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墨書 Inktalez
Three days later, Li Hong pushed open the door. Outside, Chuming, Chuxuan, and Shui Qingzi all brightened up when they saw him come out, but upon closer inspection, they were all momentarily stunned.
Li Hong was still wrapped in white cloth from head to toe, his joints stiffened, and he hopped out like a zombie.
"What do you mean by this?" the eldest disciple Chuming couldn't help but ask, puzzled to the extreme. Clearly, he had healed, so why did he still look so unappealing?
As soon as he finished speaking, Li Hong began to make faces at himself.
Chuming was taken aback, and in the blink of an eye, Li Hong had jumped back onto the couch, sprawled out with his limbs akimbo, and exclaimed, "It hurts! It’s uncomfortable! Please bring the Emperor here!"
The last sentence was deliberately shouted out loud.
Chuming laughed in shock. Chuxuan immediately understood; his senior brother must be feeling frustrated and wanted to vent his anger on the Emperor.
Very well! He smirked coldly and walked out of the Emerald Cold Hall. A row of Little Yellow Gate guards stood at attention outside, bending deeply and not daring to breathe. Chuxuan casually pointed and said, "You two, hurry and report to the Sovereign that Chu Hongzi, the National Protector, has awakened. Please ask the Sovereign to come."
The two Little Yellow Gate guards dashed off swiftly.
Soon Zhao Gou arrived with Eunuch in tow. He looked quite spirited and called out loudly as he walked, "Quickly summon the imperial physician to take care of Chu Hongzi, the National Protector!"
Upon entering the inner chamber, he immediately saw Chu Hongzi wrapped in white cloth from head to toe, exuding a strong medicinal smell. His face was completely obscured except for his eyes and lips. Zhao Gou felt deep sympathy; this injury was indeed severe! Thinking about it made him break into a cold sweat—if someone with such high skills as Chu Hongzi could be severely injured by those demons sent by the Jin people, how could he possibly survive if he encountered them?
He trembled and quietly asked, "Celestial Master, are you feeling any better? You must recover; both the palace and I are counting on you for protection. Where have those demons escaped to? Should we issue a warrant for their capture?"
Li Hong snorted coldly and replied, "Do you think your mortal constables can catch demons flying around in the sky?"
Zhao Gou suddenly realized how foolish he had been! He lowered his head submissively and said, "Then what does Celestial Master suggest?"
"It's simple; once I recover from my injuries, I will personally go out to hunt down the demons. But as you can see now, I'm wrapped up like a rice dumpling. Does the Imperial Medical Bureau have any good medicine?"
Zhao Gou's spirits lifted: "Yes! I have already summoned the imperial physicians; they are right outside. Just tell me what medicine you need; if the Imperial Medical Bureau doesn't have it, I will order a search among the common people."
Li Hong shook his head: "I don't want to disturb the populace. How about this: my junior brother Chu Hai is skilled in alchemy; let him go to your Imperial Medical Bureau's storeroom to see if there are any suitable medicines he can bring over for me to use."
Zhao Gou nodded eagerly like a chick pecking at rice and hurriedly called for the imperial physicians to come in and check Li Hong's pulse while also sending someone to fetch Chu Hai.
Chu Hai was called by Li Hong this time. At first, it felt fresh, but after two days, he quickly grew tired of it. The palace was filled with either servants or superficial people, or worse, sycophants. He really missed the carefree days of alchemy and cultivation at the Nine Li Sect.
He heard that Li Hong wanted him to check the storeroom of the Imperial Medical Bureau. Chu Hai was puzzled and was about to ask what kind of medicine Li Hong was after when he heard Li Hong transmit a message: "I believe there must be many good things in the Imperial Medical Bureau's pharmacy. Take as much as you can—Thousand-Year Ginseng, Ten Thousand Year He Shou Wu, anything we can use for alchemy! Let's make that Emperor's Son bleed a little! Hmph!"
Chu Hai suddenly understood, a smile appearing on his face, but then he caught Li Hong giving him a glare and immediately realized he needed to act serious. He put on a pained expression and said, "Senior Brother, your injury is too severe. Although I have some knowledge of alchemy, I can't guarantee I can heal you. I'll go take a look, but alas, don't hold out too much hope. It's best to rest for a while first." With that, he walked out with exaggerated sorrow, shaking his head.
Upon hearing that Chu Hai was skilled in alchemy, Zhao Gou's eyes lit up as he began to plot. However, he decided to ask Li Hong first. He cleared his throat slowly and said, "I have another matter to discuss with the Celestial Master. That is... um, that issue. I wonder if the Celestial Master has produced any good remedies over the past five years?"
Li Hong had anticipated this question and frowned as he replied, "That disciple of mine, Chu Hai, is the student of our Celestial Mountain Alchemy Hall's chief elder. He truly has the ability to bring the dead back to life. Consulting him would be absolutely correct." He thought to himself that bringing Chu Hai out this time served this purpose; he didn't have time to deal with Zhao Gou, so he might as well pass this hot potato to Chu Hai.
Zhao Gou was overjoyed and ordered the imperial physician to check Li Hong's pulse while his eyes wandered outside absentmindedly.
Li Hong deliberately chose not to reveal anything.
At that moment, two imperial physicians respectfully entered, each placing a silk pillow under Li Hong's wrist while extending two fingers to feel his pulse. As soon as they touched his skin, a sudden surge of hot and strange energy shot back at them, leaving half their bodies stiff and frozen in place, their faces alternating between blue and purple.
Li Hong sighed leisurely, "It seems my injury is quite severe; even the physicians are having difficulty!"
Zhao Gou immediately changed his expression and scolded the physicians: "What’s going on? Why do you look so strange? You must remember that the health of the Celestial Master is crucial; hurry up and treat him!"
The two physicians were sweating profusely and could only nod in fear without saying a word.
"Forget it; I don't blame them. This is an internal injury; even Hua Tuo couldn't heal it." Li Hong sighed deeply before suddenly changing his tone: "However, if my mood were better, my recovery would surely be much faster. Your Majesty, I am actually feeling quite distressed!"
A jolt went through Zhao Gou, realizing what was happening! The Celestial Master clearly wasn't as injured as he pretended; he was just reluctant to get up. It seemed that if he didn't satisfy him, this "injury" wouldn't heal for at least ten days or half a month. If a demon attacked during that time and he refused to fight back, then this emperor wouldn't have a throne anymore!
He turned his eyes sincerely and said: "Everything I have belongs to the Celestial Master. As long as I can do it, please feel free to ask for anything. I only hope for your speedy recovery so you can help me eliminate that troublesome demon once and for all!"
Hearing this, Li Hong felt somewhat satisfied and thought that Zhao Gou wasn't foolish; he had already seen through his intentions. So he decided to speak frankly: "You should execute Qin Hui! Just thinking about him makes me furious!"
Startled, Zhao Gou showed a troubled expression. "Well... killing an official without reason might not be appropriate..."
Before he could finish speaking, Li Hong sneered: "You know it's inappropriate to kill an official without reason? Then let me ask you this: what crime did Yue Fei commit? Didn't you also kill him without reason? Others may say such things, but you as emperor cannot!"
Zhao Gou immediately regretted his words upon seeing Li Hong's change in expression. He quickly nodded, "I will issue an edict to strip Qin Hui of all titles and then hand the matter over to the Ministry of Justice for punishment. This... we must maintain appearances; I have no choice." He then loudly instructed the Eunuch to summon Zhao Ding.
Upon hearing this, Li Hong thought that Zhao Gou was indeed quick to act, knowing that he did not favor Qin Hui, and immediately brought Zhao Ding back. Zhao Ding had originally been demoted to Quanzhou, and it was quite a feat for him to return in just three days.
********
Zhao Ding rode hard for three days without changing horses, arriving at the Imperial City Beautiful Main Gate, waiting for the summons. When he saw Little Yellow Gate rushing out, he gritted his teeth and stood up, taking a couple of steps before nearly falling over. Fortunately, Little Yellow Gate was quick to support him.
He was over fifty years old, and this night ride had nearly worn out his old bones. His backside was sore and raw from the saddle, blood and fabric stuck together. During his four years of exile, he had suffered greatly, all thanks to Qin Hui. Hearing that Chu Hongzi, the National Protector, had returned filled him with joy; he didn’t feel tired after three days of riding as his mind was busy plotting how to deal with those who had wronged him. It was only when he stood up that he realized how old he had become.
Little Yellow Gate quickly ordered people to carry a cool sedan chair for Zhao Ding and ran while saying, "The Sovereign has summoned you urgently; Lord Qin should bear with it for now. After meeting with His Majesty, I will definitely summon the imperial physician to treat your injuries."
"It’s nothing," Zhao Ding said while stroking his sparse white beard, his face full of wrinkles relaxing. His eyes were already squinting deeply. The arrival of the Celestial Master meant significant changes in court; it seemed that Yue Fei's sacrifice had not been in vain.
********
Li Hong's eyes lit up upon seeing Zhao Ding, but then a look of contemplation crossed his face. In just five years, Lord Qin had aged significantly, looking like nothing but skin and bones, needing assistance even to walk. He felt a mix of anger, sadness, and frustration rising within him.
Zhao Gou observed Zhao Ding's appearance and quickly spoke in a friendly tone, "Zhao Qingjia has traveled back tirelessly; you have worked hard. There is no need to kneel; please sit and speak."
The Eunuch brought over a round stool. Zhao Ding frowned slightly at the hard surface of the stool, looking somewhat troubled.
Little Yellow Gate was quite clever and immediately placed a silk cushion on the round stool before helping Zhao Ding sit down.
Li Hong noticed this scene and thought that this little eunuch was quite astute. Looking at Zhao Ding now seated, he noticed that his legs were still trembling uncontrollably. With a sigh, he took out a bottle of Supplementary Spirit Pill from his sleeve and pointed at Little Yellow Gate saying, "What is your name?"
"The little one is Liu Zhong," Little Yellow Gate replied respectfully with hands lowered upon realizing that the Celestial Master was asking about him instead of Lord Qin.
"Good job; you handle things well. From now on, stay by my side," Li Hong said. "Take this Elixir and dissolve it in Clear Water for Zhao Xiang to drink a bit. It will help with his injuries." Li Hong tossed the Elixir over.
Liu Zhong caught it and shortly after brought over a bowl of clear green medicinal soup, respectfully handing it to Zhao Ding: "Lord Qin, please take this."
Zhao Ding accepted it and indeed only took a small sip before putting down the bowl. He felt a refreshing energy flow straight down into his viscera; all thirty-eight thousand pores in his body opened up simultaneously, invigorating his blood flow. His darkened thin face began to show some color.
He put down the bowl in his hand and cupped his hands towards Li Hong, saying, "Thank you, Celestial Master, for the elixir."
"You're welcome, Zhao Xiang. You must have rushed here," Li Hong replied casually, beginning to chat with Zhao Ding about the sights of Quanzhou and then inquiring about the customs of the South, eventually discussing the seas outside Lingnan.
The two engaged in lengthy conversation. Zhao Gou, sitting on the Grandmaster Chair, squirmed restlessly, his eyes fixed on the bowl of green elixir on a nearby table, unable to contain himself.
Finally, he heard Li Hong say, "That bowl of medicinal soup should be put away; let Zhao Xiang have a sip later tonight. He has something to do this evening. Don't you agree, Your Majesty?"
"Ah?" Zhao Gou snapped back to reality, watching Liu Zhong pour the green elixir into a silver bottle and thinking about how he would need to get it from Liu Zhong later. He said, "Indeed! Qin Hui's crimes against the nation are unforgivable. Zhao Ding, draft an edict to convey my orders: strip Qin Hui of all titles and hand him over to the Dali Temple for questioning. We will decide after clarifying the charges."
Zhao Ding spoke as if accepting the edict but looked thoughtfully at Li Hong and asked, "Is this the Celestial Master's intention?"
"That is exactly my intention!" Li Hong replied coldly. "Qin Hui has framed loyal subjects and committed heinous acts; my suggestion is to execute him immediately! Since the emperor has said to hand him over to the Dali Temple for questioning, we shall follow procedure. Hmph! He truly has it easy!"
"Celestial Master, this course of action is highly inappropriate; it must not be done," Zhao Ding said solemnly.
"Ah?" This time it was Li Hong who was taken aback, feeling utterly perplexed.
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