Chapter 189

I Truly Am Not a Wise King!

Yongning Palace.

This was originally the residence of Consort Yun.

After Consort Yun passed away, Yongning Palace remained vacant.

When Qu Dubian was a child, he lived with Consort Xuan in Shunning Palace. The two palaces were located at opposite corners of the imperial grounds, and because of the great distance, he rarely visited. Only when the Fourth Prince invited him to sleep over at Fu’an Palace would he catch a glimpse of this place while passing by.

Emperor Chongzhao did not visit often either, merely ordering servants to keep it clean.

However, since a portion of Zichen Hall had burned down and had not yet been fully repaired, he had temporarily moved his quarters here.

Waking in the middle of the night, he paced through the hall, his guilt deepening with every step.

He had mistakenly believed the words of the Observatory, believing that it was Little Seven’s birth that had caused Yueqing’s death. Because of this, he had ignored the boy for two and a half years, leaving him in the remote Ju’an Hall.

No wonder Yueqing had appeared in his dreams back then.

Emperor Chongzhao sat on the steps of Yongning Palace, devoid of any imperial majesty.

After taking the pills provided by Physician Yang, he had aged rapidly over the past two days; his hair was now a mottled mess of black and grey.

The seasonal flowers in the courtyard had withered. Half-opened, bedraggled blossoms clung to the branches, and whenever a cool breeze blew, the petals drifted away like yellowed, dead leaves.

Eunuch Yu had also grown old. He stood beside Emperor Chongzhao with a hunched back, shielding him from the wind.

"Your Majesty, please put on a cloak."

Emperor Chongzhao coughed twice. "No need. I don't have many days left."

Eunuch Yu was unaware that the Emperor was taking life-shortening medication. He hastily spat to ward off the ill omen. "Your Majesty must not speak such nonsense. This old servant must be the one to go before you."

Emperor Chongzhao smiled faintly.

"Lying in bed, unable to even speak... I truly felt like I wasn't an Emperor, but a piece of pork waiting to be slaughtered."

Even drinking medicine would result in it spilling all over him, and he could not even tend to his own basic needs.

He had controlled the affairs of the court for decades, yet in the end, he could not control his own body.

His imperial dignity made it impossible for him to accept wasting away his few remaining days in bed.

Eunuch Yu said, "But aren't you recovered now?"

Emperor Chongzhao did not respond to that. Instead, he asked, "Where is Little Seven now?"

Eunuch Yu replied, "Prince Yong is handling the funeral arrangements for the... for the Fourth Prince. He has been quite busy these past two days. Although the Ministry of Rites could handle it, Prince Yong insisted on overseeing it personally. Would you like this old servant to summon His Highness?"

"If he wants to do it personally, let him. If he hasn't thought things through yet, I will wait for him."

-

The Fifth Prince’s Estate.

In a storage room, Qu Dubian found a slip of paper that the Fourth Prince had sent when the Fifth Prince moved out of the Princes' Residence.

Master Liu, who had accompanied them from Yangzhou, helped examine it. After confirming there was a hidden message, he deciphered it.

[The young wolf leaves its mother, only then does it learn to fight.]

The words Concubine Lan gave them were always the kind that could pierce straight into one’s heart.

Master Liu never expected that his skill in deciphering hidden codes would lead him into the heart of the Imperial Palace, involving secrets of the former dynasty's princess. He hadn't been able to eat or sleep for days, fearing that at his age, he would be silenced for knowing too many imperial secrets.

Qu Dubian comforted the old man and gave him some gold.

Then, he searched the Third Prince’s estate. He found nothing there. Because the Third Prince’s arm had been broken, he had smashed everything in his estate to smithery during that period. Forget a slip of paper in a box; the Third Prince had replaced every table and chair in the house.

"It’s just as well if you can’t find it. Looking at it would only make me angry," the Third Prince said resentfully. "Heaven is jealous of great talent. So many people wanted to move against me. If I hadn't been so outstanding back then, I wouldn't have incited such jealousy."

The struggle with the eldest brother, the venomous snake of the second, the horse fodder incident of the fifth, Concubine Lan driving the bear, and the scapegoating of Concubine Lan.

After he finished speaking, he paused for a moment and patted his chest. "At least I kept my life."

Qu Dubian pondered for a moment and offered a suggestion. "Third Brother, if you are still feeling vengeful, Leng Yue is in the Eastern Depot's prison. You can go see him."

"I can go?"

Qu Dubian nodded.

The Third Prince left immediately, and Qu Dubian proceeded to the Ministry of Rites.

In this manner, another three days passed. Zichen Hall had been repaired, yet there was still no interaction between the father and son.

During the morning court session, the officials, who had been observing the situation for six full days, could finally hold back no longer.

An investigator from the Censorate was the first to step forward. "Reporting to Your Majesty, a nation cannot be without an heir. Now that the chaos of Concubine Lan has been quelled, we implore Your Majesty to appoint a new heir soon to stabilize the state!"

As soon as he spoke, the other officials followed suit like a flood through a broken dam, their stiff faces instantly drooping with worry.

"We implore Your Majesty to appoint an heir soon to put the people's hearts at ease."

Indeed.

At the very least, give them a hint!

That way, they would know who their future boss would be.

Emperor Chongzhao scanned the officials below, each harboring their own hidden agendas. "Who do you all believe is fit to be the Crown Prince?"

The Minister of War said, "This subject believes that Prince Yong should be the Crown Prince."

As soon as these words were spoken, the former faction of the First Prince expressed their strong agreement.

The First Prince was currently serving as an official. According to protocol, as long as Assistant Minister Shu was alive, the First Prince could not have his peerage restored. Furthermore, he had relied too heavily on his wife's family and had betrayed the very faction that stood behind him; he had been deeply loathed for a time.

When the First Prince went to Lingbei, his former supporters had cursed him to his face with the most foul language. Why would they want him back as Emperor?

The Second Prince was dead, the Third Prince was crippled, the Fourth Prince was of the former dynasty’s bloodline and was also dead, and the Fifth Prince was imprisoned—the Emperor himself had said they would never meet again in life or death.

The Sixth Prince had committed a grave error and had been demoted to a commoner, currently farming in Zhennan Pass.

Counting them all up, only Prince Yong remained.

Poor health? It didn't matter! History was not without sickly emperors. The Imperial Academy of Medicine could nurse him, and they would simply avoid upsetting him.

His eyesight might not be great? It didn't matter! The palace servants weren't blind. If his eyes grew tired from reading memorials, he could take a walk and have someone read them to him. As long as his ears worked, it was fine.

When the time came, they would pick a few good ladies. Once Prince Yong chose his primary and secondary consorts and sired an heir, everything would be stable!

Perhaps the situation would be even better than they imagined. Given Prince Yong's abilities, after his ascension, there was hope of achieving the Great Zhou's unification of the world.

They would then be the ministers of a golden age.

Their thoughts were quite beautiful.

Emperor Chongzhao felt a strange urge to laugh. Given Little Seven's personality, he likely didn't even care for this throne.

He, the boy's father, was dying, and even he didn't dare hope that his son would take the initiative to accept the throne. These ministers, however, were quite bold in their fantasies.

Emperor Chongzhao said, "Since that is the case, why don't you all go and weep before Prince Yong’s gates? Perhaps then he will agree."

The officials: "..."

Weep? Did they not have any dignity?

Between the Emperor and his officials, it was always a struggle for dominance. If they were already this humble before Prince Yong even became Emperor, what would happen later?

However, the Emperor's words revealed one thing: he too was waiting for Prince Yong.

Emperor Chongzhao said, "Enough. We shall discuss this matter further once the Fourth Prince's funeral is concluded."

He loathed Concubine Lan’s actions, but the Fourth Prince was truly innocent. He was of the former dynasty's blood, but he was also the Emperor's own flesh and blood. He had only stripped the Fourth Prince of his title as Crown Prince; he would still allow him to be buried with dignity in the Imperial Tombs.

Old Four and Little Seven were close, so it was only right that the funeral arrangements were handled meticulously.

He should be able to hold on for a few more days.

Just as Emperor Chongzhao thought this, he waved his hand to dismiss the court. The moment he stood up, he suddenly felt a violent palpitation in his heart.

Only two words flashed through his mind: "It’s over." Then, his vision went dark. As he clutched his chest, his strength drained away rapidly, like air escaping a punctured ball.

The guillotine of the drug's lingering effects, which he had no way of knowing when would finally drop, had fallen at last. Emperor Chongzhao closed his eyes and uttered one final command:

"Summon the Prince of Yong to the palace."

A chorus of panicked cries erupted.

"Your Majesty—!"

Emperor Chongzhao was swiftly moved into Zichen Hall.

After examining him, Imperial Physician Yang shook his head.

Eunuch Yu issued an urgent order, dismissing the court officials to return home and await news, while allowing the three Assistant Ministers and Prince Ming to remain outside Zichen Hall.

*

Qu Dubian entered the palace.

Standing at the entrance of Zichen Hall, he saw Grand Tutor Fang, the other two ministers, and Prince Ming.

Grand Tutor Fang sighed at him and nodded. "The Prince has arrived."

Qu Dubian replied, "Yes."

Prince Ming said, "Go on in, little nephew. Your Imperial Brother is waiting for you. He sent the rest of us out."

Qu Dubian looked up.

Part of Zichen Hall had been damaged by fire, but as the Emperor’s residence, it had been repaired to its former glory in just a few days. The only change was perhaps the fresh gold lacquer on the plaque.

He had lost count of how many times he had come here.

Faint memories of eating here as a child lingered in the depths of time, but the events that had taken place in Zichen Hall later were much clearer.

When his Fifth Brother was ten, kneeling in the rain to beg for mercy, Qu Dubian had come here with an umbrella to see him.

When his mother was trapped in Xianghe and he insisted on going to her, it was here.

When he returned from Xianghe and received the Black Brocade, it was here.

When the Northern Border faced a sudden crisis and his elder sister was sent for a political marriage, he had used the Black Brocade to plead for her and was rejected. The thin veneer of father-son affection was torn away, leaving a rift in his heart—that, too, had happened here.

Back then, he still needed the Old Geezer’s protection to survive in the inner palace. He always found ways to cling to him, whether by falling ill or using other means, just to make the Old Geezer invest more energy in him.

When he ate meals from the Imperial Kitchen here, he was just over two years old. Having just survived an assassination attempt, he was wary of everyone and everything around him.

He had only one simple thought back then: to grow up safely, stay far away from the capital, be a carefree prince, and take care of Ye Banban in his old age.

But more and more entanglements followed, some sought out, others forced upon him. These bonds filled the emotional void of his previous life, but they also acted like an unbreakable net, making him willingly shoulder the responsibility of protection.

He had fantasized about how he would grow up, but when he finally did, he found himself back in the body of a child.

From the age of two to nineteen—roughly seventeen years.

No matter how much backstabbing he had seen in the entertainment industry in his past life, those were minor tricks. Having been raised under the gentle care of modern China, many people had never even seen a chicken slaughtered. The innate innocence and simplicity of a modern person had been gradually ground away by time and the ruthless slaughter of this world.

Past events flickered through his mind like frames of a film.

Qu Dubian stood there for a long time.

Eunuch Yu emerged from the hall, his eyes red, looking at him expectantly.

"Your Highness..." Are you going in?

Qu Dubian snapped back to reality, nodded to him, and stepped inside.

There was no smell of medicine in the hall, only the scent of ginseng broth.

Emperor Chongzhao was reclining on the bed, propped up by high cushions. His eyes were open and his breathing was weak, but his expression was calm.

Physician Yang didn’t even need to take his pulse to know there was no point in administering more medicine. He was currently being kept conscious only by high-grade ginseng slices.

Emperor Chongzhao knew this as well.

Seeing Qu Dubian enter, he even managed a small smile and beckoned him over. "Little Seven is here."

Qu Dubian sat beside him and tucked the blanket around him. "At your age, you should know better than to leave yourself uncovered."

Emperor Chongzhao had a ginseng slice under his tongue; his speech was slow but clear. "You’ll have to blame Yu Decai for that. He didn't serve me well."

Eunuch Yu cried out, "I am wronged! It was Your Majesty who refused to be covered. Your Highness, look," he pulled out a stack of somewhat worn papers and placed them by Qu Dubian’s hand. "This is the 'Health Protocol' Your Highness wrote for His Majesty back then."

"I have been looking after His Majesty exactly according to the schedule written here."

Qu Dubian flipped through a couple of pages and realized he had written this after moving to the Princes' Residence, right before he came to visit when Emperor Chongzhao had a high fever.

"He certainly meddles a lot."

Emperor Chongzhao ignored Eunuch Yu. He knew the old servant brought those papers out now because he wanted to soften the relationship between father and son.

At a time like this, what use were a few pieces of paper?

Emperor Chongzhao looked at Qu Dubian and asked, "Still don't want to be Emperor?"

Qu Dubian thought for a moment. "What if I say yes?"

Emperor Chongzhao sighed. "Looking at the Great Zhou, you are the only one who can suppress those old fogies in the court. Otherwise, no matter who sits on this throne, they won't sit securely."

"You led the army to save the throne, and the entire Northern Border follows your command. It’s only because I am your father and I am dying that I don't feel a grudge in my heart. If one of your brothers were sitting in this position, he wouldn't see your rescue as a good thing."

Emperor Chongzhao had been Emperor for over twenty years; he knew this better than anyone.

Begging for a living from a father is different from begging for a living from a brother.

Brotherly love might last a year, but what about ten years? Twenty years?

Even if the brother didn't target him out of affection, what about the people surrounding the brother?

One must hold the blade of power in one's own hands.

Qu Dubian understood perfectly what he was saying.

Just as Grand Tutor Fang had guessed, he had already thought of this before coming to the capital. Otherwise, he wouldn't have allowed his eyes to "recover."

Qu Dubian said, "You are right."

Emperor Chongzhao looked delighted. "Then you...?"

Qu Dubian replied, "I’ll think about it some more."

"..."

Emperor Chongzhao coughed several times.

He feigned anger. "I’m dying, and you still won't give me peace of mind."

Qu Dubian put down the health protocol. "It has been this way since I was a child."

Emperor Chongzhao wasn't truly angry. It was just that as the end drew near, he found himself not knowing what to say.

Time passed slowly in the silence between father and son.

Qu Dubian could clearly feel Emperor Chongzhao's breath weakening further and further, with less air coming in and more going out.

Emperor Chongzhao reached out and took Qu Dubian’s hand.

One hand was wrinkled, the other young and slender, though marked with small, faint scars from the battlefield.

It took Emperor Chongzhao a long time to find the words.

"Do you... do you blame me?"

"Back then, with your birth mother, Consort Yun... I wrongly trusted the Star Gazing Bureau and treated you as an ill-omened child, leaving you in Ju'an Palace for over two years without a second thought."

Seeing no reaction from him, Emperor Chongzhao’s voice grew lower. "I failed Yueqing, and I failed you."

"With everything that happened later, it’s only natural that you resent me. You knew I didn't have much time left, yet you didn't come to see me. I knew then that there was a knot in your heart, a knot that couldn't be untied..."

His thumb brushed over the back of Qu Dubian’s hand and palm, passing over the small scars and the calluses from martial arts.

The child he had held the most was Little Seven. When the boy was young, his fevers were dangerous; every night, the Emperor had to check if he was burning up again. If he was, he would use warm water to wipe his palms and feed him medicine.

The child he had invested the most energy in was, in the end, the one with whom he had reached a point of having nothing to say.

After a long silence, he spoke again.

"I didn't take good care of her, and I didn't take good care of you."

His hand was slightly warmer than Qu Dubian’s.

Qu Dubian lowered his eyes.

The child who should have heard this apology is already gone.

He truly wanted to ask the man before him: back then, when you left that child in the Palace of Peaceful Dwelling without a second thought, did you also harbor the intention of suppressing the Xu family? Did you never consider that the child might actually die?

If you truly loved the original host's birth mother, how could you have crippled Xu Tingfeng's legs at that time?

Without the subsequent cautious, tiptoeing interactions and the calculated father-son affection, would Emperor Chongzhao feel the remorse he does now?

Perhaps there was love, but it was mixed with self-interest.

Even familial affection was the same.

The human heart is made of flesh. Regarding parents, the emotional void Qu Dubian carried from his past life was, in the first few years after arriving here, partially transferred to Emperor Chongzhao. Though it was false, it's undeniable that he did glean a few scattered fragments of paternal love from Emperor Chongzhao.

The real and the fake, the illusory and the tangible—when you act for long enough, you eventually get drawn into the role.

It was just that the events that happened later made him rationally suppress that subconscious trace of familial affection.

Qu Dubian's personality was warm on the outside but cold within. For someone like him, once genuine feelings are given, it means exposing the softest part of oneself, vulnerable to blades, spears, and even words.

To protect himself, he would only allow those worthy of his trust into his inner circle.

Emperor Chongzhao remained outside that circle.

Qu Dubian caught sight of a small scratch and a cheeky, tongue-sticking-out smile on the innermost bedpost.

He said, "After all this time, you haven't changed the bed."

Emperor Chongzhao laboriously followed his gaze.

That was... left by the little rascal when he was young, scraping off the gold powder from the bedpost, prying out the gems, and leaving behind that mischievous drawing. He had never replaced this bed. The gems that were pried off were never replaced either, for reasons even he couldn't fully explain.

Emperor Chongzhao: "Grew accustomed to it. You see, this bed... was also lucky. Consort Yi's fire didn't burn it."

He gave a weak tug at the corner of his mouth, gasped for breath several times, a wheezing sound escaping his throat.

Eunuch Yu's eyes instantly reddened, and he knelt on the ground, wiping his tears with both hands.

Qu Dubian's Adam's apple bobbed. He lowered his eyes. "...If I sleep here in the future, I will definitely change the bed."

These words made it clear he would accept the imperial throne.

His voice was restrained, kept very calm.

Emperor Chongzhao should have been happy, but he saw the faint redness at the corner of his youngest son's eyes.

"I received the Great Zhou from the hands of the late Emperor," he said. "For over twenty years, I have been diligent and conscientious. I believe that during my reign, the people lived and worked in peace and contentment. I am not an emperor of a golden age, nor a wise and enlightened sovereign. But at least, I guarded the ancestral legacy, so that I may not face our ancestors with shame in the afterlife."

"The late Emperor told me on his deathbed to dedicate... a lifetime's effort to the Great Zhou. I, I..."

He breathed for several seconds, closed his eyes to rest a moment, then opened them again. "I should tell you the same. But this throne... once you sit upon it, you become trapped in the capital. I... know your nature, Little Seven. If you don't like it, after nurturing a worthy successor... you should... leave..."

"The world is vast. By then, no one will be able to hold you back."

As your mother hoped, be a wild goose soaring freely between heaven and earth, unbound and unrestrained.

North and south, utterly free.

Qu Dubian: "Nothing could ever truly hold me back in the first place. Every choice stems from my own heart. Every choice carries its own price."

Emperor Chongzhao looked at him for a long moment before saying, "Is that so? That's good then..."

His vision began to blur.

A lifetime. He fathered nine children.

Some died, some were exiled. Even when pity stirred in his heart, he could not indulge and protect his own children like an ordinary father among the common people.

He could only act according to the laws of the Great Zhou. Only thus could he appease the people and the officials' hearts. That was the proper conduct for an emperor.

He was mindful of the imperial family's dignity, mindful of the emperor's prestige, mindful of and constantly weighing power. In the end, not a single close person remained.

This throne is supremely exalted.

And supremely lonely, supremely cold.

Having come this far, looking back on the past, he actually felt that the days before the eldest prince left the palace to establish his own residence, the days when his youngest son infuriated him to the point of losing all decorum...

were what he missed the most.

Emperor Chongzhao said, "Little Seven, could you... call me 'father' one more time...?"

With his last breath, he did not use the imperial 'We'. He just tightly grasped Qu Dubian's hand, his eyes filled with expectation, entreaty, and even a trace of inexplicable stubbornness.

Since he was fourteen, since Princess Zhiyi's marriage alliance and the rift between father and son...

he had never again heard that address, 'father', which he once found annoying.

The young man by the bedside pressed his lips tightly together, unmoving. The expectation in Emperor Chongzhao's eyes gradually faded away.

He closed his eyes. Fragments of the past flashed rapidly through his mind.

Just before his consciousness completely vanished, a faint, barely audible word:

"Father."

Reached his ears.

Emperor Chongzhao's breathing had already ceased. A single tear, shed for reasons unknown, traced a swift, silent path down his cheek, disappearing into his graying temples, never to be seen again.

The palace servants in the Zichen Hall knelt and wept.

The atmosphere of grief began to spread outward from here.

Eunuch Yu, his face washed with tears, drew a bright yellow imperial edict from his sleeve and read through his sobs:

"By the decree of Heaven, the Emperor proclaims: As my illness worsens and my life now reaches its end, I hereby pass the throne to the Seventh Prince, the Prince of Yong, Qu Dubian. All civil and military officials, members of the imperial clan, and subjects of the realm shall obey this decree and uphold the Prince of Yong as the new Emperor. So ordered."

Outside the Zichen Hall.

Boom— Boom—

Boom—! Boom—!

Heavy bell tolls sounded. The ninety-nine strokes of the Mourning Bell for the Dragon, one after another, spread from the tower of the Meridian Gate.

Throughout the entire palace, no matter where they were, all palace servants prostrated themselves on the ground, weeping in sorrow.

Within the rear palace.

The Empress, Princess Zhiyi, Princess Sihe, the other consorts and concubines, and the Third Prince also knelt outside the Zichen Hall.

In the offices of the Six Ministries.

All officials in the capital bowed toward this direction, wailing three cries of grief, their mournful weeping long and drawn-out.

Within the capital.

Xia Fuyang, Xi Zixing, Xu Jing, and others still at home all gazed distantly toward the direction of the imperial palace, sighing silently.

The emperor's passing brings sorrow to all under heaven.

In the prison cells of the Eastern Depot.

The Fifth Prince poured himself a cup of wine, smiled, raised his cup toward the Zichen Hall, and drank it down in one gulp.

Boom— Boom—!

At the gates of the imperial city, a figure on horseback staggered and tumbled down.

The Eldest Prince, covered in the dust of travel, fell to the ground in disarray. He looked up at the city gate he had ultimately failed to cross in time, his knees suddenly hitting the ground as he choked out a sob:

"Father—!"

Amidst the resonant bell tolls, amidst the varied reactions of countless people.

Qu Dubian closed his eyes.

This father-son bond, a mix of truth and falsehood, woven with calculation, had finally reached its end.

No one would ever chase after him with a feather duster to give him a beating again.