Chapter 89 |
The atmosphere in the capital grew increasingly tense.
Inside the embassy.
Yu Ruo looked over the newly compiled information concerning the Seventh Prince.
Before coming to the Great Zhou, their focus had been primarily on the three princes who were already old enough to participate in court politics; the others were relegated to secondary importance.
Born under an ill omen that killed his mother, labeled a demonic fetus reincarnated, yet miraculously, from the age of two, he was taken out of the Ju'an Palace by the Emperor and chosen to be raised by Consort Xuan as his foster mother.
The Sword-Holding Marquis, a figure of imperial wariness, proactively relinquished his power, restructuring the Northern Frontier into a decentralized system mirroring that of the Southern Pass Garrison, thereby easing the Great Zhou Emperor's vigilance. This, in turn, brought more care and attention to this sickly Seventh Prince from a young age.
Even his several elder brothers, already grown, did not see their youngest, frail sibling as a rival. Instead, coveting the influence behind him, they occasionally displayed brotherly affection.
Everything was perfectly balanced.
At this moment, Yu Ruo could only think that heaven favored this Seventh Prince. He had no idea how much scheming Qu Dubian had expended, how many plots he had dodged just to survive, fighting his way from a catastrophic starting hand to a favorable position.
Yu Ruo: "No matter how much His Majesty indulges the Empress's family, he wouldn't have truly entrusted him with important secrets. At most, he might reveal some embarrassing matters. It's not a concern."
Could anything be more embarrassing than defeat in war?
The most crucial matter now was when the Great Zhou's Seventh Prince would wake up.
These past two days, the Ministry of Rites and the Court of State Ceremonial of Great Zhou had gone completely mad. Their wolf-like ferocity was terrifying to behold, as if they wouldn't rest until they had torn a huge chunk of flesh from Nanning.
The slight advantage he had gained through clumsy scheming had vanished without a trace.
Great Zhou, emboldened, was now pushing its luck. During negotiations, their officials stood on tables, passionately declaiming. The previously bargained-down terms—six cities of Youyun, eight cities of Jiangzhou, and a sum of silver—were instantly restored to their original demands. Not only that, they now demanded double the silver in compensation, citing the need for medical expenses for their Seventh Prince.
The Minister of Revenue had been so excited these past two days he couldn't sleep at home.
Although it wasn't a proper thought, he really wanted to set off firecrackers to thank the Seventh Prince—please, this fainting spell was good, it was wonderful!
How much silver and land had these days of unconsciousness earned for Great Zhou?
What nonsense about Prince Yu Ruo getting injured in a fall, a thinly veiled, mutually understood attempt at extortion? How could it compare to the sheer, righteous legitimacy of their Seventh Prince's condition!
-
Consort Xuan specifically sent Ye Xiaoyuan to the Sword-Holding Marquis's estate.
She was worried that the elderly Lady Wu, alone in the estate, might fall ill from anxiety.
Surprisingly, Lady Wu's state was much better than Ye Xiaoyuan had imagined.
She instead comforted Ye Xiaoyuan: "I know. Tell Consort Xuan to rest assured. My little darling dislikes it most when I worry about him. When he wakes up, tell him not to rush here to see me. His grandmother is still hale and hearty and can take good care of herself. Tell him to rest properly and come out to play only after he has fully recovered."
Ye Xiaoyuan: "Understood. I will come to inform you as soon as there is any news from Shunning Palace."
Grand Tutor Fang hadn't slept much either.
Pacing back and forth in his courtyard with his hands clasped behind his back, although he was accustomed to the Seventh Prince taking sick leave from time to time, this situation of directly sleeping for three days was a first.
Those Nanning barbarians were indeed crude and brutish.
-
On the day after the Nanning missive arrived, agreeing to cede the six cities of Youyun, twelve cities of Jiangzhou, and pay double the silver in compensation...
Inside Shunning Palace.
Qu Dubian finally regained consciousness.
His eyelids felt heavy; he struggled for a moment but still couldn't open them. His body, probably from hunger, felt weak, yet remarkably comfortable.
A warm current flowed through his meridians, like a spring breeze coaxing life from the earth. To describe it more plainly, it felt like soaking in a warm bath.
He didn't know how long he had slept... Reconnecting his body and consciousness seemed to require some time.
Qu Dubian checked the simulator.
His dantian had been opened. He could now purchase the second part of the Longevity Technique.
[Remaining Lifespan: 9 years, 75 days]
[Simulatable Diseases: Fever, Rhinitis (Nasal Sinusitis), Coughing Illness...]
[Backpack: Novels 401/123, Detoxification Pills 2/2, Scented Powder Recipe 1/1...]
Qu Dubian skimmed past these and scrolled to the end.
Simulator: [[Longevity Technique · Second Part] Price: Three Years. Purchase?]
After a moment of heartache, Qu Dubian confirmed the purchase.
[[Longevity Technique · Second Part] Purchased. Remaining Lifespan: 6 years, 75 days. Please check purchased item in backpack.]
Toiling hard for another three years, bankrupted in a day by buying a book.
He asked the simulator, "I feel your program settings are quite unreasonable. How about offering some disease simulations with longer trial periods and increasing the lifespan reward? Look, compressing some chronic illnesses into two or three days surely means the details aren't written thoroughly, right?"
Simulator: [Your suggestion has been recorded.]
"Fine," Qu Dubian entered his backpack to look at the new second part of the cultivation technique he had bought.
The first page read: Longevity Technique, all things revive in spring, vitality cycles back, nourishes the sinews and bones externally, cultivates essence and energy internally.
Qu Dubian had compared the Longevity Technique with other cultivation methods and found the gap between them was quite significant, with subtle differences in the pathways of true energy circulation.
If the first part was about circulation within the meridians, the second part taught him how to use this true energy.
It included detailed methods for injuring, killing, and healing, among others.
The more he read, the more attentively Qu Dubian studied.
"...True energy circulating within the body can gradually repair damaged meridians." He had already deeply experienced this point when previously impacting the dantian acupoint; his damaged meridians accelerated their recovery as his true energy circulated.
But studying the explanation in the second part, it seemed to say that circulating his true energy within someone else's body could also repair their meridians? Did that mean there was hope for his uncle to stand again?
Reading further, he realized his idea of helping wouldn't work. To repair meridians, true energy must be constantly nurtured within the body.
First, he couldn't be by his uncle's side constantly—the Emperor definitely wouldn't allow it. Second, at his current stage, he was still a slightly larger novice; with this little internal energy, attempting to scale walls and leap over roofs might result in a fall, let alone healing others.
Qu Dubian sighed.
He closed the backpack and checked the favorability ratings.
Wen Xiaochun: 59
Xie Mingxuan (Consort Xuan): 50
Yi Shier: 43
Zhang Chansi: 39
Fang Hechuan (Grand Tutor Fang): 37
Xia Fuyang: 35
Xi Zixing: 30
Huh???
Qu Dubian blinked and looked again at the favorability ratings for Xia Fuyang and Xi Zixing.
While he was unconscious, one had jumped from 26 to 35, the other from 25 to 30.
...Had these two gone mad? Why so generous all of a sudden.
In all the years they'd known each other, they'd been so stingy with favorability points. How come they gave more when he was unconscious? Had they finally realized his important position as a friend in their hearts?
The simulator's favorability was truly hard to collect. In the novels he read, with a full score of 100, the protagonist's points would soar upwards.
Him? With a full score of 60, every little increase relied on the slow accumulation and catalysis of time. Having been here for about seven years now, even the highest, Xiaochun, was still a bit short.
But when the favorability reaches over 20, they should be considered quite good friends, and over 30 means they're important. When interacting with Xia Fuyang and Xi Zixing, he could tell they genuinely wanted to be friends with him.
Increase! Increase more, Qu Dubian thought gleefully. He wasn't bad either; when others were good to him, he was even better in return. He deserved their fondness and wouldn't let down any sincere affection.
In the future, he would have to take Xi Zixing along more often to observe his other imperial brothers, to make this guy at the bottom of the list improve faster.
After resting for about a quarter of an hour, Qu Dubian finally felt his strength slowly returning to his body.
He slowly opened his eyes.
The light in the room wasn't very harsh, but he still squinted a little uncomfortably.
Sitting by his bed was Consort Xuan, who was propping her head up, dozing. She looked somewhat haggard, as if she had been keeping vigil for quite a long time.
Qu Dubian moved his fingers, gently poking Consort Xuan's arm with his fingertip. Having not eaten for three days, he didn't have much strength, and the force was like a kitten's scratch.
Consort Xuan opened her eyes immediately.
Qu Dubian smiled at her: "Consort..."
Consort Xuan immediately stood up and rushed outside the door: "Imperial Physician!!"
Qu Dubian: "..."
Such swift speed.
The imperial physician came upon hearing the news. Ye Xiaoyuan, Noble Lady Guo, Zhiyi... a crowd gathered around the bed. Shunningning Palace echoed with the sound of a dog barking. Da Hei anxiously wagged its tail and squeezed in, its paws resting on the foot of the bed, its chin pressed against the spot where the two-legged creature cub's feet were.
Then it watched Imperial Physician Yang, who was taking Qu Dubian's pulse, quietly and attentively.
Consort Xuan: "Little Qi, if there's any discomfort, tell the imperial physician."
Qu Dubian nodded: "I'm fine, just weak."
Ye Xiaoyuan: "Your Highness has been unconscious for three days, only having had some rice soup and sweet water. Of course you have no strength." His little face looked a bit thinner too.
"Here, Your Highness, sit up slowly for a bit to recover."
Imperial Physician Yang placed a pillow behind him, allowing him to lean back and half-sit comfortably.
Qu Dubian looked at his left hand; it was a bit swollen and painful, and a little itchy. He had still been injured when he grabbed that whip.
Imperial Physician Yang said with a chuckle: "Fortunately, it wasn't the right hand that was injured, otherwise it would delay your writing, wouldn't it? Your Highness should be largely fine now. Just pay attention to a light diet these next few days, avoid spicy and greasy foods, or you might have stomach discomfort."
"Have some rice paste later, let your body gradually adjust."
Normally, eating other things would be fine, but Imperial Physician Yang was worried that the Seventh Prince, a frequent visitor to the Imperial Hospital, might not adapt well.
Ye Xiaoyuan noted it down: "Alright."
Only now did Consort Xuan feel truly relieved. "It's good that you're alright. I'll send someone to inform the Sword-Holding Marquis's residence right away, so your grandmother won't worry."
Qu Dubian: "Mm!"
Consort Xuan nodded, went out to arrange for the rice paste, and then had Xinqing take the message to the Sword-Holding Marquis's residence.
Qu Dubian squeezed Zhiyi's hand. "Elder Sister, I'm all better! Super good. In the future, even Xia Fuyang probably won't be able to beat me."
Zhiyi's mood was somewhat low: "Don't get into fights with others in the future. Getting hurt is so painful. You really scared me. Take more guards with you when you go out," she said softly. "Xia Fuyang's martial arts are quite good; you should trick him into being your enforcer."
She knew all about her younger brother's talent for tricking people.
"Look how worried Da Hei is. It hardly ate these past two days."
She picked up Da Hei, who placed its paw next to Qu Dubian's hand and gave a few soft whimpers.
Qu Dubian raised his hand and stroked Da Hei's ears. "Oh, our Da Hei, you even look thinner. Elder Sister, do we still have any of the little snacks we made? I'll feed him a couple."
"Yes, wait a moment."
Zhiyi brought the little snacks. Not long after, the rice paste Consort Xuan had ordered was ready, served with some refreshing and appetizing side dishes.
Qu Dubian mixed the side dishes into the rice paste and ate together with Da Hei.
Consort Xuan: "Someone just went to notify the Zichen Hall. I estimate His Majesty will be here soon."
Hearing this, Qu Dubian hurriedly slurped down two big mouthfuls to finish eating.
He had to put on a bit of a performance, to scoop some benefits from the old man.
Not long after he finished eating, a call came from outside: "His Majesty has arrived!"
Emperor Chongzhao hurried over, stepping into the door of Qu Dubian's bedchamber: "I heard from the palace messenger that Little Qi is awake."
He looked toward the bed. His youngest son was leaning against the headboard. The moment he saw him, he seemed stunned for a second, then instantly looked utterly wronged, his eyes rimmed red. He raised his left hand, bandaged like a little pig's trotter, toward his father—a delicate white flower battered by wind and rain, pitiful, miserable, and wretched:
"Father! Your son was beaten up so badly!"