The next evening.
A gust of wind swept in through the window, flipping through the book on Emperor Qianning’s desk with a rustling sound. Emperor Qianning raised his head and looked outside. He saw several bamboo leaves falling softly in front of the window.
He had been weak and sickly since childhood. Normally, whenever he felt the wind, he would avoid it as quickly as possible. But over these past two days, he had finally found the root cause of his poor health and treated it accordingly. Now, he was a healthy man.
For someone who had never known what health was since childhood, this was indeed an excessively extravagant thing.
For a moment, Emperor Qianning was filled with emotion. Sitting by the window, he let the rustling wind blow against his face, feeling that cool and gentle sensation.
It was not until his personal eunuch came over and refilled his hot tea that he gradually returned to his senses.
“Has news from Huzhou been sent back?” Emperor Qianning asked.
The eunuch smiled so broadly that his face was full of wrinkles and bowed. “Although a victory report has been sent back, His Highness the Second Prince still has to remain there for some time. I heard it is because Lord Shu suffered some injuries.”
Hearing this, Emperor Qianning sighed emotionally. “Jing Mu has always been someone who knows how to repay kindness.”
As he spoke, he sighed again. “This child is the most capable person I have. He handles affairs efficiently, never forms cliques, and never asks me for anything.” At this point, he smiled. “He truly has what it takes to inherit the throne. However, I am no longer what I used to be. I can still sit in this position for several decades. When the time comes, we shall see what Jing Mu does.”
At this point, his expression was rather pleased as he picked up the teacup from the table and took a sip.
The eunuch grinned from ear to ear and quickly said several auspicious words. Emperor Qianning listened, becoming increasingly pleased with himself, before lowering his eyes and reading a few more pages.
“For this imperial examination, I must personally examine the new Presented Scholars during the palace examination,” he thought. “I want to personally select a few talented people, and I also want these newly appointed officials to see how healthy I am now, so that they won’t entertain any other thoughts.”
Just then, a young eunuch entered from outside.
“Your Majesty, it is time for your medicine.”
After kneeling and paying his respects, the young eunuch spoke.
Hearing this, Emperor Qianning put down his book. He only felt exceptionally refreshed today and even thought he could skip the medicine.
He said, “Put today’s dose aside for now.”
After saying that, he reached for his book again.
But his movement stopped.
He thought to himself that he probably could not stop taking this medicine. If he already felt uneasy whenever he missed even a single dose, then if he was even slightly late, the effects would probably not be as good.
He was unwilling to risk his own health, so a little inconvenience was nothing.
“Come back,” he ordered the young eunuch, who had already turned to leave.
The young eunuch hurriedly turned around and heard him order, “Bring the medicine over for Me.”
The young eunuch had already been worried about how he would explain himself to the several immortals refining the pills. Upon hearing Emperor Qianning say this, he hurriedly acknowledged the order before turning around and going to the alchemy room to bring over Emperor Qianning’s medicine for the day.
Emperor Qianning accepted the medicine and swallowed it with his tea.
The pill was wrapped in a layer of gold foil on the outside, making it glitter with golden light and look exceedingly luxurious. Just this appearance alone made it obvious that it was not something an ordinary person could afford to consume.
The round, smooth, slippery pill entered Emperor Qianning’s mouth and slid all the way into his stomach. Emperor Qianning vaguely felt a burning sensation in his abdomen, somewhat different from usual.
He thought he had probably gotten overheated, so he swallowed another mouthful of tea, sending the pill further down.
Outside the window, the moonlight was cool and clear. Everything was peaceful and tranquil.
——
Around noon, the news spread throughout the imperial palace.
At this time, Jing Shao was sitting in his mother’s palace, drinking tea. The fine Mingqian Longjing tea presented as tribute from Jiangnan was smooth and refreshing on the tongue, with an endless aftertaste.
Over these three years, the Empress had visibly aged.
Previously, when the Emperor’s health had been poor, he had simply handed all matters of the imperial harem to her, ignoring everything else and concerning himself only with indulging in pleasure. At that time, although the Empress was not favored, she had absolute authority over the harem, and no one could interfere with her.
But over these three years, the Emperor’s health had become considerably stronger. There were also fewer matters within the empire, so the Emperor had gradually developed an interest in enjoying himself in the harem. Even the formerly sparsely populated imperial harem had gained several new children during these three years. These consorts, led by Consort Hui, had also gradually grown in influence.
The Empress had worried herself white-haired, and the lines around her mouth had grown deeper and deeper.
“You should talk to your father more often,” the Empress said as she drank her tea, slowly nagging Jing Shao. “I am your mother. If I cannot live well in the harem, how well can you possibly live? Nowadays, all these vixens rely on their youth and beauty and have all climbed onto your mother’s head. You should think about your mother too, and find a way to keep your father’s heart.”
At this point, the Empress sighed. “I have only one son, and you are promising, but your father is healthy now as well. I would also like to be like Consort Hui and, at the very least, give you a younger brother. You could look after each other. That would be good too.”
Jing Shao answered intermittently while repeatedly glancing at the enormous Western-style clock standing nearby.
He was most impatient with listening to his mother complain about fate and blame others. This woman was simply useless, he thought. She either relied on her husband or could only rely on her son. She only knew how to enjoy wealth and luxury, had a short-sighted outlook, yet still thought herself thorough and clever.
When he was little, she had already taught him how to compete for favor. Before he could even speak properly, he already knew how to please his father.
But what use was it?
All his efforts had amounted to nothing, unable to compare with the white moonlight in Emperor Qianning’s heart.
In any case, after tonight, he would no longer have a father.
Just then, a squad of guards rushed in.
Jing Shao breathed a sigh of relief. Holding his teacup, he slowly leaned against the back of his chair and leisurely watched the squad of guards.
“Why are you in such a hurry? What happened that you would disturb Her Majesty the Empress’s peace?” he asked with a frown.
The leading guard cupped his fist toward Jing Shao.
“Third Highness, forgive us.”
Jing Shao froze.
Then he saw several guards step forward and grab him, lifting him up.
How could this be happening?!
Jing Shao panicked.
Then he saw the Empress panic as well. She grabbed the nearest guard without even caring about the impropriety between men and women and asked, “What are you doing? Where are you taking your master?”
The leader glanced at the others.
The remaining guards ignored the Empress Palace’s attempts to stop them and directly carried Jing Shao outside.
“Why are you arresting me?!” Jing Shao shouted angrily. “This is a grave crime of disrespect!”
The leading guard bowed to the Empress and said, “Your Majesty, something has happened to His Majesty. He is now on the verge of death and may not survive. We found poison added to the pills in His Majesty’s alchemy room. The paper wrapping the poison bears the mark of the Second Prince’s palace.”
Upon hearing this, the Empress’s vision went black.
“You must have made a mistake!” she said. “How could Shao’er… how could he?”
Then the Empress froze.
“You just said… what happened to His Majesty?”
“Your Majesty, His Majesty took poison administered by the Third Highness. He is now on the verge of death and is being treated by the Imperial Physicians.”
The Empress’s legs went weak, and she nearly collapsed to the ground.
“I want to see His Majesty.” Her eyes widened as she stared straight at the guard. “Take me to see His Majesty.”
“How could this happen…? This is impossible!”
Zhao Langzhi had already laid out the trap.
While Jing Shao still had not the slightest suspicion of him, he had kept items belonging to Jing Shao’s palace. Such items were normally guarded strictly and could only be used by people from that particular palace.
And Zhao Langzhi had deliberately reduced the dosage of the poison by half.
How could Emperor Qianning die immediately?
If he died immediately, who would lock Jing Shao in prison?
If Jing Shao was not locked up, would it not be Zhao Langzhi who died instead?
That night, Zhao Langzhi sat alone on the embankment beside the Yan River outside Zhaojing City. Facing the rolling waters of the Yan River and the clear moonlight, he drank an entire jar of strong liquor.
Meanwhile, Emperor Qianning lay on the imperial bed, with only a faint trace of consciousness remaining.
Through the shadows gradually gathering over his eyes, he looked at the Imperial Physicians bustling around his bedside.
Before him were the golden curtains of the dragon bed. He had lain here and looked at these golden curtains for decades, but never once had they seemed so saturated with the aura of death as they did today.
From his throat down to his stomach, there was only the searing pain of the poison.
The intense pain continued relentlessly, yet gradually gave rise to drowsiness in his mind.
He wanted to close his eyes and have a good, sound sleep.
When he was actually facing death, he had instead become much more peaceful.
He knew that it was his son who was eager for him to die. He knew that everyone throughout the palace was already watching his throne closely.
But when he truly reached the point of death, he found himself much more accepting of it.
Let them fight for it if they wanted.
He had spent several decades living cautiously and working himself to exhaustion, yet in the end, was he not still lying here waiting to die just like this?
What advantage had he gained?
He seemed to have seen through life and death somewhat late, but perhaps it was not too late.
At least he would not die with his face flushed with anger, his neck swollen, his eyes bulging and his face turning blue, dying with his eyes unable to close.
Suddenly, he remembered that his Noble Lady Yun had been the same before her death.
No matter how he had cried and shouted her name beside her, she had merely smiled faintly without saying a word. Using the last bit of strength she possessed, she had raised her hand and touched his face.
All these decades, whenever Emperor Qianning missed Noble Lady Yun, he had only been putting on an act.
Only now, when he was truly about to die, did he discover that he had genuinely—
Loved her immensely, and missed her immensely.
The imperial throne was a wonderful thing.
But it truly did harm people.
Emperor Qianning closed his eyes and quietly contemplated the Noble Lady Yun in his memories for a while.
Then he laboriously opened his eyes.
His voice was as faint as a dying breath.
“Has Jing Shao been imprisoned?”
The chief eunuch beside him, who had been shedding tears nonstop, hurriedly rushed to his bedside.
“He has been imprisoned,” he choked out. “He is waiting for Your Majesty’s judgment.”
Emperor Qianning slowly shook his head.
“Draft an edict,” he said. “After I pass away, the throne shall be passed to My imperial son, Jing Mu.”
“Your Majesty…”
“His birth mother, Noble Lady Yun, shall be posthumously honored as Empress Dowager Xiaoyi. Draft the edict first. After the imperial edict has been announced throughout the realm, I shall close My eyes.”
After giving these orders, Emperor Qianning slowly closed his eyes.
Normally, when an emperor was dying, he would inevitably recall the merits and faults of his entire life and have them written into an imperial edict to be announced throughout the realm.
But Emperor Qianning no longer had the strength, nor did he have the inclination.
He was too lazy to count his own merits and faults.
If the previous emperors had spirits in heaven, then he would wait until he went up there and count everything in front of them.
He was somewhat tired now.
His stomach hurt terribly as well.
He wanted to sleep.
Author’s Note:
Emperor Qianning: “Are you happy being emperor?!”
Jing Mu: “He’s already dead and he’s still giving me trouble :)”
Emperor Qianning: “????”