Harem Daily Life

Chapter 734: People’s hearts are unpredictable and must be guarded against

Doctor Wang hesitated for a moment and said, "If we can find all the herbs, we can cure it."

When King Yong heard this, he knew that herbs were hard to find.

"Doctor Wang, please list out the herbs we need quickly," Prince Yong urged.

"I'm not entirely sure. I only remember cinnamon twigs and clematis root, which are easy to find. But there's a certain herb called netherworld grass, which is only found in the sea. I saw this recipe in Doctor Liu's book 'A Thousand Gold Prescriptions' a while ago. I wrote it down hastily and am not very familiar with it. Oh, if Doctor Liu were here, it would be much better."

Tao Yanyan thought for a moment and asked, "Would it be dangerous to move His Majesty at this time?" If he could be moved, she would take him to Penglai Island, which was close to the sea and where they would surely find the so-called Nether Grass. Furthermore, Imperial Physician Liu was there and had the book.

Doctor Wang said, "It is possible. We know it is the poison of Sui Yi Shen, so it won't take effect quickly. However, Your Majesty will certainly be very tired. Alternatively, you can first look for some herbs. Once you find them, bring them to the palace and we can boil the medicine."

Prince Yong glanced at Empress Tao and said, "Your Majesty, are you planning to...take His Majesty out of the palace? No, it's too dangerous. His Majesty wouldn't be able to endure the exhausting journey. Besides, His Majesty can't leave the palace at will."

Tao Yanyan thought about it and realized that going to Penglai Island could only guarantee that he would meet Doctor Liu, but that was not certain about finding the Nether Grass. It would be better to write to Doctor Liu as soon as possible and ask him to copy the treatment prescription back and look for the Nether Grass at the same time.

She immediately went to make arrangements. Now there was chaos inside and outside the palace, and she had to stabilize the situation.

Concubine Liang was extremely anxious. She had experienced the entire assassination attempt. After waiting for a long time, there was no news from the Qinzheng Palace. She thought for a long time before deciding to go to Yongtai Palace to discuss it with Concubine Xian.

Concubine Xian also heard about the assassination of His Majesty. Since the Queen did not send anyone to deliver the message, she stayed in the palace and waited quietly. Unexpectedly, Concubine Liang came in a hurry.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you." After paying her respects, Concubine Liang stated her purpose: "Your Majesty, what do you think we should do now?"

The virtuous concubine asked her to speak slowly and not to be anxious, so Concubine Liang told him everything she had seen, from the appearance of the man in black to the injury of His Majesty.

"The arrow that hit Your Majesty was originally aimed at the Empress, but Your Majesty blocked it and it hit Your Majesty's arm, causing a lot of blood to flow. Later, I saw Imperial Physician Li get into Your Majesty's carriage and never get out. After returning to the palace, the entire Imperial Hospital went to the Qinzheng Hall, and it seems that no one has come out since then."

After Concubine Liang finished speaking, she glanced at Concubine Xian and said, "The Empress is young after all. Your Majesty is the one who can hold the reins in this palace. Would you like to go to the Qinzheng Palace? The Empress keeps quiet about everything, which makes people uneasy. I don't know how His Majesty is doing."

The virtuous concubine actually wanted to go, but was worried that the queen would think too much.

"How about this, you go back first, I'll go see what's going on. If there's anything I need to prepare, I'll send someone to tell you."

In fact, Tao Yanyan didn't want to inform everyone in the harem, but she was scared at the beginning and didn't expect so much. Besides, what she wanted to see most at the moment was the doctor, and she had no time to deal with the concubines in the palace.

After Concubine Xian came to the Qinzheng Palace, Tao Yanyan was discussing something with Prince Yong. When he saw her coming, he asked someone to bring her in and explain the affairs of the harem to her.

"You've come at the right time. His Majesty is injured and is recuperating in there. You can go and see him first." Tao Yanyan asked someone to bring Concubine Xian in. Not long after, Concubine Xian came out with red eyes.

"Hey, you've seen His Majesty's condition. The best plan now is to find herbs to detoxify him. His Majesty needs to rest and recuperate. The Imperial Palace will have to deal with the former court for a while, so the harem will rely on you, Concubine Xian. When you return, tell the other concubines that His Majesty is injured and needs to recuperate. Don't mention the poisoning, lest some people become restless and have evil intentions."

After Tao Yanyan finished speaking, he carefully took Concubine Xian's hand and said, "You have been in the palace longer than I have, and you are older than me. You know a lot of things even if I don't tell you. Our children are still young. If something happens to Your Majesty, many people will be suspicious. People's hearts are unpredictable, so we must be on guard."

The virtuous concubine naturally understood what the queen meant. She was worried that someone would force her to abdicate.

The virtuous concubine nodded and said, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. I know the importance of this matter. I will return first. I will take care of the affairs of the harem. As for Your Majesty, it is all up to Your Majesty."

After Concubine Xian left, Prince Yong also had to leave. He had court officials to appease and the assassin to interrogate. He had a lot of things to do.

From that day on, Tao Yanyan lived in the Qinzheng Palace. Thinking that she had no time to take care of the children, she sent Mingyue back to keep an eye on them.

"Please pay more attention to Changle Palace and have Shuang'er protect the children. Also, have Changtai be cautious of anyone who comes to inquire about the news and see who they are. There might be someone with bad intentions trying to take advantage of the situation."

Mingyue nodded and said, "Yes, I understand. Then Qingfeng and Xianglan will stay here to serve the queen. I will go back first."

After Mingyue left, Qingfeng brought up a small bowl of porridge and said, "My queen, you haven't eaten anything all day. Have a bowl of porridge to fill your stomach first."

Tao Yanyan picked up the bowl and drank it: "I don't have much appetite, so there's no need to send other food. If you're hungry, go eat first."

Seeing this, Qingfeng had no choice but to go down with the empty bowl.

Eunuch Zhang came in and reported, "Your Majesty, everything you just instructed us to do has been completed. I have informed everyone in and outside the Qinzheng Palace. Everyone is keeping their mouths shut and will not dare to leak any information."

Tao Yanyan nodded: "You've worked hard. It's not that I'm being overly cautious, I just want to be careful."

Eunuch Zhang said, "Your Majesty is very careful and cautious. By the way, would you like to retrieve the edict appointing the Crown Prince?"

Tao Yanyan thought for a moment and shook his head: "Your Majesty will be fine. Let's put the imperial edict aside for now and discuss it later. As for the eldest prince, are you keeping an eye on him?"

Eunuch Zhang nodded and said, "Someone is watching us. Not only the eldest prince's palace, but also the other princes' palaces are watching us."

Tao Yanyan frowned: "What about Prince Yong's Mansion?"

Prince Yong is in charge of the defense of the capital and should be the one to be watched the most.

Eunuch Zhang nodded: "Your Majesty has already made plans."

Tao Yanyan breathed a sigh of relief. Since ancient times, the trust and reuse of emperors were one thing, but precautions were another. How could a prince with such a noble status and command of the army not be on the lookout? It seemed that He Linzhang was a resourceful emperor who would not act on impulse.

"Okay, everything has been arranged. I'm relieved."

After he finished speaking, someone came in from outside and reported that the eldest prince had arrived and wanted to come in to pay his respects.

Tao Yanyan narrowed his eyes. When they went to open the fields today, the eldest prince was also called at the beginning, but he did not go. He came here at this time, obviously knowing that His Majesty had been assassinated.

"Let him in." Tao Yanyan composed himself and sat upright in his seat.