Imperial Physician Liu stared up in stunned disbelief, completely unprepared. Only moments ago, the emperor had spoken so fiercely that he was willing to have the entire Imperial Medical Academy buried alongside them if the physician failed to preserve Imperial Noble Lord and his child. Yet in the next breath, Feng Xuanyi himself had ordered that the father be preserved at the cost of the child. Because this concerned the continuation of the imperial bloodline, Imperial Physician Liu thought he must have misheard. He knelt there in a daze for a long time without responding.
“Leave.” Feng Xuanyi frowned in displeasure.
Only then did Imperial Physician Liu finally understand that he had not imagined it. He had truly heard His Majesty issue a secret command to end the life of his own son. Even a vicious tiger would not devour its cubs, yet the reigning emperor had deprived his own child of life without so much as blinking.
“This minister… this minister—obeys…” Imperial Physician Liu’s body trembled uncontrollably, just as badly as his voice.
When he stepped out of the palace hall again, Imperial Physician Liu was drenched in sweat and deathly pale. Never had he imagined a midsummer night could feel so cold, as though the chill could freeze straight through his marrow. He descended the steps trembling and stumbled. Had the palace attendant waiting nearby not reacted quickly enough to catch him, Imperial Physician Liu might have been incapable of carrying out the imperial order even if he wished to.
“Imperial Physician Liu, please wait.” Han Ruifeng walked gracefully from the hall and raised one hand to stop the attendants beside him from following. “You really must watch your step. It is already so late. I should have someone escort you back. It would be unfortunate if some accident happened along the way.”
“Thank you for your concern, Young Master. This minister… this minister is fine. My foot merely slipped.” Imperial Physician Liu continued wiping sweat from his face even as he spoke.
“My lord has worked tirelessly for His Majesty, so naturally you are exhausted. All the more reason to take good care of yourself.” Han Ruifeng stopped before him, smiling gently while observing every movement Imperial Physician Liu made from his slightly higher position. “You must not be careless with His Majesty’s wishes. It would be best to return and make your preparations soon. Remember what His Majesty said: it must be clean and decisive. Though… if something truly did go wrong, at this stage of the pregnancy, that would be understandable too, wouldn’t it?”
The struggles within the palace never ceased for even a single day. Regardless of rank or status, anyone caught between them lived as though thorns pressed against their back, unable to find a moment’s peace, while every step threatened to become a wrong one.
“Th-this minister… still has one matter I do not understand. Young Master, please enlighten me.” Unfortunately, even Imperial Physician Liu, head of the Imperial Medical Academy, had now been dragged into this whirlpool of power struggles and ruthless killing. Never had he imagined that one day the role of executioner would fall into his own hands.
“Please speak. If it can help relieve His Majesty’s worries, naturally I will tell you everything I know.” Han Ruifeng smiled gently, without the slightest visible edge or aggression. The way he was fanning the flames and slipping a knife in from behind seemed no more significant to him than casual conversation.
“This concerns an imperial heir. His Majesty… does His Majesty truly mean this?” Perhaps age had softened him. His heart was no longer as cold—or even ruthless—as it had been in his hot-blooded youth. After spending most of his life serving inside the palace, Imperial Physician Liu had seen such scenes too many times to find them remarkable, but he had never heard of an emperor deliberately eliminating his own child. He could not stop himself from asking one more question.
“My lord is thinking too much. How could His Majesty’s thoughts possibly be something you or I can fathom? We are all sensible people, but in the end we merely obey orders, devote ourselves to His Majesty, and remain loyal to him. Thinking beyond that is useless. Imperial Physician Liu has served in the palace for many years. You surely understand this principle even better than I do, so there is no need for me to say more.” Han Ruifeng leaned slightly closer, deliberately lowering his voice. Gone was his usual mild gentleness; something cold and ruthless entered his tone, making Imperial Physician Liu’s heart jump again.
“It is already late. Imperial Physician Liu should return soon. An imperial command cannot be delayed.” Han Ruifeng turned away, folded his hands behind him, and walked back toward the hall. Without looking back, he instructed a palace servant, “Escort Imperial Physician Liu back to the Imperial Medical Academy.”
Meanwhile, at Moon-Embracing Palace, Nalan Xuan remained completely unaware of what had occurred. He sat alone in the principal seat of the hall, exactly as he had when Feng Xuanyi left at noon, as though he had frozen in place from that moment onward. He did not move. His expression remained peaceful. There was no shouting or cursing, but that very calm frightened Xiao Dezi even more. Nalan Xuan behaved less like a living person than an ornament someone had placed there and forgotten. He simply stared through the window from daylight into darkness, from sunrise until sunset.
“Master, you’ve been sitting here all day. At least drink some tea or eat a little something.”
Xiao Dezi had expected no response and was not surprised when none came. Yet the longer Nalan Xuan remained like this, the graver Xiao Dezi’s expression became. Even he could understand by now that something truly serious had happened.
“Master, even if you won’t eat, you should at least drink this pregnancy-stabilizing medicine. Imperial Physician Liu personally prepared it just now and had it brought over from the Imperial Medical Academy.” Still receiving no response, Xiao Dezi did not grow impatient. He brought the bowl toward Nalan Xuan’s lips and tried to coax him into drinking. “This servant knows that anything I say now is useless, and I know I cannot persuade Master. But this servant isn’t saying this for Master’s sake. Whoever Master is angry with is Master’s own affair, but the little prince has done nothing wrong. Why make him suffer alongside you?”
Xiao Dezi’s words struck precisely at Nalan Xuan’s weakness. The almost imperceptible flicker of emotion did not escape Xiao Dezi’s eyes. Satisfied that he had finally gotten a reaction, Xiao Dezi pressed his advantage. “Imperial Physician Liu said medicine should not be taken on an empty stomach. Instead of helping, it can do harm. This servant has already prepared dinner in the side hall. Master can eat whenever you wish.”
Nalan Xuan understood. He was furious with Feng Xuanyi and hated him, and Feng Xuanyi cared only for the child in his belly. Nalan Xuan had tried shouting his rage, but ultimately even that had collapsed into helplessness. There was no sorrow greater than a dead heart. He would accept Feng Xuanyi again—not resisting, not rejecting. Had his original intention not also been to carve out a place in the world for the flesh and blood inside him? Since the two of them had somehow reached the same goal with astonishing agreement, stripped of every other feeling, then Nalan Xuan needed only learn how to be a good father, how to preserve the authority of his position as Imperial Noble Lord, and how to protect his child’s rights. He had long since grown sick of this imperial palace. He had only been clinging to one last fantasy that even he did not wish to acknowledge. Now it was time to wake from that dream and leave. Just not yet. Once the child was born, once his body recovered enough for him to disappear from the palace without anyone noticing, all the things troubling him now would cease to matter. He would have to place the final period himself.
Nalan Xuan knew how precious Feng Xuanyi considered the child in his belly. No matter how badly Nalan Xuan had offended him at noon, Feng Xuanyi would still be unable to eliminate him completely because of the child. Moon-Embracing Palace would lack nothing in food, drink, or daily necessities. Imperial physicians would come whenever summoned, ensuring that nothing went wrong. For the Nalan Xuan of this moment, that was enough.
Seeing that Nalan Xuan was finally willing to eat, Xiao Dezi stood to the side and at last felt reassured. After helping him through dinner, he ordered someone to bring over the pregnancy-stabilizing medicine that had been kept warm over the stove.
Once, the mere sight of that thick black medicinal liquid had made Nalan Xuan recoil. He had tried every trick imaginable—whining, stalling, playing dumb, pretending madness—always following one simple principle: if he could avoid drinking it, he would; if he could delay another moment, then another moment was worth taking. Now drinking it had become so familiar it was almost second nature. He did not even wrinkle his brow.
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