Chapter 61 Chapter 61 When did His Highness fall in love with me...
The emperor's sudden coma plunged the entire court into chaos.
The prince's faction and Xie Zhi's faction were locked in a life-and-death struggle. With the emperor nearing death, who would take charge became the most pressing concern of all officials.
"The Emperor has never deposed the Crown Prince, so naturally, His Royal Highness is the legitimate heir to the throne!"
"The Emperor's edict clearly stated that the son of Empress Wencheng would be the Crown Prince. Your Highness is the legitimate son of Empress Wencheng!"
"But the one sitting on the throne of the Crown Prince is, after all, the Second Prince!"
"The Second Prince's biological mother murdered the Holy Body. Such a rebellious act, how can we allow her own son to inherit the throne and profit from it? Wouldn't that be letting the Imperial Concubine succeed in her evil scheme?"
There were arguments and quarrels between them. Some hoped that the emperor would wake up and take charge of the situation, while others hoped that the emperor would never wake up.
Early spring arrived, and everything came back to life, but Nie Xiangyi was like a flower that had lost its nutrients, withering away bit by bit.
She was always feeling sick. Although she had not fallen into a coma like the emperor, a lot of the medicine she had poured into her stomach that day had still been poured into her.
Xie Zhi held her tightly in his arms.
He looked at her pale face and felt extremely guilty. It was him who failed to protect her.
The girl who once climbed over rooftops and loved the hustle and bustle of life was now fading bit by bit. Xie Zhi watched her life force gradually drain away, and suddenly felt a sense of panic that he could no longer hold her. He was afraid that she would leave, he was afraid that he would never see her again.
He always held her tightly, as if he could hold her life for a moment.
She used to be so delicate, always pouting and complaining about pain. But this time, even though cold sweat was already on her forehead, she just bit her lip tightly and said nothing.
Ling Zhu didn't find the antidote in the imperial concubine's palace. He went to look for it again later, but still had no clue.
He remembered that day before leaving the palace, Xie Chengxin curled his lips and looked at him with a smile, and his smile was like the verdict of a winner.
At this critical moment, the emperor fell into a coma without changing the crown prince, and he had already won.
As they passed by, Xie Zhi heard his ghostly chuckle, "If you want the antidote, then you admit defeat."
Xie Zhi had made the same choice many times.
Faced with the choice between the power of the Shen Ce Division and Nie Xiangyi, he chose Nie Xiangyi; faced with the choice between assassinating the crown prince and Nie Xiangyi, he still chose Nie Xiangyi.
He thought that he could still choose her this time, even if the price of surrender was a bit high, even if the price was the throne right in front of him.
But Nie Xiangyi held onto his collar. Her voice was soft with pain, and her strength in pulling him was feeble.
"Your Highness, you cannot admit defeat."
She had never been familiar with political affairs, but at this moment, she understood everything clearly. "If Your Highness compromises, you will be letting them down."
The Pei family, and the Zhong family. If the crown prince inherits the throne, the first to suffer will definitely be Xie Zhi and his party.
Xie Zhi didn't understand this any more than she did. Whether it was because he was in the situation or because his emotions had clouded his mind, he couldn't bear to watch Nie Xiangyi disappear.
The imperial physician went in and out of the mansion, but the result he got was only to delay the disease for a while. If he wanted to eradicate it, he needed an antidote.
"I'll be fine." Nie Xiangyi seemed to know what he was thinking. "The imperial concubine said that I won't die, I'll just suffer."
She smiled at Xie Zhi with her usual bright smile, "If I feel pain then, Your Highness, you'd better let me bite your arm!"
But she had never bitten Xie Zhi's arm, just as she didn't know whether she would really die.
She just felt the pain her mother had felt in the pain day after day.
Sometimes she would even have some strange associations. Could this be considered as another kind of wonderful connection between her and her mother?
When she was in so much pain that she was confused, she would often curl up in Xie Zhi's arms and ask him softly.
"Your Highness, is this a dream?"
"Your Highness, do you hate me or do you like me?"
"Why does Your Highness like me?"
"When did Your Highness start liking me?"
Xie Zhi just hugged her thin body and coaxed her softly, "I'll tell you when you get better."
"Then I must get better." She curled her eyes and rubbed his neck with her head like a baby bird, as if she was gradually falling asleep, and murmured,
"But I seem to miss my mother a little..."
After Xie Zhi coaxed her to sleep, he gently put her down. He called Ling Zhu over and said, "Prepare the horses. I'm going to the East Palace."
Ling Zhu rarely stopped in front of him, "Your Highness, please think twice!"
Xie Zhi didn't look at him.
He once thought that her leaving was the most unacceptable thing for him, but now he realized that leaving was not the problem, but losing was.
He thought clearly that what Xie Chengxin wanted was just his life.
The power of the Zhong and Pei families was deeply intertwined in the imperial court. Even if Xie Chengxin inherited the throne, he would not be able to act rashly anytime soon. This period of time was enough for them to catch their breath.
As for his life, it didn't seem to be a loss if it was hers.
After he rode away, Nie Xiangyi suddenly opened her eyes. She forced herself to sit up, suppressing the pain in her heart. "Hanxu, prepare the carriage for me."
"Where are you going, Madam? You shouldn't move while you're sick."
"Go to the city gate and welcome my uncle."
She heard Ling Zhu's report to Xie Zhi yesterday, saying that Zhong Qianyue had already arrived in Beijing and was waiting outside the city gate, just waiting for the order.
It was the antidote in the hands of the Crown Prince that Xie Zhi was concerned about.
She knew that it was Xie Zhi who went.
The jolting of the carriage made her pain even more unbearable, but she kept urging, "Faster! Faster!"
"You're finally here." When Xie Zhi arrived at the East Palace, it seemed as if he had been waiting for him for a long time.
"Where's the antidote?"
Xie Chengxin suddenly laughed, "Xie Zhi, I didn't expect that someone as cold-hearted as you would actually have a soft spot."
He half-closed his eyes and said, "If you ignore her, you will be the winner today."
Xie Zhi still just looked at him coldly, "Where's the antidote?"
With a clang, Xie Chengxin threw a long sword at Xie Zhi's feet. "You do it yourself. I will give her the antidote."
Xie Zhi lowered his eyes and looked at the long sword. It was the one he had used to kill the enemy at the border. Later, when he returned to Beijing, Xie Chengxin said he liked it and asked the emperor for the sword.
He always does this, taking what's his and showing off like a winner.
"Xie Chengxin, we're not three-year-old children anymore." Xie Zhi looked at him indifferently, as if he were looking at a childish clown. "I have to ensure his safety first."
His contemptuous look made Xie Chengxin feel inexplicably angry.
He was clearly the loser, yet he was always so high and mighty, always so calm and composed! Even when facing death, he remained like this!
He suppressed his smile and said coldly, "Xie Zhi, I have a lot of feelings for her. Don't forget, you also took my identity once."
Xie Zhi knew that he was talking about Nie Xiangyi mistaking the person he met during the Lantern Festival.
He spoke slowly and clearly, "This is just a return to me."
He met Xie Zhi's eyes and said, "Don't worry, after you die, she will be my worthy queen."
Xie Zhi just sneered as if he had heard a joke, and said something without thinking,
"You are not as good as Pei Jue."
He no longer looked at Xie Chengxin, but reached out and picked up the long sword. The blade's edge gleamed, and a chilling aura filled him.
Xie Chengxin was annoyed by his words, as if he had been inferior to him for no reason. He could only keep showing off his victory, "Xie Zhi, I said, as long as I want to take it, your things will always be mine."
Xie Zhi just chuckled, "You can only steal from me forever."
What about your own?
This remark seemed to have hit a sore spot, and Xie Chengxin's pupils suddenly shrank. There seemed to be a hint of angry confusion in his eyes.
Yes, what about the things that truly belong to him?
Probably only that white jade mask.
But fortunately, there is still that white jade mask.
"Don't worry about it." Xie Chengxin raised his lips, "It's better to get started soon."
Before Xie Zhi could make a move, hurried footsteps suddenly sounded outside, followed by a eunuch's frantic report, "Your Highness the Crown Prince! Your Highness the Crown Prince! Outside... General Zhong is outside, coming to the palace to support the king! The troops are already heading this way!"
The smile of confidence that had once been on his face suddenly froze, and Xie Chengxin's expression suddenly turned cold. "Enter the palace to defend the king? Soldiers guarding the border are not allowed to return to the capital without being summoned. Is Zhong Qianyue plotting treason? Or is he defending the king?"
On that day, Zhong Qianyue led his troops into the palace in the name of clearing the court of corrupt officials and defending the king. He quickly imprisoned the crown prince Xie Chengxin in the East Palace.
The emperor woke up in a daze at the moment of his last breath, but Zhong Qianyue just held the tablets of his father and sister, begging the emperor to give an explanation to the Zhong family.
Things have come to this point, no matter what the emperor wants, he is powerless to reverse the situation.
With his last breath, he left behind a will instructing Xie Zhi to inherit the throne, and then passed away.
The death knell sounded, and Xie Zhi was the rightful next emperor.
But this does not mean victory. Xie Chengxin, who is under house arrest in the Eastern Palace, is unwilling to hand over the antidote, and Nie Xiangyi is still suffering from illness.
The coronation ceremony was postponed again and again. Xie Zhi always wanted to hold it together with her coronation ceremony, but her frail body could no longer bear the heavy phoenix crown and bridal bridal robe.
He carried Nie Xiangyi into the palace and chose the most magnificent and exquisite palace for her to live in.
"This place is only separated from my palace by a wall, which will make it convenient for you to climb over the wall in the future."
Nie Xiangyi's cheeks were thin, and she just smiled in his arms, "If the Queen climbs over the courtyard wall, then His Highness will be even more annoyed by my unruly behavior."
"I'll flip it too."
"Your Majesty." Ling Zhu hurried over at this moment, glanced at Nie Xiangyi, and seemed to be hesitant to speak.
"Go ahead."
Ling Zhu handed over a white jade mask, "It's from the East Palace. I want to see the Queen alone..."
In order to avoid being accused of fratricide, and also because he wanted to get the antidote from him, Xie Zhi never attacked him.
He glanced at the white jade mask and his eyes turned cold in an instant.
That was the testimony of his past relationship with Nie Xiangyi, and it was just dazzling.
Nie Xiangyi also raised her eyelids to take a look, and suddenly struggled to sit up from his arms. She took the white jade mask without hesitation and said, "Let's go. I'll go."
Xie Zhi saw this expression, which undoubtedly proved that she still cared about him. He squeezed Nie Xiangyi's wrist tightly and said, "Ah Si, don't go."
Nie Xiangyi smiled casually, as if it didn't matter and was just a joke, "I was thinking of asking him for the antidote."
After a moment of silence, Xie Zhi slowly released the hands that were restraining her.
"Then I'll go with you."
"Okay." Nie Xiangyi nodded. "Hanxu, go find that Heavenly Palace lantern."
When the well-preserved lantern was found, Xie Zhi's eyes became darker.
Even though the incident of mistaking someone for someone else during the Lantern Festival had been exposed, he still felt uneasy.
Her feelings for him were all based on her misunderstanding. He was afraid that she would be deceived by Xie Chengxin, he was afraid that she would think of leaving again, he was afraid of losing everything.
Nie Xiangyi simply held his hand and said, "Your Highness, let's go."
The door creaked open, and Xie Chengxin, who had been under house arrest for many days, looked up and saw a beam of spring sunshine shining through the door.
It was at this moment that Nie Xiangyi walked in from the light, holding the same heavenly lantern, and looked at her quietly.
"You're here after all!" Xie Chengxin's face showed a hint of joy, "You still miss me! Right!"
Xie Zhi outside the door curled his fingertips tightly.
Nie Xiangyi was a little confused by his words, as if she didn't know why he said that. She simply reached out and placed the lantern next to Xie Chengxin, "I'm here to return this."
Xie Chengxin looked up suddenly, almost in disbelief. His eyes were fixed on Nie Xiangyi, "What did you say? You..."
He looked at the lantern, his eyes suddenly becoming cold, "Was it Xie Zhi who forced you to do this? It must be him! I stole so many things from him, he must want to take you away too!"
"Why would His Highness need to snatch it away?" Nie Xiangyi didn't understand the meaning of his words. "If you want to talk about snatching, it should be you who snatched it away from him."
"Four years ago on the Lantern Festival, if you hadn't been wearing that bronze ghost mask, how could I have mistaken you for His Highness?"
She spread out the white jade mask in her palm and said, "I originally wanted to give this mask to him."
Xie Chengxin's expression almost cracked at this moment.
It turned out to be a mistake, such a mistake! It turned out that he had always thought he had it, but it was just a self-righteous joke!
The thing he longed for, which belonged only to him, was actually stolen from Xie Zhi!
He originally thought that he didn't have to live with Xie Zhi's mask. He originally thought that he stole Xie Zhi's identity, and Xie Zhi also stole his, and he could feel at ease with this.
He suddenly felt ridiculous.
Nothing is his.
He suddenly laughed out loud and looked at Nie Xiangyi, "You're so angry with me, don't you want the antidote?"
"Xie Chengxin, you underestimate me." Nie Xiangyi just looked at him coldly, "My mother's death is related to you, and my grandfather died at your hands. Who do you think I am? Even if I die of pain, I will not be a slave to my enemy."
Her tone was filled with hatred, almost gritting her teeth, "I came here today just to see you die sooner."
The palace door was shut heavily.
In the gradually thinning light, Xie Chengxin vaguely saw that under the bright lights that year, a pink-faced girl stumbled towards him and shyly handed him the mask.
"I think this mask suits you better."
Having settled the matter, Nie Xiangyi felt much more at ease. She glanced at Xie Zhi, who was waiting outside the palace, and subconsciously addressed him as "Your Highness," "Why do you look so happy?"
Xie Zhi just pursed his lips and looked at the white jade mask in her hand, "This mask..."
"It's an unlucky thing." Nie Xiangyi waved his hand, "Throw it away."
Xie Zhi took the mask from her hand and said, "Let me see it first."
Let’s see what the mask she wanted to give herself looked like back then.
Nie Xiangyi felt the pain in her body again, and she leaned against his chest. As if knowing what he was thinking, she said, "I'll give Your Highness a different one next time."
"Hmm?" Xie Zhi suddenly asked doubtfully, looking at the fine powder that his fingertips had pinched out from inside the mask. "Is this... the antidote?"
Nie Xiangyi took a closer look and found that there really was powder attached to the inside of the mask.
After the powder was removed and examined by the imperial physician, Nie Xiangyi took the antidote. Suddenly, news came from the Eastern Palace - Xie Chengxin committed suicide.
There was no posthumous title, no funeral ceremony, and he was simply buried in the imperial mausoleum.
Nie Xiangyi was free and leaning against Xie Zhi's chest. Thinking of this, she snorted softly, "You must be so proud of knowing that I've liked you for a long time!"
"I'm very happy." Xie Zhi rarely denied it, but just hummed, "When did Ah Si fall in love with me?"
"Ah Heng, you have to answer me first!" Nie Xiangyi threatened him with a grin, "You clearly said you would tell me when I get better!"
Xie Zhi lowered his head and kissed the corner of her lips, looking at her with his eyes slightly curved.
"When Ah Si fell in love with me, I have always loved Ah Si."
——End of the full text——
-----------------------
The author has something to say: The main text ends here [flowers]
In fact, I found many shortcomings during the writing process. The story lines of many characters were not developed. Sometimes I really doubted myself.
But the babies in the comment section are really nice. I feel like I was coaxed into writing this [Let me see][Let me see][Let me see]
I am also very grateful to every baby who watched here [scatter flowers][scatter flowers][scatter flowers]
Next will be some small revisions and sweet extra chapters [scatter flowers]
Thanks again to every baby who supports [scatter flowers][scatter flowers][scatter flowers]
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
