Chapter 61 Gone Mad

Shui Xian waited in the Qianqing Palace for nearly an hour.

Emperor Zhaoheng did not return until dusk.

Shui Xian did not linger in Qianqing Palace, but instead quickly returned to Yongle Palace, supported by Yin Zhu's hand.

"Your Highness, shall I go and find out what's going on in the Cold Palace?"

Looking at Shui Xian's solemn profile, Yin Zhu tentatively asked.

"No need. The Emperor is over there, and the defenses are tight. Let's not arouse his suspicion."

She looked up and saw Yinzhu looking at her with a worried expression. Shuixian reached out and gently squeezed Yinzhu's palm.

"Don't worry, go and get some rest. We can talk about it tomorrow."

There's no need to rush small things, and rushing won't help with big things either.

Narcissus's words seemed to have a calming power, inexplicably calming Yinzhu's restless heart.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

After changing into her nightgown, Narcissus lay on the couch, listening to the crackling of the candlelight coming from the outside room, and gradually drifted into a restless sleep.

The little one in her womb seemed to sense her mother's unease and remained as quiet as if it didn't exist.

The next morning.

The faint morning light shone through the window into the bedroom, falling on Narcissus and seemingly gilding her with a pale golden halo.

As Shui Xian gradually regained consciousness, she slowly opened her eyes and was greeted by the sight of Emperor Zhaoheng sitting by her bedside.

He was holding her hand, and when he saw that she was awake, he called her softly.

"emperor?"

As if in a dream, Narcissus slowly rose, the brocade quilt slipped off, revealing her thin nightgown.

She seemed to have just escaped a nightmare, throwing herself into Emperor Zhaoheng's arms, her arms tightly wrapped around his strong waist, her body trembling slightly.

"Your Majesty! Your concubine... Your concubine had a terrible dream last night!"

Emperor Zhaoheng arrived at Yongle Palace early in the morning. He saw that she was restless and was touched by her complete dependence on him.

The man tightened his grip slightly, gently patted her back, and comforted her:

"Fear not, my fairy, I am here. What dream did you have? Tell me."

Narcissus buried her face in his firm chest, inhaling the comforting scent.

"Your Majesty... Your Majesty dreamt of Yi Guichun... She threatened me again with my parents and sister!"

"She said she'd break our parents' legs and throw them into a mass grave, and sell my sister to an older, wealthy merchant as a concubine... I can't find Your Majesty anywhere... I'm so scared... so very scared..."

As she spoke, her body trembled even more violently, and tears welled up in her eyes, soaking the dragon robe on Emperor Zhaoheng's chest.

Feeling her tears and her slight trembling from fear, Emperor Zhaoheng couldn't help but embrace her tenderly.

His tone was reassuring: "Silly fairy, it's all a dream."

"With me here, no one can harm you or your family anymore! Your parents and sister are already law-abiding citizens, and now they live in the imperial estate. With my people watching over them, they are safe and sound."

"That poisonous woman, Yi Guichun, can no longer threaten you in the slightest!"

Shui Xian lifted her tear-filled face from his embrace: "Really? Your Majesty... what about Yi Guichun...?"

Emperor Zhaoheng recalled the events of last night, sighed, and explained, "The Cold Palace caught fire, and she escaped in the chaos. She is indeed... somewhat delirious."

"The imperial physician is treating her. Once the Cold Palace is repaired and tidied up, she will be placed under strict supervision again, and there will be no possibility of her causing trouble again."

"You should focus on your pregnancy and not worry about her anymore."

As Emperor Zhaoheng spoke, he placed his hand on the slight bulge in her abdomen, his voice becoming increasingly gentle.

He wiped away her tears, comforted her tenderly for a moment, and then got up to go to court.

Before leaving, he leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on her lips, as if to soothe her heart, which was in turmoil because of the nightmare.

Narcissus hugged him back affectionately, nuzzling her cheek against the crook of his neck in a tender gesture.

Emperor Zhaoheng's heart softened, and he whispered a few more words of advice before turning and striding away.

Narcissus stood barefoot on the carpet by the window, watching Emperor Zhaoheng leave Yongle Palace, before slowly sitting down on her bed.

The vulnerability she had shown moments before was nowhere to be seen on her face.

Narcissus raised her hand and calmly wiped away the tear stains on her cheeks.

Her grievances and vulnerability were merely a reminder of Emperor Zhaoheng, Yi Guichun's past crimes.

Shui Xian recalled Emperor Zhaoheng's words from earlier.

Has Yi Guichun gone mad?

She couldn't help but sneer inwardly, thinking it absurd.

Yi Guichun, a person with a heart harder than iron and a venomous nature, would only drive others insane or to their deaths. How could she possibly go insane herself?

The palace was flooded, he escaped in the chaos, and acted like a madman... all of this was too coincidental and too deliberate!

She absolutely refused to believe it!

When Yinzhu brought in a copper basin to help her wash up, Shuixian said calmly, "Help me change my clothes. I need to go see Yi Guichun in person later."

The Cold Palace was flooded last night and is still under repair.

Yinzhu learned that Yi Guichun was placed in a temporary residence, which was originally a secluded courtyard for palace servants who had made mistakes to live in temporarily, and was under strict guard.

It's probably to prevent Yi Guichun from going crazy and escaping that they left her there.

Narcissus, under the pretense of visiting her former master, took Silver Pearl to that courtyard.

As soon as I stepped into the courtyard, I heard sounds coming from inside, sometimes crying and sometimes laughing.

In the courtyard, a royal physician walked out in a disheveled state, his official hat askew and several fresh bloodstains on his face. He was wiping his sweat and shaking his head and sighing.

Upon seeing the narcissus, the imperial physician immediately bowed and greeted, "Your humble servant pays respects to Consort Jin!"

Now, Consort Jin's pregnancy is the Emperor's most cherished. Every month, the Imperial Physicians gather together for a consultation, so almost all the imperial physicians know Consort Jin.

Shui Xian gestured for him to rise, her gaze falling on the wounds on his face, her tone filled with concern: "Imperial Physician Li, you've worked hard. I heard that Lady Yi's condition is not good..."

"She was, after all, my former mistress, and I couldn't bear to see her like this, so I came to visit her. What is this...?"

Physician Li looked helpless and lowered his head, saying:

"Your Majesty, Lady Yi... alas, she has completely lost her mind, is extremely agitated, scratching and biting anyone she sees, possessing immense strength. I was just trying to take her pulse when I nearly..."

"Oh, Your Majesty, please look!"

He pointed to the scratches on his face and said with a wry smile:

"Yi's pulse is chaotic and his speech is incoherent and bizarre. In my humble opinion, he has suffered too much trauma, which has damaged his heart. He has really gone mad."

His tone was confident, clearly indicating that he was very confident in his diagnosis.

"Really... gone mad?" Narcissus frowned slightly.

Physician Li noticed her suspicion, hesitated for a moment, and whispered:

"If Your Majesty does not believe me, you may...you may go in and take a look, provided it is safe to do so."

"But... be very careful! She's become incredibly fierce!"

Narcissus nodded: "Thank you for the reminder, Physician Li."

She gestured to Yinzhu to secretly pass over a heavy little purse.

Physician Li pinched it and put it into his sleeve.

The worry on his face lessened slightly, and he bowed and stepped aside.

The guards and nannies on duty became tense when they saw Consort Jin about to enter.

They knew all too well how precious their master, who was carrying the dragon's offspring, was, and dared not be negligent in the slightest.

The group quickly went inside and carefully inspected the chains binding Yi Guichun...

The heavy iron chain was firmly locked at one end to her wrists and ankles, and the other end was deeply driven into the cracks in the stone bricks of the wall, ensuring that her range of movement was extremely limited and that she could not break free and harm anyone.

This is a precaution taken after scratching the imperial physician earlier.

After confirming everything was in order, Narcissus, under the constant protection of Silver Pearl, slowly walked into the room filled with the smell of medicine.

The room was dimly lit.

Yi Guichun was locked in the corner, dressed in a rough gray cloth, his hair was disheveled like withered grass, and his face was dirty and filthy, as if there were still traces of the fire from the previous night.

As soon as she saw Narcissus enter, her cloudy eyes widened suddenly, and she made a strange hoarse sound from her throat.

Like a wild beast, he struggled and pounced on the narcissus!

"You bitch! I'll kill you! I'll kill you!"

She screamed, her filthy fingers clawing wildly forward, her eyes filled with a frenzied killing intent.

However, the length of the chain severely restricted her.

No matter how hard she lunged forward, her fingertips were still at least a foot away from the hem of Narcissus's dress, and she could only scratch at the air in vain.

Shui Xian stood still, her face calm. After confirming that Yi Guichun could not break free of the iron chains, she signaled the guards and nannies to retreat outside the door and stand guard, leaving only Yin Zhu by her side.

Once only the three of them were left inside, Narcissus took half a step forward, getting closer to the wildly waving arm.

She leaned slightly forward and spoke slowly, in a voice only the two of them could hear, each word piercing to the heart:

"Miss... no, Yi Guichun. Are you satisfied with how I look now?"

Narcissus deliberately revealed an undisguised smugness on her face, her tone slightly arrogant.

"It's ridiculous to think about it. The once high and mighty eldest daughter of the Yi family, the apple of the eye of the censor, has now become this inhuman, ghostly madwoman, locked in this dark corner."

"And I, the lowly servant girl born into the family in your eyes, have become Consort Jin, personally bestowed by the Emperor, enjoying unparalleled favor... Yi Guichun, how does this feel?"

As she said these words, Shui Xian's gaze was fixed on Yi Guichun's face.

She firmly believed that every word she uttered precisely struck at the point that Yi Guichun found most unacceptable!

However.

No matter how much the narcissus stimulated him, Yi Guichun's expression remained one of chaotic ferocity.

She continued to scream and scratch in vain, even letting saliva drip from the corner of her mouth, her eyes vacant.

The smugness on Narcissus's face gradually faded, leaving only pure calmness.

Her gaze lingered on Yi Guichun's face for a moment, trying to find evidence of his pretense, but... only Yi Guichun's heavy breathing and the clanging of chains remained in the room.

Finally, Narcissus slowly straightened up, the last trace of doubt in her eyes completely disappearing, replaced by a cold confirmation.

It seems... Yi Guichun has really gone mad.