Doctor Zhang acted swiftly.
Right after he learned that Qin Huaiqiu was a man, he managed to compose himself despite the initial shock. After all, men in such positions were not unheard of. The left prime minister's son in the court was also a man.
So, despite his advanced age, Doctor Zhang was able to accept this fact quickly.
He stripped Qin Huaiqiu naked at the fastest speed, then applied the mugwort plasters from the table onto Qin Huaiqiu's body. After that, he took out his needle pouch, spread it out beside the bed, selected silver needles from it, roasted them over the fire, and sealed the major acupoints on Qin Huaiqiu's body to force the poisonous blood bit by bit towards the tips of his right fingers.
Sikong Ting stood there stiffly. His lips were tightly pursed into a straight line. Beneath his gloomy complexion, his eyes were bright and sharp.
The person he cherished most should not suffer like this.
Sikong Ting looked down at his own hands and slowly clenched them into fists.
After a while, seeing that it was almost done, Doctor Zhang bowed to Sikong Ting and said, "Your Majesty, I'm about to let the princess consort's blood out..."
Sikong Ting nodded and replied in a deep voice, "Very well."
Doctor Zhang brought a basin and placed it beside Qin Huaiqiu's bed. Then, he took out Qin Huaiqiu's right hand. All five fingertips of his right hand had turned blue - purple. Seeing this, Sikong Ting felt a sharp pain in his heart and gritted his back teeth tightly.
Doctor Zhang spread out Qin Huaiqiu's limp palm, took out a silver needle, and pricked a small hole in each of his five fingertips.
Thick black blood gushed out from his five fingertips, drop by drop, into the wooden basin.
Qin Huaiqiu, who was in a coma, didn't even frown. His eyes were tightly closed, as if he would never wake up again.
Sikong Ting couldn't bear to watch any longer. He gritted his teeth, turned around, and walked out. He shouted, "Xu Xian! Inform Liu Yun that once the culprit is caught, he should be taken directly to the dungeon. I will interrogate him personally!"
Earlier that day, in Ningfu Palace.
The Lady Shufei had felt restless all day.
During dinner, looking at the table full of dishes specially arranged by Ying'er, she inexplicably felt nauseous.
In front of her was a bowl of duck blood vermicelli soup made by the imperial chef according to her instructions. Looking at the clots of blood floating in the soup, she suddenly felt a tightness in her throat and retched while covering her mouth.
Hearing the noise, Ying'er rushed in quickly. She patted Shufei's shoulder anxiously and asked, "Your Highness, Your Highness, what's wrong with you?"
Shufei retched violently. She felt her stomach churning. She grabbed Ying'er's sleeve tightly. For some reason, her heart was filled with panic. Her heart was pounding so hard that it seemed to burst out of her chest.
"… Your Highness?" Ying'er was worried as Shufei's face looked a bit pale. "Shall I summon the imperial doctor?"
"… I'm fine." Shufei pulled on Ying'er's sleeve, took a moment to catch her breath, and then looked up. "Go and call Chang Lin here right now."
Ying'er was startled and quickly replied, "Your Highness, didn't Lord Chang say that he wouldn't be in Jingshan these days and asked you not to look for him?"
"… He's not in Jingshan?" Shufei was taken aback.
She suddenly remembered what Ying'er had reported to her during her afternoon nap -
She had said, "Lord Chang asked this servant to tell Your Highness that the matter you instructed him about will yield results in a few days. He said that he will leave Jingshan these days and asked Your Highness not to look for him for the time being."
At that time, she was extremely sleepy. After hearing this, she fell into a deep sleep and completely forgot about it later.
Cold sweat broke out on her forehead immediately.
The matter she had instructed him about?
Could it be... the attempt to kill the Lady Defei?
Shufei's face showed panic. She clung to Ying'er's arm, and her whole body began to tremble violently.
"Your Highness?!"
"No... it can't be... He's not that stupid..." Shufei murmured, but a sense of panic welled up in her heart.
What would happen if Chang Lin really killed the Lady Defei?
Wouldn't she continue to be the emperor's favorite concubine?
Chang Lin was very smart. He should not leave any traces. Even if he was exposed, according to his personality, he should not expose her. That is to say, if the Lady Defei died, she would surely be the beneficiary.
Shufei thought about this. She wanted to burst out laughing, but her body was completely out of control.
She covered her face and cried out sadly.
Chang Lin deserved it! She had clearly advised him not to enter the palace in the first place. It was he who had castrated himself and entered the palace. Every time he helped her, it was his own willingness. She had not forced him! She hadn't!
Shufei cried, but at the same time, she kept comforting herself in her heart.
However, her mind uncontrollably conjured up some images - not Sikong Ting's affection for her, nor the queen's throne she had been longing for, but scenes related to Chang Lin. Finally, the images slowly froze on the look in Chang Lin's eyes when he had looked at her before leaving that night.
Shufei trembled all over. She felt a sudden darkness before her eyes. The next moment, she fell into darkness amidst Ying'er's urgent cries.
———————————————
A bit earlier that night, at the first watch.
The Imperial Hospital was unusually bustling that night.
Doctor Zhang had just been dragged away by Xu Xian, and then Ying'er rushed into the Imperial Hospital in a hurry for help.
It was indeed quite rare for two high - ranking concubines to have accidents on the same night. Doctor Li grabbed his medicine box and hurriedly followed Ying'er to Ningfu Palace.
Ying'er ran while crying. She fell down many times on the way. Doctor Li felt heart - ache for her, so he supported Ying'er, and the two of them entered the room together.
Shufei was lying on the bed, unconscious.
Ying'er was sobbing and gasping for breath. She quickly knelt down beside the bed and called out in a trembling voice, "Your Highness! Your Highness!"
Seeing that Shufei's forehead was darkened, Doctor Li stepped forward, wrapped Shufei's hand with a silk handkerchief, and felt her pulse. With a hint of confusion, he said, "Excessive anger attacking the heart?"
Ying'er crawled on her knees to Doctor Li's side and kowtowed repeatedly. "Lord Li, my lady was fine just now. Suddenly, she fainted and wouldn't wake up no matter how we called her. Lord Li, please, save my lady quickly!"
Doctor Li frowned and comforted her, "The Lady Shufei fainted due to excessive anger attacking the heart. This is not a serious illness. As long as she resolves her mental knot, she will be fine. I can only use medicine to relieve the stasis in her heart, but mental ailments cannot be cured by medicine. After the Lady Shufei wakes up, Miss Ying'er should persuade her not to dwell on certain matters."
"Understood, understood." Ying'er wiped away her tears and cried, "Thank you, Lord Li."
Doctor Li applied acupuncture to Shufei and then wrote a prescription for Ying'er to decoct the medicine.
Not long after the acupuncture, Shufei woke up.
She blinked her eyes, and her gaze was a bit vacant.
Ying'er entered the room with the just - decocted medicine in her hand. Seeing that Shufei was awake, she quickly knelt down beside the bed crying and said in a trembling voice, "Your Highness..."
Doctor Li bowed to Shufei and sighed, "My Lady Shufei, please forgive this old doctor for being talkative. Judging from your pulse, your mental ailment may have existed for a long time. The stasis in your heart is very serious, resulting in an imbalance between yin and yang and poor blood circulation. My Lady, please calm your mind and don't be overly anxious on a daily basis."
Shufei nodded weakly and said, "Thank you, Doctor Li..."
Doctor Li bowed and said, "Then this old doctor will take his leave. My Lady, please rest well."
Shufei nodded and said to Ying'er, "Ying'er, go and see Doctor Li out."
Ying'er nodded, stood up, and led Doctor Li to the door. She bowed to Doctor Li and said, "Please, Lord Li."
"Thank you, miss..." Doctor Li smiled. Suddenly, he sighed. As an old man, he liked to grumble. With two concubines having accidents that night, it probably wasn't a good omen, so he couldn't help but say a few more words. "Miss, please take good care of the Lady Shufei. Two concubines in the harem have had accidents in one night. This old doctor is not being talkative, but this may be a sign of great misfortune..."
Just as he finished speaking, there was suddenly the sound of porcelain shattering inside the room.
Ying'er was startled and quickly rushed in.
Shufei was leaning against the edge of the bed. The medicine bowl that Ying'er had just brought in had shattered on the ground, and the medicine juice was spilled everywhere.
Shufei's face showed panic. Her pale lips opened and closed several times. Finally, she said tremblingly, "Doctor Li... What did you just say?"