Chapter 639 Met His Demand
Shao Wanru, together with Qing’er, returned to her courtyard with doubt.
The courtyard next to them was in a mess. Chu Liuchen did not stay in Huaguang Temple but was escorted by the monks of Huaguang Temple to rush downhill.
Then he was directly escorted to Prince Chen’s Mansion.
The Empress Dowager had already got the message and secretly entered Prince Chen’s Mansion with several trusted subordinates. After Chu Liuchen was lifted up, when she saw the dark bloodstain on his pale lips, she became limp and almost fell down.
“Chen’er, Chen’er!” After she shouted twice in a sharp voice, her face was as pale as snow and she was about to fall down. Nanny Wei hurriedly reached out to hold her and comforted her, “Empress Dowager, let’s go to have a rest in the outer room. Prince Chen is a lucky fellow and he will be fine!”
Qi Jue was called in hurriedly, and he ran over with sweat all over his head. After bowing deeply to the Empress Dowager at the door, he immediately entered the room.
“Chen’er has already been in such poor condition, but someone still can’t tolerate him over and over again. I… I…” The Empress Dowager held on to Nanny Wei’s hand to stabilize her body. Her face was flushed with anger.
“Empress Dowager, don’t worry. Let’s go to have a rest first!” Nanny Wei comforted Empress Dowager composedly. Then, she and another palace maid beside her together held Empress Dowager to sit in the outer room. She could hear the hubbub inside, which sounded a little panicked and anxious.
Some people ran out and rushed out. The moment they arrived at the courtyard, they immediately asked someone to open the warehouse and asked for some medicine.
Then someone came out with a basin of b.l.o.o.d.y water. Frightened by the dark b.l.o.o.d.y water, Empress Dowager suddenly stood up, but her limp body was about to fall down because she had stood up too fast. Nanny Wei quickly held her up, “Empress Dowager, don’t worry. Prince Chen will be fine. Don’t worry!”
“Who can he threaten with such a poor body? It is Emperor and I that most feel sorry for him…” After the Empress Dowager sat down, she took Nanny Wei’s hand and cried out of control.
“Empress Dowager… this… this can’t be blamed on you. You had no other choice in that case…” Nanny Wei lowered her voice and tried to persuade her. Of course, she didn’t dare to mention the Emperor casually!
The Empress Dowager struggled to turn her head back. When she saw another person carrying a basin of b.l.o.o.d.y water from the inside, she almost broke down. In the past, although she knew that Chu Liuchen was in poor health, she had never seen those basins of b.l.o.o.d.y water so directly. They were all from her favorite grandson!
“We must find out who did it to Chen’er. How dare he do this again and again? He has gone too far!” The flush on the Empress Dowager’s face changed into coldness. She gritted her teeth and said bitterly, “I just want to treat him better, but this is in n.o.body’s way. How can’t someone even tolerate him!”
Empress Dowager put her trembling fingers at the corner of the table and slowly clenched her fists.
“Empress Dowager, if you don’t dote on Prince Chen too much… it may be better!” Nanny Wei sighed softly and said in a low voice.
She was the trusted subordinate of the Empress Dowager, who had also accompanied Empress Dowager to enter the palace. After so many years, the two of them had gone through a lot of ups and downs. There were some things that others did not dare to say, but she dared to give Empress Dowager some appropriate advice.
“Just because I dote on Chen’er? But Chen’er has nothing but my love… In fact, everything should have belonged to Chen’er. They even do not forget to kill Chen’er in their fierce fight. If at that time… Now it is Chen who would have been sitting in that high position…”
“Empress Dowager, please watch your words!” Nanny Wei was so anxious with sweat that she quickly interrupted Empress Dowager’s words. Although these words were spoken by Empress Dowager, those who heard them were also guilty. At this time, there were so many people in Prince Chen’s inner room. If they heard something and spread it out, it would be a big deal!
Empress Dowager also knew that she had made an indiscreet remark. She clenched her fists and sat with a gloomy face, and the room strangely became quiet.
Suddenly, Chu Liuchen’s painful cry came out. Hearing this, Empress Dowager stood up immediately and uncontrollably wanted to rush in, but she was held tightly by Nanny Wei, “Empress Dowager, calm down. You can’t enter the room at this time.”
“Chen’er is screaming in pain. He has always been good at bearing it, even at his young age. But… but now… he is crying out in pain…” Empress Dowager was trembling and her eyes became red with tears.
“Empress Dowager, don’t worry. If you go there now, it will not only be useless but also cause a delay in Prince Chen’s treatment. Moreover, Prince Chen will definitely not want to see you like this. You dote on him most, and for him, you are also his most beloved grandmother. If he sees you like this, Prince Chen will be sad!”
Nanny Wei was afraid that she couldn’t persuade Empress Dowager, so she directly used Chu Liuchen as an excuse!
Empress Dowager was still trembling but did not act rashly anymore. She leaned on the table and slowly sat down. Then, there were painful sounds coming from inside from time to time. For Empress Dowager, the suppressed sound seemed more distressed than direct shouts. Almost every m.u.f.fled groan of Chu Liuchen made the Empress Dowager tense up.
Empress Dowager with great empathy was almost suffering, and her expression was getting worse and worse. Nanny Wei was worried that the Empress Dowager would faint, so she had been paying close attention to Empress Dowager.
Another painful screaming came out.
“If Chen’er can be fine this time… I… I will definitely satisfy him!” Gritting her teeth, Empress Dowager unconsciously said these words.
“Empress Dowager!” Nanny Wei looked at Empress Dowager full of horror.
Empress Dowager indeed said these words rashly, but after that, she seemingly came to a sudden realization. She frowned tightly and said, “If Chen’er can be fine, I… Even if I help him, it doesn’t matter. Originally… it belongs to him. No matter from which aspect, it all belongs to him… Chen’er is the most suitable one…”
“Empress Dowager…”
“Well, stop talking about this. Let me calm down for a while!” Empress Dowager shook her head wearily and said bitterly. Even she herself didn’t believe these words. Would Chen’er really be okay? As long as he could stay alive, it was already good. How could he really be fine?
The room became quiet again. The time pa.s.sed slowly, almost little by little. The Empress Dowager stood up and sat down repeatedly, and felt quite restless.
Nanny Wei stood aside quietly and didn’t try to persuade her anymore. The Empress Dowager had always been the most steady one. Even when the mutiny in the palace had happened at that time, the Empress Dowager hadn’t been so fl.u.s.tered. But now, her heart was really in a mess…
Finally, Finally, the voice inside quieted down, and Chu Liuchen stopped making any sound. People retreated from the room one by one, and finally Qi Jue. Seeing Qi Jue coming out, Nanny Wei hurriedly stopped him and said, “Doctor Qi!”
Qi Jue was a doctor called in by Chu Liuchen himself. His medical skills were very good and even better than the imperial physicians in the palace in some aspects. The Empress Dowager would also ask him to treat some of her diseases.
But he didn’t want to enter the palace as an imperial physician and felt that it was comfortable and leisurely to stay in Prince Chen’s Mansion. So he became an idle person in Prince Chen’s Mansion, mainly to cure Chu Liuchen and nurse his health.
Qi Jue came over and bowed to the Empress Dowager. Empress Dowager’s eyes fell on his wrinkled sleeve, which seemed to have been rolled up, and there was a large frightening bloodstain on it.
“How is Chen’er?” Empress Dowager’s voice was a little hoa.r.s.e.
“Well… it depends on whether Your Highness can bear it or not…” Qi Jue shook his head and said.
“Don’t you have any confidence?” Empress Dowager didn’t blame Qi Jue and asked again.
“If Your Highness can wake up in these three days, he will be fine. But if he… may not wake up this time!” Qi Jue told her with a grave face.
“Blood… why is it dark?” Empress Dowager’s eyes were dull, and she seemed to lack energy. After asking this question, she even almost fainted and fell down.
“Your Highness was poisoned in the past. It is okay to lose this blood, but he also spat out some poison rooted in his body!” Qi Jue said. He had been treating Chu Liuchen’s illness, so how could he not know the truth of Chu Liuchen’s health condition?
“Then… will he really recover?” Empress Dowager looked at Qi Jue eagerly.
Qi Jue shook his head, seeing that Empress Dowager’s eager eyes lost light, and he sighed, “Your Highness has been poisoned for a long time, and the toxin has been rooted since his childhood. Even though he spit out some now, the previous poison has worked for a long time… Besides, I don’t know whether Your Highness can survive this time!”
“I know! You can leave now!” Empress Dowager’s face suddenly turned pale. She said slowly after a long pause.
After bowing deeply to Empress Dowager, Qi Jue slowly retreated. When he reached the door, he looked into the room and shook his head, and then left with his hands clasped behind his back.
The room suddenly quieted down again. The quiet atmosphere was strange and depressing. After a long while, Empress Dowager said to Nanny Wei, “Help me to go there and see Chen’er!”
Nanny Wei answered. She reached out to hold Empress Dowager’s slightly stiff body and carefully walked to the inner room. Xiao Xuanzi was guarding there in the inner room. When he heard the voice at the door, he hurried over to greet her and helped hold Empress Dowager to enter the inner room with Nanny Wei.
There was a strong smell of blood in the room. Chu Liuchen was lying in the bed with a pale face, seemingly having no breath. Empress Dowager staggered and almost fell down, and she tried to reach out to the bed.
Nanny Wei and Xiao Xuanzi hurriedly helped her to sit down at the bed.
Looking at Chu Liuchen, who was lying in the bed without a trace of blood, Empress Dowager’s eyes became red again, and her tears fell down one by one. She pinched the corner of her eye with a handkerchief, but made no sound, for fear of disturbing Chu Liuchen. After looking at him for a while, she reached out to touch his face again. She breathed a sigh of relief when she felt the lightly warm temperature.
Then, she gestured to Nanny Wei to help her up. Xiao Xuanzi also helped on the other side. When they reached the outer room, Empress Dowager said to Xiao Xuanzi, “Go back and take good care of your master. If your master wakes up, you will be rewarded heavily. If… if he doesn’t wake up, you will have no need to serve him anymore!”
“Yes, yes, I will go to serve the master now!” Xiao Xuanzi was frightened to kneel down and said repeatedly.