Chapter 174: Retreat and Pray
On the third day after Commander Li escorted Mr. Mo out of the capital, the emperor received news that the group encountered a group of assassins in black on their way back. Commander Li asked someone to escort Mr. Mo away first, and took the rest of the people to lure away the assassins.
Ji Quan was then summoned to the palace, and the emperor ordered him to bring people to meet them without any mistakes.
That night, Ji Quan brought the people back, but only Mr. Mo and the plainclothes guards who escorted him came back, and Commander Li's whereabouts were unknown.
The emperor ordered the news to be blocked and continued to search secretly for Commander Li's whereabouts, determined to find him alive or dead.
The next day, the emperor summoned Qi Shou, the director of the Imperial Observatory, showed him the formation recorded in the ancient book, and asked him if it was feasible.
Because the formation's techniques are complicated, they need to be carefully deduced.
The emperor gave him two days to deduce, and then summoned the crown prince and Prince An, asking the crown prince to supervise the country well and not to slack off, and Prince An to assist him attentively and share the worries of state affairs.
"Your Majesty, please take good care of your health, Father."
"Your son will follow your father's instructions."
After His Majesty had the two men leave, he said to Eunuch Liu, "Do you think the Sixth Prince is still a little distant from me?"
"Your Majesty, you worry too much. The princes respect and love you and regard you as a role model. Although the Sixth Prince is a little more reserved, he, like the other princes, hopes to gain your Majesty's approval." Eunuch Liu comforted.
The emperor sighed, "He takes after his mother, Concubine Qing, in his nature. He looks docile, but in reality, he's very stubborn." As he spoke, Eunuch Liu helped the emperor to his feet. The emperor said, "It's been a while since I last visited Concubine Qing. Let's go."
Afterwards, Eunuch Liu ordered someone to prepare a sedan chair, and the emperor sat in it and went to Concubine Qing's palace.
…
"How is mother's health lately?"
Cai Lian served tea to Prince An and replied with a smile, "Your Majesty has had a good appetite these past two days, Your Highness, don't worry."
"A few days ago, Jinzhou presented ten pieces of Tianshui gauze as tribute. I have two pieces here. You can take them back to Qian'er later." Qing Fei said.
Prince An nodded.
At this time, a palace maid came hurriedly to report: "Your Majesty, the emperor has arrived."
Concubine Qing's expression changed slightly, and Prince An came over to help her up and went to the door to greet her.
"Greetings to His Majesty."
"Get up."
The emperor raised his hand, and Concubine Qing took Prince An to her feet and stepped aside. She kept her head slightly lowered, her expression calm and elegant, without a trace of emotion. The emperor glanced at her and said to Prince An, "If you have time in the future, please come to the palace more often to accompany your mother, so that she won't miss you."
"Yes." Prince An bowed and accepted the order.
The emperor raised his hand to indicate that he didn't need to be so polite, then he took Eunuch Liu in, and Concubine Qing followed with Prince An.
"Please sit down," the emperor said, waving his hand as he sat down. After Concubine Qing and Prince An sat down, Cailian came over to serve tea. The emperor picked up the teacup, scraped it, took a sip, and asked, "What kind of tea is this? It has a hint of plum fragrance?"
"Your Majesty, this tea was brewed by the Empress. I used the snow water that the Empress collected from the branches of the plum trees last year. I got a jar of it and just took it out to brew tea yesterday." Cai Lian replied eloquently.
"No wonder the tea is different from the one I usually drink. It turns out to be such a clever idea. I am lucky to have such a delicious meal today." The emperor took another sip.
Prince An also picked up the teacup, sniffed the tea, and said, "If it weren't for your father's reminder, I would have missed this whiff of plum blossom fragrance."
"Try to taste the water for making tea carefully," said the emperor.
Prince An took a sip and said, "It has a refreshing and sweet aftertaste. It is indeed different from the tea I usually drink."
The emperor nodded and asked Eunuch Liu to give all the tea that Qingzhou had tributed a few days ago to Prince An.
"Thank you, father." Prince An stood up to express his gratitude.
The emperor waved his hand and asked him to sit down and talk. "How is your family doing recently?"
Prince An replied, "Thank you for your concern, Father. Everything is fine in my mansion."
"When will you give me a grandson?" the emperor asked with a smile.
A trace of embarrassment passed across Prince An's face.
"Children are determined by fate. There is no need to force it. Just let nature take its course." Concubine Qing came to the rescue.
The emperor did not mention the matter any further. He stood up and said, "I still have official business to attend to. Please stay with your mother and talk for a while."
Prince An replied yes, and followed Concubine Qing to stand up and see him off respectfully. After the emperor left, Prince An helped Concubine Qing sit back on the couch, looking a little hesitant. Concubine Qing saw that he had questions to ask her, so she signaled Cai Lian to leave first.
"Do you want to know why Mother left you behind?"
Prince An frowned slightly, pursed his lips, and replied in a calm and restrained tone, "I dare not."
Seeing him so reserved, holding everything in his heart, Concubine Qing lowered her eyes sadly and said guiltily, "It's Mother who has let you down."
A trace of obvious shock flashed across Prince An's calm and indifferent face.
"Mother has never mentioned your maternal grandparents' home to you, right?" Concubine Qing pursed her lips, frowned, and a look of pain appeared on her face. Looking back on the past, it was all vivid in her mind.
"What happened in the past was not your fault, mother. You don't have to blame yourself." Prince An comforted her.
Concubine Qing felt more and more guilty, "It's my mother's fault. I wasn't decisive enough at the time. If I could do it again..." She didn't say anything else. If she could do it again, she would not choose to enter the palace again.
"The past is the past. I will move on, and so should I." Prince An said decisively, "As long as I am here, I will never let you suffer any more injustice."
Concubine Qing smiled at him with relief. "I am very happy to see you from time to time. Besides, the Empress is kind and generous, so I will not suffer any injustice. The weather has started to get colder these past two days. You and Qian'er should take good care of yourselves and don't catch a cold."
Prince An replied, "Mother, please take care of yourself. I will go back now and visit you another day."
Concubine Qing called Cailian in and asked her to send Prince An away.
After Cai Lian came back, Concubine Qing asked her to find out where the palace maids who had served Prince An in the palace were now.
Although it is too late to mend the fold, as a mother, you should still know how your child has been through all these years alone, and what grievances and hardships he has suffered.
…….
On the other side, in the prison, Jiang Lan was taken away by two jailers.
The person she met this time was Ji Quan.
"There's an opportunity to escape from prison right now. Do you want to go?"
"...Is His Majesty asking you to trick me? Go and tell His Majesty that I will never run away. Even if the sky falls, as long as His Majesty doesn't give the order, I will stay in prison obediently."
Ji Quan shook his head helplessly, what a stubborn person.
"Are you stupid?"
“.…..”
Jiang Lan rolled her eyes and said, "You are the fool."
"Have you thought it through? Are you sure you don't want to leave?" Ji Quan suddenly asked seriously.
Jiang Lan felt that he might know something, so she inquired, "Is His Majesty going to kill me?"
Ji Quan walked back and forth in front of her for a few steps, suddenly stopped in front of her and said, "Good luck to you." Then he called for someone to come in and take her away. Jiang Lan quickly asked, "How is the battle going?" He replied impatiently with three words, "I don't know." Then he waved his hand and asked someone to take her away quickly.
On the way back, Jiang Lan was confused. She didn't know what had happened to him today and why he came to ask her if she wanted to escape from prison. Was something going to happen?
…
Two days later, Qi Shou, the director of the Imperial Observatory, came to report on the deduction results.
"I have already deduced the formation technique and have a fifty percent chance of success."
"Only 50%?"
The emperor's expression darkened, and Qi Shou recommended a person. The other party was his junior fellow disciple, who was more talented than him. However, due to his unusual appearance, it was inconvenient for him to show himself in front of others, so he had been living in seclusion. He could write a letter and invite someone to come. If his junior fellow disciple was there, there would be at least a 70% chance of success.
The emperor handed the matter over to Ji Quan, and ordered him to bring the person back within three days.
That day, Ji Quan took the letter written by Qi Shou and left the city.
Two days later in the evening, Ji Quan drove a carriage into the city and headed towards the palace.
When Ji Quan brought the man before the emperor, the emperor asked him to take off his hat.
Qi Shou said that his junior fellow apprentice looked different from ordinary people and might scare people.
The emperor insisted on seeing the other person's true face, and when the other person took off his hat, the emperor was shocked.
I saw a steamed bun-sized tumor growing on the other person's face, which looked very scary.
Qi Shou asked his junior brother to put on his hat again.
The emperor calmed himself down and said, "Don't judge a person by his appearance. As long as you do your job well, I will reward you handsomely."
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace." Qi Shou and his junior brother expressed their gratitude.
That night, the two began to prepare the items needed for the formation and told His Majesty that once the formation began, it could not be interrupted, otherwise there would be backlash.
The next night, the sound of hurried horse hooves came from outside the city gate.
Two black-armored soldiers hurried into the city and headed for the palace.
The two had an emergency to report to the emperor, so Ji Quan took them to the East Palace to meet the prince first.
Because the emperor has ordered that we should stay in seclusion and pray for blessings for the next two days and no one is allowed to disturb us.
When the prince heard the two people's reports, his face turned pale.
Cui Hai led his troops to pursue the enemy but accidentally fell into the enemy's trap and was seriously injured. Prince Fu was also captured by the enemy.
"No, I have to go see my father."
The prince stood up anxiously, and Ji Quan came over and stopped him.
"His Majesty has ordered that I must remain in seclusion and pray for blessings for the next two days and not see anyone."
The Crown Prince said solemnly, "This is a matter of great importance. I must report it to my father."
Ji Quan couldn't stop him, so he followed him to the Imperial Observatory.
When Eunuch Liu saw the prince approaching, he hurried forward and asked, "What can I do for you, Your Highness?"
"I have something important to report to my father, so please go in and inform him," said the prince.
Eunuch Liu showed a hint of embarrassment on his face. "Your Highness, please forgive me. His Majesty has ordered that I cannot see anyone for the next two days."
"This matter is of great importance. I must see my father tonight." The prince said solemnly.
Eunuch Liu asked, "May I ask, Your Highness, what happened?"
The prince replied, "There is urgent military information."
Eunuch Liu looked back at the brightly lit Imperial Observatory behind him and said, "Your Highness, please make the decision first. Your Majesty's prayers are related to the fate of the country and cannot be interrupted. I will report to Your Majesty as soon as Your Majesty comes out of seclusion."
......
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