The eunuch delivering the memorial scuttled out in panic, stumbling over himself.
"Someone! Call the imperial physician—the emperor has been poisoned!"
He shouted loudly.
Not only did the people in the bedchamber hear him, but the imperial guards stationed outside did as well.
The maids and eunuchs passing by the bedchamber also heard.
When Eunuch De realized the eunuch delivering the memorial was suspicious, he immediately chased after him, but the man was nowhere in sight.
He asked the imperial guard standing outside the hall, "Where is the man who shouted just now?"
The guard pointed toward the imperial medical academy.
"Your Highness, Baifu went that way—probably to fetch the imperial physician."
Eunuch De’s face darkened. "Bring him back!"
"Yes, Your Highness!"
But by the time the imperial physicians arrived at the bedchamber, the guards had yet to catch the man.
Although the spies Qi Yanzhou had planted in the palace held no high positions, they were scattered everywhere.
Hiding a single person was as easy as pie.
Passing along messages was also lightning fast.
Within less than two quarters of an hour, news of the emperor being poisoned and gravely ill had spread throughout the entire palace.
Half an hour later, the common people knew the emperor was on his deathbed.
"Just retribution! Heaven must have taken offense and decided to slay the emperor and install a new ruler!"
"This time, the emperor has stirred up public outrage. Countless hands are reaching out from the shadows, wanting him dead!"
"Him dying alone isn’t enough—may the Zhao family all perish!"
As the people cursed the imperial family, someone shouted in the bustling market:
"Hurry to the city gate for a spectacle!"
The words drew immediate snickers.
"A spectacle? Better than the emperor being poisoned?"
"Far more exciting than that!"
"What spectacle? Spill it! Let us all hear."
The man who had shouted waved his hand grandly.
"Follow me now—I’ll tell you on the way."
No one could resist a good show, so they all followed him toward the city gate.
"Spill it! Spill it!"
"I just got word: a martial arts master flew up to the city gate and hung something up there."
Hearing this, someone immediately raised doubts:
"Is this reliable? The imperial city gate isn’t something just anyone can climb!"
The court and the martial arts world had always coexisted without interference.
Could the emperor’s scheme to annihilate the Qi family through plague have been so heinous that it enraged the martial arts community?
As this speculation spread, the lead man shook his index finger.
"Wrong! That thing isn’t meant to intimidate the emperor—it’s a slap in the face to Eunuch De!"
"What could slap Eunuch De’s face?"
"Naturally, the thing cut off a eunuch during his castration!"
Upon hearing this, some women immediately halted.
"That filthy thing is too vile—I won’t go see it; it’ll hurt my eyes."
At that, all the women stayed behind, continuing to discuss the emperor’s poisoning and coma.
The men quickened their steps toward the city gate, chattering away.
"I’ve heard that after a eunuch’s root is cut off, it’s preserved in lime and buried with him at death, for an intact corpse."
"Hmph! Self-deceiving castrates—once it’s gone, it’s gone; why act like it’s a treasure!"
"Shouldn’t Eunuch De’s thing be in the palace? A martial arts master couldn’t get it, could he?"
"A martial arts master might not, but the Ghost Thief could. Maybe they colluded?"
"True or false, we’ll know soon enough if the palace sends someone."
As they spoke, the people arrived at the city gate.
The red sandalwood box containing Eunuch De’s severed part hung on the inner side of the wall.
A red cloth fluttered in the wind, highly conspicuous.
The lid of the wooden box was slightly ajar, revealing a crack.
Inside, a black, strip-like object wrapped in lime was visible.
Sharp-eyed folk observed and offered their comments:
"That’s way too short—shorter than my little finger!"
After a round of commentary, someone asked, "Why haven’t the city guards taken it down?"
An insider explained, "The martial arts master who put it there said that if the box is removed, the poisoned emperor and Eunuch De will both die!"
He had just entered the imperial city when he encountered this challenge to imperial authority.
Someone exclaimed, "Eunuch De’s been poisoned too?"
"Serves him right!"
Though the common folk didn’t understand court intrigues, they knew that the Beichen Kingdom’s imperial power existed in name only, long since seized by a eunuch.
They hated the emperor, but they hated Eunuch De even more.
"The lid should be fully opened! Let Eunuch De’s treasure be weathered by wind and sun, pecked at by birds!"
"Exactly! That filthy eunuch has no right to be buried whole!"
"Why didn’t the martial arts master just poison them straight out? They’re a scourge while alive!"
"Didn’t the master say that without an antidote, they’d die? Surely he won’t give them the antidote, right?"
While the people were relishing the gossip about Eunuch De’s severed part and the poisoning, the news reached the palace.
Shuangxi, Eunuch De’s personal eunuch, rushed frantically into the emperor’s bedchamber.
"Your Highness, disaster has struck!"
Eunuch De was undergoing an examination by the imperial physician.
The poison on the memorial was highly potent; just by touching it, his hands had turned red and swollen, with signs of ulceration.
The physician couldn’t yet identify the poison.
For now, he could only treat the emperor and Eunuch De with detoxifying ointments and figure things out later.
Eunuch De looked at the sweating Shuangxi and asked irritably, "What is it?"
Reluctant to mention such private matters in the presence of the physician, Shuangxi stepped close to Eunuch De and whispered in his ear about the severed part hanging from the city wall.
After speaking, he hurriedly stepped back, keeping his head low and glancing sideways to gauge Eunuch De’s reaction.
Although the rumor had spread throughout the capital, Shuangxi thought it must be false.
Normally, a eunuch’s severed part was kept in the castration chamber and could be redeemed when leaving the palace.
As the eunuch chief, Eunuch De had long since retrieved his own.
That treasure must have been hidden securely by His Highness—how could a martial arts master steal it?
Just as Shuangxi thought this, Eunuch De’s face twisted with rage.
"Qi Yanzhou!"
Shuangxi, shocked that the rumor was true, quickly knelt.
"Your Highness, calm your anger!"
Eunuch De took his anger out on Shuangxi, kicking him to the ground.
"Order the Court of Judicial Review and the Military Command to cooperate—they must catch that martial arts master!"
Shuangxi scrambled up and knelt again.
"Yes, Your Highness!"
He turned to leave, but Eunuch De called him back.
"Wait! Have the Imperial Guard find Xue Dong—they must bring him back!"
Xue Dong had never returned since he used finding herbs in the mountains for the emperor as an excuse.
Searching for him now was a long shot.
But it was better than doing nothing!
After Shuangxi left with his orders, Eunuch De seized the head of the Imperial Medical Academy by the throat and lifted him off the ground.
"I give you three days to find an antidote, or bring your head to me!"
The physician quickly replied, "I will do my utmost."
Eunuch De snorted coldly and threw the physician to the floor.
"What is the emperor’s condition?"
If the emperor were about to pass, preparations for a new emperor’s coronation would have to begin.
The physician looked at the emperor on the dragon bed, his face turning purple, and repeated the same words:
"I will do my utmost."
"Useless!"
After cursing, Eunuch De strode out of the bedchamber.
He couldn’t leave his fate in the hands of those Imperial Medical Academy fools; he had to find another way.
But as he exited the hall, he saw the emperor’s concubines approaching in a group, their beautiful faces showing signs of anxiety.
They weren’t genuinely concerned about the emperor’s health; they had come to fish for information.
“Chief Eunuch, how is His Majesty?”
“Is the poisoning severe? What did the imperial physicians say?”
“Have you decided which consorts will attend to His Majesty?”
Before the words faded, the empress’s voice rang out from behind the flock of chattering consorts.
“The bond between His Majesty and me is deep. Naturally, I will be the one to attend to him.”
As she spoke, the gaze she cast toward Eunuch De was icy with murderous intent.
“Don’t you agree, Chief Eunuch?”
If it weren’t for this damned eunuch using the emperor’s name to move against the Qi clan—and when that failed, pinning the blame on her son—her son’s position as crown prince wouldn’t have been revoked!
Now the emperor and this eunuch had struck at the Qi clan again, and failed again, leading to her son being captured, his fate unknown—dead or alive.
Whether her son lived or died, she had to do something.
Eunuch De knew the empress was angry and resentful; after all, the deposed crown prince was her only son.
Considering the military power in the empress’s maiden family, he nodded.
“Your Majesty speaks wisely.”
Then he turned to the consorts. “Ladies, please return for now.”
The consorts glanced at Eunuch De’s hand, wrapped up like a dumpling, and turned to leave.
Once the consorts were gone, the empress grabbed Eunuch De by the collar.
“Send someone to rescue my son!”
She knew clearly that Qi Yanzhou would never let Zhao Chengyu go, but she wanted to do what she could for her son.
Eunuch De grasped the empress’s wrist and pulled it away.
“Your Majesty, I will certainly send someone to rescue the Grand Prince. But you must understand—our common enemy is Qi Yanzhou.”
Rubbing her reddened wrist, the empress snorted coldly.
“You and the emperor schemed against my son—you’re enemies too!”
If her son didn’t return safely, she would avenge him.
Seeing the hatred blazing in the empress’s eyes, Eunuch De changed the subject.
“His Majesty may not last more than a few days. Whom do you think the new emperor should be?”
At these words, the empress’s expression shifted instantly.
“Is the emperor’s poisoning that severe?”
Her son was far away in Bingzhou. Even if he could be rescued, it would take at least ten days or half a month.
In the meantime, the emperor must not die!
Eunuch De extended his hands, wrapped in medicinal ointment to counter the poison.
“The poison is extremely potent, and His Majesty’s constitution is very weak.”
He cared little for the emperor’s life; whoever became the new emperor would still be under his control.
The empress’s heart sank. An overwhelming unease swelled within her.
“Chief Eunuch, whom do you have in mind?”
“If the Grand Prince cannot return safely, I will select the Eighth Prince.”
The Eighth Prince was the youngest, and his mother’s family held little power—easy to manipulate.
Hearing the first part of his words, the empress’s heart ached sharply.
Eunuch De continued. “Your Majesty, the Eighth Prince is the best choice for both of us.”
“I will do everything to save His Majesty!”
With that, the empress hurried into the bedchamber.
Eunuch De curled his lips in mockery and strode away.
The situation now could only be broken by a counterattack.
He first needed to figure out where all the news unfavorable to him and the emperor was coming from.
But the results of his investigation deeply disappointed him.
Because Beining hadn’t directly spread the news through Qi Yanzhou’s holdings. Instead, she used those channels to notify agents planted in various trades, who leaked the information.
Thus, Eunuch De traced the source to the properties of various princes and officials.
In fury, he kicked over a stool. On behalf of the emperor, he issued an imperial decree seeking doctors from across the land capable of curing the poison—offering a thousand acres of fertile land and ten thousand taels of gold.
After confiscating the assets of three high-ranking corrupt officials and a few unscrupulous merchants, the imperial treasury was no longer empty. The year’s salaries for officials were secured, and military pay could barely be distributed.
But after the decree was posted, not a single physician came forward to try.
As nightfall approached, another major event shook the capital.
A ten-thousand-signature bloody petition, led by the Song family, was delivered to the palace gates.
The people used the blood petition to urgently request that the emperor abdicate, recall the Qi clan to the capital, install Qi Yanzhou as emperor, and have Eunuch De executed by slicing.
After reading the petition’s contents, Eunuch De ordered it burned.
Yet in less than two hours, another identical blood petition arrived at the palace gates.
Since rising to power, Eunuch De had never been so cornered. The pressure forced a metallic taste of blood to rise in his throat.
Suppressing it, he looked at his festering arm.
“Qi Yanzhou, you’re ruthless,” he hissed through gritted teeth.
He then called in Shuangxi. “Grind the ink!”
He didn’t want to die. The only option was to write to Qi Yanzhou and compromise.
Shuangxi dared not look directly at Eunuch De’s hands, now covered in pustules and oozing blood.
While grinding ink, he murmured, “Chief Eunuch, this poison… it seems… it seems…”
Seeing Shuangxi hesitate, Eunuch De roared, “Speak quickly!”
“It resembles a combination of smallpox and the plague.”
The moment he said it, he knelt. “This servant is speaking recklessly—please forgive me.”
He didn’t want to stir panic with baseless speculation, but the symptoms truly matched.
If his guess was correct, it could guide the treatment.
Eunuch De immediately summoned the imperial physician.
The physician paled in fear after hearing Shuangxi’s conjecture.
“Chief… Chief Eunuch, Young Master Qi loves the people. Even if he were to counterattack against you and His Majesty, he would never use such a vicious method.”
His words lacked conviction, betraying that he too found the symptoms aligned with Shuangxi’s description.
But Eunuch De believed the physician. Qi Yanzhou was upright; he wouldn’t sacrifice commoners in his retaliation.
However, by his side was the supremely skilled physician, Ye Chutang.
Ye Chutang could cure all kinds of plagues—and could also blend such plagues into a non-contagious poison!
At this realization, Eunuch De was thoroughly shaken.
He thrust his ghastly, ruined hands before the physician. “Treat it as a plague—hurry!”
In Dayang Town.
Ye Chutang lay on a rocking chair outside the inn, gazing at the deep night sky.
The mist hadn’t yet risen; the stars glittered clearly across the firmament.
“I wonder if the capital has turned upside down yet by now?”
Beside her, Qi Yanzhou fanned gently, wafting away mosquitoes.
“Based on the news Nanxiao sent yesterday, the capital should be in chaos by now.”
This time, his lesson to Eunuch De and the emperor was brutal.
Unless the emperor and Eunuch De wanted to die, there would be no further danger until they reached Tianshan Commandery.
A wicked smile curled at the corners of Ye Chutang’s mouth.
“That damned eunuch and that damned emperor—I hope they don’t disappoint me. They’d better use the plague cure to treat the poison!”
