In the deep winter of the Forbidden City, snow blanketed the yellow glazed tiles, crowning each magnificent structure with a pure white cap.
The rice fields in the Western Park had long been harvested, with clusters of withered yellow stalks stubbornly peeking through the snow, awaiting spring's renewal.
Though news of Lu Bing's sudden illness was suppressed, the Emperor's abrupt imprisonment of the revered mystic Lan Daohang in the Eastern Depot's prison cast a shadow over the palace's Laba Festival celebrations.
As the trio passed from the Xi'an Gate to the Western Park, they could feel the tension solidifying in the air.
Lu Ying's expression was grave. Her father was not one to neglect his family - yet darkness had fallen without his return. With Lan Daohang imprisoned, had her father been injured while apprehending the mystic for attempting to harm the Emperor?
After the Qionghua Island incident, Lu Bing had strictly forbidden Lu Ying from causing trouble in the palace. Why then would the Jiajing Emperor summon her now?
Wei Caiwei calculated the timeline. In her previous life, Lu Bing had died suddenly after a banquet, struck by alcohol-induced apoplexy. In this life, he should have abstained from drinking entirely - he shouldn't be following the same path. Seeking to comfort Lu Ying, she said:
"I suspect the Emperor believes the Dark Spectre haunting the palace is connected to the one from Prince Yu's residence. Lord Lu must have been investigating Lan Daohang in secret - that so-called mystic is actually a charlatan deceiving the Emperor. That's why Lan Daohang's home was raided and he was imprisoned today." Her implication was clear: any trouble involved Lan Daohang, not her father.
Wang Daxia also comforted Lu Ying, "Exactly. Commander Lu participated in solving the Dark Spectre case at Prince Yu's residence, so the Emperor summoned her to testify."
Lu Ying knew they meant well, but as she entered the palace, her heart began racing inexplicably. Forcing a calm expression, she merely nodded.
But when the three reached the bedchamber, they were assaulted by the pungent smell of medicine and the scent of moxa sticks used in acupuncture. All three hearts leaped to their throats!
Abandoning propriety, Lu Ying broke into a run, with Wang Daxia close behind. Wei Caiwei hesitated momentarily: What happened? Did the Emperor make Lu Bing drink?
Huang Jin urged, "This way, Doctor Wei."
Wei Caiwei hurried after him into the bedchamber, where she found Lu Ying kneeling beside the imperial bed - upon which lay Lu Bing.
Lu Bing's face was ashen, with needles inserted at several major acupoints. He lay motionless and rigid as wood. Only the slight rise and fall of his chest distinguished him from a corpse.
Wei Caiwei rushed over, first checking his pupils by lifting his eyelids, then taking his pulse.
Lu Ying tightly clasped her father's hand, telling Wei Caiwei, "Save him quickly! Last time he had apoplexy, you saved him just in time. You can do it."
After reviewing the prescription the imperial physicians had administered to Lu Bing - perfectly appropriate and beyond criticism - Wei Caiwei knew she could only supplement with bloodletting and acupuncture therapy. The rest depended on whether fate would claim him today.
After performing these procedures, fine beads of sweat dotted Wei Caiwei's forehead.
Lu Ying felt something like ants crawling in her palm. Opening her hand, she discovered her father's fingers twitching slightly.
Looking at his face, she saw his eyelids fluttering faintly, eyelashes stirring as if touched by breeze. "Father is responding!"
The Jiajing Emperor rushed over, calling to Lu Bing, "Milk-brother! You'll be fine! Lu Ying is here - your beloved daughter. You'll pull through!"The bed was surrounded by a crowd, and Wei Caiwei tactfully withdrew. Having been both exhausted and tense earlier, when Wang Daxia asked if she wanted something to eat, she shook her head. "I need some quiet outside."
Wang Daxia draped a cloak over her shoulders and handed her a hand warmer. The two of them walked out of the main hall and stood under the corridor. Outside, heavy snow had begun to fall again, though the northern wind had finally ceased.
In the silence of the snowfall, Wang Daxia asked, "Has Lord Lu... been saved?" Lu Bing had recognized his talent, and Lu Ying was an exceptional superior in the Ming court. Wang Daxia couldn't accept reality and clung to the hope of Lu Bing's recovery.
As a physician, Wei Caiwei knew all too well what four consecutive strokes meant—many people didn't survive the second one. Gazing at the snow for a moment, she said, "I'm afraid it's a final rally before the end. You need to prepare yourself."
"Then—" Wang Daxia lowered his voice, "If Lord Lu is gone, Commander Lu probably won't be able to stay in the Embroidered Uniform Guard. She's always been so dedicated to her work, with unmatched ability and integrity in the guard. She even swore to dismantle the White Lotus Sect. What will happen now?"
"That's exactly why you need to be prepared," Wei Caiwei said. "When a civil official's parent passes away in the Ming dynasty, they must resign and observe three years of mourning—unless the Emperor specifically orders them to stay. But military officers defend the nation and aren't subject to mourning leave. They can resume duties after the funeral. You've been in the Embroidered Uniform Guard for half a year now. You all must rally behind Lu Ying and prevent anyone from taking advantage of this vulnerability to seize power or positions. Exposing the White Lotus Sect is a major achievement. If some opportunist tries to claim the credit, there'll be no place for Lu Ying in the Imperial Guard Office."
Wang Daxia's fists clenched with audible cracks. "How dare they! I'll fight anyone who tries!"
In her previous life, Lu Ying had likely left the Embroidered Uniform Guard after her father's death, as she observed the three-year mourning period for her father before marrying, only to be widowed within months. Rumors spread that she was an ill-fated star who brought misfortune to both father and husband. Back then, Wei Caiwei had only heard of the unfortunate young mistress but, never having met her, couldn't comprehend the pain and struggle of being forced away from a career she loved.
In this life, Wei Caiwei had done everything to save Lu Bing, repeatedly warning him against drinking. Yet, bound by imperial decree, she couldn't alter the fate of his sudden death—instead, it happened over ten days earlier than before.
Wei Caiwei felt a profound sense of powerlessness, but she refused to accept it! The Emperor's decision to bestow medicine was beyond her prediction or prevention, but Lu Ying's career might still be salvageable!
Such a dazzling, thorny rose should bloom brilliantly, not wither rapidly after losing Lu Bing's protection and then suffer further devastation in a short-lived marriage.
Wei Caiwei said, "Calm down and think carefully about how to protect her position during Lu Ying's mourning period. Don't let anyone lay a finger on it."
Wang Daxia replied, "Don't worry. Currently, Commander Lu's most critical undertaking is the White Lotus Sect investigation. This isn't something that can be accomplished overnight. All the hidden stakeouts and contacts with informants are managed by Commander Lu. The communication codes and the roster of informants are known only to a few trusted aides and Commander Lu herself. By controlling these core secrets, even if outsiders try to insert someone, we can find ways to render them powerless..."
Wei Caiwei's reminder left Wang Daxia no time to dwell on the impending grief of losing Lord Lu's support. Protecting Lu Ying's position came first.In the bedchamber, Lu Bing began showing reactions in his limbs and occasionally emitted hoarse sounds from his mouth, filling both Lu Ying and the Jiajing Emperor with anticipation.
Throughout the night, Lu Ying remained by her father's side without undressing, speaking to him constantly in hopes he would open his eyes. The Jiajing Emperor rested in his robes on an armchair, while imperial physicians bustled about, either administering life-sustaining medicine or performing acupuncture and massages.
After midnight, when exhaustion weighs heaviest on humans, Lu Ying's voice grew hoarse from continuous talking when Lu Bing finally opened his eyes.
His pupils had slightly dilated, his vision blurred as if viewing people through paper-covered windows. Everything before him had lost its color, transforming into a monochrome ink wash painting with faint strokes, like a millennium-old artwork hanging on a wall.
His hearing was equally indistinct, as if submerged underwater listening to voices from the shore.
Yet through this haze of semi-deafness, he instinctively recognized Lu Ying, his fingers gently tracing patterns on his daughter's palm.
The Jiajing Emperor sprang up from his armchair so abruptly he nearly fainted, supported on either side by the night attendants Huang Jin and Wang Daxia. Approaching the imperial bed, he cried out, "Milk-brother!"
Lu Bing could only perceive blurred silhouettes, but recognized the Jiajing Emperor. Struggling to produce guttural sounds, his rigid tongue prevented him from forming the word "imperial," yet the rasping noise vaguely resembled "Huang." Understanding the attempt, the emperor urgently responded, "I am here! I'm here!"
Channeling all his remaining strength into the right hand clasped by Lu Ying, Lu Bing moved his fingers in intermittent motions—his only mobile limb.
With choked emotion, the Jiajing Emperor vowed, "I understand your meaning, milk-brother. You're worried about her. I shall treat Ying'er as my own, caring for her diligently, indulging her as you always have."
Though Lu Bing couldn't clearly comprehend the words from the ink-wash figure before him, his heart inexplicably settled into tranquility, his fingers ceasing their movement.
As Lu Bing closed his eyes, he miraculously gained vision—the world transforming from faint ink washes to bold strokes, gradually regaining color until everything crystallized into clarity.
Images flashed rapidly before him, timelines receding from recent to distant:
Pleading with the emperor to open city gates for refugees during the Gengxu Rebellion
A teenage Lu Ying defeating him for the first time in martial practice
Storming into the inner palace to rescue the Jiajing Emperor from near-strangulation, cutting the white silk as the injured emperor clutched his hand, weeping like a vulnerable child in his embrace
Lifting one-month-old Lu Ying, kissing his daughter's plump, adorable feet
Braving searing pain to charge into a burning palace, dragging the trembling young emperor from beneath a table and carrying him to safety
Standing armored as an imperial guard, watching the young sovereign don dragon robes for coronation while joining officials in proclaiming "Long live the emperor"
Shrinking to his fifteen-year-old self, sneaking out of tiny Anlu City with a twelve-year-old boy in commoners' attire to explore vibrant Jingzhou—knowing leaving the fiefdom without permission constituted rebellion, yet feeling the adventure worthwhile seeing the boy's boundless delight in every new sight.He had shrunk again, reverting to a three-year-old boy. He had been breastfed until the age of three and still yearned for more, but was forced to wean. This led him to develop a habit of sucking his fingers, gnawing his index finger until it became deformed. He cried day and night, fussing and searching for his mother.
His biological mother was compelled to bring him along into the Xian Prince's residence. Like a little shadow, he trailed behind his mother, arriving at a place as splendid and beautiful as a celestial paradise. There, a small infant lay sleeping in a cradle. Sucking his finger, he leaned in and sniffed the baby—it smelled so sweet, exactly like the scent of his mother!
It was a fragrance he adored. Finally, he withdrew his delicious finger from his mouth and planted a loud, smacking kiss on the chubby cheek of the infant.
His mother said to him, "He is your milk brother. See, he can't speak, can't walk, and even needs help to pee. He can't do anything yet. You must protect him well."
He resumed sucking his finger and nodded.
The infant in the cradle woke up, neither crying nor fussing, but instead smiling at him and waving his milky-white little fists while babbling.
The images in Lu Bing's mind ceased their flashback at this very moment, forever lingering here.
Author's Note: A tribute to Uncle Bing.
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