Why Harem Intrigue When You Can Just Raise a Dog Instead

Chapter 44

Once Yan Junwei finished dealing with the Fake Emperor, he entered Qianqing Palace through the secret passageway. Seeing Emperor Zhouwus dark red blood-soaked shoulder, his eyebrows shot up in shock.

What are you doing, Your Majesty!? Why was he purposely torturing himself? He quickly walked over, grabbed the roll of bandages and jar of antiseptic off the table and helped him to wrap the wound with fresh bandages.

Did Sangyu safely return to the palace? Emperor Zhouwu picked up a cloth beside his bed and calmly wiped the blood from his hands.

This subject escorted Her Ladyship Virtuous Consort safely back to Bixiao Palace before immediately heading over here. Her Ladyships mind is extraordinary. She already guessed that this times assassination was faked. Yan Junwei deeply sighed. Virtuous Consorts perception was so sharp. It was a shame that she was a woman.

Emperor Zhouwu smiled warmly. The pain in his shoulder had already subsided. Once his wound was bandaged up, he rose to his feet, donned an overcoat, and activated the secret mechanism in his bedroom to enter a concealed room accompanied by Yan Junwei.

In the hidden room, Changxi was bound to a chair[1]and had a cloth stuffed in his mouth. Catching sight of Emperor Zhouwu entering with an air of regality, he looked at him with a fierce anger in his eyes. Facing the Emperors eyes which were black as a bottomless abyss, his angry expression turned to one of fright, and then despair. He gave a pitiful whimper.

Do you still recognize Zhen? Emperor Zhouwu sat down imposingly[2]in front of him. His hand rested on the teapoy, his slender forefinger rhythmically tapping the tabletop.

Changxis heart nearly shattered from the sound of the tapping, and his face turned a ghostly white. Cold sweat rolled down his forehead. Yan Junwei stepped forward to remove the cloth from his mouth.

Your Majesty, this servant was deceived. This servant begs the Emperor to spare this lowly servants life. Changxis body quivered and his voice trembled as he pleaded for mercy.

The emperor gave a spine-chilling chuckle. He casually leaned back into the chair and coldly watched Changxi struggle against his restraints. He fell at the Emperors feet looking like a dying mutt.

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Your Majesty, this servant was threatened! Gracious Consort forced this servant to ingest the poison. This servant had no other choice! This servant knew a lot of Gracious Consort and Imperial Preceptor Shens secrets. This servant will tell Your Majesty everything. This servant begs Your Majesty to take into account that this servants contributions outweigh this servants misdeeds and spare this servants pathetic dog life. Changxi snivelled and wept, snot and tears flowing from his face.

Spare your pathetic dog life? Emperor Zhouwu pondered this plea. A thought seemed to cross his mind and he gave a low chuckle, but the sound of his laughter did not contain the least bit of joy. There was only a bone-chilling and icy coldness. This caused Changxis trembling to intensify.

Tell me, what do you know? After a while, he stopped smiling and rapped his fingers against the tabletop.

Gracious Consort poisoned all the princes, ensuring they wouldnt survive into adulthood so they wouldnt be able to harm her own children. She also gave the abortion soup to all the Imperial Concubines who had performed nightly duties, causing them to be unable to give birth. Also, eighty to ninety percent of the servants in this palace are her spies. There are countless informants in the other palaces. Changxi withheld nothing and confessed everything, fearful that if he spoke too slowly, he would be bestowed death by imperial decree[3].

Poisoning all the princes and Imperial Concubines this was something that Emperor Zhouwu had already anticipated and he wasnt the least surprised. He slightly closed his eyes, waiting for Changxi to get to the main topic before opening his eyes to look at him. These spies and informants, do you know their identities?

This servant knows almost all of the spies and informants, but the identities of the rest are only known by Gracious Consort and her head palace maid. Changxi fervently nodded his head. A faint trace of hope showing on his despairing face.

Write a list. Emperor Zhouwu waved his hand, and the Secret Guards beside him untied Changxis bindings. They passed him a sheet of paper and a pen. Changxi trembled and faltered as he took the proffered items. He was hunched over as he wracked his brain to write.

Emperor Zhouwu rested his forehead against his arm with a blank face. His eyes were devoid of any emotion and it was impossible to know what he was thinking. Changxi had still not finished writing when a secret guard knocked and entered to hand over a stack of papers in front of him. This was a thick list of names that the captured Wangqing had just finished confessing moments ago. Its contents were about identical to Changxis confession.

Emperor Zhouwu finished closely examining the list of names and passed it to Yan Junwei who was standing beside him. Yan Junwei roughly counted all the names. In his head, he was speechless. It was for the best that they had secretly switched back. Otherwise, after storming the palace and regaining the throne, there would be so many spies hidden around him that he wouldnt dare sleep with his eyes closed. If the inner palace was like this, then the situation in the Imperial Court was definitely dire.

After an hour, Changxi finally finished writing. He passed the sheet of paper to a secret guard who took it. Once more, the secret guard bowed and presented the list before Emperor Zhouwu. Emperor Zhouwu accepted the list and compared it to Wanqings list.

Changxi trembled with fear and trepidation and opened his mouth to speak, Your Majesty

Seal him up.[4]Emperor Zhouwu waved his hand. His manner of speaking was utterly indifferent. Changxi heard this and suddenly felt all strength leave his body. It felt like a lump of iron balls were stuck in his throat and he couldnt make a sound.

The secret guard acknowledged the order. He pulled him to his feet and bound him to the chair once more. He soaked the remaining sheets of paper and stuck them to Changxis face one by one. Changxi initially flailed and struggled violently, but after five or six papers, his body slowly became rigid, until at last he fell silent.

Emperor Zhouwu didnt even spare him a glance. He only frowned as he carefully finished reading over the two lists. He then passed them to Yan Junwei and said in a heavy voice, First, uproot the spies from Qianqing Palace, Bixiao Palace, Cining Palace, the Imperial Medical Academy, and the Imperial Household Department. You can deal with the rest later.

Yan Junwei nodded. He inspected the list of names once and sighed, In the span of a few months, Gracious Consort was able to firmly seize control of the Imperial Medical Academy and the Imperial Household Department. She is highly capable! However, she still cant beat Her Ladyship Virtuous Consort. Bixiao Palace actually only had two or three spies, and even then they were allcareless servants.As expected of Imperial Duke Mengs Daughter! Her management skills are amazing!

Emperor Zhouwu raised his eyebrows and laughed. The thick malevolent aura around him instantly disappeared.

Yan Junwei put away the list and secretly thought to himself: A mention of Her Ladyship Virtuous Consort and [His Majestys] mood became as clear and boundless as the sky. It looked like he would definitely need to find ways to get closer to Meng Yanzhou in the future!

Right at this moment, the sound of someone knocking on the door came from outside the secret room. The secret guard by the door operated the mechanism. Astoundingly, it was Changxi who had just taken his last breath. He held a horsetail whisk[5]and bowed. In a shrill voice that was identical to Changxis, he said, Your Majesty, Gracious Consort has broughtthe other masters of the palace to kneel in front of Qianqing Palace to beg for an audience. The Empress Dowager has already gone to stop them.

Having allowed the Fake Emperor to come into contact with the Empress Dowager, Shen Huiru couldnt stop worrying. She quickly downed a bowl of medicine to prevent a miscarriage and led the Imperial Consorts to come over and express their sympathy.

Did Virtuous Consort come as well? Emperor Zhouwu suddenly stood up but his movements were too quick and knocked over the large ornately carved chair behind him. The loud crash startled Yan Junwei, causing him to furrow his brows, yet the person in question seemed as though he hadnt noticed.

Replying to Your Majesty, today the Imperial Consorts who had gone to visit their relatives have all returned. They are kneeling outside of the palace. The fake Changxi reported back in a soft voice. His manner was exactly like a real eunuch.

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Go quickly. Inform the Empress Dowager and let them come in so that Shen Huiru does not become suspicious. Emperor Zhouwu swiftly tore off his overcoat, laid down on the bed and fixed his clothes. He asked Yan Junwei, who hadnt left his side, How does Zhen look?

Although [Your Majestys] face is a bit pale, it is still as handsome as ever. Yan Jingwei fought against his urge to smile and replied seriously.

Emperor Zhouwus expression darkened and he raised a hand, signalling him to withdraw, before leaning against the headboard. His eyes were pinned to the bedroom door and his reclined posture appeared nonchalant when in fact it was tense. Only a few days had passed since he had last seen Sangyu but it felt like several lifetimes. Every minute and every second was torture.

Outside Qianqing Palace, the Empress Dowager rushed over after she heard the news and was in the middle of angrily rebuking Shen Huiru in a stern voice, Gracious Consort, what do you think youre doing? The Emperor is seriously injured. And just as he finally fell asleep, you brought over so many people to disturb him. Is this how you care for His Majesty!?

This concubine doesnt dare. It is just that this consort cannot be at ease without seeing for herself that His Majesty is safe and sound. This consort beseeches the Empress Dowager to let someone enter and announce her arrival. If His Majesty agrees, this concubine will just take a quick glimpse and leave. If His Majesty refuses, this concubine will immediately depart. Tears formed in the corners of Shen Huirus eyes. One hand supported her waist while the other covered her not yet bulging stomach. Her appearance really inspired others to take pity on her.

Meng Sangyu kneeled beside her and discreetly observed the Empress Dowager. But the Empress Dowager was still the same as always: either stern or expressionless. It was truly difficult to read her thoughts.

Youre pregnant with an imperial offspring. You cant be willful. Quickly rise. Once the Emperor awakens, he will naturally summon you all. The Empress Dowagers line of sight scanned Shen Huirus stomach and her tone of voice promptly softened. She beckoned Nianci over and ordered her to quickly support Gracious Consort to rise.

Seeing the Empress Dowagers gentle eyes, Shen Huirus heart settled as she took the opportunity to stand. A crowd of Imperial Concubines were still kneeling on the ground. The Empress Dowager had not yet permitted them to stand.Who dared to act out of line?Many of them glared daggers at Gracious Consorts stomach with malice.

Meng Sangyu wasnt so easily deceived. Although the Empress Dowagers eyes appeared gentle, the muscles on her face were strained. The smile lines at the corner of her mouth were faintly discernible. This was a subtle sign of an elderly person struggling to conceal their fury. It appeared as though the Empress Dowager was aware of the truth. There was a 90% chance that the Emperor inside was the real Emperor Zhouwu. Thinking up to here, Meng Sangyus heart felt a bit more at ease.

Just at this moment, Changxi hurriedly came out of the chamber. The horsetail whisk in his hand swished back and forth as he bowed and said, Your Highness the Empress Dowager, Your Ladyships, the Emperor invites you all to enter.

The Emperor has awoken? questioned the Empress Dowager in a grave voice.

Yes. Changxi held his arm out in a welcoming gesture.

Then lets go in. Dont stay for too long. The Empress Dowager frowned as she gave the order and led the crowd of Imperial Concubines inside.

Other than the Empress Dowager, the crowd of Imperial Concubines uniformly knelt down to pay respects to Emperor Zhouwu, who was lying on the bed.

You may rise, said Emperor Zhouwu indifferently. He glanced at the faces of the crowd of concubines before fixing his gaze on Shen Huiru. Heaven knows he exerted all his self-control to avoid focusing his attention on Sangyus face. He was conscious of Sangyus discreet examination. He secretly clenched his fist and his heartbeat quickened.

Your Majesty, how does your honoured self feel? Shen Huiru walked to his bedside and sat down. She clasped his hands.

Emperor Zhouwus rapidly beating heart ceased. The corners of Emperor Zhouwus lips drew upwards. He turned over his hand to gently pat the back of her fair hands. He said in a soft voice, Zhen is fine. How is Beloved Consort doing? Was the child harmed? Zhen already knows about what happened to your elder brother and will definitely send people to bring the assassins to justice! Beloved Consort must not dwell too deeply on this!

Beloved Consort and the child are both fine. Your Majesty Shen Huirus brows knit as tears trickled down her face. She was truly a weeping beauty, beautiful beyond comprehension[6].

Emperor Zhouwus eyes dimmed as he held her close to comfort her. He didnt dare to look in Sangyus direction.

Alright, dont cry. Be careful not to harm the baby. The emperor is seriously injured, so dont disturb him. The Empress Dowager spoke at just the right moment, saving the Emperor from extreme misery.

Shen Huiru achieved her goal and she hurriedly led the other Imperial Concubines to withdraw. Before leaving Meng Sangyu secretly glanced at Emperor Zhouwu. The corners of her lips curved up slightly. His acting skills were good, but it would be better if his eyes were not so deep and unfathomable.

Emperor Zhouwu bowed his head and firmly shut his eyes to prevent himself from looking over.

Waiting until everyone approached the entrance, the Empress Dowager seemed to remember something and decreed, Virtuous Consort, from tomorrow on you are responsible for attending to His Majesty while he is bedridden. Come earlier, and be sure not to be late.

Sangyu paused and promptly curtsied[7]and agreed. She withdrew calmly under the envious stares of all the concubines.

Tomorrow? There were still fourteen hours! Emperor Zhouwu frowned as he estimated the time. He absentmindedly dismissed the Empress Dowager and was in a daze for a long time before unclenching his fist and looking at the slip of paper that Shen Huiru had discreetly passed to him. The expression in his eyes became icy.