After transmigrating into the book, I helped my mother reconcile with her divorced husband.

As they left the inn, Lu Zhiyuan stumbled and fell, but luckily Liu Ying caught her in time. Only then did Liu Ying notice that Lu Zhiyuan's forehead was covered in a fine layer of sweat, her face was pale, and her palms were ice-cold.

"lady?"

"Help me into the car, don't make a fuss."

Liu Ying felt sorry for her and quickly helped her into the carriage, instructing the driver, "Go and fetch Doctor An quickly."

Once the carriage curtain was lowered, Lu Zhiyuan revealed a look of pain. Liu Ying was extremely anxious, constantly lifting the curtain to look outside.

Lu Yun carried the things out and saw Liu Ying's anxious expression, immediately realizing that Lu Zhiyuan was in trouble. Without showing any emotion, he handed the things to a passing guard and quickly walked to the carriage.

"But Madam..."

Liu Ying pulled the carriage curtain open a little and whispered, "The Crown Prince and Zuo Yi have not returned yet. There are many eyes and ears around the inn, and Madam does not want to make a fuss. I asked the coachman to go find Physician An, but I don't know where he went looking for him."

"Stay with the lady, I'll go find her."

He lowered the curtain and scanned the bustling crowd, but saw neither Physician An nor Physician Cui.

Inside the carriage, Lu Zhiyuan was cold and in pain, curling up in a ball with her knees drawn up to her chest. Liu Ying was so anxious she was about to cry, saying repeatedly, "How can this servant help Madam? Perhaps Madam could think of a way to transfer this discomfort to Liu Ying. Liu Ying would rather die than see Madam suffer like this."

"Silly girl, you can't bear to see me suffer, but I can bear to see you suffer?" Lu Zhiyuan clutched her clothes: "Don't cry, your makeup is ruined."

"It's all my fault. If I hadn't been so useless, I wouldn't have caused you, Madam, to suffer such a serious injury." Liu Ying cried even harder, tears streaming down her face like they were free. "Why don't you scold me a few times? The harsher the better, that way I'll feel better."

"Be good, I'll scold you after I'm better." Lu Zhiyuan pointed to the medicine box: "At the bottom, in the white brocade box."

"Is it medicine?" Liu Ying quickly brought over the medicine box. "A brocade box, a white brocade box, pills, which pill?"

“The red one,” Lu Zhiyuan pointed to the one on the right. “It’s bitter. Let’s see if there are any candied fruits in the carriage.”

"There are candied fruits; I brought them in early this morning." Liu Ying hurriedly fed Lu Zhiyuan the red pill.

Lu Zhiyuan lied to Liu Ying; the red pill wasn't bitter. She had made anything that could be fatal sweet. While Liu Ying turned away to look for candied fruit, Lu Zhiyuan took out her needle case and used silver needles to break down the toxins in Liu Ying's body.

Both Physician Cui and Physician An are experienced physicians; they must not be allowed to notice anything amiss or realize that she is using poison to quench her thirst and suppress the poison with poison.

Liu Ying picked up the largest candied fruit and held it to Lu Zhiyuan's lips: "Is Madam feeling any better? Lu Yun went to find Physician An and the others."

"I don't feel so bad anymore." Lu Zhiyuan breathed a sigh of relief. "Help me wipe my sweat. I don't want Imperial Physician An and the others to see me in this disheveled state. You know the Crown Prince is worried about me. If he finds out, I'm afraid you'll have to keep an eye on me every step of the way from now on. I love freedom and don't want to be a prisoner."

Hearing Lu Zhiyuan say this, Liu Ying felt even more distressed. While wiping Lu Zhiyuan's sweat with a handkerchief, she whispered, "Madam will be alright, won't she? Madam promised Liu Ying that she would take Liu Ying to see all the beautiful mountains and rivers of Beiliang. Madam also wants to find Liu Ying a husband, watch Liu Ying get married, deliver Liu Ying's baby, and name Liu Ying's child. In short, Madam will be alright, won't she?"

Lu Zhiyuan didn't want to lie to her, but she had no choice but to.

If nothing unexpected happens, with her abilities and careful nurturing, she might live for another three years. Three years is enough to watch Liu Ying, Lu Yun, and Han Ting get married. Xiao Yebai is already the king; he doesn't need her to worry about marriage. She only needs to have him sign a hundred-year agreement with the Xie family and Bei Liang. Besides that, she also needs to leave something to check and restrain him.

That child was originally meant to be hers and the Crown Prince's. Only a child born to her and the Crown Prince could earn Xiao Yebai's affection and protectiveness, and only such a child could stop the war at the border. She had calculated that if she had three years left to live, she would consummate her marriage with the Crown Prince when she turned seventeen. Pregnancy requires ten months, and a full-term birth would be best. If not, she would strive to raise the fetus in her womb to be strong and healthy, exchanging her life for his. She would die, and he would live.

Plans can't keep up with changes. Given her current physical condition, let alone raising children, she might not even live to be sixteen. She needs to find another connection.

A soft knock came from outside the carriage, followed by Lu Yun's voice: "Liu Ying, Physician Cui and Physician An have arrived."

Only after confirming that Lu Zhiyuan's clothes were intact and there was nothing amiss did they pull back the curtain.

"Madam's old ailment has relapsed. We request the assistance of the two imperial physicians."

Physician Cui bowed and said, "The carriage is too small. Physician An will examine Her Majesty first, and then I will diagnose Her Majesty."

"Thank you for your help, Imperial Physicians. But it's best to keep your identities hidden when you're traveling." Liu Ying looked around and said, "Before we got on the carriage, it was Imperial Physician An. After we got off, it's Doctor An and Doctor Cui."

The two imperial physicians, Cui and An, nodded.

Inside the carriage, Physician An frowned. "Your Majesty's medical skills are insufficient, and I cannot accurately diagnose Your Majesty's condition, but I do recognize these needles."

Lu Zhiyuan sighed: "Please ask Imperial Physician An to keep this a secret for me! Imperial Physician An should know that I was born with an illness, and everyone said that I would not live to adulthood, or even ten years old. Not only did I live past ten, but I also married the Crown Prince and became the noble Crown Princess. My life has not been smooth, but it has not been harsh either. That's enough."

"Your Majesty is well-versed in medicine, and your medical skills far surpass those of your humble servant. Since Your Majesty has said so, I am afraid I am powerless to help. I wonder what else I can do to assist you?"

"Please help me conceal my illness," Lu Zhiyuan smiled slightly. "Don't tell anyone, especially His Highness the Crown Prince."

"What about Physician Cui?"

"Don't tell anyone either." Lu Zhiyuan looked at the carriage curtain: "Imperial Physician Cui is not skilled in acupuncture and cannot judge my acupuncture points and deduce my condition from these clues like Imperial Physician An does. As for my pulse, it is extremely deceptive, and Imperial Physician Cui's diagnosis will be good."

"If it were Your Highness..."

“His Highness the Crown Prince won’t find out.” Lu Zhiyuan put away her needle case. “During my trip to Yanzhou, I will die in the most reasonable way possible, so that no one will suspect my illness. If I don’t die from illness, the Crown Prince won’t be able to trace it back to you, and the Xie family will have an explanation.”

She also needed to find a way to involve Xiao Yebai. Since she had no child, she would make her life a hindrance between the Crown Prince and Xiao Yebai, and a hindrance between the two countries.

I have a headache. Really a headache.

If they knew she was still plotting against them on her deathbed, they'd probably dig up her grave. The thought of her body being left to rot in the wilderness after she died sent a chill down Lu Zhiyuan's spine. She wasn't afraid of death itself; she was afraid of dying alone, left to be a pitiful creature, guarding her bones day and night, watching them wither in the wind and sun, eaten by insects, and gnawed by dogs.

"Pah, pah, pah, what ghosts and spirits? It's just code. Do you really think you're a person?"

Lu Zhiyuan pinched her cheek hard.