Don't Raise A Black Lotus Flower; Use The Emperor As A Substitute [Transmigration novel] - Chapter 21

In just a few short days, the Empress Dowager had suddenly passed away. Consort Li was demoted to Noble Lady Li, and the Crown Prince was grounded in the Eastern Palace. Suddenly, the Forbidden City was gripped by fear. The palace servants were all dressed in mourning white, and even their speech was hushed. A gloomy, oppressive atmosphere hung everywhere.

That afternoon, as Lin Ruoxuan walked toward the Cold Palace, he pondered internally: I have finished lecturing on all thirteen chapters of “The Art of War.” It is time to move on to “Zizhi Tongjian” (Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance). With this in mind, he called out to the system in his mind: “System, System!”

【Beep, beep, beep. The system is online. How can I help you, dear user?】

Lin Ruoxuan got straight to the point: “I want to redeem the vernacular version of “Zizhi Tongjian”.”

【Your current points balance is negative, dear user. According to the rules, you cannot redeem any items.】

Lin Ruoxuan looked at the bright red “-980” in the upper right corner of the mission panel and sighed: “How can I increase my points quickly?”

【I suggest you actively complete missions, such as stealing the White Jade Ginseng from the Imperial Pharmacy, dear user.】

“White Jade Ginseng…” Lin Ruoxuan felt a headache coming on. Originally, he had planned to take advantage of the Empress Dowager’s 60th birthday to observe the imperial physicians brewing the “Ten Complete Replenishing Soup” and steal the White Jade Ginseng during the chaos. But as the saying goes, “Man proposes, God disposes.” The Empress Dowager did not even make it to her 60th birthday before she passed away.

The system continued to nag: 【Keep up the good work, dear user. In addition to the White Jade Ginseng, you must also collect the other three medicinal herbs. Only by gathering all four can you refine the “Four Directions Rejuvenation Pill” to treat Xiao Tunan’s old injuries.】

“Alright, alright, I get it.”

After exiting the system, Lin Ruoxuan looked up and sighed. The White Jade Ginseng of the Eastern Ridge, the Skeleton Grass of the Northern Desert, the Merman’s Tear of the Southern Sea, and the Twin Lotus of the Western Regions—they all sounded incredibly difficult to obtain. Xiao Tunan, you are a grown man, why must you be so troublesome?

Thinking of Xiao Tunan, Lin Ruoxuan remembered the letter that had arrived from the post station last night, and his head throbbed even more.

Liaodong was far from the capital, and correspondence took two or three months. Xiao Tunan had only recently learned of the “good deeds” Lin Ruoxuan had done, including releasing those poor souls from the Eastern Depot dungeon, saving Ji Ruxue from the jaws of a mad dog, and returning some of the fields to the tenant farmers of the Xu family estate outside the city. Upon hearing of these events, Xiao Tunan was greatly gratified and had even written a letter specifically to praise him, thanking him for being willing to listen to the advice in his previous letter.

Big brother, don’t be so narcissistic. I didn’t do those things because I listened to your advice. Lin Ruoxuan was speechless. However, when he thought about it, he had received that letter from Xiao Tunan urging him to “turn over a new leaf” shortly after he had transmigrated, so the timing did indeed match up. It was no wonder Xiao Tunan thought that way.

Thinking of this, Lin Ruoxuan fell into deep thought. Including the previous persuasion letter and the praise letter from last night, he had already received two letters from Xiao Tunan. Should I reply?

After all, building a good relationship and gaining Xiao Tunan’s trust would make it easier to treat his illness later. But then, thinking of the messy, dramatic history between Xiao Tunan and Lin Wan’er that he had no involvement in, Lin Ruoxuan felt a headache coming on again and began to hesitate.

Lost in thought, he unwittingly arrived in front of Ji Ruxue’s bedroom. He reached out and pushed the door open: “Your Highness.”

Ji Ruxue was sitting on the bed, looking down at a small object in his hands. Upon hearing Lin Ruoxuan’s voice, he was slightly startled before he looked up and smiled: “Why have you come so early?”

Lin Ruoxuan caught a glimpse of what was in his hand—a small jade gourd pendant, green and dripping with luster, of excellent quality.

Ji Ruxue looked a bit embarrassed and casually tucked the little jade gourd under his pillow: “This was left to me by my mother.”

“Oh, I see.” Lin Ruoxuan nodded with understanding. So, it was a memento of the late Empress Duan-shu.

“A few months ago, I had intended to sell this to exchange for some silver so I could buy some charcoal and cotton clothes from the Imperial Household Department when winter came. Now, I do not need to sell it,” Ji Ruxue paused and said softly, “because I have you.”

Lin Ruoxuan felt a surge of pity. To think this child was driven to such a state that he intended to sell his mother’s only memento. No wonder he turned into such a “black lotus” later on. He couldn’t help but gently stroke Ji Ruxue’s hair: “This is a memento from the late Empress. Your Highness must keep it safe; it is a way to remember her.”

Ji Ruxue sighed: “Actually, I do not even know what she looked like.”

“Your mother must have been a dignified, virtuous, and great beauty.” I can tell just by looking at this little black lotus.

Ji Ruxue nodded gently: “Mm.”

Lin Ruoxuan wanted to offer a few more words of comfort, but Ji Ruxue suddenly covered his mouth and began to cough violently: “Cough, cough, cough.”

“Your Highness, what is wrong?” Lin Ruoxuan hurried to pat his back gently.

“It is nothing. Cough, cough.”

Ji Ruxue coughed violently for quite a while until his fair, small face turned red before he managed to catch his breath. He hoarsely explained: “It has been a bit chilly at night these past two days. I think I have caught a cold; I have been coughing since this morning.”

Lin Ruoxuan mused: “That must be a cold then. There are no ingredients in the kitchen right now, so how about I come over tomorrow morning and make you a bowl of rock sugar and pear soup? It is so hot outside, a chilled rock sugar and pear soup would be both refreshing and good for relieving your cough.”

“Cough, cough.” Ji Ruxue coughed a few more times before gasping, “It is fine. Superintendent Lin, please do not come by for the next few days, lest I pass it on to you.”

Lin Ruoxuan felt both amused and softened. During this time, Ji Ruxue had truly been changing slowly, from the icy little hedgehog he had been at the beginning to someone who now knew how to care for others. His efforts over the past few months had not been in vain.

He comforted him: “It is alright, it is not that easy to catch.”

But Ji Ruxue was stubborn: “If I pass it to you, I will feel terrible. Please, just do not come for a few days.”

Lin Ruoxuan sighed helplessly: “Very well, I will come back in two days.”

…

That night, Ji Ruxue lay in bed, silently calculating his plans while waiting quietly.

At noon yesterday, he had heard from a young eunuch that the Crown Prince had been grounded in the Eastern Palace for half a month. He had been extremely irritable, throwing things around all day. In the last two days, feeling uncomfortable being watched by so many people, he had reduced the number of guards in the Eastern Palace by half.

Upon hearing this news, Ji Ruxue immediately realized that Ji Ruyuan would soon come to the Cold Palace to cause trouble. It would likely be in the next two days, and probably in the dead of night.

He had been preparing for this day for a long time; he was only afraid that he would not come.

Ji Ruxue lay quietly in bed. He did not know how much time had passed. The sky had turned a deep, inky black, and a faint hint of white appeared on the horizon—the quietest time before dawn, and also the time when people’s vigilance was at its lowest.

He has not come yet. Is he not coming tonight?

Ji Ruxue felt a hint of disappointment. Just then, a crisp click sounded, and the bedroom door was pushed open a crack.

Ji Ruyuan stared coldly at the thin, small figure on the bed and spoke slowly: “Fourth Brother.”

Ji Ruxue seemed to have been sleeping lightly; his thin body trembled slightly, and he scrambled up in a panic. He stared fixedly at Ji Ruyuan in the doorway, gripping the cane by his bedside, his voice trembling: “Eldest Imperial Brother? How did you get here?”

Ji Ruyuan eyed the thin, limping youth before him with ill intent and slowly revealed a hideous grin: “Doesn’t Fourth Brother love sitting in a wheelchair? I shall help you today. As long as I break Fourth Brother’s spine, you will never have to leave that piece-of-trash wheelchair for the rest of your life.”

Ji Ruxue said with a trembling voice: “Eldest Imperial Brother, if you do such a thing, even if Father does not like me, the censorate officials will not let you off.”

Ji Ruyuan laughed: “Do you think I did not think of that? I specifically dismissed half the guards in the Eastern Palace and, during the shift change, snuck out wearing a eunuch’s clothes. On the way here, no one saw me, and no one knows I came here. And after your brain is smashed, you will not remember any of this.”

Ji Ruxue trembled even more violently: “Really, no one saw you?”

“Of course.” Ji Ruyuan grinned hideously. “Fourth Brother, would you like to be paralyzed from the waist down, or from the chest down?”

In a flash, Ji Ruxue suddenly flipped up and scrambled off the bed, clutching his cane and stumbling toward the side room. Then, with a loud bang, he slammed the side room door shut.

“Tsk, a deathbed struggle!” Ji Ruyuan sneered and gave chase.

There were very few eunuchs in the Cold Palace, and at this early hour, there was not a soul around. Ji Ruyuan naturally had no reservations. Following Ji Ruxue out the back door of the side room and through two corridors, the two of them chased one after another into the small kitchen in the backyard: “You little beast, you can sure run for a cripple!”

Ji Ruxue seemed to have run out of options; he actually dashed headlong into the kitchen cellar.

Ji Ruyuan sneered inwardly. A little cripple actually ran into the cellar; let us see where you run now.

He abruptly lifted his hem and crawled into the cellar after him, climbing down the narrow, steep wooden ladder. Just as his feet touched the ground, the strong scent of alcohol rushed toward his face. Ji Ruyuan was slightly taken aback—why was there such a strong smell of alcohol?

The cellar was used for storing grain, firewood, ice, and various sundries. It was deep and dark, almost pitch black. Ji Ruyuan blinked hard, struggling to adapt to the darkness. Before him were piles of messy debris, huge blocks of ice stacked in the corner, and stacks of firewood. Where is that little beast hiding?

He was looking around when, suddenly, a fierce wind rushed past the back of his head. With a loud bang, something heavy struck him on the back of the head.

The blow left Ji Ruyuan dizzy and disoriented. He clutched the back of his head and turned around, furious: “You little beast, you are courting death!”

Then, he froze.

It turned out that at some point, Ji Ruxue had lightly climbed back to the top of the wooden ladder. He held a small fire starter in his hand; the weak flame flickered gently, and those deep, wolf-like eyes reflected the cold light of the flame.

“How did you climb up there? Your leg…” In a flash of insight, Ji Ruyuan suddenly realized something and lunged upward.

But it was too late.

Ji Ruxue lightly flicked his wrist. The fire starter traced a smooth arc, falling gently in front of Ji Ruyuan, right onto the strong alcohol flowing across the floor.

“BOOM!” The flames soared into the sky.

“Goodbye, Eldest Imperial Brother.” Ji Ruxue slowly curled one corner of his lip and gently shut the heavy wooden cellar door.

The whole affair had gone so smoothly that Ji Ruxue’s mood was at its peak. He hummed a tune softly, scooped a ladle of water from the kitchen water vat, and carefully washed his hands. Listening to the silence from the cellar, he leaned on his cane and limped his way outside.

That night at the Palace of Compassion and Tranquility, he had intentionally provoked Ji Ruyuan, knowing the other would surely seek revenge. Although Ji Ruyuan had been ordered to reflect behind closed doors for a year, given the Crown Prince’s irritable nature, he would not be able to wait more than a few days before sneaking out to cause trouble for him.

When Ji Ruxue heard the young eunuch say that the Crown Prince felt the Eastern Palace was too heavily guarded and had removed half of them, he knew the fish had taken the bait.

Therefore, he had intentionally pretended to be sick, telling Lin Ruoxuan not to come to the Cold Palace for a few days, while he waited quietly—waiting for the dangerous, fat fish that was Ji Ruyuan.

Last night, he had found an opportunity to push that annoying old eunuch, Zhang Youde, into the dry well in the backyard, throwing in some stones and grass to cover it up. No one would discover that Zhang Youde was missing.

As for the kitchen cellar, besides the ice, it was piled high with debris and firewood, and he had poured plenty of high-proof alcohol over it. The fire would surely be ferocious, and by the time it died out, there would be nothing left of Ji Ruyuan.

Zhang Youde was about the same height as Ji Ruyuan; naturally, everyone would think that the charred remains were that of the missing Zhang Youde. Old eunuchs in the Cold Palace like him were usually just wrapped in a mat and tossed out for burial; they never even saw the face of an autopsy surgeon from the Ministry of Justice.

The Crown Prince goes missing from the Eastern Palace, and a fire occasionally breaks out in the Cold Palace cellar, burning an old eunuch to death—who would connect these two unrelated events?

Once the heat died down, he would seal the dry well, making it foolproof.

Moreover, even if something went wrong, he had a backup plan.

The eastern horizon turned a golden hue as dawn approached. Ji Ruxue limped his way out, meticulously reviewing the entire event in his mind. Finding no loopholes, he hummed a tune and slowly made his way back to his bedroom. He still had to go back to review “The Art of War.”

A young eunuch approached: “Your Highness.”

Ji Ruxue was in a great mood and nodded with a rare smile: “Mm.”

The eunuch looked behind him, puzzled: “Your Highness, is Superintendent Lin not with you?”

Ji Ruxue paused, a feeling of unease in his heart: “Superintendent Lin came? When?”

“Just a moment ago,” the young eunuch scratched his head. “I saw him head straight for the kitchen, saying he wanted to make some rock sugar and pear soup.”

Ji Ruxue’s mind went blank for a second, and he heard his own voice trembling: “I, I just went to the kitchen to get some food, I did not see him.”

The eunuch blinked, suddenly realizing: “I remember now, the rock sugar and pear soup needs to be chilled; perhaps Superintendent Lin went into the cellar to get ice?”

Ji Ruxue stared blankly at the eunuch, as if he did not understand what the other was saying. The moment it dawned on him, he felt a buzz in his head and all the blood in his body went cold. No longer caring about his disguise, he threw his cane aside and ran toward the kitchen.

Lin Ruoxuan is in the cellar!