Chapter 171: Chapter 171

"Yi Yi, where is Yi Yi?"

Emperor Yongning had a very, very long dream, dreaming that he was bitten to death by a group of venomous snakes. Yi Yi was crying beside him, and as she cried, those venomous snakes suddenly turned their heads and started biting Yi Yi, very viciously.

As if they wanted to kill Yi Yi with one bite.

Yi Yi wrestled with the group of venomous snakes, fighting for a long, long time, with the outcome hard to determine.

Just as Yi Yi was about to be bitten by a very large venomous snake, Emperor Yongning awoke, terrified.

"No, go away!" Emperor Yongning shouted, drenched in sweat. "Yi Yi, come to Father Emperor’s side. Father Emperor will protect you."

Although Emperor Yongning was already awake and had regained his senses, it was as if he were still trapped in that dream, unable to escape from it for a long time.

He desperately waved his arms to drive away the biting venomous snakes.

After a while, when he saw the Imperial Physician coming to check his pulse, he regained his senses.

The Imperial Physician checked Emperor Yongning’s pulse to ensure the poison in his body was neutralized, and he also mentioned the previous poisoning that nearly took his life, but the antidote had already removed it.

"Where did the antidote come from?" Emperor Yongning asked, looking at Qi Qin, who was guarding nearby.

As the National Guardian General, Qi Qin would only emerge during critical moments. Moreover, his wife was pregnant and about to give birth; he had already taken a leave to accompany her at home and wouldn’t suddenly appear.

If he had to come out, there must be something extremely serious.

Qi Qin briefly recounted the matter of going to Medicine King Valley for the medicine with the Crown Prince and Jun Ning to Emperor Yongning, after which Emperor Yongning listened quietly, his eyes lowered and remained silent for a long time.

Once he gathered his thoughts, he glanced at Xiao Lizi beside him, who helped him get up and dressed.

He planned to leave the palace for a while.

Jun Ning had exhausted herself trying to find medicine for him, and he couldn’t ignore that.

As for the matter of his poisoning, he would investigate after bringing Jun Ning back to the palace.

"Your Majesty, something major has occurred. You must not leave the palace."

"For safety, you must remain in the palace."

The Deputy Head of the Imperial Hospital hurriedly came to report and advised.

Someone usually steady was in a panic, so it must be something serious.

Emperor Yongning rubbed his brows, closed his eyes, and asked in confusion, "What happened? Why do you say this?"

"A plague, Your Majesty. A plague has been discovered in the Imperial City, and it is contagious. Moreover, once someone is infected, they will invariably die within a month..."

Emperor Yongning abruptly opened his eyes to look at the Deputy Head of the Imperial Hospital, his eyes full of shock.

The plague is indeed a terrifying matter.

Once it occurs, it immediately spreads from person to person, and if a cure is not found quickly, the entire country will suffer.

If severe, the population will experience a decline and heavily impact the daily life and travel of the citizens.

Additionally, the country’s power is at its weakest during this time, making it difficult to resist foreign invaders. If a desperate neighboring power seized the opportunity to attack, it could lead to a national demise.

Hence, the topic of plague has always been dreaded by various countries.

How did a plague suddenly occur?

Moreover, it’s in the Imperial City?

Emperor Yongning wanted to leave the palace, but now, for the safety of the entire Imperial City, he couldn’t go.

Meanwhile, Jun Ning had a fever.

Emperor Yongning wanted to bring Jun Ning into the palace to recover, but the Imperial Physician didn’t allow it, insisting that the first symptom of the plague is a fever and that for the safety of many, the princess must be isolated outside to recover before bringing her in.

If Emperor Yongning insisted, even mildly, on bringing his beloved daughter into the palace, the Imperial Physicians would unanimously protest.

With the plague in the Imperial City, it was crucial to have personnel, especially Imperial Physicians, so they couldn’t allow anything to happen to them.

For the greater good, Emperor Yongning had to make concessions.

But he... he was incredibly worried about what would happen to Jun Ning beyond his sight...

He kept his fists tightly clenched inside his sleeves.

Qi Qin also persuaded him, promising that he and the Crown Prince would protect the princess.

Even after listening, Emperor Yongning remained worried. He sent an Imperial Physician to check on Jun Ning, hoping to confirm it was just an ordinary fever and unrelated to the plague before proceeding.

As for the plague, Emperor Yongning hurriedly convened the courtiers to discuss countermeasures, not having time to drink a cup of hot tea.

The plague in the Imperial City was no small matter.

It had to be taken seriously, with utmost vigilance.

Not far from the Imperial City was a clinic.

When the Crown Prince carried in Jun Ning, the doctor in the clinic was treating other patients and two attendants were retrieving medicine, but for some reason, the doctor and attendants were all masked.

When it was the Crown Prince’s turn, he briefly mentioned Jun Ning’s fever to the doctor, who immediately looked toward Jun Ning in the Crown Prince’s arms.

Other people lined up behind the Crown Prince, upon hearing this, moved several steps back as if avoiding a flood beast.

Then, they unanimously covered their mouths and noses with their collars, warily watching the sleeping child in the Crown Prince’s arms.

"You, you, you... quickly take that child away from here, she’s not welcome!"

"Take her somewhere else to get treatment; not far from here, there’s a Tong Ren Tang with an excellent doctor who can probably treat her illness. You should quickly find the doctor there?"

"Just don’t leave her here to harm us; we are poor farmers with families, really can’t afford such harm."

"Go harm those wealthy merchants; they have plenty, and even if they get sick, they have money for treatment. But we don’t."

The Crown Prince, inexplicably swept his gaze over these speaking people, puzzled by what they were saying.

He was merely bringing his sister for treatment, not to harm them? For more chapters visıt 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵•𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮•𝓷𝓮𝓽

"Respected villagers, I’m just bringing my sister for treatment, not bothering you at all. Why do you speak ?"

"Listen to what you’re saying?"

It’s simply unbearable.

They weren’t here to rob anyone or take lives!

Why are they so hostile?

"Young master, don’t blame us for harsh words; we don’t want this either, but there’s plague everywhere in the Imperial City, and we’re afraid!"

"Your sister has a fever, and that’s a symptom of the plague; you should quickly take her away and don’t harm us."

"Or you should throw her to the mass grave."

"The plague is incurable, no matter how much money is spent, and it spreads from person to person. A single mistake, and an entire family could be doomed."

The Crown Prince was furious. "What nonsense are you spewing? My sister doesn’t have the plague, she’s just experiencing a common fever."