Song Chengze sat in the warm sedan chair, gently kneading the bridge of his nose with his left hand. "Very good, at least the Emperor has already believed most of what I just said." Now all he needs to do is invite his mother over and bring Zhuang Jing to tell her in detail how Empress Jiang framed the late Empress Dowager and had Qingning taken away.
Song Chengze did not attend the morning court today. The Emperor was unwell, especially with a headache that kept him awake most nights. Now the Crown Prince was acting as Regent, and he seemed to see the position beckoning him. His calculations and ambitions were no longer hidden behind his honest smile. He began to punish those who had previously looked down on him or disagreed with him, both openly and covertly, especially since he now held the tiger talisman of the Dongshan Camp.
Yesterday, Song Chengze talked to the prince about finding a doctor from the martial arts world for the emperor. The prince looked disdainful and said that he shouldn't bring anyone close to the emperor. If something unexpected happened, who would be responsible?
Song Chengze smiled slightly and first explained that the emperor had previously taken a pill prescribed by the doctor, and that it had worked quite well. Furthermore, Concubine Lian had obtained the emperor's consent to allow the doctor to come and see him. Furthermore, the doctor was a disciple of Yunling Shanren.
When the words "Yunling Mountain Man" were mentioned, the prince's face froze noticeably, as if he had thought of something, but he didn't respond. Song Chengze cupped his hands and said, "Don't worry, Prince. Anyone who can get close to your father must have been thoroughly examined, and Lu Chengbao has already arranged for the doctor to change his clothes before taking your father's pulse."
Then, with a look of worry on his face, he continued, "Father's illness has kept the Crown Prince very busy. I heard that Princess Aihua has developed a cough again since winter began, and my nephew is also not feeling well. The Crown Prince should pay more attention to the children."
The Crown Prince thought of his sickly daughter and his cat-sized son, raised his eyebrows, and sneered, "Don't worry, Sixth Brother. Since we've found a doctor for Father, I'll trouble you to accompany him tomorrow. Just remember, although Father has agreed, if there's any mistake, Sixth Brother knows the consequences."
Then he snorted coldly and strode away past Song Chengze.
Song Chengze gently lifted the curtain of the warm sedan chair. Light snow was falling outside. He suddenly thought of Qingning's snow-white hair and eyebrows.
When he brought Qingning in, the emperor was being helped by Lu Chengbao while he was taking medicine. He was very surprised to see such a young man come in.
Lu Chengbao placed the medicine bowl on the tray and said, "Your Majesty, I have examined your body."
The emperor looked at Song Chengze and asked, "Is this the doctor you were talking about?"
Song Chengze stepped forward and said, "That's right."
The emperor waved at Qingning, "How old are you? Did you make that pill? Is your master a hermit from Yunling Mountain?"
Qing Ning took two steps forward, bowed, and said, "I am twenty-two years old this year, and I am the closed disciple of Yunling Mountain Master. I prepared the medicine, and it is my honor to be enjoyed by the emperor."
"Twenty-two?" The emperor asked in surprise. Lu Baocheng walked behind the emperor and stretched out his hand to press his temples. "Are you really twenty-two?"
Qing Ning smiled bitterly, "Yes, your Majesty was frightened by my appearance. I am indeed 22 years old. It's just that I was poisoned in my mother's womb. Although my master carefully treated me, I missed the best time. My life span is no more than 30."
The emperor looked regretful and sighed, "There's nothing anyone can do about this. We can only blame fate."
Qing Ning shook his head and said, "It's not something I was born with. Someone poisoned my mother when she was pregnant with me."
"Oh?" The emperor waved his hand to stop Lu Baocheng's action, and looked Qingning up and down again. The more he looked, the tighter his brows frowned. Then he looked at Song Chengze sharply, "Sixth Brother, I'm afraid you brought this person here today not just to treat me."
Song Chengze knelt down quickly, "Your Majesty, I am here to treat you, and I also want to tell you a story."
"How dare you! You are so bold as to play such a trick."
Song Chengze raised his head and said, "Father, his name is Qingning, he is twenty-two years old this year, and his mother was poisoned when she was pregnant with him."
"What does this have to do with you... What's your name?" The emperor turned to Qingning.
"I am Qingning, the Qing of the blue sky, the Ning of tranquility. The character Qing is taken from the 'Qing' in my father's name. I didn't want to offend him, so I used the Qing of the blue sky when I went to Sanshui. Ning is my mother's maiden name, 'Ning', and I also took the 'wood' character off it."
The emperor's expression was already not right. "Ning? Your mother's name is Ning?"
Qingning nodded, "Mother has another little name."
"What's your name?" The emperor slowly stood up.
"Zhen'er, it was named by my father. He said that mother is his treasure."
The emperor felt his body shaking, and Song Chengze quickly stood up and helped him sit back in the chair with Lu Chengbao on his left and right.
"Lü Chengbao, go and guard the door for me," the emperor said coldly. "Sixth Brother, tell me, what's going on?"
"Please forgive me, Father. Qingning was taken away from home when she was three years old..."
(I can't help it if you despise me for shivering. For a detailed description of this story, please read "The Substitute Bride" in the last ten or so chapters. There, Qingning's background is described in detail. If you don't want to read it, the same thing applies. Just know that Qingning is the son of the emperor and the late empress dowager, and that he was plotted by Empress Jiang.)
The emperor's face became increasingly grim, his chest rising and falling violently, but he listened to Song Chengze's words calmly without interrupting him, and kept staring at Qingning. With every extra word Song Chengze said, he seemed to see a little more of someone's shadow in Qingning.
"Take off your shirt." After hearing what Qingning said, the emperor said, "Sixth Brother, bring the brazier closer." There was a clear sense of powerlessness in his voice.
The emperor stared at Qingning's every move. When he took off his clothes and raised his right arm, the emperor stood up. Song Chengze stepped forward to support him and slowly approached.
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