In the Yulong Pavilion, as soon as Emperor An regained consciousness, Imperial Physician Jiang stepped forward to approach him, only to be sharply waved away.
“Your Majesty…”
“Get out!”
Emperor An glared fiercely at Jiang Tian, his gaze sharp enough to cut.
Jiang Tian was his trusted confidant, the imperial physician he relied on most. Yet, he still remembered how Jiang Tian had gone to Jiyun Lane to check on Xiao Yan’s injuries, insisting that Xiao Yan was gravely wounded. That report had led him to believe the traitor had been injured saving him, causing him to misunderstand Lu Chongyuan and depose Zhao Yuanlang…
At the thought of Jiyun Lane, Emperor An’s head snapped toward Feng Lai, his expression menacing.
“You dog… servant…”
His throat ached from disuse, his voice so faint it was barely audible, but the malice in his words sent a chill through the room.
“You dare collude with Xiao Yan to harm Us… Someone, kill… kill them…”
With a *clang*, the imperial guards on either side drew their swords.
Feng Lai, in a panic, dropped the water he was holding, the bowl shattering on the floor. He fell to his knees with a *thud*.
“Your Majesty, have mercy! Your Majesty, spare me!”
Feng Lai’s face was ashen as he kowtowed repeatedly. “This servant belongs to Your Majesty. It was Your Majesty who raised me to my position today. How could I dare betray you? If I had truly defected to another, I would have fled to avoid calamity while Your Majesty was unconscious. Why would I remain in the palace?”
“That day in Jiyun Lane, this servant and Imperial Physician Jiang truly saw that traitor Xiao Yan with our own eyes. I… I don’t know what happened or how he ended up in the northwest, but I swear I did not deceive Your Majesty, nor would I ever collude with that traitor.”
“I beg Your Majesty to see the truth!”
Jiang Tian, also kneeling, kowtowed vigorously. “Your Majesty, that day I truly saw with my own eyes the Governor… no, Xiao Yan’s injuries. I saw him in Jiyun Lane.”
“His injuries, while not life-threatening, were indeed severe. That day, though Commander Yu returned to the palace, the accompanying imperial guards were present, and others can testify to it.”
“Moreover, if I or Eunuch Feng harbored ill intentions toward Your Majesty, we had countless opportunities to harm you. On the night of the palace coup, why would Eunuch Feng risk his life to protect you, nearly dying in the process? And why would I, during this time, stay by the Yulong Pavilion without leaving, doing everything in my power to treat you?”
Emperor An’s expression flickered, his emotions shifting.
Jiang Tian lunged forward, grabbing at Feng Lai’s sleeve.
“Don’t…”
Feng Lai tried to pull away.
“Don’t what? Our lives are at stake!”
Jiang Tian yanked harder, exposing Feng Lai’s arm. A gruesome scar ran from his upper arm downward, already scabbed over but still revealing the depth of the wound, which had once reached the bone. The skin below it was now reddened from the hot water spilled earlier.
Pointing at Feng Lai, Jiang Tian said, “That day, when Your Majesty fell unconscious, Eunuch Feng was also gravely injured. Yet, fearing for your safety, he never left your side. When Commander Liu refused to let him near, he stood guard outside the hall. Every decoction and meal you consumed was tasted by Eunuch Feng first.”
“Your Majesty fell into a coma from shock and blood rushing to your heart, but Eunuch Feng’s injuries damaged his organs. He relies on medicine to sleep through the pain every night. Yet, for as long as you were unconscious, he guarded you. How can Your Majesty say we colluded to betray you? It’s heartbreaking…”
“Enough, Imperial Physician Jiang!”
Feng Lai tugged his sleeve down to cover the scar, his voice low. “His Majesty was only mistaken…”
He spoke of a misunderstanding, but his pale face and the fresh wound on his forehead from kowtowing made him look utterly wretched.
Only then did Emperor An notice Feng Lai’s appearance. As a trusted attendant before the Emperor, Feng Lai had always been meticulous about his appearance, his robes pristine. Yet now, he was gaunt and disheveled, far thinner than before, his clothes wrinkled, and a scar below his neck glaringly conspicuous.
Suddenly, Emperor An recalled that night in the Zichen Hall when everyone had abandoned him. Only Feng Lai had thrown himself in front of him to block Xiao Yan’s sword, and it was he who had seized the chance to send Liu Tong’en a message.
Though Liu Tong’en had failed to turn the tide, and Xiao Yan, that traitor, had still forced him to appoint a Crown Prince in humiliation, compared to the court officials who swayed like reeds in the wind, Feng Lai was the only one who had stood unwaveringly before him from beginning to end.
“You truly didn’t collude with Xiao Yan?”
“This servant’s loyalty to Your Majesty can be witnessed by the sun and moon.”
Feng Lai raised his hand without hesitation. “I never knew the He family had surviving bloodlines, nor have I ever colluded with the He family’s traitors to harm Your Majesty. If I speak falsely, may I be pierced by ten thousand arrows, struck by five thunderbolts, and denied reincarnation after death!”
His oath was resolute.
Emperor An’s expression softened. “Get up.”
Meeting Feng Lai’s gaze, he felt a rare pang of guilt. “That traitor Xiao Yan is cunning and scheming. To eliminate the Lu family, he must have planned meticulously to trap both Us and Lu Chongyuan. If he could change his face, he naturally had ways to deceive you and Jiang Tian. We were muddled from sleep.”
Though he didn’t admit fault, the word “muddled” made Feng Lai’s eyes redden.
Emperor An couldn’t bear to look and turned his gaze away. “Where is Liu Tong’en?”
“Commander Liu has been guarding Your Majesty. This morning, exhausted and with some trouble at his residence, he left the palace briefly. But before he went, he assigned men to protect you. The Yulong Pavilion is surrounded by his people, and as soon as Your Majesty awoke, someone was sent to inform him.”
Feng Lai didn’t speak ill of Liu Tong’en. Instead, under the watchful eyes of the two imperial guards, he spoke in Liu’s defense.
“Commander Liu has been deeply worried about Your Majesty, staying in the hall day after day, neglecting even the affairs of the imperial guard and the court. If he learns Your Majesty is awake, he will surely rush back immediately.”
But as Emperor An heard Feng Lai’s words, his face darkened abruptly. “What’s the state of the court?”
Feng Lai’s expression stiffened, and he dared not speak.
Emperor An looked at Jiang Tian, who knelt silently beside him.
A sinking feeling gripped Emperor An’s heart. After that night, his reputation had been utterly ruined, and with the appointment of the Crown Prince, power had slipped from his grasp. He knew his situation was likely dire, but the expressions of Feng Lai and Jiang Tian filled him with even greater unease.
Struggling to rise, Emperor An, weakened from long bedrest, barely sat up before his limbs gave out, and he collapsed back onto the bed.
“Your Majesty!”
Feng Lai and Jiang Tian rushed forward to help, but before they could get close, the imperial guards blocked them with drawn swords.
“Step back!”
“You let go! His Majesty is ill, and I must attend to him!”
The two guards stood firm. “Back off!”
“You!”
Seeing Feng Lai’s growing agitation, Emperor An hoarsely shouted, “Let Feng Lai come!”
“No, Your Majesty. Commander Liu ordered that no one may approach you in his absence…”
“Insolent! Am I the Emperor, or is he?”
Already unsettled, Emperor An was furious that even his command to let Feng Lai approach was defied. His face flushed with anger, and after shouting, he collapsed back onto the bed, gasping for breath.
Seeing this, Feng Lai, ignoring all else, forced his way forward in a panic.
The two guards, swords in hand, hesitated. Seeing Feng Lai help Emperor An sit up and catch his breath, they didn’t dare forcibly remove him and could only stand by, watching him closely.===========
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