Chapter 73 Liquidation
The young prince died at the age of four after falling into a well.
This incident shocked the entire court, and the women of the inner palace were filled with anxiety.
After learning of the young prince's death, Consort Liang, his birth mother, nearly went mad from the loss of her only support and attempted suicide several times, but was stopped each time by palace servants. Consort Shu, who was appointed to raise the young prince, also wept bitterly, becoming depressed and withdrawn from her quarters. From then on, in a corner of the palace, occasional mournful cries or eerie sounds that seemed to be both weeping and laughing could be heard.
The King of Zhen was furious and ordered the Minister of Justice to sign a pledge: if the mastermind behind the crime was not found, he would have to return with his head.
At this critical juncture when powerful families are in decline and urgently need to regain power, regardless of whether the truth was an accident, the court and the public alike suspect that this matter is inextricably linked to the Yan family, the biggest beneficiary.
With the court officials in turmoil, the issue of choosing an heir once again became the focus of the court and the public, and memorials piled up on Prince Zhen's desk like snowflakes. Meanwhile, the seventh day after the death of the young prince had not yet passed.
Meanwhile, those who had previously spoken out for the Yan family, accused of treason, were now increasing daily, with some even willing to risk their lives to overturn their convictions. Clearly, in their eyes, the situation had reversed. Previously, the candidates for crown prince included the third prince and the youngest prince. Although the youngest prince was born with a disability, it didn't necessarily mean he would die young. Unexpectedly, the youngest prince did indeed die at such a young age, leaving only the third prince as the sole candidate for the position of crown prince. The Yan family's reversal was imminent.
The court was thus divided into two factions. One faction secretly supported the Third Prince and urged Prince Zhen to establish a crown prince every day. The other faction followed Prince Zhen wholeheartedly. In order to prevent the Yan family from using the Third Prince to make a comeback, they began to earnestly advise in court: "We have heard that His Majesty has not summoned any concubines to his bedchamber for a long time. His Majesty is in his prime and should extend his favor more widely..."
“It is too early to establish an heir, but the imperial lineage is weak, so we must plan ahead. I request that the imperial concubine selection be reopened to fill the harem.”
"The vacancy of the empress's position for too long will ultimately be detrimental to the dynasty's fate. Your Majesty should reconsider."
Shinju, standing among the courtiers, looked pale and lacked vitality. His golden eyes, which were once more dazzling than his earrings, were now lowered, his gaze vacantly passing over the floor, seemingly looking somewhere else.
But some people, eager for a spectacle and not afraid of making things worse, publicly called out Masakatsu's name, their ill intentions practically overflowing. That person said, "As His Majesty's attendant, Master Qing should advise him to stay overnight in the concubines' palaces or summon them to the Zhengren Hall; neither is unacceptable. In the end, compared to beauty, bearing children is the right path."
While Shinju was emptying his mind, his secondary dantian was still functioning normally, making it difficult for him not to hear. However, Shinju's subconscious erected a barrier around his secondary dantian, isolating him from it, so Shinju seemed not to hear anything.
Even those who didn't believe he and the Poison King truly had a relationship beyond that of ruler and subject couldn't resist their curiosity about how the once-popular Master Qing would react to this test, so no one spoke up for him.
Before the spectacle could even begin, the Prince of Zhen, seated at the head of the table, suddenly spoke up: "Zhen Suikang. Do I need your guidance on the conduct of my attendants?"
Although the King of Zhen's voice was as indifferent as ever, if any of the ministers dared to look up, they would know how terrifying his expression was. His phoenix eyes did not hide his sinister look, and the chill emanating from his body was probably comparable to the ferocious aura attached to the blood-stained scimitar.
The minister surnamed Zhen felt a pang of fear in his heart. He immediately knelt down, kowtowed, and begged for mercy, saying, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, you had absolutely no intention of giving any guidance! You were merely offering a suggestion—"
However, the Prince of Zhen, not bothering with a proper reason, casually removed the man's official hat, a fifth-rank official. All the ministers who had just offered advice felt a chill run down their spines. The censor, unable to remain silent, immediately offered his remonstrance.
The imperial court instantly erupted into a cacophony of noise, like a bustling marketplace.
However, King Zhen was determined to go his own way, as if he truly wanted to solidify his reputation as a "tyrant" and a "foolish ruler." He completely ignored everyone else, remained unmoved by the threats of death from the civil officials and censors, and kept his gaze fixed on Zhen Su, who seemed lost in thought. King Zhen was clearly not as calm as he appeared. He was worried that Zhen Su would be hurt by the provocative words, and even more afraid that Zhen Su would remain unmoved.
The attempt to dissuade the king from having sex with his concubines and to continue the family line failed, and the once powerful clan, which was on the verge of losing its influence, rose again.
People are in high spirits when they have good news. The Empress Dowager's stroke was cured. She was not only able to walk, but also her speech returned to normal.
In an instant, half of the court officials quietly returned to the Yan family's ship. This secret alliance caused the confiscation of the Yan family's property and execution to be repeatedly obstructed, even though the evidence of the Yan family's collusion with the Feng Kingdom was conclusive.
The Zhao family also gained a respite. The evidence proving Zhao Qianheng had leaked the Privy Council's plan disappeared, making it impossible to identify him as the culprit behind the attack on Prince Zhen's journey away from the capital, resulting in the deaths and injuries of many soldiers and dozens of warhorses. Soon, the head of the Zhao family was released and returned home unharmed.
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Shinju's emotions came and went quickly. After the court session, he returned to normal, standing quietly beside the King of Poison. His pair of bright golden eyes, like pools of water, complemented the golden paulownia leaves outside the palace, making people stop and gaze at him.
The King of Poisons appeared somewhat unusual, still staring intently at Shinjuku, his eyes like those of a giant, blood-mouthed python lurking in the shadows, a twisted excitement flickering within him, waiting for his prey to reveal a "flaw"—trying to capture the reaction he expected from Shinjuku.
However, Shinju was no longer in a daze as he had been during the morning court session. Instead, he said seriously, "Does Your Majesty have any countermeasures? The aristocratic families are now fighting to the death, which may prove that they have exhausted all their options and have been forced into a dead end."
The King of Zhen paused for a moment, then concealed the disappointment in his eyes and sneered, "I never intended to touch their last resort... but this time they have courted their own death, so don't blame me for being ruthless."
Many days passed, but the King of Zhen still did not summon any of his concubines to his bedchamber. Even when he tried to comfort and appease them, he sent Qing'e to do so, never setting foot in any of their palaces. Apart from attending court and discussing state affairs, he only traveled between the Scorpion Shadow Palace and the Zhengren Palace.
Upon hearing this news, the Empress Dowager immediately became radiant. Her legs and back no longer ached. She summoned the Third Prince and the Eldest Princess every day to chat with them. She even personally selected a principal wife for the Third Prince.
Seeing this, the courtiers who had not yet taken sides became even more indecisive.
Shinju had been serving as a servant to King Ju for quite some time, yet he had never seen or heard of King Ju staying overnight in the palaces of his concubines. Even now, in such an urgent situation, King Ju showed no sign of showing any affection for his concubines.
Therefore, Shinju's previously troubled mind was calmed down again.
He finally made up his mind; he would stay, stay in this little world, and be with the Poison King.
On the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival, Shinju found Uncle Wu and asked him to teach him how to make mooncakes.
Although it was Zhen Su's first time cooking, she learned very quickly. She used lard and flour to make a flaky pastry, filled it with red bean paste, pine nuts, and maltose, and used a food mold to imprint the "Osmanthus Tree and Jade Rabbit" pattern on the surface of the pastry. Finally, she baked it. Although it was her first time, with Uncle Wu's step-by-step guidance and his help with the complicated procedures such as controlling the heat, the mooncakes she made in the end were quite impressive.
Uncle Wu was quite surprised; it was the first time he had ever made such a beautiful mooncake, perfectly round in shape, with a flaky crust that had risen to a perfect consistency.
"Uncle Wu, please try it and see how it tastes?" Zhen Su's golden eyes shone brightly. Even though night had not yet fallen, Uncle Wu felt as if he had already seen the full moon that would rise tonight.
So, under the expectant gaze of Masaki, Uncle Wu took a bite of the mooncake that Masaki had made.
"..." This presentation... I was watching every step of the process, how could it turn out like this...?
Uncle Wu closed his eyes, suppressing the urge to vomit, and forced a smile as he tentatively asked, "Whom does Xiao Qingzi intend to give it to?"
Masakatsu didn't want to reveal that it was for His Majesty, for fear of frightening Uncle Wu, so he simply said, "It's a gift for someone important."
Uncle Wu looked conflicted. Since the mooncake was meant to be given to someone important, he couldn't let it ruin their friendship!
Finally, Uncle Wu bluntly pointed out the problem, and the smile in Shinju's eyes froze instantly. He quickly tasted it himself and then had nothing to say.
Uncle Wu couldn't help but ask, "What else did you put in the filling?"
After thinking for a moment, Shinju replied, "...I saw that I still had a lot of persimmon candy that I brought back from Yuncheng, so I suddenly had a brilliant idea to put it in instead of rose candy."
"The worst thing you can do when cooking is to act on a whim!" Uncle Wu thought to himself.
"No! Rewrite it from scratch!!"
"Yes, Master!"
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During the Mid-Autumn Festival, Prince Zhen's injuries finally healed, so the triumphant banquet, which had been delayed for a long time and should have been held after returning to the capital, was arranged to be held during the Mid-Autumn Festival to celebrate the festival together.
However, the shadow cast upon the palace by the young prince's untimely death has not yet completely dissipated. On this day of reunion, Consort Shu did not attend, nor did Consort Liang.
However, Han Wang, who had been worried about the King of Zhen for a long time, took this opportunity to enter the palace with his family. After offering his condolences to the King of Zhen, he saw that the King of Zhen looked relatively well, smiled with relief, exchanged a few pleasantries, and then took his seat.
At the last minute before the banquet began, the Empress Dowager arrived late, supported by the Third Prince, and sat down to the left of the Prince of Zhen.
Shinjuku knelt to the right of the King of the Abyss, where there was a small table with a small, rather plain food box on it.
Shinju would glance at the food box from time to time, and then at the King of Poison, feeling a mix of excitement and trepidation in his heart.
The King of Zhen didn't even glance at the Empress Dowager, only offering a simple greeting before habitually turning his gaze to Masakuni. Seeing that Masakuni looked somewhat nervous for some reason, he gave him a reassuring look.
Shinjuku was also puzzled, but after exchanging glances, his wildly beating heart did gradually calm down.
The smile in the eyes of the King of Zhen deepened, and then he slowly glanced at the empty seat on his right.
With the banquet still not announced, everyone began to look around anxiously. They then noticed the only empty seat on the right of the King of Poison, and whispered amongst themselves about who they were waiting for and who would sit in that position.
After a while, a young figure strode into the open-air imperial garden where the banquet was being held. Amidst the involuntary gasps of amazement from the crowd, he walked to the right of the Prince of Zhen and respectfully bowed to him, saying, "Greetings, Father Emperor."
The Empress Dowager could hardly believe her eyes. She felt a sudden dizziness. Suppressing her trembling, she raised her hand and pointed angrily at the newcomer, her eyes wide with fury. "Your legs... how could they be?! How can you walk?!"
Many who had just joined the powerful families nearly lost their composure, stammering, "The First Prince has returned... He... wasn't he lame?!"
After observing the reactions of the crowd for a moment, Prince Zhen leisurely raised his hand, pointed to his right seat, and said in a firm and powerful voice, "Your Highness, please rise and take your seat."
The word "Crown Prince" struck like a thunderbolt, and everyone's expressions immediately changed.
As Shinju sized up the unfamiliar face of the eldest prince, and seeing that the King of Zhen treated him with unusual kindness, a stark contrast to his usual attitude towards the other princes, his expression suddenly darkened.
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Author's note: They're not his biological children. All the princes and princesses have nothing to do with the Poison King. This will be explained soon.
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