Chapter 403: Lucky Star, Disaster Star

Dezhou lies along the Grand Canal, and the post road from the capital to Nanjing must pass through here. It was already a major thoroughfare and bustling city; now that Beijing has become the capital, more and more travelers and merchants head north, making this place even more prosperous. However, due to the unusually cold weather this year, the canal froze and the roads were covered in snow, trapping many merchants and scholars on their way to the capital. For the officials in Dezhou, however, those staying in the palace by the canal were the most important.

For days on end, from the prefect to the deputy judges, a group of once-powerful officials searched everywhere in Dezhou for skilled doctors and brought them all to the palace, yet the crown prince’s fever still wouldn’t subside. As a result, messengers rushed to neighboring counties and prefectures to seek help, fearing the consequences if something happened to the crown prince in Dezhou’s territory. Officials at all levels could hardly sleep. One early morning, the exhausted prefect, with dark circles under his eyes, prepared to head to the palace when a messenger brought news that was neither good nor bad.

“Sir, the emperor has sent people from the capital to bring the crown prince back to the capital. Those men are part of the imperial guard and have already arrived at the palace.”

Though worn out, the prefect immediately snapped into action, filled with anger. “Idiots! You should have reported this sooner! If the higher-ups blame us, you’ll surely be punished!”

Emperor Yongle, Zhu Di, was used to acting freely while governing Beiping. Even after becoming emperor, he refused to rule passively. After ascending the throne, he either went on military campaigns or made inspections in the north, so he built several large palaces along the canal. This palace in Dezhou was the only one in Shandong Province and had been repaired over the years—finally proving useful now. The officials from Dezhou rushed there and, upon seeing the fierce-looking guards in red coats, nervously went forward to report.

After waiting for a long time, a eunuch finally came out and said, “The crown princess is seeing Lord Zhang. Please wait in the waiting room.”

While they sat waiting in the room, Zhang Yue was in the Nuangfang Pavilion to the west of the palace. Because the roads were difficult to navigate, he followed Zhou Bailing’s advice and took a longer route with a good guide. The slippery roads and heavy snow meant they took three full days to get there. Instead of the crown prince Zhu Gaochi, it was the crown princess Zhang who received him through a curtain.

After listening to Zhang Yue’s account of the chaos in the capital, Lady Zhang frowned deeply and pondered for a long time before saying, “The weather is cold, and both water and land routes are impassable. I never expected traitors to take advantage of this situation to cause trouble! You’ve had a hard time on this journey, Lord Zhang. But the Crown Prince’s illness prevents him from enduring the hardships of travel, and as the Crown Prince is naturally sensitive to cold, he may not be able to continue on the road for now. We still need you to send someone back to the capital to report to His Majesty…”

Before she could finish speaking, a voice from outside shouted, “I report to the Crown Princess! The Crown Prince’s high fever has subsided!”

This news filled Lady Zhang with joy. She stepped out from behind the curtain, accompanied by a palace maid. Seeing Zhang Yue’s delighted expression as well, she thought for a moment before saying, “Since the Emperor sent you here, you should come with me to take a look. If the Crown Prince wakes up and sees you, he’ll be happy, and perhaps his illness will recover faster.”

Zhang Yue, who had been deeply concerned about Zhu Zhanji’s illness, instinctively bowed upon hearing this and said, “Thank you, Crown Princess!”

Surprised by Zhang Yue’s immediate gratitude, Lady Zhang smiled, thinking that he still had the heart of a young man. She nodded and gestured for him to follow. When they reached the outer area, Zhang Yue saw that the snow was still falling heavily. Since the distance wasn’t far, no carriage had been prepared. A few young eunuchs were waiting there, holding red silk umbrellas with golden phoenix decorations. Watching the heavy snowflakes, he couldn’t help but recall seeing frozen corpses along the way. As he was lost in thought, a red silk umbrella was suddenly handed to him.

“Lord Zhang, this is from the Crown Princess.”

Although he had worn a raincoat and conical hat throughout the journey and also carried a sable fur coat, all his clothes were covered in mud after the long trek. Before meeting her, Lady Zhang had specifically ordered the eunuchs to change him into a crane-feather coat, and he had sat in a warm room for a quarter of an hour until his frozen body warmed up before the meeting. Now, after thanking her, he took the umbrella and felt that the Crown Princess was extremely thoughtful.

The group moved forward through the thick snow. By the time they reached the warm hall, their shoulders and clothes were completely white. Zhang Yue handed his crane-feather coat to a young eunuch, bent down to remove the outer rain cover from his boots, and then followed Lady Zhang inside. When they reached the innermost room and a young eunuch lifted the vermilion door curtain embroidered with peonies, a strong scent of medicine filled the air.

Inside the room, aside from a red-painted and gilded frame bed against the wall, the furnishings consisted merely of hangers, plant stands, and tables and chairs—nothing luxurious. Through the blue curtain hanging over half of the bed, Zhang Yue could faintly see someone sitting half-up. When he saw Lady Zhang approaching, the person hesitated for a moment before following her and stopping at the foot of the bed.

Lady Zhang personally lifted the curtain with a hook before sitting down on the bed edge. Seeing that Zhu Zhanji was already fully awake, she quickly reached out to check his temperature and, finding that the fever had indeed subsided, her slight smile deepened. Gently adjusting the blanket around her son, she nodded to signal Zhang Yue to come closer, then said to Eunuch Huang, who was kneeling on the ground, “Get up. Pass the word—the doctor who came to treat him yesterday truly has excellent skills. Reward him generously.”

After bowing and standing up, Zhang Yue stepped forward to look inside the curtain. Seeing Zhu Zhanji’s surprise and joy upon seeing him, he quickly nodded with a smile, only to realize it was impolite and promptly stopped smiling, standing there solemnly. Lady Zhang, sitting on the bed edge, noticed this change in Zhang Yue’s expression and turned to Zhu Zhanji, saying, “Your grandfather is concerned about you, so he specially sent Lord Zhang with the Imperial Horse Guard to pick you up. His arrival brought down your high fever—truly a stroke of luck. For now, focus on recovering. I’ll have him come by every day. If you need to submit any documents to your grandfather, he can write them for you.”

Zhu Zhanji still felt a bit dizzy, but he was overjoyed at these words. After all, during his illness, everyone had been anxious. Although his parents had come to comfort him, their visits were mostly for reassurance, and while Eunuch Huang was loyal, expecting him to keep company was unrealistic. Thus, the sudden appearance of such a companion made him feel fortunate that his illness was finally coming to an end.

“Thank you, Mother.”

Zhang Yue was quite surprised to find that he could stay for such a reason. Earlier, after hearing about Lady Zhang summoning Du Wan, he had thought the crown princess disapproved of him, but it seemed not to be the case. Since Zhu Zhanji’s condition had just improved, Lady Zhang got up to leave after sitting for a while, so he naturally had to follow her.

It wasn’t until noon that Zhang Yue finally met the Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi. This plump-faced heir apparent, just like before, asked many questions but spoke little, though he inquired extremely carefully about the interrogation at Right Shun Gate. Knowing that Zhu Gaochi would eventually learn all the details, Zhang Yue explained everything in great detail. Only after fully explaining the situation was he allowed to leave.

After meeting these three extremely important figures, Zhang Yue finally had some time to have lunch. Yet before he could finish eating, he, who hadn’t slept for four days and nights, slumped over on the kang and fell asleep. Seeing this, a young eunuch sent by Lady Zhang quietly brought a blanket to cover him before slipping away. But as soon as he stepped outside, he ran into someone.
“Lord Yang!”
“Is Zhang Yuanjie still in there?”
The young eunuch instinctively nodded. Only after Yang Shiqi pulled back the curtain and entered did he realize Zhang Yue had just fallen asleep. Remembering that Yang Shiqi was one of the three respected senior officials in the Eastern Palace, he didn’t dare follow in to stop him and instead stayed at the door to prevent anyone else from barging in.
With land and water routes both blocked, the messengers sent to the capital hadn’t returned yet. Calculating everything, Zhang Yue was actually the first person to come from the north in recent days. Hearing various rumors, Yang Shiqi decided to come and inquire. As he moved from the main room to the east room, about to speak, he found Zhang Yue wrapped in a blanket, slumped on the kang with his head against the wall, sleeping soundly. He was stunned. Thinking that the officials from Dezhou he had met earlier said the roads were still covered in deep snow, he wondered how Zhang Yue had managed to get here. Lost in thought, as he turned to leave, his foot suddenly tripped over a small stool.
Though extremely tired, Zhang Yue jolted awake at the thud. Opening his eyes, he saw it was Yang Shiqi. He quickly pushed the blanket aside and got up from the kang. “I planned to visit Lord Yang after finishing lunch, but I must have fallen asleep. Have you just arrived?”
“Seeing you asleep, I planned to leave, but I ended up waking you up.” Yang Shiqi then noticed Zhang Yue’s bloodshot eyes and realized he had come too abruptly. Still, he sat down across from him on the kang. “There have been some rumors in the palace these past few days. Although I reported to the Crown Prince and had a few people punished, it’s said that silencing the people is harder than controlling rivers—so the effect isn’t great. Fortunately, you arrived with the Imperial Horse Guard. Yuanjie, what exactly is going on in the capital?”
Although he had already told Lady Zhang, the Crown Princess, and Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi twice that day, given the seriousness of the matter, Zhang Yue, though lamenting being a mere messenger, had no choice but to briefly explain the key points to Yang Shiqi. Thankfully, unlike Zhu Gaochi who liked to interrogate, Yang Shiqi was relieved after hearing everything. He then got up to leave, urging Zhang Yue to get some rest first, while also leaving one last remark.

“Your father originally had the chance to be transferred to Shuntian Prefecture, but he ultimately chose to stay in Nanjing. Fortunately, those in charge there are Zhu Yong, the Duke of Chengguo, and Li Long, the Marquis of Xiangcheng—either they are connected to your family through old ties or through marriage, so you needn’t worry about them. As for those officials from Dezhou who want to see you, I’ll block them all. Just rest well for one night. Your reputation as a bringer of disaster is already terrible enough; if they learn about what’s going on in the capital, they’ll all worry that you might bring down ten or eight of those officials from Dezhou as well.”