The next day, Fang Jue and Jiang Yuanyuan came to Qinyuan together. He had heard that Tian Yu was here and came to see her. The two were already engaged, and Fang Jue planned to formally marry Jiang Yuanyuan after he entered the court as an official.
Jiang Yuanyuan smiled and said to Tian Yu, "If I hadn't met you, how would I have met him?"
"Yes! Time flies. Almost two years have passed in the blink of an eye. I used to think you would become my sister-in-law, but now Mr. Fang has gotten a good deal."
"Don't make fun of me, I wouldn't dare to presume to be associated with Physician Li," Jiang Yuanyuan said with a smile.
"By the way, didn't your father do anything to you afterwards?"
"What else can I do? I escaped, and after a while I figured things out. Now I'm quite satisfied with him."
"That's good! That's good!"
When is your due date?
"Around the twelfth lunar month."
"Now that you are the Crown Princess, we can no longer see each other often. What a cruel twist of fate!"
Tian Yu smiled but didn't say anything. Yes! Who knew things would turn out this way.
Originally, she wanted to stay a few more days, but on the second day, someone from the palace came to say that the emperor was unwell and asked Tian Yu to return to the palace as soon as possible. Helpless, Tian Yu had no choice but to pack her luggage and return to the palace with Li Xingyun again.
Upon entering the palace, she was led by a eunuch to the emperor's bedchamber. The emperor dismissed the servants, leaving Tian Yu alone. Tian Yu looked up and saw that the emperor on the sickbed had become noticeably thinner. The emperor beckoned her over and said, "Come here, I have something to say to you."
"Yes!" Tian Yu got up and respectfully moved closer.
"I know you are unwilling. I forced you to marry into the royal family. Do you resent me?"
"I dare not accept that. It would be my honor to become the Crown Princess."
"I know you want to help the Zhao family overturn their case."
Tian Yu wasn't too surprised. She thought to herself that the Emperor was indeed the Emperor, knowing everything. She didn't need to hide anything anymore and nodded, saying, "Yes! I feel guilty towards Zhao Moyan. This is my way of making it up to him!"
"I can grant your request. There were indeed suspicious points in the Zhao family's case back then, but so much time has passed and I am old and do not want to bring up the past. However, if you can swear to wholeheartedly assist the Crown Prince and serve my Wu Kingdom after my death, I can give you this opportunity."
"Why the Crown Prince?"
"You already know that he was not born to the Empress, but do you know that his birth mother should be my Empress, just like you? I owe her."
"Does Your Majesty know the Crown Prince's temperament?"
"Are you referring to the Crown Prince's excessive cleanliness?"
"The Emperor knows?!"
“I know. Although he tried his best to hide it, how could I not know, as his father?”
"The Crown Prince?" Tian Yu wanted to say something more, but seeing that the Emperor was unwilling to continue, she realized that he was not willing to say anything more.
"It's all my fault. He was so young back then, I shouldn't have sent him to Che Kingdom. But I had no choice at the time, he was the eldest among the princes."
"What happened to the Crown Prince that caused him to become like this?"
"I don't know. He doesn't want anyone to know. He's just a bit clean-loving, that's nothing. As long as you swear to assist the Crown Prince well, I guarantee he won't treat you badly."
The Emperor waited for Tian Yu to make an oath. Tian Yu hesitated for a long time, looked at the old man lying on the sickbed, raised her hand and said, "I, Tian Yu, once again swear to serve the Wu Kingdom to the death and will do my best to assist the Crown Prince." Tian Yu agreed verbally, but she knew in her heart that the Emperor did not know that the Crown Prince was not just a clean freak; he had already developed mental problems.
"Good! Very good! Remember what you said today. The Zhao family's life is in your hands, but whether the Zhao family's case can be overturned depends on you. Now, keep my jade pendant safe." The Emperor said, taking off the jade pendant from his waist and handing it to Tian Yu.
Tian Yu looked at the Emperor with a puzzled expression. The Emperor explained, "If I am gone, it will be my promise to you, and you must not forget your promise to me!"
"Yes! Thank you, Your Majesty!" Tian Yu said, kneeling down as she accepted the jade pendant.
The emperor coughed, and Tian Yu climbed to the bedside again, saying, "Your Majesty! Your Majesty! I'll go and call the imperial physician."
"Never mind, it's not necessary. The imperial physician has already come to see me several times."
"Imperial Physician Li is right outside the door. I'll call him in to give you some more information," Tian Yu said hastily, seeing the Emperor in great pain.
"Li Xingyun?"
"Yes, he came with me to the estate and is waiting outside the palace now."
"Then let him in."
The eunuch brought Li Xingyun in. After Li Xingyun entered and bowed, he approached the emperor and took his pulse. Seeing his grave expression, Tian Yu asked anxiously, "How is it? What illness does Your Majesty have?"
“His Majesty has been ill for a long time, I’m afraid…” Li Xingyun hesitated, unsure whether he should speak.
"Speak freely, Academician Sun has already told me, and I know it in my heart."
"Yes, Your Majesty is also unable to cure your acute illness, but I can alleviate your pain."
"Is it that serious?" Tian Yu asked in surprise.
Li Xingyun nodded, his expression grave. The Emperor, however, seemed to have come to terms with it and asked, "How much longer can I live?"
“This…” Li Xingyun hesitated.
"Speak, and I will not blame you."
"At most one year."
The room fell silent for a moment, but the Emperor broke the silence first, saying, "You are Li Yun's son, and you are very much like him back then. I am relieved that the princess has married you. Do not let her down."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I dare not."
"I will arrange your marriage in a few days."
“Princess, you don’t want to get married right now. Let’s wait a bit longer!” Li Xingyun said with a troubled expression.
"Ling'er is worried about Xiao Qi. It's understandable that her mother just passed away. Well, let's give her some more time."
The Emperor then asked about the rice variety improvement. Tian Yu gave him a brief answer, but soon started coughing again. The eunuchs outside immediately brought medicine, which the Emperor drank. The Emperor then said he was tired and told Tian Yu and the others to go back first.
As they left the Emperor's palace, Tian Yu noticed Li Xingyun still had a furrowed brow and asked with concern, "What's wrong? Did you see something?"
Li Xingyun glanced at Tian Yu, smiled, and said, "No, I didn't see anything. I was just thinking that the Emperor's illness is a bit tricky and needs to be studied carefully."
"His Majesty was in good health before, how come he suddenly became so ill? You really didn't notice anything unusual?" Tian Yu asked uncertainly.
“You’ve become a bit slow because of your pregnancy. The Emperor has always been in poor health, and it’s normal that he’s fallen ill now after all this time,” Li Xingyun explained.
"Really? I thought you'd discovered something unusual?"
"Stop overthinking, go back home, you've had a long day, get some rest."
Tian Yu returned to the East Palace and heard the Crown Prince's reprimands as she entered. Not wanting to get into trouble, she bypassed his palace and returned to her own quarters. The Crown Prince was currently handling state affairs and was extremely busy, and his temper seemed to be getting worse. Lying in bed, she stared at the dragon-shaped jade pendant the Emperor had given her, looking at it again and again, still feeling that something was amiss, but unable to pinpoint the problem.
Just then, Rong'er called from outside, "Crown Princess! Crown Princess! Are you asleep?"
"No, is there anything I can help you with?"
"Um... the... the Crown Prince wants you to see him," Rong'er stammered.
"Okay, I understand, I'll be right there." Tian Yu got up, dressed, and then opened the door.
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