"How dare you!" The Third Princess was startled and immediately rebuked.

Having been engaged in a battle of wits with the Empress Dowager for so long, she subconsciously assumed that the Empress Dowager was up to her old tricks again.

But Jiayin spotted Eunuch Feng following behind the crowd.

Grandpa Feng was covered in sweat, clearly having rushed over as fast as he could.

She quickly asked, "Eunuch Feng, why did you bring people here? Has something happened?"

Eunuch Feng was panting heavily, and only after struggling to steady himself could he reply, "Your Highness, Princess, don't worry! Something happened in the palace, and the Emperor is worried about you, not that he's blaming you."

Something happened in the palace?

The Third Princess and Jiayin both frowned, their worries growing.

At this moment, the imperial physician had already knelt down, ready to take the Third Princess's pulse.

Seeing that the Third Princess was getting impatient, Eunuch Feng quickly explained, fearing that she might lose her temper and punish him without thinking.

"Your Highness, Princess, when you two visited Shou Kang Palace, several of the elderly ladies you met fell ill after returning home. The doctor diagnosed them with rootless wind disease!"

"The Empress Dowager has also fainted, and Shou Kang Palace has been surrounded."

"His Majesty was concerned for your safety and specifically instructed this old servant to bring people over. These imperial physicians, palace maids, and eunuchs, along with this old servant, will remain in Zhilan Palace to guard you until the danger of the rootless wind disease is over."

Rootless wind?

Jiayin and the Third Princess gasped, especially the Third Princess, whose face had turned as white as paper.

Human resources are sometimes limited.

In Tianwu, this phrase, when applied to medicine, is known as "rootless wind."

The onset of this illness is unknown, and no doctor seems capable of treating it.

Like a cold wind, it wanders across the land of Tianwu, occasionally appearing in a small mountain village or the backyard of a wealthy family.

Each time it appears, it inevitably takes dozens of lives. It has a rapid onset and a gruesome death, giving people no chance to deal with it.

It is said that when Dr. Zhang was young, he also wanted to figure out a prescription for rootless wind, but unfortunately he never came across one.

Jiayin had heard the old man mention it more than once, but she never expected to meet him now, especially since he was right next to her.

The third princess wanted to speak, but her teeth were chattering.

Jiayin thought about it carefully. Although they had been in contact with several old ladies, they had not noticed anything unusual since returning to Zhilan Palace.

Even the most sensitive little foxes didn't warn them, so there shouldn't be any danger.

In other words, this matter involves Shou Kang Palace and the Empress Dowager, and there may be some conspiracy involved.

Making yourself lose your composure is actually doing others a favor.

Thinking this, she comforted the third princess.

After taking their pulses, it turned out that they didn't have any symptoms.

Eunuch Feng and the imperial physicians breathed a sigh of relief, but they did not dare to let their guard down. They ordered the palace maids and eunuchs to replace all the bedding and other items with new ones and thoroughly clean and disinfect the old ones.

The palace maids and eunuchs included those who originally served in Zhilan Palace, as well as those who came with Eunuch Feng.

But regardless of their origins, they were all a bit flustered at the moment, bumping around like headless flies.

They barely got any work done, and almost started arguing.

Jiayin couldn't stand it anymore, but she was also worried that there might be outsiders among these people who might take advantage of the chaos to do something bad.

So she asked the Third Princess for the token, summoned the Third Princess's personal nanny, and together they went to the main hall to oversee the work and quickly began assigning tasks.

With a leader in mind, the palace maids and eunuchs quickly quieted down.

Cleaning and tidying the living quarters, cooking medicinal soup in a large stove—busy but not chaotic.

The Third Princess, being of royal blood, may be afraid when faced with danger, but she never backs down. She also came out and sat down with Jiayin.

Within an hour, all the hundred or so people in Zhilan Palace were well-fed and clothed, and had also drunk the preventative medicinal soup.

Seeing this, Eunuch Feng was happier than anyone else.

After all, he came under the emperor's orders and was taking a risk.

If the Third Princess and Jiayin don't cooperate and cause any trouble in Zhilan Palace, he will definitely be blamed.

Of course, the happiest person was the imperial physician.

The Emperor valued the Third Princess and Princess Kangle highly. When he received the assignment, he kowtowed and promised that if anything happened to these two beautiful girls, he would be buried with them.

Although Zhilan Palace was sealed off, the news still got out and quickly reached the Emperor's ears.

The Marquis had already entered the palace and sat next to the Emperor with a dark expression.

Hearing that the two girls remained calm and composed despite the panic, both of them were relieved.

The Emperor kept saying, "The Third Princess has really grown up. With Fu Niu'er by her side, I have even less to worry about."

The Marquis was still worried that misfortune would not stop just because the child was old enough to understand.

However, it is clear that this matter has not yet reached the point of being out of control.

He carefully examined the note handed over by Zhilan Palace and said, "Your Majesty, we really need to be careful that person doesn't resort to desperate measures, or perhaps he's using a feint."

The Emperor nodded and replied in a low voice, "If even that girl Fu Niu'er could think of that, I certainly won't be easily fooled. The secret guards are under your command. Keep an eye on Shou Kang Palace and see what other tricks that person has up his sleeve."

“She had been pretending to be bullied by the two maids and showing weakness to me, but I never underestimated her.”

After receiving the order, the Marquis got up to leave, but still somewhat worried, he instructed, "Your Majesty, please keep a close eye on Zhilan Palace."

"Don't worry, I won't let your daughter suffer any injustice!" The Emperor chuckled and replied, "My own daughter is inside too. The palace was sealed off to protect them."

The Marquis then bowed and strode away.

The night was deep, and because the palace was closed, although lanterns hung under the eaves of Zhilan Palace, it still seemed somewhat desolate.

The palace maids and eunuchs on night duty felt like they were carrying their legs on their backs, constantly looking behind them as if they were afraid that something dirty was following them and could make them fall ill at any moment.

A timid eunuch screamed in fright when a leaf blew onto his head.

It turned out to be a misunderstanding, which terrified the entire Zhilan Palace, making it as turbulent as a boiling pot.

The third princess personally spoke up and beat the little eunuch, causing everyone to shrink even further inside the room and refuse to come out.

Jiayin accompanied the Third Princess to eat snacks and play cards, coaxing her to fall asleep before returning to her own room.

Ignoring the presence of Shui Ling and Shui Yun, Mu Xu looked out the window and said to Jia Yin, "The Marquis already knows your concerns and has arranged for people to help."

"We've also sent messages to the Earl and the eldest young mistress to put their minds at ease."

Jiayin breathed a long sigh of relief and invited Mu Xu to sit down, then used a small stove to cook some meat porridge for him to eat.

Actually, after the incident, she was confident in her medical skills and didn't feel that it was dangerous.

But with her family not around, she is vulnerable to outsiders who might take advantage of her safety and do something wrong.

Fortunately, Mu Xu was there to help him resolve these worries.

A small charcoal stove and a purplish-red earthenware pot were bubbling away, and the aroma of meat porridge quickly filled the entire house.

Mu Xu sat by the stove, watching Jia Yin roll up the sleeves of her peach-colored jacket and serve him porridge. It was as if the hot porridge warmed his heart even before he drank it.

Jiayin's team was busy, but she wasn't entirely at ease, feeling as if she had overlooked something...

At this moment, the examination hall, which gathers the best talents from all over the country, is also brightly lit. The students are either writing furiously or cooking porridge to fill their stomachs, all working hard for their future...

I must explain why there have been fewer updates recently. There were no major issues with updates before December, but mainly in the middle and latter part of the month, my parents and children fell ill one after another, and I was busy taking care of them. During that time, I simply couldn't keep up with the updates.

Later, I also fell ill, and I was the one with the most severe symptoms in the family! At first, I had a high fever for a few days and went to the hospital for IV drips every day. Then, around New Year's Day, my blood oxygen level dropped, and I became so delirious that I could only breathe oxygen. I stayed in the hospital for one night, which is why I stopped updating that day and why I've only been updating occasionally lately.

Even now, Huahua is still coughing terribly and is on IV fluids. Hopefully, she won't develop white lung disease.

After the outbreak, everyone saw the disease and everyone's symptoms were different. I was probably one of the worst off, with my symptoms getting more and more severe. I've been working really hard to keep updating, and now I'm only updating once a day, which is my best effort to maintain daily updates. I just hope you guys can understand.

I will make up for the chapter that was interrupted before as soon as I recover. However, I dare not make any bigger promises after being hit by the virus in the new year. But I will try my best to keep writing and give the Li family, Fu Niu'er, and all the children a perfect ending.

Wishing all the children good health and a joyful Spring Festival!