The Emperor was ill, and quite seriously. Princess Jing Yi, despite her own injuries, had visited him several times, but the Empress had not gone once.
Rumors swirled through the harem, with palace servants discreetly relaying information to their masters. Jun Jiu Li paid them no mind, holding the phoenix seal, no one dared to disrespect her.
Who wasn't an arrogant noble lady? Having a temper was normal. Why should she offer the Emperor a way to save face? When one made a mistake, they should show remorse.
Zhao Jing Yi: "Hmph, this Xiao clan is far too haughty. Does she wish for my brother to bow to her? Won't that only embolden those old fuddy-duddies?"
Zhao Jing Heng: "Yi'er, don't be angry. It's not worth it for that lowly woman. I am ill now. If this matter gets out, they are in the wrong, and the previous incidents can be considered settled. Those foolish people will only condemn the Prime Minister's estate for being spoiled and arrogant, not respecting me, the new Emperor."
"Brother is right. Let our people impeach her. Such unvirtuous conduct, how can she be fit to be the Empress of our Zhao kingdom."
Zhao Jing Heng looked at her smiling face and chuckled dotingly.
"A child's temper. Your brother is here for everything. You don't need to worry about anything. My Empress will only ever be you."
"Brother, she is truly an eyesore. When can we get rid of her? Yi'er can hardly wait. My injury must be related to her. I sprinkled some of my snake powder on her. Will brother think Yi'er is heartless?"
Her eyes widened as she looked at Zhao Jing Heng with extreme seriousness.
Zhao Jing Heng burst out laughing.
"My little princess, how can you lack such confidence? In my heart, you are always the best. What Yi'er did was not wrong; Yi'er loves me too much."
"Brother, as long as you don't dislike me, it's fine."
The two spent a long time in sweet affection. Whenever Zhao Jing Heng lost control, he would blush and ask Zhao Jing Yi to leave so he could resolve it himself.
Who knew when this kind of life would end? Tomorrow he had to attend court. If he were to suffer such embarrassment in the Golden Palace, where would he hide his face?
But they had kept the illness a secret from the outside world. If he didn't attend the morning court, there would surely be more trouble. He was hesitant, feeling extremely vexed.
On Jun Jiu Li's side, Shui Wa had accurately depicted every action of Zhao Jing Heng and the others that night. When strung together, it formed three volumes.
Flipping through each page created a video-like effect. They were printed in stacks overnight. The puppets then distributed them on the bustling Vermilion Bird Street, also acting as storytellers.
Soon, patrolling soldiers arrived, chasing the puppets through the streets. Those who had finished their reading quickly hid them, while the puppets scattered pages one by one.
The soldiers couldn't pick them all up. As they collected them, they were astonished. They had never seen the Emperor before and marveled at the variety of poses and the beauty of the figures.
However, this was too indecent. They were determined to arrest this vile book peddler, to see if they were deliberately trying to mislead the populace and promote such a trend.
The streets were filled with these scattered pages, and the officials naturally received the news. Coupled with the thought of the gravely ill Emperor and the corpse carried out of the palace.
A small portion of people guessed the truth. The rest had not received news from the palace.
The Left Prime Minister was furious, slamming his hand on the table several times. After venting his frustration, he could only sigh.
The Prime Minister's wife hurried in, carefully closing the door. She looked at the Prime Minister with her eyes, a thin layer of mist already forming in them.
The Prime Minister seemed to have aged considerably. He nodded numbly. The Prime Minister's wife almost couldn't stand, gripping the edge of the chair.
"My child, what is to become of her now? Those square palace walls will confine her for a lifetime, and she will have no one to rely on. The Emperor is heartless and unrighteous, how could he favor my daughter?"
She spoke very quietly, but every word reached the Prime Minister's ears clearly. The Prime Minister's wife covered her mouth and sobbed.
The Emperor knew of his homosexual inclinations yet sent his daughter into the palace. How much torment would his Xuan'er suffer?
The Prime Minister considered resigning from his post; the Emperor would surely be happy. He had to pull his daughter out of this inferno and could not care about anything else.
Just then, a pigeon fluttered incessantly outside the window. The Prime Minister's wife fell silent, and the Prime Minister walked over to open the window.
The little pigeon, as if sentient, lifted its left leg. A small cylinder was tied to it.
Although the Prime Minister was puzzled, seeing no one around, he took down the item. Upon unfolding it, he read:
"Parents, do not worry. Your daughter has her own plans. She will certainly not place herself in hardship or endure any grievances. For the elders, all will be as usual."
Seeing the familiar handwriting and the distinct closing, the Prime Minister's heart eased considerably. He handed the letter to his wife.
The Prime Minister's wife quickly took it and read it. She cried and laughed, hastily wiping away her tears.
The ability to transmit the Emperor's affairs outside the palace was extraordinary, and this letter was undoubtedly written by her daughter.
She had no feelings for the Emperor, so she wouldn't be hurt emotionally. Being able to send this letter meant she had reached an understanding with someone in the shadows.
She would act as her daughter advised, as long as she was safe. Her judgment was not poor; an Emperor who could not have heirs wouldn't last long.
...
"Hey, hey, hey, did you hear? The person in the painting is..." The speaker pointed upwards incessantly with his hand.
"Do you want to die? How dare you speak such things."
"Oh, I'm only telling you. You absolutely must not spread it. The other day, I was at the mass grave collecting things, and I really saw several faces from the painting there. Do you think they might have..."
As he spoke, he greasily squeezed his eyes and made a throat-slitting gesture with his hand.
"That's too brutal, truly terrifying. He clearly liked to play, but then he couldn't handle the consequences..."
The man leaned close to the speaker's ear and whispered:
"Shh, these are not people we can discuss. But the Empress has truly suffered. Not only was she a scapegoat, but she also carries the reputation of being unvirtuous. Everyone knows why he is ill now. Instead of showing concern, they do nothing. Tsk tsk tsk..."
He shook his head as he spoke, "Truly not the act of a benevolent ruler."
"You're right, someone like that deserves..."
This person was clearly drunk, and the other hurriedly covered his mouth.
"Do you want to die? What I'm saying today is between us brothers. Heaven knows, earth knows, you know, I know, no one else can know, understand?"
The man nodded repeatedly, "I understand, I understand. Come, come, let's keep drinking. What does this have to do with us common folk? What good things aren't in there? Endless wealth and prosperity, why should we pity them."
"Alas, you are right. We are the most pitiable. Come, come, let's keep drinking. We won't go home sober tonight!"
In just one night, the matter spread throughout the capital. The people felt great sympathy for Jun Jiu Li but dared not speak out.