Chapter 76 [VIP]
Chapter Summary: Miscarriage.
"My beauty, this is the medicine that has just been brewed," Dan'er said to Xie Ying as she brought the medicine in.
Xie Yingcai woke up, but he was feeling listless and nauseous, so he said, "Leave it there, rest for a while before drinking."
Dan'er hesitated for a moment, then advised, "My lady, the imperial physician said that it's better to drink this medicine while it's hot."
Xie Ying paused, then propped herself up from the couch: "Bring it here."
"Yes." Dan'er replied with a smile, and placed the medicine in front of Xie Ying. She slowly fed Xie Ying the medicine spoonful by spoonful. "My beauty's appetite has improved a lot recently after drinking this medicine. My beauty, please bear with it a little longer. Physician Li said that after the third month, the morning sickness will lessen, and my beauty will feel more comfortable then."
"Mm." Xie Ying smiled and replied when she saw that Dan'er was so happy.
"Is it snowing outside? It's so cold!" Xie Ying asked, glancing out the window.
"Hmm, there was a light sleet just now, but I reckon it'll snow harder soon. That's how it is in Beihuai, it snows and rains a lot. If you're feeling cold, my lady, I'll have someone bring some more silver thread charcoal later." Dan'er said, her hands still moving. "The New Year is just around the corner, and I've heard that His Majesty will be hosting a banquet for his court officials. You miss your family, don't you? You'll see them then."
When Xie Ying talked about her family, a smile appeared on her face, her eyes and brows radiating happiness.
After finishing her medicine, Dan'er took the bowl and went out. Xie Ying still felt sleepy, so she lay back down on the couch and wrapped herself tightly in the down quilt. She had always been sensitive to the cold and didn't want to move in winter, and now that she was pregnant, she felt even more tired.
By the time Qi Jin finished dealing with the official documents in the Imperial Study, it was already 9 PM. Xu Xinshu had assumed that Qi Jin would go to his bedchamber to rest. Qi Jin stood up and walked forward, saying, "To Wanying Pavilion."
"Yes." Xu Xinshu responded, quickly walked to the front, picked up the cloak from the rack, draped it over his arm, and followed Qi Jin forward.
The snow outside was heavy, falling thick and fast, swirling and dancing in the air. The wind was also strong, blowing large, feathery snowflakes straight down into the corridor. Xu Xinshu draped his cloak over Qi Jin and then took the umbrella handed to him by a nearby eunuch.
When Qi Jin arrived at Wan Ying Pavilion, the courtyard was already covered with a thick layer of snow. Qi Jin walked through the snow to the corridor, where Dan'er, who was on night duty, was dozing off. Hearing the noise, she looked up at Qi Jin and quickly got up to greet him, saying, "This servant greets Your Majesty."
"Get up." Qi Jin stood still, his cloak and hair still covered with bits of snow, swaying gently in the wind.
"How is Sui Sui?" Qi Jin did not enter the room, but simply faced the door and asked softly.
"Your Majesty, the beauty took her medicine last night and is sleeping now. Her appetite has improved a lot recently," Dan'er replied carefully.
Qi Jin seemed somewhat relieved and gently pushed open the door to go inside. The hall was warm, probably because a lot of charcoal was burning. As soon as Qi Jin entered, the snowflakes clinging to his hair and cloak melted instantly. He took off the cloak and hung it on the rack. Walking to the couch, he noticed that only one candle was lit in the hall. As soon as Qi Jin sat down, he realized that Xie Ying was acting strangely.
She was curled up on the couch, her brows furrowed and her face pale.
"Sui Sui." Qi Jin reached out to touch Xie Ying's face. Suddenly realizing something, his heart tightened, and he abruptly threw back the covers, large patches of red hitting his eyes. He had killed many people and seen much blood, but never before had anything been so glaring.
"Sui Sui!" He patted Xie Ying's face, feeling fear for the first time. "Someone come here!"
Qi Jin's voice was very loud, and people outside could hear it clearly. Xu Xinshu was startled at first, and then hurriedly pushed the door open and went in.
"Summon the imperial physician! Quickly!" Before even stepping into the hall, Qi Jin's voice pierced through their ears. Xu Xinshu dared not delay and hurriedly ran outside. Dan'er, worried about Xie Ying, mustered her courage and entered the hall to investigate. When she saw the scene before her, she froze, standing there in disbelief. She had just taken her medicine perfectly fine, and now she was in this state; no one would believe it. She felt as if something was blocking her throat, unable to speak.
The imperial physician arrived quickly. Upon seeing the scene, he was startled but dared not say anything. He opened his medicine box, took out a handkerchief, and had Xie Ying take her pulse.
"How is it?" Qi Jin asked nervously from the side.
The imperial physician nervously wiped the sweat from his brow and said, "Your Majesty, I will do my best to protect the beauty."
That one sentence summed up the current situation perfectly. Qi Jin frowned, his voice filled with anger: "Hurry up and go!"
"Yes." The imperial physician rose and left with a trembling voice. His legs went weak as he stood up, and he almost fell.
The imperial physician withdrew and wrote a prescription. Soon after, a palace maid came in and changed Xie Ying's bedding to clean.
Qi Jin's hands were stained with blood at some point. Xu Xinshu noticed this and turned to instruct the eunuch to fetch some water.
"What happened?"
After Xie Ying had settled everything, Qi Jin turned to Dan'er and asked a question. Dan'er's mind went blank, and when Qi Jin looked at her, she instinctively knelt down: "Your Majesty, this servant doesn't know why this is happening!"
"What did you use on her just now?" Qi Jin asked.
"Although the beauty's appetite is better than before, she still can't eat much. She only had some porridge for dinner. She also had the medicine that Physician Li prescribed to help with the pregnancy and improve her appetite." Dan'er's voice was trembling with sobs as she spoke.
"Do you still have those things?" Qi Jin then asked.
"Yes," Dan'er replied. Qi Jin turned to look at Xu Xinshu, who hurriedly went out and returned with the items shortly after.
"Imperial Physician." Qi Jin glanced at the other imperial physicians kneeling beside him. The physician stepped forward and examined the body carefully.
After a long while, the imperial physician knelt down and said to Qi Jin, "Your Majesty, someone has laced this medicine with strychnine."
"Strychnine seeds are most effective for abortion and vaginal discharge."
"Ha!" Qi Jin sneered upon hearing this. "Xu Xinshu, summon everyone from Wanying Pavilion to the courtyard."
"Send word to Xie Xuan."
"Yes," Xu Xinshu replied with lowered eyes, then turned and left.
When Yu Jing received the news, he was asleep. When he was woken up by A Yu, he was startled and hurriedly changed his clothes and rushed to Wan Ying Pavilion.
Lanterns hung in front of Wanying Pavilion, swaying back and forth. A group of people came into view. The leader was dressed in a scarlet robe with silver fish patterns. He had probably come in a hurry and was not wearing a cloak.
Xie Xuan was visibly taken aback when he saw Yu Jing.
"Your humble servant greets Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."
"Get up." Yu Jing saw Xie Xuan and was now worried not only about Xie Ying but also about Xie Xuan. Xie Xuan had always been a man of great loyalty and affection, and he was probably also upset to learn of Xie Ying's situation.
Upon entering, the first thing one sees is a courtyard full of people kneeling in the snow. Qi Jin sits on the porch, slowly washing his hands. The people in the courtyard seem to have been kneeling for a long time, their bodies covered with a thin layer of snow, and some are even shivering uncontrollably. The copper basin beside Qi Jin is filled with hot water, which is steaming.
"Your subject greets Your Majesty." Qi Jin saw Yu Jing standing at the door and bowed to her. The people below also knelt and turned around to greet Yu Jing.
"Get up." Yu Jing didn't have time to pay attention to these things at the moment; she only wanted to go and see Xie Ying.
"How is Lady Xie?" Yu Jing asked Qi Jin as she walked down the corridor, with Xie Xuan following behind her, afraid of missing a single word.
"The child is gone, and he's still asleep. We just gave him his medicine, and he's still sleeping," Qi Jin said, glancing sideways at the hall.
Upon hearing this, Yu Jing and Xie Xuan breathed a sigh of relief, but also felt a pang of heartache.
"What exactly happened?" Yu Jing pressed for details.
"Your Majesty, someone has put strychnine in Consort Xie's pregnancy-preserving medicine," Xu Xinshu reported after Qi Jin turned away.
"Thank you, Xuan."
Xu Xinshu had barely finished speaking when Qi Jin called out.
"Your subject is here." As Xie Xuan responded, a palace maid brought a chair for Yu Jing. Yu Jing sat down, adjusted her cloak, and watched Xie Xuan step forward to reply.
“They’re stubborn. Since they won’t talk, let’s pry them open.” Qi Jin said, gently sitting back down in his seat.
"Yes," Xie Xuan replied, turning to instruct his men.
Yu Jing didn't understand what it meant at first, but when she saw the courtyard filled with benches, she realized what Qi Jin was going to do.
"Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!" Cries and screams soon filled the courtyard. Yu Jing had never seen such a scene before, and was stunned for a moment, not knowing what to do.
The paddles struck them, and the courtyard was soon filled with groans, a chilling sound. In no time, the snow in the courtyard turned red. Yu Jing was about to turn her head away when her view was blocked. Looking up, all she saw was crimson.
"Is there anyone who wants to speak now?" Qi Jin looked at the people below and said coldly.
"Send men to take their families to the imperial prison and interrogate them thoroughly."
The wails gradually weakened and turned into faint groans. It was quite a while after Qi Jin finished speaking that someone spoke.
"His Majesty!"
Qi Jin and the others all looked over and saw a young eunuch raising his hand on a long bench. Qi Jin and Xie Xuan took long strides and reached the corridor in a few steps. Yu Jing felt nauseous from the smell of blood, so she only walked a little closer along the corridor.
They stopped in front of the young eunuch, and Xie Xuan spoke first: "Speak!"
"It was...it was Eunuch Zhang from Yin Chang Palace...who gave...that thing to me, and told me to...put it into the beauty's medicine."
"He threatened me with...my family...I...cough cough cough...I had no choice!"
"Your Majesty... spare me! Your Majesty, spare me! This servant... this servant had no choice!"
As he spoke, blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, making him look truly pitiful. Yu Jing felt a pang of pity and was about to say something when she heard a "plop." The sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh and being pulled out was so loud that the little eunuch didn't even have time to utter a sound before his eyes widened and his body went limp.
Yu Jing was so frightened that she was stunned on the spot, took two steps back, and couldn't say a word.
The sword was still in Qi Jin's hand when it was pulled out, with blood dripping from its tip. Qi Jin casually tossed the sword to the ground.
"Xu Xinshu".
"yes."
Qi Jin didn't need to say anything; Xu Xinshu understood instantly.
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