The Eldest Daughter Returns: Imperial Uncle, I'm Pregnant!

Time seemed to pass very slowly, and even the bird on the windowsill no longer sang so cheerfully.

Gu Qingwan already knew the answer. The moment her slender fingers gently touched the Emperor's wrist and she felt the weak and disordered pulse, she had already confirmed her diagnosis.

However, despite having reached a conclusion in her heart, she still couldn't completely relax. After all, this was a matter of great importance concerning the Emperor's health, and the slightest mistake could lead to unpredictable consequences. So, she frowned slightly, focused her mind again, and carefully felt each beat of the Emperor's pulse, trying to capture more subtle changes and clues.

She never expected that the emperor, who was the most powerful man in the land, was such a diligent and good emperor. Although he was a little suspicious, he had never done anything heinous, yet he was drugged like this.

Gu Qingwan lowered her head slightly, pursed her lips, and frowned slightly, appearing somewhat silent.

Standing opposite her, Xiao Jingchen was completely shrouded in shadow. His once handsome face was now clouded with gloom, and a hint of displeasure flickered in his deep eyes. His clenched fists were slightly white from the force of his grip. The atmosphere suddenly became unusually heavy, and a sense of oppression seemed to permeate the surroundings.

He asked, "Are you sure?"

Gu Qingwan came back to her senses, carefully considered her words, and slowly said, "Your Majesty, Your Highness, it is certain that Your Majesty has taken Xiaoyao Pills. Fortunately, the dosage was not very high, and it was discovered early. If you had taken another dose in two days, you would have been completely unable to get rid of them."

Xiaoyao Pill? Yangrong Pill?

Upon hearing this, the Emperor was instantly enraged! Although the Princess Consort hadn't explicitly stated the truth, with the Emperor's keen insight and precise control of the situation, how could he not discern the underlying motives? Without a doubt, someone had dared to so brazenly drug him! This was blatant defiance of imperial authority—an intolerable act! Thinking this, the Emperor's face darkened to a grim degree, and his eyes flashed with a chilling light.

"Please speak freely, Your Highness."

"Your Majesty, this is also a kind of medicine that I learned about by chance. I once found a few words in ancient books, saying that this flower is called poppy, and it looks extremely beautiful. Such a flower blooms on the road to the underworld. Once you are touched by it, it is like ascending to heaven, floating and not knowing what is going on."

The Emperor fell silent. Why was he silent? Because he suddenly remembered that he had also experienced the same feeling that Princess Chu had described. It was after taking Consort Xi's Nourishing Pill that he had felt that way. At that time, he thought the medicine was very effective and felt relaxed and happy after taking it.

"So, does that mean this is a good thing?"

Gu Qingwan shook her head and said, "Your Majesty is unaware that this kind of thing is addictive. Once you are addicted, you can't quit. It will make the person who takes it emaciated and change their personality drastically. If you don't take it on time, you will become extremely violent. At first, you take it once every few days, but later you can hardly live without it. In the end, you will not ascend to heaven but be poisoned to death. It is no exaggeration to call it a slow poison."

The King of Chu's face was very gloomy. In his heart, his elder brother had always been a very patient, shrewd, and wise person. He had dodged swords and spears all these years and handled them with ease. How could he have been defeated by a small pill?

The Emperor seemed to have suddenly lost all his strength, lying back in the rocking chair, the face of his childhood sweetheart appearing in his mind. Thinking carefully, his recent state was just as the Princess Consort of Chu had described; after taking Consort Xi's Nourishing Pill, his body felt lighter, almost ethereal, and sometimes he even felt he was about to ascend to heaven, but he always returned to reality at the last moment.

Besides the fact that Consort Xi looked like his old friend, a larger part of it was that he sometimes missed that feeling.

He wasn't without suspicion about the pill, but its effects made him unable to resist his doubts. The emperor closed his eyes, his voice low and cold: "Investigate. Investigate this matter thoroughly for me."

Just then, a commotion arose outside. It turned out that the Empress had arrived in a grand procession with a large entourage.

Consort Xi rushed into the room beside the Empress. Ignoring her damaged throat and broken voice, she pointed at Gu Qingwan and shouted, "Princess Consort of Chu, what are you doing here? Being alone in a room with the Emperor, you must be up to something."

Gu Qingwan frowned: "Consort Xi, please don't talk nonsense. His Majesty is currently unwell, and we are discussing important matters."

Consort Xi snorted: "I think you have ulterior motives. It's not enough to bewitch the prince, you also want to seduce the emperor."

The Emperor opened his eyes upon hearing the commotion, his gaze sharp as he looked at Consort Xi: "I am not dead yet, and you are already so arrogant."

Consort Xi trembled with fright and quickly knelt down. The Emperor continued, "I had no idea that the Nourishing Pills you sent contained such a great secret."

Consort Xi's eyes widened, and she quickly protested, "Your Majesty, I am innocent! I did not know!"

Upon hearing the words "Yangrong Pill," Consort Xi suddenly calmed down. She also saw the Prince standing in the shadows and realized that Consort Chun had probably found some leverage to test her. She looked at Gu Qingwan with hostility, convinced that the two of them were in cahoots. She became even more determined to kill Qingwan.

She was flustered, but thinking about how much the effects of the Nourishing Pill were still known, she became even more certain that she could not admit to this, otherwise the prince would be the first to not forgive her. After thinking it through, Consort Xi's eyes filled with tears, which seemed about to fall but did not, and she gently bit her lip.

"Your Majesty, I am truly innocent! Think about it, I was the one who took the Nourishing Pill. It was only by chance that Your Majesty was given it. If there were really a problem, I would have had problems long ago. Why would I wait until now? I have taken more than Your Majesty. Moreover, my voice has improved from being unable to speak to being able to speak again. Although my voice is a bit unpleasant, it proves that it is indeed effective. Furthermore, the imperial physicians have also examined the pill, and the contents are all nourishing ingredients."

The Emperor thought about it carefully and realized it made sense. He had taken it because he saw Consort Xi using it and seeing results. Besides, Consort Xi was right; the people in the Imperial Hospital had checked it and found no problems. As the Emperor, he was always careful about what he ingested.

Princess Chu said she was a descendant of Medicine King Valley and a descendant of a divine physician, and that she even had a token. Could it be that she was too young? But he had experienced all the symptoms and effects she described.

Seeing that the Emperor was somewhat hesitant, Consort Xi felt that her words had an effect, so she pressed on.

“Princess Consort of Chu, I… I have a sore throat and I didn’t greet you properly when I saw you before. Please don’t blame me. I’m all alone in this palace, and the only person I can rely on is the Emperor. I absolutely cannot be accused of plotting against the Emperor.”

Looking at Consort Xi, who resembled a delicate white flower, Gu Qingwan still felt that this person was very familiar. She must have seen her before, but she just couldn't figure out when and where she had seen her.

“Your Highness, if anyone is wronged, it is I who am the most wronged. I came here with the Prince to pay my respects to the Emperor, but Your Highness barged in and accused me of bewitching the Emperor. This is not only smearing me, but also insulting the Emperor.”

Consort Xi's pupils contracted. How could she have forgotten about this? The Emperor and Prince Chu did not speak, but she knew that they were also concerned about this matter.

It's all that bitch Chun Pin's fault. If she hadn't been fanning the flames, how could she have... By the way, Chun Pin, since she dared to plot against her, she naturally can't escape either.

"Your Majesty, Your Highness, Princess Consort of Chu... I really didn't mean it. It was Consort Chun who just told me that Your Highness..." Consort Xi cautiously glanced at the Emperor, and seeing that he was no longer displeased, she boldly said, "It was Consort Chun who said that you ran to Your Majesty's library in disheveled clothes. I was worried about Your Highness, so I did it... If Your Highness is angry, I will accept my punishment."

Xiao Jingchen wasn't buying it. He trusted Qingwan the most. Since Qingwan had already said that the pills were problematic and the Emperor's health was also affected, then Consort Xi definitely couldn't stay by his brother's side.

"What's the point of saying all this, Your Majesty? Consort Xi cannot be kept alive."

Consort Xi was shocked upon hearing this. Was the Prince still as ruthless towards her as before, ready to kill her at will? Seeing the Emperor's hesitant gaze, Consort Xi knew that her time was running out. Thinking of the news that Xiao Yuheng had sent from outside the palace, Consort Xi felt that it was not a bad thing to bring some things forward.

The Emperor hesitated for a moment and said, "After all, she is my beloved consort. This matter has not yet been investigated, but what the Princess Consort said is not without reason. Since the Princess Consort is the successor of the old Valley Master, I trust her completely. I hope that the Princess Consort can do her best for me in the future."

Gu Qingwan knew that the Emperor still couldn't bear to part with Consort Xi's appearance, and she didn't know what the Emperor's true feelings were for his childhood sweetheart, so much so that he was willing to show some leniency to anyone who resembled her.

"Consort Xi, cast her into the Cold Palace. She is not to emerge without my permission." The Emperor was naturally furious that his beloved woman dared to do this. Although Consort Xi's explanation was flawless, in his heart, she was definitely not innocent. It was just that face… Oh well, he owed her something back then…

Consort Xi lay prostrate on the ground, her frail body seemingly able to be blown over by a gust of wind. She trembled slightly, like a delicate flower ravaged by wind and rain, evoking pity. However, beneath this seemingly fragile exterior lay unexpected strength and cunning.

The next second, the once high and mighty emperor suddenly and without warning collapsed forward. His towering body crashed to the ground like a building that had lost its support. The surrounding palace maids and eunuchs were immediately terrified and screamed. Consort Xi raised her head, a fleeting glint of triumph in her eyes, but quickly vanished, replaced by her pitiful expression.

The King of Chu rushed forward to support the Emperor who was about to collapse: "Brother! Qingwan, come quickly and see how Your Majesty is!"

This unexpected turn of events caught Gu Qingwan off guard. When she took the emperor's pulse just now, although he had been poisoned, his pulse was still very strong and powerful. Even if the poison had taken effect, it shouldn't have been so sudden and without warning. Gu Qingwan couldn't care less about anything else and stepped forward to take the emperor's pulse.

At this point, Consort Xi realized that Princess Chu was skilled in medicine. The matter of the Xiaoyao Pill must have been exposed by Gu Qingwan's meddling. However, she did not know the extent of Gu Qingwan's medical skills. Gu Qingwan had already cast a spell on the Emperor. In order to protect herself, she absolutely could not allow Gu Qingwan to examine the Emperor's pulse again.

Thinking of this, she pushed past Gu Qingwan and rushed towards the Emperor. The palace maid who was serving Consort Xi saw Consort Xi's signal and immediately shouted at the top of her lungs.

"Help! Help! The Emperor has been assassinated! Come to his rescue!"

This shout startled both Xiao Jingchen and Gu Qingwan. How did it turn into the Emperor being assassinated? Xiao Jingchen's suppressed anger was about to burst forth. Before Gu Qingwan could even reach out to stop him, he slapped the shouting palace maid to end the situation.

When Fuming led the Imperial Guards in, they saw the Prince of Chu kill the palace maid, and the Emperor was lying on the ground. Next to him, Consort Xi was holding the Emperor in a panic. Fuming subconsciously thought that the palace maid was the assassin.

The commotion on the Emperor's side was quite significant, and the Empress Dowager and Empress rushed over. Gu Qingwan couldn't care less about that now; she grabbed Xiao Jingchen's hand and was about to give him the prepared pills. She couldn't let the prince continue his emotional outburst, otherwise everything they had done would be in vain.