Those noble ladies later boosted business, and many people in the capital who were familiar with them or wanted to curry favor with them also went to Jin Fu Restaurant to buy food. Before long, Jin Fu Restaurant suddenly became famous, and the word spread among the noble ladies.
This is a bit outrageous, but fortunately, Erfu and Sifu are indeed skilled cooks. The food they make is clean, fresh, and tastes good, so by the end of the year, the shop's business has become very prosperous.
When it's not snowing, Zhou Laoda and his wife would come over to help, and their daily income was quite considerable, making the two Fu brothers happy all day long.
Seeing how sincere those noble ladies were, Xingxing decided to let bygones be bygones. She would be happy if the shop did well, but there was one thing that worried her: the emperor's health had not been good lately.
I've been coughing for half a month now. The imperial physician saw me and said it was because I have a cold constitution. In previous years, I was always dealing with political affairs day and night, and overwork had damaged my health. So when the weather gets cold, I catch a cold easily.
The palace had all sorts of good medicinal herbs and tonics, but no matter how much he took them, the emperor's health did not improve. Yet he insisted on attending court and was still diligent in his duties every day.
No one can persuade him, and we can't knock him unconscious or lock him up. It's really frustrating.
Xingxing wanted Zhu Chumo to treat the emperor, but Zhu Chumo left the capital last month, saying he was tired of staying in the capital and wanted to travel for a while. In addition to Zhu Chumo, his two senior sisters also went on a trip and their return date was uncertain.
However, Zhu Lin has already sent a letter urging Zhu Chumo to return to the capital as soon as possible. After receiving the letter, it is believed that the fourth senior brother will set off for the capital immediately, unless the roads are blocked by heavy snow and he cannot return.
New Year's Eve arrived in the blink of an eye. Due to the emperor's poor health, no palace banquet was held this year, and all the ministers celebrated the New Year at their own homes without having to attend the banquet in the palace.
Xingxing originally planned to have New Year's Eve dinner with the Emperor and Empress in the palace and then leave the palace on the first day of the Lunar New Year to spend it with the Zhou family. However, the Emperor's condition was not good, and Xingxing was worried about him, so she did not leave the palace and stayed by the Emperor's side with the Empress.
During the New Year's Eve dinner, the emperor forced himself to get up and ate with the empress and the eldest princess. However, he had a poor appetite, drank some soup, ate a few bites, and then lay back down on his dragon bed.
"Father, please don't worry. As long as you rest well, you'll get better soon. I won't leave your side for a moment; I'll stay by your side." Xingxing's eyes were red as she tucked the blanket around the emperor.
"Today is New Year's Eve, Long'er, be happy and don't cry. Your father is alright and will get better. There are still many people in the world who don't have enough to eat and wear. How can your father leave? I will only be satisfied when I see the Great Jin Dynasty prosper and flourish." The emperor's voice was weak and weary. He had been ill for so long that his temples had turned even whiter.
"So Father, you must get well soon. The Great Jin Dynasty needs a good emperor like you, and the people of the world also need a good emperor like you. You must get well soon," Xingxing said, choking back tears.
"Yes, I must take good care of myself." He had spoken a lot today, and perhaps he was tired. His voice grew softer and softer until he finally closed his eyes and fell asleep.
Xingxing was still worried, so she summoned the imperial physician to take the emperor's pulse and only felt at ease after confirming that he was really alright.
Previously, the Imperial Concubine had brought a group of concubines to the Emperor's palace, saying they wanted to serve him. However, the Emperor said there were too many people and it was too noisy. He told all the concubines to go back, as he had the Empress and the eldest princess to serve him.
"Is His Majesty's health alright?" The Imperial Concubine specially summoned the imperial physician who usually had close contact with her to ask him questions, just in case the Emperor couldn't hold on and suddenly passed away. If she and the First Prince hadn't been there for the Emperor at the last moment, they wouldn't even know who would have gotten the throne.
"Your Majesty, His Majesty is only suffering from a severe cold, and his health has been compromised in recent years, which is why he is bedridden. However, with proper care, he can recover," the imperial physician replied truthfully.
This imperial physician was the one who often treated the Consort and her son, and he was trustworthy. After hearing his words, the Consort breathed a sigh of relief and told the physician to leave.
After the imperial physician left, the eldest prince came out of the inner room with a somber expression and said, "Mother, even if Father's illness can be cured, the Empress and the eldest princess should not be left to guard him. Does Father not have any place for Mother and his child in his heart?"
Consort Duan's face darkened, her hands clenched tightly, and she said in a deep voice, "Let's bear with it for now. After all, the eldest princess is a woman, and the emperor can't possibly pass the throne to her."
The eldest prince lowered his eyes, concealing his emotions. If Linglong weren't a woman, he wouldn't have tolerated her for so long. If she were a prince, he certainly wouldn't have allowed her to live.
The sixth day of the Lunar New Year was supposed to be the day to resume court assemblies, but the emperor's health had not improved, and he was unable to get out of bed. It was truly a case of illness coming like a landslide and recovering like pulling silk from a cocoon.
Since the emperor was unable to attend court, the court sessions were naturally cancelled. However, state affairs still needed to be handled by someone, so the Zheng faction proposed that the eldest prince temporarily take charge of state affairs.
Some even took this opportunity to suggest that the emperor appoint the eldest prince as crown prince.
But the emperor did not heed the advice of those ministers. Even though he was bedridden and unable to get up, he still personally handled state affairs, having Xingxing read memorials to him every day before approving them.
After reading the memorial for half an hour that day, Xingxing earnestly advised, "Father, you can't do this. You can't even rest properly while lying down, and this illness will be even harder to cure. Since you don't want the eldest prince to be involved in politics, why not select two trusted ministers to temporarily manage the government? In short, you can't overwork yourself anymore."
The emperor was indeed at his breaking point. He looked at the stars and said in a heavy voice, "If only you were a prince. What a pity."
"Father, don't overthink it. It would be more appropriate to see which ministers are suitable to temporarily manage state affairs." Xingxing ignored the emperor's words and continued to advise him.
"Your Majesty, Minister Chen, and Grand Secretary Ye, these two are trustworthy. I hereby issue an edict that, starting tomorrow, these two ministers shall temporarily manage state affairs." The emperor's voice grew weaker; he had a bad feeling, so he hastily issued this edict.
The imperial edict was delivered to the residences of the two high-ranking officials that afternoon.
The next day, news came that the emperor had fallen into a coma. However, two important ministers, who were also the emperor's confidants, kept order in the court, so no trouble ensued.
This greatly angered Consort Duan and her son. The emperor was in a coma, yet he still refused to allow the eldest prince to participate in politics. Now the eldest prince was nineteen years old, but the emperor had never intended to let him participate in court affairs.
"Yesterday, an imperial edict was issued ordering the two senior ministers, the Chancellor and the Grand Secretary, to temporarily manage state affairs. Today, Father Emperor has fallen into a coma. If you say that this has nothing to do with Linglong, I'll twist my head off and use it as a football," the eldest prince said through gritted teeth.
"Pah, what unlucky things to say." Consort Duan felt a pang of heartache. Her son had wasted so many years of schooling, and all he could say were vulgar things like "twisting heads," which were both unlucky and crude.
"Wait and see. If your father still doesn't wake up in a few days, then don't blame us for being ruthless." Consort Duan said with a gloomy expression.
"Send more people to keep an eye on the Zhou family and the Zhu family as well, to avoid any unforeseen complications." The First Prince finished speaking, his face grim, and turned to leave Jin Yue Palace.
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