Fubuki answered clearly, though she wasn't entirely clear on the details: "Yuqiu knocked on the door just now and said that the Second Princess was fine when she went to sleep, but the palace maid on night watch suddenly heard her talking in her sleep. When she went in, she found that the Second Princess's cheeks were flushed and her body was burning hot! As soon as Yuqiu heard this, she immediately came to Chengqian Palace and quickly sent someone to invite the imperial physician. I reckon he has arrived by now."
Changning quickly dressed, grabbed Yinzhen, and ran outside. She felt uneasy, her heart pounding, and she had a bad feeling.
Seeing her frightened and anxious, Yinzhen quickly comforted her, "Don't be afraid. Hutuli is not young anymore, and she won't get into trouble so easily. Besides, she has practiced martial arts since childhood, and her body is much stronger than others. This is probably just an acute illness, not serious. She will definitely recover after the imperial physician examines her. Don't scare yourself."
Changning nodded, whether in response to Yinzhen's words or to calm herself down, she said, "Hutu will definitely be fine."
Changning's main fear and panic stemmed from the fact that medical standards in ancient times were extremely backward. There were no medical instruments available. If her daughter were to fall ill with any acute condition, without the aid of instruments to examine her, and if even taking her pulse couldn't reveal anything, then things would be very bad.
In ancient times, the survival rate of children was already low, and the infant mortality rate was even higher. It was common for children like Hutuli to die at the age of eleven or twelve, so she could not afford to be complacent.
Yinzhen and Changning flew towards the South Third Palace, but as soon as they stepped out of the palace gate, they saw Tuantuan following closely behind them like an arrow released from a bow. Her snow-white fur shone brightly in the darkness.
"round and round?"
Changning was somewhat surprised. She hadn't expected the noise to wake Tuantuan. Ever since they moved into Chengqian Palace, Tuantuan, Yuanyuan, and some kittens had been sleeping with Unaxi and Yaertan.
Nowadays, they are the darlings of Chengqian Palace. Not only do the princes and princesses pamper them, but even the palace servants treat them like auspicious beasts, serving them like little masters.
After all, she was the Empress's beloved pet, the "sister" of the Second Princess and the Third Prince. Who would dare not do their best for her?
Yinzhen was also slightly taken aback. In his eyes, Tuantuan was a spiritual animal, and had always been like a divine beast, protecting Changning and the children. No matter what danger they encountered, she could always give them a warning.
Moreover, judging by her age, Tuantuan is already one of the older cats, but she is still agile and seems like she will never grow old.
"Let Tuantuan follow along," Yinzhen said in a low voice, and Changning nodded as well.
The group moved extremely quickly, and their presence was quite impressive, soon alerting almost everyone in the harem.
It is said that something happened either in Chengqian Palace or in the South Third Palace.
The Emperor and Empress were running back and forth with a large group of people in the middle of the night.
Everyone was amazed; what could possibly happen at this juncture?
Could it be that something happened to one of the princesses or princes?
However, the vast majority of the living imperial heirs are born to the Empress.
Before they could gather any more information, they were dismayed to discover that many of their men had recently been purged by the Empress...
The news is coming too late...
When Changning and Yinzhen arrived at the South Third Palace, they had a light sheen of sweat on their foreheads.
"How is she, Physician Zhou? Is the Second Princess alright?"
When Yinzhen saw that the person who came was the Chief Physician of the Imperial Medical Academy, he felt a great weight lifted from his heart.
Physician Zhou stroked his sparse, graying beard, and after taking the pulse, he knelt before the Emperor and Empress to report.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, the Second Princess's condition is caused by an evil influence, indicating a deficiency in her vital energy. However, we do not know what caused it?"
Changning understood; it was an allergic reaction.
But……
I've never heard of my daughter being allergic to anything before.
"Yuqiu." Changning frowned and called over the head palace maid beside Hutuli to ask.
She leaned forward to look at her daughter, only to see that her once lively and cheerful face was now flushed and her forehead was covered in cold sweat. The palace maids were serving her attentively, but she looked weak no matter how she looked at it, which made Changning's heart ache.
Hutuli had his eyes tightly closed, was running a high fever, and had started talking nonsense. Changning couldn't hear him clearly, but he felt that his illness was definitely serious.
Yuqiu was originally a servant of Changning, but after Hongyan and Hutuli were born, she was assigned to Hutuli and was always very dutiful.
She dared not hide anything and recounted in detail what the princess had used, worn, come into contact with, and met in recent days, so that Physician Zhou and his men could examine everything.
Before Physician Zhou could find any results, Tuantuan suddenly jumped up, pounced on something, raised its tail, and pulled out a sachet.
Yinzhen and Changning were startled and quickly had someone hand it over. Upon closer inspection, Changning broke out in a cold sweat.
"Isn't this the mosquito-repellent sachets I instructed the Imperial Household Department to make for the children?"
Yinzhen's face was cold, and his imperial majesty was already showing, as if he would exterminate nine generations of a person at any moment.
But for his daughter's sake, he held back and handed the examination over to Physician Zhou.
Physician Zhou opened the sachets and smelled each one. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he immediately replied, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, it is this Andrographis paniculata."
Originally, this Andrographis paniculata had the effects of clearing heat and detoxifying, removing dampness and relieving jaundice, but the Second Princess's constitution was not suited to it. After being in the sachet for a long time, the medicinal properties were released, and only today did they manifest on the princess.
Changning gritted his teeth, the words almost squeezed out between his teeth.
"Doctor Zhou, are you saying that Hutuli's high fever and sudden illness were triggered by the smell of Andrographis paniculata?"
Physician Zhou quickly kowtowed: "Your Majesty, it is like this."
Changning gripped the sachet tightly and sneered, "Fine! Fine! Which damned person dares to provoke me? And dares to lay a hand on my daughter? I bet they don't want their entire family to live!"
Yinzhen's gaze darkened. This Andrographis paniculata was not originally a mosquito repellent, yet someone stuffed it into this sachet. What was their intention?
It's already very clear.
They came specifically for Hutuli.
Or rather, they came for the empress behind her.
Considering the recent rumors circulating in the palace, it's not hard to imagine that the ministers of the Imperial Household Department have resorted to desperate measures, banding together for mutual support, and trying to coerce Changning into compromising so that she would stop targeting the Imperial Household Department.
The Hutuli incident serves as a warning.
Changning naturally figured it out as well.
She felt a raging fire burning within her, almost consuming her completely.
This is truly a reversal of the natural order!
A bunch of lackeys, do they really think they can control their master?!
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