"Yes, Lady." Xiao Qingzi accepted the task and left.
In Qionghua Palace, Shu Concubine sat in a chair, her hand still tightly shielding her belly, but her mood had slightly eased.
Yu Yao looked at the expression of Shu Concubine and couldn't help but feel a trace of compassion.
For her, Shu Concubine's situation is quite easy to deal with, it's just a matter of giving her some detoxifying and pregnancy-safe pills.
But she still wanted the Imperial Physician to take a look first.
Not long after, Doctor Zhang hurriedly arrived, with sweat beads forming on his forehead.
He put down the medicine box, first bowing to Yu Yao and Shu Concubine, then approached Shu Concubine to take her pulse.
His eyebrows tightened more and more, and it took him a long time to slowly lower his hand.
"Doctor Zhang, how am I doing?"
Shu Concubine couldn't wait and asked eagerly, her expression was worried.
Doctor Zhang's expression was serious, his gaze fell on Shu Concubine, and his voice was solemn: "Young Mistress Shu, your situation is not optimistic. There is indeed a very toxic drug in your body, and this drug is very concealed. It will be impossible to discover it without careful examination. This drug not only makes the fetus weak, but also affects the blood circulation of the mistress during childbirth. It is easy to cause difficult childbirth or the death of both mother and child."
Upon hearing the doctor's words, Shu Concubine's face turned deathly pale instantly, and tears glistened in her eyes.
She looked helplessly at Yu Yao, trembling as she said, "Brother Yao, what should we do? I don't want to die, and I don't want my child to be hurt."
Yu Yao gently patted her hand and comforted, "Sister Shu, please don't panic. The Empress will not let you or the baby be hurt."
Said, she turned to look at Doctor Zhang and asked, "Doctor Zhang, is there a way to neutralize this poison?"
Doctor Zhang sighed and didn't try to hide the truth. He said honestly, "Your Highness the Empress, there is indeed a way, but the drugs that pregnant women should avoid are numerous, so it is quite difficult. I need to go home and study carefully. The detoxification method involves careful handling of medicinal materials and dosage methods, or any slight deviation may have serious consequences. Moreover, even if we do this, we cannot guarantee that all the toxicity will be eliminated, we can only try our best."
Shu Concubine, upon hearing this, despair returned to her face, and tears welled up in her eyes. She choked and said, "What should we do then? Doctor Zhang, you must save me and my child."
Yu Yao watched her in such a state and felt an ache in her heart.
She comforted her, "Sister Shu, you don't need to be too worried. Doctor Zhang is a skilled doctor, and he will definitely find a solution. Just relax for now, the Empress will also think of ways to help."
She said, and turned to Doctor Zhang and said: "Doctor Zhang, please research as soon as possible. The Empress hopes to hear good news as soon as possible. During this period, the Empress will let Sister Shu follow the precautions you mentioned before and take good care of herself."
Doctor Zhang replied respectfully, "Yes, Your Highness the Empress. The old doctor will give it his all."
After saying that, he quickly left the Qionghua Palace with his medicine box.
After Doctor Zhang left, Yu Yao looked at Shu Concubine, and a pang of discomfort rose in her heart.
Although she had the detoxifying and fetal protection pills, she could not act impulsively before the Imperial Physician had reached a conclusion.
Of course, if Doctor Zhang really has no solution, she would not be able to watch as Shu Concubine and her unborn child die.
In any case, she will save Shu Concubine's life when she gives birth.
At this moment, Shu Concubine seemed to have gathered herself, wiped away her tears, and got up to bow to Yu Yao, saying, "Sister Chenxiao, thank you so much for your care today. Now that the Imperial Physician knows my situation, I will return to my own palace."
Shu Concubine bowed with her belly and left the Qionghua Palace with Bianyuan.
Not long after Shu Concubine left, Emperor Jing hurriedly arrived, his expression anxious.
Upon hearing that the Qionghua Palace had summoned the Imperial Physician, Emperor Jing was greatly alarmed, thinking that Yao's body was not well. Therefore, he put down the memorials and hurried over to check on her.
As soon as Emperor Jing entered the Qionghua Palace, his gaze swept the room with anxiety.
Seeing that Yu Yao was safely resting on the sofa and her complexion was decent, he breathed a sigh of relief.
Yu Yao saw the Emperor coming and wanted to get up to bow.
He hurried to the bed and quickly stopped her actions with a grand gesture, saying gently, "Yao, you are on maternity leave. These empty formalities can be avoided."
Emperor Jing held her and sat beside her on the sofa, looking at her with concern, his eyes full of worry: "I heard that you summoned the Imperial Physician. What's going on? Are you not feeling well?"
Yu Yao leaned against his chest, shook her head slightly, "Your servant is fine, it's just that today Shu Concubine came to seek help. She must have known that she was poisoned. I don't know anything about detoxification, so I only summoned Doctor Zhang to take a look. Doctor Zhang said that the poison is very difficult to deal with, and since Shu Concubine is pregnant, there are many drugs that should be avoided for pregnant women. He needs to study it carefully before he can come up with a solution."
Upon hearing Yu Yao's words, Emperor Jing's face darkened: "Although Empress has been executed, the poison she has caused is harming my offspring and concubines. I will order the Imperial Hospital to try its best to ensure the safety of Shu Concubine and her child, and to fully detoxify her. You can be at ease, Yao."
Yu Yao smiled slightly, "Then I will thank the Emperor on behalf of Shu Concubine."
Emperor Jing waved his hand, suddenly taking out a scroll from his body and slowly unfolding it, handing it to her. "Yao, I have thought of several names recently. You can see which one you like and choose one for our child."
Yu Yao was surprised to raise her eyebrows, not expecting this dog emperor to let her choose the name.
She had thought he would simply issue an edict to bestow a name, and feeling a warmth in her heart, a hint of a smile flitted across her eyes.
But she didn't refuse, reaching out to take it and look at it.
First were more than a dozen male names: Rong Qiqi, Rong Jin, Rong Chang, Rong Xun, Rong Yi, Rong Min, Rong Xi, Rong Yu, Rong Han…
Below were the female names: Rong Zhi, Rong Yan, Rong Shu, Rong Ying, Rong Lan, Rong Xin, Rong Yao, Rong Wan, Rong Tan, Rong Mi…
Looking at the row of names, she felt that they were all quite pretty, and she couldn't decide which one was better. Suddenly, she felt a bit of a dilemma.
"Emperor, it's best if you choose one. I feel that they are all good."
Yu Yao looked at the scroll in her hand, saying with a bit of indecision.
Upon seeing her indecisive expression, Emperor Jing couldn't help but burst into laughter. He gently touched her nose with his finger and smiled indulgently, "Yao, your expression looks like you want to push the responsibility of choosing names back to me."
She glared playfully at him, "Emperor, I really have difficulty making a choice among these names. You are the father of our child, so it's more appropriate for you to choose."
Emperor Jing helplessly shook his head and his gaze fell again on the names on the scroll.
His fingers slowly moved over the names, as if he was seriously thinking.
After a while, his fingers stopped on the names "Rong Qiqi" and "Rong Wan".
"Yao, I think the boy should be named Rong Qiqi, wishing him a life of smooth sailing, with a kind heart and divine protection. For the girl, we'll call her Rong Wan, hoping she will be as gentle and charming as her name suggests, with a multitude of elegant demeanor."
Yu Yao listened and smiled slightly, "The Emperor chose well, both of these names are very nice."
Although the dog emperor is promiscuous and good-looking, he does have talent and abilities, and your name is also very nice.
At least much better than the ones she came up with.
Emperor Jing listened to her praise and smiled slightly, feeling very happy. He wrapped her tighter in his embrace.
"If Yao likes it too, then that's settled."
He put the scroll aside and continued, "Yao, in a few days, our child will also be one month old. Naturally, the celebration for our child's first month should be grand. However, the court affairs are busy, and it's a headache to decide who should handle the preparations for the celebration."
Since the Empress has been abolished and the mother is focusing on her Buddhist practice, he doesn't know who to entrust the matter to for a while.
Yu Yao didn't speak, but just leaned quietly against the dog emperor's chest, her small hands twisting his loose hair.
Let the dog emperor worry about such troubles. She just needed to focus on her maternity leave, take good care of her body, and that was all.
After giving birth, she took postpartum recovery and tightening pills.
And she drank various exotic and nourishing soup and medicine every day. Her physical recovery was excellent, her face rosy and delicate, and her complexion was too good.
Her skin was so tender that it seemed to have a hint of water when pinched, looking as if she hadn't given birth at all.
However, because she was in the moon period, she couldn't wash her hair or take a bath. This made her feel somewhat uncomfortable.
Yu Yao suddenly recalled the ban on cats, and looked at Emperor Jing, "Emperor, I have heard that you have ordered a nationwide ban on cats. Is this true?"
Upon hearing her words, Emperor Jing's face instantly darkened. Recalling the venomous curse from the Empress before her death, anger surged up within him.
"Yao, I did indeed issue this order. That vile woman cursed you before she died, saying that she would be a cat in her next life and bite you to death, causing you lifelong agony. I cannot tolerate such a curse and am afraid that it will come true. That's why I issued this ban."
Yu Yao couldn't help but laugh and cry. She didn't believe in such superstitions. She was the tasker, not bound by reincarnation, and there was no such thing as a next life.
But for Emperor Jing's actions, she felt quite comfortable in her heart. This was enough to show that the dog emperor cared about her.
"Your Majesty, Your servant understands Your Majesty's good intentions. However, Your Majesty is a wise ruler. This is just the malicious words of the Empress. It is not worth believing. Cats are innocent beings, and banning them nationwide will cause much inconvenience to the people. Keeping cats to catch mice is a common practice in society. Moreover, cats can help control mouse pests in the palace."
Emperor Jing frowned slightly. He actually knew she had some point, but the queen's curse before her death was like a thorn stuck in his heart.
"Yao, I know you have a kind heart, but you don't understand the cunning and danger of the royal concubine's struggle. Cats in the palace are easily exploited and can become the source of chaos."
Yu Yao smiled faintly, "Your Majesty, if you ban cats just because of the fear of being exploited, then what about all the other objects in the palace that could be used for evil? Should they all be banned? As long as we strengthen our management, such as limiting the range of cats' activities and only allowing them to move in specific areas, and assigning special guards to watch them, we can avoid being exploited. Moreover, if cats can freely catch mice in the palace, it can also reduce the risk of diseases spreading among the people in the palace."
Emperor Jing looked at her, his heart slightly swayed. He sighed and said, "Yao, I need to think about this matter more carefully."
Several days later, Emperor Jing lifted the ban on cats.
The order was issued, and everyone from the officials to the common people breathed a sigh of relief.
Days went by, and soon it was the day of the first month celebration for the Second Prince and Little Princess.
