Druid Fairy

Chapter 179 Rescue
The royal capital's inner palace was strictly hierarchical, with even the air filled with a distinct sense of division.

The air of the upper class was filled with the fragrance of spices and power, while that of palace maids and eunuchs was filled with humility and despair.

Fu'an, the old eunuch of the Hundred Beasts Garden, has been smelling this desperate, fishy stench lately.

This flavor comes from his godson, Little Chestnut, whom he treats like his own son.

Little Chestnut was only twelve years old. He was a clever and endearing little eunuch who served in the palace of a young and favored concubine named Li.

The trouble stemmed from this "cleverness." That day, Consort Li was admiring the flowers and casually remarked on how beautiful the butterflies were. Little Chestnut quickly caught the most beautiful butterfly and presented it to her, hoping to receive a reward. However, the butterfly unfortunately landed on Consort Li's newly made, luxurious palace dress embroidered with golden phoenixes. Its fluttering wings snapped a golden thread that was more precious than his life.

Consort Li immediately turned hostile.

In her eyes, this lowly servant had soiled her dress, which was to tarnish her dignity, spoil her mood, and disrespect the imperial authority.

"Give him a good beating! Let him know what rules are!"

A single, cold sentence decided the fate of a young eunuch.

After dozens of blows with a water-soaked stick, when Little Chestnut was dragged back, he was already a bloody, mangled rag doll, barely breathing and on the verge of death.

Fu'an spent all his wealth just to get a look from the Imperial Medical Academy. The doctor stroked his beard, shook his head, and left with the words, "Prepare for your funeral." In their eyes, a single glance was enough; to waste precious medicines on a lowly eunuch would be utterly ridiculous.

"Oh my God! Oh my God!"

In his dark and damp little house, Fu'an held Xiao Lizi, who was burning hot and convulsing, tears streaming down his face, his heart aching as if it were being stabbed with a knife.

He had lived his whole life and witnessed too many sordid things in the palace, and his heart had long since turned to ashes. It was this unfortunate godson who gave this withered tree a little bit of hope to keep living.

But now, even this last thought is being extinguished.

"The life of a eunuch is just so lowly..."

He said this with hatred, but his heart ached as if it were being soaked in bitter water. He hated the concubine Li who treated human life so lightly, and he hated his own lowly status even more, for he didn't even have the right to seek justice for his godson.

Several familiar eunuchs and palace maids around also looked on with pity, but none dared to step forward and say a word. In this deep palace, compassion was the least valuable thing; a slight misstep could lead to disaster.

Just as Fu'an was holding his godson, who was growing cold, and crying his heart out, almost in despair, a soft, sweet voice rang out at the door.

“Uncle Fu’an, let me see him.”

Fu'an looked up abruptly and saw Princess Mingyue, Li Mengyue, standing at the door, holding up her moon-white palace dress, with only her brother Li Mengze, who had a solemn expression, behind her.
Her clear, spring-like eyes held no trace of disdain, but rather were filled with concern and a hint of anger.

"Princess...why have you come? This place is filthy, it's an eyesore for you!" Fu'an was both surprised and delighted, and hurriedly tried to curtsy.

"Don't move." Li Mengyue stepped forward quickly and stopped him. She glanced at the dying eunuch on the bed, and her brows immediately furrowed.

"Brother, tell them all to leave."

Li Mengze nodded and walked to the door: "The princess is to treat Xiao Lizi. All irrelevant people, please wait outside."

The crowd exchanged bewildered glances, finding the situation absurd, but intimidated by the current power of the Li siblings, they obediently withdrew and thoughtfully closed the door behind them.

Inside the room, Li Mengyue no longer hesitated. She walked to the bedside, her small face filled with a solemnity beyond her years.

She stretched out her chubby little hand and gently placed it on Little Chestnut's bloodied and mangled back.

Fu'an held his breath nervously. He had witnessed the princess save the old spirit cat, but a cat is an animal after all, and a person... is there really any hope for someone so badly injured?
The next moment, a scene he would never forget unfolded.

"Om-"

A soft, holy, moon-white radiance emanated from Li Mengyue's palm. This light was not dazzling; instead, it was like the gentlest spring water, slowly seeping into Xiao Lizi's body. Under this miraculous power, the hideous wounds and accumulated black blood began to melt and heal at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The broken bones made a soft "crackling" sound as they were repositioned under the influence of the moonlight. Little Chestnut's face, which had been contorted in agony, gradually relaxed, and her rapid breathing became steady and long.

This is hardly a treatment.

This is clearly a divine resurrection technique!
After an incense stick had burned, Li Mengyue let out a long sigh of relief. A fine layer of sweat appeared on her forehead, and her face was somewhat pale.

“Eunuch Fu’an, he’s alright now. He’s just still weak. Let him get some rest, and he’ll be lively and energetic again in less than three days.”

Fu'an reached out and checked Xiao Lizi's breathing, then touched his forehead. The steady breathing and warm body temperature told him that his son had truly been pulled back from the brink of death!

"thump!"

Fu'an could no longer contain his excitement and gratitude. His knees buckled, and he knelt heavily on the ground, kowtowing deeply to Li Mengyue. Tears streamed down his face as he sobbed uncontrollably.

"Your Highness... No! You are my living Buddha! You saved Xiao Lizi, which means you saved my worthless life! From this day forward, the lives of my son and me belong to you! We would brave mountains of knives and seas of fire to die for you!"

The seemingly innocent young princess before us is not merely a royal blessing; she is a true immortal with extraordinary abilities!
From then on, Fu'an and Xiao Lizi became Li Mengyue's loyal eyes in the deep palace.

Using the connections he had built up over decades in the lower echelons of the palace, Fu'an quietly wove an intelligence network for Li Mengyue, turning seemingly insignificant eunuchs and maids into her most discerning eyes and ears.

…………

As Li Mengyue began to establish herself in the palace and quietly developed her own power, the Empress Dowager unfortunately suffered a relapse of her old illness.

This is a spiritual wound left by the Empress Dowager when she was young, which affects her soul and is extremely difficult to eradicate.

In the past, thanks to the nurturing of countless rare and precious herbs, everything remained peaceful. But this time, it came with unusual ferocity, as if decades of accumulated cold energy had suddenly erupted in an instant.

The news spread, and the entire palace instantly fell into a deathly silence of panic.

Outside the Yinian Hall, a large group of princes, princesses, and ministers knelt in a sea of ​​black, with the Emperor of Dayu at the head of the group, his face ashen and his eyes filled with anxiety.

He knew better than anyone what it would mean if his mother fell ill.

That was not merely the loss of a close relative, but also a blow to the very foundation of his imperial rule. The Empress Dowager's family held immense power and prestige in the military, making them a crucial pawn in balancing the various factions within the court.

With the Empress Dowager present, the court remains stable; but if she were gone, those restless wolves would surely leap out to tear a piece of the fat flesh. "Imperial Physician! What did the Imperial Physician say?!" The Emperor's voice, suppressing overwhelming rage, roared at the chief eunuch beside him.

The head eunuch trembled with fear, kneeling on the ground, not daring to raise his head: "Your Majesty, the chief physicians of the Imperial Medical Academy are all helpless... They say that the Empress Dowager is showing signs of her dying breath, that evil spirits have taken hold of her, and that her spirit is scattered... I'm afraid... I'm afraid she won't make it through the night..."

"Waste! All of them are waste!"

The emperor kicked over the incense burner beside him, scattering scalding hot ash all over the ground. The eunuchs and palace maids around him grimaced from the heat, but none of them dared to make a sound.

The usually dignified and composed emperor, who never showed his emotions, was now like a caged beast, restless and angry, yet powerless.

Princess Zhaoyang also knelt in the crowd, her face bearing just the right amount of sorrow, wiping away non-existent tears from the corners of her eyes.

But deep within her lowered eyes, a hint of barely suppressed excitement and pleasure flickered.

'You old hag, are you finally going to die?' she sneered inwardly. 'It's good that you're dead! With you gone, no one in this palace will be able to put pressure on me anymore! That little slut Li Mengyue has lost your biggest backer; let's see how arrogant she can be then!'

In the midst of this oppressive atmosphere, Zhang Mama, the Empress Dowager's most trusted confidante, suddenly remembered something. She scrambled to the Emperor's side, kowtowing and saying, "Your Majesty! This old servant... this old servant has something to say! Perhaps... perhaps there is still a glimmer of hope!"

"Speak!" A glimmer of hope flashed in the emperor's eyes.

“Princess Mingyue!” Granny Zhang said urgently, “Your Majesty, have you forgotten? Her Highness possesses the Taiyin Sacred Body and is imbued with divine power! Back then, the Empress Dowager’s old spirit cat, which she had raised for twenty years, was also diagnosed with a terminal illness by the imperial physician. It was only through the Princess’s intervention that it was brought back to life! I beg Your Majesty to have mercy and let the Princess give it a try!”

Upon hearing this, everyone around him showed strange expressions.

Sending a seven-year-old girl to treat the Empress Dowager's illness?

This is utterly absurd and a desperate attempt to find a cure!
The emperor's brow furrowed deeply. To be honest, he had always been skeptical of this so-called "auspicious omen." Conferring the title of princess and bestowing lavish rewards upon her was merely a convenient prelude, both to appease the Li family and a political show to demonstrate the imperial family's benevolence to the world.

He never truly believed that a seven-year-old child could have any ability to defy fate.

But right now...

He glanced at the flickering candlelight in the hall and the ashen faces of the imperial physicians.

"Even if it's a dead horse, we can only try anything."

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and with a nearly exhausted tone, uttered a few words with difficulty: "Go, invite Princess Mingyue over."

When Li Mengyue was half-invited and half-carried to the Yinian Hall, she was also taken aback by the scene before her.

She had never seen an emperor so out of control, nor had she ever felt such a strong aura of death.

"Yue... Yue girl..."

On her sickbed, the Empress Dowager had fallen into a semi-comatose state. Her once kind face was now filled with a deathly gray aura. Her once full forehead was now covered with bulging veins, and her cloudy eyes were filled with painful struggle.

“Brother.” Li Mengyue turned around and looked at Li Mengze, her eyes full of determination.

Li Mengze nodded emphatically to her.

He knew that today's move was a huge gamble. If he won, the Li family would soar to new heights and firmly establish themselves in the capital; if he lost, they would face utter ruin.

"You dissolute brat, how dare you act so presumptuously here! How dare you touch the Empress Dowager's body!"

A sharp rebuke rang out, and Princess Zhaoyang finally couldn't hold back any longer. She stepped forward and pointed at Li Mengyue with righteous indignation, "Royal brother! You can't be fooled by this little wretch! If anything happens to her and it disturbs the Empress Dowager, who can bear the responsibility!"

Her words, seemingly for the Empress Dowager's sake, were actually aimed at cutting off Li Mengyue's escape route.

Li Mengyue ignored her and simply walked to the bedside.

She looked at the Empress Dowager, who was struggling in pain on the sickbed. The old woman who used to love her the most, who would tell her stories, and who would hold her little hand and talk intimately, was now tormented by illness and was no longer human.

A deep sense of heartache welled up inside me.

She turned her head and gave Princess Zhaoyang a cold look, each word spoken with conviction.

"you shut up."

The three words, clear and resonant, carried an innate majesty originating from the Taiyin Sacred Body, causing even the usually arrogant and domineering Princess Zhaoyang to pause in surprise.

There was a deathly silence.

Everyone was stunned by the aura emanating from this little girl.

Li Mengyue stopped looking at anyone. She turned around, took a deep breath, and took out the "Taiyin Moon Essence" pearl, which her father had personally crafted, from her bosom.

She raised the pearl high, closed her eyes, and unleashed all the Yin energy in her body without reservation!

"Boom!!!"

A moon-white radiance, far more magnificent and sacred than ever before, poured out from the jewel like a bursting dam, instantly enveloping the entire Yinian Hall!
Amidst the radiance, a bright, full moon hangs high, casting down countless rays of its gentle light.

Li Mengyue's small figure appeared incredibly sacred against the backdrop of the strange phenomenon.

She carefully guided the immense power of Yin towards the Empress Dowager's brow, like the gentlest silk thread.

A cold, resentful black curse, like a coiled venomous snake, tightly entangled the Empress Dowager's soul, constantly devouring her life force.

"Go away!"

Li Mengyue let out a soft shout in her heart.

That pure and pristine Yin energy is the greatest nemesis of such evil things!
Where the moonlight passed, the black curse power was like ice and snow encountering the scorching sun, emitting a series of silent, mournful shrieks, and was rapidly purified and melted away!
As the power of the curse dissipated, the Empress Dowager's pained expression gradually eased, and the deathly aura on her face faded at a visible speed, replaced by a healthy rosy glow.

When the last wisp of black energy was completely purified, the Empress Dowager let out a long sigh of relief and slowly opened her eyes.

(End of this chapter)