Chapter 919: You Want Me to See a Patient?

Fengxin City had not followed convention by constructing a traveling palace for the Emperor of Great Yan.

As the Prince put it, when a real brother came to visit, you entertained him at home. Building a separate palace for him would be far too distant and formal.

The Emperor himself had long since grown accustomed to this man’s stinginess. Back when he had handed all his businesses over to the Ministry of Revenue and was living under his imperial father’s nose from one miserable day to the next, never knowing where the next meal would come from, he had written to this fellow for help.

This fellow responded by sending him two cartloads of cornmeal.

To this day, whenever the Emperor smelled anything made from corn, his stomach instinctively felt as though someone were taking a file to it.

Still, Prince Pingxi Residence might not possess the extravagance of the imperial palace, but it had style.

For secluded elegance and quiet refinement, even the imperial gardens outside Yanjing might not compare.

“That bastard Zheng truly knows how to enjoy life.”

The Emperor sat beside a stone table, gazing at the little bridges and flowing water in the courtyard. His mood unconsciously became lighter as well.

The Empress had already changed into more comfortable clothing. Siniang had prepared it for her: dignified without sacrificing grace. Perhaps, throughout all Great Yan, only inside this princely Residence could the Son of Heaven and his family experience what it truly felt like for ordinary relatives to visit one another.

“This concubine rather likes it here. It isn’t noisy. It’s peaceful too.”

He Sisi had never cared for pomp. Unlike many ordinary people who became rich overnight and then frantically compensated for all the luxuries they had once lacked, she had settled into wealth remarkably quickly and still preferred the feeling of a small, ordinary household.

Otherwise, she would hardly have maintained her own vegetable patch inside the imperial palace.

Perhaps that was also an He-family tradition. From top to bottom, the He household consisted of honest, grounded people.

Wei Zhonghe, standing nearby, said, “Your Majesty the Empress, after we return to the capital, why not have the Ministry of Works reproduce this garden inside the palace?”

Unlike the late Emperor, whose self-restraint had bordered upon absolute severity, the present Son of Heaven did not deliberately make himself suffer.

As the Emperor himself put it, whether the Emperor lived harshly or comfortably had no real meaning. Beyond satisfying the vanity of being able to say, “We are a frugal and virtuous Emperor,” what did his personal austerity have to do with whether ordinary people had enough food and warm clothes?

That was why Eunuch Wei dared suggest building another garden. Had anyone proposed such a thing during the late Emperor’s reign, it would have amounted to complaining that his own life was too long.

The Emperor merely shook his head and smiled.

“It wouldn’t mean the same thing. Gardens depend mainly on one’s state of mind. The imperial palace could transform itself into a hundred different shapes and it would still remain the imperial palace. But that bastard Zheng truly lives freely here. That is why this place carries this sort of quiet charm.”

Prince Pingxi Residence was enormous, but compared with a grand palace complex in the usual sense, it was still relatively compact.

Aside from Siniang maintaining one office inside the Residence, none of the yamen beneath Prince Pingxi Residence had their administrative offices here.

A home truly felt like a home.

Quiet.

Peaceful.

Serene.

“Settling in comfortably?”

Zheng Fan walked in as he asked.

“What do you think? Compared with this place, both my old princely residence and my present imperial palace suddenly feel much less tasteful.”

“Hahaha.”

The Prince was delighted by the evaluation.

The Empress stood nearby, looking as though she wanted to say something but hesitated.

Zheng Fan understood immediately.

“The Crown Prince is finishing today’s lessons. Class will end shortly.”

At that, the Empress smiled.

“Where are your children?” the Emperor urged. “Let me see them. I prepared their greeting gifts long ago.”

“I thought the journey might have tired you both, so I planned to let you rest first. Since you say so, I’ll have them brought over.”

Zheng Fan waved behind him. Xiao Yibo approached.

The Emperor stood instead and waved him off.

“The children are still small. We’ll go see them ourselves.”

“That works too.”

The Prince accompanied the Emperor and Empress to Xiong Liqing’s courtyard.

With the Son of Heaven staying in Prince Pingxi Residence, the household naturally understood that its members would have to meet him, and would probably eat dinner together later as well. The people in Prince Pingxi’s rear residence could hardly be said to stand in awe of the imperial household, but neither would they neglect basic courtesy.

So Xiong Liqing had dressed specially for the occasion.

She had originally planned to wear formal finery, but after a servant reported that the Empress had changed into clothes Siniang had prepared, Xiong Liqing chose instead an elegant noblewoman’s dress in the Chu style.

If the guest wore ordinary clothes while you appeared in full ceremonial dress, you would lower your own position without saying a word.

Being half a head lower was acceptable. The other woman was, after all, the guest and the Empress.

But her own man and the Emperor met as equals. How could she, as his woman, behave with excessive timidity?

“Greetings, Your Majesty. May my Emperor live ten thousand years.”

Xiong Liqing bent into a curtsy.

The maids and matrons behind her, however, all knelt and performed the full formal salute.

The Empress hurried forward and helped Xiong Liqing upright.

“Little Sister grows lovelier every time I see you.”

“And Elder Sister grows ever more radiant and beautiful.”

Xiong Liqing and He Sisi had met when Xiong Liqing traveled to Yanjing to receive investiture from the late Emperor.

After all, in Yanjing at that time, the only household that could truly count as her husband’s family had been the Sixth Prince Residence.

So the gathering did not feel excessively unfamiliar. Everyone went indoors together.

Big Girl had been born before Zheng Lin. Her Grasping of Fortune had taken place before the New Year, while the Emperor had not left Yanjing until afterward, then spent a long time stopping and sightseeing along the road.

For an infant, nearly every month produced a new appearance.

By now, Big Girl could already grip the rails of her crib with her tiny hands and pull herself upright to peer around.

And sure enough... the moment the imperial couple entered...

Big Girl looked toward them... and smiled.

The Empress practically melted on the spot.

She almost lunged forward, gathered Big Girl into her arms, and held her close.

“Giggle, giggle...”

Big Girl kept laughing.

The Empress held her for a long while before finally saying with a smile:

“This girl is simply too lovable.”

As she spoke, the Empress was looking at the Emperor.

Her meaning could hardly have been clearer.

What evil intentions could the Empress possibly have?

She truly thought Big Girl was beautiful and immediately likable.

As a mother with two sons, the moment she saw such a delicate little girl, exquisite as porcelain, she naturally wanted to bring her home as a daughter-in-law.

The Emperor himself liked Big Girl very much too.

In earlier letters, that bastard Zheng had praised his daughter to the heavens, practically describing a fairy descended into the mortal world. The Emperor had been able to understand. Beauty lay in the eye of the beholder, and fathers were much the same where their daughters were concerned. The Emperor himself adored the Princess born to Noble Consort Lu.

But after seeing Big Girl in person, he realized... the bastard really had produced something exceptional!

In this age, “exceptional” remained an entirely positive word.

When people praised children, they often said a child had spiritual grace.

The spiritual grace surrounding this bastard Zheng’s daughter practically overflowed from her body.

The Emperor was widely experienced.

He immediately looked toward Zheng Fan.

“A spirit child?”

“Mm.”

The Prince gave a reserved little nod, as though it were hardly worth mentioning.

The Emperor drew in a deep breath.

At that moment, Wei Zhonghe, who had been waiting behind him, stepped forward.

“Your Majesty, this slave senses the aura of a Fire Phoenix from the little Princess. Extremely dense.”

“Hahahahahaha!”

The Emperor burst into loud laughter and slapped Zheng Fan on the shoulder.

“Wouldn’t the Xiong imperial clan of Chu vomit blood from anger!”

To an Emperor, the concept of “family” differed from that of ordinary people.

This little girl possessed a Fire Phoenix spirit body, something that should have been the pride of the Xiong Clan.

Yet now... she lived in Yan territory.

She was a child of Yan!

“Zheng Fan, this is your fault. Why didn’t you tell me in your letters?”

“Is this really important enough that I needed to report it specially?”

“...” the Emperor.

He had walked straight into it.

He had personally built the bastard a stage and invited him to climb up and show off.

The Empress was still holding Big Girl and playing with her.

Big Girl gave her plenty of face and responded enthusiastically.

Wei Zhonghe, meanwhile, noticed something else.

A sword rested in one corner of the crib.

He recognized that sword.

So the disciple recently taken by the Sword Saint... was the eldest Princess of Prince Pingxi Residence.

Strictly speaking, this was not a secret the world could truly hide. The disturbance the Sword Saint had caused that day had been far too large, and many civil and military officials had witnessed it personally.

But first, Fengxin City was effectively forbidden ground for the Secret Intelligence Department. The Department’s power here had been compressed into one tiny liaison office.

Second, after the Emperor began his Eastern Inspection, his information channels had also narrowed. He still read memorials every day, but naturally could no longer receive every detail from every direction as comprehensively as before.

The Empress kept shooting meaningful looks at the Emperor.

The Emperor remained unmoved and merely joined her in entertaining Big Girl.

At that moment, Xiao Yibo entered and reported that His Highness the Crown Prince’s lessons had ended.

The prospect of seeing her son finally diverted the Empress’s attention.

“Then I won’t disturb your family reunion,” Zheng Fan said. “I’ll come call you when it’s time for dinner.”

“Good.”

The Emperor nodded.

He and the Empress left Xiong Liqing’s courtyard and returned toward their own accommodations, with Eunuch Wei following behind.

The Empress began again:

“Your Majesty, Big Girl is so wonderful. You...”

Wei Zhonghe immediately spread his hands and formed a small barrier against eavesdropping.

The Emperor noticed and waved.

Wei Zhonghe dispersed the barrier.

Since they were already living inside another man’s home, there was no point sneaking around to speak behind his back. It would only make them look petty.

The Empress had not noticed the brief exchange at all.

“Big Girl is beautiful, yes,” the Emperor said, “but Empress, she is Zheng Fan’s daughter.”

“What is wrong with being Prince Pingxi’s daughter? Would that not make her perfectly suited to our imperial household?”

Prince Zhenbei Residence had already entered decline and no longer possessed the prestige it once did.

At present, Prince Pingxi Residence was unquestionably the foremost military fief in all Great Yan.

By tradition, it truly was the most suitable household for a marriage alliance with the imperial family.

The Emperor pointed at himself.

“What about the Min Clan?”

The Empress shuddered.

A hint of alarm appeared on her face.

The Emperor had actually gone so far as to expose the scar buried deepest in his own heart merely to persuade her.

He did not seem to care.

He took the Empress’s hand and patted it gently.

“That bastard Zheng is not my maternal grandfather. My grandfather might once have possessed influence reaching Heaven, but in the end, he could not outplay my father. Zheng and I are different. Right now neither of us is playing that game, but if one day we truly did... whether I could beat him is difficult to say. But that is not even the most important point. Back then, Prince Zhenbei once drank with Father and discussed the marriage between my Second Brother and the Commandery Princess. Father said very freely that even if the Commandery Princess truly ended up ruling the roost afterward, that would only prove she possessed the ability. He did not care. But what happened later? You yourself think this Residence is comfortable to live in. That is because that bastard Zheng built it into what he wanted. He will never stand by and watch his daughter jump into the imperial family’s dye vat. And besides...”

The Emperor tapped his own forehead.

“What’s inside that bastard Zheng’s skull has never worked like an ordinary man’s. He doesn’t believe in things like marriages arranged by parents and matchmakers. I remember one time when he got drunk with me, he said his sons and daughters would have to... what was the phrase? Freely fall in love. If our son truly possesses the ability, then once he grows a little older, he can throw away his dignity and pursue the girl himself. Why should the two of us give ourselves headaches over it? An imperial marriage cannot be arranged early, but no other household could possibly arrange one with her either. We have plenty of time. Don’t worry. Once our son grows older, I’ll teach him every trick his father used to pursue his mother.”

The Empress rolled her eyes at the Emperor.

Back then, if she had not desperately stopped them, her father and elder brother probably would have hacked this lecher to death with their butcher knives.

If their son ever dared copy his father’s old methods on Big Girl...

Crown Prince or not, Prince Pingxi would probably draw Wuya long before the boy got anywhere.

The Emperor and Empress returned to their courtyard.

The Empress blinked.

“My son has actually grown this sturdy?”

“This...” The Emperor paused.

At that moment, Tian Tian, who had been standing inside, turned around, knelt, and kowtowed.

“Tian Tian greets His Majesty the Emperor and Her Majesty the Empress.”

The Emperor and Empress both looked slightly embarrassed.

Oh.

So that was not their son.

“Imperial Father! Imperial Mother!”

Ji Chuanye came running over carrying a scroll.

He had gone to fetch his schoolwork.

After putting the things down, Ji Chuanye knelt.

“This son greets Imperial Father. May Imperial Father live ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand ten thousand years! This son greets Imperial Mother. May Imperial Mother...”

“My son!”

The Empress swept the Crown Prince into her arms so fiercely that mother and son ended up sitting together on the floor.

“Your son is right here. He isn’t going to fly away. Talk normally.”

The Emperor admonished his wife a few times, then walked toward Tian Tian and reached out to help him up.

The youth had regular, handsome features. An innate heroic bearing already rested between his brows. His body was sturdy without appearing clumsy.

Once he grew up... he would undoubtedly become a handsome, heroic son of Yan.

“You are the Heir Prince Jingnan?”

“Yes, Imperial Elder Brother.”

“...” the Emperor.

Tian Wujing’s elder sister had been the principal mother of all the imperial Princes.

That made Tian Wujing maternal uncle to them all.

So Tian Wujing’s son and Ji Old Sixth belonged to the same generation as cousins.

For Tian Tian to address the Emperor as “Elder Brother” was perfectly proper.

The problem was...

Tian Tian was also the godson of that bastard Zheng.

Still, this was merely a small interlude.

Afterward, the Emperor and Empress sat together and examined the Crown Prince’s schoolwork while the family talked.

One had to admit...

Prince Pingxi Residence truly nourished people.

The Emperor had always carried guilt in his heart.

Back when he fought for the throne, his own son, the eldest imperial grandson of the Ji Clan’s generation, had contributed to that struggle as well.

In the environment of that time, failing to seize the throne had meant waiting to die.

Now he was Emperor.

He possessed the authority to force his brothers to remain quiet and obedient.

But if someone else had taken the throne... those brothers might never have tolerated him.

His ability was too great.

And behind him stood Prince Pingxi in eastern Jin, watching like a tiger.

Yet no matter how necessary it had been, a father who sent his own son charging into that struggle would always feel guilt.

The Crown Prince had been intelligent from childhood, but the signs that excessive brilliance was harming his health had been extremely obvious.

After spending a year at Prince Pingxi Residence, his constitution had improved enormously.

Even his whole personality now carried a brighter, more cheerful energy.

For that alone... the Emperor owed Zheng Fan an enormous favor.

Son.

You have to be well.

You have to stay healthy.

You are the foundation of Great Yan.

You are Great Yan’s... future.

The Emperor reached out and rubbed the Crown Prince’s head.

The Crown Prince seemed somewhat unused to this kind of father-son intimacy.

Then he remembered how Tian Tian behaved.

So he too revealed a simple, honest smile.

...

A’Ming appeared in another courtyard and called to the Blind Man.

“Blind Man. Master wants you.”

“Oh.”

The Blind Man nodded to show he understood.

But he did not walk toward the principal courtyard.

Instead, he headed in another direction.

Toward the courtyard where the imperial family was staying.

“What are you doing?” A’Ming asked.

“What could I possibly be doing?” The Blind Man spread both hands. “Going to assassinate the Emperor right now? Do I look like the kind of man who could do something that tasteless?”

“That is genuinely difficult to say. When it comes to rebellion, you sometimes give people the impression you’ve already gone mad.”

“Have you ever looked in a mirror? Do you have any idea how unacceptable you look to outsiders when you drink human blood?”

“Heh. Master is looking for you.”

“I know. And I know why Master wants me.”

“Oh?”

“That’s why I’m already going.”

“Like this?”

The Blind Man established his Mind Link.

A’Ming did not resist.

The connection formed.

The two men remained standing face-to-face while their conversation continued entirely inside their minds.

“In the prophecy, when Tian Tian broke through Yanjing and fought his way into the imperial palace, the man sitting on the dragon throne was the present Crown Prince. There are only two possibilities. One, the Crown Prince rebelled early, forced his father into honorable retirement, and turned him into a Retired Emperor. Two... this Emperor died young.”

“I understand why Master wants you now,” A’Ming said.

“Master wants to persuade me to examine the Emperor.”

“Yes. Persuade you.”

Among the Demon Kings, quite a few knew medicine.

But the Blind Man possessed one advantage nobody else could match.

For example... the others had been unable to determine the sex of a child in advance.

He had known long before the birth.

“All right. I’ve been persuaded.”

“Persuaded?”

“Yes.”

“How could you possibly be persuaded? No, more importantly, how could it happen this easily? Nobody has even said anything yet and you’ve already surrendered?”

Your dream... was rebellion!

“If the Emperor dies young, our Master will inevitably gain the title of Regent. He might even enter the capital and personally oversee the situation. Wherever the Prince’s banner points, who could possibly resist? There would certainly be people in Great Yan willing to die for the Ji imperial clan. But the overwhelming majority would never be willing to fight our Master to the death merely to preserve a situation where the sovereign is young and the state uncertain. I have planned so painstakingly for all these years. I have farmed so diligently for all these years. The setup. The atmosphere. The suppression. All of it... was for the sake of one future day, when Master—or perhaps our little treasure—could flip this entire table over in one magnificent motion. What I want... is the supreme pleasure and satisfaction of that single instant. And after all that... if the rebellion ends up proceeding step by step, naturally, smoothly, as though everything were merely following proper procedure...”

The Blind Man released the Mind Link.

Then he smiled and spoke his final lament aloud:

“How boring would that be?”

[End of Chapter 919]