After Discovering The Emperor Was A Woman… - Chapter 9

Not a trace of joy could be found anywhere in the Liu household after they received the imperial decree.

Rather than a blessing, the emperor’s decree felt more like a death warrant.

Whose daughter received such a grand decree concerning her marriage while she was gravely ill?

At the very least, they should have waited until she recovered.

Issuing it now almost made it seem as though the emperor was hoping she would not.

“The imperial decree has already been issued. We can only accept it.”

Old Chancellor Liu sighed helplessly as he thought about the decree. He turned toward the many imperial physicians waiting outside his youngest granddaughter’s room and sighed again.

“There is no use saying anything else. We can only hope Ning’er’s condition improves.”

“That would be best.”

Old Madam Liu sighed as well.

She had visited little Ning’er frequently these past few days. The poor child had always been so healthy and lively. How had she suddenly become bedridden like this?

Had she known this would happen, she would have gone to Anchang Temple with her and kept a close watch on the girl. She would never have allowed little Ning’er to run into the mountains, get caught in the rain, and suffer through this ordeal.

Liu Bocheng hurried over after properly storing the imperial decree. Hearing their conversation, he immediately tried to reassure them.

“Let us wait and hear what the imperial physicians say. Father, Mother, please do not panic. If even the two of you lose your composure, Great-Grandmother, Third Brother, and Third Sister-in-law will only become more anxious.”

After saying that, he mentioned that he had important matters to discuss and invited Old Chancellor Liu into the study.

Several days earlier, Yi’er had brought the seriously ill Liu Jiuning back from Anchang Temple. He had said only that Jiuning had already been sick at the temple for several days and had not mentioned anything else.

When Ran’er returned, however, he explained that he had intended to bring Jiuning home but was unable to enter because Anchang Temple had closed its doors to visitors. After receiving a letter from his eldest brother, he had no choice but to leave her there.

Now the imperial decree claimed that the emperor had fallen in love with little Jiuning at first sight at the temple.

Judging by the dates…

The emperor had happened to be absent from the palace during that exact period.

Naturally, Liu Bocheng understood his own son. Yi’er had refused to mention the emperor after returning, yet the emperor had relied heavily on him over the past several years, and he was almost always at His Majesty’s side.

Perhaps, while they were at Anchang Temple…

Liu Bocheng lowered his eyes slightly and thought for a moment. He did not discuss the matter with Old Chancellor Liu, instead shifting the conversation to other important affairs at court.

If even he could guess the truth, then his father must have realized it long ago.

There was no need to say it aloud.

Although the family now had a future empress, considering the emperor’s temperament and Jiuning’s current condition, this was likely nothing more than a calculated political decision.

Even so, it meant that the emperor genuinely intended to place greater trust in the Liu family.

At least for the time being.

The shifting factions within the imperial court had little to do with Liu Jiuning, who was still struggling on her sickbed.

The imperial physicians quickly finished examining her one after another.

Perhaps because she now held the title of future empress, their answers were even more ambiguous than before. They said only that treatment must continue.

Not one of them mentioned whether she could actually recover.

Unlike the medicinal soups she had been drinking before, the Imperial Medical Bureau now added medicinal baths and acupuncture to her treatment.

There had already been several female physicians in the bureau trained specifically to attend the imperial consorts. All were highly skilled, so they were left at the Liu residence to care for the seriously ill Liu Jiuning.

Despite the medicinal baths and endless needles, the feverish Liu Jiuning remained much the same.

In truth, the only thing keeping her alive was sheer determination.

She simply did not want to die.

One afternoon, driven by her overwhelming will to survive, she abruptly opened her eyes. Grabbing the arm of the female physician examining her, she used all her strength to say, “I want… a piece of candy!”

Everything was too bitter.

It was unbearably bitter.

She felt as though she had become a walking bowl of medicinal decoction.

“My darling girl, hurry and recover. Once you are well, you can eat all the candy you like.”

Xie Danxue, who had grown noticeably haggard, hurried from the couch to the bedside the moment she heard her daughter speak.

She gently held Liu Jiuning’s weak hand in her own and continued coaxing her as though she were still a small child.

“Would you like some sweet porridge? You cannot have candy for now, but Mother can have some sweet porridge prepared so you can taste a little sweetness. Would that be all right?”

She knew her child was suffering.

How could she not?

A mother and child were connected by the heart. When her daughter suffered, her own heart ached just as deeply.

Seeing that her mother looked even thinner than the last time she had awakened, Liu Jiuning immediately became much more obedient.

“Then keep some candy ready for me, Mother. I’ll recover very soon.”

Perhaps because her obsession with candy had been slightly satisfied, drowsiness began creeping over her again.

She did not want to fall asleep.

She had finally managed to open her eyes and speak. If she drifted off again, who knew whether she would ever wake?

Besides, the few things she had just said sounded suspiciously like final words.

Realizing this, Liu Jiuning desperately tried to remain conscious.

“I remember the peach blossoms in the courtyard should be blooming soon. Mother, pick a few branches for me tomorrow and place them in the room. Don’t forget to have the maids gather some petals too, so we can save them for peach-blossom pastries…”

She rambled on and on.

The more she spoke, the more tragic and mournful the atmosphere became. Even her mother seemed unable to stop her tears.

Liu Jiuning had no choice but to fall silent.

Her gaze landed on the prayer beads looped loosely around her thin wrist.

She thought of the old monk and the little monk, then remembered the little monk’s candied dates. Stroking the beads, she smiled at her mother.

“Mother, in a few days, send a bag of candied dates to the little monk for me. He gave me all the ones he had secretly hidden to help take away the bitter—”

Before she could finish, the string holding the prayer beads suddenly snapped.

Perhaps the cord had been poorly made, or perhaps there was some other reason.

The beads scattered everywhere.

Xie Danxue’s face instantly drained of color.

Her tears fell one after another onto the back of Liu Jiuning’s hand, just like the scattered prayer beads.

The broken beads themselves did not frighten Liu Jiuning nearly as much as her mother’s tears.

Even her fever-clouded mind jolted awake.

She coughed softly twice and hurriedly tried to comfort her.

“They’re only prayer beads. Mother, don’t cry. I asked the Imperial Preceptor for them because I wanted an answer about something. They don’t have any other meaning, so don’t think too much. If they’ve broken, then they’ve broken. At worst, I’ll ask him for another string. No—I’ll ask for the ones he usually carries himself.”

“Third Madam! Third Madam!”

A maid from the first branch hurried into the room carrying a simple wooden box.

She ran directly to Xie Danxue, not even pausing to bow before speaking.

“The Imperial Preceptor sent these prayer beads for Ninth Young Miss. He also sent a message telling her to take her medicine properly.”

Hearing this, Liu Jiuning immediately patted her mother’s hand.

“See? A new set of prayer beads has already arrived.”

And once again, he had told her to take her medicine.

Did the old monk have nothing else he wanted to say to her?

Still, he truly was miraculous!

He had delivered new prayer beads at exactly the right moment.

Did that mean the wish she had asked about would come true?

“Quickly, bring them here. Let me put them on Jiuning.”

Xie Danxue wiped away her tears. Her slender fingers trembled slightly as she lifted the prayer beads and carefully, solemnly placed them around her daughter’s wrist.

“May you remain safe and sound. May everything go smoothly.”

She had no other wish.

She only hoped her child would be safe.

Hearing her mother’s murmured prayer, Liu Jiuning obediently nestled in her arms.

She smiled and said, “You will get everything you wish for, Mother.”

After speaking, she gave a sleepy yawn.

Even though drowsiness was enveloping her body, she did not want to fall asleep so soon. She had only been awake long enough to say a few sentences.

Suddenly remembering how she had discovered the emperor’s secret, Liu Jiuning asked tentatively, “Has anything important happened in the capital recently?”

Honestly, had she not been awake enough to speak, Liu Jiuning might have suspected that the emperor had poisoned her medicine, intending to leave her bedridden forever so she could never reveal a certain secret.

After all, the dead were the best keepers of secrets.

She also knew that several of the emperor’s people were undoubtedly stationed around her.

Now that she carried such an enormous secret, she understood that absolute freedom was impossible.

The only way to achieve it was through the method she had considered before—becoming a corpse incapable of speaking forever.

Hearing her daughter’s question, Xie Danxue’s expression stiffened.

While Liu Jiuning was lost in thought, she quickly regained her composure.

Gently taking her daughter’s cold hand, she said, “What excitement could there be? It is all the same old news. Nothing particularly interesting. When you have more energy tomorrow, I’ll have Cuizhu tell you about it.”

“All right. Remember to tell Cuizhu.”

Liu Jiuning yawned again.

She truly could not stay awake any longer. After speaking, she leaned against her mother and closed her eyes.

Xie Danxue waited until Liu Jiuning had fallen completely asleep before carefully lowering her back onto the bedding.

Thinking of the emperor’s decree, her brows drew together slightly.

The things the emperor had done over the past several years had been truly frightening. Many young ladies from respectable families in the capital had become so scared that they arranged engagements early.

She and her husband had originally intended to keep Jiuning at home for several more years. There had been no need to hurry when selecting a husband for her.

Who could have known that one visit to Anchang Temple would cause such trouble?

Jiuning had only just begun showing a little improvement today. They absolutely could not frighten her again.

The entire family would have to be firmly warned not to mention the imperial decree.

As for what would happen later…

That could wait until she recovered.

Considering how deeply Great-Grandmother doted on Jiuning, she would probably march into the palace with her cane and ask the Empress Dowager to postpone the marriage for several years.

Everyone in the Liu family, from oldest to youngest, agreed with Xie Danxue.

The emperor’s reputation was truly…

Better left unmentioned.

Even a perfectly healthy young woman might fall ill from fright after hearing such news, much less the gravely ill Jiuning.

They had to hide it from her.

Absolutely.

The days passed one after another.

Perhaps the new prayer beads truly possessed great spiritual power. Perhaps the Imperial Medical Bureau’s adjusted treatment was finally taking effect. Or perhaps Liu Jiuning’s desire to live was simply strong enough.

Whatever the reason, she remained awake a little longer each day, and her energy gradually improved.

Even so, she still could not escape the medicinal baths, acupuncture sessions, and bowl after bowl of strange-colored herbal medicine whose pungent smell could be detected from far away.

Liu Jiuning’s appetite began to recover as well.

Perhaps because everything she had consumed recently was so bitter, she constantly craved strong flavors. She wanted sour, sweet, and spicy food alike.

Unfortunately, no matter how much she wanted them, the imperial physicians and female doctors firmly refused.

They insisted that plain porridge and simple vegetables were best for her stomach, while strongly flavored foods would interfere with the medicine.

They would not even allow her to eat candied dates, claiming the prescription already contained enough sweet medicinal ingredients.

Her only daily source of hope was the tiny piece of candy she received after finishing her medicine.

It was not even as large as the nail on her little finger.

She could barely taste it.

There was something Liu Jiuning found strange.

The elderly imperial physicians who came to examine her usually arrived in groups of three to five, with several unfamiliar faces appearing each time.

There were even more female physicians stationed inside her room. Every one of them appeared extremely skilled, and their acupuncture techniques were no worse than those of the imperial physicians.

She did not believe her family could summon so many members of the Imperial Medical Bureau for her alone.

She had intended to find an opportunity to ask her mother, but she either forgot every time or opened her mouth only for her mother to start speaking first. As their conversation continued, the question would slip from her mind again.

Liu Jiuning did not care very much.

Regaining her health and preserving her life were already tremendous blessings. The details of how it happened hardly mattered.

Even so…

She vaguely sensed that something was wrong.

The elders, brothers, and sisters who visited her all seemed unusually cautious around her.

They deliberately spoke more slowly and softly, treating her as though she were made of fragile glass.

That made no sense!

Her condition was already improving. She no longer spent the entire day unconscious after lying down.

She could drink medicine by herself, sit upright, and hold a brief conversation. Why had everyone’s attitude remained unchanged?

Even Great-Grandmother behaved the same way.

She had not once tapped Liu Jiuning on the forehead and scolded her!

Honestly, it frightened Liu Jiuning.

She kept feeling as though she had contracted some incurable disease and was destined to die soon.

Then there was the emperor, who still had not made the slightest move.

She had not tried to kill Liu Jiuning, warned her, or taken any other action!

That did not resemble an emperor at all, much less the current ruler’s personality.

Did she trust Liu Jiuning that much?

Or had she temporarily decided to ignore her because she was already so ill that she had one foot in the coffin?

Perhaps she believed placing several shadow guards nearby was enough?

How could that be possible?

Armed with the knowledge gained from nine years of compulsory education, Liu Jiuning firmly believed the situation could not be that simple.

Looking back at every emperor recorded in the history books, none of those who successfully seized and maintained power had been truly kindhearted.

The number of people they eliminated was little more than an ordinary statistic to them.

Seen from another perspective, if Liu Jiuning herself occupied the throne, she would never permit someone who knew her true sex to remain alive.

The consequences involved far more than merely shaking the foundations of imperial power.

Liu Jiuning thought for a long time but could not reach any conclusion.

When her eldest brother happened to visit with several of their other siblings, she tried asking a few indirect questions.

The only answer she received was silence.

More silence.

Staring into her eldest brother’s dark eyes and noticing the strange meaning behind them, Liu Jiuning became genuinely afraid.

She felt as though she truly had only a few days left to live.

Since she could not obtain an answer and had no way of knowing what the emperor was thinking, Liu Jiuning simply abandoned the matter.

She was still a severely ill patient who had not fully recovered and could not even leave her bed!

How could she worry so much?

It would hinder her recovery and damage her health!

That day, Liu Jiuning’s large room, filled with the heavy scent of medicine, finally welcomed a new visitor.

She was the third young lady of General Ningyuan’s household and one of Liu Jiuning’s closest childhood friends.

To put it elegantly, they were intimate handkerchief friends.

To put it less elegantly, they were childhood companions who had run through the streets and caused trouble together.

The difference was that when Liu Jiuning’s friend was eight, she followed her father beyond the frontier passes.

She remained there for five years.

When she returned, she had become a heroic young woman who could strike a willow leaf from a hundred paces. Somehow, she had even earned herself a minor official position.

Meanwhile, Liu Jiuning was still the youngest child of Old Chancellor Liu’s household, forever treated as though she would never grow up.

As for why the daughter of a civil official had become friends with the daughter of a military commander…

Naturally, it was because Liu Jiuning was lively enough.

She liked every beautiful child she saw.

Because of this, she had managed to coax all the prettiest young girls in the capital into forming a small circle around her.

“You finally came! Why are you alone? Have those heartless girls not even thought of visiting me? All the affection I usually showed them was wasted!”

Half-reclining against the headboard, Liu Jiuning pretended to complain.

In truth, she knew it was not easy for young ladies of this era to leave their homes. Visiting someone who was gravely ill required not only their family’s permission but also careful consideration of many other matters.

Then she noticed her friend’s complicated expression and the way she seemed to want to speak but held herself back.

Smiling, Liu Jiuning asked, “What is it? Why aren’t you saying anything? Are you hiding something from me?”

She waited for a long time but received no answer.

The smile on her face quickly turned to surprise.

“No way. You really are hiding something from me?”