Chapter 326 Floating
Emperor Tai'an is ill.
The war a few months ago, the birth of the little prince, the murder of the new crown prince, the dethronement of the eldest son, one bad thing after another accumulated, and finally he collapsed in front of everyone and fell ill.
All the officials were in a panic, and the harem was even more panicked. The empress dowager came to visit in person.
The Qianqing Palace was filled with the aroma of medicine, and several imperial doctors were discussing the emperor's condition in a low voice.
The Queen Mother asked the imperial physician about the situation and saw her son lying on the bed.
"Your Majesty simply doesn't take care of his own health."
Emperor Tai'an looked haggard, but he forced a smile and said, "I'm sorry to have worried my mother."
The Queen Mother sighed, "I know you're unhappy, but you can't keep it all bottled up inside and torture yourself. Your Majesty, tell me the truth. Is the little prince really just weak?"
Emperor Tai'an stared at the Empress Dowager in a daze, then smiled bitterly for a long time: "I can't hide anything from you."
The Queen Mother subconsciously folded her hands on her knees and asked, "What happened to the child?"
Emperor Tai'an was silent for a moment, then said softly, "He was born with a disability..."
In the end, the most terrible thing was not said.
"I see." The Empress Dowager held Emperor Tai'an's hand. "Is this why the Emperor decided to adopt a son from the royal family?"
"Yes." Emperor Tai'an's voice was bitter. "I don't want to wait any longer, I don't want to gamble anymore. My son is almost fifty years old, and only Concubine Wu has been pregnant in all these years. It will only get harder in the future. Even if another concubine becomes pregnant, there's no guarantee of a boy or girl, or whether she's healthy or ill. Instead of that, it's better to choose a suitable one from the royal family..."
The Queen Mother listened carefully and nodded slightly: "Since Your Majesty has made up his mind, there is no need to be angry with those people. The most important thing is to quickly recover your health."
"Son knows." The empress dowager's comfort made Emperor Tai'an look better.
The empress dowager took the medicine from the eunuch and fed it to Emperor Tai'an herself. She gave him some detailed instructions before leaving.
Emperor Tai'an closed his eyes tiredly.
The illness came like a mountain falling on him. At first, Emperor Tai'an still managed to hold on to see the imperial teacher and called important ministers to arrange state affairs. Later, his coma time became longer and longer.
As a result, some people started to have ideas.
Unlike the Prince Jing's Palace and the Prince Ning's Palace, the Prince Ping's Palace is located a little further away, and people often refer to it as Qingyuan.
Qingyuan was the residence where the family of Emperor Pingle, who was later renamed King Ping, was imprisoned. On ordinary days, people would take a detour when passing by to avoid being contaminated by bad luck.
In winter, when darkness falls early, Qingyuan seems even more tranquil. As usual, King Ping drank a few glasses of wine, letting the slight intoxication numb the pain of his frustration.
A few months ago, he felt that victory was within reach and he could take back his kingdom, but in the blink of an eye, he became a prisoner, and more than ten years of hard work were wasted.
"Your Majesty, please drink less."
"Get out of here!" King Ping stretched out his hand to push away the concubine who was urging him to drink, and his sleeve swept the wine glass to the ground, making a harsh sound.
Footsteps approached, and a hand picked up the wine glass that was spinning on the ground.
The person who came was one of the stewards of the palace, and King Ping still couldn't remember his name.
What does it matter whether they remember it or not? They are all Lao Si’s people anyway.
The entire Qing Garden is a huge cage that holds their entire family captive.
"Get out of the way." King Ping did not look at the visitor well.
"Your Majesty, it's getting dark outside."
"Didn't you hear what I said?" King Ping didn't understand the hidden meaning of the other person's words, and his face became even worse.
The visitor came closer and lowered his voice to a very low voice: "The emperor has been ill for many days."
King Ping was startled and immediately looked around, only to find that the servants in the room had disappeared without a trace.
He felt cold all over, and the little bit of alcohol he had was scared away. He stared at the young steward whose name he didn't remember.
"If you want to take back what belongs to you, I'll introduce you to someone. If not, just pretend I've never been here."
"Who are you?" King Ping asked in a low voice.
He heard his own heart beating wildly.
This made him feel that the person in front of him was suspicious, but he still felt an uncontrollable desire.
Therefore, he allowed the person to come close to his ear and whisper something.
"Really?" King Ping's face changed drastically, and he looked incredulous.
The visitor quietly put something into his hand.
King Ping stared at the object in his hand with a changing expression. Finally, he nodded and said, "Okay, you arrange it. I'll meet him."
"Yes." The man's expression was obviously much more respectful.
Not long after, a mysterious guest appeared in Qingyuan, who had a secret conversation with King Ping for half a day before leaving.
King Ping sat quietly for a while, then stood up and walked towards a place. As he got closer, his steps became heavier.
Qi Ming heard the noise and looked over.
The father and son's eyes met, and he was the first to look away.
Anger flashed across King Ping's face, and his heavy steps became hurried, and he soon arrived in front of Qi Ming.
Qi Ming looked at him quietly without saying anything.
"Ming'er, are you still blaming me?"
Qi Ming smiled faintly: "Why don't you call me Yang Zhe."
"Ming'er, you're so smart, you know that's to avoid being caught by them—"
Qi Ming interrupted Prince Ping's explanation with a blank expression: "So I'm not Qi Ming, and the Crown Prince has always been by your side. If that's the case, who else could I be if not Yang Zhe?"
If possible, he really hopes that he is Yang Zhe, the top scholar in the imperial examination who has a bright future, friends, and... life.
King Ping was furious and said, "Didn't you tell your fourth uncle where I was hiding? I am still your father after all. You are being so unfilial!"
Facing King Ping's accusations, Qi Ming remained calm and said, "So what do you want? Do you want me to cut off my flesh and bones and return them to you?"
"Qi Ming!" Facing those clear, all-seeing eyes, King Ping's anger subsided and he sighed, "Forget it, let's not argue about this. I'm here to discuss something with you today..."
In Prince Jing's mansion, Prince Jing called his two sons to his presence and gave them some instructions.
"Shuo'er, you have always been reassuring, but now that you have joined the Ministry of Justice, you will be dealing with many people. You must be extra cautious recently and try not to drink with others."
"My son knows."
Prince Jing glared at Qi Huan and said, "You better behave yourself and avoid going to such messy places."
"I understand." Qi Huan responded weakly.
He knew that he would give earnest instructions to his elder brother, but would just glare at him.
I'm used to it.
"What's your attitude? Don't think I don't know where you hang out all day!" Prince Jing let his eldest son go and focused on educating his youngest son.
When Qi Shuo returned to his residence, he found a kang table on the kang in the clinic, with a small charcoal stove on it. Bone soup was steaming in a small, exquisite copper pot, and next to it were two plates of thinly sliced mutton and some vegetables.
There is nothing more comfortable than sitting on the kang in winter and eating a pot of meat and vegetables.
"No wonder you asked me to prepare first and came back so soon." Lin Hao picked up a few slices of mutton and put them into the boiling small copper pot.
Qi Shuo smiled and said, "Usually it's like this when my second brother is around."
After they finished eating the pot and rinsed their mouths, they talked about Emperor Tai'an's illness.
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