Working Backward to Deduce Huang Daoxian's Condition

Court officials rise and fall; being ostracized and demoted is one thing, but few can escape unscathed even after being impeached and completely dismissed.

Having resigned from his position as a Grand Physician by simply urinating, Zhang Xuezhou felt extremely relieved.

He retained his promotion to "Geishazhong" (a high-ranking official), and everything seemed perfect.

In this matter, Xu Chang wanted him to bleed a little more, but Zhuang Qingdi gave him face and let Zhang Xuezhou get away with everything without paying a price. The other party's behavior was almost beyond Zhang Xuezhou's expectations.

"It's time for me to have some good luck!"

Recent events seem to mark a beginning, or a rebirth, each seemingly related to the very nature of this new beginning.

Amidst the bumps and stumbles, Zhang Xuezhou felt that everything held a profound mystery.

The more he thought about it, the more difficult it became to understand. However, Zhang Xuezhou was well aware that many things would not have a bad impact, and as long as he had a high level of mental resilience, everything would be stable and improving.

He had already gone to great lengths to become a godfather in his early years, so he wouldn't care about these things now.

Welcoming Aqiao into the family is nothing, losing his official position for urinating is nothing. These things may not be entirely satisfactory, but how many perfect things in the world can Zhang Xuezhou choose from?

"Come, come, Brother Hongyang, have a drink!"

"Brother Dongfang, I'll stay with you!"

"Brother Han, another cup!"

"I'm too weak to keep you company!"

To familiarize himself with his place of service, Zhang Xuezhou made a trip to the eunuch's office.

When the new emperor went to Changxin Palace, Sang Hongyang and Han Yan, who were familiar with the palace, accompanied Zhang Xuezhou to stroll around the eunuch's office.

There were few people with real power in the eunuch's office; most of them just served in various palaces and halls.

Zhang Xuezhou was considered a top official below the Nine Ministers, and his sudden assignment to the Eunuch's Office kept both veteran and junior eunuchs busy for quite some time.

If Zhang Xuezhou were to be exiled to the Eunuch Bureau and castrated, that would be one thing. But if he hadn't been castrated and had been reinstated, he would undoubtedly have regained real power. The other side wouldn't care which eunuch followed which master or how much favor they received. Anyone who offended Zhang Xuezhou Zhang Xuezhou the Eunuch Bureau would face dire consequences once he gained power. Even if Zhang Xuezhou didn't retaliate, their masters might still try to curry favor with him.

For these palace eunuchs who were adept at reading people's expressions, many things had become almost instinctive.

They may bully the weak who have no backing, but they will never do something so foolish as to block their own escape route.

Zhang Xuezhou received all the benefits he was entitled to; he had no worries about food and drink in the eunuch's office, and everything was arranged perfectly for Zhang Xuezhou.

Within fifteen minutes of Zhang Xuezhou arriving at the eunuch's office, some cold dishes that the palace hadn't ordered were heated up, and several half-empty jugs of fine wine were also found for Zhang Xuezhou and his companions.

Although it was leftovers, this was a privilege reserved for the highest-ranking eunuchs.

Zhang Xuezhou and the others didn't make a fuss; they sat down at the table and filled their stomachs.

Seeing that Zhang Xuezhou had lost his high-ranking official position, Sang Hongyang felt sorry for him and kept drinking with Zhang Xuezhou. Han Yan, on the other hand, couldn't take it anymore, and his face turned red after just two cups of wine.

"Brother Han, besides feeling weak, is there anything else bothering you?"

Zhang Xuezhou cupped his hands in greeting and inquired.

He wasn't really concerned about Han Yan's health; rather, he had absorbed a portion of Han Yan's energy, causing her energy level to shrink.

This is different from his situation of physical regeneration, but it is likely similar to Huang Daoxian's situation of physical reduction.

Having thoroughly investigated Han Yan's situation, Zhang Xuezhou felt he could roughly deduce Huang Daoxian's condition.

"Brother Han, please speak frankly. His Majesty said that Brother Dongfang is practically a physician, and he has personally witnessed him treat several patients!"

Seeing that Han Yan remained silent, Sang Hongyang stepped in to smooth things over.

"Well... I feel a little weak and cold," Han Yan replied.

"Is that all?" Sang Hongyang asked.

"I still miss women!"

After hesitating for a few seconds, Han Yan suddenly blurted out a sentence.

"You want a woman?" Sang Hongyang asked in astonishment.

"Maybe it's because I'm feeling cold, and I think holding a woman would make me warmer," Han Yan said.

"Brother Han comes from a wealthy family; finding some women should be a piece of cake for him!"

Zhang Xuezhou stared at Han Yan for a long time, unable to understand why Han Yan's physical strength had shrunk to this extent.

If we compare Han Yan's condition to Huang Daoxian's, Zhang Xuezhou can conclude that Huang Daoxian was physically weak and cold after his defeat in battle, but he doesn't think Huang Daoxian would be thinking about women.

He had intended to learn from Han Yan's situation, but after listening to what was happening, Zhang Xuezhou felt that things were a bit outrageous.

But Han Yan's tone was genuine, which gave him a bit of a headache.

He could only recommend that Han Yan eat more, lest he become weak-willed when he touches a woman.

"Brother Han's symptoms are too strange. Should we go see the imperial physician?" Sang Hongyang said worriedly.

"I usually focus on reading and martial arts and don't think much about women," Han Yan said dejectedly. "But right now I can't control myself. Even the palace maids sweeping the floor seem so pretty and delicate to me!"

"Perhaps it's because he's been suppressing his feelings for too long," Sang Hongyang said. "Brother Han's health is a bit weak now, so all those past repressions have been released!"

"I really want to take a knife and snip off that bell!"

Han Yan muttered a curse and then gestured towards his genitals, which startled Sang Hongyang.

"Brother Han, why don't you ask His Majesty for a few days off and then go to Silanfang to have some fun? You're not short of money anyway," Sang Hongyang said.

"How could those lowly women... I'll go!"

Han Yan cursed, but after shaking his head, he frowned and agreed to Sang Hongyang's suggestion.

"Brother Han, when you go to Silanfang to find women, make sure you eat well before and afterward, lest you deplete your body's Qi and Blood!"

Seeing Han Yan and Sang Hongyang stand up together, Zhang Xuezhou could only offer a word of advice.

A blush crept across Han Yan's face. She nodded, grabbed a chicken leg from the table, stuffed it into her embroidered pouch, and then was helped away by Sang Hongyang.

"Want a woman?"

"Could it really be as Brother Hongyang said, that Han Yan was releasing too much pent-up emotion and couldn't control himself?"

"Han Yan is feeling a bit unwell right now. If he goes to Silanfang to find women and further harms his health, he might suffer quite a bit!"

"The troubles brought about by the backlash from the imbalance of fortune are indeed one after another!"

Zhang Xuezhou hadn't figured it out before, but after Han Yan and Sang Hongyang started talking back and forth, he belatedly realized what was going on.

When Zhang Xuezhou extrapolated this to Huang Daoxian, he felt that Huang Daoxian would inevitably suffer after his battle failed. If Huang Daoxian's condition was similar to Han Yan's, he shouldn't be able to chase after him and kill him indiscriminately for a while in this unfavorable state.

"When you're lucky, good things really do come in pairs!"

After reasoning about the actual situation, Zhang Xuezhou felt there was nothing seriously wrong, and the worry that had been weighing on his mind was finally put to rest.

Having eliminated the high-risk possibility of encountering Huang Daoxian in the near future, Zhang Xuezhou focused his mind.

He was finally able to fully immerse himself in this world, lest he waver and cause instability in both his own worlds.