As soon as Gu Qianxue stepped behind the screen, dark red blood fell onto the curtains, bedding, and floor, and a strong smell of blood, mixed with the pungent stench of filth, assaulted her senses.
"Ah!..." Gu Qianxue's eyes narrowed slightly; for the first time, she felt fear from the bottom of her heart.
She instinctively gasped, suppressing her discomfort, and hurriedly walked towards the Second Prince.
Upon hearing Gu Qianxue's terrified scream, the Empress outside the screen frowned and suddenly stood up and walked inside.
When the Empress saw the man's distressed state by the bedside, her heart ached. She quickly pulled him to her shoulder and said in a hoarse voice,
"Zhi...Zhiyan! Don't scare your mother! Don't sleep! Good child! Wake up for your mother!"
However, no matter how much the Empress pleaded and cried, the Second Prince did not respond.
Her heart tightened, and she sternly ordered the guards outside the door.
"Quickly! Someone come here immediately! Summon the imperial physician! The Second Prince has vomited blood and fainted!"
Seeing this, Gu Qianxue's eyes turned cold. She quickly took a handkerchief from the wooden basin, wet it with warm water, and used it to wash the Second Prince's face.
Seeing her terrified expression and the beads of sweat on her forehead, the Empress suddenly grabbed her trembling hand and asked sternly,
"Consort Gu, tell me honestly, does the Second Prince also vomit blood like this on ordinary days?"
Why didn't the imperial physician mention this to me? Are you intentionally concealing it?
Upon hearing this, Gu Qianxue's heart pounded like a drum, her eyes were already brimming with tears, and her palms were sweating profusely. She knelt on the ground with a thud and begged for mercy.
"Your Majesty the Empress! Since I entered the palace, I have never seen the Second Prince vomit blood like this."
If so, I will definitely tell the imperial physician.
The safety of the Second Prince concerns my future; how could I dare to conceal anything from Her Majesty the Empress?
"That's good! When the imperial physician arrives, you can have a good talk with him about the Second Prince's condition."
"Your concubine obeys!"
A moment later, an elderly man with white hair as white as frost and a vigorous spirit entered the palace along with Feng Ji.
"Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress. Your humble servant was late due to some matters. Please forgive me!"
"No need for formalities. Quickly examine the Second Prince to see why he is vomiting blood."
This is Consort Gu; she's the one who takes care of him most often, and she knows the Second Prince's situation best.
Gu Qianxue raised an eyebrow, her heart sank, and she said in a flustered manner,
"Your Majesty is right. I do take care of the Second Prince on a daily basis. I will tell the imperial physician everything he wants to know in detail."
Upon hearing this, Physician Yang nodded slightly. "Very well, I will first take the Second Prince's pulse to find out the reason for his vomiting blood."
Seeing this, Princess Zhiya quickly stepped forward to help the Empress to her feet and comforted her.
"Mother, the imperial physician needs to examine my second brother. Please come with me to wait outside the screen."
The Empress looked somber and reluctantly placed the Second Prince back on the bed.
With Princess Zhiya's help, he slowly walked out of the room.
"Your second brother is really suffering! Alas! It's all that damned Consort Tian's fault!" the Empress cursed under her breath.
Zhiya turned to look at Gu Qianxue, who was still standing there, and reminded her,
"Consort Gu, you should come out too, so as not to disturb the imperial physician's treatment."
"good!"
The three of them walked out of the room together, leaving only Feng Ji to guard the room.
Half an hour later, the imperial physician finished examining the second prince and came out of the room. His expression was unusually serious.
Upon seeing this, the Empress quickly stepped forward and asked, "Imperial Physician Yang, how is it? What caused the Second Prince to vomit blood?"
Physician Yang's eyes were ashen. He paused for a moment before slowly speaking.
"Your Majesty, based on my preliminary assessment, the Second Prince has likely been poisoned, which is why he is vomiting blood."
"Poisoning? What kind of poison?"
"I haven't been able to determine it yet; the poison is quite insidious and difficult to detect."
"Poisoning a prince is a serious crime. This matter could be considered a major or minor offense. Physician Yang, have you diagnosed the patient correctly?"
"After careful observation, I believe the Second Prince does indeed appear to be suffering from poisoning."
"However, Your Majesty, please rest assured, the Second Prince is already recovering. This is likely because the vomiting of blood has expelled the toxins, and his body is slowly recovering."
"If you've improved, why haven't you woken up yet?"
"This poison is cunning; it can penetrate the internal organs and will take some time to be eliminated."
However, I am not a poison doctor, and I can only use traditional detoxification methods to remove this poison.
"Your Majesty, there is one more matter I need to inform you of."
"What is it? Physician Yang, please speak freely."
"According to my observation, the Second Prince has been poisoned for no more than an hour."
The person who poisoned him must have seen the Second Prince within the past hour and had close contact with him to have had the opportunity to poison him.
"Within an hour? Feng Ji, who has your master seen in the past hour?"
Upon hearing this, Feng Ji's eyebrows twitched, and his gaze fell on Gu Qianxue.
He was hesitating whether or not to reveal that Gu Qianluo had met the Second Prince.
Upon hearing the imperial physician's words, Princess Zhiya's eyes lit up, and she spoke first.
"Mother, please don't make things difficult for Feng Ji! He was kicked out of the main hall by the Second Prince, and only later did he find out about the Second Prince's accident."
Upon hearing this, the Empress's brow furrowed slightly, and she said in a deep voice, "Zhiya, do you know something?"
Gu Qianxue's eyes flickered, as if she was expecting something.
"Hehe, Mother would never guess who my second brother was with at the time."
"Who is it?!"
"It's the eldest daughter of the Gu family, Gu Qianluo, who is also Jinheng's cousin's wife."
"It's her?"
The Empress's eyes lit up; she had originally liked Gu Qianluo to some extent.
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