The Child Emperor-Chapter 322: Suspicious

The imperial physician was very confident in his diagnosis. When the Empress Dowager had investigated the poisoning incident back then, he had been one of the participants. “Does Your Majesty constantly feel drowsy, yet unable to sleep soundly? Physical weakness, loss of appetite, excessive sweating, slight numbness in the toes… These are all early symptoms. Your Majesty will become increasingly fatigued, sleeping for longer and longer periods…”

“Is there a cure?” Han Ruzi asked.

The imperial physician knelt on the ground and replied, “If we were in the Capital, there would be ways to alleviate the symptoms and then gradually treat the condition. But Jincheng lacks physicians and medicine, so this humble official dares not make any definitive claims.”

Han Ruzi grunted in acknowledgment. If the Imperial Medical Academy had a way to cure the poison, the Thoughtful Emperor and Prince Yong’s son would not have died.

His mind now wandered easily. Upon hearing that he had been poisoned, he had only been startled at first, but his thoughts gradually drifted to other matters. At this moment, he was carefully recalling the appearance of Prince Yong’s son, vaguely remembering a chubby little child who bore some resemblance to Prince Ying, though he could not recall more specific details.

He struggled to remember, as if this matter was extremely important, completely forgetting the immediate danger before him.

The imperial physician looked up at the Emperor and softly reminded him, “Your Majesty.”

“Mm…” Han Ruzi’s thoughts returned to the present.

“Your Majesty was still climbing the city walls to observe battles a few days ago, which indicates the poisoning occurred recently. The poisoner must still be in the city.”

“Can the poisoner also provide an antidote?”

“Very likely.”

“The Empress Dowager identified Grand Consort Cui as the mastermind, but that doesn’t seem to be of much use.”

“Grand Consort Cui certainly would not have prepared the poison herself. At that time, one of the maidservants she brought into the palace was the source of the poison. She was said to be a disciple of some southern ‘Ghost Mountain Sect.’ This maidservant was executed that very night. It’s quite unfortunate – if we could have made her reveal the poison’s formula…” The imperial physician shook his head, then suddenly realized he was focusing on the wrong matter and hastily kowtowed.

Han Ruzi paid no attention at all. He could now only think about one thing at a time and could not concentrate for too long, but his judgment remained sharp. “Summon Liu Jie.”

“Yes, I should still prescribe a formula for Your Majesty.”

Han Ruzi nodded in agreement, but he had no intention of taking medicine.

The imperial physician withdrew, and Liu Jie entered.

Han Ruzi nearly forgot why he had summoned the Chief Overseer. He stared at him for a while before saying, “You suspected this was poisoning?”

Liu Jie knelt down. “Your Majesty’s symptoms are very similar to those of the late Thoughtful Emperor…”

“But you didn’t say so immediately.”

Liu Jie kowtowed. “I wasn’t certain, so I needed to request the imperial physician’s diagnosis. Moreover, Miss Meng has been constantly at Your Majesty’s side…”

“If she wanted to kill me, she wouldn’t need poison.”

Many times, only Meng E accompanied the Emperor. With her martial skills, she could easily kill him.

Liu Jie only kowtowed and said nothing more. The facts were clear – whether to acknowledge them depended entirely on the Emperor’s attitude, not his persuasion.

Han Ruzi’s thoughts drifted again. “Let’s leave it at that for now. I won’t die immediately anyway.”

Both the Thoughtful Emperor and Prince Yong’s son had died a month after being poisoned. Han Ruzi had only shown symptoms for two days, and he felt no urgency. His physical weakness directly brought mental fatigue, like those who had lived too long while plagued by illness, entering a stage where life and death were treated with indifference. This was not detachment, merely exhaustion.

Liu Jie suddenly burst into tears, immediately felt this was inappropriate, forcibly held back his emotions, and withdrew from the room.

At some point, the sound of a zither resumed. Han Ruzi felt his mind clear considerably, so he napped briefly. When he opened his eyes again, Zhang Youcai was wiping his sweat while Prince Donghai and Cui Teng stood to the side, watching him with complex expressions.

“What time is it?” Han Ruzi asked, noticing the qin music had stopped.

“Just past noon, Your Majesty should eat something,” Zhang Youcai said.

So he had not slept long. Han Ruzi forced himself to sit up. His stomach felt no hunger at all, so he shook his head, not wanting to eat. He stared at Prince Donghai and Cui Teng for a while, then looked around but did not see Meng E.

“Your Majesty,” Cui Teng suddenly knelt down, his voice choked with tears. “Brother-in-law, you absolutely must not come to harm. My sister is waiting for you in the Capital.”

Han Ruzi smiled slightly. The Empress felt so distant, like someone he had known in a previous life. “Didn’t I say so? I’ll be fine in a few days.”

“Your Majesty’s appearance doesn’t look like…”

Zhang Youcai could not help but say, “You should all leave and let His Majesty rest for a while.”

Cui Teng had no choice but to stand up, looking back with every step. Prince Donghai said, “Your Majesty should rest assured and recover from your illness. I just went out of the residence to inquire, and all the generals said that after the Xiongnu’s siege equipment was destroyed, their main camp retreated more than three miles. It appears they won’t attack the city again for several days. They’re using Jincheng City to lure the Chu army to come for rescue.”

Han Ruzi nodded. Jincheng City was temporarily safe, but he could no longer count on reinforcements from various places.

Prince Donghai and Cui Teng also lived in the prince’s residence. After leaving the courtyard gate, Cui Teng stopped and turned to face Prince Donghai seriously. “We need to do something.”

“Can you treat illness?”

“No.” Cui Teng grabbed Prince Donghai’s arm. “But His Majesty’s illness seems suspicious. I don’t trust those eunuchs. You’re more clever – think of a way to find out exactly what illness His Majesty has and how he contracted it.”

Prince Donghai broke free from Cui Teng’s grip and sneered, “Even you can see something’s suspicious…”

“I’m not as clever as you, but I’m not blind.”

Prince Donghai continued to sneer coldly. Cui Teng looked around – there were several guards patrolling in the distance. He lowered his voice and said, “Stop overthinking. If something happens to His Majesty, it still wouldn’t be your turn to become emperor.”

Prince Donghai snorted. “Do you think I don’t understand that? Without His Majesty, Jincheng City is just an ordinary small city. If the Xiongnu become ruthless, they could break through in a single day. We would either die or surrender. When the court hears the news, they’ll immediately select a new emperor from the imperial clan members in the Capital. Of course it wouldn’t be my turn.”

“Then why don’t you hurry up and think of something?” Cui Teng said urgently.

“Don’t rush, I’m thinking right now – you go find the imperial physician and find out exactly what illness His Majesty has.”

“You’re not coming with me?”

“Ha, if I’m present, the imperial physician wouldn’t dare reveal a single word even if beaten to death. You’re His Majesty’s brother-in-law… go quickly and return quickly.”

“What about you?” Cui Teng wasn’t entirely comfortable leaving Prince Donghai alone, fearing he might secretly cause trouble.

“Don’t worry about me. Meet in my room after one hour.”

The two parted ways outside the residence gate. Cui Teng went to find the imperial physician to inquire about the situation, while Prince Donghai turned and went to the Ceremonial Guard Camp.

The camp was empty – most of the ceremonial guards and sons of nobles had been sent to defend the city, leaving only a few guards to watch over a group of special “soldiers.”

Han Ruzi preferred to keep untrustworthy people close by, so the traveling party included not only Prince Donghai but also men from the Tan family, all assigned to the Ceremonial Guard Camp. Sometimes they served as flag bearers following the emperor, but most of the time they were under house arrest. Their only privilege was not being sent to the battlefield.

Prince Donghai came to see the Tan brothers, Tan Ye and Tan Diao. He had to clarify something.

The so-called military camp was actually an auxiliary courtyard of the prince’s residence. The supervision wasn’t strict – as long as they didn’t leave the main gate, the Tan family could move about freely.

Prince Donghai hadn’t visited these “relatives” in a long time. The Tan brothers were surprised to see him, their attitude neither cold nor warm.

Prince Donghai didn’t beat around the bush and said directly, “The situation is hopeless. I’m very clear that I can’t become emperor. Even if something really happens to the current sovereign, the various factions won’t choose me again, so I’ve given up hope. It seems you’ve given up hope too.”

The Tan brothers remained silent. Of course they had given up hope – they only thought about how to preserve the Tan family from extermination.

“Ugly Wang of Luoyang helped the Tan family greatly. His Majesty won’t move against you for now, but if you want His Majesty to truly forgive you, you can’t count on Ugly Wang.”

The Tan brothers still remained silent, but their expressions changed slightly, their gazes no longer evasive.

“I will try every means to stay by the emperor’s side. At least so far I’ve been successful. I may not have the ability to save anyone, but harming someone would still be quite easy.”

Prince Donghai didn’t need to speak ill of the Tan family – he only needed to speak well of them to keep the emperor constantly wary of the Tan family. The Tan brothers looked at each other and smiled simultaneously. Tan Ye said, “Brother-in-law, what are you saying? We’re still family.”

“Good. Family doesn’t speak as strangers. I’ll only ask one question, and only ask it once: have you been secretly doing anything?”

“No.” The Tan brothers spoke in unison, showing obvious surprise. Tan Ye said, “Prince Donghai, you must help us. Ever since leaving the Capital, our family has been completely well-behaved.”

“Secretly seeking help from Ugly Wang is also well-behaved behavior?”

Tan Ye said awkwardly, “That was just to save our lives. Really, aside from seeking Ugly Wang’s help, we haven’t done anything else. At most…”

“At most what? Any word you hide from me today could lead to catastrophic disaster in the future.”

“At most arranging business affairs in various places. You know, without money, the Tan family would be completely finished.”

Prince Donghai believed this point. After thinking for a while, he asked again, “Are there any people in His Majesty’s entourage who require vigilance?”

“You mean…”

“Pugilist world people.”

The Tan brothers exchanged glances again. Tan Diao said, “By seeking help from Ugly Wang, the Tan family has lost its standing in the pugilist world. Even if pugilist world people have infiltrated, they wouldn’t come to us. For this matter, you can only ask one person.”

Prince Donghai knew whom to find. This person was also in the Ceremonial Guard Camp.

Hua Bin’s marquis title had been stripped several years ago and was not included in the general amnesty, so he was now merely an ordinary ceremonial guard soldier, eating and sleeping no differently from others, and unable to leave camp at will. However, his status in the pugilist world was growing ever higher.

Seeing Hua Bin dressed in crude armor, Prince Donghai felt much more comfortable, thinking he wasn’t the most miserable person after all.

“Pugilist world people?” Hua Bin looked up in thought for a while, adopting the manner of an elder who had seen through worldly affairs. After a long moment, he shook his head. “Haven’t seen any, haven’t heard of any either. The Emperor has deep prejudices against pugilist world people—who would dare recruit them?”

“The Hua family has fallen, a consequence you brought about with your own hands. You don’t regret it, fine, but you still have a son. Hua Huwang is still in Cloud Dream Marsh, isn’t he? Do you plan to let him be a bandit for life? Think about it—if there’s an opportunity to achieve merit, you must seize it.”

Hua Bin thought for a long while, then finally said, “There are no pugilist world people I recognize in Jincheng City—that’s the truth. If we’re talking about connections to the pugilist world—the two zither musicians that the Marquis of Luoyang presented to His Majesty are rather suspicious.”

“Mm, I noticed that too. His Majesty seems entranced by their music, somewhat like… they wouldn’t be connected to the fate seer, would they?”

“Heh, the fate seer claims he has a dragon in his hands, but at most it’s a worm—just loud boasting. I suspect the Zhang father and daughter are those kind of aphrodisiac musicians, belonging to a secretive sect in the pugilist world who make their living serving nobles. The Marquis of Luoyang probably intended to use this method to please the Emperor.”

Prince Donghai was shocked. “But His Majesty said that when he listens to the music, he feels as if he could ascend…”

“Heh heh, Prince Donghai, you’re the same age as His Majesty and also have a wife—you should understand… this sort of thing?”

Prince Donghai didn’t want to continue the discussion and asked instead, “Does aphrodisiac music harm the body?”

“I don’t like such things—I’ve only heard some legends, I don’t understand the details.” Hua Bin moved closer to Prince Donghai and said quietly, “His Majesty…”

Prince Donghai smiled and took his leave, returning to the prince’s residence to wait for Cui Teng. After sitting in his room for a while, he suddenly remembered there was one more important person he hadn’t visited. Perhaps the Emperor’s illness was connected to this person.

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