Ding Xinwan sat upright in the bumpy carriage. Her heartbeat gradually quickened with the sound of the wheels rolling over the bluestone slabs.
The prescription in her hand, which was solemnly handed to her by Hong Zhengxuan, seemed to carry a thousand-pound weight, making her feel nervous and full of anticipation.
The carriage slowly drove towards the palace gate, and after passing through layers of inspection, it finally entered the depths of the palace.
Ding Xinwan took a deep breath and adjusted her demeanor, hoping to use the help of her aunt, Concubine Shoukang, to ask the Imperial Hospital to prepare some golden thread vine.
Just as she was on her way to Ci'an Palace, she saw a woman in gorgeous clothes walking slowly towards her. She had a noble temperament and a gentle face, followed by a group of palace maids and eunuchs.
Ding Xinwan recognized her at a glance as Princess Ning'an Li Shurou, the half-sister of the current emperor and the daughter of the late emperor's Concubine Shu.
Although Li Shurou lived in the palace, she had always been on good terms with Ding Xinwan, and they had a lot to talk about every time they met.
"Xinwan, you came to the palace so early to pay your respects to Concubine Shoukang?" Li Shurou walked up and asked curiously.
"Greetings, Princess." Ding Xinwan bowed respectfully.
"I came here, firstly, to pay my respects to my aunt, and secondly, to ask for an important favor." There was a hint of urgency in Ding Xinwan's tone.
"What's the important matter that makes you so hurried?" Li Shurou asked softly. She was originally planning to go to Ci'an Palace to study the piano score with Xue Shanqiu, but at this moment her attention was attracted by Ding Xinwan's words.
On the way to Ci'an Palace, Ding Xinwan told Li Shurou the details of the Chengnan Porridge Factory.
Hearing that the victims were suffering from acute illness, Li Shurou frowned. Although she had lived in the deep palace for a long time and knew little about the world, she was kind-hearted and had none of the spoiled temper of a princess.
"So what's the current situation of the porridge factory?" Li Shurou asked with concern.
"Lord Xue from the Ministry of Revenue and Doctor Hong from the Imperial Hospital are doing their best to treat him there, but the golden thread vine herb is far from enough." Ding Xinwan's tone revealed a hint of helplessness. "That's why I came to ask my aunt for help, hoping to get her help."
"Master Xue from the Ministry of Revenue? Are you talking about the third son of the Xingyuan Marquisate?"
Li Shurou's voice rose unconsciously, and a blush quietly stained her cheeks. However, Ding Xinwan was anxious to see Concubine Shoukang at the moment and did not notice these details.
"That's right, it's the third place winner of this year's exam, the third son of the Xue family." Ding Xinwan nodded slightly.
Li Shurou had long heard of Xue Jiyan, the third son of the Xue family, and admired his talent. Now, Rongde County Lord Xue Shanqiu was temporarily staying in the palace, and she often visited Ci'an Palace, probably hoping to find out some news about Xue Jiyan from Xue Shanqiu.
When Ding Xinwan stepped into Ci'an Palace, Concubine Shoukang smiled broadly and expressed her joy beyond words when she saw her niece.
When the concubine heard that her niece had entered the palace early in the morning to seek the rare medicinal herb Golden Thread Lotus to treat the victims, her expression became solemn.
"Golden Thread Lotus is indeed a rare commodity, and the amount in the palace is quite limited," said Concubine Shoukang in a deep voice, "But since this is to save the victims from suffering, I will do my best to help."
After saying this, she turned to the palace maid behind her and solemnly instructed: "You must immediately go to the Imperial Hospital and report this matter in detail to the director of the hospital. See if he can find a way to prepare some golden thread lotus."
The maid left immediately, and Concubine Shoukang comforted Ding Xinwan softly, "Xinwan, don't worry for now. I've already sent someone to the Imperial Hospital to coordinate this matter. I'm sure the hospital envoy will be understanding."
Ding Xinwan's anxiety subsided a little after hearing this. She said with tears of gratitude, "Thank you very much, aunt, for your help. I am very grateful."
"You're being polite to my aunt." Concubine Shoukang smiled and waved her hand. "But then again, although golden thread lotus is extremely precious, it's not a panacea. We must find out exactly how the victims contracted the disease so that we can fundamentally prevent anyone from contracting it again."
Ding Xinwan nodded in agreement, but she couldn't help feeling worried.
However, in order to avoid worrying her aunt too much, she did not tell her aunt that someone had deliberately poisoned her.
In the Ci'an Palace of Concubine Shoukang, Ding Xinwan chatted with the Concubine about some family matters, but she was always worried about the situation of the porridge factory in the south of the city.
She looked out the window from time to time, as if she wanted to see everything in the porridge factory through the thick palace walls.
Not long after, the palace maid who went to the Imperial Medical Bureau returned with good news: the director of the hospital heard that in order to treat the sick victims, he decided to allocate some of the scarce golden thread vine stock.
When Ding Xinwan heard the news, a hint of joy flashed in her eyes, and she quickly stood up to thank Concubine Shoukang.
"Aunt, Xinwan and the victims will always remember your great kindness."
Concubine Shoukang smiled and shook her head. "Silly child, it is my duty to do something practical for the people. Just go and let the victims use the medicine as soon as possible."
Ding Xinwan nodded, said goodbye and left Ci'an Palace, and hurried to the Imperial Hospital to get medicine.
In the Imperial Hospital, Ding Xinwan carefully put the golden thread lotus into the medicine box, then left the palace and returned to the porridge factory in the south of the city.
…
In the early morning at the Xingyuan Marquis Mansion, although everything was normal, there was an unusual atmosphere at the corner gate.
The vegetable vendor was waiting there as usual, and Mother Han skillfully directed the kitchen servants to carry baskets of fresh vegetables and a large bucket of fresh fish.
"Why is the food delivery late today?" Mother Han asked complainingly.
The vegetable vendor sighed, "Alas, the south side of the city is full of disaster victims, so I can only go around from the west gate, which takes some time."
"It's so pitiful! Those disaster victims can't go into the city and have to sleep outdoors. I heard that many people fell ill last night."
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