32 Fever

You suspect smallpox

"So you want to kill me?" Nanny Fang staggered to her feet and said.

"You're just cannon fodder. The Crown Princess is looking for someone else, but you've given her a legitimate reason. Thank you very much."

Xue Ji didn't have much to say to her, nor did he want to say anything more.

"This damn girl, I underestimated her in the beginning."

Seeing her lost look, Xue Ji said calmly, "You think too highly of yourself. You record all that stuff, but you never think about whether the trivialities of daily life are worth making a fuss about. Is there anything else you don't understand? I'll make you understand."

Nanny Fang grabbed his collar and demanded loudly, "You've fallen for her, haven't you? Why are you so protective of her?"

Xue Ji easily subdued her with his backhand, "I won't be attracted to you anyway."

After all, this was the first time that the two of them had such a face-to-face contact. Xue Ji didn't have a deep impression of her before. He just vaguely remembered that she always had a stern face, and seemed to be intimidating without being angry. She looked like she was highly respected. In fact, Rong Qianyu was also on guard against her day and night.

She is loyal only to her only master. She moves forward when ordered to move forward and moves backward when ordered to move backward. She is like a dagger, ready to go at any time.

But she had a deep memory of Xue Ji. On that rainy night, Rong Qianyu fell asleep with Xue Ji as her pillow, and then she suddenly disappeared for two days. Rong Pan was secretive about it, and now, she saw too clearly the tenderness in their eyes.

"Someone come!"

At Xue Ji's command, two eunuchs wearing Feiyu uniforms came. They were tall and carried long swords.

"Gag her and take her back to her country. If she dares to talk nonsense on the way, cut off her tongue."

"yes."

The two men removed the shackles from Nanny Fang, tied her hands, and took her away. Xue Ji stopped one of them with a look, "And if you leave the Great Zhou territory, kill her."

The young eunuch beside him was naturally puzzled, "Sir, didn't the Crown Princess say that she would spare her life?"

"That's what the Crown Princess said. It has nothing to do with me."

"clear!"

"Don't worry, Rongguo won't make a big fuss over an old woman. She's not worthy of it yet. Be quick and save yourself the trouble."

This was Xue Ji's selfish motive. Keeping such a person around was a hidden danger, so it was better to get rid of him, cleanly and without arousing suspicion. He hadn't done this for someone in a long time. The last time was when he avenged his parents before his death. Hatred and resentment had kept him going until now.

The mountain flowers bloomed in early spring, and new buds sprouted all over the mountains. Looking at the blooming mountain flowers, his heart slowly melted.

The matter was settled, Rong Qianyu was released, and after many twists and turns, she finally escaped unscathed.

Under the peach tree, a woman in light gauze is picking up fallen petals. The breeze blows, and her green hair sways gracefully.

"Meet the Crown Princess."

Xue Ji was dressed impeccably today, as always. She wore a light blue brocade robe, a long sword at her waist, and a jade pendant and sachet. She also wore rouge, stood upright, her brows relaxed, and a beaming smile on her face as she stood beneath the peach tree.

Rong Qianyu turned around and looked, a long-lost smile appearing on her face. The two of them meeting each other at this moment was the best comfort.

"Thank you, Lord Xue, for arguing for me. Please leave first. I need to speak to Lord Xue alone."

She dismissed the servants, trotted to his side, hugged his thin waist, stood on tiptoe and gently kissed the side of his face.

This was the first time she took the initiative to show goodwill, which really scared Xue Ji. He hesitated for a long time and then put his hand on her waist in a panic.

"Master Xue has worked hard for me recently. Thank you for your hard work."

"Didn't Her Majesty just say that?" Xue Ji looked calm, but in fact, he was already very excited.

She was particularly obedient today, and seeing that no one was around, she became even more unbridled. "That was what I said to Master Xue just now, and this is for you."

Rong Qianyu spoke sweetly, but her heart was not necessarily turbulent. She knew very well what her relationship with Xue Ji was.

They were just using each other. Since Xue Ji was so taken in by this, it was only right to go along with him. But his heart was already in turmoil. Who was this smile, this coquettishness for? He gradually sank into this gentleness, greedy. Even though he knew it was all an act, he still wanted to take it, wanted more, wanted to monopolize it, wanted to be close to her day and night.

But she could give this smile to anyone she wanted, but it was definitely not the smile of a lowly and dirty eunuch.

He tried his best to hide his panic and didn't want Rong Qianyu to see him in such a mess.

Being actively teased like this, Xue Ji was a little flustered and visibly nervous. "The Queen has finally released you. All my hard work has not been in vain."

Rong Qianyu stared at the peach tree for a long time, and then she set her eyes on a brightly blooming flower. She held it in her hands and admired it for a long time.

"My Lady, do you like this one?"

"Um."

"Pick it if you like it, and get rid of the others so that they don't have to compete for nutrients with this one. Pick the flowers when they are ready, and don't wait until there are no flowers left and you have to break the branches empty." After saying this, he gave the flower to her.

"Why are you so domineering now? You seem to be in a good mood today."

"I have nothing in Jiangnan, so I give you a spring branch. I've solved a big problem, so I'm naturally in a good mood."

"Thank you, sir."

In fact, as long as she is happy, Xue Ji doesn't care about sincerity. Businessmen should not talk about feelings.

"I don't like empty words," he said honestly. "Thanks should be expressed in a tangible way. If Your Majesty likes it, I can move this tree to your palace."

"The Crown Prince has been feeling unwell since returning to the palace yesterday. Headaches and fever are common in spring, so you should be careful."

"Thank you for your concern, Madam."

At this moment, the ambiguous atmosphere is so tangled and tangled, and the surroundings are quiet. This feeling is entangled with each other. Perhaps I know that it is automatic sentimentality and one-sided, but I don't want to look back, I am willing.

"This isn't a thought," she said solemnly. "It's a request, a wish. For my sake, you must be healthy."

Fu Hua's health has not been good since he returned to the palace. Perhaps it was the late spring cold, and he often suffered from colds and fevers.

"Have you stopped taking the medicine?" he asked.

"yes."

"I've been gone for a few days, and Aunt Fang is gone too?"

"Madam Fang has returned home."

"Why?"

"She added drugs to my medicine, causing irregular periods and my inability to conceive. I allowed her to return home and spend the rest of her life in peace."

"You are clearly..." Fu Hua suddenly realized and felt for the first time that she had tricked him. He didn't know what Nanny Fang had done, but because of this, he didn't need to take the pregnancy-maintaining medicine.

"How about this? Are you going to tell the Queen that you and I never slept together, and that these past few months were just a show?"

Fu Hua was not annoyed, but very calm. Perhaps it was because of a headache. He did not want to argue with her at the moment. "That medicine was not given by Madam Fang, but by you."

"Whether it's me or not, it's her now. She's returned home, and you have no place to confront her."

"How long have you been eating?" he asked.

"Not long, just over a month." Rong Qianyu replied.

Fu Hua glanced at her and drank the tea in a gulp of displeasure. "You are so boring!"

Fu Hua had deliberately bullied him to vent Cui Rumei's anger. In fact, as long as Rong Qianyu gave in and begged him to stop taking the medicine, he would not have made things difficult for her. But neither of them was willing to give the other a way out.

"I'm boring, but I can't waste my energy here."

As he was speaking, Fu Hua suddenly shuddered, but fortunately he subdued himself and almost fell down.

"What's wrong with you? What's wrong?" Rong Qianyu was also genuinely startled. When she touched his hand, it was scorching hot. "Why are you so hot? Pan'er, go call the imperial physician!"

She helped him to the bed, changed his clothes and covered him with a blanket.

Fu Hua was confused by her sudden thoughtfulness and asked, "Why are you doing this?"

"This is my responsibility. I am the Crown Princess. Has the imperial physician arrived?" She urged Yu Xie again.

"Sister Pan'er has already gone to invite them!"

"Drink some hot water first."

"Doctor Sun, what's going on?"

Imperial Physician Sun summoned the man to a side hall and said solemnly, "Your Highness the Crown Prince has a fever that appears to be an epidemic, but we still need to observe what the disease is."

Everyone present was shocked when they heard about the plague. Goosebumps appeared all over their bodies, and their hearts were pounding with anxiety. "Is it accurate? How could it be a plague?"

"Your Majesty, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has just returned from the common people." He repeated it again.

"Xianghe, where did the prince go when he left the palace, and who did he meet?"

The young eunuch beside Fu Hua hesitated and dared not say, "Prince..."

"Hurry up and tell me," Rong Qianyu shouted at him, "If you conceal the truth, I'll kill your entire clan!"

Even though he was young, he was frightened and started crying. "Prince, His Highness went to the Pixiang Tower and met several courtesans. He also...he also went to the temple fair..."

The temple fair and the courtesan are always in turmoil. I just dealt with Nanny Fang, and now things haven't been peaceful for a few days and something else has happened.

Even though she was extremely anxious, Rong Qianyu was the Crown Princess after all, so she couldn't panic. "Go find Xue Ji right now and tell him that it was my order to seduce the crown prince. Kill those courtesans and stop the temple fair immediately!"

"Yes!" Although the young eunuch was young, he was very efficient in his work.

"Wait a moment!" She took out the token and handed it to him. "This is my token. Go quickly and come back quickly. Don't alert anyone else!"

Now there are only three people left in the room: her, Rong Pan, and Doctor Sun.

She tried her best to calm her nerves, her mind blank. For the first time, she felt so helpless. "Doctor Sun, we can only confirm it's an epidemic. Is it possible to determine what kind of epidemic it is?"

"Your Majesty, now that things have come to this, I can only tell you the truth. I wonder if Your Majesty is aware of this, but there is a smallpox outbreak outside the palace."

"Pox...pox epidemic!?" Hearing these words, her eyes widened in horror and even her mouth opened wide.

"You suspect smallpox!?"

Doctor Sun continued, "The specific symptoms are not yet clear, so we can't be sure, but it's most likely smallpox."

"This... this is no small matter. I need to report it to His Majesty and the Empress."

She had contracted smallpox as a child, and though she didn't remember it clearly, she would never forget the urgency of it. Many people died in the palace, and her father personally issued an edict of remorse. Every day, dozens of corpses wrapped in white cloth were carried out of the palace through the alleys for cremation.

Now that the epidemic has come again, she was filled with helplessness and was completely at a loss as to what to do.

"Pan'er, quickly go and inform His Majesty, the Empress, and the Crown Prince of the situation. Pass on my instructions. Everyone in the Eastern Palace must remain motionless. No one is allowed to leave the house until further orders are given. Those who don't return will be executed immediately. Don't wait for those who haven't returned yet. Close the door. Find a way to contact Xue Ji. Spare those prostitutes for now. Then, don't return yet. Go take care of him. It might be safer outside. Have Yuanqing Yujie come and serve him."

"yes."

After giving Rong Pan his orders, he felt a real headache looking at the mess. "Thank you, Imperial Physician Sun. Please leave first. I'll go see the Crown Prince first."

"yes."

Entering the bedroom, facing Fu Hua, the two of them always had little conversation. She sighed and said, "You went to Pixiang Tower and visited the temple fair. How many days did you stay in Pixiang Tower?"

"Three to five days, what's the matter?" he said without knowing what was going on.

Rong Qianyu's face was ashen. "Do you know that there's an epidemic among the people recently? How dare you go to a brothel? In fact, whether you go to a brothel or not is none of my business. But you brought the disease back to the palace, so it has something to do with me."

"What do you mean?" Fu Hua still felt that she was exaggerating to scare him.

She said word for word, "Imperial Physician Sun said you have smallpox."