"Where is the physician from Zhu Yu's residence? Isn't his medical skill superb? Send him there; he must save this person!" The old emperor seemed very anxious; even through the door, Zhu Heng could clearly hear his heavy breathing.
Physician Jiang's voice trembled: "Your Majesty, Prince An and the Fifth Prince, along with Mr. Lu, were all on the street last night. Upon hearing that the Duke was injured, they immediately went to the scene. But, alas, Mr. Lu said that the Duke was hit by two arrows in the chest. He is not a god; it is already a miracle that he was able to snatch the man back from the brink of death. If we want the Duke to fully recover and return to the battlefield, it is absolutely impossible."
The old emperor angrily said, "So, does that mean the Duke of Zhenguo will spend the rest of his life lying in bed like a living dead, clinging to life?"
"Yes, Mr. Lu said he had no other choice."
"That would be worse than death. What's the point of living like this?!"
The sound of a teacup being swept to the floor and shattering came from inside the imperial study.
Zhu Heng, who stood respectfully waiting outside the Imperial Study with his hands clasped in front of him, smiled slightly upon hearing these words.
The old emperor paced back and forth in his study, furious: "The State of Chen has gone too far! Absolutely too far! Guards, immediately issue an edict to Qi Shaocheng: annihilate the State of Chen! If we fail to destroy the State of Chen during this distant expedition, Qi Shaocheng will bring us his head!"
Zhang Zhongwei hurriedly agreed and went out to deliver the imperial decree, only to find Zhu Heng standing outside.
Zhang Zhongwei's face turned ashen. He stepped forward and bowed, "Your Highness, Second Prince, have you come to see the Emperor?"
Zhu Heng's expression was solemn as he said, "I heard that the Duke was seriously injured while chasing down a spy from Chen State, so I came to ask my father for permission to visit him at the Duke's residence."
Zhang Zhongwei sighed deeply: "Alas, the Duke of Zhenguo, what a pity."
"Who's outside?" came the old emperor's panting voice.
Zhu Heng hurriedly replied, "Father, it is your son."
"Come in."
When Zhu Heng entered the imperial study, he saw that the floor was covered with stains, with writing brushes, ink, paper, inkstones, and broken porcelain shards lying haphazardly.
He scoffed inwardly, thinking that only an incompetent person would take their anger out on these inanimate objects.
Zhu Heng stood respectfully at the lower end: "Father, I have just heard that the Duke of Zhenguo was injured by an assassin and his life hangs in the balance. I wish to visit him and have come to request permission."
The old emperor glanced at Physician Jiang: "You just said that last night, when the fourth and fifth princes heard that the Duke of Zhenguo was injured, they immediately went to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion?"
Physician Jiang was startled and honestly replied, "Yes, Your Highnesses were concerned about the Duke of Zhenguo's injuries, and because it was late at night, they were unable to come and request permission first."
The old emperor snorted coldly, then turned to look at Zhu Heng and said, "You do follow the rules."
As the spring breeze rose, it blew into the imperial study, causing the papers on the floor to sway gently and make a soft rustling sound. The faint scent of incense emanating from Zhu Heng wafted into the old emperor's nose on the spring breeze.
The old emperor's expression gradually calmed down: "In that case, go and fetch some precious medicinal herbs to keep him alive, and go see the Duke of Zhenguo for me, and properly appease Prince Lu."
Zhu Heng received the order and went straight to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion.
On his way back, he suddenly realized that the Duke of Zhenguo's injury by the assassins from the Chen Kingdom might have been orchestrated by the dog emperor.
Inside the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, the atmosphere was extremely heavy. The servants in the entire mansion did not dare to breathe loudly, and many of them had red and swollen eyes.
The front courtyard where the Duke of Zhenguo resided was heavily guarded by the personal guards sent by Prince An, and even the Duke of Zhenguo's own servants were not allowed to enter.
Zhu Heng was visiting the Duke of Zhenguo on behalf of the emperor, so no one dared to stop him.
As he stepped into the front yard, he could still seem to smell the strong stench of blood in the air.
When Lu Yucheng's servant Luo Wang saw the visitor, he hurriedly went into the room to call Lu Yucheng.
"Your Highness, the Second Prince has arrived, saying he has come to visit the Emperor on behalf of the Emperor."
Lu Yucheng rubbed his sore eyes before he and Zhu Yu left the room one after the other, bowing or curtsying to him.
Zhu Heng was also surprised to see the two of them.
Both of them had bloodshot eyes and pale faces, as if they had become much more haggard overnight.
Lu Yucheng's chin was covered with a green beard, his hair was messy, his clothes were covered with dust, and his dark blue brocade robe with floral patterns was covered with black blood from the front to the hem.
Then look at Miss Lu, who became famous throughout Shengjing City for her infamy and later divorce from Zhu Yu. Although she no longer dressed as flamboyantly as before, her hair was still disheveled and her clothes were stained with blood.
The blood had dried, sticking black and clinging to the silk embroidered long dress. The stark contrast between the gold threads and the black blood assaulted his vision.
Zhu Heng slowly exhaled and cupped his hands towards the two of them: "Please rest assured, Young Master Lu and Miss Lu, with Physician Jiang and the divine physician Mr. Lu from the Prince An's Mansion here, the Duke will surely be safe and sound. My father is worried about the Duke's injuries and specially ordered me to come and visit him."
As he spoke, he had his attendants display all the emperor's gifts and precious medicinal herbs in one by one: "Father Emperor has decreed that Imperial Physician Jiang and Physician Lu do their utmost to treat the Duke. No matter what kind of medicine is needed, no matter how precious it is, as long as it is available in the world, it will be sent to the Duke for his use."
Zhu Yu and Lu Yucheng knelt down to accept the imperial favor.
Zhu Heng carefully observed the expressions of Lu Yucheng and his sister, and saw that the sorrow on their faces did not seem to be feigned.
Lu Yucheng stepped aside to let Zhu Heng in.
The room reeked of blood mixed with the bitter smell of medicine; it was truly unpleasant.
Zhu Heng, enveloped in the fragrance of incense, didn't even furrow his brow as he looked at the Duke of Zhenguo, who lay on the bed, almost completely silent with his eyes closed.
His face was as white as paper, and his forehead and body were wrapped in white gauze.
Perhaps due to excessive bleeding, despite being wrapped in several layers of white gauze, a considerable amount of blood still seeped out.
Zhu Heng asked, "Is the Duke wounded in the heart?"
Zhu Yu burst into tears, his handkerchief almost soaked through. He spoke haltingly, sobbing uncontrollably, "Father, Father was hit by eight arrows. The others are alright, but two arrows were right in the center, in the heart. So much blood, even Physician Jiang dared not remove them."
Several blood-stained clothes were piled on the ground. The white undergarments were almost soaked in blood, as if a pound of blood could be squeezed out if you wrung them out now.
"It was Mr. Lu from the Prince An's Mansion who had my brother sign a consent form agreeing to disregard his own life before the arrow was removed. Otherwise, I'm afraid that by now, Father... Father would already be..."
Lu Yucheng glanced at his sister and continued, "Those two arrows were in the heart, in extremely tricky positions. If things went wrong, Father would have died on the spot. No one, including Physician Jiang, dared to make a move rashly."
"Fortunately, Mr. Lu's medical skills are superb, but," Lu Yucheng's eyes also reddened, "it is already a great blessing that my father can live the rest of his life lying in bed like this."
Zhu Yu leaned on Lu Yucheng's shoulder, and hearing these words again was heartbreaking. She burst into tears again, "Brother, brother, Father has worked hard all his life. Let him rest well. Lying like this, Father can rest for a long, long time."
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