Chapter 116 : This is a Brilliant Plan

As a royal physician sent by the emperor, there was no reason for the East Palace to stop them.

Moreover, the two sent were those who had attended court and treated the emperor personally.

In other words… they were the least likely to be bribed, and would handle matters in an official manner.

“This is a condition that could have been improved with proper rest. Why has it been allowed to reach this point?” the imperial physician frowned.

No one answered.

“Please prepare the medicine as per the prescription.” The imperial physician said no more, leaving the pharmacy boy to prepare the medicine, while he briefly provided the medical instructions.

“Your servant takes his leave.” The imperial physician said.

Jiang Hua let out a heavy sigh of relief upon hearing this.

It seemed the concubine of the Duke of Xuan was indeed quite stubborn. Although she had summoned the imperial physician, she hadn’t once questioned why the Crown Princess had ended up in such a state.

Jiang Hua quickly escorted the imperial physician out and, before leaving, made sure to close the Crown Princess’s palace door.

As the sound of footsteps faded, a smile appeared on the Crown Princess’s face.

Even though the medicine hadn’t been delivered to her yet, her spirit had already undergone a drastic transformation.

One of the palace maids couldn’t help but sigh, “The concubine of King Xuan really has impressive abilities, actually getting the imperial physician here.”

The Crown Princess leaned against the bedpost, her face full of ease. She nodded, “I suppose the message has been delivered properly.”

The palace maid couldn’t help but giggle, “Then you can just focus on recuperating and wait for your family to come and take you home.”

The Crown Princess smiled but didn’t respond.

Things wouldn’t be that easy… but she trusted her elders, her parents. She believed they would work hard to bring her back to Yangzhou.

“I owe the concubine of King Xuan a lot. I just hope there will be a chance to repay her.” The Crown Princess sighed.

The palace maid quickly replied, “Yes, I too will repay her in the future!”

The imperial physician soon returned to report to Emperor Liang De.

Emperor Liang De didn’t really care much about the Crown Prince’s fate.

When the late empress was still alive, the relationship between the emperor and empress had often been strained. Later, Emperor Liang De took decisive action to eliminate the power of the empress’s family, almost completely wiping them out.

The Crown Prince was also naturally rebellious, so the father-son relationship was not close.

When the imperial physician returned, Emperor Liang De casually asked, “Has the Crown Prince’s condition improved?”

The imperial physician replied, “A few days ago, he coughed up blood again.”

Emperor Liang De furrowed his brow, “Then it seems he still needs to rest properly.”

He didn’t want the Crown Prince to die too early.

He, as the emperor, was still in the prime of his life. Having a sickly prince occupy the position of heir was beneficial to him. It ensured that the emperor’s power remained centralized.

Once the Crown Prince died, people in the court would begin scheming, thinking about how to form factions and whom to support for the throne.

Emperor Liang De’s thoughts turned. Seeing that the imperial physician was still standing there without any intention to leave, he asked, “What is it? Is the Crown Prince’s condition difficult to treat? Can’t he be cured with rest?”

It was another imperial physician, named Tang, who answered. He bowed and said, “Your Majesty, I have something to report.”

Emperor Liang De was puzzled, “If you have something to report, then speak up. Why the delay?”

“The East Palace may have a case of a servant abusing their position!”

Emperor Liang De lowered his eyes, “Oh? Speak in detail.”

…

Less than an hour later, the medicine prepared by the pharmacy boy was delivered to the Crown Princess.

The palace maid, afraid the medicine might be too hot, took two bowls and transferred the medicine back and forth, cooling it down a little.

The Crown Princess smiled and took the bowl, drinking the entire contents in one go.

At that moment, a commotion suddenly erupted outside.

The pharmacy boy couldn’t help but mutter, “What’s that noise?”

The noise came quickly and faded just as fast.

Soon, someone knocked on the door and whispered, “Is the Crown Princess well?”

The pharmacy boy hurried to open the door and replied, “I’ve just assisted the Crown Princess in taking her medicine.”

The person nodded and led two burly women into the room.

The palace maid trembled as she saw them.

They looked fierce… and their faces were unfamiliar. Was the Crown Prince trying to pull off another plan after the failure of the first?

Her heart tightened as she instinctively moved in front of the Crown Princess, trying to shield her.

But the Crown Princess suddenly smiled, “May I ask, which noble’s side does Aunt serve?”

The woman didn’t smile, but she was respectful and replied, “Your Highness, you are perceptive. I am Huizhu, and I serve at the emperor’s side.”

The Crown Princess’s heart finally settled.

She asked, “Why have you come?”

At this point, the Crown Princess had an inkling of what was happening, but still didn’t dare confirm until she heard the answer.

Aunt Huizhu replied, “The emperor heard of the situation in the East Palace and sent me to assist the Crown Princess, so you can rest assured while recuperating. If there are any palace maids who act inappropriately, I will deal with them.”

The Crown Princess let out a long breath of relief.

Sure enough!

The concubine of King Xuan had truly devised a brilliant plan!

She did not directly report it to the Emperor, because that would escalate the matter… After all, the Crown Prince was the Emperor’s son. Once it became a big issue, it would be difficult to settle.

So, she only requested the imperial physicians to come.

Those two physicians were assigned to serve the Emperor directly and were far superior to any other doctors. They would not reveal anything on the spot if they noticed something unusual, but would later report everything they saw in the Eastern Palace to the Emperor.

In this way, the side consort of the Duke of Xuan could be removed.

Because, after all, this matter was seen by the imperial physicians, and it would ultimately be reported to the Emperor, who would handle it personally.

This way, the Emperor’s face could still be preserved!

The Crown Princess’s mind raced through various thoughts.

Her mood became even lighter.

At this moment, the voice of Aunt Huizhu rang out again, asking, “Can the Crown Princess get out of bed and move around?”

The Crown Princess didn’t rush to complain to her but said lightly, “I’ve been lying in bed for too long, and my limbs feel a bit weak.”

Aunt Huizhu nodded and said, “What a pity. The servants outside are just about to deal with those who dared to deceive their master. If the Crown Princess could go, it would naturally have a deterrent effect.”

The Crown Princess immediately perked up: “Please help me, Aunt.”

She wasn’t particularly interested in showing authority; she just wanted to escape the prison of the Eastern Palace as soon as possible.

But she was curious to see the outcome of these people’s fate…

She wanted to see how the Emperor would deal with them… and she even wanted to see how the Crown Prince would react!

The palace door creaked open.

The two strong maids helped the Crown Princess walk out.

When the sunlight fell on her, the Crown Princess instinctively squinted her eyes.

It felt as though her skin had been scorched.

How long… how long had it been since she had seen the sunlight outside?

The maids assisted her as they slowly moved forward.

Finally, she saw the palace servants kneeling on the ground. Two had already been held down and were receiving the rod punishment.

She saw the two eunuchs being punished, with cloth stuffed into their mouths. Every time the rod struck heavily, they would shudder, drenched in sweat, their faces turning blue from the pain.

The cries of agony were ultimately muffled by the cloth, turning into brief sobs.

No wonder the noise earlier had died down quickly.

The Crown Princess recognized them.

They had once kicked the little palace maid’s bowl away and tried to strip her to humiliate her. The little palace maid had fought back fiercely and nearly bit a piece of flesh off them before they dared to stop tormenting her.

The Crown Princess chuckled softly and said, “Excellent.”

The Eastern Palace never expected the people sent by the Emperor to act so decisively, punishing two of them immediately without hesitation.

This move terrified most of the people.

“The Emperor has heard that a palace maid in the Eastern Palace dared to secretly harm the Crown Princess and attempt to vie for favor… If anyone knows anything, quickly confess, and you may still have a chance to atone for your sins,” the chief eunuch in charge of the punishment said coldly.