Help! I just woke up and was stabbed by a big kid

Luoyang.

When Qin Zhaoyue entered the bedroom, the eunuch was serving the emperor medicine.

The entire bedroom was filled with the bitter smell of medicine, and the wisps of incense in the incense burner could not dispel the depressing atmosphere in the hall at all.

The emperor was only in his forties, and he used to be in good spirits. But after that strange coma, his health deteriorated day by day, and he became weaker and weaker at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Only the queen stayed by his side.

Before he became emperor, Qin Baiting was just an older prince, and he and the Crown Princess loved and respected each other, and he let her handle all the internal affairs of the Eastern Palace. He also let the Crown Princess get close to the other concubines only after she gave birth to his eldest son.

After all, she was a woman of the royal family. The Crown Princess, now the Queen, had never thought about being together for life. She knew exactly what she wanted and had never indulged in love. She put all her energy into her career.

She wanted to be the queen, and she got her wish; she also wanted to be the queen mother, so she urged Qin Zhaoyue day after day for ten years, firmly controlling the direction of the previous dynasty, fearing that any concubine's family was too ambitious.

Concubine Mu is not like that.

Concubine Mu was a woman who was forced into the palace by the Mu family halfway through. She had a free and easy personality and a natural temperament, which attracted Qin Baiting. Qin Baiting was so infatuated with love that he said he wanted to change the crown prince. This was a wake-up call for the queen, and she was completely sober.

In the past ten years since Qin Zhaochen was born, the queen has never relaxed her mind, and nightmares torment her every night. Unfortunately, her family did not have the fate of a military commander, and her official position was neither high nor low, so it can be said that she did not help Qin Zhaoyue at all.

It was not until Qin Zhaochen's mother's family committed a crime, almost all the male members were exiled, and Qin Zhaochen was sent to the White Horse Temple that she breathed a sigh of relief.

The Queen knew that the Emperor still had some rationality left in him, as he had not really let Qin Zhaoning and Qin Zhaochen fight with Qin Zhaoyue.

By now - the elder prince had been crowned king and left, and only the two infant-like Sixth and Seventh Princes and their inconspicuous maternal families were left around the capital. There was nothing that could stand in the way of Qin Zhaoyue's succession to the throne.

The Queen was no longer under pressure, she was more sober, and consciously took on the responsibilities of the Empress.

When Qin Zhaoyue entered the bedroom, he saw the queen sitting beside the bed, watching the eunuch feeding medicine into the emperor's mouth.

The queen herself could see that few of the high-ranking concubines in the harem really wanted Qin Baiting's favor. The emperor's care was arranged in order, and no one wanted to take care of the emperor for a little longer. They went to work on time and left on time, and no one was willing to stay longer.

Qin Zhaoyue knelt in front of his parents and said, "Your Highness, Father, and Queen Mother, I pay my respects to you."

The Queen immediately said, "Get up quickly. Your father is in better spirits today, but his throat is dry and sore, and he can't speak."

The emperor turned his head and looked at Qin Zhaoyue.

Qin Zhaoyue said: "Father, just take a rest. I am here to report on the situation in the court over the past three days."

After the emperor fell ill, Qin Zhaoyue followed the imperial decree and became regent on behalf of his father. This meant that the power of the entire Northern Qin was in his hands, so even if he killed his father and succeeded to the throne, he could do it quietly.

But Qin Zhaoyue remained diligent and careful, reporting the court's developments and major events in various regions every three days, without daring to slack off at all.

He knew very well that this emperor, who had been the crown prince for more than 20 years, understood the duties of a crown prince better than he did, and was also more cunning and better at disguise.

Qin Zhaoyue never dared to confirm whether he had his people lurking in the dark.

Qin Baiting's illness was so strange... He knew very well that not only Qin Baiting himself, but half of the officials in the court probably suspected that it was his fault.

It's like walking on thin ice.

Since the queen did not leave, she could naturally hear about the major events that happened in the previous dynasty. As the mother of the country, it would be a dereliction of duty if she turned a deaf ear to external affairs.

The emperor listened quietly to Qin Zhaoyue's report.

Qin Zhaoyue turned the page of the memorial in his hand and finally came to the main point of his visit.

With a sigh, he said, "Father, there are rumors in Jiangnan Road again."

The emperor looked at him.

"Father, please calm down." Qin Zhaoyue said, "This matter was urgently reported by officials from Jiangnan Province. I think this matter is of great importance."

He handed the memorial to the eunuch beside him.

The emperor took it in his hand and opened it. As his eyes moved, the emperor's face changed slightly, his neck gradually turned red, showing his rage. He tried his best to throw the letter to the ground, but the hard shell only made a light sound when it fell to the ground.

Qin Zhaoyue immediately knelt down: "Father, please calm down!"

The queen frowned. She didn't see what was written on the memorial, but she still advised softly, "Your Majesty, no matter what happens, taking care of yourself is the most important thing."

The emperor raised his hand and waved. The queen breathed a sigh of relief and immediately stood up to leave.

She was too impatient to have to look at people's faces here, and it would be more comfortable to return to the palace.

After a final worried look at Qin Zhaoyue, the queen left the bedroom.

The emperor closed his eyes and panted for a while, then finally spoke in an unusually hoarse voice: "What do you think about this matter?"

Qin Zhaoyue replied: "The emperor's uncle..."

He hesitated.

The emperor looked up and said, "It seems you know something."

"Father, calm down." Qin Zhaoyue continued, "I mentioned it when I was chatting with Gu Xu. Three years ago, my uncle was assassinated in the north of Yuning Prefecture. Does Father still remember it?"

The emperor nodded slightly.

"That day, the emperor's uncle met the father and son of Dunxin, and this was later confirmed." Qin Zhaoyue said, "The emperor's uncle claimed that he didn't want to involve ordinary people in the royal struggle. In my opinion, it seems that he is hiding something."

"What?" the emperor asked indistinctly.

"I asked Lord Dunxin about the location of the incident, and it was on an east-west official road north of Yuning Prefecture," Qin Zhaoyue said. "According to Lord Dunxin's description, they were walking in opposite directions, but for the emperor's uncle, taking that small road actually deviated from the direction of entering the capital, and was actually taking a detour."

The emperor pondered.

Qin Zhaoyue said: "So I feel that it seems that... the emperor's uncle intends to meet them."

That's enough to say. Qin Zhaoyue knew very well that the focus of the topic was not on Duke Dun Xin, but on Gu Xu and the Chaozhen Army behind Gu Xu.

The emperor looked up at him.

"I understand." The emperor said in a hoarse voice, "You go."

Qin Zhaoyue was a little surprised, but didn't dare show it on his face.

If the emperor could take action against Qin Shu because of this, he wouldn't have to face this uncle head-on. He still had too few bargaining chips in his hand. Gu Xu had always refused to mention the matter of the Chaozhen Army to him, and had frequent contact with the emperor. This time he went to Jiangnan again, which really made him uneasy.

It would be a good thing to sacrifice the emperor. The emperor is terminally ill, and the fight between Gu Xu and King Yin is ultimately a fight between two parties.

The one who will benefit in the end will only be Qin Zhaoyue.

Qin Zhaoyue left the bedroom.

He walked along the corridor to the East Palace rooms, but saw the queen standing alone in the corridor.

"Mother." Qin Zhaoyue stepped forward and saluted, guessing that his mother had something to say.