Chapter 290: Chapter 287: Devastation"Heh, hearing you say that, it does indeed seem like a spectacle."

    Sang Ruoshui lay in bed, her eyes narrowing into a cold smile, thinking to herself: Sang Yan really is her dear sister. Now even a courtesan has caught her eye. Am I even lower than a courtesan now!

    Xiang Ying thought the same, whispering indignantly on her behalf, "It’s outrageous how the Empress esteems a courtesan so highly! Where does she place you then?"

    She continued talking about the kindness the Empress had for Luo Shan, "She even personally took care of a courtesan! I heard she visits several times a day!"

    "Enough! Stop talking!"

    Sang Ruoshui slapped the bed in anger.

    She had slept for too long, every day lost in beautiful dreams under the Lover’s Sleep.

    Apart from eating and relieving herself, she barely left the bed.

    Her muscles had weakened from the extreme lack of exercise, and her slap on the bed lacked strength.

    "Detestable!"

    She clenched her teeth, laughing at herself with self-mockery: "Hahaha, Sang Yan, you actually humiliate me this way—"

    Before she could finish, a mouthful of blood sprayed out.

    Startled by the sight, Xiang Ying cried out, "Lady! Lady, what’s wrong with you?"

    She quickly helped Sang Ruoshui sit up, afraid that she would choke on her own blood.

    Sang Ruoshui sat up with support, her chest pounding, her head buzzing, the blood at the corner of her mouth already wiped away, leaving only dots of red on the snow-white collar.

    "Quickly, call the Imperial Physician!"

    Xiang Ying’s face was filled with terror, she shouted out towards the palace, "The Lady is vomiting blood! Go call the Imperial Physician immediately!"

    "No one cares."

    "My parents, my siblings, my sister, none of them love me anymore."

    "No one loves me."

    "Hahaha, I’m even inferior to a filthy, lowly prostitute!"

    ...

    She laughed and cried in breakdown, her face pale as a ghost, with the blood that lingered on her lips and teeth flowing out once again.

    Realizing she had spoken wrongly and made a mistake, Xiang Ying immediately slapped herself twice, consoling, "Please don’t say that, Lady! You are a body worth a thousand pieces of gold, a distinguished Princess Consort, how can you compare yourself to a courtesan? What if the Empress is good to her? This is her fate now, unable to withstand the Empress’s favor! Just a courtesan with a pitiable life and meager fortune! Believe this servant, Lady—your splendid future is still ahead!"

    "Really? Hahaha—"

    Sang Ruoshui laughed hysterically, then suddenly vomited another mouthful of blood, her eyes rolling back as she collapsed backward.

    She lay on the bed, eyes closed, in a deep sleep, her white dress stained with patchy blood, as if dead.

    "Lady! Lady, wake up! Lady, don’t frighten your servant like this!"

    Xiang Ying was scared to tears by the scene and rushed out in a state of panic, "Quickly inform the Emperor, the Empress! The Lady has fainted!"

    In the side hall of Qingning Palace

    Sang Yan was watching Qiuzhi feed Luo Shan the medicinal soup.

    In the past few days, Luo Shan had awakened a few times, but she couldn’t stay conscious for long and would quickly fall back into a deep sleep.

    The Imperial Physician said, "Doctor Luo has severe external injuries and has lost a lot of blood; her body is severely depleted. She can only recover slowly with nourishing remedies, we must not rush it."

    Thus, they were giving her some warm and strengthening medicines.

    However, feeding the medicine was inconvenient with her in a stupor, always dripping out.

    "Qiuzhi, go slower."

    Sang Yan took a handkerchief from a palace maid’s hand, walked over, and gently wiped the medicine from Luo Shan’s mouth.

    Upon hearing this, Qiuzhi slowed down and carefully fed the medicine again.

    Just then—

    The Little Guizi rushed in hastily, "Empress, a palace maid from Yuesang Palace has come with a message, saying that Princess Consort Sang has suddenly fallen ill with a strange disease and has fainted from vomiting blood!"

    "What?"

    Sang Yan’s eyes showed astonishment, which quickly turned to suspicion, "Is that true or not?"

    The Little Guizi thought for a moment and replied, "This servant saw the palace maid’s face; it seemed real, her little face was petrified white."

    Hearing this, Sang Yan frowned, thought for a moment, and then decided to go and see for herself.

    She hadn’t heard any news about Sang Ruoshui these days and thought she had become well-behaved, so low-profile that she was almost non-existent, but then today’s incident happened.

    If it were fake, she would make sure she regretted causing today’s commotion!

    "Are you from Yuesang Palace?"

    Sang Yan stepped out of the side hall and, upon seeing the palace maid waiting outside, asked, "What happened to Princess Consort Sang? Did she really vomit blood and faint? Did you call for the Imperial Physician?"

    The palace maid’s face was pale, her body shrunken, frightened and flustered as if scared out of her wits, her words jumbled, "Yes. We called for one. I am from Yuesang Palace. Princess Consort Sang really fainted, she vomited a lot of blood, suddenly... just a lot of blood..."

    She gestured with her hands, even mimicking the action of vomiting blood.

    Sang Yan’s expression grew solemn, she didn’t continue to question and instead quickly lifted her skirts, hurrying toward Yuesang Palace.

    A long line of Palace Attendants followed behind her.

    The last one was Nanny Hu.

    Nanny Hu had been covertly monitoring the happenings at Qingning Palace and also heard the news just delivered by Little Guizi, thinking to herself: This isn’t good! The "Lover’s Sleep" is likely to cause trouble!

    Yuesang Palace

    After Sang Ruoshui had fainted, Xing Ce went in to deal with the "Lover’s Sleep."

    By the time Sang Yan entered, the incense burner had already been replaced with normal incense, and it was very thick to cover up the smell of "Lover’s Sleep."

    No one noticed anything unusual.

    Sang Yan’s attention was all on the person in the sickbed.

    Not having seen her for a few days, Sang Ruoshui had become severely emaciated, her cheekbones pronounced, her complexion deathly pale, giving her a mean appearance.

    Her eyes were tightly shut, and remnants of blood lingered at the corners of her mouth.

    It made her face even more ghastly pale.

    Like a dying patient.

    She was truly ill!

    What illness could it be?

    In just a few days, to be reduced to this...

    Sang Yan had seen Sang Ruoshui’s domineering presence often, but seeing her now so weak and pitiful, she still couldn’t help but feel some pity.

    After all, she was the original body’s own younger sister, and besides, it’s heartbreaking to see someone so ill, so she felt a measure of tenderness.

    "How could Princess Consort Sang end up like this? How have you been taking care of her?"

    She asked icily, looking at the Palace Attendants kneeling on the floor.

    The Imperial Physicians were already treating her.

    The three Imperial Physicians observed, smelled, questioned, and palpated before consulting with each other about their findings, then said, "Empress, rest assured, Princess Consort Sang just had a sudden fit of intense anger, which caused her to vomit blood and faint."

    Sang Yan was puzzled, "How could she suddenly have such a fit of intense anger?"

    She asked the Imperial Physicians, but how would they know?

    Such fits of anger often stem from one’s innermost feelings.

    They weren’t gods, how could they know what someone was thinking?

    "You tell me!"

    Seeing the Imperial Physicians exchanging glances, unable to provide an explanation, Sang Yan turned to the Palace Attendants, demanding an explanation from them.

    The Palace Attendants were all prostrating on the ground, looking at each other, but no one dared to speak.

    In recent days, Princess Consort Sang had lost her appetite, slept incessantly, and didn’t exercise, which undoubtedly weakened her body.

    The words Xiang Ying spoke earlier were also too provocative, anyone would be overwhelmed! Sear?h the N?vel(F)ire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    But they didn’t dare to criticize Xiang Ying.

    "Empress, please forgive us. We don’t know,"

    One palace maid with sly, fox-like eyes knelt with her head bowed, speaking words of forgiveness, but her peripheral vision drifted towards Xiang Ying.

    Sang Yan noticed this and got a sense of the situation, then walked over to Xiang Ying, "Are you Xiang Ying, the Chief Palace Maid of Yuesang Palace?"

    She knew from the matter with Xiangxiu that since Xiangxiu was gone, Xiang Ying had taken over her place.

    Xiang Ying hastily kneeled and responded, "Replying to the Empress, I am Xiang Ying."

    Hearing this, Sang Yan’s face turned cold, and she directly asked, "Then you tell me, why has Princess Consort Sang become like this? What on earth is wrong with her health?"

    In just a few days, to become so frail, there must be a reason!