The Queen has arrived: An Lingrong does not want to fight in the palace after her rebirth

Late at night, Jiuzhou banquet.

After a brief recovery, the emperor fell into a coma again.

Song Yuanpan and a room full of imperial doctors were discussing the disease, but Wen Shichu was the only one not there.

When he came from the city to the Old Summer Palace to take up his post the day before, he encountered two groups of drunks fighting on the road and was caught in the crossfire and slashed on the back.

The Imperial Medical Bureau was in the midst of a busy period and was unable to send anyone to see him, so they had no choice but to approve his sick leave.

At this time, Court Judge Song was pulling Zhou Bing and said anxiously, "The emperor's face is flushed, and his breath is full of heat. This is obviously due to hyperactivity of wind and yang. If he doesn't take medicine, he may have a stroke. But the queen said that we used a tiger and wolf prescription, which will hurt the emperor's dragon body. What should we do?"

Zhou Bing had no choice, but as a higher-ranking official, he had to take responsibility, so he could only count on Court Judge Song: "Yes, the Queen Mother is also ill, and there is no one to make decisions now. Court Judge, you must make a decision as soon as possible. Our lives and property are all in your hands."

None of them could have imagined that the Queen had agreed to their medication plan two days ago, but tonight she kept making excuses to delay. Now the concubines in the harem have been driven away by her, and all the ministers in the court are outside and do not know the truth. If something really goes wrong with the Emperor, the Imperial Hospital will be the first to take the blame.

"Knock knock knock" Xiao Xia Zi knocked on the door of Wufutang hurriedly.

An Lingrong asked through the curtain while putting on her clothes: "Didn't she feel better this afternoon?"

Xiao Xiazi wiped the sweat off his forehead and said, "I don't know either. It's just that after midnight, the emperor suddenly became unwell again. Right now, only the Empress and Concubine Wan are taking care of him. I thought it would be easier to make decisions with more people, so I came to find the Empress."

An Lingrong cursed the Queen as a "fool" in her heart and then said quickly:

"I will be there right away. Xiao Xiazi, go to the guard duty room to find Prince Guo and ask him to take the other princes to serve the sick. Xiao Jiangzi, Bao Yuan, Bao Que, go inform Imperial Concubine Xi, Imperial Concubine Jing, and Concubine Shen and Xin. Call everyone who can."

After receiving the order, several people immediately split up and took action.

The night in June was already chilly, but it couldn't overcome the chill in my heart.

An Lingrong analyzed the Queen's motives as she walked. She had taken Zhen Huan to take care of the Queen for the past two days, hoping that after the Emperor woke up, he would remember their kindness so that she could benefit from it.

But the emperor's condition continued to deteriorate, so the queen began to have evil thoughts. She thought that if the emperor had an accident at this time, according to Manchu custom, the third prince, the eldest son, would have the possibility of ascending to the throne.

But why doesn’t the Queen think about this? The Third Prince has never received any education as a crown prince and has not even had the most basic experience of observing government affairs. If such a big country is really handed over to him, can he govern it well?

Externally, the Dzungar Khanate is eyeing the throne covetously with its troops nearby. Internally, the Third Prince's powerful uncles each have their own evil intentions. In addition, the power structure in the court is complicated, and the Third Prince might just be a puppet once he takes the throne. Worse still, if someone were to mutiny and purge the court, the people would be the ones to suffer as several forces struggle for power.

This is why she knew that the emperor's health was already at its end, but she did not dare to give him a push.

She couldn't let the world, which had been peaceful for a long time, become chaotic just for her own selfish reasons.

The more An Lingrong thought about it, the angrier she became. The Queen was so blinded by power that she actually made such a foolish move that she completely disregarded human life.

When An Lingrong arrived at Jiuzhou Qingyan, she first glanced at the guards around her. Fortunately, she had seen these people before, and they were all the emperor's personal guards.

How stupid! An Lingrong sneered. The Queen, with her little cleverness, wanted to imitate others in staging a coup. It was really laughable.

"Princess Wen, I'm here. Why are you here?" The Queen was obviously stunned when she saw An Lingrong. She and An Lingrong had been at odds in the past two years. Whenever she was around, nothing good would happen.

An Lingrong smiled and greeted him: "The Queen is sympathetic to my frail body, but I am worried about the Emperor. Whenever I leave, I always have all sorts of thoughts. I always want to be closer to the Emperor to feel at ease, so that's why I came."

The Queen smiled helplessly, "You are still so childish. The Emperor is blessed by God and will be blessed in times of trouble. You have worked hard during the day, so I let you rest. Besides, I am the Emperor's wife, and I will take good care of you. If you are willing, it will not be too late to come and serve you tomorrow."

While he was talking, he didn't let An Lingrong get up. An Lingrong stood up and walked a few steps towards the dragon bed.

"Your Highness is the one who has worked hard. You have been toiling day and night since the Emperor fell ill. I feel so sorry for you. Now that I am here, let me take over so that Your Highness can take a short rest."

As she spoke, she stretched her neck to see the emperor's expression, but the queen moved sideways to block her view:

"I am the queen, and it is my duty to take care of the emperor. It is not hard work. Now that the emperor has taken medicine and gone to bed, it is not appropriate to disturb him too much. Since Concubine Wen is here, why not go to the side hall to rest? It will not be too late to come back tomorrow morning to take over."

Zhen Huan watched the two interacting and suddenly became suspicious. The Queen was acting quite strangely tonight. First, she sent her to a side hall to boil medicine, while she kept showing off her power to the imperial physician. Then she stopped An Lingrong from visiting the Emperor.

An Lingrong consulted the doctor. The emperor's condition was not as stable as the queen said. Zhen Huan thought so. Then, while the two were confronting each other, she carefully looked at the emperor's face. He didn't look like he had fallen asleep peacefully after taking the medicine.

In an instant, Zhen Huan smelled the scent of danger, and this danger was coming towards her.

Since returning to the palace, she has been like a puppet in the hands of the Queen. She moves however the Queen says, but there has been no progress in what she wants to do.

This time when she was serving the emperor, she had thought of performing well in front of him, and taking advantage of the emperor's illness and soft-heartedness to talk more about their past relationship. Maybe things would turn around, but now it seems that the queen has new arrangements.

Thinking of this, a chill crept up Zhen Huan's back and cold sweat broke out on her palms. If the emperor could wake up, the queen would be the first person to take care of him. But if the emperor could not wake up, then she would be the scapegoat pushed forward by the queen.

Zhen Huan, who once had a sensitive political sense, finally guessed what the Queen was going to do at this moment.

At this moment, the voice of Song Yuanpan suddenly rang out: "Empress Wen, you came at the right time. The emperor's condition has relapsed. We have prepared a prescription, but the Empress said that the prescription is inappropriate. I think of your kindness and knowledge, and you are the most familiar with pharmacology in the harem. I dare to ask you to take a look at the prescription."

The Queen did not wait for Song Yuanpan to finish and interrupted him in a stern voice: "How dare you! This is about the Emperor's health, so I am naturally very cautious. The Emperor is now in a state of liver fire, and you are using strong and powerful medicine. Isn't this just adding fuel to the fire?"

An Lingrong was not afraid of her. The most important thing at the moment was to wake the emperor up. She turned around and took the prescription from Song Yuanpan: "Uncaria rhynchophylla, Gastrodia elata, Cassia seed, wild chrysanthemum... This is a prescription for extinguishing wind and suppressing yang. There is no problem with the prescription. Please use it as soon as possible, Song Yuanpan."

The Queen grabbed An Lingrong and said, "Who dares? Concubine Wen, if there is a problem with this prescription, will you dare to take the responsibility?"

An Lingrong took the Queen's hand away, stared into her eyes and said sternly: "Why should I not dare? My life and my body are from the Emperor, and I will not harm the Emperor in the slightest. But you, the Queen, have repeatedly prevented the Emperor from taking the medicine. What is your intention?"

Facing An Lingrong's strength, the Queen did not back down at all: "I am doing this for the good of the Emperor. Tiger and wolf medicines are harmful to the body. If the Emperor is hurt, neither you nor I can bear the responsibility."

Zhen Huan changed sides at this time: "Empress, please allow me to say something. I also think it is best to let the emperor take the medicine first. The Imperial Hospital gathers doctors from all over the world. Their medical skills are superb. They dare not harm the emperor's body. Instead of having a meaningless argument here, it is better to save the emperor first and then talk about responsibility."

Seeing that Zhen Huan had changed sides, the Queen immediately changed her direction of attack: "Wan Fei, you are the descendant of a criminal and you have bad intentions. I am afraid it is you who is hoping that something bad will happen to the Emperor. As the Queen Mother, I have to consider the world with my every move. Naturally, I will not tolerate you spreading rumors to confuse the people. Come, take the two away."

An Lingrong was not afraid of her threats and became even more aggressive:

"The queen's mother of the country is probably what she wants to be like Empress Lü, or she wants to be a queen dowager who rules the country from behind the curtain. Song Yuanpan, you should go and make the medicine quickly. If anything happens, I will take care of it."

Song Yuanpan looked at the tense situation and felt that the only way for everyone in the Imperial Hospital to survive was if the emperor woke up. He made up his mind and walked towards the side hall, but Jiang Fuhai reached out to stop him. Unexpectedly, Rendong gently pulled him from the side, and Jiang Fuhai obediently gave way, allowing Song Yuanpan to leave.

The Queen was furious at this: "An, how dare you order someone to commit murder in the palace? What is your evil intention?"

An Lingrong pressed the issue, "Empress, the truth of right and wrong is not determined by your words. If I am guilty, the Emperor will punish me when he wakes up. If you want to frame me now, I am afraid that everyone in the palace will think that you have bad intentions and are so eager to convict me."

The queen was furious: "You are rebelling, someone come here."

A clear male voice came from outside: "My humble servant is here. Who made the Empress so angry?"

Prince Guo arrived, and with him came Zhang Tingyu and Ma Qi, who were staying in the duty room at the Old Summer Palace.

The Queen's expression changed and she glared at An Lingrong fiercely.

An Lingrong smiled gently, and in front of several important officials, she slowly bowed to the Queen and apologized: "Your Majesty, I just lost my temper. Your Majesty, please be magnanimous and forgive me this time."

But she didn't mention why she lost her composure at all. In front of her relatives and important ministers, the queen had to put on a smiling face:

"We are all sisters in the palace. You are also worried about the emperor. Why should I blame you? Get up."

Just as he finished speaking, there were noises coming from outside the concubines' room. Besides the concubines from the harem, there were also three princes who lived in the garden.

The situation was hopeless. The Queen looked at An Lingrong with eyes that were like a knife dipped in poison. Then she turned around and looked at Zhen Huan, who was even more furious. She had spent so much effort to bring her back to the palace, but it didn't help at all. It was really infuriating.

The queen looked at Prince Guo who was standing quietly beside the dragon bed, and a hatred arose in her heart. Prince Guo was the commander of four banners, and since she could not use him, she had to find a way to destroy him to prevent him from doing bad things next time.

When the Queen was looking at Prince Guo, Zhen Huan was looking at the Queen. Her father's death had always been on her mind, and there were many doubts. She suspected at the time that it was done by someone in the palace because of an old grudge. After returning to the palace, she had been trying to investigate the people who had made enemies with her in the past.

Concubine Qi was favored for a while after leaving the palace, but she was soon suppressed by An Lingrong and could not hold her head up. She also completely offended the Queen because of the rat infestation and was put under house arrest. She became an abandoned child of the family. The family would not take any risks for such a person again.

Concubine Shen had a very unpleasant quarrel with Princess Wen Yi in her early years. I heard from Su Peisheng that on the day she broke up with the emperor, Concubine Shen went to the Yangxin Palace first. The grudge between the two of them had a long history, but Concubine Shen's family was poor and she did not have the ability to command killing from thousands of miles away.

In the past, Zhen Huan had only open grudges with these two people in the palace, but after investigation, she ruled them out. As for the others, she also learned about their actions over the years through Su Peisheng, and did not find anyone suspicious.

Now it seems that she has missed one person.

Queen, if the Queen wants to completely control her, she only needs to lend a helping hand when she is most helpless, and she will be loyal to her to the end. After returning to the palace, the Queen's various arrangements for her have proved her loyalty.

Zhen Huan suddenly woke up and had suspicions in her mind. She just needed to find an opportunity to verify them.

After everyone arrived, An Lingrong focused all her attention on the emperor's treatment. While the imperial physician prepared the medicine over and over again, she tested the medicine over and over again.

The several princes watching nearby were also extremely nervous.

The rest of the people also had their own ideas, and this night was very difficult.

Fortunately, at dawn, the emperor finally woke up after drinking three doses of medicine and undergoing acupuncture.

At this time, Manchu and Han important officials and royal nobles had gathered outside Jiuzhou Qingyan. It was no longer appropriate for the concubines to stay here, so they had to leave.

After taking a few steps back, Caiyue knelt at the Queen's feet with a sad face:

"Empress, please save my queen. She is having an emergency."

Seeing that Caiyue couldn't explain why she was sick, everyone had to follow the Queen to Fanying Pavilion to visit her.

After seeing Shen Meizhuang's symptoms clearly, Xinpin was the first to shout out:

"Oh, what kind of disease is this? Why is it so scary!"

Everyone took a few steps back in fear at Xinbin's scream.

Only Kang Changzai squeezed forward to take a look and immediately shouted, "There are so many blisters, they can't be contagious, right?"

Cao Qinmo glanced at Shen Meizhuang and hid far away: "Empress, you should find someone to check on Huipin. She looks scary like this."

The Queen felt strange as she looked at the yellow blisters on Shen Meizhuang's neck and face.

At this moment, Shen Meizhuang scratched her neck because of the unbearable itch. A bright yellow blister was scratched by her, and the juice flowed down her neck, scaring everyone to scream.

Concubine Zhen screamed: "Empress, is this smallpox?"

Kang Changzai followed up and shouted: "Oh my God, we have to isolate Concubine Hui quickly, otherwise what should we do with so many people in the garden?"

Imperial Concubine Jing immediately said, "Your Majesty, I will go and get the imperial physician."

Amid the noise, everyone left Fanying Pavilion.

After a while, Honeysuckle brought a large amount of dried mugwort and lit it around Fanying Pavilion.

A little later, Zhou Bing came:

"Your Majesty, the Emperor cannot leave without someone, so please let me come over and take a look."

An Lingrong handed Zhou Bing the cotton cloth fumigated with mugwort and asked him to wrap it around his face:

"I will go with you. The situation inside doesn't look good."

With just one sentence, Zhen Huan's heart sank. What happened to Sister Mei?

Everyone around was looking at the atmosphere and kept muttering in their hearts, could it be that Shen Meizhuang was really in trouble?