"Second Prince, rest assured, I will certainly not let you down," Yun Sheng smiled mirthfully as she finally entered the sleeping chambers of Chao Lu Palace to inspect Empress Min.
Minutes and seconds passed by, and Chao Lu Palace was enveloped in silence.
Inside the sleeping chamber, Yun Sheng investigated the state of Empress Min’s health.
She furrowed her brows and stood up to leave.
Crown Prince Li Cheng hurried over and anxiously asked, "Divine Doctor Yun, what illness has befallen my mother? "
"Empress Min’s condition is not an illness," Yun Sheng glanced around the area.
"Could it be poisoning then?" Crown Prince Li Cheng pressed on.
"Neither is it poison," Yun Sheng looked at Chao Lu Palace, her frown growing deeper.
Seeing her deep in worry, Second Prince Li Shao spoke up with mockery, "If it’s neither an illness nor poison, Yun Sheng, perhaps you simply can’t diagnose what’s actually wrong with Empress Min? Just admit you’re a charlatan!"
"Who were all the people banquet with the Empress last night? This includes the palace maids and the cooks as well; step forward," Yun Sheng ignored Li Shao. In fact, she had already had a theory about Empress Min’s condition upon entering the palace.
After her examination just now, she was even more certain of it.
But after looking over the arrangement of the sleeping chamber, she became uncertain again.
All the palace attendants, including those who had attended the banquet, stepped forward.
Yuan Bupo and Xuan Meimei were among them, and both Li Cheng and Li Shao stepped out as well.
Last night, after the sudden incident with Empress Min, everyone had yet to remember to return home, still dressed in yesterday’s clothing.
Yun Sheng first inspected the clothes and hands of several palace maids but didn’t find anything amiss.
Next, she checked Yuan Bupo, Li Cheng; also, nothing out of ordinary.
Next in line was Second Prince Li Shao.
Li Shao, humiliated by Yun Sheng, was seething with anger and glared at her.
He was usually modest and polite, but found himself easily enraged by Yun Sheng.
"Please open your hands, Second Prince," Yun Sheng’s tone was all business as she started to check Li Shao’s hands without any hesitation.
Li Shao noticed that Yun Sheng’s hands were very slender; standing beside him, a fresh fragrance wafted to him, quite unlike the powders and rouge commonly used by the women in the palace.
"Miss Xuan, your turn," Yun Sheng had already examined most of the people, leaving only Xuan Meimei. If she couldn’t confirm it now, her previous speculation might have to be completely overturned.
"Hmph, you surnamed Yun, stop playing tricks and just admit you can’t diagnose the condition," Xuan Meimei didn’t want to be examined by Yun Sheng and made a move to leave.
Who knew that Yun Sheng suddenly grabbed her hand, "Found it, Miss Xuan, the cause of the Empress’s illness is on you."
"What? What nonsense are you talking about? Are you saying I poisoned the Empress?" Xuan Meimei’s complexion turned pale white, she had not poisoned anyone, and she raised her hand to slap Yun Sheng, "You vile wretch, you’re framing me."
Yun Sheng would not let her behave recklessly, grabbing Xuan Meimei’s hand firmly.
A surge of Dark Force from within was released, striking instantly into Xuan Meimei’s arm.
Xuan Meimei felt a sudden numbness in her arm and could not muster any strength.
As the daughter of the lord of Emperor Hong City, everyone she encountered on a daily basis treated her with great reverence. Never had she undergone such an immense humiliation as she did today.
Overwhelmed by the ordeal, she burst into tears, crying and shouting, "Brother Bu Po, Crown Prince, Second Prince, you must seek justice for me, I didn’t poison her, I didn’t do it."
Xuan Meimei poisoned her?
Yuan Bu Po was equally taken aback and hurriedly stepped forward to help Xuan Meimei up.
"Yun Sheng, could there be some misunderstanding here? Meimei has no grudge against Empress Min, why would she harm her? Moreover, we were all present at the time and saw no sign of her poisoning."
Yun Sheng shrugged, "I only said the cause of the illness was related to her, I never claimed she was the one who poisoned."
Upon hearing this, Xuan Meimei immediately stopped crying, her eyes burning with anger, "Yun Sheng, what do you mean by that?"
The bystanders were also thoroughly confused.
"Crown Prince, isn’t Empress Min allergic to pollen?" Yun Sheng did not directly engage but suddenly put the question to the Crown Prince.
As soon as he spoke, Yun Sheng realized he misspoke. The term "allergy" was likely unknown on the Wuji Continent.
The Crown Prince was really puzzled, but on hearing about flowers, it seemed he recalled something, "Empress Dowager doesn’t like flowers much. In her bedroom and even in the makeup she uses daily, there are no floral scents."
The sleeping quarters of Empress Min, unlike those of the other concubines in the harem, harbored no flowering plants, only potted pines and bamboos – a detail Yun Sheng had observed.
"That’s because Empress Min is intolerant to pollen. If the Crown Prince is unaware, any palace attendant who serves her closely would understand," Yun Sheng did call for an elder female official who served Empress Min, and the latter admitted that contact with pollen would easily cause the Empress’s face to swell and her body to itch, which is why the Empress despised flowers.
The people of ancient times did not understand that this was an allergy.
Xuan Meimei, upon hearing this, suddenly remembered something.
"When I entered the palace, I picked a flower, but it was just an ordinary flower, how could it..." At that time, she had been jealous of Yuan Bu Po for addressing Yun Sheng as his sweetheart, which led her to tear up a flower in spite.
"The flower you tore up was not an ordinary one; it is known as You Tan, a type of flower with heavy pollen. After seeing you, Empress Min must have grabbed your hand to exchange pleasantries, accidentally coming into contact with the pollen. Combined with consuming allergenic foods like fresh fruit and peanuts during the meal that night, it triggered a sudden allergic reaction causing her to fall into shock," Yun Sheng explained, just as a cheer erupted from the sleeping chambers.
A few palace maids ran out, their faces brimming with joy, "She’s awake! Following the instructions of Divine Doctor Yun, we gave the Empress fresh honey from the Imperial Garden, and she really woke up!"
On seeing this, Crown Prince Li Cheng was overjoyed and hurried inside.
Emperor Tangyuan also approached. Thɪs chapter is updatᴇd by 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡~𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚~𝙣𝙚𝙩
Empress Min had indeed barely regained consciousness, and upon seeing the worried faces of Crown Prince and Emperor Tangyuan, she offered a weak smile.
"Incredible, Yun Sheng, you weren’t even there, so how could you know what happened last night? And what are allergy and shock you mentioned? That they can they be cured by honey?" Yuan Bu Po was incredulously astounded.
As a doctor, he knew treatments involved the Golden Needle or bitter medicine; how could Yun Sheng solve it all without using anything, just by calling them out and smelling their hands or clothes?
Xuan Meimei’s face was pale as she clenched her fists tightly.
Empress Min’s illness, though not her fault, led to Brother Bu Po and the Crown Prince looking at her with slightly accusing eyes.
How could she have known that old woman, Empress Min, would be allergic to some pollen?