The harem is too complicated; the empress, a lazy bum, wins by doing nothing.

Chapter 45 Mother and son connect with each other
"It involves boiling the medicine, wrapping it in gauze, and applying it to the child's navel or acupoints. The Second Prince was treated this way when he was young. I wonder if this method is also applicable to the Third Prince's illness," Consort Liang said cautiously.

Among the imperial physicians treating the Third Prince, there happened to be one named Physician Zhao, who had treated the Second Prince when he was young.

Upon hearing Consort Liang's words, he stepped forward from the crowd and said, "Your Majesty, Consort Liang's method is indeed effective. When the Second Prince was young, he was afflicted with a pathogenic wind, and this method was indeed used to cure him."

Upon hearing Physician Zhao's words, Emperor Yuanwu flew into a rage.

"Since this method is effective, why didn't you use it on the Third Prince earlier? If Consort Liang hadn't come today, when were you planning to cure the Third Prince? I really don't know how the people in the Imperial Hospital are doing their jobs every day."

"Your Majesty, we are incompetent and beg for punishment." Upon hearing this, all the imperial physicians knelt on the ground.

"Since they are incompetent, then drag them all away and give them thirty strokes of the cane!" Emperor Yuanwu shouted, his eyes bloodshot and unfocused.

"Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

Shen Qingwan sighed helplessly at the imperial physicians kneeling all over the ground.

It wasn't that they were incompetent; it was just that there were very few children in the palace, and the treatments were mostly folk remedies. The imperial physicians, whether they were princes or eunuchs, used relatively traditional methods to treat them. If they cured them, it was their duty; if they failed, they would at most be punished.

However, if someone were to suggest a folk remedy and it failed to cure the disease, they would be punished, and their family might also be implicated. Therefore, if Consort Liang hadn't suggested it today, even if the imperial physicians knew that the method was effective, none of them would have dared to try it on the Third Prince.

Consort Liang dared to use this method on the Second Prince because she was his biological mother, and she was willing and dared to take on this responsibility.

The princes were the empresses' support. Even if the second prince was not cured, no one would suspect that she had designs on her own child. But the third prince was different.

“Your Majesty, the Third Prince needs imperial physicians right now. If you drag them all away and beat them up, who will treat the Third Prince’s illness? If a different group of imperial physicians comes, I’m afraid they will be hesitant. If they are timid and hesitant during the diagnosis, it may be even more detrimental to the Third Prince’s condition,” Shen Qingwan advised.

Emperor Yuanwu took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the anger in his heart: "In the Empress's opinion, what should be done about this matter?"

“His Majesty is deeply concerned for his son, and Consort Liang made this trip so that the Third Prince could recover as soon as possible. Why not let the imperial physicians try Consort Liang’s method first, especially Imperial Physician Zhao, who used this method to help the Second Prince recover his health before? Why not let the imperial physicians make amends for their past mistakes?” Shen Qingwan said.

"The Empress pleaded for you today, so I will let you off for now. But if you cannot cure the Third Prince, I will punish you severely!" Emperor Yuanwu said this and left in a huff.

He left without a word.

This mess is left to Shen Qingwan to clean up; after all, she's the Empress!
"Imperial physicians, please rise. His Majesty loves his son dearly. As long as you take good care of the Third Prince, I will reward you after he recovers. It will be a relief for the imperial physicians to have worked so hard to treat the Third Prince."

"Your humble servant thanks Your Majesty the Empress!"

Consort Shu, as if grasping at a last straw, talked with Consort Liang and the imperial physician for a long time until the ointment was applied to the Third Prince's body before letting Consort Liang leave. After the imperial physician applied the medicine to the Third Prince, he slept much more peacefully than before.

Shen Qingwan and Consort Liang left Yonghe Palace together.

"I must thank you on behalf of the Third Prince for what happened today. If you hadn't come and suggested this solution, I'm afraid Consort Shu would still be at a loss." Shen Qingwan held Consort Liang's hand.

"Your Majesty flatters me. I only feel sorry for the Third Prince. The Second Prince has been weak and sickly since childhood. Only I know how I have endured all these years. No matter what Consort Xian did before, the Third Prince is always innocent. Since becoming a mother, I can no longer bear to see any child suffer." Consort Liang sighed.

“You have a kind heart, you will surely be blessed.” Shen Qingwan held Consort Liang’s hand.

Consort Liang also has her own son. If the Third Prince can grow up healthy, then in the future, the Second Prince will have one more competitor in the struggle for the throne.

If this were a situation that happened to someone with even a modicum of intelligence, they would be more than willing to offer advice on how to save the Third Prince; they would be happy if they didn't even wish for the Third Prince to pass away soon.

"Your Majesty, I owe everything I have today to you. Although I don't care about status or position, the Second Prince is growing up, and I have to think about him. I know my family can't compare to Consort Xian and Consort De, and I've never asked for anything. I rarely visit Kunning Palace. Your Majesty's suggestion at the Empress Dowager's birthday banquet that the Emperor promote me is truly beyond words. Everything I've done today is a result of Your Majesty's influence. Thank you for your support."

Shen Qingwan was somewhat moved by what Consort Liang said. After all, she had been with Emperor Yuanwu for so many years and had always been a Noble Lady. She had probably already resigned herself to her fate. She hadn't thought much about it at the time, only that as the birth mother of a prince, her rank was indeed a bit low. She never expected that Consort Liang would take it to heart.

"I don't know what's wrong with the Third Prince. He's never been sick since birth when he was in Jingyang Palace, so why is he like this now that he's in Yonghe Palace..."

Shen Qingwan was interrupted by Consort Liang before she could finish speaking.

"Your Majesty, as the saying goes, a mother and child are of one heart. Although the Third Prince is still young, he is past the age of recognizing his mother. I know that Your Majesty is afraid that someone will take advantage of Consort Xian's poor health to have evil intentions towards the Third Prince. Just now, looking at Consort Shu's appearance, she is really devoted to this child. No matter how devoted she is, she can't withstand being harmed by others."

Consort Liang only said half of what she wanted to say before stopping. Shen Qingwan wanted to ask more, but Consort Liang bowed and withdrew.

Watching Consort Liang's departing figure, Zhen'er asked in confusion, "What exactly did Consort Liang want to say? Why didn't Your Highness ask clearly? Who exactly wants to harm the Third Prince?"

Consort Liang didn't say, probably not because she was afraid of getting into trouble. If that were the case, she wouldn't have needed to go to Yonghe Palace today to get involved in this mess. It's more likely that she saw something, became suspicious but had no evidence, so she came to give her a heads-up.

"Su Tianhe, go find a few trustworthy servants and have them keep an eye on Yonghe Palace, paying particular attention to the wet nurse, maids, and eunuchs around the Third Prince. Tell Consort Shu that it was my order, and if anyone asks, just say that Consort Shu was too busy and randomly assigned a few servants."

Su Tianhe: "Yes, Your Majesty."

Shen Qingwan returned to Kunning Palace and had just taken a sip of tea when a palace maid relayed a message: "Your Majesty, Madam Shen has sent word that she wishes to come to the palace to see you."

(End of this chapter)