thousand-year-old ginseng

Before the end of the first lunar month, an urgent letter reached Yan Prefecture, dispelling the festive mood.

"Empress Dowager Heping is gravely ill?" Shouchang exclaimed, "When did this happen? Who wrote the letter?"

The soldier replied, "It's from Prince Jing, Your Highness. The letter didn't mention when the Empress Dowager fell ill, only asking you to pack and leave for the capital tomorrow."

After Emperor Jianyuan's death, the queen became Empress Dowager, and the consorts with sons became Empress Dowagers. Heping was Consort Duan's title, and Prince Jing her only son, Cui Xiang.

Due to familial ties, Cui Yi was raised by Consort Duan after Empress Xiaoling's death. Their relationship was relatively harmonious compared to his strained relations with Cui Jie and Cui Huan. Shouchang found Prince Jing polite and likable during Little Cui Xian's hundred-day celebration.

However, the association with the Xie family made her uneasy. Xie Yong and Xie Yuchan were expelled from the Wu King's faction, a slap in the face for the Xie family.

The letter came from Prince Jing, instructing Shouchang to prepare for an immediate departure to the capital.

The children, filled with rage, might seek to avenge the deep-seated enmity against Cui Jie, which was not entirely impossible. However, this would put Duanfei and Cui Xiang in a delicate position. Would they follow the Xie family's lead and support Cui Jie? Although Cui Xiang was also a prince, could Cui Jie tolerate him? Duanfei, being shrewd and calculating, wouldn't be foolish enough to gamble with her son's life. If possible, she would certainly hope for Cui Xiang to ascend the throne.

But nothing is absolute. If Duanfei judged that her son had no hope, then it would be wise to submit to Cui Yi. In such a case, the claim that the Empress Dowager was seriously ill and wanted to see Cui Yi could very well be a trap.

After dismissing the messenger, Chi Ying directed the maidservants to pack their belongings while pondering how to inform Cui Yi about this situation. Duanfei had treated him as her own son, and her eagerness to arrange his marriage and promote his relationship with Xie Yuchan wasn't entirely selfless but genuinely beneficial. Cui Yi understood this well, so it wouldn't be easy to dissuade him from returning to the capital.

Xiaoqiu asked, "My lady, should we take the thousand-year-old ginseng?"

"Take it... No, maybe not..." There was only one thousand-year-old ginseng in the entire palace, a gift from Cheng Fengyi. Chi Ying had carried it all the way from the capital to Yan Prefecture, intending to use it to save Cui Yi in case of serious injury. She didn't want to waste it on others.

However, Cui Yi might insist on taking it, and if he knew she was unwilling, he might get upset. After some thought, she changed her mind: "Let's take it. Whether to give it or not will depend on His Highness."

Before they finished packing, Cui Yi rushed back anxiously. Chi Ying looked up as he entered and said, "It's almost packed. Should we leave Xiaonian behind in Yan Prefecture? The journey is long, and I'm worried she won't be able to endure it."

Cui Yi frowned and glanced at the box Xiaoqiu was holding. "Put that box aside for now. Chi Ying, come with me."

Xiaoqiu placed the box containing the ginseng on the table, puzzled, while Chi Ying looked surprised. "What's going on?" Cui Yi didn't respond and turned to walk out. She had no choice but to follow.

The servants knew the king and queen were returning to the capital and were busy preparing. Cui Yi led Chi Ying through the bustling servants and arrived at the courtyard where Xie Yuchan had been imprisoned.

Since Xie Yuchan escaped and was later killed by Chi Ying and buried in the wilderness, this courtyard had been abandoned. Snow piled up, nearly burying the stone table. Chi Ying didn't understand what he intended to do and asked, "Do you have something to say? Why not talk inside, avoiding someone?"

Cui Yi replied evasively, "Or perhaps we shouldn't go back."

Chi Ying was startled and blurted out, "Not go back? Don't you want to see the Empress Dowager one last time?"

Cui Yi turned around, his face clouded with sorrow. "See her one last time? After seeing her, who will die, her or me?"

Chi Ying fell silent, moved forward, and gently touched his arm. "Did Master Bai Li tell you something?"

"He didn't say anything," Cui Yi rubbed his nose, looking pained. "I guess he didn't dare to say it, but after calming down, I think I know what he meant."

Chi Ying was surprised that Cui Yi had figured out the potential conspiracy on his own rather than rushing headlong into danger. If Cui Yi suspected Cui Xiang's letter was fake, then the person he needed to avoid could only be...

"Do you still not trust Nong Yue?"

Cui Yi replied woodenly, "Can you really believe she has no ulterior motives? She was once close to Mother Concubine Duan."

Chi Ying smiled and didn't argue whether Nong Yue was trustworthy. Instead, she said, "Show me the letter from the Seventh Prince. The Empress Dowager's illness might be real, but it could also be fabricated. We can't generalize."

Cui Yi took the letter from his chest and handed it to her. Chi Ying unfolded the letter and read it quickly.

The letter was brief, stating that since they left the capital, Mother Concubine Duan had been depressed, unable to eat, and after Emperor Jianyuan's death, she had been bedridden for a year, her health fluctuating. After the New Year, her condition worsened, and she repeatedly called out Cui Yi's name in delirium. Hence, she wrote this letter, sent by fast horse to Yan Prefecture, hoping Cui Yi would return.

The content was impeccable, though Chi Ying couldn't verify Cui Xiang's handwriting. "Do you think the Empress Dowager is truly ill or faking it?" Chi Ying asked, though the question was awkward, it was better for her to ask than for Cui Yi to voice it himself.

Cui Yi looked up at the overcast sky, his expression dazed. "I don't know. I hope it's fake, yet I hope it's true."

Chi Ying nodded, understanding his dilemma. Who would wish to discover that someone they deeply trusted had lied and plotted against them? But if Duanfei was truly ill, it wouldn't be good news either. Cui Yi had deep feelings for her, making the decision to go or not extremely difficult.

Cui Yi paced back and forth in the courtyard, the snow crunching under his boots like a squeezing heart. "Should we go back?"

Cui Yi sighed, "I don't know. Do you think I should go back?"

Chi Ying smiled, "You need to decide for yourself. After all, it's a fifty-fifty chance..." She suddenly stopped smiling. "What is it?" Cui Yi asked, puzzled.

Chi Ying hesitated, "Could it be... Could the Empress Dowager's illness be real, but the emperor's trap... also real?"

They had only considered the possibilities of Duanfei being truly ill or faking it to harm him, but they hadn't considered the possibility that Duanfei might indeed be ill, and Cui Jie might seize the opportunity to eliminate him.

Cui Yi fell silent. Recalling how Zhai Rang's letter had reached Yan Prefecture safely and the subsequent fierce attack by the Northern Di army on Hubei Pass, Chi Ying realized these events were similar, exploiting their inability to stand idly by when faced with familiar people's plight. They knew it was a trap but had to fall into it.

This wasn't Shan Jian's style. This intricate and interlocking strategy was unlike Shan Jian's ruthless and baseless tactics. Someone else must be advising Cui Jie! Considering how Xie Yuchan and Xie Yong managed to escape separately and then join forces to kidnap her out of the city—Chi Ying finally understood why Cui Yi had to avoid Nong Yue. Among the servants in Yan Prefecture, besides Xie Yong, only she had ties to the palace. Her suspicion became more evident with Cui Xiang and Duanfei's involvement.

After Shan Jian left, Cui Jie had another strategist who planned the Hubei Pass battle, using Nong Yue to free the Xie siblings and kidnap her. Duanfei's illness might be genuine, and Cui Xiang's letter might have been coerced. If these assumptions were correct, then Nong Yue's actions...

Chi Ying gasped and ran back to the main house.

In the main house, Xiaoqiu and Nong Yue watched as everything was packed, except for the box of ginseng on the table. Xiaoqiu looked outside, "Should we take the ginseng? The lady says one thing, His Highness another. I don't know whom to listen to."

Nong Yue smiled, "Simple, listen to the lady. Haven't you seen His Highness always deferring to her?"

Xiaoqiu, recalling Chi Ying's hesitation, thought she didn't want to take it. Seeing Nong Yue fiddling with the box, she suggested, "Should I ask the lady?"