The imperial physician had indeed been waiting in Prince Chen’s Mansion for a long time! He took the exclusive shortcut linking the Palace to Prince Chen’s Mansion, and Chu Liuchen went back home through the same shortcut.
The imperial physician first felt Chu Liuchen’s pulse, and then he took out needles to treat Chu Liuchen by acupuncture as usual.
Shao Wanru stayed by Chu Liuchen’s side. She watched with a serious face the imperial physician stab Chen Liuchen with the needles and slowly remove them.
It was very quiet in the room. Only the sound of the needles being put into the cover could be heard when the physician changed the needles.
Shao Wanru held Chu Liuchen’s hand tightly, but she paid all her attention to the imperial physician.
The imperial physician was under a lot of pressure when Princess Chen was next to him. “She pays too much attention to the treatment!”
Time passed much slower than usual because of the serious atmosphere.
The imperial physician performed a set of acupuncture, his forehead covered with sweats. Shao Wanru’s stare did panic him!
Only after performing the last needle did the imperial physician wipe his forehead with a handkerchief! He said to Chu Liuchen with a smile, “Your Highness, you look well. You are in good condition now!”
“Any more acupuncture treatments?” Shao Wanru asked with a restrained expression.
“Well… It’s better to keep the treatment. It is a long-standing disease anyway,” the imperial physician put the handkerchief into his pocket and said.
“Can’t it be completely cured?” Shao Wanru asked again with her eyes as deep as flowing water.
“His Highness is in good health now, but he has carried the fetus poison for so many years! So he needs to preserve his health, though the fetus poison has been cleared,” the imperial physician answered calmly with a serious face.
What he said did make sense.
Chu Liuchen’s health could not be dealt with in a short time, so he needed to take time to receive treatments. Even if he had recovered now, he still needed to be more cautious than others.
“Imperial Physician, do you think His Highness needs to consolidate his health with medicines?” Shao Wanru asked again. She was very concerned about Chu Liuchen’s health.
“No, it’s unnecessary. What’s more, Doctor Jue is in your mansion, so you don’t need other doctors’ prescriptions anymore. Otherwise, they might give a prescription in conflict with Doctor Jue’s. Of course, if you insist on having one, it’s better to refer to the previous prescription first!” the imperial physician said amiably.
Then he bowed to Shao Wanru and Chu Liuchen and said, “Your Highness, I’ll leave now!”
Chu Liuchen waved his hand, and the imperial physician left.
“Have you really recovered?” Shao Wanru asked with concern after the imperial physician left.
Chu Liuchen put his wrist in Shao Wanru’s hand. With a naughty smile, he signaled to her to feel his pulse.
Shao Wanru was very worried about Chu Liuchen’s health condition. The imperial physician’s explanations sounded flawless, but she believed in her own diagnosis more, especially after Chu Liuchen had just been treated with needles.
Shao Wanru once felt Chu Liuchen’s pulse before. Now she could sense his pulse seemed to be more energetic. It was a good situation!
However, Shao Wanru didn’t show a happy smile on her face. She looked at the door and found that the imperial physician had been away. Nowhere could he be found now.
She felt a little confused.
“Is there any problem?” Chu Liuchen led Shao Wanru to sit on the bed. He waved his wide sleeves, looking unrestrained.
“Your Highness, since you have recovered, why aren’t you the same as you were before being treated with needles? Does it mean that you were not in your best health before?” Shao Wanru couldn’t help asking with a frown after hearing Chu Liuchen’s question.
She had observed Chu Liuchen’s condition and thought he had always been very good, but the pulse she felt now made her draw a different conclusion from what she had thought before.
“You find it out?” Chu Liuchen looked at Shao Wanru with a faint smile. He held Shao Wanru’s hand and gently rubbed it. Suddenly he used some strength, and Shao Wanru felt pains and cried out in a low voice. Her eyes lit up and she immediately understood. “Your Highness, is it your plan?”
“I have been sick for so many years! How can I be cured so easily? I have to be weak again! If I recover now, it is such a waste of others’ plots!” Chu Liuchen laughed.
“Is it because Prince Yue and Prince Zhou have been keeping an eye on you?” Shao Wanru finally figured it out. She looked quite surprised with her watery eyes wide open.
Chu Liuchen was amused by her lovely expression. He let go of Shao Wanru’s hand and reached out to hold Shao Wanru into his arms. Instantly, he felt satisfied in his heart with her soft and fragrant body.
“The two of them have been straining their efforts for the information about my health. Until now, they still can’t believe that I am getting better. Since then, why not make them more suspicious? I asked Qi Jue to prescribe some medicines, which will make my pulse feel different before and after the acupuncture treatment. Anyway, the imperial physician will compare them, but sometimes they won’t,” Chu Liuchen said lazily.
“Will they… even question the imperial physician about you?” Shao Wanru took a deep breath and immediately understood what Chu Liuchen meant. But that imperial physician was the trusted subordinate of Empress Dowager and the Emperor!
“The Empress and Consort of Virtue have been in the palace for so many years, so they have a lot of people working for them,” Chu Liuchen smiled and said meaningfully.
Shao Wanru understood what he meant. She nodded and leaned against his chest obediently.
“Master, here comes another person from the Palace!” Xiao Xuanzi reported outside the door.
Shao Wanru wanted to sit up, but she was stopped by Chu Liuchen. She heard the word “another” clearly but didn’t know what it meant. She had been in the room all the time, but she had never seen Xiao Xuanzi come to report! Actually, Chu Liuchen had predicted it early, so he had instructed Xiao Xuanzi before.
“How many people have ever come by now?” Chu Liuchen asked lazily.
“It’s been the third one!” Xiao Xuanzi said, “The first one was sent by Consort of Virtue and the second by the Empress. Now the third one is sent by both of them. When the last two people came, I told them that you were acupunctured and couldn’t enter the Palace. But now the imperial physician has left for the Palace.”
“Then I’ll have to go to the Palace now!” Chu Liuchen said.
“I will go to prepare for it!” Xiao Xuanzi understood and left to get ready for his master’s entering the Palace.
“Are you going to the Palace now?” Shao Wanru stood up with Chu Liuchen.
“Yes! The two princes were punished by flogging, so Consort of Virtue and the Empress wanted to turn to me. But I couldn’t leave just now. I think the punishment is over now!” Chu Liuchen said slowly.
Shao Wanru suddenly burst out laughing, with her watery eyes becoming more and more charming. She understood Chu Liuchen’s words. He did it on purpose! He pretended to be busy and couldn’t go and persuade the Emperor in a short time, so the two princes suffered a full punishment.
After all, it was known that acupuncture treatment was so important to his health that no one could blame him for not pleading for mercy from the Emperor for his two brothers when he was receiving acupuncture.
“Since the Empress and Consort of Virtue are in such a hurry, why don’t they plead with the Emperor themselves?” Shao Wanru asked with a smile.
“Of course they do! They should still be at Uncle the Emperor’s now. But it didn’t work!” Chu Liuchen raised his handsome eyebrows with an enchanting smile. His eyes were not as gentle as before but were full of evil coldness.
Only at this moment would the Empress and Consort of Virtue think of the importance of him and turn to him for help!
“You’ve just finished the acupuncture, and you are not in excellent health. You don’t have to go!” Shao Wanru thought for a moment and said.
“Of course, I can choose not to go! But since they are longing for my arrival, I’ll just go and have fun,” Chu Liuchen said lazily, with his eyes softened. “You must be tired now. Go and have a rest! I’ll be back soon!”
Since he had made up his mind to enter the Palace, Shao Wanru nodded and hold his hand. “Be careful yourself!”
She knew it was just a redundant warning. “He is clever and scheming! How can he be tricked by others?” However, those words just blurted out, with concern in her watery eyes.
Chu Liuchen smiled, with elegance and joyfulness. Anyone could tell that now he was happy from the bottom of his heart!
“Don’t worry. I’ll be back soon. Have a rest!”
Xiao Xuanzi had already prepared a wheelchair at the gate of the courtyard. Chu Liuchen sat on the wheelchair, and Xiao Xuanzi slowly pushed him to the Palace through the side door.
Two noble ladies were kneeling in front of the Imperial Study. The one in front was the Empress, and Consort of Virtue was a step behind her.
They looked miserable kneeling there. Not far behind them knelt Chu Liuyue and Chu Liuzhou, who were struggling.
The two princes were not in good condition. They had just suffered the flogging punishment, and now they were struggling not to faint. They glared at each other, wishing to see the other fall down first.
“Your Highness, this way, please!” A eunuch led Chu Liuchen in. The wheelchair stopped under the roof of Imperial Study, and Chu Liuchen stood up and walked into it.
No one stopped when passing by Chu Liuyue and Chu Liuzhou. They passed by Consort of Virtue and finally stopped beside the Empress. Chu Liuchen greeted her, “Your Majesty!”
“Prince Chen, please intercede for Prince Yue and Prince Zhou! Now the Emperor should have vented out his anger. I hope the Emperor can let them go, considering that they are implicated by Duke Yong’s Mansion’s disaster!” the Empress looked up and said to Chu Liuchen.
Even though she looked very awkward at this time, the Empress still kept a calm face.
“Uncle the Emperor should know what to do!” Chu Liuchen said lightly and then walked to the Imperial Study.
The Empress darkened her face, with a trace of cold light in her eyes. She had no choice. Otherwise, she would not have asked Chu Liuchen to plead for her son.
She wished in her heart that Chu Liuyue had been beaten to death, but she had to maintain her demeanor of a motherly model in front of others.
But such a demeanor was humiliated by Chu Liuchen. “I have lowered my head to him, but he didn’t even give a promise!” How could she not be angry?
But she understood in her heart that Chu Liuchen had always kept an arrogant attitude, telling everyone that he was a noble young master high above. She could only clench her teeth secretly!
“I have to stand it! What can’t I stand? One day, I will trample everyone under my feet…”