Chapter 31 Jin Ling 31
"Your Majesty, you are finally awake."
Jin Ling stroked Li Yi's hot forehead with trembling hands and immediately burst into tears.
"I'm sorry for making you... and mother worry." Li Yi was still dizzy from the fever. He forced himself to comfort Jin Ling and fell asleep again.
The virtuous concubine and everyone in the palace immediately became panicked again.
"Why don't you tell those people to shut up and get out? Your Majesty is in poor health and can't stand all this noise." Jin Ling tucked the quilt in for the emperor and hurried out to order people to drive out the irrelevant palace people in the room and strictly forbid them to make loud noises.
After a while, the messy Xianju Palace became tidy again.
Seeing this, the Empress Dowager leaned towards Concubine Zhao. She'd seen them manage both palaces well, especially Concubine Xian, who came from a prominent family, and she was even more optimistic about her management skills. Who knew she was such a face-saver, secretly seducing the Emperor to make him sick, then panicking when things got tough, even asking concubines of the same rank to help her.
The Empress Dowager was extremely worried about the Emperor staying in her palace. However, the Emperor's fever had not subsided, so her health was the most important thing.
"First, confine Consort Xian to the side hall." The Empress Dowager was determined to stay with the Emperor until his fever subsided. Naturally, Jin Ling also suffered the consequences. After all, serving the Emperor was something she wouldn't delegate to anyone else, given her personality.
Tsk, Gou Dengxi is really good at causing trouble for me!
She hadn't slept well to begin with, and now she had no sleep at all. To save herself from the stress, Jin Ling simply went all out. She stayed by Li Yi's side all night, watching him intently. She used a wet towel to cool him down and a wet handkerchief to apply to his lips.
It was not until dawn that she took advantage of no one's attention, mixed a drop of reforming agent on a wet towel, and fed it to Li Yi.
His body had become extremely strong due to the effects of the pills mixed with the transformation potion. This disease looked scary, but it could actually be cured in three to five days. Jin Ling's medicine only accelerated the process.
"The fever is gone!" She pretended to have just discovered it, and took her hand off the man's forehead in surprise. She hurried to the other side of the curtain and reported to the empress dowager who was taking a nap on the couch.
The imperial physician standing guard outside took the patient's pulse and immediately showed a relieved smile on his face.
After confirming that the emperor was no longer in danger, the empress dowager collapsed, and Jin Ling had no choice but to take charge of the harem temporarily.
After five days, Li Yi, who had already recovered, discussed with the Queen Mother about lifting the ban on Concubine Xian.
"Absolutely not!" The Queen Mother was truly regretting her decision at this point. The Emperor even rejected her order for the sake of a seductive woman. She could not accept this in any way.
But Li Yi also had his own thoughts. He was indeed a broad-minded emperor who clearly distinguished rewards and punishments.
"Ultimately, the fault lies with me for not exercising restraint and self-control. Concubine Xian is just a concubine in the palace. How can she stop me?"
The emperor was also annoyed at his own weakness, which had caused such a scandal. However, he was unwilling to put all the blame on the innocent woman, and instead felt guilty for her having suffered the empress dowager's misfortune for him.
"Your Majesty, you are indeed completely wrong about this matter!" The Queen Mother looked at her son with disappointment. In her opinion, this matter was the fault of Concubine Xian, and the Emperor's defense showed that Concubine Xian had evil intentions.
"Back then, I asked you to treat Concubine Zhao equally, but what did you do? You simply threw Concubine Zhao aside and indulged yourself with Concubine Xian all day long. In less than a month, your body has been damaged to this point!"
Li Yi was about to explain when Zi Lan walked in from outside the palace gate: "Empress Dowager, Your Majesty, Concubine Zhao is requesting an audience outside the palace."
"Concubine Xuan Zhao, come in."
As Jin Ling reached the door, she sensed the tense atmosphere within the palace. The Empress Dowager leaned back in her phoenix chair, her head turned away, refusing to look at the Emperor standing nearby. Li Yi stood there, looking at her mother with a look of helplessness in her eyes, and seemed to be escaping when she saw her enter.
"I pay my respects to the Queen Mother and Your Majesty."
"Hurry up and get up." The Queen Mother beckoned her to her side. "I've been ill for the past few days, and it's all thanks to you for running around. You look so haggard, why don't you rest for a few days?"
The Queen Mother was right. Jin Ling's face was pale at this moment, and her usually healthy red lips were now a sickly lavender. Her steps were also very unsteady, and you could tell from the look of her that she was weak.
"Sharing the Empress Dowager's worries is hardly arduous." Jin Ling went over to help the Empress Dowager. "The Empress Dowager, on the other hand, is truly compassionate. When she heard that Your Majesty was ill, she was so horrified that her old illness was triggered."
As he spoke, he looked up and stared directly at the emperor standing on the other side: "Your Majesty should be more considerate of the Empress Dowager's motherly love. Even if you have other concerns, you should discuss them in detail with her."
Li Yi looked into those clear eyes and felt inexplicably ashamed. He lowered his head subconsciously, like a child who had made a mistake, and remained silent.
Jin Ling's words immediately brought the Queen Mother's favor to the peak. She held Jin Ling tightly with her skinny hands. The grievance caused by being understood by others made this tough woman burst into tears immediately.
Seeing that the Empress Dowager had been completely won over to her side, Jin Ling was determined to fan the flames even more fiercely. She was determined to get away with it today. Furthermore, she was going to force the Emperor to side with her, bringing her dominance within the palace to its peak!
When the Queen Mother calmed down a bit, Jin Ling called Zi Lan to help her wash and comb her hair again. The two of them sat together like real mother and daughter, ignoring Li Yi and leaving him aside.
Li Yi: “…”
Li Yi: "Since the Queen Mother is ill, I will take my leave first."
"Stop!" The Queen Mother's face was no longer filled with anger. She looked at her son calmly and asked, "Has the Emperor made up his mind to pardon the virtuous concubine?"
Li Yi glanced at Jin Ling, seeing that she looked down and didn't look at him. He then looked at his mother, who had a calm expression. After hesitating for a moment, he nodded and said, "This is not the fault of the virtuous concubine. Please forgive me for not punishing her."
"What a wise ruler who can distinguish right from wrong! Now that the Emperor has spoken, I will release her from her house arrest." The Empress Dowager took Jin Ling's hand. On each wrist, the old and the young, both wore identical jade bracelets. "I only hope that the Emperor will remember my words and maintain harmony in the harem. Don't be disinclined to favor one over the other."
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