Rong Ying stood nearby, looking thoughtfully at the peach blossom buds in Jing Yan's hand. After a moment or two of silence, he asked Shang Yu.
"Did the Crown Princess only ask you to send a peach blossom without saying anything else? Or has something happened these past few days?"
Shang Yu raised his hand and scratched his head, trying to recall what the Crown Princess had said, but he couldn't grasp the main point, so he just recounted what had happened that morning.
“I was out gathering herbs today when I ran into the Crown Princess leaving the East Palace. She saw me and immediately called out to me, then picked a peach blossom for me to give to His Highness.”
"She even urged me to hurry up, saying that once the peach blossoms bloom, the Crown Princess will no longer take responsibility."
"As for what happened these past two days," Shang Yu suddenly looked up, "yesterday I vaguely saw Princess Cheng running out of the East Palace with a frustrated look on her face. Does that count?"
"I heard today when I left the palace that Empress Dowager Cheng is ill, and she has not only summoned the imperial physicians but also the sorcerers."
Rong Ying suddenly realized, her shrewd eyes filled with understanding, and she clicked her tongue at the peach blossom in Jing Yan's hand.
"Oh, so it turns out that when His Highness was not in the East Palace, some peach blossoms bloomed inside, and the Crown Princess picked them once. I'm afraid she wants to pick them again today."
"Empress Dowager Cheng has invited a sorcerer, and he has been able to reveal all sorts of heavenly secrets, fortunes, and misfortunes as soon as he opens his mouth."
Click!
Before Rong Ying could finish speaking, Jing Yan snapped the peach branch in his hand with a gentle bend of his thumb.
"They're getting more and more outrageous!"
"I will return to the palace first," Jing Yan has always insisted on not marrying or taking in either of the two empress dowagers' nieces.
After Yue Jiang was brought in, he thought the two empress dowagers would change their ways, but they still wanted to find a way to send people in.
He wanted to go back and see for himself what Empress Dowager Cheng had to say.
"Your Highness, don't panic," Rong Ying stopped Jing Yan, disapproving of Jing Yan's hasty and violent actions.
"You are currently in the camp. If you rashly go back to the inner palace to stop Empress Dowager Cheng's charade, it would be very easy. But afterwards, everyone would know that it was the Crown Princess who informed you and made the decision."
"Considering the Crown Princess's situation, we cannot go back in person."
"If I don't go back, won't Empress Dowager Cheng be able to do as she pleases?"
Jingyan cared about Yuejiang, but Rongying's reminder was also correct. There was still no movement from over there, and if he rushed back in a hurry, it would make Yuejiang lose face.
However, if they don't go back, and the sorcerer says something, even if their father and mother don't believe it, they will have to make it all look good on the surface.
After all, for the Emperor, he had chosen to bring both Empress Dowagers' nieces into the harem to maintain a balanced situation.
If Empress Dowager Cheng were to make a breakthrough, Empress Dowager Zheng would certainly be uneasy as well.
“Your Highness will not return, but I can go back in your stead and guarantee that the sorcerer invited by Empress Dowager Cheng will be rendered useless,” Rong Ying said confidently.
Seeing Rong Ying's certainty, Jing Yan guessed that breaking the deadlock wouldn't be difficult: "What kind of convenience do you need me to provide?"
Rong Ying rested her chin on her hand and said without any politeness, "A bronze cauldron that Your Highness recently found in the mountains!"
...
When Empress Dowager Cheng fell ill, Yue Jiang not only found Jing Huaixu and Empress Ye in Yongshou Palace, but also Empress Dowager Zheng, who had always been at odds with Empress Dowager Cheng, came to visit her in person.
The two were surprisingly harmonious, as if they had already forgotten the tasting event a few days ago; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they had a deep sisterly bond.
"Sister Cheng, you've always been in good health, how did you fall ill? Did the imperial physician say what the cause was?"
Empress Dowager Zheng sat at the head of Empress Dowager Cheng's bed, her delicate hands, covered with wrinkles yet exquisitely maintained, tightly holding Empress Dowager Cheng's right hand.
She glanced discreetly at Cheng Suyun, who was standing in the corner, and said with unusual tenderness, "Look, Suyun's eyes are red. She must have been terribly frightened."
Mrs. Cheng looked noticeably haggard, her long, gray hair was disheveled, and she appeared listless.
"I'm getting old, and last night I suddenly developed a headache. The imperial physicians couldn't figure it out. The Consort, being filial, invited a sorcerer, who burned a few talismans, and I feel much better now."
"That's terrible!" Empress Dowager Zheng looked at Jing Huaixu and Empress Ye in shock, realizing the situation was extremely serious.
"Your Majesty, Empress, whenever the imperial physicians cannot diagnose a case, and a sorcerer is summoned to burn talismans and succeeds, it must be due to evil spirits!"
Jing Huaixu could not possibly believe that there were evil spirits in the place where he was staying; otherwise, how could a dignified emperor maintain his dignity?
"Your Majesty, the palace is bathed in the aura of the dragon. How could there be any evil spirits? It must be that the medicine the imperial physician drank after examining Your Majesty did not work immediately. Now that it has taken effect, he believes it is the work of the sorcerer."
"Your Majesty is quite pedantic," Empress Dowager Zheng said sarcastically, letting out a soft sigh.
"It seems that this time it's not that I've inexplicably developed a headache, but rather that I'm fortunate. If it were me, would His Majesty have been as filial as the Consort and consulted a sorcerer? I would have been tormented to death."
Jing Huaixu sighed helplessly and glanced at Consort Cheng, who remained silent. He had lived most of his life and knew in his heart whether it was evil spirits or impure hearts.
Especially since the biological mother and the Cheng mother have gathered together today for the first time to show concern for each other, there must be something even stranger than the evil spirits mentioned.
Following Empress Dowager Zheng's instructions, Jing Huaixu made a symbolic inquiry to Consort Cheng.
"Since the sorcerer is effective, it could be that Empress Cheng was possessed by some evil spirit. What is the solution?"
Consort Cheng's face was flushed, and upon hearing Jing Huaixu's words, she gave a rare, respectful curtsy.
"Your Majesty, I am ignorant. After learning that the imperial physicians could not cure the Empress Dowager's illness, I immediately thought of a skilled alchemist. Unfortunately, I could not understand what the alchemist was saying."
"It's roughly because the phoenix energy in the Empress Dowager's palace is declining. This phoenix energy is connected to one's lifespan; if the dissipation of the phoenix energy cannot be stopped, one's lifespan will also end..."
“Nonsense!” Jing Huaixu snapped, then turned to his attendant and said, “Bring in the sorcerer that the Imperial Concubine has summoned.”
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