Chapter 34: Terminal Stage of Love-Stricken? No Cure, Awaiting Doom 3

“Your Majesty, my wife sent word earlier that she is with child. I am going to be a father.”

Qin Ye paused. “Should I offer my congratulations?”

“It is my first time becoming a father. My heart is overwhelmed with joy, and I regard Your Majesty as both lord and father. I couldn’t help but share this momentous good news with you.”

Ji Cheng’s face was full of upright sincerity.

Qin Ye rolled his eyes.

Enough, what a performance. Wasn’t he just afraid I’d bring up old matters and order him to marry a princess, so he deliberately mentioned his wife, hinting that he already has one, and she is expecting a child?

These officials—all of them are crafty.

Qin Ye fixed his gaze on Ji Cheng, who returned it with an innocent, earnest look.

Wen Ding’an rubbed his aged eyes, tears glistening, as if witnessing a harmonious scene of ruler and minister.

The King of Yue was still trembling; let him die if he must, but his child is still so young. When he and his royal brother became estranged years ago, he hadn’t even had children yet. How innocent they are!

“As congratulations for my beloved minister’s fatherhood, I hereby appoint you as Grand Imperial Envoy, grant you the Imperial Sword, with authority to act first and report later, and dispatch you to the frontier to oversee the border troops.”

Ji Cheng was stunned for a moment, then knelt. “I accept the decree.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a strong force pulled him up from the floor and pressed him into a chair.

After this, Qin Ye sat down as well, his expression solemn. “I have just journeyed to the Underworld and met with the ancestors of Anguo.”

The three men’s pupils shook; for a moment, they didn’t know whether to believe him, but thankfully none of them revealed their thoughts, instead listening quietly and seriously.

“I thought I had been a decent emperor, but the ancestors berated me harshly.

I was baffled. During my reign, I punished the corrupt and the wicked, ensured fair weather and prosperity, a reign free from disaster—if not faultless, I’d even say meritorious.

If not for years of campaigns that damaged my health, Yun Kingdom would already be history.

I have achieved such feats—why are the ancestors so dissatisfied with me?

Even if I truly pass through the Gates of Hell, I leave behind three loyal ministers as guardians to assist the Crown Prince. Anguo will know no worries.

Why then did the ancestors denounce me as an unfilial descendant who has squandered Anguo’s glorious legacy?”

Though not entirely convinced that the emperor really visited the Underworld and met previous Anguo emperors, the three still felt a trace of doubt about Qin Ye’s words.

Indeed, the Yong’an Emperor was a wise ruler: he trusted those he employed, and dismissed those he didn’t. Aside from his mediocre health and his grand ambition for military conquest—which not even the ministers’ desperate remonstrations could sway—serving under the Yong’an Emperor was comfortable for any honest official; one would feel fortunate to have such a sovereign.

So why the harsh rebuke from the ancestors?

“I was deeply confused, and not just confused, but indignant—until the ancestors expended the nation’s fortune to show me Anguo’s future.”

At this point, Qin Ye’s face turned mournful. “The prosperous situation I left for the Crown Prince was thrown into chaos.

Even Yun Kingdom managed to claim an army of a hundred thousand to invade Anguo, advancing all the way to the capital.”

Wen Ding’an yanked at his beard. “How could this be?”

Yun Kingdom is a ruined state, with only a Crown Prince left, and that prince is a hostage here in Anguo.

Unless someone wants to overthrow the royal family and crown themselves, no one would risk the life of Yun Kingdom’s sole heir.

On the contrary, they would surely bow and scrape, doing everything possible to bring their prince home.

Frankly, even if we released the Yun hostage, so what?

Yun Kingdom is a tiny, feeble land—what could it possibly use to contend with Anguo?

It’s not arrogance, but simple fact.

So Yun Kingdom reaching Anguo’s capital—what a joke, but not a funny one.

“I didn’t believe it either, but I saw it with my own eyes. Before my death, I entrusted the Azure Dragon Guards to a confidant, so they might clear obstacles for the Crown Prince in times of crisis.”

“Your Majesty’s trust was misplaced?”

Ji Cheng, young and quick-witted, was the first to ask.

“No, it was the Crown Prince. For love, he refused to command the Azure Dragon Guards.

Because before the new emperor tames them, the Azure Dragon Guards will only act to eliminate threats to the royal family.

The Crown Prince couldn’t control them right away, so he abandoned their use.

For if he gave the order, the Guards would remove all threats around him—including his beloved, who is closely connected to the Yun Kingdom hostage.”

Wen Ding’an yanked his beard again.

What did he just hear?

What feelings? What love?

Ji Cheng blinked, unsure what to say. The King of Yue blinked too, hard, and tried desperately to suppress his curiosity about why the Crown Prince’s beloved would be so intimately linked with the Yun Kingdom hostage.

“I also entrusted the Tiger Tally to Huayang, firmly believing she would never betray her own brother.

Yet Huayang handed the Tiger Tally to the Yun Kingdom hostage, just to prove her love.”

Wen Ding’an’s beard suffered yet another tug.

Love, again?

The three looked as if they’d just witnessed something utterly incredible, their expressions as shocked as commuters reading bizarre news on their phones.

Qin Ye felt suddenly refreshed.

Good, finally it isn’t just me who’s been blindsided.

This world is nothing but a backdrop for the lead couple’s play.

At this moment, he felt he ought to have a cigarette in hand—not necessarily to smoke, but as a fitting prop.

Before the cigarette appeared, Qin Ye began coughing.

The three, shaken from their stupor, hurried to advise him to take care of his health.

Qin Ye waved his hand, pushing aside Yang Lao, who had been patting his back.

Yang Lao felt as though he’d run headlong into a maddened ox, the force so great he couldn’t resist.

Surely a delusion; His Majesty has always been frail, insisted on leading troops, and ended up our first casualty—thrown from his horse and nearly trampled.

Such a weak emperor, now gravely ill—how could he possess such strength?

“My extraordinary experience must be the ancestors’ blessing, unwilling to let Anguo’s century-long foundation be ruined.”

He chose to fabricate this strange tale to fool the three simply because he resented being the only one blindsided, while the others remained blissfully ignorant.

It sprang from his sense of imbalance, not from any need to govern.

The three remained oblivious to his malice, instead falling into deep thought.

At last, Wen Ding’an came to himself first, frowning. “But Your Majesty’s heirs are few, only the Crown Prince…”

Even if the Crown Prince is a fool, we have no other choice.

For the ministers, as long as the bloodline is royal, it suffices; for the emperor, the difference is enormous.

Wen Ding’an didn’t voice the alternatives.

Qin Ye waved his hand again. “I have already devised a foolproof plan. Thanks to my encounter, I can hold on for several more years, during which I will personally instruct the Crown Prince.

If he proves different from the future shown by the ancestors, I will hand Anguo to him.

But if he stubbornly pursues only romance and passion, he is unfit to be emperor.”

Wen Ding’an spoke again. “If not the Crown Prince, will Your Majesty place the realm in Princess Huayang’s hands?”

It wasn’t that Wen Ding’an objected to a female emperor—the ruler of neighboring Rong Kingdom is a woman, and her forces are ever stronger, now pressing the grassland tribes.

Wen Ding’an’s concern was: though he preferred the Crown Prince, from what the emperor said, Princess Huayang might not be ideal either.

Entrusting Anguo to Huayang might mean she hands the realm straight to the Yun Kingdom hostage.

Speaking of which, the Yun Kingdom hostage has been here a while, yet he hadn’t even remembered the man’s face. Perhaps it’s time to see just what manner of person he is?

“My son and daughter may both prove useless, but thankfully, there is the Crown Prince of Yue.”

The King of Yue: ???

He dropped to his knees, this time no longer caring for his dignity, hitting the floor hard.

“Your humble servant is terrified, unworthy of such trust. Please, Your Majesty, retract your words. I firmly believe that, with your guidance, the Crown Prince will become a wise ruler.”

He truly had no desire for the throne; please don’t involve him.

Qin Ye cared nothing for the King of Yue’s words, only for his own thoughts.

He pulled the King of Yue up again and pressed him back into his chair.

Now, the King of Yue, feeling as if he’d been struck by a wild ox himself, was dazed.

Qin Ye said, “It is settled. This concerns the nation’s fate—you must not leak a word. I am weary; tomorrow I will not attend court. If there is any business, decide it amongst yourselves. You may withdraw.”

“Your servants take their leave.”

In the end, only Yang Lao, his personal attendant, and the chief physician, who dared not leave for fear of a sudden rally, remained.

The chief physician knelt, silent.

Yang Lao began to pledge his loyalty.

Qin Ye had no intention of troubling either of them.

After blindsiding the three trusted ministers, his mood had settled.

He had intended to rest.

But couldn’t sleep.

The original body was weak, sure, but could it be worse than Qin Ergou? Qin Ergou is a corpse now, yet he lives.

Furthermore, having been mentally shaken by Bai Juan’s revelations, Qin Ye’s soul had drifted, granting this body a great benefit.

Weak would not be the word; in fact, he now possessed innate strength.

In other words, he was remarkably strong and healthy.

Seeing Qin Ye seemingly unwilling to rest, Yang Lao, certain he was still His Majesty’s favorite, tentatively asked, “Will Your Majesty review memorials?”

“No.”

“Earlier, Lady Ning’s palace sent someone to inquire. Lady Ning is worried about your health and wishes to tend to you.”

Lady Ning was a beautiful concubine with an ethereal air, once favored by the Yong’an Emperor, with prospects of becoming Imperial Noble Consort.

The palace believed that, should she break the curse of the emperor’s lack of heirs, she might rise to the highest rank.

Hence Yang Lao’s mention of Lady Ning.

Qin Ye frowned. “Little Laozi, I value you for your loyalty and steadfastness all these years.

I don’t wish to personally order your execution, so let me be clear.

From today, all matters of the harem will be handled by the Empress.

I don’t want to encounter anyone while idly wandering, or waste my time on palace intrigues.

You’ve heard everything today—you know my goal. From now on, such matters need not be reported to me.”