Chapter 114.1 – An Episode of Illness
There was no mistake in the royal physicians’ diagnosis. Although the Emperor had a fever and fainted, he did not remain in a coma for long. After just an hour or two, the Emperor regained consciousness. When he opened his eyes and looked at the familiar bed canopy, he was dumbfounded.
Zhang Jian was the first to notice the Emperor waking up, and he quickly rushed to greet him, saying rather excitedly, “Your Majesty, are you awake!?”
The Emperor blinked, feeling that his head was still a bit dizzy0. He was not young anymore; his vitality was not as strong as before, and he also had many small problems with his body. So when he felt a bit unwell today, he didn’t pay too much attention to it. “Zhang Jian? What’s wrong with me? Wasn’t I still discussing matters with the officials in the palace before? Why am I suddenly back in the inner palace lying down?”
Seeing the Emperor frowning in discomfort, Zhang Jian quickly called a nearby royal physician to diagnose the Emperor’s pulse. At the same time, he pleaded his guilt and said, “It is This Servant’s mistake. Your Majesty had been suffering from a cold and fever for a long time today, but This Servant was unable to notice it. Your Majesty was so tired that you fell ill and fainted. I beg Your Majesty to punish me.”
The royal physician had already requested the Emperor to extend his wrist so he could diagnose his pulse, and as the Emperor listened to Zhang Jian’s words, he finally remembered how he fainted earlier. He furrowed his brows and immediately asked, “How long have I been unconscious? Has the news spread?”
Zhang Jian knew what the Emperor was worried about, but he could only bow his head and reply helplessly, “There were still some esteemed officials present when Your Majesty fainted, so the news couldn’t be concealed. Now all the kings, princesses and some important officials are waiting in the outer hall.”
After he said that, seeing the Emperor’s expression slightly change, Zhang Jian quickly added. “Your Majesty, please rest assured. His Royal Highness The Crown Prince already came earlier, and he’s presiding over the overall situation outside. There won’t be any trouble.”
When the Emperor heard that the Crown Prince had come, he felt relieved and reached out his other hand to wave, saying, “Go out and spread a message, just say that I am fine and have the Crown Prince return to the Eastern Palace earlier. If he doesn’t listen, burn more charcoal in the pots and have him put on more clothes, so he won’t catch a cold and fall ill again.”
The father and son pair couldn’t get sick at the same time; they needed someone to take care of the overall situation.
Of course, Zhang Jian understood. He first looked at the royal physician who was diagnosing the Emperor’s pulse and saw that he had a relaxed expression, so he followed his orders and went out to deliver the message. The Crown Prince and the others breathed a sigh of relief when they heard that the Emperor had woken up without any problems.
King Wei wanted to see the Emperor again. After Zhang Jian passed the message, the Emperor simply summoned everyone to meet him together. After seeing that he was fine other than having a bad mood, everyone’s concerns were finally relieved.
After showing his face, the Emperor didn’t want to say much and waved his hand, saying, “”Alright, I’m fine. You all go back.”
This time, the crowd did not insist, but King Wei repeatedly reminded the Emperor to take care of his health before leaving, looking even more sincere than ever. In the eyes of others, his attitude had a lot of other meanings, but even if they didn’t like it, no one would say anything right now.
The days were short during winter. It was still mid-afternoon when they entered the palace, but when they left, the sky outside had already turned dark. Qi Yang and Lu Qipei sat on the carriage returning to the mansion, and the atmosphere was somewhat bleak.
After a while, Qi Yang lowered her head and said, “Royal Father’s health is getting worse and worse. Back then, Royal Father was never sick, and his body had always been healthy. Even until I later… he was still fine.”
Others might not understand, but Lu Qipei knew that Qi Yang was referring to the past life. In her previous life, Qi Yang died two years later, so she was still a ‘prophet’ in some matters. However, with the changes that they brought about in this life, many things had also changed accordingly.
On the upside, the Crown Prince was still alive and had temporarily escaped the fate of premature death from the previous life. On the downside, it seemed that the Emperor’s health had deteriorated prematurely.
These two were Qi Yang’s father and brother. Lu Qipei couldn’t really say anything, so she could only stroke her back and comfort her, saying, “This is a variable, we can’t do anything about it. I just hope that after this incident, His Majesty will take care of his health more.”
Qi Yang could only nod upon hearing this. Fortunately, the Emperor was not seriously ill, so she reluctantly put away her worries.
Putting aside these emotions, Qi Yang began to face the current situation calmly – the Emperor’s illness would cause some turbulence in the court, and Xie Yuan far away in the north might even seize the chance to counterattack.
Furthermore, the Emperor’s health will inevitably suffer after these two times he fell sick, and his lifespan might not be as long as expected. The Crown Prince’s ascension to the throne might not be an unreachable matter.
Setting aside the latter, for the sake of the former, it was better if the Emperor’s illness did not last for long.
