Chapter 29 The Illness: If Only She Could Wake Up
Silence reigned all around, and darkness filled the view. Shen Yujiao had been trapped in this dark place for so long that she had lost all sense of time.
She remembered that she was clearly in a carriage, but for some reason she suddenly lost consciousness. When she woke up again, she was in this chaotic place. She was not sure if she was dreaming, but she was sure that she was the only one in this space.
She didn't know how much time had passed when she suddenly saw a point of light in the distance, like a lighthouse on a dark sea. As if by instinct, she moved towards the light. Having been in the darkness for too long, she had lost her balance and could only slowly crawl towards the light.
As she lay there, Shen Yujiao suddenly touched something hard with her fingers. She subconsciously withdrew her fingers, and after a moment, she tentatively reached out her hand again.
A wall is a wall.
The wall was very high. Shen Yujiao stood upright against the wall, but she couldn't reach the top. She wasn't sure if she was like a blind man touching an elephant, but for now she could only walk forward along the wall. She didn't know how long she had walked, but the light spot in front of her suddenly became more tangible and gradually enlarged.
Or rather, it was a small hole.
Shen Yujiao stood on this side of the wall, hesitant to go over, or rather, she wasn't sure if the other side of the wall was safe. But after standing there for a long time, she decided to go forward, as it was the only clue she had at the moment.
As she approached, a bright scene gradually magnified before her eyes. It was a room, and although the lighting was dim, it still took Shen Yujiao a while to adjust to the light.
Upon seeing the scene on the other side of the wall, Shen Yujiao froze, because on the other side of the wall was herself.
On the other end, "Chen Yujiao" was pale and emaciated. She was leaning against the bed with lifeless eyes, throwing one letter after another into the brazier in front of the bed.
The flames in the brazier leaped higher and higher. As more letters were thrown in, the flames gradually transformed from a dancing girl into a soaring fire phoenix, rising higher and higher as if about to take flight. Accompanying the fire was a continuous stream of rising black smoke.
Even just looking at it from below the wall made Shen Yujiao's eyes sting, but the "Shen Yujiao" on the other side of the wall seemed completely unaffected. Her eyes were empty and lifeless, and it was unclear whether she had cried all her tears. Even the smoke and fire couldn't make her shed another tear.
Flames flickered in Shen Yujiao's eyes. She stared blankly at the brazier, lost in thought. As the last letter was thrown into the fire, it seemed that all hope had been burned away. She lay back on the couch with an empty expression, staring at the bed curtains. After an unknown amount of time, tears streamed down her face, and Shen Yujiao closed her eyes tightly.
The flames did not subside after burning the letters; instead, they spread wildly around the bed curtains like vines. A piece of fabric that had been burned fell to the ground and became the fuse for the carpet. Before long, the entire room was engulfed in flames.
Shen Yujiao wanted to shout to wake up the "Shen Yujiao" in that world, but she seemed not to hear her own call. In the thick black smoke and the ever-spreading fire, her breathing became weaker and weaker, and in less than a quarter of an hour, her chest stopped rising and falling.
"Wake up! Wake up!"
"Shen Yujiao! Can you hear me? No—"
"Shen Yujiao!!!"
Shen Yujiao screamed hysterically, and the person on the bed seemed to finally hear her call. A gentle smile appeared on her lips. Her face was so beautiful, and she looked sacred and peaceful lying in the sea of fire. She was a sacrifice to this fire, and Shen Yujiao was the only witness.
"Jiaojiao, Jiaojiao, open your mouth." Jiang Chen struggled to get Shen Yujiao to drink the medicine, but after feeding her for a long time, she couldn't get any of it into her mouth. After half a bowl of medicine, the quilt in front of her was soaked.
"Go again! Go and brew another dose of medicine!"
As soon as Jiang Chen finished speaking, Mu Jin ran to the small kitchen again, wiping her eyes as she ran. She couldn't let the tears in her eyes blur her vision; she needed to quickly brew another dose of medicine.
With a thud, she tripped over something and fell heavily to the ground. Gritting her teeth, she got up and limped back to the small kitchen. Seeing the herbs being put into the jars, she leaned against the threshold and slowly sat down.
The pain from the fall became clearer at this moment. She raised her arm and saw the abrasions on her wrist, with bright red streaks of blood mixed with dirt. She took out a handkerchief and wiped them, and as she did so, her sleeve rode up a little, revealing a scar on her arm.
It was a mark left from a burn.
The medicine bowl was brought into the bedchamber again. This time, Jiang Chen fed the patient most of the medicine. Looking at the lifeless Shen Yujiao in front of him, Jiang Chen let his arm fall limply, and the medicine bowl in his hand spun on the thick carpet.
Five days have passed, a full five days. Shen Yujiao lies here like a porcelain doll. No matter how many times Doctor Wang performs acupuncture or what kind of medicine he administers, Shen Yujiao shows no sign of transformation whatsoever.
When the Crown Prince and Crown Princess both fell ill, the Emperor and Empress in the palace had no choice but to send imperial physicians to them frequently. Every imperial physician who had entered the Eastern Palace would be respectfully invited back to the palace, because the Crown Prince preferred quiet and did not want so many people around him.
After learning about this, all the princes and princesses were considering whether or not to visit them.
"Yesterday, while we were having tea at my sister-in-law's place, my fourth sister-in-law happened to be there as well. She said she was thinking of visiting the East Palace in the next few days. Would you like me to go with you, Third Master?"
The tea poured down from the cup into the bowl, its amber color rippling in the white Ru kiln porcelain. King Han reached out and took the teacup from Queen Han, lowered his eyes to savor the aroma, and then a look of rapture appeared on his face.
"No need. Even if the Princess Consort were to go now, I'm afraid the East Palace wouldn't open its doors. Hmm... the Princess Consort's tea-making skills are becoming more and more exquisite every day."
Princess Han picked up her cup and took a sip. Upon hearing this, she smiled and said, "Your Highness is too kind. If we're talking about tea-making skills, I'm afraid we have to look to the Crown Princess. Even my sister-in-law, who has been studying this for many years, is probably no match for her."
"She's certainly willing to spend time on these things," King Han shook his head and put down his teacup, "but it's a pity..."
He didn't say what was wrong, and Princess Han didn't ask either. She only said, "Speaking of which, the Crown Prince's illness is also strange. He was fine a few days ago, but now he suddenly fell ill. Today, when I entered the palace, I heard from my mother that Her Majesty the Empress is very worried about this."
"It's not just the Empress who's worried. Countless people are watching the Crown Prince's illness," the King of Han said, his long fingers tracing the rim of his mouth, his skin as smooth as porcelain. "But this is for the best. If they weren't so concerned, they would be in a state of confusion, and we would have a hard time finding any flaws."
Princess Han's beautiful eyes flickered: "Your Highness means..."
Sunlight streamed into Queen Han's hair, and in the interplay of light and shadow, her skin appeared as white as snow and her face as radiant as a peach blossom. Her eyes held a deep, unspoken affection as she looked at King Han, a sight that filled him with a sense of peace and delight.
He took Princess Han's hand and admired her nail polish in the sunlight: "Let them meddle in their affairs. We're not involved, so how would we know anything about them? Your nail polish has faded, so how about I re-dye it for you?"
"good."
......
"Your Highness, His Highness said that you may go if you wish. The affairs of the inner quarters are entirely up to Your Highness." The young eunuch replied respectfully, and seeing that Princess Huan remained silent for a long time, he was unsure whether he should leave.
"Alright, now that I'm in charge again, you should go back and tell the Prince that we have plenty of people in our household to keep an eye on things. I haven't been feeling well these past few days, so I won't be visiting him."
The young eunuch dared not look at Princess Huan's expression, so he could only respectfully retreat again and then turn around to relay the message to Prince Huan.
The arrow in King Huan's hand left the bowstring, piercing the cold wind and hitting the bullseye. He glanced at the trembling arrow tail, then bent down and picked up another arrow, saying in a calm tone, "Since the princess is not going, she should rest well in the manor."
When he saw the arrow hit the bullseye again, he put down his longbow and said to the person behind him, "These past few days, the manor has been closed to guests. The princess is not feeling well, so have someone keep an eye on the main courtyard and prevent just anyone from coming and going."
"Yes." Jian Shan knew that his master was dissatisfied with the princess keeping an eye on the front yard. He thought for a moment and said, "Your Highness, a message came from the East Palace saying that the East Palace is the same as yesterday, and the Crown Princess... seems to have not improved."
King Huan paused, glanced at him, and asked, "Is there any news about the divine physician we sent to find last time?"
Seeing Shan's stiff expression, he replied, "Not yet..."
"Then send out more people. Once the person is found, send them directly to the East Palace."
“But, Your Highness,” Jian Shan said with some difficulty, “we have already sent out many people. If we send more, it will be extremely disadvantageous for us if word gets out.”
King Huan turned to look at him, his eyes deep and unfathomable: "If you can't even handle this simple matter, what use are you to me?"
Having said that, he didn't linger any longer. He removed his wrist guards and returned to his study. After instructing that no one was allowed to come in and disturb him, Jiang Yu changed into a plain-colored robe. He stood in front of the bookshelf and reached out his hand towards a spot on it.
With a click, the bookshelf began to move, revealing a small archway on the wall. Behind the archway was a secret room, where a Buddha statue, half the height of the wall, was enshrined.
At this moment, Jiang Yu's black hair was completely disheveled. He entered the secret room, locked the mechanism, and slowly knelt down in the dim candlelight. His posture was upright, his expression solemn, and his eyes were full of piety towards Buddha. He put his hands together in front of his chest and whispered his prayers to Buddha.
Two days later, the Eastern Palace was suddenly visited by a wandering Taoist priest who said he had come by divine providence and could resolve the current difficulties of the household.
At first, Jiang Chen wanted to refuse, as he never believed in such fantastical things. But when he turned to look at the sleeping Shen Yujiao, he lowered his head and said in a hoarse voice, "Bring her in."
Zhu Yu hesitated, "Your Highness, that person isn't coming in."
"What?" Jiang Chen turned his head to look, and Zhu Yu said again, "That doctor said he wants to see you."
In the front hall, a person dressed in pure white was sitting. Jiang Chen walked into the hall and saw that although the person had white hair, he looked like a child with delicate features and a gentle temperament. If it weren't for the protrusion on his throat, he would probably have thought that this was a woman.
"I heard you wish to see me?"
The man looked up at the sound and saw that although the prince was dressed neatly, the dark circles under his eyes and the stubble on his chin made him look somewhat unkempt. Although he looked tired, his aura was not diminished at all. Only the slight urgency in his eyes betrayed his composure.
"This humble subject greets Your Highness the Crown Prince," the voice said, its tone and tone indistinguishable from the person's. "I had something to ask Your Highness, but looking at Your Highness's current demeanor, it's as if you've been reborn."
Jiang Chen clenched his fist behind his back. "My memory isn't very good. Did you know me before, sir?"
“No, not at all,” the doctor in white stood up and took a few steps toward Jiang Chen. “I only had the honor of seeing Your Highness a few times when you were young, and I can’t say that I am familiar with you.”
Jiang Chen loosened his clenched fist and bowed to him: "I heard from the servants that you have a way to solve the problem of the Crown Prince. Since you are willing to step into the hall, please accept my bow. I am willing to repay your kindness with whatever I can."
The doctor in white seemed quite surprised upon hearing this. He shook his head and asked with a smile, "Whatever the consultation fee, Your Highness is willing?"
"You may take whatever I own, sir."
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