Little Sizi came to my house and became the family's darling, and Li Shimin got anxious.

Empress Zhangsun was wheeled into the emergency room, and the red light on the door lit up.

Before Li Yinxun could catch her breath, a nurse came over with a form: "Family member, did you bring the patient's ID card? Go and create a file quickly."

"I didn't bring it." Li Yinxun shook her head, her tone as frank as if she were telling the truth. "It's a distant relative of mine. They lost their ID card and phone on the way from their hometown. Could you please arrange for them to go through a temporary process?"

Seeing this, the nurse didn't ask any further questions. She directly created a file manually according to the procedure for temporary medical treatment without identification, only registering her name, approximate age, and the contact number of the accompanying person, and issued her a temporary medical card.

This eliminates the need to swipe an ID card or undergo real-name verification.

Li Yinxun made up a name for Empress Zhangsun: Li Zhen.

We can't really fill in "Empress Changsun", can we?

The little princess nestled in her arms, her head pressed tightly against her chest, her big eyes darting around anxiously, observing the strangers coming and going in the corridor.

"Sister, where is Mother?" the little princess tugged at her collar and asked softly.

This is the fifth time.

"Mother is sick and is being treated inside." Li Yinxun patiently patted her head, her voice very soft. "Little Sizi, be good. Let's wait for Mother to come out together, okay? Your older sister and sister are here, don't be afraid."

The little princess huffed defiantly, clutching her clothes tightly with her tiny hands: "I'm not scared, I'm very good."

"Yes, little Sizi is the bravest."

After calming the little dumpling in her arms, Li Yinxun looked up at Li Lizhi beside her.

Li Lizhi stood straight, her eyes fixed on the door of the emergency room, like a string stretched to its limit.

"Lizhi, don't scare yourself. We have to trust the doctor and your mother."

Li Lizhi nodded mechanically, but the unease that welled up in her bloodshot eyes betrayed her.

After a long half hour, the emergency room door finally opened.

Li Yinxun and Li Lizhi sprang up almost simultaneously and rushed forward.

The doctor removed his mask, his expression grave: "The patient's condition is not optimistic. He has a severe airway infection, accompanied by underlying medical conditions, and must be hospitalized immediately."

Li Lizhi swayed and almost lost her balance.

Li Yinxun reacted quickly and helped her up, then turned to the doctor and said, "Hospitalization is no problem, we will fully cooperate."

The doctor nodded: "Then let's go through the admission procedures first. Someone will need to stay with the patient during their stay. The patient is awake now, but their emotions are a bit unstable. Go in and comfort them first. They will need to undergo a whole set of tests after being transferred to the ward."

Li Lizhi didn't quite understand some of what was being said, such as "accompanying" and "examination," but she clung tightly to those three words.

—Mother has woken up.

Her eyes reddened, and she bowed deeply to the doctor.

After thanking them, Li Yinxun, carrying the little princess, led Li Lizhi quickly into the emergency room.

Empress Zhangsun lay flat on a mobile hospital bed, her face covered with an oxygen mask, and needles inserted into the back of her hand, connected to transparent tubes.

She stared blankly at the unfamiliar white ceiling above her.

You could tell she was trying her best to control herself, but the panic in her eyes was still impossible to hide.

"Mother!" Li Lizhi rushed over.

Upon hearing the sound, Empress Zhangsun turned her head.

The moment she saw her daughter, a glimmer of clarity flashed in her eyes, and then her breathing became rapid, and the fog on her mask thickened.

She tried to reach out and touch her daughter's face, but as soon as she moved her fingers, the needle and clamps pulled painfully, so she could only helplessly put them down.

"Lizhi...where is this...?" Her voice was muffled and weak by the mask.

"Mother, don't be afraid. This is a hospital. They're treating you." Li Lizhi wrapped her hands around her mother's hand that wasn't receiving the injection.

"Auntie, you're in the hospital now." Li Yinxun pointed to the mask on her face, trying to explain in the simplest terms, "With this on, is breathing easier?"

Empress Zhangsun quietly looked at the mask, then at the glowing machine with incomprehensible wavy lines drawn on it by the bedside, and frowned.

But nothing more.

She didn't ask any more questions, nor did she panic. She simply nodded slightly, as if forcing herself to accept everything before her.

Li Yinxun was somewhat surprised.

No wonder she was born to be an empress.

Without much thought, she put the little princess down and whispered to Li Lizhi, "You stay here for now. Do whatever the doctor says. I'll go pay the fees and complete the admission procedures."

"it is good."

Reaching the window, Li Yinxun checked her phone balance.

She made over a million yuan from her last gold sale without batting an eye, and immediately signed up for a VIP private hospital room.

……

Inside the VIP ward.

After settling Empress Zhangsun in, the nurse came over to adjust the oxygen flow and gave a few instructions, such as how to press the call button, before leaving.

Empress Zhangsun's eyes were fixed on everything in the room—the adjustable bed, the wall sockets, the overhead lights, and the completely unfamiliar high-rise buildings outside the window.

"Mother, are you thirsty?" Li Li asked.

Empress Zhangsun shook her head.

Are you hungry?

He still shook his head.

The little princess sidled up to the bedside, tiptoed, and leaned close to the edge, asking, "Mother, are you still feeling unwell?"

Empress Zhangsun looked at her, her gaze softening, and through her mask, her voice muffled: "I'm feeling better."

"My sister said the doctors here are amazing, they'll definitely be able to cure Mother!" The little princess's eyes lit up when she talked about Li Yinxun.

"Yes, Mother understands." Empress Zhangsun nodded slightly, then turned her gaze to Li Lizhi. "Lizhi, your father..."

"Father knows," Li Lizhi quickly interjected, "Father agreed to it. Mother, don't think about anything else, just get well first, and then we'll go home."

Li Yinxun looked around curiously.

To be honest, her first time in a VIP ward was better than she had imagined. The room was spacious and bright, but there were several instruments in the corner that she couldn't name, which looked quite intimidating.

She turned around, fetched a glass of warm water, inserted a straw, and brought it to the bedside: "Auntie, try drinking with a straw; it's more convenient with your mask on."

Li Lizhi took the cup and carefully brought it to her mother's lips.

Empress Zhangsun glanced down at the straw, hesitated for a moment, then tentatively put it in her mouth and took a small sip.

The warm water slid down my throat, easing the dryness and pain in my throat considerably.

Before I could even put down my cup, the door was pushed open, and a nurse came in pushing a cart, holding a stack of forms.

"Li Zhen, right? We'll be doing a few tests to check her heart and lungs." The nurse flipped through the forms without looking up. "Family members, please help the patient open her shirt a little, exposing her chest, wrists, and ankles."

Empress Zhangsun froze, her hand pressing against her collar.

"No." Although the voice was muffled by the mask, it carried obvious anger.

The nurse looked up impatiently: "What's wrong with that? I have to check."

Li Lizhi looked at Li Yinxun helplessly.

Li Yinxun explained, "Auntie, that's how it is here. To find out what the problem is, you have to cooperate. Don't worry, they're all female nurses."

Empress Zhangsun's hand froze on her clothes, her chest heaving a few times.

After a moment, she slowly released her grip, turned her head away, and closed her eyes.

Li Yinxun stood up and picked up the little princess: "Come on, Sizi, let's go for a walk. Mother needs to go for a check-up."