The Imperial Doctress Episode 24 Recap
> The Imperial Doctress Recap
Qiyu departed for Datong to negotiate with the Oirat people. Yunxian came to bid him farewell, cautioning him to be careful. He assured her that he was acquainted with some Oirats from his time in the North and found them straightforward and capable of repaying kindness. He promised to return safely within half a month and officially marry her, and they parted with a lingering farewell.
Two months later, Queen Qian’s pregnancy was visibly advancing, and she joyfully felt the baby move, anticipating an energetic child. Qiyu had sent a letter indicating he was on his way home. During this time, Yunxian attended her godmother Madam Yu’s birthday celebration. Madam Yu, who had recently developed an interest in "medicinal food," proudly showed Yunxian a popular book, supposedly compiled by Supervisor Chen Shisan of the Imperial Faculty of Medicine.
Yunxian was shocked to discover that the book was a direct copy of her own medicinal food manuscript. Enraged, Yunxian confronted Chen Shisan, accusing him, a senior member of the Imperial Faculty of Medicine, of plagiarism. Chen Shisan initially denied the accusation, claiming the medicinal food recipes were merely a collection of known remedies.
However, Yunxian presented irrefutable evidence: Chen Shisan's "Seven Treasures Strength Returning Soup" used the exact same main and alternative ingredients as the "Seven Treasures Strength Returning Pill," a secret family medicine from her Tan lineage. She declared her intention to report this grave offense to His Majesty, especially since her "Tranquil Medicinal Food Recipe" was commissioned by the Emperor himself. Cunxia, Chen Shisan's nephew, rushed to intercept Yunxian, pleading with her not to expose his uncle.
He explained that Chen Shisan had raised him and that reporting this crime would ruin their entire clan, potentially costing them their lives and positions. Cunxia desperately promised that within three days, he would collect all the published books and bring his uncle to personally apologize, even vowing to cut off his own fingers if he failed. Moved by Cunxia’s desperate plea and their shared discipleship, Yunxian agreed to give Chen Shisan three days.
Chen Shisan, feigning repentance to Cunxia, promised to handle the matter. Behind Cunxia's back, Chen Shisan acted on a different plan. He recalled Yunxian’s knowledge of the Tan family's secret recipe and, after receiving a secret report confirming her identity, immediately reported to the Empress Dowager that Yunxian was the granddaughter of Tan Fu, the Imperial Physician whom the Empress Dowager blamed for her past miscarriage. Learning this, the Empress Dowager was enraged and vowed to kill Yunxian.
Chen Shisan, wary that the Emperor would intervene to save Yunxian if she were directly executed, proposed a new scheme. He reminded the Empress Dowager about her previous instructions regarding Consort Zhou and Consort Liu, suggesting one could be used. Soon after, Consort Liu dramatically fainted. Yunxian was called to examine her. Consort Liu, feigning an eye injury, asked Yunxian to take her pulse from behind a cloth, extending only her hand.
After Yunxian examined her and prescribed medication, Chen Shisan burst in, accusing Yunxian of harming Consort Liu's unborn royal child, leading to a miscarriage. The Empress Dowager, brandishing Consort Liu's blood-soaked clothing as proof, accused Yunxian of harming a royal heir and demanded her execution for using a fake identity to enter the Palace. The Emperor arrived, fiercely defending Yunxian, explaining that the Grand Empress Dowager had changed the Tan family's surname to Hang, thus making her entry legitimate.
He further questioned the Empress Dowager's accusation regarding the past miscarriage, pointing out the lack of official records. The Imperial Physicians present confirmed Consort Liu’s miscarriage. However, the Emperor denied ever being intimate with Consort Liu, asserting the child could not be his. The Empress Dowager retorted that there were records of his presence in Consort Liu's chambers, accusing Yunxian of attempting to hurt the royal baby to curry favor with Empress Qian.
When the Empress Dowager insisted on punishing Yunxian for treason, even threatening to summon all court officials, Yunxian calmly requested to retake Consort Liu's pulse. She confirmed the miscarriage but declared that the person she examined that morning was not Consort Liu. Yunxian revealed that the morning patient had a rare "Xie Fei pulse," which she had noted and reported to Supervisor Liu Pingan, as such a unique pulse must be officially recorded.
Consort Liu's current pulse was normal, proving that a substitute was used. Cornered, Consort Liu admitted that the Empress Dowager had orchestrated the entire plot to frame Yunxian. Exposed, the Empress Dowager, feigning sudden illness, attempted to take Chen Shisan away, instructing him to escape. The Emperor, however, warned her against protecting Chen Shisan, threatening to send Consort Liu to the Eastern Depot for further interrogation.
Later, Cunxia sought out Yunxian again to apologize for his uncle’s broken promise and his entanglement in the royal bloodline scandal, which had now been exposed. He pleaded with Yunxian to save Chen Shisan, arguing that his uncle, a mere physician, had acted under the Empress Dowager's orders and deserved leniency for his many years of service.
In an attempt to sway Yunxian, Cunxia recounted that during a previous cholera outbreak, Chen Shisan had accidentally scalded his hand while saving citizens, burning off a birthmark between his index finger and thumb. This detail triggered Yunxian's memory, confirming Chen Shisan as the man who had framed her grandfather, Tan Fu, years ago. The Emperor, armed with Yunxian's confirmation, reopened the case of the Empress Dowager's past miscarriage.
He revealed that Chen Shisan, her trusted advisor, was the true culprit who had caused her to miscarry, not Tan Fu. Eastern Depot's investigation found that Chen Shisan had sold a bottle of safflower powder, a potent abortifacient, to the Empress Dowager after acquiring it from a merchant who later died mysteriously. Overcome with rage and the shocking truth, the Empress Dowager ordered Chen Shisan's death. Cao Jixiang immediately complied, stabbing Chen Shisan.
The emotional turmoil caused the Empress Dowager to suffer a stroke and collapse. However, Cao Jixiang secretly brought Chen Shisan back to the Eastern Depot. His stab had not been fatal. Cao Jixiang, seeking to uncover more of the Empress Dowager's secrets, subtly manipulated Chen Shisan. He falsely informed him that Cunxia was the one who had implicated him, pointing out that Cunxia remained unscathed and in his position after the scandal.
Feeling betrayed by his nephew, Chen Shisan, despite his initial reluctance to reveal secrets, agreed to cooperate with Cao Jixiang, especially after Cao Jixiang hinted at a "yang recovering formula" that could restore his virility. Concurrently, Yunxian's "Tranquil Medicinal Food Recipe" was officially published under the title "Taiping Medicinal Food Recipe" and distributed for free, receiving widespread acclaim from the public for the Emperor's benevolent reign.
The Emperor also formally rehabilitated the names of Yunxian’s grandfather, Tan Fu, and her brother, clearing their wrongful convictions, fulfilling Yunxian’s long-held wish. Yunxian, visiting her family's grave, felt a sense of closure. When Cunxia later confronted Yunxian again, seeking help for his uncle, his father sharply rebuked him, stating that Chen Shisan deserved his fate and that Yunxian owed them nothing, having already secured Cunxia's innocence by speaking with the Emperor.
