The maidservant is too charming. I want to help her become the queen.

It turned out that when Lu Qingqing was sent back to Yinglan Pavilion, it was Xiaotao who helped her change clothes.

Xiaotao's father is a quack doctor who travels among the people. Xiaotao has been learning from her father since she was young and is quite knowledgeable about medicine.

When she got the dark purple palace dress, she saw the problem at a glance.

"The reason lies in this dark purple palace dress. When my lady wore this palace dress, did you smell a strange fragrance?

After hearing what Xiaotao said, Lu Qingqing finally reacted.

It seems to have a special taste.

Lu Qingqing loves gardenia, and usually her bedroom and clothes are scented with the fragrance of gardenia.

But this morning when she put on the dark purple palace dress, she smelled a herbal fragrance that she had never used before. At first, she thought it was the custom incense used in the special palace dresses made by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, so she didn't care.

"My lady, the reason why you fainted from alcoholism today is because of the fragrance of this palace dress."

After Xiaotao got the palace dress, she carefully looked for the source of the fragrance and later discovered that it was the fragrance of the fabric itself.

This special aroma comes from a plant - Rhodiola rosea.

"My lady, this aroma is the smell of Rhodiola rosea. Rhodiola rosea itself is non-toxic, and its petals are usually purple-red. It is often used to promote blood circulation and remove blood stasis, clear the lungs and relieve coughs, and strengthen the spleen and replenish qi. However, if consumed with alcohol, it is very likely to cause an alcohol reaction."

"The rhodiola used in this dress is very rare. It is from the Tangut Plateau, so its medicinal effect is also very powerful."

After listening to Xiaotao, Lu Qingqing understood immediately.

No wonder the Imperial Household Department sent a dark purple palace dress, which was not commonly used by concubines. The reason for using dark purple was to cover up the traces of dyeing with Rhodiola rosea.

This also explains why Doctor Dou made the wrong diagnosis.

Men and women should not touch each other, not to mention that she was a concubine. Even if Doctor Dou had great medical skills, he would not have been able to detect it without close contact and observation of the palace clothes she was wearing.

Lu Qingqing told Xiaotao to keep the dark purple palace dress well.

She was being plotted against.

So vicious!

If Xiaotao hadn’t been well versed in medicine, the imperial doctors wouldn’t have been able to discover the Rhodiola rosea on the palace dress!

Lu Qingqing leaned on the bed, thinking carefully about the people involved in this matter.

This year's birthday festival was organized by Concubine Xian, could it be her?

Lu Qingqing was just suspecting and there was no conclusive evidence yet. She could only wait until she recovered before looking for clues.

Erxi sighed at this time.

"My lord, we must find out who is behind this incident, but this is not the most urgent matter right now."

Erxi moved a bronze mirror from the dressing table and placed it in front of Lu Qingqing.

She looked at herself in the bronze mirror and was really shocked.

The once fair and beautiful face is now covered with large red rashes on both cheeks!

Her fingers touched the red rashes on her face with concern, and every time she touched it, she felt a noticeable stinging pain.

Intensive phobia is about to commit!

Even Lu Qingqing herself couldn't bear to watch it anymore. She turned her head away and slammed the bed hard with her pink fist.

This is too much! So disgusting!

The person who poisoned her didn't want to kill her, but to destroy her appearance!

In the harem, without beauty, there would be no favor. Without favor, how could a small noble like her have a place to stand?

She asked hurriedly, "Erxi, did Doctor Dou say when the rash on your face will disappear?"

Erxi's face was filled with regret. "My lady, Doctor Dou said that it would take at least a month, and at most half a year, for the rash to disappear, and..."

She paused, fearing that what she was going to say next would deal a heavy blow to Lu Qingqing.

"Besides, there is a possibility that scars will remain on your face after the rash subsides. My lady, what should we do?"

Xiaotao saw the anxiety in Erxi's heart, so she walked over, took Erxi's hand, and gently patted her back to comfort her.

"Don't be anxious, Sister Erxi."

Xiaotao took out a porcelain bottle from her arms and handed it to Lu Qingqing.

"My lord, if you trust me, you can try this."

Lu Qingqing took the porcelain bottle and asked, "What is this?"

"My lady, this is my family's secret recipe, the Fairy Jade Cream, which is effective for facial rashes. In just seven days, the rashes on your face will fade away without leaving any marks."

Lu Qingqing was filled with gratitude after hearing this. She took Xiaotao's hand and said, "That's great, Xiaotao. It's all thanks to you."

Xiao Tao chuckled, her eyes curved.

"My lady, you are too polite. This is what I should do. But now that the rash problem has been solved, there is a bigger problem to solve."

"The Emperor said he would come to see you after the banquet. Have you thought about how to deal with it?"

Lu Qingqing thought for a moment and made up her mind.

She was at a loss when dealing with the rash, but she was familiar with Li Xuansheng.

Night time.

The sounds of stringed instruments from the distant imperial palace gradually died down, and the colorful lanterns dimmed. Looking at the time, it seemed that the longevity banquet was about to end.

Lu Qingqing asked Erxi to help her put on a silk face towel.

Although Li Xuansheng had seen Lu Qingqing's face when she just had an attack at the banquet, there were only a few red rashes at that time, which were harmless. But now her face was covered with red rashes, which was really unsightly. Li Xuansheng was afraid that it would scare her.

Lu Qingqing lay on the bed, brewing tears for a while.

Sure enough, not long after, the voice of Eunuch He Qing was heard.

"The Emperor has arrived——"

Lu Qingqing supported herself on the bed with her elbows with difficulty and was about to stand up to salute him.

Li Xuansheng walked quickly to the bed and grabbed Lu Qingqing's arm.

"You are still sick, lie down and rest, no need to salute."

Lu Qingqing nodded slightly, and at the moment of nodding, strings of crystal tears like pearls fell down.

She took the initiative to put her arms around Li Xuansheng's waist with a feeling of grievance.

"Your Majesty, I thought I was going to die today, and I thought I would never see Your Majesty again, wuwu~"

Lu Qingqing's eyes were filled with tears and her voice was sobbing. Her crying seemed to tear apart the silent night, and every sob was like a sharp blade stabbing into Li Xuansheng's heart.

He caressed Lu Qingqing's back lovingly and held her tightly in his arms.

"Be good, Qingqing, don't be afraid. This is just a reaction to your alcohol addiction. You won't miss me. Listen to the doctor and take medicine on time. You will be cured in a few days."

He reached out his hand to Lu Qingqing's cheek and was about to lift the veil.

"Why is Qingqing still wearing a face scarf?"

However, Lu Qingqing blocked his hand with her slender fingers and spoke coquettishly to him.

"Your Majesty, please don't do that~~~ I have a rash on my face. I don't want Your Majesty to see it. If Your Majesty sees it, you will dislike me."

"I won't, I won't."

Although Li Xuansheng kept making promises, Lu Qingqing really couldn't afford the risk and never took off the veil.

Lu Qingqing had heard the story of Lady Li, wife of Emperor Wu of Han.

When Lady Li was dying, she refused to see Emperor Wu of Han for the last time, because she knew her beauty had faded and she did not want the emperor to see her miserable state. Thus, she became the eternal white moonlight in Emperor Wu of Han's heart.

The same goes for Lu Qingqing. Before she has other bargaining chips to win favor, she must always remain beautiful and elegant in front of Li Xuansheng.

Li Xuansheng couldn't persuade her, so he stopped asking.

He continued to comfort her for a while and wanted to stay overnight in Yinglan Pavilion, but was persuaded by Lu Qingqing to leave on the grounds that she was weak and needed rest.

She couldn't afford to lose the big picture for a night of pleasure.