Chapter 46: If Su Yingxue Were to Fall Like This, Could Any Egg Remain Intact When the Nest Overturns?

Now that Su Yingxue had been unconscious for a long time, the Princess’s Palace was solely supported by Qiushuang. Due to her consistently arrogant, extravagant, and domineering personality, Su Yingxue had inevitably made many enemies in the Dasheng palace.

With Su Yingxue severely injured and poisoned, those enemies lurking beneath the calm surface were merely biding their time, observing the situation. After all, poison was not an illness. If it were an injury or sickness, proper rest and recuperation would suffice. But this poison—no one knew if it could be cured, nor when it might take effect. Everything was uncertain.

If luck was on her side and she encountered a favorable opportunity, the poison would be neutralized, and the remedy would cure the ailment. Then Su Yingxue would remain the most favored Eldest Princess in the entire Da Sheng Guo Du, and the entire Princess’s Palace would continue to be the object of flattery and sycophancy from all the palace staff.

If, however, she lacked a bit of fortune and the poison could not be cured, then Su Yingxue and the Princess’s Palace would be like bees and their hive. Just as a towering pine or cypress, Su Yingxue alone upheld the entire Princess’s Palace with her wealth and honor. This immense prosperity and prestige would gradually decline as Su Yingxue slowly faded.

If one day Su Yingxue were to fall like the first snow, could any egg remain intact when the nest overturns? Would he be forced to return to that life of being bullied and trampled upon?

Chu Xingchen had to admit that if Su Yingxue were truly harmed, the entire Princess’s Palace would inevitably collapse like a great building, with its inhabitants scattering like monkeys fleeing a falling tree.

At present, Chu Xingchen and Su Yingxue were still intricately connected by intertwined interests. He was not yet fully established and still needed the protection of the Princess’s Palace. Under Su Yingxue’s guardianship, Chu Xingchen and his Shadow Guard could carry out certain tasks more reasonably and conveniently.

Therefore, rather than saying that Chu Xingchen was going to great lengths to save Su Yingxue’s life, it was more accurate to say that he clearly separated personal grudges from his grand ambitions.

The humiliations and hatred of the past—a gentleman could wait ten years to seek revenge. But now, with his great cause at stake, he had no choice but to save her.

While muttering hoarsely as if repeating the words to himself, Chu Xingchen stared blankly at Su Yingxue before him, who was suffering from pain and poisoning, her brows tightly furrowed and her face as pale as paper. His thoughts suddenly drifted away.

Chu Xingchen recalled the moment in the carriage when, with sincere and joyful eyes, she had given him a sweet, spring-breeze-like smile and said in a voice as sweet as honey, “Younger Brother.”

Just as Chu Xingchen was lost in thought, he felt a chill on his hand, as if a millennia-old ice block had pressed against his warm palm.

Looking down, he realized it was Su Yingxue, whose poison had flared up. Her body was cold as ice, curled up in the brocade quilt, shivering from the cold like a rabbit rolling in the snow in winter—though she lacked its liveliness and was instead much quieter.

Just like the wild rabbit he had raised in the Cold Palace of Da Qi. It was given to him by an old nanny in the Cold Palace. He remembered it was also a bitterly cold winter, and the little rabbit had been very well-behaved in his arms, just like her at this moment—utterly unassuming and extremely docile.

“Such a vicious person, yet she has the appearance of someone harmless,” Chu Xingchen sighed softly.

Even now, as she unconsciously reached out to hold his warm hand for warmth, she seemed so obedient, without any trace of the detestable or repulsive aura she usually carried.

This is likely the current Su Yingxue—fragile, like a porcelain doll that would shatter at the slightest touch.

What if she remained like this?

Remained like this, how?

Chu Xingchen was startled by his own inexplicable thought. What a bizarre notion!

Instantly, his gaze turned icy. His eyes held a cold, merciless indifference and hatred, as if frozen for millennia. Yet, even if Su Yingxue had changed, becoming different from her former self, so what?

Shouldn’t she take responsibility for the mistakes and wrongdoings she had committed in the past? Chu Xingchen let out a cold, soft snort.

He had only saved her out of concern for his own circumstances. Chu Xingchen silently repeated to himself: One day, when the great undertaking is near completion, Su Yingxue, your days of comfort will come to an end.

Su Yingxue, This Solitary One is also curious—if a person who has always stood atop the clouds were to one day fall into an abyss, struggling to survive alongside ants and weeds, could they endure such humiliation and agony?

Just as This Solitary One once suffered, if that suffering were to return to you twofold one day, I wonder if you could still maintain your innate superiority and dignity, looking down on others as you do now?

I only hope that when that time comes, you will endure it as This Solitary One once did. A faint, almost eerie curve tugged at the corner of Chu Xingchen’s lips.

After more than a month of meticulous care by the Imperial Physician, Su Yingxue finally awoke in the third week of the second month. The arrow wound on her body had nearly healed under careful treatment.

However, the poison within her had not been eradicated. Although Chu Xingchen had exhausted all means to suppress its toxicity, it was merely a temporary solution. Every seven days, the poison would still flare up. While it no longer posed a life-threatening danger, she had to endure the agony of each episode.

The moment Su Yingxue slowly opened her eyes, Chunfeng, who had been wiping her body, noticed her fingers twitch and turned to see her awakened gaze. Overwhelmed with emotion, tears welled in Chunfeng’s eyes as she rushed out and called to the maids guarding outside the hall, “Quickly summon the Imperial Physician! Her Highness has awakened!”

“Summon the Imperial Physician! Her Highness the Eldest Princess has awakened!” Chunfeng cried out joyfully, leaving Su Yingxue alone to lie quietly. Having been unconscious for so long, her eyes struggled to adjust to the bright light, leaving her momentarily dazzled and unable to see clearly.

With her vision blurred, her hearing became her primary sense, and she immediately recognized Chunfeng’s voice.

Indeed, when it came to steadiness, Qiushuang was undoubtedly the most composed.

Once her eyes adjusted to the well-lit hall, the Imperial Physician respectfully took her pulse and reported with a smile, “Your Highness, my current prescription can only temporarily alleviate and suppress the ‘Seven-Day Fragrance’ poison within you. This toxin is rare and ferocious as a tiger—its onset alternating between icy chills and scorching fever.”

“We are still researching an antidote. Given your severe injuries and the lingering poison, Your Highness must rest and recuperate diligently!”

“In that case, I thank you for your diligent care these days,” Su Yingxue replied, forcing a faint smile.

Having been unconscious for over a month and sustained only by liquid nourishment and herbal decoctions fed to her by Chunfeng, she felt weak upon waking. Even her speech was feeble and fragmented.

“I am deeply humbled,” the Imperial Physician knelt and kowtowed upon hearing this. “Three generations of my family have served as Imperial Physicians. To serve Your Highness is both our duty and honor. May Your Highness’s sacred health remain eternally secure!”

Su Yingxue responded with a faint smile, serene as chrysanthemums. She instructed Qiushuang, “Qiushuang, the Imperial Physician has worked diligently these days. Remember to grant extra silver rewards. We appreciate your efforts, Imperial Physician!”