Chapter 877: No Major Incidents in the Capital

Although the Imperial Medical Academy claimed to gather the finest doctors from across the land, there were also reclusive masters among the common people, and not everyone valued the title of imperial physician held by those in the academy. Thus, when the three imperial physicians repeatedly prescribed treatments in the Renshou Palace yet Empress Dowager Zhang’s condition showed no improvement, both Zhu Ning and Fan Hongjin Ying could no longer bear it. Zhong Huai, the eunuch in charge of the imperial stables who was the last to learn of this, was extremely anxious. As soon as Duke Cheng Zhu Yong mentioned it, he immediately spoke earnestly to Zhu Ning and Fan Hongjin Ying. By afternoon, Dr. He, dressed in loose sleeves and robes with an air of transcendence, appeared in the Renshou Palace.

Zhu Ning had been thinking of Xiao Wu’s master, Feng Yuanming, but he had already disappeared during the incidents at the Han Prince’s mansion. She could only sigh. Under the repeated questioning by the imperial physicians, Dr. He answered fluently, prompting her to impatiently give Fan Hong a glance. Understanding immediately, Fan Hong coughed softly, interrupting the three flustered imperial physicians.

“Enough. What’s the point of keeping questioning? Accompany Dr. He to take her pulse and keep an eye on things.”

His words were blunt and unpretentious. Naturally, once Dr. He entered, it would be impossible for him to leave the Renshou Palace until the emperor returned. So Fan Hong wasn’t worried about any trouble arising. Only after Dr. He entered did he turn to Zhu Ning and say, “I hope this man truly has the skills Duke Cheng described and can save the Empress Dowager. By the way, Jin Ying has been gone for so long; it’s unclear if she’s already succeeded. Sigh!”

Zhu Ning didn’t reply. The fate of the Prince of Liang was none of her concern, and the Empress Dowager’s illness couldn’t be cured just by worrying. During these days in the palace, her two children at home were left in the care of nurses and others, and she missed them terribly. Even more troubling was that among the eunuchs captured last night, two were from the Yongning Palace. If this were truly connected to Concubine Sun, what would happen once the emperor returned? The Empress Dowager was extremely stubborn, and so was the emperor—those mother and son…

“Princess, Lord Lu from the Eastern Depot requests an audience.”

Lu Feng had finally arrived!

The people captured last night have all been taken to the imperial prison under the North Pacification Bureau of the Jinyiwei. However, they are being interrogated jointly by the Eastern Depot and the Jinyiwei. Only Lu Feng has arrived so far, presumably because some confessions have been obtained, while Fangling still needs to keep an eye on things. At this moment, Lu Feng holds a document prepared in advance and glances at it from time to time as he speaks. When he finishes, he sees Zhu Ning frowning deeply and Fan Hong’s face turning pale and blue; he himself feels utterly helpless. If there were even the slightest way, he would try to cover this up, but Fangling is under Empress Dowager Zhang’s control—how dare he?

“It’s really involved… Her Majesty the Noble Consort…”

Fan Hong’s face turned completely pale. He thought to himself that Consort Sun must be insane. The emperor favored her the most, and her son had been named crown prince—everything seemed legitimate. Why would she do such a foolish thing? Initially, he hadn’t quite believed that it was Consort Sun who had ordered the change in the meal menu after those two slaps from Eunuch Lu, but now that documentary evidence and witness testimony had been found in the Prince Liang’s mansion, things became complicated.

Zhu Ning had already guessed something and quickly regained her composure. She ordered, “You still take charge of this matter. Make sure the subordinates keep quiet and don’t let a word leak out. The interrogators must be carefully selected. As for whether this is true or false, we’ll wait until the emperor returns to decide. Don’t reveal a single hint to the Empress Dowager either.”

After Lu Feng left, Zhu Ning asked Fan Hong to stay and watch, while she took a few people out of the main hall and hurried to the east, where the crown prince lived. Even at the door, she heard loud crying, followed by the soothing voices of nurses and palace maids. When she entered, she saw everyone bustling about. Finally, someone noticed her, and the nurse rushed over with the bright yellow swaddled infant.

“Princess, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince… He keeps crying for some reason!”

Looking at the crying baby, Zhu Ning instinctively picked him up and tried to comfort him, but to no avail. Gradually, she frowned in thought. After pondering for a while, she handed the child back, watching as the group tried every means to calm him. When the baby finally stopped crying and the hall settled down, she summoned a palace maid. After learning that the crown prince was healthy, had eaten enough after crying, and had fallen asleep, she nodded and left with her people.

Since last night, the four main streets in the Eastern and Western Six Palaces have been under stricter surveillance than in previous days. At the gates in front of each palace, there are four tall, strong eunuchs on guard. If not for Zhu Ning’s explicit instructions, there would likely be twice as many guards in front of Yongning Palace as elsewhere. Even so, the palace servants and eunuchs inside remained in constant anxiety. After all, two eunuchs were found missing early that morning, and with more trouble reported within the palace, it was inevitable to have dark thoughts. Thus, when news came that the Zhongsi Gate had been opened and Zhu Ning had arrived again, everyone was extremely nervous.

Yet, while everyone was anxious, they forgot to inform Concubine Sun in the Warm Pavilion. So, this concubine, who had once been the only one to possess the golden seal and register, continued to lie in her bed in the Warm Pavilion, staring blankly at the canopy above her head. After a long while, she sensed someone beside her. She turned her gaze slowly and saw it was Zhu Ning, and immediately became nervous.

“The crown prince is fine. He just cried for a while, so I thought I’d come and see you.”

Concubine Sun let go of Zhu Ning’s wrist in relief, took a deep breath, and her mood turned somewhat gloomy. However, Zhu Ning’s next words scared her so much that she jumped up abruptly.

“I didn’t come here to beat around the bush today. I just want to ask you: did you ask Lu Shanggong to change the empress dowager’s meal menu? And did you know that two eunuchs from your palace tried to sneak into Renshou Palace to plot something evil last night?”

Facing Zhu Ning’s unflinching gaze, Concubine Sun involuntarily shrank back before shaking her head firmly. “No, I don’t know!” she said, her eyes reddening. When she raised her head again and saw Zhu Ning getting up to leave, she panicked and instinctively reached out, grabbing a jade pendant tied to Zhu Ning’s belt. Clinging to it as if it were a lifeline, she held on tightly until she saw Zhu Ning turn back, at which point she released her grip and regained her dignity as an imperial concubine.

“Aunt Ning, I can tell you clearly—these things weren’t done by me! Earlier, a letter reached me saying that Concubine Wu was pregnant. The Empress Dowager kept it a secret to ensure the child would be recognized as the queen’s. Since she didn’t like me, she also didn’t want my son to become the crown prince. Eunuch Lu often came to see me, sometimes bringing messages from the Empress Dowager, and at other times even speaking of her hatred toward the late Concubine Guo… I was confused at that time. Eunuch Lu told me to find an excuse to get the menu from the Imperial Kitchen Department, which I did; he also asked me to inquire about the spices commonly used by the Empress Dowager, which I did as well. I just wanted her to like me… My son is already the crown prince—how could I dare do such things!”
As Concubine Sun spoke, her eyes regained their luster, and her face gradually regained its vitality. Zhu Ning knew all too well that this son was her greatest hope. Though she didn’t want to see Concubine Sun crying bitterly, seeing her overly calm still raised doubts in her heart. So, she adjusted the disheveled tassels of her jade pendant, smoothed out the hem of her dress, gently patted her hand, and said nothing more.
Eunuch Lu had already had her under strict surveillance. That frail woman couldn’t possibly commit suicide, so extracting information from her would be much easier than from Concubine Sun. She came to check on her just to reassure Concubine Sun, as she herself didn’t know what was really going on. But regardless of the truth behind those words, the person who dragged this concubine into this mess had undoubtedly understood human nature well.
That damned scoundrel!
When leaving Yongning Palace, Zhu Ning took a deep breath, clenched her fists tightly, then relaxed them again. She had experienced fratricidal strife before—not only in the Zhou clan, but also in the former Han clan, and in the Jin clan, which would surely be ruined this time, as well as in other imperial clans hiding their crimes while keeping the court in the dark. All of them were the same. Ultimately, although the court had long established the rule of inheritance by the eldest legitimate son, exceptions had already occurred over twenty years ago—a case of a prince seizing control of the empire. How could this not inspire others to follow suit and fight for the throne?

As the king’s direct uncle, Marquis Wuding Guo Xuan had visited the king’s residence before, but he had never felt as irritated and angry as he did today. Following Jin Ying, he could only cautiously keep up with her steps, his heart filled with sorrow and pain as he wondered if his father shouldn’t have given his sister to the crown prince as a concubine in his earlier years. He had almost forgotten his sister’s childhood; the only thing he remembered was her shy smile.

Yet that shy smile had withered away in the palace. Now, for that withered person, more lives had to be sacrificed—all because of a madman!

So, after pushing open the door to the study, Guo Xuan didn’t even notice how the two doors behind him closed. His gaze was fixed on the dagger in the king’s hand, which spun lightly around his right hand, seemingly ready to cut the young man’s throat at any moment.

“Zhanjie… Jiu Lang…”

Despite their usual hierarchical differences, Guo Xuan instinctively called out. Only when those bloodshot eyes stared at him blankly and the dagger fell to the ground did he snap back to reality, his expression turning extremely complex. His own son had followed this nephew down a dark path, only to be killed to silence him. What more could he say? What should he say?

“It wasn’t me…”

King Zhu Zhanjie murmured to himself, then, as if fearing Guo Xuan wouldn’t understand, he added forcefully, “It wasn’t me who forced my cousin to death! Definitely not me!”

“Stop talking!”

Guo Xuan had initially been extremely cautious, but after hearing those two statements from the king, he finally couldn’t hold back and shouted. He stepped forward, slapping the thick sandalwood desk hard, ignoring the pens flying into the air and the king’s frozen expression. Word by word, he said, “If you still care about your mother’s surname, Guo, if you don’t want the Guo family to be wiped out, then live! Don’t forget—your tenth brother is just a child!”

Outside, Jin Ying was startled by the shouts inside, but when there was no sound for a while and then the king’s soft sobs could be heard, she finally breathed a sigh of relief. Anyway, this issue was temporarily resolved. Zhang Yue’s idea was good, and Guo Xuan’s determination was strong.

After a night of turmoil, the capital gradually fell into an eerie silence; even the beggars on the streets and thieves in the markets became fewer, as if they too had sensed some indescribable terror. Like rats that can predict danger, they quietly retreated to their dens to avoid potential harm. The ministers heading to Xifengkou braved the severe cold on their journey. Fortunately, it seemed even the heavens realized the wind and snow in recent days had been excessive—they stopped the fierce winds, dispersed the dark clouds, and allowed the most pleasant winter sun to shine. The warm sunlight on people naturally lifted their spirits.

With so many bad news, good news became all the more precious. Five days after Yang Pu and others set off, good news came from the southwest. While Mu Sheng was fighting against the Si clan, the King of Burma, acting on someone’s advice, launched a surprise attack from behind on Luchuan. The Si clan was forced to retreat in haste, and later, with their resources seized, they were left with no choice but to send envoys to Mu Sheng under humble terms, claiming they were tasked with guarding the southwest for the Ming dynasty, saying they had been deceived before, offering gold, silver, and elephants—all in an effort to seek peace.

The situation in the southwest gradually became clearer, and exciting news also came from the Divine Might fleet that had gone north to Japan. Led by Wang Jinghong, the fleet returned to Japan with its powerful ships and guns, terrifying the people there. Moreover, Ashikaga Yoshimochi, who had ruled Japan for many years, had died just a few months earlier, Ashikaga Yoshikatsu had only recently taken office as shogun, and the emperor had just been replaced by Prince Hikaru of the Fushimi Palace. Thus, Japan’s situation was already unstable. When the Ming dynasty’s envoys arrived in the summer with a large fleet, the forces of the old Southern Dynasty immediately came to ask the imperial court to uphold justice. Now, several new ports had opened in the south.

Therefore, despite having less than half of their officials and incomplete staff, the six ministries continued to function normally. The cabinet, with only Yang Shiqi left, also remained orderly, sending memorials to the emperor daily without any interruption. These were the last days of the year, and the imperial edicts, stamped with the red seal marked “Kě,” were sent throughout the country as usual.

For nearly ten days, nothing major happened in the capital. Until one afternoon, the sound of rapid horse hooves shattered the accumulated snow as they rushed into Chaoyang Gate with unstoppable force, shattering the apparent calm as if nothing had happened.