Chapter 22: The Young Servant Met a Fairy

  Zhao Yan removed the plastic tube from outside the needle, pierced the rubber stopper on the glass bottle with it, sucked the cephalosporin injection liquid into the syringe, squeezed out the excess air, and then said to Zhao Shu beside him: "Dad, I'm going to give my brother an injection. Don't worry, there won't be any problem!"

  Zhaoyan had to explain it several times, so they wouldn't worry or even stop him. However, Zhaoyan underestimated Zhaoxu, the Emperor of Song Dynasty. Since he had already made up his mind, he wouldn't change it easily, so he just nodded calmly. Empress Gao, who was standing beside him, looked worried, but once Zhaoxu made a decision, she couldn't change it either.

  As for Han Qi and Zeng Gongliang, they were all waiting in the outer hall. In the room, apart from Zhao Shu's couple and Zhao Yan, Cao Ying was also here. She had been staring at Zhao Yan's every move since the beginning, her eyes sometimes dazed and sometimes puzzled, it was unknown what she was thinking in her heart.

  Zhao Yan lifted Zhao Kun's sleeve, originally should have been disinfected with alcohol, but unfortunately there was none now. Under helplessness, he could only use a clean cloth to dip in the strongest wine and wipe it gently before inserting the needle into Zhao Kun's arm, slowly pushing the cephalosporin injection inside. At the same time, Zhao Yan thought to himself that this might be the first time in human history that medicine was injected into a patient's body to treat an illness.

  After the injection, Zhao Yan pulled out the needle and carefully put the syringe back in its original place. Although it was just a disposable syringe that should be thrown away after use according to regulations and absolutely cannot be used for a second time, but in the Northern Song Dynasty era, it might not be easy to manufacture a substitute for the syringe, so this used syringe might still have some use in the future, throwing it away would be such a waste.

  After the injection, Zhao Yan accompanied his father Zhao Shu for a while. At this time, the sky was almost dark, and Cao Ying asked someone to prepare dinner and send it over. However, neither Zhao Shu nor Empress Gao had any appetite and couldn't eat at all. Zhao Yan, on the other hand, had been busy for half a day and was both tired and hungry. Moreover, he believed that his medicine would definitely work, so he wasn't worried about Zhao Yun's situation at all. Even though Cao Ying had prepared only vegetables and tofu for him, he ate them very deliciously.

  "Yan'er, you... why are you eating these today?" Zhao Yan had almost finished dinner before Zhao Shu noticed that his dishes were different from his own, and what surprised him even more was that the previously picky eater Zhao Yan was actually savoring them with relish.

  "Reporting to Father, the Duke was injured last time and his body is greatly damaged. He can't eat greasy food for the time being, so he has been eating vegetarian dishes all this time. The Duchess also asked me to supervise the Duke's diet!" Before Zhao Yan could respond, Cao Ying spoke up on her behalf.

  "I see." Zhao Shu nodded and smiled, "The taste of green vegetables and tofu is lighter, but it's the most nourishing. Mountain delicacies and seafood are delicious, but sometimes they can become indigestible. You should understand this, my child."

  After finishing teaching Zhao Yan, Zhao Shu turned his head and said to Cao Ying: "Besides, you also did a good job, Cao. I know Yan's temper, and it's not easy for you to make him eat green vegetables and tofu for a month. Today, I'll give you a special privilege. From now on, all the major and minor matters of the county prince's mansion will be decided by you, and Yan has no right to interfere. I believe that with your guidance, Yan won't be as reckless as before."

  Zhao Shu's words had just fallen, and before Cao Ying could thank him, Zhao Yan spoke up with a face full of grievance: "Father, I helped big brother recover from his illness, and at the very least, I deserve some credit. Is this how you reward those who have made contributions?"

  "Haha, they say that marrying a good wife is the key to happiness. Look at you, it's only been a month since your wedding and you've changed so much, it's like you're a different person! Cao Shi is certainly deserving of praise for this change, and as your father, I will naturally reward her. As for you, if you can really cure your older brother's illness, I will have another reward in store!" Zhao Shu was initially quite pleased, but his mood sank again when the conversation turned to Zhao You's illness.

  Zhao Heng's condition was severe, so he could only stay at Zhao Yan's place. Zhao Shu and his wife didn't plan to return to the palace either, so they also rested there that night. Cao Ying had already arranged for a courtyard to be set up next to the wing room. Since Zhao Shu's illness hadn't recovered yet, he couldn't stay up late, so after chatting with Zhao Yan, he went to rest. Several high-ranking officials like Han Qi also took their leave one after another, but only Empress Gao refused to leave Zhao Heng's side even half a step.

  "You go rest, I'll be fine here!" Zhao Yan said softly to Cao Ying, who also looked a bit tired. Today was another busy day for Cao Ying, arranging personnel and dinner plans, and only now did she finally have time to take a break.

  "There's a bed in the outer room where you can rest, if you're tired, go take a nap!" Cao Ying said with a slightly softer tone towards Zhao Yan. As Zhao Yan was now the chief physician of Zhao Yun, he would definitely have to stay here tonight. After witnessing Zhao Yan's medical skills today, Cao Ying had many questions she wanted to ask him, but unfortunately, there was no time for that now.

  Zhaoyan responded with a sound, letting Xiaodouya and Moxue accompany Cao Ying to the inner house. The entire wing was left with only Zhaoyan and Empress Gao. Originally, Zhaoyan had some dissatisfaction with Empress Gao, and Empress Gao also didn't like this son of hers, so the two people felt very awkward in the room. In the end, Zhaoyan simply went to the outer room to rest. If Zhao Xun had any reaction, he could be called up directly.

  The efficacy of the cephalosporin was much stronger than Zhao Yan had expected. Just before dawn, Zhao Yan was awakened by a palace maid. It turned out that Zhao Xun had already woken up from his coma and the fever on his body had also subsided by more than half. Now Zhao Shu and Empress Gao were both in the side room, and several imperial physicians were also there, waiting for Zhao Yan, the chief physician.

  Zhaoyan stood up and wiped his face, just walking to the bedroom door, he heard a bright laugh from inside, as well as the voices of Gao Empress and a young man. When Zhaoyan entered the bedroom, he immediately saw Zhao Xun lying on the bed, Zhao Shu sitting in a chair beside him, while Gao Empress sat directly at the bedside, the three were happily talking about something.

  "Yan'er, come and take a look at your big brother. Just now, Xun'er was saying that he would be fine and thank you, his third brother!" Zhao Shu was the first to see Zhao Yan enter, and immediately smiled and beckoned him over. He was extremely happy today, not only because Zhao Yan had saved Zhao Xun's life, but also because he saw hope in Zhao Yan's behavior - this son who used to be known for causing trouble had finally grown up.

  "Big brother, how are you feeling? From now on, you must never be so careless with your own body again, or else it will worry Father and Mother!" Zhao Yan said with a smile as she walked over, also hastily greeting Zhao Shu and Empress Gao.

  "This time, thank you third brother for saving my life. In the future, I will definitely be more careful!" Zhao Yun also smiled and said, while also feeling a bit sentimental in his heart. Originally, he didn't pay much attention to this mischievous third brother of his, and their fraternal feelings were quite ordinary. But unexpectedly, it was precisely this neglected brother who saved his life at the critical moment.

  "What else can be said between brothers?" Zhao Yan also smiled casually, and Zhao Shu on the side also praised him highly, laughing and praising that Zhao Yan really understood a lot more, even the attitude of Empress Gao towards Zhao Yan improved a lot.

  The family chatted for a few words, and the imperial physician who was discussing Zhao Yun's condition on the side finally had a result. The slightly fat white-bearded imperial physician who was in charge walked over and bowed to Zhao Yan, saying: "Your Highness, Duke of Guang, we have just examined the body of the Duke of Ying and found that the evil wind in his body seems to have dissipated. As for how to treat him next, please instruct us, Your Highness!"

  Those imperial physicians did not believe that Zhao Yan could really cure the illness yesterday, but at that time they were already helpless and worried that the emperor would blame them for it. Unexpectedly, Zhao Yan took the initiative to treat Zhao Yun, which made the imperial physicians grateful because if Prince Yun was not cured, the emperor would not blame them either. However, what they did not expect was that this infamous Prince of Guangping, Zhao Yan, actually improved Zhao Yun's condition, which also made the imperial physicians look at Zhao Yan with new eyes and speak to him with unprecedented respect.

  Zhao Yan was also somewhat surprised by the efficacy of the cephalosporin, and didn't expect that one injection would eliminate more than half of Zhao Yun's inflammation. After a moment's consideration, he spoke up: "Although big brother's illness has already started to take a turn for the better, in order to be on the safe side, this afternoon I will give big brother another injection to consolidate it, and afterwards you can just have him take some more medicine - you people are more experienced than me at this!"

  "Yes!" The imperial physician responded, but didn't immediately leave. Instead, he hesitated for a moment before continuing, "Your Highness, I don't know what medicine you gave the Duke of Ying yesterday, but it had an astonishing effect! If our Great Song can prepare this medicine, then in the future, our military officers won't have to fear getting injured!"

  Upon hearing the imperial physician's words, Zhao Shu and his son Zhao Cong were both shocked. If the Song army could also use that medicine from yesterday, how many soldiers' lives would be saved? Moreover, most of the soldiers who survived the battlefield were elite troops, which would greatly enhance the combat effectiveness of the Song army. It can be said that this medicine could even change the unfavorable situation for the Song dynasty in foreign affairs.

  "Yesterday, that medicine was extremely rare, and even in the entire Song Dynasty, only I had a little bit here. It's fundamentally impossible to mass-produce it." Zhao Yan heard this and shook his head with a bitter smile, saying that extracting cephalosporin injection required microbiology and chemistry, not to mention advanced craftsmanship, so even if he knew the manufacturing method, he probably still couldn't produce it.

  "Yan'er, then where did you get the medicine in your hand?" Zhao Shu asked again with some reluctance.

  "This...," Zhao Yan hesitated for a moment, perhaps it was time to bring out the explanation he had fabricated, "Father, don't worry, I'll have someone call Cao Ying over, there are some things that everyone should know about."

  Zhao Shu was taken aback, not understanding why Zhao Yan wanted to call Cao Ying over. However, seeing his son's serious expression, he didn't object either. Before long, Cao Ying arrived after receiving the message. She had also gotten up early and arranged for breakfast to be prepared for Zhao Shu, his wife, and Zhao Yun. But she hadn't expected Zhao Yan to summon her here, leaving her bewildered.

  Next, Zhao Yan drove all the palace maids and eunuchs out of the room, leaving only him, Cao Ying, Zhao Shu, Empress Gao, and Zhao Xian lying on the bed. Only then did Zhao Yan sit down with a serious face and say: "Father, I met an immortal recently!"