Yunxiu's call of "Emperor Shunzhi" really choked the emperor.
"…" Kangxi was speechless for a moment, and then he said, "The Imperial Concubine is right."
The prince's face changed slightly when he heard this. He shrugged his shoulders and lowered his head deeply to hide the laughter that was about to escape from his mouth. As for the emperor, he was neither angry nor smiling. His face was full of blue and white, and even his earlobes were stained with a striking deep red.
In an instant, all the memories came back.
It would be fine if he told Xiuxiu his true feelings and told her about his "afterlife". He would not and was unwilling to withdraw the imperial edict he had prepared. No one could say anything about her being conferred the title of Imperial Noble Consort for her meritorious service in caring for the sick. This was also the honor he wanted to give her.
Only my cheeks felt a little hot, after all, these were the truth that could not be compared to sweet words.
But I can protect this child...
He said that he could rest in peace in the afterlife, but the prince did not stop him and allowed him to make such a joke.
I have lost all my face!
Kangxi straightened up with difficulty and coughed heavily. He felt his cold limbs gradually warm up and his heavy body felt light.
His face was stern, and his weak words became much smoother: "Yinreng, in this case, what I just said to you does not count. The merit of offering medicine offsets the mistake just now. The most important thing now is to rest. Why don't you leave? The medicine... arrange it immediately. When the palace doctor gets better, I will call you to see me again."
The prince responded with mixed feelings, and took a heavy step. He had never had such a clear thought before.
He was the innocent victim.
Merits and faults offset each other? How could it be his fault since the Emperor didn't allow him to speak from the beginning to the end
Even though he was seriously ill, he still did not forget to confuse right and wrong, and did not sympathize with his son's sore hands. His heart and eyes were full of Yi'er Niang. This was the imperial father he was most familiar with.
He sighed deeply in his heart, bowed and took his leave very neatly. The prince's phoenix eyes, which were exactly the same as Kangxi's, were gentle and smiling.
It is better than anything else if the emperor is healthy and well.
When passing by the screen, Liang Jiugong suppressed his excitement and whispered, "Your servant respectfully sends you off, Your Highness." The prince nodded slightly. In a blink of an eye, Yunxiu and Kangxi were the only ones left in the hall, but the scene was different.
Kangxi curled his fingers and said softly, "Xiu Xiu."
Without waiting for Yun Xiu to reply, he softened his voice, coughed softly, and slowly said: "The prince has rested, and you should rest too. You have been traveling so fast, and I see that you are very tired along the way... You will have the energy to come and see me only after you have a good sleep, right? Don't tire my little princess out."
Listening carefully, it turned out to be a coaxing tone. Yun Xiu felt a little swollen in her heart. She curled up the corners of her lips and smiled slightly, and stopped trying to be stubborn: "I will listen to the emperor."
A slight soreness spread from his legs and feet. After sitting in a carriage for a long time, even if the road was not too bumpy, it was not as comfortable as other places. Just now, he was so focused on Kangxi that he ignored the protests from all parts of his body. Now that a big stone has been lifted from his heart, his stomach no longer hides it and makes a very light groan.
Kangxi turned his head to look at her, Yunxiu's face lightly blushed, and she pulled her hands out from the slightly warmed, cold hands, sat up from the couch, poured a cup of warm water and handed it to his lips. After the warm water was empty, she leaned over with some difficulty and helped him lie down.
"Your Majesty," she tucked the corner of the quilt for him and said with a faint smile, "Aren't you tired? You will feel refreshed after a good sleep. I will stay in the east wing and come to take care of you soon, okay?"
After a few breaths, Kangxi uttered a low "hmm" and said in a hoarse voice: "... Before settling in, ask the kitchen to cook some easily digestible food. I will leave Liang Jiugong to you."
Yun Xiu smiled and said hello.
Her eyes shifted slightly and she no longer looked at the emperor's slightly red ears.
With a creaky sound, the palace door slowly opened. When there was no more sound in the bedroom, Kangxi closed his eyes peacefully and his breathing slowed down.
He pursed his lips, which were dry from the heat, upwards, as if the dizziness in his head was no longer an unbearable thing.
It was quiet all around.
********
The candlelight flickered, Yun Xiu opened her eyes hazily, and was stunned for a long time before she realized that this was not the Yikun Palace where she was used to sleeping.
"Your Highness, you are finally awake." A surprised voice came, "Hot water just happened to be boiled outside, I will help you wash and dress... Court Judge Chen has received the emperor's order and is waiting outside."
This time, Yunxiu had to leave the palace in a hurry, so she had to travel light and not mobilize a large army, so she only brought Ruizhu with her. When they went to the bedroom to meet Kangxi, the prince sent her and He Zhuer away, telling them to take a nap, as the palace maids from the temporary palace would clean the side rooms, and they should rest up enough to serve the master.
After hearing the three words "Chen Yuanpan", Yunxiu sobered up a lot. She came out of her trance and asked, "How long have I slept?"
"Your Highness was very tired on the way. After bathing, she rested for four hours." Ruizhu shook her outer garment and carefully put it on her shoulders. "If I remember correctly, it's just past dinner time."
Yun Xiu nodded and spoke subconsciously: "Your Majesty..."
"Don't worry, Madam. The Crown Prince brought a magical medicine that can cure malaria. It's called Quinine Frost. Who doesn't know it now? After the sick palace maids took it, they showed obvious improvement within two quarters of an hour. They were so happy that they had saved their lives. They cried and kowtowed to others. The imperial physician was even more surprised..."
When Ruizhu mentioned this, her face was filled with joy, and her hands were moving without stopping, "Everyone says that the Imperial Concubine loves the Emperor deeply and is blessed with great fortune. The Crown Prince's pure filial piety moved the heavens, so they granted the magic medicine to save the True Dragon Emperor."
After traveling thousands of miles to Rehe, the empress became the Imperial Noble Consort who ruled over the six palaces and had the same status as the empress dowager. The only thing missing was a formal enthronement ceremony.
Ruizhu tried to suppress her sadness when she came, and she was not very happy to hear the news. Yunxiu insisted on coming, and no one in the service could persuade her to stop. She thought with red eyes, the emperor is seriously ill, and the queen will have no one to rely on in the future. What does it matter if she becomes the imperial concubine
The queen was looking forward to having a little princess, but she lost her father when she was born...
Now it was completely different. In just a few hours, the situation had changed drastically. Ruizhu almost cried for joy. Her Majesty finally had her cake and eat it.
It is worth taking the risk, the emperor will always remember the queen's kindness.
Yunxiu became the Imperial Noble Consort, and within an hour, everyone in the palace knew about it. The Crown Prince presented a miracle drug, and the day of the Emperor's recovery was just around the corner. The eunuchs and palace maids immediately changed their tone, sweeping away their desperate and sad expressions. When they saw Ruizhu, they were extremely enthusiastic, calling her "Auntie" all the time, and asked her if the Imperial Noble Consort had any other instructions.
As soon as Ruizhu came out of the inner room, she was treated like a star.
She told Yunxiu all the interesting stories in the palace.
"I was so scared that I thought I was some big shot in some corner!" These words made the imperial concubine burst into laughter, and her slightly tense heartstrings completely relaxed.
After getting dressed and washing up, he applied hot water to his face. Outside, some people were preparing water and some were preparing food. Court Judge Chen walked briskly with his gray beard raised, and carefully took Yunxiu's pulse.
Now that his life was no longer in danger, Court Judge Chen had finally recovered and had the leisure to complain.
He didn't dare to criticize her openly, but only criticized her in private. The queen was four months pregnant, and it was really ridiculous. Running around every day, and running to a "wolf's den", ordinary women with no illness or disaster could not bear it, let alone the queen who was as precious as gold and jade? If something happened...
When the emperor fell ill, Chen Yuanpan was shocked and desperate, as if he had been to the gates of hell. He had even written a long suicide note, but who knew that he was so lucky to escape the disaster.
Maybe it's because I've experienced many storms before, so I feel quite calm now.
He kept muttering as if he had opened up his Ren and Du meridians, "Fortunately, the queen has always been in good health, and the signs of an unstable fetus are very subtle. Wait for me to boil a dose of medicine..."
Yun Xiu felt a headache from his nagging, but she didn't dare to refute him because she was in the wrong. Facing Chen Yuanpan's extremely regretful look, she quickly agreed to everything.
Only then was Judge Chen satisfied, and he went off briskly to boil the medicine.
Yunxiu was silent when she saw this, and Ruizhu was beside her trying not to laugh. After a while, Ruizhu seemed to remember something, and her face became slightly solemn. She whispered, "Madam, I forgot to report to you just now. I don't know why Rong Fei angered the emperor, and she was taken to the inner room at the far west of the side courtyard. I heard that the room was not swept, and was covered with cobwebs and dust. I also heard that... the kitchen didn't even deliver food."
The Third Prince lived far away from Yanbo Zhishuang Palace, so he probably hadn't received the news yet. As for what Rong Fei had done wrong, the eunuchs guarding in front of the courtyard were very secretive about it, and the personal maid who had come to Rehe before was detained in another place, so no one pleaded for her.
Yun Xiu naturally knew the reason. After hearing this, her face paused and she said calmly, "She deserved what she asked for."
After saying that, she smiled softly, "After she finishes drinking the medicine, I will go and entertain her properly and let her experience... what it means to feel at home."
******
There was only one candle in the empty room. Rong Fei, still wearing her white veil, sat quietly on a wooden chair covered in dust.
There was a burst of noise outside, accompanied by the uniform voices of greeting: "Your servant greets Her Majesty the Imperial Concubine—"
She suddenly opened her eyes, her eyebrows twitched for a while, and she stood up quickly. She walked to the door in three or two steps. The next moment, she seemed to have no strength left in her body and slowly stopped.
Imperial concubine
Is she hallucinating?!
The approaching noise broke her hope: "My Lady Imperial Concubine, please be careful with your steps. The road here is not easy to walk on..."
Concubine Rong stood there in a daze, not moving for a long time.
His nails dug deep into his palms, his eyes gradually became bloodshot, and after an unknown amount of time, the light suddenly shone through the doors and windows. With the sound of the wooden door opening, Yun Xiu walked in slowly.
"Pah!" Before Rong Fei could react, she was slapped hard to the ground.
The maid shook her wrist and took a step back respectfully, "Madam."
Yun Xiu squatted down, smiled and pinched Rong Fei's chin, leaned close to her ear and asked, "You like to burn incense for Hui Fei, so how does it feel to be drugged by her?"