In Sixiang Hut, the air was full of warm mists while the gauze slightly swept the ground.

In squint eyes, Emperor Jingxiao looked through those thickly dotted words of military reports up and down, tightly frowning.

The smell of Tanmu and sweetgum mingled in the air, being apt to drug people a little drowsy.

Eventually, he finished reading the two reports with patience, stuffing them to Leng Qingtang in front of the bed. Then he yawned indolently.

It had been more than one hundred years since Guangxi that adjoined An Guo was merged into the domain of Da Yi. Bo Ku was located on the west of Dianyun. When Emperor Yuanlong, Emperor Jingxiao's grandfather, was on the throne, he employed force to merge large areas in the north of Bo Ku into the domain of Da Yi.

Not long before, the old emperor of An Guo died so that his successor became on the throne. But when Da Yi was dealing with the war in Southern Jiang, the new emperor staged a coup. On the excuse of helping the Lang Army in Guangxi, he dispatched 15,000 picked soldiers to openly fight against the Southwest Army of Da Yi, under the illusion of gaining political independence.

Misfortunes never came alone. One day later, there were 300,000 soldiers of Bo Ku bearing down in force. Without a break, they occupied four cities in the south of Da Yi and killed the Tusi Official dispatched by Da Yi to guard the southern border of Bo Ku. And they even marched towards the border of Yunnan, brazenly burning, killing, and robbing.

"Ah, what are those gits worrying about? There is nothing but rebellions of our affiliate tribes, An Guo and Bo Ku. Aren't those places much far from the capital?"

In the bed, Emperor Jingxiao rubbed his forehead impatiently.

Leng Qingtang squinted his phoenix-like eyes slightly in a flash of astonishment.

If an ordinary man said so, he would not be amazed. However, it was the leader of one country that casually spoke those words.

Obviously, the Wangyou Gu Poison produced by Jiang Huaian made distinctive effects.

Leng Qingtang quietly turned around to make eye contact with High Priest Yu Xuanji beside him.

Putting his hands into sleeves embroidered with pythons, Leng Qingtang nodded and lowered his eyes obediently, slowly advising,

"Your Majesty, An Guo and Bo Ku took advantage of the occasion when our troops fight against the Lang Army and staged an armed rebellion. Therefore, Southern Jiang is currently facing chaos of wars. Besides, the two affiliate tribes hold 450,000 crack troops altogether, which cannot be looked down upon..."

"I know..."

Impatiently and unhappily, Emperor Jingxiao interrupted him in several waves of hands, as if he had had no patience to bear to listen. With a scowl, he ordered,

"Now that you replace me to mark and reply to memorials, it is up to you. I believe in you. As long as you guard a complete domain for me, I will treat you fairly enough... Yu Xuanji, I get a headache from those nuisances. Go and fetch Jindan Pills for me, as soon as possible."

Yu Xuanji's expression slightly changed. He looked at Leng Qingtang again and replied,

"Your Majesty, you just ate two Jindan Pills before a quarter, so you can't eat anymore."

Emperor Jingxiao stared at Yu Xuanji dazedly, his expression seemingly stagnating in his evidently haggard face. After a while, he begged softly,

"I, I must eat Jindan Pills. Please give it to me! High Priest, High Priest, I beg you..."

Unexpectedly, his voice was filled with flattery.

Yu Xuanji sat in front of the bed, with some teasing smiles in his delicate mouth.

He showed it to Leng Qingtang on purpose, implying the current physical conditions of Emperor Jingxiao.

"Your Majesty, please take my advice. Jindan Pills are so valuable, not puddings. You can't take them as your meals."

"No, I want to eat... I want to eat! Give it to me... Please... Fetch it for me..."

Currently, Emperor Jingxiao appeared to be a completely different person. Lying on the bed, he rolled and cried without a break,

"I feel bad... All I want is a Jindan Pill! You deliberately withhold them! You hide them! You all want to murder me..."

"OK, OK. Don't cry, Your Majesty."

Yu Xuanji got up to the front desk and came back immediately, with two Jindan Pills in one hand and one emerald cup in the other.

Instantly, Emperor Jingxiao became excited, with greedy and weird expressions on his face. He grabbed at Jindan Pills and stunned them into the mouth immediately, swallowing them with the emerald cup of water.

Leng Qingtang indifferently stared when Yu Xuanji scrubbed at the face of Emperor Jingxiao with a handkerchief. It seemed that Yu Xuanji was coaxing a babyish child.

Having been satisfied, Emperor Jingxiao eventually calmed down. He blew his nose with one sleeve of Yu Xuanji, asking him,

"Where is my Kunhuang Island map?"

Yu Xuanji smiled flatteringly,

"Your Majesty, I will fetch it for you right away."

He opened the locker, took out one gold box from the hidden drawer, and handed it to Emperor Jingxiao.

Emperor Jingxiao could not help disclosing the lid of the box, taking out the parchment, and holding it in his arms. He chuckled with two rows of white teeth shown. The expression was so weird that made people feel a kind of indescribable gloom and astonishment.

"Hahaha, the Kunhuang Island map is at my disposal! I am not afraid of those over-confident people! I am the Son of Heaven, protected by Dragon God's soul! No one could murder me!"

When Leng Qingtang tried to say something, the voice of a eunuch occurred outside the meditation room,

"Your Majesty, Her Grace wishes to visit you."

Emperor Jingxiao's smile suddenly wavered and disappeared. He tightly held the Kunhuang Island map in his arms, blurting out,

"No!"

Just then, Empress Qian opened the door and strode to rush in.

On the day of Spring Banquet, she was pushed down by Emperor Jingxiao from the estrade. After the great treatment of the Imperial Hospital, she revived in general.

In spite of the fact that she dressed up, her haggard face could not be covered by the slightly thick make-up.

Leng Qingtang and Yu Xuanji immediately saluted, "Your Grace."

Empress Qian took a cold and angry glance at them, gloomily and quietly.

"What are you coming for?"

Seeing his wife, Emperor Jingxiao seemed a little unhappy, so he asked her impatiently.

"Your Majesty." Empress Qian bowed to salute him in front of the bed and said seriously,

"I heard that two military reports from Southern Jiang had been submitted to the capital. But you live long in Elixir Chamber and have been ignoring the political affairs for four or five days. So I come here particularly to beg you to leave and contrive with officials, in order to beat our enemy."

Emperor Jingxiao razzed a while, and turned around to avoid looking at her. He answered sullenly,

"I have appointed the Commander-in-chief of the Eastern Depot to deal with the matter. Leng Qingtang, later you can communicate with officials in Ministry of Defense and Military Ministry..."

"Your Majesty!"

Empress Qian couldn't stand anymore, so she shouted bitterly,

"It is you that are our emperor, the leader of the country!"

It seemed that she said those words innocently and also deliberately. But it sounded so harsh.

Yu Xuanji lowered his head and squinted his eyes in grudge, while Leng Qingtang slightly raised his eyes to peer at that indignant woman and smiled a little.

Empress Qian seemed so astute and sober. It was just as well that she was not a man!

A crack broke out the sullen atmosphere. Empress Qian was amazed. Her body shook for a second and she gasped.

It was Emperor Jingxiao. He blazed and violently tossed out the map. But then he realized its importance and gestured Yu Xuanji to pick it up for him. He then held the parchment tightly in his arms,

"People in the imperial harem mustn't interfere in political affairs. How dare you, a woman, blame me like that..."

Emperor Jingxiao pointed at Empress Qian and strongly rebuked her. Then he turned over to get up, but Yu Xuanji prevented him resolutely.

Suddenly, Emperor Jingxiao showed painful emotions. With hands upon his head, he mussed his hair and his forehead was covered by hot sweats.

He dragged one sleeve of Yu Xuanji with slightly trembling fingers,

"Fetch Jindan Pills for me! I am sick. I need to eat Jindan Pills again!"

"Your Majesty, take it easy! I will fetch it right away! I will go immediately!"

But when he held the green porcelain container shaped in calabash, it was immediately taken by Empress Qian. She lifted it above her head, bitterly shouting to Empress Jingxiao,

"Your Majesty, you shouldn't eat Jindan Pills anymore!"

Then the container was shattered into pieces, and Jindan Pills rolled on the ground. With those porcelain pieces, the ground was in a mess.

Instantly, Emperor Jingxiao turned from astonished to anxious. With fists tightly clenched, blue veins stood out as intensely as spider webs on Emperor Jingxiao's hands. He hoarsely roared,

"Get out! You get out, b*tch! From now on, you are forbidden to get into the gate of Kunning Palace..."

Had just recovered from severe illness and now being furious about Jindan Pills, Empress Qian teetered, out of breath.

Committing a double bagger, she flushed with shame. She stared at anxious Emperor Jingxiao in glinting eyes, with unsaid words, violently breathing up and down in her chest.

After a while, Empress Qian flinched helplessly and then turned around to go out of the meditation room.

Leng Qingtang noticed that if he were still there, he would be embarrassed. So after calming Emperor Jingxiao down with Yu Xuanji, he also left there.

When thinking about how to summon main officials in Six Ministries to talk about political affairs, he was just walking out of Elixir Chamber. But then he saw the honor guards of Kunning Palace were still in one open space outside the Elixir Chamber.

Empress Qian was standing in front of the sedan, slightly smiling at Leng Qingtang,

"Master Leng, could you please go this way?"

A flicker of cunning flashed in his eyes, and he bowed with hands folded obediently,

"It is up to you, Your Grace."

Sixiang Hut was located in the Imperial Garden. In this midsummer, all plants were exuberant.

As Empress Qian held the white jade barrier, she looked over lakes and mountains in the distance. Her expression was calm and indifferent,

"Master Leng, why did you go to Sixiang Hut today?"

Leng Qingtang lowered his eyebrows and smiled,

"Critical military reports are coming from Southern Jiang. So as long as I received them, I rustled to enter the Imperial Palace and submitted them to His Majesty."

Empress Qian mocked and showed a little defiant in her expression,

"Leisured emperor, fidget eunuch..."

Slightly and softly tilting her body, she stared at Leng Qingtang seriously. But Leng Qingtang remained unmoved, and his quiet attitude was so impeccable that she changed the subject,

"Now His Majesty is eating more and more Jindan Pills one day. What do you think about it?"

Leng Qingtang blinked a few times and answered openly,

"The prescription of Jindan Pills produced by High Priest was recorded in the Imperial Hospital. Besides, the leader and many officials of the Imperial Hospital are all sure that the prescription is indeed perfect. Jindan Pills are good to foster mentality and strengthen energy. So they are not harmful to His Majesty."

"Presumably, it was because of Wan Li's scheming action in Spring Banquet that His Majesty became feeble. Now only Jindan Pills could comfort him."

High Priest is supposed to do with things in a measured behavior. I believe that if His Majesty became healthier, he would curtail the dose of Jindan Pills. Your Grace, please be relieved."

Empress Qian stared at him seriously, with dignity in her rosy face. There were cold and angry expressions in her smart eyes,

"People all say that Kunhuang Island map includes Yin map and Yang map. I am afraid that... Someone holds scheming intentions on the excuse of Kunhuang Island map. It is he or she that incites Wan Li in the dark."