Chapter 18
Chapter Summary: Mother Consort.
Ayu understood the situation and didn't hesitate. She quickly pushed open the door and went in to help Yu Jing put on her clothes. Yu Jing sighed as she reached out her hand.
Ayu noticed the change in Yu Jing's emotions and comforted him, saying, "His Majesty is the Son of Heaven, blessed by Heaven, and will surely be safe and sound. Your Majesty, please do not worry too much."
"Mm." Knowing that Ayu was trying to reassure her, Yu Jing nodded in response. When she opened the palace door, Yu Jing felt the raging wind and snow outside. In such terrible weather, encountering such a situation, Yu Jing's heart inexplicably began to panic.
To save time, Ayu ordered a carriage to be prepared instead of a sedan chair, and Yu Jing boarded the carriage. The carriage was spacious, even more so than a sedan chair, with a small brazier in the center, burning with moon-patterned incense. But Yu Jing couldn't calm down at this moment; she dared not think about what would happen if Qi Jin really…
Qi Jin has no children, which will surely throw the court into chaos. No one knows how things will develop after that.
As Yu Jing pondered this, a thin layer of sweat appeared on her palms. The carriage moved quickly and arrived in no time, at which point A-Yu's voice came from outside.
"Your Majesty, we have arrived at Chengming Palace."
Yu Jing did not respond, but stood up and walked towards the carriage curtain. A Yu heard the movement inside the carriage, reached out and lifted the curtain, and handed over her hand to help Yu Jing get off the carriage.
As soon as Yu Jing stepped out of the carriage, the cold wind that blew against her face messed up her hair, making her shiver.
"This servant greets Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."
The people waiting at the door all knelt down to pay their respects. Yu Jing glanced at them and replied, "Please stand up."
"yes."
Yu Jing stepped into Chengming Hall. The hall door was open, and there were many candles lit inside, making it bright. Because the hall door was open, the wind rushed in, and the candlelight flickered.
The scent of ambergris filled Yu Jing's nostrils first. Yu Jing was still in the outer hall, but he could vaguely hear the voices of people talking in the inner hall.
"Your Majesty, His Majesty is so hot, it's unlikely to come down anytime soon."
"Why?" Yu Jing asked directly.
Hearing the voice, everyone turned to look and, seeing it was Yu Jing, knelt down to pay their respects. Yu Jing, concerned for Qi Jin, looked anxiously at the couch.
Qi Jin lay there, dressed in a white undergarment and covered with a thick quilt. A large charcoal fire burned in the hall, making it very hot. A fine layer of sweat had formed on his forehead, stray hairs clung to his temples, and his face was pale, making him look extremely weak.
Yu Jing walked to the bedside, and the imperial physician who had spoken earlier knelt down and replied, "Your Majesty, His Majesty's high fever came suddenly. The plague has invaded his body, and the righteous and evil are fighting each other. In addition, although His Majesty has been taking medicine on time recently, he is still working day and night and has not rested properly. This has led to the evil in his body becoming more and more severe."
"Is His Majesty in danger?" Yu Jing asked with some concern after hearing this, glancing at Qi Jin who was lying down.
When Yu Jing asked this question, the imperial physician nervously wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with his sleeve and said, "Your Majesty, I have already prescribed a medicine, but birth, aging, sickness and death are inherently unpredictable. Your Majesty, I am incompetent and beg Your Majesty's forgiveness."
"How could this be! She was perfectly fine just a few days ago! How could she suddenly..." Yu Jing was anxious and impulsive, and these words just slipped out.
Sheng Hua's voice was already cold, and with Yu Jing speaking so fast, the imperial physicians, palace maids, and eunuchs behind him all bowed down.
"Mother."
Yu Jing was stunned for a while before she came to her senses when she heard Zhang Qingcen's slightly flustered voice. She turned around and glanced at Zhang Qingcen, then ordered in a deep voice, "What I just said must not be spread. If I hear it anywhere else, you will all lose your heads."
Although Yu Jing was flustered, Sheng Hua was, after all, the former Empress Dowager, so Yu Jing spoke in a low voice but with great force, which made people's hearts tremble inexplicably.
"Yes, Your Majesty, I will obey your command."
"Has the medicine been brewed?" Yu Jing then asked.
"Your Majesty, I have already instructed the servants to prepare it," Zhang Qingcen replied from the side.
“Okay.” Yu Jing replied, then lowered her eyes to look at Qi Jin.
Qi Jin seemed to be in great pain, his face pale, and he was restless, trying to pull the blanket off. Just as Qi Jin was about to pull the blanket off, Yu Jing subconsciously reached out to tuck the blanket back in for him. As she was about to withdraw her hand, she heard Qi Jin murmur something, a very soft voice that Yu Jing couldn't hear clearly. She leaned down slightly and heard a muffled "Mother."
Yu Jing stiffened, turning her head slightly to look at Qi Jin, her eyes filled with pity. She knew Qi Jin wasn't calling for her, and she felt a pang of pity that he wasn't calling for her. He was only nineteen, his father and mother both gone, leaving him all alone. If he were an ordinary young master, it wouldn't matter, but he was the emperor of Beihuai. The court was treacherous and unpredictable; a single misstep by an ordinary official could lead to utter ruin. And what of the throne, with millions of eyes watching?
Yu Jing reached out and gently patted Qi Jin's chest to comfort him, but unexpectedly, just as she was about to withdraw her hand, Qi Jin grabbed it tightly.
"Mother!" Qi Jin's voice was slightly excited. Yu Jing raised her hand and tried to break free, but Qi Jin held on even tighter.
"Mother!" Qi Jin's voice was much louder than before. Almost everyone in the hall heard it. The crowd knelt even lower, for everyone knew that the Empress Dowager's greatest taboo was mentioning the Emperor's birth mother in her presence.
Zhang Qingcen also lowered her head slightly, unsure of how to react for a moment.
But no one noticed that one of the people kneeling below slightly raised his head to observe Yu Jing's every move.
Looking at Qi Jin like this, Yu Jing sighed softly. Counting the time it took for her to gain consciousness as Butterfly Tile, she was a deity who had lived for two thousand one hundred years; she couldn't possibly argue with a mere nineteen-year-old child. So Yu Jing sat down on the dragon bed beside Qi Jin, stretched out her other hand, and gently patted Qi Jin's chest, just like coaxing a child.
Perhaps Qi Jin was already weak due to his illness, because after Yu Jing patted him for a while, his hand slowly loosened. Yu Jing took the opportunity to withdraw her hand and looked up at Zhang Qingcen. Zhang Qingcen understood and walked to Yu Jing's side.
When Yu Jing stood up, she realized that everyone in the hall was still kneeling. It had been so quiet that Yu Jing thought they had all left.
"You should wait in the outer hall," Yu Jing said in a low voice.
"Yes," the group replied softly and withdrew.
Zhang Qingcen looked at Qi Jin with worry in her eyes. Seeing Yu Jing still standing to the side, she said in a low voice, "It is really wrong of me to disturb the Empress Dowager so late at night. Please forgive me, Empress Dowager."
“Such an important matter, it would be wrong of you not to send someone to inform us,” Yu Jing replied.
"It's late, Mother, please go back and rest. I'll look after things here," Zhang Qingcen said, glancing out the window. Although Zhang Qingcen said this, she still didn't want Yu Jing to leave. Although she appeared calm, she was actually quite afraid. With Yu Jing around, at least she wouldn't lose her composure.
"No need. I will wait here for the Emperor to wake up before I feel at ease."
Hearing Yu Jingru say this, Zhang Qingcen breathed a slight sigh of relief: "That's fine too."
A moment later, a palace maid brought in the brewed medicine, which Zhang Qingcen personally fed him spoonful by spoonful. Qi Jin was not fully conscious and couldn't swallow the medicine. After feeding him several spoonfuls, Zhang Qingcen became somewhat anxious. She held the medicine bowl for a while, then ordered, "You may all leave."
"Yes." After a short while, all the servants inside left.
Yu Jing sat in the chair and saw Zhang Qingcen holding a bowl of medicine and looking at her. Her ears turned red, and she hesitated before calling out to her in a low voice, "Mother."
Yu Jing understood instantly, stood up, and walked out of the hall. He never expected to encounter something so familiar from storybooks.
Yu Jing had barely stepped outside the hall and hadn't even caught his breath when he heard a report from a young eunuch.
"Your Majesty the Empress Dowager, Lord Zhang, Lord Su, and several other ladies request an audience."
Yu Jing frowned slightly. It was truly a case of misfortunes never coming singly, and a delayed boat encountering a headwind. Zhang Ming, Su Siyang, and several women from the harem arriving at this time must have heard some rumors. Given their position in the palace, Yu Jing wouldn't believe they didn't have informants. But they probably only knew that the Imperial Hospital had summoned many physicians, unaware of Qi Jin's condition; otherwise, they wouldn't have come in such a hurry.
The young eunuch waited attentively, bowing respectfully, for Yu Jing's instructions. Yu Jing glanced at him; it was truly difficult for him to deliver a message now. She'd rather explain things herself and quickly get rid of those people.
The doors of Chengming Hall opened, and Yu Jing looked at the vast crowd outside, feeling a strange headache coming on. She took a deep breath, head held high, and strode out.
Zhang Ming and Consort Nancy stood at the head of the table, while Su Siyang stood beside Zhang Ming. It had been a while since Zhang Ming had seen Su Siyang, and upon seeing him, Zhang Ming felt a little guilty.
"Your humble servant greets Your Majesty the Empress Dowager." They were not surprised to see Sheng Hua come out, presumably because they had already received the news.
"Get up," Yu Jing said, silently encouraging herself. No matter what, she couldn't lose in terms of momentum.
"Your Majesty, I have heard that you are ill. Is it serious? Your Majesty, may we go in and take a look?" Nancy spoke first, her expression showing great anxiety and concern.
"His Majesty is fine, you may all return."
“But I’ve heard that Her Majesty the Empress’s people have summoned all the imperial physicians on duty at the Imperial Hospital to Chengming Hall,” Zhang Ming said, squinting at Yu Jing, his words laced with suspicion.
Yu Jing's face immediately darkened, and she glanced at Zhang Ming: "Lord Zhang, are you doubting me?"
Yu Jing was actually quite flustered when she said this. She deliberately softened her tone, staring at Zhang Ming, speaking each word slowly and deliberately, her face expressionless, exuding a strong sense of pressure.
Zhang Ming was taken aback, then softened his tone and replied, "Your humble servant would not dare."
Su Siyang stood to one side, watching Yu Jing, his expression hidden in the dim candlelight, lost in thought.
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