As soon as she stepped out of the courtyard, Gu Peilan, who had been so resolute moments before, was now overwhelmed with distress.
Ji Renran, who was inside tending to Ji Zongyou, saw her mother return and immediately asked, "Mother, did you manage to find a doctor?"
Looking at her still unconscious son, Gu Peilan vented all her anger onto Ji Zizhao, "That little wretch Ji Zizhao! To neglect her own brother's life for a petty official post! She deserved it when the Fifth Prince rejected her back then!"
Ji Renran was frightened by her mother's careless words and quickly sent the servants out of the room.
Once it was just the mother and daughter left, Ji Renran finally understood the whole story from her mother.
Upon hearing that no one was willing to treat her brother, Ji Renran became extremely agitated.
As long as her brother was unwell, she would have to stay by his side to serve him.
"I never expected Eldest Sister to be so heartless, to disregard Brother's life! But this cannot go on forever." The complaining Ji Renran had long forgotten her own schadenfreude from before.
Gu Peilan's anger intensified upon hearing this, wishing she could dismember Ji Zizhao right then and there.
But despite her thoughts, looking at her son lying beside her, Gu Peilan felt powerless. She looked at Ji Renran and asked, "Have you been in contact with the Fifth Prince recently? He cares for you so much; if you ask him, he surely won't stand idly by."
Ji Renran's expression stiffened.
She had recently had Madam Song secretly send a letter to the Fifth Prince, but she had been desperately trying to please him, not to pave the way for her brother. "The Fifth Prince is so busy; where would he find the time?"
Gu Peilan, however, spoke with righteous indignation, "I heard that the princes of eligible age will soon be selecting consorts. Since the Fifth Prince has feelings for you, we will be family soon. What's wrong with him helping us now?"
This statement caused Ji Renran's heart to skip a beat.
The princes of eligible age were to be married this year, and the Fifth Prince would certainly be among them.
If her brother were to die at this time, she would have to observe mourning rites for at least a year.
By the time she finished her mourning period, let alone the position of the Fifth Prince's consort, she might not even be eligible to be a secondary consort.
"Mother is right. I will write to the Fifth Prince immediately. Daughter is just worried that Eldest Sister might interfere. After all, the Fifth Prince is a sentimental person." Ji Renran felt extremely aggrieved but still put on a reassuring front for her mother, not forgetting to drag Ji Zizhao down with her.
If she was not doing well, Ji Zizhao would not do well either.
The thought of Ji Zizhao brought a hint of malice to Gu Peilan's face. "Ji Zizhao cannot be kept."
Ji Renran was surprised, "What does Mother mean?"
Gu Peilan instructed her daughter, "Leave this matter to me. You just focus on writing to the Fifth Prince."
Seeing that her mother was not joking, Ji Renran felt much better. She agreed readily this time and the very same night wrote a letter, which she had Madam Song secretly send out of the manor.
When Luohong received the letter, his face was more than just displeased.
First Ji Zizhao, now Ji Renran. Truly, there wasn't a single decent person in the Ji family!
Xie Jingzhou, who had just finished discussing matters with his advisor, glanced at the letter and tossed it onto the table with a scoff.
Luohong, standing by, happened to see the contents of the letter, and his face grew even uglier. "This Ji Renran has no sense of propriety! With trouble in her own household, she still expects Your Highness to help clean up the mess!"
Xie Jingzhou looked up at Luohong. "You also think Ji Renran has overstepped?"
Luohong...
Not only had she overstepped, she was utterly shameless!
"But it is precisely because of this that it shows she has no ulterior motives towards me. Go, take my calling card to the four major medical halls and invite a good doctor to be sent to Ji Renran."
Luohong was furious. "Your Highness!"
Xie Jingzhou waved his hand, his dark eyes full of calculation. "There will soon be a use for her. This small matter is nothing."
For a while now, the Seventh Prince had been making a lot of noise in the general's office.
Even with the Fourth Prince's support behind the Seventh Prince, he hadn't made any progress over the years. Su Dan Fiction Network.
On the contrary, ever since he saw the Fourth Prince with Ji Zizhao at the tea house last time, the Seventh Prince had been soaring higher and higher, fluttering his wings in front of him as if afraid he wouldn't notice.
Then he thought of how Ji Zizhao had also gone to Luoyi with them back then...
He had every reason to suspect that Ji Zizhao bore an undeniable responsibility for the Seventh Prince's current success.
If Ji Zizhao had obediently married him back then, wouldn't all of the Seventh Prince's current glory belong to him?
Xie Jingzhou closed his eyes unwillingly, constantly reassuring himself.
No hurry.
There was still an opportunity.
The day for the eligible princes to be granted marriages was fast approaching. If he wanted Ji Zizhao to obediently return to his side, Ji Renran was the perfect chess piece to utilize.
With his mind made up, Xie Jingzhou went into the palace the next day to pay his respects to Consort Xi.
Consort Xi was pleased by her son's filial piety, but when she heard that her son's words revolved around Ji Zizhao, she was no longer happy.
Who would be happy when their son was a love-struck fool?
However, in front of her son, Consort Xi did not want to make things too unpleasant. As soon as her son left, she couldn't help but complain to Madam Zhang beside her, "The war in Tonglin is so intense right now. In this imperial palace, which prince isn't racking his brains to help His Majesty? But look at my good son, talking about Ji Zizhao, Ji Zizhao, all day long. One would think he was possessed!"
This was a great opportunity to earn merit in front of the Emperor, why couldn't her son understand!
Madam Zhang dared not say anything but to comfort her. "This old servant heard that Eldest Miss Ji is highly valued by Chancellor Zhang at the Imperial Hospital. A few days ago, she was even summoned by the Marquis of Zhongyong for a consultation. It seems she has some skill."
Consort Xi was unaware of this. It was unusual for a mere scribe to receive an invitation from a marquis's manor. It seemed Ji Zizhao truly had some ability.
After a long silence, Consort Xi said again, "Send someone to keep an eye on the Imperial Court."
If that Ji Zizhao was truly capable, it wouldn't be impossible for her to return to her son's side.
Madam Zhang nodded in agreement and sent someone to inquire about the Imperial Court that afternoon.
The result was that the Emperor had not visited the harem for a long time, and the marriages of the princes had to be put on hold.
If the Emperor couldn't even be bothered about his own well-being, how could he worry about his sons?
The war in Tonglin was fierce, and the imperial court was eerily quiet every day.
Recalling the battle of Luoyi, where Yu Lin suffered heavy casualties, although the Second Prince was a troublemaker, it was an undeniable fact that all the male members of the Ji family had perished.
And now, the Xirong, who were tens of times stronger than the Turks, were causing trouble in Tonglin. Forget offering advice, the officials wished they didn't even have to breathe, all of them feigning death and keeping their heads down.