sick man

The news that the prince was sick in the emperor's bedroom last night spread in the palace the next morning, and the ministers waiting in front of the palace exchanged glances and whispered to each other, trying to figure out what the emperor was thinking.

The crown prince Li Shenyan was the eldest daughter of Prime Minister Zuo, born of the Qin family who was conferred the title of Concubine Zhaorong.Concubine Qin entered the palace in the year when Su Hongrui was sentenced to death for treason after Yunze was abolished.At that time, she was still a concubine, and she was not favored by Li Chengyan.Even though her natal family was in the ranks of powerful ministers, she herself was a rare woman with both beauty and talent, but she was never in favor of Li Chengyan, and the number of times she was recruited/sleeped by Li Chengyan could be counted on the fingers.Fortunately, Li Chengyan didn't treat her harshly, apart from being indifferent, he treats her with respect as a guest, and the seasonal rewards are never short, and he never fills the harem with newcomers.Concubine Qin Guifei's temperament is mediocre at first, and there are no powerful characters around her who are intriguing/competing/loving. As time passes, she has gotten used to the quiet/lonely days, playing the piano and reading every day, and her temperament has become more and more stable.She is gentle and pleasant, she speaks softly and moderately, sometimes when Li Chengyan encounters troubles, he also likes to come to her palace to sit and drink tea.

The two get along like friends, one listens and the other confides, but no love emerges.

At least for Li Chengyan, he is more willing to regard Concubine Qin as a confidant rather than a woman whom he admires.

But as the king of a country, affection/love always comes after responsibility.Although Li Chengyan didn't love Concubine Qin, he couldn't stand the remonstrance of the ministers who refused to give up for several years, and even forced him to die. In the end, in order to continue the bloodline, Concubine Qin became pregnant with a dragon heir.

When Concubine Qin had Li Shenyan, 15 years had passed since Su Hongrui's death.The great reputation of the Su family has long since disappeared, and no one mentioned the general who was deposed and given to death.

But on the night of fetal movement, Concubine Qin had a difficult delivery.

Pots of dripping blood were brought out non-stop, and pieces of white and soft cloth were dyed red before being sent out. The experienced woman Wen who had delivered several princes was a little panicked.Li Chengyan rushed from Chaoyang Palace overnight, and despite everyone's dissuasion, he insisted on going in to meet the dying Concubine Qin.

"His Majesty……"

Concubine Qin's face was as white as the snow falling outside the palace, her temple hair was scattered around her cheeks, her voice was so weak that it could hardly be heard, but her eyes were shining brightly.

The look of mixed hope and excitement that seemed familiar in those eyes made Li Chengyan's heart twitch.

He couldn't help but hold Concubine Qin's outstretched hand, lowered his head and said in a soft voice,

"My dear concubine, I am here."

Concubine Qin Gui smiled weakly at him, her lips that had faded from blood slightly opened and closed, and a word escaped lightly.

"Your Majesty, my concubine... I implore your majesty, no matter what, you must keep your child..."

Li Chengyan's smile froze around his mouth, and the face of Concubine Qin Guifei gradually blurred in his eyes, and slowly but clearly changed to another person's face.

One night 15 years ago, that person was lying on the bed like this.But it was not yet winter, and there was no snow in the sky, but it was still cold at night.The bed in the cold palace was not as soft and comfortable as this. The cold and hard quilt covered the man's disastrous body, but it couldn't cover his protruding abdomen.

Blood was also slowly dripping from under his body, flowing out one by one, and the bright red soaked the gray mattress.

It must be painful, right?

Standing in front of the bed, he felt a little bit of unbearable feeling in his heart.

The room without the charcoal-burning basin became more and more damp and cold as time went by. Later, he couldn't stand it anymore, but he didn't know whether it was because he couldn't stand the cold or the smell of blood filling the room.

But at the moment when he was about to turn around and leave, his hand was hooked.

Gently, but persistently retain.

The hand holding him was hot and soaked in cold sweat.

"Cherishment..."

The man was panting heavily and managed to make a sound.

And he just knocked down his hand impatiently, frowned and turned to look at him like a charity.

With just one glance, the man's gray eyes suddenly lit up, like fireworks bursting in the dark winter night.

"Chengyan... Your Majesty..."

He stretched his arms persistently, and finally grabbed his hand again, still gently hooking it cautiously, begging intermittently,

"The guilty minister is... dying, no matter, no matter what, please the emperor... let this child go..."

"Criminal?"

He begged so humblely and pitifully that even the court lady who was ordered to monitor him turned her head and couldn't bear to look at him, but he sneered, slowly withdrew his hand, looked straight into his eyes and said,

"Since you have pleaded guilty, you still think that I will keep this evil son? You are so reluctant to part with him, and you just took him to die with you. You can count as a companion on the road to Huangquan."

Hearing his vicious words, the light in that person's eyes was like fireworks, which instantly turned to ashes.

Then, he left the cold and empty room.

Then, the news that the man died of dystocia came as scheduled.

He only glanced at it from a distance, confirmed that it was undoubtedly him, and ordered someone to dispose of the man's body quickly.And that child, a ridiculously small baby wrapped in a piece of white cloth at random, was lying beside the man.He didn't even have the interest to look at it.

In fact, he knew that the child was his.

That person put down his dignity and begged him several times, all for the sake of that child.

He must love him very much, right?

I also love myself very much.

But I personally killed them all...

After that, he couldn't wait to destroy everything related to that person.The clothes that the man had worn, the books he had read, the sword he was used to, and his family were all destroyed and expelled by him, leaving nothing behind.

He never thought of him again, and of course, he never thought of the child.

He only heard that it was a boy, there was no cinnabar mole between the eyebrows, he was so thin that he could hold it with two hands, he died at birth, he didn't even cry, his whole body was bruised and purple, it was like being poisoned.

"Whoa - whoa whoa... whoa whoa..."

The baby's weak but distinct cry suddenly hit the eardrums, and the hand that was tightly holding Li Chengyan was suddenly loosened, and the child was born. Qin Guifei, who tried her best, did not die, but she also lost half her life.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty, Congratulations to Your Majesty! You are a beautiful little prince!"

Soon someone scrubbed the bloody baby clean, gently put it in a swaddle, held it in front of him and handed it to Li Chengyan.

Li Chengyan lowered his head slowly, looked at the crying baby who was stretching out his hands indiscriminately, and instead of feeling joyful, his heart felt strangely heavy.

This is his child.

His first... no, second child...

Before this child landed, he already had a lot of things, such as a noble status, endless glory and wealth, and the love of his mother and concubine. In the future, he might even inherit his own throne.

But what about that child?

The child who was strangled by his own hands, even the right to live was taken away by him... And that person loves his child so much...

The memory that he deliberately kept dusty, on the night of Li Shenyan's birth, reappeared in front of his eyes. That person, that person whose face had been blurred for a long time, suddenly became so clear that he could touch it with his hand.

Turns out it's been 15 years.

His corpse should have been turned into bones, right?

Li Chengyan began to care about this issue. He mentioned Su Hongrui intentionally or unintentionally, but no one dared to answer his words.When everyone heard the name Su Hongrui, they all became dumb. Even newcomers to the palace knew that Su Hongrui was a taboo in the palace, and if he mentioned it, he would be beheaded.

Like a child who misses the candy in front of him but can't get it anyway, Li Chengyan's temper gradually got out of control.He often throws out the memorials in his hand in a good manner, overturns the tea on the table, and once even tore up his favorite rare book.And he seldom went to the Qin family's dormitory again. Although he thought that she gave her life to give birth to the prince and made her a noble concubine, he did not show his due love for this hard-won son.

He hardly hugged Li Shenyan, even on the day he was canonized as the prince.

The unfavored prince discouraged those who wanted to cling to him, for fear of accidentally standing in the wrong team, guessing the wrong will, losing his wife and losing his army.

But the emperor, who has become more and more unkind these days, did allow the prince to serve him.

The emperor's health is getting worse day by day, and his indifferent attitude towards the prince has suddenly improved. I'm afraid...is it settled?

As Li Chengyan's condition worsened, they became more certain about their speculation.Suddenly, Prime Minister Zuo's home, Concubine Qin's bedroom, was inexplicably filled with many rare gifts.

Li Chengyan heard and saw all this, but he didn't take it to heart.

He begged for death almost laissez-faire, hung himself on ginseng soup all day long, and really disappeared.

In the middle of the night, the Chaoyang Palace, where all the palace people had been removed, was as deserted and quiet as a tomb, where the emperor who wanted to die was buried.

Li Chengyan lay on his back on the bed, stared straight at the top of the bed, and whispered that person's name one after another.

"Hong Rui... Hong Rui... you wait for me... I'll come to you right away... and the child, Hong Rui... you... just wait for me, okay?"

His eyes slowly lost focus, but the pained expression on his face was tinged with comforting stars, as if a scene he had dreamed of appeared in the void, even though he knew it was an illusion, he couldn't help but be happy.

He even raised his arms and grabbed at the top of the bed.

"Hongrui..."

The skinny fingers stretched straight, and the fingertips turned white, but they still couldn't touch the figure with the head bowed and smiling.

It is said that when a person is about to die, the most cherished image in his life will flash before his eyes.Li Chengyan stared blankly at the drifting image, tears poured down like a gate.

It turns out that what has been hidden in my heart all along is Su Hongrui's shadow.

What he cherishes the most is not Xue Xiaoyun, who he once regarded as his true love, but Su Hongrui, whom he thinks he hates to the bone.He still remembered why he bowed his head and smiled.But that day, he couldn't control his temper and got angry at him. To make up for it, he reluctantly pecked and kissed the man's forehead.

The man's face turned red.

While hurriedly lowering his head, a slight smile leaked from the corner of his mouth.

It actually has a different kind of seductive style, which is so abruptly engraved in his mind.

"Hahahahahahahahahahaha..."

Li Chengyan withdrew his hand, usurped the quilt and let out a piercing laugh.

He remembered that he had once pointed at Su Hongrui who had begged for mercy, and scolded him for committing a crime of his own accord.

It was only now that he finally understood that the person who committed the crime and could not live was himself.

He didn't even have the chance to say sorry to Su Hongrui.

Su Hongrui is dead.

was killed by him.

He watched his life disappear, but only gave him an indifferent back.

"Hong Rui...I'm sorry...I'm really...I'm sorry..."