“I’m fine. Stop shaking me. You’re making my head hurt even more.”
Xiao Jingyu’s voice was even hoarser than before. His throat felt as though it were on fire.
He didn’t even care about drinking water right now. All he wanted to know was which damned bastard had attacked him.
That person had better pray he never found out who they were.
Because once he did, he would tear them to pieces, have them drawn and quartered—
Slice them a thousand times!
Xiao Jingyu was nearly driven mad with rage. Ever since he was a child, he had never suffered such humiliation.
Li Defu immediately let go of Xiao Jingyu’s arm, hurried to the table, and poured a cup of tea.
The tea had been brewed yesterday, because all the tea leaves in the Imperial Palace had been stolen.
That thief had absolutely no sense of restraint.
They stole everything!
Carrying the cup back, Li Deli quietly said,
“Your Majesty, let this servant help you drink some water. Your throat has gone completely hoarse.”
Xiao Jingyu nodded. He truly was thirsty.
His throat felt as if flames were burning inside it.
It even ached slightly, as though he hadn’t had a drop of water in half a lifetime.
Li Deli supported his master as Xiao Jingyu took a sip of the tea.
The moment he tasted it, he frowned deeply.
“What is this? Why doesn’t it have any flavor at all?”
Li Deli opened his mouth, reluctant to deal another blow to his master.
Seeing his hesitant expression, Xiao Jingyu weakly said,
“Speak. What happened?”
Since the emperor had asked, Li Deli immediately reported the theft in the Imperial Palace.
“What?”
Had he heard wrong?
Almost everything valuable in the entire Imperial Palace had been emptied out.
Some palaces didn’t even have tables or chairs left.
How was that possible?
There were so many things in the palace.
How many people would it take to move all of that away?
Xiao Jingyu refused to believe that such a massive disaster could have happened in just one night.
“You worthless slave! Are you lying to me? There are so many treasures in the Imperial Palace. How could they all disappear overnight?”
Furious, Xiao Jingyu slapped the bed and sat upright.
Li Deli was so frightened that he immediately fell to his knees, knocking his forehead painfully against the floor.
Even so, he honestly explained everything.
“Your Majesty, how would this servant dare deceive you? Everything I said is true.”
“Raise your head.”
Xiao Jingyu’s voice was icy.
Li Deli tremblingly lifted his head.
His eyes were filled with sincerity, without the slightest trace of deception.
Xiao Jingyu stared fixedly at him, trying to find even the smallest sign that he was lying.
But no matter how hard he looked, he couldn’t find any.
His head buzzed, and he collapsed back onto the bed.
How could this happen?
How was this possible?
How could every valuable treasure in his palace disappear overnight?
What exactly had happened?
Could someone please explain it to him?
Seeing his master’s condition, Li Deli spoke another sentence that Xiao Jingyu could hardly bear to hear.
“Your Majesty, it’s all true. This servant isn’t lying. Even the palace’s tea leaves were stolen. This tea was brewed yesterday.”
Li Deli had watched Xiao Jingyu grow up.
He knew the emperor disliked plain water and only enjoyed drinking tea.
Since there were no tea leaves left, he had no choice but to serve him yesterday’s tea.
The moment Xiao Jingyu heard this, his throat tightened.
A metallic sweetness surged upward, and he almost spat out a mouthful of blood.
He forced himself to swallow it back.
Even so, a thin streak of blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
Li Deli jumped in fright and hurriedly took out a handkerchief to carefully wipe away the blood.
But he didn’t dare say another word.
The emperor was already in a towering rage.
If he misspoke even a single word, he might not live to see tomorrow’s sunrise.
Endure it.
He couldn’t lose the dignity expected of an emperor over something like this.
Xiao Jingyu clenched his teeth so tightly that his jaw hurt, forcing himself to remain calm.
That damned thief hadn’t even spared the tea leaves.
Had they never seen good tea before?
Stealing my tea…
May they choke to death while drinking it!
Xiao Jingyu spent quite a while catching his breath, trying to calm himself.
Li Deli gently patted his chest to help him breathe.
He certainly didn’t want anything to happen to his master.
Unable to hold back any longer, Li Deli softly persuaded him while continuing to soothe his breathing.
“Your Majesty, please take care of your imperial health. You’re everyone’s pillar. You absolutely mustn’t collapse.”
If the emperor fell…
What would happen to servants like them?
They were still waiting for His Majesty to take charge of the situation.
After all, it wasn’t just jewelry, antiques, and jade that had been stolen.
Even the food had been completely cleaned out.
Whether it was the Imperial Kitchen or the private kitchens of the palace’s masters and mistresses…
Everything inside had been stolen.
Not a single thing had been left behind.
They hadn’t eaten all day.
Even now, his own stomach was growling with hunger.
After calming down a little, Xiao Jingyu slowly lay back against the pillow.
The imperial physicians hurried over.
Five or six of them rushed into the room.
Each physician took the emperor’s pulse before stepping aside.
“Imperial Physicians, how is my condition? I’m not seriously injured, am I?” Xiao Jingyu asked first.
“Please rest assured, Your Majesty. Your condition isn’t serious. You have only a slight fever, and your anger caused your blood to surge upward, making you cough up blood. This official will prescribe a few doses of medicine, and you’ll recover soon.”
The oldest physician, Imperial Physician Zhao, answered respectfully.
Hearing this, Xiao Jingyu finally let out a sigh of relief.
Fortunately…
His body was still in excellent condition.
His mood improved slightly.
“As long as it’s nothing serious. You may withdraw.”
He waved his hand.
The physicians bowed and prepared to leave.
But Xiao Jingyu suddenly stopped them.
“Wait.”
The physicians immediately halted, bowed respectfully again, and stood where they were.
“Does Your Majesty have any further instructions?” Imperial Physician Zhao asked.
“Was the Imperial Medical Academy robbed as well?” Xiao Jingyu asked.
Imperial Physician Zhao shook his head.
“Reporting to Your Majesty, nothing is missing from the Imperial Medical Academy.”
When they first heard that the Imperial Palace had been robbed, all of the physicians had assumed the Medical Bureau would have been stripped clean as well.
After all, many of its rare medicinal herbs were extremely valuable.
How could a thief possibly overlook them?
But when they arrived there, they were pleasantly surprised to find that not a single item was missing.
The physicians were overjoyed.
They even felt that this thief had some sense of honor.
At least they hadn’t stolen the medicine used to save lives.
“Very well. You may leave.”
Xiao Jingyu weakly waved them away.
“This humble official takes his leave.”
The physicians bowed together before leaving the emperor’s bedchamber.
Soon afterward, the palace maids and eunuchs quietly withdrew as well.
Xiao Jingyu lay silently on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling without saying another word.
Li Deli stood beside the bed, not daring to utter a sound.
…
Shen Shuyan slowly opened her eyes.
Like the emperor, her head throbbed painfully.
She gently raised a delicate hand to rub the aching spot, only to feel a swollen lump.
Who was it?
Which damned bastard had struck her?
The palace maid who had been standing beside the bed immediately stepped forward with concern when she saw the empress awaken.
“Your Majesty, you’re finally awake. This servant has been worried sick.”
The speaker was Cui Liu, the chief palace maid of the Empress’s Palace.
She had originally been Shen Shuyan’s personal maid before entering the palace, and afterward became the head maid serving the empress.
“What happened to me? Why does my head hurt so much?”
Shen Shuyan frowned, her voice hoarse.
Cui Liu had already prepared what she would say.
She deliberately omitted part of the truth.
Everything she did say was true—
Just not all of it.
Otherwise, she feared the empress wouldn’t be able to bear it.
After all, on the very day she became empress, she had been found hanging from the city wall together with the emperor and the Empress Dowager…
With barely any clothes covering them.
Cui Liu truly feared the empress would be overwhelmed with shame and might do something foolish.
She explained what had happened.
After listening, Shen Shuyan flew into a rage.
“What did you say? My private treasury was robbed? The Imperial Palace is heavily guarded. How could thieves break in so easily? My own treasury being stolen is one thing, but the National Treasury is protected by heavily armed guards. How could that possibly be robbed as well?”
The National Treasury had been emptied completely.
Not even a single grain of rice had been left behind.
How was that possible?
She refused to believe it.
“Your Majesty, this servant doesn’t want to believe it either. But that’s the truth. I don’t know how it happened.”
Cui Liu lowered her head honestly.
She was only a palace maid.
What could she possibly know?
Everyone wanted to know the answer.
The Imperial Palace had contained countless treasures.
Yet everything valuable had vanished.
Who had emptied the entire palace?
Shen Shuyan naturally understood that a palace maid couldn’t possibly know.
But her heart ached.
Her private treasury contained nearly half the wealth of the Prime Minister’s residence.
To ensure she had a magnificent wedding, her family had spared no expense.
And now…
Everything was gone.
Her blood surged upward.
She spat out a mouthful of blood and fainted onto the bed.
Terrified, Cui Liu cried out,
“Imperial Physician! Quickly! Summon the Imperial Physicians! Her Majesty has coughed up blood and fainted!”
The Empress’s Palace instantly became chaotic.
…
The Empress Dowager slowly opened her eyes.
Confusion filled her gaze.
Her pounding headache left her unable to think clearly.
Hadn’t she been enjoying herself in her palace with her two male lovers?
Why did her head hurt so much?
She looked around.
Her two lovers were nowhere to be found.
She also realized she wasn’t in her own palace.
This place was far too plain and shabby.
It didn’t suit her status at all.
The elderly nanny standing nearby hurriedly asked with concern when she saw the Empress Dowager awaken.
“Your Majesty, you’re awake. How are you feeling? Is there anywhere you’re uncomfortable?”
The woman was surnamed Qin, and everyone called her Nanny Qin.
She had served the Empress Dowager since she was ten years old.
It had now been nearly thirty-five years.
She was the Empress Dowager’s most trusted confidante, handling almost everything on her behalf.
Over the years, she had helped the Empress Dowager commit countless evil deeds.
She also knew many of the Empress Dowager’s secrets.
“My head hurts terribly. What happened to me? Who dared lay a hand on me?”
The Empress Dowager rubbed the swollen bump on her head as she asked.
Her name was Bai Moli.
Although her name sounded pure and elegant…
She was anything but.
Deep down, she was a woman with extremely indulgent tastes.
Long before the late emperor passed away, those two male lovers had already been smuggled into the palace disguised as eunuchs.
As the late emperor grew older, he could no longer satisfy her.
So the Empress Dowager sought her own amusement.
In private, she lived a life of extravagant debauchery.
There was almost nothing she wouldn’t try.
Nanny Qin carefully recounted the day’s events while cautiously watching the Empress Dowager’s expression.
By now, the Empress Dowager’s face had turned so dark it seemed as though ink might drip from it.
“Who was it? Who stole my private treasury? Every treasure in there was priceless! Investigate it! I want the culprit found no matter what!”
The Empress Dowager felt as though she could barely breathe.
So many treasures…
Gone.
Her private treasury contained her dowry from her maiden family, rewards bestowed by the late emperor, and expensive gifts presented by noblewomen.
Together, they were worth an enormous fortune.
She felt as though her heart were bleeding.
All she could think about was her own stolen treasury.
She hadn’t even heard Nanny Qin mention that the National Treasury had also been robbed.
Nor had she paid attention to the fact that the emperor’s and empress’s private treasuries had been emptied as well.
At that moment, she cared only about mourning her own losses.