Chapter 281 Summoning the Imperial Physician
"Your Majesty!"
He Ling and Mingzhu exclaimed in surprise at the same time, and hurriedly supported Jiang Huan's limp body, terrified out of their wits.
Jiang Huan's eyes were closed, her face was as pale as paper, and she had lost consciousness.
"Quick! Summon the imperial physician!" He Ling cried out in a shrill voice, and together with Mingzhu, helped Jiang Huan to the nearest soft couch.
Xie Yunzhi snapped out of his daze and scrambled out, nearly tripping over the threshold.
Upon receiving the news, the Imperial Medical Academy naturally dared not delay and sent someone to deliver the message to the Imperial Study.
Wang Degui practically rushed in, his voice trembling: "Your Majesty, something terrible has happened! Something has occurred at Weiyang Palace! Consort Zhuang has suddenly been vomiting uncontrollably and has fainted!"
Huo Lin's pen fell onto the memorial with a thud, staining a large area with blood.
He stood up, his face so gloomy it could drip water.
What happened? He was perfectly fine before he left, how could he suddenly...?
A worst-case scenario flashed through his mind, chilling him to the bone.
Please, please don't let it be poisoning.
A chilling killing intent swept over him, and Huo Lin almost lost control.
"Let's go to Weiyang Palace!"
He strode out, his robes billowing in a sharp wind.
Wang Degui and his palace servants were terrified and hurriedly followed.
When Huo Lin arrived at Weiyang Palace, the imperial physician also arrived, panting heavily.
Inside the palace, Jiang Huan lay weakly on a soft couch, while Mingzhu anxiously wrung her hands beside her.
Huo Lin's heart clenched. He took a few steps forward, sat down next to Jiang Huan, and held her cold hands in his palms. His voice was as cold as ice: "What happened? Why did you suddenly vomit? What did you eat?"
He Ling, who was standing nearby and was already on high alert, hurriedly added when Huo Lin asked, “Your Majesty, it was Consort Li. She just came by and brought a dish of honey-glazed dried meat. Consort Zhuang did not eat it, but as soon as she finished speaking with her, she felt nauseous and vomited uncontrollably.”
"Consort Li?" Huo Lin frowned, his aura instantly dropping to freezing point. "What is she doing here?"
Just then, the announcement sounded again from outside the hall.
"Consort Li has arrived!"
As soon as Consort Li returned to her palace, a palace maid rushed in to report.
It is said that Consort Zhuang fainted after she left, and not only did the Imperial Hospital go to her, but even the Emperor was alarmed.
This was no small matter. She thought back carefully and realized that Jiang Huan's state did seem a bit strange when she opened the plate of honey-glazed pork jerky.
Moreover, the most natural association with nausea and vomiting is food.
She delivered that plate of dried meat in full view of everyone; if the Emperor were to investigate...
The more she thought about it, the more frightened she became, so she quickly turned back to check on the situation.
To her surprise, as soon as she entered the hall, she saw Huo Lin with a cold expression and an aura that seemed to have dropped to freezing point.
Consort Li's legs went weak, and she almost knelt down on the spot.
"This concubine greets Your Majesty..."
Huo Lin looked at her, his voice cold and devoid of any warmth.
"Very good, I haven't even summoned you yet, but you've come back on your own."
Consort Li felt a chill run down her spine and her scalp tingle under his gaze. She forced a smile and explained, "I only thought that Consort Zhuang was a master chef, so I brought some dishes I had researched to ask her to taste them. I didn't add anything, and I had absolutely no other intentions! Besides, she didn't even eat any..."
"If you want to harm someone, there are ways a million times faster than eating them," Huo Lin interrupted her.
"Why don't you explain to me why you cooked the food but didn't taste it yourself or the palace servants, and why your 'good intentions' were only directed at Consort Zhuang?"
"Your Majesty, please understand!" Consort Li knelt down with a thud, her voice trembling with tears. "I really don't know what happened. Perhaps... perhaps it's just that Consort Zhuang's stomach is upset and she's sensitive to smells. It has nothing to do with me, Your Majesty!"
"Irrelevant?" Huo Lin sneered, his anger almost tangible.
He walked towards Consort Li step by step, each step feeling like it was treading on his heart.
"Consort Li, do you think I'm easy to fool, or do you think Consort Zhuang is easy to bully?"
"I wouldn't dare! I absolutely wouldn't dare!" Consort Li cried out in fear, tears streaming down her face, repeatedly kowtowing. "Your Majesty, please calm your anger! I really didn't..."
"You'd better start praying for Consort Zhuang's safety right now!" Huo Lin shouted sternly. "Get out of here and kneel down. I'll wait for the imperial physician's diagnosis before I punish you!"
Consort Li was so frightened that her whole body went limp. She was dragged to a corner by two eunuchs and made to kneel down. Her face was ashen, and she dared not utter a sound.
Huo Lin stopped looking at her and turned to look anxiously at the imperial physician.
"Investigate immediately, and investigate thoroughly!"
The imperial physician carefully examined the pulse, his brows furrowing and relaxing intermittently, and sweat beading on his forehead.
Under the Emperor's gaze, which seemed to pierce through him, the pressure was immense.
A moment later, he withdrew his hand and respectfully reported, "Your Majesty, the Empress has not been poisoned."
Huo Lin frowned: "Then why did you suddenly start vomiting uncontrollably?"
The imperial physician carefully chose his words: "Your Majesty's illness seems to be caused by a sudden external pathogen, leading to disharmony of the spleen and stomach. In addition, her recent irregular diet has caused severe vomiting to the point of fainting. She only needs to rest for a few days and eat a light diet to relieve the symptoms."
Hearing this, Huo Lin's tense nerves relaxed a little.
He gripped Jiang Huan's hand tighter, his gaze fixed on her lifeless face, his heart aching with uncontrollable pain.
How bad must one feel to vomit so much that they faint?
He would never bear to see her frown even once, yet now she was suffering this pain for no reason.
His heart ached, and he wished he could immediately find out the root cause of her suffering and tear it to pieces.
Even if it wasn't intentional poisoning, we absolutely cannot let them off easily!
He glanced at Consort Li kneeling in the corner and said coldly.
"Even if there was no poison, Consort Zhuang was still upset by what you served, causing her stomach upset and vomiting! And you disturbed the concubines, almost causing a serious mistake. You are hereby fined half a year's salary. Reflect on your mistakes and get out!"
Consort Li felt as if she had been granted a pardon, but she was filled with indescribable grievances and could only retreat in a disheveled state.
Upon returning to the palace, she immediately dismissed all the palace servants.
"That vile woman Jiang Huan, she must be faking it, trying to frame me on purpose!"
The more she thought about it, the more unwilling she became. Her gaze swept around the room until she saw the food box on the table.
"I want to taste it and see just how foul and disgusting it is that it could make her vomit like that!"
Consort Li picked up her chopsticks in a huff, grabbed a piece of dried meat, and stuffed it into her mouth.
Then……
"vomit!"
The rich, oily sauce, mixed with the firm texture of the meat, filled my mouth.
Consort Li suddenly covered her mouth, her stomach churning violently.
She forced herself not to vomit, but the greasy smell made her feel extremely nauseous.
She stared incredulously at the half-eaten piece of jerky in her hand, then at the rest of the food in the box.
How could it be... so awful?!
She clearly followed the recipe exactly!
Consort Li refused to believe it and picked up another piece, enduring her nausea as she took a small bite.
"vomit!"
This time she couldn't hold it in any longer and rushed to the side to vomit violently.
She vomited even more violently than Jiang Huan, with tears and snot streaming down her face, and it took her a while to stop.
Consort Li, her face pale as she leaned on the table, unusually showed understanding towards Jiang Huan.
This stuff can really kill people!
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