Suddenly, a slightly panicked tinkling sound rang out, precisely from the young princess Zhu Xiaoyan.
"Grandmother, why has your face turned so pale?"
"Are you feeling unwell right now?"
"What, what's going on? Is there something wrong with my body? I don't feel anything!"
Empress Ma was extremely surprised upon hearing this.
Although Daoist Qingyun had said her body had problems, how did her granddaughter notice it? Was her body so weak that even a little girl could tell?
At this moment, Empress Ma did not know that her complexion had already turned frighteningly pale.
The next second, two female Jin Yiwei guards arrived beside her.
These two female Jin Yiwei guards first knelt on both knees, then took out a mirror, allowing Empress Ma to see for herself how bad her complexion was at that moment!
After Empress Ma saw her incredibly pale complexion in the bronze mirror, she fumbled the bronze mirror in her hand, and it fell to the ground with a clang.
Immediately, Empress Ma took a deep breath, calmed herself down, summoned Liu Xue, who was hiding in the shadows, and gave a few instructions…
However, before she could finish speaking, her body swayed, and Empress Ma collapsed to the ground.
Liu Xue quickly squatted down, extended her left hand, touched Empress Ma's neck, and then her forehead.
After this moment, Liu Xue's face changed drastically, looking terrifyingly grim.
"The Empress's skin temperature is extremely low, below the standard for a normal person!"
"What?!"
"It's over..."
As soon as Liu Xue spoke, all the female Jin Yiwei guards could no longer maintain their composure. They rushed towards Empress Ma…
"Your Majesty, how are you feeling now?"
Liu Xue asked anxiously while injecting all her internal energy into Empress Ma's body.
Hearing Liu Xue's question, Empress Ma weakly mustered a breath and said, "This consort is so cold," before closing her eyes.
Before losing consciousness, Empress Ma's last thought was, Daoist Qingyun was right, was I poisoned?
Will I die next?
As soon as this statement was made, the entire Southern Banquet Hall was shocked.
Many ladies and young ladies, filled with fear, silently wept and shed tears.
Heavens, something big is about to happen, something really big is about to happen. The sky of the Great Ming Empire has been pierced.
"Some of you, hurry to the Imperial Hospital and find the imperial physicians. The Empress is poisoned. The rest of you, guard the doors, do not let anyone leave. Quickly, quickly, quickly!"
"If Her Majesty the Empress doesn't make it, we will all die. By then, no one here will escape."
Liu Xue stood up and anxiously commanded her subordinates who were kneeling on the ground.
After finishing, Liu Xue scanned the entire venue with cold eyes.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please do not leave the scene, otherwise..."
Liu Xue did not finish her sentence.
However, all the ladies and young ladies in the Southern Banquet Hall felt a chill run down their spines. They had also heard Liu Xue's words.
The Empress was not sick, but poisoned!
Buddha, Dao Ancestor, please be upon us! Something big has happened!
Someone actually dared to poison someone in the palace? And poison the Empress, who embodies maternal virtue?
...
"Immediately take that sachet for testing!"
"Yes!"
"What about those women from earlier? Investigate them immediately and bring them here. I want to know what kind of guts they had to dare poison Her Majesty the Empress!"
"Yes!"
After a while, a female Jin Yiwei guard ran over with a panicked expression.
"Boss, after they left the palace, they couldn't be found. They disappeared!"
"What, you sons of bitches???"
"Bastards..."
Liu Xue could no longer suppress the anger in her heart and uttered expletives.
In the Southern Banquet Hall, at this moment, all the guests were extremely terrified.
An assassination, this is a standard assassination technique! Strike once, then flee immediately!
"Quickly report to the Commander of the Jin Yiwei! Report to the Crown Prince! Report to His Majesty!"
However, at this moment, it was already a little late.
Empress Ma ultimately could not hold on. Her eyes closed, and she completely fainted.
"Your Majesty!"
"Your Majesty!"
"Your Majesty, please wake up! Please wake up!"
"Quickly call the imperial physicians, quickly call the imperial physicians!"
...
The entire Southern Banquet Hall was in complete chaos.
Endless fear surged into everyone's hearts. They were not unaware of the current Emperor's temper.
If Her Majesty the Empress were to die, everyone present would have to be buried with her.
They would be implicated. Regardless of whether the Empress could be saved in the end, they would at least lose a layer of skin.
Because…
The one who was poisoned was no other than the person the current Emperor valued most, the Empress who embodied maternal virtue.
One strand of her hair might be more important to the Emperor than the Great Ming Empire.
Her husband and son were the Emperor and the Crown Prince.
She possessed the ability to influence the life and death of the entire empire.
...
Northern Banquet Hall.
Upon receiving the news, Zhu Yuanzhang was shocked and then furious, kicking the Jin Yiwei who delivered the message to the ground.
Then he pointed at the equally shocked ministers and said.
"Tang Wei, immediately mobilize the Imperial Guards and seal off the capital."
"Mao Yifan, return to the Jin Yiwei headquarters now and find the culprit at all costs. If you can't find them, prepare dozens of coffins for your entire family!"
"Also, issue a notice to all the citizens of the capital: no one is allowed to leave the city today. Violators will be executed along with their nine generations of relatives!"
"Yes!"
Tang Wei and Mao Yifan, the highest commanders of the Imperial Guards and Jin Yiwei, acknowledged the order and hurried out.
"Your Majesty, the Zhongshu Sheng is willing to provide all assistance in apprehending the culprits!"
"The Ministry of War is willing to provide all assistance!"
"The Ministry of Rites is willing..."
"The Ministry of History is willing..."
"The Ministry of Justice is willing..."
"The Ministry of Revenue is willing..."
"The Ministry of Works is willing..."
Led by the Prime Minister of the Zhongshu Sheng, the ministers of the Six Ministries spoke one after another, supporting the action to apprehend the culprit.
Coincidentally, Crown Prince Zhu Biao, upon learning that his mother was in critical condition, was also furious.
"Investigate! Investigate thoroughly! The entire Great Ming Empire, thoroughly investigate it all!"
"Yes!"
"Yes!"
"Yes!"
...
A storm swept across the entire Great Ming Empire, beginning to stir! This night, the capital was illuminated, and no one could sleep!
Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao, a father and son pair standing at the pinnacle of power, their father-son rage was about to sweep across the entire Great Ming Empire.
Outside the Fengfeng Palace in the imperial palace.
Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao, along with countless high-ranking officials and nobles, were waiting anxiously outside, their faces filled with worry.
Nearly half an hour had passed since Wu Tao and the imperial physicians began treating Empress Ma, yet none of them had emerged.
Not only that, but even the eunuchs and palace maids attending to her had not come out.
It should be known that for the treatment of an Empress with her special status, the situation must be reported outwards at all times.
If they were too busy, they still had to send out eunuchs and palace maids, but now, there wasn't even anyone to carry messages…
"It's over, it's over, we're really going to die!"
"If Empress Ma really has an accident, what will we do? What about our clansmen? Are we really going to be buried with Empress Ma?"
"Damn it, these damned assassins, no matter where you hide, we will kill you all and make sure your entire family has no place to be buried!"
...
Countless high-ranking officials cursed inwardly, occasionally looking up at the Fengfeng Hall, their eyes filled with hope.
Everyone hoped that the door of Fengfeng Hall would open the next moment, and Wu Tao and the imperial physicians would walk out with smiles, telling everyone that Empress Ma was unharmed.
However…
Just as everyone's attention was focused, the door of Fengfeng Hall opened.
The imperial physicians walked out of the door collectively.
At this moment, Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao rushed forward anxiously, with other high-ranking officials following closely behind.
"How is it? How is the Empress?!"
Hearing the Emperor's words, the imperial physicians lowered their heads and said, "Your Majesty, your humble subjects deserve to die. We have done our best. The Empress has lost consciousness and cannot be awakened no matter what!"
As soon as this was said, the entire assembly was shocked. Zhu Yuanzhang almost collapsed to the ground, but was supported by Zhu Biao, preventing him from doing so.
The next second, Zhu Yuanzhang pushed Zhu Biao aside, grabbed an imperial physician by the collar, and interrogated him.
"How could this be?"
"Didn't you already find out what kind of poison it was based on the sachet? Why can't you wake up my Empress?"
"I have raised you for so many years, but you are useless when it truly matters. You have eaten so much food for nothing, yet you cannot awaken my Empress..."
"Since that's the case, what is the point of you living? Tell me, what is the current condition of my Empress? Speak, speak!"
Zhu Yuanzhang's bloodshot eyes terrified all the imperial physicians.
"No, Your Majesty, it is not like that! We have truly done our best. The National Preceptor is still using internal energy to sustain Empress Ma's last breath..."
The head of the Imperial Hospital walked up to Zhu Yuanzhang, wiping sweat, and said, "After examining Her Majesty the Empress's body, we discovered that she had already been poisoned years ago, and this sachet was merely a catalyst."
"The medicinal substances in the sachet have prematurely brought out the peculiar poison within Her Majesty the Empress."
"This peculiar poison has long since merged with Her Majesty the Empress's body..."
"What is most troublesome is that without the formula for this peculiar poison, we cannot administer any medicine casually, otherwise, not only will it be ineffective, but it will also worsen her condition..."
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