FID – Chapter 890

Chapter 890: The Empress Dowager’s Temperament 

“No wonder we didn’t see the Empress Dowager yesterday. If she wasn’t feeling well, why didn’t anyone say anything? If I’d known, I would have gone into the palace to see her,” the old lady slapped her leg in frustration, then turned to pick up Xiao Badou and handed him to Liu Yusheng, taking Hongdou into her own arms. “Let’s go, quickly. Otherwise, with her stubborn nature, she’ll probably force herself to come over before long.”

Chen Xiulan hurriedly fetched a few clean diapers for them to take along. The whole family urged them to head to the palace quickly, their worry no less than Qin Xiao’s.

The Empress Dowager’s illness must not be minor for the Grand General himself to come to request this.

Qin Xiao gave the Liu family a deep look and cupped his hands. “Thank you.”

Perhaps this was why Aman was so tolerant and accepting of the Liu family.

“General Qin, let’s go.” Liu Yusheng took the lead and headed out.

Feng Qingbai was still in the palace. He hadn’t mentioned anything about the Empress Dowager being unwell yesterday, so it was likely that even he had been kept in the dark.

The Empress Dowager had always been the type to stubbornly keep up appearances.

On the way to Yangxin Hall, Liu Yusheng didn’t ask why Qin Xiao seemed to know so much about the Empress Dowager’s condition.

Back when she almost fell from the windowsill at the palace, the young man who saved her was called Qin Yi by the Empress Dowager.

With the surname Qin, he was undoubtedly related to General Qin. The only question was whether the Empress Dowager knew this.

If she did and still kept him close by, then her feelings for General Qin might not have truly faded.

Before they even entered the hall, they could already hear harsh coughing from inside, along with an old maid’s anxious attempts to soothe her.

“Your Majesty, you’re coughing so severely right now. It really isn’t wise to leave the palace. Please rest and recover for a couple of days. It won’t be too late to go after you’re better.”

“I… cough, cough, just want to take one look… cough, and I’ll come back…” The old woman’s voice was strained with labored breathing, but her stubbornness remained unchanged. The old maid couldn’t persuade her at all. “Bring me the medicine… cough-cough! Once I drink it, I won’t cough so much… cough-cough!”

“You mustn’t take any more right now! That medicine is to be taken only once every three hours. Your Majesty just took one a short while ago!” The effects of the medicine only lasted about half an hour.

If the Empress Dowager hadn’t felt dizzy when she tried to get up earlier, she would’ve already left the palace regardless of anyone’s protests.

“Bring it! Cough-cough-cough!”

The old maid was helpless and could only retrieve another pill from a small box nearby. Just as she was about to hand it over, a large hand suddenly snatched it away. “You can’t take another one.”

Back at the palace entrance, Grandma Liu’s eyes widened in shock. “Girl, was that flash that just sped past us like the wind General Qin?”

Liu Yusheng twitched at the corner of her mouth. “Yes.”

He really did move like the wind. One moment he was beside them, and the next, he had completely vanished. All they caught was a blur trailing behind him.

Inside the hall, the Empress Dowager glared at the man who had suddenly appeared before her. She forcibly suppressed her coughing, holding it back until her face turned red, refusing to cough even once in his presence. 

She didn’t dare speak either, afraid that opening her mouth would trigger another fit of coughing and expose her weakened state to him.

“You can’t take any more,” Qin Xiao said as he returned the pill to the ornate box. “I just went to request—”

The Empress Dowager ignored him completely and reached out to snatch the box away.

But the General simply lifted it high out of her reach. With the stark difference in height, even if she jumped, she couldn’t touch it.

The old maid stood quietly at the side, not uttering a word. Though she knew she shouldn’t be siding with General Qin, she also didn’t want to see the Empress Dowager constantly taking medicine to suppress her cough.

After several failed attempts to grab the box, the Empress Dowager truly lost her temper. Perhaps due to her illness, her anger loosened her tongue, and she suddenly lashed out to vent her bottled-up frustration. “You—cough-cough—you’re bullying me? Cough-cough-cough! You’re trying to bully me again!”

“When have I ever bullied you?” Qin Xiao asked.

“You always did! Ever since we were children! Cough-cough! You never let me win even once when we played chess!”

At the threshold of the inner hall, Liu Yusheng nearly choked on her breath. A surge of laughter welled up in her chest, but she didn’t dare let it out. 

The Empress Dowager, acting willfully due to illness, was now dredging up old grievances? She was picking this moment to settle old scores with General Qin?

She said since we were children? So the Empress Dowager and General Qin had known each other since they were young?

Grandma Liu, on the other hand, stood off to the side, her eyes practically sparkling. 

Oh my, oh my! The person who always insisted on being dignified and composed actually had such an undignified side too? Once she recovers and comes to her senses, she’ll definitely be too embarrassed to show her face. Should I keep watching the show or not?

After the Empress Dowager’s outburst, she panted heavily and glared fiercely at Qin Xiao. She once again held back her coughs, refusing to appear weak in front of him.

He knew just how stubborn and proud she was.

Lowering his gaze, Qin Xiao looked deeply at her, his eyes clouded with unreadable emotion, even a bitter taste rising in his mouth.

Back in their youth, when they played chess, it wasn’t that he refused to go easy on her to bully her. It was because if she won, she wouldn’t play with him again—for fear of tarnishing her perfect record. Only by always letting her lose would she keep coming back to play with him. Even if she ended up furious and flipped the chessboard, she’d still show up the next day, demanding a rematch.

That was the secret little trick of a boy in love, tucked away and quietly hidden.

“I’ve brought the Princess Consort,” he said softly. “Xiao Badou and Hongdou are here too. Your Majesty doesn’t need to leave the palace.”

The Empress Dowager was momentarily stunned, then immediately turned her head toward the door, only to meet Grandma Liu’s sparkling eyes directly.

Her already flushed face turned an even deeper shade of red.

“Look at you,” Grandma Liu began, walking into the hall with Hongdou in her arms, suppressing her gossip-loving nature, “You’re not young anymore, so why are you still so headstrong? If you’re not feeling well, you should be resting properly. What are you doing trying to run around? If you wanted to see Xiao Badou and Hongdou, you could’ve just sent a message. You really do love to stir things up.”

“Who—cough-cough!—who are you calling not young anymore!” the Empress Dowager retorted. When she saw Grandma Liu approaching, she abruptly stepped back a couple of paces. “Don’t come any closer! Cough! Don’t pass my illness on to the children.”

Liu Yusheng also stepped in, placed Xiao Badou on the soft couch, and helped the Empress Dowager sit down. “Xiao Badou and Hongdou are both in excellent health. It’s not that easy for them to catch something. And besides, Your Majesty, it’s just a cough, not a contagious illness. There’s no need to be overly cautious.”

As she spoke, she gently placed her hand on the Empress Dowager’s wrist to check her pulse.

With the two babies right in front of her, their chubby little faces pink and adorable, the Empress Dowager couldn’t bear to look away. Her attention quickly shifted, and with her mood lifted, the anger she’d been feeling also began to dissipate.

She let Grandma Liu continue lecturing her from the side, while extending her finger for Xiao Badou to grab.

The old maid by her side began explaining the Empress Dowager’s condition over the past two days. “Previously, after drinking the herbal tea sent by the Princess Consort, Her Majesty’s nighttime coughing had gradually improved. But yesterday morning, after getting out of bed, she suddenly felt dizzy, and the coughing began again. It rapidly worsened in just half a day. The imperial doctors were summoned, but the medication they prescribed had little effect. It can only slightly suppress the coughing.”

Liu Yusheng slowly furrowed her brows. After withdrawing her fingers, she looked toward the medicine box. “General, may I trouble you to let me take a look at that medicine?”

“Is there something wrong with it?” Qin Xiao’s expression instantly turned cold, his years of battlefield aura radiating outwards, causing the entire hall to feel a few degrees colder.

“I’m not sure whether it’s the medicine being ineffective or something else, but Her Majesty’s pulse shows faint irregularities. I’ll need to use acupuncture needles shortly for a deeper diagnosis.”

Her words caused everyone in the hall to feel a heavy weight in their hearts. No one here questioned her medical skills. For her to treat a mere cough with such seriousness, it clearly wasn’t a minor issue.