"Qin'er, Hongli is alright now. What I want to tell you is what's next. Please listen to me patiently, okay?" the Fourth Prince said.
Seeing that Fourth Master looked very serious, Lanqin immediately stopped making a fuss.
Fourth Master pulled Lanqin aside and told her about how the prescription had been switched, followed by the conclusions of his investigation.
Lanqin immediately quieted down and listened quietly to Fourth Master's words, falling into deep thought.
"My lord," Lanqin said, "the person who copied Physician Huang must be someone familiar with him, perhaps even from the Imperial Hospital. But with so many people in the Imperial Hospital, who could predict when Hongli would fall ill, when he would call for the physician, and for that palace maid to happen to bump into Xianhui?" Inwardly, however, she thought to herself, "There must be a traitor among Hongli's men. No one but someone who knows him well could possibly do all that."
"You mean they have spies around Hongli?" the Fourth Prince asked.
“Otherwise, how could they have gotten such a precise timing!” Lanqin retorted. “My lord, let’s go talk to Father Emperor. I’m really worried about Hongli being in the palace. There are already people who can’t stand Hongli being favored and they can’t wait to make a move.”
"Hmm, it seems Hongli has people around him. That makes things much easier to investigate; there are only eight people in total," Fourth Master said.
“Investigate them separately and take them down one by one!” Lan Qin immediately replied without hesitation.
Fourth Master looked up at Lanqin and said, "Let them write down their daily whereabouts?"
Lanqin shook her head and said, "Let them point out each other's whereabouts. If Hongli really has someone hiding around him, he will definitely try his best to hide anything suspicious about himself. But since she is in Hongli's room, she can't escape other people's attention. So the most suspicious person will be exposed."
Fourth Master couldn't help but admire Lanqin's way of thinking. He took Lanqin's hand and said, "Why are your ideas always so unique? Why didn't I think of that?"
Lanqin thought to herself: I am from three hundred years in the future, so naturally I know more than you ancient people.
"I only thought of it by chance, and I don't know if this method is even possible," Lanqin said.
"This recipe is good. What do you think, Your Majesty? Alright, now that you have a method, Your Majesty's appetite is whetted. I'm hungry, let's prepare the meal." The Fourth Prince's mood improved instantly.
"My lord, the New Year is almost here. Shouldn't the red envelopes and allowances for the princesses and concubines be increased this year? After all, you have been promoted to prince this year." Lanqin gestured to Cui Niang to order the meal to be prepared, while she spoke to the Fourth Prince herself.
"Well, you decide what to do. You can discuss it with Shilan," Fourth Master said.
"The Uya clan came today saying they wanted to invite a doctor to come and take a look. I've already sent Doctor Lin over to see him," Lanqin said casually.
"What illness? Her?" Fourth Master raised an eyebrow and asked.
Lanqin saw this but pretended not to notice and said, "Madam Wuya suspects she is pregnant."
Fourth Master was startled, a rather embarrassed expression on his face. He had visited her several times recently, but he hadn't expected that Lady Wuya would actually be pregnant?
"What did Doctor Lin report when he returned?" Fourth Master asked quickly when he saw Lanqin looking at him.
“No. But Uya did indeed delay her period for quite some time. In the end, Doctor Lin said that it was probably due to irregular menstruation,” Lanqin said.
Fourth Master was taken aback, and after a moment of silence, he said, "Then take good care of yourself."
Lanqin nodded. Seeing that Cui Niang and the others had brought in the food, she said nothing more and had dinner with Fourth Master.
Meanwhile, Uya learned that she had menstrual disorders and lost all her energy.
“My lord, dinner is ready. Please have some. Only when we are healthy can we conceive your child!” Cuiyun advised.
Uya said angrily, "I can't believe my menstrual blood has gone bad. It used to be so accurate."
Cuiyun was actually quite disheartened. She had finally managed to earn some favor from the Fourth Prince, but then she had to get menstruation.
"My lord, please don't think about it anymore. Thinking about it won't help. You should just take Doctor Lin's medicine properly. Maybe that will cure you," Cuiyun said.
“Master went to the South Courtyard again today, didn’t he? If he knew I had this problem, would he stop coming?” said Madam Wuya.
“My lord, you mustn’t be discouraged. The master has just shown you some favor. As long as you don’t lose heart, the master will still cherish you,” Cuiyun said.
After thinking about it, Wuya felt that Cuiyun's words made sense. She couldn't be like this, otherwise the Fourth Prince would be even more disgusted with her.
"Alright, Cuiyun, let's have our meal. I, this lady, will remain beautiful and charming as ever." Wuya Shi perked up and finally agreed to eat.
Meanwhile, after having dinner at Lanqin's place and visiting the children, Fourth Master stayed overnight at Lanqin's place.
In the following days, whenever the Fourth Prince returned, he would either stay in the South Courtyard or the East Courtyard, and he rarely visited Lady Wuya's side. Firstly, the New Year was approaching, and the Fourth Prince had matters to discuss with his two concubines. Secondly, she had developed a woman's ailment, and the Fourth Prince intended for her to rest and recuperate, and it was not advisable for her to serve him in bed anymore.
"Cuiyun, what should we do? It must be that person from the South Courtyard who said something to the Master, otherwise he wouldn't treat me like this." Seeing that she couldn't see the Fourth Master, Madam Wuya felt even more disheartened.
“Master, perhaps once you have recovered, the master will come,” Cuiyun said.
"Men are so heartless. He didn't even come to see me," Wuya said with some resentment. All the effort she had put in had vanished in an instant.
"My lady, please don't do this!" Cuiyun said, seeing that Wuya was refusing to eat again.
“Cuiyun, is my life so bitter? Why is everything so unlucky? When I was young, I couldn’t be his woman because of our different social statuses; after I got married, I didn’t have a son and was neglected by my husband; now that I’ve finally become his woman, I can’t get pregnant,” said Wuya.
“Master, you mustn’t lose heart. If you lose heart now, then there will truly be no hope for the future,” Cuiyun said.
Wuya's eyes were ashen, as if she could no longer hear Cuiyun's voice. She just sat there, and finally turned her face to the side and fainted.
"Open the door! Open the door!"
A series of urgent knocks came from the south courtyard.
"Who is it? What's the matter so late?" Granny Wang had already gone to bed, but suddenly someone was banging on the door, so she had to get up to open it.
"Open the door! Open the door!"
"Who is it? It's so late!" Granny Wang impatiently pulled the bolt on the door, but before she could open it, the door was pushed open from the outside in.
It turned out to be Cuiyun from the Wuya clan.
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