Chapter 58 Pipa Tribulation 1
As the saying goes, the fingers are connected to the heart.
Moreover, burns are different from other injuries.
The pain may be bearable at first, but after a while, the burned areas will feel like being pricked by needles and will be extremely painful.
Xiao Jingheng gently placed Song Zhao's hand in his palm, his eyes filled with heartache.
"Go call the imperial physician!"
For large banquets like this in the palace, the imperial physician would always be present in the side hall.
Xiao Jingheng called so urgently that the imperial physician almost trotted all the way from the side hall to treat Song Zhao.
After a quick inspection of the injury, the imperial physician said:
"Fortunately, the temperature of the tea is not too high, and your injury is not serious. I will apply some cooling ointment for you to treat burns. You will be completely healed in three to five days."
"Three to five days..." Song Zhao suddenly withdrew his hand, pursed his lips and shook his head, "I want to play a pipa piece for the emperor to celebrate his birthday. I wonder if the imperial physician can wait until I finish the piece before treating me?"
"This..." The imperial physician was obviously in a dilemma and stammered without responding.
Xiao Jingheng was so concerned that he was confused and said with a little anxiety:
"Nonsense. I can play the pipa all the time, but what if my hand gets injured and I have a serious illness? Doctor Chu, go get some medicine."
Xiao Jingheng could see the disappointment on Song Zhao's face, so he put his arm around her shoulders and comforted her softly:
"Okay, I understand your intentions, but if I ask you to play the pipa despite your injuries, won't every note I hear be heart-wrenching?"
So many eyes were looking at Song Zhao, and Xiao Jingheng did not hide his concern for her.
If she was to be pretentious at this time, she would probably attract a lot of jealousy.
So she said tactfully: "It is my fault that I am clumsy and have spoiled the emperor's fun."
Xiao Jingheng felt strange.
In his opinion, Song Zhao was never a rash person, and in an occasion like today, she would not be unable to hold a cup steadily.
As his thoughts flowed, he subconsciously looked up at Liu Changzai.
Liu Changzai was frightened by his sharp eyes. When she was about to defend herself, she heard Song Zhao speak before her:
"Your Majesty, this matter has nothing to do with Sister Liu. It was my fault that I was careless and didn't hold the cup firmly."
Liu Changzai's words of explanation were squeezed into his throat, but he swallowed them back and followed Song Zhao's words and said:
"It was also because I reacted too slowly. If I had been able to block the blow for my sister, she wouldn't have been burned."
After saying that, he came close to Song Zhao, blew gently on her fingers, and looked distressed.
Xiao Jingheng looked at their "sisterly love", and the doubts in his heart did not dissipate at all.
He thought this was really strange.
Perhaps Liu Changzai did it on purpose. After all, the sound of the two of them clinking glasses was so loud that he could hear it clearly even though he was sitting in the top seat.
Song Zhao has always been weak and timid by nature. Perhaps she didn't want to cause trouble, so she swallowed all the grievances.
“Ah~!”
Just as Xiao Jingheng was about to continue asking questions, when the imperial physician was applying cooling ointment to Song Zhao, she suddenly screamed in pain.
The girl bit her lips tightly, and a thin layer of pink appeared on her lips.
Her pretty eyebrows were slightly knitted, and tears were welling up in her eyes.
Xiao Jingheng's heart was broken, and his tone towards the imperial physician became a little harsher.
"Don't you know how to be gentle?"
The imperial physician saw that Song Zhao's fingers, which had been smeared with the ointment, were trembling constantly, so he quickly fetched some clean water and rinsed the ointment off the fingertips.
After another careful inspection, it was discovered that there were many tiny wounds on Song Zhao's fingertips that were not noticeable to the naked eye.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me. I was confused and did not notice that there were many tiny wounds on your fingertips.
This cooling ointment cannot be used on wounds, otherwise it will seep into the wound and cause stinging pain. I will prescribe some mild ointments for you, and I believe that it will soon relieve your pain."
The imperial physician skillfully brought back the ointment.
This time, Xiao Jingheng said, "Bring the things here, I will apply medicine for Song Changzai."
He held Song Zhao's hand, dipped it in the ointment, and gently applied it on Song Zhao's fingertips.
The other concubines originally wanted to watch the fun, but who would have thought that they would see Xiao Jingheng treating Song Zhao so tenderly?
Concubine Ying saw that Concubine Chen's expression was not very good, so she took the opportunity to whisper sarcastically:
"The Emperor is really considerate to Concubine Song. Concubine Chen, the Emperor is said to love you the most, but has he ever treated you like this?"
"Heh~" The jealousy on Concubine Chen's face was swept away, and turned into disdain, "Since I entered the palace, I have rarely been sick. The only time I had a miscarriage, the emperor stayed by my side for two months. Concubine Ying, you should ask the queen this question."
She looked at the queen with a smile and said sarcastically, "The queen often suffers from heart problems. You should ask the emperor if he has ever treated her like this?"
The Queen smiled gently but did not even glance at Concubine Chen, as if she did not exist.
Instead, he stepped forward and walked in front of Song Zhao, saying with concern:
"I heard from Concubine Yao that you were not good at playing musical instruments, but in order to make the emperor happy on the birthday celebration, you practiced pipa day and night in the palace. After nightfall, you were afraid of disturbing Concubine Yao's rest, so you braved the cold wind to practice in the corridor, right?"
Song Zhao lowered his head somewhat embarrassedly, shook his head and said:
"I am naturally dull, and I can only make up for my dullness with hard work and learn something."
Xiao Jingheng understood, "So the wound on the finger was caused by the strings?"
Song Zhao pursed his lips and said nothing. Yunshan beside him couldn't stand it anymore and said:
"My lady has been practicing the pipa day and night, and her hands are new and she doesn't know any techniques, how can she not get hurt? Besides, if my lady's wrists are weak from practicing for so long, how can she not even hold a teacup steadily?"
"Yunshan, don't talk nonsense in front of the emperor!"
Don't talk nonsense, I've already said it.
As for whether it is nonsense or not, the speaker may not mean it, but the listener may take it seriously.
For example, Xiao Jingheng was applying medicine to Song Zhao.
When he looked at Song Zhao, there was obviously more pity and tenderness in his eyes.
"How can I not feel distressed when you are like this?"
"I just wanted to give His Majesty a surprise..." Song Zhao was very disappointed and choked up as she said, "It's a pity that even such a small matter was messed up by me."
Song Zhao's grievances were obvious.
She had worked so hard to prepare for so long, but now she had ruined her good intentions.
Self-blame and regret are certain.
In fact, if she cried a few times in Xiao Jingheng's arms at this time, it would make Xiao Jingheng feel better.
Seeing her trying her best to endure and swallow all the grievances,
It was more like countless hooks with thorns, scratching Xiao Jingheng's heart.
He embraced Song Zhao, speaking softly and comfortingly.
But Song Zhao always knows the big picture.
She didn't shed a single tear, but looked at Jamel Xiao with tears in her eyes and a smile on her face.
Seeing Xiao Jingheng frowning distressedly, he reached out to smooth his brows.
"Today is the emperor's birthday. The sisters have prepared the program carefully. The emperor should be happy. If the emperor is happy, I will be happy too."
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