Madam, don't do this!

Chapter 337 Accompanying My Father-in-Law to the Jade Garden (8,000 words)
Yang Hetong is a cunning old fox, and Fang De is no less so.

The moment these words were spoken, Fang De instantly understood the other party's intentions. He couldn't help but curse this person inwardly for being treacherous, pushing Emperor Ninghe to the brink of disaster. However, after his lips moved twice, Fang De ultimately said nothing. After all, in the current situation, it would be inappropriate for him to say anything, especially since he himself was preparing to place one of his daughters next to Song Yan, so he had no right to criticize Yang Hetong.

Seeing the atmosphere become extremely tense, Song Yan frowned slightly and was about to step forward to say something. But at that moment, Fang Hai gently tugged at Song Yan's sleeve and shook his head at him. Although Song Yan didn't understand what Fang Hai meant, he knew that Fang Hai's experience in the court was far beyond his own. After a brief hesitation, he stopped.

In the vast imperial court, Emperor Ninghe and Yang Hetong stared at each other.

Anyone could feel the tension in their eyes.

This eerie oppression may have lasted for a few breaths, but for the officials in the court, it felt like three autumns had passed. Suddenly, Emperor Ninghe let out a long breath and sat back on the dragon throne: "Very well, since all my beloved ministers have no objection to the Grand Secretary's words, then let's arrange it this way."

"The Secretariat will draft an imperial edict in the future."

"Let the court adjourn; I am weary."

As soon as he finished speaking, Emperor Ninghe looked extremely tired. He waved his hand, and the old eunuch beside him quickly helped Emperor Ninghe leave the main hall.

The fact that Song Yan was dismissed as the prefect of Pingyang was tacitly avoided being mentioned by anyone.

Accompanied by rustling sounds, the court officials gathered in small groups and left the palace.

Song Yan's pace was somewhat slow.

Fang Hai and Jiao Junze stayed by his side, and there was no one else around.

Jiao Junze looked light and cheerful. This time, he not only escaped criticism during his performance review, but he even received the title of baron. Although it was only the lowest rank, he was still very happy. After leaving the main hall, he patted Song Yan on the shoulder and said, "Congratulations, Brother Song, you've been ennobled."

"If you ever want to cause trouble in Jurchen territory again, remember to call me. Let's brothers pull off another big heist."

He felt that when he saw those Jurchen barbarians now, he probably wouldn't feel the same disgust as before; he might even find them somewhat endearing. After all, their heads were precious military achievements. This time he was a baron, next time a viscount, and if he completely wiped out the Jurchens, he might even be granted a countship, making him a lord then.

Fang Hai, who was standing next to him, felt very bitter upon hearing this. He was the one who met Song Yan first, so how come Jiao Junze had taken all the benefits away from him?

Bah, shameless.

“Speaking of which, you have double happiness.” Jiao Junze’s smile became even more ambiguous: “I never thought that this princess would end up in your hands. Nakhtoya is quite beautiful and has a hot figure. Brother, you’re in luck this time. This is a marriage bestowed by His Majesty. There will probably be a wedding celebration. Remember to invite your brother then.”

Generally speaking, a wedding ceremony is not held when a concubine is taken.

Most often, a small sedan chair would be carried in through the side door.

But a marriage bestowed by the emperor is naturally different.

Song Yan smiled and said, "Then remember to bring your congratulatory gift."

“You still owe me ten taels of silver. How about we consider those ten taels as a congratulatory gift?” Jiao Junze blinked and said.

Song Yan glanced at Jiao Junze and realized that he wasn't joking. His facial muscles were twitching, and he was genuinely heartbroken over the ten taels of silver.

So, this is a self-inflicted wound.

You're a prefect, after all. Is it really worth it for ten taels of silver?

"I'll return it to you later."

Jiao Junze was relieved.

"Uncle Fang, why did you stop me just now?" Song Yan looked at Fang Hai and asked the question that had been bothering him.

Fang Hai shook his head: "Nephew, were you just about to refuse the marriage bestowed by His Majesty?"

Song Yan nodded.

"Alas." Fang Hai sighed, "Nephew, although you are intelligent, you still lack experience in court affairs. You just saw that the Emperor was in a dilemma, and since the matter was related to you, you should have stood up to share some of the burden with the Emperor. But if you were going to speak up, you should have refused decisively when Yang Hetong first proposed the marriage. If you missed that opportunity, then don't speak up."

“At that time, His Majesty was clearly already angry. If you spoke again, others would see it as you being forced or frightened by His Majesty.”

"Perhaps you helped His Majesty solve a problem, but you've given him a reputation for mistreating meritorious officials. This is definitely not a good thing." He patted Song Yan on the shoulder and said, "What to say and when to say it in court is a great skill. You should learn from it."

Song Yan was stunned, not expecting there to be so many intricacies involved.

Jiao Junze subconsciously increased the distance between himself and Fang Hai. These civil officials were too corrupt, full of ulterior motives. Military generals like Brother Song were much more worthy of his acquaintance.

Song Yan roughly understood, but his brows furrowed again: "But, won't this arouse His Majesty's suspicion?"

Fang Hai rolled his eyes: "What are you afraid of? You have soldiers under your command."

Song Yan subconsciously glanced around and was relieved to find no one nearby. Although it was the truth, was it really appropriate to say it so bluntly?
"Don't worry, His Majesty won't suspect you if you do this."

"Perhaps they will also think that you are lustful and easy to control." Fang Hai stretched his stiff arms and said slowly, "For the emperor, a general who can fight well and make the foreign tribes unable to raise their heads is naturally extremely important. The emperor can accept that the general loves his soldiers like his own children and trains his soldiers to obey orders. The only thing the emperor cannot accept is... that the general is not greedy for money and not lustful."

"Humans are all driven by desires. If a general with elite troops in his command is not greedy for money or lustful, what do you think he would want?"

Song Yan's expression gradually turned serious: "Power."

“That’s right.” Fang Hai had a teachable look on his face: “Power. If there really was such a general, the emperor might have to worry about whether he could still sit firmly on the dragon throne. What power in this world could compare to that position?”

Fang Hai smiled, looked away, and looked ahead, but his eyes were a little empty, and it was unclear what he was looking at: "I hit it off with you, my dear nephew. I got my marquis title because of you. If it weren't for the fact that our generations are not quite right, I would have liked to become sworn brothers with you. That's why I'm saying these things to you."

“Nephew, you are very capable, but what you lack now is experience and maturity.”

“You must remember that you are His Majesty’s nephew-in-law and command elite troops. Since that’s the case, be a little arrogant, a little haughty, a little greedy, and a little lecherous. If you see a pretty woman on the streets of Chang’an and take her home, or if you get drunk and fight with other young men in the Qunyu Garden, or even beat your colleagues black and blue, His Majesty will tolerate all of that, as long as you don’t violate any principles. His Majesty will even be very pleased.”

"Because only such a nephew-in-law is a good nephew-in-law in His Majesty's eyes, and only such a nephew-in-law can put His Majesty at ease. Just like today, you are dragging more than a hundred officials of the Censorate down to hell, offending everyone in the Censorate. That's good, His Majesty is never afraid of you offending people..."

Song Yan let out a long breath. He naively thought that he had a grudge against the Yang family and that Emperor Ninghe also wanted to deal with the Yang family. Even without Luo Tianxuan's involvement, they were natural allies. But now it seems that he was indeed thinking too simply.

"Thank you for your guidance, Uncle," Song Yan said respectfully, bowing deeply.

Previously, he addressed Fang Hai as "Uncle" out of consideration for Gao Yang's relationship, but now, this address is absolutely sincere.

If Fang Hai hadn't truly valued him highly, he would never have said those words.

Fang Hai was greatly pleased and seemed very happy, so he patted Song Yan on the shoulder again.

Before they knew it, they had arrived outside the palace. Song Yan and Fang Hai got into the carriage together, and even Jiao Junze followed. Such an opportunity to learn from a senior was extremely valuable.

The carriage creaked and groaned as it moved along.

Once they were alone, Fang Hai spoke, "Remember, having soldiers is your reliance."

"But how many soldiers do you have under your command?"

"Ten thousand, twenty thousand?"

"Then do you know how many soldiers Ningguo has? There are twelve prefectures, and each prefecture has 15,000 soldiers, which is 180,000 soldiers."

"Within Dongling City, there are 30,000 Imperial Guards, 30,000 Golden Guards, and 30,000 Silver Feather Guards."

"To the north, there is a border army of 70,000 to defend against the Xiongnu."

"In the south, the King of Jin is stationed there to guard against the State of Zhao, with 40,000 border troops."

"To the west, there is a border army of 60,000 to guard against the State of Chu."

Song Yan's expression turned somewhat solemn; this was 440,000 soldiers.

He knew that Ningguo had a large army, but he never imagined that the number would be so exaggerated.

Just thinking about it, one can probably understand why the Central Plains seemed to have the largest number of troops when it was fragmented. For example, during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, there were armies of 100,000, 200,000, or even a million, just like the god of war Bai Qi, who massacred 400,000 in a single battle.

For example, during the late Eastern Han Dynasty, armies numbering in the millions were commonplace.

On the contrary, after the unification of the Central Plains, the number of troops seemed to suddenly decrease significantly. When marching and fighting, 100,000 troops seemed to be an extremely impressive number.

Seeing Song Yan's solemn expression, Fang Hai shook his head: "Nephew, I know that your soldiers are brave and skilled in battle, and your weapons and equipment far surpass those of other armies, but do you think you can overturn the table with just 20,000 men?"

Turn over the table?

Jiao Junze's eyelid twitched.

He shouldn't have gotten on the bus. Is this something he should be listening to?

Song Yan pondered for a moment. Twenty thousand versus four hundred and forty thousand. He thought about the fine steel armor, the fine steel battle sword, the thunderbolts… In the current situation, it seemed there was no advantage. If he could establish a firearms battalion, this advantage would be more or less there. He had already decided that once firearms were deployed on a large scale, he would name it the Divine Machine Battalion.

Of course, 440,000 is indeed a huge number, but Song Yan believes that this 440,000 is by no means a monolithic entity.

Jiao Junze was helpless. Song Yan was actually seriously considering such a rebellious thing.

No, am I the only loyal one in this car?
Song Yan shook his head.

"As you know, if you can't overturn this table, then you can only rely on His Majesty in the court. This is your other support."

Song Yan nodded. Indeed, Emperor Ninghe regarded him as a sharp knife to stab at the powerful clans and Bailu Academy. In turn, Song Yan was also relying on Emperor Ninghe to strengthen his power.

"So you don't need to think too much. You and His Majesty need each other. Under this premise, you can tolerate each other even if there are any conflicts."

"Of course, you shouldn't be thinking of rashly dealing with the Yang family or taking action against Bailu Academy."

"On the one hand, the Yang family and Bailu Academy have been deeply rooted in Ningguo for many years, and their influence is spread throughout Ningguo. Do you know how many of the twelve governors are their people? Do you know how many of the Imperial Guards, Jinwu Guards, and Yinyu Guards are their people?"

"On the other hand, without the Yang family and Bailu Academy, the conflict between you and His Majesty will come to the surface."

Song Yan breathed a sigh of relief: "I've learned a lot."

It's somewhat like nurturing an enemy to enhance one's own prestige, but more importantly, it's about developing one's strength stealthily.

To put it bluntly, all the problems boil down to one thing... insufficient firepower.

Leaving aside AKs, even if he could produce early bolt-action rifles, such as Mausers or Mosin-Nagants, or even the old-fashioned Hanyang rifles, just a few hundred thousand or so, then all the current problems would no longer be problems.

Jiao Junze felt that these topics were too outrageous and worried that if others heard them, they might think that he was in cahoots with these two rebellious guys, so he changed the subject: "By the way, Brother Song, when are you planning to leave?"

"Shall we go back together?"

Song Yan shook his head: "I probably won't be able to leave."

"Although it wasn't mentioned in court today, I have already been dismissed from my post as the Prefect of Pingyang. A guy named Sun Hao..." Song Yan shrugged, "If he's lucky enough to make it to Pingyang alive, he'll be the next Prefect of Pingyang."

Upon hearing this, Fang Hai and Jiao Junze's eyelashes trembled simultaneously.

To say something like "to live to Pingyang" suggests that Sun Hao is probably dead.

However, at this time, it was very inconvenient to transmit messages.

In a few days, news of Sun Hao's encounter with bandits and his murder for money should reach Dongling.

Those people at Bailu Academy are stupid. Song Yan brought Pingyang back on track, and it's thriving. Now they want to jump out and reap the rewards? There's no such thing as a free lunch.
As they were talking, a whoosh was heard and the carriage suddenly stopped.

Immediately, the carriage curtain was lifted, and a person was seen blocking the front of the carriage.

The man was dressed in coarse linen clothes, seemingly a commoner who had come from the outer city. His old face was wrinkled, like a blooming chrysanthemum. It had been quite some time since I last saw him in the backyard of the Luo family, but the old man hadn't changed much.

Jiao Junze and Fang Hai were taken aback and prepared to get out of the car to pay their respects. Jiao Junze, in particular, looked somewhat flustered, thinking that the eunuch had overheard the disrespectful words they had said in the car earlier.

"My lords, please don't do this."

"I am acting on my master's orders to invite the Marquis of Champion for a chat."

He was an old eunuch from the imperial court. He had removed his palace servant's clothes, discarded the whisk in his hand, and changed into coarse linen clothes. With his deliberate disguise, it was hard to tell his identity unless you looked closely.

"Gentlemen, please go back first." Song Yan said and got off the carriage. This was the emperor's invitation, and he could not refuse.

Jiao Junze and Fang Hai exchanged a glance, both able to see the helplessness in each other's eyes; this was something they couldn't stop.

Led by the old eunuch, the two of them wandered through the inner city, and soon boarded a carriage. They changed carriages three more times along the way.

When the car finally stopped, it had arrived at a special place.

My nose feels a little itchy.

Various scents of young girls, perfumes, slightly stimulating.

In my ears, I can hear the chirping of birds.

Looking up, a five-story building came into view.

The plaque bears three large characters: Qunyu Garden!

For a moment, Song Yan didn't know what kind of expression she should make.

No, is it appropriate for a father-in-law to take his son-in-law to a brothel?

Even with Song Yan's composure, he was momentarily stunned. He stared blankly at the old eunuch beside him: "Are you sure this is the place?"

"That's right, let's go."

As he spoke, the old eunuch stepped into the gate of Qunyu Garden, showing no sign of stage fright, as if he were already familiar with the place.

Although Qunyu Garden was also a pleasure quarters, it was far more upscale than ordinary brothels. The girls there weren't like typical prostitutes who would fawn over any man entering, cooing, "Sir, come and have some fun!" Perhaps shocked by the old eunuch's age, he only cast a few curious glances at her before quickly turning away to do his own thing—drinking, composing poems, writing lyrics, painting—and even his service to guests was quite refined.

Just like the princesses in a shopping mall, they provide spiritual pleasure. Of course, if the atmosphere is right, they can also provide some special services.

As for how to increase the atmosphere value, that depends on how much silver you can afford.

The old eunuch didn't care about the stares around him and went straight upstairs.

Faintly, one could still hear joking sounds coming from the lobby downstairs, perhaps from some patrons gossiping:
"My goodness, how old is that old man?"

"I estimate he must be at least sixty years old, and he can still frequent brothels. He's truly a man of great skill, a role model for us all. I admire him greatly."

"Tch... I reckon he'll probably only have the strength to move his fingers left."

"Perhaps we'll only be able to shed tears in vain? That would be pitiful."

"Hahaha, vulgar, so incredibly vulgar."

Song Yan's face stiffened. No... is it really okay for you to say these things in front of a eunuch? He clearly saw that the old eunuch's face instantly darkened.

Even his withered, bony fingers clenched unconsciously.

Song Yan glanced worriedly at the lobby downstairs. He worried that the old man might lose control and cause a bloodbath.

Fortunately, the old eunuch was aware of his mission. Although he was angry, he did not vent his anger here. He just glanced coldly down below, probably memorizing the appearances and identities of the people who had spoken, and then went upstairs.

They silently mourned, hoping that this powerful old eunuch wouldn't cause them any trouble in the middle of the night.

"Speaking of which, I don't even know my father-in-law's name?" Song Yan asked quietly as they went upstairs, so that no one else could hear.

"Wei Xian!"

Well, the eunuch who delivered the imperial decree was named Wei Zhong, and your name is Wei Xian, so together it's Wei Zhongxian.

That's a really good name, Nine Thousand Years Old.

They didn't stop until they reached the top floor, at the age of four thousand five hundred.

On the top floor, only one room remained, a place reserved for the most distinguished guests of Qunyu Garden. In Song Yan's opinion, even big shots like Lü Changqing and Zhao Anze wouldn't be able to enter. The fifth floor's design was also quite peculiar, with incense burning in all four corners, filling the air with an intoxicating fragrance. Opposite the room was a row of bookshelves filled with various precious books, many of which were ancient editions with yellowed covers.

There are also many calligraphy and paintings hanging on the walls, which are obviously the work of masters who have made great achievements.

In the middle of the fifth-floor lobby, a woman knelt on the ground, with a guqin in front of her. Her slender white fingers gently plucked and strummed the strings, producing melodious sounds that seemed to possess a mysterious power. Listening to these sounds brought a sense of peace to the listener, as if much of the pressure on their body had been relieved in that instant.

It is a quiet and elegant place.

The woman, though seated, still possessed a graceful figure. Her face was covered by a veil, but judging from her slender neck and fair skin, she must have been quite beautiful.

He must be a high-ranking member of the Hehuan Sect; I wonder how his status compares to Mingyue's.

The women of the Hehuan Sect often cultivate special techniques that give them an amazing charm that makes men fall for them. Moreover, these techniques have other effects, one of which is bringing peace of mind.

The woman's attention was focused on the strings of the zither from beginning to end, and even when Song Yan and Wei Xian appeared, the sound of the zither remained unchanged.

The old eunuch stood at the door of the room, gesturing for Song Yan to go in.

Pushing open the door, the scene inside was somewhat different from the decadent scene Song Yan had imagined. In the small room, there were no prostitutes in messy, revealing clothes, and no scene of debauchery.

There was also no woman dressed in simple clothes and with a quiet temperament grinding ink and painting.

There was only one person in the room.

Wearing a cloak, he sat quietly by the window, silently watching the street outside through a crack. In his hand was a simple teacup with a few tea leaves floating on it; the tea was clear and had a subtle fragrance.

He seemed to be lost in his own world, and didn't even notice when Song Yan pushed the door open and entered.

Song Yan roughly understood why he had come here; it was certainly not for pleasure... Most of the most beautiful women in Ningguo were concentrated in the palace. Even though the women in Qunyu Garden were all graceful and elegant, they were still inferior to the women in the palace.

In fact, most of the women in the imperial harems of ancient emperors were quite beautiful.

Apart from the Qing Dynasty, they were truly a group of strange and misshapen people.

What Emperor Ninghe sought was perhaps simply the woman playing the zither outside… or more precisely, the music she played. More accurately, the tranquility the music brought. Without sitting in that position, one can never truly understand the pressure Emperor Ninghe endured—a pressure that was almost cruel torture for his spirit. Perhaps only in such moments could Emperor Ninghe find a moment of respite.

Emperor, emperor, emperor... Everyone wants to be emperor, thinking that once they become emperor, the whole world will be theirs, and they can do whatever they want. But they don't know that it's easy to be a foolish and incompetent emperor, but if they want to become an accomplished and wise ruler, the weight that must be borne on their shoulders is something that ordinary people cannot bear.

That is... the weight of the nation.

Song Yan glanced at Emperor Ninghe. His face was still somewhat pale, his eye sockets were sunken, and there were dark circles around his eyes, as if he hadn't slept well for a long time.

He didn't say anything, just waited quietly to the side.

A long time passed before Emperor Ninghe finally withdrew his gaze, drank the tea in his hand, but it had already gone cold.

Upon seeing Song Yan standing opposite him, Emperor Ninghe's face revealed a rare smile: "Sit down." He then moved his wrists, as if maintaining the same posture for a long time had caused some numbness. At this moment, Emperor Ninghe no longer displayed the anger he had shown in court against Yang Hetong; it was as if his previous fury was merely an illusion. He was like an ordinary middle-aged man, or perhaps an old man, moving his limbs and occasionally rubbing his temples and forehead. His hand then fell to his abdomen, his brow furrowing slightly, as if he also felt some discomfort in his abdomen.

It felt like Emperor Ninghe had aged several years since the last time they met.

"My health is deteriorating day by day."

Emperor Ninghe sighed.

Song Yan grinned and said, "Your Majesty, don't worry, you will surely live to be a hundred years old."

Emperor Ninghe laughed: "Live to a hundred years? Well, everyone else says ten thousand years, but you only say a hundred. Are you cursing me? Believe me or not, I'll punish you for a great disrespect." Although it was only the second time the two had met, there was no sense of awkwardness. In addition, since they were outside, they didn't care much about the etiquette between ruler and subject, and their speech and behavior were quite casual.

Song Yan then picked up the teapot and filled Emperor Ninghe's cup: "In this world, where is there any such thing as a ten-thousand-year emperor? How does Your Majesty compare to the founding emperor of the Great Wu?"

Emperor Ninghe shook his head: "The Great Wu Emperor started as a beggar and had the merit of driving out the Tartars, restoring the old lands, recovering the Central Plains, and allowing the Han people to stand tall on this land again, no longer suffering from the bullying of foreign tribes."

"I am not as good as him."

"How does Your Majesty compare to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty?"

Emperor Ninghe shook his head again: "Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was a man of unparalleled martial prowess. He suppressed the surrounding tribes and made the Han people of the Central Plains the masters of this land for the first time. For the first time, there was a grand occasion when all nations came to pay tribute."

“I am not as good as them.” Then he glared at Song Yan, his face unfriendly: “What do you mean? Although I don’t consider myself a tyrant, are you trying to humiliate me by comparing me to these two?”

Song Yan sighed: "Your Majesty is right. Emperor Taizu of Wu and Emperor Wu of Han can be said to be the pinnacle of emperors in the Central Plains. No one can surpass them in terms of civil administration and military achievements."

"However, even such a man of great talent and ambition, in his later years, also favored alchemists in order to live forever."

"But what will the final outcome be?"

"Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty died at the age of sixty-three, and Emperor Taizu of Wu died at the age of seventy-one. Although they can be considered long-lived, they are far from living to be ten thousand years old."

Emperor Ninghe looked at Song Yan with some suspicion: "I am naturally aware of these matters, and I would never favor alchemists. Why are you telling me these things?"

Song Yan couldn't help but roll her eyes: "Then why are you still taking pills? I thought you were also pursuing immortality."

Emperor Ninghe was taken aback: "How did you know I've been taking pills recently?" Then he smiled and said, "But don't worry, I know that it's impossible for people to live forever, so I won't pursue that illusory lifespan. The pills I took were just provided by a Tibetan monk to boost my spirits."

"I must say, the effect is quite good. I often felt listless during this period, and even when dealing with state affairs, I felt lacking in energy. After taking the pill, my energy has improved a lot compared to before."

Song Yan then raised his right hand and gestured to Emperor Ninghe.

Emperor Ninghe had no choice but to place his wrist on the table, and Song Yan's fingers rested on it.

After a few breaths, Song Yan sighed and glanced at Emperor Ninghe: "Have you been having trouble concentrating lately, not sleeping well at night, and experiencing numbness in your limbs?"

Emperor Ninghe frowned and nodded.

"Bloating, as if there's a lump in my stomach, and loss of appetite?"

Emperor Ninghe nodded again.

"Pale complexion, nausea, vomiting, vomiting white lumps, and also quite irritable from time to time, as if his temper is getting out of control?"

At this moment, Emperor Ninghe's face was also ashen, and he exhibited many of the symptoms that Song Yan had described.

Song Yan sighed helplessly, "You've been poisoned, you know that?"

"Poisoned?" Emperor Ninghe's voice was already somewhat suppressed.

“That’s right, chronic heavy metal poisoning.” Song Yan withdrew his finger.

Song Yan could easily guess how alchemists in ancient times refined pills: they mostly just threw whatever strange or unusual things they saw into the furnace. One wrong move and the furnace would explode. If you hadn't experienced a furnace explosion, you wouldn't even dare call yourself an alchemist.

It contains minerals such as sulfur.

These minerals are mostly rich in impurities and have not been refined. Even if the refining technology is inadequate, countless residues remain. The final pills made from them are practically a collection of various heavy metals. The difference between eating this stuff and directly ingesting arsenic is that one is slow-acting and the other is acute, but the ultimate outcome is death.

Song Yan was somewhat exasperated: "Your mother is still worried about you a lot in Liaodong, wondering how you are doing... Tianxuan hasn't even recognized you yet, and I, your son-in-law, haven't officially become your husband, and you're already going to ruin yourself? Can you even eat those things that alchemists make? They're all deadly."

"You knew all along? Yuheng told you?"

"No, but I have some guesses."

"He's quite clever." Emperor Ninghe frowned. "Never mind, let's not talk about that for now. You said the pill was poisonous, but after taking it, my spirits did improve considerably."

"That's because the pills contain some stimulants that can make people feel excited and happy for a short time. These things can cause dependence. You used to have some good energy every day, but now without the pills, you can't seem to get your energy up, right?" Song Yan pursed his lips. "That's also a kind of poison. Besides these, there are other harmful substances. These things won't kill you directly, but they will accumulate in your body. Once the concentration reaches a certain level, your body will start to have various problems, until..."

As for what it was, Song Yan didn't say, but Emperor Ninghe understood.

"Who introduced you to that foreign monk? Kill him later, and don't take any more of these pills," Song Yan said casually.

Emperor Ninghe glanced at Song Yan silently: "He is the Empress's father."

puff.

Holy crap, is he the emperor's father-in-law?
(End of this chapter)