Madam Qi fell to her knees with a loud thud in front of Imperial Physician Hu: “Imperial Physician Hu, I beg you, I beg you to please take a look at my granddaughter!”
She was a titled Marchioness and elderly at that, truth be told, even before a prince, she could remain standing and retain some dignity. Yet now, she knelt for Qi Yuan.
This alone showed just how dearly she loved the girl.
Physician Hu grew serious, straightened his disheveled beard and hair, and lifted his chin slightly. “Let me take a look first.”
He instructed everyone to step back, then lifted Qi Yuan’s eyelids for inspection, felt the skin at the back of her neck, and finally took her pulse.
No one knew how much time passed before he frowned and muttered, “Why are you all so tense? She’s just asleep!”
?!
If he weren’t such a well-known physician from the Imperial Medical Bureau, Liujin would’ve thought he was a charlatan.
What the h*ll was he talking about?!
Asleep?
Who suddenly collapses unconscious like that and calls it falling asleep?
And she’s been like this for so long.
No matter how people shouted or called out to her, there was no response. Liujin was on the verge of accusing this man of malpractice.
Old Marquis Qi anxiously added, “Physician, that can’t be! She’s been unconscious for three full hours, and no matter how we try to wake her, she won’t respond! How could this be normal sleep?”
Hearing that, Physician Hu let out a puzzled hmm, stroked his beard again, then sat down to examine her pulse more carefully.
Yet no matter how many times he checked, it still seemed like she was… just asleep!
And not just asleep, sleeping soundly.
He could only rub his temples and say, “Let’s wait a while. Observe and see what happens.”
So they waited, until late into the night.
Qi Yuan still hadn’t stirred.
By now, no one in the Qi household believed this was merely sleep. They immediately sent someone to summon new physicians.
But it turned out they didn’t need to.
Lai Chenglong had already called in nearly every doctor from within and outside the city. They each came forward one by one to examine her.
But despite all the scrutiny, no one could find anything wrong.
Only one unanimous conclusion remained: Miss Qi was… really sleeping.
She was truly fast asleep.
Inside her dreams, Qi Yuan vaguely sensed many people calling her.
But she simply couldn’t summon the strength to open her eyes.
It was like she’d been tied to a stone and plunged into the depths of a lake, everything around her was murky and dark, suffocating.
She struggled desperately to break free and swim upward, but the weight around her ankles wouldn’t budge.
Below her, someone was gripping her ankles, dragging her down, gripping them tightly, trying to pull her straight into hell.
She blew bubbles underwater, lowered her head with difficulty, and saw a familiar face twisted in madness,
Qi Wang!
Was this a dream?
Straining to exhale, Qi Yuan bent her waist and yanked out the dagger at her side, slashing Qi Wang’s hand hard enough to make him let go.
In reality, this man couldn’t even get close to her, why should she let him have the upper hand in a dream?!
She exhaled sharply, only for the scene to suddenly shift again.
Now she stood not in a lake, but in a resplendent palace.
Princess Baorong, adorned in regal finery, was pointing at her (seated beside Qi Wang) and declaring: “Royal Brother, can you still not see clearly?! Feng Caiwei’s secret letter has arrived, it clearly states she was once a guard by Xiao Yunting’s side! How long do you intend to protect her?!”
Feng Caiwei again.
She remembered, along with that secret letter, an invitation to Feng Caiwei’s wedding to the Imperial Grandson.
At the head of the hall, Qi Wang gently pinched her chin, grinning as he asked, “Ai Fei, is what she said true? You were once Xiao Yunting’s deathsworn guard?”
Qi Yuan had always been an exemplary guard.
So even though her heart twisted with pain, she still smiled and glanced at the letter, then laughed aloud: “Why is Miss Feng getting married but still thinking about me? With her this concerned, how could I be a deathsworn guard?”
Then she smiled sweetly and added, “I must be her love rival, no?”
Qi Wang laughed as well, casually tossing the letter aside and giving Baorong a cold look: “This is clearly Feng Caiwei trying to sow discord. Can’t you see that? If you can, then why make such a fuss? What exactly are you trying to do?!”
Princess Baorong nearly lost her mind.
She couldn’t help but shout, “Xiao Ling, are you mad?! Ever since this woman arrived, Royal Mother’s fallen ill, your close aides have all encountered misfortune, can’t you tell what’s real and what’s not?!”
Qi Yuan pressed her lips together and sighed faintly: “Your Highness, you’re a woman too, how can you blame all political missteps on a woman’s presence? If I’m at fault, then it’s only because I was born a woman.”
From the present looking back at her past self, Qi Yuan suddenly felt a strange emotion.
Was it bitterness?
Yes, she’d suffered far too much.
Hidden by Qi Wang’s side, interrogated day after day by Princess Baorong and Master Lu, always under suspicion, always threatened.
But none of that pain compared to,
That letter.
That letter of betrayal.
And that wedding invitation.
She suddenly took a few steps forward, wanting to reach out and touch the tears of her past self.
There were no tears on her face, but inside, she’d been crying all along.
She understood.
Qi Wang roared: “Enough! Baorong, you’re getting more and more insolent! I sentence you to house arrest for three months, your entire household is confined! Until you learn to show proper respect to your sister-in-law, you are not to leave!”
Sister-in-law?!
Princess Baorong was furious. “Sister-in-law?! Since when is she my sister-in-law?! Has she been formally conferred a title? Given the imperial seal? Xiao Ling, are you insane?!”
To be punished, over that woman?!
Everyone knew Feng Caiwei was now the Imperial Grand Princess-to-be.
She had every reason to make her accusations.
The proper approach would be to kill a thousand rather than let one slip!
But Xiao Ling, that useless fool, actually trusted Qi Yuan that much!
Seething, she lunged to grab him, but Qi Yuan instinctively stepped forward to shield him.
So Baorong’s slap landed hard on Qi Yuan’s face.
Qi Wang erupted in fury. He raised his hand and slapped Princess Baorong back with force, shouting: “How dare you?! You say she hasn’t been officially conferred? Then I’ll make it official right now, I’ll order the Ministry of Rites to draft the edict. I’ll make her my Noble Consort, no, I’ll make her my Empress!”
Princess Baorong stared at him in shock: “You’ve gone mad! Xiao Ling, you’ve completely lost your mind!”
