Suoqiu didn't know what Consort Hui was trying to do. She only knew that one night, she had seen a masked man sneak into their tent. Consort Hui had ordered Suoqiu to get out of the carriage and keep watch. That's why she was guarding outside the tent in the dark. As for what the masked man and Consort Hui had said to each other, she didn't know.
"Suoqiu, from this day forward, you are completely bound to me. Only if I am safe will you be safe. Do you understand?" Consort Hui warned, seeing Suoqiu lower her head and remain silent, knowing what she was thinking.
“Suoqiu knows, Master. Now that Consort Lan has been poisoned, what should we do next?” Although Suoqiu had never intended to betray Consort Hui, the feeling of being kept in the dark was really unpleasant.
"Wait, wait until the Emperor sends her away. To cure that poison, we must return to Jinan. Trying to cure it in this desolate wilderness would be extremely difficult, even for Hua Tuo himself." Consort Hui's face was contorted with rage, but no one could see it under the cover of night.
Meanwhile, Emperor Kangxi had already arrived at Holland's tent with Physician Meng. Holland was unconscious, his face was ashen, a wisp of black smoke gathered between his brows, and even his lips were slightly purple, all clear signs of poisoning.
"How could this happen?" Although Kangxi didn't have much affection for Holland, she had borne him a child and had just lost it. The pain of losing his child made Kangxi unusually concerned about Holland at this moment. Now that he saw her poisoned, how could he not be angry?
"Your Majesty," said Physician Meng, "I have only just discovered that Consort Lan has been poisoned. However, I have examined all the items that Consort Lan has used or come into contact with, and found nothing unusual. Therefore, there are only two possibilities. First, the poison was already in Consort Lan's body a long time ago, but it only took effect today. Second, someone poisoned Consort Lan without her noticing." Physician Meng was also covered in sweat. If anything were to happen to Consort Lan, it was hard to guarantee that Emperor Kangxi wouldn't use them, the imperial physicians, as a sacrifice.
Kangxi looked at Holland and shouted at the palace maid beside her, "How have you been taking care of your lady? Tell me, have you been by her side every single moment? Have you ever left her side?"
Hui'an trembled, then knelt down and prostrated himself on the ground, stammering, "Your Majesty, this servant ordered Baoqin and the others to prepare the medicine. This servant has been watching over the Noble Lady the whole time. Also, Consort Niu and Consort Hui came by and stayed here until they left. It was only after they left that the Noble Lady suddenly showed signs of poisoning."
As Kangxi pondered Huian's words, a thought suddenly flashed through his mind, and he asked in a deep voice, "Imperial Physician Meng, do you know what poison Lan'er is suffering from, and is there any medicine that can cure her?"
Physician Meng was just waiting for these words, and immediately replied, "Your Majesty, I would like to invite several other physicians to come and help detoxify Consort Lan. I hope Your Majesty will grant my request."
Upon hearing this, Kangxi knew that even the nature of the poison might not be known, so he immediately said to Liang Jiugong beside him, "Do as he says, and summon all the accompanying imperial physicians."
Kangxi then said to Physician Meng, "You must save Consort Lan's life, or I will hold you accountable!"
Physician Meng spoke gently, his body trembling violently. He quickly patted his sleeves, bowed deeply, and said, "Your humble servant will do his utmost."
After Kangxi left with his palace attendants, Physician Meng finally breathed a sigh of relief, but a fierce battle awaited him. He had not yet determined what poison had afflicted Holland and could only wait for the other imperial physicians to come and examine her for the poison.
After Kangxi returned to his imperial tent, he immediately turned stern and shouted at a palace maid, "Go and invite the Fourth Prince and Lady Niu over, and then go and invite Consort Hui!"
The young palace maid withdrew as instructed, and the atmosphere within the imperial tent immediately became extremely heavy. Liang Jiugong had already summoned the imperial physicians to the Dutch tent. Just as he entered Kangxi's tent, he heard a loud crash as a cup shattered.
"Damn it, you can't even brew tea properly!" came Kangxi's extremely displeased voice from inside, followed by the sound of him kneeling down and begging for mercy.
Upon hearing this, Liang Jiugong recognized the voice of his apprentice, Xiao Quanzi, and immediately strode into the room. He saw a broken teacup on the ground, and Xiao Quanzi was kneeling on the ground kowtowing repeatedly. Kangxi's anger had not yet subsided.
"Damn it, get out of here! Are you trying to piss the Emperor's eyes by standing here? Get out!" Liang Jiugong kicked Xiao Quanzi, then glanced cautiously at Kangxi. Seeing that he wasn't displeased with what he had just said, he kicked him again and shouted, "What are you standing there for? Get out of here!"
This time, Xiao Quanzi understood his master's intention. He immediately kowtowed several more times and hurriedly left in a panic.
Liang Jiugong bowed carefully to Kangxi and said, "Your Majesty, please calm down. It's all my fault for not disciplining these little rascals properly. When we get back, I will definitely punish them severely!"
Kangxi's expression softened slightly, and he said, "It seems I need to give those around me a good talking-to. They're doing these things right under my nose."
Liang Jiugong knew that Kangxi was not angry with Xiao Quanzi, which was why he dared to let him leave immediately. He was just a punching bag for Kangxi, who had no one else to vent his anger on.
Before long, the Fourth Prince, Lanqin, and Consort Hui entered the imperial tent together; it was already quite late.
Consort Hui immediately stepped forward and bowed with concern, saying, "Your Majesty, I heard that Sister Lan has been poisoned. Please don't worry too much. Take care of yourself. With so many imperial physicians around, Sister Lan is very fortunate and should be alright."
Fourth Master and Lanqin were naturally shocked, unaware that Holland had been poisoned again, especially Lanqin.
Kangxi waved his hand and said, "Fourth Prince, Lan'er's situation is becoming increasingly complicated. We still don't know what poison she was poisoned with or when it was administered. I summoned you here to ask Lanqin and Pei Ning how long you stayed with her in the Dutch tent and whether anything unusual happened."
After exchanging a glance, Lanqin and Consort Hui continued, "Your Majesty, when Sister Hui and I were there, she was not poisoned. Could it be that she was poisoned after we left? Moreover, we saw something unusual happening while we were there."
Consort Hui suppressed the smile in her heart. Just as she had expected, Lanqin had become her best witness.
"Your Majesty, have you questioned Lan's palace servants? Perhaps you could gather them up and question them; there might be someone among them who poisoned her," Consort Hui suggested.
Kangxi looked at them, his expression shifting between light and dark, and said, "Those palace servants shouldn't have the guts to harm my noble lady. However, Physician Meng said that Lan'er might have been poisoned long ago, but it's only showing up now. We'll have to wait until they can test what kind of poison she's been poisoned to find out."
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