The Martial Doctor

Watching the Crown Prince kneel on the ground to confess his crimes.

Emperor Zhao Rui was momentarily at a loss for words; it was this son who had been a key to him ascending the throne years ago.

Without this son, his father wouldn’t have considered passing the throne to him. In the royal family, there is no familial affection, only consideration for the continuation of the bloodline.

The Crown Prince only briefly described his situation in Dongshan — what should be said, and what should not be said. After so many years as the Crown Prince, he is well-versed in this.

Especially the matter of revealing his identity to Lin Miao; he concealed this. In his heart, he already regards Lin Miao as his own, even as a secret weapon. How could he tell his emperor father?

"Crown Prince, have you broken through in your martial arts cultivation?" The Emperor, who also had some accomplishments in martial arts, at least had seen many masters, and his eyesight was sharp.

It’s just that as the Emperor, high martial arts cultivation is unnecessary, not to mention he doesn’t have the time to practice, given that time is limited.

Therefore, Zhao Rui’s accomplishments were mostly accumulated when he was a Prince and Crown Prince. Later on, progress slowed.

The Crown Prince went to Dongshan and surprisingly broke through the Blood Fusion Realm. He thought the Crown Prince would have no significant achievements in martial arts in this lifetime.

Unexpectedly, now he could be considered a third-rate master. The Crown Prince broke through the Blood Fusion Realm only in terms of realm; his actual combat power was estimated to be less than the Bone Forging Realm.

The Crown Prince doesn’t have to personally fight; having reached the Blood Fusion Realm is already good enough. As long as he sits in this position, even if he breaks through to the Tianyuan Realm, he won’t live long.

In this position, unless one governs with minimal interference, not involving oneself in state affairs, they will be exhausted; how many are long-lived?

Historically, Emperors were never long-lived.

Becoming an Emperor, having gained so much, losing some years of life seems fair.

"Yes, it was sheer luck, Father."

"This isn’t just from your own accumulation, is it?" Zhao Rui wasn’t foolish; it was apparent that the Crown Prince had received some aid or had an encounter. Otherwise, with his aptitude, at this age and physical state, to break through would require either taking powerful drugs or consuming potential, like drinking poison to quench thirst.

"Father, you see clearly; it’s indeed not because of my own accumulation, but the past month I’ve been taking Mr. Lin’s decoctions, combined with acupuncture treatment, and also practicing a set of health exercises he taught me. Most importantly, he instructed me to abstain for a month, go to bed early, wake up early, and eat a bland diet..." Zhao Yuanze wasn’t foolish either; he knew that his breakthrough was likely due to the painstaking treatment Lin Miao provided the last night. The earlier treatments weren’t unrelated either, but he could discern their relative importance.

This is his secret weapon; it can’t be shared with others.

Even if used, it would require acknowledging his favor.

Therefore, he spoke evasively; after all, the Emperor might not fully understand it. He himself hadn’t figured it out, yet he had already made a breakthrough.

Zhao Rui nodded slightly; the Crown Prince’s words seemed honest. He had also tried abstaining for a while and took tonifying medicines, and his body noticeably improved, thus believing much of it.

"I’ve never seen acupuncture treatment, but as for those exercises of yours, could you teach me sometime?"

"At your command, Father."

"While you were away, I blocked news from the Eastern Palace and arranged for someone to impersonate you. Rest assured, he only lay in bed feigning illness daily. Upon your return, you can revoke these arrangements," said Zhao Rui.

Zhao Yuanze was listening.

"There’s two hours until the royal banquet. You are the Crown Prince, so this year’s banquet shall be hosted by you. Now, go prepare."

"At your command," Zhao Yuanze couldn’t help but feel relieved upon hearing this. He had learned that the Emperor had intended to let the fifth son host instead this year.

After all, a severely ill Crown Prince was ill-suited for such a role; it was quite normal to replace him.

But now that he was back, he felt unsure about whether they would change the host. If the fifth son were still chosen, it would be a clear sign of replacing the Crown Prince.

However, now it seems the Emperor still wants him to host the banquet, indicating he doesn’t want to change the Crown Prince just yet or at this time.

As long as there is no clear signal from the Emperor, Zhao Yuanze still had a chance.

Yet, he had only two hours to prepare, which was also a test from his father. If he failed, that would be troublesome.

After the audience with the Emperor, the Crown Prince immediately returned to the Eastern Palace.

The upcoming royal banquet is critically important.

"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince seemed like a changed person after visiting Dongshan," an elderly eunuch stepped out from behind the curtain and bowed slightly.

"Hmm, I could see that; he has become more composed and better at concealing things," Emperor Zhao Rui nodded subtly.

"Your Majesty, there’s a small matter concerning Prince Qi..." Mr. Yao hesitated before speaking.

"Oh, what is it?"

"Your Majesty, it’s not a major incident, but this person has some connection with Mr. Lin?" Mr. Yao said.

"What is it, exactly?"

"Your Majesty, Prince Qi deceived a female official from the Imperial Pharmacy into going to Consort Xue’s quarters, subsequently drugged and took her away, and then..."

"This rebellious son, isn’t he harming the female official?"

Mr. Yao lowered his head; he dared not respond. After all, it was Prince Qi, the Emperor’s most favored fifth prince. Doing such a thing was indeed outrageous.

"Outrageous, how dare he!" Zhao Rui was furious; as a prince, liking women was not a problem, but he couldn’t resort to such means. If word got out, how would the royal family’s reputation stand?