Chapter 285: Capturing
Grandma Zong told Li Xi’er two hours of palace drama, her throat was a bit dry so she drank some tea, then awkwardly returned to Jin Xi Hall.
It was originally to punish her, but somehow, she ended up chatting with her about past experiences of surviving in the Imperial Palace.
Before leaving, she repeatedly emphasized not to spread what she had just said outside!
“Grandma Zong is back, how did it go? Was she obedient?”
Consort Li woke up from her nap, Yi Nan was massaging the consort’s temples with a displeased expression.
“Your Highness Consort, Young Woman Xi’er, … um, she was fairly obedient!”
Consort Li opened her eyes, her face somewhat swollen, “Oh? What’s wrong, Grandma Zong, we’ve been together for many years, this doesn’t seem like your usual style?”
“Your Highness Consort is overthinking it, this servant just remembered the past, sigh, perhaps age has caught up, seeing such a pure young woman made me recall my own past!”
Time flies, years pass like a shuttle, without looking back at the past, she didn’t realize she had grown old too.
“Pure? It seems Grandma, you have a high opinion of her!”
“Your Highness Consort, this girl has already been punished as she should, she’s actually not as complicated as we thought!” Perhaps, she is the most desireless and undemanding person in this Prince’s Mansion.
The Prince might have taken a liking to her simplicity, being with her feels comfortable, unrestrained, and natural!
“Alright then!”
Consort Li said listlessly.
“Is Your Highness Consort feeling unwell anywhere?”
“Grandma Zong, the consort has no appetite, bloating, she just got up and had acid reflux and vomited!”
“What to do? You girls, why didn’t you go call an imperial physician? This servant will go fetch one right now to take the consort’s pulse!”
Grandma Zong was about to turn and go personally invite an imperial physician, taking a few steps to the doorway,
“Sigh, wait, it’s just my old ailment acting up, I’ll be fine after resting, they’d just make a trip for nothing!” The maids were also stopped by Consort Li from going.
“How can that be? If they make a wasted trip, so be it, they are physicians, we can’t delay the consort’s condition!”
Grandma Zong quickly brought Imperial Physician Hu from the Imperial Academy of Medicine, after checking: “Has Your Highness Consort eaten anything?”
“Um, just that stinky fruit!”
“Oh, I see, did Your Highness Consort eat too much again?” Consort Li’s face was a bit embarrassed, it was all Grandma Zong’s fault, she told her not to go, but she insisted!
“Hehe, this stinky fruit is hot-natured, I had already reminded before that it shouldn’t be eaten in excess, eating too much can cause intestinal blockage, constipation, indigestion, swollen gums, and other heat-related illnesses!” Imperial Physician Hu said methodically.
“Understood, Imperial Physician Hu.”
“This is a pill to aid digestion, Your Highness Consort take two first, I’ll come back later with a prescription to soothe the intestines!”
“Good!”
Consort Li took the pill, ate some thin porridge, drank the boiled medicine, but her condition didn’t seem to improve.
Before afternoon even arrived, red bumps appeared on her body, her face swelled hugely, nosebleed started, and abdominal pain.
This scared Grandma Zong badly, she went to see the Prince several times but he hadn’t returned, so she hurriedly went again to fetch Imperial Physician Hu.
“Imperial Physician Hu, please take a good look, what’s wrong with our consort? Why is she suddenly having nosebleeds, and her face swollen like this?”
Imperial Physician Hu also found it unbelievable, normally for indigestion and excess heat, the pill and prescription he gave should have slowly improved it?
How could her face swell like this? Nosebleed, nonstop abdominal pain, it looks like poisoned! In fact, because this stinky fruit is a foreign fruit, they didn’t fully understand its pharmacology, logically from a tropical region, it’s naturally a hot-natured fruit, eating too much causes excess heat.
Previously, Consort Li had eaten stinky fruit a few times and handled it this way.
Hearing poisoned, it instantly heightened Consort Li and Grandma Zong’s nerves.
Who wanted to harm her?
In this Prince’s Mansion, the Third Child, he currently has no reason to do so, unless he wants to shake off her and Luo Ning this trouble, but she knows his character well!
As for the servants, these were all handpicked by the Third Child, unless they made mistakes, she has no deep grudges with them, she usually treats servants fairly kindly.
That one in the Imperial Palace, though hard to say, she has no obvious benefits tied with him, she always keeps herself out of trouble, but it can’t be ruled out, then who could it be?
After much thought and consideration, that pair of clear and bright eyes flashed in her mind, it’s her! Who else but her?
The two exchanged glances, both thinking of Li Xi’er!
Today the consort only had contact with her, punished her, seeing how obediently she cooperated at the time, who knew she secretly used some method to try to take her life!
Heart of a scorpion!
“You, Li Xi’er!”
Grandma Zong thought of how she had even fooled her just now, furious.
“Men! Go to Zui Yue Pavilion and seize that vicious wretch!”
After Li Xi’er returned, seeing the durian she personally selected, she went to the kitchen.
Still busy in the kitchen now, since there was time today, having gotten durian she planned to make durian pastry, durian pizza to visit godmother later! Zisu and Honglian were helping her.
Kneading dough, humming a tune, suddenly a group of people rushed in clamorously, fierce-looking to arrest her.
Servants with sticks, ones with rope, they want to tie her up?
Zisu and Honglian turned pale with fright, “Yi Nan, what are you doing?”
“Young Woman Xi’er, the consort is ill, they suspect it’s related to you, the Prince is not in the mansion now, you go and explain to the consort, it’s hard to clarify right now! Offended!”
The consort is ill, for illness call an imperial physician, what does it have to do with her?
Unless, unless poisoned, or sudden condition the imperial physician couldn’t treat, looking for trouble with her!
Li Xi’er quickly calmed down, is her condition that serious?
Thinking it over, after all she is Feng Qingcheng’s mother, naturally she doesn’t hope for her to have an accident, so she’ll go see what’s going on,
“Fine, this young woman will go with you, just one thing, I’ll walk myself, no need to tie! Otherwise, you might not even be able to tie me!”
Li Xi’er took off her apron and handed it to Zisu, flicked her skirt hem, and followed the group grandly to Jin Xi Hall.
“Speak, what was your motive? Why poison the consort? What poison did you use? Hurry and hand over the antidote!” As soon as she entered, she was unflustered, making Grandma Zong’s blood rush with anger, immediately shouting loudly.
“Grandma Zong, what a trumped-up charge!”
Li Xi’er had so many charges pinned on her right as she entered, speechless! Today truly clashes with her!
Glancing at Consort Li lying weakly on the bed, head swollen like a basin, face red and swollen, curled up groaning nonstop, maids wiping her nosebleed from time to time.
A person looking like an imperial physician constantly checking her condition, “Your Highness Consort, does your stomach still hurt, is there bloating? Do you still feel like vomiting?” Seeing Li Xi’er enter, he looked up at her, hesitating to speak.
Li Xi’er pondered inwardly, Consort Li looked listless indeed ill, not like deliberately finding fault with her!
Her mind quickly filtered, bloating, abdominal pain, face swollen like a basin, what illness is this!
“You won’t confess? Men, beat her with the plank! Beat until she’s willing to talk!” Grandma Zong for the consort’s sake, disregarded all costs.
“Grandma, wait!”
Li Xi’er’s crisp voice rang out.
“Li Xi’er, you poison woman! What more do you want to argue? The consort only taught you some rules, and you actually…” Grandma Zong looked at her calm eyes, hating so much her teeth itched!
“Hmph! What, afraid of the plank? Then hurry and confess!”
“No, Grandma Zong, I say I didn’t poison then I didn’t, I just want to ask, besides face swelling, vomiting, abdominal pain, does the consort also have red rashes all over her body?”
“Don’t dodge the issue, beat her! Beat hard, see if she confesses!”
“Stop! Grandma Zong, do you want the consort to escape danger quickly or not, if this continues she might have breathing difficulty, leading to organ damage, failure, and death!”
“What?”
Grandma Zong panicked! Anxiously looked at Imperial Physician Hu, who sighed and nodded to her!
“How do you know? You still claim you didn’t poison?”
“This is extremely urgent, I have no time to joke with you, Grandma Zong, save the consort first, then we can settle scores after, okay?”
Her gaze swept around the maids,
“And you all must cooperate with me, Grandma Zong tell me first, does the consort have red rashes all over her body?”
“…Yes!”
