Chapter 52 Only four months left

Zhizhi rushed into the palace and went straight to the Imperial Pharmacy to find Chu Fengnian, who was on duty. She asked him to go to Huaguangzong with her immediately.

Upon hearing that the princess had fainted for unknown reasons, Chu Fengnian quickly packed his medicine box and followed behind her.

The two had just passed by the Emperor's Liangyi Palace when Zhizhi was stopped by a familiar eunuch.

"Miss Zhizhi, what brings you to the palace? Is it because of the princess?"

Zhizhi was surprised that the news spread so quickly and immediately nodded.

The young eunuch said, "Hey, tell the princess not to worry. The matter that Minister Qin mentioned is still unresolved. The Emperor has always doted on the princess and won't easily believe what he says."

Zhizhi paused in confusion, sensing that the eunuch wasn't referring to the princess's fainting. However, she had no time to linger and left the palace after a few perfunctory words.

The two of them rushed back to the courtyard in the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

Xiao Sui, who was originally standing guard beside the princess, immediately stood up and made way for Chu Fengnian when he heard their footsteps.

Chu Fengnian took Ning Qi's pulse through a handkerchief, his brows furrowing and his wrinkles deepening. "The princess's pulse... is floating and weak, and feels empty when pressed. It is clearly a pulse of qi deficiency. How could her body have become so depleted in just a few days?"

“How could that be? The princess seems to be in better spirits than before,” Zhizhi said hurriedly.

“That’s just the surface,” Chu Fengnian said gravely, shaking his head. “In reality, the internal organs are damaged, and both qi and blood are deficient. If this continues, the vital energy will be exhausted, endangering the life!”

Zhizhi was so scared she almost cried.

Chu Fengnian said, "Has anything happened to the princess recently? The princess was originally weak, but it shouldn't be to this extent."

Xiao Sui, who had been silent until now, said, "The princess was bitten by a corpse demon a few days ago, but she was not infected."

"That's it." Chu Fengnian clapped his hands. "Although the princess was not infected, it caused great damage to her body. It won't be visible in a short time, but problems will arise in the long run."

Xiao Sui's face turned pale.

Qianyu regained her composure slightly. "Imperial Physician Chu, is there any way to make up for it?"

Chu Fengnian frowned. "I will perform acupuncture on the princess, along with a nourishing herbal prescription, to help her recover for a period of time."

"When will the princess wake up?" Xiao Sui asked.

"You will wake up within half an incense stick's time after the acupuncture treatment."

——

Ning Qi stood in a pitch-black place, completely devoid of light, the oppressive atmosphere seeping into her very bones.

She called out to the system, but after a moment there was no response.

The unknown fear brought by the darkness almost completely overwhelmed her. Ning Xi took a deep breath to calm herself down and reviewed what had just happened.

She was watching Xiao Sui and Yan Chongyan's match when her vision suddenly blurred, followed by dizziness and then loss of consciousness. Just as she was about to fall to the ground, she seemed to be caught by someone. When she regained consciousness, she was in this godforsaken place.

She couldn't think of any other possibility besides the system playing tricks on her.

Ning Qi called out again, "System, come out!"

There was still no response.

She sat down cross-legged on the spot, thinking that since the system had brought her here, it must have something to ask her, and she relaxed.

After a long while, a green, glowing object suddenly appeared in front of her. It was shaped like a jellyfish, floating in mid-air. It didn't have a long mouth, but it made a sound, "What do you want?"

"This is the system," Ning Qi said with a cold smile. "What do I want with you? Shouldn't I be asking you that?"

The system was silent for a moment, then said, "I didn't bring you in."

Ning Qi raised her eyebrows.

The system continued, "It's because your physical body is too weak to withstand your spiritual body, resulting in a rejection reaction. For your safety, I've temporarily placed you in this spiritual room."

"The conditions in your room are pretty bad," Ning Qi said with disdain.

The system shook its body. "You can adjust it according to your own preferences. You just need to think about it."

Ning Xi recalled what her room looked like. It had quickly changed. The surroundings brightened, and tables and chairs gradually appeared, exactly the same as the furnishings in her room.

Feeling much better, she looked at the system and asked, "Why didn't this happen before? Why did my health suddenly deteriorate?"

"It didn't suddenly get worse," the system said. "As a supporting character, you were supposed to log off in four months, and you only have four months left to live. It's normal for you to be experiencing various physical discomforts now."

"What do you mean?" Ning Qi's head buzzed, and she exclaimed, "Didn't I abandon the mission? How come I only have four months to live!"

"This is the arrangement of Heaven, and human effort cannot change it," the system said. "Therefore, regardless of whether you complete the mission or not, you will leave the small world in four months."

Ning Qiteng stood up. "Why didn't you say that before?"

The system paused for a moment. "I didn't know before either. I've never encountered a host who voluntarily gave up a mission."

Ning Xi had no time to question its professional capabilities. The news struck her like a bolt from the blue, leaving her dizzy and disoriented. "I only have four months to live?"

"Yes, if you give up the mission, your body will gradually deteriorate, and you will die from illness after four months due to declining function."

Ning Qi could no longer support herself and grabbed the table for support, her fingers digging tightly into the edge of the wood.

"Before I leave this world, you can reconsider whether you want to live here for four months or complete the mission with me, get the huge reward, and return to your original world," the system coaxed. "I don't think this will take long to decide, right? I'll only give you two days."

After speaking, the luminous object disappeared, and Ning Qi slumped into a chair.

How could this be? How could it have only been four months?

"Princess……"

A deep voice suddenly appeared in my ear, as if it was suppressing a sob.

That's Xiao Sui's voice.

She stood up and called his name, but received no response no matter how many times she called. She knew her voice couldn't carry.

Ning Qi sat down, closed her eyes, and tried to recall the real world.

A warm, dry touch came from her hand, and she could almost feel the hard calluses. It was Xiao Sui holding her hand.

She moved her fingers, trying to hold him back, but grasped only air.

Ning Qi did not give up and continued to try to return to her body.

She felt a gentle touch on her forehead, and when she looked up, she saw Xiao Sui in the mental room.

His face was magnified in the mental room, allowing her to see it clearly. He looked even more haggard than on the field, as if he were the one who was sick.

The next moment, Ning Qi felt herself return to her body, but she was as if she were trapped in a nightmare, unable to move.

This feeling was very uncomfortable. She quickly rolled her eyes and desperately tried to move her body to break free from her restraints. Finally, she moved her fingers.

Xiao Sui immediately sensed it, took her hand, and gently called her name, "Princess?"

Ning Qi suddenly opened her eyes, regaining control of her body.

She was panting heavily as she turned over and moved closer to Xiao Sui.

Xiao Sui hugged her tightly, "You're finally awake."

The voice sounded muffled.

She raised her hand and touched his blindfold; it was indeed a little wet.

Honestly, why do you cry so much?

A metallic scent of blood wafted to her nose, and she immediately wrinkled her nose to sniff. "You're injured?"

"No, it's just a minor injury," Xiao Sui said.

Ning Qi didn't believe it. She freed her hand and pulled open his clothes, quickly seeing the sword wound on his shoulder. The skin was torn open, and the blood from the wound spread down the shoulder blade, already congealed and turned reddish-brown.

"Who hurt you? Was it Yan Chongyan?" Ning Qi sat up anxiously and called Qian Yu to bring in some gauze. "Why wasn't it bandaged? It always makes people worry."

"If it doesn't hurt, I'll forget about it," Xiao Sui said softly.

How could it not hurt? Such a deep wound.

Ning Xi cleaned his wounds, her heart filled with worry. Just the fact that Xiao Sui had fainted like this made her uneasy. She couldn't even imagine what he would be like if she left the small world four months later.

Should we continue the mission?

If she completes the mission, her last four months with Xiao Sui will definitely be affected by it; but if she fails to complete the mission, she will die.

Ning Qi was somewhat undecided.

Just then, Zhizhi knocked on the door and came in. "Princess, His Majesty requests your presence in the palace."

"At this time?" Ning Xi asked in confusion. It was already dark outside, and her father had never come to see her at this time before.

“It seems…” Zhizhi hesitated, “It seems that Minister Qin has something that is detrimental to you, so the Emperor summoned you over.”

Ning Qi frowned, knowing that he must be doing this to get revenge on Ning Xuanzhou.

She pondered what leverage she might have that he could use against her, and let Qianyu do her hair and makeup.

When it came to her face, Ning Qi pushed away her hand that was about to apply rouge to her lips, looked at her pale face in the bronze mirror, and said, "That's fine."

Whatever it is, at least get some sympathy from the Emperor first.

The night air was already cool, and Qianyu put a brocade hat on her to protect her from the wind. Ningqi got into the sedan chair and entered the palace through the teleportation array, quickly arriving at the Liangyi Palace.

After entering the palace, Ning Qi looked around and saw Minister Qin, who looked smug, as well as an older aunt and several young palace maids she had never seen before.

She first bowed to the emperor.

"Get up, Xiaoxi." The emperor's voice was flat and emotionless, revealing no emotion whatsoever.

Minister Qin then said, "Your Majesty, now that the princess has arrived, shall we begin the blood test to confirm her kinship?"

Ning Qi suddenly turned her head, wondering if she had misheard. "Blood test for kinship? What do you mean by this, Minister Qin?"

“Oh, the princess doesn’t know yet.” Minister Qin revealed a smug smile. “I accidentally learned about this aunt’s story from back then, which seems to be related to the princess’s background and has caused quite a stir, so I came to report to the Emperor.”

"What kind of talk is that?"

"This aunt has confessed. Years ago, driven by her own selfish desires, she took away the newborn Princess Hexi and exchanged her for her own granddaughter, allowing her to enjoy sixteen years of wealth and honor that did not belong to her!" Minister Qin said firmly. "The Emperor is wise and cannot allow such a deception to occur."

Ning Qi looked at him with disbelief, then at the expressionless emperor.

The system didn't mention this, did it? And what about the plot about the real and fake princesses?

That's not right. She's read all the plot points about Princess Hexi in the original book, and there wasn't a single mention of her.

But Qin Shilang's words sounded so convincing, could the system be trying to trick her again?

She tried calling the system several times but received no response, so she gave up; she had gotten used to the system being unreliable.

Seeing that the emperor remained silent for a long time, Minister Qin grew anxious. "You only need to drip a drop of blood, and everything I say will be clear."

The emperor sat on a magnificent wooden chair, the candlelight slicing his face in half, half of which was hidden in darkness, making him look even more majestic than usual. He slowly spoke, "Who said I was going to perform a blood test to determine kinship?"

Qin Shilang choked up, almost unable to breathe.