There was a charcoal stove burning in the stuffy palace, and the hot wind blew into the humidity with a faint smell of sweat, and the whole palace had a trace of rancidity.
In the corner, next to the huge copper stove, people were still throwing herbs into the fire. Pungent white smoke rose, and the weird smell made it almost impossible to breathe.
On the gorgeous big bed, a skinny middle-aged man lay on the thick bedding, moaning hard in his sleep as if he was in a nightmare.
"Does it have to be this way?"
The attendant said to the doctor: "We must open the window. His Majesty cannot stay here. The smell of incense is so strong that he can hardly breathe."
"You cannot open the window." The old doctor shook his head: "Your Majesty must not see the wind or light. Once the incense is diluted, the virus in the lungs will lose control and spread rapidly."
"How long will this kind of life last?" The mentally and physically exhausted servant said to himself, his expression gloomy.
"As long as it lasts."
The doctor had no expression on his face, looked at the sad queen beside the bed, and whispered, "This is not what you should say, nor is it a question you should ask. Just do what you should do, and don't do anything else. Think too much and don’t ask too many questions.”
The attendant was stunned for a moment, realized his faux pas, turned pale, and nodded quickly.
In the long silence, there was only the hoarse moan of the patient. Beside the hospital bed, the haggard queen's expression changed. After hesitating for a long time, she finally made up her mind, got up and walked towards the door.
At the door, two guards stopped her.
The queen's face turned ugly.
"Get out of the way, do you dare to step into my path!"
"Your Highness the Queen, you cannot leave."
The older guard said: "Your Majesty needs your company now."
The queen's face was livid, "What he needs is a doctor! A real doctor! Not this kind of dabbler who doesn't know where to find it! Not under house arrest! Don Juan, that son of a bitch, he has already prepared this." One day, right? I have long seen that that bastard has been up to no good from the beginning!"
The guard said nothing and pretended not to hear.
"Step aside!"
The queen ordered sternly.
The guard didn't move.
"If the Queen wants some fresh air, let her go out for a walk."
A soft voice sounded from behind the door, "It's not good to be bored in there all the time."
The queen's expression changed.
The guard, as if he had been granted amnesty, stretched out his hand and opened the heavy door. Amidst the low sound of steel hubs rubbing together, the light of the scorching sun swept into the dim palace like a waterfall.
The autumn wind passed through the yellow leaves in the courtyard, dispersing the almost suffocating air in the temple.
As the young man stepped into the palace, the queen's face turned pale and she couldn't help but retreat.
He is a head taller than himself.
His face was heroic and handsome, but he bore no resemblance to his father.
"I think there may be some misunderstandings here. Your brother, the Marquis of Loire, our commander-in-chief of the Forbidden Army, believed some rumors and just now did some regrettable things."
The young man named Don Juan smiled politely and said, "Maybe I kept you for too long, which caused some strange rumors to spread outside. But I believe that soon, the rumors will dissipate in the face of the truth. This servant will not I'm sensible, I offended you, please don't mind. I have something else to say to my father, please feel free to do it yourself."
The queen's face twitched, and she retreated step by step under Don Juan's advance. She lowered her head and avoided Don Juan's sight, but she saw the remaining scarlet on his boots.
Like stepping through blood.
"I'm sorry about your brother." Don Juan stopped beside her and placed a broken coat of arms in her palm: "He left me no choice."
The queen was stunned, raised her head suddenly, stared at Don Juan, her expression became distorted, and she held the iron coat of arms tightly with her five fingers, almost splitting her palm.
"you… "
She opened her mouth to scream, but heard a hoarse voice behind her.
"Is it Don Juan?"
The sickly man woke up from his sleep and opened his eyes with difficulty. There was a grayish shadow in the green eyes, and there was a hint of frightening chill in the decay.
He was obviously terminally ill.
He stood up with difficulty, and the maid hurriedly wiped away the drool that leaked from the corner of his mouth. His head was still shaking slightly, leaning on the bedside diagonally, waving to Don Juan:
"Come here, son, and come in some."
Don Juan smiled: "Okay, father."
Soon, all other unrelated people left. In the silent palace, only the medicinal materials in the copper furnace were burning, making a soft sound.
"Father, are you feeling better?"
Don Juan combed his messy hair back with concern and sat in front of the bed.
"Give me some hot water, my stomach hurts."
The emperor sighed, held the water glass handed over by his "son", shook his head and sighed: "Son, you are not very good at poisoning... Although 'Tulip' is safe, the poison takes too long to develop, and the taste is weird. If you put it in red wine, It affects appetite.”
Don Juan raised his brows slightly but said nothing.
"Your uncle also died in this way back then. You were much better at drugging than I was at that time."
The emperor put down the water glass, closed his eyes, and after thinking for a moment, he opened his eyes: "First the National Assembly, then the Ministry of Finance. Counting the time, you have already controlled the Imperial Army and the Army, right?"
"Not even close."
Don Juan answered truthfully: "Adrian is very slippery and has not agreed to my conditions yet."
"Don't worry, he is the Minister of War I chose. I know him." The emperor commented: "A typical wallflower. He knows that you can use him. He will not express his position until I am dead."
Don Juan listened and nodded: "It sounds fast."
"Yeah, soon."
The emperor nodded with a sad look on his face: "I'm afraid I am the emperor with the shortest reign in history, right? I have been waiting for my whole life, but I only stayed on the throne for two months."
"History will remember you, father."
"who cares?"
The emperor smiled mockingly and raised his eyes to look at him: "After I die, treat my queen well. She is a stupid woman and can't harm you. Your uncle will become the next emperor. You must assist him well. ."
He paused and looked at Don Juan: "Do you understand what I mean?"
Don Juan thought for a moment and was stunned:
"You want me to send him to the guillotine?"
"Someone has to be responsible for the mess." The emperor sighed, "The current Ministry of Finance and the National Treasury are rotten to the core. I don't have time to solve it, and he doesn't have the ability. He can only make things worse. Since he is full of thoughts It’s all about that crown, then give him the crown and let him bear the anger of the masses and the National Assembly for you. When the next chaos comes, you can send him to heaven with those problems. Don Juan , you will be the new king who strives to govern, the resurrected Lord of Burgundy, and the flawless emperor."
Don Juan was not happy after hearing this, but fell into silence.
The emperor patted his shoulder with difficulty, "Don Juan, don't be anxious. There are some things you need to 'take your time'. This is a lesson I have learned throughout my life. You are too reckless, and sometimes you are too anxious. If I hadn't asked someone to clean up the mess, your brother would have been discovered that time."
In the long silence, Don Juan raised his head and looked at him.
"Don't you hate me? 'Father'." He bit down on the pronunciation of that word, "I killed my brother, your original heir, and now, I've taken away everything from you."
The emperor smiled.
"No, you've made everything for me, kid."
The emperor smiled happily: "Why should I hate you? You are a good boy, just like me, with eyes that are always hungry and don't know when you are full. I originally had six sons, but when I was old, I realized They are simply unable to bear the heavy responsibility and are mediocre. They only know how to fight for the leftovers in the trough like pigs, but they dare not raise their heads to look up to the sky. Can you understand my feelings? What pain and despair. But you are different from them. , you are a wolf, a real predator. When I saw you for the first time, I knew that you were the successor arranged by God for me. The wishes of the ancestors of all generations will be fulfilled in your hands, and you will become the true leader of Burgundy. The Lord, the unique King! How ecstatic I was when I saw you."
He reached out and held Don Juan's hand, his eyes sparkling like they were burning: "You don't know how happy I was when I drank that glass of red wine with tulips, and how happy I was to welcome this result. . Unfortunately, sometimes you are still too impatient and lack experience, which makes me worried. You should have cleaned up the place in Root Town long ago. How could this kind of thing leave such a big loophole?"
Don Juan was stunned.
Feeling cold all over the body.
He lowered his head and looked at his "father".
"You... knew it a long time ago?"
"Why don't I know? A father must understand his son. Isn't this one of the reasons why I love you?"
The emperor looked at him and smiled, with a hint of madness that Don Juan couldn't understand: "Don't be afraid, how could I watch you lose everything? You are too careless and too soft-hearted to think about it. What if someone comes out to correct you? There will always be someone who remembers your face! Don’t worry, the people sent by the queen to investigate will not come back. I have packed up everything for you, so you won’t have any worries."
The dying man grabbed Don Juan's wrist, but his palms were like iron pincers, no matter how much Don Juan panicked and struggled.
"You will wear a crown, my child." He stared at the successor in front of him, as if to kill his weakness: "You will become an epic, I will be forgotten by history, but history will remember you, remember you Don Juan!”
silence.
In the long silence, a stiff smile gradually appeared on Don Juan's pale face.
"I see."
So, the emperor smiled and let go of his hand with satisfaction. As if he had exhausted all his strength, he fell to the bed, unable to even open his eyes.
"Don Juan, are you still there?"
"I'm here, Father."
"Come closer, kid, I can't see you clearly."
The emperor studied the face that came close to him and smiled: "My dear, tell me, who are you?"
"I am your son, father."
The young man replied hoarsely.
"very good."
The Emperor laughed, delighted at this answer, and shouted with all his strength in a hoarse voice: "Tell everyone, then, who you are?"
"I am your successor."
Don Juan closed his eyes, bloodshot eyes spreading in his pupils: "I am the first citizen of Burgundy, the guardian of the White Rose, and I will eventually be the emperor of everything!"
The emperor closed his eyes with satisfaction and said no more.
The weak breath stopped.
he died.
In the silence, Don Juan leaned weakly on his chair. The sun shone in from outside the hall and fell on the wall, casting a blurry shadow.
He closed his eyes and laughed to himself.
"Yes, I am Don Juan."