The Imperial Palace.
Yangxin Hall.
Emperor Changning's gaze slowly swept over the Shouyang Ginseng Ji Mingyuan had handed to him.
Then he stretched out both hands. His withered arms trembled slightly; one could clearly sense that there was not the slightest strength left in them.
Yet the hands he extended remained steady.
He took the Thousand-Year Shouyang Ginseng Ji Mingyuan offered him, bit down on it, and slowly chewed.
Afterward, a trace of color quietly surfaced on Emperor Changning's face, and his bearing immediately improved by a great deal.
He looked at Jiang Ning, then at Ji Mingyue, and finally at Ji Mingyuan.
"Yuan'er, stand guard outside. Without Our decree, no one is allowed to enter."
Ji Mingyuan froze for a moment, glanced at Jiang Ning and Emperor Changning, then nodded in answer.
"Yes, Father!"
As his words fell, he looked at Jiang Ning and Ji Mingyue once more, then turned and withdrew from the inner chamber, gently closing the door behind him.
"Little Seventeen, where is Hai Dahe?" Emperor Changning asked.
"I don't know!" Ji Mingyue shook her head. "Today, the Dongling Marquis and I had only just returned to the capital. From the Imperial Palace all the way to Yangxin Hall, we did not see Steward Hai. The one standing guard outside Yangxin Hall just now was Steward Fu. Steward Fu once stopped the Dongling Marquis and me from coming in to visit Father."
Emperor Changning nodded and continued to slowly chew the Shouyang Ginseng in his mouth. His Adam's apple rolled with difficulty, and then a faint, abnormal flush seeped through his ashen face; his eyes also grew a little clearer.
"Hai Dahe is absent, and Fu Dayu is guarding the main gate. Heh heh—" Emperor Changning gave two dry laughs.
"Dongling Marquis, in my current state,