Gu Yanxi gave a light cough, and the Emperor snapped back to attention. "Rise."
Shaoyao stood up and looked towards Yan Ge. Gu Yanxi gave her a slight nod.
Shaoyao stepped forward carrying her medicine chest, placed the small medicine pillow on the thick armrest, and patted it.
The Emperor chuckled wryly and placed his hand on it.
Most physicians diagnose by observing, listening, questioning, and pulse-taking in sequence, but Shaoyao did the opposite. She first took the pulse, then observed, listened, and questioned before summarizing: "Your Majesty should know that there are no magic elixirs in this world that take effect immediately. Any medicine with such effects must come at the cost of harming the body."
Shaoyao put the small medicine pillow back into her medicine chest and continued: "If this Golden Elixir were truly as effective as they claim, why would those Celestial Masters bother pretending to be eminent figures everywhere? They could just eat it like daily meals and become immortals. Why bother mingling with ordinary mortals?"
The ordinary mortal Emperor...
"Your Majesty hasn't been taking it for too long. Although it has damaged your foundation, I'm still confident I can remedy it." Shaoyao suddenly changed the subject. "Are you having some trouble remembering things lately?"
"Yes..." The trapped Emperor instinctively looked at Gu Yanxi and, as expected, saw his darkened expression.
The Emperor pointed at Shaoyao, but she showed no fear. "This elixir is more potent than any I've seen before. Based on my previous experience, it shouldn't have damaged the body's foundation so quickly. Yan Ge, do you have the Golden Elixir? Let me examine it."
Gu Yanxi glanced at his imperial uncle. "Ren Ba."
Ren Ba entered through the door and presented several brocade boxes.
The Emperor averted his gaze. Without thinking, he knew these were all the ones he had hidden.
Shaoyao picked up one pill and sniffed it first, her brow furrowing so deeply it could crush a mosquito. She directly took two boxes and stood up. "I need a room to study these."
Seeing Shaoyao's expression, Gu Yanxi knew it was serious. He instructed Lai Fu to quickly take her to the adjacent room and had the imperial physician, who had been waiting outside with trembling legs, bring along a stack of medical records to follow them, in case Shaoyao had any questions.
Uncle and nephew exchanged glances, their hearts sinking.
It took nearly four hours before Shaoyao emerged from the room. "The formula ratio of this elixir is four times that of the Golden Elixir I've seen before."
The imperial study was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
After a long while, the Emperor asked, "If I had taken it for longer..."
"How many pills do you take daily now?" Before the Emperor could answer, Shaoyao continued: "It should have started with two pills a day, increased to three after a few days, then to four or five. If I'm not mistaken, you should be taking six pills daily now."
The Emperor remained silent, tacitly admitting it.
"The quantity will continue to increase. When you need it, if you don't take it, you'll feel listless, forget what you just said moments later, be unable to concentrate, and even struggle to recall names. I suspect you're already experiencing such symptoms."
The Emperor secretly clenched his palm but couldn't control the trembling of his hand. He asked hoarsely, "Can these symptoms be alleviated?"
"Yes." But the damage to his foundation was already difficult to reverse. When she understood the ingredients and formula ratio of the Golden Elixir, she knew it was bad news. This Golden Elixir was essentially meant to take lives.
Gu Yanxi asked gravely, "Why didn't the imperial physicians detect any abnormalities?"
"I've already detained them. No need for flaying or tendon extraction—leave them for me to test medicines on. Additionally, I need to review His Majesty's dietary records from this period."
Lai Fu understood and bowed before quickly leaving.The imperial palace was about to face a storm!
While waiting, Shaoyao didn't remain idle. She carefully took the Emperor's pulse once more, then boldly drew a small amount of his blood to study it carefully.
Gu Yanxi had already mentally reviewed the entire incident and rose to go to the adjacent room.
"Summon Qu Qi to see me."
Qu Qi arrived dressed in palace servant attire, appearing as humble and obedient as any common attendant in the palace.
He knelt on one knee before Gu Yanxi. "Chief."
"Has there been any unusual activity from the Second Prince recently?"
After a moment's thought, Qu Qi shook his head. "I haven't detected any abnormalities."
Gu Yanxi also believed the Second Prince was the least suspicious. Both the First and Third Princes were more powerful than him, and even the newly emerging Fourth Prince, with his influential maternal family, was no weaker. Before his wings were fully grown, making such moves would only benefit others if successful. Moreover, his mother, Consort Hui, wasn't favored, so she couldn't influence the Emperor through pillow talk.
"Investigate the First Prince. Wait, no, that's not right." Gu Yanxi's expression turned icy cold. "Use our palace personnel to investigate Consort Rong, Consort Liang, and Consort Xu. I need to know who they've met recently and whether they've had any unusual contact with their maternal families. Additionally, spread the word that the Seven Constellation Bureau has captured a Celestial Master."
"Yes."
The mothers of the First Prince (Consort Rong), Third Prince (Consort Liang), and Fourth Prince (Consort Xu) - the problem must lie with one of these three, with the first two being more likely. Gu Yanxi rubbed his jade thumb ring. Without bloodshed, their ambitions were growing so vast they could swallow the heavens whole!
A loud crash echoed, and in a flash, Gu Yanxi was outside the door, quickly instructing Xiao Wu who stood guard outside the imperial study: "Keep watch."
"Yes."
The imperial study was in disarray - objects overturned and shattered everywhere. The Emperor stood before his wide chair, breathing heavily. Lai Fu knelt to the side, not daring to lift his head. Unaffected, Shaoyao focused intently on studying the recipe with a furrowed brow.
Gu Yanxi rushed to his uncle's side to support him. Even through clothing, he could feel the Emperor's burning body temperature. "Shaoyao, come see what's happening."
"It's nothing serious. The Emperor becomes agitated when he doesn't receive the Golden Elixir on time, and this reaction is intensified by recent events." Shaoyao looked up. "Yan Ge, someone has tampered with the recipe. The amounts of mutky, fishy, and various meat dishes have been greatly increased. I've compared them - they're twice the normal quantity. If the Emperor weren't taking the Golden Elixir, it would merely mean he's eating more greasy food. But the problem is he is taking the Golden Elixir, which further accelerates its effects."
"Good, very good! So impatient!" the Emperor sneered. "I shall issue an edict immediately. Yanxi, you shall become the Crown Prince."
"Those with facial disfigurement cannot serve as officials."
"I'm not making you an official - I'm making you Emperor!"
"Rules cannot be broken." Gu Yanxi didn't even blink. "If you feel my face isn't damaged enough, I can add another cut."
Smack! The Emperor directly slapped his face, his chest heaving violently. The words about establishing a Crown Prince stuck in his throat.
When Yanxi had injured his face before, the Emperor had known it wasn't from battling enemies as claimed - it could only have been self-inflicted. To reassure him, and to placate the other princes.Yan Xi's disdain for this position was clearest to him. He even felt that if not for his uncle, Yan Xi would never have become the head of the Seven Constellation Bureau. He would have long since left the capital and the imperial court, only returning after the Empress Dowager's departure to avenge his mother and Shaoyao.
He had always known—he hadn't cherished this child in vain.
PS: Ladies, please don't scrutinize the Golden Elixir too closely. I can only try to make it as reasonable as possible.
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