Chapter 42

That night, countless people in the capital stayed awake.

Some were worried about being implicated by the First Prince, while others were anxious about how to handle the shifting situation.

The calmest place perhaps was the Xie residence.

When Xie Hengzhi returned, it was with ease, and by the next morning when he entered the palace, he was already dressed in light furs and leisurely, exuding composure.

This showed that the situation had stabilized.

In the afternoon, news indeed came from the palace—

The Emperor had deposed the First Prince for committing the crime of deceiving the emperor, placing him under house arrest. He was not allowed to leave his residence, nor were visitors permitted.

Upon hearing this news, people couldn’t help but feel a sense of resignation. After all, he was the eldest son, and when it came time for punishment, some consideration had been given.

If it had been anyone else who had single-handedly ruined the Luo Tian Great Ceremony, causing the Emperor, Queen mother, and the Queen to all be injured, just the rebuke alone would have taken three days and nights to read.

But then again, what good would it do to show leniency?

The Emperor had never been fond of the Daoist path; he genuinely believed that human rule alone could not ensure the eternal reign of the Great Liang and that only with the blessings of heaven could the empire endure for generations.

For these years, he had earnestly prayed and worked toward securing divine favor for the nation.

But now, the First Prince’s cleverness had almost destroyed everything the Emperor had worked for over the years. Even the Queen mother’s several near-death experiences last night couldn’t change the outcome.

It seemed that even if the First Prince were not imprisoned for life, he would never rise again.

As for the Queen, after this incident, citing the Emperor and Queen mother’s poor health, she naturally ended her self-imposed exile at the Protecting the Nation Temple and returned to the palace to manage affairs.

Yiling considered herself someone who had weathered many storms. As she listened to the news from Mama Cao in the room, she instinctively hugged her arms, still feeling a lingering sense of dread.

But remembering the pain she had felt when she had fallen into the water, she still had to say,

“Deserved.”

“And the Eastern Palace?”

Thinking of the greatest beneficiary of this situation, Yiling asked, “Any news from the Crown Prince?”

Mama Cao whispered, “The Crown Prince is always one to avoid contention. Not only did he not take advantage of the situation, but he even stopped preparing for his birthday celebration.”

She paused, then added, “I heard the Crown Prince had planned to marry Zhou Ge Lao’s granddaughter as a concubine, but now that has been postponed. He will wait for an auspicious day before entering the Eastern Palace.”

With such a situation unfolding in the court, the entire capital fell into a state of quiet tension.

Every household kept a low profile, fearful of attracting misfortune. Who would dare to hold a celebration?

However, for Shen Shufang, this might be a good thing.

Just as she thought this, Yiling soon heard that Shen Shufang’s condition had worsened and she was now bedridden.

In fact, since the Crown Prince returned to the capital from Shu, Shen Shufang had been feeling unwell. Given the tumultuous year, her falling ill was expected.

However, what was unexpected was that the matter of the concubine had been delayed, and yet she remained troubled.

Yiling no longer stayed in the Xie residence. She prepared a few items and quickly went to the Eastern Palace.

When she arrived, the Eastern Palace was unusually quiet, with the palace servants all moving cautiously.
About half an hour later, Yiling had not yet received word from the Crown Princess when she saw Feng Yu, who had dark circles under her eyes, coming out.

Yiling’s heart sank. She knew that Shen Shufang’s illness must have been quite serious.

“Madam.”

Feng Yu curtsied and said, “I was attending to the Princess and neglected you, Madam. Please forgive me.”
“No need for such courtesy, Aunt.”

Yiling lightly supported her and asked urgently, “How is the Princess now?”

Feng Yu looked at Yiling, her face full of concern.

“The Princess… is really not doing well. She had a high fever last night and only just woke up.”

“Is it that serious…”

Before Yiling could finish speaking, Shen Shufang’s voice suddenly came from inside.

“Is it Mrs. Xie?”

Feng Yu did not continue and quickly led Yiling inside.

Back at the Xie residence, it was time for dinner.

Mama Cao stood behind Yiling, noting her favorite dishes, and said, “Madam, there’s some lamb leg meat left in the kitchen. Should I make lamb dumplings for you tomorrow?”

Yiling nodded, agreeing, though her enthusiasm was lacking.

Thinking back to the events at the Eastern Palace today, she felt awkward but also a sense of melancholy.

She knew she didn’t understand medicine, so her visit to Shen Shufang was more about offering companionship.

When night fell, she noticed Shen Shufang repeatedly looking outside, waiting for someone.

But Shen Shufang didn’t admit it and insisted that Yiling stay a little longer.

Yiling smiled and agreed but said she couldn’t occupy the Crown Prince’s place. Once he returned, she would have to leave.

She then asked Aunt Feng Yu when the Crown Prince would be back.

Aunt Feng Yu’s face showed signs of difficulty, and she reluctantly told the two of them that the Crown Prince had already returned but had gone straight to his side room to rest.

At that moment, Yiling nearly wanted to crawl into a hole out of frustration.

She had thought that Shen Shufang’s displeasure was merely due to the issue with the concubine, leading to a quarrel with the Crown Prince. However, to her surprise, the Crown Prince was this indifferent, even treating her as if she were nonexistent despite not having the three palaces and six courtyards yet.

It seems the Emperor’s matchmaking skills are really lacking.

Yiling was still pondering this when suddenly, she heard Xie Hengzhi’s voice behind her.

“Did you go to the Eastern Palace again today?”

Yiling turned to glance at him. In the dim light, he had already taken off his outer robe and walked past her, heading inside.

“How do you know I went to the Eastern Palace?”

There was clean water in the room, and Xie Hengzhi carefully washed his hands, not turning around, and casually replied, “Is there anything you do that I don’t know about?”

So you can do that, huh?

Yiling muttered to herself, “You really look at me like I’m a criminal.”

Xie Hengzhi glanced at her, noticing the sharp tone in her voice but didn’t comment on it.

He was used to her inexplicable emotional changes anyway.

After washing his hands, Xie Hengzhi changed into a new outer robe without saying a word and went to the study.

Yiling watched his retreating figure and smiled lightly.

Like attracts like; the men around the Crown Prince were all equally heartless and ungrateful.

The next morning.

Yiling was awakened by the noise Xie Hengzhi made getting up. She didn’t know the time, but she could tell it was still early as the world outside was silent.

She hadn’t slept well the night before, and now she had been woken up, so she clicked her tongue in dissatisfaction.

Xie Hengzhi paused for a moment, not understanding why she was in such a bad mood after returning from the Eastern Palace.

Turning around, he saw her groggily lying in bed, scratching her face.

Xie Hengzhi’s gaze darkened as he stared at her cheek for a while, then reached out to grab Yiling’s wrist.

Startled, Yiling opened her eyes in confusion.

“What are you doing?”

Xie Hengzhi didn’t answer but leaned closer to her.

Seeing his face suddenly move closer, Yiling’s alarm bells went off in her mind, and she immediately leaned back.

“What exactly are you doing?!”

Xie Hengzhi squinted, carefully examining her face, and asked, “What’s that on your face?”

Yiling touched her face and realized there seemed to be a bump on her jaw.

“It’s probably a rash.”

She said indifferently, then turned over to try to continue sleeping.

But Xie Hengzhi didn’t let go; instead, he pulled her up.

“Get up. Let me see.”

Yiling: “?”

It’s just a rash!

She’d had them plenty of times since she was young, what’s there to make a fuss about?

“Wait… I…”

Yiling, who hadn’t had enough sleep, was too weak to resist. Xie Hengzhi easily pulled her out of bed.

He grabbed the nearby candleholder and brought the flame close to her face to inspect in the light.

Yiling was about to curse from the irritation, but seeing Xie Hengzhi’s furrowed brows, she felt something was wrong and started to get nervous.

“What’s wrong?”

Xie Hengzhi pursed his lips, and after a pause, he said, “There’s an epidemic in a county in Mengyang Prefecture.”

The epidemic had shown signs in the autumn, initially thought to be a temporary illness that would stop once the weather cooled.

But this epidemic was stubborn; although it hadn’t spread widely, it couldn’t be eradicated.

In the Great Liang Dynasty, there was a major epidemic every ten years and a smaller one every three, so Xie Hengzhi wasn’t overly alarmed. He was simply paying special attention to reports from the smallpox inspectors.

But now, seeing Yiling suddenly develop a rash, he couldn’t help but wonder if he had underestimated the epidemic in Mengyang Prefecture.

Yiling’s face turned pale when she heard this.

“No, it wouldn’t be smallpox, would it?”

The more she thought about it, the more terrified she became.

“Yesterday, I heard from Mama Cao that Mrs. Zhang from the kitchen had a rash around her waist a few days ago, and not long after, she passed away!”

“That’s probably not the epidemic, but more like the symptoms of a disease called ‘chaining dragon.’”

Xie Hengzhi said this, but the serious look in his eyes didn’t lessen.

After a moment of thought, he said, “When it’s light, let’s get a doctor to check.”

“What are you waiting for daylight for?”

Yiling said, “We should go get a doctor now!”

Before long, the lights in Linfeng Yuan were bright.

Mallow was sent to fetch a doctor, and Mama Cao and the others were standing quietly inside, not making a sound.

The silence made the atmosphere even more tense.

It was just past the early morning, and doctors weren’t easy to find at this hour.

Mallow, thinking of asking someone familiar first, went straight to Doctor Huang’s house. Not wanting to reveal the situation before confirming the illness, Doctor Huang, upon hearing it was Mrs. Xie requesting, immediately claimed he was gravely ill and would soon die.

Mallow had no choice but to go ask Doctor Zhang.

This back and forth took quite some time. As the sky was almost bright, Mallow still hadn’t returned with a doctor.

Xie Hengzhi had already changed into his official robes but showed no intention of leaving.

Li Chun had been waiting outside for a long time. Watching the time pass and seeing the morning court time approaching, he came in for the third time to remind him.

“Master, if you don’t enter the palace now, it will really be too late.”

Xie Hengzhi still sat calmly on the couch.

“No rush. We’ll wait for the imperial doctor to arrive.”

Seeing Xie Hengzhi’s attitude, Yiling’s limbs went cold.

Could she really be this unlucky?

Everyone sat anxiously in the room, waiting for the doctor to arrive. Finally, after much delay, Imperial Doctor Zhang hurriedly arrived.

As soon as he entered, he originally intended to greet Xie Hengzhi first, but Yiling stopped him.

“Dr. Zhang, no need for formalities. Come over and have a look.”

Dr. Zhang dared not move and instead raised his eyes to see Xie Hengzhi’s reaction.

Although Xie Hengzhi had been in the room the whole time, when the doctor arrived, he said nothing, only raising his chin slightly.

It was only then that Dr. Zhang walked over to Yiling and began examining her.

“Madam, where do you feel unwell?”

Yiling pointed to her chin.

“A rash suddenly appeared here.”

Dr. Zhang glanced at it and asked, “Anything else?”

Yiling: “?”

“Anything else?”

Dr. Zhang was incredible.

“Nope!”

Yiling replied, “It suddenly appeared in the middle of the night, both painful and itchy.”

Dr. Zhang blinked, then sat down, staring at the red rash, inspecting it carefully.

He then pulled out a pulse cushion and placed it under Yiling’s wrist, closing his eyes to focus on taking her pulse.
Mallow and Mama Cao, standing behind them, dared not speak and nervously watched Dr. Zhang.

It was unclear how much time had passed, but he finally opened his eyes.

Yiling immediately asked, “How is it? Have I caught something?”

Dr. Zhang replied, “It doesn’t seem like it.”

Hearing this answer, Yiling turned to meet Xie Hengzhi’s gaze.

Dr. Zhang then asked, “What have you been eating lately?”

Could it be a problem with the food?

Yiling answered, “I’ve been eating the same as usual, still taking my medicine, but since the weather’s been cold, I’ve eaten more mutton these past few days.”

Upon hearing this, Dr. Zhang withdrew his hand from her wrist and nodded.

“This is the cause.”

Yiling leaned forward. “Poisoned?”

Dr. Zhang shook his head. “No, you’ve just overheated.”

Yiling: “…………”

A subtle atmosphere immediately settled in the room, one that could be called awkward.

After a long pause, Yiling tugged at the corner of her lips.

She didn’t continue questioning Dr. Zhang but instead turned to look at Xie Hengzhi.

He didn’t say anything, his expression slightly stiff.

He then picked up his official hat, stood up, and left.

“I’ll be late for court.”