Chapter 619: Trapped in the Fire (1)
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
After learning from Empress Dowager Wei that the emperor had woken up and that the order to not see everyone had indeed come from him, Shangguan Heng directly treated her as Shangguan Pu’s accomplice.
Compared to his grandmother, whom he had just met a few times, he clearly trusted his second brother’s judgment more.
As soon as Empress Dowager Wei left with her men, he clamored to enter Yangxin Hall.
In the end, Lord Jing, who had rushed over after receiving the news, reprimanded him as an elder brother and ordered him not to approach Yangxin Hall again without his permission.
“Second Brother, even Grandmother is on Eldest Brother’s side. What should we do now?” Shangguan Heng scratched his head in frustration.
Empress Dowager Wei’s simple words were equivalent to vouching for Shangguan Pu. They had just spread the news that the emperor was imprisoned, and the news would probably be suppressed soon.
Shangguan Yu’s fingers rubbed the corners of his sleeves gently. He pursed his lips and said, “Don’t you still have to see Consort Shu? Go quickly.”
“Second Brother, aren’t you going with me?” Shangguan Heng asked.
Shangguan Yu shook his head. “No, I have something to do and have to leave the palace early.”
After returning to Cining Palace, Empress Dowager Wei asked MO Yuan about the emperor’s condition again and received the same answer as before.
Her face was usually expressionless. Even Empress Dowager Wei, who thought that her eyes were sharp, could not tell if this was the truth or a lie.
After lunch in Cining Palace, Madam Qiu could tell that Empress Dowager Wei was tired, so she bade farewell.
The pills she had taken recently were all made of well water with spiritual liquid. Her health was much better than before, but she could not compare to ordinary people.
Empress Dowager Wei was afraid that Shen Yijia would catch a cold, so she instructed someone to prepare a sedan chair and packed a box of snacks for Shen Yijia.
“I remember that Song Daniu likes this jade cake the most. His descendants probably like it too. Bring it back for your family to try.”
These words were actually unfounded. Who would like some snacks just because their father or mother liked them?
Especially when Empress Dowager Wei looked at her before she left, Shen Yijia felt that it meant something.
The sedan chair stopped at the entrance of the palace. Shen Yijia helped Madam Qiu down and saw a familiar carriage parked on the palace path. Two men with the same aura stood there and chatted. Hearing the commotion, they both turned around.
Shen Yijia’s eyes lit up.
“Madam Qiu.” The two of them went forward to greet Madam Qiu.
“Your Highness Lord Xian, Earl Zhongyi.” Madam Qiu bowed. Others gave her face, but she had to know her limits.
The two of them bowed. Shen Yijia resisted the urge to pounce on Song Jingchen and helped Madam Qiu into the carriage.
After she left, she took a few steps forward and held Song Jingchen’s hand. She tilted her head and asked, “Hubby, are you here to pick me up?”
Song Jingchen reached out and rubbed her head, not denying it.
“Since Sister-in-law is here, I’ll leave first,” Shangguan Yu said.
Song Jingchen said distantly, ‘Your Highness, take care.”
Shangguan Yu paused and shook his head with a bitter smile. In the end, he didn’t say anything and got into his carriage to leave.
“Why is he here?” Shen Yijia pursed her lips and asked.
“We happened to meet.” Song Jingchen helped her into the carriage. The ice mirror that was used to hold the ice cubes had been replaced with charcoal, and a steady stream of heat spread out from there. The inside and outside of the carriage were two completely different worlds.
Song Jingchen poured a cup of hot tea and handed it to her. “Did you see the emperor?”
After taking a sip of tea, Shen Yijia felt her entire body warm up. Hearing this, she paused. “How did you know?”
After asking, she thought of Shangguan Yu and thought that he was the one who said it.
She put down her teacup and told him everything that had happened in the palace. After saying that, she called MO Yuan into the carriage to ask about the cause of the emperor’s illness.
“He was fed medicine, and his symptoms are identical to those of a stroke.” MO Yuan paused and continued, “I realized that there seems to be another slow-acting medicine in his body. It’s not fatal, but it’s addictive.”
Everything complemented and countered each other. If there was a poison, there was naturally an antidote. However, this was different. It was not considered a poison, but it could destroy a person’s will when their drug addiction acted up.
The early-stage ingredients could refresh one’s mind, but as time passed, it would make one irritable until one became a complete lunatic.
Therefore, the emperor was not only tortured by Shangguan Pu’s poison, but his rationality was also corroded by another drug addiction.
It could be said to be tragic!
Song Jingchen recalled that when he first entered the palace, Eunuch Li had said that Ji Yunxi was refining pills for the emperor. Sometimes, if a court session dragged on, he could see him taking pills..
