"It's Chinese New Year!" "It's Chinese New Year!" The children in the neighborhood were not confined to their homes by their families today, and their laughter filled the air.
As the new year approaches, Li Xi is very excited; it's her first New Year in Jingyuan. Always generous, she bought a lot of fireworks and firecrackers to give to the neighborhood children, who are usually very polite to them.
Since taking a break after the Lunar New Year, Li Yi has been staying with Li Xi. He often helps out when he sees his sister busy attending to guests, disregarding his status as a student.
Over time, he noticed that his sister always had a smile on her face in front of others, but when she was alone, her eyes were indifferent, and sometimes she would drink alone on the rooftop.
This was the first time he had met a woman like this, and sometimes she seemed like a stranger to him, but her concern for him was genuine, and he could feel her love.
The New Year's Eve dinner is a moment that people look forward to every year. There is nothing more pleasant than the whole family gathering together, sitting around the table, eating New Year's Eve dinner and chatting.
Li Xi and her group of people all come from different worlds and different families, but since they got to know each other, they have all come to regard each other as family.
Everyone was busy preparing for the New Year's Eve dinner, except for Meng Zhong, who was still in the palace. Tonight, officials of the third rank and above were bringing their families to the palace for the banquet, so the imperial physicians from the Imperial Hospital were all waiting in the palace in case anything unexpected happened.
Murphy's Law has always held true in later generations: "If anything can go wrong, it will."
When someone from the palace came to summon Meng Zhelan, she was still eating. She was stunned when she heard the news. Why would the palace need her? Could something have happened to her father? Thinking of this, she forgot about eating, grabbed her thick cloak, and went out.
Li Xi was worried and told the others to eat their fill and then rest. She drove her carriage after them; based on what she had seen in movies and TV shows, summoning someone to the palace during the New Year was never a good thing. Worried, Li Xi quickened her pace.
Inside the palace, in the Kunning Hall, the Imperial Medical Academy staff knelt trembling on the ground. The Emperor, sitting at the head of the table, was furious. "Haven't you come up with a solution yet? So many of you, and not one of you can figure out what poison the Empress has been poisoned with!"
Turning to Meng Zhong, who was kneeling beside her taking the Empress's pulse, she said, "Imperial Physician Meng, what exactly is going on? You say the Empress is poisoned. When can she be given the antidote?"
"Your Majesty, I am not capable enough to find out the poison in Her Majesty the Empress. However, I have used a needle to block the poison from entering her heart meridian. It will take some time before we can determine what kind of poison it is. Please allow me to go and examine the wine that Her Majesty just drank."
"Go ahead." The emperor couldn't help but feel a headache coming on. Even a simple banquet could turn into such a mess. He would never hold a New Year's Eve banquet again. Being an emperor was truly exhausting.
"Summon the Crown Prince, Prince An, and Prince Liang." The Emperor was in poor health, nearing forty, and his strength was not what it used to be.
The princes who had been waiting in the side hall were filled with anxiety. Tonight, only the three of them sat near the Empress and all of them made contact with her.
The three princes felt their legs go weak when they saw the emperor with his brows furrowed. Their father had always been very strict with them since they were young, and even the crown prince was no exception.
They were required to be proficient in both literature and martial arts, and each of them had to learn the art of governing the country. Apart from having a priority in terms of title, the crown prince was treated the same as the other princes.
Therefore, the Crown Prince was constantly on edge, fearing that if he wasn't focused, his brothers would surpass him and incur his father's displeasure.
"Father, I really don't know why Mother was poisoned. Just now, Mother called me over to inquire about the Crown Princess's condition and asked how the midwife was being found." The Crown Prince looked at the Emperor with some unease.
The Crown Prince is the Emperor's eldest son, not born to the Empress, but to Consort Li. His biological mother died of illness when he was three years old, and he was subsequently adopted by the Empress. The Empress has only one daughter to this day.
"Others say you had a disagreement with the Empress and parted on bad terms. What's the story behind that?" The Emperor stared at him, and the Crown Prince felt a chill run down his spine. He knew that his father's expression showed distrust.
"Father, is that really the case? The Crown Princess was also present. Moreover, I would never poison Mother. Mother has always treated me very well since I was a child. I would never poison Mother."
The emperor pondered deeply. On the surface, the empress's poisoning was not good for the crown prince, but his secret guards discovered that the crown prince was involved with Consort Li's family. They suspected that Consort Li's death was related to the empress.
"Qi Yan, what do you think? Someone saw you handing wine to the Empress today." The Emperor's expression remained unchanged, so calm it was somewhat frightening.
"Father, a few days ago Mother asked me if the plum blossom wine in my residence was ready. Today I found the plum blossom wine to be incredibly fragrant, so I brought a pot over to invite Mother to drink with me. The wine is still in the side hall. I have drunk some, and Father has also drunk some. The wine cup was handed to me by Wen, the nanny beside Mother."
The Prince of Liang was handsome, just like his mother, Consort Shen, with a face like jade, bright eyes and white teeth.
After a moment's thought, the Emperor realized that it was indeed the case. Granny Wen was the Empress's wet nurse, so she would certainly not harm her. Moreover, killing the Empress would be tantamount to cutting off one's own escape route.
"Qi Yu, Granny Wen said you gave the Empress a packet of pastries before the palace banquet today?" The Emperor looked at Prince An in front of him with some displeasure. This son of his usually carefree and unambitious nature was nothing more than a playboy.
“Your Majesty, the pastries were brought back by your son from a restaurant near Baichuan Academy. The pastries from this restaurant are so popular that they are always sold out as soon as they are baked, and people reserve them for them early. In the past, the Empress Dowager also asked me to bring back some local delicacies to try. The pastries should still be here. The imperial physician just checked them and they are not poisonous,” Prince An said confidently.
"Your mother is currently unconscious, and we don't know whether what she's saying is true or false," the emperor said worriedly.
Thinking of the Empress's past care for him, Prince An couldn't help but say, "Father, perhaps there is someone who can detoxify the Empress. I was poisoned twice before by accidentally eating the wrong thing, and I was saved by someone. This doctor's medical skills are indeed superb. Usually, he recovers completely the day after treatment and is even healthier than before."
"What? When were you poisoned? Why didn't you tell your father? There are such extraordinary people! Even the Imperial Physician couldn't do anything about it. Which doctor can save you?" The Emperor looked at Prince An with a worried expression, unable to believe that his son had been poisoned, and that someone dared to poison his prince. The Imperial Physician, kneeling on the ground, was incredulous. Was there really someone better than the people of the Imperial Hospital?
"Give it a try. Have someone summon him to the palace," the emperor ordered.
"Yes, Your Majesty, I obey." Prince An stepped out of the palace and instructed Lu Yi to take Eunuch Su to invite someone into the palace. The Emperor then summoned Prince An and, from behind a screen, inquired about his poisoning. The worry and concern on his face were genuine.
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When Meng Zhelan arrived at the palace gate, she was extremely anxious, fearing that something had happened to her father.
"Lan'er, don't worry. If you haven't come out by dawn, I'll go ask around," Li Xi comforted her.
Meng Zhelan followed closely behind the palace servants, anxious but unable to ask Eunuch Su for advice.
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