zChapter 997 - Imperial Concubine Shu Attends to the Bedchamber (1/2)

Without a doubt, there was someone attending to the bedchamber. The unimpeachable behavior that the Emperor had maintained for many years for Imperial Concubine Yun’s sake had finally come to an end in a single night.

In truth, Feng Yuheng did not find attending to the bedchamber to be something odd. Instead, it was the over-20-year period of inactivity from the Emperor that she found strange. Thinking back to when the Emperor was middle-aged, though he would not have been as vigorous as in his 20s, that was still when men were near their peaks. To have kept to himself for all of those years and not die from holding it in, he could be considered quite fortunate. She had no desire to speculate on how the Emperor got through all of those years. It was just that when she thought a bit about it, he had managed to endure through his younger years. Why was it that when he reached this age, he suddenly picked things back up? Also, of all the people that he chose, why did he choose Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu?

That was right, the person currently in Zhao He Hall was Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu. That voice was very easy to distinguish. The Emperor must be exerting all of his strength to have Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu make that sort of a voice. There would occasionally even be some sounds that could not be held back.

Normally speaking in the ancient times, there were many rules pertaining to a member of the imperial harem attending to the bedchamber. Among these rules was one that stated that a member of the imperial harem must not let out this sort of sound. It was considered being rude to the emperor, and this was a problem with her morals. But at this time, Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu was not paying attention to any of this. She was even all too eager to let the entire inner palace, and even extending to the capital and all of Da Shun, know that she had been favored by the Emperor once more. Her son had also been saved from punishment. From this day forward, this inner palace would be her world. It would no longer have any relation to Imperial Concubine Yun.

The sounds continued to come from inside the hall, and the lightly-sleeping Zhang Yuan furrowed his brow. He covered his ears in irritation but did not open his eyes; however, it was very clear that he was annoyed.

Feng Yuheng did not wait any longer, pulling Xuan Tianming into her space, “Continuing to listen from the outside is no fun. Let’s go in and take a look.” As she said this, she disappeared once more. The two then reappeared in Zhao He Hall.

With a member of the imperial harem attending to the bedchamber, the hidden guards naturally stayed far away. It would be best if they did not watch this sort of thing. The two stood behind a screen. Although they could not clearly see the scene inside, the sounds became much clearer. The sound of heavy breathing coming from the Emperor, the sound of bodies coming together, and the sound of Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu’s wanton cries continued to enter their ears.

The old emperor was ill? Xuan Tianming was so angry that he wanted to charge in and chop both people up; however, Feng Yuheng shook her head at him, gesturing for him to keep calm. Finally, the sounds from inside stopped, as the old emperor said in a tired voice while panting: “We really have gotten old, yet dear imperial concubine is still so young. Unfortunately, We wasted so many good years in the palace. We really are apologetic toward you.”

“Your Majesty, what sort of thing are you saying.” Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu’s voice was changed, and it caused those who heard to feel numb, “You still have not reached 60. How have you become old? Ever since this concubine entered the palace, I have been Your Majesty’s woman. Regardless of how Your Majesty treated this concubine, it’s this concubine’s fate. This concubine is happiest about being able to give birth to a son for Your Majesty while I was young. Whenever I think of our Mo’er, any amount of suffering is bearable.”

“Our Mo’er really is Our most beloved child.” The Emperor’s became a little more lively. It was as if he was expressing his thoughts, “Dear imperial concubine, don’t worry. As long as We are around, nobody will be allowed to bully Mo’er. Even if there comes a day when We are no longer around, this country will definitely be handed to Mo’er. I definitely will not treat mother and child poorly.”

Feng Yuheng could not bear to continue watching, as she pulled Xuan Tianming and retreated. Only after hiding in the space did she say: “In this sort of situation, I won’t be able to check Father Emperor’s pulse. But listening to how lively his voice is, there should not be anything majorly wrong.”

“Hmph!” Xuan Tianming coldly snorted, “What illness could he possibly have? At first, I thought that he might have some sort of plan and was deliberately putting on appearances. Now, it seems that he really is genuinely interested in the wellbeing of those two!”

Feng Yuheng helplessly said: “They’re all his women, and you’re all his sons. If he really wanted to treat those two well, there’s nothing that we could say, right? After all, it was indeed our imperial concubine mother who had treated Father Emperor coldly for all of these years. No matter what else is said, he is still a man. But I still feel that something is off about all of this. For a person to change, it is impossible for them to change so suddenly. There must be something that provoked him and brought about such a large change. As for this factor, I believe that it definitely is not the execution of the eighth prince. There is another cause at play, and we need to investigate carefully.”

Xuan Tianming nodded, “We should investigate carefully. This Imperial Palace is too unclean.” An exhausted look appeared on his face, as he unconsciously waved his hand and said: “I really am ambivalent in regards to the throne, but I definitely do not want to see the old man give it to old eighth like this. That old eighth might be made to govern the world, but he is definitely not a ruler who will love the people. I cannot just watch Da Shun fall into the hands of someone like this, but right now…”

“There’s nothing about right now.” Feng Yuheng said, “It’s just that the Emperor merely gave Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu that sort of promise while in bed. As long as the imperial decree has not been made, it will not come true.”

“That’s right!” A look of concern lingered on Xuan Tianming’s face, as he thought for a while longer before saying: “We’re leaving. Go to the inner hall.”

Feng Yuheng did as he said and headed in the direction of the inner hall. Once there, she saw Xuan Tianming raise his right arm and gesture. In the darkness, a hidden guard suddenly appeared and kneeled in front of him, silently saying: “Master.”

“Un.” Xuan Tianming looked at the person and did not mince any words, directly asking: “What exactly happened in the palace these past few days?”