In Xu Zang's memory, the strongest impression of the palace was its high walls.
His mother died at that time, and the emperor treated him like he was invisible, ignoring his plight.
The palace maids and eunuchs, seeing which way the wind was blowing, accepted the woman's favors and bullied him relentlessly, making him eat dog food, kneel on the ground and crawl like a dog, and dress him in dirty clothes.
He was starving and cold, living worse than the wild dogs kept by the palace maids. He was skin and bones, and even a five-year-old child was taller and stronger than him.
Xiao Xuzang stood under the palace wall, his neck bent so high he could barely see the light outside.
The palace is a walled city, blocking out hope and imprisoning countless people's years and time.
The thing Xu Zang was most grateful to in his life was that she persuaded the emperor to send him out of that cage.
Ten years later, he is back.
No longer will I walk around the palace as a weak and useless person. I estimate that after today, things will change in this palace.
The eunuch leading him was the emperor's confidant, who had followed him since the emperor was still the crown prince and was extremely loyal.
While everyone else rolled their eyes at Xu Zang and cast disdainful glances at him, he was respectful to the point of humility as he led Xu Zang to the outside of the emperor's bedroom.
It's already the height of summer, and the heavy curtains at the door are still hanging. As soon as you step inside, you can smell a strong medicinal odor.
This flavor takes at least a year and a half to develop.
The further you go in, the dimmer the light becomes.
The dark curtains blocked out most of the light, and even the thickest bright yellow bedding on the huge dragon bed made the emperor's emaciated figure clearly visible.
Xu Zang stood by the bed, expressionless. The childishness on his face, which had been so convincingly faked, had vanished without a trace the moment he stepped into the palace.
The current emperor lies on his bed, barely clinging to life.
He could no longer breathe or speak as easily as a normal person, and he had to squint his eyes with difficulty to see the person in front of him clearly.
Ten years have passed. I haven't seen this child in ten years. I didn't realize he had grown so tall.
His face looks just like his mother's.
Thinking of that woman who loved to laugh, with her striking features and cheerful smile, it seems as if she's right beside me.
He once thought that she was his disgrace, and that only an incompetent emperor would use marriage alliances to protect his country.
On their wedding night, he ignored the joy in her eyes, coldly completed the ceremony, and never set foot in the Empress's palace again.
She didn't even glance at her unborn child, only hastily deciding on a name.
The position of crown prince should not have belonged to Xu Zang, but as the Western Liang Kingdom grew stronger day by day, he had no choice but to compromise.
Thus, she was mercilessly blamed by him; an empress was treated worse in the palace than an ordinary concubine.
But when it comes to feelings, one is never in control of one's own destiny.
There weren't many women in the harem, but the competition for the emperor's favor was fierce.
She was pushed in front of him, and misunderstandings arose one after another. But things took a turn for the better, and before she knew it, she had fallen in love with him.
Over the years, he had been deceiving himself, telling himself that he had never fallen for that woman.
But when people are at their most vulnerable, they only think of the people deep in their hearts.
He repented, he hated himself for being blind and heartless, and he wished he could turn back time.
The emperor has not attended court for more than forty days. The third prince has taken over the duties of acting as regent, and the empress is ruling from behind the curtain.
No one thought of even glancing at the emperor; they were all eyeing that position.
Only when the emperor was on his deathbed did he see the true colors of everyone.
"Good boy, come here." The emperor's voice was hoarse as he stretched out his thin, bony hand and beckoned to Xu Zang.
Xu Zang didn't move; he looked at the pitiful man with an almost mocking expression.
"Your Majesty, you've gone to great lengths to bring me back, surely you don't just want to catch up with old friends?"
He couldn't be bothered with the boring formalities and didn't want to stay in the house for even a second longer.
Hearing his distant form of address, the emperor's eyes dimmed further, and his face turned ashen.
"You won't even call me 'Father'?"
His words only made things worse. Xu Zang's expression shifted from mockery to violence: "You have no right! Ever since Mother died, you've been no different from a dead person in my heart!"
No one in the world dares to curse the emperor to death, not even the emperor's own mother.
Xu Zang's utterance of such treasonous words terrified all the palace servants in the bedchamber, causing them to kneel down in fear.
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