Chapter 432

Chapter 432 Xie Run had no intention of getting involved in this matter, as she was by nature someone who disliked entangling herself in affairs. But just as she was about to step forward, she saw Beauty Wu stumble and fall into the snow along with her maidservant. The maidservant tugged at her for quite a while but couldn't manage to help her up. Xie Run let out a soft sigh. "In this freezing weather, even the palace attendants passing by are few. I'm truly afraid Beauty Wu might freeze to death right here." "Xiaoshu, Chunfeng, go give them a hand." Chunfeng was a disciple trained by Chunjuan, and she had gained considerable favor in Xie Run's presence. After a moment, Xiaoshu came running over. "Niangniang, Beauty Wu has fainted. Given the current situation, I'm afraid we'll need to send her back to her palace and summon an imperial physician." Xiaoshu lowered her voice. "Niangniang, Beauty Wu's complexion is far too poor. This servant worries..." She worried that Beauty Wu might die right there in the Red Plum Courtyard. Xie Run then dispatched two more people to help carry Beauty Wu back to her palace. With Beauty Wu absent, the two remaining palace maids in her residence were extremely indolent. Suddenly catching sight of Xie Run's imperial procession, they were so startled their faces changed color. "This servant pays respects to Noble Consort Zhao." Dantao supported Xie Run as she entered the main hall and sat down. "Go brew a pot of hot tea for Niangniang!" The two young maids hurried out. Dantao called one of them back. "One is enough for the tea. The other, go to the Imperial Medical Bureau and find a senior imperial physician." "Hurry!" The two maids exchanged a glance, and the quicker-witted one turned and ran toward the Imperial Medical Bureau. Xie Run looked around. "Is this all the attendants Beauty Wu has?" Dantao said, "This Xiangyun Pavilion isn't large, and I've only seen these two young maids so far." Xie Run couldn't help but furrow her brows. A Lady of Beauty was entitled to at least four maids and two eunuchs, and those who were favored could exceed the quota by two more. But Beauty Wu's palace no longer had any eunuchs, leaving only three maids. The number of attendants was far too few. It was understandable that maids and eunuchs wanted to climb higher and were unwilling to stay serving an unfavored Lady of Beauty. But when people left, new ones should have been arranged to fill the vacancies. Leaving them empty was clearly Consort Jingshu deliberately being spiteful. If Beauty Wu were healthy, it wouldn't matter, but unfortunately, she was left with a body full of ailments from childbirth. At this rate, she would be slowly ground down until her life was spent. Xie Run sighed. "Consort Jingshu has gone too far." "Isn't she afraid that if Beauty Wu dies of illness, all her efforts raising that child will have been in vain?" The emotional entanglement between a birth mother and an adoptive mother had always been complicated, no matter how well Consort Jingshu might raise the Seventh Prince in the future. As long as the Seventh Prince learned that his birth mother's death was connected to Consort Jingshu, estrangement was inevitable. Xie Run said, "Consort Jingshu is such a clever person. Why did she have to lose her senses on this matter?" Dantao said softly, "The player is always blind to the game." Moreover, Consort Jingshu had never been a magnanimous person. The bedchamber was busy settling Beauty Wu in, but Xie Run sat in the main hall and never received her hot tea. Even with Dantao's good temper, she couldn't help but say, "Niangniang, let me go see if the tea is ready." Xie Run could actually guess why the tea was taking so long, and only nodded slightly. After a while, Dantao returned with a hint of anger on her face, carrying a cup of hot tea in her hands. "The attendants in this palace are far too lazy!" "In such cold weather, they hadn't even boiled hot water to have on hand! To have a cup of tea, they had to start a fire and boil water from scratch! Is this how they serve their mistress?!" It was precisely because they had to boil water on the spot that the tea from Xiangyun Pavilion was so delayed. Xie Run took the tea and sipped it lightly. "Perhaps the attendants are lazy, or perhaps Beauty Wu doesn't have that much silver to spare." Keeping hot water boiling at all times consumed too much firewood. Firewood cost silver to buy, and the serving maids also needed silver to keep them content. Beauty Wu probably didn't have that much spare money. She glanced at Dantao, signaling her to say no more. It wasn't a matter in their own palace, so meddling further would do no good. After a while, the imperial physician was brought in to take Beauty Wu's pulse. Xie Run looked up and was surprised to see that it was her elder sister, Xie Jiang. She asked softly, "Why is it Physician Xie who came?" Xie Jiang also maintained a professional attitude. "The other physicians at the Imperial Medical Bureau were unavailable. This humble official happened to hear that Noble Consort Zhao had summoned someone, so I came." Xie Run said, "Beauty Wu's condition seems rather poor. I'll trouble Physician Xie." With that, Xie Run had someone prepare tea and a hand warmer for Xie Jiang. After a moment, Xie Jiang came out with a furrowed brow and bowed to Xie Run. Xie Run asked, "How is Beauty Wu?" "Reporting to Noble Consort Zhao, Beauty Wu's body was damaged during childbirth and has never been properly restored. Now that cold has invaded her system, her qi and blood are severely depleted. If she doesn't receive timely supplementation and treatment, I fear she won't survive this winter." Xie Run frowned slightly. "Has it become that serious?" Though she asked this way, she had actually already guessed as much when she first saw Beauty Wu's complexion. Winter in ancient times was the hardest season to endure. Countless healthy people were slowly killed by the cold, let alone Beauty Wu with her half-dead body. "Prescribe a formula to regulate her condition first." Beauty Wu's illness wasn't particularly difficult—what was difficult was the environment she was in. Her illness required good medicine and careful nourishment accumulated over time, and even then, recovery wasn't guaranteed. Yet her rank was not high, and her monthly allowance was limited—she could barely even bribe the palace attendants for a few extra braziers of charcoal to keep warm, let alone come up with such a sum to nurse her health back. Thus Xie Run said nothing more, only had Xie Jiang write out a prescription first. Xie Run: "The snow runs deep in winter. Take care on your way back, Physician Xie." Xie Jiang: "Thank you for your concern, Your Highness." Xie Run: "Dantao, see Physician Xie out." "Yes." After a moment, Xie Run sent someone to Yongning Palace to deliver a message to Consort Jingshu, asking her to come to Xiangyun Pavilion. In one's position, one tends to one's duties. If Beauty Wu had merely suffered a bit of hardship, Xie Run would not have bothered to intervene. But if someone in the palace were to be tormented to death, Xie Run, as Noble Consort, could not simply turn a blind eye. By the time Beauty Wu woke, the snow had already lessened considerably. Upon hearing that it was Noble Consort Zhao who had saved her, and had even summoned a physician and had medicine brewed for her, she immediately struggled to get out of bed to pay her respects. Hearing the commotion, Xie Run lifted the curtain and entered the bedchamber, saying in a calm voice, "With your body this weak, there's no need to fuss over such empty formalities." Beauty Wu's eyes trembled as she looked at Xie Run, a hint of fear in her gaze. "This humble one thanks Your Highness for the grace of saving my life." Since entering the palace, she had offended Xie Run on several occasions, and so in her heart she always feared that Xie Run would hold a grudge and seek revenge.