Abandoned Woman Busy Farming

Chapter 1574: Chapter 1574: Lady Xu was Pregnant Before She Died_1

The eunuch, tasked with delivering the decree, exhibited a helpless expression as he said, ”Mr. Bai, you should see for yourself. Consort Lv seems to be in a bad way, and Her Majesty the Empress isn’t asking you to confront her. She mainly wants your assistance in diagnosing her illness.”

”What illness does Consort Lv have? Hasn’t she been examined by the Imperial Doctors in the Palace?” Bai Ruozhu inquired.

”Mao Yanshi and the others have examined her and say it’s hysteria—that her mind is somewhat disordered,” the eunuch said, his voice lowered, while gesturing towards his own head. After all, he was discussing a master of the Palace and dared not speak too loudly.

Bai Ruozhu nodded and murmured intentionally, ”How can she suddenly be out of her wits without reason? She wasn’t poisoned by Wei Pengbo and frightened out of her senses, was she?”

”Perhaps that’s the case,” the eunuch conveying the order said.

Bai Ruozhu quickly followed the eunuch into the Palace towards Hanlu Palace. The Empress and the Empress Dowager were both present, with the Empress Dowager appearing concerned upon seeing Bai Ruozhu, as if she feared someone might be scheming against him.

”This humble official pays respect to the Empress Dowager and the Empress. I have been briefed on the situation by the eunuch on the way here. Why not let me examine Consort Lv’s condition first?” Bai Ruozhu said after performing the proper salutations.

The Empress’s complexion turned slightly red, ”Consort Lv has just had a fit of madness, nearly injuring myself and the Empress Mother. I have had her restrained for the time being. It would be good for you to go check on her now.”

Bai Ruozhu detected from the tone of the Empress that there wasn’t much suspicion against her; instead, she felt that Consort Lv had indeed gone mad.

Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager got up, with Hao Mu supporting her as they walked towards the inner hall, uttering, ”Consort Lv was fine before; I too am curious how she suddenly came down with madness.”

When Bai Ruozhu saw Consort Lv again, she almost couldn’t restrain her laughter. Her heart swelled with satisfaction—after all, Consort Lv had once caused a beloved beauty to die miserably, and she wished nothing more than to let Consort Lv taste the pain of being executed by dismemberment, to let her know the agony of being slowly cut to pieces.

Unfortunately, as Consort Lv held a position second only to that of the consorts, Bai Ruozhu could not flay her piece by piece. She could only allow her to taste the torment of unbearable pain.

At that moment, Consort Lv’s hair hung loose and disheveled, and her clothes were torn and tattered. Where was the slightest hint of the dignified lady of the Palace? She was the very picture of a madwoman on the streets.

She was tightly bound to a chair, her hands tied behind her back, but her feet kicked violently as if driven by madness, making sounds akin to those of a wild beast.

”I’ll kill you all, I’ll kill you all!” she screamed while writhing in her restraints. Observers might not understand, but Bai Ruozhu knew the unbearable itching and pain within her body, her mind aggravated by drugs, causing her to shriek like a madwoman, intent on killing, unable to express her internal suffering.

This medicine came from the Poison Scripture Bai Ruozhu had found in her previous life. Due to its extremely potent and cruel effects, combined with the difficulty of finding ingredients, she had prepared it only once and didn’t wish to use it recklessly.

But she didn’t regret using it on Consort Lv at all!

”Chief Doctor Bai, can you determine what’s wrong with her? She’s not cursed, is she?” The Empress asked nervously, but to maintain her own image, she could only steel herself and move a few steps closer.

Bai Ruozhu saluted the Empress and said, ”It shouldn’t be. It looks more like hysteria.”

As she prepared to approach Consort Lv to take her pulse, Consort Lv let out a bestial roar, yelling, ”Bai Ruozhu, stay away from me! It was definitely you who poisoned me. It was you!”

Seeing her so agitated, everyone grew fearful. Bai Ruozhu had no choice but to stop advancing and asked, puzzled, ”Why would I want to harm you? We have neither grudge nor grievance. Last time, it was I who treated you when you were poisoned by Wei Pengbo, and I even cured your stomach ailment. Why would I harm you?”

She glanced at the Empress and the Empress Dowager and continued, ”Even if Ruozhu were bold, she would not dare to harm the consorts of the palace, not to mention, there must be a reason to harm someone, right?”

Consort Lü had already lost her reason, shouting as she spoke, ”You are just seeking revenge for that wretched woman, Consort Xu. I know you want me dead, want me to join Consort Xu!”

”What does Consort Xu’s matter have to do with you? Even if someone wanted to avenge Consort Xu, they wouldn’t come looking for you, would they?” Bai Ruozhu feigned confusion as she asked.

Everyone went silent, all staring directly at Consort Lü, as if they had discovered something.

At that moment, the eunuchs’ shrill voices came from outside, ”The Emperor has arrived!”

In the blink of an eye, the Emperor walked in, and everyone bowed in greeting, while Consort Lü, bound to a chair, showed not the slightest respect for Tang Yin, glaring at him and saying, ”Have you come to see how I suffer? I’ve been wholeheartedly devoted to you, but how have you treated me? Have you ever looked at me directly?”

”How dare you, Consort Lü, show such disrespect to the Emperor!” the Empress shouted angrily.

The Emperor raised his hand to stop the Empress from scolding and looked at the somewhat unrecognizable Consort Lü, frowning as he said, ”Has she gone mad?”

Consort Lü suddenly burst into laughter, ”Yes, I’ve gone mad. If I weren’t mad, I would have killed all of you by now. It’s all Bai Ruozhu’s fault. Sooner or later, she will kill all of you. It doesn’t matter if I alone die. Even as a ghost, I will not let her off, nor will I let any of you off!”

Listening to Consort Lü’s incoherent words, everyone thought she surely must be mad, otherwise, how could she dare to utter such treasonous words?

The Emperor’s frown deepened, ”You say Bai Ruozhu harmed you, do you have evidence?”

Consort Lü cried out, ”I ran into her near the execution ground that day, and afterwards, I felt uncomfortable all over. It must have been her doing something to me in secret. She wants revenge for Consort Xu and wants me to die in place of Consort Xu!”

This time, without waiting for Bai Ruozhu to speak, the Emperor, with a cold face, continued to ask, ”Why would anyone seek revenge for Consort Xu? Are you the one who reported her crimes?”

Consort Lü laughed maniacally, ”Why should Consort Xu be granted the honor of sharing the Emperor’s bed? Why should she be the one to conceive the Dragon Heir, while I, poisoned, have been wounded and lost my ability to bear children? Why?”

”What? Consort Xu is pregnant?” The Empress Dowager staggered, realizing that no one had noticed this detail.

Bai Ruozhu shivered, feeling a chill in her bones, realizing that this was the reason, this was it!

Consort Lü had continuously strived for weight loss, slimming her waist to the detriment of her health, making pregnancy difficult. On top of that, she had been poisoned by someone Wei Pengbo had sent, damaging her fertility. It’s no wonder the Imperial Doctors would say so when diagnosing her.

But in truth, as long as Bai Ruozhu helped her recuperate, she might not recover in one or two years, but she would certainly be able to conceive in three years. Regrettably, Consort Lü had given up that possibility herself.

Consort Xu conceived after only one night of serving the Emperor, and she might not have even noticed it herself, but the envious Consort Lü, who pretended to be on good terms with her, had observed it. Jealousy had distorted Consort Lü completely; she hated everything she couldn’t have, and she also hated Bai Ruozhu, believing that Bai Ruozhu had harmed her and had helped Consort Xu conceive the Dragon Heir.

”It’s all Bai Ruozhu’s fault. I won’t let her get away with it. As long as Consort Xu admits that she has cast a witchcraft spell on the Emperor, won’t Bai Ruozhu be implicated?” As Consort Lü spoke, she once again burst into crazed laughter.