GBP Chapter 593: Seeking nothing or harboring great ambitions?
Chapter 593: Seeking nothing or harboring great ambitions?
In the days following the emperor's ingestion of the longevity elixir, the imperial physicians took turns examining his pulse.
Only after she was assured that she could attend court normally did the Empress relent.
"Your Majesty should not overwork yourself. Discuss matters with the Prime Minister and other senior officials. Don't try to do everything yourself."
"I understand, Your Majesty. Please don't worry too much. I feel fine now, just like before."
The emperor paid a heavy price for his decision this time. Although he wouldn't have many years left even without the poisoning, at least he wouldn't have to count the days on his fingers like this.
If it weren't for the longevity pill given by Princess Xuan Nan, I probably wouldn't have made it to next spring.
Now I can at least see the flowers blooming again, even if it's the last time.
A few days passed, and although the Princess of Xuannan visited once, she did not take the opportunity to make any demands or ask for any rewards.
Even though the Empress had suggested it several times, Princess Xuan Nan simply acted indifferent and didn't ask for anything in return.
Is he truly without desires, or does he harbor grand ambitions?
This question had been lingering in the emperor's mind, but since he had already taken the longevity elixir, he was content with what he had.
Just as the Queen said, reasonable requests should be met as much as possible, while excessive requests should be ignored.
I can't very well spit out the longevity pill and return it.
On the morning of that day, when the court officials saw His Majesty, who had been recuperating for several months, finally reappear, their thoughts varied.
Those who were previously quite boastful are now breaking out in a cold sweat.
Is the news wrong?
Who said His Majesty doesn't have much time left? And that we're making plans so early? Our faction's plans are a bit too premature.
Sigh~ His Majesty looks to be in very good spirits now, is it time to start settling scores later?
After the court officials finished presenting their reports, the chief eunuch immediately announced the end of the court session.
The Empress has instructed that His Majesty should not be overworked, and there is no need to rush the matters that need to be discussed.
Now that the court is neither at war nor suffering from disaster, why waste time in the court?
The court officials below were completely bewildered by this move. The court session was adjourned? It was adjourned just like that?
No decision has been made yet? Is His Majesty in a hurry to go back and take his medicine, or is he not actually recovered and is just pushing himself through the motions?
This move reignited suspicions among those below, and their recently subsided thoughts began to stir again.
But what surprised them even more was yet to come; it was all about taking them by surprise.
After the court session ended, an imperial edict was issued to bestow honors upon the Princess Consort of Xuannan.
Only then did everyone learn that the Princess Consort of Xuan Nan had presented the Longevity Pill, which had restored His Majesty's vitality within a few days.
The Prince of Xuannan and his wife knelt down to receive the imperial decree, and the rewards were naturally given to them.
One of these conditions alone would be enough to make most people in the court envious: a pardon from death.
"A get-out-of-jail-free card?"
"It's actually a pardon from death! Since the founding of our Great Zhou Dynasty, only three pardons from death have been awarded in total."
It's been almost twenty years since the last time an imperial pardon was granted. Sigh... I've actually witnessed the fourth imperial pardon in my lifetime, and it was bestowed upon a woman.
However, no one said anything sarcastic, since the Prince of Xuan Nan was someone who couldn't be offended.
As for the Longevity Pill, they are now unsure whether it is more valuable than the Death-Exemption Token.
These two things may seem unrelated, but they are both treasures that can save lives.
The only difference is that one is a magical guardian and the other is a physical guardian.
The idea of granting pardons was indeed the emperor's own, though the empress only gave him a slight hint.
The emperor accepted the suggestion so quickly because he didn't want to owe anyone a favor; he wanted to repay it as soon as possible.
It's just a get-out-of-jail-free card. Even if it's made of pure gold, how much gold could it cost?
Those longevity pills are priceless, so this time I really made a huge profit.
Besides, by giving a reward, one won't have to worry about the other party making any excessive demands in the future, thus eliminating any potential trouble.
He also put an end to his worries and could now enjoy the extra time that the longevity pill gave him.
"Your Majesty, are you reading memorials again?"
"Your Majesty, His Majesty has been reading memorials for half an hour and has just taken a break."
"Well, I'll come back later. All of you, be on your guard. His Majesty needs ginseng soup when he wakes up. Don't forget."
"Your Majesty, rest assured, the ginseng soup has been kept warm in the side hall, and His Majesty will be able to drink it when he wakes up."
The Empress returned to her palace and had only been sitting for a short while when the Second Prince arrived.
"Why are you here at this time?"
"Greetings, Your Majesty. How have you been feeling these past few days? Please don't overexert yourself."
"Don't worry about me. The palace servants will take care of the specific matters. How could I possibly get tired?"
"But you should go visit your father. Since he recovered, all the other princes have been rushing to visit him, but you haven't."
What's the point of saying a few nice words and expressing superficial filial piety?
"Oh, what's this? You have something to say that goes beyond the surface? Tell me about it."
After thinking it over, the Second Prince informed the Empress of the information that Jiang Xiaoqi had provided to him.
"How could this happen?! This is incredibly audacious; it goes far beyond simply treason."
After all, this group had previously planned to abduct a large number of our able-bodied men. What good could it possibly be if they were to get involved with the Japanese?
The second prince thought so too. These Japanese pirates had already been imprisoned, yet they were still able to get out and get involved with people in the palace.
He would never believe there was nothing fishy going on, but he still didn't know who the contact in the palace was, so he had to wait for the person to slip up again.
"Have you verified this matter?" The Empress asked solemnly. The Second Prince nodded, "It is absolutely true. I would never joke about such a thing."
The Empress pondered for a moment, "This matter is of great importance, and we cannot easily alert the enemy. You may leave now. I will discuss this with His Majesty, but we need to find a more reasonable source for the information."
The relationship between my son and Lord Jiang must not be exposed. Teacher and student should remain just that – teacher and student, not subordinate. At least, this must always be the case in public.
After the second prince left, the empress immediately went to the emperor's quarters. At that moment, the emperor had just woken up and was preparing to drink ginseng soup.
The Empress dismissed the palace servants and informed the Emperor of the matter. Upon hearing this, the Emperor was furious, exclaiming, "How could such a thing happen!"
"Hmph, isn't the Dali Temple run by that Ouyang family brat? How is he doing his job!"
The Empress advised, "Your Majesty, please calm down. The most urgent task now is to investigate thoroughly and obtain solid evidence."
"We won't feel at ease until we find this contact in the palace."
The emperor's anger wasn't necessarily about the Japanese, but rather that his inner palace, which he had cleaned several times, was still not clean.
For the second time, he began to doubt his own abilities.