Transmigrator Meets Reincarnator
Chapter 707: The End (1)
The Imperial City had been sealed off since last night. Currently, there was an oppressive tension within its walls, like dark clouds gathered over a mountain.
The entire forbidden palace had been invaded and was now under the control of Yuan Zhong, who was part of the Sixth Prince’s faction.
The imperial guards and soldiers of the palace had already been captured, and Sixth Prince was now seated in Wanmin Hall, where the emperor was recovering from his illness.
By the ailing emperor’s deathbed sat Imperial Concubine Wei and Sixth Prince.
Before Xiao Bojian had even brought Chu Lian to Wanmin hall, Imperial Concubine Wei was already ‘earnestly’ trying to persuade the emperor.
“Your Majesty, with the palace in this state, you no longer have any other choice!”
With a wave of her hand, a young attendant brought in a tray and walked up to the emperor’s bed. There was a golden imperial decree which was already open on the tray.
The contents of the decree had already been written: the throne was to be passed down to Sixth Prince. The only thing left to complete the decree was the special jade seal in the emperor’s hands.
The bedridden emperor’s face looked worn and haggard. His sharp eagle eyes had already lost their past luster.
He stared dead-on at the woman before him wearing a false smile, boundless hatred carried within his gaze.
In the past, one look from the emperor would have been enough to make Imperial Concubine Wei cower, but now Imperial Concubine Wei acted as if she hadn’t noticed the fearsome look from the emperor. Her smile grew even brighter, as she was visibly delighted with the circumstances.
She spoke charmingly, “Your Majesty, if you don’t have the strength to hold the seal, you could tell this concubine where the seal is. This concubine will help you to press it down.”
As if he didn’t want to continue looking at Imperial Concubine Wei’s false pretense, the emperor shut his eyes and turned his head away.
The instant the emperor shut his eyes, Imperial Concubine Wei and Sixth Prince’s expressions turned cloudy.
Sixth Prince tossed his sleeves forcefully and strode out of the hall with an overcast expression. The subordinates waiting outside immediately knew that they hadn’t accomplished their mission just yet.
In order to properly succeed the throne and be recognised by the people as the new emperor, a successor needed two things: an imperial edict and the imperial jade seal.
The decree could be faked, but the seal could not.
Sixth Prince had the palace in his control, but he couldn’t kill the emperor just yet, because he hadn’t managed to obtain the imperial jade seal!
“Is Xiao Wujing here yet?” Sixth Prince asked coldly.
Although he was only fifteen years old, he had plenty of ambition to make up for his young age.
One of his subordinates had just gotten the news and had been about to report to the prince when Sixth Prince had come asking himself.
“Replying to Your Highness, Sir Xiao has arrived at Taihe Hall, he should reach Wanmin Hall in no time.”
The good news lifted Sixth Prince’s sour mood, “Has it been done?”
“Sir Xiao has reported that all is well. He mentioned that Your Highness should not worry.”
Sixth Prince couldn’t hold back the laughter that bubbled within him. All his pent up frustration had faded away with that piece of news.
“I knew Wujing wouldn’t disappoint me.”
Sixth Prince personally walked to the front of Wanmin Hall to wait for Xiao Bojian.
While leading a group of men over and swiftly walking towards Wanmin Hall, when Xiao Bojian caught sight of Sixth Prince standing impatiently before the hall, a corner of his lips tilted upwards, forming a sinister smile.
Back inside Wanmin Hall, Imperial Concubine Wei let out a strange smile while watching over the emperor in his bed. She bent over to get closer to the emperor, and whispered into the emperor’s ear, “Your Majesty, it’s fine if you don’t want to hand over the jade seal now. We’ve prepared a nice present for Your Majesty. By then, Your Majesty must remember to hand over the jade seal in exchange for the present! Otherwise, Sister Ye will never forgive Your Majesty…”
While Imperial Concubine Wei’s was soft and cloying, her words were like a venomous snake spitting out venom.
It served the effect she wanted on the emperor.
He abruptly opened his eyes, showing off traces of his usual imposing aura as he glared furiously at Imperial Concubine Wei. There was no longer the pall of sickness hanging over him. He had transformed into a brutal and regal lion who had just been provoked.
“What did you say?!”
Despite her earlier swagger, Imperial Concubine Wei seemed to have been silenced by the sight before her. She didn’t dare to speak another word.
After some time, she regained her senses and looked closely at the emperor’s overcast expression. It was then that she remembered that the man lying in the bed before her was no longer the most respected emperor of the dynasty, but a sick and dying man who was succumbing to a slow-acting poison.
The spike of fear that the emperor had drawn out in her slowly subsided.
She chuckled, “This concubine would advise Your Majesty to save some strength. Otherwise, what will you do if you expire before you get to meet Sister Ye’s flesh and blood?”
It took a few beats before the emperor adjusted his mental state and faded back into the sick and dying monarch. He couldn’t give the game away now after acting for so long. If he threw his temper around now, then all of their efforts would go to waste.
As expected, not too long later, Chu Lian was pushed into the hall by Sixth Prince and Xiao Bojian.
Upon seeing the bound Chu Lian, the emperor’s expression almost ‘cracked’.
Chu Lian had already heard about the other identity that her body had from He Changdi.
Like He Changdi, she had never thought of using this identity to do anything. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the same for others.
Facing the current situation, she didn’t show too much surprise. Even the gaze she directed towards the emperor wasn’t too shocked.
Sixth Prince was satisfied with his father’s change in mood.
He snatched Chu Lian over from Xiao Bojian’s hands and held her against him. In his right hand, he drew a dagger and placed it against Chu Lian’s slender neck.
“Father, if you don’t want my dear sister to leave this earth at such a young age, I would advise you to hand over the imperial seal!”
The emperor was trembling with the force of his anger. If she hadn’t been tied down and threatened, Chu Lian would definitely have burst into laughter.
The emperor hadn’t been poisoned at all. Back then, Great Doctor Miao had already told them in private about the emperor’s condition. The slow-acting poison in the emperor’s body should have been treated by now.