kvmb Chapter 495 I Want to See the Imperial Tutor
Chapter 495 I Want to See the Imperial Tutor
"Your Majesty—" Eunuch Liu exclaimed in alarm, "Someone, quickly go and fetch the imperial physician!"
The guards and imperial guards paled and quickly carried the Northern Qi emperor to the dragon bed in the inner palace.
The eunuchs waiting in the hall hurriedly went to fetch Physician Fang.
Physician Fang examined the Northern Qi Emperor's pulse, his brows furrowing slightly.
Eunuch Liu hurriedly asked, "How is His Majesty?"
"His Majesty's pulse is rapid and irregular, caused by a strong stimulus that disrupts his Qi and blood circulation." Physician Fang said solemnly, "Eunuch Liu, His Majesty's health has been deteriorating over the past few months. He is most susceptible to extreme joy or sorrow and cannot be subjected to any further stimulation, otherwise I will be powerless to save him."
Eunuch Liu looked worried. The Northern Qi emperor needed to rest and recuperate, but the Northern Qi was in a time of great turmoil. Not only were there disasters to deal with in various places, but the wise prince and court officials were also embroiled in corruption cases.
Before these cases were properly resolved, remnants of the previous dynasty took the opportunity to incite the people to revolt.
How could the emperor of Northern Qi have the leisure to recuperate?
Unless he appoints a crown prince and orders cabinet ministers to assist the crown prince in governing the country.
But the Northern Qi emperor would not relinquish power.
“Since His Majesty fell ill with headaches, he has been unable to sleep at night. Even the slightest thing can make him irritable and restless.” Eunuch Liu sighed and said helplessly, “Lord Fang, as you know, His Majesty is busy with countless affairs of state, working day and night, and has no way to rest quietly.”
Today, the Emperor of Northern Qi fell ill because he was devastated by the news of the tragic death of the Prince Xian.
"I'll write a prescription and send it to the Imperial Pharmacy. First, I'll decoct a bowl of medicine for His Majesty." Physician Fang wrote the prescription and handed it to Eunuch Liu. He then took out a small porcelain bottle from his medicine box: "These are pills that I specially prepared for His Majesty. They can improve His Majesty's headaches and also calm His Majesty's temper."
Eunuch Liu agreed.
Three-quarters of an hour later, the Imperial Pharmacy delivered the medicine.
Eunuch Liu personally fed the Northern Qi emperor the drink.
The Northern Qi emperor drank the medicine, but instead of getting better, his face turned even paler, cold sweat beaded on his forehead, and he began to mutter incoherently.
Eunuch Liu called out anxiously, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty..."
Lost in a nightmare, the Northern Qi emperor could not hear Eunuch Liu's calls, but only heard the Prince Xian calling out in his ear again and again, "Father, Father..."
He looked in the direction of the sound and saw the wise king standing by the bed.
"Heng'er, you're back. You're not dead?"
The Northern Qi emperor tried to get up excitedly, but his body seemed to be bound and he could not move.
"Father, do you wish for your son's death?" The Prince's expression turned extremely lost and sad: "Yes, you must be wishing for your son's death."
The Emperor of Northern Qi vehemently denied it: "Heng'er, the throne of Northern Qi needs you to inherit it. How could your father wish for your death? In this world, no one wishes for you to live well more than your father."
The wise prince retorted, "If that's the case, why does Father Emperor elevate Prince Qi and suppress me? And why did he invite great Confucian scholars to teach Prince Qi the ways of being a ruler and the strategies of governing the country? While I am learning the ways of being a subject, how to be loyal to the emperor and love the people?"
The Emperor of Northern Qi said with certainty: "Throughout history, the eldest son of the legitimate wife has been established as the crown prince. The Prince of Qi is the son of the Empress. What is wrong with me entrusting the country to him?"
King Xian asked again, "Since that's the case, and King Qi's position in the court is getting higher and higher, you should be happy and make him the crown prince. Why did you start to value me, share power with me, promote me, and even let me be above King Qi?"
Unable to offer any explanation, the Northern Qi emperor, facing the aggressive Prince Xian, became somewhat enraged: "I am the emperor of Northern Qi, your father. I can do whatever I want. When did it become your place to question me?"
"Why don't you dare answer?" The wise prince was not afraid of the Northern Qi emperor at all, and exposed his dark thoughts: "Because the court officials began to urge you to establish a crown prince. You were afraid that after the Prince of Qi became the crown prince, he would begin to covet your throne and force you to abdicate. Therefore, you began to support me to check the Prince of Qi."
The Northern Qi emperor's face flushed red, and he flew into a rage: "Shut up! Shut up!"
Instead of stopping, the wise king became even more agitated: "Hahaha, you used me to check the King of Qi, and because Jiang Jianzheng predicted that I would usurp the throne in the future, you took away my power and forced me to return to my fiefdom. You clearly knew that the King of Guangling was a major threat to Northern Qi, but in order to restrain the King of Qi, you still gave the King of Guangling power."
"The ruler is the guide for his subjects, and the father is the guide for his son."
“If you had made the Prince of Qi the crown prince from the beginning, allowed me to return to my fiefdom, and denied the Prince of Guangling any power, the Prince of Qi would have remained the crown prince as long as you did not abdicate.”
"It was you who caused us brothers to kill each other."
"It was you who forced the King of Qi to assassinate you."
"It is you who made the Prince of Guangling so powerful and uncontrollable."
"It's all your fault that I died."
Every word spoken by the wise king was like a sharp blade piercing the heart of the Northern Qi emperor.
He didn't want to hear another word, nor dared to hear another word.
"No, it wasn't me, I didn't." The Northern Qi Emperor refused to admit it, glaring angrily at the Prince Xian and growling at him, "Shut up, I order you not to say another word."
The more pain the Northern Qi emperor was in, the more pleasure the wise king felt, and the more he wanted to continue speaking.
“The Qi King’s lineage is questionable, and the Guangling King’s bloodline is impure. Your kingdom has no successor. From now on, the words ‘Northern Qi’ on the dragon banner will probably have to be changed to ‘Great Zhou’.” The wise king’s eyes were filled with hatred as he said with loathing, “It’s you. All of this is your doing.”
"It wasn't me, I did nothing wrong." The Northern Qi Emperor tried to silence the Prince Xian, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't lift his hand. A sudden fear gripped his heart, and he struggled desperately: "I still have you, my empire will not be without a successor, and the dragon flag will not be changed to the Great Zhou."
"Is that so?" The wise king seemed to have heard a joke and burst into laughter, laughing so hard that he was doubled over, his expression deranged: "Have you forgotten? I am already dead, killed by your own hands."
At this moment, the Northern Qi emperor finally raised his hand and fiercely tried to cover the mouth of the Prince Xian. Just as he touched the Prince Xian's head, he saw the Prince Xian's head fall off his neck and roll to his side.
His eyes widened, and he suddenly sat up in bed, panting heavily.
"Your Majesty, you're awake."
When Eunuch Liu noticed that the Northern Qi Emperor was covered in cold sweat, he worried that the cold might enter his body and worsen his condition, so he quickly picked up a brocade handkerchief to wipe his sweat.
Meanwhile, the Northern Qi emperor was still immersed in a terrible dream and suddenly dodged Liu Gonggong's hand.
Eunuch Liu was an old servant of the Northern Qi Emperor and had never seen him so distraught. The Emperor was deathly pale, clearly in a state of extreme shock, having had a nightmare.
He said worriedly, "Shall I fetch the imperial physician for you?"
Hearing Eunuch Liu's voice, the Emperor of Northern Qi was pulled back to reality from his illusory dream, and slowly he saw Eunuch Liu's appearance clearly: "Nightmare... Was I having a nightmare just now?"
He seemed somewhat disbelieving, looking at the bed and then at the inner palace, but did not find the wise king. Only then did he realize that he was dreaming.
In fact, the wise king did not interrogate him, nor did he die.
"Where is the Wise Prince?" the Emperor of Northern Qi asked instinctively. "Where is he?"
The inner hall fell silent; you could hear a pin drop.
No one dared to reply.
Just then, the Northern Qi emperor regained his senses, and the memories from before he fainted came flooding back. Combined with the scenes from his dream, his mental defenses completely collapsed.
"Heng'er is dead. I killed Heng'er... Imperial Tutor, I want to see the Imperial Tutor."