LRAB Chapter 36 The Grief and Indignation in the Imperial Study
Chapter 36 The Grief and Indignation in the Imperial Study
Fan Jiangang had not gone far from the palace gate when he saw Chen Pingping's carriage speeding towards him, and it suddenly stopped in front of the palace gate.
The black-clad officers quickly carried Chen Pingping out of the car and placed her in a wheelchair.
"Has the Censorate found out?" Fan Jian hurried forward, his voice tense. "How? Who did it?"
Chen Pingping's face was as cold as iron. He glanced at Fan Jian, and his usually calm eyes were now surging with barely suppressed killing intent.
"Come with me to see His Majesty." His voice was hoarse.
Fan Jian understood the meaning in Chen Pingping's eyes, and his heart sank.
This matter is related to the royal family!
Without saying a word, he turned around, pushed Chen Pingping's wheelchair, and the two headed straight for the Imperial Study.
The wheels rolled over the bluestone slabs of the palace road, making a rapid "rolling" sound.
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
In the imperial study, Emperor Qing sat on a couch by the window, the sunlight from outside falling on his face, making it appear deathly pale.
His fingers, resting on his knees, curled unconsciously, and his expression shifted between light and shadow.
This time, both the Kyoto plan and the westward expedition plan were very successful.
The Western Hu suffered a crushing defeat, and the Qing Kingdom expanded its territory by countless miles. Meanwhile, the plans in the capital went smoothly, and Ye Qingmei... also died.
But now, he felt as if his meridians were being pricked by countless fine needles, and every breath was accompanied by a dull pain.
His meridians are now on the verge of collapse.
Not only will they lose all their martial arts skills, but they will also lose their lives at any time due to the shattering of their meridians.
This is all because he cultivates domineering true qi.
He understands now.
It must be Ye Qingmei!
She must have tampered with his cultivation technique, intending to shatter his meridians and kill him so she could completely control the entire Qing Kingdom.
No wonder... no wonder a goddess like her would choose him and become pregnant with his child.
Once he dies, Ye Qingmei's power will be enough to control the entire Qing Kingdom.
When the time comes, the throne of Qing Kingdom can be inherited by the child in Ye Qingmei's womb.
This child was born to him and Ye Qingmei, so no one could object to letting this child inherit the throne.
Thinking of this, his face gradually darkened, and the pent-up emotions in his chest surged violently.
"puff……"
A mouthful of blood spurted out, splashing onto the blue bricks beside the bed, blooming into a dazzling red.
"Your Majesty! Are you alright?" Eunuch Hou rushed forward, his voice trembling. "Imperial physician! Summon the imperial physician..."
"What are you yelling about?" Emperor Qing wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and coldly shouted, "I'm not dead yet."
He had gotten used to vomiting all the way back to Kyoto. The imperial physicians who accompanied him examined him repeatedly but could not find any explanation, let alone provide any treatment.
"But Your Majesty..." Eunuch Hou looked at Emperor Qing's pale face with concern, wanting to persuade him again.
At this moment, a young eunuch hurried to the door of the imperial study, bowed, and reported: "Your Majesty, Dean Chen and Lord Fan have arrived."
Emperor Qing's eyes narrowed, and he said coldly, "Let them in."
"Yes, Your Majesty." The young eunuch bowed and withdrew.
Eunuch Hou had no choice but to swallow his words of advice and turned to shout towards the door of the Imperial Study: "Summon... Dean Chen and Lord Fan!"
The door was pushed open, and Fan Jian pushed Chen Pingping's wheelchair in. Both of them looked frighteningly pale.
"Your Majesty, we pay our respects." The two bowed simultaneously.
Emperor Qing's gaze fell directly on Chen Pingping. Suppressing his irritation and anger, he asked in a deep voice, "Chen Pingping, have you found anything?"
Fan Jian also looked at Chen Pingping, his hand unconsciously tightening its grip on the wheelchair handle.
Chen Pingping slowly raised his head, his eyes bloodshot. He took out a folded piece of paper from his pocket, his fingers trembling slightly.
"The investigation is complete," his voice was hoarse but revealed an uncontrollable killing intent, "but Your Majesty... you should be prepared..."
He held the paper in his hand, the edges already crumpled.
Upon seeing this, Eunuch Hou was about to step forward and present it to Emperor Qing when Fan Jian acted first.
He snatched the paper from Chen Pingping's hand and unfolded it impatiently.
When Emperor Qing saw Fan Jian's action, his ominous premonition suddenly intensified.
Does this mean the Audit Committee has truly uncovered the truth? What information did they find that they shouldn't have?
Disregarding imperial decorum, he got off the couch and quickly walked to Fan Jian's side.
Fan Jian had already finished reading the contents of the paper.
His face drained of color instantly, and his hand holding the paper trembled violently, making a soft "rustling" sound.
He felt as if the sky had fallen... Ye Qingmei... the woman he loved... was dead.
Those who took action were temple messengers, gentry from Kyoto, Guanzhong, and Jiangnan, the empress, and even... the empress dowager!
Emperor Qing snatched the paper from Fan Jian's hand and quickly scanned the writing on it.
With each line he read, his face grew paler.
As he finished reading, he suddenly looked up at Chen Pingping, his voice trembling with disbelief: "Dead?"
Chen Pingping had already closed his eyes, and two streams of turbid tears slid down his cheeks.
"Zhuge would never give me false results," his voice suppressed with immense grief, "So...Miss...she's dead."
Emperor Qing, whose face was already deathly pale, now looked ashen, his body swayed, and he staggered as if about to fall.
"Your Majesty, be careful!" Eunuch Hou rushed over to support him.
Fan Jian knelt down with a thud, his forehead hitting the cold blue bricks with a dull thud.
When he looked up, his eyes were red-rimmed, and his voice was trembling with sobs and boundless hatred:
"We beg Your Majesty to issue a decree to avenge Qingmei!"
Emperor Qing was supported by Eunuch Hou, but he only felt cold all over.
He stared at the paper in his hand, the words on it both blurry and clear in his eyes.
"Dead... Ye Qingmei... really dead..." he murmured in disbelief.
Although he already knew the outcome.
But at this moment, a twisted sense of relief arose in some corner of his heart.
But why...did the Censorate investigate so thoroughly? They even found out about the Empress Dowager's side...
According to his and the Empress Dowager's plan, the Censorate should not be able to find out anything about the Empress Dowager.
With great difficulty, Eunuch Hou helped Emperor Qing back to his bed.
Fan Jian was still kneeling on the ground.
Chen Pingping lowered her head, tears silently dripping onto the armrests of her wheelchair.
The Imperial Study was deathly silent, with only the rustling of the wind through the treetops outside the window.
Emperor Qing sat on the couch, his hand holding the paper gradually tightening, the paper crumpling into a ball in his palm.
He raised his head, looked at Fan Jian kneeling on the ground, then at Chen Pingping who was crying, opened his mouth, but found that he could not make a sound.
What should I say?
Issuing an imperial decree for revenge?
Whom should he seek revenge against? His mother?
He closed his eyes briefly, and when he opened them again, his eyes were churning with an extremely complex mix of emotions.
The people had to be killed; otherwise, the people left behind by Ye Qingmei would not be convinced.
The reason he went west to keep himself out of it was so that he could return now, ostensibly to avenge Ye Qingmei, and in turn to consolidate Ye Qingmei's power.
Looking at Chen Pingping and Fan Jian again, he had already made up his mind.