Chapter 2: Wind and Rain Over the Realm (1)

The seventh year of the Eastern Emperor of the Yong Dynasty, Chonghua Palace.

The water clock drips long, the night is not yet deep; jade terraces and pearly halls reach toward the Milky Way, while the palace gates, a thousand layers deep, are as vast as the sea.

Ten thousand golden lamps illuminate the deep palace hall, layers of intricately embroidered cloud-curtains hanging silently between the dragon pillars. Nearby, the shadows of the palace slaves kneeling to hold the lamps are frozen upon the massive obsidian floor tiles, thick and obscure.

In the dead of the long night, not a sound is heard in the surroundings, when suddenly, hurried footsteps echo from the depths of the hall, appearing exceptionally abrupt in such silence. More than a dozen medical maids, who had been kneeling in wait before the hall for half the night, had not yet raised their heads when they heard the Changxiang Marquis, Yuexi, let out a low, desperate roar: "What are you all standing there for! The Empress Dowager has shown no improvement to this day—hurry and find a way!"

None of the medical maids dared to utter a word, until the young maid at the head raised her head and reported softly: "Marquis, the Empress Dowager's chronic illness has persisted for too long, her Qi and blood are both withered; we... truly have no way left..."

Before she could finish, Yuexi flew into a rage: "What do I keep you all for! Do you not know how to use medicine?" He paced rapidly through the hall, his originally handsome face twisted with violent, panicked expressions, "No matter what method you use, find a way for me!"

The medical maid remained silent for a moment, then added: "Reporting to the Marquis, given the Empress Dowager's current condition, unless a physician of the Witch Clan is here..."

At the sudden mention of the "Witch Clan," Yuexi seemed stung by a venomous scorpion; he whirled around and raised his hand to strike the medical maid across the face. The maid staggered, collapsing to the floor, her face instantly turning red and swollen. Although these women were medical maids serving the Empress Dowager, in the eyes of the Changxiang Marquis, they were no different from common palace slaves; such abuse was already a common occurrence. Having taken the blow, the maid merely steadied herself to kneel once more, lowering her eyes and brows, not saying another word.

"Have you lived enough? How dare you mention those two words in Chonghua Palace! I tell you, if anything happens to the Empress Dowager, every one of you will be buried with her! No one will be spared! Buried alive! All of you, buried alive!"

The angry reprimand, mixed with the man's beast-like footsteps, echoed hollowly in the hall. The medical maids, with numb expressions, knelt amidst the dim lamplight like lifeless stone statues, leaving only an endless silence.

In the cold night of the deep palace, the dripping of the water clock gradually merged into one. Suddenly, the wind rose, and the nine-branched phoenix-singing lamps hanging high seemed unable to withstand the sudden cold, flickering out one by one. Outside, it began to rain, dark clouds obscuring the moon; the night grew even darker and more deathly silent.

The long darkness, the deep cold rain, could not conceal the outcome known to all...

The Empress Dowager had countless male favorites, killed or demoted, none lasting long, yet only Yuexi held her favor deeply. For years, he had been granted a mansion and a title, enjoying endless favor, coming and going from the court, wielding power, and no one in the world dared to challenge him.

When the Empress Dowager falls, the first to be buried with her will be Yuexi—the Changxiang Marquis, who stands above one and below ten thousand, the favorite minister the Empress Dowager cannot bear to be apart from for a moment, the Yuexi who does not even place the Eastern Emperor in his eyes.

When the Empress Dowager falls, it will be the end of his glory, the end of his power, the end of his life!

Half a lifetime of prosperity, finally turning to dust; a life of storm and fury, yet life and death are impermanent. The Empress Dowager, who had controlled the Yong Dynasty for over a decade, could finally no longer outlast the Eastern Emperor—or perhaps, it would be tonight...

Yuexi forcibly suppressed the panic in his heart, his face gradually turning gloomy. In a moment unseen by anyone, a trace of viciousness flashed through his eyes. Just as the thought arose, he suddenly heard a voice ring out faintly behind him: "Still in Chonghua Palace so late, is the Changxiang Marquis preparing the funeral rites for the Empress Dowager?"

Flying snow across ice strings, flowing water splashing jade cups.

The voice was clear and slow to the ear. A breeze blew into the hall, and the cold rain of the dark night retreated submissively, leaving only the shadows of countless lamps swaying in this royal palace, in the lonely human world.

Outside the palace gate, under the bright lamps, before the heavenly stairs, a figure in cold white robes walked gradually from the depths of the night, like faint moonlight piercing heavy clouds, casting an unreal phantom in the deep, boundless darkness. Behind them followed another person in black robes, silent as the shadow of the one before, walking without a sound.

At the sudden sight of that person, the corner of Yuexi's eye spasmed—the Eastern Emperor, Zi Hao, the only surviving heir of the late Emperor, the true master of the Yong Dynasty, the person he least wished to see at this moment!

The night rain formed a fine curtain between heaven and earth, reflecting tiny glimmers of light from time to time, like silk, like blades.

The Eastern Emperor walked slowly into the hall, his clear, handsome eyes lifting slightly. He scanned the room with a smile—a smile that was gentle, yet could not hide the bone-chilling cold in his eyes. Looking at Yuexi, it made this powerful minister shudder involuntarily.

Yuexi's heart sank, but a smile had already appeared on his face: "The night is rainy and cold; Your Majesty should take care of your own health. Everything is well here with the Empress Dowager; why trouble yourself to come in person?"

Zi Hao looked at him with a light laugh: "Yuexi, you are afraid."

Yuexi bowed slightly, also smiling: "Why would Your Majesty say such a thing?"

Zi Hao looked up, his refined eyes narrowing slightly, as if admiring the magnificent hall under the lamplight, his thin lips curling into a proud, shallow arc: "Are you not afraid? Your Empress Dowager will not last the night."

Yuexi trembled all over, suddenly raising his eyes. Zi Hao's handsome eyes flickered; as they met, his dark, deep pupils were like a bottomless whirlpool, the chill instantly devouring the soul.

After a moment, Yuexi sneered: "Though Your Majesty may have such a wish, heaven may not grant it. The Empress Dowager is merely slightly indisposed; I fear Your Majesty will be disappointed."

Zi Hao let out a light sigh, as if disappointed to find his opponent unworthy after drawing his sword, mixed with faint disdain: "The sun sets and the moon wanes, stars fall and mountains crumble; if heaven grants my wish, the nation must have its mourning. Whenever stars fall over Qishan, the Imperial Capital always sees a transition of life and death—a prophecy unchanged for thousands of years, and tonight will be no exception. Has the Changxiang Marquis not seen it clearly yet?" He turned his head and smiled: "Li Si."

The medical maid at the head stepped forward and knelt submissively by his side. Zi Hao raised his hand to stroke her black hair gently, as if petting a long-domesticated cat: "You all have forgotten, Li Si was once a maid to the Nine Princess of Langxuan Palace. Although she cannot undo your poison, she also knows how to use many medicines. Now, she is the medical maid the Empress Dowager relies on most. Is that right, Li Si?"

His low inquiry was like a clear mountain spring, flowing melodiously through the cold, rainy night. Li Si raised her head and answered softly: "Yes, Master."

A flash of lightning struck in the dead of night, the golden-snake-like electric light splitting the heavy black clouds, illuminating the hall in a ghastly white, revealing a long-silent palace in the north, and seeing the dense ancient trees and the towering Profound Tower.

Yuexi looked at the medical maid kneeling at the Eastern Emperor's feet—the Empress Dowager had been seriously ill for over a year, with no medicine proving effective; in an instant, he truly understood what this meant.

Langxuan Palace, that woman who had been imprisoned for seven years—could one of her maids have overturned the heavens in this imperceptible way?

Muffled thunder rolled in, the sudden rain chaotic, dancing wildly with the wind, ruthlessly lashing against the palace gates. Amidst the lightning and thunder, Yuexi stared fixedly at Li Si, as if wanting to swallow the gentle woman whole. Suddenly, a fierce light flashed in his eyes, and he swung his palm toward her back!

This palm strike was sinister and ruthless; before it even reached her, the palm wind was already pressing against her face. Li Si's long hair suddenly danced in disarray. Just as she was about to meet a tragic end, a sword shadow like black feathers arrived through the air, the profound light sharp, shooting rapidly toward the attacker's brow.

Yuexi, caught off guard, was forced to retract his palm. Two figures crossed like lightning, separating as quickly as they met. A muffled groan was heard, and Yuexi retreated several steps. At the same time, a figure flashed, and a person calmly retreated into the shadows of the lamps behind the Eastern Emperor, standing silently in black robes with a black sword, as if they had never left.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye; Zi Hao's hand had not yet left Li Si's hair, his lips still bearing the same faint smile. Li Si remained kneeling by his side, her expression quiet, a few strands of long hair drifting down in a gentle posture, finally landing on his slender, refined fingertips.

The deep night under the lamps was boundless and endless, the sound of rain outside growing more urgent.

Yuexi shouted in extreme rage: "Mo Heng! Are you rebelling!"

The man in black behind Zi Hao did not even twitch an eye, looking ahead expressionlessly, yet a cold sword Qi emanated from his body, intimidating enough to make any rash move retreat in fear.

Zi Hao's fingers gently stroked Li Si's still slightly swollen face, a trace of faint pity melting in the depths of his eyes. He slowly smoothed her hair, as if smiling warmly, but as his pupils contracted, the smile turned into an ice blade. Turning around, he flicked his sleeve, and a True Essence of extreme cold swept across the golden lamps, stirring up cold rain, pressing straight toward Yuexi.

Yuexi felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar, his heart's blood and Qi running wild, as if thousands of sharp blades were stabbing into him, piercing through flesh and blood. The heart-gouging, bone-stripping pain grew heavier with the cold, the icy baleful energy infiltrating his meridians, almost freezing his very breath to death. He struggled to circulate his power to resist, seeing he could no longer hold on, when suddenly, a wide, flowing sleeve swept across his face, throwing him more than a zhang away. He crashed heavily against a palace pillar, a mouthful of fresh blood spraying out; had it not been for the pillar supporting him from behind, he would have long since collapsed to the ground.

Zi Hao's ink-colored eyes swept over him coldly: "The Empress Dowager is still here; I will spare your life for now. Since Li Si is my person, if you dare to hurt her, I will surely make you wish for death."

Yuexi recovered his strength, gritting his teeth and sneering: "Your Majesty, do not forget, if anything happens to me, you will not live long either! Even the Empress Dowager, if she truly cannot be cured, you will suffer a fate worse than death!"

Hearing this, Zi Hao laughed loudly, then suddenly stopped, his eyes full of mockery: "True, if I do not take your antidote, I fear I will not last three days. But you overestimate yourself. Since I dared to send her on her way today, I must have my plans. I have no interest in perishing with you." As he spoke, he tilted his head slightly, his lips curling: "Do you hear that?"

Through the heavy darkness of the driving wind and rain, a continuous sound of footsteps came from outside the hall, mixed with the sound of armor and swords clashing, and the abrupt, urgent cries of palace slaves. The various sounds, blurred into one by the heavy rain, seemed to be spreading throughout the palace, not knowing if it was the sound of wind, rain, or the clatter of boots, gradually surrounding the royal palace, shaking the earth, overturning the honor and humiliation in this human realm, subverting the rise and fall of the world, and the vicissitudes of a chaotic age.

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 3 =====