Crown of Silence

There was a charcoal stove burning in the stuffy palace, and the hot wind blew into the humidity with a faint smell of sweat, and the whole palace had a trace of rancidity.

In the corner, next to the huge copper stove, people were still pouring herbs into the fire. Pungent white smoke rose up, and the weird smell made it almost impossible to breathe.

On the gorgeous big bed, a skinny middle-aged man lay on the thick bedding, moaning hard in his sleep as if he was in a nightmare.

"Does it have to be this way?"

The attendant said to the doctor: "We must open the window. His Majesty cannot stay here. The smell of incense is so choking that he can hardly breathe."

"You cannot open the window." The old doctor shook his head: "Your Majesty must not see the wind or light. Once the incense is diluted, the virus in the lungs will spread rapidly if it loses control."

"How long will this kind of life last?" The exhausted servant said to himself, his expression gloomy.

"As long as it lasts."

The doctor looked expressionless, looked at the sad queen beside the bed, and whispered, "This is not what you should say, nor is it a question you should ask.

Just do what you should do, don't think too much about other things, and don't ask too many questions. "

The attendant was stunned for a moment, realized his faux pas, turned pale, and nodded quickly.

In the long silence, there were only the hoarse moans of the patient on the bed. Beside the hospital bed, the haggard queen's expression changed. After hesitating for a long time, she finally made up her mind, got up and walked towards the door.

At the door, two guards stopped her.

The queen's face turned ugly.

"Get out of the way, do you dare to step into my path?"

"Your Highness the Queen, you cannot leave."

The older guard said: "Your Majesty needs your company now."

The queen's face was livid, "What he needs is a doctor! A real doctor! Not this kind of dabbler who doesn't know where to find it! Not under house arrest! Don Juan, that bitch-raised bastard, he has been prepared for it for a long time It’s a good day, right? I’ve already seen that that bastard had evil intentions from the beginning!”

The guard said nothing and pretended not to hear.

"Step aside!"

The queen ordered sternly.

The guard didn't move.

"If the Queen wants some fresh air, let her go out for a walk."

A soft voice sounded from behind the door, "It's not good to be bored in there all the time."

The queen's expression changed.

The guard, as if he had been granted amnesty, stretched out his hand and opened the heavy door. In the low sound of steel hubs rubbing together, the light of the scorching sun swept into the dim palace like a waterfall.

The autumn wind passed through the yellow leaves in the courtyard, dispersing the almost suffocating air in the temple.

As the young man stepped into the palace, the queen's face turned pale and she couldn't help but retreat.

He is a head taller than himself.

His face was heroic and handsome, but he bore no resemblance to his father.

"I think there may be some misunderstandings here. Your brother, Marquis Royal, our commander-in-chief of the Forbidden Army, believed some rumors and just now did some regrettable things."

The young man named Don Juan smiled politely, "Maybe I kept you for too long, which caused some strange rumors to spread outside, but I believe that soon, the rumors will dissipate in the face of the truth.

This servant is ignorant and offended you, please don't mind. Next, I have something else to say to my father, please feel free to do so. "

The queen's face twitched, and she retreated step by step under Don Juan's advance. She lowered her head and avoided Don Juan's sight, but she saw the remaining scarlet on his boots.

Like stepping through blood.

"I'm sorry about your brother." Don Juan stopped beside her and placed a broken coat of arms in her palm: "He left me no choice."

The queen was stunned, raised her head suddenly, stared at Don Juan, her expression became distorted, and she held the iron coat of arms tightly with her five fingers, almost splitting her palm.

"you……"

She opened her mouth to scream, but heard a hoarse voice behind her.

"Is it Don Juan?"

The man on the hospital bed woke up from his sleep and opened his eyes with difficulty. There was a grayish shadow in the green eyes, and there was a hint of frightening chill in the decay.

It was obvious that he was terminally ill.

He stood up with difficulty, and the maid hurriedly wiped away the drool that leaked from the corner of his mouth. His head was still shaking slightly, leaning on the bedside diagonally, waving to Don Juan:

"Come here, son, and come in some."

Don Juan smiled: "Okay, father."

Soon, all other unrelated people left. In the silent palace, only the medicinal materials in the copper furnace were burning, making a faint sound.

"Father, are you feeling better?"

Don Juan combed his messy hair back with concern and sat in front of the bed.

"Give me some hot water, my stomach hurts."

The emperor sighed, holding the water glass handed over by his 'son', shaking his head and sighing: "Son, your poison is not very good...'Tulip' is safe, but the poison takes too long to develop, and the taste is weird. If you put it in red wine It will affect your appetite.”

Don Juan raised his brows slightly but said nothing.

"Your uncle died in the same way back then. You were much better at drugging than I was at that time."

The emperor put down the water glass, closed his eyes, and after thinking for a moment, he opened his eyes: "First the National Assembly, then the Ministry of Finance. Counting the time, you have already controlled the Imperial Army and the Army, right?"

"Not even close."

Don Juan answered truthfully: "Adrian is very slippery and has not agreed to my conditions yet."

"Don't worry, he is the Minister of War I chose, I know him." The emperor commented: "A typical fence-sitter, he knows you can use him, and he won't express his position before I die."

Don Juan listened and nodded: "It sounds soon."

"Yes, it's soon."

The emperor nodded, his expression sad: "I am probably the emperor with the shortest reign in history? I waited for a lifetime, but I only stayed on the throne for two months."

"History will remember you, father."

"Who cares?"

The emperor laughed mockingly, raised his eyes and looked at him: "After I die, treat my queen well, she is a stupid woman and can't harm you.

Your uncle will be the next emperor . You have to assist him well. "

He paused and looked at Don Juan: "Do you understand what I mean?"

Don Juan thought about it and was stunned for a moment:

"You want me to send him to the guillotine?"

"Someone has to be responsible for the mess." The emperor sighed, "The current Ministry of Finance and the National Treasury are rotten to the core. I don't have time to solve it, and he doesn't have the ability to do it. He can only make things worse.

Since he is full of the crown, give it to him and let him bear the anger of the masses and the National Assembly for you. When the next turmoil comes, you can send him to heaven with those problems.

Don Juan, you will be a new king who works hard to govern, the lord of Burgundy's revival, and a perfect emperor. "Don Juan listened, but was not happy, but fell into silence.

The emperor patted his shoulder with difficulty, "Don Juan, don't be anxious. You need to 'take your time' in some things. This is a lesson I have learned in my life.

You are too rash and sometimes too anxious. If I hadn't asked someone to clean up the mess, you would have been discovered by your brother that time."

In the long silence, Don Juan raised his head and looked at him.

"Don't you hate me? 'Father'." He bit the pronunciation of the word, "I killed my brother, your original heir, and now, I have taken away everything from you."

The emperor smiled.

"No, you have accomplished everything for me, child."

The emperor smiled with relief: "Why should I hate you? You are a good child, just like me, exactly like me, with eyes that are always hungry and never satisfied.

I originally had six sons, but when I was old, I found that they were simply unable to bear the heavy responsibility, mediocre, and only knew how to fight for leftovers in the trough like pigs, but did not dare to look up at the sky.

Can you understand my feelings? How painful and desperate.

But you are different from them, you are a wolf, a real predator.

When I saw you for the first time, I knew that you were the successor arranged by God for me. Heir, the wishes of the ancestors will be fulfilled in your hands, and you will become the true master of Burgundy, the unique king!

When I saw you, I was so ecstatic. "

He reached out and held Don Juan's hand, his eyes were burning, shining: "You don't know how relieved I was when I drank that glass of red wine with tulips, and how happy I was to welcome this result.

Unfortunately, you are still too impetuous and inexperienced sometimes, which makes me feel worried. You should have cleaned up the town of Rut a long time ago. How could such a thing leave such a big loophole? "

Don Juan was stunned.

He felt cold all over.

He lowered his head and looked at his "father".

"You... knew it a long time ago?"

"Why shouldn't I know? As a father, you must understand your son. Isn't this one of the reasons why I love you?"

The emperor looked at him and smiled. There was a hint of madness in his smile that Don Juan couldn't understand: "Don't be afraid. How could I watch you lose everything?

You are too careless and too soft-hearted. You didn't think about what if someone came out to correct you? There will always be someone who remembers your face!

Don't worry, the people sent by the queen to investigate will not come back. I have cleaned up all the mess for you. You won't have any worries."

The dying man grabbed Don Juan's wrist, but his palm was like an iron clamp, no matter how Don Juan panicked and struggled.

"You will wear the crown, my child." He stared at the heir in front of him, as if to kill his weakness: "You will become an epic. I will be forgotten by history, but history will remember you and Don Juan!"

Silence.

In the long silence, Don Juan gradually squeezed out a stiff smile on his pale face.

"I... understand."

Then, the emperor smiled, and loosened his hand contentedly, as if he had exhausted all his strength, and fell on the bed, even his pupils could hardly open.

"Don Juan, are you still there?"

"I am, father."

"Come closer, child, I can't see you clearly."

The emperor looked at the face that came closer and smiled: "Dear, tell me, who are you?"

"I am your son, father."

The young man answered hoarsely.

"Very good."

The emperor laughed, happy with this answer, and used all his strength to shout hoarsely: "Then, tell everyone who you are?"

"I am your heir."

Don Juan closed his eyes, bloodshot in his pupils: "I am the first citizen of Burgundy, the guardian of the white rose, and I will eventually be the emperor of everything!"

The emperor closed his eyes contentedly and never spoke again.

The weak breath stopped.

He died.

In silence, Don Juan leaned weakly on the chair. The sunlight shone in from outside the hall, fell on the wall, and cast a vague shadow.

He closed his eyes and laughed at himself.

"Yes, I am Don Juan."