The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 260 Too late

Li Xianmu dared not delay and hurriedly entered the bedroom.

A quick glance across the hall revealed that the ambergris incense that the palace maids had lit in the bronze censer last night had cooled, leaving only ashes on the lid. Some of these ashes were scattered by the breeze and swirled in the morning light streaming into the hall.

The gold-lacquered dragon and cloud patterns on the ceiling of the palace were dull and lifeless, as if the dragon's eyes were lowered.

Empress Zhang remained by the emperor's bedside. Li Xianmu hurriedly walked to the bedside and glanced at the emperor. His complexion was even worse than when he had just woken up.

It was even thinner than the paper windowpanes on the windows of the palace.

In particular, it was completely bloodless; although the lips were not chapped, they were so pale that they almost blended into the skin.

His conversation with the Crown Prince and the Empress had severely depleted his already limited energy, to the point that he could barely open his eyes.

"Your Majesty, your humble servant has arrived." Li Xianmu dared not speak loudly, bowing slightly and lowering his voice to ensure the emperor could hear him.

Zhu Gaochi's eyelids also had some bluish tinge.

“Ming…Da”.

Her breath, though not as continuous as when she spoke with the Crown Prince, was as thin as a wisp of silk, as if it would break at the slightest touch.

Upon hearing this, Li Xianmu sensed something was wrong. The next moment, his pupils suddenly went unfocused, because the emperor stopped speaking and closed his eyes helplessly, like a lamp extinguished by the wind, leaving only a smoking wick.

"His Majesty!"

"His Majesty!"

Empress Zhang cried out in alarm, but dared not speak loudly, her voice breaking into a few sharp trembling sounds.

Li Xianmu suppressed his horror, knelt before the bed, and gripped the emperor's right wrist with his fingertips, for he had some medical knowledge.

Beneath his fingertips, the emperor's pulse was as faint as a seed breaking open, extremely weak.

Fortunately, they are continuous, like resilient grass in a strong wind, swaying and breaking, yet they always persevere and never break.

He secretly exhaled a breath of stale air.

"Your Majesty, His Majesty is alright for now!"

The emperor was temporarily safe, but Li Xianmu felt even colder inside.

The emperor's father gave him a deadline of ten days, but even if he was foolish, he knew that was just the number he could barely hold on to. If anything went wrong, he would die even earlier.

Zhu Zhanji heard his mother's exclamation and went in again. Strands of hair under his golden crown stuck to his forehead like black tear stains.

"What happened to Father?"

"His Majesty was just about to speak when he fainted due to exhaustion," Li Xianmu said in a hoarse voice. "We don't know when he will wake up."

Zhu Zhanji's eyes darkened, and then he said anxiously, "Father wanted to summon all the Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet, but now that everyone has arrived at the main hall, Father has suddenly fainted. What should we do?"

Li Xianmu said in a deep and decisive voice, "Your Highness, His Majesty's current situation cannot be kept secret from the Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet. It would be better to tell them directly."

Otherwise, if any rumors were to spread, it would be extremely bad.

Since His Majesty is temporarily unconscious, His Highness the Crown Prince will receive the ministers in His Majesty's stead.

Zhu Zhanji agreed after only a slight hesitation. Empress Zhang continued to guard the emperor, while the two of them proceeded to the main hall of the Huagai Hall.

The five Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet stood in their respective positions, the hems of their scarlet robes fluttering slightly in the morning breeze, revealing the moon-white linings beneath. Even in their anxiety, they maintained the demeanor of renowned ministers.

However, all five of them wore expressions of deep confusion.

Along the way, both the palace servants and the palace guards appeared to be on high alert, which made everyone suspicious and knew that something terrible must have happened in the palace.

Moreover, the fact that Li Xianmu, the chief Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, was not on duty at the Cabinet today, and is not currently in the Hall of Literary Glory, has led to much speculation among the group.

As they were speculating, they heard hurried footsteps approaching. Looking up, they saw that it was Crown Prince Zhu Zhanji and Grand Secretary Li Xianmu arriving together. Their slightly haggard appearance suggested that they hadn't rested all night.

An even bigger question arose in their minds: Where was the emperor?
Before anyone could ask, Zhu Zhanji dropped the bombshell: "His Majesty suddenly fell ill last night. He woke up briefly this morning, but before the officials could enter the palace, he fainted again and will not be able to see them."

The hall fell silent.

The morning breeze seemed to have its neck severed by those words; the flame in the bronze crane lamp suddenly leaped up and then quickly subsided, the wick making a soft "crackling" sound.

The five cabinet members were all stunned, unable to believe the crown prince's words.

Just yesterday, the emperor was discussing state affairs with them normally, and even set forth a grand plan to divide the provinces. How come today...

Li Xianmu continued, "This morning, His Majesty, the Crown Prince, and the Empress discussed some matters. When he summoned me, he suddenly fainted. He had summoned you all because His Majesty had something to tell you."

Given the current situation, we can only hope that His Majesty can provide further explanation when he is lucid.

The faces of the people in the hall turned pale and then red, unwilling to believe what they were hearing.

"His Majesty is currently in a coma, and we do not know what the future holds. There are some things I must discuss with you all. First of all, His Majesty's coma must be kept strictly confidential and must not be leaked to avoid causing chaos or giving those with ulterior motives an opportunity to take advantage of the situation."

Upon hearing this, the five cabinet members were immediately alarmed.

They were all too clever; they immediately realized that Li Xianmu was referring to the Prince of Han. If the Prince of Han and his associates were to learn that the emperor was currently in a coma, it could very likely cause chaos.

If two emperors were to die in quick succession within a year of each other, who knows what dangerous rumors would circulate in the court and among the people.

At this moment, everyone could only feel fortunate, fortunate that the emperor had finally persevered to the point of becoming emperor, and fortunate that Zhu Zhanji was the crown prince rather than the grandson of the crown prince.

Otherwise, according to the custom of the emperor's son becoming emperor, he would have to be posthumously granted the title of emperor before he could succeed to the throne, which would be a repeat of the Jingnan Rebellion.

"Prime Minister, what about the court officials? They can't possibly skip the court sessions held every three days, and what about the official documents between the Six Ministries?"

Zhu Zhanji said in a deep voice, "When Father Emperor woke up earlier, he asked me to handle state affairs temporarily. As for the court assembly, I said that Father Emperor was unwell and that the court assembly should be suspended for the time being. As for the documents of the Six Ministries..."

“Let the Grand Secretariat handle all communication between the six ministries,” Li Xianmu said in a deep voice. “The Grand Secretary of the Grand Secretariat is the only one in the court who enters the palace every day. Having the Grand Secretariat handle the communication will not attract attention.”

All five cabinet members focused their gazes; this was no longer a simple matter of communication between the inside and outside; it represented a further expansion of the cabinet's authority.

Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures.

Moreover, Zhu Gaochi and Zhu Zhanji both prioritized the Grand Secretariat over the Six Ministries and the Grand Secretariat, so they readily agreed.

"In that case, let's do as the teacher says. For the time being, we will not allow the ministers of the six ministries to enter the palace. Instead, we will entrust the cabinet to handle communication between the inside and outside. We will suspend the court sessions for now and wait until Father Emperor wakes up before discussing anything else."

Everyone responded in unison, but no one asked what would happen if the emperor didn't wake up.
Zhu Zhanji turned to Li Xianmu and said, "Teacher, you didn't sleep a wink last night. You should go back and rest first. You must take care of your health. The Ming Dynasty cannot do without you."

The cabinet members all bowed their heads. As expected, Li Xianmu had not left the palace last night. The royal family truly trusted Li Xianmu to the extreme.

"Then I will return to my residence first. If there is any business in the palace or court, Your Highness may send someone to summon me."

Li Xianmu agreed first, then turned to the cabinet members and solemnly instructed them: "Shiqi, Zirong, I entrust all matters in the cabinet to the two of you. Now is a time of great turmoil, so you must be cautious and vigilant!"

After the group nodded solemnly, Li Xianmu left the palace.

People often say that a scene evokes emotions, but emotions and scenes are inherently intertwined.

Li Xianmu was in a rather gloomy mood at the moment. When he came out of the palace gate, he saw the lush willows on both sides of the long street, but he had no mood for them. Instead, he only noticed the water puddles in the cracks of the bluestone slabs by the roadside, which sometimes gathered and sometimes broke apart.

This scene made him even more irritable.

Upon returning home, his wife Zhang Wan immediately greeted him. Li Xianmu noticed the anxiety in her eyes at a glance. "Husband, what happened last night?"

Li Xianmu was left in the palace all night and did not return home. Zhang Wan also tossed and turned, unable to sleep, not knowing what had happened.

Before she could ask any further questions, Li Xianmu waved his hand and said, "My lady, don't worry, it's nothing."

Although Li Xianmu said that, Zhang Wan had shared a bed with him for more than ten years, so how could she not see that he was not being sincere and that he was deeply worried?

But she didn't ask any more questions. Instead, she removed Li Xianmu's crown and court robes, and said gently, "My husband, let me have someone warm some water for you. Take a bath and then rest."

"Thank you for your trouble, my lady." Having not slept all night, Li Xianmu was indeed quite tired, and a bath would be just the right thing to do to get rid of his fatigue.

The copper incense burner in the bathroom was already lit, and the warmth of the cypress wood and agarwood wafted out from the cracks in the carved door.

Li Xianmu leaned against the bathtub, smelling the medicinal fragrance in the rising steam, which seemed to change like the white clouds in the sky. The heat surged from every cell in his body, and Li Xianmu gradually became sleepy.

He forced himself to wake up, and then thought of the emperor in the palace, who might never wake up again.

Zhang Wan entered from the outer room, accompanied by several maids. Li Xianmu said without turning his head, "No need to serve you."

Outside, the sun was rising in the east, its light as hot as an oven. Rays of light pierced through the fine lattice windows of the bathroom, shining on the steam and creating a faint rainbow.

A pair of soft hands landed on Li Xianmu's shoulders. Li Xianmu was startled and turned around to look. It was his wife, Zhang Wan.

"My lady, why did you come in person?"

In wealthy families like theirs, the mistress of the house doesn't personally serve people. Besides, someone of Zhang Wan's background probably never learned to serve men during bathing. He had just thought she was a maid in the mansion.

"My husband is in a bad mood, and I don't want to keep you worrying when I get home. When I'm in a bad mood, I like to soak in hot water for a while and stretch my muscles."

"Ugh."

Li Xianmu sighed deeply, letting Zhang Wan massage his shoulders, and said sadly, "Life is full of disappointments, and I never thought it would be like this."

Zhang Wan felt a great deal of doubt. She had almost never seen such sadness in her husband before, the last time being when her mother-in-law passed away.

What on earth happened to make her husband, who is practically capable of carrying the weight of the heavens, so depressed?

No one answered her, and Li Xianmu remained silent; the bathroom was quiet.

(End of this chapter)