Chapter 243 Meeting the Emperor
Xiao Yuancheng struggled to regain consciousness amidst the strong smell of medicine and the tearing pain. Every breath he took strained the wound on his left shoulder, leaving him feeling so weak and close to death. This feeling of being out of control filled him with fear and rage from the bottom of his heart.
The emperor's cloudy eyes slowly opened, his blurred vision gradually focusing as he took in the faces gathered around the couch—Shangshu Ling Shen Yushan, the General of the Jinwu Guards, the Minister of the Imperial Clan, and several important cabinet officials. They all had solemn expressions, clearly having been waiting here for a long time.
"Your Majesty! You're awake!" Bai De'an's voice was choked with surprise. He hurried forward and carefully fed him some ginseng soup to help him breathe.
Several important officials immediately gathered around, bowing and saluting, their voices filled with worry: "Long live Your Majesty! Your health is paramount!"
Xiao Yuancheng moved his throat, trying to speak, but only a series of hoarse coughs came out. He barely raised his uninjured left hand to indicate that he was still alive.
After a brief silence, Minister Shen Yushan stepped forward. Representing the consensus of all the important officials present, his expression heavy with sorrow and earnestness, he slowly spoke, "Your Majesty, tonight's shocking events are truly a great misfortune for our nation. However, the country cannot remain without a ruler for a single day. Although the rebellious king has been executed, Your Majesty's health is damaged and he urgently needs rest. However, the affairs of state cannot cease for a single day..."
He paused, observing the emperor's reaction. Seeing that he was just listening with his eyes closed, but his breathing was a little rapid, he continued cautiously:
"Your Majesty, we are deeply aware of your grief, but for the sake of our country and the peace of the world, we risk our lives to implore Your Majesty... to appoint a crown prince as soon as possible, allowing him to temporarily assume the power of regent and handle daily affairs to strengthen the foundation of the country. Your Majesty can then provide oversight. This will not only prevent state affairs from being affected, but also ensure that Your Majesty rests in peace and recovers quickly."
Shen Yushan's words were flawless, speaking entirely from the perspective of a minister caring about his king and father and worrying about state affairs. They were reasonable and there was almost nothing wrong with them.
Several other important officials also bowed and echoed: "We second the motion and implore Your Majesty to put the country first!"
The hall fell silent once again, the only sounds being the Emperor's heavy breathing and the occasional crackle of the candlelight.
All eyes were focused on the frail emperor lying on the dragon bed.
However, Xiao Yuancheng just closed his eyes, his chest rising and falling rapidly, and for a long while, he did not respond. He did not immediately roar angrily, nor did he express the slightest sign of approval. He just remained silent.
This silence made the ministers present even more uneasy than his rage. They were unsure what was going on in the mind of this emperor who had weathered so many storms and was now suffering a severe blow.
In fact, Xiao Yuancheng was already extremely angry. As expected, as long as he showed a little sign of decline, even if his sons were not ready to make a move, his confidants would still urge him to appoint a crown prince.
Crown Prince, Crown Prince, everything started from this.
Xiao Yuancheng finally couldn't help but open his eyes. He turned his head and scanned the group of people in front of him with a weak but sharp gaze. Are any of them reliable? Who do they support?
But Xiao Yuancheng also knew that he was seriously injured now. If he didn't take good care of his injuries, he might really die. Moreover, his injured right shoulder would also hinder his handling of state affairs.
After an unknown amount of time, the emperor finally spoke slowly, his voice low and hoarse: "...I, understand."
He didn't say for sure, nor did he say for sure.
Just these three words put all the requests aside lightly.
Then he closed his eyes again, as if he had exhausted all his strength and no longer paid attention to anyone.
The emperor was obviously unwilling to talk further, and they did not dare to press him any further. They could only step aside worriedly and discuss the follow-up matters in a low voice.
It was during this heavy and eerie silence that a notice came from outside the palace: King Wu, King Wen, and King Zhao had arrived at the palace gate and requested an audience.
Xiao Yuancheng's eyes immediately opened again, and after a moment's hesitation, he said, "Announce!"
The palace gate over there opened silently, like a bottomless mouth, swallowing up the last bit of darkness before dawn.
As soon as they entered the palace, they felt something was strongly wrong. The number of imperial guards on duty inside the gate had increased significantly. They were heavily armored, had stern faces, held weapons in their hands, and swept their sharp eyes over them. The atmosphere was so solemn that it was almost suffocating.
This unusual way of welcoming the king made the already suspicious King Wu, King Wen, and King Zhao feel a sinking feeling in their hearts. This was definitely not an ordinary summons!
The three of them exchanged glances, each seeing a look of surprise and doubt in the other's eyes. King Wen's joke about "establishing a crown prince" now sounded like the truth.
King Wu frowned, his hand unconsciously pressing on the hilt of the sword at his waist. Xiao Ji's face remained calm, but his hands in his sleeves were slightly clenched.
Under the "escort" of the Jinwu Guard generals, the three of them passed through the palace gates in silence. The closer they got to the Zichen Palace, the more oppressive the feeling in the air became, and their hearts were in their throats.
When they arrived outside the Zichen Palace, they saw Bai De'an standing there with a haggard look on his face. Several important ministers were also standing in the corridor with heavy expressions. The whole palace was eerily quiet.
"Butler Bai, what happened to our father?" Prince Wen spoke first, his voice unconsciously lowered.
Bai De'an raised his eyelids and looked at the three men, who had an indescribable wariness and subtle pity in their eyes. He shook his head slightly and said in a hoarse voice, "My three princes, please come in... His Majesty is waiting for you."
He stepped aside to make way and did not directly answer King Wen's question.
This attitude brought the three people's anxiety to a peak.
Xiao Ji's heartbeat was getting faster and faster. He took a deep breath and stepped into the inner hall of Zichen Palace.
However, what came into view was a corpse covered with white cloth!
The corpse was laid flat on a couch, and the white cloth was not completely covering it, revealing the gorgeous prince's attire underneath!
Even King Wu, accustomed to the horrors of battlefields, was shocked by the sight of corpses strewn across the main hall of the Purple Palace. His pupils shrank and his steps abruptly stopped. King Wen gasped and subconsciously took a half step back, his eyes filled with disbelief and horror.
And Xiao Ji's eyes were fixed on the corpse. Although he couldn't see the whole picture, the clothes, the figure... and all the strange things that happened tonight put together... a terrible answer was about to come out!
That's... Prince Ning?!
How did he die?! And he died in the Purple Palace?! Judging from the situation, it was clear... that he was executed here!
Just as the three of them were so shocked by the horrifying corpse in the center of the hall that their minds went blank and their hearts were trembling, a slight and difficult sound came from behind the curtain of the inner hall.
The three of them turned their heads suddenly and looked.
Two eunuchs were seen carefully supporting Xiao Yuancheng as they slowly walked out of the inner hall.
He was casually dressed in a bright yellow nightgown, the thick bandage on his right shoulder particularly conspicuous, faint traces of blood seeping out. His face was ashen, his lips pale, his eye sockets sunken, and he looked as if all his energy had been drained away overnight, leaving him withered.
However, in stark contrast to his extremely frail body were his eyes. Those eyes, sunken in their sockets, were not cloudy at all. Instead, they emitted a sharp, cold gaze, as if quenched by ice and burning with dark flames, fixed intently on his three sons.
He was supported by the eunuchs and barely stood up. His eyes swept over the body of King Ning on the ground, and then slowly moved to the shocked and speechless King Wu, King Wen and King Zhao.
An extremely weak voice, yet unusually clear and piercing due to the extremely suppressed anger and coldness, escaped from his lips: "Did you see clearly?"
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