Fifteen years ago (China)
When the palace servants saw that Rouge had delivered Cui Sugong's usual items to Kunning Palace and then came out empty-handed, as if she intended to stay in Kunning Palace for a long time, coupled with the rumors Rouge had spread, they quickly spread this good news.
—Your Majesty has awakened! That vixen Shen Meiwu is about to fall out of favor! From now on, it will be the virtuous and kind Empress's world!
Those outside the palace, upon hearing the news, were overjoyed. Only the ministers who had sided with Shen Meiwu hurriedly sent their wives to present their credentials, hoping to see Shen Meiwu and inquire about the situation. However, Shen Meiwu ignored them all, simply hiding in Chengqian Palace and refusing to come out, as if she had accepted her impending fall from favor.
Three days later, Rouge went to Kunning Palace and found Cui Sugong.
"This servant greets Your Majesty."
Upon seeing Rouge's arrival, Cui Sugong immediately asked with concern, "Rouge? What brings you here? Did Meiwu hear those baseless rumors and become upset? Or has someone wronged her? I'll return to Chengqian Palace now!"
"Your Majesty is overthinking it. The Empress is fine. She just wants to eat the water chestnut cake from Jiang's shop that we ate together. She sent me to ask Your Majesty to let her leave the palace."
"It's such a small matter... Go ahead, just buy an extra portion and send it to me."
"yes."
Rouge curtsied and then left. However, after leaving the palace, she did not go to buy Jiang's water chestnut cake. Instead, she went to a place that looked like an ordinary house.
She looked around to make sure no one was following her, then knocked rhythmically on the door with her fingers. After a moment, a hoarse voice came from inside.
"What medicine?"
"The sterilization drug for men should not only be harmless to the body, but it must also be able to sterilize without being noticed by others."
"One thousand taels." At the same time, a withered, inhuman hand reached out from the small window next to the door.
Rouge handed the silver to the other party without hesitation.
After taking the silver, the other party remained silent for a moment before saying, "Come back in three days to collect it."
Without saying a word, Rouge turned and left.
Three days later, Rouge found another excuse to come here, and that withered hand placed a medicine bottle in Rouge's hand.
"You need to take it for ten consecutive days to achieve the desired effect."
Rouge accepted the medicine bottle, turned and left. She bought a curtain, changed her clothes, and casually bought a common sterilization drug from a pharmacy before changing back into her original clothes and returning to the palace.
"Your Majesty," Rouge whispered in Shen Meiwu's ear, "the medicine you requested has been brought back."
Shen Meiwu handed Cui Lingxian, whom she was holding, to the wet nurse and dismissed all the palace servants before speaking: "Go find Liu Ruo, who is in charge of the small kitchen in Kunning Palace, and tell her the effects of this medicine. Tell her to put this medicine into His Majesty's food. Remember, it must be His Majesty's food. Fu Yunjin must not eat it."
"This servant understands, but Your Highness, will Liu Ruo agree?"
“Of course she’ll agree,” Shen Meiwu said with a mocking expression. “Her sister was disfigured after being forced by the Emperor and then committed suicide by jumping into a well. Now that she has a chance to take revenge on the Emperor, she won’t let it go.”
"But she might not help us shift the blame onto the Empress."
Shen Meiwu poked Yanzhi's head hard: "Why can't you think straight? There are so many spies in Kunning Palace, why don't you pick one that we have something on, and let her jump out and shift the blame?"
"Your Majesty is right. I was confused. Should the other medicine be given to Liu Ruo?"
"The other medicine will be sent to Kunning Palace in half a month. We can just find an inside agent to apply it to His Majesty's bowl and chopsticks."
"Yes, this servant will take care of it right away."
*****
Half a month later, just as Shen Meiwu had expected, chaos broke out in Kunning Palace.
Upon hearing this news, Shen Meiwu smiled. After taking a bath and changing into a peach-pink dress, she waited for Cui Sugong's arrival. She planned to be a gentle and understanding confidante to soothe his emotions while simultaneously sowing discord between him and Fu Yunjin, and also to share the idea she had been thinking about for many days.
However, after waiting for a long time without seeing Cui Sugong arrive, she hurriedly sent someone to inquire about the situation. Only then did she learn that it wasn't just Cui Sugong who had an accident in Kunning Palace, but also Fu Yunjin.
*****
Fu Yun was very happy when Cui Sugong first arrived at Kunning Palace. After all, Cui Sugong was her husband and the father of the child in her womb.
Therefore, although she vaguely felt something was amiss, she still welcomed Cui Sugong in with a joyful expression. When she saw Chen Meiwu bringing daily necessities, Cui Sugong did not object. He was even more delighted after tacitly agreeing to stay in Kunning Palace for a long time, completely unaware of what would happen next.
It wasn't until half a month later.
After having lunch with Fu Yunjin, Cui Sugong had only exchanged a few words when his lower abdomen suddenly began to ache for no apparent reason. The pain was so intense that he turned pale and even became unsteady on his feet.
Fu Yunjin was quite frightened and repeatedly ordered her personal maid Qingya to go to the Imperial Hospital to fetch an imperial physician. She stayed by Cui Sugong's side with a worried and concerned expression, never leaving his side.
When Cui Sugong saw Fu Yunjin, heavily pregnant, staying by his side and showing him great care, he couldn't help but feel moved. He even wondered if he should come more often in the future, since Fu Yunjin was, after all, his lawfully wedded wife.
Just then, Physician Chen, who was on duty at the Imperial Hospital, arrived.
Just as Physician Chen was about to bow to Cui Sugong, Fu Yunjin, who was extremely anxious, stopped him and told him to quickly examine Cui Sugong. Cui Sugong also chimed in, and seeing the urgency of the situation, he did not refuse and quickly walked to Cui Sugong to take his pulse.
Then his face turned pale.
Fearing he had made a mistake, Physician Chen examined the patient three or four more times, and after receiving the same result, large beads of sweat immediately appeared on his forehead.
He took a few steps back, knelt on the ground, and said in a trembling voice, "Your Majesty, this humble servant...this humble servant's medical skills are not good enough to judge Your Majesty's condition. Please summon the chief physician."
Seeing Physician Chen's posture, Cui Sugong had a bad feeling.
The Chen family has three generations of officials in the Imperial Medical Academy. They have seen a lot of things. What could have scared him like this?
Cui Sugong's face darkened. After dismissing everyone around him, including Fu Yunjin, he said in a deep voice, "Now it's just the two of us, the emperor and his subject, here. You can rest assured and tell me your diagnosis. I will not blame you."
"Your humble servant... Your humble servant..."
Physician Chen hesitated for a long time but still couldn't say anything.
Cui Shenzhi was already unhappy because of the inexplicable pain in his lower abdomen, and with Doctor Chen's timid and hesitant demeanor, his patience was completely exhausted.
He casually grabbed a teacup from beside him and threw it at Physician Chen, his eyes filled with murderous intent: "I'm telling you to speak! You're a physician, if you can't find out what's wrong with my body, then what makes you think you're qualified to work in the Imperial Hospital? You'd better think about whether your Chen family can bear the crime of deceiving the emperor!"
Upon hearing this, Physician Chen broke out in a cold sweat. He bit his lip, kowtowed heavily, and whispered, "Your Majesty, my diagnosis is... yes... yes, you have been given a strong drug and have lost your fertility."
Upon hearing this, Cui Sugong's pupils couldn't help but dilate slightly.
He forced himself to stand up, clutching his lower abdomen, and staggered to Physician Chen. Grabbing his collar, he roared, "What did you say?!"
Physician Chen trembled like a leaf in Cui Sugong's hands.
"Your Majesty, my diagnosis is indeed as stated... That is why I said my medical skills are inadequate and requested Your Majesty to summon the Imperial Physician."
Cui Sugong stared intently at Physician Chen for a long while, and only after confirming that he was not lying did he throw him aside.
"Go! Go now!"
Physician Chen shakily got up from the ground and stumbled toward the palace gate, but before he could push it open, Cui Sugong called out to him.
This matter must not be leaked.
Cui Sugong thought to himself with a dark expression.
He only has one daughter, Cui Lingxian. If Fu Yunjin is also carrying a daughter, it means that he will never have a prince to inherit the throne!
Back then, in order to ensure his succession to the throne, he ruthlessly eliminated everyone who could compete with him, regardless of whether they were his own brothers or members of the royal family. Anyone qualified to compete with him was crippled or rendered mentally impaired. As a result, over the years, many former officials and members of the royal family have held grudges against him, and his reputation among the common people is not good.
In this situation, once the news spreads that he is infertile and that he will never have an heir to the throne, those who have been harmed by him will be eager to do everything they can to send their children into the palace and into the position of crown prince.
What will he do then? What will happen to his throne and his empire?
Just then, Cui Sugong suddenly realized that he had been living and eating with Fu Yunjin these past few days. He had been drugged, but what about Fu Yunjin? What about the child in Fu Yunjin's womb? This was his only hope now!
*****
After being called in by Cui Sugong, Fu Yunjin looked at him with concern and held her pregnant belly as she went to his side.
"Your Majesty, is your abdominal pain any better? What did Physician Chen say?"
Cui Sugong did not answer, but simply instructed Physician Chen to examine Fu Yunjin immediately.
Physician Chen quickly stepped forward.
"Your Majesty, the Empress and the unborn child are both fine and have not eaten anything that she should not have."
Cui Sugong breathed a sigh of relief, patted Fu Yunjin's hand to comfort her, but still did not answer her question. Instead, he instructed Physician Chen, "I started having abdominal pain after lunch. Go to the small kitchen and see where the problem is."
Physician Chen bowed and withdrew.
Then Cui Sugong began to think about who might have harmed him.
Those who still harbor treacherous ambitions and want to seize the throne from him?
No, let alone the fact that they couldn't drug him, even if they could, they wouldn't wait ten years after his ascension to the throne to do such a thing. Or rather, if they could drug him, why didn't they use poison instead of a drug that would make him infertile? Even if they wanted to see him suffer and struggle so they wanted him to be infertile, they shouldn't have spared Fu Yun Jin and the child in her womb. Although it's not yet born and we don't know if it's a boy or a girl, as long as it's not born, it could be a prince.
Could it be...?
Cui Sugong narrowed his eyes as he thought of the rumors he had heard recently, then looked at Fu Yunjin's prominent belly beside him, his expression inscrutable.
Just then, Physician Chen returned to the palace.
"Your Majesty, I did indeed find the problem during lunch."
Which dish was unclean?
"No, it's not that. The problem is with your personal bowls and chopsticks. Your humble servant found traces of them being soaked in medicine."
No wonder he was the only one who got the medicine.
Cui Sugong, his face dark, ordered all the palace servants from the small kitchen to be brought over. Just as he was about to investigate, a palace servant stepped forward.
The palace maid stepped forward and knelt before Cui Sugong, trembling as she said, "Your Majesty, I know my crime, but I have no choice. Her Majesty the Empress ordered the Fu family to arrest my parents and threatened to kill them if I did not comply. I had no choice but to do such a despicable thing for Her Majesty the Empress."
Hearing this, Fu Yunjin looked confused.
Cui Sugong had just had the imperial physician examine her pulse, but he didn't tell her anything. She didn't even know why Cui Sugong had abdominal pain, so how did she get involved?
"Who are you? What nonsense are you spouting? I am the Empress. If I need you to do something, why can't I just give the order directly and threaten you with your parents?"
The palace maid did not answer, but instead kowtowed to Fu Yunjin and said to herself, "Your Majesty, although the matter has been exposed, I did act on your orders to harm the Emperor. Please do not harm my parents."
After saying that, the palace servant rushed towards a pillar in the hall, smashed his head against it, and died openly and in front of everyone in Kunning Palace.
Fu Yunjin was pregnant and felt nauseous and wanted to vomit when she saw such a bloody scene. She also had some lower abdominal pain and felt unwell. Just as she was about to tell Cui Sugong, she was slapped hard across the face.
“Fu Yunjin,” Cui Sugong said through gritted teeth, “you poisonous woman! I knew you had been so well-behaved these days, not targeting Meiwu, and I was even thinking of visiting you and the child more often. I never expected you to be plotting against me!”
"Your Majesty, you are my husband, the father of the child in my womb, how could I..."
"What more excuses do you have! I thought you were different from the Fu family, and I felt sorry for neglecting you all these years, thinking I would try my best to make it up to you in the future. But I was not wrong at all! You are the daughter of the Fu family, and you are just like the Fu family—despicable, base, and shameless!"
Fu Yunjin was stunned. She knew that the Fu family's style was not very upright, and she also knew that Cui Sugong did not like her very much, but she did not expect that Cui Sugong would view her and the Fu family in this way.
If Cui Sugong looked down on the Fu family and her so much, why did he marry her in the first place? Was it just to conveniently take Shen Meiwu, who was her maid at the time? Why didn't he just tell her that he was going to ruin her life?
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