Chapter 702: We Have Come

The formal dragon robe was removed.

Wei Zhonghe selected a set of black casual robes and presented them.

Inside the palace, the Emperor did not spend every waking moment dressed in a dragon robe. The more symbolic a garment was, the heavier that symbolism became, and the more uncomfortable it was to wear.

The same was true of the court robes worn by the hundred officials.

So after court, the Emperor of Yan always changed into informal clothing.

But even informal imperial clothing had rules.

Which garment.

Which set.

Everything followed established regulation.

At certain seasons and on certain dates, the Emperor even had to wear particular colors or styles in prayer for favorable weather and harvests.

The patterns embroidered beneath each garment and the ornaments paired with it all carried different meanings.

After all... the Emperor possessed another title.

Son of Heaven.

Child of Heaven.

The man who tended the people on Heaven's behalf.

A god among men.

"Change it."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Wei Zhonghe brought out another set.

The Emperor of Yan glanced at the newly presented clothes.

Then shook his head.

"White robes."

Wei Zhonghe froze for a moment.

The Son of Heaven had not worn white in a very long time.

Once upon a time, when the Emperor of Yan was still merely a Prince... he had loved white.

Everyone had been young once.

Everyone had known recklessness once.

White robes billowing.

Paper fan in hand.

A pendant swaying gently at the waist.

Small bridges, running water, peach blossoms.

Soft winds, fine rain, fragrant grass.

White clouds, slanting sun, green willows.

It was not that Yan people did not understand elegance.

Great Yan's Emperor too... had once been elegant in his youth.

Back then, the young lady of the Tian Clan had felt her heart stir toward the shameless rogue who climbed over her courtyard wall.

And before the young lady of the Min Clan married into the household, she herself had chosen which imperial prince she wanted as a husband.

Without an excellent face... without a compelling presence... mere authority, status, and rank could never have been enough.

The Tian family's daughter lacked no influence.

The Min family's daughter lacked no wealth.

Wei Zhonghe remembered clearly.

From the day His Majesty entered the Eastern Palace and became Crown Prince, he stopped wearing white.

He stopped touching other colors that seemed too light or frivolous as well.

After ascending the throne... apart from the black dragon robe... nearly every other garment His Majesty wore had black as its principal color.

Great Yan revered black.

Black represented solemnity.

Black represented gravity.

Yet today... the Emperor wished to wear white.

The Emperor of Yan raised both arms.

Wei Zhonghe and two palace maids helped him put on the robes.

Wei Zhonghe personally attached each ornament with extreme care.

At the end, he even rubbed the hanging tassels lightly between his fingers and straightened every strand.

Every set of clothing had its corresponding accessories.

On the tray held by a young eunuch nearby, one object remained.

A folding fan.

Wei Zhonghe picked it up and prepared to present it.

The Emperor lowered his gaze to the fan.

Then smiled and shook his head.

"We are no longer the young man We were."

He did not take it.

Outside the Imperial Study... the imperial palanquin was already prepared.

Eight eunuchs crouched at the front.

Eight more at the rear.

The palanquin had a canopy and curtains, and the interior had been lined with fur to keep out the cold.

The Emperor of Yan sat inside.

Wei Zhonghe flicked his horsetail whisk.

"Raise the palanquin."

Sixteen eunuchs lifted it together.

"Your Majesty, where are we going?" Wei Zhonghe asked.

"Just wander around."

"..." Wei Zhonghe.

Naturally, Wei Zhonghe could not do what he once might have done and cry aloud:

"His Majesty decrees: we're going to wander around wherever!"

So he could only walk to the front himself and signal for the procession to follow him.

At a moment like this, Wei Zhonghe did not dare think too much.

Nor did he dare ask too much.

He had made every necessary mental preparation long ago.

He had even sealed away that entire room of Mr. Horns for the next man.

What else could he possibly be unable to let go of?

Other people endured until the clouds parted and the moon shone through.

Wei Zhonghe wanted something different.

He wanted only to guard this true dragon through the final stretch of its life.

For a eunuch... perhaps that too could count as allowing his own life to reach completion in another form.

The imperial palanquin began wandering through the palace.

The Emperor of Yan leaned sideways against the cushions.

Bathed in the afternoon sunlight... he quietly admired the imperial grounds.

Long ago, when Zheng Fan escorted the Princess of Chu to Yanjing for her formal investiture, he had told the Emperor something:

The Princess says Great Yan's imperial palace is far inferior to the palace of Chu.

The Emperor of Yan laughed.

He laughed happily.

Because the achievements of an Emperor... had never lain in golden splendor.

Not in towering Deer Terraces.

Not in exquisite gardens.

Not in seas of flowers stretching beyond sight.

A qualified Emperor... throughout his entire life... was like a craftsman.

There was only one monument he truly needed to build.

On that monument would be carved... his life.

His... epic.

And that monument would be left to later generations.

People might spit upon it.

Horse hooves and cart wheels might trample across it.

Or perhaps travelers would dismount before reaching it... and bow.

Back then... the Chu imperial palace had looked ten times grander than Great Yan's in the eyes of the Princess of Chu.

Heh.

Where was it now?

The Emperor's thoughts were unusually different today.

Perhaps influenced by his mood, when he looked at certain corners of the palace again, he suddenly tasted a flavor unlike anything he had known before.

The refinement hidden within this palace.

The thought invested in this palace.

He had lived here for so many years.

Yet at this moment... it suddenly seemed unfamiliar again.

And with that unfamiliarity came curiosity.

The desire to explore.

The desire to understand.

All of it... could be gathered into one word.

Attachment.

Ji Runhao closed his eyes.

He did not want to keep looking.

He felt he had seen enough.

As an Emperor, he had long since become accustomed to restraining, even cutting away, those emotions and traits within himself that belonged to an ordinary human being.

After long enough... that restraint had become instinct.

He raised one hand.

The palanquin stopped.

Wei Zhonghe, who had been guiding the procession ahead, immediately returned.

"Make preparations. We are going to Lady Fengxin's residence."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

...

The imperial palace was the most secret and central place in a state.

It concealed far too many secrets.

And yet... precisely because it was such a place... it was also extraordinarily difficult for it to possess true secrets.

His Majesty had spent so long recuperating in the Rear Garden.

Leaving aside the way people's hearts had begun shifting... the mere fact that the Dragon Throne had stood empty for so long was enough to drive every faction into a frenzy of infiltration toward the inner palace.

Besides... the Emperor had spent a very long time riding his palanquin around the palace today.

Far too many palace maids and eunuchs had seen it.

There was simply no way to conceal the matter completely.

Likewise... many people already knew that Lady Fengxin's residence had sent someone into the palace to request an imperial physician.

...

"His Majesty is going to Lady Fengxin's residence."

Mr. Zhu stood before the Crown Prince and spoke gravely.

"Mm. Chuanye is ill."

Mr. Zhu suddenly knelt before the Crown Prince.

"What is the meaning of this, Sir?"

"Your Highness, while His Majesty remains inside the imperial palace, ten thousand evils cannot approach him. But once His Majesty leaves the palace... he is surrounded by openings."

The Crown Prince fell silent.

At precisely this moment... the eldest imperial grandson had fallen ill.

The timing itself was difficult not to think about.

Far too convenient.

Perhaps other ministers, even if they noticed the strange timing, would instinctively assume that Sixth Highness, having lost his position at the grand court audience, intended to play the emotional card through the eldest imperial grandson.

Ji Chuanye.

Ji Chuanye.

Pass on the clan.

Inherit the enterprise.

Many people still remembered the day the eldest imperial grandson was born.

His Majesty had personally gone to the prince's residence.

But... the eldest imperial grandson was still far too young.

"Your Highness, this subordinate believes Sixth Highness may attempt something beyond the bounds."

The Crown Prince looked at Mr. Zhu kneeling before him.

He did not refute him.

Because the Crown Prince himself carried a similar worry.

"Imperial Father is still Imperial Father. And this is Yanjing." In the end, the Crown Prince shook his head. "Sixth Brother cannot succeed. Besides, both Princes are still in the capital."

"Your Highness, over these past several days, has either Prince appeared in public? We can set aside the Prince of Jingnan. The Southern Prince has always been solitary by nature. But Prince Zhenbei? Are he and First Highness truly so inseparable that they must drink themselves unconscious together every single day?"

"What exactly is Sir trying to say?"

"When this subordinate was young, I became obsessed with street tricks and stage magic. A single box could make countless things appear and disappear. I once wanted to learn the craft, but a master magician told me something: 'The lid closes. The lid opens. Unless something vanishes before your very eyes, never believe it truly vanished.' The same logic applies now. We have not seen either Prince for several days. This subordinate dares to speculate... could the two Princes already have left Yanjing? Your Highness... most importantly... because of his relationship with Marquis Pingxi, Sixth Highness may have learned the answer much earlier!"

The smile on the Crown Prince's face had still not disappeared.

He said:

"This Palace will repeat the same thing. In this world, no one is capable of scheming against Imperial Father."

"What if His Majesty deliberately wants to be schemed against?"

The Crown Prince fell silent.

"After the grand court audience ended, all the ministers rejoiced. Everyone thought dawn had come and the national heir had been decided. Yet this subordinate has watched Your Highness over these past days. You have remained unhappy. Depressed. Outside ministers watch only the spectacle. But when it comes to the affairs of the imperial household itself, who could possibly understand them better than Your Highness? Your Highness... stop deceiving yourself. This subordinate does not believe Your Highness failed to imagine this possibility!"

The Crown Prince put down the memorial in his hand.

He looked toward Mr. Zhu.

The smile on his face slowly disappeared.

"Then what do you want this Palace to do? Imperial Father has probably already departed. The imperial carriage must already be outside the palace."

"Your Highness, those who accomplish great affairs cannot be bound by trifles. You are the Crown Prince. You are the foundation of the state. Great Yan's future can rest only upon your shoulders! This minister asks the Crown Prince to mobilize the Eastern Palace Guard and proceed to the Lu Residence... to protect the imperial carriage! Only if Your Highness is there can we ensure His Majesty does not deliberately walk into that trap. Even if the possibility is tiny... we cannot afford to gamble. The great undertaking stands before us. The supreme treasure stands before us. We... the Eastern Palace... the ministers who support Your Highness... cannot permit the slightest accident!"

"The Eastern Palace Guard?"

The Eastern Palace Guard did not refer to the ordinary guards inside the Eastern Palace.

It was a dedicated guard yamen stationed in the inner city outside the imperial palace.

In essence... the Crown Prince's personal army.

Its authorized strength was two thousand.

This had always been part of the standard establishment of Great Yan's Crown Prince.

Every generation of Crown Prince possessed such a force.

Whenever the Crown Prince left the palace or attended major sacrifices and ceremonies, they also served as honor guard and escort.

"Yes. At present, the only troops we can mobilize immediately are the Eastern Palace Guard."

Trying to mobilize other forces would first lack proper authority.

The Emperor had already returned to the palace.

The Crown Prince was no longer regent.

Even if some other force could be moved eventually, there would not be enough time.

Only the Eastern Palace Guard theoretically obeyed the Crown Prince alone.

They could be deployed at once.

And this force was absolutely no ceremonial shell.

Its soldiers were well trained.

Its armor and equipment were excellent.

"Your Highness, if Sixth Highness has not truly been driven into desperation, then you are merely visiting your eldest nephew. But if Sixth Highness truly dares... then Your Highness is going to protect the Emperor! The situation is urgent. Your Highness cannot hesitate any longer!"

The Crown Prince drew a deep breath.

At last... he nodded.

"Then this Palace will go visit our eldest nephew."

...

"Eunuch."

Wei Zhonghe was driving the carriage.

Several guards followed before and behind.

At that moment... a senior handler from the Secret Intelligence Department rode forward to ask for instructions.

The question was simple.

Under normal procedure, whenever His Majesty left the palace incognito, the streets had to be cleared in advance.

Experts from the Secret Intelligence Department would spread rapidly through the surrounding area, eliminating every possible threat before it could appear.

The problem was... this incognito visit was going to the Lu Residence.

The head of the Lu Residence, Lu Bing, was effectively a colleague of the Secret Intelligence Department.

On previous occasions when His Majesty visited the Lu Residence in secret, there had been no advance street-clearing operation.

Because the people from Lu Bing's yamen would only arrange the security even more carefully.

But this time... the senior handler had deliberately come forward to ask.

It could only be said that no fool could rise to a position like his.

After spending enough years in this line of work, a person naturally developed an almost uncanny intuition.

Sometimes... he could smell an unusual omen in the air itself.

Wei Zhonghe's eyelids drooped slightly.

He waved one hand without speaking.

"Understood."

The handler withdrew.

The Secret Intelligence Department did not establish advance control or clear the area around the Lu Residence.

Just as on previous visits... they displayed their respect toward this parallel intelligence yamen.

The gates of the Lu Residence... slowly opened.

The carriage... entered.

...

At the same time...

Marquis Zheng was holding the Son of Heaven's sword and chatting idly with a group of Zhenbei Army officers when a report reached him.

The Eastern Palace Guard had suddenly deployed.

Every man present.

Every suit of armor donned.

A military force that large could not possibly move without making noise.

And after the Zhenbei Army entered the capital several days earlier, they had established simple defensive zones across parts of the city.

The Eastern Palace Guard had passed directly through one of those areas.

They carried an edict from the Crown Prince.

The Zhenbei Army had no reason to block them.

Still... this was military intelligence.

Zheng Fan was a military-service Marquis.

He held the Son of Heaven's sword.

And the days he had spent drinking, chatting, and becoming familiar with these Zhenbei Army grunts had not been wasted.

So Marquis Zheng learned the news almost immediately.

The moment he heard it... whether because years of battlefield experience had sharpened his instincts... or because of his understanding of Ji Old Sixth and his confidence in him...

Marquis Zheng's first reaction was:

Ji Old Sixth... is moving!

Then... what should he do?

This Zhenbei Army under Li Liangshen had perfectly missed every major war of recent years.

That was precisely why its officers were so fascinated whenever Marquis Zheng told stories from the battlefield.

But that did not mean Marquis Zheng could genuinely command them.

For now... the only thing he could do was signal Siniang with his eyes.

Return immediately.

Notify the others.

Begin making contact with the people around the prince's family.

Whether they could help Ji Old Sixth himself was a separate matter.

At the very least... they needed to secure his family first.

And in addition... notify the First Prince, who had been pretending to lie drunk at home for several days.

...

"Your Majesty."

Lu Bing personally stepped forward and helped the Emperor of Yan down from the carriage.

Every other member of the Lu household... had once again been confined to his or her rooms in advance.

Their own residence was about to become the center of attention for all Yanjing.

Yet the family living inside it truly could not see the true face of Mount Lu.

"Is Wet Nurse's health still good?"

He had come to see his grandson.

But naturally... he first asked after his wet nurse.

"To reply to Your Majesty, Mother's health remains sound."

"Good."

The Emperor gently pushed away Lu Bing's supporting hand.

Then walked toward the Buddhist hall by himself.

"This minister greets Your Majesty! Long live Our Emperor, long live, long live ten thousand ten thousand years!"

"This minister greets Your Majesty! Long live Our Emperor, long live, long live ten thousand ten thousand years!"

Two of the Imperial Medical Bureau's finest physicians had already arrived.

The instant they saw His Majesty appear personally, they hurriedly knelt in salute.

"How is Chuanye?" the Emperor asked.

"To reply to Your Majesty, His Highness the imperial grandson appears to have caught a chill and developed deficiency heat. This minister has already applied acupuncture. With several more doses of medicine, he should begin recovering within two days."

"Rise."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

The Emperor of Yan entered the Buddhist hall.

Inside, two maids were already kneeling.

Old Madam Lu stood waiting with a cane.

The instant she saw the Emperor enter, delight first appeared across her face.

But then she looked more closely at his complexion.

His color had almost recovered to that of a healthy man.

The old woman's mouth opened.

Then closed again.

Her aged eyes instantly filled with tears.

"Wet Nurse."

"Your Majesty, this old woman failed to care properly for the imperial grandson. I ask Your Majesty to punish me."

"Wet Nurse, sit. Sit."

The Emperor stepped forward and took Old Madam Lu's hand.

"This matter has nothing to do with you. Nothing to do with you."

He patted the back of her hand.

Then told Lu Bing:

"Help Wet Nurse sit down."

Lu Bing immediately supported his mother onto the seat.

The Emperor of Yan said to Old Madam Lu:

"We will first go see Chuanye."

Old Madam Lu dabbed at the corner of her eyes with a handkerchief.

Then nodded.

The Emperor entered the inner room.

Eldest Imperial Grandson Ji Chuanye lay on the bed.

A faint sheen of sweat still covered his face.

Perhaps the commotion outside had disturbed him.

Or perhaps his body truly felt too uncomfortable.

He was still awake.

When the Emperor entered, the child was lying there with his eyes open.

Ji Chuanye's mouth spread into a grin.

"Imperial Grandfather..."

Then he tried to sit up.

"Aiya, Your Highness, you can't get up. You absolutely cannot take another chill."

Wei Zhonghe hurried forward and gently pressed Ji Chuanye back onto the bed.

Lu Bing stood behind the Emperor.

A trace of struggle appeared in his eyes.

The Emperor of Yan walked to the bedside.

And sat down.

He reached out.

Placed one hand against Ji Chuanye's forehead.

Still somewhat hot.

Grandparents doted on grandchildren.

Over these past several years, other sons had also produced children one after another.

Yet of all his grandchildren, the Emperor had visited this eldest imperial grandson most often.

Otherwise Ji Chuanye would never have said he wanted to learn sleeve-sword techniques from Wei Zhonghe.

Outsiders... simply did not know.

"Tell Imperial Grandfather. Does it still hurt?"

Ji Chuanye shook his head.

Then said:

"Great-Grandmother made Chuanye drink medicine. The medicine was really bitter."

Behind him...

Lu Bing's expression instantly stiffened.

The Emperor of Yan remained perfectly calm.

He asked:

"The medicine was so bitter, and Chuanye still drank it?"

"I drank it. Great-Grandmother said my father told me to drink it. He said it could lure Imperial Grandfather here to see Chuanye."

"Oh?"

"My father told me before. He wants to fight for the position. If he wins it, then later I'll get a share too."

"Is that so?"

"Yes. I'm my father's son. Teacher taught us in class that the father guides the son. That means whatever my father tells me to do, I have to do. Whatever my father wants to fight for, I have to help him fight for it. The medicine was very bitter. But Chuanye still drank every bit of it. And Imperial Grandfather... you really did come."

The child was clearly uncomfortable.

Yet he still grinned and revealed an innocent smile.

"Heh-heh..."

The Emperor of Yan smiled and reached out to stroke Ji Chuanye's head.

"Our Chuanye... is such a good boy."

[End of Chapter 702]