As Ning Wanshuang heard the eunuch's words, she suddenly felt a wave of dizziness, her vision blackened, and her legs gave way, nearly causing her to collapse.
Supported by Liu Yue, she barely steadied herself, but couldn't recover even for a moment. She abruptly pushed Liu Yue away and rushed hurriedly towards the artificial mountain.
Having gone without proper rest for a long time, and with her spirits perpetually low, Ning Wanshuang's strength failed her, causing her to stumble every few steps.
Yet, despite her tattered clothes and bruised body, she gritted her teeth and made her way to the crowd.
She heard piercing wails rising and falling from within the crowd.
Pushing through, she first saw Ruo Xin trembling uncontrollably, sobbing in Yun Shan's embrace.
Then, lowering her gaze, she saw Jin Yue lying on the ground, covered in blood, with Kang Yubin pressing hard on her chest, shouting loudly:
"Quick, summon the imperial physicians!"
For a fleeting moment, Ning Wanshuang felt as though the world around her had grown hazy.
She could no longer make out the figures kneeling before her, nor hear their voices.
All she could see was Jin Yue, lying still in Kang Yubin's arms.
Step by step, she approached Jin Yue, knelt down, and gently stroked the blood-stained hair from her brow, murmuring in a daze:
"Don't be afraid, Jin Yue, Mother is here. Be good, nothing will happen to you, you'll be fine..."
Later, when Jin Yue was carried back to the Yonghe Palace, the Imperial Medical Bureau, under the leadership of Judge Zhang, marshaled all its resources to treat her critical condition.
Ning Wanshuang stayed by her bedside the entire time, refusing to leave for even a moment.
She sat silently, watching as Jin Yue was surrounded by the imperial physicians, her clenched fists at her sides, fingernails digging into her flesh, oblivious to the pain.
The only sound was her incessant murmuring:
"Nothing will happen, she'll be fine, she'll be fine..."
Outside the palace,
When Zhao Hua arrived, the terrified Ruo Xin flung herself into her embrace, sobbing:
"Wah wah wah, Mother, I'm scared...there was blood! Sister Jin Yue bled so much!"
Zhao Hua patted the child's back soothingly, saying: "Don't be afraid, Ruo Xin. With Mother here, with the Empress Dowager here, and so many imperial physicians, Sister Jin Yue will definitely be alright."
Turning to Yun Shan, she asked in bewilderment:
"But what exactly happened? Ruo Xin was merely accompanying Jin Yue on her birthday, with so many maids attending them. How could Jin Yue have fallen from the artificial mountain?"
Yun Shan answered remorsefully with tears in her eyes: "The Second and Third Princesses saw a butterfly and wanted to chase it, so they climbed up the artificial mountain. The mountain had steps, and the path wasn't very steep. I was guarding the Third Princess, and Palace Attendant Kang guarded the Second Princess, staying right beside them.
But once we reached the flat area at the top, for some unknown reason, the Second Princess suddenly fainted and fell to the ground. And since that area was sloped, Palace Attendant Kang rushed to try and catch the Second Princess but failed... he could only watch helplessly as the Second Princess tumbled down the mountain..."
It wasn't really Yun Shan's fault.
The maids each had their assigned duties – once outside the palace, their sole responsibility was to guard their respective mistresses.
Such an accident was never something anyone wanted to see.
At this moment, Kang Yubin was also overwhelmed with guilt, kneeling on the ground and slapping himself repeatedly, crying:
"It's all my fault! It's all my fault! The Second Princess didn't let me hold her hand, so I let go. I shouldn't have let go! If anything happens to the Second Princess, I might as well be dead!"
Zhao Hua looked down at him with rising resentment, reproaching him:
"Let me tell you, if the Second Princess is unharmed, it will be fine. But if anything happens to her, even if the Empress Dowager spares you, I will make sure you pay with your life!"
The artificial mountain was about thirty feet high.
To fall vertically from such a height, even a grown adult might not survive, let alone a delicate five-year-old girl.
As everyone in the palace fretted, a voice announced from outside:
"His Majesty the Emperor has arrived!"
Zhao Hua turned to see Xiao Jingheng, supported by a young eunuch, making his way towards her with halting steps.
She hurried to greet him, feigning concern: "But didn't the imperial physicians instruct Your Majesty not to exert yourself? Why..."
"Jin Yue is my daughter. How could I remain calm when she is in such a state?" Xiao Jingheng asked anxiously, looking towards the inner chambers. "How is she? What did the imperial physicians say?"
Zhao Hua replied: "Judge Zhang has brought all the imperial physicians on duty to treat her. The Second Princess has the blessings of Heaven, so she should be..."
"Jin Yue!!"
Before Zhao Hua could finish, Ning Wanshuang's heart-rending wails erupted from the inner chambers:
"No! Who said Jin Yue is dead!? Why are you all kneeling before me? Save her! I order you to save my daughter!"
Hearing that something was amiss, Zhao Hua and Xiao Jingheng rushed inside.
In the inner chamber, the imperial physicians knelt on the ground, their expressions despondent, heads bowed in sorrow.
Jin Yue lay in Ning Wanshuang's arms, still and peaceful, as if merely asleep.
And Ning Wanshuang, on the verge of collapse, had descended into incoherent wails:
"Jin Yue! My daughter... you can't leave Mother, Mother has nothing left, Mother begs you, begs you to open your eyes, look at Mother..."
Before these heart-wrenching words could fade, Ning Wanshuang, overcome with grief, had fainted.
"Your Highness the Empress!"
The crowd rushed forward to support Ning Wanshuang. Xiao Jingheng, his eyes red, staggered towards them.
After taking one final look at Jin Yue, he lacked even the courage to touch the child.
Turning away, he fell silent, tears streaming down his face.
And Zhao Hua's heart felt as though it had been battered by a thousand blows, aching to the point of suffocation.
On the sixteenth day of the second month of the tenth year of the Qiyuan era, Her Highness Princess Jin Yue, aged five, tragically died from a fatal head injury after accidentally falling from a great height.
