Chapter 165 [VIP]
Prince Li was stunned, his mouth opening and closing in disbelief.
After a long while, he finally realized what was happening and quickly shouted, "Quick, quick, grab the Emperor!"
The eunuchs rushed over and grabbed the emperor's arms as he pounded his head. His forehead was red from the blows; he must have been in pain, grimacing, yet unable to control his movements.
What's wrong with this? Prince Li frowned as he looked at it.
"Imperial Physician!" he pointed at the emperor and roared, "Is this what you call 'no serious illness'?"
The imperial physician was almost in tears.
The emperor's pulse was indeed quite good; who knew he would suddenly have a seizure?
The imperial physician, his hands trembling, took out his needle kit to administer acupuncture to the emperor. Just as his hand reached out, the emperor kicked him away.
The kick was very hard; the imperial physician was clutching his lower abdomen and whimpering as he crawled over on all fours.
After the needle was inserted, the emperor kicked him away again.
Prince Li was extremely anxious as he watched this unfold.
"Oh dear, you, you!" Prince Li pointed at Gu Yican and said angrily, "You two siblings truly deserve to be called twins from the same mother."
"This dog has the exact same temperament."
“Your Highness, what did my brother say wrong? Was it that we shouldn’t have attacked the Di, or that we shouldn’t have rescued the Emperor?” Gu Zhizhuo snorted, “Please don’t take sides.”
"Am I taking sides?" Prince Li pointed at himself, almost laughing in anger.
You've already shown such favoritism towards them, and you still call that taking sides?
He muttered in a low voice, "Look at him! You two have really angered the Emperor. Luckily, it's just me here, so I can keep it under control. Otherwise, there would probably be more memorials impeaching your brother than impeaching Eunuch Shen."
Gu Zhizhu raised his chin and said arrogantly, "Whoever impeaches me, I'll send them to the Zhenbei Army Camp for a few years."
Prince Li: "..."
I'm so annoyed.
Talking to this girl will give you a stroke sooner or later.
Prince Li turned his head away, deciding to ignore her.
The imperial physician administered three acupuncture needles in succession, and the emperor finally calmed down, panting heavily. He felt somewhat uneasy, even though his mind was perfectly clear, he just couldn't control his hands and feet.
A chill ran down the emperor's spine.
She must have been angered by Gu Yican. That must be it.
Upon seeing the brother and sister, the emperor's anger surged, and his face turned ashen.
The imperial physician, clutching his aching lower abdomen, knelt anxiously before the bed.
"emperor."
Prince Li stepped forward, blocking the siblings, and advised, "Please don't get agitated. The imperial physician said you need to rest well, and don't worry too much about matters of state."
Prince Li was still wondering whether the Emperor could resume his duties now that he had regained his senses.
Looking at it now...
He dared not let the emperor leave. If it happened in the Golden Palace, and the emperor suddenly went mad and started hitting him halfway through the morning court session, the scene would be too much to bear.
Just thinking about it made Prince Li shudder.
"You should rest and recuperate first."
"Prince Li, please move aside."
The emperor was furious. "You took advantage of my insanity to collude with outsiders, rebel, and plot treason. I haven't even settled that score with you yet. How dare you stand before me and speak to me!"
“Prince Li, you are already so old. Aren’t you afraid that you will be ashamed to face the late Emperor when you are on the other side of the earth for doing such a thing!”
"emperor!"
Just now, when Prince Li said he was angry with the Gu siblings, he was just saying it casually.
Now, he was truly furious, and his chest was aching slightly.
Prince Li clutched his chest, his breathing momentarily disordered.
The emperor, his face stern, said coldly, "You made this title for the Gu family on your own initiative, and I do not approve of it. As for Gu Yan, tell him to get out of here and return to the Gu family." He even called him Gu Yan instead of Xie Yan.
“It was an imperial edict issued by you personally; a monarch’s word is law.” Prince Li was also furious.
He stole a minister's wife, fathered an illegitimate child, and now expects the Gu family to swallow their anger and raise his son? Has he no shame?!
However, it is indeed quite shameless of them to try to get the Gu family to give their title and military power to their son.
Prince Li is the emperor's elder and is highly respected among the imperial clan. In the past, he would have argued with the late emperor over disagreements. Now that he is older, his temper is much better, but even his good temper is almost about to break down.
Besides, he had been holding back his anger for a long time.
"And your illegitimate son..."
He pointed at the emperor's nose and cursed, "Send him back? Ha, you brought him here yourself, can't afford to raise him or what? You insist that the Gu family raise him? Do you want him to inherit the Gu family's title in the future? As the ruler of a country, aren't you afraid of disgracing your ancestors and being infamous for ten thousand years?"
The emperor's face turned pale and then red.
Now that things have come to this, the emperor naturally no longer naively believes that Gu Yan can inherit the Gu family's title. However, upon seeing Gu Yan, he is reminded of the absurdity of the past few days.
The emperor, enraged and humiliated, shouted: "Prince Li, you have been so insolent before me! Do you really think I dare not kill you?!"
Prince Li: "..."
At this moment, Prince Li was utterly disappointed in him.
The emperor's face was grim: "Guards..."
“Your Majesty,” Gu Zhizhu interrupted him, smiling as she said, “I think it would be best for Xie Yan to stay by your side. Your deep affection for Lady Ji is truly touching. You should raise Xie Yan well for her sake, so as to be worthy of the eight years of deep and unwavering love between you two.”
It would have been better if she hadn't mentioned it; the moment she brought up the Ji family, the emperor's expression worsened.
The emperor pictured Ji Shi's dilapidated face.
Recalling the intimacy he had shared with her, a nauseating sour feeling rose in his stomach, and he vomited it out.
This girl is definitely on his side, preventing the emperor from saying anything more hurtful. Touched as he was, Prince Li's head was indeed throbbing: "Zhuo'er. Alright, you two have thanked him enough, you should hurry up and leave."
"You."
Just the fact that she angered the emperor to the point of vomiting, if someone saw it, would surely lead to her being accused of a grave act of disrespect.
Prince Li's face hardened. He gave Gu Zhizhuo a sharp look and said sternly, "Get out of here now!"
Avoiding the emperor's gaze, he lowered his voice again: "Don't worry about me. This position of Emperor Zongling is not something he can simply depose or kill at will. Hurry up and go."
The emperor was still vomiting; he was even vomiting bile.
As soon as he closed his eyes, Ji's face appeared before him, and he could even smell the faint, foul odor emanating from her.
Having barely managed to suppress his nausea, the emperor was about to have someone bring him a cup of water to rinse his mouth when he heard a faint sound again, drifting into his ears like the wind.
"Red rash, pus discharge, rotting, and foul odor."
The emperor vomited until his vision blurred.
Prince Li lowered his voice and said, "You're just here to cause trouble, aren't you?"
No way.
Gu Zhizhuo said in a serious tone, "My brother and I came here specifically to express our gratitude. How could Your Highness misunderstand us?"
Her expression was innocent and pure, and she was very well-behaved.
Prince Li wouldn't be fooled by her.
"Get out, get out..."
"Halt." The emperor swallowed hard, a sour, rotten smell filling his mouth. "The Gu family's title..."
"Your Majesty," Gu Zhizhuo peeked over Prince Li's shoulder, asking innocently, "Is Lady Ji pretty?"
emperor:"……"
One unpleasant scene after another flashed before the emperor's eyes.
He has always loved beautiful women.
Lady Ji was once a beauty; otherwise, the emperor would not have wronged himself.
But……
The emperor vomited again, and the sky darkened.
Prince Li rubbed his forehead and quickly pushed the two siblings outside.
Suddenly, the curtain was lifted, and he bumped into Yan Rong, the Minister of Personnel, who was standing outside waiting.
Prince Li merely nodded slightly and said to the two siblings in a serious tone, "Have you finished reading? If you have, then stay put. Do you hear me?"
Gu Zhizhuo smiled at him, and Gu Yican smiled back at him. Likewise, it's unclear whether it's acceptable.
"Your Highness."
Yan Rong turned to look at them and interjected seriously, "Your Highness, Miss Gu's disrespect to the Emperor is a grave offense. Your Highness has always been fair and just, so why is there no punishment or blame? Are you deliberately protecting her?"
He arrived a while ago.
But the emperor did not summon him, so he could not go in and could only stand at the door, listening to the noise inside.
Gu Yican snorted coldly, not even giving him a glance.
Gu Yican disliked the infighting in the imperial court and only loved riding horses and open warfare, but that didn't mean he couldn't understand it.
The Ministry of Personnel has always been in the hands of Prince Jin. Yan Rong wanted to use this to find a handle on the Gu family and force them to make a statement on Prince Jin's affairs.
Gu Yican raised the corner of his phoenix eyes and said in a light tone, "Lord Yan, is your neck itchy?"
Yan Rong paused for a moment, ignoring the threat, and said only, "The Gu family has long harbored rebellious intentions. Miss Gu, now that you can defy the imperial decree and speak recklessly at the Emperor's sickbed, will you be able to force the Emperor to abdicate in front of the Emperor's throne in the future?"
"Lord Yan, be careful what you say." Prince Li may have given instructions, but he could not bear to be instructed by others.
However, before he could finish speaking, a palace attendant came out from inside and asked suspiciously, "Lord Yan, are you perhaps having a fit of hysteria? We have been serving you inside, and we haven't heard Miss Gu say or do anything reckless."
The eunuch's voice was high-pitched as he said, "Miss Gu is extremely respectful to the Emperor, always agreeing with him and speaking with utmost deference. Lord Yan, could your words be an attempt to deliberately slander and frame her?!"
"Absolutely vicious!"
Prince Li was still drooling in his throat, dumbfounded.
Yan Rong: ? ? ?
He wasn't mistaken, was he? The eunuch came out from inside specifically to speak up for Miss Gu?
Yan Rong recognized the eunuch; he was Yin Xin, the newly transferred chief eunuch to Hanzhang Palace.
These high-ranking eunuchs were people I used to treat with great respect, even to myself.
"Eunuch Yin?" Yan Rong said with a forced smile, "Just now, Miss Gu was clearly contradicting the Emperor..."
Yin Xin said sarcastically, "Is Lord Yan calling me blind and deaf?"
No! Where did I insult him? Yan Rong felt it was absurd. Before he could explain, Yin Xin had already made up his mind and made a gesture, saying, "Lord Yan is indeed having a fit of hysteria. You'd better not go in, lest you harm the Emperor."
"Take him away."
After he finished speaking, several eunuchs rushed up, including the one who had just been fanning Gu Zhizhuo. They made a "please" gesture with a forced smile, and dragged him out regardless of whether he wanted to or not.
Yan Rong almost cried out his innocence, but the words caught in his throat as he suddenly remembered that he was in Hanzhang Palace, and he didn't dare to utter a sound.
Turning her head, she saw Yin Xin eagerly greeting her, "Young lady, please have a seat."
Would you like some iced soup?
Gu Zhizhuo nodded happily: "Thank you for your hard work."
"It's not bitter, it's not bitter." Every wrinkle on Yin Xin's face was filled with a smile.
Yan Rong was completely dumbfounded.
Although these eunuchs had always looked down on people and never treated him any differently, treating everyone the same and never openly showing favoritism.
Someone tell him what's going on!
He was dragged out of Hanzhang Palace and thrown to the ground. The eunuchs looked at him with disgust, as if he were some kind of filthy thing, and then turned back after throwing him away.
"This is……"
Chief Minister Song happened to be coming over with Xie Yingchen, and was stunned for a moment when he saw this.
"Your Highness, Grand Secretary, inside..."
Yan Rong was about to say something indignant, but Xie Yingchen said calmly, "Ignore him."
Yes. Chief Minister Song bowed slightly, not even glancing at Yan Rong out of the corner of his eye, and stepped up the stairs into Hanzhang Palace.
"Young Master, the Chief Minister."
Gu Zhizhuo's ice bowl hadn't arrived yet, so he drank the fruit syrup first. The bright red fruit syrup was served in a glass with an ice cube inside, giving off a refreshing coolness.
Gu Zhizhuo got up and cheerfully went to greet him.
It was indeed her. Xie Yingchen's smile deepened, and he said, "Eunuch, please go and announce her arrival."
Yin Xin ignored him, as if he were deaf.
“Young Master, please go in directly. There’s no need to announce your arrival. Prince Li is inside. The Emperor…” Gu Zhizhuo chuckled, “He’s quite a character.”
"Miss Gu." Prime Minister Song was startled and was about to say something to ease the tension when he saw Yin Xin smiling, seemingly not thinking there was anything wrong with what she said.
But when she turned to look at them, her smile vanished instantly: "Then please."
His face was drooping, looking lifeless.
Hmm, that's right, the Prime Minister thought to himself, no wonder this attitude seemed familiar. These people in the inner court are just like the cats that Shen Xu keeps.
"Wait for me."
After he finished speaking, he and Chief Minister Song walked inside, and Yin Xin led them in.
"I'll go take a look too." Gu Yican hadn't seen enough yet. "Are you coming?"
"I'm not going."
If she goes in again, Prince Li will have to cry in front of her.
Gu Zhizhu swirled the fruit syrup in his cup, then leaned comfortably against the soft fur. A young eunuch presented him with freshly cut fruit, and a small silver fork was placed beside the bowl.
It's so comfortable, who would want to go in and watch the emperor vomit? It smells awful.
"I'm going now, I'll tell you about the fun when I get back."
Gu Yican also sneaked in.
"Young lady, would you like to listen to a little tune?" the young eunuch asked solicitously. "The Imperial Music Bureau has some new pieces."
Gu Zhizhuo almost said yes. However, a last shred of reason held her back.
The emperor is inside, vomiting and going crazy, while she's here listening to music. Is she really alright? Shouldn't she at least pretend to be okay?
Therefore, Gu Zhizhuo reluctantly refused.
Seeing the young eunuch hanging his head in disappointment, Gu Zhizhuo said, "Go and see how things are inside."
Okay.
The young eunuch smiled happily and walked away briskly.
Prince Li had not yet made it public, so even if people heard a little bit about it, not many people came over in a big way. Only a few important officials came to pay their respects.
People gradually went in.
The young eunuch would occasionally come out to report:
"His Majesty has finished vomiting."
"The Emperor got angry again when he saw Prince Chen."
"The Emperor rebuked Prince Chen for colluding with Prince Li, and asked Prince Li how much benefit Prince Chen had given him. He is already a prince, yet he is still allowed to become the retired emperor."
"Prince Li was furious and took out his whip."
"..."
"Meow~"
The familiar meowing sound rang out.
Gu Zhizhuo looked up and saw that it was Shenmao strutting over with an air of indifference. He waved to it and then told the eunuch to fetch some dried fish.
Shen Xu received the news first and arrived last. He stepped across the threshold, backlit, his bright red robes, with gold embroidery, shimmering in the sunlight.
Gu Zhizhuo picked up the cat and curtsied.
"Master Supervisor."
The eunuchs greeted him respectfully, and Sheng Jiang stepped forward to remove his cloak. Immediately, a junior eunuch took the cloak with both hands and took it away to be used for incense.
New incense was placed in the incense burner in the corner of the room, suppressing the sour and rotten smell in Hanzhang Palace.
A snow-white fur was laid out on the round-backed chair. After he sat down, a young eunuch brought a golden basin to help him wash his hands and fan him.
What a grand display. Tsk tsk. Gu Zhizhuo took a sip of fruit syrup and fed the cat some dried fish.
"Master, have you gone in and taken a look?"
She slightly raised the hand holding the dried fish, which amused the cat so much that it stood on its two hind legs and beckoned the dried fish with its little paws.
Gu Zhizhuo leaned closer to him across the coffee table, her eyebrows dancing with excitement, and said:
"It's time."
"You may let the Prince of Jin out."
"Can you convince the Emperor that the actions of the Ji family were instigated by the Prince of Jin?"
Shen Xu raised an eyebrow and said with a half-smile, "You've mastered the art of framing people."
A note from the author:
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