The prince pinched the pill and stuffed it into the emperor's mouth. After a while, the emperor suddenly gasped and jumped up from the bed. The prince said: "Ah——"
He was so frightened that he stepped back repeatedly and accidentally bumped into the footstool. He pulled the emperor's boots off with his hands and they fell squarely into his arms.
The prince: “…”
He held his boots in a daze and asked in a trembling voice, "Father? Are you awake?!"
After the emperor sat up, he was still breathing rapidly, like a dying toad. His bloodshot eyes looked particularly terrifying, and with his purple face, he looked like a ghost crawling out of hell to take his life.
The prince unconsciously hugged the boots in his arms tightly, as if holding a life-saving straw.
The queen covered her mouth in fear, staring at the emperor in amazement, and asked in a low voice, "How could this happen, Your Majesty?"
The emperor turned his head and stared at them. Just as he was about to speak, his face changed and he suddenly spat out a mouthful of black blood, which sprayed all over the prince's head and face.
The prince: “…”
“Ahhhhhh—”
"Bang--"
The palace door was suddenly kicked open from the outside. The prince was startled and looked over. A cold wind whistled in from outside, blowing away the chaotic smell of incense and medicine in the palace. A cold and murderous aura hit him in the face, and the prince's heart skipped a beat.
Heavy snow was falling outside the eaves, palace lanterns were swaying in the corridor, and eerie shadows were stretched, twisted, and entangled one after another, forming an ominous trace.
The leader...
The prince's eyes were bloodshot, and he shouted hoarsely, "Old Five? What do you want to do?"
The Fifth Prince's face was as cold as a snowy mountain, completely different from his usual dandy appearance. When he was serious, he actually had some of the demeanor of the late emperor.
The Queen was uneasy, but she still stood up and, with her airs as a queen, demanded, "Fifth Prince, without the permission of the Emperor and me, who gave you the right to trespass into His Majesty's bedroom?"
Her gaze swept over the dense mass of guards behind him, and she asked in a stern tone, "You've brought so many guards with you. What are you planning? Are you trying to force the emperor to abdicate? His Majesty hasn't even arrived yet, and you're so impatient?"
The Fifth Prince smiled as the blame fell upon him. "Who is so impatient? The Empress knows it all."
He waved his hand and said coldly, "Go! Capture the Crown Prince and the Queen. They are plotting to murder my father. They deserve death. Imprison them in the Heavenly Prison first."
"You dare?!" The Queen immediately stood in front of the Prince and raised her voice, "I am the Empress of the Central Palace. I am the mother of a country. Who dares to touch me and the Prince?!"
However, her powerful voice was of no use. The Fifth Prince brought with him guards from his own palace who only obeyed the Fifth Prince's orders.
They rushed in to arrest the Crown Prince and the Queen, and the Crown Prince cried out, "How dare you! Someone—someone! Where are the Imperial Guards?"
"Fifth Prince—what are you doing?"
The commander of the Royal Guards who rushed over after receiving the news looked at the scene in disbelief and clenched the knife in his hand.
The Fifth Prince glanced at him and said, "The Crown Prince and the Queen are plotting to murder Your Majesty and poisoning Him."
As he spoke, he gave the imperial physician behind him a look, and the imperial physician immediately rushed to the dragon bed, "Your Majesty, please vomit quickly——"
The imperial physician had no idea what the emperor had smelled, but the emperor's face turned green and he leaned over the bed and started vomiting, "Ugh! Ugh!"
The black blood mixed with a pile of food residue flowed all over the floor. It was sour, bitter, smelly and mixed with the smell of blood. When it was heated, it filled the entire hall. Anyone who smelled it would feel nauseous.
The commander of the Royal Guards immediately looked at the Crown Prince and the Queen with suspicion. The Queen knew that this matter could not be concealed any longer. The Fifth Prince came prepared. The most urgent task was to sever ties with the Crown Prince and expose the mother and son.
In a flash, the Queen immediately looked at the Prince and slapped him. The Prince stumbled and fell to the ground, his boots falling out of his arms. He looked at the Queen blankly: "Mother..."
The Queen demanded sternly, "Prince, didn't you say that the Imperial Master gave you a magical elixir that could revive the dead? How could this be?"
The Queen winked at him, and the Crown Prince suddenly became alert. He immediately slapped himself again: "It's all my fault. I trusted that villain, the Imperial Preceptor! I really thought he was doing this for the good of my father, so I took the medicine he gave me. Who knew he...he was trying to frame me!"
The Queen gritted her teeth and said, "Did you hear that? The Crown Prince was deceived by the Imperial Master. This medicine was given by the Imperial Master. It's obvious that the Imperial Master colluded with others to deliberately frame the Crown Prince."
At this point, the Queen immediately looked at the Fifth Prince. "Fifth Prince, you came so promptly, but did you get the news beforehand? Could it be that you are the one colluding with the Imperial Preceptor?"
The more she thought about it, the more possible it seemed, and she felt more confident when she questioned it.
The commander of the Royal Guards was confused again. He looked at this and then that, and felt that no one seemed like a good person.
The imperial physician fed the emperor an antidote pill and kept him alive. The fifth prince ignored the queen's questioning and just walked to the bedside. The queen rushed forward and tried to push the fifth prince away, but was stopped by the fifth prince's guards.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me for being late in rescuing you."
The fifth prince chose a clean place and knelt down.
The emperor took a deep breath and breathed hard, then tremblingly sat on the head of the bed with the help of the imperial physician. His voice was hoarse and weak, and it was inaudible if you didn't listen carefully. "Good boy..."
The queen was stunned. What was going on?
What does the emperor's tone mean?
Just when the atmosphere in the hall was getting weird to the extreme, someone else came outside.
"I am late in coming to your rescue, Your Majesty, and I beg your forgiveness."
As soon as the Imperial Preceptor's voice rang out, the Queen and the Crown Prince's hearts skipped a beat.
By this time, the sky was already getting light, and the light shining on the Imperial Master seemed to have coated him with a layer of light gold, making him look like a banished immortal.
He walked in alone, his eyes beneath the mask looked around, and finally smiled, "Empress and Crown Prince, what are you doing?"
"You, you, you—you still have the nerve to come here? The medicine you gave me almost killed my father, Imperial Master, you have such a vicious mind! Do you have any ill intentions?!"
The prince took the initiative, rolled his eyes and pointed at the imperial teacher and started questioning him.
The Imperial Preceptor looked at him with pity. "Your Highness, you still want to slander me after all this? Once your Majesty dies, you'll pin the blame on me. Killing two birds with one stone by eliminating two of your greatest foes, you can then sit back and relax and ascend the throne, right?"
The prince was startled. "What nonsense are you talking about? I—"
"Rebellious son! Beast! Worse than pigs and dogs!" The emperor didn't know if it was a moment of enlightenment or simply outrage, but his voice suddenly rose. He pointed at the prince and cursed, "The Imperial Master is loyal to me. When he said you had ulterior motives, I didn't believe him. I always felt that you were my own flesh and blood. I didn't expect you to be so cruel!"
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