General Jiang Xiao Xian rode his horse towards the Crown Princess' carriage. He nodded to the escort guards around the princess carriage before he moved closer to the window. "Your Highness," he spoke softly. "Are you well?"

"I am," the princess answered behind the curtains. "What's the matter?"

"His Majesty wanted to know if you're well enough to continue traveling to the hunting ground," the young general said. "If you're tired, we can take a quick break."

"That's not necessary. It won't be good to make our guests to delay this trip," Princess Lingchen said. "How much longer till we arrived?"

Jiang Xiao Xian looked at the sky before he answered, "At this speed, we should be arriving at the hunting ground before dusk."

"Very well. Tell His Majesty not to worry much. Mingyue is here to look after me," the princess said.

Jiang Xiao Xian bowed. Then he rode towards the Emperor's carriage and continued to guard around His Majesty's carriage.

The group arrived at the hunting ground a few hours later, earlier than the general had expected. The soldiers and servants who came much earlier had set up tents for the royalties to rest. The Emperor, Empress, and the Crown Princess' tent were set up in an area separately with the seven princes. The officials' tents were set up in another location.

The Emperor and Empress arrived surrounded by the military guards. Everyone quickly surrounded the royalties and bowed to welcome them. The officials from the Ministry of Rites stepped forward to conduct an opening ceremony for the spring hunt. Once the ritual concluded, the Emperor permitted the others to return to their tent and rest. The Spring Hunt will begin tomorrow morning.

When Princess Lingchen headed straight to her tent to rest, the imperial cooks had already prepared a meal for her. However, Ah Zhen instructed the servant to serve the food later as the princess needed to rest.

Princess Lingchen went straight to her sleeping chamber with Mingyue trailing behind her. The Princess changed her wardrobe into a lighter dress and leaned on her bed. Then, she extended her hand and let Mingyue took her pulse and examined her condition. Mingyue then performed the usual acupuncture and moxibustion procedure on her.

Jiang Mingyue took out the pills that her grandfather had prepared and handed one to the Princess. Mingyue gaze immediately softened as she watched the princess swallowed the medicine. As the physician who stayed by the princess' side, she had seen how the princess had to bear the pain with each treatment. "You're doing well. It seemed that grandfather's new prescription is effective," Mingyue commented after a while.

Princess Lingchen smiled weakly. The new prescription might be potent, but the poison in her body stayed. Unless if they found the missing ingredients, it seemed that she had to be careful all the time or suffer from the pain.

"Are you tired, Your Highness?" Mingyue asked.

The Crown Princess shook her head. "I've been sitting in the carriage doing nothing but sleep; how can I be tired?"

"I'll ask Ah Zhen to serve the meal now. Then, you should go and rest earlier. Tomorrow, you still have to join the Spring Hunt." Mingyue watched the Princess nodded and turned to find the princess' maidservant, Ah Zhen.

"Mingyue."

Mingyue paused and turned around. "Hmm?"

"You don't have to stay with me tonight," Princess Lingchen said. "Ying Yi can stay by my side. You should find your husband. It has been a while since you last saw him, right?"

"Your Highness, you don't have to worry about this," Mingyue said. "Your health is my primary concern."

"I know," the Princess smiled. "But there's not much for you to do anyway since I will be resting early." Princess Lingchen took Mingyue's hand in hers and continued, "Just go and see him for a while. It will be bad for me if your husband holds a grudge against me."

Mingyue chuckled at the princess' teasing. After a few seconds pa.s.sed, Mingyue nodded. "Alright."