Di Yunjian saw that her complexion was fair, not as frighteningly pale as yesterday.
He reached out and stroked her delicate neck, a hint of coldness flashing in his eyes.
If it weren't for the fact that the Zhenyuan Marquis Mansion hadn't been completely uprooted yet, he wouldn't have needed to keep Yan Lanxin and even bestow upon her the title of Liangdi.
But it would be over soon. Very soon.
Di Yunjian picked up the ointment on the dressing table. With his well - defined fingers, he pinched some ointment and gently applied it to her neck bit by bit, carefully spreading it out, for fear of hurting her.
"Does it still hurt?"
His voice was filled with concern.
Yan Qingshu frowned slightly and murmured, "It doesn't hurt."
"You're lying. Your eyebrows are all knitted. How can it not hurt?" Di Yunjian chuckled and continued to apply the ointment carefully.
Yan Qingshu tilted her head back to make it easier for him to apply. She wasn't lying. It really didn't hurt much.
The wound hadn't been serious in Fengzao Palace yesterday. Yan Lanxin had known her limits when she attacked. Yan Qingshu had just used some tricks to make it look more serious.
"Okay, put your head down." Seeing her struggling to keep her head up, Di Yunjian covered his lips and smiled softly.
"I'm a bit busy today. I'll come and have dinner with you tonight. I'll ask the imperial kitchen to send you something to eat later."
"Don't think about anything. Just rest well. Do you understand?" Di Yunjian stood up, leaned over, and planted a kiss on her forehead.
Yan Qingshu nodded. Seeing that he was about to get dressed, she was about to get up to serve him.
"Come on, just lie there."
Seeing her trying to get up with her big belly made his heart skip a beat.
Yan Qingshu lay back down with a smile, watching him being served while dressing and grooming himself. Finally, he put on a solemn court robe and went to the court session.
"Take good care of your mistress. If she has any discomfort, report it to Qianyuan Hall immediately. Otherwise, I'll hold you accountable."
Before leaving, Di Yunjian seriously instructed Zhu Yao and Shihua.
The two quickly nodded and said, "Your Majesty, please rest assured!"
Only then did Di Yunjian leave with confidence.
When his figure completely disappeared, the smile on Yan Qingshu's face faded. She reached out and rubbed her face that was almost stiff from smiling.
"Mistress."
After the two of them saw that the emperor had gone far away, they entered the bedroom. Shihua was asked to stand guard outside the bedroom.
"How is it? What about Xianshu?" Yan Qingshu sat up straight, stroking her belly as she spoke coldly.
"Mistress, Xianshu was tortured after she was sent to the Forbidden Court last night, but she never revealed who instigated her. She only said that she was jealous of you, so she poisoned you." Zhu Yao also looked a bit worried.
She hadn't expected Xianshu to be so loyal to the person behind the scenes.
"Humph, she sure has a tough mouth." Yan Qingshu sneered and leaned against the edge of the bed.
"Who do you think it could be?"
"I think it might be the queen, mistress. After all, the things she sent you all had bad implications. I don't think the queen is as kind as the rumors say."
Shihua stroked her chin, thought for a while, and then spoke.
"What about you?" Yan Qingshu turned to Zhu Yao.
Zhu Yao frowned and then shook her head. "I don't think it's the queen. The queen promised the emperor to take care of your pregnancy. She shouldn't do such an obvious thing."
"Then who could it be?"
"It can't be what Xianshu said, that she was really just jealous of you, mistress. I remember she didn't read much. How could she come up with such a vicious method as using cinnabar?" Shihua sat on the stool beside the bed, lost in thought.
"You're right. It couldn't have been Xianshu's own idea. There must be someone else."
Yan Qingshu stroked her chin and looked at Zhu Yao.
"Did Li Dahai, who serves the emperor, say anything else?"
Zhu Yao shook her head. "Eunuch Li only said that Xianshu had a very tough mouth and they couldn't get anything out of her."
"If they still can't get any information, they might beat Xianshu to death."
"Beat her to death then. Mistress has been so kind to us, but she had other ideas and betrayed mistress. She deserves to be beaten to death!" Shihua said angrily.
"However, this morning, Aunt Dongyun, who serves the empress dowager, said that this matter was too serious and must be thoroughly investigated. If they really can't find out anything, they will gather all the maids and servants to watch Xianshu be tortured and beaten to death."
Zhu Yao remembered the news she heard this morning and spoke.
"Mistress, I support beating Xianshu to death. But you're pregnant. It's not good to see blood in the palace. What if it brings bad luck to the two little masters?" Zhu Yao reached out and stroked her bulging belly, her eyes full of worry.
"If my children are so easily affected by those who want to harm them, how can they be my children?"
Yan Qingshu didn't believe in such superstitions. With the system, she and her children were auspicious. What was there to be afraid of?
However, this matter was indeed troublesome. She hadn't expected Xianshu to be so stubborn. No matter what methods the Forbidden Court used, they couldn't pry her mouth open.
If they couldn't find out, with the queen in front and the hidden enemy behind, they would be caught between two fires.
Now that the empress dowager had intervened, it should be easier to investigate.
She propped her head up and sighed.
"Are you still sleepy, mistress? Do you want to sleep a bit more?" Seeing her looking tired, Zhu Yao asked.
"No. Have you finished tidying up the things in the side room?" Yan Qingshu shook her head and asked.
This question left Shihua a bit confused.
"What things?"
Yan Qingshu smiled softly and told them the whole story.
It turned out that Xianshu had hidden the packet of cinnabar so well that they hadn't been able to find it. Zhu Yao had gone to the imperial hospital in Xianshu's name and taken a handful of cinnabar, wrapped it in paper, and placed it in a conspicuous place.
The cinnabar that Xianshu had originally obtained from elsewhere was still hidden in the side room.
"Mistress, so you knew she had put cinnabar in your food a long time ago!" Shihua was a bit surprised.
"Actually, it was her own carelessness. I just happened to see her sneaking around and putting something in the food."
"Zhu Yao and I set up a trap, and she just walked right into it."
"I didn't tell you because I was afraid you were too hot - tempered and would go to Xianshu and expose the matter."
Yan Qingshu said all this without any guilt.
"So that's how it is." Shihua nodded in understanding.
Suddenly, Tan Xiang's voice came from outside.
"Mistress, many noble ladies outside said they wanted to come and pay their respects to you."
"Find an excuse to send them away. Since they're not from Guanghan Hall, why would they come to pay their respects to me? They might as well go and pay their respects to the queen if they have the time."
She naturally knew why these concubines were here. Yan Lanxin had just returned to the palace yesterday, and the news of her demotion had spread last night.
In their eyes, she, the beloved Concubine Zhen who was pregnant with the emperor's heir, was the first person they wanted to get on good terms with.
Unfortunately, these people had all laughed at her one way or another. She would never make friends with them.
No one was stupid enough to associate with people who were two - faced.
Tang Yinmian was a case in point.
Speaking of Tang Yinmian, she had been in the Cold Palace for a month. She wondered if she was used to it.
Tan Xiang responded and went out to find an excuse to send the concubines away.
"Help me dress and do my makeup. I can't sleep anymore."
Yawning, Yan Qingshu sat in front of the dressing mirror, her eyes still sleepy.
Zhu Yao and Shihua helped her comb her hair and change her clothes. Then they asked Xiaoluzi to serve breakfast.