The Rebirth of Han Yuxi

News of the abundant potato harvest in the northwest soon reached the capital.

Yan Wushuang frowned. "These potatoes can yield seventeen or eighteen hundred jin per mu? Why have I never heard of this crop before?"

Meng Nian replied, "I've already made enquiries. These potatoes were brought to Fujian by foreign merchants ten years ago."

Yan Wushuang was even more puzzled and asked, "With such a high yield, why haven't they become widely cultivated?" Fujian was several thousand li from the northwest, yet Han Yuxi actually knew about them. Thinking of the information he had received earlier, Yan Wushuang's expression flickered.

Meng Nian continued, "These potatoes actually have one major problem. The yield is very high in the first growing season, but if you plant them in the second season, the harvest drops considerably. By the third season, you can't even recover your original investment. That's why they were never widely introduced." This situation was precisely what Yuxi had mentioned earlier: growing potatoes in consecutive seasons would lead to insect infestations. Once the crops were infested, the harvest would naturally decline considerably.

Yan Wushuang nodded. Now that made sense. If there were no harmful consequences, such a high-yield crop would surely have been cultivated more widely.

They had only just finished discussing the matter when Guo Zhong requested an audience outside. Upon seeing Yan Wushuang, Guo Zhong said somewhat anxiously, "Wangye, His Majesty has fallen unconscious."

Yan Wushuang asked coldly, "What's going on? How could His Majesty suddenly fall unconscious when he was in such good condition?" Martial artists generally enjoyed good health. Zhou Jing had always been very healthy and rarely fell ill.

Guo Zhong shook his head and said, "His Majesty kept His Highness in his bedchamber, and somehow he fell unconscious. The imperial physicians haven't been able to explain the cause either. Wangye, please go and have a look!" If anything three long and two short were to happen to the Emperor, it would create yet another troublesome situation.

After a moment's thought, Yan Wushuang instructed, "Go and summon Han Ce Fei. Have her accompany me to the imperial palace." As for why he wanted Yuchen to accompany him, only Yan Wushuang himself knew.

Upon hearing the news, Yuchen immediately gathered the things she had prepared for Zhou Yan and brought them along. Momo Gui, however, was somewhat worried and asked, "Why would Wangye suddenly want to take Niangniang to the Imperial Palace when everything was perfectly fine? Could something have happened to His Highness?" She desperately hoped that nothing had happened to His Highness. Otherwise, her Niangniang could never bear it.

Yuchen also felt somewhat uneasy.

Upon arriving at the imperial palace, Yan Wushuang went to the outer court, while Yuchen took Momo Gui to the inner palace. When Yan Wushuang reached the Hall of Mental Cultivation, he asked Zhang Yuyi, "What has happened to His Majesty?"

Sweat had already broken out on Zhang Yuyi's forehead. "Forgive us, Wangye. We have been unable to determine why His Majesty fell unconscious." To think he was the Director of the Imperial Medical Bureau, yet he couldn't even identify the cause of the Emperor's unconsciousness. How shameful!

Yan Wushuang asked, "Could he have been poisoned?" Seeing Zhang Yuyi shake his head, he continued asking, "Maybe the poison is colourless and tasteless, so it's impossible to identify?" Such poisons existed, but they were extremely rare.

Zhang Yuyi felt embarrassed and shook his head. "I have only read about such poisons in medical books. I have never actually encountered one." Truthfully, he thought Yan Wushuang was overthinking it. Zhou Jing was merely a puppet emperor. Who would go to such lengths and exhaust so much thought just to poison him? If someone possessed such a poison, they would be better off using it on Yan Wushuang.

Yan Wushuang ordered, "Summon every Imperial Physician and have them examine His Majesty. Whoever identifies the cause of his condition will be promoted by two official ranks and rewarded with one hundred taels of gold."

Several Imperial Physicians examined the Emperor, but they all shook their heads, indicating that they could not determine the cause. The last was Hong Taiyi, who was not particularly concerned with trimming his edges and borders. He felt the Emperor's pulse twice, then furrowed his brow.

Seeing this, Yan Wushuang asked, "Have you discovered anything?"

Hong Taiyi shook his head. "His Majesty's pulse is steady and strong, his breathing is even, and he looks as though he is asleep. In all my years, I have never encountered symptoms like these." Someone asleep would wake when called, but Zhou Jing could not be awakened.

Had the circumstances been more appropriate, the other imperial physicians would probably have rolled their eyes. His words were as good as saying nothing.

When Yuchen saw the two eunuchs guarding the entrance, looking somewhat alarmed at the sight of her, she immediately realised something might have happened to her son. She stopped them at once and demanded, "Where is His Highness?"

The young eunuch knelt and replied, "His Highness is in his bedchamber."

Yuchen strode inside. The moment she entered, she saw Zhou Yan lying on the bed, his face deathly pale. Yuchen rushed forward, grasped Zhou Yan's hand and asked, "Yan-er, Yan-er, what has happened to you?"

Zhou Yan responded in a very weak voice, "Mom, I'm all right."

How could he possibly be all right in such a condition? Yuchen immediately summoned the wet nurse and demanded sternly, "Speak! What happened to His Highness?"

The wet nurse knelt on the ground and said through her tears, "Niangniang, His Highness has been injured. There are wounds all over his body. Please save His Highness, Niangniang!"

Upon hearing this, Yuchen immediately pulled back the quilt and removed Zhou Yan's inner robe. She then saw one horrifying, vicious-looking welt after another covering his body.

Yuchen's eyes seemed about to split at the corners. "Who? Who did this?"

Tears streamed down the wet nurse's face. "It was His Majesty. His Majesty beat him. His Highness was afraid Niangniang would worry, so he didn't dare tell Niangniang. Niangniang, this isn't the first time. Since the beginning of the year, His Majesty has been acting erratically. Every so often, he beats His Highness viciously."

Yuchen had never felt such hatred. Her son was only six years old, yet someone had dared to lay such a poisonous hand on him. That Zhou Jing truly deserved to die.

Zhou Yan wiped away Yuchen's tears and said, "Mom, don't cry. I'm all right."

Yuchen held Zhou Yan tightly and burst into loud sobs. "Yan-er, Mom is useless. Mom failed to protect you." If she had known that she and her son would suffer such mistreatment, they might as well have gone along with the late His Majesty that day.

Zhou Yan endured the pain throughout his body and comforted his mother, "Mom, don't be sad. It doesn't hurt. Really, it doesn't hurt at all." The first time the whip had struck him, he had actually fainted.

The more sensible and considerate her son was, the more heartbroken Yuchen became. However, crying wouldn't solve anything now. Yuchen instructed a palace maid to fetch some medicine, which she then reapplied to Zhou Yan's wounds. After she applied the medicine, Zhou Yan fell into a deep sleep. Yuchen stroked his head and murmured to herself, "Yan-er, don't worry. Even if Mom has to throw her very life away, Mom will keep you safe." If there was truly no other way, then death would be all that awaited her. But if it really came to that, she would drag that beast to his death alongside her.

Yuchen stayed in the Imperial Palace that day to care for Zhou Yan and didn't return to the Wangfu until the following day. That evening, Yuchen went to find Yan Wushuang and asked, "Did you already know about this?" Otherwise, he would not have taken her to the Imperial Palace that day. Since the New Year, she had only entered the palace twice. As Zhou Yan had behaved normally, she had noticed nothing unusual. She had also failed in her duty as a mother because she had not even realised that her son was being abused.

Yan Wushuang did not deny it. "So what if I knew?"

Yuchen nearly ground her mouthful of silver teeth to pieces. She had known this man had deliberately kept the matter from her. "Wangye, Yan-er is the Huang Taidi. I want him to move into the Eastern Palace." The Eastern Palace was some distance from the Imperial Palace. If Zhou Yan lived there, he could avoid Zhou Jing for a while. As for what came afterwards, that would require careful planning.

Yan Wushuang glanced at Yuchen expressionlessly and reminded her with a smile, "Remember your position." A mere Ce Fei had actually dared to make demands of him. Of course, if Han Yuchen could offer him something useful, he might consider it.

Ever since returning, Yuchen had been thinking about how to persuade Yan Wushuang. Eventually, she came up with a solution that was hardly a solution. "Wangye, Zhou Jing is already sixteen this year. Once he marries, he'll be able to govern on his own. But Yan-er is only six." She meant that Zhou Yan would be easy to control, whereas Zhou Jing might not be.

Hearing this, Yan Wushuang became rather interested. Ever since this woman had arrived at the Wangfu, she had looked lifeless. Later, when Zhou Yan returned to the capital, she had resorted to playing tricks and currying favour with him just to see her son. By comparison, he much preferred seeing Yuchen as she was now. "Don't waste my time with useless words."

Yuchen said, "In another year or two, I'll make sure that Yan-er voluntarily abdicates the throne in your favour. That way, you won't have to bear the infamous name cursed for a thousand ages of having usurped the empire." The imperial throne and everything associated with it were unimportant. What mattered was keeping her son alive first. As for the future, she would deal with it when the time came.

Yan Wushuang said regretfully, "You're very clever. What a pity." Such an intelligent person, yet unfortunately she had been ruined by women of the inner household.

Yuchen had no idea what Yan Wushuang was thinking. Hardening her scalp and forcing herself onwards, she said, "Wangye, my proposal would be the most advantageous arrangement for you."

Yan Wushuang smiled. "You'll have to offer me bargaining chips that can stir my heart." As if a couple of words were enough to get her what she wanted. How naive!

Yuchen straightened her spine and offered, "I know you want to deal with Yuxi. I can help you. Yuxi and I grew up together, and no one knows her better than I do."

Hearing this, Yan Wushuang asked, "Tell me more." For the time being, he had no intention of going head-to-head with Han Yuxi. However, he knew he would eventually have to confront Yun Qing and Han Yuxi.

Yuchen revealed, "Apart from her two children, Yuxi's greatest weakness is my Eldest Aunt. When she was in the capital, she frequently visited temples to worship the Buddha. I believe that even after moving to the Northwest, she certainly wouldn't have changed this habit."

Yan Wushuang remarked, "You mean to capture Old Madam Han and use her to threaten Han Yuxi? That isn't a particularly clever scheme." The method might prove somewhat useful, but it would be limited in effectiveness.

Yuchen shook her head. "No. No matter how filial Yuxi is, she would never sacrifice her own life for Eldest Aunt. What I mean is that we could first use eminent monks from the temples to influence Eldest Aunt and persuade her to favour our side." Qiu Shi was the person closest to Yuxi. If Qiu Shi sided with them and was willing to act on their behalf, they would then have an opportunity to exploit the situation.

Yan Wushuang smiled faintly. "The idea isn't bad, but putting it into practice won't be easy. After all, Qiu Shi is Han Yuxi's adoptive mother. How could she possibly take our side?"

Yuchen responded, "My Eldest Aunt is the kindest, most merciful and most sympathetic person I know." Simply put, she intended to exploit Qiu Shi's kindness to achieve their objectives.

Yan Wushuang was very satisfied with this. It wasn't that he was pleased with Yuchen's proposed plan; in fact, it had many flaws. Rather, he was satisfied with Yuchen's attitude. "It's true that Qiu Shi is compassionate, but it would be very difficult for us to plant someone by her side." Since Qiu Shi was compassionate by nature, even if he used monks to influence her, he could not make her harm Han Yuxi.

Yuchen said, "Matters depend on what people do. As long as we're determined, we'll eventually find someone whom Eldest Aunt would be willing to keep by her side."

Yan Wushuang smiled and remarked, "I'll have Zhou Yan move into the Eastern Palace tomorrow." Yan Wushuang knew that Han Yuchen was no match for Han Yuxi. But she still had his support, didn't she?

P.S. (Author): O(∩_∩)O~ Happy Dragon Boat Festival, everyone! (🦊: The original chapter was posted on 20 June 2015, the day of the Dragon Boat Festival. That's why the author made this wish.)

きつね's Musing

Basically, Yan Wushuang is using Yuchen as a weapon against Yuxi.