Year 30 of the Yuanfeng Era, Fifteenth Day of the Eighth Month.

On Mid-Autumn night, I received an unexpected visitor.

This person wore black clothing and a mask on his face, revealing only a pair of eyes.

I showed no fear and invited him to sit.

He was somewhat surprised by my composure.

Once seated, I asked him to get straight to the point.

He didn’t waste words either, pulling out a paper packet from his bosom: Put a little of this in the Crown Prince’s daily tea every day.

I pushed the paper packet back: I won’t do things that harm heaven and reason.

He sneered coldly: Think about your parents, think about the Shen family.

I hesitated for a full half hour before asking, “If I just put a little in every day, you’ll spare them?”

He said, “Yes!”

I said, “I’ll do it.”

Before leaving, he threatened, “Remember, the lives and deaths of the Shen family are all in your hands.”

After he left, I poured out some of the white powder and tasted it.

It wasn’t any fatal poison, but day after day, year after year, it could become lethal.

I tasted it carefully again and wrote down each medicinal herb I could identify on paper.

Then, based on these herbs, I formulated corresponding prescriptions.

They had found the wrong person.

I had been tasting hundreds of herbs since age three. I had tasted countless medicinal herbs. Which herbs were poisonous, which were not—I kept a mental ledger.

All things in the world exist in mutual generation and restriction.

Where there are elixirs of immortality, there are poisons.

Where there are poisons, there are antidotes.

He only told me to put this thing in the Crown Prince’s tea. He didn’t say I couldn’t add something else that would counteract and neutralize this slow poison.

Things that harm heaven and reason—I, Shen Duruo, simply won’t do them.

Using anyone’s life or death to threaten me was useless.

This was the conscience of being human.

……

Year 30 of the Yuanfeng Era, Ninth Day of the Ninth Month.

In the night, I was awakened by knocking.

Opening the door, I saw it was Xiao Ze.

Xiao Ze said the Crown Prince was ill and asked me to come over.

I returned to the Crown Prince’s residence once more.

The Crown Prince lay askew on the bed in his undergarments. The Crown Princess personally attended to him at his side.

When my three fingers fell on his wrist and I felt the burning heat of his skin, I knew this illness was quite dangerous.

As expected.

The pulse was not good.

I was very puzzled.

A few days ago when I had checked the Crown Prince’s pulse, he was still fine. How had he suddenly become this ill?

After careful consideration, I said, “If I use ordinary medicine, this illness will take two months to completely cure. If Your Highness is willing to take a risk, half a month will be sufficient for the medicine to cure the disease.”

The Crown Princess asked, “What kind of risk?”

I said, “I need to add several potent medicines.”

The Crown Princess asked, “Will it harm the body?”

“All medicine has some toxicity. There will certainly be some harm—it just depends on how well he recuperates afterward.”

After thinking, I added, “Your Highness’s illness originates in the heart and rises from there. After the high fever subsides, it will transfer to the lungs. If it drags on too long, the danger will be even greater.”

The Crown Prince didn’t even open his eyes: “Use it!”

The Crown Princess’s expression changed slightly. She sighed, stood up, and grasped my hand, saying, “Since it’s dangerous, I must trouble the female physician to stay and watch over him.”

I had no objections. This was my duty to begin with.

……

Year 30 of the Yuanfeng Era, Tenth Day of the Ninth Month.

I dozed off and awoke to find the Crown Prince gone. My heart was greatly alarmed.

Jiao Yu pointed at the window. I looked over accordingly.

He stood with his hands behind his back before the window, his figure blending with the night.

I frowned and stepped forward. “Your Highness should take care of your health.”

He turned to look at me. “Soon it will be the fifteenth again.”

My frown deepened. “Your Highness has the leisure to grieve over autumn and lament the moon. You’d be better off nursing your health.”

The words were unpleasant to hear, and his face darkened.

I reached out and closed the window, making a gesture of invitation. “If Your Highness wishes for your condition to worsen tomorrow, you may continue standing.”

He looked at me, his expression changing several times before he obediently got into bed.

I followed him to the bed and said from above, “People’s illnesses all come from the character for ‘thought.’ Your Highness needs to think less and worry less in order to prolong your life.”

His face was stern, his expression icy and fierce.

I acted as if I didn’t see it and ordered Jiao Yu to lower the bed curtains.

After a long silence, a soft sigh came from within the curtains, then no more sound.

……

Year 30 of the Yuanfeng Era, Fifteenth Day of the Ninth Month.

For a full seven days, I didn’t leave the Crown Prince’s courtyard. When tired, I would nap on the couch in the outer chamber.

His illness progressed as I had predicted—first a high fever, then lung heat and coughing.

Besides administering medicine, I had Jiao Yu and Taiping use strong alcohol every half hour to wipe the Crown Prince’s palms, soles of his feet, and forehead.

The Crown Prince was fastidious about cleanliness and bathed and changed clothes daily.

The high fever brought out wave after wave of cold sweat. He wanted to bathe, but I didn’t agree.

His expression once again became icy and fierce.

I still acted as if I didn’t see it.

Only after the internal heat had subsided for seven days did I allow him to wipe his body with hot water.

That night, the fourth watch sounded.

As usual, I entered the hall to check the Crown Prince’s pulse.

He suddenly opened his eyes and grasped my hand in return.

Seeing his brows pressed tightly together, I spoke to comfort him. “In a few more days, the illness will be cured. Your Highness should endure a bit longer.”

He didn’t release my hand, saying hoarsely, “Female Physician Shen has worked hard.”

I closed my eyes briefly. “If Your Highness could be a bit more obedient, I would have less hardship.”

He smiled and slowly released my hand.

I lowered the bed curtain and walked out.

I had barely taken a few steps when his voice came from within the curtains: “Shen Duruo, I have walked on thin ice for half my life. Tell me, can I reach the other shore?”

My heart trembled violently.

The higher someone’s position, the less casually they speak. Every sentence they utter has deep meaning.

I didn’t know if my adding medicine to his tea had been discovered.

Or perhaps he had encountered some trouble at court?

My conscience was clear, so my answer was also frank. “Your Highness, you will certainly reach the other shore, because the other shore is your destination.”

After saying this, I walked out with my head held high and my chest out.

……

Year 30 of the Yuanfeng Era, Third Day of the Tenth Month.

The Crown Prince went to Mount Tai to offer sacrifices to heaven on the Emperor’s behalf. I had three days of rest.

That night, the unexpected visitor came again.

Sitting before me, still masked, revealing only a pair of cold eyes that looked at me eerily.

I let him look.

I had placed the slow poison medicine as ordered. I kept my word—there was nothing to feel guilty about.

As for whether it was effective, that wasn’t my concern.

Seeing my calm expression and my eyes neither dodging nor evading his gaze, he sat for a while and then left.

Only after he left did I discover my entire body was drenched in cold sweat.

I was still somewhat afraid in my heart.

This world was truly laughable to the extreme. Why should good people have to fear bad people?

……

Year 30 of the Yuanfeng Era, Late Tenth Month.

The Crown Prince returned from Mount Tai. Though his face bore traces of wind and frost, his spirits were high.

Representing the Son of Heaven in offering sacrifices to heaven was the best thing that had happened in all his years as Crown Prince.

When I checked his pulse, thinking of what happened on the third day of the tenth month, I couldn’t restrain myself despite trying several times.

“Your Highness, the better things are, the more careful you must be. Otherwise it’s easy for joy to turn to sorrow.”

He looked at me with slight surprise. After a long while, he said, “Has Female Physician Shen ever had a moment of genuine smile?”

“Yes.”

“When?”

“When patients recover.”

“You didn’t smile when I recovered from that illness in the ninth month.”

“I hid my smile.”

“Why?”

I looked into his eyes. “Because if I’m happy, others might not be.”

His temples twitched, and his expression gradually darkened. “The female physician speaks very correctly.”

Whether what I said was right or not didn’t matter.

What mattered was whether he had listened.

Zhao Lin, the other shore is not so easy to reach. Between here and there lie mountains and waters, countless blades and swords.

So, no matter what, please be careful!