gnovel Chapter 14 The Emperor's Selfish Motives
Chapter 14 The Emperor's Selfish Motives
Unbeknownst to Lin Ruhai, at the same time his memorial was delivered, a secret report from the Northern Garrison also arrived.
In the Imperial Study, Lin Ruhai's memorials and the secret reports from the Northern Garrison were laid out side by side on the Emperor's desk.
Emperor Yankang sat upright on the dragon throne, without uttering a word.
Dai Quan went to the private room, picked up the copper kettle, poured tea at the imperial desk, and said softly, "Your Majesty, please have some hot tea..."
Emperor Yankang slowly raised his gaze, looking at the rising sun outside the window, and slowly reached out to touch the teacup.
Dai Quan quickly picked it up and handed it over.
Emperor Yankang grabbed the teacup from the saucer and suddenly smashed it hard onto the brick floor in front of his desk!
Fragments flew everywhere, and tea splashed all over the place!
Dai Quan was startled.
"Get the second son into the palace!" Emperor Yankang slammed his fist on the imperial desk in a fit of rage.
Dai Quan knelt down with a thud: "Your Majesty! Your Majesty, you must not summon Prince Jin to the palace... The only way to preserve the overall situation is to pretend we know nothing about this!"
"What did you say?!" Emperor Yankang stared at Dai Quan with bloodshot eyes.
Dai Quan shuddered, then steeled his resolve and loudly replied, "In the more than one hundred years since the founding of our Great Qian Dynasty, has there ever been a case of treason like the assassination of an imperial envoy? Throughout history, anyone who dared to lay a hand on an imperial envoy was considered to have openly rebelled. Whether they were princes, members of the imperial family, or high-ranking officials, their fates were invariably the same: being given death, committing suicide, or dying in battle..."
If this matter gets out, those officials from the previous dynasty will never let it go; they will definitely put the prince to death!
"They dare!" Emperor Yankang suddenly stood up.
Dai Quan gritted his teeth: "Has Your Majesty forgotten that ten-year agreement?"
Emperor Yankang trembled, his legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground.
Dai Quan then brewed another bowl of tea, gently placed it beside Emperor Yankang, and said in a low voice, "After Lin Ruhai left the Salt Commissioner's Office, the martial law was lifted, which means he must have learned the inside story... This time, the corrupt officials in the Lianghuai Salt Administration were eradicated, and Lin Ruhai made a great contribution. Your Majesty can reward him handsomely to appease his loyalty to the emperor, which can also be considered compensation."
Emperor Yankang had calmed down. He picked up his teacup, took a sip, and slowly said, "Although the corrupt officials in the Lianghuai Salt Administration have been eliminated, the salt affairs still need someone to keep them in check. I hereby issue an edict: Lin Ruhai shall be promoted to Provincial Surveillance Commissioner of Jiangsu, while still concurrently in charge of the Lianghuai Salt Administration. His ancestral home is Suzhou, and I remember that the old office of the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner is still there. The office shall be temporarily moved back to the old site in Nanjing, and then moved to Suzhou later."
"Your Majesty is wise!" Dai Quan hurriedly bowed and praised the emperor.
"Stop being afraid of flattery!"
Emperor Yankang glared at him, his tone turning somber: "I have spoiled the second prince too much these past few years. If I don't teach him a lesson, who knows what kind of monstrous disaster he will cause in the future."
He paused, then continued, "Didn't he have a fight with the eldest son yesterday? The imperial decree states: Prince Jin has disrespected his elder brother, violating royal decorum. He is hereby stripped of all official duties and confined to his residence to study for a year or six months..."
Now the King of Wu has been thrust into the eye of the storm.
Half a year is neither too long nor too short; it can teach Prince Jin a lesson without delaying his participation in the struggle for the throne.
Thinking of this, Dai Quan sighed silently. Only when an emperor is selfless can the world be at peace; a single selfish thought can cause turmoil throughout the land!
"Lin Ruhai, that captain of the personal guards..." Emperor Yankang suddenly spoke.
Dai Quan's lips twitched: "That person definitely didn't know the inside story, otherwise Lin Ruhai would never have ordered the search and arrest of the assassin's accomplices after returning to the city... He just saved Lin Ruhai's life... It's really not worth it."
Emperor Yankang nodded. Crushing an ant is easy, but chilling the hearts of loyal ministers is not worth it.
Emperor Yankang suddenly remembered: "Is there any progress on that matter?"
Dai Quan understood that the question was directed at the son of the deposed crown prince, and bowed, replying, "I was just about to report to His Majesty that there are still no new leads in the capital..."
"Continue the investigation."
"Yes," Dai Quan replied, then added, "However, news just came from Xuzhou that the son of the deposed crown prince has most likely perished in the Yellow River when it breached its banks."
"Oh?"
Emperor Yankang tapped his fingertips lightly on the imperial desk, his eyes darting around. "Spread this news. Keep a close watch on the place of exile!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Dai Quan replied loudly.
......................
Liu Feng was unaware that he had just narrowly escaped death once again.
In fact, he was somewhat conscious that night, but due to excessive blood loss and fever, he did not fully wake up until this morning, having been unconscious for five days and five nights.
This time, he suffered a severe blow and will definitely not recover without several months of careful recuperation.
The doctor advised against exposure to drafts, so all the curtains and window blinds were drawn tightly, and the room was dimly lit.
Liu Feng lay on the bed, his face ashen.
Granny Wang stood by the bed, her eyes fixed on the doctor.
Liu Feng almost laughed in anger. The doctor had three fingers on his wrist, his eyes were closed, and if it weren't for the slight movement of his fingertips, he would have thought the doctor was asleep!
After a while, the doctor slowly opened his eyes, gently tucked Liu Feng's hand back into the blanket, and said, "Take your medicine as usual, and you can eat some rice porridge to replenish your qi and blood. I will come back tonight to check your pulse again. If you can stabilize, we can change the prescription tomorrow."
"Quickly, go tell the kitchen to make porridge!"
As soon as Granny Wang finished speaking, a clear female voice suddenly came from the back window: "Granny, I have some freshly cooked green rice porridge."
"That would be perfect." The doctor stroked his beard and nodded.
Helpless, Granny Wang could only call out to the back window, "Xueyan, bring the porridge."
"Why--"
Liu Feng's eyes flashed. Xueyan? Was that Lin Daiyu who spoke so clearly and melodiously just now?
"Thank you for your trouble, Doctor Wang."
While instructing the servants to see the doctor out, Granny Wang told the maids to take good care of Liu Feng, then turned to give Liu Feng a few more words of advice before leaving.
Liu Feng curled his lip. What do you mean by "taking good care of them"? It's just watching them, feeding them medicine, and when they're itching like crazy, no one helps them scratch.
Sigh, everyone says Lin Daiyu is stingy, but now she's actually giving me her own green rice porridge. You can't believe everything in the original story!
Before his mind had even fully processed the information, Liu Feng felt a wave of weakness, like he was experiencing low blood sugar. His eyelids became so heavy he couldn't keep them open, and he fell asleep with his head lolling to the side.
In a daze, he seemed to hear someone calling him, and then he heard a pleasant voice telling him not to disturb him. He drifted off to sleep until nightfall.
"Holy crap, who the hell stabbed me!"
A sudden, sharp, needle-like pain shot through Liu Feng's chest, one after another. He grimaced in pain, his hand too weak to move; otherwise, he would have slapped him already.
When I opened my eyes, it was Doctor Wang.
Doctor Wang took out a silver needle, heated it over a candle flame, then took out a cotton ball soaked in white medicine from his medical bag to wipe the needle clean, and then inserted it into Liu Feng's chest.
Seeing that Liu Feng was awake, Doctor Wang asked, "Does it hurt?"
Liu Feng rolled his eyes.
Doctor Wang smiled and called out, "Bring the porridge."
The old woman came in carrying a bowl of porridge in both hands: "Doctor Wang, may I give it to him now?"
Dr. Wang moved aside and sat on the edge of the bed: "Sit here and feed him slowly."
The old woman sat down on the stool, scooped up a spoonful of porridge, and brought it to Liu Feng's lips.
Oh my god, where's the pretty little maid?
Liu Feng wanted to turn away and refuse, but his stomach wouldn't cooperate. The aroma of the porridge made his mouth water, so he opened it and took a spoonful. The moment it entered his mouth, his eyes lit up—this porridge was so delicious!
It's not a strong, cloying fragrance; it's a delicate, light scent with a hint of grass.
Liu Feng swallowed the porridge and looked at the old woman: "What kind of porridge is this? It smells so good!"
The old woman smiled and said, "This is porridge made from glutinous rice, which was originally tribute rice. In the past, it was only grown in the imperial fields outside the capital. Now it is also grown in the south. Our Lin family also has a piece of top-quality land dedicated to growing this, but the yield is extremely small. It has always been reserved for the Madam and the young ladies. This bowl of yours was specially saved by the young lady to thank you for risking your life to protect the master."
"By the way, the food rations of the madam and young lady these past few days have all been set aside for you to nourish your body. This is an immense favor!"
Grace my ass! I almost lost my life, it's not like they're giving their daughter to me!
But as soon as the porridge entered his mouth, Liu Feng could only think: It's so delicious.
Liu Feng ate the fragrant green rice porridge with gusto, his heart filled with mixed emotions. No wonder everyone was desperately trying to climb the social ladder; even a bowl of porridge like this was a rare treat that ordinary people could never even touch or smell in their entire lives.
If I remember correctly, there was also a character named Rouge Rice in Dream of the Red Chamber!
MMP!
After finishing a bowl of porridge and resting for a while, Doctor Wang suddenly said out of the blue, "Bear with it."
Before Liu Feng could react, Kaka tore the silk cloth off the wound, sprinkling wound medicine on it like it was free, and then quickly rewrapped it with clean silk cloth. Liu Feng was in so much pain he was covered in cold sweat, but the old man remained unfazed, not even panting. He was in really good health!
Only after the doctor removed the silver needles one by one did Liu Feng realize that these needles were used to stop bleeding. As soon as the needles were removed, the newly applied silk cloth instantly turned red – it was truly amazing!
No, the low blood sugar is acting up again. I closed my eyes and fell asleep again...