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

Chapter 49 Incurable Diseases
"What's going on? Is it the baby in my belly?" Shen Qingwan frowned deeply, and this was the first thought that came to her mind.

But when I saw her during the day, she was perfectly fine; the accident happened just before dusk.

Shen Qingwan and Emperor Yuanwu hurriedly put down their chopsticks and headed towards Xianfu Palace.

Just as they arrived at the entrance of Xianfu Palace, the imperial physicians, each with their faces covered by a white cloth, were spraying medicine inside the palace with palace maids.

"What exactly happened?" Emperor Yuanwu's expression hardened.

Upon hearing the sound, Physician Zhang hurriedly came out from inside: "Your Majesty, this humble subject greets you."

"Imperial Physician Zhang, please rise and tell me, what exactly happened to Consort Li? How is the child? What are they spraying?" Emperor Yuanwu asked.

"Your Majesty, you'd better not come in. Consort Li has smallpox."

smallpox?

If one were to contract this at this time, it would probably be an incurable disease.

Neither medicine nor medical skills can cure such infectious diseases.

In ancient times, every outbreak of plague would kill many people.

“There is no smallpox in the capital city, and the palace is heavily guarded and rarely has contact with the outside world. How could someone have contracted smallpox?” Shen Qingwan asked, puzzled.

"Has it been confirmed?" Emperor Yuanwu's face was gloomy.

"Your Majesty, it is all my fault. I took Consort Li's pulse before, and when she only had some red rashes, it was not very serious. I thought that she was just allergic to some food. I never expected that she had contracted smallpox!" Imperial Physician Zhang knelt on the ground, blaming himself.

"What about the child? How is the child?" Emperor Yuanwu asked anxiously.

"Your Majesty, the child is fine for now, but given Consort Li's current physical condition, I'm afraid it will be difficult for her to give birth at full term. Consort Li has scratched many places on her body. If Consort Li doesn't control herself and continues to scratch like this, and if the scratches get infected, I'm afraid they will leave many scars after they heal."

The imperial physician paused for a moment, then continued, “Your Majesty, from this day forward, no servant in Chuxiu Palace may leave the palace. Consorts who have been in contact with Consort Li in recent days must also stay in their own palaces and may only travel after seven days if it is confirmed that they have not been infected.”

"Who has been in contact with Consort Li recently, and where has Consort Li been these days?" Emperor Yuanwu asked.

Shen Qingwan staggered back a step.

“Consort Li visited the Third Prince today and had contact with me. Later, I also went to… Zhongcui Palace.”

Shen Qingwan's voice fell like a bolt from the blue.

Emperor Yuanwu hadn't had a child for so long, and after finally having two concubines pregnant, suddenly...

"Then quickly have Consort Rou isolated in Zhongcui Palace, and Consort Shu, the Third Prince, and the palace maids and eunuchs in Yonghe Palace. I will have someone send over disinfectant spray." After speaking, the imperial physician Zhang glanced at Shen Qingwan and added, "Your Majesty the Empress should also return to Kunning Palace."

Physician Zhang dared not suggest that the Emperor return, but since Emperor Yuanwu had been in contact with Shen Qingwan tonight, he was essentially indirectly infected and could very well be infected as well.

Within half an hour, the entire harem was filled with panic and fear.

“This is too strange. Consort Li has been staying in the palace ever since she became pregnant. How could she suddenly contract smallpox?” Shen Qingwan wondered. Emperor Yuanwu frowned, seemingly realizing the same thing: “Investigate! This matter must be thoroughly investigated!”

Shen Qingwan didn't dare to stay in Chuxiu Palace for long. After Emperor Yuanwu left, she returned to her own palace. The Imperial Hospital sent disinfectant, and maids and eunuchs were sweeping and disinfecting.

Shen Qingwan was trapped in Kunning Palace and could not leave. Emperor Yuanwu was unable to attend court these days, so he decided to investigate the matter of Consort Li contracting smallpox.

It's not a big deal if we don't investigate, but once we do, we find quite a lot of things.

Among the newly arrived palace ladies-in-waiting was Consort An, who was from the same hometown as Consort Li.

Emperor Yuanwu seemed to have little interest in Consort An. He favored her once, but never went to her again.

Before entering the palace, Consort An had heard a lot about Consort Li. After falling out of favor, she went to Consort Li to seek help.

Consort Li was unaware of what her fellow villagers were saying about her behind her back. Although Emperor Yuanwu would occasionally favor her, ultimately, she seemed to have nothing to do with being favored.

Consort Li made her position clear, indicating that she might be willing but unable to help, but unexpectedly, within a few days, news spread that she was pregnant with a prince.

Consort An harbored resentment. She overheard a young eunuch saying that someone in their village had just died, apparently from smallpox. She spent money and tried every means to get the items used by the person who had smallpox brought into the palace.

Among them was a gold-threaded purse, which Consort An thought was quite nice. She put it in the purse she had embroidered herself and gave it to Consort Li.

Consort Li looked at the pattern on the purse, which depicted a pair of mandarin ducks playing in the water under a pomegranate tree. The pomegranate symbolizes many children and good fortune. Which woman in the palace didn't hope to rise in status through her son? They might say that their sons and princesses were like sisters, but a princess would eventually have to marry. If the situation was bad, she might even be sent to a tribe for a political marriage. Of course, having a son was still the best way to ensure support in old age.

Consort An had this advantage over Consort Li, and used a purse with this pattern.

Even if Consort Li didn't like it or not, she wouldn't just throw away something with such auspicious meaning. She just left it in her palace. When Consort Li first developed a rash, it was only a mild infection. As a result, she was always feeling unwell during her pregnancy, so she simply carried the purse with her, hoping to give birth to the prince safely.

On the same day, Consort An was sentenced to death by Emperor Yuanwu for plotting to harm concubines and princes. The eunuch who helped Consort An bring smallpox into the palace was also beaten to death with sticks. Those who served Consort An were either executed or exiled.

Seven days later.

Besides the eunuchs and maids in Consort Li's palace who were also infected, Consort Rong, who lived in the same palace as Consort Li, was also infected.

Fortunately, Consort Liang stayed in the Prince's quarters all day to supervise the Second Prince's studies, leaving early and returning late, which allowed her to escape this predicament.

The Imperial Medical Academy exhausted all their medical skills, but not only did Consort Li's condition not improve, she even showed signs of miscarriage.

On the seventh day after the incident, Consort Rong developed a high fever.

With the entire Chuxiu Palace gates tightly shut, it instantly became the most dangerous place in the palace.

Consort Li's pregnancy was hard-won. If she recovered from her illness and found out that the baby was gone, Shen Qingwan was really afraid that Consort Li, who had just returned from the brink of death, would send her back to her own death.

“If ordinary medicines don’t work, why don’t we have all the ministers go back to their hometowns and inquire about any folk remedies? Wasn’t it Consort Liang who cured the Third Prince’s illness last time by using a folk remedy?” Shen Qingwan suggested.

(End of this chapter)