On his first night back in the palace, Yuwen Wuji spent it in the palace of the Imperial Noble Consort.
He didn't sleep well last night because of what happened yesterday.
It's late autumn now, and the nights are getting colder. He doesn't know if he caught a chill last night, but he feels uncomfortable all over.
He coughed lightly twice, then went to court.
Li Wei draped a coat over him. Yuwen Wuji glanced at Li Wei, who was still wearing the same autumn eunuch robe, and said, "This autumn is colder than in previous years."
Li Wei was taken aback, then said, "This servant is wearing a rabbit fur vest underneath! Your Majesty should take care of your health!"
Yuwen Wuji nodded in satisfaction.
Li Wei thought that this year's autumn was clearly hotter than last year's because of the severe drought that preceded it.
The grand court assembly proceeded smoothly. After the assembly ended, Yuwen Wuji went to the Qiankun Hall, but unexpectedly, Song Wenyue was kneeling in front of the hall.
He walked up to her with displeasure, only to find that she was not wearing any makeup, hairpins, or even plain clothes. It was clearly an act of apologizing.
"What's up?"
Yuwen Wuji spoke with displeasure; he had never liked Song Wenyue to begin with. He had thought she would resemble her older sister somewhat, but the two were nothing alike. Then she did a series of foolish things, and he had run out of patience with her. If it weren't for the fact that she had given him a prince, he wouldn't want to deal with this woman at all.
Song Wenyue raised her pretty face to look at Yuwen Wuji. She had actually put on makeup today, but she hadn't applied lipstick or drawn her eyebrows.
With tears welling in her eyes, and having practiced diligently, her expression as she looked at Yuwen Wuji appeared pitiful, helpless, and incredibly moving.
Yuwen Wuji couldn't help but feel a little pity for her.
"Your Majesty, please save me and the young prince!"
After she finished speaking, two lines of clear tears rolled down her cheeks. The beauty of a woman silently shedding tears was truly breathtaking.
What happened?
Seeing her like this, Yuwen Wuji told someone to get up and go inside the hall to talk.
Song Wenyue had been kneeling for a while, and she was unsteady when she stood up. A palace maid went to help her, but Yuwen Wuji brushed her aside and helped her up himself.
Upon entering the Qiankun Palace, Song Wenyue wiped away her tears and said, "Your Majesty, someone is trying to harm me and the young prince!"
She told him about the recent rumors circulating in the palace. Yuwen Wuji was naturally suspicious, and if he heard the rumors and confronted Song Wenyue, he might think that the little prince was indeed not his son.
But Song Wenyue's tearful plea for his support for her and her son dispelled most of his doubts.
"Why would such a rumor arise?" Yuwen Wuji's face was gloomy.
In fact, he himself had his doubts. After all, so many concubines in the harem had not gotten pregnant, but only Song Wenyue had. How could he not be suspicious?
Furthermore, none of the concubines who entered the palace later were able to conceive, which made him extremely suspicious.
While shedding tears, Song Wenyue spoke clearly and logically: "Your Majesty, I have something I wish to present to you."
She glanced at the servants around her, and Yuwen Wuji waved his hand, dismissing everyone except Li Wei.
Song Wenyue then took out a white porcelain box from her bosom and handed it to the emperor.
The Emperor knew this stuff; it was called Jade Bone Regenerating Cream, and the concubines in the harem all used it to maintain their beauty.
"Your Majesty, as you know, I entered the palace suddenly, and because of my strong temper at the time, I was not well-liked by the ladies in the palace. So I never knew about this kind of thing."
"When I was staying at the Summer Palace, I saw Consort You secretly buying this thing. It was clearly a legitimate item, but her behavior was strange. I tricked her and found out that they were using it for that purpose in private!"
Yuwen Wuji was puzzled for a moment, then heard her blush and say, "They were whispering among themselves that this thing could tighten up there, making the Emperor linger. When I heard this, I felt scornful, but I also wanted the Emperor to favor me again, so I kept it. After returning to the palace, I had a royal physician examine it and found that it immediately contained contraceptive ingredients! Your Majesty, the person behind this is malicious!"
Upon hearing this, Yuwen Wuji's pupils contracted sharply, and he subconsciously took two steps back, as if he were afraid of that thing.
"Summon the imperial physician!"
Li Wei immediately went out to summon the imperial physician.
"Why did you only report this now!" he said angrily.
"I only just learned of how filthy this thing is. You were praying for the people at Huangjue Temple, and I wanted to send you a message, but I was afraid that if this matter were leaked, I wouldn't be able to see you alive!"
Furthermore, I lack sufficient evidence and dare not draw any conclusions, lest I alert the enemy. Last night, the rumor that the young prince is not your child spread throughout the entire palace. I know that the mastermind behind this knows that I am investigating this matter and wants to kill me to silence me! Your Majesty, please save me and my child!
Yuwen Wuji had no time to pay attention to her at this moment. He was worried that the thing used by the women in the harem might be harmful to him.
The head of the Imperial Medical Academy arrived quickly. He first took the emperor's pulse, and then went to examine the Jade Bone Regenerating Ointment.
After the imperial physician finished his examination, his expression changed drastically.
"Your Majesty, this item contains medicine that renders women infertile and men impotent!"
Yuwen Wuji's face was so pale it was almost dripping with water. "How is my health? I didn't feel unwell before."
The imperial physician said tremblingly, "His Majesty hasn't visited the inner palace very often, and since these medicines weren't applied directly to you, they haven't had much of an effect on your health. I'm afraid those concubines..."
They had been using medication for a long time and had long since lost the ability to conceive.
"You've been taking their pulses all this time, why can't you tell!" the Emperor roared in anger.
"Your Majesty, the medicine's effects are not strong, like a gentle stream, but little by little they accumulate. We only noticed the ladies' weak pulses and couldn't possibly attribute it to the medicine..."
The imperial physician's voice trailed off. Why was he being asked to do such a private matter again? And why did he have to be on duty today of all days?
"Li Wei, take your men to the inner palace and get rid of all these filthy things! I want to see how many fools are using them!"
Li Wei responded and immediately led his men there.
"So, the reason I have no children is because of this filthy thing? If I didn't use these women in the harem, would I be able to have many offspring?"
The imperial physician wiped the sweat from his brow and said, "Your Majesty, having offspring depends on fate."
Yuwen Wuji's expression was displeased. "Tell me, is it really true that there's nothing wrong with my body?"
He had already experienced vomiting blood and falling into a coma twice, once from being poisoned by a Gu, and once from being tricked by this filthy creature.
Suddenly, he thought of Gao Ping.
"Li Wei, send someone to Chenliu and find out for me whether this was Gao Ping's doing!"
She dared to use poison on herself, so what are those concubines compared to her?
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