Chapter 124 Crocodile Tears

Hongzhao had already suffered the same fate once before, and the same tricks were no longer as effective after being used repeatedly. He did not intend to wear these clothes with scabs on them.

"Xiao Dezi, go and call Physician Zhou Qi. Tell him I suddenly feel very anxious and ask him to come and take a look."

He gave the order decisively, and Xiao Dezi, knowing his young master's temperament, left promptly. Hongzhao then turned to Xuexin, who was completely bewildered, and said in a deep voice, "Xuexin, you only came to deliver the clothes after Physician Zhou Qi came to take your pulse. After Physician Zhou Qi noticed something was wrong with the clothes, I kept you here. Do you understand?"

Xuexin's surprised gaze turned to the clothes on the table beside her—"No one else has handled these clothes. They were sent from the Imperial Household Department to Yongshou Palace. Logically speaking..." As she spoke, she looked up and met Hongzhao's deep, dark gaze that seemed to draw people in. She opened her mouth but swallowed her words and nodded gently with her lips pursed.

"Xuexin, think about it. You said this garment was sent from the Imperial Household Department and left in Yongshou Palace. Has anyone else come to Yongshou Palace these past two days?"

Xuexin thought carefully for a moment, then shook her head slightly as she spoke, “Her Majesty has been staying at home lately, rarely going out or seeing anyone. If anyone has come these past two days... it would only be Consort Nian. This morning she spoke alone with our Imperial Noble Consort for quite a while in the palace, without calling anyone else in.”

Consort Nian? No, it couldn't be her. Either she just happened to run into her, or she was tricked again.

Just then, Zhou Qi was urged by Xiao Dezi to grab his medicine box and run into the hall.

——

Hearing that the Crown Prince had summoned the imperial physician late at night, Yinzhen disregarded the nameplate he had just chosen and rushed towards the side hall in his boots.

"What happened? Why didn't you send someone to tell me sooner?" As soon as Yinzhen entered the room, he saw his son, who had been lively just moments before, lying listlessly on the couch, his face much paler than before. He hurriedly went over and touched Hongzhao's forehead.

Zhou Qi knelt at the head of the bed with a solemn expression. "Your Majesty, there is nothing wrong with the Crown Prince's pulse. His palpitations need to be addressed before questioning him. However, there is another matter that I would like to ask Your Majesty to review."

As he spoke, he pointed to a stack of clothes on a tray beside him and slowly said under Yinzhen's questioning gaze, "These clothes are mixed with scabs from people who have had smallpox. If the Crown Prince were to wear them close to his skin, that would be a real problem."

smallpox...

The late emperor had countless children who hadn't benefited from this. Yinzhen's eyes widened, and he unconsciously tightened his grip on Hongzhao's hand, raising his voice to question, "What a vicious method! Is this an attempt to kill my son? Who sent these clothes?"

His sharp gaze swept around the room, finally settling on Xue Xin, who had previously dared not appear there. Xue Xin's anxiety and worry were written all over his face. When he saw the emperor looking at him, he quickly bowed and replied.

"Your Majesty, it was the Imperial Noble Consort who sent me to deliver clothes to the Crown Prince. Among them was a nightgown made of very fine material. I originally intended to help the Crown Prince change into it. But who knew that as soon as the Crown Prince's hand was about to touch the clothes, he withdrew his hand as if he had been burned by something, clutching his chest and crying out in pain. That's why we summoned the Imperial Physician."

Xuexin was a head maidservant serving the Imperial Noble Consort, so Yinzhen was naturally familiar with her. He believed that the Imperial Noble Consort would not want to harm her own son, and that someone must have tampered with this matter.

"Su Peisheng, investigate and find out who has come into contact with these clothes. Question them all, leaving no one out. I want to see who has the audacity to plot against the Crown Prince!"

"yes."

As soon as Su Peisheng agreed, Hongzhao slowly woke up. He gently moved his hand in his father's palm and softly called out, "Father."

"Yes, Father is here." Upon hearing the voice, Yinzhen disregarded everything else, took Hongzhao's hand, bent down, and gently replied, "Tell Father if there's anything else that's bothering you?"

Hongzhao shook his head blankly—"No, I just feel weak, nothing else. Father, I don't know what happened to me just now, suddenly..."

"Alright, alright, Father knows, Father will protect our You'er." Before he could finish speaking, Yinzhen patted his head, interrupting him. Even the imperial physician couldn't find anything wrong, so it certainly wasn't a physical ailment.

It can only be said that his son You'er was blessed with good fortune and was protected by heaven. Even the heavens couldn't bear to let him suffer any more misfortune.

The news was not something that could be found out in a short time. Seeing that his son had almost suffered another calamity, Yinzhen put aside all other thoughts and whispered to the outside, "Go and tell Consort Wan that I will not go today."

...

Zhen Huan has been having a terrible time these past few days. She and the Imperial Noble Consort had both been involved in a dramatic affair with the Emperor and were confined to their quarters for quite some time, while her father had been working exceptionally hard in the court. But now, after things had settled down, her father was impeached and dismissed from his post.

The daughter of a meritorious official suddenly became the daughter of a disgraced official, and her fourth-rank official position suddenly dropped to a sixth-rank official position. The difference was enormous.

The Imperial Noble Consort was on the verge of being crowned Empress, yet she was left empty-handed. She had finally managed to get the Emperor's attention, and after much deliberation, she had figured out how to plead with him. But just as everything was prepared, the Emperor suddenly changed his mind and said he wouldn't come.

"Your Majesty, why don't we make some soup and send it to the Hall of Mental Cultivation tomorrow? I heard that the Crown Prince was ill today, and the Emperor must be exhausted from taking care of him. Sending the soup there would be good for both the Emperor and the Crown Prince." Jinxi, who was standing to the side, naturally knew the bitterness in Zhen Huan's heart and couldn't help but make a plan for her.

As Zhen Huan's inner self was being rebuilt, the melancholy in her eyes gradually dissipated, and her gaze became more and more determined. "Of course, from the day I lost my child, I vowed never to live a life where I was at the mercy of others again. No matter what, I have to try. Tomorrow, I will prepare the medicinal meal early and go after the Emperor finishes court."

Despite her thoughts, when she arrived at the Hall of Mental Cultivation and saw the "sea of ​​people" inside, she felt a wave of dizziness.

Imperial Noble Consort Lü Jiaying had naturally come to see her son, while Consort Cao stood to the side...

Consort Cao's worried expression seemed genuinely alarming. In front of the Emperor, she turned around, took a yellowed prescription from a maid, handed it to Lü Jiayingfeng, and, holding a handkerchief to her heart, spoke earnestly.

"When Wenyi was young, she often had seizures. My sister and I would stay up all night to watch over her, not daring to close our eyes. It was only after Physician Jiang Shen gave us this prescription that she got better. Your Majesty, you should also take it and have Physician Zhou take a look. If it works and can cure the Crown Prince's illness, that would be even better."

This prescription was indeed one that Wen Yi had used before, but she found it this morning after rummaging through her belongings. She didn't understand why, instead of receiving news that the Crown Prince had contracted smallpox, it was just a common seizure. But it was nothing; being sick was better than not being sick.

After saying that, she peeked worriedly behind the screen at where Hongzhao was lying—"Alas, I am also a mother, and I can't bear to see my child suffer. I understand Your Highness's anxiety. It is truly a case of the mother's heart aches when the child is hurt."

Su Peisheng was taken aback when he entered the hall and saw so many people. Then, with a grim expression, he walked up to the Emperor and whispered something.

The people inside seemed to be looking down and not paying attention, but in fact they were all listening intently.

Su Peisheng's voice was so low that even Cao Qinmo, who was closest to him, could only vaguely hear "...Consort Nian...alone..."

Her lowered eyelids concealed a glint of shrewdness in her eyes.