Chapter 210: with translation of chapter title

Prince Qi cried, and the Empress Dowager felt a sour ache in her heart.

She gritted her teeth and said angrily: "Mother Empress earlier said, if there is no young lady, just take one from the clan and raise her; if there is no good match, we will slowly pick, you are not old, even if you are older, could it be that the prince's manor cannot afford to raise a young lady?"

"Why are you so obstinate?"

"I remember, isn't Little Seven already seven or eight years old?"

"Over these years, you have taken many concubines, you often visit the princess consort and concubine quarters, yet there has been no news; you should understand that it's simply not destined, no need to force it."

"If you feel that a lady from the clan is not worthy of the prince's manor's county lord status, you can simply pick one from your imperial elder brother's princesses; at worst, we surpass the rank and still make her a princess."

……

Emperor:???

How did we get to talking, and his princesses are now being coveted?

The problem is, he doesn't even have many princesses!

Prince Qi indeed feels distressed; the blow of being unable to have children is only a superficial layer.

It's the short lifespan that is the deadly blow!

Seeing Prince Qi's crying lessen, the Empress Dowager lightly sighed: "Besides, hasn't the princess consort already brought back a child? I think that's quite good, and he also has a life-saving debt to Little Six, which means he is fated with our Prince Qi manor and our old Feng family; he should be our child, and we just need to raise him well—why go through all this trouble?"

"The child is still young; if we raise him with care, what's there to fear about not raising him well?"

"If it really doesn't work, we can use status and position to overwhelm her, raising the child to be extraordinarily precious; even if others later have designs, they'll have to weigh whether they can raise him well after taking him back."

……

When Sui Sui was mentioned, Prince Qi's crying grew even softer; he slowly held back his tears, recalling yesterday's scene with Sui Sui, and then realized: "Empress Dowager, Sui Sui… she is also my lifesaver!"

The Empress Dowager already knew about this.

Although the Princess Consort didn't really want to say it, she did not conceal the necessary details.

After all, it's better to hear it from oneself than from others, right?

If the Empress Dowager felt that one was hiding something, it wouldn't sound good.

Moreover, the more one hides, the easier it is to raise suspicion.

Being open and straightforward, on the contrary, won't invite doubt.

Hearing Prince Qi say that Sui Sui is his lifesaver, the Empress Dowager let out another long sigh: "So I said, this child ought to be the princess consort of our Prince Qi manor—she saved you and also saved Little Six; what a fine child! Don't be too greedy!"

If it weren't for yesterday, when Sui Sui smelled the odor on Prince Qi's body and felt nauseous, wanting to vomit, the Princess Consort probably wouldn't have thought to have Doctor Liu examine him and take his pulse.

Originally, it was just a lack of reassurance, wanting to take a few more looks.

As a result, this look…

Indeed, something went wrong!

Moreover, today's chicken soup, Sui Sui said the taste was bad and she didn't want to drink it; the Princess Consort grew suspicious again, took her to the palace to have the imperial physicians examine her.

This examination…

Alright, something went wrong again!

The tonic soup Prince Qi drank at the separate residence, and the plaster used, were both mixed with Thunder God Vine and Horse Money Seed.

Thunder God Vine indeed has good analgesic and anti-edema effects.

But…

If not processed properly, its side effects are also extremely great!

It is obvious that what Car Maid gave Prince Qi to use was not properly processed, or rather, not processed at all.

Thus, its toxicity is even greater!

Fortunately, they discovered it in time.

If they continued using the medicine, Prince Qi's lifespan would only be further affected.

Fortunately, the duration of medicine use has been short; although there is some bodily harm, with gradual recuperation it can still be made up.

The Empress Dowager recounted to Prince Qi, in detail, what she had heard from the Princess Consort.

Upon hearing this, Prince Qi wondered: "Did Car Maid even put medicine in the chicken soup she herself drank?"

That's clearly not right!

To harm others, and yet drag herself into it as well?

To be so ruthless in one's hand?

He furrowed his brows, puzzled, saying: "How could the Car Shi still give herself medicine?"

If she entered the manor and could bear a son or daughter, even if her status couldn't be changed, at least she would have some dignity.

If she cannot bear children…

In the end, she would only be lost among a crowd of women; over time, Prince Qi would probably forget her face.

Prince Qi was puzzled and bewildered; as a former palace intrigue champion, the Empress Dowager had long seen through it.

She let out a cold chuckle and said: "This matter likely means that Car Shi herself is a clueless fool kept in the dark; probably the Car family had some scheme, so they also factored Car Shi into the calculation."

After the Empress Dowager said this, Prince Qi understood.

The Car family wanted their own biological daughter to enjoy blessings.

Thus, relying on Car Maid's current favor, they frequently had Car Lingzhi appear to boost her presence, hoping Prince Qi would take a liking to this lady.

That way, later if Car Maid cannot give birth, and Car Lingzhi has gained favor, Prince Qi, still unable to have children, would then only be able to acknowledge Car Lingzhi as that lady.

Their own daughter would become the manor's princess consort; the status of everyone in the Car family would naturally rise with the tide.

Although this matter is risky, it is also not without worth.

After all, who would have thought that someone would use oneself as the setup?

Although the person being set up is herself a clueless fool, unaware.

But at least it won't arouse suspicion!

Moreover, the everyday medicines are inconspicuous.

The various medicinal soups and the like, after being consumed, are disposed of.

Used plasters, once peeled off, are cleaned thoroughly and leave no trace.

Things like scented sachets are swapped even more frequently, without drawing attention.

After all, the scent of Thunder God Vine and Horse Money Seed isn't very strong; under heavy fragrance, unless you're a senior doctor, you can't detect it at all.

The Che family's methods are crude, but on Prince Qi they're just right and won't be easily exposed.

If Sui Sui hadn't thought it smelled bad yesterday, the Princess Consort of Qi wouldn't have become suspicious.

If the chicken soup this morning hadn't tasted off to Sui Sui, the Princess Consort of Qi wouldn't have overly brought it into the palace.

Perhaps this matter could continue to be concealed and proceed.

With prolonged use of the medicine, Prince Qi not only cannot recover, but his lifespan is also affected.

So before dying, satisfying a lingering obsession by taking a lady back to the residence to keep, isn't that exactly what most people would think?

Prince Qi gnashes his teeth, "Fine, fine, they bully me for being brainless, sniff sniff, Mother Queen, you must intervene for me!"

After that roar, he looks resentfully at the Emperor: "Elder brother, you can't just ignore your younger brother's fate; they're about to kill me!"

Emperor: …

Honestly, it's just the younger brother.

If it were someone else, he'd still make sarcastic remarks.

Who told you to be brainless?

But since it's his younger brother, the Emperor can only smile and reply, "Don't worry, I'm aware, I'm looking into it, and later I'll deal with them all."

Second watch at 19:00.