"This..." Nanny Gui hesitated for a moment. "Your Majesty and you have a deep affection for each other. Naturally, he loves you."
At this moment, the Empress suddenly opened her eyes and let out a cold snort. "No, he has no heart. How can there be love in the harem? Falling in love with the Son of Heaven is my sin."
"Your Majesty, you mustn't say such things."
But the Empress waved her hand, her tone tinged with weariness. "You may leave first. I want to be alone for a while."
Nanny Gui knew it was no longer appropriate to disturb the Empress at this time, so she withdrew from the small Buddhist hall.
To prevent the Empress from being bothered by such things, Nanny Gui strictly forbade the servants from gossiping in front of the Empress, especially not to mention the Concubine casually.
But there is no such thing as a wall that doesn't let the wind through in this world.
Today, it was heard that something had happened between the Concubine and the Emperor again.
Yesterday, it was heard that the Emperor had given the Concubine some excellent fabric that had been offered as tribute from the small southern country of Nanning.
One thing after another somehow managed to reach the Empress's ears. After a while, she became numb to it.
Sitting alone on the Imperial Viewing Terrace, looking at the flowers in full bloom in the imperial garden, the Empress couldn't help but feel a tinge of sadness in her heart.
The Empress herself didn't know what was going on. Usually, Xiao Huaishi doted on the Concubine, but she never used to feel melancholy because of it.
But now, she actually felt a bit touched. Could it be because she was getting old? And she had also heard that the little bitch was pregnant with the Emperor's child?
"Has Yu Jin sent any message?"
"Replying to Your Majesty, the Second Prince hasn't sent any message yet."
The Empress sighed. "Well, the affairs in the court must be keeping him busy enough. All I can do in the harem is pray for him."
At this moment, a little maid rushed over and whispered something in Nanny Gui's ear.
Nanny Gui, who had been carrying a sad air like the Empress, was suddenly shocked upon hearing the news from the little maid. She couldn't help but let out an exclamation. "What!?"
Nanny Gui's exclamation caught the Empress's attention. She slowly turned her body and looked at Nanny Gui, asking gently, "What happened?"
The little maid didn't usually stay by the Empress's side, so she was a bit timid when facing the Empress. She couldn't help but take a step back.
"Am I that scary?"
The little maid quickly knelt on the ground and shook her head. "Forgive me, Your Majesty. Forgive me, Your Majesty."
"Forget it... You may go about your business."
The little maid left quickly after receiving the order.
Nanny Gui repeated what the little maid had told her to the Empress.
An anxious look suddenly appeared on the Empress's calm face. She involuntarily grabbed Nanny Gui's hands. "Is there anything seriously wrong with the Emperor's body?"
But Nanny Gui shook her head, indicating that she didn't know either.
"Quickly take me to have a look."
When the Empress was helped into the Hall of Mental Cultivation by Nanny Gui, she saw a group of imperial physicians kneeling in the hall.
The Concubine was sitting beside Xiao Huaishi, pointing at the group of imperial physicians and scolding. "You useless quacks! You can't even cure the Emperor's illness. What's the use of you?"
The imperial physicians kneeling on the ground didn't even dare to breathe loudly. Only the head of the imperial medical academy dared to speak. "Replying to Your Majesty, the Emperor's pulse is really strange. It seems normal, but he's unconscious. I really don't know the reason."
"You only know how to shift the blame when something goes wrong. You keep saying you don't know. Then what's the use of you?"
The Empress heard the Concubine's voice from afar. Judging from her tone and manner, she seemed like the mistress of the harem. If someone didn't know, they might think that the woman beside Xiao Huaishi was the main wife of the harem.
It wasn't until the servant beside them announced, "The Empress has arrived!"
Concubine Chen was standing beside Xiao Huaishi's bed in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, looking down at the plain - dressed Empress haughtily.
The Empress slightly bowed, which was considered a salute.
Nanny Gui wanted to scold the Concubine for being disrespectful and improper, but was stopped by the Empress. The Empress slightly shook her head, as if she didn't want to pursue the matter.
But the Concubine seemed to think this wasn't enough to relieve her anger. Not only did she not take the Empress seriously, but she also sarcastically said, "Seeing that the Emperor is ill, but sister is the last one to arrive. If someone didn't know, they might think sister doesn't care about the Emperor at all."
But the Empress ignored what the Concubine said and directly walked to Xiao Huaishi's side, lifting the thick curtain.
She saw Xiao Huaishi lying pale on the dragon bed, looking as if he was just sleeping.
After taking a quick look at Xiao Huaishi, the Empress walked up to the head of the imperial medical academy.
"Look up and tell me what's wrong with the Emperor?" The Empress's voice was soft, but it carried a kind of aura that was hard to refuse. This was the aura she had developed after more than 20 years on the position of the Empress.
It wasn't something that anyone could imitate.
The head of the imperial medical academy looked up and saw the Empress standing in front of him. He replied tremblingly, "Replying to the Empress, I don't know what's going on either. Maybe the Emperor is over - exhausted, which has led to a deficiency of qi and blood. But his pulse is extremely normal. It's really strange. Now the Emperor is sometimes awake and sometimes unconscious. We can only use the best medicinal herbs in the prescription to nourish the Emperor's body."
Although the head of the imperial medical academy was trembling when he spoke, he didn't stutter. So based on his words, the Empress roughly understood Xiao Huaishi's condition.
So the Empress gave an order. "You take these smart people and wait here in the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Pay attention to the Emperor's body at all times. If there's a shortage of medicinal herbs, tell me."
The head of the imperial medical academy nodded. "I will follow the Empress's order."
Then the Empress took out a small key from her body and handed it to the head of the imperial medical academy. "This is the key to my small storage room. If you're short of any medicinal herbs, you can go and pick them."
The head of the academy took the key from the Empress.
This action made the Concubine extremely jealous. After all, the Empress had taken control of the situation as soon as she arrived, which wasn't what she wanted to see. But at this moment, regarding matters related to Xiao Huaishi's health, it was better to be more restrained.
So although the Concubine was angry, she could only swallow her anger.