My Lady Always Lacks Ambition

Chapter 1281 - 1203: Someone Doesn’t Want Me Alive

The illness is terminal, and the end is near.

This was Qin Liuxi’s thought when she saw Princess Rui, Mu Jin. She tapped the golden silkworm poison, which was agitated by sensing the poisonous insect, and walked over.

Her words startled Nanny Wang and Mrs. Mu—infected by poison?

Mrs. Mu glanced at Nanny Wang, who took small steps outside, instructing a trusted maid to guard the door. If the princess was infected by poison, it was not just a common illness but an ulterior motive at play.

Unexpectedly, when Mu Jin heard Qin Liuxi’s words, she was momentarily dazed but not overly shocked, as if she had expected this all along.

Qin Liuxi found it somewhat strange.

Mu Jin’s reaction was unusual. An ordinary person, upon knowing they were infected by poison, would first be astonished and furious, followed by confusion and fear.

Yet, she was overly calm, with only a trace of surprise, but more so a sense of relief, as if confirming that something was indeed wrong.

Heart as cold as ashes.

This phrase popped into Qin Liuxi’s mind again.

A few years ago, she had seen her once, back then she carried a hint of innocence and shyness, her eyes full of love and expectation when looking at Qi Qian. Now, her demeanor was dignified and elegant, befitting a princess, yet it seemed like the passage of time had mellowed her edges, subdued her initial innocent nature, leaving only the virtues of a wife and mother and the noble demeanor of a princess.

Back then, when I saw her, I could tell, love too deep doesn’t last.

Mrs. Mu broke the silence, asking in shock: "Temple master, what do you mean by these words? Infected by poison?"

"There are poisonous insects troubling her body." Qin Liuxi looked at Mu Jin and said, "When I said this, you weren’t too surprised. Could it be that you already knew?"

Mu Jin weakly smiled and shook her head, saying: "I am just an ordinary woman, how could I know these things, it’s just that I suddenly became weak and it worsened over time, so I had some suspicions. I initially thought it was poison, but didn’t expect it to be a poisonous insect."

She lowered her eyes, but Qin Liuxi still caught a glimpse of the sadness that flashed across them, causing her to frown.

Qin Liuxi sat on a stool and said, "Let me check your pulse."

Mu Jin hesitated for a moment, then extended her hand, watching as Qin’s slender, cold white fingers touched her wrist, her gaze followed Qin’s hand upward, settling on her face.

Qin Liuxi’s skin was naturally pale, her appearance not soft but rather striking, with sword-like brows that weren’t overly sharp, well-defined facial features, a high nose bridge, thin lips, but deep, clear, and agile eyes that seemed to penetrate one’s heart, making one dare not look directly.

She merely wore a Daoist bun, fastened with a hairnet and a wooden hairpin, even though it was cold outside, she still wore a thin Daoist robe, embroidered with runes, without much adornment, yet still mysterious and casual.

The person in front of us is different from those women who stay in the rear courtyard, no, she is different from mortals, she is as distant as the far mountains.

Perhaps because of this, one would only dare to watch from afar without daring to disrespect her.

"The princess has too many burdens on her mind." Qin Liuxi looked over calmly, withdrew her hand, and frowned.

No wonder there were so many charcoal stoves burning in the bedroom, and she was draped in a heavy cloak and quilt because Mu Jin’s body was filled with too much yin energy. Just now, when Qin’s fingers touched it, the cold yin energy could be felt transmitting through the fingertips.

Furthermore, besides the poisonous insect, someone had also administered another chronic poison to her, which wouldn’t kill her immediately, but wouldn’t let her recover either, causing her to remain weak until death.

The poisonous insect and the poison had already devoured more than half of her vitality.

That Mu Jin could still endure, her resilience was truly uncommon.

Her mind was still heavy with worry, making it even harder to regain her health.

Qin Liuxi looked at Mu Jin, who had become extremely thin due to the torment of the poisonous insect and poison, though she had applied some makeup, it couldn’t hide her haggardness.

Qin Liuxi’s gaze flickered slightly, the few strands of silver by Mu Jin’s temples dazzling her for a moment, leading her to sigh softly.

"You have both a poisonous insect and a kind of chronic poison in your body, they were meant to devour your vitality, and with your heart troubled, overly worrying, to be honest, no matter how much medicine you take, it would be ineffective."

Mrs. Mu listened in shock, looking at Mu Jin, her eyes were caught by the white strands hidden by her temples, when did Fifteenth Sister have gray hair?

Her eyes gradually turned red, unable to help herself as she stepped forward, wanting to hold her hand.

"Don’t come closer, and avoid touching her, to prevent the cold yin energy from affecting you, which would be bad for your health, especially since the child is newly conceived, you shouldn’t catch a cold." Qin Liuxi stopped her.

Mrs. Mu’s hand froze mid-air, while Mu Jin, hearing these words, her eyes lit up with delight and asked, "Yun Xiu, you’re pregnant?"

Mrs. Mu revealed a look of shyness and said, "Though I haven’t asked the Imperial Physician to check if there is a Peace Pulse yet, the temple master has already checked the pulse, saying it’s been a month. So Fifteenth Sister, you should take good care, as an aunt you’ll have to bathe the child in the third bath in the future."

Mu Jin said, "The Prince Mansion has an Imperial Physician, go request... no, the temple master’s medical skills are excellent, if she says so, then it must be. You shouldn’t stay here, go wait outside, to avoid catching my illness."

"Fifteenth Sister, it’s okay, I have a strong constitution..."

Mu Jin shook her head, "Listen to me, this is your first pregnancy, the first child of our young brother, the precious of our two families, go wait outside, there’s nothing you can help me with here."

She said this as she looked at Nanny Wang at the foot of the bed, instructing her: "Escort Mrs. Mu out, arrange a stable carriage to send her back to the mansion, and take my name card, sending a little eunuch to invite Dr. He, a gynecological expert from the Imperial Hospital, to the Marquis Mansion to check the Peace Pulse."

Nanny Wang, ever since, has been a bondservant of Duke Cheng’en Mansion, although worried about her princess’s health, hearing such joyous news naturally filled her with happiness, she immediately stepped forward to support Mrs. Mu, persuaded her out gently.

Inside the bedroom, only Qin Liuxi and Mu Jin were left. Qin saw Mu Jin losing her strength, her body trembling, teeth chattering, and softly groaning, so she took hold of her hand, passing a hot breath to dispel the cold yin energy in her body.

Warmth circulated throughout her body, and Mu Jin couldn’t help but sigh, tears welling up in her eyes, it had been so long since she felt warmth.

Qin Liuxi said, "Lie down, I’ll help you remove the poisonous insect, after some adjustments, you won’t feel this cold any longer."

She got up, intending to lay her flat.

Mu Jin, however, gave a bitter smile and said, "It’s useless."

Qin Liuxi frowned, "It’s just a matter of removing the poisonous insect, don’t you trust me?"

"I trust you." Mu Jin bitterly shook her head, tears welling up in her eyes, "But it’s useless, even if the insect is removed, I won’t get better."

Qin Liuxi was slightly startled, something flashed across her mind, her expression immediately darkening.

"As you said, besides the insect, there’s another chronic poison inside me, so it’s useless, because someone doesn’t want me to live." Mu Jin’s tears flowed down from the corners of her eyes.