The Imperial Doctress Episode 48 Recap
> The Imperial Doctress Recap
Emperor Qiyu was delighted to learn of Yunxian's pregnancy, declaring it a joyous event. He promptly issued an imperial decree, promoting Noble Consort Hang to Imperial Noble Consort, praising her for saving the Capital during the plague and her current pregnancy. He told Yunxian that she would soon be a mother and asked her not to be angry with him anymore. He admitted his jealousy upon seeing her and his brother together during her disappearance.
Yunxian then revealed that someone had intended to harm her, breaking her boat, and that only medicine women had saved her and Lvxiang. Yunxian suspected the Empress, though Qiyu initially found it impossible. Yunxian pressed the matter, insisting that for the sake of their child, no one should be allowed to escape justice.
Qiyu vowed to have Cao Jixiang investigate thoroughly, promising that if anyone, including the Empress, dared to harm Yunxian or their child, he would not let them get away with it. Meanwhile, Empress Wang Meilin was furious upon hearing of Yunxian's pregnancy, declaring she would not allow it and questioning how Yunxian could have a child when hers was gone.
Duke Wang urged her to calm down, reminding her that her priority should be covering up the attempt on Yunxian's life. He informed her that he had already arranged for a eunuch from Renshou Palace to be framed for the boat incident. When Wang Meilin suggested methods like saffron or causing Yunxian to fall, Duke Wang cautioned against any immediate action, pointing out that Qiyu was protecting Yunxian fiercely and any scheme would immediately implicate her.
He advised Wang Meilin to endure and allow Yunxian to deliver the child, suggesting that after a year or two, they could make it appear as if Yunxian died of illness. He stressed the importance of maintaining a virtuous front to regain Qiyu's favor during Yunxian's pregnancy. Cao Jixiang's investigation into Yunxian's near-drowning was completed, and a eunuch read the letter to Qiyu, just as Empress Wang Meilin arrived.
The letter, tampered with by Wang Meilin, implicated a eunuch from Renshou Palace (Empress Dowager Wu's palace), noting that he had been handsomely rewarded by the Empress Dowager and had a will stipulating that Empress Dowager Wu would care for his family should anything happen to him.
Wang Meilin, feigning innocence, confirmed her clear conscience but then subtly shifted blame onto Empress Dowager Wu, pointing out Yunxian's lack of respect towards her and Empress Dowager Wu's past resentment of Yunxian for angering ministers over the medicine women. Wang Meilin even offered to have her maid, Lan Cao, take the blame if Yunxian still suspected her. However, Qiyu, remembering Wang Meilin's past attempt to poison Empress Dowager Wu, harbored deep distrust.
He quickly dismissed the matter, telling Wang Meilin to return to her palace and granting clemency to Duke Wang. After she left, Qiyu expressed his fear that Wang Meilin, who had poisoned Empress Dowager Wu and framed her own maid, might one day poison him too. He immediately summoned Cao Jixiang for further inquiry into the attempt on Yunxian's life.
Later, Qiyu warned Yunxian to be extra careful, advising her to stay away from servants from both Kunning Palace (Empress Wang Meilin) and Renshou Palace (Empress Dowager Wu), and increased her guards. He refused her request to visit the Imperial Medical Faculty and Imperial Pharmacy, insisting she prioritize her pregnancy and stay safe in the palace. He suggested she instead write her medical book, "Miscellaneous Entries of a Female Physician", limiting her to 500 characters a day.
During a court session, officials reported high death tolls from the plague across various regions, acknowledging the contributions of the retired Emperor, Imperial Noble Consort Hang, and other officials. An urgent report arrived detailing that Ye Xian, now the Oirat Khan, was leading 3,000 ambassadors to Datong to offer condolences and propose an alliance, effectively testing Ming's weakened state.
Officials urged Qiyu to personally lead the army to Datong and meet Ye Xian, while Duke Wang argued against it, citing the ongoing epidemic and Qiyu's imperial status. However, a minister clarified that Ye Xian had crowned himself the Heavenly Khagan of Great Yuan, making him a ruler. Another minister stressed the danger of not meeting Ye Xian, warning of a potential invasion that Ming could not withstand in its current state.
Qiyu initially agreed to depart for Datong in three days. Empress Wang Meilin and Empress Dowager Wu vehemently opposed Qiyu's departure. Wang Meilin argued that it would create a power vacuum, potentially allowing the retired Emperor to stage a comeback. She also expressed concern for Qiyu's safety given Ye Xian's violent nature, and used Yunxian's delicate pregnancy as a reason to keep him in the Capital.
Swayed by their pleas, Qiyu held Yunxian's hand, touching her belly, and declared that he would not leave them. The next day, Qiyu feigned a leg injury in court to avoid going to Datong, ordering Yu Dongyang to go instead. Yu Dongyang refused, stating that an alliance between two nations required a meeting between rulers.
The court was deadlocked until Zhu Qizhen, the retired Emperor, appeared and volunteered to go, stating he had experience with Ye Xian and was the most suitable choice. Qiyu reluctantly accepted his brother's offer. Yunxian was deeply upset by Qiyu's feigned injury and cowardice, especially after learning from a servant that Qiyu was merely afraid of death. She refused to see him later that night, pretending to be asleep.
Qiyu, sensing her disapproval, confessed his feelings of inadequacy compared to his brother and regretted having fought for the throne. The following day, as Yunxian took a walk for fresh air, Empress Dowager Wu accosted her, criticizing her muddy shoes and berating her for disrespecting her and potentially harming her unborn grandson by being so active.
When Yunxian tried to explain the health benefits of exercise, Empress Dowager Wu slapped her, declaring it a warning, and forbade her from leaving Wan'an Palace without her explicit permission. Later, Qiyu questioned Yunxian about retorting his mother, explaining Empress Dowager Wu's bad temper stemmed from her lowly birth and the challenges of her new title, but he continued to insist that Yunxian remain confined for the sake of the child.
Yunxian, with a headache, asked to rest, effectively ending their conversation. Empress Wang Meilin, pleased by Yunxian's troubles, hoped her rival would miscarry or that the Empress Dowager would allow her to raise the child. Still, Wang Meilin desired Yunxian's death and recalled Duke Wang's advice for a tasteless, colorless poison undetectable by physicians. She then learned about Borneo diamonds, described as the hardest substance on earth, capable of grinding jade smooth.
She covertly tested diamond powder on a rabbit, which Cheng Cunxia, unaware of the method, diagnosed as having died of natural causes from an acute intestinal problem, not poison. Meanwhile, Zhu Qizhen met Ye Xian outside Datong. Ye Xian, though now a Khan, still referred to Zhu Qizhen as "retired Emperor." Zhu Qizhen invited Ye Xian to the scenic Wuzhou Mountains for their discussion, and they both ordered their armies to retreat.
They engaged in a horse race, which ended in a draw. Ye Xian probed Zhu Qizhen's wisdom, acknowledging that the retired Emperor understood his precarious position. He confessed his struggles in subduing Ala Zhiyuan and his fear that Ming might ally with them to attack Oirat from both sides.
Ye Xian offered to become a subject to Ming and forge a thirty-year peace, but Zhu Qizhen insisted on a relationship of "uncle and nephew" rather than "brother nations," to which Ye Xian reluctantly agreed. They then swore an oath to uphold the peace for three decades. Overjoyed by the successful alliance, Qiyu rushed to Yunxian's palace. He found a sour bayberry soup, sent earlier as a gift from him, which Yunxian had set aside as it was too cold.
Without thinking, Qiyu, feeling hot, drank the soup. He happily shared the news of the alliance, Ye Xian's tribute, and the new nephew-uncle relationship. He expressed his profound regret for his past actions, admitting his jealousy and selfishness, and promised to compensate his imperial brother, whom he now recognized as truly worthy. He also decreed that Empress Dowager Qian would no longer be confined.
Yunxian, however, seized the moment to ask Qiyu not to remove Jianshen from the Crown Prince position for their unborn child, urging him to return everything that originally belonged to the retired Emperor, who had never harmed him. Qiyu appeared to hesitate at her words.
