Chapter 23
Half an hour ago.
Wen Xiaochun had a dark blue cloth tied around his mouth and nose, and was dressed as a palace servant in charge of pouring night incense. He was pushing a wooden barrel cart and walking slowly on the deserted palace road.
The wooden barrel gave off a faint stench.
It was a rule for palace servants who poured night incense to walk along this road at night, so the patrol team just covered their mouths and noses, stopped him as a routine, opened the wooden barrel and looked inside.
After confirming that there was nothing wrong, he waved and asked him to come over.
Wen Xiaochun lowered his head and heard the guards talking quietly from afar: "Hey, why do I remember that a night incense burner just passed by not long ago?"
"New here, right? Sometimes I'll meet two of them at night, but they're in charge of different places. They all pass through this palace road, which is the farthest from the east and west palaces, so as to avoid the stench from offending other nobles."
"Oh, I see..."
Wen Xiaochun quickened his pace slightly, and the sound of the wheels rolling on the ground remained steady.
He circled around and stopped outside the Astronomical Observatory.
Although the Astronomical Observatory is located in the imperial palace, it has a special status. Officials here are not allowed to stay overnight except for those who stay behind every day. It is equivalent to the yamen where ministers go to work after leaving court.
Again, there are no dedicated guards here, only patrols passing through occasionally.
Sneaking in becomes extremely easy.
Wen Xiaochun stopped in front of the huge stone tablet in the Observatory.
There were two lines of words on the stone tablet. He couldn't quite understand them. He only recognized a few of them, which were all taught to him by the young prince.
He looked around, went to the wooden barrel on the dung cart, and took out a piece of black cloth from the barrel. Under the cloth was a piece of paper soaked in oil.
He had been working as a steward in charge of oil in the kitchen for so long, and originally thought that the oil sent by those people as a flattery was useless, but unexpectedly it came in handy by accident.
Wen Xiaochun took out all the oil paper inside, then took out a piece of paper from his arms with a word written crookedly on it.
He learned this character several times, and the little prince taught him stroke by stroke until he finally learned it.
Comparing the characters, he spread the heavy oil papers on the ground one by one.
Think while laying out.
There are too many evil-hearted people in the world. The little prince is kind-hearted and so young. If no one protects him and no one retaliates for him, I'm afraid anyone can bully him in the future.
After the characters were arranged, Wen Xiaochun pushed the cart and retreated along the planned route.
As he retreated, he freed one hand, blew on the fire stick, and threw it back without looking back. The flames instantly ignited, and the scorching heat wave blew up the light blue eunuch's uniform.
-
Holding Qu Watanabe, Yi Twelve sped all the way.
He simply avoided the guards outside the Ju'an Hall and entered the main hall without even alerting anyone.
As soon as Eunuch Yu turned his head, he saw a man in black wearing a wooden mask and holding a child. He was startled and almost blurted out a sharp "Protect the emperor".
Then Yi Twelve half-knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, His Highness has been found."
Eunuch Yu suppressed his heartbeat, and suddenly realized that this person must be the secret guard beside His Majesty. He had only heard his voice through the screen before, but this was the first time he saw him.
Emperor Chongzhao turned around suddenly.
His eyes fell directly on the little boy in Yi Twelve's arms, whose face was flushed with fever.
The child was obviously over two years old, but he looked still a little bit older. His thin face had a pair of round and beautiful eyes, which were now filled with mist and looked dazed.
Emperor Chongzhao saw the shadow of Concubine Yun in his youngest son's face.
These eyes really look like...
There was a faint sound of discussion outside, it seemed that the imperial doctors were talking. Yi Twelve handed the child to Eunuch Yu in silence and disappeared.
Eunuch Yu felt the burning temperature in his arms and said in his heart, "Your Majesty! The prince is in bad condition."
Emperor Chongzhao: "Where is the imperial physician? Come in!"
Yi Twelve came to the leader of the secret guards who was guarding the emperor.
The leader of the secret guards made a gesture: If you appear in front of people directly, your stealth value will rise sharply and you will most likely fail. The secret guards are guarding His Majesty, why are you making an exception for a prince?
For secret guards who fail to meet the stealth value requirement, there are only two options: death or life imprisonment.
B12 did not respond.
Their secret guards were only loyal to the emperor. But at that time, he looked at the little prince sitting alone on the ground, without any strength at all. He always felt that the Seventh Prince, who was so smart on paper, should not be burned into a fool in the eyes of the imperial physician.
So he showed up anyway.
The leader of the secret guards gestured: Go to the cell and wait for trial.
Yi Twelve bowed slightly and disappeared again.
The leader of the secret guards shook his head slightly and focused his attention inside the hall again.
When the imperial doctors heard the shouting, they came in one after another. After they finished paying their respects, they looked up and saw the child in Eunuch Yu's arms and were shocked.
"Your Highness has found it?"
"Quick, eunuch, put the little prince down and let me take his pulse."
The most anxious person was Doctor Qiu, who knew Qu Dubian's condition. He was already in such danger in the morning, and now he had been missing for an entire afternoon, and no one knew what his condition was.
Doctor Qiu: "Eunuch, quickly ask someone to prepare some hot water!"
He was about to take the little prince from Eunuch Yu's hands, but he saw the child, who was quietly nestling in Eunuch Yu's arms, suddenly move and hold on to Eunuch Yu tightly.
“…No, I don’t want it.”
A tiny voice came out of his throat, sounding pitifully hoarse.
Eunuch Yu was also anxious, and coaxed: "Your Highness, be good, and ask the imperial doctors to check your pulse."
There was mist in Qu Dubian's eyes as he looked at the man in the dragon robe who had been standing in the bedroom.
Emperor Chongzhao was stunned.
The youngest son was very smart. Even though he had never seen him before, he recognized him immediately. He remembered the note that the child had left before he disappeared today.
I want to meet him, my father.
The child's eyes were red, and the tip of his nose was also red. He stared at him for a few seconds, then suddenly stretched out his hand towards him. The tears in his eyes were crystal clear, as if there were winter frost crystals hidden in them, and there was a hint of expectation.
This is the action of the baby asking for a hug.
Emperor Chongzhao subconsciously took a step forward.
The child couldn't help but stretch his arms high again, a little happy, "Father..."
The next second, Emperor Chongzhao remembered what the Astronomical Bureau had said about not being too intimate with his young son, and he stopped abruptly.
So Qu Dubian didn't even finish saying the word "father" and his mouth gradually became tight.
Eunuch Yu couldn't help but feel a little nervous and raised the child in the direction of Emperor Chongzhao.
"His Majesty."
Emperor Chongzhao clenched his fist, put one hand behind his back, and finally turned his face away and said, "Treat the disease first."
How could he resist hugging His Highness? Sure enough, he was not raised by his side, so there is not much affection. Your Majesty is really... Eunuch Yu lowered his head and whispered, "Your Highness, can you treat the illness first?"
The child put down his hands that were raised to ask for a hug, and the tears hidden in his eyes finally fell down. It seemed that the expectations that he had accumulated with great difficulty collapsed because of an implicit rejection.
Emperor Chongzhao opened his mouth.
The youngest son turned his head away from him, grabbed the clothes on Eunuch Yu's chest, buried his head in it, and sobbed, "I don't want a doctor, I don't want a doctor, I don't want anything, I just want Ye Banban..."
"I want Ye to accompany me..."
Qu Dubian fully demonstrated how difficult it would be to deal with a sick child when he made a fuss. Even with so many imperial doctors and Eunuch Yu, no one was able to comfort him.
But he didn't cry loudly, which is annoying. He just cried softly, with a choked voice, and his voice was hoarse and weak, which made people feel heartbroken.
The imperial doctors in the bedroom were helpless. They had to take the patient's pulse before prescribing medicine. Now the sick protagonist was not cooperating, so they could not use their medical skills.
Eunuch Yu rocked the child in his arms and looked at Emperor Chongzhao from time to time with an anxious gaze.
"His Majesty……"
Doctor Qiu was moved with sympathy: "Your Majesty, please comfort the little prince. You must not delay any longer!"
Looking at this little face that resembled Concubine Yun, Emperor Chongzhao clenched his fists and gave them up, compromising, "Give it to me, and I'll hold it."
But when he stretched out his hand, the child in Eunuch Yu's arms dodged and ignored him.
Qu Dubian thought with a chill in his heart, do you know what the consequences of hurting a child's heart are? You refuse to hug me, right? You'll be in trouble in the future.
Emperor Chongzhao froze and withdrew his hand.
Seeing that the child was almost unable to cry, he became nervous. He looked around the hall and couldn't help but raise his voice and asked, "Who is Ye Banban?!"
Eunuch Yu felt that the temperature was getting higher and higher, and hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, Eunuch Ye is the one who has been serving the young prince. Send someone to find him quickly, otherwise..."
Emperor Chongzhao: "Go quickly!"
After hearing this, Qu Dubian stopped whining, stretched out his tightly clenched hands, and called the imperial physician for treatment, but he still stayed in Eunuch Yu's arms and refused to go to the bed.
With the permission of Emperor Chongzhao, Eunuch Yu had to hold him and sit on a stool while the imperial physician squatted down to take his pulse.
-
When Ye Xiaoyuan heard the news that the little prince had been found, his legs went weak.
The palace servant who came to look for him hurriedly supported him and said, "Eunuch Ye! You can't fall down. The young prince is waiting for you. Without you, I'm afraid he won't take the medicine. Come with us quickly."
"...Go, go, go faster."
While Ye Xiaoyuan breathed a sigh of relief, he couldn't help but become more worried and hurried back to Ju'an Hall.
At this time, the small kitchen in Ju'an Palace was already in use, with people boiling water and cooking medicine in an orderly manner. When Ye Xiaoyuan entered the bedroom, he saw the little prince nestling in Eunuch Yu's arms, refusing to move and crying.
He resisted the urge to run over and kowtowed to Emperor Chongzhao.
Emperor Chongzhao raised his hand towards him and said, "Go and see Xiaoqi, he has been calling you."
Eunuch Yu was already sweating profusely. Seeing Ye Xiaoyuan, he stood up carefully as if he had seen a savior. "Eunuch Xiaoyuan, you are finally here!"
Ye Xiaoyuan hurriedly brushed off the coldness from his body before taking Qu Dubian over.
“Your Highness…”
Upon hearing his voice, the child who had been sobbing just now stopped crying immediately.
Eunuch Yu watched this scene, walked to Emperor Chongzhao, and whispered to comfort him: "Eunuch Xiaoyuan has been with Your Highness since he was a child. It is normal for Your Highness to be a little dependent on him."
Qu Dubian opened his eyes and was immediately relieved. He was originally worried that if he slept too long, Ye Banban would be blamed for his disappearance. Now it seems that his cheap father is not that stupid.
He rubbed Ye Xiaoyuan's arm.
"Ye Banban."
Ye Xiaoyuan suppressed the bitterness in his eyes, hurriedly carried him to the bed, covered him with a quilt, and half-hugged him as usual.
"Yes, my companion is here. Your Highness, please take the medicine carefully later, and you will feel better soon."
Qu Watanabe: "Banban, I want to go find my mother."
Ye Xiaoyuan's heart trembled.
Without waiting for him to speak, Emperor Chongzhao said in a serious tone, "Don't talk nonsense!" Realizing that his tone was wrong, he walked to the bedside and slowed down his voice, "Take the medicine obediently, you will be fine."
The child said nothing.
He turned his head away, his flushed face resting on Ye Xiaoyuan's palm, refusing to look at his father.
Emperor Chongzhao pursed his lips.
Eunuch Yu also fell silent, and the atmosphere became a little weird for a moment.
No matter how stupid Ye Xiaoyuan was, he could sense that something was wrong, but he didn't know what had just happened, so he could only gently stroke Qu Duanbian's back as a way of comforting him.
After a while, Qu Dubian said sullenly.
"Banban, I'll drink the medicine I took last time."
Emperor Chongzhao: "Last time?"
Ye Xiaoyuan: "Your Majesty, the prince was also sick a while ago, and the medicine was given by the Imperial Hospital. There are still a few doses left in the cabinet. Maybe the prince saw that Xiaochun drank it and it worked, so he kept it in mind."
He added: "Your Highness, you should listen to the doctor. Perhaps the cause of your illness this time is different from the last time?"
The child insisted, "Just drink that, nothing else."
Emperor Chongzhao waved his hand and said: "Find someone to decoct the medicine, and show it to the imperial physician. If it works, use it. If it doesn't, we'll talk about it later." It would only take one more person to decoct the medicine, so he could appease the patient first.
Ye Xiaoyuan told where the package of medicinal materials prescribed by the Imperial Hospital last time was, and someone immediately went down to prepare it.
Qu Watanabe was satisfied. He was really grateful to the person who harmed him in the beginning. The overdose of medicine sent by the Imperial Hospital not only saved Xiaochun, but also helped him at this critical moment.
He asked weakly again, "Where is Xiaochun?"
Ye Xiaoyuan paused and said calmly: "He should still be looking for you. Once the news of your finding gets out, he will probably be back soon."
The two people in Ju'an Hall were fine, so Qu Dubian was completely relieved and waited for the bowl of medicine to be served later.
Not long after, the captain of the guards came hurriedly to report.
"Your Majesty, there was a fire in the Astronomical Observatory, which burned down most of the palace."
"The palace servants who put out the fire said that the Astronomical Observatory had deceived Your Majesty and that the heavens had punished you, which is why the fire started so late at night."
Emperor Chongzhao frowned, handed the bedroom to the imperial physician, walked out, and looked towards the Observatory from afar.
He twirled the emerald green ring gently with his thumb, "What happened over there?"
"After the fire was half extinguished, a word appeared under the stone tablet of the Astronomical Observatory."
"What word?"
The chief guard bowed his head deeply, "I can see that it is vaguely the word 'lie'."
The distance was too far to see the fire from here, only the red sky illuminated by the fire could be vaguely seen. Emperor Chongzhao fell silent, and the hand that was turning the ring also stopped. It was unclear whether his tone was sarcastic or cold.
"My palace is really busy. The Imperial Hospital, the Yongning Palace, the Six Palaces of the East Garden, the Astronomical Observatory... all have had accidents one after another. Give the order to send more people to put out the fire."
"yes."
Emperor Chongzhao turned and entered the hall and said something again.
"If the head of the Astronomy Department wants to see you tonight, there's no need to call him over."
-
In a corner away from the crowd.
Wen Xiaochun pulled the dark blue cloth on his face and looked back at the place where the flames were shooting into the sky.
Isn’t it unknown? Let’s see who the unknown one is.
He lowered his head meekly, and the sound of the wheels gradually faded away.
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