Chapter 365: Between the Palms
Cheng Jing cried hoarsely, shouted a few words at the top of his lungs, and then couldn't stop coughing.
Concubine Hui was originally being polite to Xiao Jingheng, but when she heard the child cough, she immediately poured him a cup of warm water.
"Son, go slow, drink some water to moisten your skin..."
"I don't want it! Wuuuuuu..."
Cheng Jing pushed the cup away with force, but he cried even harder.
Concubine Hui also cried with him, "Your Majesty, I have no choice. I don't know what to do..."
She fell to the ground weakly, shaking her head in despair.
"Cheng Jing is still so young, what can he understand... He only knows that the medicine is bitter and he doesn't want to drink it, how can he know what paralysis means to him? If I don't force him to take the medicine, what else can I do? Am I going to give up on him and let him stay bedridden for the rest of his life?"
After all, Concubine Hui is Chengjing’s biological mother. As a mother, how could she not love her child?
Seeing Concubine Hui crying like this, Xiao Jingheng couldn't bear to blame her. He just stepped forward to wipe away the tears on Cheng Jing's cheeks and comforted him in a gentle voice: "Cheng Jing, don't cry. You are a man, you must be strong."
Although Zhaohua's eyes were red, he still forced a smile and said to Chengjing:
"Good boy, your mother is doing this for your own good. Look, you've made your mother cry."
He helped Concubine Hui up from the cold ground, held her hand, and comforted her:
"Sister, don't cry. Cheng Jing has encountered this difficulty suddenly. I know you are sad, but there will be a turn for the better, right? I just heard from Doctor Zhang that Cheng Jing can already feel pain in his lower body. Isn't this a sign of improvement?"
The accompanying doctor Zhang had hidden in the crowd.
At this moment, De Zhaohua called out, and hurried forward, bowed, and said:
"The Third Prince has indeed improved. During this period, Concubine Hui can try to help the Third Prince walk more. Even if he can't move, just helping him move his lower limbs will be beneficial to his recovery."
In fact, it wasn't just Imperial Doctor Zhang who told Concubine Hui this.
Judge Guo and Imperial Physician Liu also gave Concubine Hui the same advice.
Moreover, Concubine Hui had some knowledge of medicine. She knew that if Cheng Jing remained paralyzed on the bed, even if his legs could recover in the future, his muscles would atrophy due to long-term inactivity. If he tried to recover at that time, it would be too late.
So without anyone telling her, she had already tried to help Cheng Jing walk around in private.
After ten days or so,
On this day, Zhaohua was watching the fine weather and was leisurely feeding the canary in a seven-piece cage in the courtyard.
Doctor Zhang came to check her pulse as usual. After saying that everything was fine, Zhaohua casually took a handful of sunflower seeds and threw them into the birdcage, and asked calmly:
"Have you visited Cheng Jing today? How is his recovery?"
Doctor Zhang said, "Empress Hui had people take the Third Prince for a walk every day, or let him lie on the couch to stretch his lower limbs. The Third Prince couldn't stand the pain, and he kept crying like he was being tortured.
When I went there today, the Third Prince, in order to avoid the golden needle treatment and the exercise of his lower limbs, actually fell off the bed and hid in the closet, causing people to search for him for a long time.
Zhao Hua sneered, "The entire Imperial Hospital has no way to make his legs respond. Only Doctor Zhang has a way to restore some feeling to him. Since you have such a great skill, you should treat him well. If he can recover in the future, it will be a great deed for you."
Doctor Zhang smiled slyly and lowered his voice, saying, "In fact, his illness is incurable. The golden needle method can only restore a little pain sensation to him. When he walks or moves his lower limbs, it feels like a needle piercing his bones. Other than that, there is no other 'benefit'."
Zhao Hua gently stroked the canary's bright feathers with his gilded armor and said disapprovingly:
"I don't know anything about medicine, so Doctor Zhang, just treat me in your own way."
Doctor Zhang immediately understood and nodded in agreement.
Then he moved closer to Zhaohua and said in a mosquito-like voice:
"What the Queen asked me to verify has been proven. The Third Prince is indeed the biological child of the Emperor and Concubine Hui. There is no doubt about it."
Hearing this, Zhao Hua was silent for a moment before he nodded in agreement and told Doctor Zhang to go about his business.
As the afternoon sun gradually grew hotter, Yunshan escorted Zhaohua into the inner bedroom.
As soon as I closed the door, I heard her murmur in a low voice:
"It seems that Concubine Hui has been so cruel in order to make the Third Prince better."
"Cruel?" Zhao Hua said sarcastically, "I think she didn't mean it. Didn't you hear what Doctor Zhang said just now? She forced Cheng Jing to walk every day. Cheng Jing was in so much pain that he even crawled into the closet to avoid her. I was thinking, if Cheng Yu or Ruo Xin suffered such a hardship one day, what would I do?"
She lowered her eyes and thought for a while, then shook her head with a fading smile.
"It's true that parents love their children and plan for them in the long run. But how could they bear to see that little person so pitiful? He was forced to take medicine and force him to stagger for two hours a day because of the pain in his legs. If I saw a child crying like that, I'm afraid my heart would break."
Yunshan said: "Concubine Hui originally planned for herself. She is not as favored as the young lady, and she only has this one son, who is her hope for the future."
"Then what is she counting on?" Zhao Hua raised his eyes and glanced at Yun Shan with a smile.
"Chengyu will never have the hope of returning to the palace in this lifetime, and Chenghuan has no chance of inheriting the throne. If there is no prince born in the harem, then if her Chengjing is healthy, wouldn't he become the most suitable candidate for the throne?"
Yunshan was terrified after thinking about it, and hurriedly said, "Then Miss, you should not meet her as much as possible in the future, lest she has any dirty thoughts and harm you again."
Zhao Hua adjusted the cloud pattern on her sleeves and sneered, "If she wants to harm someone, she has to have the ability to do so. In the past, I was in the open while she was in the dark, which allowed her to take advantage of the situation. Now that we have both revealed our true colors, it would be too stupid for me to still be harmed by her."
As he was speaking, Xiao Fuzi knocked on the door, bowed and walked in, and replied in a deep voice:
"My lady, Tianji has done a good job and has sent back the news."
"You go on."
"Chun Lan was selected to serve in the palace through a formal selection system for palace maids a few years ago. Her parents died early, and the truth of her family background is no longer traceable. However, the people from the Tianji Office made secret inquiries and learned a secret."
Xiao Fuzi lowered her voice even more, emphasized her words, and said:
"Someone once saw Chun Lan going in and out of Prince Qi's residence before entering the palace."
"Prince Qi?" Zhao Hua was silent for a moment, puzzled, "How could the people of Prince Qi be so loyal to Concubine Hui?"
"I don't know the answer to this question." Xiao Fuzi paused, then smiled secretly and said, "But I have some good news to tell you, Madam..."
"What's going on?" Zhao Hua raised his eyebrows and asked before he could, "Did the golden dragon take the bait?"
Xiao Fuzi bowed deeply and said in admiration, "Your Majesty, your plan is brilliant. The people from Tianji Office said that there is another person in the palace who came to them with a secret order from Tianji, and it is the same thing that Your Majesty asked, which is to secretly investigate Chunlan's identity.
According to the portrait, the man looked like Xiao Yinzi, who was beside the emperor. However, the Tianji secret order he took was forged by the queen in the past. When the Tianji Office saw the fake secret order, they did not expose him openly, but asked the prince to pass the message in to ask the queen's opinion. "
Zhao Hua nodded calmly, a smile that showed he was planning something.
"They will tell the emperor what they have found out. Only after hearing enough real news will the emperor trust the Tianji Office's ability to handle affairs."
Her fingers were tapping on the ash wood tabletop.
Having said this, he suddenly turned his soft fingers and slowly clenched his fist, sneering and saying:
"If he believes it completely, it will be easier for me to manipulate him in the future."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
