The first day was actually fine. Emperor Jiajing only occasionally felt a little regretful when he thought about "what if Li Changzhou was killed, or what if Li Changzhou thought the palace was dangerous and never came back".

These feelings will pass if you suppress them.

That night, he was full of energy and favored Consort Yan, Consort Wen, Consort Zhang, and Consort Bao, and forgot about the matter.

He woke up early the next day and walked out of his bedchamber. The moon was still hanging in the sky. He felt that whether Li Changzhou was the Heavenly Emperor of the Divine Cult or not was not that important.

When he returns, have him change the title of Heavenly Emperor and demote the title of Immortal Marquis to Immortal Earl, and the matter will be over.

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, in addition to hosting a banquet for the imperial family and princes, the Jiajing Emperor practiced breathing exercises.

Only a short time after a meal does the body feel slightly refreshed.

That evening, he favored Consort Ma Zhen and Consort Chen Yong, and also played with a palace maid. He felt some swelling and pain when he urinated.

The title of Heavenly Emperor was given to the first rebel of the Divine Cult. What wrong has Li Changzhou done? Let's skip the demotion; he can remain the Marquis of the Divine Immortals.

On the third day of the Lunar New Year, a tea banquet was held at Huangji Gate for Grand Secretaries, Hanlin scholars, and others; the rest of the time was spent cultivating oneself.

That evening, he favored Consort Cao, who was in better condition than the day before, and then ordered Consort Wang and Consort Wang Ning to come and serve him.

Upon waking up in the morning, he sent someone to inquire about the whereabouts of the Immortal Marquis.

On the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, a banquet was held at Huiji Gate for the royal family, as well as the envoys from Korea, Annam (Vietnam), Siam (Thailand), and Gurkha (present-day Nepal), and each received a reward.

That evening, he favored Consort Fu and Consort Zhang, and took the long-awaited Innate Elixir.

I felt a little dazed when I woke up in the morning. I only felt a little better after having breakfast and breathing exercises.

On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, a banquet was held in the West Garden for the princes, princesses, and other dignitaries. After watching a play for a while, I inquired about the news of the Immortal Marquis three times.

That evening, he continued to take the Innate Elixir and favored Consort Chen, Consort Wang, and Consort He.

He woke up in the morning feeling unsteady on his feet. He slipped and fell in front of the bedchamber, breaking his leg. Three eunuchs were beaten to death.

"The leg injury is a minor matter; it will heal in a few months. What is most worrying is His Majesty's health. These days, he has been ejaculating multiple times a day and has also been taking elixirs, which has weakened his body, making him even weaker than before the new year," Li Shizhen said, stroking his beard after taking the pulse.

Emperor Jiajing sat in his chair, looking haggard, yet still possessing the majesty to govern the world.

After listening to what Li Shizhen said, his expression remained unchanged.

Li Changzhou was initially misdiagnosed by a quack doctor for excessive indulgence, which made him feel ashamed, indignant, and angry because he was an ordinary person.

As an emperor who had someone wipe his bottom when he went to the toilet and whose excrement was examined by imperial physicians every day, he had no sense of shame in this regard.

Huang Jin said, "Doctor Li, even if we're losing money, it shouldn't be this fast, right? Could it be... that your good health a few days ago was just an illusion?"

Li Shizhen frowned and pondered for a moment.

Huang Jin was the personal eunuch who served Emperor Jiajing. Many questions that Emperor Jiajing wanted to ask but were not suitable to say aloud were answered by Huang Jin. Therefore, Li Shizhen had to carefully consider Huang Jin's questions, because it was Emperor Jiajing who was listening to the answers.

The fact that the Jiajing Emperor was physically robust did indeed seem strange.

For an ordinary person, becoming strong overnight, let alone gaining the strength of an ox, would be a trivial matter. But for an emperor who is invulnerable to all laws, it is impossible.

After thinking for a while, Li Shizhen still shook his head: "His Majesty was in good health a few days ago and there was no problem. If there really is a problem, it is because I am not good enough in medicine and cannot understand the mystery."

Huang Jin looked cautiously at the Jiajing Emperor.

The Jiajing Emperor remained silent.

Li Shizhen often advised the Jiajing Emperor against taking "innate elixir," which made him unpopular. However, even after losing his official position, Li Shizhen was still summoned by princes and nobles to treat him.

After a long silence, the Jiajing Emperor said, "From today until the fourteenth, all banquets in the palace will be cancelled, and I will not see anyone."

"Yes." Huang Jin bowed his head and accepted the order.

"Go down." Emperor Jiajing closed his eyes.

Huang Jin and Li Shizhen bowed and withdrew, followed by eunuchs and palace maids.

The Jiajing Emperor was alone in the palace, the smoke from the incense sticks rising gently. He stood up, limped over to the incense burner, and leaned against it. For a long time, the burner remained motionless.

The smoke from the incense, which had been rising straight, was scattered by his breath.

On the sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth days of the month, Emperor Jiajing's health deteriorated day by day, and he had serious problems with his sex life. He could only manage to complete the act by taking the Innate Elixir.

On the evening of the tenth day of the lunar month.

"Your Majesty, be careful not to catch a cold." Huang Jin walked to the window and tried to close it.

"Get out of my way!" Emperor Jiajing roared.

Huang Jin trembled slightly, but he wasn't very afraid. He knew that doing this would definitely draw a reprimand, but some reprimands were necessary; that was what made him a loyal follower.

On the tenth day of the first lunar month, the moon was already quite full, and the Lantern Festival was just five days away. Emperor Jiajing was soaking his feet while gazing out the window.

At this moment, a eunuch on duty strode in from outside the door and knelt outside the warm pavilion.

Huang Jin went out, listened to the report, waved away the eunuch on duty, and then walked back in.

"Your Majesty, there is news of the Immortal Marquis!"

The Jiajing Emperor continued to gaze at the bright moon outside the window.

"I just received news that on the second day of the lunar new year, the Immortal Marquis subdued four of the Five Heavenly Kings of the Divine Sect on the Bohai Sea! He also killed the leader of the White Lotus Sect, the Fire Dwelling Taoist, and the thieves of the Lingbao Sect!"

Emperor Jiajing remained silent, and Huang Jin's excited expression gradually turned into unease.

"Huang Jin".

"Your servant is here!" Huang Jin replied softly but firmly.

Where is the Immortal Marquis?

“This—” Huang Jin looked at the ground for a while, then glanced at the Jiajing Emperor’s expression. “Perhaps he was injured and is recuperating.”

This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!