Chapter 1583: Chongzhen Has Departed

The singing was melodious, the zither notes rippling, accompanied by the crisp, pleasant tinkling of jade pendants, enough to make one listen as if drunk and entranced. Now and then a light breeze drifted through, carrying wafts of subtle fragrance.

Outside the window, the grass was green and the flowers red, the waves rippling and the lotuses emerald. In a glass pavilion by the pond in the Palace of Longevity, all was peace and song and dance, harmony and joy. The Great Ming Emperor Zhu Cilang, Empress Wu Sanmei, Crown Prince Zhu Hexing, and Crown Princess Ding Yuying had all become dutiful sons, worthy grandsons, and a good daughter-in-law, keeping company with the soon-to-be-promoted Retired Emperor Zhu Youjian as he drank wine, listened to songs, and watched the dancing.

Of course, the Chongzhen Retired Emperor could only listen to the songs and smell the fragrance... and drink just a little wine diluted with water.

It was not that Zhu Cilang would not let him enjoy himself, but the old man's welfare was running out and his body could no longer take it, so they had to stop at a taste, lest he go all the way in one step and become the Late Emperor.

Chongzhen, however, was somewhat dissatisfied. After a few cups of watered wine, he stood up in a daze. A "last-generation eunuch" of about seventy (the eunuch system had largely been abolished, but a small remnant remained, all of whom had entered the palace before the abolition) hurried over to support him.

"Old His Majesty, what are you..." the old eunuch asked as he steadied Chongzhen.

"We are happy today, and wish to dance with a Hu dancer... come, hold Us steady!"

With that, the old man, supported by the eunuch, staggered toward a Hu dancer of especially graceful figure, whose features looked like a fairy out of a painting.

Zhu Hexing, seeing his grandfather still so full of lust at such an age, felt it was somewhat improper and made to rise and hold him back a little.

Zhu Cilang waved his hand and laughed. "Your grandfather is rarely this happy. Let him be!"

Seeing his father did not stop him, Zhu Hexing could hardly say anything. Chongzhen was happy at heart, though perhaps forcing a smile. He had spent fifty years learning the skills of an emperor, had learned them all, and knew how to be a wise sovereign and a mighty ruler. And he had waited until his unfilial son Zhu Cilang retired, only for the unfilial son to retire and the grandson to take over! All the skills he had spent a lifetime learning were utterly useless. It would be strange if he were not depressed.

And how old was Zhu Hexing? He looked tall and strong and was never ill, so the Chongzhen Retired Emperor had no hope left. He could only be a Retired Emperor's Retired Emperor. While he could still enjoy himself, he might as well enjoy himself a little more!

Life is short and bitter — though perhaps not so short. In any case, seize the day while you can, right?

In a daze, the Chongzhen Retired Emperor saw a Hu dancer dancing before him — needless to say, she must be a peerless beauty! A woman sent to Zhu Cilang by that girl Anu was absolutely beyond reproach! At that thought, he swayed and staggered over. The old eunuch was still supporting him, which seemed rather in the way. The old man felt the person beside him was a hindrance, so he flung his arm hard and said, "We do not need you to hold Us!"

The old eunuch was also muddle-headed with age. Without considering how old Chongzhen was, he answered and simply let go.

The Chongzhen Retired Emperor could indeed still walk, though his steps were a little unsteady, and he headed straight for that Hu dancer, which quite frightened her!

She was just a girl of seventeen or eighteen, raised and trained from childhood at the side of Khatun Anu, and had seen little of the world. Now she suddenly saw a tall, thin old man "pouncing" at her — how could she not be afraid? Was he trying to stage an accident and extort her?

She must not let him touch her!

This girl had been raised by Zhu Anu and had been thoroughly indoctrinated; her awareness was very high — she could only be touched by one man, Zhu Cilang. No other man would do, not even Crown Prince Zhu Hexing! Much less an old grandpa on the verge of death.

So she quickly dodged aside. She was a dancer trained from childhood — how nimble her movements were! Never mind Chongzhen; even Zhu Hexing could not have caught her. Only Zhu Cilang himself could pounce and catch her every time.

And how could the Chongzhen Retired Emperor have known that a woman would dodge? He had never encountered such a thing! In the eighty or ninety years of his life, he had never once met a woman who dodged him.

As a result, he pounced on empty air, and landed headfirst, slamming hard onto the floor tiles — head hitting the ground! Good heavens, he was knocked out cold at once. First a burst of stars before his eyes, then all went black, and he lost consciousness. Then...

Zhu Cilang had been holding a cup of wine, watching with great amusement, when he suddenly saw Chongzhen fall, and headfirst at that. Startled, he shot to his feet, overturning a tea table beside him, and the plates and dishes on it all crashed to the floor and shattered.

The Hu dancers performing and the musicians playing in the flower hall had also seen Chongzhen fall and Zhu Cilang's reaction, and they too were somewhat stunned. All stood staring blankly. The Hu dancer who had dodged the Chongzhen Retired Emperor was terrified as well. She knew who the shameless old man who had pounced at her was — the Emperor's own father. How had he fallen? Surely he was not going to die?

If he died, whose fault would it be? Would they seize her to be buried with him?

At that thought, she collapsed limply to the ground, gazing tearfully at the Zhu Emperor, looking more pitiful than words could say.

Zhu Cilang had no time to bother with her. He hurried over in a few quick strides, crouched beside the Chongzhen Retired Emperor lying face-down, and with effort turned him over. Then he reached under his nose to check — there was still breath!

"Imperial Physician! Imperial Physician..." Zhu Cilang shouted. "Summon the Imperial Physician at once to save the Retired Emperor!"

Zhu Cilang was a filial son; of course he could not just watch him pass away like this!

He had to try to save him, to give Zhu Cilang the chance to perform his filial duty at the bedside!

Otherwise it would truly be as the Chongzhen Retired Emperor often said — at his bedside there had never been a filial son, only beautiful women.

At Zhu Cilang's shout, the people below also came to their senses.

A matronly palace maid standing guard in the flower hall dashed out to call the Imperial Physician.

The Imperial Physician was on duty just outside the door — the masters of the Old Mountain Palace were all old now, and they had to be constantly guarded against falling ill. So the Imperial Medical Academy had to send someone to watch over the elderly masters twelve hours a day.

Soon, an old physician with a grizzled white beard arrived. He did not even take the pulse, but merely felt Chongzhen's chest, looked at the old man's alarming complexion, then pried open his eyelids to examine his pupils, and said to Zhu Cilang, "Your Majesty, the Retired Emperor's cerebral stroke has recurred... I fear, I fear..."

A cerebral stroke was a stroke!

Chongzhen had suffered a stroke the year before, but had pulled through, and seemed to have no major problems afterward.

But any experienced doctor knew that if a first stroke did not kill, a second attack was almost certainly fatal... In truth, even the first attack could not be treated; whether one lived or died depended entirely on how great one's luck was.

Moreover, the Chongzhen Retired Emperor was nearly ninety years old. Even in later ages, a stroke at that age would still call for a grand funeral to be prepared!

Zhu Cilang sighed as well, and forced out a bit of grief. "We must at least try to save him... go fetch the thousand-year wild ginseng!"

"This subject obeys the decree!" the Imperial Physician answered.

But he knew full well that no thousand-year or ten-thousand-year wild ginseng would do Chongzhen any good.

Chongzhen was now a lamp whose oil was spent, dying a natural death at the end of his allotted span... Actually, it was a fine thing. He had retired in his thirties, fathered over a hundred sons, had more wives than he could count, and despite all that debauchery and misrule, had lived to ninety!

What the hell was there left to save? And in his state, any soup poured down his throat was wasted!

Still, appearances had to be kept up, so he hastily ordered his apprentice to go to the Imperial Medical Academy and brew the thousand-year ginseng decoction.

When the ginseng decoction was ready, they pried open the Chongzhen Retired Emperor's mouth with a wooden spatula and poured it down. Then they waited about half a watch... and the Chongzhen Retired Emperor, exactly as the Imperial Physician had predicted, passed away!

"Reporting to Your Majesty: the Grand Empress Dowager (Empress Zhou), the Retired Emperor has mounted the dragon and departed for heaven..."

"Waaah... Imperial Father, how could you just leave like this?"

Zhu Cilang burst into tears at once — a filial son! How could he possibly not cry?

The imperial sons, grandsons, great-grandsons, and great-great-grandsons who had gathered in the Palace of Longevity upon hearing the news had been waiting for this very moment. Seeing Zhu Cilang weep, they all began wailing one after another.

And a flock of aging beauties — all consorts and beloved concubines of the Chongzhen Retired Emperor — upon hearing the old man was gone, also began to howl.

In the Hall of Longevity, the weeping at once became a single chorus of grief.

(End of Chapter)