Chapter 1262: Chapter 1098: A Desperate Gamble

"Oh dear! Emperor, what happened? Could it be that you’ve caught a cold?" Pang Chu saw the Emperor coughing vigorously and quickly stepped forward to pat his back.

The Emperor coughed incessantly, his mind gradually turning hazy, but suddenly he tasted a salty and fishy flavor in his mouth.

He hurriedly picked up a handkerchief to cover his mouth and coughed a few more times forcefully.

"Emperor?" Pang Chu was shocked, watching a stain of bright red seep through the brocade handkerchief, and he froze in place.

"Someone come, quickly call the Imperial Physician!"

Pang Chu exclaimed, his sharp voice causing the Emperor’s ears to ring and his vision to blur.

"Emperor? Emperor?" Pang Chu caught the Emperor’s slumped body, his tone carrying a sob.

...

"Prince, in another three days we will arrive at Fengqing Prefecture," Tang Canling tightened the fur cloak around him and said to the person inside the carriage behind him.

"Quickly! We need not rest these three days!"

Prince Jing instructed Xiao Chengzi to move the brazier closer inside the carriage; the closer they got to the border, the more severe the weather became.

"But I’m worried that your body won’t hold up with this recent long journey," Tang Canling expressed concern, as the Prince’s body was not particularly strong. Recently, he had been stabbed with a sword, and now his body hadn’t fully recovered.

With long travels and little rest, how could one bear such conditions?

"Indeed! Prince, you should rest for a bit! With the constant travel over the past few days, how is your body supposed to endure?" Xiao Chengzi, too, showed concern, looking at Prince Jing’s pale complexion filled with worry.

"Don’t worry! I know my own body well. Prince Gong has already taken Huadong Prefecture and is sharpening his knives towards other state prefectures. We’ve fallen behind and can’t let his influence expand further."

Prince Jing sighed, surprised that his elder brother could take such a bold step, making him look at him in a new way.

Though compared to courage, he was somewhat lacking compared to Zhao Xian. But he was also astonished by Zhao Xian’s power, whether in financial resources or manpower, he couldn’t compare.

This was all due to their father’s excessive favoritism towards Zhao Xian during those years. How many advantages did Zhao Xian gain because of their father’s favoritism?

Recruiting soldiers requires Silver, and without Silver, how can one recruit soldiers? Unlike him, aside from visiting the fiefdom where circumstances improved somewhat, he had gathered no Silver living in the Capital all these years.

His father seldom assigned him tasks, especially good tasks with ample benefits were beyond his reach. Due to his physical limitations, he had to live constantly under scrutiny, resorting to acts of instigation behind the scenes to achieve his goals.

Holding a tea bowl with cold fingers, feeling the heat along the rim, Prince Jing collected his thoughts.

"It’s amazing that Yuan Bin survived! His survival thwarted my plans. And then there’s Qiu Mantang, who dare play me like a fiddle." Prince Jing recalled the matter with some anger.

"It was my oversight, none of my subordinates recognized Prefect Qiu’s defection." Tang Canling found the matter vexing, as the Prince had entrusted it to him, yet he had somehow bungled it.

"Unexpectedly, Qiu Mantang allied with my elder brother, which surprised me greatly. The failed assassination allowed Yuan Bin to escape, and my elder brother sent someone to assassinate him again, yet both attempts failed to kill him; it seems his life is truly charmed. If not for Gu Chengyu’s interference, we almost ended up benefiting others. The surprises my elder brother has brought me come one after another!"

Prince Jing closed his eyes lightly, the thought of the newly crowned Crown Prince adding to his worries.

"Prefect Qiu’s betrayal turned the previously secure Wujun Prefecture into uncertainty!" Wujun Prefecture had always been Prince Jing’s target, and Prefect Qiu had long since defected to him, but merely going to the Capital led Qiu Mantang to betray him.

Indeed, Zhao Xian played a clever move. Not only did he disrupt my plans, but he also seized Huadong Prefecture.

"Prince, now that Junior Minister Gu is stationed in Wujun Prefecture, our efforts to take Wujun Prefecture won’t be easy," Tang Canling felt a bit apprehensive about Gu Chengyu, as once Gu Chengyu made a move, his Prince’s plans were always disrupted.

Despite his Prince being an outstanding strategist, he was always slightly inferior when facing Gu Chengyu. Gu Chengyu seemed born to suppress people, as his Prince always had to avoid confrontation when dealing with him.

The thought of Gu Chengyu’s involvement made Tang Canling feel unsettled.

"Do you think he’ll stay at Wujun Prefecture?" Prince Jing smiled slightly; there might still be an opportunity.

"Do you mean he’ll head to the border?" Tang Canling pondered for a moment, then recalled Inspectorate’s Lord Yin Kun was still at Yuhe Pass.

"Exactly! Those Da Xing bandits are growing more rampant, perhaps ready to act. Imperial Censor Yin has yet to send any news back to the Capital, and the Emperor is already dissatisfied with him. Sending Gu Shaoqing to Jiangnan was precisely to assist the Imperial Censor, wasn’t it?"

Since Gu Chengyu exposed Prince Gong’s plan, Qiu Mantang won’t fare well either. Now in Wujun Prefecture, it should be unoccupied, and isn’t this the perfect opportunity?

"Now that he’s not in Wujun Prefecture, isn’t this our chance?" Tang Canling’s eyes lit up, eager to return to Wujun Prefecture right away.

"Don’t be too optimistic; do you think Prince Gong will simply watch? He’s closer than we are and might act on Wujun Prefecture first." Prince Jing was merely speculating, as he was finding Zhao Xian increasingly hard to read.

Zhao Xian might seize the opportunity to strike Wujun Prefecture when Gu Chengyu is absent. Or he might have other plans, which are unpredictable.

...

"How is it? Is there any problem with the Emperor’s health?" Pang Chu urgently grabbed Director Zhang’s sleeve, almost startled to death watching the Emperor cough up blood.

Pang Chu was anxious as ants on a hot pan, yet Director Zhang silently stroked his beard.

"Director, please say something! What’s wrong with the Emperor? Is it due to excessive fatigue?" Pang Chu wore a mournful face, pulling Director Zhang back and forth.

Unable to withstand the shaking, Director Zhang promptly pulled his sleeve back.

"Just now, upon examining the pulse, I suspect the Emperor has been poisoned. Though not entirely certain, the likelihood of poisoning is high. This poison I have never encountered, it’s truly baffling!"

Now he truly doubted his medical skills, as he struggled to diagnose the late Emperor’s poison, and now he’s equally baffled by the new Emperor’s poison.

Could it be he’s not skilled enough? Director Zhang felt somewhat defeated but then recalled something.

"If this poison is concocted by the Divine Doctor Family, that would explain it. Their family’s poisons are renowned nationwide, and besides their family members, no one can cure them. Yet, the Divine Doctor Family seldom emerges, and their poisons are hard to procure. How could they target the Emperor? Could it be someone in the court invited them?"

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