Yuqiongyin

As the lights came on, the noise of the dinner gradually faded away, and the palace walls returned to silence.

Wei Ming and others were in Kunning Palace, the candlelight flickered, and the light and shadow danced on his face.

His fingers tapped the armrest unconsciously, and his eyes looked towards the palace gate from time to time, looking forward to Xie Chenning's return.

At the dinner today, Xie Chenning announced that she was pregnant, and soon after, he asked her to leave and return to the palace to rest.

But his heart was always worried about the baby in her belly.

At this moment, there were subtle footsteps outside the palace. Wei Ming sat up straight suddenly, with a hint of surprise in his eyes.

However, when that figure appeared, it was not the queen he was expecting, but a palace maid from Minghua Palace.

"Your Majesty, this servant of yours pays respect to you. Concubine Ming has fainted again. Your Majesty, please go and see her."

Wei Ming frowned slightly, leaned back in his chair, and after thinking for a moment, decided to go to Minghua Palace to take a look.

Walking through the long corridor, the hurried footsteps were particularly clear in the silent palace at night. After all, he still felt that he owed Ming Fei.

When he arrived at Minghua Palace, Wei Ming rushed in without waiting for the attendants to inform him.

The hall was filled with a strong smell of medicine, and the flickering candlelight reflected a desolate scene.

Ming Fei lay quietly on the bed, her face as pale as paper, her long black hair scattered messily on the pillow. Her once bright eyes were now closed, her brows tightly furrowed, as if she was trapped in an endless painful nightmare.

Wei Ming walked quickly to the bedside and when he sat down, he created a gust of wind that made the curtains beside the bed sway gently.

He stretched out his hand tremblingly and gently held Ming Fei's cold little hand. That hand had been so soft and warm in the past, but now it was like ice.

His eyes were full of pain and pity, and his lips trembled slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but was choked in his throat.

After a long time, he finally found his voice and called softly, "Ni'er..." His voice was hoarse, full of tenderness and sadness.

Wei Ming gently pushed aside the hair on Ming Fei's forehead and looked at her haggard face, his eyes full of heartache.

At this time, Doctor Zhang knelt down tremblingly and reported Ming Fei's condition to the emperor.

Wei Ming frowned, a trace of anger flashed in his eyes: "I gave her to you to take good care of, why did it turn out like this?"

Doctor Zhang was so frightened that he kowtowed repeatedly and dared not speak a word.

Wei Ming gently stroked the concubine's cheek and murmured to himself: "Ni'er, you must get better. I can't live without you."

Ming Fei slowly opened her eyes, her eyes were empty and desperate.

When she saw Wei Ming, tears welled up in her eyes again and rolled down her cheeks.

"Your Majesty...our child..." Ming Fei burst into tears instantly.

Wei Ming embraced Ming Fei in his arms, patted her back gently, and comforted her like coaxing a child: "Ni'er, don't be too sad, your health is important. You will have children, children..."

But he also knew that it would be difficult for Mu Ni to get pregnant again, and these words were so powerless at this moment.

Fortunately, he still has the baby in the queen's belly.

*

As the night deepened, the night wind blew in through the gaps in the window lattices, bringing a hint of coolness.

The moonlight shines on the glazed tiles of the palace, casting a cool light.

Wei Ke walked to the window and looked at the watery moonlight.

Hearing footsteps behind him, he knew it was Xie Chenning.

"I just came back and saw Wei Ming coming. Is he leaving so soon?"

Xie Chenning looked indifferent, and smiled, but the smile did not reach his eyes, "She was called away by Concubine Ming pretending to be sick."

Wei Ke turned around to look at her, only to see Xie Chenning sitting quietly on the main seat. She was wearing a gorgeous phoenix robe. The phoenix embroidered with gold thread sparkled brightly under the candlelight, and that light also illuminated the indifference in her eyes.

"My lady, it seems that she is really anxious."

"Well, we can start arranging other things." Xie Chenning's voice was cold, as if he was talking about something very ordinary.

Wei Ke shook his head, "I need to go there in person for this matter."

"Then I'll go with you."

"it is good."

The two of them dressed simply, avoided everyone's sight, and walked towards the Imperial Hospital.

Wei Ke learned today that there is an imperial physician in the Imperial Medical Bureau who once treated the late emperor, and perhaps he could get some clues from him.

In a remote corner of the Imperial Medical Bureau, the two found the residence of the imperial physician.

Xie Chenning knocked gently on the door, and it opened a crack, revealing the old and frightened face of the imperial physician.

"Who are you?" the imperial physician asked in a low voice.

The person behind Xie Chenning only showed his face. The imperial physician hesitated for a moment, but still let the two of them into the house.

The room was filled with a strong smell of medicine, and various medical books and medicinal materials were placed around.

"Why are you two here..."

"The late emperor."

The doctor was a little shocked, then sighed: "Your Highness, this matter is of great importance. I don't want to mention it again, but the late emperor has been kind to me, and I can't bear to see the truth buried."

The imperial physician raised his head, looked at Wei Ke with a firm gaze, and began to tell him about the little-known past.

It turned out that when the late emperor was seriously ill, his condition had once shown signs of improvement.

At that time, everyone saw hope and thought that the late emperor would be able to recover.

However, just when everyone was full of expectations, the situation took a turn for the worse. The emperor's condition suddenly worsened rapidly and ultimately there was no way to save him.

When the imperial physician recalled the scene at that time, his face was full of pain and self-blame.

He said that when he treated the late emperor again, he unexpectedly discovered that the original prescription seemed to have been secretly tampered with.

The dosage of the medicinal ingredients that were supposed to be effective had inexplicably changed.

However, the situation was very complicated at the time, and he knew very well that if he made it public, not only would he be in danger, but he might also alert the enemy.

Therefore, he could only bury this secret deep in his heart, secretly wondering and investigating.

Moreover, according to the imperial physician, during that period, there were some abnormalities in the flow of medicinal materials in the Imperial Hospital. Sometimes, some precious medicinal materials would disappear for no reason; and sometimes, some medicinal materials of unknown origin would be mixed in.

Although these clues may seem trivial, they are like pieces of a puzzle, vaguely pointing to the empress dowager who was serving the late emperor at the time. She is the only one who could manipulate all this behind the scenes.

After listening to the imperial physician's narration, Xie Chenning's expression became more serious.

*

In the Cining Palace, a gloomy atmosphere permeated the hall.

The Queen Mother was dressed in gorgeous clothes and sat on the Phoenix Chair, which symbolized supreme authority. Her face was gloomy, and her eyes, which should have been kind and gentle, were now flashing a chilling sinister light.

"Humph, Xie Chenning actually dared to deceive me and got pregnant with the dragon heir."

The Queen Mother said through gritted teeth, her voice full of anger and resentment.

Eunuch Zhao knelt on the ground, shaking uncontrollably.

At this moment, the Queen Mother was rapidly calculating various things in her mind. No matter what the cost, she would never allow Xie Chenning and the Xie family to take away the power in her hands.