Rebirth: Phoenix Riding the Ninth Heaven

As the dawn light broke through the sky, Emperor Qian had already calmed down the turmoil within him. He took a deep breath and walked with a determined step towards the court to begin a new day.

However, as he sat on the throne, he heard the trivialities coming from all over the place, and a feeling of boredom welled up in his heart. These trivial matters were the same every day, making him feel bored and tired. He longed for the day when he could escape from these disturbances and enjoy a moment of peace and tranquility.

Emperor Qian frowned slightly, his gaze fixed on the distance, as if pondering how to change this situation. He knew that as the ruler of a country, he shouldered enormous responsibilities, but that didn't mean he had to be burdened by endless trivial matters. He needed to find a balance between handling state affairs and maintaining peace of mind.

Perhaps he could try some new ways of running government affairs, reducing red tape and bureaucracy. Perhaps he should listen more to his ministers' suggestions and work together to find solutions to problems. Or perhaps he could set aside some time to relax, away from the hustle and bustle of the palace, and regain his inner peace.

Regardless, Emperor Qian decided not to let these trivial matters dominate his life. He believed that as long as he persevered, he would find a way to make each day more fulfilling and meaningful.

Emperor Qian sat on the Dragon Throne, listening to the ministers' heated arguments below, growing increasingly irritated. He waved his hand impatiently, signaling for them to stop arguing, but the ministers seemed oblivious to his gesture and continued their quarreling. Emperor Qian frowned, slammed his hand on the table, and roared, "Shut up, everyone!"

The court fell silent in an instant, and all the ministers lowered their heads, not daring to meet the Emperor's gaze. The Emperor took a deep breath, suppressed his anger, and said slowly, "Let's put today's matter aside for now. I'll make a decision after careful consideration. Court is dismissed!" With that, he stood up and strode out of the court.

Returning to his study, Emperor Qian leaned back wearily in his chair, rubbing his temples. At that moment, a palace maid hurried in, kneeling on the floor to report, "Your Majesty, this is bad! Imperial Concubine Qiao is in critical condition. I'm afraid... I'm afraid she won't make it. She keeps clamoring to see you one last time."

Emperor Qian stood up suddenly, his face pale, and he muttered to himself, "How could this happen?" He hurriedly ordered the maid to lead the way to Qiao Xinran's bedroom. Along the way, he was extremely anxious and kept urging the maid to speed up. When he finally arrived at Qiao Xinran's bedroom, he saw her lying on the bed, her face pale and her breath weak.

The Emperor attempted to reach him, but a group of palace maids and eunuchs lay at his feet. They clung to his feet, muttering, "Emperor, there's danger ahead! You must not go forward! This disease will spread to all the people. You must take care of your health!" The Emperor, visibly furious, watched the maids and eunuchs holding him. He kicked them hard, knocking them to the ground. However, the maids and eunuchs clung to his feet, refusing to let go.

Amidst the wailing and pleading, Qiao Xinran slowly opened his eyes. He tilted his head with difficulty to look at Emperor Qian, but before he could say anything, turbid tears flowed from his eyes. He supported his body and coughed violently, drinking and saying, "Qian Huang, Huang Er and I are so miserable. They must be trying to frame me. You must avenge me and find out the murderer behind this."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Qian anxiously said, "Of course I know. I know you and Huang'er were framed. I've already found the murderer. Xinran, you must get through this. I've already lost Huang'er, so I can't lose you!"

When Qiao Xinran heard Emperor Qian say they had found the murderer, she became excited. She struggled to sit up, but found her body was too broken to support her movements. She could only crawl towards Emperor Qian, each step seemed extremely laborious.

However, before she could crawl to the bed, she was suddenly hit by a violent cough, which made her whole body tremble. Her face was as pale as paper, her forehead was covered with cold sweat, and her lips were bitten too hard, and blood flowed down the corner of her mouth.

Emperor Qian was heartbroken upon seeing this and quickly reached out to help Qiao Xinran up, but the palace maids and eunuchs at her feet still held her feet tightly, preventing her from taking another step forward. The palace maid who was attending to Qiao Xinran came forward to help her up and gently patted her back, trying to help ease the pain from her cough. After a long while, Qiao Xinran finally caught her breath, but she was still panting heavily, her eyes filled with confusion and anxiety.

She held Gong's hand tightly and asked anxiously, "Emperor Qian, who is it? Who wants to harm our son? Is it Empress Kun? Is she trying to harm our son and me?" Her voice was filled with tears, and tears kept pouring out of her eyes, as if she wanted to vent all the grievances and sorrow in her heart.

Emperor Qian looked at Qiao Xinran's crazy look and felt a little scared, but she forced herself to hold back and said patiently, "It's not Wang Yuyan, but Ma Xiuxiu. I have sent people to interrogate her. He said that he was jealous of you and hated you because he thought it was you who made him look bad during the animal show. So he hated you and put clothes that the eldest prince had worn into the second prince's clothes, which led to the second prince's unfortunate death from the smallpox virus."

Qiao Xinran listened to Qian's words, but she didn't believe it. She murmured, "How is it possible? How could it be Ma Xiuxiu? Why would Ma Xiuxiu want to harm my prince? It must be Wang Yuyan. Wang Yuyan must have instructed Ma Xiuxiu to do this."

Qiao Xinran mustered all her strength to raise her head, her eyes fixed on Qian Huang, a look of determination and conviction. She gritted her teeth and, with her last remaining strength, said, "Qian Huang, you must believe me! Huang'er and I were definitely murdered by Empress Kun!" Her voice was filled with endless grief and despair, as if she wanted to pour out all the pain in her heart.

Qiao Xinran took a breath and continued, "I am sure that it was Queen Kun who ordered Ma Xiuxiu to harm me and the prince! You must believe me!" There was a firm light in her eyes, hoping to make Emperor Qian believe that everything she said was true.

Qiao Xinran emphasized again: "You must avenge us! We can't let them go unpunished!" Her voice gradually became lower, but the determination contained in it became stronger and stronger.

Emperor Qian listened quietly to Qiao Xinran's words, a complex expression on his face. He looked at Qiao Xinran's pale face, and an unspeakable sadness welled up in his heart. However, he did not immediately respond to Qiao Xinran's request, but fell into deep thought.

After saying this, Qiao Xinran seemed to have used up all her strength and fell straight onto the bed, her body unable to support herself any longer, her eyes tightly closed. She turned her head to the side, her eyes empty and lifeless, as if she had lost all life, staring straight at Qian Huang and Ha Huang.

Qian Huang Ha Huang stood there, quietly watching Qiao Xinran lying on the bed, with an indescribable sense of sadness welling up in his heart. He wanted to rush over and hug her tightly in his arms, feeling her warmth, but his body could not move at all.

However, at this moment, the surrounding palace maids and eunuchs rushed forward and hugged Qian Huang and Ha Huang with all their strength, preventing him from taking a step forward. Qian Huang and Ha Huang struggled hard, trying to break free, but the palace maids and eunuchs held him tightly and refused to let go.

Emperor Qian's rationality told him that now was not the right time to act impulsively. He took a deep breath, trying to calm his inner turmoil and calm himself. Although he was extremely anxious, he knew that he had to stay sober at this moment to better deal with the situation.

Emperor Qian looked at the palace maids and eunuchs walking in front of him, feeling extremely angry. He kicked them down one by one and still knelt before him one by one. Emperor Qian knew that he would not be able to get through this day anyway, and he might even get infected with smallpox, so he reluctantly walked out of the room.

Emperor Qian walked out of the house angrily. The chief eunuch who followed him was extremely nervous and followed him closely without daring to breathe. This was the rhythm of death! The emperor had lost his most beloved concubine and prince one after another. How could anyone calm down?

Emperor Qian returned to his chambers, his heart still swollen. What had happened? He couldn't even reach out and hug his beloved prince and concubine. He hated his own incompetence and cowardice. The last bit of rationality he had left was the fear of contracting smallpox. He was afraid of death. Although he loved him, he loved himself more.

Under the double pressure of loving his concubine and hating himself, Emperor Qian did some irrational things. He ordered the chief steward beside him to collect Xinran's body, confer the title of virtuous Queen Kun on her and place her in the imperial mausoleum, and bury her with the rites for Queen Kun.

Upon hearing this order, the Grand Chamberlain's face turned pale, his legs weakening as he knelt. His voice trembled as he spoke, "Emperor Qian, please retract this order! Since ancient times, a nation cannot have two Empresses at the same time! Furthermore, Empress Kun is still alive; she has committed no wrongdoing and has not been deposed. Now, you want to bury Concubine Qiao in Empress Kun's name. This is completely unreasonable and has no precedent!"

The eunuch's words plunged the Emperor into deep thought, but the pain and regret in his heart prevented him from changing his mind. He gritted his teeth and said, "My mind is made up. No need to say more! Go and execute it!" With that, he turned and left, leaving the eunuch kneeling there in bewilderment.

The chief eunuch did not want to disobey the order of Emperor Qian, but if he carried it out, when Qian Huang woke up, he would definitely hold him accountable. He did not dare to make the decision on such a big matter, nor did he want you to carry it out. The chief eunuch thought about it and decided that only the Grand Empress Dowager could reason with Emperor Qian and make him take back his order. Thinking of this, the eunuch hurriedly walked out of the palace and rushed to the Grand Empress Dowager.