Chapter 284 Qiu Liu's Serious Illness
From Qiansong Hall to Lengxiang Residence, the old lady didn't ask Qingluo anything. When she saw Qiuheng lying on the bed with a sickly face, she was shocked.
"Is Heng'er sick?"
Fangzhou and Xuehan were sent to sleep by Qiuheng, and the wet nurse, Mama Wang, was the one guarding Qiuheng.
Qiu Heng gestured for Wang Mama to leave, and upon seeing this, the old lady also told Chuncao to leave.
"Grandmother, I don't know if I ate something bad or if there was something wrong with what I ate, but I've been vomiting and having diarrhea for the past half day, and I feel terrible."
The old lady was startled: "What do you mean by 'the food itself was problematic'?"
Qiu Heng smiled wryly, "Yesterday, when I went to the palace, I had a cup of tea with Consort Yu. I felt that Consort Yu's eyes were strange. I didn't think much of it when I came back, but I started feeling unwell this morning."
The old lady frowned deeply: "It shouldn't be like this. Consort Yu summons you to the palace from time to time, why would she suddenly do this? Could it be that you have displeased her?"
Qiu Heng shook her head: "No. But as you know, Consort Yu is unpredictable. She doesn't need a reason to dislike someone, just like how she treated my elder sister during the autumn hunt two years ago..."
Upon hearing Qiu Heng mention Qiu Meiren, the old lady's heart skipped a beat.
"Of course, it's also possible that my granddaughter is overthinking things and just has an upset stomach."
Looking at her granddaughter's pale face, the old lady said in a deep voice, "It's best to have a doctor examine her first."
"My granddaughter invited you here to talk about this."
The old lady cast a questioning glance at her.
"Please find a trustworthy doctor, and regardless of the diagnosis, tell the public that it is an acute case of food poisoning and that the patient's life is in danger."
The old lady was stunned: "Is it that serious?"
The girl on the bed looked sickly, but her tone was calm and composed: "It has to be this serious. If Consort Yu doesn't like me and wants to punish me, I need to be seriously ill to satisfy her. If it's just indigestion, I can take this opportunity to be sick for a while and not have to go to the palace so often. What do you think?"
The old lady nodded in agreement.
Serving a ruler is like serving a tiger; Consort Yu is even more difficult to please than the Emperor himself. Frequent meetings could easily lead to trouble. Perhaps feigning illness and avoiding her for a while will cause her to lose interest in Sixth Sister.
"Heng'er, you're sick, so don't think too much. Let's do it your way."
"Thank you, Grandmother." Qiu Heng smiled sweetly at the old lady.
If someone is sick and can't be seen for months, it wouldn't be easy without the old lady's help to cover it up.
Qiu Heng dared not tell the truth that what Consort Yu wanted was not a minor punishment, but her life.
Having spent so much time together, she could tell that the old lady truly loved her granddaughter. But what if the old lady knew that Consort Yu would never let her go?
Could the old lady be thinking that if this doesn't work, Consort Yu will have other methods, perhaps even targeting the Earl's Mansion? To avoid endless troubles, having her "die of illness" would be the only way to solve the problem once and for all.
Between her alone and the entire Earl's mansion, which is more important?
She didn't want to test human nature.
The old lady gently patted Qiuheng and instructed Chuncao to send word to invite a doctor.
A familiar doctor visited the patient and diagnosed him with indigestion and cholera.
In the side room, Xu Bo watched through the window as people who looked like doctors came and went, old and young, coming to visit Xue Han one after another. Unable to bear it any longer, he poked Xue Han awake.
Xue Han sat up abruptly, his face pale: "Uncle Xu, what's wrong? Is Ah Heng's condition serious?"
Uncle Xu pointed out the window: "Take a look."
Xue Han looked over, a bewildered shock in his eyes: "Uncle Xu, Ah Heng, she—"
"Don't panic, it's not that Ah Heng is in trouble, it's the two of us."
"The two of us?"
“I saw the doctor come by. Everyone in the mansion knows that Aheng is sick, but the two of us are still in the side room.”
So they never intended for the people in this mansion to know they were there...
Can this really be kept secret? What if it gets discovered?
"Aheng has her reasons."
Xu Bo rolled his eyes helplessly and said wearily, "Fine, if their family finds out, you can take the blame."
Once all the visitors had left, the two of them left the room to go see Qiuheng.
Uncle Xu glanced at the prescription left by the doctor and clicked his tongue: "This is being treated as an indigestion. However, such misdiagnosis is normal, especially since you, Aheng, already induced vomiting and took the decoction yesterday."
Among the folk doctors in the capital, there are probably few who have a deep understanding of poisons, especially mushroom poisons.
"If the situation doesn't worsen by tomorrow, then the measures taken will be timely and effective, and we'll have passed the danger period."
After hearing Xu Bo's words, Xue Han finally suggested leaving on the night of the third day.
Uncle Xu was shocked: "You said you'd leave first, and I'd stay behind alone?"
"We can't keep hiding from the Imperial City Guard forever, but I can't rest easy without Uncle Xu here with Aheng, so I'm asking Uncle Xu for help."
"Get lost." Xu Bo felt like he was on a pirate ship and couldn't get off, feeling utterly exhausted.
But just as Qiu Heng was out of danger, rumors began to circulate that Qiu Liu was seriously ill.
Ling Yun and Princess Jiayi, accompanied by the imperial physician, personally arrived at the Yongqing Marquis's residence. Qiu Heng took the medicine prepared by Xu Bo, and the imperial physician reached a conclusion consistent with the rumors.
Princess Jiayi went into the inner room to see Qiuheng, but after Fangzhou reminded her not to go closer, she went out with red eyes and walked to her brother's side.
"How is Ah Heng?" Ling Yun asked in a hoarse voice.
Tears welled up in the eyes of the county magistrate of Jiayi and fell: "She's been unconscious the whole time, and she doesn't look well..."
Ling Yun clenched his fist: "Let's go, don't disturb Aheng's rest."
After leaving the Yongqing Marquis's residence, Ling Yun did not take a carriage, but walked aimlessly step by step.
Princess Jiayi tugged at his sleeve worriedly: "Brother."
Ling Yun snapped out of his daze and smiled at his sister: "Big brother is alright."
The voice then lowered: "Aheng will be alright too."
"What did you say, brother?"
“I told you that Ah Heng is a lucky person and that everything will be alright.”
After saying this, Ling Yun walked back to the Kang Prince's Mansion, but collapsed before even entering the gate.
"Big brother!"
Amidst the chaos of war, Princess Kang, who rushed to the scene upon hearing the news, looked at her son lying on the bed, tears streaming down her face: "I shouldn't have let your elder brother go. His headaches often flare up, and he can't handle any stress..."
In the Jade Palace, Consort Yu frowned slightly: "Today I wanted to invite Princess Suiyun to the palace for a visit, but I didn't expect that Princess Suiyun was ill. It is said that the Prince of Kang's son fainted from heart pain after visiting her, so it is clear that she is quite ill."
No one would specifically mention the noblewoman's illness to Emperor Jingping. Upon hearing Consort Yu mention it, Emperor Jingping was taken aback: "She was perfectly fine the other day, how could she suddenly become so ill?"
“Even a common cold can be fatal. Your Majesty, why not let Physician Wang, who often takes my pulse, take a look? Physician Wang is highly skilled and may be able to bring me back to health.”
Emperor Jingping agreed without much thought: "Then let Physician Wang go, so that my beloved concubine won't worry."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Not long after, Physician Wang, who had received the imperial edict, arrived at the Yongqing Earl's residence.
Upon hearing Physician Wang explain his purpose, the old lady almost lost control of her expression.
(End of this chapter)
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