By the end of November, another heavy snowfall came.
The north wind swept across the land, carrying an overwhelming torrent of snow that covered half the capital. In the towns nearby, the many houses collapsed beneath the weight of the snow, leaving numerous people homeless and freezing to death in the streets. Reports of the disaster poured in from the various prefectures of the northern regions, one memorial after another piling up on the Emperor's desk.
Yet the Emperor still did not attend court. With one wave of his hand, he sent all the memorials to the Council of State Affairs and told them to discuss among themselves how to deal with the matter.
"Cui-Changshi, wait." Qiao Hairen hurried after Cui Xin, who was carrying the Emperor's orders, and asked with concern, "His Majesty hasn't attended court for several days now. Has his health still not recovered? The country cannot go a single day without its ruler. For now, we can barely manage to keep things running, but there are still many matters that require His Majesty's decision."
He sighed.
"Now that so many officials have been thrown into prison, we're already short-handed. And now we’re going through this snow disaster. Who knows how many of the common folk will be left homeless?"
"His Majesty's health is no longer a concern." Cui Xin stopped when he saw that the person who had caught up with him was Qiao Hairen, and did not conceal the truth from him. "It's just that the matter of the Imperial Tutor and the Zaohe Riven campaign have left His Majesty deeply troubled. I'm afraid he won't be able to resolve that knot in his heart anytime soon.
"As for the affairs of the court, we'll have to trouble you esteemed officials to bear the burden for the time being."
Cui Xin cupped his hands toward him.
Hearing him say this, Qiao Hairen could only sigh. "His Majesty relies heavily on Cui-Changshi. I hope you will advise him as much as you can and help His Majesty put his mind at ease. The defeat at Zaohe was merely a temporary setback. there will be opportunities to make them pay in full."
He gave Cui Xin a bow, sighed, and left.
Cui Xin watched his figure gradually disappear beneath the curtain of falling snow. His expression remained indifferent. This upright and principled Counselor Qiao still didn't understand the emperor well enough.
The corners of his lips curled into a mocking smile as he slowly made his way toward Taiqian Palace.
---
While the officials in the political affairs hall were embroiled in arguments over how to handle the disaster, Li Fengqi received, one after another, letters from Yunrong and the The northern border.
The letter from Yunrong concerned Ye Wang. After taking Madam Yin’s letter to Yunrong, their spy had carefully concealed his identity and continued tracking down any news about Ye Wang. Despite his efforts, he failed to uncover anything definitive. In the end, following Li Fengqi's instructions, he delivered the letter directly to Yin Manor under Madam Yin’s name.
Fortunately, the Yin family still had some blood ties and affection for Yin Hongye. they readily provided information on Ye Wang without much trouble.
Unfortunately, the news was not good.
According to Yin Xiaozhi's letter, shortly after arriving at Yunrong, Ye Wang had been placed under temporary house arrest within. Considering that he was, after all, a great-grandson whom they had cherished for many years, the Yin family had never truly intended to harm him. They merely confined him to the residence. They had planned to send him back after the fighting was over. No one anticipated that he would seize his chance to escape while Yin Xiaozhi and his son were leading troops out to fight at Zaohe River. Since then, Ye Wang’s whereabouts were still unknown. The Yin family had sent people to search for him, but without success. They even assumed that he had already returned to the capital.
Since they had failed to find him, the spy could only send back a report detailing everything he had learned, while continuing to search for clues to Ye Wang's whereabouts in Yunrong.
"Nothing but lies." Ye Yunting's brows drew tightly together, and there was faint anger in his expression. "If the Yin family really only intended to confine him, why would he have needed to risk escaping?"
The idea that Ye Wang might have returned to Shangjing was even more absurd. The Yin family undoubtedly had eyes and ears throughout the capital. How could they not know whether Ye Wang had returned to the Duke's residence? What's more, Ye Wang grew up in the capital and had been accustomed to fine clothes and good food since childhood. With hundreds of miles separating Yunrong from home, how could he possibly make the journey alone during this bitter winter freeze?
Ye Yunting tightened his grip on the letter, suppressing the worry in his heart, and said to Li Fengqi, "We'll have to send more people to look for him. Start along the road from Yunrong to the capital."
If Ye Wang had escaped from the Yin residence, he would most likely try to find a way back to the capital. In an ordinary year, perhaps it would have been possible. But this winter had brought such a severe snow disaster. If Ye Wang didn't have any money on him...
Ye Yunting didn't dare continue the thought.
"I'll send more people to search." Li Fengqi understood his worry. "Have people put up notices offering a reward in every prefecture along the way. He'll be fine."
“That’s all we could do for now.” Ye Yunting sighed. After remaining silent for a moment, he said, "I'll have someone send a message to Madam Yin."
Ever since Madam Yin had entrusted the letter to him, she had sent her personal maid several times to ask about the situation.
Ye Wang's whereabouts were now unknown, and keeping it from her wasn't something they could do forever.
"What did the letter from The northern border say?" Ye Yunting suppressed his worry and remembered that there was still another letter. "Has it been affected by the snow disaster as well?"
Both Weizhou and Xiyuzhou were both located in the northwest, known for their extreme climate with harsh winters and scorching summers. With snowfall this heavy, even the central prefecture of Jializhou had been affected. The situation in The northern border would certainly be even more serious.
"They've all suffered from the disaster as well. Fortunately, the northern border makes preparations every year, and this year they specifically stockpiled additional grain and supplies. They should be able to endure."
Despite these words, Li Fengqi's expression was far from relaxed. " However, Xihuang has borne the brunt of this snowstorm heavily. I heard many cattle and sheep perished from the cold... Zhu Wen mentioned in his letter that small bands of Xihuang soldiers have been probing our borders continuously. If this snow continues unabated, we're facing a tough battle on the northern front this year."
The climate in Xihuang was even more extreme than that of the northern border.
With the snow disaster killing so many cattle and sheep, Xihuang had suffered tremendous losses. They would inevitably turn their attention toward neighboring Beizhao and attempt to make up for their losses through plunder.
Noticing Li Fengqi's expression, Ye Yunting asked in a slightly lowered voice, "Are you planning to go to the northern border, Your Highness?"
"I am." Li Fengqi put down the letter and lightly tapped his fingers against the armrest of his wheelchair. "But the matters here in the capital need to be settled first. You and Mother will come with me as well." Turning to Ye Yunting, he added softly, "This time, I'm afraid we won't be coming back for a while."
He had long planned to travel to the norther border. Now, with the Yin family's rebellion, the political situation in the capital was unstable. Although Li Zong was currently wary of the northern border and therefore did not dare act against him recklessly, there was no guarantee that something unexpected wouldn't happen. Remaining in the capital was not a long-term solution.
And now that Xihuang was showing signs of turbulence, it presented an opportune moment to make his move.
Bringing Ye Yunting and the Elder Wangfei with him was simply to ensure that he had no worries left behind.
Ye Yunting understood what he meant, and his expression became slightly grave.
"Then we'd better find the antidote as quickly as possible."
Li Fengqi nodded.
"That depends on whether Ye Boru can manage to obtain the cure from Han Chan or not."
If Ye Boru failed, they'd have no choice but to find another way.
---
Ye Boru, as the person being discussed, suddenly sneezed. He pulled his collar closer around himself and headed toward Han Chan's bedroom.
For the past few days, Han Chan had stubbornly refused to eat. Eventually, he had probably reached the limits of what he could endure and had finally been willing to drink a little porridge and water. But he was no longer young, and after putting himself through such torment, his health had inevitably suffered. When Ye Boru received word that Han Chan had fallen seriously ill, he hurried to the palace to report the matter. Afterward, he was dispatched to assess the situation.
This was exactly what he had wanted.
He pushed open the door to the inner room without hurry. A maidservant was keeping watch beside the bed. A servant girl knelt by the bedside, keeping watch. Charcoal burned in the brazier, but it barely warmed the air. Cold wind gusted through the wide-open window in the outer chamber, chilling him down to the bone.
"Why haven't you closed the window?" Ye Boru gave the maid a meaningful glance and walked toward the outer room to close it.
The maid immediately got up and followed him to close the window, saying as she hurried over, "Master won't let me close it. He says the room becomes stuffy."
"He's ill. How can he risk exposure to such cold? If any complications arise from this, do you think you could bear the consequences?" Ye Boru looked at the deferential maidservant standing before him with her eyes lowered and her head bowed, and lowered his voice. "Last time, you said you'd noticed something unusual. What was it?"
"The ornaments on the display shelf." The maid lowered her voice as well. "Master never lets me touch those things. Once, I tried wiping one of them, and he became extremely angry."
After hearing this, Ye Boru understood. He gave a slight nod. "Go inside and keep watch. Once he's taken into the palace, your task will be finished. Remember to keep your mouth shut."
The maid obediently nodded and turned back into the inner room.
Ye Boru stood beside the curtain separating the rooms and looked inside. His eyes swept over the display shelf against the wall. The corners of his mouth curved upward.
Then he returned to the palace to report.
---
Taiqian Palace.
The lively singers and musicians had all been dismissed. Li Zong stood barefoot beside the window, his hair loose and disheveled, with a dragon robe casually thrown over him. When he saw Ye Boru being led inside by an attendant, his hand tightened slightly.
"How is he?"
"The situation isn't good." Ye Boru bowed. "I went to see him. He's running a fever and is unconscious. There is only one maid left in the Imperial Tutor's residence to attend to him, and the room itself is drafty and cold..." Ye Boru cautiously looked up at him, as though carefully choosing his words. "In my opinion, we should summon an imperial physician as soon as possible. Otherwise, I'm afraid..."
He wasn't exactly lying; Han Chan's condition really was poor. But his description exaggerated the situation somewhat. In his view, the Emperor still had lingering feelings for Han Chan. Whatever kind of feelings they might be, at the very least, it was certain that the Emperor would not be willing to watch him die like this.
As long as the Emperor brought Han Chan into the palace for treatment, Ye Boru would naturally have enough time to carefully search for the antidote.
As expected, Li Zong fell silent at these words. His hands were clasped into fists behind his back.
After a long while, Ye Boru heard him say, "Find a side hall. Bring him into the palace and have the imperial physicians examine him. Don't let him die like this."
It worked.
Ye Boru cupped his hands and bowed, suppressing the smile at the corners of his lips. "This subject will comply with His Majesty's command."
He immediately left the palace with an imperial physician and several palace attendants. They went to the Imperial Tutor's residence to bring the unconscious Han Chan into the palace.
The imperial physician checked Han Chan's pulse and administered acupuncture before having the attendants carry him into the sedan chair.
Once everyone had left, the Imperial Tutor's residence fell silent again. Ye Boru dismissed the maidservant, closed the doors and windows, and carefully examined the display shelf against the wall. He tried two of the ornaments, but nothing happened. Then he tried a third, and there was suddenly a faint click.
The display shelf against the wall split apart from both sides, revealing a staircase descending behind it.
"Looks like it's here," Ye Boru muttered under his breath and descended the stairs.
At the bottom, he found a secret chamber, filled with row upon row of memorial tablets. On either side stood tall white candles, now burned down to half their length. Before the tablets lay an incense burner laden with smoldering sticks, alongside a small white jade bottle.
Ye Boru's heart leapt. He picked up the white-jade bottle and examined it. Inside was indeed a single brown pill.
"This must be it." Ye Boru carefully stored away the jade bottle. He then turned his attention to those eerie memorial tablets.
Why would Han Chan worship so many ancestral tablets here?
He examined them one by one, and his brows gradually tightened.
Every tablet bore the same surname: They were all Zhao.
"Zhao Mingquan... Zhao Mingxi..." Ye Boru pondered the relationship between the Zhao family and Han Chan. Then, suddenly, something struck him as he recalled the history of the Zhao family.
During the reign of Emperor Chengzong, the Zhao family had been a major aristocratic clan. But later, for reasons unknown, they had committed a grave crime and were executed, their properties confiscated and their entire family wiped out. The historical records concerning their crime were vague. Ye Boru had merely heard about matter in passing during casual conversation, which was why he hadn't immediately remembered it when he first saw the tablets.
Han Chan was actually venerating the Zhao family's ancestral tablets in a secret chamber. What exactly was his relationship with the Zhao family?
Ye Boru's expression shifted repeatedly as he pondered for a long time. he hastily left the dark chamber, instructing the Shence Army to guard the exit from the bedroom area before returning to the palace once again.
=== Author's Notes ===
77: It's time to take my wife on our honeymoon and go see the world!
Yes yes yes, I know, saying something like 'the prefecture of Jializhou' is so very Department of Redundancy Department, but it just sounds better in my ear. Please bear with me and forgive me >.<
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