Yi Shuo's Investigation

Yi Shuo Not Short of Money, not that she was extremely wealthy, but that money held little appeal for Yi Shuo.

She needs money to practice medicine, but she doesn't seek money; she simply aims for a cost price and a profit price.

One tael of gold equals three taels of silver equals three thousand and a half taels of coins. The exchange rate in Chang'an City currently fluctuates around this value.

Cui Yan took out a piece of gold and asked her to treat his illness, but he didn't even need to treat it, which was an extremely strange request.

"Does Your Excellency the Physician think this gold is a bit too little? You've seen plenty of wealth at the Empress Dowager's court, and this is indeed far too little!"

Seeing that the female physician opposite him did not accept money, Cui Yan couldn't help but feel around in his pocket again.

After turning over all the items hidden in his belt, Cui Yan found two more pieces of silver.

Without a bag, a wealthy person would only carry some gold and silver on their person, and would not have dozens or hundreds of taels of heavy goods wrapped around their waist.

Cui Yan carried a moderate amount of money, which would normally be enough for the female physicians to give him face, but Cui Yan couldn't figure out what the female physicians were up to.

"I have limited funds with me when I leave the palace, and I hope the physician can help me," Cui Yan pleaded.

"Very well, I'll go with you. The consultation fee doesn't need to be so high!"

Yi Shuo nodded, then took a piece of silver from Cui Yan, but did not accept the gold from him.

Her behavior delighted Cui Yan, and his fondness for Yi Shuo quickly increased.

"I still don't know your name, Physician?" Cui Yan asked with delight.

"The Empress Dowager has always called me Shuo'er, Lord Cui is also an elder, so he can address me like that as well," Yi Shuo said.

"This is too much for me. How can I compare to the Empress Dowager?" Cui Yan said. "Shuo'er, please get in the carriage. I'll get on with my business quickly and won't delay your rest time!"

"You're too kind, Lord Cui," Yi Shuo said as she stepped onto the carriage road. "I wonder which patient you wish to see, Lord Cui?"

"I haven't met that guest either," Cui Yan said. "I received orders that a powerful cultivator is seriously injured and I need to go see him. If his condition is minor, I invite him to Palace of Peace and Happiness as a guest; if his condition is serious, I must return to the palace to report!"

"I see, then this matter will be easy!"

Yi Shuo nodded, indicating that she had no problem seeing the doctor.

"This is simple for you physicians, but too difficult for those of us who don't understand medicine," Cui Yan said. "Luckily, we ran into Shuo'er just as we left the palace!"

"You're too kind, Lord Cui. May I ask if the patient lives far away?" Yi Shuo said politely.

"I want to visit the residence of Dongfang Shuo, a scholar-official at the Golden Horse Gate. His house is very close to here. If there is no traffic, it will take half an hour to get there, and if there is a delay, it will take an hour," Cui Yan said.

"Oh? Is Dongfang Shuo seriously ill?"

Yi Shuo exclaimed in surprise, completely unaware that Cui Yan had left the palace to go to Zhang Xuezhou's home.

"Dongfang Shuo is alright... His illness is quite troublesome, it's good that he's alive," Cui Yan said. "This time I went to see one of his fellow patients, a man named Li Shaojun, who apparently suffered some injuries in an accident."

Yi Shuo made a good impression on Cui Yan. He was a favorite of the Grand Empress Dowager, while Yi Shuo was a favorite of the Empress Dowager. As a result, there were not many taboos between them in their actions.

When the other party goes to see a doctor, it will be only a matter of time before the name is Chu Lands identified, so Cui Yan did not hide anything and chose to tell them directly.

As for the involvement of Palace of Peace and Happiness and Weiyang Palace, that is a secret, and Cui Yan is very tight-lipped; he will not divulge anything that should not be revealed.

After exchanging many things with Yi Shuo in the carriage, he then took the initiative to inquire about the Empress Dowager's well-being and other trivial matters to pass the time.

"Lord Cui, why doesn't our Jianzhang Palace have a dedicated Alchemist? Why do we physicians always have to brew the medicine?"

After Cui Yan finished speaking, Yi Shuo was no longer silent; instead, she took the initiative to ask and answer questions, and the two had a very pleasant conversation in the carriage.

"The schools of alchemy and medicine making are famous, including Daoist School, Yin-Yang School, Medical School, and the Hanging Gourd Sect. Our Palace of Peace and Happiness has some Alchemist Daoist School, but most of them refine Outer Core, and there are few masters of Inner Core elixirs," Cui Yan explained. "The Alchemist of the Yin-Yang School have disappeared without a trace. It is said that some cultivators have gone to serve the King of Huainan and have not come to our Chang'an City. The alchemist Chunyu Yi of the Medical School has been dead for some years. His successor, Chunyu Tiying, made a mistake in treating patients and was punished and has not returned to this day. As for the Hanging Gourd Sect, let's not talk about them; they have not entered the court!"

Cui Yan spoke eloquently, recounting the relevant situation of Alchemist.

Punishing Chunyu Tiying was like striking a vital artery; Chunyu Tiying her, the Imperial Medical Hall became increasingly incompetent, and the pills it produced rarely reached their full potential.

The Empress Dowager was concerned about Chunyu Tiying, thinking that demoting her to commoner status for a year or two would pass quickly, but they couldn't find out where Chunyu Tiying had gone.

With things dragging on, it's no surprise that the imperial palace lacks top-tier Alchemist.

"Without a reliable Alchemist, treating illnesses is much more troublesome for us. We can only rely on administering medicinal soups and acupuncture," Yi Shuo said.

"It's troublesome," Cui Yan said, his head throbbing.

"Doesn't our palace have any exquisite Pill Furnace or other treasures to aid in medicine making?" Yi Shuo said, "If we could lower the standards for alchemy, then surely many people could refine excellent pills!"

"The more exquisite the Pill Furnace, the harder it is to control," Cui Yan said. "The best Pill Furnace in the Great Han Dynasty is undoubtedly the Nine Dragons Cauldron in our Palace of Peace and Happiness, but even the basic operation of this Pill Furnace requires the cultivation of the Divine Ability Realm, and only True Self Realm cultivators can freely control the Nine Dragons Cauldron. Where would we find True Self Realm Alchemist here!"

"I thought the better the Pill Furnace, the easier it would be!" Yi Shuo said.

"The Pill Furnace is all about complex craftsmanship. The better the Pill Furnace, the more complex it is, and the higher the requirements!" Cui Yan said earnestly.

"What a pity!"

"It's a real pity, otherwise truly good pills wouldn't be so expensive!"

"With so many treasures in the world, isn't there anything that could make alchemy a little easier?"

Yi Shuo sighed repeatedly with regret, which stirred something in Cui Yan's heart.

"The alchemical treasure you mentioned does exist. I've heard of a medicine gourd that's very effective in alchemy," Cui Yan said. "Unfortunately, that gourd circulated in the palace several times before being stolen!"

"This is outrageous! This person has made us work so hard every day to brew medicine!"

Yi Shuo complained bitterly, which drew Cui Yan's constant agreement.

"I know that Pill Cauldron can be used to refine medicine, but can this gourd also be used to refine medicine?"

After Yi Shuo finished complaining, she continued to question Choi Yeon.

"In the past, there was a physician in the Imperial Medical Hall named Yili, who used a red gourd to make elixirs," Cui Yan said. "Later, Yili reported that the gourd had been stolen, which angered the Empress Dowager and led to a reinvestigation. After that, it disappeared, and no one ever saw that gourd that could be used to refine elixirs again."

"What a pity! How could someone steal such a perfectly good gourd!"

Yi Shuo blinked slightly.

Cui Yan's few simple words were almost a massacre for Yi Shuo and the others.

Some old stories from the palace are known only to the elderly, and getting these elderly people to recount them is an extremely difficult task.

Yi Shuo had been going in and out of the palace for many years, all in order to find out the connection between her father and the gourd case and other incidents.

She didn't just happen to meet Cui Yan; rather, she had been waiting and finally found the right opportunity to get close to him.

As far as Yi Shuo knew, her father Yili's death seemed to be related to an official surnamed Choi.

There weren't many officials with the surname Cui in the palace, and even fewer with the surname Cui who needed to be associated with the Imperial Medical Hall.

One of them was Cui Yan, standing right in front of him.