The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

Coastal city.

In a very ordinary house, lying on a shabby sickbed, Xie Qian slowly opened his eyes.

The middle-aged man standing next to him quickly handed the bowl of medicine to him and said, "Father, hurry up and take the medicine. If you don't, the medicine will get cold."

Xie Qian looked around, and the surroundings were still unfamiliar. He looked at the man next to him and asked, "Where is this?"

The middle-aged man was Xie Qian’s eldest son Xie Zheng.

Because Xie Qian was convicted and exiled to Binhai City, and Xie Zheng got his position with the help of Xie Qian, this time Xie Zheng was exiled here with Xie Qian and also served as a minor official.

But this kind of petty official was obviously here for training, and his salary was pitifully low. Plus, he had a large family to support, which put a lot of pressure on Xie Qian and his son Xie Zheng. Especially after Xie Qian fell ill, the Xie family felt as if their entire family had collapsed.

Xie Zhengdao: "This is the courtyard we just found. Father, you have been in a coma since last night. It has been almost twelve hours. Everyone in the family is very worried, and there is no one else to take care of you."

"Alas!" Xie Qian sighed heavily, "Why do I need you to take care of me? I am already dying and seriously ill, so there is no need to force me. Ahem, what kind of medicine? What is my illness?"

Xie Zheng handed over the bowl of medicine, and Xie Qian took it but did not take it.

"Father, this is the famous doctor we invited. After examining you, he prescribed some herbal medicine for you. He also gave you... an injection before. I'm not sure what happened exactly." Xie Zheng's tone was somewhat evasive when he said this.

Apparently there were some things he didn't want Xie Qian to know for the time being.

Xie Qian frowned and said, "Famous doctor? What famous doctor? Do you still have money to hire a doctor now?"

Xie Zhengdao: "Actually, the city's management staff found us. The person who came was a woman, so we didn't ask too many questions. After diagnosing you, she prescribed some medicine. As for the injection in your arm, it was said to be... able to quickly reduce inflammation, but we didn't understand what it meant."

"Who?" Xie Qian asked.

You are such an unfilial son, how dare you let someone harm your old father's body? Don't you know what it means to be careful not to damage the body and hair given by parents?
You actually teamed up with outsiders to harm your old father's body! You deserve to be killed!
Xie Zhengdao: "I don't know who it was. In fact, we have consulted doctors before, but all doctors said that your disease is difficult to treat and no one dares to treat it. And the medicines are all provided by the doctors. Otherwise, maybe my father would..."

"I'd rather turn my back than accept favors from others. Ahem."

While pretending to be strong, Xie Qian handed the medicine bowl back to Xie Zheng.

Xie Zhengdao: "But father, if you don't think about yourself, you should also think about this family. I just received news today that my second brother has passed the imperial examination and ranked fourth in the second class. If your illness is not cured, he will come to serve you and think about his future."

"Tell him not to come." Xie Qian said with a dark face.

"There are also the old and young in the family who all hope that father's illness can be cured soon. But father's condition has been getting worse day by day in the past few days. He has been bedridden for the past few days, and today is even worse... If anything happens to father, I don't know how to explain to my family and the people in the clan." Xie Zheng looked distressed.

As a father, you really don't have any sympathy for these younger generations. Now your whole family is suffering because of you, and you still want to just give up and face your ancestors?
Don’t you think that if you leave like this, you will completely ignore the mess left behind by the whole family?
Xie Qian was also very angry after hearing this. His children had obviously grown up, and it seemed that he had nothing to do with anything and he could just enjoy his retirement.

But the entire Xie family seemed to be unable to live without him.

This is the responsibility of a man in his old age who still has to shoulder the entire family's mission, which makes him feel that he cannot afford to get sick, let alone die.

"Bring it here." Xie Qian had no choice but to call out to Xie Zheng.

Xie Zheng then handed the medicine back to Xie Qian. Xie Qian drank it in a few sips. Then he felt a little sleepy, so he lay down and continued to rest.

……

……

The next morning, when Xie Qian woke up, he heard his son talking to someone outside.

Xie Qian's own health seemed to have improved a lot. At least his body was not as heavy as before, and his mind was clearer. However, he still felt weak after the serious illness, so he couldn't get up directly from the bed.

"Father?" At this moment, Xie Zheng glanced into the room and saw that his old father had sat up.

Then, a woman dressed as a woman walked in.

Xie Qian took a look and seemed to think he looked familiar, so he asked, "Who are you?"

The visitor bowed to Xie Qian and said, "My concubine greets Lord Xie."

She didn't tell Xie Qian who she was.

Xie Qian nodded and asked, "What are you doing here?"

Xie Zhengdao said, "Father, this is the doctor invited by the city manager. Your condition was also diagnosed by this female doctor. Father, do you feel better today?"

"I..." Xie Qian didn't know what to say.

The woman said, "The medicine is ready. There is an injection cartridge. Remember to use it before noon. After a few times, the condition should get better. If it doesn't get better, I may be powerless. As for the soups, they also have the effect of reducing inflammation and removing internal heat. I'll take my leave now."

"I will send you a miracle doctor." Xie Zhengdao said.

"I don't deserve it." The woman bowed and turned to leave.

After Xie Zheng sent the woman out, he came back half a day later, followed by people from the Xie family.

Xie Qian dismissed the others and asked, "Dazhong, who is that? Why is a woman here prescribing medicine for others?"

Xie Zhengdao: "I dare not ask more. Since she was sent by the city manager, she must be someone important. If it weren't for her, your illness this time would have been..."

"Who sent this person of unknown origin?" Xie Qian asked with a dark face.

It seems like he is saying, "If you don't tell me who I am, I won't treat this disease."

Xie Zheng sighed, "I don't know who it is, but it was probably sent by someone in charge in the city."

"Zhang Bingkuan? Is he here?" Xie Qian asked with a frown.

"Duke Cai has already returned to the capital, but it is said that before he left, he asked someone to take care of you, father. If it weren't for the help of Duke Cai's people, you would have been..."

"You, why don't you understand? They are just giving a small favor to let your father... ahem!"

In his excitement, Xie Qian started coughing violently this time.

"That famous doctor also said that the medicine was actually left by Duke Cai and was originally intended for emergency use. Who would have thought that it was actually used on you, father?" Xie Zhengdao said.

Xie Qian frowned and said, "Zhang Bingkuan knew that I would get sick? He..."

Xie Zheng was stunned, and somewhat helpless. Did his old father think that Zhang Bingkuan was still harming him? Was he poisoning him first, or finding some way to make him sick, and then curing him so that he would repay his kindness?
This idea seems... too dark, even Xie Zheng doesn't think so.

It's not like the family hadn't sought treatment for Xie Qian before because his illness was simply a combination of a series of illnesses. There was no sign of poisoning, but rather a combination of physical and psychological illnesses, which was very obvious.

"Father, you should rest and recuperate. The city manager has also told you that you don't need to be busy with official business recently. Someone will take care of it for you."

"No, I have to take care of him for two more days, and then I will have to take on those chores again. I am not old enough to need sympathy from others..."

No matter how strong Xie Qian tried, his body couldn't hold on.

He could only talk big and pretend to be strong in front of his son, but in fact he seemed to know that he had to recuperate recently and it would take a long time before he could return to work.

……

……

After many days, Xie Qian was finally able to get out of bed.

His wife, Xu, helped him walk to the yard. His steps were still a little unsteady, but he insisted on walking by himself. After he felt a little better, he sat on the stool prepared for him. After sitting down, he panted heavily.

"You haven't been out for many days. Are you feeling better?" Xu asked her husband.

Xie Qian waved his hands, meaning that he didn't want to talk.

Xu and Xie Qian were in love with each other, but Xie Qian himself had many concubines, which is also recorded in history. However, when he came to Binhai City this time, most of his concubines stayed in the capital or were sent back to Yuyao by him.

He didn't want these people to suffer with him, and more importantly... he didn't want anyone to see him in such a miserable state.

Xie Qian said, "I asked Dazhong about the treatment, but he refused to answer me. Do you know who the woman who came to treat the disease is?"

Xu shook her head helplessly because she didn't know either.

"Master, your medical treatment is all handled by Dazhong. Fortunately, he is here. If you didn't have this son by your side, I'm afraid you would not be able to overcome this hurdle. At first, I thought the court asked Dazhong to come here to make things difficult for our family. Now it seems that the court also takes your old age into consideration." Xu said.

Xie Qian said with a dark face: "How can you call this a favor when my family is implicated by my affairs?"

Seeing that Xie Qian had a bad attitude, Xu stopped talking.

At this time, a girl of about thirteen or fourteen came over with a medicine bowl and said from a distance: "Grandpa, grandma, mom said that you have to drink the medicine quickly, otherwise it will get cold."

The girl was timid, but she didn't seem afraid of Xie Qian.

Xie Qian was still sulking, but when he saw his granddaughter coming, his expression changed to a good one. He pushed his crutches aside, as if to show that he was strong and healthy.

"Junnu, come here." Xie Qian greeted with a smile.

The girl then brought the medicine over.

Xie Qian brought over the medicine bowl. The medicine was originally very bitter, but after being brought by his granddaughter, it tasted sweet when he drank it.

Xu smiled and said, "Master, are you in a better mood?"

"What are you talking about? When have I ever been in a bad mood?" Xie Qian was a male chauvinist after all. After giving his wife a sidelong glance, he said to the girl, "Junnu, have you continued to study recently? Have you memorized all the "Female Filial Piety Classics" given to you?"

"Yeah." The girl nodded.

Xie Qian sighed, "You are already a grown-up girl, but it's a pity that you have to follow your father here and suffer a lot."

The girl said: "I don't feel it's hard. I can walk around and there are many fun places here."

"What do you mean?" Xie Qian was a little displeased.

He glared at his wife, probably saying, how could you let a young girl run around in such a chaotic and disorderly place?
Xu said, "Everything is good here, but you have to do a lot of things yourself. It's not like when we were in the capital. There was no one to do the housework. Sometimes even the little maids had to help take care of the house. Master, our situation is not the same as before."

Xie Qian seemed to realize at this moment that he was no longer the high-ranking official in the court who had everything provided for him, and could even take care of his family members without having to do any housework.

He is now an old man who needs to work hard to support his family.

"Thank you for your hard work." Xie Qian said.

Xu said, "There is a girls' school in the city. I plan to discuss it with the master and send her there to study."

"What? Girls' school?" Xie Qian frowned.

"Yes, sir. In this city, all boys and girls who want to study will be sent to private schools. There are also special private schools for girls. The nearest girls' school is not far from the street corner, just a few steps away. I heard that many girls from the surrounding neighborhoods have been sent there." Xu said.

Xie Qian said: "It's against the rules to go out and study."

Xu said, "I understand that you should not go out of the house, but a girl will get married eventually, so there is nothing wrong with letting her learn something. Otherwise, what can she do if she stays at home every day? In the past, not only did you not have to spend money to study, you were also provided with three meals a day, and even a monthly allowance."

"What is this?" Xie Qian frowned. "Did Zhang Bingkuan come up with this?"

Xu said, "I don't know who came up with this idea, but I heard that many families were reluctant to send their daughters there. But since they can have food to eat, learn something, and can bring some money home at the end of the month, what's wrong with that?"

Xie Qian angrily said, "Is Zhang Bingkuan stupid? What's the difference between this and selling your daughter? How can my granddaughter, a lady from a noble family, associate with a woman from the market?"

Hearing this, Xu fell silent again.

Xie Qian saw that his wife was also a little unhappy. He thought that he couldn't even earn enough to support his family. Then he thought that Zhang Zhou had a group of women who could be accountants, and they were all so awesome...

"What does Dazhong think about this? As a father, does he have any objection?" Xie Qian felt that if he refused, he would be the bad guy.

It would be better to push your son out.

Mrs. Xu said, "It was the female doctor who mentioned this to Dazhong, and Dazhong thought it was a good thing at the time. Others can't be trusted, but the female doctor can be trusted. She came to our house many times before, and didn't ask for a single cent for the consultation. She also gave us medicine without even saying thank you. If people like this can't be trusted, then who can be trusted?"

Xie Qian said helplessly: "Zhang Bingkuan always wants to make some trouble! It's because I am now... a tiger in the plain, otherwise, I would have impeached him to pieces! Now he is targeting my house!"

Then he looked at his granddaughter and asked, "Junnu, do you want to go?"

"Listen to grandpa and father." The girl was very tactful and did not express her own opinion.

"Then I'll discuss this with your father later, oh!" Xie Qian sighed heavily. (End of this chapter)