Chapter 58 Smallpox

The newly chosen Crown Princess by Her Imperial Majesty was Lady Pei, daughter of the Minister of Personnel. From the moment she stepped into the hall, Shen Tuobai could sense that both the Crown Princess and the senior nursing wet nurse beside her never once averted their gazes from her.

Feigning ignorance, Shen Tuobai brought A-Ning forward to serve her tea.

"Elder Sister, please rise. Although I am the Crown Princess, I am a newcomer here. In the days to come, the affairs of the Eastern Palace will inevitably require your guidance, and I hope you will instruct me well."

Pei Qiuchi maintained an air of perfect poise and propriety, her words brimming with respect for Shen Tuobai.

Though she received this gesture of goodwill, Shen Tuobai was not about to engage lightly. "The Crown Princess flatters me. As concubines, it is naturally our duty to assist you when needed. However, the affairs of the Eastern Palace have always been managed by Lady Lu, so I'm afraid I might not be of much help."

With a light smile, Pei Qiuchi smoothly bypassed the subject, turning her attention instead to A-Ning. "Is this the little Princess?"

Retrieving an exquisite sachet from a tray, Pei Qiuchi offered it with a smile. "For our first meeting, I embroidered this myself at my maiden home. I wonder if the little Princess likes it?"

Shen Tuobai glanced at the object. The little cats embroidered upon it were lifelike, clearly crafted with a child's preferences in mind.

A-Ning's eyes lit up, her whole face spelling out two distinct words: *Liked.*

Seeing this, Shen Tuobai nodded. A-Ning hastily took the sachet, brought it to the tip of her nose for a sniff, and then expressed her thanks with the utmost politeness. "Thank you, Crown Princess. I like this sachet very much."

"If you like it, I have many more embroidered pieces in my chambers. Later, you can pick out a few favorites to take back with you." As she spoke, Pei Qiuchi naturally opened her arms, signaling the child to come closer.

Shen Tuobai understood this as an olive branch from the Crown Princess; it was by no means a bad thing for A-Ning to grow close to her, so Shen Tuobai readily nodded her consent.

Once everyone was seated, Lu Yuanshuang arrived last. Surprisingly, aside from wearing her habitual scowl, she refrained from uttering anything truly mortifying in public.

Yet, observing her demeanor, Shen Tuobai couldn't shake the feeling that she harbored malicious intentions, plotting something sinister beneath the surface.

On its first day, the Crown Princess's entrance into the palace was harmonious, leaving both host and guests thoroughly pleased.

The anxiety in Shen Tuobai's heart had somewhat subsided, but just as she was preparing to leave—

"Mother~" A-Ning called out in a soft whisper before collapsing into unconsciousness the next instant.

"A-Ning!" Shen Tuobai caught her with one hand to keep her from hitting the floor, only to find the child's face flushed a deep, alarming crimson.

Shen Tuobai reached out to test her temperature, discovering instantly that she had developed a high fever.

***

Holding A-Ning tightly in her arms, Shen Tuobai shouted sharply, "Summon the imperial physician!"

Simultaneously, she cast a piercing glance at Lu Yuanshuang. The Crown Princess had also risen in alarm, though her eyes remained fixed squarely on Shen Tuobai.

Shrugging with an air of studied detachment, Lu Yuanshuang retorted, "Why are you looking at me? From the moment you entered this hall, I haven't laid a single finger on your precious daughter."

The imperial physician arrived swiftly. Following a thorough examination, he delivered a nigh-unacceptable verdict: "Judging by the symptoms, the little Princess has contracted smallpox."

"Smallpox?" Shen Tuobai swayed in disbelief, steadying herself with a hand on Chunchan's arm. "Are you certain?"

The physician rolled back the sleeve of A-Ning's garment. "Pustules have already formed on the little Princess's skin; this humble official cannot possibly be mistaken. The most urgent priority is to quarantine everyone present in the hall today. Under no circumstances must the contagion spread to others."

"Impossible? How could it possibly be smallpox?" Lu Yuanshuang collapsed into a chair, equally distraught and hollow-eyed.

Instantly finding a target for her terror and rage, Shen Tuobai lashed out, "It was you! You madwoman, you couldn't even spare a child this young!"

"You're the mad one! How could it possibly be me? If I had done this, I wouldn't have dared show my face here today!" Shoving Shen Tuobai's hand away, Lu Yuanshuang turned her sights on Pei Qiuchi. "It's her! It has to be her!"

With a manic glint in her eyes, Lu Yuanshuang shrieked, "You contracted smallpox in your childhood, so you're the only one here who is immune! Did you try to murder all of us at once, didn't you?!"

Panicked, Pei Qiuchi shook her head, feeling utterly defenseless against the accusations. Instinctively, she looked to the wet nurse by her side.

Nanny Yuzhen stepped forward, placing herself between Pei Qiuchi and the accusers. "My Ladies, if this servant may be permitted to speak: the most pressing matter is to find a way to heal the little Princess. Beyond that, we must prevent the smallpox from spreading outside the palace walls. You two must not quarrel at a time like this."

Shen Tuobai knew Nanny Yuzhen spoke sense, yet looking at A-Ning, who lay curled into a miserable ball of suffering on the bed, she found it impossible to remain calm.

Chunchan supported her, helping her sink into a chair.

"A-Ning has not left the palace in recent days," Shen Tuobai stated coldly, her voice trembling. "Her food, clothing, housing, and travel are all managed by dedicated personnel. Even if she contracted smallpox, there must be a source."

"If the physician's diagnosis is correct, there must be someone else in the palace afflicted with the disease. Chunchan, go investigate!"

"Yes!" No sooner had Chunchan acknowledged the order than Lu Yuanshuang chimed in eagerly, "The rules of the palace are strict; if someone had contracted smallpox, it could not possibly have been concealed. In my view, this smallpox was unquestionably brought in from the outside."

As she spoke, Lu Yuanshuang glared at Pei Qiuchi, her implication glaringly obvious.

"What do you mean by that?" No matter how poised and composed Pei Qiuchi tried to be, she was only fifteen years old. Hearing such an accusation, she could no longer remain silent.

***

Shen Tuobai, however, sensed that at such a critical juncture, Lu Yuanshuang would not make such claims groundless. Pointing to the sachet clutched tightly in A-Ning's small hand, she commanded, "Cut it open."

Panic flared instantly in Pei Qiuchi's eyes. "Even you suspect me?"

Ignoring her, Shen Tuobai kept her gaze locked fixedly on the sachet.

Chunlan obeyed, slicing the pouch open with a pair of scissors. Inside, alongside ground floral powders, lay a piece of fabric the size of a palm. Judging by the pattern, it had clearly been cut from an infant's traditional bellyband.

"I heard that the Crown Princess's younger half-sister was driven out to a rural estate half a month ago after contracting smallpox, and only managed to cling to life by a stroke of sheer luck. Could this piece of fabric have been cut from that bellyband, specifically to murder the little Princess?" Lu Yuanshuang's words were articulated with lethal clarity and chilling logic.

Without warning, Shen Tuobai swung her hand and struck Lu Yuanshuang across the face.

Staring at her in sheer disbelief, Lu Yuanshuang cried out, "I was helping you, and you hit me?!"

"I don't care what you think you know," Shen Tuobai glared at her with venomous intent. "If anything happens to A-Ning, I will never let you go."

"Guards! Go outside the palace immediately and summon the physician who treated Lady Pei. From this moment on, lock down the Eastern Palace, and confine the servants brought by the Crown Princess in isolation."

Disregarding the protests of both Pei Qiuchi and Lu Yuanshuang, Shen Tuobai issued one directive after another.

The servants of the Eastern Palace instantly found their backbone. Since it was the little Princess who had fallen ill, and Shen Tuobai was her birth mother, following her commands at a time like this was undoubtedly the right course of action.

Having given her final order, Shen Tuobai tried to recall if she had overlooked anything else...

"Mistress!"

"Lady!"

None of them anticipated that Shen Tuobai would suddenly faint. Hurrying forward with a sliding step, Lady Zhu caught Shen Tuobai just in time and called out for the physician to pulse her wrist. "She wasn't feeling well since yesterday; examine her quickly."

Terrified, Lu Yuanshuang scrambled backward to put distance between them. "This smallpox is spreading so fast—am I going to be next?!"