After returning home, Su Xiaoning fell ill again.
After all, the prison environment was bad, damp and stuffy, and she couldn't sleep or eat well. Su Xiaoning developed a high fever and couldn't get out of bed.
Su Qingcai was very nervous and hurriedly asked Bai Hua to come and treat her. Bai Hua was startled, thinking that Su Xiaoning had relapsed. After taking her pulse and confirming that she was just too weak, he breathed a sigh of relief.
Bai Hua told Su Xiaoning to rest well and prescribed medicine for her. However, worried that Su Qingcai might overdose on his illness, he pulled Su Qingcai away and only sent a servant to deliver the medicine to Su Xiaoning.
After lying in bed for several days, Su Xiaoning's head was constantly dizzy, and she felt weak and helpless.
One night, in the dead of night, all was quiet in the Ninth Prince's mansion. Su Xiaoning was sleeping peacefully in bed as usual. Her high fever persisted, and she couldn't sleep soundly, as she could always hear the sounds from the outside world.
In the quiet room, where only the faint sound of the wind could be heard, a rustling sound suddenly broke out, the source of which was unclear.
Although Su Xiaoning's head was spinning, she knew that opening her eyes at this moment would be bad, so she kept her eyes closed, tried her best to maintain steady breathing, and pretended to be asleep.
The strange sound lasted for a while, and I didn't know what it was doing. Then it suddenly disappeared, and I could still hear the faint sound of the wind.
Su Xiaoning waited for a while, and only after confirming that everything was alright did she cautiously open her eyes.
She struggled to get out of bed and light the oil lamp, but saw nothing unusual in the area illuminated by the light. Just as she was puzzled, she suddenly caught a strange smell.
The smell was faint, like a light floral fragrance, yet tinged with a putrid stench; one whiff and you knew something was wrong.
Su Xiaoning quickly covered her mouth and nose. She picked up an oil lamp and searched the room, finally finding some strange powder under the bed.
There was a pile of grayish-black powder under the bed, and quite a lot of it was sprinkled on it; it was obviously suspicious.
Su Xiaoning thought for a moment, then took out a handkerchief and carefully wrapped the powder up.
She waited anxiously all night, and the next morning, she went to the pond in the backyard with a handkerchief in her hand and poured all the powder from the handkerchief into the pond.
At first, the pond was very calm, but after a while, bubbles suddenly started to rise to the surface. A little while later, a group of dead fish floated to the top. They floated on the water with their white bellies upside down, looking extremely eerie.
This unusual situation naturally came to Su Qingcai's attention, and upon seeing this shocking scene, he flew into a rage.
"You're already back, yet there are still people who are determined to harm you. I must thoroughly investigate this matter!"
"Don't be impatient." Su Xiaoning gently patted Su Qingcai's back.
“You definitely won’t be able to catch him now, and you don’t have any evidence. This person probably knows me very well, or has been watching me all along. Although I am immune to all poisons, I am currently weak from illness, and it’s hard to guarantee that I won’t get infected. If that person sees that I’m alright, they will probably still make a move against me later. Don’t alert them; we can wait and see.”
Su Qingcai frowned. He didn't want to use Su Xiaoning as bait, but seeing how determined Su Xiaoning was, he was afraid that refusing would be useless, so he had no choice but to nod.
...
The next few days were surprisingly peaceful, and Su Xiaoning was no longer harmed by the poison, and her body slowly recovered.
At the same time, the emperor's edict was issued.
After the previous matter was resolved, the emperor wanted to see Su Xiaoning, but she suddenly fell ill, so the matter was temporarily put on hold. Now that Su Xiaoning has recovered, the emperor has rekindled his interest and has ordered that he see Su Xiaoning.
Su Qingcai comforted Su Xiaoning, telling her not to be afraid, and then, at a chosen time, took her to the palace.
As soon as the three met, the emperor said unhappily, "Don't think you can rest easy just because the matter has been resolved. This happened entirely because you were too reckless, taking a dog out in the street and letting it bump into the Seventh Prince's concubine. If it weren't for the Ninth Prince's brilliant plan, I probably wouldn't have been able to find an excuse to release you!"
The emperor's words were actually biased, but Su Xiaoning could not refute them in front of him.
She pursed her lips and nodded silently, displaying a humble attitude.
The emperor continued to berate Su Xiaoning, and after finishing, he casually made an excuse to send Su Qingcai away. Although Su Qingcai was unwilling to leave, he was forced to go under the emperor's imposing gaze.
As soon as he left, Su Xiaoning had a vague feeling that something was wrong.
Sure enough, the emperor suddenly said, "You still don't want to leave Xiao Jiu?"
"What does Your Majesty mean by this?" Su Xiaoning was taken aback, and her heart was suddenly filled with panic.
The Emperor stared intently at Su Xiaoning and said sternly, "Although I promised you before, you have now put Xiao Jiu in the eye of the storm. Your status was never good enough for him to begin with, and now you can't even sit quietly. How can you expect me to support you?"
Su Xiaoning's face was a little pale. She lowered her head and said softly, "Does Your Majesty also know that you promised us? A monarch's word is law."
The emperor paused slightly, then turned his head away somewhat awkwardly: "You still remember these things, but these words are ultimately unknown to the court officials, so just take them as a joke."
"I cannot do it." Su Xiaoning's throat tightened, and she insisted on not giving in.
The emperor tried to persuade her again with earnest words, but Su Xiaoning remained unmoved and refused to agree no matter what he said. Helpless, the emperor relented.
"Alright then, I can't force you too much. If you're willing to let Xiao Jiu marry another daughter of a powerful family, then this matter will be dropped. Without the help of a powerful family, his future is destined to be difficult."
Upon hearing this, Su Xiaoning lowered her head even further.
Marry another woman...
In the past, she would definitely not have agreed, but after the incident at Medicine King Valley, she was no longer so insistent.
One day she will return to Medicine King Valley and stay there until her death. What will Su Qingcai do then? If he could have a woman by his side for a long time, that wouldn't be bad. Moreover, this woman could also help Su Qingcai. Now that she no longer has the koi fish mark, she has lost some of her value.
Su Xiaoning felt a slow, sharp pain in her heart, like a dull knife cutting into her flesh. But she knew that no matter how much it hurt, she had to make the "right" choice.
She spoke slowly, her voice so soft that even she could barely hear it.
"Very well, I agree."
Hearing that Su Xiaoning had finally agreed, the emperor breathed a sigh of relief and gave her an approving look.
Su Xiaoning kept her head down, her fists clenched tightly, her eyes wide open, trying her best to hold back her tears, letting the pain in her heart overwhelm her like a tsunami.
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