Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 418 Sadness and Joy
Li Baizhou was overjoyed. He thought his mother was finally out of danger and excitedly exclaimed, "That's great! You're alright!"

The eunuch, who was dozing outside the door, heard the noise, opened his eyes and glanced into the room. When he saw that it was Consort Jiang who had woken up, he pouted and turned back to his room, closing his eyes again to continue dozing.

Li Baizhou was so engrossed in his joy that he didn't notice Jiang Meiren's unusual behavior. Yan Ciwan, however, could see it clearly. At this moment, Jiang Meiren's face was flushed with a sickly redness, and her complexion suddenly became rosy. But her eyes were unfocused and empty. Her gaze seemed to be on Li Baizhou, but upon closer inspection, it seemed to be fixed on something far away.

Jiang Meiren's appearance was clearly a final burst of energy before her death.

She said softly, "A-Zhou, I heard the Crown Prince is ill. Go and see him for me later."

Li Baizhou held her hand and said, "You're sick too, and I'm more concerned about your safety now."

“I’m fine. I just feel a little cold and tired. I want to take a nap. Don’t stay here any longer. Go back now. After I wake up and finish copying the Heart Sutra a hundred times, I’ll go back and make you some jujube paste pastries.”

As Jiang Meiren spoke, she slowly closed her eyes, and her entire being deteriorated at a visible rate.

At this moment, Li Baizhou finally realized that something was wrong.

He cried out in a panic, "Mother, don't sleep! Open your eyes and look at me. I won't go anywhere. I'll stay here with you. Don't leave me. I'm scared to be alone..."

Hearing her son's plea, Jiang Meiren reluctantly mustered her strength again: "A-Zhou, don't be afraid. You're an adult now. Even if I'm not by your side, you can take care of yourself."

"No, I can't live without you, Mother." Li Baizhou sobbed uncontrollably.

"Don't cry. I'm going to find your grandpa and grandma in the underworld. I've missed them so much all these years. Now I can finally reunite with them. You should be happy for me."

"Then what should I do? I'm all alone, don't abandon me."

“You still have your Crown Prince brother. He’s a good man. As long as you stay with him, he won’t treat you badly. I’m really tired. I need to sleep for a while, just a little while…” As Jiang Meiren spoke, she closed her eyes again.

No matter how Li Baizhou called out to her, Jiang Meiren did not open her eyes again.

She fell into a deep sleep forever.

Li Baizhou completely broke down, and he lay on Jiang Meiren's body, crying uncontrollably.

The eunuch outside heard the commotion and rushed in to check. He saw that Jiang Meiren was not in good condition and felt uneasy. Could she really be dead?

The eunuch mustered his courage and checked Consort Jiang's breath; she was indeed not breathing.

He was so frightened that he backed away repeatedly, thinking to himself, "This is terrible, someone has died!"
Although Consort Jiang was not favored, she was still a concubine of the emperor, and she had a son. Now that she had died in this small Buddhist hall, this matter was not easy to handle.

The eunuch was in a state of panic and hurriedly ran out.

He had to inform Consort Xie about this matter as soon as possible so that she could come up with a solution.

Li Baizhou paid no attention to the eunuch's fate. He was immersed in the grief of losing his mother, and tears streamed down his face as he wept uncontrollably.

Yan Ciwan, who witnessed this scene, felt a pang of sadness. When her mother passed away, she and Li Baizhou were also deeply grieved.

To this day, she still can't bear to recall her mother's appearance on her deathbed. Just thinking about it makes her heart ache and she feels unbearably sad.

The eunuch left and never returned. Li Baizhou cried for a long time until his voice was hoarse and his tears ran dry, before he gradually stopped crying.

The sun was gradually setting outside the window, and night was about to fall. Li Baizhou sat blankly on the ground, holding his mother's already cold body. He seemed to be in a daze, his face expressionless.

At this moment, no one knows what he is thinking.

The sandalwood incense on the altar was almost burned out. The Bodhisattva statue on the wall bowed its head slightly, its eyes gazing quietly at the mother and child on the ground. Soon the candles also burned out, and the Buddhist hall was plunged into darkness. The compassionate face of the Bodhisattva was swallowed up by the darkness.

Li Baizhou sat in the darkness, holding his mother's body, for the entire night.

At dawn the next day, just as the sky was beginning to lighten, hurried footsteps approached.

Yan Ciwan walked to the window and saw that Ning Qingyang had arrived.

Ning Qingyang lifted her skirt and ran as fast as she could. She pushed open the door and rushed into the Buddhist hall, excitedly shouting, "His Highness the Crown Prince's condition has stabilized! I heard that the imperial physicians have all returned to the Imperial Hospital. We can go there now..."

Before she could finish speaking, she saw Jiang Meiren, whose face had turned pale, in Li Baizhou's arms.

Li Baizhou's eyes were red and swollen, and there were traces of dried tears on his face. He glanced at Ning Qingyang and said in a hoarse voice, "There is no need for the imperial physician. My mother has passed away."

His tone was calm, as if losing his mother was not a big deal to him.

Ning Qingyang went over and felt Jiang Meiren's pulse; indeed, there was no pulse at all.

She wanted to comfort Li Baizhou, but didn't know how to start.
Li Baizhou said, "Can you help me? It's too cold here. I want to carry my mother back."

"Okay." Ning Qingyang helped put Jiang Meiren on Li Baizhou's back. Li Baizhou's right hand was not fully healed yet, and his right hand hurt a lot when he stood up while carrying Jiang Meiren.

But he showed no expression on his face, and just like that, he carried Jiang Meiren out of the Buddhist hall.

Ning Qingyang followed closely behind them, filled with worry.

On their way back, they encountered many palace servants and imperial guards. Everyone was beaming with joy because the crown prince's condition had stabilized, the emperor's mood had improved, and everyone in the palace no longer had to live in constant fear. They could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

As Li Baizhou walked past the palace servants, their joyful smiles were like salt sprinkled on his already festering wounds.

His mother was gone, but no one in the palace knew, because everyone's attention was focused on the crown prince.

No one cared whether his mother lived or died, and no one cared about his joys and sorrows.

The scene before Yan Ciwan changed again. A moment later, she appeared in the mourning hall. In the center of the hall was a coffin, and in front of it was the memorial tablet of Jiang Meiren.

At this moment, Li Baizhou was kneeling in front of the memorial tablet, dressed in mourning clothes, when a voice announced his presence behind him.

"His Royal Highness is here!"

Li Baizhou turned around and saw Li Xuanhe being helped in. At this time, Li Xuanhe's condition had not yet fully recovered, and the imperial physician did not allow him to go out. However, he was worried about his fifth brother and insisted on coming to see him in person.

He pushed aside the servant beside him, took the incense sticks from Li Baizhou, and bowed to the memorial tablet of Consort Jiang.

Li Baizhou helped him insert the incense sticks into the incense burner, then knelt down and kowtowed to him.

Li Xuanhe quickly helped him up: "Fifth brother, I am really sorry. I have been so sick these past few days that I did not know that Lady Jiang had passed away. It is my dereliction of duty as your elder brother that I was unable to be by your side when you needed me the most."