Shen Yu's expression turned grave, and she muttered to herself, "This is bad. Someone may have tampered with this carrier pigeon. I'm afraid someone is trying to harm Ping'er." Thinking of this, she didn't dare to delay for a moment and hurriedly ran towards Meiyang Palace.
Before long, Chen Yu arrived at the courtyard of Meiyang Palace. The courtyard was empty and silent, except for a homing pigeon pacing on the flower stand in front of the window, seemingly unwilling to leave, and cooing incessantly.
Suddenly, with a whoosh!
Shen Yu turned around alertly and saw King Jing holding a bow and arrow, shooting at the carrier pigeon. However, unexpectedly, the pigeon was not hit and instead fell headfirst into the flower bushes.
Shen Yu looked surprised, while King Jing looked suspicious and hurriedly ran to the flower bushes to pick up the carrier pigeon and examine it carefully.
Strangely, the carrier pigeon was not hit by the arrow.
"It's just a little pigeon, not a bad person. Wouldn't this arrow kill it?" Ping'er said, sliding down the tree.
[This humble servant is ashamed of his own inadequacy; it is all thanks to Your Majesty's intervention that the pigeon was subdued with a small pebble.]
After saying this, King Jing took the note off the carrier pigeon's leg and looked at Ping'er again.
[Your Majesty, there is a note here. Please take a look.]
Ping'er took the note, opened it, and read: When will Liu's army march into the capital? How many troops are there?
Ping'er looked at Chen Yu with sharp and scrutinizing eyes. Although Ping'er was only a child under seven years old, he had already learned tactics and strategies under the tutelage of Prince Jing. It was likely that this carrier pigeon was also arranged by Chen Yu to clear his name.
Shen Yu frowned, her face full of doubt. She had only sent people to collect evidence of Ouyang Meiniang's collusion with the Zhao family; she hadn't used carrier pigeons.
With a whoosh, Chen Yu looked up and saw a sharp arrow heading straight for Ping'er's back. Without hesitation, she pulled Ping'er into her arms and turned around.
[Ah!] An arrow pierced her back.
"Catch the assassin! Quickly! Catch the assassin!" King Jing shouted as he led his men out.
------
When Chen Yu awoke, two days had passed. Opening her eyes, she was immediately struck by a fair and delicate face, an oval face, slightly upturned lips, and a magnificent azure robe…
Isn't that Guluo?
Gu Luo leaned down, his delicate and obedient face close to Chen Yu's.
Shen Yu was alarmed, fearing that if she moved even slightly, her nose would brush against Gu Luo's face.
In this life, she had only ever been intimate with Liu Yu, and had never been so close to a man again, not even King Jing.
How could she allow herself to be flirted with by a pretty boy?
Before Shen Yu could scold him, Gu Luo reached out and helped her up. He then thoughtfully placed a long pillow behind her back. Once she leaned in, he gently pulled the blanket up until it covered her hands before straightening up and whispering:
[Your Majesty, the poison has not yet been completely eliminated from your body, and you are feeling cold. You must not catch a chill.]
Chen Yu's heartstrings were already tugged, and her cheeks flushed slightly.
Remembering that Liu Deng had previously sent Gu Luo to the Guli tribe to investigate the Love Potion, Chen Yu quickly asked, "Did Doctor Gu find out where the Love Potion in the palace came from?"
Gu Luo still smiled slightly. According to the exit records and the records of the Guli tribe's medical clinic, the person who bought the love potion was Zhang Hongyu, Chen Yu's maid.
He had originally intended to report the truth to Liu Deng and pledge allegiance to the Liu family, but now that Liu Deng was dead and Shen Yu held real power, he naturally had to help conceal the truth. He shook his head and smiled:
[It's truly difficult to investigate. Although the Guli tribe is small, there are countless vendors selling aphrodisiacs, and it's practically a household item. Besides, Princess Yanran has already married Prince Jing, so there's no need to investigate this matter further, is there?]
Shen Yu nodded, secretly praising, "Gu Luo is indeed clever!" Seeing that there were no servants in the room, she quickly inquired, "What poison have I been given? How many days have I been unconscious?"
[Your Majesty, the poison you have been afflicted by is a rare poison from the Guli tribe. Although it will not cause immediate death, if treatment is not timely, the poisoned person will fall into a deep sleep and die in their sleep within two hours.]
Fortunately, I rushed back to the palace the day before yesterday and was able to detoxify the Empress Dowager.
Shen Yu looked at Gu Luo in surprise. It was too strange. It seemed that Liu Deng and Liu Chong had been poisoned by the same poison.
Why did Guro appear after she was poisoned?
She was terrified and cried out, "Cuiwei! Jiu'er!"
"Your Majesty, what are your orders? Guluo is willing to serve you."
As Gu Luo spoke, he tried to help Chen Yu up, but Chen Yu pushed him away.
[Step back!]
She lifted the covers, preparing to get out of bed. Before her legs were even fully on the edge of the bed, Gu Luo quickly bent down, carefully holding her legs and moving them to the edge of the bed. Then he squatted down and carefully put her shoes on.
Shen Yu's eyes widened in shock. Although there were eunuchs in the palace who served the emperor, she had never seen a man serve his mistress like this.
She wondered to herself, what was the purpose of this lowly Gu Luo? Could it be that he truly harbored feelings for her?
Just as she was pondering this, a pair of warm and strong hands took her arm and gently helped her up.
She turned her head and saw those large, fair hands with distinct knuckles... they looked just like Yu Lang's hands.
Her nose tingled, and she pursed her lips, her eyes welling up with tears.
[Your Majesty, your legs have a long-standing ailment and you need to walk around every day. You've been lying down for two days, so your knees must be stiff. Let me help you walk a few steps first...]
She looked up and met Gu Luo's eyes.
Good heavens! She had met Gu Luo twice, yet she hadn't noticed that Gu Luo also had a pair of captivating eyes.
However, why were tears glistening in Gu Luo's eyes?
With a creak, the door opened. Chen Yu was startled and pushed Gu Luo away abruptly. She quickly wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and looked nervously towards the doorway.
To her utter surprise, standing at the door were Prime Minister Qiu and Hongyu.
This is terrible! Chen Yu felt even more terrified.
As the Empress Dowager, if her subjects saw her behaving so intimately with a young man, wouldn't she be branded as unchaste?
Moreover, the emperor already harbored resentment towards her, and if such rumors were to spread now, he would certainly distance himself from her even more.
[Empress Dowager, as the mother of the Emperor, you are having an ambiguous relationship with a man. Do you intend to emulate the mother of a sage and keep a male favorite in the harem?]
Kong Xiang walked into the house, glaring at Gu Luo and asking:
Are you the legendary healer of the Guli tribe? Why are you getting close to the Empress Dowager? What is your true purpose?
Gu Luo knelt down with a thud. "Your Majesty, I have long heard that Mu Chenyu is a goddess physician in the capital and has developed an antidote for the rare poison in the north."
Gu Luo has long admired the Empress Dowager, and in a moment of impulsiveness, he offended her by behaving inappropriately. He begs the Empress Dowager's punishment.
Seeing an opportunity, Kong Xiang immediately said, "Guluo has offended the Empress Dowager, which is a capital offense. Why hasn't the Empress Dowager ordered him executed? Could it be that she has feelings for him?"
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