Capítulo 30: Chapter 3.8
Zhou Yun Sheng's soul was powerful, not to mention four days without sleep, even four months without sleep was possible for him. So, after he returned to his room, he didn't rush to sleep, instead, he stood at his window to meditate.
He was waiting, waiting for Xie Yu Rou's medical space and spiritual spring, as long as Xie Yu Rou came, he would be able to ensure the Crown Prince's safe recovery. Would Xie Yu Rou come? The answer was certainly yes.
Thinking of this, he narrowed his eyes and smiled.
"Official Shen, His Highness the Crown Prince summons you." The personal servant thought that he was too worried about the Crown Prince to fall sleep, so he inevitably felt grateful.
Hearing this, Zhou Yun Sheng immediately headed towards the main room.
"Your Highness." He slowly walked to the bedside, bowing in salute.
"Even at this time, you still call me Your Highness? Call me Si Nian." The Crown Prince tried to raise his upper body, wanting to get a good look at the boy's face.
Zhou Yun Sheng quickly helped him up, padding his back with a soft pillow, then obediently called him Si Nian. This name seemed to instantly shorten the distance between the two, resulting in their faces softening.
The Crown Prince laughed softly, gripping his hand, he called out Yun Sheng, then repeated it over and over, as if there was no afterlife if he missed this time.
"You said, if I have an accident, you would accompany me to the Yellow Springs, do those words still count?" He finally regretted. What paving the way and clearing obstacles, those were all lies he'd forced himself to believe. He was this selfish, even when heading to the underworld, he wanted to drag this man down with him.
If Zhou Yun Sheng was afraid of anything, it was not death. Even if the task in this world was not completed, he could go to the next world, then another world, no big loss. He pondered for a moment, then smiled and nodded, "Remember, those words will always count."
The Crown Prince's eyes brightened slightly, while coughing and laughing, his laughter held unprecedented joy.
The palace maids and attendants had red eyes, they turned around to wipe their tears.
Afterwards, Zhou Yun Sheng stayed close to take care of the Crown Prince. He ate, drank and slept by him, not the slightest bit afraid of infection. He said that he was willing to go to the Yellow Springs with the Crown Prince, but he knew that his body was transformed, unless he took the initiative to leave, he could live for a long time. Plus, the Crown Prince would not be killed by this plague.
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Xie Yu Rou finally arrived at the mansion, she heard that the Crown Prince was at death's door and let out a big sigh of relief, sneering inwardly: So what if you escaped the fate of abolishment, Heaven has destined you to never ascend the throne, and you will face retribution here. If not for that rich and honorable life, you would not have to struggle on your deathbed!
She kowtowed once outside the Crown Prince's courtyard, then urgently went to take care of the Seventh Prince.
The Seventh Prince was very touched when he saw her brave death to help him, he took her hand and held on for a long time. Xie Yu Rou whispered some comfort, then she put a drop of the spiritual spring in all of the Seventh Prince's decoctions, tea, and meals. She also brought out some lotus seeds grown in the spiritual spring, peeled and gave them to the Seventh Prince to eat.
In order to prevent the loyal servants who came with her from getting infected with the plague, she even generously dropped some spiritual spring into the big pot of tea the servants drank from.
The effectiveness of the spiritual spring was extraordinary, the Seventh Prince rehabilitated within a day, and the servants within his courtyard also weren't infected. On the other hand, in the Crown Prince's courtyard, a corpse was carried out almost every day, and the Crown Prince himself was unconscious more than he was awake, his end was near.
Because the medicine given to the two was the same, the imperial physicians were not suspicious, they thought that this was a result of the Crown Prince having a weaker body than the Seventh Prince.
One day, Zhou Yun Sheng took care of the Crown Prince until he fell asleep, then freed himself from his unyielding grip on his clothes, and slowly walked towards the Seventh Prince's courtyard.
"Lady Concubine, please also save His Highness the Crown Prince." After paying respects to the sickly Seventh Prince, he rushed towards Xie Yu Rou, who was standing to the side, and bowed down deeply.
The imperial physicians were in the room for a check-up, when they saw this scene, they were astonished.
Xie Yu Rou's heart was greatly alarmed, but her face didn't reveal anything, asking uncertainly, "Official Shen, what do you mean? This concubine doesn't possess medical knowledge, how can this concubine have a way to treat His Highness the Crown Prince?"
"Lady Concubine is very modest; His Highness the Seventh Prince was able to recover to this point because he was blessed with the Lady's panacea. His Highness the Crown Prince is the country's heir, the Lady clearly has the medicine, but keeps it a secret, choosing to watch His Highness die of illness. What is the difference between this deed and treason?" Zhou Yun Sheng was smiling, but his words were blade-like, almost slicing Xie Yu Rou's mind open.
"Official Shen is joking, where does this concubine have this panacea? The luggage this concubine brought is all here, and coincidentally, all the imperial physicians are also here. You are all free to search, if you find this legendary panacea, this concubine is willing to face the highest punishment. Treason is a great crime, worthy of executing an entire family line. Official Shen, if there is no evidence, please don't make irresponsible remarks."
Xie Yu Rou relied on the space at hand, quickly restoring her calm.
Zhou Yun Sheng smiled gently, "If there was no absolute certainty, this Shen would never be so rude to the Lady. To be quite honest, this Shen's nose is different from ordinary people, this Shen can sniff out what ordinary people cannot. If the Lady wants proof, this Shen will give a demonstration."
He pointed to the spice bag hanging on Xie Yu Rou's waist and said, "This bag contains root of Dahurian Angelica, Szechuan Lovage Rhizome, Phragmites Japonica grass, and five portions of muskroot. Also add the rhizomes of aromatic ginger, Ling Xiang grass, fragrant eupatorium, and two portions of mugwort leaf."
"Of course, these are the most commonly used medicinal herbs in spice bags, the Lady could claim that this Shen is only blindly guessing, but this sachet still has secrets, containing a chunk of ginseng and some lotus seeds separately. The fragrance of this ginseng is very unique, unexpectedly, this Shen has never smelled it in his entire life, this Shen boldly guesses that it is the legendary, extinct purple ginseng. And those lotus seeds are even more mystical, only the aftertaste of one small sniff can make this Shen hopelessly intoxicated. This Shen is proficient in medicine, and has read all the books, but this Shen actually cannot make the slightest guess about the origin of this strain."
After he finished talking, he slowly walked to the table and brought the Seventh Prince's medicine bowl up to his nose, sniffed, then smiled and said, "This bowl of medicine contains the scent of that ginseng and lotus seed. Moreover, there is a clear and cold liquid fragrance, it seems to be full of spirituality."
He put down the bowl, then looked at a casually placed fruit basket that contained unstripped lotus seed heads, his eyes brightened slightly, and he sighed, "Such extraordinary lotus seeds, but Lady Concubine unexpectedly has this much. The Lady really must possess supernatural powers."
He walked a lap around the room, then halted by the window and nodded to a gurgling teapot on a small stove, which was emitting white vapor. His voice changed from gentle to cold and sharp, "Even the servants' tea can have the panacea, but you're not willing to give a little charity to His Highness? Lady Concubine, what are your intentions?"
Xie Yu Rou secretly clenched her fists, cold sweating. She would've never expected that her medical space and spiritual spring would actually be exposed because of a dog nose. At this moment, she had already lost her mind in agitation, but she still strongly argued back, "So many imperial physicians are here, but only Official Shen smelled anything odd. Official Shen's ability to improvise nonsense has really broaden this concubine's horizons. This concubine says that there is no panacea, you guys may search high and low through all this luggage. If you find the slightest suspicious thing, this concubine will plead guilty."
The Seventh Prince recovered from his surprise and said in a heavy voice, "Go ahead and search." He and Xie Yu Rou had ample tacit understanding, seeing Xie Yu Rou's confident expression, he also didn't panic.
Zhou Yun Sheng seemed to have heard a big joke, he clapped and laughed, "Why should I search your luggage? I only need to bring back this bowl of medicine, fruit basket, teapot, and sachet. Lady Concubine, this Shen has been rude, if the Crown Prince is sound, this Shen will certainly come to apologize. If the Crown Prince passes away, this Shen will accompany him to the Yellow Springs, so this Shen will be unable to come back. This Shen will take his leave now, please have a good rest, Seventh Prince and Lady."
He bowed in salute, then bluntly tore away Xie Yu Rou's spice bag after straightening up. He ordered for the dishes, fruit basket, teapot and other objects to be carried out, then called the imperial physicians and grandiosely walked away.
The medical space and spiritual spring were soul objects, and they existed in an invisible dimension. Even Xie Yu Rou couldn't believe her eyes at first, how could she predict that they would one day be seen through? So, when the group was out of sight, she immediately went limp like clay. Facing the Seventh Prince's strange, inscrutable gaze, she only saw darkness in her future.
When Zhou Yun Sheng returned to the courtyard, the Crown Prince had not yet awakened. The imperial physicians followed closely behind him, inquiring doubtfully, "Infection from the plague is almost a guaranteed death, can these things really save His Highness the Crown Prince? Official Shen, are you not mistaken?"
"You'll know whether or not I'm mistaken after it's used."
Zhou Yun Sheng opened the spice bag, taking out a slice of ginseng and a lotus seed, throwing them into the medicine bowl. He ordered for all the lotus seed heads to be peeled and placed on the tea tray for later use, then he propped up the Crown Prince and gently called out.
"Yun Sheng, I seem to be at death's door, bring me a writing brush and ink stone, I want to write a letter to Imperial Father. You can rest assured, even after I die, I will guarantee the Shen family's prosperity for a hundred years." The Crown Prince said weakly.
"Your Highness will be healed today." Zhou Yun Sheng neatly combed his messy hair, then brought the medicine bowl to his mouth, saying in a low voice, "This is the panacea Xie-shi brought. Drink it, and you will be healed right away."
The Crown Prince thought that he was deceiving him, but he still smiled and obediently drank the medicine. Then he forced down the desire to vomit and chewed the lotus seeds, finally, he used the tea to wash down the medicine.
The imperial physicians stared wide-eyed, but they didn't seem as confident as Official Shen. They each thought: This plague is terminal, how can a bowl of medicine, a few cups of tea, and lotus seeds cure it? Official Shen is so worried about the Crown Prince that he has gone mad. Just now, he offended the Seventh Prince and his favored concubine, if the Seventh Prince ascends the throne someday, the Shen family will be in trouble ah!
However, a miracle appeared. After the Crown Prince ate the medicine, he actually started sweating profusely, and that sweat was black, carrying a thick foul odor. It was as if all the toxins in his body were being expelled. Afterwards, the Crown Prince repeatedly used the toilet, and after taking a hot bath, his face was already rosy, and his eyes were shiny, his body full of vitality.
This result was very obvious, but it was not surprising. Forget about the spiritual spring and purple ginseng, just this 9th Grade Golden Lotus had extraordinary medicinal power. The Seventh Prince was given small amounts under Xie Yu Rou's moderation, only allowed to eat one grain a day, so it looked like he'd slowly recovered. It couldn't compare to the Crown Prince, who chewed dozens of grains in succession.
That 9th Grade Golden Lotus bloomed in the spiritual spring, the seeds absorbed the spiritual spring water until it was full and plump, its effectiveness was obvious. Also, Xie Yu Rou was rather careless, unexpectedly taking out about five or six lotus seed heads, this allowed Zhou Yun Sheng to fulfil his wish of washing the marrow and boasting the meridian channels of the Crown Prince.
"Help me check my pulse." The Crown Prince placed his wrist on the pillow, his wet hair hanging loose, his voice full of strength.
The imperial physicians took turns inspecting, his strong pulse caused all their jaws to drop.
Wang-shi heard the news and hurried over, she was now holding a towel, wanting to dry the Crown Prince's hair.
"You don't need to appear in front of me anymore, you craven and cowardly thing." The Crown Prince narrowed his eyes, the chill in his voice overflowing. Then he looked to the young man standing respectfully at his side, his smile like a spring blossom, "Come Yun Sheng, my hair is dripping water, it's quite cold."
This spoiled tone caused Zhou Yun Sheng to be covered with goose bumps, he had no choice but to slowly walk over to wait upon him.
Wang-shi's face paled, she tried to weep, but was unable to produce tears.
After the imperial physicians were all finished examining his pulse, they exclaimed, "His Highness is already healed, Xie-shi's medicine is indeed miraculous!"
From the respectful Lady Concubine to the disrespectful Xie-shi, this was a precursor to Xie Yu Rou's miserable future. She obviously had medicine but refused to use it on the Crown Prince. When this matter was passed on to the Tian Chen Emperor, not only would Xie Yu Rou suffer a calamity, perhaps even the Seventh Prince would be disgraced. The Crown Prince was DaZhou's heir, this couple just looked on as he almost died, this was the great crime of regicide.
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T/N:
I, your- ZYS actually uses 'I' here, plus the informal 'your'. Either the author forgot, or he lost his temper.
craven and cowardly- idiom. greedy for life, afraid of death
tried to weep, but was unable to produce tears- idiom. so grieved and sorrowful that one is unable to produce tears even though he or she wants to cry
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