Chapter 6
Xie Danling leaned close to Consort Shu, counted on her fingers, and said, "They set off at the end of last year, and it's almost April now. It took my cousin Chen quite a long time to get back."
A faint mist floated in Gu Zhizhuo's clear phoenix eyes. Upon hearing this, she suddenly raised her head. Yes, she had been reborn.
The young master is still alive. He's still here!
Gu Zhizhuo was filled with hope, his eyes and brows brimming with joy and anticipation.
Consort Shu pondered, "It has indeed been quite a long time. I heard that they have just entered Yizhou." She paused for a moment and said, "However, since Prince Chen has managed to live to adulthood in such an awkward position, he will surely be able to return to the capital alive."
This statement is quite thought-provoking.
"It'll be quite lively then."
Gu Zhizhuo: "..."
She remembered that when the young master returned to the capital in his previous life, he was robbed by bandits in the capital region and was seriously injured, almost dying. These bandits had fled from Yizhou to the capital region because his brother's efforts to suppress them were unsuccessful.
This became one of the serious crimes attributed to the elder brother, and everyone said that the elder brother was a tiger father and a dog son, and was not fit to take on great responsibilities.
The young master was already frail and sickly, and after this serious injury, his life force was greatly diminished.
They sought out renowned doctors, but none could offer a solution.
Even the renowned Daoist physician Wuweizi shook his head and sighed, "Fate cannot be defied." She did not believe in fate, so she became Wuweizi's disciple and used every method to prolong the young master's life.
As it turned out, the master was right after all.
Rumble!
A muffled clap of thunder suddenly rang out, startling Gu Zhizhuo and pulling him out of his reverie. His face turned deathly pale.
"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid."
Startled herself, Xie Danling grabbed her hand, unsure whether she was comforting her or herself.
After repeating "I'm not afraid" several times, Xie Danling grumbled unhappily, "Why is it thundering all of a sudden? Is it going to rain? The Imperial Observatory said that it would never rain today. They can't even read the stars."
Gu Zhizhuo nodded obediently in agreement: "Cousin Danling is right. I've done the calculations, and it will rain at three-quarters past 5 PM."
"Let's go, let's go take a look."
The two cousins huddled together at the window to see if it was raining, chatting away as they went.
Consort Shu ignored them. First, she sent the chief eunuch to the Phoenix Palace to inquire, then she leaned against the chaise longue, looking at the two sisters with a smile in her eyes.
When Physician Chen arrived, she beckoned Gu Zhizhuo over.
The imperial physician's name was Chen Baishu, and he was about forty years old. He came from a collateral branch of the royal family and was also one of the palace's "own people".
When Consort Shu and her sister married into the capital, the Wang family arranged for Chen Baishu to change her surname to her mother's and open a clinic in the capital. Later, when the current emperor ascended the throne, Consort Shu moved from the Prince's residence to the inner palace, and the Wang family again arranged for Chen Baishu to enter the Imperial Medical Academy.
Apart from the few palace maids who accompanied Consort Shu, no one knew that Chen Baishu's original surname was "Wang".
"Doctor Chen, come and take a look at Yaoyao's face."
Chen Baishu quickly agreed.
He examined Gu Zhizhuo's face from all sides and carefully took her pulse, saying, "Your Majesty, fortunately, the eldest young lady washed away the poison in time, and the redness and swelling on her face will be completely healed in three to five days."
Upon hearing Chen Baishu's words, Consort Shu's tense nerves completely relaxed.
"Yaoyao".
Consort Shu gestured for Gu Zhizhuo to hand the small medicine pot to Chen Baishu.
After opening the package, Chen Baishu smelled it, then scraped off some of the remaining ointment with his fingernail and applied it to the back of his hand. After only three breaths, his intact skin turned an abnormal red at a speed visible to the naked eye.
“This contains bone-corroding grass, withered vine, and blood dragon’s saliva,” Chen Baishu said confidently, then added, “These herbs corrode the skin, and if there are wounds on the skin, they will cause the wounds to fester and become difficult to heal.”
Gu Zhizhuo lowered his eyes slightly, the excruciating pain from his previous life still seemed to be right before his eyes.
The agony of watching her skin rot and peel away inch by inch was so intense that it made her wish she were dead.
She clenched her fists, letting her nails dig into her soft palms.
"How vicious."
Consort Shu slammed her hand on the chaise longue, her eyes filled with hatred.
Their daughter, Yaoyao, is so beautiful. She looks like her older sister and also like her. Any more or less would be too much or too little. She is absolutely stunning.
She simply couldn't imagine how desperate Yao Yao would have been if Xie Jing hadn't noticed something amiss in time and succeeded. She wondered if Yao Yao would have been able to hold on.
Consort Shu stared intently at the small medicine pot, forcing herself to calm down, and said, "Imperial Physician Chen, go and add something to Yao Yao's face."
The Empress hadn't reacted yet, but she had to be on guard against the possibility of the Empress sending someone to check on Yao Yao's injuries.
Chen Baishu bowed and agreed.
His medicine kit was fully equipped, and in no time he prepared a bowl of dark red medicine. Then, he carefully applied it to Gu Zhizhuo's cheeks with a small brush.
"Young lady, please apply the medicine until evening and then wash it off. This medicine will soothe your skin and help the redness and swelling subside faster."
It took Chen Baishu a full incense stick's time to apply the ointment properly. When he looked in the bronze mirror, he saw that Gu Zhizhuo's fair and jade-like cheeks were swollen and red.
Gu Zhizhuo tried to wipe it off with his hand, but it wouldn't come off.
At first glance, it does look very real, but if you look closely at it under the light, you can still find some clues.
Chen Baishu added, "This medicinal juice can nourish the skin, and it can be washed off with water. Young lady, I'll prepare another bottle for you. Please apply it for a while after you get home."
Xie Danling also came over to join in the fun: "Let me see too."
“Cousin Danling.” Gu Zhizhu put down the bronze mirror, pouted, and looked like she was about to cry. “Am I ugly like this?”
"Yes..." Xie Danling quickly waved her hand, "No, no!"
"Cousin Danling is the best. We promised to share the good times and the bad, right?"
Xie Danling nodded without hesitation.
Gu Zhizhuo quickly dipped his finger in the medicine, pounced over, and laughed: "Let's be ugly monsters together."
Xie Danling jumped up and ran away, saying, "No way!"
The two chased and fled, creating quite a commotion.
Consort Shu rubbed her forehead and said helplessly to the head palace maid, "They're the ones who argue, and they're the ones who make things right. They're giving me a headache."
The head palace maid covered her mouth and laughed, "You seem to be enjoying yourself immensely."
The two cousins ran around the main hall. Xie Danling hid in Consort Shu's arms for protection, but Consort Shu immediately switched sides, hugged her tightly, and called out, "Gotcha, Yaoyao, come quick!"
Xie Danling giggled.
Gu Zhizhuo pounced on her, preventing her from moving, and used the medicinal juice to draw floral patterns on her forehead.
After finishing the last petal, Xie Danling admired herself in the bronze mirror, looking at herself from left to right. Just then, the head eunuch Zheng, whom Consort Shu had sent away, returned.
His expression was flustered, a thin layer of sweat on his forehead, and before he could catch his breath, he urgently reported, "Your Majesty, Phoenix Palace has been struck by lightning."
What? !
Consort Shu recalled the sudden rumble of thunder from just now, and could not hide her surprise.
Xie Danling, forgetting all about looking in the bronze mirror, urged with shining eyes, "Tell me quickly!"
"Yes, Princess." Eunuch Zheng was still a little scared. He bowed and reported, "Your Majesty, after you left, the Empress dismissed everyone else and took the Third Prince and Miss Ji back to Fengluan Palace. The Third Prince admitted that he had asked Physician Liu to tamper with Miss Gu's medicine, and that it had nothing to do with Miss Ji. If the Empress still wants to pursue the matter, it will be to force him to his death."
He glanced at Gu Zhizhuo cautiously, then said, "His Highness the Third Prince keeps saying that he only loves Miss Ji and only wants to marry Miss Ji! It's just that Miss Gu is being tactless, clinging to the Emperor's joke and insisting that it's a marriage agreement."
"The Empress was furious and ordered her men to drag Miss Ji away and beat her."
Eunuch Zheng swallowed hard. Some of the things he said were too harsh to say directly, for fear of offending the Fifth Princess and Miss Gu's ears.
"The maids from the Empress's palace came to drag her away, but the Third Prince stood in front of Miss Ji and started hitting people. The Empress was so angry that she had a chest pain and kept saying that he must be beaten to death."
Still shaken, Eunuch Zheng said, "Your Majesty, Aunt Qiu from Fengluan Palace told me personally that the thunder sounded after Her Majesty the Empress uttered the words 'to be beaten to death.' It was almost one after the other."
"The eaves of the main hall of Fengluan Palace caught fire on the spot."
Wow! Xie Danling's phoenix eyes lit up with excitement.
She blurted out, "If the Empress were to have that Ji fellow beaten to death, would Phoenix Palace be struck by lightning?"
this……
This sounds like a play script, no, even a play script wouldn't dare write something like this!
Gu Zhizhuo curled his lips into a slight smile, as if to say, "Just as I thought."
Ji Nanke has always been very lucky, as if she was born to be favored by the heavens.
In her previous life, she always managed to turn misfortune into good fortune, no matter what calamity she faced.
I remember one year, not long after Ji Nanke became the Third Prince's wife, the Emperor gave Xie Jing a task to carry out disaster relief. At that time, the national treasury was empty and could not even come up with the disaster relief funds, which caused Xie Jing a lot of headaches.
Later, Ji Nanke volunteered to go with him to Dongyang County in Qingzhou. Unexpectedly, after the great disaster came a great epidemic. While they were still on their way, an epidemic broke out in Dongyang County. By the time they arrived, nine out of ten houses were empty, and less than ten percent of the population was still alive.
Now we have enough money.
Xie Jing immediately allocated silver to provide medical care and medicine for the people, and also distributed fertile land and crops to each household.
Xie Jing's reputation soared among the people during this disaster relief effort, and he also received high praise from the imperial court.
Not long after, Xie Jing entered the Eastern Palace, and Ji Nanke became the esteemed Crown Princess.
Xie Danling was excited and eager to ask, "What happened next?"
Eunuch Zheng bowed and continued, "The Third Prince told the Empress that the True Man Qingping had once divined Miss Ji's fate, saying that Miss Ji was a blessed woman destined to inherit the great fortune of the Great Qi Dynasty."
"Later, the Empress dismissed all the servants, spoke to the Third Prince about something, and then secretly had Miss Ji sent back to her residence. The Empress issued a strict order to everyone in Fengluan Palace: anyone who spoke out of turn would be beaten to death."
Consort Shu sneered repeatedly: "A woman blessed by heaven?"
"She doesn't deserve it!"
With a cold expression, she gently stroked the jade bracelet on her fair wrist with her thumb.
Xie Danling was extremely curious.
He even dares to casually utter phrases like "receiving the great blessings of the new era." If this Qingping Zhenren isn't truly capable, then he must be...
"A charlatan?"
A note from the author:
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