The next morning, Yi Shangyun, who hadn't slept all night, got up early.
After a night of deep thought, it was clear that penicillin was the first choice for curing Lanxiang's illness.
But in this day and age, how could she possibly find such a medicine!
At that moment, she was seen pacing back and forth in the courtyard with her brows furrowed.
He muttered to himself, "Am I really going to watch such a young and vibrant life fade away right before my eyes? She has suffered so much since she was a child, and she finally escaped from that sea of suffering. It shouldn't end like this."
But as soon as the thought crossed his mind, he immediately shook his head vigorously, denying it repeatedly.
"No……"
"Can't……"
"We can't just give up so easily..."
"Absolutely not!"
"There must be a way, there must be..."
Just when she was at her wit's end, the little palace maid who had been so excited about receiving the red envelope all night that she almost couldn't sleep walked in from outside, carrying a bamboo basket in her arms, wiping away her tears as she cried.
Upon seeing this, Yi Shangyun hurried over and asked her with concern, "Xiaoshuang, why are you back at this hour? Why are you crying? What happened? Who bullied you?"
Xiao Shuang looked at the bamboo basket in her arms, sobbing uncontrollably, and said, "A few days ago, Her Highness the Princess had some fine oranges transported back to the palace from Dongning Kingdom. His Highness the Crown Prince liked them very much, so Her Majesty the Empress bestowed them all upon him and ordered me to keep them safe, but..."
Xiao Shuang seemed somewhat aggrieved. She paused for a moment, then continued, "This morning, His Highness the Crown Prince sent someone to say that he wanted to eat oranges again today, so I went to the warehouse early in the morning to get some. But I didn't know that these oranges needed to be ventilated when stored. When I got to the warehouse, I found... found..."
Xiao Shuang was clearly getting more and more frightened as she spoke. After stammering for a long time, she finally managed to say clearly: "I found that almost every orange had grown spots of greenish fuzz on it. The oranges were all moldy!"
Xiao Shuang looked up at Yi Shangyun's face helplessly: "What should I do? This time, I'm sure I'll be beaten to death."
She had barely finished speaking when she burst into tears of fear and anxiety: "Waaah..."
At this point, Yi Shangyun finally understood what had happened, and slowly reached out to lift the lid of the bamboo basket in Xiao Shuang's hand.
But then his eyes widened in surprise, as if he had suddenly realized something, and he exclaimed, "That's right! Moldy oranges! How come I didn't think of that?!"
So he quickly grabbed the young palace maid's hand and asked, "Where are all those moldy oranges? Take me there quickly!"
The young palace maid was already so frightened she wished she could disappear into the ground, so she struggled and pushed her away, saying, "No, I won't go, I'm too scared to go..."
Yi Shangyun knew her worries, so he assured her, "Don't be afraid, I'm here. I promise you won't be punished; in fact, you'll be richly rewarded!"
"What did you say? A reward?"
The young palace maid repeated in astonishment, utterly disbelieving that she could possibly be forgiven for such a grave mistake!
At this moment, Yi Shangyun looked extremely serious, gripped her hand tightly, and said with almost pleading eyes, "Trust me just this once, okay?"
Seeing that Yi Shangyun seemed quite certain, the little palace maid was still half-believing and half-doubting.
Yi Shangyun added, "This matter isn't just about some spoiled oranges. Those oranges carry His Highness the Crown Prince's deep longing for the Princess. Yesterday was New Year's Eve, and the Crown Prince must have been missing the Princess again. I don't think you can escape it. So, if you are really punished later, I'll say that I was in charge of keeping those oranges safe, and it has nothing to do with you. Now you can rest assured, right?"
"But you...I..."
Just as the little palace maid was stammering and seemed to be hesitating, Yi Shangyun grabbed her and rushed out the door.
Just as the two were about to reach the entrance of the Crown Prince's Donghua Palace, Yi Shangyun suddenly slowed down.
The young palace maid asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"
Yi Shangyun seemed lost in her own memories and didn't hear the little palace maid's voice at all. She thought to herself, "No, I mustn't let the Crown Prince recognize me!"
Thinking of this, she quickly took out a face towel from her body and covered her face.
The young palace maid was puzzled: "What do you mean by this? Why are you covering your face with a veil?"
Yi Shangyun instructed the young palace maid: "If anyone asks later, just say that I have a rash on my face and it's not appropriate for me to show it to anyone!"
The young palace maid was honest and asked, puzzled, "But your face is perfectly fine, there's nothing there at all?"
Yi Shangyun really didn't know how to explain to her, so he threatened her, "If you don't want anything to happen to us today, don't ask so many questions! In short, you'll do whatever I say later, otherwise, we'll both die today!"
The young palace maid was indeed frightened, so she agreed, "Okay, I understand!"
Even now, she was still filled with anxiety and doubt: "Will His Highness the Crown Prince really not punish me?"
As soon as the two stepped into the main hall, Crown Prince Xuanyuan Hao was questioning the palace maids inside: "It's almost noon, why haven't the people who went to fetch the oranges returned yet?"
A palace maid beside him lowered her head and stammered, "Your Highness, oranges, oranges..."
Seeing his tense expression and stammering words, Xuanyuan Hao shouted sternly, "What exactly happened? Don't you intend to tell me the truth?"
Upon hearing the sound, everyone in the hall, including the two who had just entered, was so frightened by the noise that they all knelt down on the ground with a thud.
The palace maid beside him reported tremblingly, "Your Highness, please forgive us. Due to the negligence of the palace maid in charge of keeping the oranges, the oranges... the oranges have all... gone moldy and spoiled."
Xuanyuan Hao was indeed furious. He stood up abruptly and questioned her, "What did you say? Something's wrong?"
The room was silent.
It was as if even the air inside the hall had frozen; everyone held their breath, afraid to even breathe.
"Crack..."
It was accompanied by the crisp sound of porcelain falling to the ground and shattering into countless pieces.
Yi Shangyun and the little palace maid were both stunned as they watched the porcelain shatter into pieces in an instant.
Upon seeing this, Xiao Shuang was so frightened that she almost fainted.
Yi Shangyun quickly and quietly steadied him, then knelt on the ground and said, "Your Highness, please spare me! It's all my fault for being careless and failing to safeguard those oranges properly, but..."
Before he could finish speaking, Xuanyuan Hao couldn't wait to lash out in anger, saying, "You can't even handle such a small matter. What use are you to the palace? Guards, drag them out and give them fifty strokes of the cane. Not one of them should be spared!"
"What?"
"Fifty?"
"No, no, this is my dereliction of duty, it has nothing to do with her. Your Highness, punish me if you must!"
Upon hearing this, Xiaoshuang could no longer suppress her guilt and knelt down to confess.
"What's going on between you two?"
Xuanyuan Hao saw through their intentions, which enraged him even more. He slammed his fist on the table in front of him and roared, "You audacious servants! How dare you lie to me, the Crown Prince, and manipulate me like a puppet! Drag them out and give each of you fifty strokes of the cane..."
Before she could finish speaking, Xiaoshuang was so frightened that she fainted and collapsed to the ground.
At this moment, the palace maid beside him pleaded on his behalf, "Your Highness, spare their lives! Isn't fifty strokes of the cane too much? It might kill them!"
Xuanyuan Hao glared at her coldly and questioned, "When did I, the Crown Prince, need your questioning? Do you all want to be punished along with her?"
The palace maid immediately lowered her head.
At this moment, Yi Shangyun began to defend herself: "What if I could turn all these moldy oranges into priceless treasures that benefit the country and its people, and bring lasting benefits? Would Your Highness then let her off the hook?"
"What did you say? Moldy oranges can be turned into a priceless treasure that benefits the country and its people? How can that be done?"
Clearly, Xuanyuan Hao believed that he had traveled extensively with the Grand Tutor for many years and had seen many people and things beyond his reach.
But I've never heard of a moldy orange turning into a treasure.
Seeing the doubt in Xuan Yuanhao's eyes, Yi Shangyun said with an air of confidence, "If I succeed, I beg Your Highness to be merciful and release Xiaoshuang."
Xuanyuan Hao was indeed very curious about the priceless treasure she mentioned, so he agreed: "If you can really do it, I, the Crown Prince, will not only release her, but also reward you handsomely!"
Upon hearing this, Yi Shangyun instantly became confident: "Does Your Highness keep your word?"
Xuanyuan Hao also said seriously, "I, the Crown Prince, always keep my word, but what if you can't?"
Without a second thought, Yi Shangyun replied, "Your Highness, do as you please. This servant will have no complaints!"
Xuanyuan Hao readily agreed: "Alright, it's a deal then! However, I can only give you two months. After two months, if..."
"Lanxiang's illness won't last more than two months."
Before she could finish speaking, Yi Shangyun said, "No need for two months, half a month will be enough. This servant will definitely show the Crown Prince an unexpected result."
Having finally obtained all the oranges he had been longing for, Yi Shangyun immediately went over to help Xiaoshuang up and prepared to leave Donghua Palace with a satisfied heart.
"I never expected that a mere palace maid would have the country and its people on her mind. She is truly admirable."
As Xuanyuan Hao watched her departing figure, he wondered, "But why does that back look so familiar?"
"etc……"
Just as Yi Shangyun was about to step over the threshold, Xuan Yuanhao suddenly called out to her again.
Yi Shangyun stopped and turned around to ask, "Is there anything else, Your Highness?"
Xuanyuan Hao asked in confusion, "Why are you covering your face?"
Yi Shangyun's heart skipped a beat, and she said, "It's been windy lately, and I've developed a rash on my face. I'm afraid of offending the noble ladies in the palace, so I'm covering my face."
The two locked eyes, and Yi Shangyun tried her best to remain calm and not give herself away.
Xuanyuan Hao thought to himself, "Perhaps it's just that their eyes look too similar. I must be overthinking it. My sister-in-law Qin has been gone for a long time, how could she possibly be in the palace again?!"
After thinking for a while, he finally said, "Alright, you can go now..."
At this point, the heart that had been hanging in mid-air finally sank down. Yi Shangyun tried her best to remain calm and took another step away.
With Xiao Shuang's help, Yi Shangyun moved all the oranges from the warehouse to the yard where she lived.
Xiao Shuang found it utterly disgusting and even vomited frequently during the transport, wondering, "What can these disgusting things possibly do?"
Yi Shangyun said excitedly, "You'll see for yourself when the time comes. Just wait to receive your reward!"
He then instructed, "By the way, I also need you to go to the imperial kitchen and fetch me some rice water and taro soup."
"Okay!" Xiao Shuang agreed, but she looked completely puzzled.
The days that followed.
Yi Shangyun then began working tirelessly, day and night, to prepare the priceless treasure that would later save countless lives in this era.
day to day.
As Lanxiang's condition worsened day by day, Long En felt as if his heart was being torn apart every time he saw her lying in bed in pain, wishing he could be the one who contracted the disease.
This must be the most instinctive and selfless reaction of all parents in the world when facing their children.
Without exception...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com