Chapter 16: The Princess Consort’s Little Scheme (1)
Following the instructions in the medical book, she carefully washed the herbs before grinding them into a fine paste. Every step had to be done in the right order because adding too much of one herb or too little of another could ruin the medicine.
She spent the entire night making the medicine and even used the mice as test subjects.
By the time morning arrived, the medicine was finally ready. Although dark circles had formed under Lin Xueyi’s eyes, she was still too excited to feel tired and she couldn’t wait to give the medicine to Rong Shuyan.
"Princess Consort, it’s already morning," Mei Lu called softly as she opened the door to Lin Xueyi’s chamber. "This servant has brought your morning tea. Would you—Ahhh! What happened to you, Your Highness?!"
Lin Xueyi, who had just rested her head on the table, immediately sat up straight the moment she heard Mei Lu’s scream.
"Oh, Mei Lu! Help me clean up and get me changed!" Lin Xueyi said excitedly, unable to hide the bright smile on her face. "I want to have breakfast with His Highness!"
Mei Lu wanted to ask why the Princess Consort looked as though she had just climbed out of a grave, but seeing how energetic she was, she simply swallowed her questions and hurried to do as she was told.
"It just so happens that His Highness will be having breakfast in the dining room today since he’s feeling much better," Mei Lu said while helping her get dressed. "I’m sure he won’t mind sharing a table with you, Your Highness."
To be honest, Mei Lu wasn’t completely sure about that. Ever since the original Lin Xueyi moved into Prince Rui’s manor, the two of them had never shared a meal.
Whenever Lin Xueyi ate in the dining room, Rong Shuyan would eat in his own chamber. And whenever Rong Shuyan came to the dining room, Lin Xueyi would stay in her room instead.
In fact, the only time the servants and guards had ever seen the Prince and the Princess Consort sitting together was when they met the Third Imperial Prince.
If everyone in the manor saw them finally having breakfast together in the dining room, they would probably think they were dreaming. Some of the servants even still hadn’t recovered from the shock of learning that Rong Shuyan and Lin Xueyi had shared the same bedroom, even if it had only been for one night.
===
The moment Lin Xueyi stepped into the dining room, she saw that Rong Shuyan was already seated there. He hadn’t touched his meal because he was busy reading a piece of paper in his hand.
[What’s that? It looks like an invitation or something?] Lin Xueyi thought. [Oh! I remember. It’s the invitation to the Emperor’s birthday banquet!]
Unfortunately, in the original story, Rong Shuyan never made it to the Emperor’s birthday banquet because he fell seriously ill after drinking Rong Mingze’s poisoned tea.
But the problem wasn’t that he couldn’t attend the banquet. While he was absent, Rong Mingze persuaded the court officials at the banquet to petition the Emperor to remove Rong Shuyan from the line of succession since he didn’t seem to have much time left to live.
As if that wasn’t enough, Rong Mingze even claimed that if something happened to the other princes and Rong Shuyan became the only one left to inherit the throne, the Empire would be doomed. According to him, Rong Shuyan’s illness had already damaged his mind, making him unfit to rule.
To make matters worse, most of the court officials actually believed him. They thought Rong Shuyan had become nothing more than a foolish donkey because of his illness. Since he had stayed away from the palace for so long, no one knew the truth, making the rumors even easier to believe.
Although Rong Shuyan managed to make a comeback later in the story, things would be very different if he were removed from the line of succession and stripped of his title as Prince. He would be exiled to a remote region, and every servant in the residence would be taken away, except for Eunuch Liu who had made a vow to be by his side until the day he died.
[Now that I’m still alive... doesn’t that mean I’ll be exiled too?!] Lin Xueyi shivered. A second later, she tried to comfort herself. [Well... I was poor in my previous life too. Maybe it won’t be that bad.]
She paused for a moment. [No! Wait! Being poor in ancient times is at least ten times worse!]
"Princess Consort." Rong Shuyan’s voice pulled her out of her thoughts before her imagination could run any wilder. "I didn’t expect to see you here."
Lin Xueyi quickly straightened her back and put on her brightest smile. "Good morning, Your Highness!"
Rong Shuyan lowered the invitation and looked at her. His gaze lingered for a brief moment before his brows drew together ever so slightly. "Did you sleep at all last night?"
Lin Xueyi instinctively reached up and touched the skin beneath her eyes. [Are the dark circles really that obvious?]
She laughed awkwardly. "Just a little."
[A little? I didn’t sleep at all.]
Rong Shuyan fell silent. His eyes moved from the faint smudges beneath her eyes to the loose strands of hair that had escaped her bun. She looked far from presentable, yet the excitement on her face made it seem as though she had just won a fortune.
"What kept you so busy?" he asked.
Lin Xueyi’s eyes lit up. "I made something!" she said excitedly. "I’ve finished the medicine you asked for before. Your Highness, would you like to try it after breakfast?"
[I’m still not sure if I really want to use this method to get rid of Gu Yao,] Lin Xueyi thought hesitantly. [But it’ll be much easier to get rid of her if Yanyan gets angry with her.]
[But what if he gets angry with me too?] A chill suddenly ran down Lin Xueyi’s back. [After all, I’m about to make him feel itchy.]