Lying on the bed with a weary face, Fan Xian immediately voiced his strong opposition. Firstly, he didn't have much confidence in his own suturing skills, and secondly, he couldn't bear to have his always clean and delicate sister see the bloody mess inside his chest and abdomen, especially since she would have to touch it herself later...

"Wan'er, you should go out too," Fan Xian said in a somewhat dry voice. "Take Ruo Ruo out."

Wan'er didn't speak, but simply shook her head gently. Ruo Ruo insisted, "My hand is the steadiest."

Hearing the Fan family's young lady speak with such confidence, everyone, including the heads of the Third Bureau, was somewhat surprised.

Fan Xian glanced at her, watching as the confidence gradually rose in the girl's usually placid eyes. His heart stirred, and he didn't know what he was thinking. A faint smile appeared on his pale face. "It will be very disgusting later, and you are my family, so I shouldn't choose you in principle... But since you insist, then you can stay."

After saying a long string of words, his spirits flagged again. Before he could speak, Wan'er beside him had already... shaken her head again, still without saying a word.

There was a moment of silence in the room. The candlelight illuminated Fan Xian's cheeks, casting alternating patches of light and shadow. He forced a smile and said, "Then what are you all waiting for? It's just a small surgery."

The boxes brought by the Third Bureau were indeed made according to Fan Xian's suggestion, but the true originator was Fei Jie, and where did Fei Jie learn this from? Besides Fan Xian, no one should know. And at this moment, he was to be the medical director of his own surgery. Following his somewhat disjointed words, everyone in Guangxin Palace began to move busily.

The imperial palace was luxurious, with enough candelabras. They also thought of some ways to focus the candlelight onto the flat bed, illuminating Fan Xian's chest and abdomen exposed outside the bedsheets.

The young eunuchs were rushing to boil water and sterilize the instruments, instructing everyone in the palace to wash their hands. Ruo Ruo, on the other hand, leaned to the side, listening carefully and earnestly to her brother explain the precautions and operating techniques for later. The head of the Third Bureau was undoubtedly the best anesthetist available, and those young eunuchs became nimble nurses.

As for the imperial physicians, who watched everyone busily working, but didn't know what everyone was doing, they seemed to have become third-year medical students observing surgery in that other world.

"Anyway, it's not a gynecological exam," Fan Xian thought to himself, and abandoned the idea of chasing these imperial physicians out the door. As for sterilization... forget it, our imperial palace doesn't have those conditions.

With a crisp clang of metal colliding, echoing in the quiet halls of Guangxin Palace, Fan Ruo Ruo nodded nervously, indicating to her brother that she was ready.

Lin Wan'er turned back to look at her little sister-in-law with concern, then took a snow-white soft cotton towel to wipe the sweat from Fan Xian's forehead.

Fan Xian smiled with difficulty, "Madam, you should wipe the doctor's forehead."

The head of the Third Bureau was about to force-feed him medicine unreasonably. Unexpectedly, Fan Xian smelled the odor, tightly closed his lips, and signaled that he wouldn't take it, saying, "The strychnine is too harsh, I'll pass out."

The head of the Third Bureau asked in confusion, "If you don't pass out, what do we do? What if you jump up from the pain later?"

Although Fan Xian didn't have Guan Yu's courage to endure bone-scraping treatment, only he himself was best at this trick, so he couldn't allow himself to fall unconscious and entrust his life entirely to his little sister. He said with difficulty, "Use chloroform, a little less."

Only then did the head of the Third Bureau realize that he had forgotten the drug. Speaking of which, he had recommended this drug to Fan Xian in the spring, but later Fan Xian used it north and south, and the Third Bureau of the Overwatch Council rarely used it themselves. He went back to the corner of the room and rummaged for a while, found a small brown bottle, and happily walked back, holding the bottle under Fan Xian's nose.

A slightly sweet smell immediately seeped into Fan Xian's nose, and after a while, the effects of the drug began to take effect.

Although his vision wasn't blurred, the scenery in front of Fan Xian's eyes began to become strange. It seemed that he could clearly see two paintings at the same time. One picture was of his sister, holding a pair of pointed pliers-like instruments, looking at him with concern. The other picture was... many... many, many years ago, in a magical place called a hospital, a very familiar beautiful little nurse was talking to him.

His mind was much stronger than ordinary people, and he immediately knew that he was beginning to experience brief hallucinations. The real scenes and the imagined scenes began to intertwine, leaving him with little time.

"Start, hurry," he squinted his eyes slightly. "If Ruo Ruo can't hold on, senior brother will take over immediately."

He was very bold, seeming to be using his own life to maintain Ruo Ruo's confidence. But under the influence of the chloroform, his thoughts always drifted away from the operating room in this imperial palace, forgetting that the patient being operated on was himself.

Fan Xian had used chloroform on Xiao En, Yan Bingyun, and the Second Prince. Today, he was finally getting his comeuppance.

Turning his head to look at Wan'er's snow-white cheeks, her eyes swollen and particularly poignant, and then looking at his sister, who was incredibly careful and busy at his chest, he suddenly smiled foolishly, thinking that if he could have his wife and sister wear pink nurse uniforms at home in the future, although he could only look at them twice... wouldn't that be a wonderful scene?

As one fades into unconsciousness, their true nature gradually reveals itself.

——————————————————————————

The people outside Guangxin Palace were still waiting anxiously. They all knew that Fan Xian had woken up and was forcefully treating his serious injuries according to his own arrangements. Although the people of Qing Kingdom had long been accustomed to the surprises that Fan Xian brought, such as the three thousand poems, the opera Begonia, the spring examination, the First Bureau, the tender tofu... but everyone was thinking, he himself was seriously injured, yet he wanted to heal himself, wondering if he could pull himself back from the brink of death.

His Majesty, who was resting briefly in the Imperial Study, seemed particularly concerned about this young minister. He actually returned to Guangxin Palace in the imperial carriage. He looked at the quiet crowd in front of the palace, listened to the faint words and some metal clashing sounds coming from inside the palace, and couldn't help frowning, recalling many years ago, on the arduous battlefield in the north, he seemed to have seen a similar scene.

"How is it?"

Prince Jing bowed to His Majesty and said worriedly, "The imperial physicians can't help. Those guys from the Third Bureau... shouldn't have any problem detoxifying, but the knife wound... is too deep."

The Emperor smiled slightly and said, "With those treasures she left behind, there shouldn't be a big problem."

Prince Jing was stunned, and remained silent without answering, standing behind His Majesty. A trace of anger and sadness flashed across his lowered eyes, then vanished instantly, turning into a tranquil well.

……

……

Not knowing how long had passed, the door of Guangxin Palace was finally pushed open. Consort Yi couldn't care less about her status as a consort, and pulled the Third Prince, peering towards the door, asking anxiously, "How is it?"

What answered her was an extremely rude vomiting sound - wah!

It was a young eunuch who came out, the one who had been responsible for handing over the instruments in the palace earlier. At this time, being the first one to leave the palace, he naturally became the focus of everyone's attention. But hearing Consort Yi's question, he couldn't answer at all, his face pale, seemingly shocked by something, holding on to the pillars of the corridor and vomiting non-stop.

Eunuch Yao cursed, "You little bastard, vomit..."

Before he could finish cursing, another young imperial physician with a pale face walked out of the palace gate and squatted down to vomit together with the young eunuch.

The current world is generally peaceful. The young eunuch had grown up in the palace since childhood. He had seen punishment by caning, but he had never seen such a gloomy scene as in the palace just now. What were those red, green, and white things? Could it be that the inside of a person's stomach was that kind of terrible bloody mass of flesh? The Fan family's young lady was really amazing, she could even touch it with her hands!

And that young imperial physician, after studying medicine for many years, only knew the four characters of "looking, listening, questioning, and feeling the pulse." The most disgusting thing he had ever done was look at the tongue coating and the Eastern Palace's groin for venereal diseases. But tonight was the first time he had seen someone... actually sewing skin with needles, cutting flesh with scissors... that was human flesh and skin!

After another while, the imperial physicians who were students of the medical school tonight all quietly withdrew from Guangxin Palace. But everyone's face was a bit ugly. Although most people could maintain a superficial composure, they were also greatly shocked deep down.

When the Emperor saw their faces, he knew that Fan Xian should be fine, but he still asked, "How is it?"

The chief imperial physician, who had been slapped by Prince Jing and had also couldn't help but secretly observe out of curiosity, was now in a state of shock, with a mixture of green and red on his face, and said in shock, "Your Majesty... it's really miraculous."

When Prince Jing heard this tone, he couldn't help but scold, "I'm asking you about Fan Xian... I'm not asking you to express your emotions here."

The chief imperial physician stood up straight, still expressing his emotions, his beard trembling slightly, "Your Majesty, Your Highness, this subject has been practicing medicine for decades, and I have also heard of this miraculous needle-knife technique. I never expected to actually see it today... Please rest assured, Your Majesty, Lord Fan's internal organs have been joined together, and there will be no major problems, but he has lost too much blood and cannot wake up for a while."

He didn't dare to say that after the surgery was over, Lord Fan finally didn't survive the effects of the chloroform and began to talk nonsense while lying on the "operating table." It involved the ridiculous affairs of noble families, which were utterly absurd. He definitely didn't dare to report this to His Majesty at this time. Fortunately, besides himself, the number one observing student, there were only the two women closest to Lord Fan at the operating table, so there should be no problem.

At this time, the people who remained outside Guangxin Palace were all people who sincerely hoped that Fan Xian could live. Hearing the chief imperial physician's sonorous and powerful guarantee, they all breathed a sigh of relief.

The First Prince showed a relieved smile, bowed to His Majesty, and then no longer waited outside Guangxin Palace, leaving the palace directly to return to his residence. He didn't want everyone to think that he was showing goodwill to Fan Xian, nor did he want people to think that he was trying to fathom the Emperor's intentions. He simply didn't want Fan Xian to die. Now that he heard that the other party was safe, he left in a carefree manner.

The Emperor waved his hand, signaling Consort Yi to lead the Third Prince, who was already too sleepy, back to the palace first. Then he lifted his foot and prepared to go to Guangxin Palace to take a look. Prince Jing naturally followed behind him.

Unexpectedly, the chief imperial physician blocked the two dignitaries in front of him and said with a wry smile, "Lord Fan said before he fainted that it's best not to let anyone in, lest...

" he frowned and thought for a long time, finally remembering that new word: "...infection?"

Fan Xian's statement was actually just to seek some peace and quiet. The Emperor and Prince Jing were stunned for a moment and agreed. Unexpectedly, they looked at the chief imperial physician with a fanatical expression on his face and said, "Your Majesty, this subject believes that Lord Fan's medical skills are excellent and he should be employed by the Imperial Hospital... Firstly, he can treat the noble people in the palace, and secondly, he can teach students and benefit the people of Qing Kingdom. This is what is meant by 'benefiting thousands of generations'..."

These words were truly a kind request and had no selfish motives. But the situation was tense at this time, and the Emperor finally couldn't help but get angry before Prince Jing could, angrily scolding, "He hasn't woken up yet, what are you snatching for! What kind of talent does Fan Xian have? How could he be confined to these affairs!"

Prince Jing, however, was not angry. He giggled and muttered, "Being a doctor is always better than being a patient."

The officials of the Third Bureau finally withdrew at this time, respectfully saluting His Majesty. After receiving a few words of encouragement from His Majesty, they left the palace somewhat exhausted. At this time, in Guangxin Palace, besides the few eunuchs and palace maids serving, there were only Fan Xian, Wan'er, and Ruo Ruo.

Lin Wan'er looked at Fan Xian with heartache, and then looked at her pale-faced little sister-in-law with heartache, gently wiping the sweat from her forehead. This was what Fan Xian had said earlier. Fan Ruo Ruo's hand, which had been steady until now, finally began to tremble. Knowing that she had finally completed a very remarkable thing under her brother's command and that her brother's life should be saved, her mind relaxed for no reason, her legs weakened, and she almost fell to the ground.

Lin Wan'er helped her up and smiled somewhat self-deprecatingly, still without speaking. The meaning in this smile was very clear. Chicken Leg Girl felt that... more or less everyone around her could help Fan Xian with something, but only she seemed to be able to only observe and not play any role.

"Sister-in-law," Fan Ruo Ruo finally noticed Lin Wan'er's unusual silence and asked with concern, "Is your body alright?"

Lin Wan'er was stared at by her little sister-in-law for a long time. There was no way out, so she smiled and said, "I'm fine."

The two words "I'm fine" were spoken somewhat vaguely. Fan Ruo Ruo looked closely and realized that there were faint bloodstains on her sister-in-law's lips, and she was startled, preparing to call an imperial physician in to take a look.

Lin Wan'er quickly covered her mouth, fearing that she would wake up Fan Xian, who was indulging in chloroform. She explained somewhat incoherently, "No...thing, I just... bit my tongue."

Fan Ruo Ruo was slightly stunned and immediately understood what was going on. Her heart warmed, and she added a touch of respect and love to this young sister-in-law. Earlier, when feeding Fan Xian medicine, Wan'er was extremely anxious and only cared about chewing the pill to dissolve it. But in her urgency, she bit her own tongue, but she had been enduring it until now because she was concerned about her husband's safety.

The white curtains in Guangxin Palace had long been removed. At this time, the moon passed through the evening clouds, sprinkling a shower of clear light on the world, somewhat similar to the white curtains in this palace back then. The people outside the palace gradually dispersed, leaving only enough guards and eunuchs to deliver messages. The palace maids and eunuchs inside the palace rested their heads on chairs, ready for any changes in Lord Fan's condition. There were also palace maids on night duty quietly moving away the extra palace candles.

The two sisters-in-law quietly sat on the chairs, looking at Fan Xian sleeping peacefully in the dim candlelight, and a trace of relieved smiles appeared on their faces at the same time.

Outside the layers of imperial city walls, Wu Zhu, dressed in coarse cloth, looked indifferently at a certain direction in the palace. After confirming someone's safety, he quietly disappeared into the small woods of the night.

———————————————————————

Several days later, still in the imperial palace, deep within the Plum Garden, a place that used to be quiet but was heavily guarded today, that patient, the most famous in Kyoto now, was lying on a soft couch and sighing with emotion.

"When can I go home?"

Fan Xian was covered with a thin quilt, lying on the soft couch, looking at the little plum blossoms that had appeared early in the Plum Garden to honor him, his face somewhat annoyed.

The resources in the imperial palace were naturally extremely rich. All kinds of precious medicinal materials, after careful treatment by the Imperial Hospital, were constantly poured into his stomach. It was difficult not to recover quickly. The eunuchs and palace maids in the imperial palace were naturally much better at serving people than in the Fan Residence. Even the scenery of this Plum Garden was better than the backyard of the Fan family. Plus, his wife and sister had received special permission and could stay by his side every day - bathed in the small autumn sun, covered with a small cotton quilt, accompanied by small beauties, it seemed no different from his life at home - except for the lack of a swing.

But he still really wanted to go back to the Fan Residence because he always felt that was his real home in Kyoto.

After experiencing the first surgery in the Qing Kingdom's imperial palace, relying on the foundation of his body, which he had diligently cultivated for nearly twenty years, his recovery was extremely fast. His chest and abdomen had not yet fully recovered, but he could finally lie flat and look at the scenery. However, there was no improvement in the situation of the True Qi scattering in his body, and he felt a slight chill and fear in his heart.

Ruo Ruo blew on the clear porridge in the bowl and fed him a spoonful with a spoon. On the other side, Lin Wan'er reached into his wide robe and carefully adjusted the position of the grain bag in the double-layered cloth belt. This was Fan Xian's request. Tying the wound with a cloth belt and pressing it with a heavy bag was very beneficial for the healing of the wound.

Fan Xian swallowed the clear porridge with some difficulty and complained, "Drinking porridge every day, my mouth tastes like bird droppings... I want to go home... Not to mention eating the dishes from Baoyue Tower, even drinking the fruit juice prepared by Aunt Liu is much better than this."

Lin Wan'er chided, "You just woke up a few days ago, but you're already talking a lot. Since His Majesty has bestowed grace and allowed you to recuperate in the palace, what are you afraid of the gossip... But... what does it mean to have your mouth taste like bird droppings?"

Fan Ruo Ruo was also puzzled, "What bird?"

Fan Xian's expression remained unchanged, and he changed the subject, "I'm not afraid of gossip... I just miss home a little."

Now he was in the imperial palace and could not contact the Qi Nian team. His Majesty had also decreed that he should not worry about anything. Wan'er and Ruo Ruo simply had not left the palace. The other eunuchs and palace maids were even less likely to speak. The assassination case at Suspended Temple had passed for several days, but he did not know any relevant information, and he could not question Old Hobble in person about Shadow. He was really very upset and uneasy.

(I have to go to the hospital to settle the bill today, so I can only write here...)