CHAPTER 30

Emperor, Empress, and First Prince

RUAN YANJUN

“Shi Tengfei,” I said, keeping my voice calm but with a hint of authority, as I glared at the emperor who was still lying on his bed, face down and half-naked at near midday. “Get up right now and get dressed. I’ll wait for you in the tea room. If you don’t come out in half an hour, I’ll come drag you out of bed and put you on display as you are right in front of your palace.”

Upon hearing my threat, he quickly sat up with a gasp but kept his back on me. Although this man still acted like a child at times, he was smart enough to know that I never spoke out empty threats.

“Half an hour,” I reminded him before I turned to the Chief Eunuch Zeng Jie who was standing a few steps behind me. “Get His Majesty washed and dressed.”

“Yes, my lord,” he replied and ran to the door to summon the servants.

I walked out of the chamber and took the corridor to the right.

In front of the tea room, a place the emperor had designated as a restricted quarter for only him and me to discuss private and confidential matters, I found Empress Suyin and her son, Prince Yongnian, standing before the door.

As an empress and as a first-born child of the emperor, they held the highest status in the inner court, but their demeanor possessed none of the bearing of royalty. They both looked like mere bystanders hoping to get even just a glimpse of the emperor.

As I approached, they both bowed to greet me.

“Greetings, Lord Ruan,” the empress said. “I’ve heard of your arrival in the palace, so I and my son have come to pay our respect and gratitude to you for heeding our plea.”

I sighed. Indeed, Empress Suyin was the one who had sent me a message informing me about Shi Tengfei’s condition, that the emperor had locked himself inside his room and would not allow anyone in except for his chief eunuch. He had abandoned his duties as the emperor for so long that many of the officials had started to lose faith in him.

Shi Tengfei’s reign had been met with strong opposition from the start. The only reason that no one had done more than file petitions was because they knew that Shi Tengfei had me at his back. Empress Suyin knew that if I stayed away for too long while the emperor was at his lowest, those people who’d been eyeing the throne, especially his older brother who had remained bitter over the years, would grab the opportunity to dethrone the emperor.

“I’m surprised you knew where to reach me,” I replied.

“I knew you were heading to the west, so I figured you’d stop by in Qushan before crossing the desert. I sent one letter to each of the inns in Qushan to make sure you get the message.”

I nodded. This woman possessed a brain that none of the consorts and concubines could equal. That was the reason why I did not object when the late Empress Dowager had selected her for Shi Tengfei’s empress even if she was ten years older. Unfortunately, Shi Tengfei could not see that. To him, Empress Suyin was just an old, ambitious woman who had stolen the title that he had wanted to bestow on his one true love, and that was no other than Princess Xinnu’s mother.

“Is that all or do you wish to see your husband?” I asked.

She shook her head. “His Majesty resents the sight of me. I will not dare rebuke him in his current condition. I just wanted to ask his lordship how His Majesty is doing.”

I sighed. This woman was indeed pitiful, but instead of pity, I was displeased with her instead.

She was the empress. She had the right to demand more from her husband, but instead, she withdrew herself to the corner too afraid that her sight might offend the emperor and would resent her even more. From the rumors I had heard, Shi Tengfei had only bedded her on their wedding night and had never paid her another visit ever since.

She did this to herself. She had made herself pitiful. As a result, she had made her son, the firstborn who should be vying for the crown prince position, as pitiful as she was.

“He’s gotten out of bed and is being dressed,” I replied. “I’ll make sure he’ll get better from hereon. He should be here in a moment.”

“I believe you, my lord.” The empress clasped her hands and bowed again. “You’re the only one His Majesty listens to. We probably should take our leave now.”

“Why are you afraid to see your husband?”

She stared at me blankly for a moment, and then she lowered her head. “He’s in a difficult condition. I don’t wish to add to his suffering.”

“You think that he just seeing you will already cause him suffering?”

She did not answer and just swallowed. Her eyes were welling with tears, an indication of the deep-seated emotions that she had been suppressing inside her for two decades. She may be nearing her fifties, but she was still lovely. The fine wrinkles around her eyes and mouth did not make her any less appealing.

But she would not acknowledge any of that. Being much older than the other consorts and concubines, besides the fact that her husband had forgotten her existence, she had developed severe insecurity and she blamed her age and her face for it.

I could only sigh for her. The sight of her son pitying her was even more pitiful.

As they walked away, I took a good look at Prince Yongnian. I had never bothered myself with low-level cultivators before, so I had not immediately noticed that the young man had already breached the third level. At that level of skill, he should be qualified to hold a position in the imperial army, but I didn’t think he’d want that. With the way he had stared at the empress earlier, his eyes full of pain for his mother’s suffering, the last thing he wanted was to make her even lonelier.

I entered the tea room where two servants were waiting. After I settled down, another servant entered with a tea set in hand. To keep me occupied while waiting, I asked one of the servants to bring me a book to read.

Not long after, Zeng Jie walked in with the emperor behind him.

Shi Tengfei sat on the pillow from across me and the chief eunuch poured tea into his cup. He still looked a little haggard, but at least decent enough.

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“You lost your favorite son,” I started. “Yet you were reluctant to act on it because you didn’t want to implicate your second favorite son. As a result, your favorite consort has run out of the palace to seek justice for her son. And now you’re depressed.” I paused and looked at him. “Is that the reason for all this sulking? Or is there something else?”

He took a big gulp of tea before he answered. “That is all,” he replied with his head low, unwilling to meet my eyes. He looked like a child being scolded, and I looked like a father scolding a ten-year-old child.

“You handle the state affairs quite well. Why can’t you handle your family matters the same way?”

“It’s not that easy.”

“Because you are afraid of the consequences? You are afraid that you might lose your second favorite son and your two favorite consorts?”

He could not answer.

I sighed. “Shi Tengfei, I had tried to stay away from your family matters because it’s none of my business, but now that it’s affecting your official duties, I have to step in. I have no complaints with the way you manage the empire, but the way you manage your family is utterly deplorable.”

“I tried to think about what is best for everyone. I wanted to keep peace within my family, but some things are beyond my control. Consort Fei… she’s so stubborn no amount of pleading can make her understand.”

“All she wants is justice for her son, for your son. Why can’t you give that to her? You know the culprit from the very beginning, and I’ve sent you all the information that I’ve extracted from Han Bao. You have enough to demand the emperor of Wu Empire to surrender Consort Xi and Prince Bao back to Xianru. With the amount of evidence you have, he will not be willing to risk his reputation over two people related to him only by affinity, no matter how much his wife pleads. And now you expect Consort Fei to understand that?”

“They’re also my wife and son. If they come back here, only death awaits them.”

“Didn’t they kill the crown prince? How many men have been executed for killing another person? Why should they be treated differently?”

“Of all people, his lordship should understand my dilemma the most.”

“I did not raise you to be a wimp!” I grunted through my teeth. “If this comes out, people will lose their confidence in you. The royal court officials are now divided. With the crown prince dead and with the way you’re handling the issue, you might lose the support of the Zou Clan. Have you thought about that?”

He slowly lowered his head as if it was only the first time that he realized the possible outcome of things.

I allowed him a few moments of silence to reflect.

There was another glaring concern in his family that he probably had never considered. If this exploded, it might mark the end of his reign. Even I would probably rather change sides. As long as the deal was more beneficial to me, I would not give a damn whose arse was on the throne.

“Shi Tengfei, your eldest son had grown,” I said. “When was the last time you’ve spoken to him?”

He stared at me blankly. It was obvious he could not remember it.

“He was here with his mother earlier. They wanted to know how you’re doing. But before you came out, they left in a hurry. Your wife was afraid the mere sight of her would worsen your condition.”

He looked away and cleared his throat. Evidently, the subject was not to his liking.

“Shi Tengfei, I don’t care if you dislike the empress to the point that seeing her face makes you want to throw up, but I’m concerned about your eldest son. He’d been so quiet for so long. When you appointed Prince Sheng as the crown prince, disregarding his being the first-born, he never said anything, he never protested. When you had initially suspected him of poisoning Prince Sheng, he remained silent and did not even try to defend himself. When Prince Sheng died, he was supposed to stand right beside you, but you allowed the other princes to push him all the way to the back as if he was of least importance, yet he never complained. Whatever you or anyone else did to him, he had taken all the insult… but when it comes to his mother, a son can only take too much. If you continue treating his mother like a piece of garbage, this humble and devoted least favorite son of yours will soon rebel.”

“Has he shown hints that he might rebel?”

I smirked. “He didn’t, but I see it coming.” I paused. “You have to remember that next to your family, the empress’ family is the richest and most influential clan in Xianru. You managed to get away from their fury when you appointed Prince Sheng as the crown prince only because Consort Fei’s mother is also their relative, but this time around, I don’t think they’ll let you go unscathed if you disregard his right as the first-born again.”

“I’m still young. Appointing a crown prince too soon should not be an urgent matter.”

“Then make sure you live long enough until you’re ready to appoint a new crown prince, otherwise, there will be a blood bath. This empire that your father had worked so hard to build will turn into dust, and it’s all because of his son who decides based on affection rather than capabilities.”

“It’s not like my eldest son is the most capable.”

“Were you the most capable among the children of the former emperor?”

He quickly pressed his mouth shut. He knew too well that when it came to capabilities, he was far inferior to his older brother. He only managed to become the emperor because of my influence, because I thought that a less capable but modest man would fare better than a fully capable yet arrogant man.

“Don’t make me regret my decision then,” I said. “It’s important to manage the State, but it’s also important to manage your family. This eldest son of yours, he’s a third-level cultivator already, are you even aware of that?”

He looked at me with widened eyes.

Of course, he was not aware.

“For a twenty-one-year-old, that’s quite remarkable. Soon, he’d seek out a master to implant him a core to boost his cultivation. With the way you treat him and his mother, do you think he’d have a reason to remain devoted to you? I guarantee you, he’d rather abandon his empty status to become a disciple of a sect, and he’d take his mother with him. As far as I can tell, the empress had endured all those years of loneliness merely because of his son. If her son leaves, she’d have no more reason to remain here. She’d surrender her title and go with her son, even if you threaten to kill her.”

“She can’t do that,” he snapped. “She’s the empress. It’s her duty to manage the inner court.”

“Oh, I’m surprised you are aware of her duties. Ever since she became the empress, aside from the issue between Consort Fei and Consort Xi, the inner court had been peaceful. So she’s quite capable, I suppose. But have you ever acknowledged her for doing a good job?”

“The fact that I never had to reprimand her means that I’m content with her work.”

I smirked. “It’s your family, not mine. Two consorts and two sons have already left you. Soon, the empress and your eldest will leave you, as well. You still have hundreds of concubines and more than a dozen sons. Why should you care if they left? As for me, my only concern is to keep you on the throne. But if someday, this eldest son of yours comes to me and offers me the same privileges if I helped him take his rightful place, I might have to make a choice.”

Shi Tengfei’s face turned red as he looked at me in disbelief. “My lord,” he stuttered. “You couldn’t possibly do that to me. You raised me. You made me what I am now.”

I smirked. “The problem is… you no longer listen to me. As you grow older, you’re becoming stubborn. Compared to you, Prince Yongnian looks more amenable.”

He turned away with eyebrows meeting at the center. Even his neck and ears had already turned red.

He looked like a child having tantrums. Despite the strict training I had imposed on him, he still manifested hints of the spoiled child that he had once been.

I sighed. “Those things that I’ve told you have not happened yet. You can still change things. Your eldest is still devoted to you. Why make an enemy out of him if you can keep him by your side?”

He lowered his head and pondered for a moment. “I understand,” he said with a nod.

“Good.”

“My lord.” Zeng Jie cautiously approached me. “An urgent message has arrived from your disciple.”

I picked up the sealed envelope from the platter he was holding in his hand and opened it. It was from Huang Wen. The message stated that Luo Fan had been attacked by several men the day before and Huang Wen had taken him to my residence for protection.

I tightened my fists, crumpling the paper in my hand. That crown prince of Kan Empire had acted too soon, oblivious to the fact that Luo Fan was under my protection.

That dumb prince was so full of himself.

“Is there something wrong, my lord?” Shi Tengei asked.

I took a deep breath. “Something has happened. I need to return to Henmei District soon.”

“My lord.” He seemed worried. “Could you postpone your travel for a day? I have not attended the morning assembly for so long and the officials have lost faith in me. I need his lordship to accompany me tomorrow morning to reassure them that you’re still on my side.”

I sighed. “Fine. But in one condition.”

“Anything, my lord.”

“Go pay the empress a visit tonight, and every week from here on.”

His lips parted. He definitely had not anticipated my condition.

“Do we have a deal?”

He swallowed hard, and then he nodded. “I’ll do as his lordship says.”