Zhang Zhongwei hurriedly knelt and crawled forward, his voice trembling slightly: "Your Majesty, His Highness the Third Prince went to Annam City yesterday to collect relief supplies. He heard about yesterday's events this morning and is already on his way."
What a coincidence that he wasn't there?
The old emperor then remembered that Consort De hadn't gone to light the lampstand yesterday either.
Why didn't the mother and son go?!
It's as if they knew in advance what was going to happen!
The old emperor's eyes grew increasingly gloomy, with a hint of malevolence creeping into them.
"Have someone investigate immediately what the third prince and the Duke of England have been doing all this time!"
Zhang Zhongwei was startled. The Third Prince had been busy with disaster relief efforts all this time. Did the Emperor suspect the Third Prince? A cold sweat broke out on his back. He dared not delay and hurriedly ordered his trusted confidant to carry it out.
As I turned around, I caught a glimpse of a woman in a magnificent palace dress walking towards me out of the corner of my eye.
Zhang Zhongwei felt a slight chill, and his eyes involuntarily turned to look at his trusted aide who was hurrying away.
After only one glance, Zhang Zhongwei stepped aside and bowed to Consort De.
"Your Majesty, Consort De requests an audience," a young eunuch announced from outside the Imperial Study.
"I have already said, I will not see anyone, I will not see anyone!"
"Your Majesty, I've come to see you. Are you feeling any better? I've made some longan, jujube, and lotus seed soup. Would you like to try it while it's hot?"
"Get out!" the old emperor roared in fury, followed by a cacophony of things being smashed.
Consort De, who was outside the Imperial Study, was startled.
Zhang Zhongwei hurriedly bowed to Consort De and said, "Your Highness, please go back first. Such a big thing happened yesterday, and His Majesty is in a bad mood right now."
He didn't even get to see one of the many civil and military officials in the court.
Consort De glanced at the tightly closed door and mustered her courage to say, "Your Majesty, Chen'er is already on his way. He was terrified when he received the news and dropped everything to come here immediately."
"Get out!" the old emperor roared again. How could it be such a coincidence that neither his third son nor his mother went to light the lampstand, and then the assassination attempt on him, the emperor, happened?
What is the third brother trying to do?!
Is this a plot to usurp the throne?
At this point, she still dares to come see him; what audacity!
"Your Highness, the Emperor has ordered the Fifth Prince to thoroughly investigate this matter. You and the Third Prince can rest assured that the Emperor is not injured."
Consort De nodded: "Then I will trouble Eunuch Zhang to serve His Majesty well."
"Yes, it is my duty."
Consort De glanced at the tightly closed door again, and could only leave awkwardly.
If she had known the assassination attempt would happen, she would have insisted on going to the lampstand to accompany the Emperor yesterday.
Even if an arrow pierces his throat.
After all, she still has a son.
Zhang Zhongwei entered, and the old emperor, his face ashen with rage, paced irritably around his desk: "How dare she come here! How dare she come here! Those two, mother and son, are up to no good. Do they really think I don't know? Do they think I'm blind and deaf?!"
"Your Highness, the Emperor is not seeing anyone. Please return." The voice of the young eunuch rang out again outside the Imperial Study.
Ignoring the eunuch's attempts to stop him, the Third Prince lifted his robe and knelt outside the Imperial Study.
"Father, I am late in coming to your rescue. Please punish me. Just open the door and let me see you. Only when I confirm that you are alright will I be at ease."
The old emperor slammed the door open, saw Zhu Chen kneeling outside, and kicked him, shouting, "Have you come to confirm whether I'm dead or not?!"
Fueled by rage, the old emperor delivered a powerful kick.
Zhu Chen was kicked to the ground and dared not get up. He immediately knelt down before the old emperor and said, "Father, your son is terrified..."
"Fear? Ha, what are you afraid of? Aren't you all hoping I'll die sooner?"
"Father, you have wronged your son. Your son and mother only wish for your long life."
The old emperor looked at Zhu Chen with a gloomy expression.
Does he even believe that himself?
"Your Majesty, His Highness the Third Prince has been so anxious to raise disaster relief supplies that he often has sleepless nights. He only slept for less than an hour yesterday when he received the news. Despite his exhaustion, he rushed over overnight. The roads outside Annam are rugged, and His Highness fell countless times before finally making his way here."
The head guard behind the Third Prince couldn't help but speak.
The old emperor then took a good look at Zhu Chen. He saw that Zhu Chen's hair was disheveled, and his usually dignified and proper appearance was now in a sorry state. His gorgeous robes were stained with mud, and he looked exhausted. There was blood on the back of both hands.
Seeing the old emperor looking over, Zhu Chen rolled up his sleeves to cover the bloodstains.
The old emperor softened his tone: "Then what are you still standing here for? Why don't you let Physician Jiang take a look at your injuries?"
The young eunuch beside him hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.
Zhang Zhongwei had no choice but to step forward and say, "Your Majesty, Physician Jiang has been... has been summoned away by the Left Chancellor."
The old emperor's face darkened: "What is Ren Yushan trying to do! Jiang Lianying is the head of the Imperial Medical Academy, not the physician of his Left Prime Minister's residence!"
At this moment, Consort Ye appeared at the door of the Imperial Study, clutching her injured arm.
Her face was extremely pale, and she looked as if she had suffered a great shock. She was supported by palace maids the whole time.
When the old emperor saw Consort Ye, he remembered that if it weren't for her deep affection and her immediate act of pushing Consort Chu in front of him to shield him from an arrow in the critical moment, something terrible might have happened to them. His expression softened somewhat: "Since you're injured, what are you doing here?"
Upon hearing this, Consort Ye's eyes reddened: "Your Majesty, I just miss you and worry about you, so I really can't lie here."
In reality, Consort De was stopped at the door, and upon returning, she ordered her maid to drag her off the bed.
"Come here." The old emperor beckoned to Consort Ye.
The palace maid helped her walk step by step to the old emperor.
The old emperor looked at Consort Ye's injured arm; there seemed to be blood seeping out from the gauze wrapped around it.
"What happened? Why hasn't the bleeding stopped?"
Consort Ye choked back tears, feeling wronged.
The old emperor said to the palace maid supporting Consort Ye, "You speak."
The palace maid, her face pale, stammered, "The medical skills of the imperial physicians in the Imperial Hospital are nowhere near as good as Physician Jiang's. But when I went to invite Physician Jiang, I heard that he had been invited away by Prime Minister Ren. Apparently, it is said that Miss Ren is not feeling well and bled when she was sent back to her residence."
The old emperor could tell from the expressions on these people's faces that it was not a good thing, so he immediately ordered the young palace maid to tell him what had happened.
The palace maid's originally pale face grew redder and redder as she spoke.
Hearing the last part, the old emperor's brow twitched, and his face turned green, then purple with rage: "Zhu Zhi is insolent, insolent! I was attacked, and not only did he care about his own survival, but he also dared to do such a shameless thing! Shameless! Shameless!"
"He has completely disgraced our royal family!"
Zhu Chen remained kneeling on the ground: "Father, my elder brother, the Crown Prince, has always been a man of principle. With such a big incident yesterday, he wouldn't be so confused. There must be some misunderstanding."
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