Chapter 58 - Forestall (2/2)

The two began bickering again but the Emperor was not paying attention to their words. He was too busy scrutinizing his wrist, for a while now he has been getting a burning pain there like someone had put hot coal on him, that was getting increasingly hotter. Initially, he had thought he got bitten by something, but on looking over his wrist, there was no sign of a bite or even any redness to explain the burning pain he was getting. He even touched it and didn't feel worsening pain.

...Strange...

While the Emperor was staring fixedly at his wrist, he suddenly felt himself being yanked forward with extreme force, then all of a sudden, he found himself in the Empress dowager's bedroom faced with the shocking scene of the Empress dowager strangling Lei Xing and Lei Xing bashing the Empress dowager's head with a basin. The Emperor's eyes went wide in shock, but before he could say or do anything he was yanked back and found himself looking at the Defense minister and Prime minister. He frowned in confusion, trying to make sense of what just happened.

”Your majesty, is everything alright?” Defense minister Lei asked, both he and Prime minister Zhao were looking at the Emperor with knit eyebrows with worry, they had been calling out to him and he was just staring off into space. They were quite perplexed at his odd behavior today, it was really out of character for him to be spacing out.

The Emperor blinked several times and then felt a shooting pain on his wrist, this time his hand started shaking and he was feeling increasingly anxious. The other two in the room looked at each other in confusion and were about to inquire again when the Emperor suddenly stood up with one hand holding over the other and just stood there.

Then he sat back down and sighed, ”Continue.”

...What is going on with me today? I must be really tired to dreaming while awake now or would this be seeing visions?... According to someone, hearing a voice in one's head already makes one crazy, I wonder what this would equate to?... I should really reconsider those sleeping decoctions...

”Your majesty, if you are not feeling well...perhaps we can come back later on.” Defense minister Lei suggested.

”I'm fine. You have both made valid points. But regardless of our high prospects of winning in war, there will inevitably still be losses on- ” Then he stopped and looked at his wrist again, then got up, ”Either way, go revise it again, keep the gold mines and work on some reasonable reductions.” He finished and then quickly walked out.

When he got outside the doors, he looked at Eunuch Li, ”Has my mother woken up?”

Eunuch Li shook his head. The Emperor then frowned.

...What exactly am I doing right now? This is stupid... But since I'm here, there's no harm in going to check on her at least once while she's sick and possibly on her death bed, it is the filial thing to do...I guess. Ah perhaps this means that she's dying and this will be last chance I have to see her alive, just like the dream about my father...a premonitory dream...only this time I am awake and this one is a bit - too specific?... It also explains the anxiety, I guess I still somewhat care for her at least a bit more than I thought...or perhaps it's actually excitement? Ah, that makes more sense...

Defense minister Lei and Prime minister Zhao also followed the Emperor out. When they saw him standing there, they bowed but he still was not paying them any attention, they cast worried glances at him and then left.

Eunuch Li seeing their faces and the Emperor who was just standing there with a frown asked, ”Your majesty are you okay?”

” I'm going to see my mother.” He flatly said and started strutting off.

...I am going to see if she's still breathing...

Eunuch Li followed behind him with a relieved smile. He had tried to persuade the Emperor to go see the Empress dowager since she fell ill but could not succeed. The Emperor had investigated the matter of her illness and ensured she was getting the best care, but remained silent whenever he brought up the issue of going to visit her. To see him choosing to go on his own and even asking after her welfare, made him happy. Eunuch Li was aware the Empress dowager was not a good mother to the Emperor, but in the end, she is still his mother...she was not always like this, the circ.u.mstances made her become this way.

...To see his heart move in her direction even a little bit is a relief...

***

Meanwhile, in the Empress dowager's room.

Lei Xing had finally lost consciousness holding a clump of the Empress dowager's hair in a hand. At this point, the Empress dowager was laughing hysterically and happily strangling the life out of her. Suddenly, the gem on Lei Xing's ring flashed a bright light and the Empress dowager froze, staring at it with a frown for a while. Then her head began to be in pain again and she released Lei Xing's throat to hold her head, closing her eyes and groaning.

After a little while, it seems the pain stopped and she opened her eyes and let out a shocked gasp when she saw that she was sitting on an unconscious body. She looked at her hands and then at the imprints on Lei Xing's neck, then she started shaking and pat Lei Xing's face multiple times, ”Hey, wake up, wake up...” Then she started crying, ”What have I done? I am so sorry...I - I didn't mean to...Please wake up...What should I do?... Um, I'll go get help, you'll be fine.” Then she made to get up, when her head started hurting again and she slumped back down before she could even rise. When she opened her eyes this time, she immediately went back to the strangling, ”Don't get in my way! She's not dead yet. I'll make sure to finish her off this time. Then I will never have to worry again. Her first and then the others next...” And then she started chuckling maliciously.

***

As the Emperor approached the entrance of the Empress dowager's palace, he noticed the cl.u.s.ter of servants outside and frowned, then he noticed Xiao Ruo and Ah Jin there and his heartbeat sped up along with his footsteps towards the Empress dowager's bedroom. As he rounded the corner to her bedroom, he could hear the hysterical laughter that had often hanuted his dreams. At this point, he was sprinting towards the bedroom doors, paying no mind to the people surrounding the area who were greeting or speaking to him. Eunuch Li hastily followed the Emperor, he could now sense that something was wrong.

The Emperor burst through the doors and without even missing a beat ran up to the duo and threw the Empress dowager off Lei Xing and crouched down to check on Lei Xing's condition. Thankfully, Eunuch Li was quick on his feet and caught the falling Empress dowager, who was screaming, ”Let me go! I need to finish this! Why do y-” Then her head started hurting again and she slumped down with Eunuch Li holding her, groaning in pain again.

The others outside had followed behind the Emperor and caught sight of what was going on in the room before the Emperor intervened and froze in their steps, petrified and wide-eyed. Song mama was the first to snap out of the shock and rush to the Empress dowager's side. The Imperial doctors in the room quickly snapped out of it, and one ran to the Empress dowager while the other to Lei Xing, who the Emperor was currently holding up. She was unconscious but was still alive. The Emperor let out a breath he had been holding his breath without realizing it.

...Thankfully, she's still breathing...

On the other side, the Empress dowager looked up at the Emperor holding Lei Xing, let out a short self-mocking laugh and then in a pained voice said, ”In the end, it's still her who is most important and I'm not, I never was and never will be, you prove this point over and over again to the point that it has been ingrained deep into my bones, to never forget...It's still better if you all just drop dead for me.” And then her eyes closed, and tears trailed down her face. It seemed she had gone back to sleep. The Emperor looked at his mother with knit eyebrows and lightly shook his head and Then asked the doctor at her side, ”How is she?”

”The Empress dowager seems to have fallen asleep due to fatigue.” The doctor responded with a bow.

The Emperor nodded and then looked back down at Lei Xing and then picked her up. He turned to those frozen at the door and coldly said, ”No one is to speak of whatever it is you have seen or heard here today. If you dare to, then regardless of your position, it will be death. Am I clear?” He finished narrowing his eyes at them.

They all blinked, bowed and said, ”Yes, your majesty.”

Then he walked out of the room with the Imperial doctor following behind, leaving Eunuch Li behind to care for his mother.

After the Emperor left, the Imperial wives stood there in a daze for a while staring at the scene. Then one after the other, they turned and left the scene silently still in a daze, and continued on like that back to their own palaces. They were in disbelief of all they had just heard and seen. While they had all known to tread carefully when facing the Empress dowager to avoid getting in trouble and being punished, but this was on a different level.

They all wondered what Lei Xing could have possibly done to warrant such an extreme response, is there even anything that should warrant such a response? To strangle her herself is...unheard of. The entire situation left them confused and very scared. Most of them were not at all concerned about Lei Xing's welfare; their concern was centered on the fact that the Empress dowager could do that to the Defense minister's daughter. This meant that it could easily happen to any of them, and the Emperor seemed to be covering up the matter as well. It was the first time they had truly felt scared of being in the palace.