046 Be neither humble nor arrogant!
Updated: 2013-06-06 20:01:44 Word Count: 1505
The doctor's diagnosis was like a bolt from the blue, instantly shattering the already oppressive atmosphere of the royal palace.
Amidst the chaos and a chorus of anxious greetings, Prince Mu arrived as if riding the fury of thunder. His dignified face turned ashen upon hearing the doctor's words. Standing in the center of the room, he looked at his sickly son lying on the wedding bed still adorned with festive red silk, his heart filled with grief.
Consort Li arrived shortly after, her eyes brimming with barely suppressed joy and anticipation, though she dared not show it at this moment. She glanced at Luo Zhiheng standing to the side, a venomous glint in her eyes, and questioned her sorrowfully, "What were you doing when the young prince fell ill, Luo Zhiheng? Knowing his health was poor, you should have been by his side constantly. Our royal family condescended to marry a daughter from a third-rank noble family, not so she could enjoy a life of luxury, but so she could care for the young prince. To put it bluntly, it was a marriage arranged to bring him good fortune! But your arrival not only failed to save the young prince, but instead plunged him into even greater danger! Of course, you shouldn't have been the one to marry into this family in the first place! Tell me, what face do you have left to stand here?"
These words almost instantly plunged Luo Zhiheng into hell.
Consort Li's words were accusatory, resentful, and blaming, even an invisible attempt to pin the blame on her, as if she were the one who had brought misfortune upon Mu Yunhe! She also brought up the fact that Mu Yunhe had taken her sister's place in marriage without permission, making it impossible to change the situation, clearly intending to kill her.
Luo Zhiheng felt a chill run down her spine. She looked up and saw the Princess looking at her with a pale face, Consort Li's hypocritical expression, the servants' angry gazes, and Prince Mu's cold, knife-like eyes.
The wet nurse and maid were so frightened that they knelt down and begged for mercy for Luo Zhiheng, but Luo Zhiheng forced herself to calm down. She bent down and said calmly, "Consort Li is wrong. Today is the day for my return visit. My mother and the young prince both allowed me to go back, so I left. Moreover, I did not know that the young prince would fall ill. However, I did have a mistake in this matter, and I will try my best to make up for it."
Luo Zhiheng knew very well that she had to endure the accusations and slander, because at this point she had no room for retreat or rebuttal. Only by remaining calm and composed, and by refraining from verbal sparring, could she get through this difficult situation. But it didn't matter; they would settle Consort Li's score later!
A chilling, authoritative voice boomed from Prince Mu's mouth: "Make amends? What makes you think you can make amends! Even if your entire Luo family committed suicide to atone for your sins, it wouldn't be enough to compensate for my Yun He! You were the one who insisted on marrying in my place. Since you insisted on marrying him, why didn't you take good care of Yun He? Now he's your husband! Do you think you can look down on him and ignore him just because my son is sick? Yun He was perfectly fine before you married him. Why did his condition suddenly worsen so quickly after you arrived? Tell me, if it weren't for your bad luck that's bringing Yun He bad luck, why would his condition suddenly deteriorate!"
As a high-ranking official, Prince Mu was naturally domineering and full of malice. When he got angry, everyone fell silent.
However, Luo Zhiheng remained humble and composed, even looking directly into the prince's eyes and saying, "I will take responsibility for my mistakes, but the most important thing now is not to pursue the responsibility, but to find a way to save the young prince's life."
She never knelt or begged for mercy, subtly proclaiming her unyielding arrogance. Seeing the stubbornness in her eyes, Prince Mu glared angrily: "You dare to defy me!"
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047 Betting your life on the future!
Updated: 2013-06-06 20:01:45 Word Count: 1579
Faced with the prince's pressure, Luo Zhiheng could only grit her teeth and say, "This is not defiance, but facing the facts!"
Everyone gasped, shocked by Luo Zhiheng's defiant act, but almost everyone was certain that Luo Zhiheng was doomed. Because no one dared to defy the Prince.
"You are indeed quite audacious!" Prince Mu's gloomy words were like thunder. He sneered and said, "Since you are so unrestrained, so resilient, and willing to take responsibility, then I will reward you by making you a nun and sending you to the mountains to pray for Yunhe's life!"
These words shocked everyone once again.
"No! Your Highness, please have mercy! Miss is so young and ignorant. I beg you to forgive her, Your Highness. She's just a child!" The wet nurse cried out in terror, kowtowing repeatedly.
"How dare you! How dare you, a lowly servant, speak like that! Guards, drag her away and beat her to death!" Consort Li seized the opportunity to retaliate, speaking coldly.
Luo Zhiheng looked at the princess, but the princess was also cold and indifferent at the moment. She did not help her and was no longer kind. Luo Zhiheng saw the reality once again. It was useless to please the princess. Only if Mu Yunhe lived well would her flattery have any value. Otherwise, she was just a worthless object that could be discarded at will!
"Wait! My wet nurse isn't a member of the Prince's household yet. You have no right to harm her." Luo Zhiheng said through gritted teeth. She looked at the Prince and said, "I dare not disobey Your Highness's punishment, but Mu Yunhe is my husband. I will not leave like this. Even if I have to leave, I will not leave in an unclear way, leaving people with the stigma of being a jinx! It won't be too late for me to leave when the young prince has recovered."
She had to leave herself a way out. If she went to a nunnery, her life would be over. She didn't think that Prince Mu, who hated her so much, would let her escape from that place so easily.
"Hmph! Let you stay by Yunhe's side? I'm afraid Yunhe will be even more afflicted by you..." Consort Li said hesitantly.
Luo Zhiheng held her breath, coldly glancing at Consort Li, before fiercely saying to the even more sinister-looking Prince Mu, "Your Highness, please let me stay by the young prince's side to take care of him. I know my life is worthless, but as long as I live, I will take care of him wholeheartedly. If anything happens to the young prince, I, Luo Zhiheng, will immediately apologize without complaint!"
"Miss!" The wet nurse and maid were shocked.
Everyone was shocked!
Luo Zhiheng was at her wit's end; she had no choice but to gamble with her life, betting her future! She was a ruthless person at heart; once pushed to the limit, she could be ruthless to the very end, including towards herself!
As the situation reached a stalemate, Xiao Xizi suddenly spoke up timidly: "Your Highness, please let the Princess Consort stay. In my humble opinion, the Prince and Princess Consort have been much more energetic these past few days, as Da Huo has witnessed. Now that the Princess Consort has only been gone a short while, the Prince has had this accident. I think perhaps the Princess Consort is blessed, and if she stays, the Prince's condition might improve."
Xiao Xizi's ability to speak up for Luo Zhiheng surprised everyone, but his words brought great comfort to Mu Yunhe's parents, who truly loved him. Compared to marrying a woman who brought misfortune to her husband, they preferred to believe in and like the latter.
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048 A chance to survive!
Updated: 2013-06-06 20:01:46 Word Count: 1672
"Your Highness, please give her a chance. Perhaps He'er can really get better?" The princess looked at the prince pleadingly. Even she herself was extremely distrustful of these words, but she could only deceive herself and choose to superstitiously believe that the marriage to bring good luck would not bring misfortune to Mu Yunhe.
The prince silently looked at the unconscious Mu Yunhe, his clenched fists revealing his inner struggle. Then he looked at Luo Zhiheng, who was staring at him without fear. For some reason, that stubborn gaze gave him an impulse to give it a try.
“I have never been a merciful man. Remember, you only get one chance. If Yunhe fails to escape death this time, you and the entire Luo family will be buried with my son! So, do you still insist on staying to take care of him instead of living a life of ignominy in the nunnery?” Prince Mu spoke bluntly, with both a test and a threat.
If it were any other woman, she would probably have been intimidated by his power and chosen the latter or fainted. But Luo Zhiheng raised her chin and said firmly, "I will stay! He is my husband. No matter what, I will stay with him until the end! If the result is a crushing defeat, I will be buried with him and protect him even after death!"
After those bold and resolute words, the noisy room fell into a deathly silence!
This was the guarantee given by Luo Zhiheng, and also the attitude she had to give. Since Mu Yunhe was their darling, she would let them know that he was also her everything. In this way, she refused to believe that nothing could shake the prince's heart.
She made the right bet! Her words not only stirred the prince's heart, but also deeply moved the princess's fragile heart. Her attitude of disregarding everything to live and die with Mu Yunhe moved the princess beyond measure.
"Good child, I'm so sorry to have wronged you, so sorry to have wronged you..." The princess cried.
The prince said hoarsely, "I hope you will keep your word!"
“I, Luo Zhiheng, always keep my word! But while I’m taking care of the young prince, I hope that the prince will order the servants not to interfere with my decisions. I hope that at least during this time, the people in this courtyard will listen to me.” Luo Zhiheng glanced at the dark room, which reeked of a nauseating stench, and said.
The prince waved his hand weakly to indicate his agreement, and left with the princess. Their backs, supporting each other, no longer looked as steady and strong as before.
Consort Li's eyes were filled with malice. She hadn't expected Luo Zhiheng to be so cunning! She actually knew how to use Mu Yunhe to save his life from the prince's clutches. But did she really believe the prince's earlier vow to sever all ties with him? What a hypocritical performance! This princess is waiting to see what kind of act she can put on when she's about to die! She glanced at the frail Mu Yunhe, her eyes filled with unwavering malice and utter pity.
Luo Zhiheng sneered as she saw the guest off: "Please leave if you are not authorized to do so."
"How dare you!" Consort Li suddenly raised her voice; no one had ever dared to disrespect her before.
Luo Zhiheng wouldn't be polite to anyone who wanted to kill her! Her eyes flashed with sharpness as she rebuked, "You're being insolent! I'm in charge here now. Your presence is seriously disturbing the young prince's rest. Please leave immediately! Or do you want to be the first person I ask the prince to bring to justice?"
Consort Li's face turned pale and then flushed as she coldly snorted, "Let's see how long you can be so arrogant!"
Seeing Consort Li leave, Xiao Xizi said with a pale face, "Little Princess..."
Luo Zhiheng's tense nerves relaxed, and she quickly said, "Stop talking nonsense! Tell me quickly, how did the young prince fall ill?"
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049 Change the environment
Updated: 2013-06-06 20:01:47 Word Count: 1669
“Because he hasn’t been able to eat for a while, the young prince will definitely not be able to stand it for long, and it seems to be getting worse. Today, he was taking his medicine at noon, but after only a few bites, the young prince started coughing violently, then he had difficulty breathing and fainted once. When he woke up, he was coughing like when you came back, and now he has fainted again,” Xiao Xizi said fearfully.
Luo Zhiheng said angrily, "How can a person live without eating? This matter is very important, why didn't you tell the Princess and the Prince?"
Xiao Xizi trembled and said cautiously, "Because after taking the medicine every day, the young prince would be dazed for a period of time, but he would not cough or cry out in pain. We servants thought this was a good sign. But we wanted to tell the mistress about the young prince not eating, but the young prince stopped us. He said he didn't want the princess to be sad and worried anymore."
"Nonsense! Isn't this playing with your own body?" Luo Zhiheng was extremely angry. She touched Mu Yunhe's head and thankfully it wasn't hot. Otherwise, in this era, without Western medicine from foreigners, she would have been doomed if she had been burned.
"Quickly change the young prince's clothes, make sure he doesn't catch a cold. Where's the medicine the doctor prescribed? Bring it here right away," Luo Zhiheng instructed one by one.
"The medicine has arrived, but how are we going to get the young prince to drink it?" Xiao Xizi asked with a distressed expression.
Luo Zhiheng was also at a loss; how could she give him medicine while he was unconscious?
The wet nurse came over at this moment and said, "Miss, why don't you let this old servant give it a try?"
Luo Zhiheng nodded quickly. Now that they had no other choice, they would try anything to get the medicine down their throats.
The wet nurse was clearly experienced. She and the girl worked together, one opening the girl's mouth while the other slowly poured the medicine in, then closing her mouth again, repeating this process. Although a lot of medicine came out, at least a significant amount was swallowed. This was life-saving medicine; the more the girl took, the greater her chances of survival.
"Drink it, drink it, that's wonderful!" Xiao Xizi and the servants exclaimed with delight.
"What's all the noise about? Xiao Xizi stays, everyone else get out." Luo Zhiheng waved away the group of uneasy servants, then asked, "Has this room always been this dark? Why aren't the windows open? What are those black curtains on the windows for? Did the doctor order them to be like this?" She had long been annoyed by the dark room.
Xiao Xizi said, "Replying to the Princess Consort, this is what the Prince ordered: no sunlight is allowed to shine into this room. Except for the curtains on the window next to the soft couch where you sleep, which the Prince ordered to be removed, all the others must be kept in place. This room is like this all year round."
What's this? Does being sick make your heart so dark? It's not like you'll die from exposure to light. Those hospitals built by those foreigners are all sunny and pleasant. Although she doesn't understand how sunlight helps with her condition, at least a healthy person wouldn't want to live in darkness.
"Have someone come in and clean this place immediately! Get rid of all the stench in this room! And those curtains..." Luo Zhiheng said, suddenly taking a few steps forward and deftly pulling down a curtain with a whoosh. Light, like a lively sprite, pierced through the paper window, illuminating that patch of floor and space. She reached out to push open the window, but the boy suddenly exclaimed in surprise...
"Your Highness, no! The young prince forbids anyone from opening the windows, or he will throw a huge tantrum!"
Luo Zhiheng sneered. He's almost dead, what's with all the fuss? If opening the window really made him come back to life and throw a tantrum, she'd be thanking her lucky stars! Without hesitation, she pushed open the window, and more light and fresh air rushed in!
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050 Fever!