Mu Fulan didn't expect Xier to come here at this time.
The inner hall was deep and wide, with heavy curtains, and there was no announcement. When she realized it, the child was already behind her.
The moment she turned around and saw him, she suddenly felt an absurd feeling of guilt and panic in her heart, as if she had been caught having an affair.
She quickly stood up from the bed, left the man on the bed, turned around and walked towards her son.
"Xier, it's so late, why haven't you slept yet?" she asked.
"Mother, you are tired. Father is awake now, you should go and rest. I have slept for a while and cannot fall asleep. Let me accompany Father instead."
Mu Fulan hesitated.
"Mother, you should have a good rest. Isn't there a couch here? If I feel sleepy, I will sleep here."
Xie Changgeng smiled. He seemed to want to sit up and said, "Xi'er, you don't have to stay. You and your son should go and rest..."
Xier walked quickly to his side, held his arms, and let him lie down slowly.
"Mother!"
He turned his head and looked at Mu Fulan. "I want to accompany my father." He said again with emphasis.
No one knew better than Xi'er her love and trust for this man. During the days when he was in a coma, the person who was most worried and sad should be this child.
Mu Fulan looked at the two figures, one big and one small, and finally nodded.
"Your father has just woken up and is still very weak. Don't talk too much to him. The medicine will be delivered later. After he takes it, you can go to bed early. If there is anything, call me or the imperial physician at any time."
Mu Fulan gave instructions, and Xier agreed to them one by one.
She turned her head and glanced.
In the shadow of the lamp, the man was half lying, his eyes looking at her silently. She suddenly felt upset and hated the way he looked at her.
She quickly turned around and walked out.
Xier accompanied her out and ordered the palace maids waiting in the outer hall to serve her and let her rest.
The young boy stood there, watching Mu Fulan's figure leave, lost in thought.
A palace maid came hurriedly carrying medicine.
He turned back to the bedroom, took the medicine bowl from the palace servant, stirred it, blew air slowly, and when the medicine liquid cooled down a little, he held it in both hands and brought it to Xie Changgeng, saying, "Father, you have taken the medicine."
Xie Changgeng looked at him with a faint smile in his eyes. He picked up the cup and drank it in a few gulps.
"Is the medicine bitter?"
Xie Changgeng smiled and shook his head: "Not bitter."
"Father, are you feeling better?"
"much better."
Xier handed the empty bowl to the palace servant beside her and ordered everyone to leave. She looked at Xie Changgeng lying in front of her, knelt down upright and kowtowed to him.
Xie Changgeng was a little surprised, and sat up again. He supported himself on the edge of the bed with one hand, leaned over, and stretched out his other hand to help him up.
"Xi'er, you're fine. What's wrong with you? Get up."
After Xier finished bowing, she raised her head and said, "Father, you have disregarded your own safety in order to allow me to become the crown prince smoothly under the attention of the people of the world. I owe you this, and you should accept it."
Xie Changgeng smiled, and his eyes were full of kindness and relief as he looked at him.
He said, "It's okay. I know how much my father has been hurt. Besides, my father is a tough guy and won't die so easily. You can get up now."
After he finished speaking, he saw that the young boy did not stand up and was still kneeling in front of his bed, so he asked, "What's wrong with you? Is there anything else?"
Xi'er said, "Father, may I dare to ask you something?"
Xie Changgeng nodded.
"Father, you are clearly not my biological father, but why are you so kind to me? Not only did you acknowledge me as your own son in front of the world and make me the crown prince, but you also risked your life to hold this ceremony as scheduled?"
Xie Changgeng paused and slowly leaned back. He avoided the young boy's gaze and whispered, "Father has long regarded you as his own son. Now that Father has obtained this world, who else will he pass it on to if not to you?"
The young boy shook his head.
"Father, you have been so kind to me all this time. Is it because of my mother?"
Xie Changgeng raised his eyes and looked at the young boy again.
He said, "Father, I was ignorant when I was young, and I always hoped that mother would be good to you. In the past few years, I have grown up and found out that my mother actually did not like you, Father. In fact, she felt disgust and even hatred towards you. I don't know why, but she must have her reasons. Mother is such a kind person, she would not treat you like this for no reason."
"Father, do you know why my mother treats you like this?"
Xie Changgeng was stunned. His chest seemed to be hit by a huge rock, causing him to feel stuffy and painful.
The feeling of satisfaction and pleasure that had arisen quietly a moment ago when he opened his eyes and saw her sleeping beside him was snatched away completely at that moment, as if it were something stolen, before he had time to savor it.
He looked at the young boy kneeling in front of him.
The candlelight fell on the child's handsome face, whose eyes were hazy, half bright and half dark.
"It was your father who had wronged your mother in the past..."
Finally, he responded.
"Father, I don't want to ask about your past with my mother." The young boy continued. "When you were unconscious, my mother stayed by your side. I think she was grateful for your kindness. Besides, it was also because my mother was a doctor and had a kind heart."
"It's all my fault, because I said I wanted to be king, and she came to the palace for me. But father, I know you won't force anyone to do anything."
The child kowtowed again to the person on the bed.
"Xi'er knows that what I said just now was disrespectful, but for my mother, Xi'er had to say it. If it offends the emperor, you can just deprive me of my position as the crown prince, and I will not complain at all."
Xie Changgeng stared at the young boy kneeling in front of him. In a daze, he remembered the boy in his previous life who severed the father-son relationship with him with blood.
If that young man could come back, he would hate himself and would never allow himself to get close to his mother, right
Xie Changgeng's face was grim and his eyes were dim.
After a long while, he whispered, "Get up. Father knows."
The young boy beside the bed finally got up from the ground. He supported the emperor, carefully let him lie down again, and covered him with a blanket.
The young boy smiled and said sincerely, "Father, I will remember your kindness to my mother. I will definitely repay you in the future."
…
Although Mu Fulan was extremely tired, she did not sleep well. She tossed and turned all night, waking up and falling asleep. She woke up at dawn, washed up in a hurry, and came back to find that Xie Changgeng was gone.
Danzhu, the maid who had been serving her, said that the emperor got up at the beginning of the fifth watch this morning and moved back to Yuanchen Palace with the imperial physician.
"Your Majesty has ordered me to tell the Queen that His Majesty is recuperating there, and that the Imperial Physician is accompanying him, so it will not affect the affairs of state too much. Please rest assured, Queen."
This is her bedroom. At that time, he lost too much blood and fainted, so for convenience, she sent him here.
His sudden action surprised Mu Fulan.
His injuries were not light to begin with, and he had lost too much blood, so he should have done nothing and just stayed in bed to rest.
She stood in the bedroom, looking at the bed in front of her, which was so tidy that there was no sign that anyone had slept in it last night. She was stunned for a moment, then walked over, held the edge of the bed and slowly sat down.
She did not pursue him to Yuanchen Palace. That day, late at night, Cao Jin sent a young eunuch to take her away.
Mu Fulan arrived outside Yuanchen Palace, and Cao Jin, who was waiting, reported to her the emperor's diet today and the doctor's diagnosis and treatment. Then he quietly led her in through the imperial study to the back hall and whispered, "Early in the morning, His Majesty summoned several ministers. After the ministers left, the doctor repeatedly told His Majesty to have a good rest. But Queen, you see... I really have no choice but to disturb the Queen..."
Mu Fulan stopped at the passage leading to the back hall. Through several layers of curtains, she could vaguely see the man half lying and half leaning on a dragon bed.
The bedside lamp was brightly lit, and a foot-high pile of memorials was piled up beside his pillow. He was holding a memorial in his hand, looking down and flipping through it. After finishing, he slowly and with some effort turned over, took a pen dipped in ink from the eunuch standing beside him, and wrote on the memorial. But his hand seemed to be shaking a little, and he lost his grip and dropped the memorial to the ground with a "pop".
"pick it up-"
He frowned, looking unhappy, holding a pen and urging the eunuch.
The eunuch hurried to pick it up.
Mu Fulan could no longer hold back the anger rising in her heart, so she stepped forward, lifted the curtain, and walked in.
Xie Changgeng took the memorial handed to him by the eunuch and was about to continue when he heard footsteps. He raised his eyes and saw that the hand holding the pen had stopped.
"Your Majesty, you brought the prince here from Changsha. Even if Your Majesty is confident that he is strong and healthy and does not take the doctor's advice to heart, please consider the prince a little. He is still young and I am afraid he cannot support the court and the country independently."
She stared at the man on the dragon bed and spoke in a flat tone.
The man's expression seemed to be listless. He looked at her for a moment, and the hand holding the pen slowly dropped down.
"Have you taken all the medicine?" she asked the eunuch.
"I have taken the medicine." The eunuch replied hurriedly.
"Collect all the memorials. Serve His Majesty to rest immediately!"
The eunuch sighed, leaned forward, looked at Xie Changgeng's face, and carefully took the pen and memorials from him. Seeing that he didn't respond, he hurriedly collected the memorials piled aside.
Xie Changgeng didn't say anything and stopped looking at her.
He lowered his eyes, as if he wanted to lie down.
The eunuch rushed forward to help, but he was pushed away. He held on to the bed with both hands, turned sideways, and slowly lay down.
The eunuch covered him with a blanket. His back was motionless, as if he had fallen asleep.
"Serve me well. Call me if you need anything."
Mu Fulan no longer looked at him. She just gave an order to the eunuch and then turned and left.