Reborn: Femme Fatale First Daughter

Chapter 334 The Empress Dowager of Cining Palace Is Gravely Ill

News of the Empress Dowager’s severe illness was sent to Emperor Zongwen immediately. Emperor Zongwen, who was a filial son, immediately stopped his talks with his inner cabinet about the nation’s matters and went to Cining Palace. On his way, he met the Empress, who was hurrying in the same direction as well. Emperor Zongwen did not care that the Empress was still being punished and they went to Cining Palace together.

The eunuch guarding the door paused for a moment when he saw them entering together. Then, he quickly went up to them and knelt in welcome.

Emperor Zongwen got off his palanquin and rushed in while he asked, “The Empress Dowager was doing fine yesterday night. Why did she…”

The eunuch did not dare to hesitate when he saw the grave and angry expression on Emperor Zongwen. He ran behind Emperor Zongwen, wiping the sweat off his brows while he said, “Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager was still fine when she went to bed and she had a great half bowl of rice for dinner. We saw that she was fine so we left only a few people behind lest we make too much noise. We did not think that we would find the Empress Dowager ill this morning.”

The eunuch shook nervously. The Emperor was known to be filial to the Empress Dowager. If anything happened to her, everyone in the palace would have a bad time.

“You useless slave. If anything happens to the Empress Dowager, you all can only dream about staying alive.” Emperor Zongwen said coldly. There was a flash of icy coldness in his eyes. The eunuchs and palace maids who were standing by the side were all so frightened that they lowered their heads and knelt down.

They felt wronged though. Before the Empress Dowager fell asleep last night, she was still in pretty good health. She even ate more for dinner than she usually did. Then, she had told them to leave early to rest. The Empress Dowager had not been feeling well recently and she slept very early at night. As such, this was considered a regular occurrence and no one took extra note of it.

The other servants left after leaving the Empress Dowager with lit candles that she specially asked for. Only Eunuch Yu, the manager of the palace and also the Empress Dowager’s most trusted servant stayed behind. All was silent that night, but no one expected to hear that the Empress Dowager had fallen ill the next morning. Everyone in Cining Palace was afraid and filled with trepidation. They were all afraid that they might be beheaded if they were not careful.

There were a few imperial physicians outside the palace coming up with a prescription together. When they saw Emperor Zongwen, they knelt down hurriedly and kowtowed.

“How is the Empress Dowager?” Emperor Zongwen stopped to ask. His face was dark and grave.

“The Empress Dowager had a shock the last time and still has not recovered from it. Furthermore, she has a cold and due to her advanced age, she…” The imperial physicians did not dare to hide anything and they spoke truthfully.

It was spring and Cining Palace was deep inside the palace. There were so many people looking after the Empress Dowager, who was already ill, and they all did their best. Furthermore, she was not a child, how could they let her catch a cold? Emperor Zongwen’s eyes darkened and he pursed his lips. He looked menacing as he swept his gaze upon the imperial physicians, from the first man to the last and then back again.

The coldness in the air made them all stand frigidly as the Emperor looked at them. The imperial physicians felt sweat dripping down their backs and they could not speak.

“Is the Empress Dowager in danger?” He asked coldly.

“The Empress Dowager’s body is weak and she often catches colds. We are preparing medicine and do not dare to say anything for now…” The imperial physicians could not make their difficulty known. The Empress Dowager’s illness seemed grave but it was not really a big deal. However, because of her advanced age and the fact that she had yet to recover from her previous illness, they were afraid that something bad might happen to her.

The imperial physicians all did not dare to take responsibility for that. As such, they all treated the ordinary cold as a grave illness. They were all frightened when Emperor Zongwen stared at them coldly and they conveyed their message murkily.