Chapter 760: Chapter 722: The Final Choice

Qianqing Palace.

Princess Consort Duan had been kneeling outside for more than an hour, yet still had not received a summons from Emperor Guangxi.

At this moment, the door to the Emperor’s bedroom opened, and emerging was Doctor Shen, followed by Mr. Cui.

Knowing she would not get any news from the Imperial Physician, Princess Consort Duan directly looked at Mr. Cui, concern in her voice, "How is the Emperor’s condition?"

Mr. Cui sighed, "The Emperor summons you inside, Your Grace."

Princess Consort Duan lifted her skirt hem and stood up, quickly tidied up her appearance, and followed Mr. Cui into the inner hall.

On the luxurious, spacious, bright yellow Dragon Couch hung a golden-threaded silk curtain. Through it, one could vaguely see someone lying within; it was none other than Emperor Guangxi, who hadn’t attended court in several days.

Mr. Cui stepped forward and drew back the curtain, revealing the emaciated profile of Emperor Guangxi, whose face showed a sickly, ashen hue from prolonged illness.

His eyes were half-closed, his breathing weak. Compared to the majestic and vigorous emperor on the hunting ground over half a month ago, he was a completely different person.

Princess Consort Duan was shocked, "Wasn’t it said that the Emperor was out of danger? Why hasn’t he recovered yet?"

On the day Chief Minister Yang left the palace, she had many thoughts. From Emperor Guangxi being shot to the Crown Prince being imprisoned, and even the Empress becoming critically ill and Song Wei being killed, everything seemed too coincidental. It was as if an invisible hand was hiding key figures and setting up an empty city ploy against them, and it could only be Emperor Guangxi.

So in fact, Princess Consort Duan’s purpose in visiting Qianqing Palace today was to probe the true situation of Emperor Guangxi.

Seeing Emperor Guangxi on the Dragon Couch, seemingly gravely ill, Princess Consort Duan was somewhat stunned.

Everything was different from her speculations; she seemed to have misunderstood something.

"Zhenzhen..."

Emperor Guangxi’s feeble voice came through.

Princess Consort Duan hurried forward, "Your Majesty, I am here."

Emperor Guangxi grasped her hand and glanced at Mr. Cui.

Mr. Cui said, "Please, Your Grace, take care. I shall take my leave."

After Mr. Cui left, Princess Consort Duan once again focused on Emperor Guangxi. It must be that he was truly gravely injured; he had thinned considerably. The hand that held hers was especially bony, merely a thin layer of skin covering it.

"I thought you wouldn’t come."

"I did come before, but unfortunately, I couldn’t see Your Majesty."

Princess Consort Duan tucked his hand back under the brocade quilt, "It’s cold outside; Your Majesty should stay warm."

Emperor Guangxi stared at her in silence.

Princess Consort Duan felt uneasy under his gaze, "Why does Your Majesty look at me like that?"

"Am I old?" Emperor Guangxi asked.

Princess Consort Duan smiled, "Your Majesty feels old because you have worked so hard for Great Chu."

"I ascended the throne at a young age, have ruled for forty years, and thought I could truly live forever." Emperor Guangxi’s voice was extremely light. The candlelight reflected in his eyes, yet provided little warmth. "In the end, I’m still old. Just one arrow took half my life."

Princess Consort Duan hesitated, "Was it really the Crown Prince who shot the arrow?"

Emperor Guangxi was noncommittal, "Where is that rebel?"

"He has been imprisoned in the Imperial Clan Court," Princess Consort Duan said.

Seeing Emperor Guangxi’s unpleasant expression, she quickly added, "Since Your Majesty hasn’t yet recovered, don’t dwell on such worrying matters. Please rest and recuperate; I will come daily to care for Your Majesty."

Emperor Guangxi lightly coughed twice and closed his eyes, "How did the Empress fall into the water?"

"Consort Xian has already investigated, and it is related to Xianfu Palace."

With the Empress ill, Consort Xian had been managing the affairs of the harem in recent days.

Xianfu Palace used to be the residence of Princess Consort Qi and Consort Qing. When Princess Consort Qi was promoted to Empress, Consort Qing became the head of the residence.

During the days of the hunt, Consort Qing, like Empress Qi, stayed behind in the palace.

Upon hearing this, Emperor Guangxi let out a cold laugh, "The whole world has turned upside down!"

"Your health is the priority, please, Your Majesty, do not get angry," Princess Consort Duan said, reaching out to gently caress his chest.

Emperor Guangxi caught his breath in two short gasps, his complexion growing even graver, "As soon as I fell, troubles erupted one after another. Now, both in court and harem, the only person I can trust is you, Zhenzhen."

Princess Consort Duan lowered her gaze, "If Your Majesty has anything to say, please just instruct me."

Emperor Guangxi said, "I have a secret letter that urgently needs to be delivered to Duke Lu Mansion."

Princess Consort Duan’s heart raced, "Your Majesty means for me to deliver it personally?"

Emperor Guangxi nodded, "I told you, aside from you, I trust no one."

Such a heavy promise felt like a huge burden on Princess Consort Duan’s shoulders.

"It’s in the silver box on the antique shelf behind you." Emperor Guangxi pointed, "The situation is urgent. I hope you can fulfill my advice as soon as possible."

Princess Consort Duan stood up and walked towards the antique shelf. As expected, she saw the silver box mentioned by Emperor Guangxi, adorned with a coiled dragon engraving, looking exceedingly luxurious.

"The box is unlocked, and both the key and the secret letter are inside."

After Emperor Guangxi spoke, he yawned and immediately closed his eyes to sleep.

Princess Consort Duan held the box, standing still for a long time without moving.

——

Upon leaving Qianqing Palace, Princess Consort Duan did not head straight to the Lu Family but instead sent someone to deliver a message to Chief Minister Yang.

When Chief Minister Yang learned that Emperor Guangxi had tasked Princess Consort Duan to deliver a secret letter to the Lu Family, he quickly rushed over.

"Why would the Emperor entrust such a task directly to you?" Chief Minister Yang asked with a look of bewilderment.

"The Emperor said he trusts no one but me." Princess Consort Duan stroked the intricately patterned box. "Yet I feel he’s testing me."

"What makes you think that?"

"Look." Princess Consort Duan pointed at the box and said, "It’s unlocked, and the secret letter is inside. If I had any hidden motives, I would certainly open it privately to see what’s written on the letter."

These words reminded Chief Minister Yang, "The Emperor sending a message to the Lu Family at this time must be of grave importance. Since it’s unlocked, why should you hesitate to open it?"

Princess Consort Duan shook her head, "Knowing it’s a test yet taking risks—if something truly goes wrong, it will be too late for regret."

Chief Minister Yang bowed slightly, "You don’t need to handle this personally; leave it to me."

Taking a few steps forward, Chief Minister Yang placed the box onto the Eight Immortals Table with both hands and slowly opened it. Inside lay a lock, a key, and a secret letter.

The secret letter wasn’t sealed with wax, clearly tempting someone to peek.

Seeing Chief Minister Yang take out the secret letter, Princess Consort Duan’s expression changed, "Uncle, you mustn’t open it!"

"The Emperor is forcing you to choose." Chief Minister Yang said calmly, "If you are loyal and do not open the box, then the secret letter will safely reach Duke Lu’s hands. However, if you peek at it, it will surely be intercepted midway. Think carefully, what could be written in the letter to provoke such a reaction from you?"

"I don’t know what’s written." Princess Consort Duan refused to speculate, "I only know, you mustn’t look at it."

The Emperor’s personally penned secret letter is akin to an edict.

To spy or intercept it is to defy the order, an act of treason.

Since Chief Minister Yang first plotted against Song Wei to avenge the Liang Family, Princess Consort Duan knew that the Yang Family could no longer turn back.

At this point, Chief Minister Yang’s ambition had exceeded her expectations, and she didn’t want him to make error after error.

Chief Minister Yang knew what Princess Consort Duan was worried about. He held the letter with a mixed expression, "I’ve been planning for the Second Prince since he was in the womb; now we’re one step away from success, yet you advise me to stop—don’t you find it laughable?"

"I simply don’t want you to go completely astray."

"Don’t forget, on this path it’s not just me, but you and the Second Prince too. During the Third Prince’s full-month banquet, Empress Qi nearly dropped that child, all thanks to you. Do you really think the Emperor is unaware? It’s precisely because he knows that today he presented you with a dilemma, giving you one last chance to choose. Choose right, and perhaps he’ll spare your life, but choose wrong, and it won’t just be you and the Second Prince—the entire Yang Family will accompany you in the grave!"

Princess Consort Duan pursed her lips, her brow furrowed in contemplation.

"If you don’t believe it, take a closer look."

Chief Minister Yang had already pulled out the piece of paper from the secret letter and presented it to Princess Consort Duan after looking at it himself.

Princess Consort Duan lowered her gaze, seeing eight characters written neatly on the paper: ’Yang Family’s treason, deserving of death.’

Her spine stiffened, eyes locked onto those eight characters, filled with disbelief.

Chief Minister Yang casually stuffed the paper back, "If you intercept the letter, you betray the Emperor, committing treason. But if you deliver it to Duke Lu, the Yang Family will be finished. Consider your choices carefully."

Princess Consort Duan insisted, "Since the Emperor is testing me, what’s written in the letter doesn’t count. As long as I deliver it for the test, the Yang Family won’t be in trouble."

Chief Minister Yang’s face darkened, "Are you gambling the lives of my entire clan?"

"What do you intend to do then?" Princess Consort Duan said, "The Emperor obviously has a backup plan; if we intercept the letter, that’s when we truly fall into a trap. Who knows what might happen then!"

"Is that so?" Chief Minister Yang walked to the candle stand, and with a flick of his hand, the orange flame consumed the secret letter into ashes.

Pulling out a handkerchief to wipe his hands, Chief Minister Yang turned around, a sinister smile on his lips, "I have people inside the Emperor’s bedroom—if I don’t give the order, it’ll be hard for the Emperor to recover. If not now, when shall we strike against the crown? Do you still wish to wait for the Crown Prince to emerge and raise him as your own son?"

Princess Consort Duan inhaled sharply, "In the Emperor’s bedroom... are you talking about Mr. Cui?"

On the day Song Wei’s coffin returned to the capital, it was Chief Minister Yang who requested the title. Princess Consort Duan had heard from her subordinates that Mr. Cui personally led people to swap the coffin.

Previously, in the Emperor’s bedroom, Emperor Guangxi himself had mentioned he trusted no one in the forecourt or the harem.

Could it be that Mr. Cui had really been bought out by Uncle?

To buy off someone serving the Emperor for so long—what had Uncle done in secret all these years?

The more Princess Consort Duan thought, the more alarmed she became.

Staring at the empty box, Chief Minister Yang sneered coldly, "The Emperor wants you to take the letter condemning my clan to Duke Lu—then you must use this box to carry a succession edict inside. As long as the Imperial Jade Seal imprints, we’ll achieve great success."

Seeing Princess Consort Duan still hesitated, Chief Minister Yang said, "Don’t worry, I’ve already arranged everything. With Mr. Cui assisting, nothing will go wrong."