At dawn, the ministers received the news that Prince Ling had unfortunately contracted smallpox, and everyone in the Prince Ling Mansion had already been sent overnight to the traveling palace to recuperate.

The ministers were not at all surprised by the news because since his engagement, Jing Lingyu had been frequently ill, never fully recovering, and hadn’t made any public appearances.

In their hearts, the ministers lamented that Prince Ling had such bad luck this year, fearing it was an astrological misfortune.

Some even recalled the rumors about the Princess Consort Ling, wondering if she truly brought misfortune to her husband?

If it weren’t for the Princess Consort’s ill fate, would Prince Ling have fallen more seriously ill since their marriage?

Now that he has contracted smallpox, whether he can survive is a question, so no wonder the Emperor ordered Prince Ling to move to the traveling palace overnight for treatment. If this illness isn’t cured, it’s likely no one will return.

Under the Emperor’s orders, Jing Yunzhou arranged for people to spread the news around the Capital City at the break of dawn.

The citizens of the Capital City, upon hearing the news of Prince Ling contracting smallpox as they left their homes in the morning, became frightened, knowing it was a deadly affair.

However, upon hearing that everyone from the Prince Ling Mansion had moved to the mountain palace to recuperate, they all felt relieved and praised the Emperor for his wisdom and decisiveness.

Wu Liang and several others had left the city yesterday, yet early in the morning, Wu Liang was still uneasy and planned to go into the city to check on the situation.

Yesterday, the Princess Consort only instructed them to pack and leave the city quickly without explaining anything.

He originally intended to stay but was unable to disobey the master’s orders.

He could vaguely guess that something might happen to the Prince Ling Mansion, but given the Princess Consort’s intelligence, he believed she could evade it.

Guessing was one thing, but he was still uneasy without finding out the news.

Wu Liang did not expect that upon entering the city, everywhere was abuzz with news of Prince Ling contracting smallpox, and now the entire Prince Ling Mansion had moved to the traveling palace overnight.

Wu Liang was somewhat bewildered, recalling Prince Ling’s previous skin eruptions; surely, it was smallpox?

The residents of the Capital City all thought the same as Wu Liang, with no one doubting the news, especially given Prince Ling’s recent report of a strange skin disease. If even the doctors couldn’t cure it, what else could it be but smallpox?

It seemed that it was severe now, no longer concealable, and perhaps Prince Ling was near death.

Wu Liang went to look outside the Prince Ling Mansion, finding the main gate indeed closed and rather deserted. He promptly left the city to report the news back.

"Where is Miss Ashui?" Wu Liang, after reporting the news, realized Ashui was missing.

Wu Zhi and Wu Ling both said they didn’t know, mentioning that Ashui had gone out early in the morning.

"Never mind, Miss Ashui is a mysterious person; she surely wouldn’t tell us where she’s headed," Wu Liang said. "Now we wait for the Princess Consort’s news. To think Prince Ling indeed contracted smallpox, why did the Princess Consort have us leave ahead of time?"

Wu Liang frowned, feeling something was amiss.

Logically, if Prince Ling truly had smallpox, the Princess Consort shouldn’t have let them leave; they should’ve gone together to the traveling palace for treatment. They were several in number, and if they carried smallpox and spread it outside, wouldn’t that cause chaos across the land?

Wu Liang did not believe the Princess Consort was someone who instigates unrest, yet he couldn’t unravel the reasoning.

As the three siblings frowned in contemplation, the Emperor was in court.

He briefly mentioned Jing Lingyu’s severe case of smallpox.

The ministers inwardly lamented, thinking that with the Emperor’s statement, Prince Ling likely wouldn’t endure this ordeal.

After court was dismissed, the Emperor pondered whether there was anything he had overlooked in this matter.

With this news spreading, Lin Xinghuai’s arranged betrothal would inevitably approach the Crown Prince.