Chapter 158: Chapter 158

The news terrified the concubines and servants who hurried to attend to the Emperor.

Everything that Emperor Yongning ingested was tested for poison with a silver needle and taste-tested by designated people before he consumed it.

With such meticulous checks, how did the Emperor get poisoned?

It’s not easy to uncover the truth about this matter.

But clearly, this is not the time to dwell on it; the priority is to detoxify Emperor Yongning.

Once he recovers, we can investigate the matter further.

But to detoxify him, we must first understand what poison he was afflicted with.

The Chief of the Imperial Hospital led a group of imperial physicians to examine the poison in the Emperor, and during their examination, they discovered something surprising.

After repeated confirmations, the Chief of the Imperial Hospital informed Jun Ning and the group of concubines led by the Imperial Concubine, "The Emperor’s sudden outbreak of poison is not entirely unfortunate."

If it weren’t for Emperor Yongning’s unusually heightened emotions today, which caused him to run a stretch in the Imperial Garden, accelerating the blood flow in his body, the poison might not have surfaced but remained dormant, making it hard for the imperial physicians to diagnose.

Consequently, it might have been treated as a common ailment, missing the optimal time for treatment.

Until one day when the malignant poison thoroughly collapses Emperor Yongning’s health and suddenly breaks out.

By then, there would be no room for any remedy at all.

There is still some leeway now.

As long as the antidote is prepared, the poison can be eliminated.

Upon hearing this, all the concubines breathed a sigh of relief.

But Jun Ning remained worried.

The Emperor should know his body best, yet he was so disappointed in his health that he prepared for the worst, indicating how dire his condition is.

Healing is not easy! Nᴇw ɴovel chaptᴇrs are published on 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡⁂𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚⁂𝙣𝙚𝙩

With the Empress gone, the Imperial Concubine currently holds the highest position in the harem.

After hearing the imperial physician’s words, the Imperial Concubine, who had been standing by Emperor Yongning’s bedside, holding his hand, lifted Jun Ning and said, "In that case, Princess Anle is a hero."

The Chief of the Imperial Hospital nodded, "You could say that."

"Then our Princess Anle truly is a little lucky star." Not only bringing fortune to her but also to the Emperor, the Imperial Concubine chuckled as she pinched Jun Ning’s cheek, "Once the Emperor recovers, I will definitely tell him to reward you handsomely."

If other princes or princesses heard such words, they would undoubtedly be unable to hide their pride.

But Jun Ning kept a tense face, eyes filled with melancholy, showing no hint of joy.

"Thank you, Imperial Concubine, for your kindness. Please let me down."

Jun Ning struggled to get down from the Imperial Concubine’s arms, and seeing this, the Imperial Concubine had no choice but to release him.

She watched the little figure helplessly, thinking, "Why doesn’t this child warm up to me? If it weren’t for this child back then, I wouldn’t have managed to secure control over the harem."

The Imperial Concubine always wanted to find an opportunity to get along well with Jun Ning.

But it seems it won’t be easy!

After Jun Ning got down from the Imperial Concubine’s arms, she saw the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess Consort entering from outside the Imperial Study Room. She hurried over, grabbing the Crown Prince’s sleeve, and said, "Brother Crown Prince, please save the Emperor."

The Crown Prince’s health had improved, and he returned to his former gentle and refined demeanor.

Looking at the little girl with swollen eyes like peaches, the Crown Prince didn’t say anything extra. He bent down and picked her up, heading towards Emperor Yongning’s bedside.

The Crown Prince was far more noble than these harem concubines, especially those who hadn’t borne a prince; they all had to bow and greet him.

After they saluted, the Crown Prince carefully inquired about the method to detoxify the poison from the imperial physicians.

Detoxifying the poison is not difficult.

The Imperial Hospital has the most skilled physicians in the entire Eastern Chu Kingdom, with top-notch pharmacists to prepare the medicine. As long as the prescription is written and the medicines are gathered for preparation, there should be no issues.

But the difficulty lies with the medicinal ingredients.

Some life-saving ingredients are priceless and difficult to obtain; even the palace’s medicine storeroom doesn’t have reserves.

It’s not that they don’t want to stockpile them, but rather that they can’t.

For some life-saving herbs, hefty bounties were offered across the land for many years but not even a single one was acquired.

This brought about the problem Jun Ning was worried about just now.

Indeed, whether poisoned or fallen ill, recovery is never easy!

"The road is long and arduous, but if one proceeds, they will eventually reach their destination."

Jun Ning bit her lip, filled with determination. No matter how difficult it was, she was determined to procure the life-saving medicinal ingredients.

She asked, "Imperial physician, what exactly are the life-saving medicinal ingredients, and how can they be obtained?"

"To report to Your Highness, the life-saving medicinal ingredients consist of three types. Their names are complex and difficult to remember, so I will write them down for everyone shortly." The imperial physician said, "As for obtaining these medicines..."

The imperial physician paused for a long time before continuing, "These medicinal ingredients do exist in the Imperial City, but they grow in Medicine King Valley."

The name Medicine King Valley immediately made everyone understand the rarity of these life-saving medicinal ingredients.

Medicine King Valley is located in a cold valley, with a climate suitable for cultivating various precious herbs. About three hundred years ago, a mysterious medical family occupied the land and began cultivating herbs.

However, they never sold their cultivated herbs, only keeping them for themselves to appreciate and play with. When in good mood, they might share a few life-saving herbs; when in a bad mood, they’d rather let the herbs wither and die than give them away.

Yet, even so, there were still many who came seeking for the famed life-saving medicines.

However, the entrance to Medicine King Valley is the Black Forest; to enter Medicine King Valley, one must pass through it.

The Black Forest is filled with wild beasts that are extremely ferocious. Those who intended to seek medicines from Medicine King Valley often couldn’t even get past the Black Forest and lost their lives before even reaching it, let alone acquiring medicines from it.

Even if someone is lucky or possesses high martial arts skills and can bypass the beasts to reach the depths of the Black Forest, it doesn’t necessarily mean they can enter Medicine King Valley, meet its eccentric heir, and obtain the medicines from him.

The Crown Prince glanced at Emperor Yongning on the sickbed, hesitated for a moment, and finally said, "The Emperor’s poison must be detoxified; I will personally go with the National Guardian General to fetch the medicine."

In the entire court, the most skilled and strongest person without a doubt is the National Guardian General.

For the Crown Prince to navigate through the Black Forest and acquire the medicinal ingredients, he must go with the National Guardian General.

The National Guardian General is loyal to the monarch and loves his country. Plus, given that the Emperor is about to marry his beloved daughter to the General’s soon-to-be-born son, surely, the General will spare no effort to help obtain the medicine.

The Chief of the Imperial Hospital quickly wrote down the three medicinal ingredients on a piece of paper, handed it to the Crown Prince, and advised, "Your Highness must remember this: within ten days, you must find the life-saving ingredients listed on this prescription and present them to me. Otherwise, if this time is missed, even with the antidote, the Emperor’s poison would have penetrated his lungs deeply, and even medicines would be useless."

"Brother, I will go with you."