In recent days, the Qing army, which had been retreating step by step, was suddenly encouraged and successively recaptured two cities from the fierce barbarians.
When the news reached the court, everyone was ecstatic. Several ministers burst into tears and said that it was the will of heaven and the Heavenly Dynasty would never perish!
Only Pei Zheng seemed too calm amid the celebrations, and his expression even became more solemn.
The Celestial Empire's 50,000 troops were barely able to repel 20,000 barbarians, and suffered heavy losses. This is by no means something to celebrate.
At the Prime Minister's Mansion, Li Yu happily ran to tell Qi Changyi the news. Qi Changyi was sitting on a stone bench in the back garden, teasing the little black cat in his arms.
After hearing the news, Qi Changyi happily held the kitten and turned around twice, scaring Li Yu so much that he kept shouting, "Your Highness! Your Highness, stop turning around, or you'll fall!"
Qi Changyi put the kitten down. His belly was already slightly bulging. Everyone in the Prime Minister's Mansion watched him carefully every day, worried that he would get bumped or hurt.
"Xiao Yuzi," Qi Changyi pulled Li Yu's arm, "Do you think Brother Pei will come back earlier today?"
Speaking of which, Pei Zheng was busy with government affairs and came back late every day when Qi Changyi had already gone to bed. When he left in the morning, Qi Changyi was often not awake yet, so Qi Changyi had not been able to talk to Pei Zheng for several days.
Li Yu hesitated, "This, this..."
In fact, he still has something to tell His Highness.
News came from the palace that the emperor's health was deteriorating and it seemed that he would not be able to hold on for much longer. Therefore, this morning, an imperial decree announced the candidate for the crown prince in front of all the ministers.
It was none other than the fourth prince Qi Changfeng.
Seeing Qi Changyi's pair of eyes with a hint of smile looking at him hopefully, Li Yu gritted his teeth and told him that the Fourth Prince had been made the Crown Prince.
Qi Changyi blinked, seemingly not caring much about the matter.
Li Yu added, "Yes, it was because the adults tried their best to support His Royal Highness the Fourth Prince, and the Emperor had no choice but to establish the Fourth Prince."
It was Brother Pei. Did Brother Pei want Fourth Brother to be the emperor? But Brother Pei knew that not long ago, Fourth Brother had ignored his own safety for the throne, which almost caused him to
Qi Changyi felt uncomfortable in his heart. He slowly loosened his grip on Li Yu's hand and sat back on the stone bench, folding his arms and staring blankly into the distance.
Seeing His Highness' unhappy look, Li Yu immediately regretted telling Him all these things, but even as a bystander he could sense that something was really wrong as the adults had been so busy lately that they were nowhere to be seen.
After dinner, Pei Zheng had not returned yet.
Qi Changyi lay down on the bed, staring blankly at the bed curtain above his head. The disappointment in his eyes could not be concealed. He clutched the quilt tightly, curled up in the bed, closed his eyes and tried to fall asleep quickly, because he had to sleep well so that the baby could have a good rest.
As the night deepened, there were some noises coming from the door of the small building, and suddenly it was gently pushed open.
**The little man was not asleep yet. Hearing the footsteps of someone approaching, he became a little scared. He opened his eyes wide and looked into the darkness, asking, "Xiao, Xiao Yuzi, is that you?"
A tall, dark figure walked to the bedside, and the dim moonlight reflected the man's handsome chin.
"It's me."
Pei Zheng spoke in a low voice, raised his hand to take off his outer robe, and then got on the bed.
Another hot body slid into the quilt. Pei Zheng thought that the little guy had fallen asleep, so he planned to hold him quietly and sleep for a while. Unexpectedly, as soon as he lay down in the quilt, the warm and soft little body next to him leaned over, clinging to his arm greedily, and a pair of arms also wrapped around his waist.
"Brother Pei, why are you back so late?"
"Something happened in the palace," Pei Zheng said calmly, "Go to sleep."
Qi Changyi rubbed his arm with his little face, "Brother Pei, Brother Pei, Brother Pei"
Pei Zheng slightly turned his body, and the warmth from Qi Changyi's embrace suddenly faded away. He immediately moved closer with dissatisfaction.
"Brother Pei, I, I today..."
"Shh." Pei Zheng didn't avoid him anymore, but stretched out his arms to hold him in his arms, resting his chin on the top of his head, not looking into his clear and bright eyes.
"It's too late. I won't talk about it today. Go to bed, dear."
Qi Changyi obediently stopped asking. No matter what Brother Pei did, he must have his reasons, and he should believe him.
"Okay, Brother Pei, have a good rest and have a sweet dream."
"Um"
Qi Changyi blinked at Pei Zhenghuai, waiting for his next words, but unfortunately there was no other movement above his head.
Qi Changyi pursed his lips and said, "Okay, Brother Pei must be very tired, so let him have a good sleep first."
We all closed our eyes, and the familiar and pleasant scent of sandalwood filled our breaths, which made us feel at ease and more obsessed and dependent on it.
Such a warm embrace, such an intimate distance, such a unique person, is his brother Pei.
Finally feeling sleepy, Qi Changyi fell into a deep sleep in Pei Zheng's arms.
I don’t know how long I slept. I only know that it was still dark outside when someone knocked anxiously on the door of the small building.
"My Lord! My Lord!"
Li Yu was so anxious that he almost broke into the room, but he continued to knock on the door regardless. The situation was so urgent that he couldn't afford to worry too much.
Finally, a gloomy and suppressed voice came from inside, "Come in."
Li Yu pushed the door open and rushed in, then knelt down and knocked his head on the ground.
"Sir! Someone from the palace wants you to come in. They say the emperor is dying."
Pei Zheng sat up from the bed at once, took the robe beside him and put it on, then stood up to leave.
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The little guy in ** had also been woken up. When he heard Li Yu's words, his eyes immediately became moist. He followed him down from the bed and almost fell down. Fortunately, Pei Zheng reached out and grabbed him into his arms.
Pei Zheng carried him back to the bedroom, then turned and walked towards the door.
"Brother Pei!" The little guy behind him cried, "I, I want to go with you."
"no."
Pei Zheng said in a serious tone, with a tone that did not allow for discussion, "You wait here, I will send someone back to report if there is any news."
"Brother Pei..." Two lines of hot tears fell from the corners of Shui Yingying's eyes, "I, I want to go see my father, can you please take me with you
Look at the Father."
Pei Zheng said nothing more. He walked straight past the kneeling Li Yu and went to the door. Before he took a step out, he heard a faint, suppressed cry. The voice must have been from someone who was afraid of being heard, as it came from under the quilt.
The sobs and whimpers were like hot tears dripping into Pei Zheng's heart.
Li Yu felt a figure turning back beside him and returning to the bed.
Qi Changyi was still sitting in the bed, covering his head with the quilt, when he suddenly felt the quilt being pulled off, revealing a tear-stained little face.
Pei Zheng put a robe on the little boy, picked him up, and walked out of the room steadily.
Sitting in the carriage heading to the palace, the little person in her arms was shaking non-stop and her tears were flowing uncontrollably.
Pei Zheng hugged him, touching his hair from time to time, or hooking his little face for a kiss, but it didn't work. The little guy was still so sad that he almost couldn't control himself.
"Father, Father"
Qi Changyi's long and thick eyelashes were covered with a string of tears, which fell drop by drop when he blinked. He murmured, "Don't let anything happen to you. You can't leave Yi'er."
Finally, they arrived at the palace and outside the emperor's bedroom.
It was late at night, and the lights inside and outside the palace were brightly lit. The bluestone slabs outside were filled with a huge crowd of people. All the military officials of the court were there.
The door of the bedroom just opened and a man walked out. It was Qi Changfeng who had just been named the crown prince.
"Your Highness, how is the Emperor?" an official asked anxiously.
Qi Changfeng raised his eyes and shook his head. His eyes were red and his sleeves were clenched tightly. He saw Pei Zheng and Qi Changyi standing on the steps.
The little guy was crying with tears in his eyes, looking very pitiful.
Qi Changfeng walked up to him and said softly, "Changyi, I'm sorry"
Qi Changyi's tears suddenly flowed even more violently. He turned his eyes away, not wanting to pay any more attention to Qi Changfeng.
Qi Changfeng pursed his lips and said, "Father, I want to see you. Come in."
Pei Zheng glanced at the current Crown Prince, nodded slightly, and walked into the palace with Qi Changyi.
Passing through the screen curtain, they arrived at the inner hall. The emperor was lying weakly on the dragon couch, looking up at the sky, blinking his eyes very slowly, as if he was using up all his strength with every blink.
When Qi Changyi saw the ** man, the suppressed sadness could no longer be controlled and he knelt beside the bed, holding the emperor's hand, crying and shouting, "Father, father, I am Yi'er, look at me, I am Yi'er"
The emperor blinked twice again, as if he heard someone calling him, but his neck was too weak to turn.
"Yi, er, er, are you here?"
Qi Changyi held the emperor's hand and stroked his cheek, nodding desperately, "Yes, it's me, father, what's wrong with you? Are you playing with Yi'er? Please get better soon and don't scare Yi'er anymore, okay?"
All his tears fell onto the emperor's hand, wetting the back of his old and thin hand.
Pei Zheng supported him beside him, hugged him and carried him to sit next to the bed.
The floor of this bedroom is so cold that his body won't be able to bear kneeling for too long.
When the emperor saw Pei Zheng, his eyes suddenly widened slightly and he became a little agitated. He opened his mouth for a long time, wanting to say something but couldn't utter a single word smoothly, as if the words were stuck in his throat.
Pei Zheng stood up straight, stood beside the bed, and bowed respectfully to the emperor.
He thought he knew what the emperor was going to say.
"Your Majesty, rest assured. Since I have made an oath, I will not refuse even if it means death."