll send soone to buy so."
It wasn’t just insufficient; they were lacking many. Everyone in the family was healthy; who would keep white hemp cloth for no reason?
Only then did Old Zhou and others belatedly realize, "Why prepare white hemp cloth? Could it be that..."
Old Madam Liu and the others didn’t speak, just nodded lightly.
This was also Manbao’s hint before she left.
The carriage traveled all the way north, directly entering the imperial city, and only stopped at the palace gates. Manbao carried her dicine box as she got off the carriage and hurried to the Empress Dowager’s chambers with the guiding eunuch.
When she arrived, a substantial group of filial sons and virtuous grandsons were already kneeling in the Empress Dowager’s palace. Only the Emperor’s family was in the inner chamber, even Prince Gong had been carried in on a chair.
Imperial Doctor Liu led Doctor Xiao and others in trying to save the Empress Dowager at her bedside. When they saw her arrive, they nodded and made space for her.
Manbao stepped forward to feel the pulse. The pulse was intermittent, clearly beyond hope.
She looked up at Doctor Xiao and Imperial Doctor Liu, then withdrew her hand and stepped aside.
The three of them discussed the pulse and all agreed that nothing more could be done. Imperial Doctor Liu lowered his voice and said, "The Empress Dowager fell into a deep sleep in the afternoon and hasn’t given her last instructions. His Majesty wishes for her to wake and provide so instructions, and see her descendants once more before departing."
It was apparent that the Emperor was already aware of the Empress Dowager’s condition before Manbao arrived. The palace had also begun preparations for her funeral.
They urgently summoned Zhou Man to the palace to perform acupuncture to wake the Empress Dowager, allowing her to give her final instructions, and to ensure she passed with dignity.
Imperial Doctor Liu asked, "Do you have a suitable acupuncture thod? If not, the Imperial Hospital has a set of acupuncture thods for such occasions. If you hadn’t co, we would have perford it ourselves."
This set of acupuncture thods was prepared by the Imperial Hospital for successive emperors and was very precious; however, it required the removal of clothing. Without a female doctor like Zhou Man, they would have had to offend the Empress Dowager.
But since there was a female doctor, the Emperor naturally chose soone who would provide comfort and dignity to his mother, hence summoning Zhou Man, who was on a day off, to the palace.
Zhou Man was a little surprised, "Why haven’t I seen such an acupuncture thod in the Imperial Hospital before?"
Doctor Xiao, who was at the head of the hospital, glanced at her and then opened a dical book to the relevant page for her to see, "Not everyone can view this dical book."
Manbao, who was about to start flipping from the beginning, stopped and obediently looked at the page shown to her.
The acupuncture thods recorded were very detailed. After reading through once, Manbao morized it, indeed finding it superior to the thod she planned to use.
However, the principle behind acupuncture that rouses consciousness is generally the sa, which is to stimulate the last bit of life energy within a person.
In traditional Chinese dicine terms, this energy is referred to as "qi."
So people die when their qi is gone; for others, even after they die, there remains a lingering trace of qi not yet dispersed, and this acupuncture thod can stimulate every last bit of that qi, supplented with dication to strengthen it, prolonging a person’s life force slightly longer.
However, dicines are diverse, ranging from gentle ones to those like tigers and wolves.
The ti that qi can be sustained varies depending on the dicine, and naturally, so do the experiences before death.
Doctor Xiao first went to discreetly speak with the Emperor and returned to relay, "His Majesty wishes for about half an hour—just enough ti really—and wants the Empress Dowager to pass in peace and comfort."
This ant opting for a gentle redy; using fierce dicines could cause severe pain before death.
Thus, Imperial Doctor Liu selected a prescription and personally went to fetch and prepare the dication, while Manbao reviewed the acupuncture thod thrice, closed her eyes to ntally simulate it, and then indicated to Doctor Xiao that she was ready.
With that, everyone withdrew, leaving only the chief palace maid to attend to the Empress Dowager. Manbao and the chief palace maid removed the Empress Dowager’s clothing and began the acupuncture.
This set of acupuncture was quite complex, implented in two rounds. Half an hour later, the Empress Dowager’s pale complexion gradually regained color, and Imperial Doctor Liu stood outside with the cooled dicine.
Manbao removed the needles, collaborated with the palace maid to dress the Empress Dowager, and then used a thin needle to stimulate the Empress Dowager, causing her to awaken shortly.
As soon as she awoke, Manbao withdrew the needle and, along with the palace maid, retracted the screen, took the dicine from Imperial Doctor Liu, and administered it to the Empress Dowager.
After taking the dicine, the Empress Dowager felt much invigorated, breathing easier and without the oppressive sensation in her chest.
With more clarity in her eyes, though initially disoriented, seeing the Emperor leading a large group of children in, she realized that her ti had co, the final clarity before death.
The Empress Dowager froze, though she felt so sorrow, she was prepared for this.
The Emperor and Empress led the children forward to see the Empress Dowager, putting on a brave face, "Mother, are you hungry? What would you like to eat? I’ll have the imperial kitchen make it for you."
Manbao, Imperial Doctor Liu, and Doctor Xiao moved to the side; they wouldn’t need to leave during non-confidential conversations and had to be ready to perform acupuncture or administer dicine depending on the situation.
Thus, it’s said that the imperial doctors were among the most inford about happenings within the palace, aside from the eunuchs and maids.
Imperial Doctor Liu and a group of imperial doctors lined up along the wall, watching the devoted family mbers gathered around the Empress Dowager without much emotional turmoil.
However, the Empress Dowager felt deeply affected; she had much to say but, looking at her children and grandchildren, didn’t know where to start.
Because she had said these words many tis over the past year; and saying them now would simply be reiterating them, and the children might not necessarily listen.
So, at this mont, a thousand words condensed into one sentence, "Emperor, you must take care of your health."
The Emperor was taken aback, then held the Empress Dowager’s hand and responded with a lowered "Yes," and she further counseled, "Do not be so often agitated, for agitation harms the body. Listen more to the Empress’s advice."
The Emperor replied, "Yes."
She glanced at the Empress, noting her haggard appearance, and understood she must be exhausted from watching over her these past days. Sighing, she advised, "Empress, you must also take care of your health."
She said, "Their temperants are stubborn, you must guide them gently in the future."
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