After a month of "rest," Dong E Wan Ning was finally able to resume her postpartum confinement and return to the emperor's service.
However, after she recovered, the situation in the harem seemed to have changed somewhat.
When Emperor Shunzhi entered the palace, he often visited Consort Tong in Chengqian Palace, and as a result, his third son, Xuan Ye, also received considerable attention.
Tong Yurou has been enjoying great popularity lately. While the Imperial Noble Consort's favor has greatly diminished after her miscarriage, Tong Yurou has won the Emperor's affections and has temporarily become a favored concubine in the harem.
Under these circumstances, she had some other thoughts and a glimmer of hope.
It seems the Emperor's favor towards the Imperial Noble Consort has waned somewhat. Could she then foresee the day when Dong E Wan Ning falls out of favor?
Furthermore, if the Emperor continues in this state and spends more time with her, wouldn't she be able to hope to conceive another prince?
Although the Third Prince is good, intelligent and sensible, he is not her own son. It would be better if she could have her own biological child.
Not long after Tong Yurou had this idea, her adopted son, the Third Prince, got into trouble.
The incident began when the Third Prince caught a cold due to poor care from the servants and developed a fever. Tong Yurou didn't notice anything unusual and simply assumed it was just a common cold.
But something seemed wrong. The Third Prince's cold was not getting better, and with a high fever, many red rashes and blisters gradually appeared on his body.
The cold turned into chickenpox. The imperial physicians thought they had made a mistake in their diagnosis and were quite frightened. They started prescribing medicine to treat chickenpox again, hoping to cure the Third Prince as soon as possible.
After several days of treatment, there was no improvement; the Third Prince's symptoms not only failed to improve but worsened.
It was at this time that Shunzhi discovered the problem and sent several imperial physicians to treat his son. They found that the Third Prince had neither a cold nor chickenpox, but smallpox, a disease that terrified people.
When smallpox broke out, the entire harem was in an uproar, and the once bustling Chengqian Palace became a forbidden area.
To prevent smallpox from spreading throughout the palace, Emperor Shunzhi ordered the Third Prince to leave the palace for treatment and temporarily sealed off Chengqian Palace, forbidding anyone from entering or leaving.
Poor little Xuan Ye, at only three years old, had to leave the palace alone to seek medical treatment outside.
Even if Shunzhi sent more palace maids and eunuchs, what difference would it make? Such a young child had no parents by his side; how could he possibly fight off the disease all by himself?
Yunyi arranged for the villa where the young Xuan Ye left the palace, and then reported it to Shunzhi through some means so that he could choose it.
That place is quiet, suitable for patients to recuperate, and it's far from the capital, making it a good place for Yunyi to do something.
Xuan Ye was delirious with fever. He shook his slightly dizzy head, opened his eyes, and found himself in a carriage.
The carriage was reasonably well-equipped, with a thick cushion underneath, presumably for shock absorption, but the carriage was still quite bumpy, and it was precisely because of the bumps that he woke up.
Just as he was looking at the carriage, the coachman called out from outside, and the carriage stopped. Xuan Ye raised his somewhat weak hand and lifted the curtain, revealing an unfamiliar courtyard outside.
The curtain at the front of the carriage was lifted, and Xuan Ye's wet nurse came in. She was pleased to find that the young master was awake.
"Third Prince, we've arrived at the villa. Let me carry you down."
The wet nurse's embrace felt familiar, and because of his illness, Xuan Ye nestled weakly against her chest.
The wet nurse, Madam Chen, thought the young master was sad and quickly comforted him.
"Third Prince, don't worry. His Majesty sent you to this villa to recuperate. It's a quiet place suitable for you to rest. He also sent the most skilled physician, Physician Xia, from the Imperial Hospital. You will definitely get better."
"Yes! I know, Granny. Father has his reasons. I will stay here and recover well, and not cause any trouble for Father and Mother."
The child was only three years old, yet he spoke so considerately and sensibly. The wet nurse, Chen, felt a pang of sadness but dared not show it.
She forced a smile, patted the Third Prince's head, and praised him: "Third Prince, you are so sensible. If the Emperor and the Empress knew, they would surely praise you."
Xuan Ye simply smiled and remained silent, but inwardly he scoffed at the wet nurse's words.
She wasn't a child who was much loved by her parents. Her father liked her fourth brother, who died young, more than herself.
Although her mother seemed to like her, something seemed to be hidden beneath her loving mask.
When I fell seriously ill, my mother was very concerned at first and would come over every day to ask about my condition.
But ever since the imperial physician said that she had smallpox, her mother fell ill, saying that she was exhausted from taking care of her.
Xuan Ye knew that she wasn't actually sick; she was clearly using illness as an excuse to avoid coming to take care of him.
He had overheard what was said two years ago: Tong Shi claimed to be his mother, but Xuan Ye knew there must be something wrong with it.
He had secretly investigated Qiu Yan, a concubine in Chengqian Palace, and suspected that Tong Shi and Qiu Yan had switched the children.
In his previous life, he had heard the maidservant serving his mother mention Qiu Yan's name. Based on his own guesses, Xuan Ye had some doubts about Qiu Yan.
However, after investigating, Qiu Yan was found to be without fault, and Xuan Ye could not find anyone else to suspect, so he suppressed his doubts.
Upon entering the courtyard, a woman dressed in a blue qipao walked towards them. Her face was covered by a veil, so her features could not be seen, but Xuan Ye couldn't help but feel a jolt of surprise.
With a hint of surprise and doubt, Xuan Ye stared intently at the woman, wondering why he felt a sense of familiarity.
Even though he had never seen this woman before, why did he have that strange feeling?
The woman was not intimidated by Xuan Ye's gaze and slowly began to introduce the courtyard. It turned out that she was the head maid of this villa, in charge of managing the entire residence.
Xuan Ye still had a fever. The woman who called herself Granny Yun led them to a room to rest. After putting the Third Prince down, Granny Yun withdrew.
After that, Xuan Ye began recuperating in a villa outside the palace. Perhaps it was the change of environment, but Xuan Ye's illness began to improve.
The imperial physicians were also somewhat surprised. The Third Prince was in great danger while in the palace. When the Emperor ordered the Third Prince to leave the palace, they had all made the worst-case scenario plan.
Unexpectedly, after the Third Prince left the palace, his condition improved. The imperial physicians believed that it would not be long before he recovered.
Inside the room, as she had done in the past few days, Granny Yun brought up a bowl of soup.
Xuan Ye secretly sized up this Granny Yun. With a normal expression, he drank the bowl of soup in one gulp, his little face smiling adorably, and the words he spoke were also normal.
With her big eyes blinking rapidly, Xuan Ye seemed reluctant to part with Granny Yun, a skilled cook, but in reality, he was trying to find out more.
"Granny Yun's cooking is truly excellent. You are wasting your talents in this secluded courtyard. Once I recover, would you be willing to return to the palace with me to serve me?"
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