Meanwhile, inside the west hall, the spacious room was filled with people.
Fangqi, the old woman, stood on the outskirts of the crowd, listening to the tug-of-war between Ding, Hu, and the two old women from the west side of the palace. She was already getting impatient.
She coughed loudly, drawing the attention of others, before speaking in a low voice.
"Gentlemen, let's put aside this matter of the rats for now and first invite the imperial physician to examine Consort Rouliang!"
Granny Ding's expression relaxed slightly, and she nodded in agreement.
“Granny Fang is right, the child in Consort Rou’s womb is the most important thing. As for how this rat appeared, you all know the answer to that!”
Those two old nannies were specially sent by the emperor to take care of Consort Rou's health. They were arrogant and always looked down on Ding and Hu. Upon hearing this, they were immediately enraged, slammed their hands on the table, and pointed at Granny Ding's nose while cursing.
"Who do you think you are, daring to criticize me? When I was in charge of things in the palace, you were still suffering outside!"
As a trusted confidante of the Crown Princess, Ding Mama held a special position. Wherever she went, she was respected by others. There was never a time when anyone would point at her and yell at her.
She was furious; her face turned bright red, and her fingers trembled.
"You old hag! You don't even respect our Crown Princess anymore?!"
The old woman snorted and rolled her eyes at her.
"Which word did I say about the Crown Princess? I was cursing you! You coward! Just because you're the Crown Princess, you think you're the master? Others may fear you, but I don't! If you have the guts, come with me to the Emperor and tell him why you insist on framing us for poisoning these rats?"
Another old woman chimed in sarcastically, "That's right, who knows, maybe it's the thief crying 'stop thief'!"
Granny Ding swayed, nearly fainting from anger.
Granny Fangqi was so annoyed by this group of people that she didn't want to deal with them anymore and simply pulled over a young palace maid.
"You, go to the Imperial Pharmacy immediately and fetch a royal physician!"
The young palace maid, who had been kneeling on the ground trembling with fear, scrambled to her feet and ran away in a flash upon hearing this.
Upon seeing this, Granny Fangqi frowned deeply.
This little palace maid doesn't know any manners at all.
How did these two old women discipline their subordinates?
While Ding and Hu were still arguing with the two old nannies, Fangqi took a few steps back, withdrew from the encirclement, bypassed the dead rats scattered on the ground, and quietly entered the bedroom in the west wing of the hall.
There she was, Rou Liangyuan, resting against the headboard.
Her small face, barely the size of a palm, was as pale as paper, but her eyes shone brightly, showing no signs of being frightened.
Granny Fangqi was an old servant in the palace, and with just one glance, she had a guess in her mind.
However, she didn't show it, offering only a few token words of concern.
Rou Liangyuan covered her mouth with her handkerchief and said softly, "Thank you for your concern, Consort Xi. Please go back now, Granny! I'm fine, I was just frightened by those rats... Ugh, I'm most afraid of those things."
Granny Fangqi glanced behind her, her expression unchanged.
"If Your Highness is afraid, why not wait until His Highness arrives and ask for permission to keep a cat?"
Is this okay?
Rou Liangyuan's eyes lit up.
“Why not?” Granny Fangqi smiled, but her voice was calm. “If there is a rat infestation in the palace, it is no small matter. The mistress is pregnant with the little mistress! His Highness will surely agree.”
Rou Liangyuan gave an embarrassed look.
"Thank you very much, Granny Fang. I will tell His Highness when he arrives."
Granny Fangqi chatted with her for a few more minutes until someone outside shouted, "The imperial physician is here!" Granny Fangqi breathed a sigh of relief, got up, and stepped aside.
A young palace maid led in an unfamiliar imperial physician. Granny Fangqi pulled the young maid aside and asked in a low voice.
"How come I've never seen this imperial physician before?"
The palace maid replied, "This is Imperial Physician Song, who is said to be the most trusted physician by the Emperor recently!"
Fangqi, the old nanny, had heard about the recent changes at the Imperial Hospital, so she didn't say anything more and went forward to pull back the curtain to make preparations.
Physician Song, of course, refers to Song's father.
He carried the medicine box to the bedside, bowed, opened the medicine box and took out the pulse pillow before speaking.
"Please extend your right hand, Your Highness."
Rou Liangyuan, who was behind the gauze curtain, hesitated for a moment before extending her hand after Physician Song spoke for the second time.
Physician Song carefully took the pulse, his sparse eyebrows furrowing into a frown.
Seeing this, Granny Fangqi couldn't help but ask, "Imperial Physician, how is Consort Liangyuan? Is there anything wrong with the child in her womb?"
"Ah? The child? Oh! Your Majesty is alright."
Physician Song seemed to have just come to his senses, and quickly withdrew his hand, muttering to himself.
"Your Majesty, have you been sleeping poorly lately? You've been overworking yourself, thinking too much; it's not good for your health. I'll prescribe a remedy for you to drink before bed each night; it will calm your mind, help you sleep, and relieve fatigue..."
Rou Liangyuan smiled and thanked her, then took out a purse containing silver from a small drawer by the bedside and asked Granny Fangqi to give it to the imperial physician.
Physician Song refused repeatedly, but was finally forced into his arms by Granny Fangqi.
Fangqi Granny naturally wouldn't interfere with the matter of fetching and decocting the medicine. She simply watched as Physician Song wrote the prescription, making two copies, and then handed one copy to Consort Rou. Taking advantage of seeing the Physician off, she got up to say goodbye.
Physician Song walked out of the west side hall, his gaze frequently darting to the opposite side, his steps dragging very slowly.
When Granny Fangqi stepped out of the palace and saw him like this, her heart immediately jumped. She quickly stepped in front of him and pointed forward.
"Imperial Physician Song, the main gate is this way."
Physician Song responded with "uh-huhs" and "ah-ahs," but his eyes were still glancing eastward out of the corner of his eye.
Granny Fangqi couldn't hold back any longer and scolded in a low voice, "Imperial Physician Song, didn't anyone teach you to be careful in the palace? This Eastern Palace is not a place you can inquire about! Leave at once!"
The imperial physician Song was so startled by her serious expression that he stumbled and almost fell.
"Oh, that's not what I meant. I just wanted to see..."
"What are you looking at? The women of the Eastern Palace all belong to the Crown Prince. How dare you look at them so casually?"
Granny Fangqi got even angrier and pushed him toward the East Palace gate.
Physician Song was unable to explain and his face turned red with anxiety.
Fortunately, at that moment, the door of the east hall suddenly opened, and Wei Hong came out and waved to Physician Song.
"Imperial Physician, my master is unwell. Would you be so kind as to take a look at him while you're here?"
Upon hearing this, Physician Song's expression changed, and he rushed over.
"Pshaw...cough cough, what's wrong with Consort Xi? Is she feeling unwell? Where is she? Please take me inside!"
Wei Hong wanted to continue acting, but seeing that Physician Song was sweating profusely, she quickly led him into the palace.
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