The Splendid Brocade of the Painting Physician – Chapter 174

Chapter 174: The Emperor Who Goes Mad From Time to Time

When Lu Lingxuan sent someone to chase after the diplomatic mission outside Yecheng, another piece of news was delivered to Gao Zhan’s desk!

The person who delivered the news was Liu Taozhi, the number one imperial assassin of Northern Qi!

“Your Majesty, Yuwen Hu’s mother, Lady Yan, has disappeared. It seems that someone sneaked into Lady Yan’s room and kidnapped her!”

Upon hearing the news, Gao Zhan’s face changed in shock, and he hurriedly asked, “Who did it?”

“Your Majesty, you initially sent Lady Yang, Yuwen Hu’s aunt, to the Zhou state under the pretense of escorting Yuwen Hu’s mother. This news was kept highly confidential. Apart from the Harmonious Palace Attendant and the two envoys, Minister Wei and Minister Bi, Your Majesty did not inform anyone else. This matter…”

“It couldn’t have been Yantong. Having Yuwen Hu’s aunt, Lady Yang, return to the Zhou state in place of his mother, Lady Yan, was Yantong’s idea in the first place. There’s no need for him to do such a thing, and it wouldn’t benefit him either…”

“Yes!”

Liu Taozhi lowered his head and remained silent. To the Northern Qi monarch, he was nothing more than an executioner. The emperor ordered him to kill whomever, and he would kill them. Trying to guess the emperor’s thoughts was the last thing he should do, and he wasn’t good at it either.

“I’m afraid spies from the Zhou state have already infiltrated Yecheng. I’m entrusting you to investigate this matter! Also, quickly locate Yuwen Hu’s mother, Lady Yan!”

“Yes!”

After responding, Liu Taozhi saw Gao Zhan embracing a beauty with a somewhat languid and listless expression. He hadn’t spoken for a while. Just as Liu Taozhi was about to excuse himself, Gao Zhan suddenly asked, “Taozhi, tell me, if I desire a beauty, but her husband refuses to give her to me, and this man has a reputation for virtue, making it difficult for me to act against him, what should I do?”

Liu Taozhi understood his meaning and simply said, “Please tell me who this person is, Your Majesty, and I will help you kill him!”

Gao Zhan took a sip of wine, coughed violently, chuckled a few times, and waved his hand, saying, “Forget it, there’s no rush. After this matter with the Zhou state is settled, I’ll consider this again!”

“Yes!”

“I heard that Yuwen Yong, the puppet emperor of the Zhou state, has repeatedly sent envoys to the Turks, seeking to marry a Turkic princess. This means he’s prepared to join forces with the Turks to invade our Great Qi at any moment!”

“Indeed, Your Majesty. In fact, as early as when Yuwen Tai established the foundation of the pseudo-Zhou, he sought marriage alliances with the Turks to jointly resist our Northern Qi!”

“Heh, that Muqan Khagan of the Turks is also an old fox. On one hand, he discusses marriage alliances with the Northern Zhou, and on the other, he wants to restore good relations with our Qi state. The last time they invaded our Bingzhou border, fortunately, Changgong repelled them…” Speaking of this, Gao Zhan felt inexplicably irritated again. “Forget it, forget it. That old fox of the Turks won’t give up so easily. I’m afraid he’ll join forces with the Northern Zhou to attack our Great Qi again.

First, go and investigate the disappearance of Lady Yan!”

“Yes!”

After responding, Liu Taozhi took his leave!

Gao Zhan suddenly turned over, pinning the beauty beneath him. The beauty’s face was flushed, her charm overflowing. She looked at him with a sweet smile and a shy gaze, calling out softly, “Your Majesty!”

“I am the Son of Heaven, yet I can’t have the woman I desire. Tell me, am I not utterly useless?”

“Your Majesty, this concubine wholeheartedly desires to serve you!”

“Unfortunately, after having seen such exceptional beauty, I find you ordinary women dull and uninteresting. Moreover, you once served my imperial brother, Gao Yang, didn’t you?”

As Gao Zhan asked this, the beauty’s face instantly turned pale. She clearly sensed a chilling coldness in the emperor’s seemingly amused eyes.

“Your Majesty!”

She was about to beg for mercy, but before she could, Gao Zhan’s hand had already tightened around her slender neck. With a sudden exertion of force, the woman’s head twisted and drooped onto her shoulder.

Gao Zhan got up and kicked the woman’s corpse off the bed, then summoned He Shikai and the palace attendants to enter!

“Clean this place up!”

At his command, the palace attendants trembled and responded with a “Yes,” thinking to themselves: His Majesty’s temperament is truly unpredictable; it seems he’s having another episode! The last time he had an episode, he beat the former Empress Li Zue half to death and killed her only surviving son right in front of her. Afterward, he even ordered someone to stuff Li Zue into a silk bag and throw her into a ditch for a whole day. Fortunately, palace attendants saved her, so she didn’t lose her life. After that, Li Zue became completely disillusioned and became a nun!

His Majesty loves beauties, but he never cherishes them. Whoever displeases him won’t even know how they died!

Just like this beauty, Consort Wang, before them!

“Your Majesty, did Consort Wang anger you?”

He Shikai was currently the only one who dared to speak frankly with the emperor.

Gao Zhan, however, countered with a question, “Yantong, tell me, if there’s a spy from the Zhou state by my side, what should I do?”

He Shikai’s expression changed, and he looked at the corpse of the beauty being dragged out by the palace attendants. He exclaimed in astonishment, “Your Majesty, are you saying that this Consort Wang was a Zhou spy?”

Gao Zhan chuckled twice, “Otherwise, Yantong, who do you think it could be? Who leaked the news of me sending Yuwen Hu’s aunt, Lady Yang, in place of Lady Yan?”

He Shikai instantly turned pale and knelt down.

“Your Majesty, this matter has absolutely nothing to do with me! I kept the secret strictly and haven’t told anyone!”

“Alright, alright, get up! I never suspected you!”

“It’s just that I don’t quite trust another person anymore!”

He Shikai seemed to have guessed who the other person in Gao Zhan’s words was, but at this moment, he didn’t dare to say anything in rebuttal. He changed the subject with a flattering smile, “Your Majesty, you shouldn’t worry about this. You can leave these matters to reliable ministers to handle. You’re still young, and you should enjoy life to the fullest, so as not to waste this life. Look at the emperors of the past, no matter how diligent they were in life, they all turned to ashes in the end. Yao, Shun, Jie, Zhou, their final outcomes were no different!

The virtuous husband dies for his name, the greedy husband dies for profit, the ending is the same, all paths lead to the same destination!”

Gao Zhan seemed to find his words reasonable, and his furrowed brows slightly relaxed.

He Shikai seized the opportunity and went a step further, “I know Your Majesty is troubled by the beauty. You see such a stunning beauty, yet you can’t hold her in your arms. Your Majesty must be feeling distressed. Actually, I have a plan that can alleviate Your Majesty’s suffering!”

“Tell me,” Gao Zhan’s face lit up with joy!

“Why not send the Prince of Lanling to guard the border and have him leave his princess consort in the Yecheng mansion? As long as he’s not around, Your Majesty will have plenty of opportunities. Moreover, she’s currently the Female Director of Astronomy. What difficulty would Your Majesty have in summoning her?

And even if Your Majesty can’t meet with a minister’s wife and children for now, you can summon her into the palace in the name of the Empress!”

As He Shikai spoke, Gao Zhan’s face beamed with delight, but then his expression darkened.

“But Changgong has just returned from Southern Chen not long ago, and it’s his honeymoon. Wouldn’t it be too heartless of me to send him to guard the border?”

“Your Majesty, you are the Son of Heaven, why bother with such things? As long as your imperial decree is issued, no subject would dare to disobey!”

Gao Zhan wanted to hear precisely these words. He was overjoyed and pulled He Shikai closer. The two began to play Woshuo again!

……

Just as Gao Zhan and He Shikai were engrossed in their Woshuo game, two letters were delivered to Lu Lingxuan’s mansion in Yuan Zisi and the Prince of Lanling’s mansion in the Heavenly Palace district.

“The emperor has become suspicious of you. Quickly recall the people who went to intercept the diplomatic mission!”

This was the letter He Shikai sent to Lu Lingxuan. When the housekeeper delivered the letter to Lu Lingxuan, her eyelids twitched almost imperceptibly. She hurriedly called Han Changluan over!

“Quick, bring my son back immediately!”

✿✿✿

The letter sent to the Prince of Lanling’s mansion read: The emperor suddenly went mad for some reason and strangled a beauty to death in his bedchamber! Also, it seems that He Shikai has been whispering slander in the emperor’s ear again. Please be careful, Your Highness and Princess Consort!

Upon seeing the letter, Xiao Jinyu was somewhat astonished. She asked Gao Changgong, “Has the emperor ever had such episodes before, going mad and killing people for no reason, just like Emperor Wenxuan?”

Gao Changgong shook his head and said, “The emperor does have a somewhat violent temperament, but he doesn’t go mad and kill people without reason. He has had such episodes in the past, but there were always reasons behind them!”

✿✿✿

At this point, Gao Changgong became even more frightened and couldn’t help but hold Xiao Jinyu tightly, “A’yu, with the emperor’s temperament, I’m truly afraid for you to be by his side…”

Xiao Jinyu smiled and gently interrupted,

“I’ll cherish my life, don’t worry. You saw it yourself in the Grand Ultimate Hall today, Xie Zhen isn’t someone who only knows how to offer advice blindly. I’ll adapt my approach depending on the kind of monarch I’m dealing with. Isn’t there a saying, ‘A wise person knows the times and acts accordingly’?”

Gao Changgong couldn’t help but feel a pang in his heart, and the worry in his beautiful eyes deepened:

“I’m just afraid that war is about to break out, and I’ll have to go to the border to defend against the enemy. By then, you…”

Xiao Jinyu had already told him about Yuwen Hu’s character. Regardless of whether Gao Zhan had sent his mother, Lady Yan, back to the Zhou state, war between the Qi and Zhou was inevitable. Neither Gao Zhan nor Yuwen Hu were men who kept their promises!

The so-called strategy of breaking off diplomatic relations was merely a way to probe each other’s military strength and delay the war!

Seeing his worry, Xiao Jinyu immediately interrupted with a smile, “I have Ling Ye and a detachment of personal troops sent by my Uncle Xian by my side. I’ll be fine. Changgong, you also need someone to assist you in the court, and Xie Zhen is your backing!

I’ll protect myself, don’t worry!”

Gao Changgong’s eyes suddenly welled up with tears. He said “Alright” and couldn’t help but sweep Xiao Jinyu up in his arms.

“I just wonder how Fenghuang is doing now? Did he manage to leave the diplomatic mission early as I instructed?”

✿✿✿

As dusk settled, a carriage outside Yecheng was still slowly traveling along the official road, surrounded by the diplomatic mission. The old lady inside the carriage tightly held the hand of the “maid” beside her, chattering incessantly about many things.

She spoke of her experiences from her youth, her marriage at seventeen, and her confinement as a hostage in the Qi state’s detached palace, living a monotonous and lonely life. When she talked about missing her children and grandchildren, tears streamed down her face. Then she touched the “maid’s” face and said with a tearful smile, “My youngest grandson must be about your age. Child, it’s fate that we share this carriage today. Take care of yourself, you don’t have to worry about this old woman anymore!”

The maid’s expression was somewhat surprised!

The old lady continued, “Although I’m old and a bit muddled, I’m not foolish. My son has sent people to find me many times, and every time, just when we were about to escape back to our homeland, we were caught by your Qi emperor!”

“Now I’m old and truly can’t run anymore. But having a child like you by my side, willing to listen to my rambling and talk to me, I’m content. If I can’t return to my homeland in this lifetime, I only hope that your Qi emperor will send my ashes back to the Zhou state. That would be enough!”

After saying this, she looked at the disguised “maid” with a kind expression.

“Child, tell me, what do you need this old woman to do for you? I’m willing to help, and then you can escape!”

This maid was actually Fenghuang in disguise. He had initially lied, approaching this old lady, Lady Yan, as a Zhou spy. Then he disguised her as Lady Yang and asked her to help him leave Yecheng as her maid. He hadn’t expected this old lady to have such sharp intuition despite her poor eyesight. She had already seen through his disguise.

“Old lady, you should return to the Zhou territory with the diplomatic mission. My brother said that whether you return or not, war between Qi and Zhou will break out. Why should an old lady die in a foreign land?”

The old lady couldn’t help but shed tears of gratitude.

“Your brother is truly a kind-hearted person. Hopefully, hopefully, I can still see my children and grandchildren in my lifetime!”

As soon as the old lady finished speaking, Fenghuang’s eyes became alert.

“Not good, someone is chasing after us!”

The old lady’s expression also became tense. She pushed Fenghuang and whispered, “Go quickly, child, go quickly! This old woman doesn’t need your care anymore!”

The sound of hooves thundered behind them. Fenghuang hesitated for a moment. Unexpectedly, just as the carriage entered a small path through a wooded area, chaotic footsteps could be heard from ahead!

Outside the carriage, there was sudden panic and commotion. Fenghuang swiftly opened the curtain and looked around. He saw a group of refugees dressed as bandits blocking the diplomatic mission!

“Leave all your valuables, or we’ll kill you!”

The bandit leader shouted in a gruff voice.

As a civil official, Wei Shou rarely faced bandits so directly. However, Bi Yiyun remained calm and collected. He asked unhurriedly, “Do you even know who we are? You dare to rob us?”

“I don’t care who you are! Even if the Son of Heaven himself came, we would still rob you. What’s more terrifying than an empty stomach?”

Bi Yiyun’s face instantly darkened. He hurriedly summoned the armed personal troops behind him to fight the bandits. Fenghuang, seeing these people engaged in a fierce battle, glanced at the old lady and took the opportunity to jump out of the carriage, joining the fight against the bandits!

At this moment, the sound of hooves behind them grew closer and closer!

“Who’s there ahead, daring to rob the diplomatic mission?”

Mu Tipo roared, leading a group of manor soldiers who arrived in an instant!

“Capture all these people! And as for everyone in the diplomatic mission, not a single one is allowed to leave Qi territory. Turn around and return to Yecheng!”

Hearing this order, Wei Shou was extremely surprised.

“General Mu, what is the meaning of this? His Majesty ordered us to escort the old lady to the Zhou state, why are you asking us to return to Yecheng?”

Mu Tipo currently held the position of General of the Right Guard.

“I suspect there are Zhou spies among the diplomatic mission. Everyone must return to the city for inspection!”

Bi Yiyun’s face remained calm, not knowing what to say!

However, Lu Lingxuan and her son had their reasons for acting this way, and he couldn’t question them!

At that moment, the old lady’s cries suddenly came from inside the carriage. Only then did Bi Yiyun open the carriage curtain and ask, “What’s wrong, old lady?”

The old lady cried for a while before saying, “My A’ying is gone… I saw her fighting with the bandits just now, and she was forced off the cliff by a group of them… Please go and find her for me!”

Bi Yiyun’s face changed drastically. He looked towards the direction where the bandits and personal troops were fighting, and indeed, the maid was nowhere to be seen. He took two people with him to investigate and saw that there was indeed a bottomless cliff ahead. With the shadowy figures in the night, it was impossible to see the situation clearly!

“Old lady, it’s just a maid. How about when we return to Yecheng, I’ll give you a few maidservants, alright?”

The old lady cried even harder, and Bi Yiyun was at a loss for what to do. He looked at Wei Shou!

“Why are you looking at me? I don’t know what to do either. Should we send two people down the cliff to search? We need to see her alive or dead?”

“No need to search, return to the city immediately!”

Mu Tipo shouted sternly. The old lady stopped crying, and then Bi Yiyun also waved his hand, signaling the personal troops to turn the carriage around and head back to the city!

✿✿✿

The next day, news of the diplomatic mission being recalled to Yecheng by Mu Tipo reached Gao Zhan’s ears. At the same time, Sima Maozong, the Minister of Justice, also delivered a stack of documents to Gao Zhan’s desk.

“Your Majesty, General Gao has indeed been frequently visiting Lu Lingxuan’s mansion and has a close private relationship with Lady Lu.

Moreover, the eight assassins he brought with him this time were meant to assassinate Xie Zhen.

It was also him who lured Xie Zhen to the Northern Palace with the intention of killing her. It seems he wanted to frame her as a Zhou spy after killing her!”

The location where Gao Anagong attempted to assassinate Xie Zhen was not far from the detached palace where Yuwen Hu’s family was confined. It was indeed a good excuse for framing her!

Hearing these two pieces of news in succession, Gao Zhan flew into a rage. In his anger, he violently overturned the table!

“Liu Taozhi!” he roared.

“Present!”

“Go and summon Lu Lingxuan to see me immediately!”

“Yes!”