Chapter 57 I'm going to take the blame? No, it's my former subordinates who are rebelling!
The air in the backyard of "Yun'an Hall" seemed to be a bit heavier than in the front hall.
Yun Zhan squatted in the corner, watching the ants move their nest, his mind a jumbled mess. The shadow of the plague loomed over the entire capital, weighing heavily on his heart as well. His previous smugness at "making a fortune" through the clinic had long been washed away by guilt and worry.
"Xiao Qi," he said weakly, poking at the ground, "when will this plague ever end? If this continues, forget about making money, I'm afraid my little clinic will collapse from all the patients being carried in."
[Based on the epidemic spread model and the assessment of the effectiveness of current prevention and control measures, the probability of effective control in the short term is less than 30%.] Xiaoqi's electronic voice also carried a hint of heaviness. [Moreover, the situation may be more complex than the host perceives.]
"More complicated?" Yun Zhan looked up, his heart skipping a beat. "What do you mean?"
The epidemic has spread from the capital to surrounding prefectures and counties. The number of deaths and displaced people due to the disease has surged across the country. Furthermore, the rumors of "swallows absorbing the fortune of the land" are intensifying, leading to the gathering of displaced people in many areas, and even... small-scale riots and uprisings.
"An uprising?!" Yun Zhan suddenly stood up, his eyes wide with shock. "Who? Who dares to cause trouble at this time?"
According to the information gathered, the largest group operates under the banner of "avenging the former emperor Chu Yin and eliminating the usurper."
Yun Zhan: "???"
He's just sitting at home, and trouble falls from the sky... Ugh! How unlucky! I'm not even dead yet! What kind of revenge is this?!
"Are they out of their minds?!" Yun Zhan was so angry he almost jumped up and down. "When did I ever need them to avenge me? To eliminate traitors who stole the country? They're clearly all up to their own agendas, trying to take advantage of the situation! They're using me as a cover!"
[In the eyes of the people, the former emperor Chu Yin had indeed 'committed suicide out of fear of punishment.' This move could indeed attract some former officials who were dissatisfied with the status quo and some uninformed common people.] Xiao Qi analyzed calmly.
Yun Zhan rolled his eyes dramatically, feeling a tightness in his chest. What kind of mess was this?! He had finally accepted that Yan Linye had taken the blame for the plague on his behalf, and now, they were even going to pin the blame for the rebellion on him? Were Yun Zhan and Yan Linye professional scapegoats?!
He was so angry that he was spinning around in circles when Eunuch Gao led someone silently into the backyard.
"Young master, look who's here." Eunuch Gao's voice carried a hint of barely perceptible excitement.
Yun Zhan turned his head irritably, and when he saw the person's face clearly, he was stunned, and then a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.
"Mu Yan!"
The newcomer was none other than Li Muyan. He wore a slightly worn blue scholar's robe, and seemed a little thinner than when he was in the palace, but the calmness and scholarly air in his eyes remained. However, at this moment, his face showed the weariness of a journey, and his eyes looked at Yun Zhan with a complex expression.
"Your Majesty." Li Muyan stepped forward quickly, about to bow.
Yun Zhan quickly stopped him: "No! Please don't! I'm just an ordinary citizen now, I can't accept such a grand gesture! And don't call me Your Majesty anymore, just call me Young Master like Eunuch Gao does." He pulled Li Muyan up and down, feeling a pang of sadness. Li Muyan was a talent he greatly admired, intelligent and capable, but because he followed him, this "former tyrant," he probably suffered a lot and his life must have been difficult.
"Mu Yan, are you... are you alright? Did Yan Linye make things difficult for you?" Yun Zhan asked with concern, his tone tinged with guilt.
Li Muyan looked at the genuine concern in Yun Zhan's eyes, paused for a moment, then shook his head, a faint smile appearing on his lips: "Your Majesty... Young Master, please be concerned. I am fine. The new emperor... did not make things difficult for me. On the contrary, because of my slight reputation, he allowed me to enter the Hanlin Academy to do some leisurely work of compiling classics."
"The Hanlin Academy?" Yun Zhan blinked, somewhat surprised. "He...he even made you an official?"
“Yes.” Li Muyan nodded. “Although the new emperor is ruthless in his methods, he doesn’t seem to have any prejudice against factions when it comes to employing people.”
Hearing this, Yun Zhan felt a strange sense of relief, as if a small stone had been lifted from his shoulders. Thankfully, Yan Linye hadn't taken his anger out on Li Muyan because of him. This guy… in some ways, does actually have… a bit of magnanimity?
But this thought was quickly overshadowed by his worry about the current situation. He hurriedly pulled Li Muyan to sit down on a stone bench and asked anxiously, "Muyan, you've come at the right time! Tell me quickly, what's the situation outside? In the palace... is Yan Linye in a very bad situation right now?"
He always felt that System Xiao Qi was just giving him the runaround, and that it would be more reliable to ask someone like Li Muyan who was on the fringes of power.
Li Muyan's expression turned solemn. He glanced at the eunuch Gao standing beside him with his hands at his sides and lowered his voice, saying, "Young Master's prediction is correct. The epidemic is raging and has spread to several regions, leaving countless dead and hundreds of thousands of refugees. Although the court is doing its best to provide disaster relief and epidemic prevention, it is only a drop in the ocean. In addition, in various places... especially that force that is using the banner of 'avenging you' to rise up and stir up trouble. The court and the country are in turmoil. The new emperor... is besieged on all sides and is finding it difficult to move forward."
With each word Li Muyan uttered, Yun Zhan's heart sank deeper and deeper, until it reached the bottom.
He knew the situation was bad, but he hadn't imagined it would get this bad! The plague had spread across the country, hundreds of thousands of people were displaced, and there were even rebellions! How was Yan Linye supposed to cope all by himself?
He was about to eagerly ask Li Muyan if there was any way to help Yan Linye, even just to offer some advice, when he heard Li Muyan suddenly change the subject, his tone carrying an unusual firmness:
"Your Majesty, now is our chance!"
Yun Zhan: "???"
He was completely bewildered, almost thinking he had misheard: "Huh? What opportunity?" He was still thinking about how to help Yan Linye get through the crisis, so how did Li Muyan jump to the topic of "opportunity"?
Li Muyan stood up, took a step back, and solemnly knelt down in front of Yun Zhan! Seeing this, Eunuch Gao, who was standing to the side, also knelt down without hesitation!
"Your Majesty!" Li Muyan raised his head, looking intently at Yun Zhan, his voice clear and firm, "Although I am in the Hanlin Academy and work for the rebel Yan, my heart has always belonged only to Your Majesty! Now that the rebel Yan has lost the hearts of the people due to the plague and the world is in turmoil, it is the perfect opportunity for us to set things right and help Your Majesty regain control of the country!"
Yun Zhan was completely dumbfounded, his mouth agape, unable to close it for a long time.
The opportunity he... he mentioned, was it... was it rebellion? Was it reclaiming the throne?!
"Wait, wait a minute!" Yun Zhan felt like his CPU was about to overheat. "Mu Yan, you...you just said that the rumor about 'Yan Linye absorbing luck'...could it be...it's you guys..."
Li Muyan nodded without hesitation, his eyes even gleaming with a hint of self-satisfaction: "Yes! This plan was secretly pushed forward by Muyan and Eunuch Gao! Only in this way can we shake the foundations of Yan's rule to the greatest extent and create an opportunity for His Majesty!"
Eunuch Gao also kowtowed beside him: "This old servant is willing to go through fire and water for Your Majesty, even unto death!"
Looking at the two people kneeling in front of him, Yun Zhan felt a complex mix of emotions that were hard to describe.
Are you moved? Yes. When he was abandoned by everyone and had fallen to such a state, there were still two people who risked their lives, thinking only of "avenging" him and "reclaiming his kingdom".
But more than anything, I felt anger! And lingering fear!
"Nonsense! You're utterly ridiculous!" Yun Zhan suddenly stood up, his face pale with anger, pointing at Li Muyan and Eunuch Gao, his fingers trembling. "Do you even know what you're doing?! Spreading such rumors? This is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of your family! Don't you value your lives?!"
His chest heaved violently, his voice trembling with excitement: "And another thing! Who asked you to help me reclaim my throne?! Don't I know myself? Am I fit to be emperor?! I can't even manage myself, how can I possibly govern the people of the world?!"
He recalled the chaotic days when he was emperor, relying entirely on the system and his own cleverness to stay afloat, and he remembered how Yan Linye handled government affairs with such ease. A huge sense of powerlessness and self-blame welled up in his heart.
“Yan Linye is doing a great job as emperor! He’s more capable and responsible than me! The world is a hundred times better in his hands than in mine!” Yun Zhan almost roared, his eyes uncontrollably reddening. “It’s all because of me… it’s all because of me, this good-for-nothing… If it weren’t for me, he wouldn’t have rebelled prematurely, wouldn’t have contracted this damned plague, wouldn’t be condemned by everyone now, beset by internal and external troubles… It’s all my fault… I’ve harmed you all, and I’ve harmed him too…”
Hot tears finally welled up and slid down his cheeks. He knelt down, buried his face in his knees, his shoulders trembling slightly. At this moment, the pent-up grievances, guilt, worry, and anger at his own powerlessness that had been building up for so long finally erupted.
Li Muyan and Eunuch Gao knelt on the ground, stunned to see their former emperor so distraught and weeping. Their faces were filled with astonishment and heartache.
Meanwhile, inside the Imperial Study.
The "live broadcast" in front of Yan Linye clearly conveyed everything in the backyard.
When Yan Linye saw Li Muyan appear, and Yun Zhan so intimately pulled him up and down to look him over, his fingers unconsciously tightened around his teacup, and a surge of long-standing jealousy almost welled up inside him.
But when he heard Yun Zhan urgently inquire about his situation, and when he heard Li Muyan say "every step is difficult," Yun Zhan's face turned pale and his eyes showed worry. Yan Linye's heart felt as if it had been gently bumped by something.
Later, when Yan Linye heard that Li Muyan and Eunuch Gao had orchestrated the rumors and were planning to overthrow Yun Zhan, his eyes instantly turned cold, and a flash of murderous intent appeared.
However, Yun Zhan's next reaction was like a warm current, unexpectedly dispelling all his jealousy and anger.
Hearing Yun Zhan's furious roar, choked with sobs, hearing him say things like "Yan Linye would be better off as emperor than me" and "It's all my fault," and seeing his thin, curled-up figure weeping...
Yan Linye felt as if his heart was being tightly gripped by an invisible hand, both sore and painful, yet... surging with an indescribable, burning warmth and satisfaction.
This little liar... he really does have feelings for him.
He would rather bear everything himself than let others hurt him in the slightest, or even... admit that he is inferior to himself.
All the previous calculations, waiting, and anxiety seemed worthwhile at this moment.
He looked at Yun Zhan in the picture, crying like a child. The coldness in his deep eyes disappeared, leaving only an unyielding tenderness and heartache.
His Yun Zhan should be back by his side soon.
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