Chapter 142: Contagion

In truth, Chen Danian understood Yan Yan far too little. Even if he disapproved of her approach now, Yan Yan would likely have embarked upon it without a single backward glance. In her heart, she felt that at this juncture, probably no one wished for Old Nine to survive more than she did. He was not only the man she loved, but also the sum of all her future hopes.

Yan Yan was unwilling to admit that she had come to rely on Old Nine to such an extent, yet the truth was undeniable. That Chen Danian offered no opposition gave her boundless confidence. He instructed Wang Quan'er to act in accordance with her directives, and soon, Head Eunuch Wang along with the maids and pages in Old Nine’s study sprang into action.

Actually, Yan Yan's method for reducing fever was quite simple—none other than the cold compresses, tepid sponge baths, and alcohol rubs commonly used in future generations. Yet executing these straightforward methods was far from easy. It demanded the utmost vigilance from the practitioner, who had to ensure that Old Nine's body heat was drawn away while taking care not to induce hypothermia or frostbite. After all, it was already mid-October, and the weather had turned bitterly cold.

Consequently, Yan Yan handled almost everything personally, frequently drenched in sweat from the exertion of wiping Old Nine's body. Furthermore, as if she possessed an internal alarm clock, she adhered to Old Nine's medication schedule with absolute precision. The moment it was time for his medicine, she would go all out alongside Wang Quan'er, terrified that Old Nine might expel even the tiniest fraction of a drop.

Fortunately, by the afternoon, the temperature of Old Nine's body appeared to drop somewhat, causing both the imperial physicians and the present thirteenth and fourteenth princes to stare in astonished disbelief. Seizing the moment, the thirteenth and fourteenth princes hurried back to the imperial palace to report back to the Kangxi Emperor.

By then, the Emperor had already learned of Old Nine's condition and dispatched a fresh wave of the palace's most skilled physicians at top speed. Among them were even Western missionaries, seeing as an illness Old Nine contracted in his youth had once been cured by Westerners.

Naturally, with all this commotion kicked up by the Emperor, the news of Old Nine contracting the pestilence spread through the capital like wildfire. Lady Donggo, Madame Shumuru, and others rushed over to Old Nine's residence. Though nominally coming to inquire after his health, their true purpose was to warn their respective daughters not to play the fool—a plague was no laughing matter, and one misstep could cost them their lives.

Thus, upon learning that Old Nine had fallen ill with the pestilence, Lady Donggo was overcome with grief and exhaustion, taking to her bed and unable to rise. All matters large and small within the estate were handed over to Lady Wanyan to manage. Although Lady Wanyan sent people every day to deliver items to Old Nine's study, she never showed her face again.

The Eighth and Tenth Princes still visited a few times the following day, but were quickly barred from further visits by the Emperor's decree. From then on, everyone entering or leaving Old Nine's study was placed under strict containment, and even Yan Yan and the others serving inside were required to undergo daily disinfection. Fortunately, besides Yan Yan, the only other person by Old Nine's side was his wet nurse, Nanny He. Upon hearing that Old Nine had contracted the plague, Nanny He had wept and shouted, demanding to be let in to watch over him, a devotion that moved everyone to tears.

"Side Consort, the congee is ready!" Nanny He murmured as she walked in carrying a bowl of white rice congee.

Yan Yan gave a soft assent and helped raise Old Nine into a sitting position. He had not eaten for three days, surviving merely on the meager amounts of medicine forced down his throat. Deeply worried, Yan Yan resolved that today, even if she had to force-feed him, she would make Old Nine swallow some sustenance.

Nanny He tucked a handkerchief beneath Old Nine to protect his clothes, scooped up a spoonful of white congee, and held it near his lips, whispering, "Your Highness, please have some congee."

Anxious, Yan Yan urged, "Nanny, that won't work. You have to force it in."

Hearing this, Nanny He's eyes instantly turned red. She pushed the spoon a little further forward, but it achieved nothing. Knowing that Nanny He could not bring herself to be harsh, Yan Yan immediately said, "Nanny, let's switch."

"Side Consort, if His Highness doesn't wish to eat, perhaps we should let it be," Nanny He said, truly finding it unbearable to watch Old Nine endure such suffering. Seeing Yan Yan force-feed him medicine over the past few days had been agonizing enough.

At these words, Yan Yan rubbed her temples and spoke in a low voice, "Nanny, even if His Highness were to breathe his last today, I would snatch him back. Moreover, this is merely eating congee; such a simple task cannot defeat me."

Nanny He looked at Yan Yan and finally understood why Old Nine held this Side Consort so dearly in his heart. Silently, Nanny He handed the bowl of congee to Yan Yan. Taking a deep breath, Yan Yan pinched Old Nine's jaw open with one hand while slipping a spoonful of white congee into his mouth with the other. Yet Old Nine seemed to have forgotten the function of chewing; the congee went in only to flow right back out again.

Yan Yan felt her eyes grow increasingly hot and her heart utterly helpless. Glaring at Old Nine, she whispered, "Why won't you eat? You are only twenty-four years old. Your life has barely begun, and we have only been together for a few years. Hongzheng and the others haven't even learned to call you Father—how can you bear to be like this? Why won't you eat? Hurry up and eat! You can only get better if you eat!"

Seeing Yan Yan become so agitated, Wang Quan'er stepped forward to hold her back. "Side Consort, please calm down."

Yan Yan froze for a moment, looking at Old Nine, who still kept his eyes tightly closed. In truth, she could not comprehend how, after a mere separation of a single night, Old Nine could possibly have contracted this damned plague. If it were simply an ordinary fever, how could it become this severe? What on earth had happened in between?

Looking at Old Nine's deeply sunken eye sockets, Yan Yan bit down hard on her lower lip and abruptly made a daring decision. Taking a large mouthful of the congee, she imitated a scene she had once seen in television dramas from her future world and forcefully transferred it into Old Nine's mouth lip-to-lip.

Nanny He, Wang Quan'er, and all the maids in the room were stunned into complete shock, some even dropping what they were holding onto the floor. Attracted by the commotion, the imperial physician walked in, took one look, and froze as well.

Chen Danian muttered under his breath, "Mad. She's completely mad."

Fortunately, after Yan Yan struggled with him for a moment, Old Nine actually swallowed that mouthful of congee. Yan Yan burst into a joyful smile, looking delightedly at Nanny He. "He swallowed it! He actually swallowed it! It seems those talking-nonsense scriptwriters weren't entirely lying."

Without waiting to see if Nanny He understood, Yan Yan fed Old Nine another bite.

Not until Yan Yan had painstakingly coaxed Old Nine into finishing the entire bowl of congee did she gently wipe the corners of his mouth and lay him back down. Just as she was looking for a bowl of clean water to rinse her mouth, she caught sight of Chen Danian standing in the doorway with a bewildered expression. She could not help smiling. "Imperial Physician, if he can take in food, does that mean he won't waste away like this?"

Still struggling to process the scene, Chen Danian stared at Yan Yan and stammered, "Side Consort... this illness is contagious."

With a radiant smile, Yan Yan replied, "And what of it? Perhaps passing through me like this will even weaken the virus."

Chen Danian wiped his sweat, though he ultimately instructed, "Someone, go brew some medicine for the Side Consort." Turning back to Yan Yan, he added, "Regardless, Side Consort, you should take some preventative measures."