Chapter 375: Acute Abdomen (Part 2)

Soon a eunuch rushed to get a chamber pot, but Hu Xiaotian told them it wasn't necessary and directly fetched a copper basin. The emperor's manhood isn't something just anyone can see, so the guards drew the screen and sent the idle attendants away. Hu Xiaotian supported Long Yelin; though others found it odd for him to be so close, they didn't dare chase him off, given the urgent situation—the emperor hadn't forbidden him from watching, and besides, this fellow was a eunuch.

The emperor's personal attendant eunuch helped undo Long Yelin's trousers, and Long Yelin, trembling, revealed his member.

Hu Xiaotian thought his eyesight was fine, but at a glance he couldn't see clearly—the emperor's manhood was too tiny, like a peanut, and he wondered if it could still function. Long Yelin strained for a while and finally managed a few drops of bloody red urine; the eunuch attendant turned pale with fright. Seeing the copper basin, Long Yelin himself was terrified, his soul fleeing his body, and he cried out, 'Imperial physician… quickly… quickly summon the imperial physician… I… am I to die here?'

Long Yelin believed he could not escape death, and the pain in his waist made it impossible for him to sit or lie still. He blamed everything on this cup of tea, shouting, 'Someone… take… that… that slut and these palace servants… drag… drag…' Just moments ago she had been a beloved consort, now suddenly a slut. Though he hadn't finished speaking, everyone understood: the emperor was going to kill someone.

Hu Xiaotian said, 'Your Majesty, please calm your anger. In my judgment, you are not poisoned; you merely have kidney stone disease. From Long Yelin's symptoms, I have determined he suffers from kidney stones. As for Lady Wen Ya, she's been unlucky enough—last time she attended the emperor, she had her period, and this time the emperor himself visited the Bright Moon Palace, only for his kidney stones to flare up again.'

Hu Xiaotian wasn't trying to excuse Lady Wen Ya, nor was he attempting a hero‑saves‑the‑beauty stunt. The foolish emperor was convinced the tea was poisoned and would surely slaughter everyone in the Bright Moon Palace, himself included.

Long Yelin's trembling hand grabbed Hu Xiaotian as he groaned incessantly from pain. Hu Xiaotian's words suddenly cleared his mind; he had suffered such an attack before. Last time he had passed a small stone on his own, and the symptoms were much the same. Recalling this, Long Yelin felt considerably relieved—if it wasn't poisoning, his life should not be in danger.

In this age, there's no lithotripter to be found, no ultrasound or retrograde urography as auxiliary examinations, so Hu Xiaotian couldn't determine the stone's exact size. Although he had accurately diagnosed Long Yelin's condition, deciding on a treatment was a headache.

At that moment someone from the Imperial Medical Institute arrived—it was Qin Yutong again. Qin Yutong still wore a light veil over her face. Seeing Hu Xiaotian also present, she was obviously a little surprised, but she quickly composed herself, approached him and asked, 'How is the situation?' She had great confidence in Hu Xiaotian's medical skill, so her first move was not to examine the patient but to seek him out.

Hu Xiaotian said, 'Kidney stone, left kidney. It should have already dropped into the upper ureter.'

Qin Yutong nodded and asked, 'What do you propose?'

Hu Xiaotian thought to himself that his method would be surgery, which would be easy to suggest for anyone else, but this person before him was the emperor of Dakang—could he really operate on the sovereign? Unless he wanted to die. He then explained simply: 'Along the whole ureter there are three narrow points; the stone is likely lodged in the second one. The treatments I know of are usually three: one, surgical removal; two, using some kind of energy to shatter the stone inside the body so it can be passed in urine; three, helping the emperor with pain relief—let him drink more water in hopes of passing it spontaneously.'

Qin Yutong approached Long Yelin and performed a salute.

Long Yelin said, 'Qin… Miss Qin… quickly… quickly examine me for me… I can't bear the pain…'

Qin Yutong took out a golden needle and inserted it into Long Yelin's wrist and the point behind his ear. Her needling technique was marvelous; after the needle went in, his pain noticeably lessened, his incessant wailing stopped and he sat there, though his body still felt somewhat uncomfortable.

Qin Yutong then came to Hu Xiaotian's side; she didn't know how to perform surgery, and as for Hu Xiaotian's suggestion of using energy to shatter the stone inside the body, her martial arts cultivation was far from that level, so she could only ask Hu Xiaotian for advice again.

Hu Xiaotian had someone prepare more water for the emperor to drink, and had him repeatedly jump up and down the steps. By jumping in this way to vibrate the body, he hoped to promote the stone's swift expulsion.

Long Yelin was half‑believing, half‑doubting; although he didn't trust this little eunuch Hu Xiaotian, he had full faith in Qin Yutong's medical skill. So he took off his dragon robe, found a set of steps in the Bright Moon Palace, and began hopping down them one step at a time, like a rabbit jumping up and down, retaining none of the dignity of a sovereign.

Hu Xiaotian had thought this method might not work in the short term, but he hadn't expected Long Yelin's luck to be so good—after jumping for less than half an hour, he passed a stone the size of a mung bean. After urinating it out, Long Yelin felt completely relaxed and at ease. The attendant eunuch fished the stone straight from the urine basin and exclaimed delightedly, 'Long live the emperor! Long live the emperor! The stone has come out! The stone has come out!'

Long Yelin furrowed his brows; the first part of the exclamation was fine, but hearing 'the stone has come out' in the second part annoyed him somewhat.

At this point Hu Xiaotian stepped forward respectfully and said, 'Congratulations, Your Majesty! Congratulations, Your Majesty! The emperor has expelled the dragon crystal—truly a great omen. The emperor is the true Son of Heaven, dragon, whose chest embraces sun and moon, whose body holds rivers and seas; the dragon soars over Dakang, its light shines upon all under heaven!'

Hearing this, Long Yelin felt truly pleased; the same words spoken by two different people felt worlds apart.

Qin Yutong listened at the side, her delicate brows slightly furrowed; she was clearly averse to Hu Xiaotian's flattery and fawning, yet she could understand it—after all, Hu Xiaotian is merely a lowly eunuch trying to make a living in the palace; if he didn't grovel before the emperor, how could he survive? She felt a pang of sadness and also some sympathy. The once spirited, reckless youth Hu Xiaotian had sunk to such sycophancy, something Qin Yutong's proud nature would never emulate, but she could comprehend. In reality one must adapt, and the Hu Xiaotian before her had undoubtedly changed.

Long Yelin's face lit up with great pleasure as he stroked his moustache and said, 'Today I owe my recovery to you. Tell me, what is your name?'

Hu Xiaotian fell to his knees with a thump and said, 'Your humble servant begs to report, Your Majesty, I am called Hu Xiaotian.'

Upon hearing the name, Long Yelin felt a hint of familiarity, but could not immediately recall where he had heard it; he frowned, lost in thought. With so many affairs to handle each day, it was normal that he couldn't remember Hu Xiaotian.

Hu Xiaotian furtively observed Long Yelin's expression, guessing that the emperor held no impression of him, yet there was little to feel disappointed about—what presence could a petty eunuch possibly have before the sovereign?

Long Yelin said, 'I seem to have heard of you.'

Hu Xiaotian replied, 'Your Majesty's grace is vast; I am filled with awe and trepidation.'

'Please rise first,' Long Yelin said.

'As the son of a condemned official, I dare not stand before Your Majesty.'

Qin Yutong gave Hu Xiaotian a cold glance, thinking, 'This man is no ordinary fellow; he really intends to use this occasion to get close to the emperor.'

Long Yelin's curiosity, sparked by Hu Xiaotian, prompted him to ask, 'You are…?'

Hu Xiaotian answered, 'I am the son of the condemned official Hu Buwei.'

Long Yelin then recalled that several sons of condemned officials had entered the palace as slaves to atone for their fathers' crimes; hearing the name Hu Buwei, he finally matched Hu Xiaotian to him, nodded and said, 'You are indeed his son—raise your head so I can have a good look.'

Hu Xiaotian lifted his face; Long Yelin's waist no longer hurt, so he naturally had the energy to size him up. His gaze settled on Hu Xiaotian, and he nodded slowly, saying, 'Indeed, you have an honest countenance and a remarkable appearance.' Hu Xiaotian suddenly felt a prickle on his scalp, recalling that this dog of an emperor disliked rouge and favored military attire, and thinking back to just now, when the emperor's manhood was no bigger than a peanut—he absolutely must not catch the emperor's eye; it turns out being handsome is also a risk.

Fortunately, Long Yelin quickly withdrew his gaze: 'Good, good, are you now on duty in the Bright Moon Palace?'

'Your humble servant reports to the emperor that I also serve as the steward of the Imperial Gardens Bureau.'

Long Yelin said, 'I never expected you to know medicine and to be so perceptive—you must be a son of the Hu ministerial family.' Long Yelin inwardly calculated: this lad seemed quite clever; although Qin Yutong of the Xuantian Guan had come to treat him, most of the diagnostic and therapeutic methods were his own ideas, which had relieved his pain—this certainly counted as a great achievement. As the Son of Heaven, he ought to bestow a reward, but what should it be? As Long Yelin hesitated, a report arrived from outside: Ji Feihua, having heard the news, had rushed over.

At the mention of Ji Feihua's name, a flicker of unease crossed Long Yelin's face—swift, but Hu Xiaotian caught it keenly. How could a monarch show such an expression? Could he still harbor apprehension toward Ji Feihua?

Ji Feihua had the two eunuchs who accompanied him wait outside, and entered the Bright Moon Palace alone. Before even stepping into the inner chambers, his voice came ahead: 'Your Majesty, Feihua arrives late, unable to share your worries and relieve your difficulties; I hope you will forgive me.'

Ji Feihua wore a red robe and a black cap; his skin was fairer than snow, his features exquisite—truly gorgeous as a flower, rivaling the peerless beauty of Lady Wen Ya. Wen Ya's beauty is a delicate charm like a narcissus, whereas Ji Feihua is fiery and intense, dazzling to the eye, exuding a seductive aura rarely found in ordinary people—a quality unique to eunuchs.

Approaching Long Yelin, Ji Feihua bowed low, bending only at the waist; Long Yelin told him to rise, and Ji Feihua took the opportunity to stand, glancing briefly at Hu Xiaotian, who was still kneeling. Having just arrived at the Bright Moon Palace, he was unaware of the exact situation.

Long Yelin said, 'Xiaotian, you may rise as well.'

On the last day of 2014, brothers and sisters who still have monthly tickets, don't keep them in your hands—vote for Jiangshan! You can see Zhangyu's efforts these past days! (To be continued~^~)