Chapter 2638 - 2571: It’s Up to You

Yin Huo leaned disheartened on the couch. If the Emperor didn’t come, he would have gone to play with Bai Shan and the others, but due to the Emperor’s presence, he couldn’t go out.

Even if Bai Shan and the others were to come looking for him, they would be stopped.

Longevity Palace whispered comfortingly to him, "Young master, don’t be anxious. There’s plenty of time ahead. Tomorrow you can visit Young Master Bai and Miss Man."

Daji closed the door, returned to report in a low voice, "Lord Yin has escorted the guests down from the mountains, and they are now all at Lord Yin’s residence."

Manbao sighed, "Our homemade treats must be gone."

Bai Shan comforted her, "Never mind, next time I’ll have someone make them for you again."

On the first day of moving in, the activity in the Yongzhou summer palace only quieted down towards midnight.

The tranquility of the mountains is different from the calm in the capital.

At home in the capital, no matter how quiet, every so often you can hear the time being beaten.

But here, when it quiets down, everyone hears the sound of insects, especially now as it is summer, with croaks from the fields echoing endlessly.

After washing up, Manbao lay on the bed and turned to look at the closed window.

Bai Shan had also washed up, lifted the thin blanket to sit on the bed, glanced at the window, and then laughed, "There are many bugs in the mountains. I heard that grandmother brought along a piece of smoke gauze; later we can cut it out to make window screens, so even if the window is open, the bugs won’t fly in."

Manbao said, "Using smoke gauze for window screens, isn’t that a bit extravagant?"

"Not at all. When we go back, we’ll take it down and bring it along; it’ll still be useful at home," Bai Shan said. "As long as it’s continuously useful and not discarded after a short time, it’s not extravagant."

Manbao thought this made sense, and gladly agreed.

Manbao leaned against him and began to think of the Emperor. "Why do you think His Majesty wants to hide?"

If he didn’t hide, it wouldn’t be impossible to invite him for a bowl of homemade treats.

Bai Shan pondered and said, "Every human has a desire to peek; His Majesty is just an ordinary person."

Manbao looked up at him, "Do you have it too?"

Bai Shan immediately replied, "That’s why etiquette is necessary to regulate, not peeking is a fundamental courtesy; moreover, one mustn’t look at illicit things. What His Majesty did was improper; if Lord Wei and Minister Li knew, they’d surely advise him."

The Emperor naturally knew this, so he omitted Minister Li when inviting guests. Although Wei Zhi was called, Wei Zhi had been busy with official duties and was unaware of the Emperor’s brief disappearance, let alone guessing these events.

Thus, the Emperor passed the night without incident.

The next morning, feeling refreshed, the Emperor first took a stroll with the Empress around the Longevity Palace before having breakfast and meeting with the ministers.

The Emperor’s demeanor was entirely different from when he was in Taiji Palace; there, he was like a wilted ear of wheat, but now he was like a lotus blooming in water, his face and brows were full of smiles.

Upon meeting, Wei Zhi’s gaze moved across the Emperor’s face before he quickly took out the memorial, "Your Majesty, I have comments on several directives from the Central Secretariat..."

Wei Zhi glanced at the stack of memorials on the Emperor’s desk and squinted, "Your Majesty, did you review yesterday’s memorials?"

The Emperor remembered and immediately winced, clutching his stomach, "Perhaps the homemade treats I had last night were too cold, I’ve been feeling unwell since returning to the hall."

Wei Zhi emotionlessly closed the memorial he was holding, "Really? Your Majesty looks quite ruddy, not at all like someone who is unwell, should we call in Imperial Doctor Zhou to have a look?"

The usually reticent Minister Li promptly added, "Your Majesty’s health is paramount, it shouldn’t be neglected; we should definitely call Imperial Doctor Zhou to examine."

Thus, the Emperor had to send someone to summon Zhou Man.

Manbao was in the courtyard practicing the five animal frolics, having just finished her exercises, she let out a breath. A palace attendant rushed over to invite her, "Doctor Zhou, His Majesty summons you."

Manbao was immediately startled, "Did he eat something bad?"

The palace attendant was equally startled, "Doctor Zhou, how did you know?"

Manbao nervously swallowed and asked, "How does His Majesty look, does it seem serious?"

She asked while instructing Xi Bing to fetch her medical kit.

The palace attendant hadn’t seen the Emperor, he was following Lord Gu’s orders directly; Lord Gu was composed and not anxious, so he said, "It seems, it shouldn’t be too serious, Lord Gu seemed quite calm."

Has Lord Gu ever not been composed?

Manbao clearly didn’t trust the judgment of the junior attendant, took the medical kit and left.

May pursued from inside, "Lady, aren’t you changing clothes?"

Manbao waved her hand dismissively, already following the junior attendant quickly away, there’s no time to change clothes with urgency looming.

Manbao hurriedly donned casual wear as she rushed to Taiji Hall; reaching Taiji Hall, her breath was slightly uneven due to the haste.

The ministers, engaged in further deliberation on state affairs, all turned to look at her.

Manbao, panting, asked, "Is His Majesty unwell?"

She scrutinized the Emperor’s complexion, blinked, and looked him up and down, then turned her gaze to the junior attendant who had followed her in.

Everyone followed her gaze to the junior attendant.

The junior attendant, overwhelmed by the attention he shouldn’t bear, fell to his knees, trembling.

Seeing him tremble, Manbao stepped to the left, positioning herself right in front of him, put down her medical kit, gave a deep bow to the Emperor, and raised her head to ask, "I’ve heard Your Majesty is unwell?"

"Ah? Oh, yes," the Emperor returned to his senses, and again extended his hand to clutch his stomach, "Earlier I felt a vague pain, but now there’s nothing."

Wei Zhi suggested, "Lord Zhou should still examine His Majesty."

Minister Li added, "Don’t conceal maladies out of fear of doctors."

The only individual somewhat aware of the truth, Minister Han, along with Yin Li, who knew the entire truth, remained motionless.

Manbao agreed, looked at the unmoving ministers, then at the Emperor, asking, "Would Your Majesty prefer the examination here, or..."

The Emperor immediately rose, "Let’s go to the inner chamber."

Gu Zhong cheerfully stepped forward to carry Manbao’s medical kit; Manbao thanked him and followed the Emperor to the inner chamber.

Gu Zhong, smiling broadly, followed behind; before leaving, he glanced down at the kneeling junior attendant and whispered, "What are you still kneeling for, hurry and withdraw."

The junior attendant, as if granted amnesty, scrambled to retreat.

The Emperor seated himself on the soft couch behind the screen, Zhou Man sat on a small stool to take his pulse, Gu Zhong then prepared two cups of tea to bring in, one being plain tea for the Emperor, the other almond tea for Manbao.

Clearly infused with a significant amount of honey, just placing it nearby allowed Manbao to scent the honey aroma.

She couldn’t help but look at the Emperor.

The Emperor smiled at her, asking significantly, "Courtier Zhou, is there any issue with my stomach and intestines?"

Manbao’s mind only echoed Director Xiao’s reminders, so she carefully asked, "Does Your Majesty feel the problem is serious?"