Inside the Shuyu Tower, Su Muxue solemnly handed the handkerchief stained with Su Mu's blood to the old doctor in front of her.
This old doctor once served in Su Yi's household, but because of his advanced age, Su Yi allowed him to retire and return to his hometown.
Fortunately, Zhao Yefan knew where he was staying and sent people to bring him back to the capital day and night.
Although Su Muxue usually seemed indifferent to worldly affairs, as a member of the royal family, she had long seen through the intrigues and conspiracies within the palace.
From the events that occurred between Su Mu's illness and Su Yuntian's successful ascension to the position of regent, and considering Su Mu's unusual behavior over the past month or two, she knew that Su Mu's coma must be inextricably linked to Su Yuntian.
After bringing the old doctor back to the capital, Su Muxue and Zhao Yefan described Su Mu's symptoms in detail to him. However, the old doctor did not dare to make a conclusion easily, saying that he had to examine Su Mu himself before he could determine her condition.
However, ever since Su Mu suddenly fainted and lost consciousness in the main hall, Su Yuntian has ordered that no one, except for the imperial physician, is allowed to approach the Zichen Hall.
Therefore, trying to bring the old physician into the palace, and even into the Zichen Hall, was no easier than climbing to heaven.
Finally, the old doctor came up with a solution: to obtain blood from Su Mu's fingertip, which might reveal one or two possible diagnoses of the illness.
So today, outside the Zichen Palace, Su Muxue used her status as a princess to coerce, entice, and even make a scene, in order to get the guards to let her into the Zichen Palace to see Su Mu.
Upon entering the main hall, seeing Su Mu's pale and sickly appearance, Su Muxue's tears fell like pearls.
For Su Muxue, Su Mu was a good father, and his position in her heart was even greater than that of her mother, Consort Nanyu.
However, she couldn't help feeling sad. Not long after she entered the palace, Su Yuntian followed her into the Zichen Palace. With her back to Su Yuntian, she quickly took blood from Su Mu's fingertip, and then, under the pretext of arguing with Su Yuntian, she took the blood from Su Mu's fingertip and left the Zichen Palace.
The old doctor stared at the handkerchief stained with brownish-red blood, brought it close to his nose and sniffed it lightly. Then he dissolved the bloodstains on the handkerchief with water and dipped a silver needle in it. After observing it for a moment, he was shocked to see that the silver needle had turned grayish-black.
The old physician, holding silver needles, hurriedly reported to Su Muxue, "Princess, the Emperor's blood contains poison, a poison called 'Poisonous Corpse Poppy.' Judging from the color of the blood, it is already poisonous." The old physician looked at Su Muxue, hesitating to speak.
Seeing the old doctor's troubled expression, Su Muxue's heart tightened, and she quickly grasped his hand and asked, "How far has it progressed?"
The old doctor looked reluctant, but still answered with a heavy heart, "It's beyond the reach of any medicine."
Upon hearing this, Su Muxue felt as if all her strength had been drained, and she almost fell to the ground. Fortunately, Zhao Yefan reacted quickly and caught her in his arms.
Su Muxue looked at the old doctor with a look of panic and disbelief, as if the sky had fallen and the earth had collapsed. She said, "No, perhaps you have misdiagnosed him. How could my father be so seriously ill that there is no cure?"
The old physician sighed deeply: "I understand that the princess finds it hard to accept, but this is the truth. The person who poisoned the emperor was intent on taking his life."
"When this medicine is first taken, it will make the user feel excited, happy, and full of energy, and they can stay awake for up to a month. After that, they will feel weak all over and collapse."
Looking at Su Muxue's red and swollen eyes, Zhao Yefan felt a pang of pain in his heart. While comforting Su Muxue, he asked the old doctor, "Old sir, is His Majesty's illness truly incurable?"
The old doctor sighed again: "If we had discovered from the beginning that the Emperor had been poisoned by this poppy corpse, and had given him the longevity pill from Emperor Nangong Shenzong in time, there might have been a glimmer of hope for his life."
The Longevity Pill is the most precious treasure of the Southern Palace Divine Sect, and obtaining it is undoubtedly as difficult as ascending to heaven.
Even if the sect leader of the Nangong Shenzong sect were willing to offer the longevity elixir, the Nangong Shenzong sect is a thousand miles away, and the round trip would take a month. At present, the emperor simply cannot hold on until then.
"You must have misdiagnosed him. How could Father King be dying? He hasn't even seen my brother marry his sister-in-law, nor has he seen me, the princess, get married. How could he leave us like this?"
Su Muxue cried very sadly, and the old doctor felt distressed seeing this.
Unfortunately, everyone in the world, whether powerful royal nobles or humble commoners, has their own unavoidable circumstances. He shook his head and sighed repeatedly, filled with helplessness.
Zhao Yefan asked the old physician, "How much time does the Emperor have left?"
The old doctor replied, "It's probably within the next couple of days."
Upon hearing the old doctor's words, Su Muxue's face turned pale instantly, and her body began to tremble uncontrollably.
Suddenly, she felt her consciousness begin to blur, as if she were being swallowed by a thick darkness.
Then her body slumped to the side, and she fainted in Zhao Yefan's arms.
"Mu Xue!"
Zhao Yefan held Su Muxue in a panic, anxiously calling her name repeatedly. The old doctor also rushed forward to examine Su Muxue and then spoke to Zhao Yefan.
"Your Highness need not worry. The princess is simply overwhelmed with grief and anger. She will wake up on her own after a short rest."
Zhao Yefan felt relieved upon hearing this, but the thought of Su Muxue's endless sorrow upon waking up made his heart sink again.
Zhao Yefan's expression was solemn. He closed his eyes slightly, then opened them after a short while and turned to the old doctor, saying, "I would like to trouble you to prescribe a calming medicine for the princess that will not harm her body."
The old physician was taken aback and asked, "What is the meaning behind the young master's actions?"
Zhao Yefan replied, "As you say, the Emperor's time is near, and there may be unforeseen events in the Eastern Yue Kingdom."
"To prevent the princess from suffering any misfortune, I must send her to the Southern Shu Kingdom as soon as possible and hand her over to her maternal grandfather and King Yi."
The old physician suddenly realized: "The young master is worried that Princess Muxue is unwilling to leave the emperor, so he wants me to prescribe some calming incense to help the princess arrive in the Southern Shu Kingdom smoothly?"
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