The Return of the King: A Generation of Prodigies

Shen Tianjiao almost didn't sleep last night and spent the whole night in bed.

She felt sleepy when she woke up in the morning, and almost fell asleep when Chunchao was dressing her.

"Master, why don't you take a nap for a while." Chunchao was a little worried when he saw Shen Tianjiao's condition.

Shen Tianjiao shook her head and said, "No need. Go get me some rejuvenation pills. I'll be fine after taking some and resting for a while."

Chunchao looked at Shen Tianjiao and became even more worried. These days, when Shen Tianjiao felt low, she would always take rejuvenation pills to cheer herself up. Although this medicine was good, it was poisonous after all. Taking too much of it would not be good for her.

"Okay, nothing to do, go get it." Shen Tianjiao knew that taking too much medicine was not good for her, but the current situation did not allow her to not work hard.

"Yes." Chunchao swallowed back the words he wanted to say to persuade her. He knew best how busy and difficult Shen Tianjiao's life was.

When Chunchao brought the rejuvenation pill, Shen Tianjiao had already fallen asleep leaning on the chair. Seeing this, Chunchao quickly put down the medicine in his hand and went to get a thin blanket to cover her.

After finishing everything, Chunchao tiptoed out of the room. As soon as she walked outside, she saw Li Muyang coming. She was so scared that she rushed over.

"Your Highness, the master just fell asleep. Can we go play somewhere else first and not disturb him?"

Chunchao lowered her voice and spoke in a tone that only she and Li Muyang could hear.

"Okay." Li Muyang also lowered his voice. He stepped forward and held Chunchao's hand. The two of them tiptoed out like thieves.

"Chunchao, have you got the medicine?" Shen Tianjiao was a light sleeper to begin with, and it was even more so when she had something on her mind.

She had already noticed it when Chunchao came in just now, but she just wanted to take a break and rest for a while.

"Oh, I got it." Hearing Shen Tianjiao's voice, Chunchao felt very annoyed. She blamed herself for having moved too much just now and woken Shen Tianjiao up.

Chunchao pulled Li Muyang in and gave the medicine to Shen Tianjiao.

Seeing Shen Tianjiao take the medicine, Li Muyang came forward and asked, "Mother, what's wrong with you? Are you sick?"

Looking at her son with tears in his eyes, Shen Tianjiao reached out and pulled him to her side, comforting him, "Mother is not sick, she is just a little tired and not in good spirits. Take some tonic."

"Mother, when I grow up, I will help you with everything. Then you won't have to work so hard." Li Muyang felt distressed when he saw his mother looking tired.

"Yeah, okay." Shen Tianjiao held Li Muyang in her arms, patted his back, and said, "Then you must eat and sleep well in the future, so that you can grow up quickly."

"Yes, son, I understand." Li Muyan nodded obediently in agreement.

Shen Tianjiao pulled Li Muyang out of her arms, grabbed his shoulders with both hands, and said, "Mu'er, you have to follow your mother to Zhenghe Palace later."

"Go to Zhenghe Hall?" Li Muyang tilted his head and looked at Shen Tianjiao in confusion. He said, "Mother, isn't that where all officials hold court and where you handle state affairs? Why do you want your son to go there?"

"I want you to go because today your father is going to announce to all civil and military officials and the whole world that my son, Li Muyang, will become the crown prince of Yunli Kingdom and the future emperor." Shen Tianjiao looked at Li Muyang and said solemnly.

"Mother, I don't want to be the crown prince or the emperor. I just want to stay by your side and be your son."

Li Muyang is no longer an ignorant child. He knows what a crown prince is and he also knows that after becoming a crown prince, he will replace his father as the emperor of Yunli Kingdom in the future.

To exercise his duties as an emperor, he not only had to govern the Yunli Kingdom well, but also had to shoulder the responsibility of protecting the people. This was what his third uncle told him when he was in the hot spring villa.

But Li Muyang didn't want to be a crown prince or emperor at all. He just wanted to be a good son to his mother, and when he grew up, he would follow his uncles to guard the border and defend his country.

"Mu'er." Shen Tianjiao squatted down, looked directly at Li Muyang and said, "There are many things in this world that are beyond your control. The title of Crown Prince and Emperor is not something you can just say or do."

"Everyone has their own responsibilities and obligations. You were born into a royal family, and many things are beyond your control."

"If your father has other sons, then you are free to choose the path you want to take and what you want to do."

"But now your father has only you as his son, so you must shoulder your responsibilities and work with your mother to support the Yunli Kingdom."

"Whether you want it or not, you have to take your own responsibilities, do you understand?"

Li Muyang shook his head and said honestly, "I don't understand, but since the Queen Mother said this is a responsibility that a son must shoulder, then I will listen to her and be a good crown prince and emperor."

For Li Muyang, who was still a child, he didn't know how to be a crown prince, let alone a king, but he was willing to listen to his mother and act according to her wishes.

Shen Tianjiao looked at Li Muyang, and for a moment she suddenly questioned whether it was right for her to go to so much trouble to push Li Muyang to this position?

But now there is no time to think about these things, and this is not the time to think about these things.

Shen Tianjiao touched Li Muyang's head, then stood up, took his hand, and said, "Let's go. A ceremonial officer will teach you what to do. You just need to follow and do it well."

"Yes, son, I know." Li Muyang was still a little nervous. He held Shen Tianjiao's hand tightly, and his little hands were full of sweat.

Shen Tianjiao did not comfort Li Muyang anymore. Regardless of whether Li Muyang would become the emperor in the future, he would have to face many things alone.

Everyone has a first time when facing the unknown. As long as you take the first step, you will become braver and braver.

Li Rui was dressed neatly in Taihe Hall. Looking at his face in the bronze mirror, which was so thin that it was almost unrecognizable, he felt a mixture of emotions.

A few months ago, he was a king full of vigor and vitality, but a few months later, he turned into this horrible state. Now he is just a walking corpse.

Life is really unpredictable. If he had not been greedy and had treated Shen Tianjiao with respect, he would never have ended up like this today.

But it’s too late to say these things now. God is fair to everyone. If you do something wrong, you must pay the price for your mistakes.

No one can escape this law, not even the king.

"Your Majesty, it's time for us to set off." Huang Chunhua walked over to Li Rui and cautiously reminded him, "The Empress and the Crown Prince are already waiting outside."

"You're already here, why don't you come in?" Li Rui withdrew his gaze from the bronze mirror and asked with a look of disappointment.

Huang Chunhua saw this and quickly said, "It's not that the Empress and His Royal Highness didn't want to come in. It's that the Empress said that Your Majesty was not feeling well and asked you to rest a little longer. They came in and made a fuss, and they were afraid that it would disturb your rest."

"Really?" Li Rui smiled bitterly. He knew that these were all Shen Tianjiao's excuses. His wife, who once filled his heart and eyes with love, would never come back.

He was the one who pushed his little girl away from him. Now he has no one else to blame but himself.

Li Rui stood up and Huang Chunhua hurried to support him. The two of them left the house and went to the yard, where they saw Shen Tianjiao teaching Li Muyang the rules.

Li Rui just stood there, looking at Shen Tianjiao and Li Muyang, mother and son. For a moment, he felt an unreal feeling that time had stopped and the years were beautiful.

Shen Tianjiao accidentally looked up and saw Li Rui standing there, so she said to Li Muyang, "Mu'er, have you remembered all the rules the etiquette officer taught you?"

"Yes, mother, I remember it." Li Muyang was smart and learned things quickly. The etiquette officer only taught him two or three times, but he had already memorized it.

"It's good that you remember it, but it doesn't matter if you forget it later." Shen Tianjiao touched Li Muyang's head and comforted him.

Although Li Muyang has learned well now, it will be his first time to experience such a situation later. He will inevitably be nervous. It is understandable that he will forget it due to this nervousness.

Although Shen Tianjiao hoped that Li Muyang could do well and leave those court officials speechless, she hoped that Li Muyang would not have too much pressure and just do his best.

"Yes, mother, I understand." Although Li Muyang was a little nervous, he didn't feel scared because Shen Tianjiao was with him.

"Let's go, your father has come out, we should go to Zhenghe Hall." Shen Tianjiao looked up at the distance. She knew that after taking this step, everything in the future would be a new beginning.

Shen Tianjiao brought Li Muyang to Li Rui's side and said with a rare smile, "Your Majesty, it's getting late. Let's go."

"Yeah." Li Rui nodded, bent down and held Li Muyang's hand. Li Muyang felt very uncomfortable with Li Rui holding his hand suddenly. He wanted to break free but didn't dare, so he had to look up at Shen Tianjiao.

Shen Tianjiao nodded to Li Muyang, and Li Muyang reluctantly let Li Rui hold his hand.

This was the first time, and possibly the last time, that their family of three walked together like today. Thinking of this, Li Rui couldn't help but feel a lot of emotions, and he held Li Muyang's hand a little tighter.

"Your Majesty, please get on the dragon chariot." Huang Chunhua reminded in a low voice.

"No, I will go to Zhenghe Palace with the Queen and the Crown Prince today." Li Rui knew that he didn't have much time left, and he just wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to get closer to Shen Tianjiao and Li Muyang, so as to have fewer regrets.

"Your Majesty, please take a seat. The road to Zhenghe Hall is not short."

Shen Tianjiao said this not because she cared about Li Rui, but because she was afraid that Li Rui's current physical condition would not allow him to walk to Zhenghe Hall. She didn't want Li Rui to suddenly fail at this critical moment.

If something went wrong with Li Rui at this time, it would be like throwing a big trouble into her hands.

"It's nothing. I feel I'm in good spirits today and can walk to Zhenghe Hall without any problem." Li Rui was unwilling to give up this rare warm time for the three of them today.

Shen Tianjiao rolled her eyes silently and suppressed her temper. At this important moment, she could not lose her temper with Li Rui no matter what.

"Okay then, let's go to Zhenghe Hall. But if the emperor gets tired, just let me know. The dragon sedan chair is always ready."

"Okay, I understand." Li Rui turned around and smiled at Shen Tianjiao. This smile made Shen Tianjiao feel very sick. She was so scared that she quickly turned her head away and dared not look at Li Rui again.

Soon everyone in the palace knew that today the emperor, the empress, and the eldest prince walked to Zhenghe Hall.

When Li Rui, who had not attended court for many days, suddenly appeared in front of the officials, everyone in the hall was really shocked.

Everyone saw that although Li Rui's complexion was not very good, he seemed to be in good spirits.

However, this also refuted the rumors that Li Rui was about to die.

There have been rumors these days that Queen Shen Tianjiao took advantage of the emperor's serious illness to build up her own power and try to seize power. It is also said that Li Rui has an incurable disease and will not live long.

Now seeing Li Rui appearing in Zhenghe Hall in good spirits, this invisibly frightened the hearts of those who had evil intentions and made them put away their inappropriate thoughts.

Li Rui looked around at the court officials, all of whom had different expressions and thoughts, and said solemnly, "I have been feeling unwell recently and need to rest, so I have asked the Queen to supervise the state affairs on my behalf."

"But during the time the Queen was in charge of state affairs, I heard that the ministers were causing trouble for her and causing her to suffer."

"I will say this again in front of all of you today. I personally allowed the Empress to govern the country. If you do not accept this, you are opposing me."

"If you want to oppose me, you should first consider whether the head on your neck is strong enough."

"I have never shown mercy to those who refuse to obey my orders."

"Your Majesty, we are deeply apprehensive. From now on, we will diligently uphold our duties and assist the Empress with all our heart and soul. We will not dare harbor even the slightest evil intention."

As the head of all officials, Wang Yunzhi was naturally the first to admit his mistakes and express his loyalty.

When Prime Minister Wang spoke, everyone behind him followed suit and pledged their loyalty. For a moment, the court was bustling with people.

This scene surprised Shen Tianjiao. She never expected that Li Rui would come to Zhenghe Hall today and say these words to defend her as soon as he opened his mouth.

Is this really the case of a dying man finding his conscience?

"You'd better remember what I said today. I am not someone you can fool. If I hear you say anything disrespectful to the Queen again, I will not let you off easily!"

Although Li Rui is not a good person, as an emperor, he still has the necessary pressure and means.