V2C152

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The emperor stretched out his withered hand and trembled as he took a glance at it – the envelope was written in a delicate handwriting, obviously by a woman’s hand, soft and fragile, with the sealed lacquer still on it.

The Head Steward of the Royal Household reported, “According to the maid of the Green Pavilion, this letter was just delivered to the palace at noon on the day Consort Qing was executed, so no one has opened it yet.”

“Oh.” The emperor was slightly puzzled, not understanding why the female members of the White King’s residence would have correspondence with Consort Qing. However, after pulling out the missive and taking a glance at the contents, his face changed drastically and he coughed intensely!

“Your Majesty!” The Head Steward of the Imperial Household was startled, “Are you alright?”

What exactly was written on this letter that caused the emperor to be so shaken with wrath?

“Yu… have actually… cough, cough! Damn it!” The emperor cupped the letter in his palm and tightly kneaded it into a ball, coughing so hard that his entire body hunched over; it took a long time before he could manage to smooth his breathing, his face turning blue, and he didn’t mention anything, only asked, “Have you read this letter…?”

The Head of the Inner Household was alarmed and immediately bowed in prostration: “This letter came from a suspicious source, where would I have the guts to open it without permission? Naturally, I brought it to His Majesty at the very first opportunity.”

“Well…” the emperor gasped sharply, sizing up his long-time trusted subject, before finally nodding slowly, “You have always acted cautiously over the years…This time, you are considered to have saved your life.”

The Head Steward only felt a chill down his spine, the coldness of a blade passing through his neck.

The emperor said coldly, “Do not mention this letter to anyone, do you understand?”

“Yes.” The Head Steward of the Inner House was surprised in his heart, but did not dare to say more.

“Also, all those people who served Consort Qing… cough, in the Green Hall, including that maid… who passed on the message privately, are all to be given death,” the emperor coughed faintly, “not a single… one of them can be spared.”

“Yes.” The Head Steward of the Inner Household was shocked and nodded hastily.

All these years, the emperor had been indulging in pleasures, spending his days engaged with music and dancing and drinking, yet he was not a tyrannical emperor – perhaps his entire character has changed towards the end of his life? Or, was it because of the letter, and the terrible reasons hidden in it?

“Go on your away.” The emperor waved his hand, without any further explanation.

When there were no more outsiders in the room, the emperor unfolded the crumpled letter in his hand and slowly read it again, as his eyebrows slowly tightened and his breathing became ragged and intermittent, apparently with fierce emotions rushing through his debilitated chest, causing the dying old man to toss and turn.

“Injustice… injustice, ah!” For a long time, the emperor pounded his hand heavily on the bed, muttering hoarsely, turning his head to summon the chamberlain outside, with a tone of annoyance and anger, “Go quickly! Ahem… go and find the Crown Prince for me and bring him here! If you don’t find him again… I’ll demand your own heads to be cut off!”

“Yes.” The chamberlain had never seen the emperor so vocal and stern, and was so frightened that he hurriedly retreated.

The emperor coughed violently and leaned back on his bed, his dizziness getting heavier and heavier, yet he could barely hold his breath but refused to just collapse. His eyes fell blankly on the magnificent bronze candle lights, the flames leaping and reflecting the bright and shimmering light, as if countless visions were emerging.

In that moment, just like a flashback before his death, all the events of his life swept across his eyes like a fleeting image: the Autumn Water Singer, Empress Bai Yan, Consort Qing, his two sons, the six Vassal Kings, the countless courtiers and people… All the visions, like the remnants of a lamp in front of him, swaying in the wind, about to extinguish.

How did things come to this? Did… himself commit some kind of heavy sin?

After an unknown period of time, footsteps came from outside. The emperor shook for a moment, thinking it was Shi Ying who had returned, and was propping himself up to struggle to speak, when he heard the attendant report from outside: “Emperor, the White King requests an audience.”

The emperor was stunned for a moment: the White King? It was not yet the celestial hour, it was not even dawn yet, why had the White King entered the palace alone early in the morning? Could it be that… he had also learnt of the incident on the confidential letter, so he hurried here? In that case… would he not…

The emperor could not help but cough sharply, “Announce.”

A moment later, the White King entered the Inner Hall and greeted him through the draped curtain, his words respectful but his expression wanting to say something. The emperor replied slowly, coughing uncontrollably and looking at the Vassal King’s face with a hidden unease. The White King responded a few words through the curtain and finally asked, “Why do I not see the Crown Prince serving on the side of His Majesty’s bed?”

Did he come to speak about Shi Ying after all? The emperor’s voice remained impassive as he only stated, “He has been here on guard for many days, and I have just sent him off to attend to some matters.”

“The Crown Prince… has gone to investigate and deal with that bold and presumptuous thief from yesterday, has he not?” A guilty look of mortification appeared on the White King’s face, and he suddenly rose up gathering his clothes and prostrating himself to thank the emperor, “It was my own incompetence that caused the Imperial Envoy who came to bestow marriage to be humiliated in broad daylight!”

“Ahem…” the emperor coughed, and his face turned pale.

The White King bowed heavily and continued to apologize, “Xue Ying has just received the favor of the Holy Crown, but unexpectedly suffered this accident – not only was the jade scroll lost, but even the jade pendant given to my daughter by the Crown Prince was taken away by the treacherous thief. My heart is boiling and I cannot sleep at night, so I have come here to ask His Majesty to punish me!”

“Oh…” Hearing such words, the emperor was surprisingly relieved and murmured, “So… you rushed here early in the morning for this?”

The White King was confused for a moment, not knowing why the emperor was asking this question. Yesterday, there was such a big mess at the entrance of the White King’s residence, the wedding messenger was robbed, the jade scroll was lost, he was so worried that he remained awake all night, and he came here early in the morning to make amends to the emperor, why did His Majesty react so strangely?

“So be it…” The emperor blurted out three words and immediately came back to his senses without any further comment, putting away the letter that he was cupping in his hand and asking, “Besides the jade scroll, was even the jade pendant taken away?”

The White King hurriedly bowed, “That rebel had the audacity to break into Xue Ying’s room and steal the jade pendant!”

“Is that so?” The emperor, however, did not ask about the whereabouts of that bandit, but only inquired with concern, “Is Princess Xue Ying alright? She is not in good health, ahem… nothing can happen to her.”

The White King hurriedly said, “Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. Xue Ying is only slightly frightened, there is nothing serious that can harm her.”

“Well… that’s good, then.” The emperor breathed a sigh of relief, and a glint of light swept through his dusky eyes, uncertain of what to think about, he just shook his hand and said weakly, “Rise.”

“This humble servant does not dare.” The White King prostrated himself on the ground, “I also request to His Majesty to punish me!”

“What kind of sin did you commit to get punished…?” the emperor coughed, “After such an incident at the feet of the Son of Heaven, it is logical… cough, that I am the one most to blame, right? I’m not good at ruling my own kingdom…”

“His Majesty’s words are too serious!” The White King hastily bowed his head, “It’s just a few scoundrels, I’m sure the Crown Prince will be able to capture them soon – it’s just that the enthronement of the Crown Princess is an important matter for the country, so we can’t delay the process…”

He was about to politely remind the emperor that he should send his Imperial Envoy again to re-gift the jade scroll, but the emperor, with his forehead locked in a frown, suddenly said, “In broad daylight, the jade scroll and jade pendant would actually disappear… Ahem, this is an ominous sign… it seems that this marriage needs to be re-considered in the long run.”

“What?” The White King suddenly froze.

What does the emperor mean? Could it be that… he is trying to take the opportunity to cancel this marriage agreement?

“Fortunately, there is no formal enthronement either,” the emperor coughed on his bed, intermittently, but his voice was more resolute than ever before.

“I will ask the Grand Secretary to step in and ask the gods to issue a decree and then decide on a new choice for the Crown Princess. What does my dear friend thinks?”

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