Emperor Cheng'an chuckled twice: "How could his temperament be like mine? If it were like mine, he wouldn't have left like a coward."
"Atonement? Whose sins does he want to atone for? To whom does he want to atone?"
Emperor Cheng'an's face grew increasingly ferocious as he spoke. He suddenly tore the letter to shreds and roared breathlessly, "Go! Immediately send more men. No matter where they are, bring this bastard back to me!"
"Doesn't he think I'm guilty? I will make him watch the King of Qin be executed with his own eyes, so he'll know that the victor is king and the loser is villain, and only the winner is right."
“It’s not that he doesn’t want the throne, but he feels it’s stained with blood. So I will make him the emperor.”
“Once he becomes emperor, he will naturally understand my good intentions.”
After Emperor Cheng'an finished speaking, he looked at the stunned Qi Zhong with a ferocious expression: "What are you standing there for? Hurry up and go!"
Qi Zhong was startled and hurriedly retreated.
*
Although Emperor Cheng'an intended to conceal the news of the Crown Prince's disappearance, the truth could not be hidden forever. Moreover, he dispatched the Imperial Guards to search for the Crown Prince's whereabouts, and such a large commotion could not be concealed at all.
Within four or five days, court officials requested an audience to inquire about the whereabouts of the crown prince.
Emperor Cheng'an has been claiming illness and has not attended court for the past few days. Now that more and more ministers are requesting an audience, if he continues to avoid them, there will likely be even more rumors circulating.
Emperor Cheng'an, seeing that he could no longer delay, had no choice but to attend court despite his illness.
He didn't want anyone to notice that his health was deteriorating, so before going to court, he even had Qi Zhong apply powder to his face to make it look rosy. He also deliberately hid his immobile left hand in his sleeve before going to court, pretending to be in good spirits.
Among the ministers in the court, Xie Lianhong was the most concerned about the whereabouts of the crown prince.
The crown prince is the foundation of a country; if the crown prince makes a mistake, it could shake the very foundation of the nation.
Others might have hesitated to speak directly due to their concerns, but Xie Lianhong had none of those concerns. After the court session began, he stepped forward and asked, "These days, there are rumors circulating that His Highness the Crown Prince has gone missing, and that the palace has mobilized several thousand imperial guards. May I ask Your Majesty if this is true?"
Emperor Cheng'an's face darkened slightly, knowing he couldn't hide it any longer, so he could only vaguely say, "It is true that the Crown Prince is not in the Eastern Palace, but he is not missing. Rather, he is in a bad mood, and Uncle Liu has gone out of the capital to relax."
Xie Lianhong's heart sank upon hearing this: "The crown prince is the foundation of the country, how can he leave the capital without permission?"
Emperor Cheng'an forced himself to say, "The Crown Prince has not yet recovered from the grief of losing his wife and son. I pushed him too hard before, which is why he left the capital without permission. I have also reflected on my actions during the days he was away. Once I find him, I will not push him too hard again."
"Even if he refuses to discuss marriage again, so be it. The Empress is now pregnant. If she can give birth to a prince, it won't matter if the Crown Prince has no heir. My elder brother was able to pass the throne to me. If the Crown Prince has no heir, he can just pass the throne to his younger brother."
Emperor Cheng'an casually dropped such a bombshell, leaving his ministers bewildered.
Even Xie Lianhong took a long time to react before asking incredulously, "Is Her Majesty the Empress pregnant?"
Emperor Cheng'an nodded, looking relieved, and said, "Perhaps Heaven took pity on me and the Empress for losing our two sons, and has blessed us with another child. The Empress is three months pregnant, and the imperial physicians are taking care of her day and night, saying that everything is fine."
"Before, I thought that the Empress was not young and that this pregnancy was difficult. I was worried that announcing the news too early would harm the fortune, so I did not announce the news."
The court officials, who were initially filled with anxiety due to the Crown Prince's unknown whereabouts, were now overjoyed by this unexpected piece of good news.
If it weren't for this child, the Crown Prince's disappearance would naturally be a major event for both the Crown Prince's faction and the Prince of Qin's faction.
This was naturally a heavy blow to the Crown Prince's faction. The Emperor's health was deteriorating rapidly, and he was already in his twilight years. Their support for the Emperor was simply placing all their bets on the Crown Prince.
The fact that the crown prince is now missing is naturally a heavy blow to them.
But since the Empress is already pregnant, even in the worst-case scenario—if the Crown Prince doesn't return—as long as the Emperor still has an Empress, the country will not be in turmoil.
They didn't exactly bet on the wrong horse.
It would be even more advantageous for them if the crown prince didn't return.
—If the emperor wins this struggle and the little prince in the empress's womb inherits the throne, those who support the emperor may become regents in the future.
Since the emperor was young, the one in power was none other than the regent minister.
The ministers who supported the crown prince were both worried and happy, and their expressions were quite comical.
The ministers who supported the King of Qin were naturally happy to see this happen.
Emperor Cheng'an is already old, and only the Crown Prince can rival the Prince of Qin. Now that the Crown Prince has disappeared, they have lost a powerful opponent, which is naturally a good thing for them.
For a moment, both the Crown Prince's faction and the Prince of Qin's faction smiled, creating a harmonious and joyful atmosphere.
Emperor Cheng'an sat on his dragon throne, looking down and taking in the expressions on everyone's faces. He didn't need to put in much effort to figure out their little schemes.
He scoffed inwardly, but outwardly remained cheerful, forcing himself to finish the court session.
After the court adjourned, he forced himself to walk behind the curtain, his back, which he had been trying so hard to straighten, suddenly bent over. He had to hold onto Qi Zhong's arm to barely keep his balance.
His face showed signs of weariness, and he turned to Qi Zhong, asking, "Did you see the expressions on the faces of those people in court just now?"
Qi Zhong nodded cautiously: "They are all happy for His Majesty."
"Happy?" Emperor Cheng'an's expression grew even more sarcastic. "They are indeed happy."
"But not for my sake, but for my own."
Emperor Cheng'an released his arm from his grasp, forced himself to walk a few steps, and sat down in a chair, panting. He sneered, "Do they really think they don't know what they're up to?"
"None of these people care about the Crown Prince's whereabouts; they only care about whether there is anyone left to inherit the throne, and whether they have bet on the right side."
As Emperor Cheng'an was speaking, he covered his mouth and coughed.
Qi Zhong quickly handed him tea: "His Majesty has just recovered, he must not get angry again."
Emperor Cheng'an took the tea and drank a couple of sips, which relieved his cough. He suddenly looked up at him with a gloomy expression and asked, "Whose bet have you placed this time?"
Qi Zhong's hand trembled, and the teacup he was holding slipped from his grasp and fell to the ground, shattering into pieces. He didn't care about that, however, and knelt down straight, his forehead hitting the broken porcelain shards. He said with trepidation, "Your Majesty, please understand! How could a mere eunuch like me know anything about gambling? I only know that being able to serve Your Majesty is the greatest fortune of my life."
He cautiously raised his head and said with a fawning expression, "If we must bet on something, then this servant should be betting on Your Majesty."
Emperor Cheng'an smiled upon hearing this and patted him on the shoulder: "I was just asking casually, there's no need to be so frightened."
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