in2ebook Chapter 297 The Emperor Awakens
Chapter 297 The Emperor Awakens
In the stillness of the night, the Emperor, as if guided by a pre-set biological clock, punctually opened his eyes from his coma.
The Empress stood by the Emperor's bedside. She was initially a little tired, but the moment she saw the Emperor awaken, all her weariness was replaced by joy, and she couldn't help but cry tears of joy.
However, these tears were not entirely due to her deep affection for the emperor, but more so out of her heartache for her son.
Although Canglan Jingyun was the Crown Prince and possessed the power to oversee the country, he was not yet the true Emperor. There were some important decisions he could not make on his own. Now that the Emperor had finally awakened, a great weight had been lifted from the Empress's heart, and she was naturally overjoyed.
"Empress, what's wrong? I just took a nap, why are you so sad and in tears?" The Emperor slowly turned his head, looked at the Empress, and asked softly.
The Empress quickly wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief and replied with a smile, "Your Majesty, I am crying tears of joy. You slept for so long. I have been keeping watch here, and I was really worried. Now that I see you awake, I am naturally happy."
The Emperor nodded, then frowned and pressed, "Have you found out who poisoned me?"
The Empress's expression turned serious, and she answered without hesitation, "It is Consort Qin."
The Emperor was clearly surprised by the answer. He lay on the bed and sighed deeply, "I really didn't expect it to be her..."
"Otherwise, who does Your Majesty think it is? Your Majesty? Is it me, or Consort Zhuang?" Upon hearing the Emperor's words, the Empress's face instantly turned cold, her tone filled with questioning and dissatisfaction.
Faced with the Empress's sudden coldness, the Emperor was momentarily speechless, unsure how to respond. He had only spoken casually, but he hadn't expected the Empress to be so sensitive; this questioning caught him off guard.
"It seems Your Majesty truly suspects me and Consort Zhuang." Seeing this, the Empress's dissatisfaction grew even stronger. She snorted coldly and continued, "Fine, since Your Majesty has awakened, I will no longer be an eyesore to you." With that, the Empress turned to leave, seemingly very disappointed with the Emperor's attitude.
However, just as she was about to step out of the room, the Empress seemed to suddenly remember something, stopped, and turned to the Emperor, saying, "By the way, Your Majesty didn't need to be unconscious for so long. If Consort Zhuang hadn't brought Jianping back, you probably would have continued to be unconscious."
After the Empress finished speaking, she bowed to the Emperor with swift and decisive movements. Then, without looking back, she walked out, leaving the Emperor alone on the bed. Watching her receding figure, he felt a pang of guilt.
As the Empress walked, she instructed Ying Qiu, "Go and inform the Crown Prince that the Emperor has awakened and no longer needs to handle state affairs. Let his father deal with those matters himself!"
"Yes." Ying Qiu replied respectfully, then quickly left to find His Highness the Crown Prince and convey the Empress's decree.
Lying in bed, watching the Empress's departing figure, the Emperor felt increasingly that his words had been somewhat excessive. He began to question whether he had harbored unnecessary suspicions about the Empress and Consort Zhuang.
However, as the emperor, despite his excessive behavior, he would never apologize easily.
The Empress arrived at the outer hall and said expressionlessly to Li Desheng, who was waiting there, "Chief Eunuch Li, the Emperor has woken up."
Upon hearing this, Li Desheng was astonished and asked in disbelief, "Your Majesty, has the Emperor really woken up?"
The Empress did not respond, but simply nodded slightly in affirmation.
Upon seeing this, Li Desheng was so moved that tears welled up in his eyes. He thanked them repeatedly and then ran towards the dormitory like a gust of wind.
As for what the Emperor and Li Desheng actually said, the Empress seemed unconcerned. She turned and returned to Anning Palace, as if it were all none of her business.
Upon returning to the palace, the Empress summoned her personal maid, Yingchun, and instructed her, "Go to Cuiwei Palace and tell Consort Zhuang that the Emperor has awakened and that she does not need to attend to him after dawn."
Yingchun accepted the order and left, while the Empress sat alone by the window, lost in thought.
In fact, even if the Empress hadn't sent anyone to deliver the message, Su Nuannuan had no intention of serving the Emperor. Just now, the Emperor and Empress's conversation had drifted into her ears like a gentle breeze.
Su Nuannuan felt nothing but disgust and resentment towards this cold-blooded, ruthless, and ungrateful emperor. She wished he could stay as far away from her as possible, and ideally never appear before her again.
At this moment, Su Nuannuan was filled with remorse. She felt that she hadn't given the Empress Dowager enough time to guard her tomb; she should have added another ten years. That way, she could have completely escaped this place that she loathed and stayed away from that heartless and ungrateful man.
After a moment, the Empress softly called out, "Chen Honghai."
Upon hearing the Empress's summons, Chen Honghai immediately bowed and entered the hall, replying with his head bowed, "This servant is here."
The Empress sat upright on a small couch, a bowl of steaming lotus seed soup in front of her. She gently stirred the lotus seeds in the bowl with a spoon, then looked up at Chen Honghai and said, "At daybreak, go and issue an edict to the six palaces, informing them that the Emperor has awakened and needs them to serve him medicine."
Chen Honghai hurriedly replied, "Yes, I will take care of it as soon as it is light."
The Empress nodded and added, "Remember to convey the message to every concubine without fail."
"This servant understands." Chen Honghai bowed again, then turned and left the palace.
By this time, dawn was breaking, and the light of day shone through the window onto the Empress's face, illuminating her slightly weary expression. For the past two days, the Emperor had remained unconscious, and the Empress had been filled with worry, barely closing her eyes. Except for a brief moment of rest last night when Consort Zhuang returned, she had spent the rest of her time leaning against the Emperor's bedside, trying to rest with her eyes closed, afraid to truly fall asleep.
Meanwhile, Su Nuannuan was already in bed resting. Before going to sleep, she specifically instructed Jinse and the other palace servants not to wake her unless it was something extremely serious. After all, she had stayed by the Emperor's side for a long time last night, and naturally wanted to sleep as much as possible after finally getting some rest.
As for paying respects to the Empress, Su Nuannuan said there was no need to go for the time being. She knew that the Empress must have been very tired these past two days and needed to rest well as well, so she would wait until the Empress had rested before going.
As for the Emperor who has awakened, Su Nuannuan believes that someone will serve him.