FID – Chapter 891

Chapter 891 – Someone Wants this Empress Dowager’s Life?

Before using the golden needles, Liu Yusheng first fed the Empress Dowager a small medicinal pill.

It was one she had refined herself, effective in easing coughing without any side effects.

When the golden needles finally pierced the acupuncture points, Liu Yusheng’s brows furrowed more and more tightly, and a grave expression gradually appeared on her face.

“It’s poison. Her Majesty has been poisoned.”

Qin Xiao immediately clenched his fists, his eyes turning pitch black like ink, thick with looming fury—like storm clouds gathering before a thunderstorm.

Even under his protection, someone had still managed to harm Aman! Once he found out who it was, he would tear them limb from limb and grind their bones to dust!

“Is it the medicine prescribed by the imperial physicians?” he asked in a low voice. Otherwise, Liu Yusheng wouldn’t have asked to see the medicine box just now, saying she needed to examine its contents.

“For now, I can’t determine the method of poisoning, but caution is best. I need to test all the medicine the Empress Dowager has taken,” Liu Yusheng said.

Compared to Qin Xiao’s rage and anxiety, the Empress Dowager remained calm. She didn’t believe anyone would go so far as to harm her through medication.

“All these years, whether it’s a serious illness or a minor one, the one who treats me is always the chief physician of the Imperial Medical Academy. He’s an old imperial doctor in the palace, skilled in medicine and virtuous in conduct. The medicine he prescribes shouldn’t be a problem. After all, if something were to happen to me, he would be the first unable to escape blame.”

After carefully examining and smelling the pills in the medicine box, Liu Yusheng indeed found no issues. She furrowed her brows and said thoughtfully, “It might not be the medicine itself. Perhaps it was done through some other means. I just checked Her Majesty’s pulse. While her five internal organs appear normal on the surface, there’s already a sign of kidney failure. In such a condition, even a single inappropriate medication could easily worsen the illness.”

“Kidney failure? Why would such a condition develop? Is there a known cause?” Qin Xiao’s brow was tightly knit. 

From Liu Yusheng’s expression earlier, he had already sensed that the situation was far more serious than she initially let on.

The Empress Dowager was also confused. “This Empress just saw the imperial physician yesterday, and he didn’t mention anything about kidney failure. Why is that? Did he deliberately withhold the truth, or is it possible that even such an experienced physician failed to detect it?”

To claim that the imperial physician lacked medical expertise was nearly unthinkable. Anyone qualified to serve in the palace as an imperial doctor was among the finest medical practitioners in all of Nanling.

Moreover, this physician was the chief medical officer of the Imperial Medical Academy, outstanding even among the elite.

That, in itself, made the situation all the more suspicious.

Liu Yusheng glanced around the room. At the moment, aside from themselves, there were no other palace maids or eunuchs present.

After a brief hesitation, she said, “This kind of failure is not the usual kind. Even an imperial physician might not detect it. The reason I made this diagnosis after taking the pulse is because I’ve encountered a similar case before. But that person’s condition had a different cause. He was poisoned with Gu, a parasitic toxin, which led to the slow deterioration of his internal organs. That was a chronic poison. But the Empress Dowager’s symptoms are acute.”

“You’re saying someone wants this Empress dead within a short time?”

Liu Yusheng nodded. “This is a very aggressive toxin. If it were a common poison, it wouldn’t have harmed Your Majesty, because the medicinal tea I previously sent contains a powdered antidote capable of neutralizing most poisons. As long as she drank it daily, ordinary poisons would be rendered ineffective.”

Both the Empress Dowager and Qin Xiao fell into deep thought, their expressions grim.

Grandma Liu stood off to the side, listening in stunned silence.

Upon hearing that someone had tried to poison the Empress Dowager, she immediately grew anxious and began pacing in circles. “What are we supposed to do now? The imperial palace may look glamorous on the surface, but it’s full of dirty tricks and schemes! First, Xiao Feng’er was poisoned, and now even the Empress Dowager? This palace isn’t a place for people to live at all!”

Grandma Liu turned around and grabbed the Empress Dowager’s hand. “Your Majesty, let’s not stay here anymore. Come live at the King’s Manor or even come back to Xinghua Village with me! If you keep staying in this man-eating place, you’ll lose your life! Don’t be afraid, Nannan has excellent medical skills. Come back with us, rest and recover in peace. She’ll definitely cure you and help you live a long, healthy life!”

The old woman’s hands were rough, with calluses on her palms and fingertips sharp enough to scrape skin raw. Years of farm work had made her strong, strong enough to redden a delicate wrist with a single grip.

Yet this time, the Empress Dowager didn’t scold her for being a rude commoner, nor did she chide her for overstepping. She only said with a hint of exasperation, “Look at you, at your age, you’re still getting worked up over nothing. I am the Empress Dowager. If I don’t live in the palace, where should I go? If I truly left the palace and didn’t return, the Emperor and the Prince would be scolded by the world as unfilial. One must consider the consequences before acting so recklessly all the time.”

“But someone is trying to harm you right now! We don’t even know who it is. How are we supposed to guard against the unknown? Do you want to die?!”

“Isn’t Nannan here? If she can cure organ failure once, she can do it again. And besides, because we don’t know who the culprit is, I especially can’t leave. If they tried once, they’ll try again. Now that we’re on alert, the next time they show themselves, we’ll catch them red-handed.”

Qin Xiao looked at the woman who remained unnervingly calm after learning she’d been poisoned. His fists clenched so tightly that the veins bulged from the backs of his hands, and it took every ounce of his self-control not to lose composure.

“Rest assured, Your Majesty. This old subject will assist the Prince and make sure the person behind this is found quickly!”

“With you here, I naturally feel at ease,” the Empress Dowager said calmly. “This really isn’t such a big matter. Poisoning is the most common method in palace intrigues; I’ve long since grown accustomed to it.”

Qin Xiao felt a sharp pain in his heart.

She was once the Empress, and now she was the Empress Dowager. No matter how well or poorly she fared, he had no room to intervene. All he could do was stand behind her, supporting her when she needed it.

But now he realized he couldn’t even keep her safe.

What value does his life still hold?

Great battle achievements? Power in hand? Without Aman, what use were those things?

When Feng Qingbai and Feng Mohan arrived after hearing the news, the heavy atmosphere in the hall had not dissipated.

Except for the Empress Dowager, who was calmly playing with the two little ones on the soft couch, everyone else had tightly furrowed brows.

“What’s going on?” Feng Qingbai walked over to Liu Yusheng and asked.

The Empress Dowager didn’t visit the King’s Manor yesterday. Before leaving the palace last night, he had come to check on her once but saw nothing unusual. He hadn’t expected her condition to worsen so severely today. It seemed she had been forcing herself in front of him last night.

“Imperial Aunt, what illness does the Empress Dowager have? Why has it suddenly worsened? The imperial doctors clearly said it wasn’t serious,” Feng Mohan asked as well.

Liu Yusheng pursed her lips. “The Empress Dowager was poisoned. The toxin is very similar to the Gu poison you were infected with. I suspect it might be a related toxin derived from the Gu insect.”

Feng Mohan was startled. “Related? That means the one who poisoned the Empress Dowager could very well be the same person who poisoned me back then?”

“Xiao Feng’er was poisoned at least ten years ago,” Feng Qingbai’s expression immediately grew grave.