I was sold when I opened my eyes! My sick and disabled husband comforts me every night after he wake

After Lan Zhi left home, Eunuch Tian greeted her and led her to the carriage, where they sat together.

After the carriage started moving, Eunuch Tian spoke in a hoarse voice:

"Doctor Lan, although the Empress Dowager is the Emperor's biological mother, she is old after all. She doesn't care about the affairs of the harem anymore. Now the Empress has the final say in the entire harem. The Empress asked me to tell you that you must 'take good care' of the Empress Dowager's illness. If there is any mistake, not only will your life be in danger, but your family may also be implicated."

Princess Tian emphasized the word "good" as if she were warning her, which reminded Lan Zhi of what A Qi and Mo Ning had said.

He appeared to work for the Empress Dowager, but in reality, he was someone close to the Empress; in other words, he was someone who could play both sides.

He is now threatening her on behalf of the Queen.

Although she understood, she didn't show it on her face, but nodded in response:

"Thank you for the reminder, Eunuch Tian. The current emperor and empress are both extremely filial, which is known to all the people of Northern Wei. I will do my best to heal the empress dowager."

As she spoke, her tone shifted between emphasis and softness, leaving Eunuch Tian unsure whether she had understood his hint.

He cleared his throat and warned again:

"The Empress Dowager's illness certainly needs to be treated, but she is a restless person. If she recovers, the ladies of the harem will be unhappy. I am only reminding you because we get along well. You should weigh the pros and cons carefully."

What's the point of this eunuch saying such ambiguous things to her?

The Empress Dowager's illness could have been cured without her treatment; it was beyond her control. To put it bluntly, her entering the palace to treat the Empress Dowager was merely a smokescreen.

Mo Ning is right. It's better for her to appear a bit dull in front of these people.

Thinking of this, she nodded solemnly.

"I am deeply grateful for Eunuch Tian's patronage. I think I understand the meaning behind your words, but Eunuch Tian, ​​please don't tell me too much about palace affairs. I'm afraid that my loose tongue might cause trouble for me, and I'll have to ask you to save me."

Her seemingly casual words caused Eunuch Tian's face to turn ashen.

He was really afraid that if he said too much, this woman would go and gossip to the Empress Dowager, and then he would be in real trouble.

Thinking of this, he cleared his throat, shifted awkwardly, narrowed his eyes, and remained silent.

Sharing a carriage with a eunuch made Lan Zhi feel somewhat awkward.

To ease the awkwardness, she started a conversation.

"Eunuch Tian, ​​when will the results of this year's imperial examinations be released?"

Old Master Tian glanced at her with his small, shrewd eyes and replied coldly:

Around the end of August.

End of August?

It's early July now, and there are still two months until the results are released.

When his elder brother Ling Jiawei left home, he said that the travel expenses to Beijing were too expensive. After the exam, he would find a job in Beijing and earn enough for the return trip by the time the results were released.

And what about Tang Xiucai? I wonder if he delivered the letter he asked my elder brother to.

When she has time, she will try to find her older brother, after all, he is the only person who has ever been kind to her since childhood.

When she returned to Changshou Palace with Eunuch Tian, ​​Granny Sun rushed to greet her.

"Why did you take so long to return? The Empress Dowager has been waiting for you for a long time."

At this moment, Eunuch Tian did not forget to make excuses for himself.

"Doctor Lan insisted on saying goodbye to his family, which took up a lot of time. If the Empress Dowager punishes him, you must explain for me."

Granny Sun had no interest in talking to him and hurriedly led Lan Zhi toward the Empress Dowager's bedroom.

When Lan Zhi approached the Empress Dowager, the Empress Dowager was visibly displeased.

"Didn't I tell you that you could only leave the palace once every three days? Why did you leave the palace today?"

Lan Zhi hurriedly explained:

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger. This morning at Fengxian Palace, I misdiagnosed a palace maid's pulse, which resulted in her being expelled from the palace. I wanted to apologize to her, so I didn't have time to tell you. Please punish me, Your Majesty."

"Are you telling the truth?"

"This humble woman dares not conceal anything; every word is true. I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly."

Seeing her candor, the Empress Dowager's anger lessened somewhat.

"I've heard about this matter. You diagnosed a young, unmarried woman as pregnant on purpose?"

The Empress Dowager's question made her hesitate about whether she should tell the truth.

If she doesn't tell the truth, it proves she doesn't know medicine, and she's suspected of deceiving her superiors.

If she tells the truth, it would mean she's deliberately deceiving the Queen, which is also unacceptable.

How should she answer?

Seeing her hesitate, the Empress Dowager spoke frankly:

"Don't be embarrassed. I've already told you the biggest secret. What else do you have to worry about? I just want to hear the truth from you."

Since the Empress Dowager has said so, if she doesn't tell the truth, it would seem like she's not being sincere.

Thinking of this, she spoke up decisively.

"I said that on purpose in order to get the Empress Dowager's reward money; otherwise, I wouldn't have had the chance to serve the Empress Dowager."

"Good, dare to speak the truth. I have never liked people who like to beat around the bush. It's so much better to be straightforward."

"Your Majesty flatters me; I am truly unworthy of such praise."

"You are a smart girl, but I'm letting you stay. You don't need to feel burdened, and I won't make things difficult for you. I'm sure you can see that the palace is not as simple as it seems on the surface. I'm keeping you here only to cover things up and prevent more doctors from being sent to the palace to suffer. It's such a waste of resources and manpower!"

The Empress Dowager spoke with a tone that was both angry and helpless.

Lan Zhi wanted to ask her why she was faking illness, but she swallowed the words back.

Mo Ning is right. In the deep palace, it's best not to ask questions that shouldn't be asked. Besides, this matter has nothing to do with her.

“I understand. But you can’t stop taking this medicine. How about this, I’ll prescribe a health-boosting formula for you tomorrow. You can try it first, and that will also avoid arousing suspicion.”

"Fine, as long as they see that I'm taking medicine every day and that my illness hasn't improved, that's fine. I'm exhausted from all their torment and want to have a few days of peace and quiet."

At this point, the Empress Dowager sighed deeply. Lan Zhi couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness. The Empress Dowager's status was probably the envy of all the women in the Northern Wei Kingdom, but who could know that she was actually not happy?

The next morning, she took the Empress Dowager's token to the Imperial Hospital to get medicine. As she was walking, a whip suddenly lashed out at her.

"Master, be careful."

When Xiao Xin warned her, she already realized the danger. She quickly dodged, grabbed the whip tip that was being pulled towards her, and pulled it forcefully to her side. A cry of "Ouch!" was heard, and a woman in a light pink dress fell to the ground in front of her. Immediately, two maids rushed forward; one helped the pink-clad woman up, while the other pointed directly at Lan Zhi.

"Who came here with such a blind eye? You've offended Princess Yujie, so kneel down and beg for forgiveness!"

Princess?

Lan Zhi couldn't help but gasp inwardly. How had she inexplicably offended the princess?

Princess Yujie, who had been lying on the ground, got up with the help of her maid. She wiped the stains from the corner of her mouth with her sleeve, glared at Lan Zhi, and angrily questioned her.

"Where did this wild girl come from, daring to dodge this princess's whip? She's asking for death."