She pondered deeply, but Xia Ruqing could not figure out what was amiss, so she drank the brown sugar water anyway.
Come dinnertime, she also ate a bowl of braised lamb. The steaming hot lamb was still delicious. While eating, she didn’t sense anything wrong.
However, half a Shi Chen after she finished, she felt an unbearable pain in her abdomen, as intense as if it were on fire. After drinking two bowls of plain boiled water to no effect, Zi Yue called for the Imperial Physician.
Imperial Doctor Zhang hurried over for a diagnosis and, after taking her pulse, he declared, "This is an acute surge of internal fire! Noble Consort, you are still in your confinement period. You mustn’t get angry about anything!"
What?!
Xia Ruqing was completely flabbergasted. "I have not been angry!"
Imperial Doctor Zhang stroked his beard. "Even if you haven’t gotten angry, perhaps you’ve been holding back your frustration! Or perhaps, did you eat something inappropriate? Might I ask what you ate today?"
"What did I eat?" Xia Ruqing thought for a moment and recounted all her meals for the day.
After listening, Imperial Doctor Zhang pondered for a while and also began to feel suspicious. "Eating like this shouldn’t pose a problem! Could it be... that lamb is not suitable?"
Xia Ruqing quickly shook her head. "Impossible, I used to eat it often."
Imperial Doctor Zhang was completely baffled. If lamb wasn’t the issue, and there was nothing wrong with the three daily meals, then...
After racking his brain for a long time, Imperial Doctor Zhang still couldn’t find the cause and had no choice but to say, "If that is the case, Noble Consort, you should refrain from eating lamb tomorrow. Try something else!"
"Hmm..." Xia Ruqing felt a little sad but had no choice but to agree.
That night, Imperial Doctor Zhang left a prescription for a gentle, heat-clearing remedy before departing. After taking the medicine, Xia Ruqing felt somewhat better, and then she went to sleep.
「In the following two days.」
Her health not only did not improve but got even worse! Sometimes she would vomit; other times, she felt nauseous. At times her lower abdomen was cold and in unbearable pain, and at others, it felt as if there was a fire burning in her stomach.
With the back-and-forth torment, she was nearly broken down. Her previously healthy complexion had vanished; her entire face was waxen and sallow, as if she were malnourished.
Zi Yue was terribly anxious. "What’s going on? The Imperial Physician couldn’t find anything wrong, and all the food and drink are fine! We used to eat like this in the past too! My Lady, are you ill?"
Xia Ruqing weakly shook her head. "Didn’t the Imperial Physician say my body isn’t ill, it’s just that I’ve eaten something wrong? But I just don’t know what I’ve eaten that was wrong."
「That evening.」
After Xia Ruqing had her dinner, she started vomiting again, this time accompanied by a high fever. Zi Yue hastily summoned the Imperial Physician, causing a great commotion in Qingya Residence.
Upon hearing the news, Noble Concubine Shih unexpectedly came to visit, in a rare good mood. She hadn’t known, but when she saw Xia Ruqing, she was taken aback.
"Oh my, Consort Xian, it’s only been two days, and your complexion has become so poor? What sickness do you have exactly?" Noble Concubine Shih raised her brows, looked at Imperial Doctor Zhang kneeling to one side, and said with sarcastic undertones, "When did the Imperial Medical Bureau become so ineffective!"
Imperial Doctor Zhang, who had just finished taking her pulse, replied, "Replying to Noble Concubine Shih, Consort Xian is merely suffering from a stomach upset. It’s not serious!"
Noble Concubine Shih smiled. "Oh~ So it’s just a stomach upset!" Then, looking at Xia Ruqing, she mocked, "I’ve always heard that Consort Xian has a good appetite, but... during this confinement period, you should still be cautious! Eating indiscriminately... can lead to suffering!"
Xia Ruqing stared at her gloomily. "For a minor illness, there’s no need for Noble Concubine Shih to worry!"
Noble Concubine Shih laughed heartily. "Good! Consort Xian, you must take good care of yourself. You are now a prized treasure, the mother of three Princes. If anything untoward were to happen, it would truly be an irreparable loss! Enough, I won’t bother you any longer! Take good care of yourself, and I wish you a speedy recovery, Sister!"
You! These words made Xia Ruqing’s heart clench. Damn it, this is practically a curse!
She immediately turned her head to one side, saying coldly, "Noble Concubine Shih, please leave at your leisure. I am unwell and cannot see you out!"
Noble Concubine Shih didn’t mind at all, leaning on Ying Qiu’s arm and leaving in high spirits.
Over here, Imperial Doctor Zhang left a prescription and took his leave as well.
Zi Yue and Zi Su knelt to the side, their faces pale with anger. "Your Highness!"
Xia Ruqing endured her weakness and spoke. "There must be something wrong with my food! With so many items, it’s impossible that I can’t eat each and every one of them. So, we have a traitor here!"
Zi Yue’s face was stricken with horror! "Yes! How did I not think of this?! Many people have come to Qingya Residence these days: some arranged by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, some given by the Emperor, and then there are the Sisters and Wetnurse Nannies! These people all came from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, maybe...!"