Ask the mountains and rivers

Chapter 310 Shattered (Part Two)

Both Vice Minister Han and Physician Ma are dead.

Prime Minister Pang went to Liaoxi safely and returned safely. It must be that Pei Qinghe received the imperial decree! She's willing to enter the palace as his imperial concubine!
Looking at the Emperor's face, gleaming with light so close to him, Prime Minister Pang felt a lump in his throat. He gritted his teeth and knelt down again, his voice trembling: "This old minister is incompetent!"

"This old minister arrived too late; by the time I reached Liaoxi City, General Pei had already gotten married."

"Your Majesty, please punish us!"

Emperor Jian'an froze.

It has been untouched for a long time.

Prime Minister Pang knelt humbly without moving.

Time seemed to stand still, frozen in this moment.

Standing to the side, Gao Yong, unable to bear seeing the Emperor's broken expression, knelt down as well: "General Pei has taken Shi Yan as his son-in-law; the die is cast and cannot be changed. It is not the Prime Minister's fault. Please, Your Majesty, calm your anger and do not blame the Prime Minister."

Even Eunuch Shen couldn't stand up any longer, so he knelt down, not daring to utter a single word.

He had served his master for over a decade, witnessing his every emotion, but he had never seen his master like this before. It was as if the sky had fallen, the earth had collapsed, and the road ahead was shrouded in darkness, with no light left.

Gao Yong was the boldest, perhaps because he was a martial artist and not as perceptive. Every word he uttered struck a nerve with the emperor: "Your Majesty has the Empress by your side and two concubines to confide in. General Pei is an eagle in the sky, a tiger on the battlefield, and a war god who can defeat the Xiongnu barbarians. For the sake of peace in the north, General Pei should be stationed to guard Youzhou."

"Your Majesty, please abandon this idea. General Pei is still a loyal and capable general, utterly devoted. Otherwise, if he were to completely turn against us, wouldn't that cause pain to our loved ones and joy to our enemies..."

Eunuch Shen wished he could shut Gao Yong up.

You think you're so eloquent?

Can't you see the Emperor is almost broken?
Shut up you!

Prime Minister Pang sighed and picked up where Gao Yong left off: "Your Majesty, all the blame lies with this old minister. I am not in good health and the journey took a long time, which delayed me for several days. As a result, the imperial edict was delayed, causing Your Majesty and General Pei to miss it."

"This old minister is willing to accept the punishment and implores Your Majesty to take care of your health for the sake of the country and its people."

Emperor Jian'an remained motionless, like a wooden sculpture.

Shen Gonggong had a bad feeling in his heart. He got up and rushed over to support Emperor Jian'an: "Quickly, quickly summon the imperial physician!"

The emperor fell straight down with his eyes open.

Prime Minister Pang and Gao Yong's expressions also changed. Prime Minister Pang, an old man, was far less agile than Gao Yong. Gao Yong rushed forward in a flash and firmly grabbed the emperor's arm.

Chaos reigned.

The imperial physician, with a solemn expression, took out gleaming gold needles and began inserting them one after another into the emperor's body.

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"

Empress Zhang rushed in, sobbing, and knelt beside Emperor Jian'an, weeping bitterly, "Cousin, wake up! You mustn't die, don't leave me..."

"I won't stop you anymore. You can bring whoever you like into the palace. I won't argue or hold grudges with you anymore..."

Prime Minister Pang felt a sharp pain in his eardrums from being pierced, but he moved away from it without making a sound.

Eunuch Shen wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with his sleeve and humbly comforted her, "Your Majesty, the Emperor suffered a sudden attack of blood and qi; he's alright. Please don't cry, Your Majesty."

Her heart-wrenching cries gave listeners the subtle illusion that the emperor was about to pass away.

Gao Yong didn't have Shen Gonggong's good temper. His voice was somewhat harsh: "The imperial physician needs to administer acupuncture to the Emperor for emergency treatment, which requires quiet. Please, Your Majesty, do not make a sound, so as not to disturb the imperial physician."

Empress Zhang could only wipe away her tears and say with red eyes, "I will send someone to invite my father and brother right away."

General Zhang and his son entered the palace as if they were returning home. Gao Yong couldn't very well stop them.

Less than half an hour later, the Zhang father and son arrived in a hurry. Emperor Jian'an was still unconscious and could not be moved casually, so only a wooden board was moved. The unconscious Emperor Jian'an lay quietly on the wooden board, his face ashen.

Empress Zhang's eyes were swollen from crying.

Prime Minister Pang and others looked grave.

With General Zhang's arrival, everyone breathed a slight sigh of relief. Regardless, General Zhang was indeed a pillar of the Northern Court. With General Zhang around, even if the sky were to fall, someone would be there to hold it up.

Prime Minister Pang rose to greet him, saying, "General, His Majesty fainted upon hearing the joyous news of General Pei's marriage and has not yet regained consciousness."

General Zhang grunted in response, his gaze sweeping over the unconscious Emperor Jian'an before settling on Empress Zhang's face.

Empress Zhang, feeling wronged and helpless, said, "Father, the Emperor hasn't woken up yet. What should we do now?"

General Zhang said in a deep voice, "Don't panic. His Majesty is the Son of Heaven, protected by dragon energy, and will surely be safe and sound."

Zhang Yun comforted her softly, "Your Majesty, don't worry. Father is here for you."

With the support of her father and brothers, Empress Zhang's panicked and helpless heart gradually calmed down.

After waiting for a long time, the emperor still did not wake up.

General Zhang ordered, "Lying here is not a solution. Carry the Emperor to the imperial bed."

Prime Minister Pang did not object. Gao Yong frowned, about to speak, but Eunuch Shen quickly gave him a look. Gao Yong reluctantly shut his mouth.

Emperor Jian'an was carried to his bed.

General Zhang told Prime Minister Pang to go back to his residence and rest, and also ordered Gao Yong to leave and rest: "I will stay by the Emperor's side until he wakes up and recovers, then you can come back!"

Gao Yong left expressionlessly.

Eunuch Shen quietly followed him out and tugged at Gao Yong's sleeve: "What exactly happened? Why are you a few days late?"

Gao Yong rolled his eyes at him irritably: "A few days ago, Prime Minister Pang and I both died in Youzhou. There's no need to call him General Pei anymore; you can just call him King Pei."

Eunuch Shen was speechless.

Gao Yong, seething with anger, muttered resentfully, "This whole thing is absurd from beginning to end. The Emperor should have woken up after this heavy blow."

Eunuch Shen paused for a moment, then sighed deeply and released his grip: "That's enough, things have come to this, there's no point in saying anything now. You go and rest, I'll go and keep watch over the Emperor."

Emperor Jian'an slept for a day and a night.

With General Zhang in charge of the palace, everyone's hearts were uneasy, but no major trouble arose.

The next day, Emperor Jian'an finally woke up.

When he woke up, his eyes were blank and lifeless. He opened his mouth when the medicine was brought to his lips and drank the porridge. But he didn't speak.

Empress Zhang cried again.

General Zhang remained calm. After consulting with the imperial physicians and confirming that the Emperor was not seriously ill, he said to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, please take good care of your health. I will handle state affairs on your behalf for a few days."

Emperor Jian'an nodded slowly.

General Zhang, displaying the composure of a high-ranking official who remained unperturbed by either favor or disgrace, bowed and took his leave.

The civil and military officials were not bothered by this. Emperor Jian'an, by nature, listened to General Zhang in everything. General Zhang could make decisions on court affairs with a single word.

Now that the Emperor is lying down, it's the same if General Zhang steps forward!

Meng Liulang was worried about his brother, so he didn't cause any trouble. Instead, he quietly went to the Pei residence.

(End of this chapter)