93 Feeding Medicine
◎The Queen has her own difficulties, I hope you understand◎
Under the moonlight, the carriage from Fengyi Palace exited the imperial palace through a side gate, bound for the temporary palace outside the capital. This palace had long been abandoned; the last time it received the emperor was when the late emperor was still the crown prince. In the blink of an eye, thirty years had passed.
The palace has more than fifty rooms. It was used to escape the heat in the summer because it also has hot springs. In winter, it was often used as a reward. Last time, it was given to the concubines in the harem.
As beautiful as this place was in the past, it is now as dilapidated. After the late emperor ascended the throne, he never came here again because it was a bit remote. At the beginning of the year, it was used as an isolation area to house patients.
Not only bleak but also unlucky.
Fu Hua placed her here, hoping that she would fend for herself, or even die and be done with it.
However, the only attractive thing about this place is that the palace is surrounded by plum blossoms. The red plum blossoms under the snow look particularly gorgeous.
Rong Qianyu's forehead was burning hot, but her body was cold. Her slightly moving lips were very pale, and her defeated face showed a deathly gloom.
A layer of cold sweat broke out on his forehead, his teeth were clenched, his lips were pale, and his whole body was shaking.
She knelt in the snow for two or three hours in a single layer of clothing. Not only did she have a fever, but her knees and fingers also suffered varying degrees of frostbite.
Occasionally he opened his eyes, but could hardly see people clearly, and then he fainted again.
If you are frozen, you need to use snow to warm your body again. Xue Ji stayed at the bedside and took care of her for a long time without taking off his clothes. Her body was no longer cold, but she just couldn't feel any better.
They did not bring any servants with them, only Qingyun, Rongpan and Yuanqing. Qingrong knew about the relationship between the two, but Yuanqing was always unaware of it.
The situation today was critical, and she couldn't care less. Seeing Xue Ji guarding the bedside all day long, she roughly understood the situation.
Rong Pan knocked on the door and entered the room. She saw Xue Ji asleep on the edge of the table. She knocked on the table lightly, and Xue Ji suddenly woke up. "My lord, you should go and rest. I will keep watch."
Xue Ji has been taking care of Rong Qianyu for the past two days, and he never takes off his clothes. He used to change clothes at least twice a day, but he hasn't changed clothes for two days recently.
Rong Qianyu's condition has not been getting better and is even getting worse. He frowned, "She can't even take the medicine... How can she get better without taking the medicine?"
Qingyun jumped out of the door, holding a potion in his mouth. "Your Majesty has banished us here, leaving us to fend for ourselves. Your Majesty must see a doctor!"
What he said was true. In the final analysis, this matter was a challenge between Fu Hua and Rong Qianyu. Rong Qianyu was a person who kept her word and was willing to go all out, and Fu Hua never showed any mercy to her.
The Empress was such a noble woman, yet he made her kneel in the snow to beg for mercy. Such absurdity had never occurred in any dynasty. Rong Qianyu was his first wife, the one who had stayed with him in times of trouble. Even if he had no feelings for her, he should have treated her with courtesy and not humiliated her like this.
At first, the ministers all thought that Fu Hua was acting on impulse and was betting the country with a woman, but they didn't know that it was such a vicious move.
Rong Pan saw Xue Ji's bad face and immediately stopped him, "Qingyun, stop talking." He sent him out again, "Go out and see Yuanqing. Bring the medicine in when it's ready."
This kid is sometimes smart and sometimes silly. "Okay."
Looking at Rong Qianyu's increasingly haggard face, Rong Pan was extremely scared, but she was not a doctor, and no matter how anxious she was, she was powerless to help.
Xue Ji felt mixed emotions, his eyelashes trembling slightly. He took her hand and wiped it for her, lowering his head and speaking in a flat tone, "You go out first. I'll bring the medicine in when it's ready."
He watched the person in his arms getting worse and worse, and the more he thought about it, the more scared he became. Countless horrible guesses entangled in his mind, like a cold-blooded poisonous snake slowly crawling through his heart, making him terrified and feeling desperate.
1 His eyes moved nervously, his brows were furrowed, and he bit his lips unconsciously.
He didn't know where to put his hands. He rubbed them together, then clenched them into fists. Finally, he cried alone.
Outside the house, Yuanqing was decocting medicine for Rong Qianyu. She had decocted the medicine several times, but Rong Qianyu could not drink more than a few sips.
Xue Ji ordered that if someone vomited, he should boil it again. If someone vomited, he should boil it again.
"Has the Queen drunk it?" she asked.
Rong Pan shook his head, "He throws up after just a few sips. I can't feed him."
"The Queen and Master Xue..." She wanted to say something but hesitated. It was not easy for her to speak of such things, but seeing the current situation, she had to ask.
Seeing this, Rong Pan put down the work in her hands and went to close the door. She looked solemn and moved a chair to sit down.
"Now you've seen it. It's not that we really wanted to hide it from you, but the risk is simply too great. Your Majesty cannot take it. You've been by your side since you entered the palace. You've seen how your Majesty has been living. You should also know how your Majesty treats you."
After saying this, Yuanqing plodded to her knees and swore to the heavens, "I am not an ungrateful person. Although I haven't been educated for many years, I still understand the meaning of loyalty and righteousness. Sister Pan'er, please don't harbor any grudges against me. Since I have been supported and cared for by the Empress, I should always put the Empress first in everything. I won't say a single word to anyone!"
Rong Pan's eyes were filled with tears. She stood up and helped the man up. "The queen has her own difficulties. I'm glad you understand. Thank you very much."
It was good that the two of them talked about this matter in this way. Rong Pan originally thought that Yuan Qing would be unhappy, and she hesitated for a long time, not knowing where to start. Now that she could say this, it was really gratifying, which saved a lot of unnecessary trouble in the middle.
Inside the house, Xue Ji helped the person up, held her in his arms, put a spoonful of medicine near Rong Qianyu's mouth, and fed her in small sips, but she vomited it all out.
He got up and changed her into new clothes. He had been taking care of her these days, feeding her medicine and changing her clothes himself, and even not letting Rong Pan get close to her.
Just holding her and talking to her, Rong Qianyu occasionally responded, but now there is no reaction at all.
Xue Ji drank a mouthful of medicine, then straightened Rong Qianyu's head and passed the medicine into her mouth, but he still vomited more than he drank.
He fed her two bowls of medicine repeatedly, and she barely finished the dose. The medicine was very bitter, and Xue Ji didn't like the taste, but now he could bear to do it for her.
He endured the bitter taste in his mouth and took the last bite. Rong Pan and others happened to open the door.
Rong Pan tilted his head and saw that the bowl was empty. He asked for something else to say, "Your Majesty, are you still unable to drink?"
Xue Ji drank the tea on the table and said, "Two bowls, that's enough."
"What should I do?" Qingyun said helplessly, "Don't worry, sir. I will go find a doctor tomorrow."
Everyone left, each busy with their own things. Only Xue Ji and Rong Qianyu were left in the room. He hadn't slept for several days. He held her and whispered softly, "Wake up, can you hear me?"
A faint voice came from the person in his arms, "Jiming..."
Xue Ji held her hand tightly and kept saying, "I'm here, I'm here!"
"Ji...Ming..." Her voice was very low, she could only speak but couldn't open her eyes.
He looked at her, feeling pain deep in his heart, a pain that made him panic. His brows furrowed, and his hands, which had been resting on both sides of his body, now hugged her tightly.
At night, Rong Qianyu opened her eyes in a daze, but it was only for a brief moment.
She saw Xue Ji lying beside her. She turned her head tiredly, her two deep-sunken eyes were empty and lifeless, and her mumbling was unclear and difficult to understand.
She raised her hand with difficulty and gently smoothed his brow. Seeing him so toiled and haggard, his whole body ached. Her throat was dry and she couldn't speak.
Xue Ji closed his eyes and held her in his arms.
"Jiming..." She couldn't utter much. Her head was dizzy, her eyes were dark, and she was sweating all over. She soon lost consciousness.
She knew that Xue Ji had suffered a lot for her, but she didn't expect him to be so good to her. If she could get through this, she must treat him well.
The next morning, she couldn't be woken up again. Her fever had subsided last night, but now it was back.
I couldn't wake him up even if I called him.
Qingyun called in a doctor, who, seeing the situation, said, "Your Majesty, you are not well. You have been having high fevers over and over again. You will become stupid if the fever doesn't go away. I'm afraid your life will be in danger!"
"Sir, do you have any solution?" Rong Pan asked anxiously.
Fu Hua spread the word that the queen had moved to an abandoned palace, which gave everyone a signal that the queen had lost her favor, so no one dared to really treat her.
If the high fever doesn't go away and keeps dragging on, I'm afraid the patient will be in trouble.
Xue Ji saw his evasive expression and was afraid that he had no other options. "Just tell me what you want. As long as you can cure the Empress, the price is negotiable!"
The doctor spread his hands, somewhat helplessly, "Sir, it's not that I'm unwilling to help, it's just that the Empress won't take the medicine. She has an old illness, and once it flares up, it's hard to take medicine. If the fever doesn't subside, she won't recover no matter what."
"Your Majesty is not in good health. Why do you still have an old illness?"
Xue Ji was not aware of this.
"I wonder if Your Majesty has ever fallen into the water, experienced great sorrow, or injured her body?" asked the doctor.
Rong Pan recalled, "Yes, the Queen fell into the water, and she was overly worried for a period of time. She was sick for most of the year."
In the past, when she was in Rong State, the former queen passed away and Rong Qianyu gradually lost favor. She was once pushed into a remote lotus pond by Rong Ruoyu, and it was Wen Xiaqing who passed by and rescued her.
During that time, she, the legitimate princess, became the most ignored person in the harem. No one came to treat her, and no one visited her. As time went on, she finally got over the pain of losing her mother.
But my health has not been good since then.
"That's it. This time, the Empress suffered from frostbite and was overly worried, causing an old illness to relapse. The imbalance of yin and yang caused blood stagnation. If it was just one thing, it would be easy to deal with, but this..."
"Then there is no other way?" Rong Pan asked.
The doctor knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly, "I am not very knowledgeable and talented, I really... I really can't do anything."
Everyone was helpless when they saw this. They didn't know whether he really had no choice or was just making excuses.
Later, several people came to find several doctors, but none of them could cure the disease as promised.
Xue Ji's face darkened. He felt helpless as there had been no news for several days.
"Sir, sir, I met a gentleman outside the door who said he could cure the queen's illness!" Qingyun shouted as he jogged. He ran so fast that he could see a man following behind him.
He looked to be in his twenties, wearing very simple clothes, carrying a faded wooden box, and as he approached he smelled of an unpleasant medicinal soup.
"Who is it?" Xue Ji looked him up and down, fearing that he was an assassin.
"I, Zhou Yanshu, am honored to meet the Master Seal-holder." He first bowed to Xue Ji, without any stage fright, as if he had come prepared.
"Who are you?"
He replied, "Your Majesty's eldest princess's mother, Consort Tan, is an old acquaintance of mine. I heard about it and came to see Your Majesty on short notice."
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