Chapter 393 Your Majesty, Consort Su is Pregnant
Hua Murong continued, "That cat belonged to a princess. The cat was beaten to death, and she fainted from fright. When I left the palace, I heard palace servants saying that the princess had been kidnapped by the enemy army and then released to become a spy to murder the prince."
"Princess? Is it Princess Zhenrou?"
"I don't know what kind of princess she is?"
"There are only two princesses in the harem. One is the emperor's younger sister, Princess Zhenrou, and the other is the emperor's daughter, Princess Qingyun, who is less than a year old."
"She was a teenage girl." He caught a glimpse of the princess from afar when she was taken away.
Just then, Hongzao brought in a note, "Princess, in the palace..."
When she saw that Hua Murong was also there, she stopped talking.
News came from Yun Zhaoxue's spies planted in the palace.
Yun Zhaoxue saw the contents of the note and then recalled what Hua Murong had said.
It is speculated that Zhao Zhenrou may have been used as a pawn.
Who could be the murderer?
Is it Yun Jiaoyue or Liu Yiyi?
The person who benefited the most was Yun Jiaoyue, while Liu Yiyi held the Phoenix Seal and managed the harem.
She couldn't escape responsibility for the sudden loss of several imperial heirs.
In severe cases, the person will be demoted to the rank of concubine; in milder cases, their imperial seal will be revoked.
So it's Yun Jiaoyue?
Yun Zhaoxue then asked Hua Murong about the symptoms of those concubines who had miscarried.
She wondered if Yun Jiaoyue had poisoned her.
However, Hua Murong added, "When I took the pulse of that imperial concubine, I found that she also had the same symptoms as those other concubines."
Yun Zhaoxue overturned her previous guess. She remembered that the last time she entered the palace, she smelled an unpleasant odor.
I forgot about it because I couldn't remember it at the time.
Hua Murong just mentioned cinnabar.
The palace walls were painted with a mixture of vermilion and iron oxide.
"I guess the palace was painted with cinnabar, which is poisonous, so they were poisoned, not by ingesting it, but by inhaling it through their noses."
"Uncle Hua, could you do me a favor?"
Hua Murong asked, "Do you want me to go to the palace and tell the Emperor?"
Yun Zhaoxue nodded, "Yes."
"You're the one who discovered this, I can't steal your credit."
He's already quite old, he doesn't want to make any contributions or receive any rewards, he's just that indifferent to fame and fortune.
“It’s not appropriate for me. I brought Princess Zhenrou into the palace. If I were to point out now that the cinnabar in the palace is poisonous, I would be accused of withholding information. If it’s convenient, I would also like to trouble you to say a few good words for Princess Zhenru. She is a pitiful person.”
Hua Murong thought it made sense and nodded, saying, "Then I'll go to the palace now."
Hua Murong went to the palace to meet Zhao Xuan and shared his guess.
Zhao Xuan took it very seriously and had him test it on the spot.
The book states that the authenticity of mercury can be tested by burning it.
Hua Murong scraped off the red powder from the wall and burned it, which surprisingly produced mercury.
Before the mercury could evaporate into the air, they quickly covered it with something.
"Your Majesty, if a small amount of mercury is added, it is non-toxic, but if an excessive amount is added, it becomes toxic. In daily life, we only come into contact with small amounts, which is why many people believe that cinnabar is non-toxic."
The palace was built in a hurry, and people moved in immediately after it was completed, inhaling the smells that wafted out.
Zhao Xuan's face darkened when he saw the mercury. The sloppy work of those people below had almost caused him to have no descendants.
If Hua Murong hadn't discovered and informed him in time, and they hadn't continued living in this palace, he would have truly never been destined to become a prince.
He wanted to execute everyone involved in building the palace.
Before he could even speak, a congratulatory message suddenly came from above.
"Congratulations, Your Majesty! Congratulations, Your Majesty!" The eunuch's voice suddenly rose, his tone brimming with barely suppressed joy, "Consort Su is pregnant! The imperial physician has just confirmed it, but..."
Before Zhao Xuan could even feel happy, he heard this and his heart sank. "But what? Tell me quickly!"
"Consort Su suddenly felt nauseous and dizzy. The palace servants went to fetch the imperial physician, who then diagnosed her as pregnant. The imperial physician said that Consort Su's kidney pulse was as weak as a thread, and she was extremely deficient in both qi and blood. The imperial physician said, 'The consort is weak, but we can't find the reason.'"
"That damned cinnabar again! How is the child? Can we save him?"
"The imperial physician said there's an 80% chance of saving him..."
Zhao Xuan didn't want an 80% chance; he wanted a 100% chance. He had to save the child; those imperial physicians were all quacks.
Thinking this, he cupped his hands towards Hua Murong and said, "I implore Physician Hua to go and treat Consort Su. If you can save the fetus, I will reward you handsomely."
Hua Murong quickly stepped aside, "Your Majesty, this is unacceptable. I cannot accept such an honor. I am not entirely certain of my abilities until I have seen the patient and taken his pulse."
"Please feel free to move to this spot and take Consort Su's pulse."
"Alright!" Hua Murong followed him to Su Wan'er's palace and, upon examination, discovered faint black lines on her gums, indicating cinnabar poisoning.
"Miracle doctor, how is the situation? Is there any chance of saving the baby?"
"Given the current situation, with proper care, the child can be saved. However, given Consort Su's condition, she cannot stay here. We hope to find her a new place to live as soon as possible."
"Great! That's wonderful." Zhao Xuan's face lit up with joy. Having just lost four children, he felt comforted to learn that Su Wan'er was pregnant. The rumors that he was destined to be childless were dispelled.
Hua Murong gave Su Wan'er acupuncture and then had someone brew medicine for her to drink, and her condition improved.
The imperial physicians, including Physician Li, couldn't determine what poison had afflicted them. Only when the divine physician had a moment to spare did they approach and whisper, "Divine Physician, has Consort Su been poisoned? We cannot determine what it is. Please enlighten us, Divine Physician."
Hua Murong didn't hide anything and told them, "When cinnabar is exposed to the scorching sun, it evaporates along with the gas. If inhaled as miasma, it can invade the fetus and cause problems."
Physician Li and the others suddenly realized, "It's actually the cinnabar on the wall? How come we didn't think of that? Thank you for your guidance, divine physician."
Zhao Xuan then appointed several imperial physicians specifically to ensure the safety of the pregnancy; if anything were to happen to the child, they would be executed.
Yun Jiaoyue and Liu Yiyi, who were present, changed their expressions slightly. The Emperor valued this child so much. If this child was a prince, and if he was to be named the Crown Prince in the future...
Su Wan'er's status rose because of her son.
How should they deal with this, especially Liu Yiyi?
Her spy, whom she had planted beside Su Wan'er, reported that the Emperor had promised to make Su Wan'er Empress if she became pregnant with a prince.
Zhao Xuan had no idea what the two were thinking; he was figuring out where to move.
After thinking about it, I decided to move to the royal garden on Gushan Island in West Lake.
A royal garden was built on Gushan Island in West Lake, specifically for the emperor and his consorts to enjoy the scenery while touring the lake.
The royal gardens and palaces have different architectural styles; they are not painted with cinnabar to create vermilion walls, but are mainly in the style of Jiangnan gardens.
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