"Your Majesty spoke to us in private, and no one knows what was said, but our comings and goings are recorded!"
"It's over, it's over! The guards sent to retrieve blood from the Empress Dowager's maternal family have already gone. By now, the blood might have been collected, and it can't be concealed anymore..."
"Has Your Majesty truly met with misfortune?"
"Should we tell the truth when asked, or what?"
"How about... we run..."
"To avoid implicating my family and sect, I shall take my leave first. You few decide for yourselves!"
Scarcely had they exchanged a few words when Qi He Zhenren, knowing that the informant would never dare to fabricate news of the Emperor's demise, had a myriad of thoughts flash through his mind. To protect his family and sect, he decisively took out several pills from his robes, mixed them, and swallowed them.
Moments later, he vomited blood and died.
This left the other Daoist Zhenren beside him stunned. They exchanged bewildered glances, their hearts in turmoil, unsure whether they should follow suit or use their own lives to secure the safety of their families and sects.
Before long, another Zhenren made up his mind.
But he hadn't brought any medicine, so he could only resort to dashing his head against a wall.
However, he was unsuccessful, as the other Zhenren beside him managed to stop him. At the same time, Xuan De Zhenren persuaded him:
"Slow down, don't rush. Don't rush to die.
We can't be so panicked. Let's calm down and think this through. If His Majesty has indeed passed away, and we follow him in death, could we be perceived as committing suicide to evade punishment? Or worse, might people suspect that we cursed His Majesty? Although we know we lack such power, others don't.
Therefore, our most important task now is not to die.
It is to avoid being misunderstood..."
"This... this actually makes some sense!"
"But how can we explain ourselves? We can't possibly say we knew nothing about this. Wait, I have an idea.
It might be a bit immoral, a bit of a 'let my friends die before I do' situation, but it might be useful. We might not even have to die, at most we'll be implicated.
Can we shift all the blame onto fellow Daoist Qi He? Since he's already dead, we'll only bear the guilt of not dissuading him in time. That should not be a capital offense, nor should it implicate our families and sects!"
Though Zhenren Huai Ming's face showed a hint of guilt, he genuinely believed his suggestion was quite brilliant.
Allowing the dead to serve one last purpose.
Wasn't that also a virtue?
"You mean we can attribute the matter of refining pills with human blood entirely to fellow Daoist Qi He? We can even save face for the royal family by claiming that what His Majesty instructed us to do was actually Qi He's instigation of His Majesty.
This way, Your Majesty's posthumous reputation might be somewhat better?"
Zhenren Xuan De, with his sharp mind, quickly understood Zhenren Huai Ming's intentions and expanded upon them.
He hoped to maximize their benefits.
After all, it was the same burden to shoulder the blame for Qi He, whether it was one blame or several. It was better to let him carry more, so everyone could come out looking better. The Empress and the new Emperor, seeing their efforts to uphold Emperor Jin'an's posthumous reputation,
Should grant them more leniency.
"If we go even further and directly say Qi He cursed him, could we be completely absolved?"
"Please, are you foolish? We are already innocent; we'll merely be implicated. We were together every day. If we say Qi He cursed His Majesty, how will we respond when the Dali Temple asks why we didn't stop him?
Won't they suspect we were also involved..."
"Forget it, let's not expect to escape completely unscathed and easily. As long as we don't face severe punishment, let's proceed as we discussed. Let's synchronize our stories and avoid any slip-ups."
"Very well, our accounts must be consistent."
...
Qianqing Palace, within the rear chambers.
"Has Your Majesty truly passed away?"
Looking at Emperor Jin'an's forehead, which was scorched black, his exposed skin covered in burn marks, and parts of his clothes and bedding reduced to ash, devoid of any breath, the Empress was heartbroken and unable to accept it.
Yet, there was also a sliver of secret joy.
Her husband was dead, and after years of shared emotions, she naturally felt grief.
The secret joy was primarily that she no longer had to worry about any future mishaps regarding her son's position as Crown Prince. She would soon become Empress Dowager and no longer fret about some concubine gaining favor and causing trouble.
In recent years, she had often lost sleep, worrying if Emperor Jin'an lived too long, whether her son's position as Crown Prince would be as precarious as that of some princes in historical accounts.
Or worse, if Emperor Jin'an would become wary and target him.
Now, her worries were finally over, and everything was settled.
However, no matter her inner thoughts, on the surface, her eyes were red, her body trembled, and she incredulously questioned the imperial physician, feigning disbelief at the Emperor's demise.
"Your Highness, please accept my condolences!"
At this moment, any further words would be a mistake. The head of the Imperial Medical Academy dared not respond directly, merely offering a veiled expression of condolence.
This indirectly confirmed the Emperor's death.
As for the cause of death, he dared not speak of it.
In this day and age, even a lightning strike on a rooftop could be misunderstood or slandered, let alone someone being struck dead.
Furthermore, Emperor Jin'an's ascension to the throne was acquired through the Jingnan Campaign.
Anyone who learned of his death by lightning would first suspect divine retribution. In more extreme cases, some might even attempt a restoration, leading to widespread chaos.
Therefore, anyone with a shred of sense and a desire to live would avoid mentioning the cause of death. The Empress was well aware of this. Thus, she quickly ordered everyone who knew of the matter to be placed under surveillance, preventing any leaks.
Then, she sent word to the Crown Prince and her father.
Asking them to quickly bring troops into the palace.
She could handle matters within the inner palace and knew how to do so, but how to deal with the court officials, the nobles, and the imperial clan, and how to announce this matter publicly, she was unsure.
She could only rely on her son to devise a plan.
As for when to notify the civil and military officials and formally announce the Emperor's passing to the public, that would have to wait until she resolved the hidden dangers within the inner palace, completely preventing the spread of news,
And until her son devised a suitable public statement.
Following this, the inner palace became a hive of activity. The Crown Prince and his maternal uncle rushed into the palace. A small number of eunuchs and palace maids risked their lives to spread the news. Some well-informed ministers and other imperial princes also hurried to the palace gates, attempting to see Emperor Jin'an and confirm his death.
Especially the ministers who supported other imperial princes.
They were beside themselves with anxiety.
How could a perfectly healthy emperor, with no reported illness or hidden ailments, suddenly pass away? His death was one thing, but his sudden demise left them no time to switch their allegiance to the Crown Prince!
This left them in a predicament, having pledged allegiance to the wrong person.
The concubines in the inner palace also began to sense that something was amiss, each taking action, sending messages, and inquiring about the situation.
Only Ding Yun, feigning complete ignorance, went to sleep. After all, if she didn't sleep now, after the official announcement of Emperor Jin'an's death,
It would be difficult to sleep so peacefully.
While she wouldn't have to keep vigil,
She would at least have to show some outward signs of mourning.
In short, it was quite troublesome, so troublesome that Ding Yun regretted killing him, thinking she should have just turned him into a living corpse.
That way, the problem would have been solved,
Without this current hassle.
However, it was too late for regrets. A resurgence of life would likely have worse repercussions. Therefore, Ding Yun could only be unconcerned and get a good night's sleep first.