Chapter 79 Consul

Chapter 79: The Consul

In front of the emergency room, stuff like this was pretty routine for the medical staff.

When Di Yu collapsed, even Zhu Shinian didn't react in time, but the young nurse who had just handed him the forms caught him before he hit the ground.

They brought a gurney right away, and Zhu Shinian helped them get Di Yu onto the gurney.

The secretary followed the gurney and asked Zhu Shinian to keep an eye on Tao Yuan.

"Yuanyuan, don't be scared," Zhu Shinian said quickly, seeing the stunned girl. "I just checked on him—your dad passed out from stress and high blood pressure. He's not in danger. He's been going nonstop for days. Let him get some rest."

"O-okay, Uncle..." Tao Yuan struggled to hold back her tears, but her shoulders trembled uncontrollably. "I won't cry... I won't cry."

"It's okay. If you want to cry, go ahead. It's fine."

When she finally tired herself out and could barely breathe, Zhu Shinian wiped away her tears. Jiang Huaiyan noticed her hair was disheveled and gently gathered it, tying it into a ponytail with a black elastic band.

Seeing Tao Yuan like this, everyone's heart ached. They all had kids, and they'd all been kids once.

Kids her age should be their parents' treasures, carefree, only worried about homework they haven't finished.

After her father was taken away, Tao Yuan curled up on the chair by herself, staring blankly at the light above the emergency room door.

Would her dad be okay? No one could give her a straight answer.

An hour later, Tao Juan's secretary showed up again at the emergency room entrance.

Di Yu wasn't in serious condition. The secretary had arranged a ward for him and hired a caregiver to watch over him.

They sat in a row, none of them daring to leave, anxiously and painfully waiting for the final verdict.

At 1:48 a.m., the emergency room door opened again.

Everyone braced for the worst, ready to accept any outcome.

—This time, it was good news.

The doctor, looking exhausted, walked out and breathlessly announced that Tao Juan had turned the corner and his vitals were basically stable.

Everyone let out a huge sigh of relief. Lin Wenyuan patted his own chest, repeating, "Thank God, thank God."

Zhu Shinian's tense nerves finally relaxed.

"Which one of you is Zhu Shinian?" the doctor asked, taking off his mask, looking tired.

"I am." Zhu Shinian quickly stepped forward.

"The patient's vitals are stable. You can go in and see him, but don't stay long—he's still very weak. He asked for you."

Zhu Shinian was taken aback. He glanced back at Yuanyuan, who had just been crying and still had tear stains on her face. Didn't Tao Juan want to see Yuanyuan first?

Zhu Shinian hesitated, but ultimately didn't ask, nor did he take the liberty of bringing Yuanyuan in.

The ward was very quiet. The light on the ECG monitor flickered on and off, emitting a faint, rhythmic beeping. The curves on the electrocardiogram rose and fell calmly.

After knowing each other for so many years, Zhu Shinian was seeing Tao Juan like this for the first time.

Tao Juan lay in bed, his face pale, his eye sockets deeply sunken, his cheekbones protruding. Needles were stuck in his hands, tubes connected to IV bottles, oxygen tubes in his nose, and electrode pads on his chest. Those tubes and wires extended from under the blanket to various machines by the bed.

He was like a fallen tree with its roots exposed.

"Just now, when the critical notice was issued," Zhu Shinian said cautiously, "Shimu couldn't bear it and fainted on the spot, but she's fine now. Secretary He found a caregiver to look after him."

"Do you want to see Yuanyuan? She probably wants to see you very much now. See her first, then we can talk about work. I'm young; staying up late is nothing."

"Don't see her yet. Let's talk in a few days. I look like this now—it'll only scare her."

Tao Juan shook his head and smiled self-deprecatingly, raising his hand to point at the tubes and wires covering his body.

Someone who was usually so strong, now reduced to this by illness overnight. Zhu Shinian looked away, unable to bear the sight.

"Kids don't have good memories. How much do you remember from when you were her age? Have the secretary take her home first. After this period, I'll coax her again. It's not like I'm going to die today and never see her again."

Zhu Shinian couldn't remember much from when he was Yuanyuan's age, but when it came to how to treat Yuanyuan well, he certainly wasn't as skilled as Tao Juan.

"I'm sorry for tricking you into coming to the Resistance Zone," Tao Juan said quietly.

"Telling you the truth about your brother's death at that moment—I ruined your peaceful life," Tao Juan continued.

Zhu Shinian was stunned. He had thought Tao Juan wanted to talk about work, not this.

In his position, who didn't have some dirt on their hands? Tao Juan had only schemed against him this once. Compared to the empire's politicians, such means were practically saintly.

Besides, it was Ning Ye who had committed the evil, and the empire had allowed it.

Without Tao Juan, Zhu Shinian would have remained in the dark forever, continuing to serve the empire wholeheartedly.

He shook his head. "Teacher, I had the right to know the truth and make my own choice. The truth was always there; you just let me know it. You didn't kill my brother. You don't need to apologize."

Tao Juan had told him the truth so he wouldn't be kept in the dark like a fool. He should be grateful, not dwell on the purpose or timing.

Besides, Tao Juan's purpose was noble.

Tao Juan slowly shook his head—just that one action seemed to take a lot of effort.

"But if your brother were alive," Tao Juan said, "he wouldn't have wanted me to tell you at a time like this."

He lifted his cloudy eyes to look at Zhu Shinian, and suddenly Zhu Shinian realized—his teacher was old.

He was no longer the young Captain Tao Juan of the Arctic Wolf Squad, who had dared to stand up to the empire with just a small team.

"Teacher, please don't blame yourself. He wouldn't have wanted me to join the Resistance either, but it was my choice. When Yuanyuan grows up, you won't want her to go to war either, right?"

His brother was actually alive, actually sitting on the metal chair outside the door.

But Zhu Shinian looked calmly at Tao Juan and answered without telling him that Jiang Huaiyan was Zhu Cheng.

Zhu Shinian had undergone special agent training. If he wanted to, he could control his expression almost flawlessly.

If he told Tao Juan, he would surely be sincerely happy for Zhu Shinian, his guilt would lessen, and he would feel much better.

Zhu Shinian trusted Tao Juan, respected him, and truly revered him like a father or elder brother.

But once something happens, it can happen again. His teacher had schemed against him once. Zhu Shinian didn't blame him, but there was no reason to hand over his secret vulnerability.

Having his brother back was a blessing he had never dared to dream of. He couldn't risk it.

"People are selfish," Tao Juan sighed softly. "But we're fighting tooth and nail now so that Yuanyuan's generation won't have to fight anymore."

"Yes, Teacher," Zhu Shinian said. "I don't regret joining the Resistance. You don't have to think that way either."

Tao Juan, who had just come back from the jaws of death, smiled with relief.

Zhu Shinian was a student he greatly admired, so upright and kind in a military academy full of sycophancy and bullying that it was like a white flower blooming in the mud.

If he weren't looking for an heir for the Resistance who wouldn't steal the spoils of war or think about how to become the new ruling class after the war, he wouldn't have plotted against anyone, least of all Zhu Shinian.

"Have you... read my will?"

"Shimu mentioned a little about it," Zhu Shinian replied.

"In my will, I originally had a Qi'nan agarwood bracelet to leave to you. It was given to me by my old man. You should have seen me wearing it."

"I've seen it. The color is very beautiful, and the texture is excellent."

Zhu Shinian wasn't just agreeing casually; he indeed remembered it. It was an agarwood bracelet of excellent quality, which Tao Juan treasured deeply, afraid of bumping or scratching it. Not because he had much affection for his aristocratic father, but because anyone knowledgeable could tell that the bracelet was indeed rare and expensive.

Hearing that Zhu Shinian recognized its value, Tao Juan seemed a bit proud, like an ordinary middle-aged braggart being flattered by a younger person he already admired.

Most of the things he inherited from his aristocratic father he had sold off to support the Resistance. Only this agarwood bracelet survived, because it couldn't fetch a good price on the secondhand market.

"But I can't give it to you now. I'm not dead yet."

Zhu Shinian smiled. "That's even better."

Tao Juan laughed as well. He actually knew that Zhu Shinian didn't care for things like bracelets or watches, but he felt he should leave him something. After searching, besides this, there was nothing decent to give.

"With my body in this state, I can't continue working anymore," Tao Juan continued. "Even if I worked while recovering, I wouldn't be efficient, and I'd only be a burden to everyone."

Zhu Shinian's eyes widened slightly, vaguely sensing what he was about to say.

He knew this day would come. The current outcome was far more acceptable to him than if the doctor had announced Tao Juan's failed resuscitation and the lawyer had read the will.

"Tomorrow, I will formally announce my resignation and let the Joint Military-Civilian Committee elect a new governor... Actually, the title 'governor' isn't suitable either. The head of an Imperial district is called 'governor,' and that name stuck from when there were only three Resistance districts. It makes us seem inferior. Then, let everyone brainstorm what the title should be."

"As for nominations of other candidates, you can discuss it among yourselves. Whether within the committee or among the people, you should be the obvious choice."

Zhu Shinian responded with an "Okay."

He had originally intended to assure his teacher that he would never betray the Resistance and would fight to the death for it, but when the words came to his lips, Zhu Shinian felt that no amount of words would be as reassuring to his teacher as actually doing it.

"Just call it 'Archon,'" Tao Juan said. "The Archon of the Resistance." Author's note: