Chu Yunfei did not want to pay attention to the arrogant and domineering Fifth Princess, so she stepped into the room.
A strong smell of medicine rushed to meet her.
She subconsciously stopped in her tracks, gazing at the Imperial Physician who was treating Prince Zhan's injuries in the inner chamber, her eyes deepening slightly.
Chang Qing stood at the bedside, and upon turning to see Chu Yunfei enter, his expression turned cold: "Just because of a letter of divorce, the Princess Consort has made such a huge scene, even going so far as to have Minister Chu enter the palace to file an imperial complaint?"
Chu Yunfei ignored him, walking into the inner chamber as if nothing had happened, and took a casual look at the medicine in the Imperial Physician's hand: "Imperial Physician, how is the Prince's condition?"
The Imperial Physician turned around and gave a perfunctory bow to Chu Yunfei: "I am currently applying medicine to the Prince. Please forgive me, Princess Consort, for not being able to perform the full courtesy."
"No harm." Chu Yunfei stood before the bed, looking at Rong Cang, who was lying on his stomach, and frowned slightly, "Is the Prince's injury this severe?"
Rong Cang lay on the bed with his eyes closed, his sturdy back covered in blood, the smooth lines of his back swollen high from the cane wounds, looking truly ghastly.
Even though the wound had been cleaned and coated with a layer of translucent ointment, it was still shocking at first glance.
"Isn't the Prince's injury this severe all thanks to the Princess Consort?" Chang Qing said coldly, "The Prince treated the Princess Consort with a true heart; I never imagined the Princess Consort could be so heartless."
"The injury is on the body, it just needs time to rest and recuperate." Chu Yunfei glanced at him and said indifferently, "An injury in the heart is enough to make life worse than death."
Chang Qing choked, suddenly left speechless.
"This is the medicine I have left for the Prince; it can promote blood circulation and remove blood stasis." The Imperial Physician stood up and handed the ointment to Chu Yunfei, "The cane wounds cannot be ignored. Princess Consort, please apply it to the Prince again this evening. I will go write a prescription; please send someone to the Imperial Hospital later to collect the medicine, and have the Prince take it twice a day."
Chu Yunfei gave a nod: "Thank you, Imperial Physician Liu."
"This is my duty." Imperial Physician Liu quickly said he dared not accept the thanks, "From now on, just ensure the medicine is taken and the dressings are changed on time. In three days, I will come to investigate the Prince's recovery status."
Chu Yunfei said indifferently: "Thank you."
Imperial Physician Liu wrote the prescription, explained the required medicine and the dosage in great detail, and then picked up his medicine chest to bid farewell.
Chu Yunfei ordered Chang Qing to see the Imperial Physician out.
Chang Qing was somewhat reluctant, but under the cold, piercing gaze of Chu Yunfei, he had no choice but to obey.
Chu Yunfei quickly closed the door and turned to walk to the bedside. Looking at the weak figure of Rong Cang lying there with his eyes closed, his usually stern face was now pale and bloodless, and the hair at his temples was dampened by cold sweat, unexpectedly adding a touch of fragile charm.
Chu Yunfei's gaze shifted slightly, looking at his hand hanging off the bedside. After a moment of silence, she reached out and took his wrist.
However, the moment she touched him, Rong Cang, who had been keeping his eyes closed, suddenly opened them. With a swift flip of his palm, he fiercely seized Chu Yunfei's slender wrist.
Chu Yunfei felt the pain from his grip, but she only looked at him coldly and calmly: "Let go."
Rong Cang's tone was indifferent: "Get out."
"And if I don't?" Chu Yunfei gave a cold smile, tinged with mockery, "Can the Prince still stand up and throw me out?"
Rong Cang's thin lips were pressed tight, his black eyes as cold as ice.
Chu Yunfei slowly extended her left hand and forcefully pried open the hand that was gripping her wrist: "I am pregnant, the Prince had best not use force on me."
Rong Cang suddenly fell silent and closed his eyes with a look of annoyance.
Chu Yunfei took the opportunity to place her fingers on his wrist.
Rong Cang sensed something unusual, opened his eyes, and coldly shook off her hand: "What are you doing?"
Chu Yunfei held his wrist firmly and patted his injured back with her left hand: "Behave yourself, don't move around."
Rong Cang's muscles trembled, and his complexion turned even paler.
Chu Yunfei felt his pulse, and as she sensed the abnormal pulse under her fingertips, a look of shock gradually appeared in her eyes. She stared at Rong Cang's handsome, pale face in disbelief.
Her heart was suddenly in a panic, as if it had been tightly gripped.
Chu Yunfei was stunned for a long while before she let go of Rong Cang's hand, her own complexion even colder and paler than his.
Heart-Eater Gu.
A type of Gu poison that could turn a normal person into a manic, bloodthirsty killer.
It was currently in the larval stage of the Gu worm.
Chu Yunfei closed her eyes, suppressing the churning emotions in her chest, as if she had finally understood the reason for Rong Cang's sudden change in temperament.
So in her previous life, was it because Rong Cang knew he had been poisoned by this damnable Gu and could not control his own actions that he gave her the letter of divorce?
She was not sure.
But if this was the truth, then the unreasonable points she could never figure out before now had a logical explanation.
This fool.
A self-righteous fool.
Chu Yunfei let go of his hand and gazed at him unblinkingly, the depths of her eyes dark and cold.
The God of War of Chu?
He was simply a fool beyond saving.
Chu Yunfei gave Rong Cang a cold look, turned, and walked out, her voice like ice: "Have him moved to the Shuanghua Courtyard immediately. If he refuses, knock him unconscious and carry him over."
Chang Qing, who had gone and come back, was just about to say that the Prince would not agree, but after hearing this, he silently swallowed his words and then looked at Chu Yunfei's departing figure with confusion.
The Princess Consort seems very angry?
Even angrier than when she received the letter of divorce this morning.
But the imperial complaint was clearly filed by the Princess Consort's father to the Emperor, and it should have been at the Princess Consort's instruction, so the Prince was beaten; the Princess Consort should be very happy.
What is she angry about now?
Chu Yunfei walked into the Shuanghua Courtyard, dismissed the attendants outside the door, walked into the Warm Pavilion alone, leaned against the brocade couch, and sat down, gazing blankly out the window.
Who poisoned Rong Cang with the Gu?
Has the Gu poison reached a point where it is uncontrollable?
No, the Heart-Eater Gu in its larval stage only flares up occasionally, which can make a person's mind manic, but it has not yet reached the point of uncontrollable bloodlust.
And...
Chu Yunfei thought of her previous life.
Rong Cang only committed regicide at the palace banquet seven years later... so was the act of regicide itself an uncontrollable behavior while he was being manipulated by the Gu poison?
Chu Yunfei closed her eyes, a wave of heartache washing over her, and she could not describe the feeling.
But she had no time to wallow in her annoyance and heartache for Rong Cang; she needed to find out the truth as soon as possible and find a way to cure the Gu.
The final winner in her previous life was Consort Gu.
So, could the person who poisoned Rong Cang be Consort Gu?
If it were her, then her decision to send Chu Yun Jiao into Prince Zhan's Estate at this time seems unreasonable, because if Rong Cang lost control, he would very likely hurt Chu Yun Jiao.
Unless...
Chu Yunfei raised her hand to rub the space between her eyebrows.
Amidst the scheming and mutual deception of the Imperial Family, it was truly full of dangers, difficult to guard against.
If a Prince of noble status could fall into someone else's trap, what more of others?
"Princess Consort." Sheng Xia stood by the window, looking at Chu Yunfei with some worry, "Did the Prince make the Princess Consort angry again?"
Chu Yunfei came back to her senses and slowly shook her head: "No."
Sheng Xia frowned: "Princess Consort, I heard what Prince Chen and the Second Miss said at the Chu Family Ancestral Hall."
Chu Yunfei was silent for a moment, then narrowed her eyes: "What did they say?"
"When he entered the ancestral hall, Concubine Chen was also present, and Prince Chen even comforted the Second Miss." Sheng Xia frowned, "He also said he would think of another way and told the Second Miss to rest and recuperate well at home for a few days."
Chu Yunfei's eyes deepened: "So Chu Yun Jiao's approach to Rong Cang was at the instruction of Consort Gu and Prince Chen?"
Sheng Xia nodded: "It should be."
Chu Yunfei pondered in silence for a long while before speaking again: "Sheng Xia, after we finish lunch later, go and get some medicine for me."
Get medicine?
Sheng Xia was confused: "Should I get it according to the prescription Imperial Physician Liu gave?"
"Yes, but you must go to a pharmacy in the outer city to get it, and don't let anyone see the medicine you bring back." Chu Yunfei's voice was cold, her eyes deep, "Then have Baochan take Imperial Physician Liu's prescription and go to the Imperial Hospital to get another batch."
Sheng Xia was confused: "Princess Consort?"
"Don't ask too much, just do as I say." Chu Yunfei said, then instructed: "Go and call Chang Qing in."
"Yes." Sheng Xia turned and left.
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