Chapter 202: Chapter 201 High Risk Lu Zijin had received his orders, and for three consecutive days, he sought any trace of He Hongzhao’s whereabouts. But He Hongzhao seemed to have vanished from the face of the earth; not a single clue could be found in Quanzhou, or even in the neighboring cities of Quanzhou.


    He Ying was so enraged by this that he smashed many things.


    Ministers reporting to the Emperor dared not speak loudly, fearful of displeasing him.


    The entire State Mansion was engulfed in an oppressive atmosphere.


    Although He Ying hid it well in front of Sang Yan, never showing any negative emotions in her presence, she still sensed something was off.


    That day,


    When Sang Yan heard that officials were reporting to the Emperor, she went to act as an emotion regulator.


    "Lady—"


    It was Imperial Doctor Liu’s voice.


    Sang Yan had just reached the study door when she bumped into him and immediately replied with a smile, "Imperial Doctor Liu, have you finished examining the Emperor? How is his recovery coming along?"


    The medicine prescribed by He Hongzhao was indeed an antidote.


    After He Ying took it for a few days, his wounds began to heal.


    It was because of this improvement that he trusted her, which led to him overlooking the possibility that she could administer other drugs.


    By the time he realized her malicious intent, Imperial Doctor Liu had removed that component from the medicine and adjusted the prescription before continuing to administer it to He Ying.


    These past few days, He Ying had been taking the medicine prepared by Imperial Doctor Liu.


    "I was just looking for you to talk about this."


    "Ah? What do you mean?"


    Sang Yan saw the serious look on Imperial Doctor Liu’s face, and her mood suddenly tensed: Was there a new problem with He Ying’s health?


    Seeing Sang Yan’s panic, Imperial Doctor Liu quickly reassured her with a smile, "No, Lady, do not worry. It’s just some minor issues."


    Doctors always tend to downplay serious illnesses as minor.


    Sang Yan couldn’t relax and became even more anxious, "I implore you, Imperial Doctor Liu, to clarify."


    Imperial Doctor Liu nodded with a smile and explained, "Here’s the thing, Lady, as you have seen these past few days, the Emperor has been frequently infuriated over the He Hongzhao incident. His mind is troubled, and although he is now taking an antidote, the toxins in his body haven’t been completely eliminated yet. If he remains too emotionally agitated, I fear the toxins in his body will circulate more rapidly, making them harder to eradicate later."


    He had just delivered medicine to the Emperor and took the opportunity to offer some advice, to little effect.


    Pei Muyang, who also tried to offer some words of consolation, was instead greeted with a torrent of abuse.


    "You lead people to enact death sentences, so how could you be so careless? Is that dagger just for show? You should have just struck her down with one blow! Useless!"


    Poor Pei Muyang deserved some sympathy.


    The aging old man couldn’t bear to listen and so placed down the medicine bowl and left.  S~ea??h the N?vel(F)ire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Sang Yan, listening to Imperial Doctor Liu, thought: So that was the concern. She had feared that He Ying’s health had taken a turn for the worse. It had nearly scared her to death.


    "Thank you for the concern you’ve shown for the Emperor, Imperial Doctor Liu."


    She spoke politely and lamented, "To be honest, it has been bothering me as well."


    To share a bed with He Ying every night and not know he was troubled would mean she wasn’t doing her duty.


    Imperial Doctor Liu’s eyes lit up when she said this, "Oh? Does Lady have any ideas then?"


    Sang Yan shook her head, her demeanor despondent, "I’ve just inspected the map of Quanzhou. It’s a coastal area, not very large, densely populated, with frequent trade and a high rate of people coming and going. It’s quite difficult to find a place for the Emperor to unwind and lift his spirits."


    In truth, it wasn’t that there were no places for relaxation, but safety was a concern.


    He Hongzhao was still at large, and Qi Wuya might be lurking in the shadows, so they had to be extra cautious.


    Thus, being an Emperor truly was a high-risk occupation.


    Seeing Sang Yan express these concerns, Imperial Doctor Liu knew she already had given it thought.


    Since she had concerns, how to alleviate the Emperor’s troubles was no longer something he needed to ponder.


    Each task should be assigned to the appropriate person.


    He felt relieved, ready to stand by and watch with interest, smilingly said, "Then I will leave the Lady to think it over. I believe you will come up with an idea."


    He said this from the bottom of his heart, this Lady was astute and intelligent, combining softness with rigidity, truly a good girl.


    Initially, when he had heard she was a person of ill-omen, destined to outlive her husband, and that the Emperor had repeatedly braved dangers for her, he felt a bit of aversion, but after interacting with her, recognizing the "Fan Yin Flower", discerning the feigned death of He Hongzhao, and most importantly, being able to manage the Emperor, she really was a rare character.


    Their young and valiant Emperor was fierce and tyrannical, but now, with something to subdue him, it was indeed wonderful.


    The more Imperial Doctor Liu thought about it, the more satisfied he became, and his gaze toward Sang Yan gradually became that of a doting elder.


    Sang Yan: "..."


    What’s going on?


    Why does Imperial Doctor Liu look at her like a father looking at his daughter?


    "Imperial Doctor Liu, what’s wrong?"


    Sang Yan felt a bit uneasy: this fatherly, loving gaze was strangely penetrating.


    Indeed, she wasn’t good at dealing with the elderly.


    Imperial Doctor Liu chuckled, "Lady, you are so concerned for the Emperor, I, as a humble subject, am happy for the people of Da He, happy for the Emperor."


    In the past, the Emperor wouldn’t even think about touching a woman, he’d feel uncomfortable all over just seeing one.


    Now, seeing the Empress, they get along as if they were one person.


    The Emperor’s temper has improved a lot too.


    How could he not be happy?


    Sang Yan blushed at his words.


    She even felt somewhat burdened—he’d actually placed the people of Da He on her shoulders. What merit or capability did she have?


    "The Emperor is still in a rage; perhaps, Lady, you could go and persuade him."


    Imperial Doctor Liu did not linger long, he bowed with his hands clasped, "This humble one takes his leave."


    Sang Yan nodded, watching him leave.


    Suddenly, a fierce shout came from the study, "Get out!"


    Hearing this, Sang Yan sighed resignedly and pushed open the door.


    Pei Muyang, drenched in tea, came towards her looking distressed.


    The official beside him also looked a mess, with a swollen forehead; he quickly bowed to Sang Yan and then hurried out.


    Sang Yan didn’t recognize him, she just nodded slightly, her main focus was on Pei Muyang. Her lips parted as if wanting to say something, but she didn’t know what to say.


    Pei Muyang, however, started talking, not at all resentful about the Emperor drenching him with tea. He said cheerfully, "Lady, your timing is perfect, please go and reason with the Emperor. Imperial Doctor Liu said the Emperor still has residual poison in him, and he should not get angry."


    He was a loyal servant.


    Such loyalty was nearly extinct in modern times.


    Thus, Sang Yan had always admired him, "Alright. Go clean yourself up. I’ll handle things here."


    "Yes, thank you for your hard work, Lady."


    Pei Muyang bowed his head in acknowledgment and exited the room.


    He even considerately closed the door behind him.


    Sang Yan frowned slightly at the closed door: What’s with closing the door in broad daylight? It made it seem as if they were about to do something improper.


    "Ah Yan—"


    He Ying peeked out from a pile of petitions, his eyes warm and smiling, as if he hadn’t just been the one in a rage.


    On seeing this, Sang Yan pursed her lips, calling him out, "Humph, stop pretending! I heard you shouting at people from way back!"


    Hearing this, He Ying stopped pretending, and sighed, "They deserve it! There are so many ways to sentence someone to death, why use poison. If at that time they had simply given a dagger, He Hongzhao wouldn’t have survived!"


    And if He Hongzhao had not survived, he wouldn’t have burned down the He Family Clinic or taken the medical texts.


    He had suffered from her medical skills and was very worried about what she might do next.


    Just thinking about it made him inexplicably irritable.


    And then, those incompetent fools, after searching for so long, still hadn’t found her, how could he not be angry?