Chapter 200: Smallpox Patient Recovered (Supplementary Chapter, Chapter...)
In the pitch black, Qi Chengming sat blankly on the couch, no longer sleepy, only listening intently to the sounds outside.
A series of hurried footsteps, followed by the sound of people coming downstairs, and hushed whispers—anxious, barely suppressed sobs, and words of grief and despair. Nearby, the Seventh Prince's eunuch could be heard quietly inquiring about the situation.
"Your Highness..." Xiao Chengzi, inexperienced in such matters, rushed forward and tightly gripped Qi Chengming's hand, which was sweaty. He didn't care about the potential offense, holding on tightly. He was terrified. Both were princes of high status, but the eldest prince had received so much more favor in his younger days, and now...
"It's alright," Qi Chengming said quietly. "Turn on the lights, and wait for news."
He hadn't turned off the system monitoring at all these past few days, keeping a close eye on news from Emperor Hongren's side.
Emperor Hongren stayed up late again tonight, his mind preoccupied with the poisoning of the prince, raging through the night. His suspicions had reached their peak; he had just berated five or six officials, punished several servants, and ordered several squads of imperial guards to surround the residences of commoners' relatives and report their every move.
He had just finished resting in the side hall at midnight, intending to take a short nap before getting up to oversee the joint trial, but before he could even fall into a deep sleep, Emperor Hongren was awakened by a trembling old eunuch. The old eunuch, prostrate on the ground, barely daring to breathe, reported the matter.
Emperor Hongren sat there dumbfounded, not saying a word for a long time.
"...Your Majesty?" Zhao Fuman saw that the emperor's eyes were fixed on him, and he called out with a forced smile. He lowered his head without daring to breathe, but the smile on his lips became even more sinister.
Emperor Hongren didn't see it, nor did the old eunuch who was pretending to be dead with his head down. But Qi Chengming, whose surveillance camera was positioned very well, did see it.
He immediately took note of it.
—What does "Fu Man Gong Gong" mean?
Could it be that this old eunuch and Emperor Hongren are not of one mind?
The original story didn't depict the eunuch's fate; he was merely mentioned briefly as a supporting character, seemingly receiving a peaceful end under the original male lead's influence. During his early years as a prince, he was a powerful and respected head eunuch who didn't bully his servants. He never showed any disrespect to the original second prince, always treating him with utmost deference.
...His face always wore a smile, like a steamed bun made with white sugar.
Qi Chengming recalled his several encounters with Grandpa Fuman, and there wasn't a single time Grandpa Fuman wasn't smiling. He'd previously thought it was just a sign, but now, seeing the true meaning behind that smile…
It's hard to say.
Emperor Hongren sat there blankly for a while, then, unusually, stroked his thumb ring with a vacant expression and asked, "How did you get there?"
"The imperial physician examined him and said it was smallpox that caused his premature death." He had actually said this once before, but the old eunuch didn't dare to say anything more and carefully repeated it again.
Emperor Hongren remained silent for a long while before finally saying, "Let the Court of Judicial Review investigate thoroughly. I will also attend. Investigate it completely, and afterwards... execute their entire clan."
His words were neither hot nor cold, not at all furious, just calm, yet they sent chills down one's spine, as if a sense of danger had crept onto one's skin.
"Yes." Everyone in the room held their breath and lowered their heads; you could hear a pin drop. After a while, the old eunuch left silently, leaving only the dim light and the hunched-over Zhao Fuman in the room.
Emperor Hongren could not see that Zhao Fuman was still hunched over with difficulty, and was lost in thought, saying softly, "Chengxiao... when he was born, I also had high hopes for him."
This son was intelligent, studious, and gentle. He treated his younger brothers with the demeanor of an elder brother, and was the perfect eldest son in Emperor Hongren's eyes. For the first time, he was a father, for the first time teaching his son, and for the first time worrying about his son's studies and character. All of this was for this child.
Although the third son later became more outstanding, intelligent and skilled in both literature and martial arts, winning his favor, Emperor Hongren's expectations for his eldest son never diminished.
He was also the first of his sons to enter the cabinet, and he did a good job when he participated in politics.
If it weren't for his eldest son's hypocritical nature being exposed later, his treasonous collusion with court officials, his intolerance of his brothers, and his exposure of his inherent cold-blooded selfishness, Emperor Hongren wouldn't have been so heartbroken and utterly disappointed, and wouldn't have made up his mind to completely remove this son from the line of succession.
When he later released his eldest son, he was planning to let him further hone his skills against his second son. Once they had competed for power and the second son had matured, he would then hand over the vast country to him. Until then, no one would know that he had already secretly usurped his eldest son's right of succession…
But now.
Now……
Losing her son in her later years!
Although the eldest son is not suitable for great responsibilities, he has changed his attitude towards his brothers lately, so how could he be...!
Emperor Hongren grew increasingly vengeful, waiting only for the joint trial to be overthrown by five horses and torn to pieces, even a thousand cuts would not be enough to satisfy his hatred!
He forced himself to stay alert and asked again, "How is the First Prince now?"
Zhao Fuman, unsure of what the emperor was asking, cautiously replied, "These past few days, the Crown Prince's wife, along with two concubines and three other women, have been praying for His Highness at the palace with the imperial grandchildren."
"I remember the eldest grandson is almost six years old?" Emperor Hongren recalled for a long time, vaguely remembering that the eldest prince had three or four grandsons. The eldest grandson was not born of the legitimate wife, so he did not give him a name, and he could not remember it clearly now.
"Yes, His Highness once inquired about the matter of His Highness the Imperial Grandson's enrollment in school." Zhao Fuman recalled this matter from his mind.
The eldest grandson's birthday is still young; strictly speaking, he shouldn't start school until the year after next. That day, the eldest prince was just exchanging pleasantries and exchanging gifts with Zhao Fuman, and casually mentioned this to sound him out. But now that His Majesty says the eldest grandson will soon be six years old, even including the traditional Chinese age reckoning, there's still some time to go, and Zhao Fuman accepted it without batting an eye.
This is a good thing.
His Majesty cherishes his son and is willing to promote the eldest prince. If word gets out, even Consort Shu will be grateful to him.
"Go and deliver the imperial decree during the day. After the New Year, let the eldest grandson study in the Imperial Study. As for the other suitable children... send them there as well." Emperor Hongren glanced at Zhao Fuman, then pulled the thick quilt over himself in a flustered mood.
Zhao Fuman knew what this meant.
The emperor, so devoted to his son, couldn't even remember his grandson's name or how many he had when he wanted to bestow favors. It was truly embarrassing. Zhao Fuman's failure to investigate these details beforehand was a sign of his servants' inattention; it was their fault.
He lowered his head and quickly responded again.
There was no further movement in the side hall. Qi Chengming turned his gaze away from the monitor, feeling drowsy but also somewhat alert.
...The eldest prince's child is only a few years old, so the other princes probably wouldn't take them seriously. In the original story, they indeed didn't cause much trouble. However...Emperor Hongren lived a long time, and after the youngest male protagonist from the original story ascended the throne, they were supported and caused a few disturbances.
No need to be on guard now, but you should keep it in mind in the future.
Qi Chengming turned over and lay down with difficulty.
Without the imperial physician secretly interfering, and with the system pills he was secretly taking, the pimples on his body gradually dried up, and some even began to fall off, indicating that he had passed the critical period.
But it is precisely at times like these that one must not relax or be careless in advance. Not even a single scab should be rubbed off. If he were to become emperor in the future, Qi Chengming would not want to be called the Pockmarked Emperor like Kangxi. That would be a truly unpleasant sound.
This was the third week since the princes were diagnosed.
The seventh prince, half-asleep, woke up once, feeling as if he had just survived a bout of boiling oil in the underworld. He stared listlessly at the rafters, oblivious to the commotion his brothers made outside the door. But his little eunuch—the one who had miraculously survived—came over and stammered out the news of the eldest prince's death.
The seventh prince's eyes widened suddenly.
"What?!"
The Seventh Prince was so anxious that he tried to sit up on the spot, but his whole body was unbearably itchy, his sores hadn't healed yet, and he was too weak to sit up. He fell back down halfway. The Seventh Prince couldn't care less about these things; his heart clenched, filled with worry and fear: "You said that the imperial physicians at my elder brothers' places have discovered that they've been dishonest?"
A sense of crisis loomed over him like a dark cloud.
The Seventh Prince felt that he could never clear his name of the filth he had been smeared with!
Putting aside the fact that he'd infected the brothers with smallpox, if everyone had been alright, we could have maintained a semblance of civility. But now, our eldest brother… our eldest brother is gone! That's a blood feud.
"What exactly happened to my eldest and second brothers? Tell me quickly!" The seventh prince was so anxious that he almost coughed.
Did the eldest brother die because someone sabotaged his life? What about the second brother? He didn't intentionally infect all the brothers, and he wasn't the one who sabotaged it! But will the others believe that?
He has a criminal record, and now it seems he is the prime suspect! But the Seventh Prince knows his own situation—he still harbors a sliver of hope that his father, the Emperor, is wise and should know that he doesn't have many people to rely on, right?
Yes, compared to this poor little guy, Sixth Brother is the eldest son of the Empress, and is favored by the Empress Dowager. His maternal family also has many relatives. If he wants to bribe people... only Sixth Brother has such ability and family background!
The Seventh Prince prayed silently while anxiously watching the young eunuch. However, news from their area was tightly controlled; they couldn't even leave the house, so how could the young eunuch possibly find out anything? He could only stammer and make a bitter face.
This way.
The Ministry of Justice, the Court of Judicial Review, and the Censorate jointly supervised the trial of the prince's murder case, which the Emperor himself was in the audience of. After several rounds of review, the case finally came to a conclusion.
It turns out that the people behind Physician Feng have some connection with the First Prince! They've set their sights on eliminating dissidents for the monarch. And what about the unclean objects dragged from the First Prince's room? They're just a smokescreen, designed to deceive others should the plot to murder the prince be exposed.
No matter how flawlessly they acted, they couldn't withstand the grief of the grieving old emperor who was determined to investigate.
"Execute their entire clan!" Emperor Hongren's anger and pain finally found an outlet. He slammed his fist on the table and roared, "Tie up the ringleader and have him executed by slow slicing at the execution ground! I want everyone to see this! This is the fate of those who dare to plot against a prince!"
Such a cruel decree resulted in the execution of many, with even exile being forbidden. Yet this time, no one dared to utter a single word of advice against defying the will of Heaven.
The dignity of the royal family cannot be offended; anyone who dares to lay a hand on a prince will face bloody retribution.
The most important reason why Emperor Hongren was angry was—
Just a few months ago, he was furious because his youngest son had resorted to any means to poison his second son. But a few months later, someone still dared to target the prince? So, they really think he's too old to wield a sword?! Even if he wants the reputation of a benevolent ruler, he wouldn't be so foolish and cowardly!
Emperor Hongren felt an extreme unease, as if the situation was slipping out of his control.
When the emperor is enraged, blood will splatter three feet deep.
Now, Physician Feng, along with the two fifth-rank officials and the third-rank provincial official behind him, were executed by slow slicing as the ringleaders, and their entire families were bound and put to death. The extermination of three generations meant that their paternal, maternal, and paternal families would all suffer.
This led to executions at Caishikou for over ten days, with hundreds dying and heads rolling everywhere. The stench of blood lingered in the air for a long time. The number of others who were sold off or implicated was even greater, reaching thousands.
People were filled with anxiety.
Even though the year is drawing to a close, there is no festive atmosphere in the capital, and no family dares to openly prepare for the New Year. In previous years, even the imperial family would put aside any difficult or complicated matters because the New Year was approaching. Even serious crimes punishable by death would be postponed until after the New Year to avoid bad luck.
...It's clear that Emperor Hongren was truly furious this time, and didn't care about anything else.
The only good news is—
Apart from the eldest prince who tragically passed away, the other princes gradually recovered, their conditions improving day by day. Although the second prince had never been very healthy since childhood, and every imperial physician shook their heads at him when he first contracted the disease, he was the first to recover and was the first person to walk out of the restaurant.
"Your Highness is truly blessed! You survived smallpox without even a single scar." After so many days of worry, Xiao Chengzi could finally breathe a sigh of relief and praised him sincerely, his eyes crinkling with laughter.
"You are very lucky too," Qi Chengming said in return. But wasn't he worried about Xiao Chengzi the whole time? It was expected that he would recover well from the pills without leaving any marks, but he didn't know how he would make Xiao Chengzi take them every day if he were to catch the infection.
"Cousin! I'm so glad you're alright!" The carriage that had been parked nearby finally opened. Cousin Wang Shuo strode down and rushed over to greet Qi Chengming as he came out, his eyes filled with tears again.
Song Gu busied himself directing several people to hand over braziers and burn mugwort leaves at the doorway: "Quickly, give His Highness a step!"
"Alright, alright, I'm fine." Qi Chengming was both amused and annoyed as he was surrounded by a group of people bustling around him, watching his cousin, who was a head taller and more muscular than him, act like a child. He subconsciously glanced into the distance.
Although he couldn't see it clearly, the red robe on the distant building remained unchanged. Qi Chengming felt even warmer inside.
He also knew why Wen Er wasn't coming over, and it would be best for them to avoid suspicion and pretend they didn't know each other.
"Quickly, let me see!" An unexpected voice rang out.
Xiao Chengzi, Xiao Dezi, Song Gu, Gan Tang, and their group were all startled and respectfully took a few steps back to make way for Qi Chengming.
Looking into the distance, Qi Chengming saw an unassuming old man sitting in a shop across the blocked street. He wore a silk hat and held a jade fan, looking like a wealthy old man.
Qi Chengming was taken aback and quickly went over to pay his respects. He hadn't expected that... Emperor Hongren would actually come out of the palace to pick him up in person.
"Greetings, Father Emperor." Qi Chengming knelt firmly down, and two strong hands suddenly appeared on his arms, as if to help him up quickly. His concern and fear were palpable.
At a time like this... it would be a shame not to say something emotional.
Qi Chengming tried to gather his thoughts, but still couldn't hold back his tears. So he resorted to his old tricks—prostrating himself on the ground and sobbing, he said, "You unfilial son, I almost thought I would never see my father again!"
Upon hearing this, Emperor Hongren burst into tears, nearly unable to hold back his emotions: "Chengming...you've scared me to death!"
He pulled Qi Chengming into his arms emotionally, patting him as he said, "Without you, who am I supposed to rely on in the future...!"
It was a resounding statement.
Upon hearing this, everyone around changed color, but quickly concealed their expressions...
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Author's Note: Second Update
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