Chapter Sixty-Seven: Match in Heaven
As one of the womenfolk, Hua Xi Wan did not make a bedside visit after she entered Zhu Que Palace. From a distance, she saw that the Crown Prince’s complexion was waxy yellow and much of his vitality had disappeared. There was a female dressed in matronly palace attire standing by the bed. Even though her face was filled with respect, dullness was evident and she was lackluster in her actions.
The Crown Princess was silently crying as she sat on the side. However, her complexion was well, and there were several servant women around her who were guarding her.
Seeing the servant women’s postures, the womenfolk of the Imperial Clan were not unperceptive to go near the Crown Princess. They all picked places slightly further away to sit down, and no one dared to speak up.
Of the imperial womenfolk present, Hua Xi Wan was the highest-ranked. She took a drink of tea and used an embroidered handkerchief to wipe her mouth that was not wet at all. She stood and then bowed towards the Empress. “Empress, how is the Crown Prince?”
The Empress looked at the insincere concern of these women and wanted to shout at them to not act like this. She felt disgusted looking at them, but she did not shout. Because she was the Empress. She would not, and could not, lose her composure and do such a thing. “It was trouble for everyone to make this trip. The imperial doctors have already tried to force the Crown Prince to vomit. As long as he is carefully taken care of, there will be nothing wrong in the future.”
“Then that is great.” Hua Xi Wan showed an expression of joy. “The Crown Prince has great fortune and definitely can overcome this danger and turn it into good fortune.”
“I’ll accept Xian Wang Fei’s auspicious words.” The Empress forced a smile. When her gaze landed on the Crown Princess, her smile seemed slightly darker.
“Niangniang, two of the grand doctors have fainted.” Zhao Dong trembled as he knelt in front of the Empress and didn’t even dare to raise his head. “What to…”
“What is the use in keeping them if they cannot heal the Crown Prince?” the Empress said expressionlessly. “Let them stay unconscious. If something happens to the Crown Prince, not just them, but even their families will not have good days.”
The Empress’ words were a threat and also a way to vent. Everyone present sympathized with the grand doctors, but no one dared to stand out at this time. They were all mortals, and sympathy was something they would possess only when they were sure they themselves were safe.
Zhao Dong felt that this action was not correct, but the present situation did not allow for him, a servant, to give advice. He silently left. Looking at the grand doctors kneeling outside the room, he sighed. Suddenly, he saw the procession of His Majesty appear at the corner, and he wanted to go into the hall to report to the Empress. However, the Chief Taijian Steward, Ma gonggong, who served the Emperor walked towards him. He could only stop and welcome the other with a smile.
“Hey, Little Dong, what is going on here?” Ma gonggong looked at the old grand doctors who had fallen in the snow and exclaimed. “Aiya, aren’t these people the masters of the grand hospital—how did they end up like this?”
Zhao Dong’s heart skipped a beat when he heard this. Before he could speak, he saw the imperial procession had reached him, and he hurriedly stepped back in order to kneel.
Qilong Emperor looked at the disorganized yard and said in a deep voice, “Have the grand doctors stand up, and the unconscious ones sent home. The others can all stand under the eaves and wait for summons.”
Zhao Dong’s anxiousness increased. He seemed to hear slight discontent from the Emperor’s words. Then he recalled that the survival of the Crown Prince was uncertain, and the Emperor only had this one son. Even if the Emperor was discontent, he would not do anything.
“The Emperor has arrived!”
When the people inside the room heard this announcement, they all stood and then stepped back. Yan Jin Qiu walked next to Hua Xi Wan and put her behind him as they bowed simultaneously towards the shadow clad in yellow.
“Stand up.”
Hua Xi Wan raised an eyebrow towards Yan Jin Qiu as she stood up. The Emperor did not seem to be in a good mood.
Yan Jin Qiu pinched her fingertip slightly to indicate for her not to worry.
The Emperor walked next to the bed and looked at the waxen-faced Crown Prince. He sighed and then when he turned his head, he saw the Crown Princess with red-rimmed eyes. He said to the Empress, “Zhen had people send back the grand doctors who have fainted outside. The Crown Princess is pregnant. If you think of nothing else, you should still think of accumulating good fortune for the unborn child.”
He was talking to the Empress. If they were talking in private, this would not be anything, but there were many members of the Imperial Family present. The Emperor really did not leave the Empress face in saying these words.
The Empress’ expression changed as though some emotion was about to erupt. However, when her gaze landed on the Crown Prince who was on the bed, the emotion instantly disappeared without a trace. She bowed her head and said, “Qie was too impulsive.”
The Emperor saw her acting like this and did not continue. He turned and looked at the Crown Princess standing at the side to say in a gentle voice, “You are pregnant; there is no need for you to attend the Crown Prince every day. There will be servants in the palace to take care of the Crown Prince in the future. You should go back and rest early.”
The Crown Princess looked at the Empress and then curtsied towards the Emperor. “Erxi bids farewell.”
The Empress said with a smile, “Your Father-Emperor is right. You are pregnant and cannot be careless.”
“Yes.” The Crown Princess curtsied again before taking the hand of a palace attendant and walking outside.
Hua Xi Wan watched out of the corner of her eye as the Crown Princess walked away with a group of palace attendants who carefully circled around her. Then she moved her gaze away silently.
The Empress looked indifferently at the back of the Crown Princess. Turning, she walked next to the bed, and tucked in the blankets for the Crown Prince. She said in a gentle tone, “Emperor, what should ben gong do if something happens to the Crown Prince? And what about the unborn child of the Crown Princess? What if he doesn’t have a father when he is born?”
The Empress’ words were sad, but Hua Xi Wan could hear that something was not right. If her previous guess was right, then the Crown Prince was the most important to the Empress. If something happened to the Crown Prince, then the babe inside the Crown Princess’ stomach…
“Do not worry, nothing will happen to the Crown Prince.” Qilong Emperor walked next to the bed. After looking at his son for a long time, he sighed. “Do not worry too much. Didn’t the imperial doctors say that nothing will happen if care is taken with the recovery? You should take care of yourself.”
“Even so, when qie thinks of the son suffering so much just after he came out of the prison, qie feels bad inside.” The Empress wiped away the tears at the corner of her eyes. “Emperor, you cannot allow the culprit to stay free.”
The Emperor said with a dark expression, “Do not worry; zhen’s son cannot be schemed against for nothing.”
No matter how disappointed he was in the Crown Prince, this was still his only son. Today, someone could poison the Crown Prince in Zhu Que Palace, then in the future, wouldn’t there be someone who would dare to try to poison him?
Seeing the Emperor and Empress angry, the other people present stopped breathing. If it wasn’t for the uselessness of the Crown Prince, a poisoning of the Crown Prince would be a matter that could shake all of the country. Fortunately, the Crown Prince was not a good person to start with. Even if something happened to him, there would not be any great effects.
They had a feeling that the Emperor and Empress seemed to intend for them to listen to this, but they had to appear as if they did not understand. This was because only people who had knowledge would overthink, so they had to act as though they did not understand.
Hua Xi Wan suddenly felt there was nothing interesting in the most noble couple of the Great Zhao Dynasty. They only seemed harmonious on the surface, and the thing was, they did not teach their son well. This was the heir to the future of the Great Zhao Dynasty. They did not teach their son well, and it wasn’t just one person who would be affected, but the people of this entire country.
What happened between them was none of her business. As an emperor, Qilong Emperor was becoming increasingly wilful and obstinate. Qilong Emperor as he was now could not be considered a good emperor.
Taking away her gaze, Hua Xi Wan looked at the tiles under her feet which shone, and did not want to raise her head.
“You can all leave. There is nothing majorly wrong with the Crown Prince now. You do not have to worry.”
As the Emperor had spoken, everyone flowed out. Yan Jin Qiu and Hua Xi Wan went to sit for a while with the Empress Dowager before they sat on the carriage to leave the imperial palace.
“What is it?” Yan Jin Qiu detected that Hua Xi Wan’s mood wasn’t quite right. He curled an arm around her waist and said, “You are not feeling well?”
Hua Xi Wan shook her head and said, “It’s nothing. I just felt slightly depressed.”
Seeing the tiredness in her brow, Yan Jin Qiu gathered her into his arms so she could lean more comfortably. “Depressed in mind?”
Hua Xi Wan’s hand stilled where she was pulling his robe. She raised an eyebrow, saying, “I feel depressed all over.”
“Then I will rub your chest for you.” Yan Jin Qiu smiled and moved to rub Hua Xi Wan’s chest. It caused Hua Xi Wan to laugh. In the end, she laughed so much she could only lie helplessly on Yan Jin Qiu’s chest. “No, no more. I can’t breathe.”
Seeing Hua Xi Wan’s blush from laughing so much, Yan Jin Qiu couldn’t resist kissing her cheek and saying in a gentle voice, “Do not worry, I will never allow you to enter such a predicament.”
Knowing what he was talking about, Hua Xi Wan’s mind shifted. She raised her head to look at Yan Jin Qiu, and then a moment later, buried her head in his shoulder. “You have to keep your word.”
Yan Jin Qiu hugged her tightly. For some reason, he thought about how she appeared during the matter of Lu Zhu when she had kicked the fake mountain in fury. In that moment, he had felt she was so beautiful he couldn’t move his gaze away.
His mother had been a gentle woman, and he had seen many women who were warm and gentle. Yet in his eyes, these women were like ancient paintings with thoughts. They might have some style, but they would shatter with a touch.
When he first saw Hua Xi Wan, he was stunned by her beauty, by her smile, but only just stunned. What really moved his heart was that anger when she was furious. At that time, she was like the only streak of color among black and white which caused his heart to move.
The closer they became, the more he felt that this kind of woman was one who was suited to walk shoulder-to-shoulder with him. She was lazy but not stupid, beautiful and intelligent, emotional but cool.
He did not need a noble lady who was so dignified that she was a statue, or a woman of the Imperial Family who would adhere to etiquette. She might be slightly lazy, or have her own thoughts, or was not the same in how she acted and what she was really like, but from beginning to now, what he wanted was a living woman, and not a puppet.
Sometimes, the path of a person was too hard to walk, and he needed to find someone suitable to walk it with him.
He had originally thought that he would never find a woman who would fulfill his standards, but by heaven’s blessing, he found her. Then he would do all he could to obtain her heart.
In this world, it was too difficult to find someone suited to him. How could he bear to miss a chance like this?
In reality, he and she were people of the same type. The heavens had them come together—this meant that the heavens had intended it to be so.
A match made in heaven should not be missed.