Chapter 43: “The Duke of Liu’s residence did not push from within…”

Chapter 43 "The Duke of Liu's estate had no part in this..."

That night, under the influence of the herbal medicine, Huo Ling slept deeply.

But for many others, it was a sleepless night.

In a villa owned by the Duke of Liu, Lady Gu and the Hereditary Prince of Duke Liu sat together at the table.

Recalling the scenes from the drill field earlier that day, Lady Gu looked displeased: "His Majesty and that Huo woman..."

In front of everyone, the Emperor dismissed the imperial guards and personally carried the Huo woman onto the imperial carriage. No one would believe there was nothing between them.

The candlelight on the table flickered, casting the Hereditary Prince's face in alternating light and shadow: "We misjudged."

Lady Gu turned to her husband.

The Hereditary Prince of Duke Liu rubbed his temples.

However reluctant he was to admit it, the truth was staring them in the face. To pretend otherwise would be self-deception.

"I thought she was after Prince Duan’s concubine position. I never imagined she’d aim higher than we expected."

"Given His Majesty's attitude today, the palace will soon have another imperial concubine."

Lady Gu was incredulous: "How could this happen? She’s barely been in the capital, yet she's already caught His Majesty’s eye."

The Hereditary Prince of Duke Liu cared little about how Huo Ling had connected with Emperor Jingyuan—what mattered to him was the outcome.

Lady Gu shared his concern: "She has a grudge against the Duke of Liu’s estate. If she enters the palace, could she pose a threat to Yuanwan?"

The Hereditary Prince sighed: "That is precisely what worries me."

The matter of Ji Yuanwan's adoption had remained unresolved, a constant source of frustration for the Hereditary Prince.

With the Huo woman's beauty and the Emperor's evident favor today, once she entered the palace, she’d undoubtedly rule the harem. No matter how wise His Majesty was, her whispers could sway him.

Lady Gu pressed urgently: "So what do we do?"

"Is there any way to keep her out of the palace?"

After a pause, her lips curled bitterly. Faced with an even more dreadful consequence, she finally lowered her standards: "At worst... at worst, I could persuade A Qiao to agree to let the Huo woman enter Prince Duan's mansion as a secondary consort."

If the Huo woman entered Prince Duan's mansion, at least there would still be the Princess Consort of Duan to keep her in check.

But if she entered the imperial palace and won the Emperor's favor, there might truly be no one above her to restrain her.

The Hereditary Prince slammed his teacup onto the table, his voice low but sharp: "What kind of nonsense is that?"

Lady Gu hesitated: "But... weren’t the Huo woman and Prince Duan involved? If Prince Duan could persuade her with their past sentiments, perhaps it might work."

The Hereditary Prince retorted: "Even if the Huo woman were swayed by Prince Duan's words, do you truly believe His Majesty would be pleased?"

Lady Gu clung to a last shred of hope: "His Majesty and Prince Duan are brothers, after all..."

But even she couldn't convince herself of that.

If the Emperor had any regard for Prince Duan, the scene at the drill field today would never have happened.

Taking a deep breath, as if to comfort her husband—or perhaps herself—she murmured: "No matter how much favor she gains, she’s still just a concubine. How could she possibly influence the court’s greater affairs?"

The Hereditary Prince of Duke of Liu's expression relaxed a little.

Maybe because of the harem scandals under the previous emperor, and having been tripped up by favored consorts and their sons himself, Emperor Jingyuan’s inner court only granted high positions to those who had borne imperial heirs or had followed him since his princely days.

Even if she was stunning, without noble connections, this Huo girl could at best be given a Zhaoyi or Consort rank.

That was tomorrow’s problem. For now, the Hereditary Prince of Duke of Liu had other worries on his mind.

"From the emperor’s tone, it seems he intends to thoroughly investigate the incident of the startled horse."

Lady Gu looked around nervously—even though they were alone—and whispered: "Did you plan this?"

"How did things go this way?"

In another nearby villa, He Tai slumped into an armchair, his face ashen.

Because of the Yanxi affair, he'd nursed a grudge against Huo Shiming and his daughter for years. But killing her outright was too easy—he wanted to break her slowly.

Whatever she desired or cared for, he would destroy.

Thus, he had ordered someone to drug Huo Ling's horse.

The drug would make the horse go wild. With so many Palace Guards on the training grounds, the likelihood of Huo Ling dying from a fall was slim, but one wrong move under those hooves, and she’d lose a limb.

As long as nobody died, He Tai believed no one would bother investigating the matter thoroughly.

But now everything had gone sideways.

He had considered the possibility of Huo Ling attaching herself to Princess Jiale, or even Princess Elder Ningxin—but never had he imagined she would aim straight for the most powerful man in the realm.

Trying to kill the emperor’s new favorite right under his nose was a far graver offense than targeting a Commandery Lady with no influential family backing.

A subordinate kowtowed, forehead glued to the floor: "No witnesses, no evidence—the guards might hit a dead end."

He Tai's lips trembled slightly, clinging to this faint hope that no trace had been left behind.

But if the truth could not be concealed... He shot the man a dark look.

***

Inside Chang Le Palace, the corner lanterns had all been extinguished, leaving only a single candle flickering by the bedside.

Outside, the rain grew heavier. Eunuch Li eased the door open and crept forward to Emperor Jingyuan's side, whispering in the faintest voice: "Sire, it’s past midnight..."

Emperor Jingyuan sat by the bed, leaning against a nearby frame, his eyes closed in repose. At the sound, he slowly opened them.

First, he glanced at Huo Ling on the bed, pressing a palm to her forehead to confirm her fever had not returned, then said, "We’ll stay tonight."

Eunuch Li hesitated but ultimately withdrew from the chamber.

Cui Hongyi and Wu Mo were also waiting outside.

Seeing Eunuch Li carefully shut the door, the two hurried forward.

Cui Hongyi asked, "Eunuch Li, is His Majesty still not returning to rest?"

Eunuch Li shook his head.

Wu Mo let out a shaky breath, knowing her lady’s gamble had paid off.

Cui Hongyi’s shock melted into smug satisfaction—he’d backed the right horse too.

Wow, from the moment he first laid eyes on the Commandery Lady in Changle County, he knew she was destined for greatness. Turns out, he nailed it.

Li Man turned to Wu Mo and quietly asked if she had any spare blankets.

Wu Mo understood what he meant and immediately replied, "Pretty sure we do. I'll go grab them."

...

When Huo Ling woke again, it was already daytime.

The morning light filled the entire palace as she gazed dazedly at the celestial-blue bed curtains above her.

Maybe due to the aftereffects of yesterday's fall from the horse, Huo Ling felt a dull ache in her chest, and her thoughts were sluggish. Only when a warm hand gently touched her forehead did she slowly blink and hesitantly murmur, "...Your Majesty?"

Emperor Jingyuan gave a quiet "Mm," tossing off the light blanket covering himself. "Awake? Want some water?"

When Huo Ling didn’t answer, just staring, dazed, he asked, "Still feeling unwell somewhere?"

The moment he spoke, Huo Ling couldn’t hold back—her eyes welled up, and tears rolled down.

She bit her lip, neither speaking nor sobbing, yet her still-pale face was quickly streaked with tears.

Emperor Jingyuan was startled at first, then let out a low laugh. "Why the tears?"

He patted himself down but found no handkerchief, so he used the inner sleeve of his robe to wipe her cheeks. "Wiping just makes you cry harder."

Huo Ling ignored him, pulling the blanket up to cover her face, her voice shaky with tears. "Just leave me alone."

The Emperor didn’t force her to lower the blanket, instead brushing back her messy hair with his other hand. "I’ll have them bring in hot water and have your maid help you clean up. Sound good?"

Huo Ling abruptly lowered the blanket, her eyes and the tip of her nose red from crying. "Are you leaving?"

"If you don’t want me to go, then I won’t."

Huo Ling gave a teary laugh. "Now I believe the saying that the Emperor’s word is law—you really stayed with me all night."

Emperor Jingyuan sighed. "You didn’t cry when the horse spooked, didn’t cry when you fell, didn’t cry even though you were so badly hurt—and now you cry over something this small?"

Huo Ling gradually stopped weeping. Her eyes, bright from crying, were clear and radiant, like the sky after rain.

"Asking for something even family wouldn’t do from an outsider—that was an unreasonable demand to begin with."

The Emperor said, "I am no outsider."

Huo Ling smiled softly, replying earnestly, "I get it now."

Li Man and the others, who had been waiting outside the hall, hurried in upon hearing the summons.

Emperor Jingyuan first poured Huo Ling a cup of water. After she drank, he instructed Wu Mo to help her get ready while he slipped into the side room to wash his face and wake himself up.

"Has the imperial physician arrived?"

Li Man replied, "The physician is already waiting outside. Commander Zhan is also here, saying he’s got some leads. Do you want to see him?"

Emperor Jingyuan said, "Have him wait outside."

Pity flashed through Li Man’s mind for the Commander of the Imperial Guard. This Commander Zhan really picked the worst time.

Since Huo Ling still needed her bandages changed, Emperor Jingyuan stayed in the side chamber a while longer. It wasn’t until Cui Hongyi came to remind him that he returned to the main hall, sitting beside Huo Ling as the imperial physician checked her pulse.

Huo Ling had only a slight fever the previous night, which went down after she took medicine and rested. Still, the physician prescribed a few doses of sedative herbs to ensure she slept more soundly in the coming days.

Once the physician left, Emperor Jingyuan accompanied Huo Ling in having a bowl of simple millet porridge before bringing up the issue of the Commander of the Imperial Guard: "Would you like to hear the investigation results yourself, or would you prefer to rest?"

Huo Ling didn’t hesitate. "I want to hear it."

Only then did Emperor Jingyuan instruct Li Man to call in the Commander of the Imperial Guard.

Li Man was on good terms with the Commander, and under his guidance, the latter understood how badly he’d messed up. Upon entering, he first bowed to Emperor Jingyuan, then turned slightly to give Huo Ling a respectful nod.

"Greetings to the Xiang'an Commandery Lady."

Huo Ling automatically started to get up and return the courtesy, but Emperor Jingyuan held her down. "Speak."

Seeing this, the Commander eased up a little and handed the investigation findings to Li Man, who then presented them to Emperor Jingyuan and Huo Ling.

As they reviewed the documents, the Commander started explaining.

The Imperial Guard had plenty of skilled people. After a night of investigation, they discovered traces of blue powder on the frenzied white horse.

This drug originated from the Western Regions and was extremely rare in the Central Plains. In small doses, it could treat illnesses, but an overdose would cause sudden frenzy in humans or animals.

Focusing on the drug’s swift effects, the Imperial Guard traced everyone who had entered the stables before the competition, eventually leading them to He Tai’s captain of the guard.

Huo Ling remained composed, clearly having anticipated the culprit’s identity. "Yanxi is right next to the Hexi Corridor—it would be easy for He Tai to obtain such Western poisons."

"But with just this evidence, unless the captain confesses against He Tai, we can’t hold him accountable, can we?"

Emperor Jingyuan closed the records and ordered the Commander, "Arrest and interrogate that captain."

Then, he turned to Huo Ling. "Whether the captain speaks or not, the fact remains that he is He Tai’s subordinate, and his actions frightened you and disrupted my birthday celebrations."

"I will remove him from his post and hold him for questioning. As for the rest… I’ll leave it for you to handle personally. How does that sound?"

Huo Ling’s eyes brightened, but she soon pressed her lips together. "Of course, I’d prefer to act myself. But given my lack of influence, this would only allow He Tai to remain free a while longer."

Emperor Jingyuan assured her, "He won’t."

Huo Ling smiled at him. "Then I’ll follow Your Majesty’s lead."

Emperor Jingyuan turned back to the Commander. "Did you hear everything I just said?"

The Commander clasped his fists in acknowledgment and prepared to leave, only for Emperor Jingyuan to add, "Is this all you’ve uncovered?"

Puzzled, the Commander hesitated before nodding.

Emperor Jingyuan said coolly, "Did the Duke of Liu’s estate have no hand in fanning the flames?"

At this, both the Commander and Huo Ling looked at him in surprise.

After a moment, the Commander decisively replied, "This subordinate will send men to dig deeper in that direction."