The emperor's eyes lit up slightly, and a spark ignited in his dull eyes.

He clenched his fists under the quilt and asked Xuan Jing weakly, "My illness..."

"Your Majesty, this Nine-Layer Golden Pill is a supreme treasure. Your Majesty has taken it for half a year, so you should have a deep understanding of its value."

Xuan Jing said seriously, "It's just that the Emperor Star is dim this time, and the Emperor's dragon body is also weakened by the Emperor Star. The effect of the elixir is too strong, and the Emperor is actually too weak to be replenished this time."

"..." The emperor thought for a while and felt that what Xuan Jing said made sense.

For example, if you give a hundred-year-old ginseng to someone with a weak foundation, the other person may die because of the inability to absorb the tonic, but can you say that ginseng is poisonous? ! This time, if it weren't for the dimming of the Emperor's Star, how could he have suffered this disaster? In the final analysis, it was Gu Jue who harmed him! The emperor suddenly realized that it was true, otherwise, he had been taking Xuan Jing's elixir for more than half a year, how could there be no problems earlier or later, but it just happened to be such a coincidence!

Gu Jue was indeed his biggest nemesis! ! Seeing that the emperor believed him, Xuan Jing breathed a sigh of relief and felt that his life was temporarily saved.

"Your Majesty," Xuan Jing said again, "I will go back and refine another furnace of Bu Yuan Dan for Your Majesty. Bu Yuan Dan can greatly replenish your vitality and make your dragon body return to the state of a pure and healthy childlike body."

The emperor listened, his eyes brightened, and he said anxiously: "Then I'm sorry to bother you, Taoist priest."

After he had only said a few words, the emperor's voice became even hoarser, and his throat felt like it was on fire with every word he spoke.

He felt that this group of imperial doctors were useless. They treated him for three days and three nights, but they only left him with a mouth full of ulcers. They were simply a bunch of useless people.

The emperor asked Eunuch Ni to see Xuan Jing off, so Eunuch Ni escorted him out of the Yangxin Palace and ordered another young eunuch to take a few imperial guards to escort Xuan Jing back to Yuanqing Temple.

After exchanging a few words of greeting, Eunuch Ni hurried back to the emperor's bedroom, leaving Xuan Jing sweating profusely.

When the cold wind blew towards him, Xuan Jing felt cold all over and his heart was chilled.

His instinct told him that he had to run away.

But then, reason rejected this idea. If he ran away, it would be confirmed that there was something wrong with the elixir, and the emperor would be furious. At that time, the emperor would definitely order the Jinyiwei to arrest him. The whole world belongs to the emperor, where can he run to? Once caught by the Jinyiwei, he would be dead.

But he had no choice but to run away, as his current situation was like walking on a thin tightrope.

If you take even the slightest wrong step, you will be doomed!

It was not until today that Xuan Jing finally understood what it meant that it was lonely at the top.

Xuan Jing was about to walk down the white marble steps when he saw a young man in a golden python robe walking hurriedly towards him, followed by several eunuchs.

It was the Crown Prince Gu Nanjin.

As soon as Xuan Jing saw the prince, his face froze.

The two men faced each other, and Gu Nanjin naturally saw Xuan Jing.

After a moment of daze, Xuan Jing quickly walked down the white marble steps, then knelt down in front of Gu Nanjin with a plop and said, "Your Highness, the Emperor has shown mercy and allowed me to return to Yuanqing Temple."

Xuan Jing was telling the prince that it was the emperor's will that he be released from prison, and if the prince put him back in prison, it would be disobeying the emperor's will.

Gu Nanjin's face was exhausted. He understood that since the emperor released Xuan Jing, it meant that he did not believe that his illness was caused by the elixir.

Gu Nanjin was not surprised by this result, but he was also very tired.

He ignored Xuan Jing, walked past him and entered the Yangxin Palace himself.

Xuan Jing, who was kneeling on the ground, felt relieved. With the help of Eunuch Xiao Wen, he stood up and left quickly, fearing that he would be late and bump into the queen again! Gu Nanjin ignored the eunuchs and palace maids who saluted him all the way and rushed to the emperor's bedroom with big strides.

The emperor inside also heard the palace servants outside shouting "Your Highness the Crown Prince", and his thin lips were tightly pursed together.

Oh, his prince is finally here! The emperor just watched Gu Nanjin walk around a screen and enter his field of vision, his eyes sinister.

"Father." Gu Nanjin bowed solemnly to the emperor on the dragon couch, panting.

Just now he heard that the emperor had woken up, so he put down what he was doing and hurried over.

Gu Nanjin had rushed here as quickly as possible, but the emperor had long had a grudge against his eldest son. In his opinion, even Xuan Jing, who was imprisoned, had arrived, but the prince had only arrived now, which clearly showed that he, his father, was not putting him first.

Yes, the prince is probably busy trying to win people's hearts and wait for the throne! The emperor was furious, but he didn't get angry immediately. He looked calm and asked in a hoarse voice, "What happened after I fell ill that day?"

The emperor's voice was soft and without any ups and downs, and no anger could be heard in it. Perhaps only Eunuch Ni knew that there was a rage behind every word the emperor spoke.

Gu Nanjin was a little surprised. He thought he would be scolded by his father again, but he didn't expect his father to be surprisingly calm today.

Gu Nanjin dutifully told the emperor about the cause of the illness, which was diagnosed as erysipelas by the imperial physicians. He just didn't mention that the imperial physician suggested looking for the miracle doctor from Jishidiang.

Finally, he also mentioned that the queen was in the Yangxin Palace tending to an illness and had just returned to the Fengluan Palace to rest last night.

The emperor casually said, "Thank you for your hard work, Queen," and then asked Gu Jue, "Has Gu Jue ever been to the palace?"

Gu Nanjin answered truthfully: "No. The Royal Grandmother is still in Prince Chen's Mansion."

Speaking of Empress Dowager Yin, Gu Nanjin couldn't help but think of the fact that the Emperor drugged her, and his face became unnatural for a moment.

The emperor had been observing the prince's every move, even every change in color, and felt that this was "unnatural" and a sign of guilt.

Yes, Gu Jue has the prince as his spy in the palace, and he knows his situation very well. So why bother to go to the palace again!

The emperor felt that he had seen through it but did not speak out. He waved his hand and said tiredly, "Prince, you can go down."

Anyway, I won't hear a word of truth from the prince, so there's no point in saying more.

Gu Nanjin bowed his head. He was totally unaware of this moment. The emperor's eyes were as sharp as ice knives as he looked at his hair crown.

Cold, heartless, disgusted.

Gu Nanjin retreated from the bedroom and sighed exhaustedly.

It was the Chinese New Year these days, and all the civil and military officials in the court were on holiday. There were no state affairs to deal with, so after the emperor fell ill, Gu Nanjin initially took care of him in the Yangxin Palace, doing his best.

Later, Prince Li and the cabinet ministers came to ask for a meeting, and righteously advised him that as the crown prince, he should calm the people's hearts and stabilize the court as soon as possible. In addition, the crown prince also had to prepare for tomorrow's opening ceremony.

In addition, after the New Year, the envoys of the Hao Kingdom will set off for the Hao Kingdom with the princess of the marriage alliance. The betrothal gifts, various ceremonial objects, etc. for the "princess's" marriage still need to be reviewed by the crown prince, especially since the envoys from the royal family of Da Qi have not been decided yet.

Gu Nanjin wished he had three heads and six arms. These days he only slept for two hours at most every night.

Gu Nanjin was worried, and Chu Qianhuang was worried too.

Although she had already received 20,000 taels of silver from Shen Wan, as long as she did not leave the capital, she was worried that things might change. After all, in her dream, the princess who married the Hao Kingdom was the third princess Anle, not Yuan Zhitong.

"Sister Huang, keep this!" The lady handed a carved box to Chu Qianhuang personally.

"Thank you, Grandma." Chu Qianhuang looked at the Madam with gratitude, "Grandma, you treat me the best!"

Shen Zhi didn't care about her "marriage" at all. She could only be thankful that she had her grandmother, the Madam, to help her take care of it.

This box is Chu Qianhuang’s dowry.

Because Chu Qianhuang didn't want to take so many worldly things with her, she asked the lady to exchange them for gold and silver. She collected some gold beads and a few thousand taels of silver, plus the 20,000 taels of silver note given by Shen Wan, and Chu Qianhuang felt that it was barely enough.

Chu Qianhuang handed the wooden box to Baoqin.

Compared to the dowry that should have belonged to her, these are nothing.

Whenever Chu Qianhuang thought about it, he felt a dull pain in his heart and felt very uncomfortable.

If Shen Zhi had not given all her dowry to Chu Qianchen, she would not have been so tight on money and would not have had to go to Shen Wan for a mere 20,000 taels.

Chu Qianhuang's eyelashes trembled slightly, and she whispered, "Grandma, I won't be able to show my filial piety to you in the future, so you must take good care of yourself."

The old lady always felt that her eldest granddaughter was forced to go to the Kingdom of Hao, and she sighed and said, "Sister Huang, my poor sister Huang! It's because of grandma's uselessness!"

As she spoke, the lady began to wipe her tears with a handkerchief.

"Grandma, I know you tried your best." Chu Qianhuang held the lady's hand and comforted her considerately, "Granddaughter knows that you treat me the best."

After she said that, the lady became even more excited. She patted Chu Qianhuang's hand and kept saying that she was reluctant to let her go. It was a scene of deep love between the grandmother and granddaughter. Looking at Nanny Wang beside her, her eyes also turned red.

At this time, a maid in blue came to report: "Madam, the young master is here!"

The lady was delighted when she heard this and said hurriedly, "Please come in! Please come in!"

The lady held Chu Qianhuang's hand tightly, smiling so hard that her teeth were showing: "Sister Huang, I haven't seen Brother Yi for several days."

Years ago, Chu Yunyi was seriously ill, and the lady wanted to visit him, but Shen told her that Chu Yunyi had chickenpox and was temporarily staying at the farm.

Chickenpox can be a serious or minor disease, and the most feared thing is that it can be transmitted to others, so the lady only kept an eye on Shen and made sure she sent a maid who had had chickenpox before to take good care of Chu Yunyi.

Chu Qianhuang smiled slightly: "Yes, I haven't seen Brother Yi for a few days."

After a while, Chu Yunyi came down led by a maid in green clothes.

Chu Qianhuang looked at Chu Yunyi, who was wearing a royal blue robe with dark patterns, walking towards them. Her eyes flashed, and she couldn't help but think of the conversation between Chu Lingyu and the lady that she heard that day.

She was outside that day and couldn't stay for long, so she didn't listen too carefully. She only knew vaguely that Kang Hongda had a crush on Chu Yunyi.

In Chu Qianhuang's dream, Kang Hongda also left a mark of his own. Just like now, he fell in love with Chu Yunyi.

Originally, Chu Qianhuang thought that the life trajectories of Chu Lingxiao and Aunt Jiang had changed, and that Chu Yunyi's life would also change.

Chu Qianhuang couldn't help but sigh that fate really has a mysterious cause and effect, and the people who can ultimately transcend fate are only a very small minority among the minority.

Chu Qianhuang's eyes flickered and she subconsciously clenched the handkerchief in her hand.

After Chu Yunyi paid his respects, the lady couldn't help but hold his hand, looked him up and down, and said with a smile: "Brother Yi, you have grown taller again, taller than your father. But you have become thinner and darker..."

The old lady thought that her grandson had lost weight because he had chickenpox, and she gave him some distressed instructions.

"Grandma, your grandson is so sincere!" Chu Yunyi said with a smile, showing a row of neat white teeth. "I am still growing up, and I will grow taller! This little illness is nothing."

The old lady had always doted on her eldest grandson, and continued to ask him how he had been doing recently, such as how many days the acne had appeared, when the scabs fell off, etc. Chu Yunyi answered without a single mistake, and smiled as he said that he had been eating light meals in recent days, and now that he had finally returned home, he asked the old lady to nourish him well.

In fact, Chu Yunyi arrived in the capital with the Xuanjia Camp yesterday. He rested in the Fengtai Camp for a night before returning to the Marquis' Mansion.

Chu Yunyi had already been to Shen's place just now, and he knew what excuse Shen had given him, so he came to Rongfu Hall to pay his respects to the Madam. Therefore, he was well prepared for the Madam's questions and answered them calmly.

At her age, the lady was most pleased when her grandchildren begged her for help. She immediately instructed the maid to go to the kitchen to greet them.

The atmosphere was lively and the grandparents and grandchildren were happy.

The lady said something that made her feel a little savory, so she took a sip of tea, and then seemed to remember something, and said with a smile: "Sister Huang, Brother Yi, you don't know yet, do you? Your father will be back soon!"

The brother and sister indeed did not know about this matter and were both shocked, but their surprise was subtly different.

In the eyes of the lady, this was a surprise.

The lady smiled, a smile of relief and joy, and sighed, "With your father gone, the mansion is like it has lost its backbone! Especially..."

The words after "especially" were not said, but Chu Qianhuang understood what the old lady had not said, especially letting Shen control everything in the Marquis' Mansion and not having the slightest respect for her mother-in-law. The old lady had been feeling depressed and upset these days.

Nanny Wang also felt sorry for the rich man in her heart. How could a daughter-in-law be so arrogant? If the old lady had shown a little bit of mother-in-law attitude, Shen would have cut off all her expenses except for her three meals a day, and she would have had to use her dowry to buy supplements, make clothes, etc.

Since the old lady dared to pretend to be sick, Shen dared to invite doctors from major medical clinics in the capital to come to her house, causing a lot of fuss, but in the end those doctors thought the old lady was being pretentious.

The lady was really afraid of Shen, so she had to stay in Rongfu Hall every day, thinking that less trouble is better.

Now that her eldest son is finally coming back, her hard days are finally over.

The lady looked at Chu Yunyi with a loving smile on her face. She touched his face and sighed, "Our brother Yi is getting better and better!"

Her eldest grandson has been good-looking since he was young, with a full forehead, straight nose, clear eyes, and a very handsome appearance. He looks 90% like her eldest son when he was the same age!

Chu Yunyi just laughed, but Chu Qianhuang's heart skipped a beat when she heard it. Her heart suddenly sank, and a frightening thought naturally emerged in her mind: Could it be that... Grandmother was really persuaded by Second Uncle? ! Why? ! Didn't Grandmother always like Brother Yi?

At this moment, Chu Qianhuang felt as if a bucket of cold water was poured on her head. Her limbs felt cold and she looked at the lady with an unbelievable look. The handkerchief in her hand was already crumpled into a ball.

The lady looked at Chu Yunyi in a daze, and her thoughts couldn't help but go back to the day before the New Year.

She still remembered that day when it was snowing, her second son Chu Lingyu suddenly came to her and said to her: "Mother, if you want your eldest brother to return to Beijing from exile, it is not impossible. It depends on who can do it. I am afraid that only Kang Hongda can do it."

"But we, the Chu family, can't ask Kang Hongda to do something for us without paying anything, right? In the capital, Kang Hongda is a man who can cover the sky with one hand. Kang Hongda has always been generous to his 'own people'. If we follow his wishes, he will definitely let my eldest brother come back."

"Besides, the reason why our Chu family has fallen into this embarrassing situation is because of the eldest branch. If the eldest branch makes a little effort, Kang Hongda can help the Marquisate..."

The old lady was so angry that she drove Chu Lingyu out that day, but this suggestion seemed to have left a brand on her heart. In the following nights, the old lady tossed and turned and couldn't sleep much, always thinking about this matter and couldn't get rid of it.

She was moved.

She knew that Chu Yunyi had always worked very hard and diligently. This child also had a bright future. With his own experience in getting into the Imperial College, he would surely be able to make a name for himself one day.

But the current Yongding Marquis Mansion can't give Chu Yunyi any help at all. It will take Chu Yunyi at least ten, twenty years or even longer to mess around in the army on his own.

With Kang Hongda's help, it will be much easier.

Just like what the second son said, Kang Hongda is only interested in boys aged thirteen or fourteen. Chu Yunyi will only suffer for a year or two at most, but he will be able to help his father and facilitate his own career.

Otherwise, Chu Yunyi would be controlled by Shen. It is conceivable that Shen would not marry him a good wife. An unvirtuous wife would bring disaster to three generations. Chu Yunyi's future life would only become more and more difficult.

She also wanted to do good for her eldest grandson. The lady told herself in her heart, and said tentatively: "Brother Yi, you were originally planning to participate in the selection of the imperial army's military exercise in the spring, right? It was only when your second uncle met Lord Kang by chance that we heard about this."

Chu Yunyi smiled calmly and nodded in response: "Yes."

The lady sighed and said, "Alas, you prepared for so long, but you missed this opportunity because of chickenpox."

"Grandma, it's okay." Chu Yunyi smiled carelessly, his young face full of energy, "I'm still young!"

For Chu Yunyi, the gains from this actual combat training with Xuanjia were so great that the other gains were not worth mentioning at all.

However, the lady felt that Chu Yunyi was just pretending to be strong, so she patted his hand gently and comforted him tactfully: "Brother Yi, there will be many opportunities in the future..."

The lady wanted to say that Kang Hongda valued you and that he would definitely support you, but she felt embarrassed and couldn't say it.

"That's right!" Chu Yunyi couldn't see the lady's entanglement at all, and his smile became even happier. Yunzhan told him that he would still ask his second brother-in-law for his opinion in the future if there was an actual battle, and try to bring him along.

Chu Yunyi was completely unaware, but the moment Chu Qianhuang heard the lady mention Lord Kang, she had already confirmed her intention. Her limbs were numb with cold, and her heart was filled with an indescribable emotion, including shock, disappointment, contempt, etc.

The lady thought about it and wanted to say something else, but Chu Yunyi had already said goodbye: "Grandma, I want to go to Prince Chen's Mansion to wish my second sister a happy new year."

Speaking of Chu Qianchen, the atmosphere in the room immediately underwent a subtle change.

The old lady swallowed back the words she hadn't thought of in the first place, and said dryly: "Go ahead, the sooner you go, the sooner you can come back."

So Chu Yunyi left again.

When the door curtain fell, only the two of them, the grandmother and the granddaughter, were left in the warm room.

Chu Qianhuang couldn't help but lower her voice and asked, "Grandma, what...what did you want to say to Brother Yi just now?"

Chu Qianhuang's eyes were dark and deep, as if hiding thousands of words, and the handkerchief in her hand was still tightly clenched.

The lady looked at her deeply, her gaze seemed to pierce into the depths of her soul.

She slowly twisted the beads in her hand and asked, "If someone can bring your father back, it's reasonable for them to pay a price, right?"

Compared to her hesitation when facing Chu Yunyi just now, the old lady's tone and expression were very calm at this moment, so calm that Chu Qianhuang felt as if she didn't even recognize this grandmother.

Chu Qianhuang: "..."

Chu Qianhuang bit her lower lip with her pearly teeth, causing her lips to turn slightly white.

If Chu Lingxiao could come back, that would be great. Once Chu Lingxiao came back, Shen's would not be so arrogant anymore, and they would not be able to dominate alone. They would not be able to give her dowry to Chu Qianchen like this...

It seemed as if there were several selves in Chu Qianhuang's heart fighting with each other, sparks flying, noise, galloping, and fighting, and finally everything returned to calm.

She said in a low, hoarse voice, "Yes."

She knew what the "price" the lady was talking about. Chu Lingxiao had committed a serious crime, so how could the emperor pardon him for no reason?

Chu Qianhuang lowered her eyes, then quickly raised her head again and said, "Things have their priorities."

It was unclear whether this sentence was said to herself or to the lady.

The lady looked at Chu Qianhuang with a softer look in her eyes. She felt that this eldest granddaughter knew her feelings after all, so she nodded and said, "Yes. Things have their priorities."

"As a human being, from the common people to the emperor, there will always be times when we are in trouble. We cannot just follow our tempers, but must consider the overall situation."

The lady said something meaningful again and turned to look out the window.

From her angle, she could no longer see Chu Yunyi. The courtyard was empty except for two servants sweeping the floor.

After Chu Yunyi left Rongfu Hall, he went to Yimen, where the servant was already waiting for him with his red horse.

A stick of incense later, Chu Yunyi appeared in Prince Chen's mansion with his horse.

Since the afternoon of the second day of the New Year, the Prince Chen's Palace had been closed to visitors, and had only welcomed the emperor as an uninvited guest. Chu Yunyi was the first guest of the palace in the new year in the true sense.

Chu Qianchen usually stays with Gu Jue and refuses to leave even a step. Only when his brother came back did he give him a little face and show up.

"How do you feel?" Chu Qianchen asked him with a smile.

Yunzhan had returned to Prince Chen's Mansion yesterday, so Chu Qianchen had already known that Chu Yunyi was back. Moreover, he also knew that he had made a small contribution in this actual combat training and was accidentally injured, but it was just a minor skin scrape on his thigh.

Just now, she also heard from the servants that the boy came on horseback.

He could ride a horse and was so lively and energetic, Chu Qianchen knew at a glance that he was fine.

Moreover, in her opinion, this boy has thick skin and rough flesh, so it is normal for him to get injured and bumped. Even when Chu Yunmu got his hands and thighs rubbed while practicing archery and horse riding, Chu Qianchen still had the same attitude, telling him not to cry and to endure it.

After all, military generals will go to the battlefield, and no one can remain unscathed on the battlefield, no one is an exception.

Of course, injuries that need to be treated should still be treated, and the best medicine should be used.

"That's it!" Chu Yunyi shrugged and raised his eyebrows.

The way he was with Chu Qianchen was completely different from the way he was before in Rongfu Hall. He was extremely relaxed, sitting in an untidy manner, lazily leaning on the back of the chair, gulping down warm water.

Chu Qianchen saw that this boy was proud, so he deliberately asked him: "Really? Then do you want to go to the battlefield in the future?"

This time, Chu Yunyi didn't dare to answer ambiguously. He sat up straight and nodded, "Yes!"

He answered without hesitation and with full energy.

At the end, he boasted: "Brother Yun said that I am a good material!"

Chu Yunyi raised his chin proudly, and his expression seemed to say that he was born to be on the battlefield! The boy was unbridled and unruly, and he looked a little bit like he deserved a beating, but he had beautiful eyebrows and eyes, so even if outsiders saw him, they would not feel too much disgust.

(End of this chapter)