Thunderclap

There was a thunderstorm that night.

Lightning flared against the windows, followed by a boom-.

It startled countless light sleepers awake.

Qi Yuanzuo jolted awake, his body trembling and his heart hammering. He drew deep breaths, thinking it would settle in a moment, only for pain to stab through his heart and lungs, leaving his breathing tight and stifled.

Hearing the commotion, Fat Eunuch came in. Seeing the Crown Prince's pale lips, he hurried to light a lamp and ring the bell.

The Hall of Inherited Blessing erupted into turmoil. Bolao ran out with several servants to summon the imperial physicians.

Simiao said urgently, "I'll go fetch His Majesty!"

"Wait!"

Lying flat, Qi Yuanzuo worked to slow his breathing and ease the stabbing pain in his lungs.

"Don't go. I'm fine. I was only startled."

He reckoned his heart had been beating too fast, pumping blood faster and irritating the capillaries in his lungs.

Only when the stabbing pain subsided did he slowly sit up.

"What time is it?"

Simiao supported him and helped him drink a cup of warm water, her eyes brimming with tender concern.

"The hour of the ox."

That meant around two or three in the morning.

This was when people sank into deep sleep.

"Don't go. It's nothing serious. There's no need to disturb Father's rest."

Looking at the Crown Prince in her arms, Simiao felt an ache in her heart. How could a child truly pampered and cherished in every way be so considerate?

Everyone envied the Crown Prince's overwhelming favor, saying His Majesty denied him nothing.

But that was because the Crown Prince himself asked for nothing.

The favor others coveted amounted to His Majesty having lunch with the Crown Prince every day, reading to him for an hour to lull him to sleep, and occasionally staying the night to share his bed.

Among ordinary families, these things could not have been more commonplace, yet in the imperial household, they became extraordinary favor.

His Highness had been gravely injured. At the age when he should have been most active, he had spent half a month lying in bed.

He neither cried nor fussed. He dressed, washed, ate, and recuperated on his own, and when he grew bored, he entertained himself.

Every time His Majesty came, the Crown Prince's eyes would light up, and he would throw himself into his father's arms with a radiant smile.

Never mind His Majesty-if she had a child like this, she too would have gladly offered him her very heart.

He needed no coaxing to take medicine and no chasing about to feed him. Those two things alone could bring mothers everywhere to tears.

How bitter those bowls upon bowls of medicinal broth were! His Highness had been drinking them for a month or so, and even when they made him retch, he did not cry.

His Highness would not eat sweets, leaving even her hand holding the candy looking helpless.

Simiao could not stop her tears from falling.

They dripped onto Qi Yuanzuo's hand, making him pause in surprise.

"Why are you crying?"

Just because I didn't send for Father?

Fat Eunuch was also wiping away tears beside the bed.

Qi Yuanzuo said, "...?"

I'm the one who's ill. What are you crying for?

"We servants just feel sorry for Your Highness."

Fat Eunuch choked out the explanation.

Understanding dawned on Qi Yuanzuo. Inwardly, he applauded their professional dedication. Just look at their methods of displaying loyalty-they could cry on cue.

Once he learned how, he would perform for Father too.

Qi Yuanzuo patted Simiao's hand. "Don't worry. I'm perfectly fine. A couple of doses of medicine, and I'll be all right."

Their tears only fell faster.

Fat Eunuch turned away and silently wiped his eyes.

Qi Yuanzuo felt helpless. Fine, then. Act all you like.

I'll just watch.

Boom- another thunderclap rang out.

The Qi Emperor rolled over and sat up.

Consort Yin was startled awake as well, her silky hair falling languidly over her shoulders. She drew aside the bed curtains, and the servants outside approached with lamps. Warm light soon filled the pitch-black palace chamber.

The chill of the rainy night seeped inside.

Consort Yin took the outer robe a servant handed her and gently draped it over the Qi Emperor's shoulders. Resting her cheek against his back, she murmured a reminder.

"Your Majesty, the weather has turned cold. Please take care of your imperial health."

The Qi Emperor stared at the lightning splitting the darkness outside, one crashing flash after another, his concern mounting.

"Dress me."

Fat Eunuch, who had been dozing in a side room, hurried over at the sound. Hearing His Majesty's order, he began helping the Qi Emperor dress without a moment's delay.

Consort Yin's heart lurched. If the emperor left her bedchamber in the middle of the night and word spread tomorrow, how could she show her face?

She hurried forward. "Your Majesty, it's late, and the rain is heavy. Where are you going? Let me accompany you."

With his hair loose, the Qi Emperor donned a hooded cloak. It was a firegrass garment, impervious to water and fire, warm in winter and cool in summer. Woven from threads made by rubbing together the outer membrane of firegrass, it was even rarer than lotus-fiber boots, a tribute from the southwestern region.

Only three feet of cloth could be produced a year, and only one bolt offered as tribute every three years. In the entire imperial palace, only the emperor and the Crown Prince possessed it.

Consort Yin understood at once.

With lightning and heavy rain tonight, His Majesty's departure at this hour could only mean he was going to the Hall of Inherited Blessing to see the Crown Prince.

She began dressing too. "Your Majesty, let me go with you. If His Highness has been frightened, I can help look after him."

The Qi Emperor had intended to refuse, but remembering how her temperament resembled that of the late empress, he silently consented.

The two set out together through the rain toward the Hall of Inherited Blessing.

Hearing footsteps, someone at the Condensing Dew Pavilion poked his head out for a look. He saw the emperor and Consort Yin walking together, with eunuchs and palace maids holding umbrellas on either side, the whole grand procession heading in one direction.

The young eunuch guarding the entrance withdrew to report what he had seen.

The eunuch in charge of the pavilion knocked on the door of the still-lit bedchamber.

Nanny Ning let him in. Beneath the dim yellow light of a bronze lamp, Consort Xian wore a peach-red sleeping robe and a white fur cloak. Turning bodhi beads in her hand, she propped up her head and watched the rain.

The eunuch in charge bowed.

"Your Highness, the young eunuch at the gate saw His Majesty heading east with Consort Yin."

Consort Xian murmured, "East..."

What lay to the east that could make the emperor venture through the rain in the middle of the night?

The bodhi beads stopped, and her fingers involuntarily tightened.

The Crown Prince.

In the Colorful Fragrance Courtyard, Lady Zhou had been jolted awake by the thunder and was lovingly cradling the Third Prince, soothing him back to sleep.

Hearing a servant's report, she felt boundless bitterness well up in her heart.

"Ever since His Majesty had the Crown Prince, he has never stayed overnight in any consort's palace. When he made an exception for Consort Yin for the first time, I thought he'd changed. Yet even she still isn't as important as the Crown Prince."

After speaking, she silently shed tears.

"They're both his sons. The Crown Prince is three, yet His Majesty still fears he'll be frightened by thunder. My San'er is nearly a month old, and His Majesty hasn't come to see him once."

The more Lady Zhou thought about it, the angrier and more resentful she became.

The servants beside her could only console her. "My lady, the Eldest Prince doesn't enjoy His Majesty's favor either."

"When the Third Prince turns a month old, His Majesty will have to hold him, at least."

"Our Third Prince is so handsome. His Majesty will surely love him when he sees him."

Lady Zhou thought they had a point. "Then San'er's full-month banquet must be a grand affair."

How the full-month banquet would be held depended on the emperor's wishes. At the Crown Prince's full-month banquet, all the officials had attended to offer congratulations, a general amnesty had been proclaimed, and word had spread across the four seas.

Lady Zhou thought that even if it could not match the splendor of the Crown Prince's celebration, it must not fall short of the Eldest Prince's.

Lady Zhou felt bitter, while the others grew anxious.

Lady Wei of the Luminous Deportment, Lady Xiao of the Eighth Rank, and the other ladies of the Worthy and Seventh ranks were each fantasizing about dazzling everyone at the Double Ninth banquet and reigning supreme in the emperor's affections.

Lady Wei practiced her dancing amid layer upon layer of gauze and satin, thinking ambitiously that once she bore a son, he would surely be more beloved by His Majesty than the Crown Prince!

Lady Xiao rehearsed the chance encounter planned for a few days later over and over in her mind. Everything had been arranged. Nothing would go wrong.

The glory and favor the Crown Prince enjoyed today would one day be hers too!

When the Qi Emperor arrived and saw the Hall of Inherited Blessing brightly lit, with all the eunuchs and palace maids up, his heart gave a jolt. He immediately sensed something was wrong.

Surprised by the Qi Emperor's arrival, the palace servants of the Hall of Inherited Blessing knelt one after another to greet him.

"We pay our respects to Your Majesty. Long live our emperor!"

The Qi Emperor asked, "What happened?"

The palace servants hastened to explain. "Your Majesty, His Highness the Crown Prince was frightened by the thunder. He had stabbing pain and tightness in his chest and difficulty breathing, so we sent for the imperial physicians."

The Qi Emperor flew into a rage. "Why wasn't I informed?!"

Were all these people I'd stationed in the Hall of Inherited Blessing just eating their fill and doing nothing?! My son was ill, and not one of them came to report it!

Ignoring the rain, he stepped out from beneath the umbrella and ran toward the main hall with long strides. The palace servants hurried after him, reporting as they ran.

"His Highness the Crown Prince feared disturbing your rest and wouldn't let us trouble Your Majesty."

"The imperial physicians examined him and brewed medicine. His Highness is taking it now."

Dozens of servants ran behind the Qi Emperor, vying to hold an umbrella over their sovereign.

After hearing this, the Qi Emperor's heart filled with love, pity, and anger. He pushed open the door and saw his beloved son holding a bowl and drinking medicine.

At the sight of him, Qi Yuanzuo choked on a mouthful.

He coughed repeatedly.

The Qi Emperor shook off the rain and removed his outer robe, revealing dry clothes beneath. He strode over and gently patted his son's back, his intelligence plummeting in his panic.

"Imperial physician! Zuo'er has choked-what do we do? Think of something!"

The imperial physician said, "..."