Ashes to Crown

Chapter 158: Chapter 112: Killing Intent

The Emperor’s bedchamber was brightly lit, ringed by a dense formation of Imperial Guards. The security was so tight, it seemed not even a moth could hope to fly inside.

But when one man approached, without saying a word, the wall of bronze and iron parted for him, allowing him to pass through freely.

Seeing him step into the great hall, the attending eunuchs bowed their heads in salute. ”Grand Tutor.”

Deng Yi walked past them to the bedside.

The Emperor was reclining with his eyes closed, seemingly asleep.

”Your Majesty,” Deng Yi knelt and said softly, ”the Heir of Zhongshan King requests permission to enter the palace and stand vigil for you.”

The Emperor, eyes still closed, let out a sudden laugh.

”So he made it in time after all,” he said, then added with a cold smile, ”It seems he poured plenty of oil on tonight’s fire.”

Deng Yi said, ”A long time ago, I accepted money from the King of Zhongshan. A great deal of money.”

The Emperor opened his eyes and looked at him, a hint of surprise in his expression that quickly turned into another laugh. ”My brother... he lost a leg, yet he leaps higher and more gleefully than ever.”

As he said this, his tone turned melancholic.

”Our Imperial Grandmother should never have broken his leg back then. Breaking his leg only made his ambition grow.”

”That’s a woman’s weakness for you. She didn’t understand that to truly destroy a man, you must destroy not his body, but his spirit.”

”A pity I was still young. If it had been a few years later, I would have had countless ways to ensure I had a ’good’ little brother.”

But that chance was gone. The Emperor looked around the hall. The lamps were bright, but to him, everything was a dim, blurry yellow.

”What did he ask you to do?” the Emperor asked.

Deng Yi replied, ”To have me open the palace gates for him.”

The Emperor stared at the man before him. Though he had entrusted him with the heavy responsibility of the nation, Deng Yi was a stranger. He couldn’t even remember what Deng Yi looked like.

The reason he had used Deng Yi was because Eunuch Qi had pushed this man before him. Anyone who dared to challenge the Crown Prince’s faction was clearly an ambitious fellow.

In a crisis, an ambitious man like this was the most suitable person to pull out and use.

’So was Deng Yi’s ambition also arranged by someone else?’

”What will you do?” the Emperor asked, staring at Deng Yi and enunciating each word.

Deng Yi, still kneeling with his back perfectly straight, met the Emperor’s gaze without a hint of evasion or hesitation. ”I will honor my promise and open the gate for him.”

The Emperor chuckled, as if this wasn’t such a terrible thing. ”Then open it. Since he’s had this idea for so long, you aren’t the only one he can use. If you don’t open it, someone else will.”

Deng Yi nodded. ”That is what I thought as well. It is already chaotic outside. If the King of Zhongshan makes another move, it would not be good for Your Majesty. Besides, Your Majesty, you have no other choice now. The Crown Prince is dead, and as for the Third Prince—”

He looked at the Emperor.

”Can Your Majesty tolerate letting a prince who murdered his own brother inherit the throne?”

The Emperor let out a sharp laugh, but it was immediately cut short by a violent coughing fit, forcing him to cover his mouth with his sleeve.

Deng Yi... was he now an advocate for the King of Zhongshan?!

The two eunuchs at the Emperor’s side looked on in disbelief. Was he trying to force the Emperor’s hand?

”Your Majesty—” the two eunuchs cried, rushing forward with tears in their eyes.

Another two moved to attack Deng Yi.

Unperturbed, Deng Yi continued calmly, ”However, I have one condition for the Heir of Zhongshan King.”

The Emperor, still covering his mouth with his sleeve to stifle his muffled coughs, watched him.

Deng Yi smiled.

”I will give the Heir of Zhongshan King an imperial edict,” he said. ”In his name, it will order the death of the King of Zhongshan. Once that is done, he may step through the palace gates and remain by Your Majesty’s side.”

The Emperor froze for a moment, then burst into roaring laughter, coughing and laughing at the same time.

”Excellent, excellent!” he cried. ”What a man, this Deng Yi! What a Grand Tutor! Truly worthy of my favor.”

Whether he had noticed Deng Yi first, or the King of Zhongshan had pushed him forward, no longer mattered.

This Deng Yi belonged to no one but himself.

He looked at Deng Yi, his eyes filled with admiration, and even envy.

”You are exactly the kind of person I was talking about. When you destroy a man, you destroy his spirit.”

’So, King of Zhongshan, you want your son to be emperor? Fine. You can die first as a show of respect. And your own son will be the one to order your death.’

’And your son, having climbed to the throne over his own father’s corpse—will he be happy, or not?’

The eunuchs lowered their heads and retreated silently and respectfully.

Deng Yi remained kneeling, his expression wooden and calm. But in the next instant, his face changed. The Emperor had moved his sleeve, revealing splatters of blood on the fabric.

”Your Majesty!” Deng Yi shot to his feet.

But the Emperor paid it no mind. He spread his sleeve open, leaned back against the dragon bed, and let the blood from the corner of his mouth drip onto his robes.

”Let me answer your question. I can tolerate a son who murders his brother, but I cannot tolerate a son who wants to murder his father,” he said. ”That bitch, the Imperial Concubine, actually poisoned me.”

’Those pastries were so delicious. No wonder they tasted different from the Imperial Chef’s. The poison must have built up over a long time, little by little.’

Deng Yi stepped forward. ”Your Majesty, we must summon the Imperial Physician at once—”

The Emperor laughed, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth with his hand. ”It’s useless. I’m dying. But—”

His expression was a mixture of despair and sorrow, but it was dominated by a manic excitement.

”With Grand Tutor Deng here, I’m sure my ’good’ nephew will make a fine emperor.”

”Even in death, I will ensure that whoever sits on this throne will never know a day of peace.”

”I can die content.”

With that, he burst into laughter again, coughing and laughing as more blood sprayed from his mouth.

The surrounding eunuchs all fell to their knees, whimpering.

Blood splattered onto Deng Yi’s face and robes. He made no move to help the Emperor, but instead knelt once more. ”I shall not fail to live up to Your Majesty’s high hopes.”

....

....

Tossing the imperial edict to the ground wasn’t enough to vent his fury. Xiao Xun raised his foot to stomp on it, then moved to pick it up and throw it into the fire.

It was the first time in his life he had lost his composure so completely. Tie Ying was stunned, not knowing what to do. Ning Kun lunged forward and snatched the edict, clutching it to his chest.

”Your Highness!” Ning Kun cried. ”Calm down!”

Xiao Xun froze, glaring coldly at Ning Kun. ”Calm down? You want me to calm down for what? So I can deliver this thing to my father?”

Ning Kun, who had watched the Princely Heir grow up, knew full well how close his relationship with the Prince was.

This was also the first time he had ever seen Xiao Xun like this. The young Princely Heir’s usual composure was gone, his face contorted with rage, like a frenzied beast.

”Princely Heir,” he said, his voice trembling as he dropped to his knees with a THUD. ”Right now, it’s not about what I think, or even what you think. It should be about what the Prince thinks.”

Xiao Xun’s eyes were red with fury. He kicked at Ning Kun, cursing, ”How dare you say that! How dare you even think that! You are not even allowed to think it!”

Tie Ying stood to the side, utterly shaken, wondering if he should join the Princely Heir in kicking Ning Kun.

’That Ning Kun... he’s actually trying to convince the Princely Heir to send his own father to his death?!’

Ning Kun didn’t dodge or flinch, taking Xiao Xun’s kicks. He struggled to wrap his arms around Xiao Xun’s leg, shouting, ”Princely Heir, think about it! For you to become the Crown Prince, to ascend the throne—that is the Prince’s greatest wish!”

Xiao Xun pointed outside. ”What is there to think about? He has no other choice! The Crown Prince is dead, the Third Prince is a madman, and the Imperial Grandson is doomed. He only has me! He has to choose me!”

”But the Third Prince isn’t dead yet!” Ning Kun yelled. ”And His Majesty is a madman, too! He was mad enough to take pleasure in watching his two sons fight, so he’s certainly mad enough to let the Third Prince remain as Crown Prince! And His Majesty is still alive! The Prince’s plans have all been exposed this time. We have no choice—it’s either fight for our lives or accept our deaths!”

Xiao Xun kicked Ning Kun away. ”My father is not the weak child he once was. It won’t be so easy for the Emperor to kill us now.”

Ning Kun fell to the ground but didn’t try to grab Xiao Xun again. He said anxiously, ”The Prince has been planning for so many years! It wasn’t to be branded a traitor who rebelled against the throne! Princely Heir—”

He knelt, holding up the imperial edict in his hands.

”Ning Kun is not asking the Princely Heir to commit patricide. I am only asking you not to make this decision on your father’s behalf.”

”A matter of this magnitude... the Prince must be told.”

”On a matter of this magnitude, Princely Heir, you cannot act on your own!”

’After all that talk, it still comes down to him wanting me to deliver this bullshit edict to my father.’

Xiao Xun’s face was dark, his body trembling.

’If Father received this edict, what would he think? What would he do?’

’He didn’t dare to think about it. He couldn’t. He wouldn’t.’

’What I should do right now is grab that edict, throw it in the fire, and make it disappear from this world.’

’But—’

He stood frozen, staring at the edict in Ning Kun’s hands. Growing up, he had never acted on his own initiative. Every step he took, everything he did, had been arranged by his father.

’This time, should I make the decision myself?’

’What if... what if Father has a better solution?’