Time Travel: Pampered by the Aloof Prince
Chapter 286 What Exactly is the Relationship Between You and the Empress?

Chapter 286: Chapter 286 What Exactly is the Relationship Between You and the Empress?

Hearing these words, Qi Yu, who had originally been somewhat groggy, suddenly had a burst of fireworks explode in her mind. She instantly became alert and stared at Li Mingjue with piercing eyes, "Prince, you’ve known all along, haven’t you?"

The spy placed in Jingyang Palace definitely wouldn’t have gone so long without sending out any information.

Li Mingjue did not deny it, slightly raising his eyebrows he said, "Is the Princess blaming me?"

Upon hearing this, Qi Yu, who was still a bit angry, deflated a bit. She pursed her lips and complained softly, "How dare I."

Li Mingjue no longer teased her, and said seriously, "This matter is of great importance, and the Empress is cautious and has hidden it deeply. That person can only speak of what they’ve witnessed. The real truth is still uncertain."

Qi Yu, seeing him spin such a long story without getting to the point, poked his chest to remind him, "What news did that person send out?"

Li Mingjue caught her mischievous hand and said softly, "Nothing much, the Empress values that newly-appointed Imperial Physician Chen greatly."

He chose his words carefully, but Qi Yu understood immediately.

It wasn’t just appreciation; clearly, there was an unspeakable relationship between Imperial Physician Chen and the Empress.

Li Mingjue chuckled, "Perhaps. Chen Shi comes from a poor family, born a commoner."

Implicitly, he was no match for the Empress, who came from an aristocratic family.

Qi Yu did not dwell on this and instead asked, "What is the Empress’s real name?"

Li Mingjue’s eyes suddenly deepened, and he softly uttered a few words, "Liu Yiyao."

Qi Yu was stunned upon hearing this name.

She did not know if it was mere illusion, but upon hearing that name, she subconsciously thought of Liu Wensheng.

Was it just a coincidence?

The backgrounds of Liu Wensheng had always been very complicated. He was a disciple of the reputable Xuanji Sect and also the infamous Valley Master of Evil Valley, and was always controlled by the Empress.

There must be some hidden stories there.

The next day, Qi Yu went to Yongchun Hall after a long absence.

Manager Qian, seeing her, was naturally thrilled.

Qi Yu looked at the thick ledger in his hands and sighed slightly, another prompt for payment.

Since Yongchun Hall treated patients without taking silver, all the operating expenses were borne by her alone.

Of course, it relied more on money from Prince Qiu’s Residence.

The little money she had could only make a small splash when thrown into this, it kind of felt like she was living off someone else.

Qi Yu flipped through the ledger, and each time she saw those expenses, she felt very depressed.

Why are these medicinal materials so expensive!

Manager Qian responded with a smile, "My lady might have forgotten, if the materials were cheap, wouldn’t everyone be able to afford treatment?"

Qi Yu thought about it, and it was true.

Kindness needed to be shown, and business needed to be done.

Otherwise, continuing to lose money like this, she would eventually bankrupt Prince Qiu’s Residence.

Although Li Mingjue didn’t care about the bit of silver she spent, Qi Yu still felt very guilty.

In her previous life, she had been an independent woman who worked her way up; she wondered how she ended up taking steps backwards.

She closed the ledger and said to Manager Qian and Song Ling, "These days, I’ve been thinking about ways to make money."

After a pause, her expression turned deep as she continued, "After much deliberation, I could only think of closing down the Medical Hall."

Manager Qian and Song Ling both froze, not knowing what to say.

Seeing them like this, Qi Yu laughed out loud, waved her hands repeatedly, and said, "I’m just joking."

These two were too serious.

Manager Qian wiped his sweat with relief and said grudgingly, "It would be best if the lady avoids such jokes in the future."

Song Ling could only helplessly shake his head, evidently very aware of her unruly nature.

Qi Mu and Qi Xuan were busy pounding medicine; they needed to grind the dried herbs into powder.

Hearing the laughter, they both looked over and saw Qi Yu waving at them. They quickly wiped the sweat from their faces and ran over.

"Are you tired?" Qi Yu asked, seeing them work so hard that their little faces had turned red, feeling a bit heartbroken.

Qi Mu and Qi Xuan shook their heads and said in unison, "Not tired."

These days, they had been following Shiqi to learn the basics of martial arts, practicing horse stances daily, so pounding medicine was also a form of exercise for them.

Upon hearing this, Qi Yu had nothing more to say.

One child in each hand, she smiled and said, "How about I teach you how to make medicine pills?"

Qi Mu and Qi Xuan’s eyes widened. "What are medicine pills?"

Qi Yu explained with a smile that medicine pills had the same function as herbs but were more convenient to take, especially useful for common colds and flu.

Upon hearing this, both raised their hands and said, "I want to learn!"

Qi Yu pinched their little cheeks and then looked at Manager Qian and Song Ling, "I’ve been thinking, there are only a few types of business we can do in the Medical Hall. Since we don’t charge Silver for consultations, we might as well make some medicine pills to sell."

Manager Qian pondered for a moment and said with some difficulty, "But we don’t have enough staff right now."

Making medicine pills was simple, and they had the necessary herbs on hand, but with just a few of them, it was a bit troublesome.

Qi Yu waved her hand dismissively, "That’s no problem, the Prince Residence has plenty of people."

Sometimes she even complained that there were too many servants in the Prince Residence. She had mentioned it to Li Mingjue, but he had adamantly replied, "The more people there are, the better the service."

Qi Yu knew this was a matter of perspective and dropped the subject.

After all, it wasn’t as if they couldn’t afford them.

Once everything was settled, Qi Yu returned to the Prince Residence in peace.

She was now very used to being a hands-off manager; with Manager Qian and Song Ling around, she could focus her attention elsewhere.

With a twinkle in her eye, she briskly walked toward the back courtyard.

Liu Wensheng was swallowing a bowl of extremely bitter and unpleasant-tasting medicine, prescribed by Mo Qingshan, which he said would dispel the coldness within his body.

Feng Yue brought the medicine over after brewing it; despite the many servants in the Prince Residence, he had no intention of delegating this task to others.

Moreover, he did not trust anyone else with the medicine that was crucial to Liu Wensheng’s survival.

When Qi Yu entered, she happened to see Liu Wensheng swallow the last gulp of medicine without changing his expression.

Upon seeing her, he slightly lifted his eyelids, "Princess of Prince Qiu Residence."

Feng Yue, carrying an empty bowl, passed by and also nodded slightly at her.

Qi Yu casually asked, "How does your body feel now?"

Liu Wensheng thought for a moment before slowly saying, "Much better than before."

The prescription by Mo Qingshan was certainly no elixir, but its effectiveness was remarkable.

In just a few days, he felt the persistent chill in his body dissipate somewhat.

Qi Yu felt his pulse and, seeing indeed an improvement, she was able to relax.

However, to completely cure the poison in his body, they still needed to get their hands on the antidote as soon as possible.

Regarding this, Liu Wensheng was neither cold nor warm, merely remarking lightly, "The Empress does not have the antidote."

Qi Yu frowned and asked, "How do you know?"

But Liu Wensheng did not respond.

She touched her chin, changed the topic, and asked, "What exactly is your relationship with the Empress?"