zChapter 1033 - Sudden Onset of a Serious Illness (1/2)
The Emperor tried his best to remember the past with a focused expression. The more focused he was, the worse the headache, and he finally put down the arm holding onto Imperial Concubine Yun, grabbing his head and groaning softly.
Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu feared this the most, once the Emperor encountered a blank spot, he would get a headache. That was the aftereffect of her manipulations in the shadows and was also currently the one mistake which she had not thought of the most optimal solution. Watching the Emperor sink into his memories of the past, Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu quickly gave the Eighth Prince a look. The Eighth Prince understood the message and quickly held up the wine cup, speaking to the Emperor: “Father Emperor, please have a good taste of this wine again, this is something this son secretly buried in the palace when I was ten years old, waiting to open it many years later and invite Father Emperor to taste it together.”
Xuan Tianmo successfully made use of the Emperor’s drinking hobby to divert his attention. Once he heard about alcohol, and that it was something buried by Xuan Tianmo when he was 10 years old, the person who had been trying his best to remember the past suddenly raised his head, and he no longer felt it was painful, blurting out: “Buried for more than 10 years?”
Xuan Tianmo nodded, “That’s right. There are much more wines hidden in the palace, with some a few hundred years old, but this vat of wine was carefully brewed by This Son, the taste is pure and rich, Father Emperor should taste this properly.”
The Emperor could not resist this temptation, and immediately pushed aside the topic of “how did We celebrate New Year in the past”, starting to drink with Xuan Tianmo. Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu also breathed a sigh of relief but was also inwardly anxious. She did not know when she could make the Emperor abandon his past completely and no longer get these headaches, which made her feel jittery.
Drinking a few cups of wine, the Emperor praised the high quality, then held Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu and said: “Tomorrow is the first day of the New Year, there is a banquet at night, in front of everyone, We will announced during the banquet to initiate you to Imperial Concubine Gui. Beloved Concubine, you have suffered too much for so many years in the palace, We wish to make up for what We owe you even at the risk of Our life.” Saying this, he mumbled, “How could We have been so hard-hearted to not see you for more than 20 years? We really deserve death!”
“Your Majesty should not say such things!” Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu quickly covered the Emperor’s mouth lightly, speaking in a tender tone: “It is alright that Your Majesty can remember This Concubine now, let’s not talk about the past. Moreover, Your Majesty did not let This Concubine down and at least gave This Concubine a son. With a child at my side, This Concubine is satisfied.”
“That’s right! There is still our son.” The Emperor looked at Xuan Tianmo and said: “A crown prince should be appointed in another two years, with Our age now, there might not be many years left. When We are still alive, We should leave the throne to our Mo-er in the rightful and proper way, not allowing the other brothers to bully him.”
Xuan Tianmo spoke, feeling very moved: “Father Emperor, This Son does not wish for that throne, as long as Father Emperor is healthy, our family being together will be stronger than anything. The throne is immaterial, if obtaining the throne means losing Father Emperor as the price, This Son definitely does not want it!”
The Emperor felt a wave of emotion, and sighed: “A good child, you’re really a good child! If all of Our children were like Mo-er, that would be so good!” As he spoke, this mental state started to dim again, and he felt like something was missing at his side, yet he could not pinpoint exactly what was wrong, so he called out subconsciously: “Xiao Yuan Zhi! Xiao Yuan Zhi, where the heck did you go off to?”
This shout almost summoned Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu’s soul out of her body, and she gave a look to Head Eunuch Wu Ying who approached in response, worrying that something bad would happen tonight.
Wu Ying stood at the Emperor’s side and responded to the summons respectfully, but the Emperor looked at him as if he was a stranger and asked: “Servant, where did you come from? Where is our Xiao Yuan Zhi who does not fear any authority?”
Wu Ying looked at Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu, and seeing that Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu did not specially make her intentions known, he bit the bullet and spoke the truth: “Eunuch Zhang Yuan made a mistake and was banished to the Department of Guilty Servants by His Majesty ten days ago, has Your Majesty forgotten?”
The Emperor was stunned, “We sent Xiao Yuan Zhi to the Department of Guilty Servants? Strange, when did We banish him to the Department of Guilty Servants? How can We banish him to that sort of place? Didn’t all of you say before that the Department of Guilty Servants can eat people up? Then why would We let Xiao Yuan Zhi go?” The Emperor was frantic, and he even looked at Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu, showing a questioning gaze.
Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu’s heart fell with the “thunk”, but she could only bite the bullet to say: “Eunuch Yuan did anger Your Majesty that time, This Concubine tried to advise, but was unable to convince Your Majesty. If Your Majesty regrets it and wishes for Eunuch Yuan to return, it is simple. Just ask someone to go and get him back. It is New Year’s Eve today, Your Majesty should not think of these vexing things anymore, being happy during New Year’s Eve should ensure that the New Year will go smoothly.”
Just as she said this sentence, sounds of fireworks and firecrackers for the occasion were heard outside. Xuan Tianmo stood up quickly to support the Emperor with one hand, saying: “They’re setting off the fireworks, Father Emperor, let’s go take a look together!”
The Emperor nodded, and with Xuan Tianmo and Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu supporting him, he walked outside the hall, mumbling as he walked: “Our memory is getting worse, exactly when did We chase Xiao Yuan Zhi away?”
Listening to the Emperor’s words, Xuan Tianmo and Imperial Concubine Yuan Shu started to get worried, but as of now, they did not have any way to deal with it and could only try their best to use the happenings around them to divert his attention. Such as fireworks, such as the Eighth Prince describing Da Shun’s beautiful rivers and mountains as well as his strong aspirations.