Nathaniel and the Emperor's Secret Chapter 10

The Grand Palace Lady sighed, put on a snow-blue cloak with rhinestones, and left in a hurry.

This prince is a good man, but unfortunately he was born into the wrong imperial family. He is loyal, kind, loves reading, and is filial to his elders. In any ordinary family, he would be a son that the elders like very much.

It was a pity that he was born in an imperial family and was the son of Emperor Alexander Qian. When Emperor Alexander Qian was fighting for the throne of the Eastern Palace, he personally fought on the battlefield and killed the Qiang people, and snatched the throne of the Eastern Palace in the flames of war. Compared with him now, this weak prince seemed too incompetent.

The Grand Palace Lady hurried to the Queen's Jing'an Hall. As soon as she entered, she found palace maids tiptoeing to and fro, and the imperial physician hurried past with his head lowered. The door of the inner room was wide open, and a smell of medicine wafted into her nose.

The Grand Palace Lady was shocked and immediately grabbed the banquet master in the Queen's Palace and asked, "My Lord, do you know that the Queen is ill?"

Si Yan hissed and whispered, "The Queen is taking care of people."

The Grand Palace Lady had a vague idea of   who it was. With a glance, she saw a man being helped onto a couch behind the curtain, and then several palace servants came and carefully carried the couch out. The Queen leaned over the man, wiping away her tears with her hands.

The Grand Palace Lady called out "Your Majesty" and then walked in. The Queen was sitting behind the tea table, in tears, and when she saw her come in, she asked blankly, "You're here?"

The Grand Palace Lady knelt down immediately and said, "I am here to pay my respects to the Crown Prince. That person just now...but...but..."

The queen suddenly slammed the teacup, making a crisp bang.

The Grand Palace Lady dared not say a word. The Queen's face changed and she gritted her teeth in anger and said, "Li Ji, that B@st@ard!"

The Grand Palace Lady hurriedly stood up and closed the green gauze cabinet.

The queen seemed to be unaware and said sternly, "It was almost dead when it was delivered! He didn't say anything, just one sentence. What do you think it was?"

The Grand Palace Lady shook her head and said, "I don't know."

"He said: Leave it to the Queen to take care of!"

The Queen's voice was almost completely shrill and changed its tone: "---That beast! He is simply not a human! There are so many handsome boys in the world, does he have to kill Nathaniel Shangguan to count?"

The Grand Palace Kneeled Down: "Your Majesty, the most important thing now is to let Master Nathaniel Shangguan take the exam. Master Nathaniel Shangguan is very talented, as long as he takes the exam, he will have a chance."

The queen tried her best to calm her breathing, and slowly stroked the Grand Palace's back, saying, "Good child, you really think the same as I do."

The Grand Palace Lady said, "I dare not."

"What is there to be afraid of? The prince is in that state. If you are not around to take care of him, how can I..."

The Grand Palace Consort looked up and saw a tear drop on the delicately made-up face of the Queen: "I have already paid so much, what do I want? Isn't it just for him to ascend the throne? If he doesn't ascend the throne, how can he be worthy of me, how can he be worthy of his brother! How can he be worthy of us for so many years, living in silence..."

Nathaniel Shangguan was actually not fully conscious. One moment he was being jolted in a sedan chair, the next moment he seemed to have arrived at the Queen's Fengxian Palace, and just as he was about to fall asleep, he was awakened by a silver needle piercing the back of his neck.

Then he was carried to the examination room on a soft couch, and arrived at the Imperial College Hall in the palace where the examination was held before the cock crowed three times.

He felt his mind was not clear, sometimes hot, sometimes cold, and he was not even sure how he sat down. After a while, candidates came one after another, and the hall was completely silent. Every minute and every second was a painful torture for him.

He was thirsty and had a high fever. Every bone in his body seemed to have been broken and reconnected. He could hardly even sit still. He couldn't hold the pen steadily in his hand. His hands were shaking so badly that he could hardly write.

The invigilator walked past the seat and saw that the candidate was acting strange, so he asked, "Are you okay?"

Nathaniel Shangguan almost fell down. He didn't even have the strength to raise his head. He just shook his head slightly.

After three years of hard study, many candidates placed great hopes on this exam. Even if they were not feeling well, they would still go to the examination room. The Imperial Academy official sighed in understanding, said nothing, shook his head and walked away.

Nathaniel Shangguan leaned over the table and took a breath for a while, reading the questions word by word. The questions were about the way to be an official, and Mingyi asked what a son should do to be filial. Every word and sentence alluded to the current emperor and the crown prince.

It’s really good, the grand Spring Examination, such an important question, with tens of thousands of candidates taking the exam...the question was actually meant for me alone to see.

Nathaniel Shangguan twitched the corners of his lips, as if he was about to smile, but then he covered his lips suddenly because of the pain.

The man seemed to want to eat the person whole, not even leaving the delicate skin in the mouth untouched, biting off every inch and every millimeter bit by bit, leaving only a mess on the ground.

Nathaniel Shangguan picked up the pen. The relationship between father and son is different from the relationship between ruler and subject... If the father is old and senile, the son should do his best to make amends and comfort him; if the ruler is incompetent, licentious, poorly governed, and violates human ethics, the subject should strongly advise or even force him to do so. How can loyalty and filial piety be confused?

---Li Ji, Nathaniel Shangguan thought coldly: Since you have set the test questions for me alone, I will just explain the answer to you carefully.

It was already noon when the exam was over. The chief examiner made the final decision, and the ancient bell rang. The whole city of Chang'an could hear the lingering echo. The papers were collected one by one, and the chief examiner lectured them on the way of being a gentleman and a minister, and then waved his hand and let them leave.

The Imperial Academy gradually became noisy. Nathaniel Shangguan vaguely realized that he had to leave. His fingers were shaking so much that he could not lift anything. Finally, he had to throw all his stationery on the table, stood up, and staggered out.

One of the examinees thought that he had forgotten his writing brush, ink, paper and inkstone, so he stepped forward and patted him: "My dear brother..."

Just like that, Nathaniel Shangguan collapsed without a sound.

The candidate was startled: "Brother! Brother! What's wrong with you? What's wrong?"

There seemed to be noise and shouts from people around him, but they were getting farther and farther away from him. Nathaniel Shangguan's eyes went dark, and he fell straight onto the platform in front of the steps of the Imperial Academy.

_

It's actually not a big deal if a candidate faints after the exam.

The chief examiner Maxwell Ding did not pay much attention to it. He just wanted to show his love for the people in front of others. So he ordered: "The officials of the Imperial College, please help the examinee to the inner room and ask the doctor to take a look."

After saying this, he turned around and saw the emperor's favorite eunuch Zhang standing by the side. He hurriedly went up to him with a big smile on his face and asked, "Hello, eunuch Zhang?"

Zhang Kuo bowed slightly and said, "Thanks to you, my family is doing well. The spring exam is over, you will have a hard time."

Maxwell Ding said hurriedly: "It's not hard, it's not hard. I will not let the emperor down."

He wanted to ask about his little daughter in the palace, but before he could open his mouth, he was interrupted by Zhang Kuo: "Sir, I suddenly remembered something. Who is the candidate who just fainted?"

Maxwell Ding had no idea who that person was, so he turned around and asked the boy, "What's the name of that candidate? Where is he from?"

The servant ran to inquire and came back, saying, "Your Excellency, it is Nathaniel Shangguan, the youngest son of Nathaniel Shangguan Shilang."

Zhang Kuo's face suddenly changed, and he rushed forward and asked, "Where is it?"

Maxwell Ding was startled, and then he saw Zhang Kuo turned around and whispered to him: "Master Ding, you don't know, that person's favor... but... but very deep!"

Maxwell Ding and his men hurried to the inner room. Nathaniel Shangguan was lying on a small couch, his face pale and his breathing shallow. There was no one around to serve him, and everyone outside was busy. A servant saw Maxwell Ding and Eunuch Zhang coming down with a few men from afar, and hurried over and shouted: "Sir! I just brewed red maple tea, would you like to try it?"

Zhang Kuo raised his hand and slapped the boy: "What have you been doing so far? Get out of the way!"

The servant was beaten and fell to the ground, and hurriedly retreated to the side. Zhang Kuo hurriedly lifted the curtain and entered the inner room. When he saw Nathaniel Shangguan's condition, he hurriedly shouted, "Hurry up and send him to the palace!"

Maxwell Ding was just asking someone to invite Nathaniel Shangguan Shilang to come. When he heard this, he dismissed his men, came over, pointed at Nathaniel Shangguan, and asked in a low voice: "Eunuch, do you know who this man is..."

Zhang Kuo made a shushing gesture and said, "Originally, I shouldn't say too much, but since I have known you for so many years, I shouldn't hide such a small thing from you. This man and the queen originally have some... some kinship."

After saying that, he leaned over and gently pushed Nathaniel Shangguan, then whispered in his ear: "Nathaniel Shangguan Master, Nathaniel Shangguan Master?"

Nathaniel Shangguan frowned dazedly, opened his eyes slightly, and after a long while he could see clearly, and asked in a low voice: "What are you doing here?"

Zhang Kuo lowered his hands and said, "The emperor sent us here."

Maxwell Ding was startled, and heard Nathaniel Shangguan close his eyes and whisper: "...Tell him to get out."

Maxwell Ding could hardly stand still, but he saw that Zhang Kuo seemed to have been used to it for a long time, and smiled and said: "Young Master, you should take care of yourself. Why do you have to be so hard on yourself? I have sent someone to report to your father's house, saying that the emperor has ordered that since you are not in good health, you should be taken to the palace to recuperate, which is also a way of caring for your subjects..."

He talked a lot and gradually Nathaniel Shangguan didn't have the energy to listen to him. He just saw his mouth opening and closing, and no one knew what he was saying. Then he fell asleep in a daze.

Zhang Kuo waited obediently on the side, and when he saw him gradually close his eyes and fall asleep, he slowly stopped talking and winked at the palace servants who had been waiting outside for a long time. Emperor Alexander Qian's order was: send the child to me, but this "beside me" did not add any time limit.

Could it be that the emperor has already made it clear to the Nathaniel Shangguan family?

...Maybe.

The Nathaniel Shangguan family does not have only this one son. If this is the only son of the family, then as an old minister, it is still reasonable to argue and swear not to obey; if there is another son in the family and he is a Concub!ne's youngest son, then when the emperor tactfully expresses his love for him, most people will not refuse too much.

There were such examples in the previous dynasties. An emperor had a few handsome boys as his servants, which was nothing. He was an unarmed boy who entered the harem alone. Apart from the emperor's favor, what else could he rely on?

As long as he leaves the Nathaniel Shangguan family, he will no longer be a son of an official family. It is difficult for Emperor Alexander Qian to possess the son of a minister, but if he is separated from the identity of a son of the Nathaniel Shangguan family, Emperor Alexander Qian can do whatever he wants to him and no one will care.

Autumn Passing Diaoliang

Emperor Alexander Qian was not in the harem. He was still in the imperial study discussing matters with ministers. The envoys from the Western Wan Kingdom were about to come to Beijing to pay homage and submit their letters of credence. Many things were piled up on his desk and had to be dealt with.

To be honest, Emperor Alexander Qian was not a foolish and licentious emperor. Although Nathaniel Shangguan sometimes scolded him for being a foolish emperor, he was not always like that. The previous dynasty had four morning court sessions a month, but Emperor Alexander Qian held them every day. He regularly checked the performance of his ministers, and rewarded and punished them in a reasonable manner. The court was in good order. It can be said that although he was somewhat immoral as a man, he was still very wise and decisive as an emperor.

Prime Minister Theodore Zheng finished explaining the arrangements for the audience with the envoys from the State of Xiwan. He looked up and saw Emperor Alexander Qian sitting silently behind his desk in a daze. He quickly lowered his head and coughed lightly.

Emperor Alexander Qian suddenly came back to his senses: "Prime Minister."

"I am here."

"Is the Spring Exam over?"

Xia Zheng was stunned: "...Just now the huge bell rang, I think it's over."

Emperor Alexander Qian nodded, and then unexpectedly and without continuity said: "In that case, the prince is not young anymore, but he has not married yet. The queen said that your little daughter is beautiful and well-mannered. I think we should marry her as my daughter-in-law. What do you think, Prime Minister?"

Prime Minister Theodore shuddered, then knelt down and kowtowed three times and nine times: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace!"

Today's Crown Princess will, if nothing unexpected happens, become the future Queen.

In fact, this "expectation" is not uncommon in the palace. A piece of snack with some ingredients, a few ill-intentioned words, or even the emperor's momentary thoughts... can all cause this accident to happen. There are too many mistakes that may completely destroy the path to becoming the queen. At the same time, the most stable approach is to ensure that the prince ascends to the throne.

Nathaniel Shangguan had always wanted to make the daughter of Prime Minister Theodore, who was once powerful, the crown princess, and he even killed Consort Xia. If the elder sister became the emperor's Concub!ne, the younger sister would never be able to become the crown prince's principal wife.

As for the fact that he conveniently framed Concub!ne Ding's family, that was purely the behavior of a vicious villain like Nathaniel Shangguan.

Emperor Alexander Qian looked down on Nathaniel Shangguan's little tricks behind his back, but if he really wanted to stop it, he couldn't stop it. He couldn't really deal with Nathaniel Shangguan. All he could do was to know that Nathaniel Shangguan was looking forward to his decree to appoint the prince as a Concub!ne, but he just didn't issue this decree. From winter to spring, he watched Nathaniel Shangguan scratching his heart every day, wandering around him every day, wanting to say something but stopping himself, but he was slow and didn't let him go.

You are trying to play tricks on me, aren't you? I'm going to make sure you don't succeed.

Emperor Alexander Qian originally planned to delay it for a year or two. If he delayed it for a year or two, he would slowly find faults and investigate the Nathaniel Shangguan family. A child without an official position who was convicted of a crime would easily fall into his hands. But now the incident happened suddenly, and he was going to do something very sorry for Nathaniel Shangguan, which might make that little thing angry or even jump over the wall... So he had to give a little compensation and a little buffer before that.

Emperor Alexander Qian coughed and said, "My dear minister, please stand up. I think the prince can't delay any longer, so let's find an auspicious day to hold the ceremony."

Xia Zheng was about to open his mouth to express his gratitude when Zhang Kuo suddenly came out from behind the crystal curtain and leaned over to whisper something into Emperor Alexander Qian's ear. Emperor Alexander Qian's face changed, and he stood up without saying a word and went straight to the inner hall.

All the officials in the hall were stunned. Zhang Kuo immediately stood up, waved his whisk, and said solemnly: "Listen to my order, all officials: we will discuss matters tomorrow. Today, I will adjourn the court..."

Zhang Kuo added the phrase "will discuss tomorrow" himself. In fact, if there was really an urgent matter, he could ask someone to send it to the palace in the afternoon. But Zhang Kuo estimated that the emperor would not leave easily after seeing Nathaniel Shangguan, so it would be impossible for the emperor to have the energy to handle official business this afternoon.

The palace maids were surrounding Nathaniel Shangguan in the inner room of Zhengtai Palace, bringing him medicine and water. Suddenly, Emperor Alexander Qian kicked the door open with a bang and barged in.

The palace servants knelt down in unison and said, "Long live the emperor!"

Emperor Alexander Qian waved his hand impatiently to let them off the hook. "Long live the emperor!" He is almost dead now, what's the point of long live the emperor!

Ah Zui, who was beside the prince, was walking to the door to inquire about the situation. When she saw Emperor Alexander Qian inside, she stopped immediately. Unexpectedly, the corner of her scarlet dress was seen by Emperor Alexander Qian. She was about to avoid him when she heard the emperor say, "Come in, Shang Gong!"

Ah Zui hurriedly came in and bowed: "Your servant greets His Majesty..."

Emperor Alexander Qian interrupted her: "Where is the imperial physician? Why are you covering him with such a thick blanket when he is unconscious? Do you want to suffocate him to death? You are an old lady in the palace, don't you know how to do this?"

Ah Zui thought, "I haven't come in yet, what does this have to do with me?" She immediately knelt down and said, "Those servants are ignorant, I will take care of Master Nathaniel Shangguan myself. The emperor has many affairs to attend to, so..."

Emperor Alexander Qian interrupted her again: "Can't I stay with him?"

Ah Zui immediately said, "I dare not!"

She was a housekeeper in the prince's palace, and the queen treated her like a half-daughter. The emperor saw that she was more loyal, brave and decisive than the prince, so he didn't say much to her. Ah Zui personally brought Xue Qiu to replace the brocade quilt, but when Emperor Alexander Qian saw it, he asked impatiently: "Is there nothing lighter?"

Ah Zui hurriedly said, "I will go get your Majesty's fire fox fur."

A eunuch chief steward beside Emperor Alexander Qian was startled, but before he could remind him that it was not in accordance with the system, Azui pinched the back of his hand and he quickly retreated.

After a while, the fire fox fur was brought. Just as Ah Zui was about to change Nathaniel Shangguan into it, he heard Emperor Alexander Qian snort and say, "I'll do it myself."

The emperor, who had never served anyone before, carefully took off the quilt little by little and wrapped him in a fire fox fur coat without disturbing Nathaniel Shangguan's sleep. Ah Zui glanced over and saw that Nathaniel Shangguan's shoulder blades were covered with blue and purple marks, some of which were oozing with blood, and he couldn't help but secretly gasp.

This is not a bed-partner at all, it's simply an attempt to abuse someone to death.

Emperor Alexander Qian wrapped Nathaniel Shangguan in a fire fox fur coat, held him horizontally in his arms, stood up and strode out. The eunuch chief hurriedly followed him and asked, "Where are you going, Your Majesty?"

Emperor Alexander Qian said calmly as he walked: "From now on, let him live in my bedroom."

The chief eunuch was about to call out this disregard for the system, but was stopped by another sentence from Emperor Alexander Qian. The emperor stopped in front of the dragon chariot, turned back and whispered to him: "...all expenses will be handled according to the rank of Fengxian Palace."

The chief eunuch was shocked.

The rank of Fengxian Palace...that's the treatment given to the current queen.

_

When Maxwell Ding entered the Qingzhen Palace with his head bent down, he seemed to see a child in the emperor's arms at a glance, but he didn't see it clearly and quickly lowered his head.

"Your Majesty, I, Maxwell Ding, pay my respects to you! Long live the emperor..."

Emperor Alexander Qian interrupted him with a sharp look, then lowered his voice and pointed to the desk in front of him: "Put it up."

Maxwell Ding quickly bent over and handed the test paper in his hand. The moment he approached, he saw the young man in Alexander Qian's arms. His thin body was wrapped in a fire fox fur coat, with only the tip of his nose exposed. He was terribly pale, as if he would die at any time.

Emperor Alexander Qian seemed to be afraid of disturbing the child, and he unfolded the test paper as quietly as possible. Maxwell Ding whispered, "Your Majesty, the Imperial College official Xie Hongjie has read this paper and tried his best to select this candidate as the third place. But after seeing what this person said, I am very frightened..."

Emperor Alexander Qian stared motionlessly at the handwriting on the test paper, the bony Slender Gold script. Even though the name was sealed on the test paper, he could still tell who the person was.

"Debauchery, extravagance, poor governance, stubbornness, stupidity, cruelty, violation of human ethics, not worthy of being a model for the world..." Emperor Alexander Qian read the words one by one in a low voice, and sneered: "---Eight resounding crimes."

Maxwell Ding lowered his head deeply.

Emperor Alexander Qian closed the test paper. It was also in front of this desk, and it was also like this, holding this person in his arms from behind, holding his hand, and teaching him calligraphy stroke by stroke. It was also like this, in early spring, but the air was as cold as late autumn. The sky outside the Qingzhen Palace was high, but there was no bird flying in the sky.

How old was the child at that time? The thin and delicate hand was held in the palm of my hand, and every delicate bone was pressed against the palm of my hand, as if with a little force, I could crush the bones and melt them into my flesh and blood.

Such beautiful words, such brilliant literary talent, now on this desk, stroke by stroke, accuse him of his crimes: debauchery, extravagance, poor governance, stubbornness, stupidity, cruelty, violation of human ethics, and unworthy of being a role model for the world...

Nathaniel Shangguan fell into a daze and slept with his head buried in Emperor Alexander Qian's arms. He breathed softly, creating a slight airflow that gently tickled the muscles on the emperor's neck.

Emperor Alexander Qian put down the test paper and said calmly: "This person has a good writing style."

Maxwell Ding's heart trembled.

"Then I'll choose Tanhua."

Maxwell Ding looked up at Emperor Alexander Qian. The expression of the almighty emperor was solemn and dignified, and it seemed that he did not show any real emotion at all.

Maxwell Ding bowed three times and kowtowed nine times, then withdrew from the ceremony: "I accept your order---!"

Perhaps his voice was a little too loud, and the young man in Emperor Alexander Qian's arms suddenly started coughing. Emperor Alexander Qian suddenly hugged him and said to Maxwell Ding hurriedly: "You go."

Maxwell Ding hurriedly left the door. Before closing the door, he took a last look and saw Emperor Alexander Qian holding the man tightly in one hand and stroking the man's face with the other, muttering: "Why are you still coughing... dear... are you thirsty? Do you want some water..."

One night in the early spring of the 17th year of Emperor Alexander Qian, the door of the Imperial Hospital was suddenly broken open by a pair of guards holding an imperial edict. The chief imperial physician, Wang Junyi, put on his clothes tremblingly, and was immediately grabbed.