Ping Zhao Lu

Xu Zhouye felt his heart suddenly tighten, as if it was being tightly grasped by an invisible big hand, making it difficult for him to breathe.

The feeling was exactly the same as when he was struggling on the brink of death in his previous life. Familiar and terrifying scenes kept appearing before his eyes.

At this moment, his breathing became more and more rapid, and his chest heaved violently, as if a huge mountain was pressing down on him, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.

Chu Yunxiao in front of him saw this and his expression suddenly changed.

Without any hesitation, he quickly reached out and gently picked up Xu Zhouye's gradually falling body from his arms. Then he stared straight at Xu Zhouye's face, which turned as pale as paper in an instant, and his heart couldn't help but panic.

"Call the imperial physician quickly!" Chu Yunxiao shouted loudly, his voice full of anxiety and worry.

Then, he held Xu Zhouye's slightly trembling hand tightly with one hand, trying to convey some understanding and comfort to him.

With his other hand, he carefully held Xu Zhouye horizontally in his arms and walked towards the hall as fast as the wind.

After entering the hall, Chu Yunxiao gently placed Xu Zhouye on the dragon couch.

His eyes never left Xu Zhouye's face, and his eyes were full of concern and anxiety.

At this time, Zhao Dequan, who was guarding outside the door, heard Chu Yunxiao's shouting. His heart trembled suddenly and he immediately realized the seriousness of the matter.

He did not dare to delay for a moment and quickly turned around and ordered the eunuch beside him to go and call the imperial physician.

Hall

Xu Zhouye felt his head was extremely dizzy, as if millions of bees were buzzing in his ears, and his whole body was in a hazy and chaotic state.

His vision became increasingly blurred, and everything in front of him seemed to be covered by a thick veil, making it difficult for him to see clearly.

Subconsciously, he raised his hand and fumbled around aimlessly, trying to touch the face that was so close yet so unclear, muttering to himself, "Is this a dream..."

When Chu Yunxiao saw him like this, his expression instantly became solemn, especially after hearing his words full of confusion and uncertainty, a strong sense of uneasiness surged in his heart.

His already clenched hands tightened even more now, fearing that he would lose the fragile person in front of him if he wasn't careful.

He leaned down and moved his face closer, hoping to make Xu Zhouye clearly feel his presence. His voice trembled slightly, but he still tried his best to suppress the surging nervousness in his heart and said softly: "It's not a dream, I am here, I am by the Queen's side."

When Xu Zhouye felt the warmth coming from the emperor, his rapid breathing finally began to slowly calm down.

However, his voice still sounded very weak, as if every word was squeezed out with all his strength: "I'm glad it's not a dream..."

As soon as he finished speaking, his eyes slowly closed, his body completely relaxed, and he fell into coma.

Chu Yunxiao's heart suddenly sank, as if falling into a bottomless abyss, and a chill instantly spread throughout his body.

"Xu Jin?"

Without time to think, he quickly leaned over, almost touching the face of the person lying on the couch, anxiously calling Xu Zhouye's name, trying to wake him up from his sleep.

At this time, a eunuch came hurriedly with an imperial physician.

They jogged along, beads of sweat covering their foreheads.

When he came closer, Doctor Chen was about to kneel down to salute the emperor. Seeing this, Chu Yunxiao quickly waved his hand to stop him and signaled him to check the queen's condition as soon as possible.

Doctor Chen understood what he meant and without delay, he immediately walked forward.

Chu Yunxiao quickly stood up and gave up his seat.

At the same time, he did not forget to signal the palace servant standing beside him with his eyes to bring a stool over for the imperial physician.

Soon, the palace servant brought a stool and placed it next to the imperial physician.

Doctor Chen sat down steadily, first carefully observing the queen's complexion and expression, then reached out and gently opened the queen's eyelids to take a look.

Then he carefully placed it on Xu Zhouye's wrist pulse.

About half an hour later, Doctor Chen's expression remained unchanged and he remained relatively calm.

He slowly turned his head and whispered to the emperor, "Your Majesty, please rest assured. The Queen is fine. She's simply been overworked, overly worried, and frightened lately, which has weakened her body and caused her to faint. She only needs to recuperate for a while, and she'll be back to normal."

Chu Yunxiao couldn't help but frown when he heard this.

When the imperial physician was talking about being frightened, was he referring to the dream he had just told the empress about?

Once this idea came into being, it quickly spread in his mind like weeds.

Thinking of this, Chu Yunxiao's deep and sharp eyes slowly turned to the person lying quietly on the couch with a hint of doubt.

For some reason, when his eyes fell on that pale and handsome face, an inexplicable and strange feeling suddenly surged in his heart.

It was like a dream scene reappearing...

Chu Yunxiao took a deep breath and calmed his restless emotions. After a while, he turned to Doctor Chen and said, "You go down first."

"Yes, Wei Chen is resigning."

Doctor Chen hurriedly put away the medicine box he was carrying, stood up respectfully, bowed, then turned around and walked out of the bedroom in small steps.

After the imperial physician left, Chu Yunxiao slowly sat back down beside the couch.

He carefully took Xu Zhouye's slightly cold hand, then gently placed it in his broad and warm palm, and began to rub it back and forth slowly.

However, at this moment, his mind kept recalling the words that Xu Zhouye had just muttered when his consciousness was blurred.

The more I think about it, the more anxious I become.

His hands also tightened a little.

*

Yaohua Palace

Concubine Li sat in front of the dressing table, which was filled with a wide variety of jewelry.

Her slender fingers gently turned over these precious objects, and her eyes moved among them, as if she was choosing the treasure that could best highlight her beauty.

Suddenly, her hand stopped at an exquisite hairpin, which was inlaid with sparkling gems and delicate pearls, emitting a charming glow.

Concubine Li picked up the hairpin and carefully placed it on her head, with the corners of her mouth slightly raised, revealing a satisfied smile.

"Even if I don't receive the Emperor's favor, I will still dress up well, especially for the Empress Dowager's birthday banquet, to outdo those concubines who are flirting with each other."

The maid standing by immediately echoed in a flattering tone, "Your Majesty is right. With your stunning beauty, you only need to dress up a little and you will be the most beautiful woman in the harem, leaving those vulgar women far behind."

Hearing the maid's flattery, Concubine Li felt disdainful. She raised her head, her eyes revealing arrogance, and said coldly, "Do you need to tell me? Go quickly and cut out the piece of Song brocade that the Ministry of Internal Affairs sent me. Don't waste this fine material. I'm counting on it to shine brightly at the birthday banquet and make a splash!"

Upon hearing this, the maid secretly curled her lips, but she still wore a flattering smile on her face and quickly responded, "Yes, Madam, I will do it right away."

After saying that, she turned and left in a hurry.

She dared not neglect it for even a moment. If there was any delay or she failed to do her job well, she would suffer the consequences.

Her master is not as easy to talk to as the virtuous concubine.

Whenever he is unhappy, he takes it out on them.

Seeing her hurried departure, Concubine Li couldn't help but sneer. Then she turned to look at the maid waiting on the other side, a hint of ambiguous smile on her lips, and said, "You, go and get the piece of brocade that the Empress Dowager gave me earlier, and make it into a dress for the Empress. Be careful not to ruin it, it's very precious!"