The young eunuch beside the emperor quickly stepped forward, intending to support him. However, the emperor waved everyone away. "Don't you see that the Prince of Cang is here? I need to discuss matters with him. Step back quickly!"
The young eunuchs had no choice but to withdraw from the imperial bedchamber in unison.
In the vast bedchamber, only the emperor and Cang Xuan remained. The emperor had recovered from his coughing fit and pulled Cang Xuan to sit down at the table.
Cang Xuan lowered his eyes and looked at the emperor in front of him. Unaware that his brows were tightly furrowed, he asked, "Your Majesty is not in good health. Have you summoned the imperial physicians for a diagnosis?"
The emperor replied nonchalantly, "I've seen them. It's nothing serious. I just haven't fully recovered from the chill I caught before. And I got angry during the New Year's Eve palace banquet, which led to a recurrence of the old illness."
Mentioning the palace banquet, Cang Xuan remembered what Shu Moyun had said to him at Lingyang Ferry.
"Regarding the New Year's Eve palace banquet, I heard about it on my way here," Cang Xuan said meaningfully. "His Highness the Prince of Qi was really muddle - headed. He actually came up with such an idea to solidify his position. Confusing the royal bloodline is a capital crime at any time."
"Do you think I punished him too lightly, Lord Cang?" The emperor understood his implication and sighed. "Although the Prince of Qi was indeed muddle - headed, the laws of the Great Chu are as such. I must give him a chance to reflect. Summoning you to the palace, besides finalizing the matters of the official - conferring ceremony, I also want you to help me calculate the candidate for the next crown prince."
"A country cannot be without a crown prince for a single day, or chaos will ensue. During the court sessions in the past few days, the ministers have started to urge me to establish a crown prince as soon as possible. But the selection of the crown prince cannot be made casually. Firstly, the candidate needs to have a legitimate status; secondly, be virtuous; thirdly, be loved by the people; fourthly, have the destiny to be an emperor and be able to carry the national fortune of the Great Chu. Among my sons, who can shoulder this great responsibility? What do you think, Lord Cang?"
As he said this, he was looking at Cang Xuan. His gaze seemed to be a mix of expectation and probing, hiding an indescribable helplessness.
Cang Xuan quietly clenched his hand under the table. He didn't dodge the emperor's gaze and replied in a deep voice, "I will follow Your Majesty's order and surely select a suitable heir for the Great Chu."
The emperor smiled, looking relieved. "If you say so, I can rest assured. Now, let's first discuss the matters of the official - conferring ceremony.
In this special imperial examination, 360 vacancies were originally set. Logically, 360 people should have been recruited. But in the last test, only 221 people chose to abandon entering Qingyi Garden and instead went to help the refugees build houses and distribute porridge, far fewer than the original plan.
Among these 221 people who passed the test, there were candidates who were vying for the same position. This matter is really a headache."
"Do you have any good strategies, Lord Cang?" the emperor asked.
When setting up such a test, Cang Xuan had already anticipated this result. He said, "Back then, asking each department to sort out the vacancies and add this special imperial examination was to change the long - standing situation of no new blood in the court. Some of these vacancies are actually not crucial and can be concurrently held by others. If no candidates are selected for such positions, they can remain vacant.
As for the situation where multiple candidates have passed the palace examination for one vacancy, the first - ranked candidate will be selected, and the rest can be supplementary candidates for other vacancies."
After listening, the emperor nodded in satisfaction. "Sure enough, you have a way, Lord Cang. I've been thinking about this for more than a month, racking my brains but still not knowing how to arrange these candidates. The ministers have also been arguing about this matter, and no one can convince the other. It's really a headache. Indeed, the court cannot do without you, Lord Cang."
The emperor then pulled Cang Xuan and talked a lot more, complaining about how he had spent this month without Cang Xuan, and lamenting that the originally good New Year's Eve palace banquet had been ruined by the crown prince and the Wang family. But because of their deep roots in the court, he could only deal with them like this for the time being.
Cang Xuan watched the emperor chattering in front of him, his gaze turning solemn.
Since the emperor knew they had returned to Shengjing and had arranged for Eunuch Bao to send the rewards to the Prince of Qing's Mansion, he must also know that there was a divine doctor of traditional Chinese medicine by their side. But from beginning to end, the emperor never mentioned it. Was he not interested in this person, or - was he afraid to mention it?
Cang Xuan suddenly said, "Your Majesty is not in good health. When we returned to the capital this time, we also found the famous divine doctor of traditional Chinese medicine, 'Divine Doctor of Apricot Grove', who was well - known among the common people in the past. Why not invite this divine doctor into the palace to diagnose and treat Your Majesty?"
The emperor's voice suddenly stopped. He paused for a moment and then smiled. "There are so many imperial physicians in the Imperial Hospital, all of them are the best in the Great Chu. With them around, why bother the Divine Doctor of Apricot Grove?"
"Alright, I won't make things difficult for you. You escorted Miss Fubao back to the capital all the way. You must be tired. Go back and rest earlier. Oh, by the way, remember to draw up the list of the newly recruited officials and choose an auspicious time for the official - conferring ceremony."
After saying that, the emperor got up and walked towards the big bed behind him.
Cang Xuan watched his hunched and aged back and said, "The Divine Doctor of Apricot Grove is a woman. Her surname is Shu. She is from the Shu family in Shuzhou."
Hearing this, the emperor suddenly stopped in his tracks.
"Do you really not want to see her?" Cang Xuan asked.
"Is it that you don't want to see her because you're afraid of remembering your useless self from many years ago, or are you too ashamed to face her?"
The emperor's body visibly trembled. A glimmer of hope suddenly rose in Cang Xuan's heart. He hoped that the emperor would turn around and say something to him, whether it was a confession or an explanation.
However, the emperor never turned around to look at Cang Xuan.
"What are you talking about, Lord Cang? I don't understand."
Cang Xuan frowned tightly. He now realized that he seemed to have never truly understood the emperor's mind. He said indifferently, "I take my leave."
Even after Cang Xuan left, the emperor never turned around. But Cang Xuan didn't know that the emperor with his back to him had tears streaming down his face, soaking his robe.
Cang Xuan had hit the nail on the head.
It wasn't that he didn't want to or didn't wish to, but that he was too afraid.
He was so useless. Back then, he was powerless to fight against the aristocratic families and couldn't protect his wife and child, forcing them to flee and hide their identities. Although he had his own plans and had laid so many pieces on the chessboard over the years, the harm had already been done. What right did he have to see her again?
Maybe, without him, the mother - son pair would have lived a better life.
Overwhelmed with emotions, the emperor began to cough violently again. He covered his lips and leaned against the pillar, coughing violently. After calming down, he looked at his palm and saw some bloodstains. He calmly wiped away the blood, leaving no trace.
Calling the eunuchs to serve him, the emperor lay down on the dragon bed. When he closed his eyes, there was a relieved smile on his face.