novelden Chapter 881: Drunk
Chapter 881: Drunk
Inside the palace
Pei Dafu held Ai Lang's urgent memorial in his hand, hurried to His Majesty's side, and reported in a low voice: "Your Majesty, Prime Minister Ai has an urgent memorial to present."
Sheng Jingchen raised his eyebrows slightly and glanced at Pei Dafu sideways, "Prime Minister Ai? Isn't he presiding over the Imperial Examination? Why is this old man still feeling aggrieved?"
As soon as he finished speaking, he took the memorial and looked at it. With just a glance, the scene of Ai Lang's silver beard standing up, his eyes wide open, pointing at his nose and cursing suddenly appeared in his mind.
The entire memorial was filled with sarcastic remarks, saying that he had supported the two juniors, causing them to become arrogant and treat the imperial examinations and official careers as a joke, and even expanded it to mean that he treated the country of the Great Zhou as a joke.
He was criticized for nothing and was no different from a tyrant!
Sheng Jingchen: ...
"boom"
The emperor slammed the abusive memorial shut. The flickering candlelight flickered in his eyes. He couldn't help but curse, "These two stinking brats! Order the Imperial Examination Hall to kneel before me, no matter when they hand in their papers, until the end of the third round."
Pei Dafu's expression instantly changed for the worse, and he cautiously replied, "Your Majesty, I'm afraid it's too late. Lin Yuzan and Young Master Wang handed in their papers and left the Imperial Examination Hall at the end of the Si hour."
The emperor paused for a moment after hearing this, then flew into a rage, "They've truly rebelled! Pei Dafu, order someone to bring those two brats here. I want to see them kneel down myself."
Pei Dafu quickly responded and retreated out of the hall while silently mourning for Wang and Lin.
Unexpectedly, just as he was about to step out of the hall, he suddenly heard a pair of hurried footsteps.
A steward eunuch hurriedly ran to the palace gate, knelt on the ground with a plop, and reported loudly: "Your Majesty, Princess Jiahe and Princess Le'an have entered the palace."
Pei Dafu was stunned when he heard this, and then he said in a low voice with an unhappy expression: "How dare you! It's just two princesses entering the palace, and you are so disrespectful! If you disturb His Majesty, you'll have to be careful with your head!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a voice calling for entry was heard from inside the hall.
Pei Dafu glared at the eunuch in charge, then led him back into the hall.
The eunuch in charge hurriedly wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, knelt down again and kowtowed before the emperor, and then a questioning voice came from above his head.
"What happened?"
The eunuch in charge quickly responded, "Your Majesty, Princess Jiahe and Princess Le'an were brought into the palace by shadow guards and several men in black, crossing the palace wall. Besides them, there was also the Crown Prince's tutor, Young Master Lin, and three others, all unconscious."
"Commander Wu has already led his men to pursue those men in black. Upon hearing the news, the Empress Dowager has placed them in a side hall of the Fushou Palace..."
Before he could finish his words, the emperor suddenly stood up, his face stern, and strode out, leaving behind an order: "Order Concubine Nuan to go to Fushou Palace."
"Yes."
Pei Dafu quickly glanced at the mostly unapproved memorials, then hurriedly picked up his cloak and chased after him.
Inside Fushou Palace, the Empress Dowager was furious.
She threw the teacup in her hand to the ground, and the fragments scratched the cheeks of several kneeling imperial doctors.
"The Imperial Hospital is a bunch of useless people. No one can tell what kind of drug the princess has been given. You can't even wake her up. What use do I have for you?"
The imperial physicians' faces flushed red. One wiped the sweat from his forehead and explained, "Your Majesty, please calm down. I am a humble servant with limited knowledge and have never seen such a drug before. I dare not prescribe it without permission, fearing that it might harm the princess's precious body. However, the head of the academy, Cui Xiangyang, is knowledgeable and experienced, and perhaps he can identify what this drug is."
Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager's expression eased slightly, and she urged, "Cui Xiangyang? What are you waiting for? Call him over to me!"
By the end of her words, she was already slamming the table anxiously.
Several imperial physicians looked at each other with embarrassment on their faces. One of them replied truthfully, "Your Majesty, Court Administrator Cui's daughter disappeared the day before yesterday. Your Majesty has granted him special leave from his duties at the Imperial Hospital for the past few days. He is not in the palace at the moment."
"What are you waiting for? Bring me the imperial decree and order him to come to the palace to treat the princess." The Queen Mother said anxiously.
Before the palace servants could run out to pass on the message, the emperor's calm voice came from the doorway, "Mother, there's no need to summon Cui Xiangyang to the palace. It's just a little bit of a drug! Once the drug wears off, the princess will wake up on her own."
As he spoke, the emperor had already walked into the palace with the "Nuan Fei".
The "Nuan Fei" gracefully passed by the imperial physicians and continued with contempt, "That's right, it's just a little bit of aphrodisiac, yet none of them can do anything. These imperial physicians are truly useless, no different from drunkards."
As soon as he said this, he received a warning glare from the emperor and angry stares from the imperial doctors.
He sneered indifferently, gently stroked the phoenix hairpin in his temples, twisted his waist and snuggled up to the emperor's side, calling softly: "Your Majesty! Are you right?"
Sheng Jingchen: ...
The emperor's gaze immediately turned to the imperial physician lying on the ground, and he shouted with disdain, "Useless thing, get out!"
The imperial doctors hurriedly withdrew as if they had been pardoned.
The Empress Dowager looked at the fleeing figures with displeasure on her face. She demanded, "Your Majesty, what is your intention? If you don't call Cui Xiangyang, do you intend to watch them fall into a coma and be harmed by the drug?"
However, her question fell on deaf ears and did not cause any ripples.
When the emperor heard this, he just glanced at her calmly and replied, "Mother, you are so thoughtful. The emperor will take Concubine Nuan to see them! He also knows some medical skills."
After saying this, he took the "Nuan Fei" to the side hall, not caring that the old woman was shaking with anger.
But after a moment, a harsh sound was heard in the hall, and the tea set on the table was swept to the ground again and shattered into pieces. The empress dowager also walked to the side hall, leaving the mess on the ground.
In the side hall, the flickering candlelight filled the surroundings with warmth. Little Yining and Wang Gungun lay side by side on the brocade couch, looking cute and adorable.
"Nuan Fei" felt the pulse of the two children with a slightly serious expression, then bent down and sniffed their faces, then stood up, covering her nose with an embroidered handkerchief.
At the same time, the Empress Dowager's concerned voice came from behind him: "How is it? Did Concubine Nuan see anything?"
Concubine Nuan looked at the old woman whose expression changed as if she were turning the pages of a book when she learned that he knew the art of medicine. She nodded slightly and replied solemnly, "These two children... must have wet the bed last night. They have a faint smell of urine on them. Although they have washed, they still cannot escape my keen sense of smell."
Queen Mother: ...
The old woman was so angry that her fingers were shaking again. She pointed at "Nuan Fei" angrily and was about to throw the cup to vent her anger. Fortunately, the emperor spoke in time to comfort her.
"Mother, please calm down."
Sheng Jingchen secretly glared at the "Nuan Fei" and kept his tone calm: "Don't make trouble, answer me properly."
Concubine Nuan returned a charming smile and finally got back to the point: "Your Majesty, Princess Le'an and the others are suffering from the Thousand Day Drunkenness. Although their number is very small, without an antidote, they won't wake up for a month."