Emperor Zhou's pupils contracted: "If I wanted to kill you, why would I bother with all this trouble!"
Zhou Huaichuan looked down at him, his eyes devoid of any warmth, as if he were looking at a dead body.
"Of course, you don't want to kill me..."
When Zhou Huaichuan was born, a colorful sunrise filled the sky above the capital, hundreds of birds sang in unison, and peonies on the branches bloomed overnight.
It was regarded as an auspicious omen.
At that time, Zhou Zhe was not yet the emperor, but this auspicious omen earned him a lot of respect in front of the late emperor.
However, Zhou Zhe gradually discovered that the child would have asthma and develop red spots all over his body whenever a woman touched him.
The imperial physicians were all at a loss.
Consort Li had no other choice, so she asked Zhou Zhe to go to Lingshan Temple with her to pray to Buddha.
Unexpectedly, Master Yuanjing, the abbot of Lingshan Temple at the time, not only had no way to cure this strange illness, but also said that Zhou Huaichuan's fate was extremely tough, that he would bring misfortune to his father, mother, brother, and wife, and that none of his close relatives would have a good end.
Consort Li immediately retorted: "When my son was born, auspicious omens appeared in the sky. It would never be like what you said! Who exactly instructed you!"
“Benefactor, what this humble monk has said is all according to the divination.” Yuanjing bowed, but did not change his words.
Zhou Zhe hurriedly asked, "Master Yuanjing, is there a way to resolve this?"
Yuanjing took off a string of Buddhist prayer beads from his hand: "Let the young benefactor wear them. When the time is right, he will naturally turn misfortune into good fortune."
Yuan Jing's words planted a seed of apprehension in Zhou Ji's heart.
Later, Zhou Zhe went to Lingshan Temple to have his fortune told by Yuanjing.
At that time, Zhou Zhe had been appointed as the crown prince, and Zhou Huaichuan's divination results also changed.
"Young benefactor, your Ziwei star is beginning to glow faintly, gradually connecting with the fate of the Great Zhou Dynasty..."
Zhou Zhe was startled: "What about my Ziwei Star?"
“The brighter the young benefactor’s light, the brighter the prince’s light will be.”
Before Zhou Zhe could even catch his breath, Yuan Jing continued, "But the Crown Prince must maintain a proper balance. You are primary, he is secondary. If the secondary star shines brighter than the primary star, then..."
Yuan Jing spat out a mouthful of blood before she could finish speaking.
"Master Yuanjing!"
Zhou Zhe hurriedly went to help him up.
Yuanjing waved his hand: "It's alright. Revealing heavenly secrets always comes at a price. Your Highness just needs to remember that you can use it, but you must not let it become too sharp!"
Zhou Zhe returned home with a heavy heart, and as Zhou Huaichuan grew up day by day and his various talents became apparent, he became even more restless.
Zhou Huaichuan reached his peak, especially when Grandpa Qi praised him for having the demeanor of Emperor Taizu at such a young age.
So, when Consort Shu poisoned Zhou Huaichuan in an attempt to frame the Empress, she replaced the arsenic with peony silk, a drug that could drive people mad and make them bloodthirsty.
He wanted to turn Zhou Huaichuan into a heartless beast, someone who, as long as he lived, could illuminate his path to the throne.
This matter was known only to the Emperor and the Empress Dowager. How did Zhou Huaichuan find out about it?
"You want to know how I know?"
Zhou Huaichuan's lips curled into a sneer: "The little eunuch who poisoned you back then had his heart on the right side and escaped unscathed. Now, he's become your chief eunuch."
Everyone in the hall looked at Eunuch Su, who smiled generously and said, "Your Majesty, even a servant's life is a life."
Eunuch Su was rescued by a palace maid serving Consort Li. After Zhou Huaichuan regained his appearance, he told her the truth.
Zhou Huaichuan then asked Consort Li and went to Lingshan Temple to find Yuanjing.
He said to Yuanjing, "Master, how could you have known that I would be where I am today? Isn't it because of your words that I am in this situation?"
Originally, I was born with auspicious omens, and even if I did not ascend to the throne in the future, I would not have to become this inhuman, ghostly creature.
The blood the master spat out wasn't because he had revealed a heavenly secret, but because he had done something evil and was being punished by Buddha.
Yuanjing already felt guilty towards him, and after hearing these words, she was deeply shocked.
Zhou Huaichuan, no matter what his future holds, at least he has never harmed anyone.
Yuanjing, seeking repentance and spiritual practice, resigned his position as abbot of Lingshan Temple and went to Xuzhou.
He wanted to salvage a chance for Zhou Huaichuan.
When Chu Xinxin handed the string of Buddhist prayer beads to Yuan Jing, Yuan Jing knew it wasn't the one he had given to Zhou Huaichuan.
However, he knew that Chu Xinxin was the one who could lead Zhou Huaichuan back to the path he was meant to be on.
He helped her only to make up for the mistakes he had made.
When Eunuch Su reappeared before Zhou Zhe, his youthful face had matured.
Zhou Zhe had simply assigned a eunuch at random and did not remember what he looked like.
"So what if I did it? As ruler and subject, father and son, if I want you dead, you should thank me for my great favor!"
The Zhou emperor made the bed boards clang loudly.
"Is that so?" The Empress stepped out from behind the curtain. "Did His Majesty say the same thing to my father, brothers, and clansmen when he starved them to death?"
Emperor Zhou's face turned ashen: "Empress, what are you saying? I don't understand..."
"The dungeon of the Prince of Huainan's mansion is littered with bones. His Majesty should also experience it..." The Empress's eyes were filled with hatred, "...the feeling of slowly dying in despair and hunger..."
“Zhou Zhe, we have been husband and wife for over twenty years. When you were at the bottom of society, it was my father who supported you all the way. How can you repay kindness with enmity!”
The Empress's eyes were so red they seemed about to burst forth, and Emperor Zhou dared not look directly at her.
"I don't want my teacher to die, but almost all the scholars in the world are his students. Only if he dies will those scholars be loyal to me alone!"
The empress never imagined that her father, who had worked diligently throughout his life and devoted himself to the Zhou Dynasty, would be exterminated along with his entire clan simply because of the emperor's suspicions!
"Zhou Zhe, you deserve this fate."
As the effects of the hibiscus pollen wore off, Emperor Zhou became agitated again: "I gave him a chance! If he had given up then, I wouldn't have killed him!"
"An opportunity?" the Empress asked incredulously. "You call it an opportunity when you pinned the blame for leaking the exam questions on him?"
If Grand Tutor Xu confesses, he will be condemned to death by all the scholars in the world!
"It's better to live a wretched life than to die a good death! I will not mistreat him."
The Empress sighed softly, "Then Your Majesty should rely on this peach blossom powder to live well."
After saying this, the empress poured the pollen into Emperor Zhou's mouth.
The Empress Dowager tried to stop him, but Eunuch Su stepped forward to block him.
"Cough cough cough, water, water!" Emperor Zhou's voice was like a broken bellows, whooshing and about to break.
No one in the hall paid him any attention.
After recovering from that moment, Emperor Zhou chuckled again.
"Hahaha, so what if you helped him ascend the throne? In the future, history books will only remember him as an executioner who murdered his emperor and his father!"
Chu Xinxin couldn't stand hearing this: "Old man, it was your beloved concubine and your minister who wanted to kill you. What does it have to do with my husband?"
“Oh, speaking of Consort Zhao…” Eunuch Su interjected, “I forgot to tell His Majesty, Consort Zhao is more than three months pregnant. His Majesty truly dotes on his grandson; even before the child is born, he listens to her every word and is completely manipulated by Consort Zhao…”
Even the food brought by Consort Zhao wasn't inspected. "To die beneath the peonies is to die a romantic death, Your Majesty. This way of dying is far better than a knife stabbing into your heart."
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