☆, Chapter 151: Drag her away and behead her!
Despite being pulled and dragged by several palace maids and eunuchs, Zhou Mujiao remained calm and said, "I can't leave the palace on my own, so why are you in such a hurry? Let go, I can walk by myself. Oh, by the way, instead of keeping an eye on me, you should pay more attention to your mistress. She looks pale, like she's about to die."
"How dare you! You actually curse the princess! I think you are—"
"Princess! Princess, what's wrong?! Quick, summon the imperial physician! The princess has fainted! The princess has fainted!!"
Princess Jinling had always been in good health, but now she suddenly collapsed and convulsed. Everyone blamed Zhou Mujiao, believing that she had angered the princess to the point of fainting.
The eunuch was both angry and frightened, pointing at her and barely able to speak: "If anything happens to the princess, not only will you die, but your entire family will be exterminated!"
Zhou Mujiao looked at the imperial physician: "Imperial physician, is the princess's sudden illness really because she was angered?"
The imperial physician shook his head but said nothing more, only instructing Eunuch Wang to invite the Emperor and Empress Dowager.
Aunt Luo, who served the princess, entered the palace with Consort Liang and had always stayed by the princess's side. Suddenly, she seemed to remember something and her expression changed drastically. She asked the imperial physician in a low voice, and the physician nodded slightly. Aunt Luo then collapsed to the ground, tears streaming down her face.
The Emperor and Empress Dowager arrived quickly, as did Zhao Yunjing. Upon entering, he grabbed Zhou Mujiao and asked, "Did she do anything to you?"
Zhou Mujiao shook her hand back, saying, "I'm fine."
Zhao Yunjing breathed a sigh of relief and pulled her back a little.
From behind the screen came the Empress Dowager's sobbing: "My poor Jinling, waaaaah... Emperor, Jinling is only eighteen years old, you can't just watch her die!"
"Eunuch Lu! Summon all the imperial physicians to the palace! Go immediately! My daughter cannot be harmed! She cannot be harmed!"
"Your Majesty, the princess... she's not breathing!"
Who could have imagined that Princess Jinling, who was standing with her hands on her hips taming people just a quarter of an hour ago, would now be no longer breathing?
There was a moment of silence inside the screen, followed by Aunt Luo's heart-wrenching sobs.
"Your Majesty, Empress Dowager, the princess has passed away!"
Both indoors and outdoors, there was a chorus of weeping.
The emperor was so upset and angry that he wanted to behead everyone in the imperial medical department. The empress dowager was crying so hard she almost fainted. Suddenly, Aunt Luo rushed out, pointed at Zhou Mujiao, and shouted, "It's her! It's because of her that the princess fell ill! She'll be buried with the princess! Guards, drag her away and behead her!"
The emperor came out and, upon seeing Zhou Mujiao, was shocked and furious: "It was you? You're the one who harmed my daughter!"
"Your Majesty, Empress Dowager, this Zhou fellow is shamelessly boasting that he wants to become Empress Dowager!"
The emperor trembled with rage and waved his hand, "Guards, drag her away and behead her! Clean her up, don't defile Jinling's Fenghua Palace!"
Zhao Yunjing stepped forward, and the emperor roared, "Shut up! Otherwise, I will punish you as well! I don't need you! The Great Liang can't do without you! Zhao Yunjing, you'd better know your place!"
Zhao Yunjing cupped his hands in greeting: "Then please, Your Majesty—"
Zhou Mujiao interrupted him: "Your Majesty, everyone says that the princess's illness is my fault, so please grant me permission to see the princess."
"The princess wouldn't want to see her! Her last order before she died was to have her head cut off! Your Majesty, quickly order her to be dragged away! Don't let her defile our Fenghua Palace! Don't tarnish the princess's path to reincarnation!"
"This humble woman has a way to save the princess."
The room fell silent after Zhou Mujiao said this.
Aunt Luo was the first to react. She pointed at her and scolded her, firmly refusing to let her in to see the princess. Everyone in Fenghua Palace knelt down and begged the emperor to immediately behead Zhou Mujiao.
The emperor stared at Zhou Mujiao: "Can you really save Jinling?"
"I can."
"Your Majesty is lying! It was she who angered the princess to this state, she—"
Zhou Mujiao interrupted, "I'm going to die anyway, so dying a little earlier or a little later makes no difference. But what if I can really save the princess? Are you all stopping me because you're afraid she'll die or that I won't be able to save her? Are you afraid that I can actually bring her back to life?"
All the palace servants in Fenghua Palace knelt down, and everyone cried out that they were wronged.
"Your Majesty, let her in," the Empress Dowager said from the inner chamber. "She's right. She's going to die sooner or later. Living an extra cup of tea won't change anything. Let her give it a try."
The Emperor, forcing back his grief, said, "Zhou Mujiao, go inside. Zhao Yunjing, go out!"
Princess Jinling lay on the bed, her face completely pale, her lips beginning to turn purple, her arms hanging limply at the bedside, her fingers cold and almost stiff. Two imperial physicians knelt before the bed, trembling all over.
The Empress Dowager stared intently at her: "If you dare to lie to me, I will exterminate your entire family!"
"Please make way, Your Majesty. Also, open all the windows and disperse the crowd so as not to obstruct air circulation."
As Zhou Mujiao gave instructions, she took the princess's pulse, frowning as she did so.
"Whether it's the Empress Dowager, the Emperor, or the princess's mother or maternal grandfather, does anyone else have the same disease?"
No one answered, but the Empress Dowager's expression had changed: "I let you in to save people, not to ask random questions!"
Zhou Mujiao had only asked casually, but upon hearing this, she explained, "Your Majesty, please calm down. I'm not asking randomly; I'm just trying to understand the patient's medical history. Imperial Physician, may I take a look at the princess's medical record?"
Physician Liu's handwriting was so elegant and graceful that Zhou Mujiao could roughly understand it by guessing and deciphering.
"Princess, this disease is a hereditary condition. Some people never develop it in their lifetime, some are born with it, and some are perfectly fine but suddenly develop it. If it's not treated in time, there's a high probability that they won't survive. Physician Liu, insert acupuncture needles into each of these acupoints."
Physician Liu hesitated, but the Empress Dowager said in a low voice, "Listen to her!"
Indeed, many members of Consort Liang's maternal family died from sudden illnesses. Among those who died despite Physician Liu's efforts to save them were Consort Liang, her elder brother, her father, and her two cousins.
Over the years, in addition to being responsible for the princess's health, he also studied the diseases of Consort Liang's maternal clan. However, after more than ten years, he had gained nothing. As for the acupoints that Zhou Mujiao pointed out, he had never inserted needles before, so his hands were shaking when he inserted the needles.
Eight silver needles were inserted into the acupoints, and a few minutes later Zhou Mujiao had Physician Liu insert eight more needles into the other eight acupoints.
Princess Jinling's head and both arms were covered with needles. The silver needles gleamed with a cold, eerie light under the candlelight. Whether it was the physician Liu's imagination or not, he felt that Princess Jinling's arms seemed to have softened a bit.
After a short while, Zhou Mujiao had Physician Liu remove all the needles, but Princess Jinling still showed no reaction.
Aunt Luo cried, "Empress Dowager, she's lying! She's lying! She wasn't trying to save the princess at all; she wanted the princess's body—"
"Shut up, Physician Liu! I need a female doctor with excellent acupuncture skills." Zhou Mujiao said in a deep voice, "Whether the princess can wake up and whether her heart palpitations can be cured depends on the next few acupuncture needles."
Physician Liu hesitated: "But—"
"Your Majesty, the princess has grown up under your care since she was a child. I believe you would not want her to leave like this. Your Majesty, please trust me one more time."
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