Although the Imperial Hospital had regulations stating that imperial physicians were only permitted to make house calls for officials of the fifth rank and below upon imperial decree, they could also attend to those of higher rank if specifically requested.
However, since the founding of the Yu Lin dynasty, such a request had never occurred.
To put it bluntly, an imperial physician was in a quasi-internship at the Imperial Hospital. Even for officials below the fifth rank, they would meticulously research and seek out reliable physicians, let alone ministers of the fifth rank and above.
Now, the Zhongyong Marquisate was directly requesting an imperial physician for a house call. Wasn't this akin to toying with their own lives?
Upon hearing this news, Zou Hansheng immediately took the invitation and questioned the messenger, "Coincidentally, I have a good relationship with the eldest young master of the Zhong family. It would be difficult for me to stand by and do nothing if someone in their household is unwell."
In essence, Zou Hansheng intended to personally go.
While Zou Hansheng's interception was less than honorable, as a newly appointed imperial physician, his status was naturally higher than Ji Zizhao's.
However, the young eunuch who delivered the message stated, "The person from the Zhong family who delivered the invitation said they are only looking for the eldest daughter of the Ji family."
Zou Hansheng: "..."
He never expected that the Zhong family's slap would land on his face one day.
At this, the gazes of everyone in the Imperial Hospital towards Ji Zizhao became incredibly subtle.
It truly was a case of 'fear not pitfalls on the ground, but falling treasures from the sky.'
When Ji Zizhao heard the name "Zhongyong Marquisate," her brow twitched.
The so-called Zhongyong Marquisate was, in fact, the Zhong family.
Ji Zizhao did not believe she had the influence with the Zhong family to slap Zou Hansheng's face. Yet, here was Zou Hansheng's face being slapped resoundingly. She could do nothing but rise to accept the invitation and further step on Zou Hansheng's face.
Taking the invitation, Ji Zizhao discovered it was Zhong Xinyi who had requested her presence.
After carefully examining the described symptoms, Ji Zizhao packed some medicinal herbs suitable for the conditions into her medicine chest and then left the Imperial Hospital with the young eunuch who delivered the message.
A wet nurse from the Zhong family, who had been waiting at the palace gate, greeted Ji Zizhao very politely, "This old servant offers her greetings to the eldest daughter of the Ji family."
Considering Zhong Xinyi's condition, Ji Zizhao did not exchange pleasantries with the Zhong family's wet nurse and boarded the carriage.
The Zhong family's wet nurse watched Ji Zizhao, who had boarded the carriage without finishing her sentence, with a mixture of surprise and emotion.
She truly hadn't expected the eldest daughter of the Ji family to be able to truly let go of past grievances and distinguish between right and wrong. No wonder she was someone capable of entering the Imperial Hospital and bringing glory to the Ji family. Her demeanor in handling matters was so pleasing to behold.
The carriage traveled smoothly for about half an hour before arriving at the Zhongyong Marquisate.
Ji Zizhao alighted from the carriage and followed the wet nurse into a courtyard at the back. As she stepped into a room, she saw Zhong Xinyi, who was reclining on a couch eating watermelon.
Seeing Zhong Xinyi's ruddy complexion and her hearty enjoyment, Ji Zizhao truly did not believe she was unwell in any way.
Zhong Xinyi had no intention of hiding anything from Ji Zizhao. She stood up and invited Ji Zizhao, "This watermelon was just retrieved from the pond. It's cool and refreshing, do have some to ward off the summer heat."
Ji Zizhao: "..."
She did not recall rushing over just to eat watermelon.
Seeing Ji Zizhao standing still, Zhong Xinyi smiled somewhat sheepishly, "I heard that the eldest daughter of the Ji family has been neglected in the Imperial Hospital recently. I was worried that you might be feeling down, so I thought of finding an excuse to invite you to my residence to share some watermelon and sweeten your mood."
Her words were subtle, but Ji Zizhao understood the underlying meaning.
There were plenty of opportunities to ask her for watermelon, but to send an invitation while she was on duty was clearly not about eating watermelon; it was likely a deliberate attempt to support her.
The Zhongyong Marquisate was one of the foremost marquisates in the imperial city, a key object of the court's protection.
The invitation from the Zhongyong Marquisate today was like a mountain weighing on the hearts of those officials below the fifth rank.
From now on, even if they wanted to collude with others to ostracize Ji Zizhao, they would have to weigh their own standing first.
To put it bluntly, if people could even climb the gates of the Zhongyong Marquisate, why couldn't they climb yours?
Were the lives of your minor officials, below the fifth rank, more precious than those of the Zhongyong Marquisate?
Ji Zizhao truly hadn't expected Zhong Xinyi to have this much thought for her. "Thank you for your concern regarding my affairs, Miss Zhong. I appreciate your sentiment."
Hearing this, Zhong Xinyi breathed a sigh of relief, "You scared me! I thought you'd be angry that I was meddling."
Ji Zizhao smiled, "I'm not that ungrateful."
There had been some friction between her and Zhong Xinyi, but Zhong Xinyi was fundamentally pure and just.
Otherwise, Zhong Xinyi wouldn't have stood up for Ji Renran in the past, nor would she have helped Ji Renran negotiate peace with her.
Now that Zhong Xinyi was willing to befriend her, she was naturally willing to let go of past grievances.
Moreover, completely falling out with Zhong Xinyi would not benefit Ji Zizhao in any way.
The Zhong family was the maternal family of the Empress. Even though the Fourth Prince and the Seventh Prince were adopted by the Empress, they would still have to call Zhong Xinyi "cousin."
In essence, there would be many more opportunities to meet in the future, and it was always better to be united than divided.
Zhong Xinyi's initial awkwardness and shyness vanished with Ji Zizhao's smile. She pulled Ji Zizhao to sit on the couch and proactively offered her a piece of juicy red watermelon, "Actually, this matter is thanks to my Fourth Cousin. If my Fourth Cousin hadn't come to the residence last time to mention the eldest daughter of the Ji family, how would I have known about these things?"
Eating watermelon, Ji Zizhao was precisely thinking of the Fourth Prince when she heard Zhong Xinyi's words and choked on a mouthful.
Zhong Xinyi was startled, "Are you choking?"
Ji Zizhao wiped her mouth with a handkerchief, "It's nothing, I just ate a bit too quickly."
Seeing that Ji Zizhao was truly fine, Zhong Xinyi breathed a sigh of relief and continued, "When I heard my Fourth Cousin talking about the eldest daughter of the Ji family, I was quite surprised. In all my life, you are the first person who has ever appeared in my Fourth Cousin's mouth."
Ji Zizhao found this statement rather awkward.
Although she had already been implicitly proposed to by the Fourth Prince twice, she did not harbor any presumptuous feelings.
"In the future, Miss Zhong, you don't need to be so formal. Just call me by my name," Ji Zizhao deliberately changed the subject.
Perhaps the Fourth Prince had intentionally mentioned her situation to the Zhong family, but it only proved that she was on the same boat as the Fourth Prince. If she faced obstacles in the Imperial Hospital, it might not be a good thing for the Fourth Prince.
It was the same reason she had rushed to the Xue family upon hearing that the Fourth Prince had been framed there.
They were like grasshoppers tied together on a string; if one died, the other could no longer jump.
It was merely a matter of "lips and teeth" (close interdependence), truly nothing to be concerned about.
Zhong Xinyi was unaware of Ji Zizhao's thoughts. Seeing her say so, she smiled and replied, "Then in the future, you can call me by my name too, instead of always calling me 'eldest daughter of the Zhong family'."