Chapter 64 Gu Xi's Poisoning Outbreak: "Do you not like children, or do you dislike..."
In front of the Qianqing Palace.
"Miss! Miss!" The voice was filled with panic.
"We're here?" Gu Xi rubbed her eyes; she hadn't been getting enough sleep these past two days.
She now counts down the days, fearing that one day she might fall asleep and never wake up again.
She had many things she wanted to say to him before she died.
Zhu Yin looked at Gu Xi with red eyes, tears streaming down her face. She had called her name several times but Gu Xi hadn't responded; she was so scared...
She really wanted to tell the Emperor the truth regardless of everything, even if it meant sacrificing Medicine King Valley, just to find an antidote for her young lady. But she knew that doing so would cause her young lady unbearable pain.
"Don't let the Emperor find out." Gu Xi raised her hand and wiped away Zhu Yin's tears.
With Zhu Yin's help, she stepped off the palanquin and headed towards the warm pavilion of the Qianqing Palace.
Upon entering the warm pavilion, I saw palace servants kneeling on the ground, all trembling with fear, and my heart tightened immediately.
what happens?
She glanced at the shattered dinner scattered on the floor, her gaze finally settling on the amber-colored syrup. She then squatted down and asked, "Aheng, is this the osmanthus dew you prepared for me? How did it spill?"
Xiao Heng stood by the dining table, his gaze fixed on her, looking at her coldly.
Gu Xi looked up and saw his cold eyes, and her heart suddenly clenched.
Why does he see her that way? Did she do something to upset him?
"Aheng?" she stood up and called out uncertainly.
"All of you, get out of my sight!" Xiao Heng commanded coldly.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Fuquan led everyone downstairs.
Xiao Heng fixed his gaze on her and asked in a deep voice, "I will ask you one more time, how did you and Bai Xingzhi meet?"
Gu Xi was stunned for a moment, not understanding why he suddenly brought up Bai Xingzhi.
She frowned and said, "Aheng, don't you know? When I returned to the capital, Lord Bai saved me, and that's when we met."
"Anything else besides this?" Xiao Heng stared at her intently.
"What do you mean by that?" Gu Xi asked, puzzled.
Have you seen them since?
Gu Xi thought for a moment: "Later... we happened to meet at a restaurant in the capital and had a meal together."
"And then?" Xiao Heng asked in a deep voice.
And then? Then she was suddenly selected as a concubine. At that time, she did not want to enter the palace. She went to the Bai residence to find Bai Xingzhi but failed. Later, she met him at the Misty Rain Pavilion.
But I can't tell him these things!
Moreover, they did not meet.
"That's all..." Gu Xi said softly.
Xiao Heng's gaze remained fixed on her: "Why didn't you tell me before?"
Gu Xi muttered under her breath, "It wasn't a big deal after all." Little did she know she had to tell him about such a trivial matter!
She walked around the mess on the ground, went to his side, put her arms around his waist, and asked, "Aheng, what happened?"
"It's nothing." It seems that the chance encounter made Bai Xingzhi remember her preferences.
Before long, the warm pavilion was cleaned and the imperial kitchen served a new dinner.
Gu Xi ate her food in silence, looking at Xiao Heng's gloomy face. She wondered what he was angry about. She hadn't forgiven him yet, and he was already giving her attitude!
They even said they had prepared her favorite food, but she spilled it all without a single explanation!
The Emperor is amazing!
at night.
When Gu Xi saw that Xiao Heng's expression had returned to normal and he was starting to pester her to do "that" again, she tentatively asked, "Aheng, if you knew someone had poisoned you, how would you deal with that person?"
"Who wants to harm me?" Xiao Heng suddenly stopped what he was doing and stared at her intently.
Gu Xi felt a pang of unease under his gaze and explained, "No, it's just that we happened to be talking about laws today, so I was just asking..."
"The crime of regicide warrants the extermination of nine generations of one's family," Xiao Heng said in a deep voice.
"What if that person was unaware of the situation? Or was forced into it? Would you forgive him?" Gu Xi continued to ask.
“No,” he said without hesitation.
Gu Xi lowered her eyes and dared not speak again.
*
Inside Weiyang Palace.
There are only three days left until the end of the month.
"Miss, how are you?" Zhu Yin asked, her eyes red, looking at the mouthful of dark blood in the urn.
"It's nothing." Gu Xi wiped her mouth, her voice a little weak.
It seems that my senior brother's acupuncture did not delay the onset of the poison, but only alleviated the symptoms.
Even so, when the poison takes effect, the pain in the bone joints is still excruciating, and the whole body feels like it is being pricked by needles, making the teeth chatter.
For some reason, there has been no news from her senior brother. Even if she couldn't find the antidote, he should have sent a message to her through her father.
She later begged Xiao Heng several times to let her leave the palace, but he refused each time, and his expression became even more unpleasant. She dared not say anything more, for fear that he would notice something amiss.
A few days ago, Hua Yue inquired about a method. If there was still no news from her senior brother today, she planned to give it a try, rather than just waiting to die.
"Miss, would you like some more?" Zhu Yin asked, looking at the medicine bowl on the table.
"Drink it." She didn't want to give up. Perhaps heaven would take pity on her and let her endure until the day an antidote was found.
If an antidote is found, and she recuperates for a period of time to clear the poison, then they will have a child together. She hadn't dared to have one before, fearing it would trigger a relapse of her old illness, but now that she is nearing the end, it would be wonderful if she could leave a child with him before she dies.
Gu Xi suppressed her sadness, picked up the bowl and brought it to her lips. She had only drunk half of it when she suddenly caught a glimpse of bright yellow in the corner of her eye.
She looked up and saw Xiao Heng staring at her angrily. Before she could react, the bowl in her hand was suddenly snatched away and smashed on the ground with a loud crash. Porcelain shards shattered everywhere, and the medicine stained the bricks on the ground brown.
Xiao Heng stared at her pale face and asked, "Gu Xi, how are you going to explain this time?" His eyes were like the ice of the Arctic, so cold that they made people shiver.
Gu Xi stared at him blankly, the coldness in his eyes making her extremely sad.
The taste of the medicine instantly filled her mouth. She had taken all kinds of medicine since she was a child, but she had never felt that this medicine was so bitter, and her heart was filled with bitterness as well.
She opened her mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.
Ah Heng, can I tell you?
I'm poisoned, and I might die soon.
But if I tell you, you will kill my master and senior brother, as well as my companions in Medicine King Valley. I cannot be so selfish as to sacrifice them all for my own sake.
Even if you misunderstand me or get tired of me because of this.
She suppressed the bitterness in her throat and tried to keep her face calm: "Aheng, I don't like children."
Xiao Heng sneered: "Do you dislike children, or do you dislike my children?"
Gu Xi felt a lump in her throat upon hearing this, and tears almost welled up in her eyes, but she managed to hold them back.
She wanted to say, no.
Ah Heng, I love children and really want to have one of our own, but I just can't have one.
But she could only look at him and silently shake her head.
She wanted to say something more, but she was afraid that if she opened her mouth, she would burst into tears and tell him the truth.
The room was deathly silent.
Xiao Heng stared at her pale face, a cold laugh escaping his throat. The last trace of warmth in his eyes faded, leaving only icy coldness.
He didn't say another word, and turned and left.
The moment he turned away, tears streamed down Gu Xi's face.
Then the excruciating pain struck again, and Gu Xi fell off the chair with a loud "bang".
"Miss!" Zhu Yin exclaimed in surprise and quickly helped Gu Xi up and lay her on the bed.
Xiao Heng had already left Weiyang Palace without looking back. He coldly ordered Zhao Fuquan, "Investigate for me!" A hint of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes.
"Yes," Zhao Fuquan replied nervously, his forehead covered in sweat. He was really afraid of finding out some bad results.
*
Gu Xi lay on the bed, waiting for the pain in her body to subside; her whole body was soaked in cold sweat.
She didn't know how much time had passed, but it seemed like she had taken a nap before she recovered.
She took a deep breath, sat up, changed her clothes, put on a cloak, and headed to the Qianqing Palace.
She wanted to explain things to him and try to appease him. Even if she couldn't tell him the real reason, she didn't want him to get angry with her like that.
Perhaps these next few days will be her last moments with him.
But when she arrived at the Qianqing Palace, she searched everywhere but could not find Xiao Heng.
She thought for a moment and then went to the Imperial Study.
Outside the Imperial Study, Zhao Fuquan looked troubled and said, "Your Highness, the Emperor said he doesn't want to see you right now."
Gu Xi pursed her lips, her eyes hurt: "Please trouble Steward Zhao to pass on my message again, and tell him that I am waiting for him here."
"This servant will go and report this immediately," Zhao Fuquan said respectfully.
Gu Xi stood outside the Imperial Study, her cloak drawn around her. The cold wind made her shiver, and waves of pain coursed through her body, but she gritted her teeth and endured it.
She wanted to see him.
But soon that excruciating pain spread throughout her body again, and she was in so much pain that she could hardly stand.
Seeing that Gu Xi was about to collapse, Zhu Yin quickly supported her and said, choking back tears, "Miss, let's go back."
Gu Xi was in so much pain that she almost lost consciousness. She leaned against Zhu Yin's body, hummed in agreement, and turned to leave.
Zhao Fuquan stood in the imperial study waiting for Xiao Heng's reply.
"Let her in." It's cold outside.
"Yes." Zhao Fuquan breathed a sigh of relief.
But soon his heart was in his throat again. He went to the outside of the Imperial Study and found that Gu Xi and the others had already gone far away. He had no choice but to go back to the Imperial Study alone.
"Where is she?" Xiao Heng asked without looking up, not hearing her footsteps.
"Your Majesty...the person is gone."
Xiao Heng paused, his hand holding the pen still, and gave a self-deprecating smile.
*
Gu Xi returned to the Qianqing Palace that night. She took some medicine to relieve the pain, hoping that the poison would not be noticed when it flared up. She hadn't expected the pain to be this bad.
She wanted to have a good talk with him tonight.
But Xiao Heng did not return by 9 PM. She put on her cloak and went to the Imperial Study again, but he was no longer there.
Gu Xi hurriedly ran back to the Qianqing Palace, thinking that he might have gone back.
But she was disappointed; Xiao Heng did not return home all night.
She didn't sleep all night either.
As she lay in bed, she couldn't help but wonder, where had he gone?
Is she with one of his concubines now? Did he abandon her before she even died?
But in the last few days, she originally wanted to be good to him.
Gu Xi wiped away his tears with his sleeve and saw that it was already bright outside. At this time of day, he should have already finished court and returned to Qianqing Palace.
She quickly tidied herself up and went to the front hall to find him, just in time to see him walking in from outside.
Gu Xi's eyes lit up, and she hurriedly went to greet him, looking up and asking in a low voice, "Aheng, where did you go last night?"
Xiao Heng glanced at her indifferently, said nothing, and brushed past her.
That cold gaze caused Gu Xi's heart to ache sharply, and the metallic taste in her throat suddenly surged up again. She quickly covered her mouth and hurriedly left the Qianqing Palace.
Hearing her hurried departure, Xiao Heng stiffened, his mockery intensifying.
Gu Xi rode in a palanquin to Weiyang Palace.
She lay in bed, tossing and turning in pain, her body fluctuating between hot and cold, trembling all over.
"Miss, how are you?" Zhu Yin was already crying anxiously.
"Zhuyin...go...go and call...Yun Ke over for me...go quickly!" Gu Xi said haltingly.
Yun Ke is now a female physician, so she needs to ask her to conceal the fact that she was poisoned. Otherwise, if the other people in the Imperial Hospital find out, Medicine Valley will still be in trouble.
"Okay, Miss, hang in there..." Zhu Yin said, choking back tears.
After Zhu Yin left, Gu Xi fainted from the pain.
*
Cining Palace.
"It's been almost a month. How is that rebellious son? Has the Imperial Hospital heard anything?" The Empress Dowager took a sip of her tea and asked.
Granny Liu said with a grave expression, "Your Majesty, the Imperial Hospital says the Emperor has not been poisoned!"
"What! Not poisoned?!" The Empress Dowager slammed down her teacup.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Go quickly! Bring Wanyu here! Ask her what happened! Didn't they say the arrow hit her?" The Empress Dowager said sternly.
"Your Majesty, have you forgotten? A few days ago, you summoned Wanyu to settle that person. I just asked those assassins, and the arrow did hit, but it hit Consort Xi, not the Emperor!"
"What? You shot Gu Xi?!" The Empress Dowager exclaimed in astonishment.
"Yes, Your Majesty, I don't know where things went wrong, but we mistakenly thought it was the Emperor who was poisoned!"
"Outrageous! This bunch of good-for-nothings!" the Empress Dowager shouted sternly.
They thought that if Gu Xi left the palace with Xiao Heng, even if they found out that the poison came from Medicine King Valley, they would try their best to cover it up, and that way they would never be able to find out about them.
Unexpectedly, the deception was indeed successful, but the person poisoned was not Xiao Heng. All efforts were in vain!
"Your Majesty, what should we do now?" asked Granny Liu.
Now the Ninth Prince is a cripple and can no longer ascend the throne. The young grandson has been taken away by the Emperor, and General Qin's military power has been handed over to the Emperor. The Empress Dowager has no more bargaining chips.
"You may leave now... Let me think about it." The Empress Dowager rubbed her temples.
Granny Liu glanced worriedly at the Empress Dowager, bowed, and withdrew. She had barely stepped out the door when she heard the Empress Dowager's voice behind her: "Come back..."
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Author's Note: Sorry for the wait [laughing and crying emoji]
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