The icy sensation, followed by a surge of pain— Qin Yuanxi didn’t need to look to know that his neck was bleeding!
Damn it, the blade is so sharp. Couldn’t this Zhao Tuo be a bit more careful? He just directly pressed the knife against his neck. What if he miscalculated the force? Blood would be flowing like a river by now!
This bastard, acting like a complete jerk. The excitement that was there a moment ago got drenched in cold water now. Qin Yuanxi didn’t even dare to swallow his spit, fearing that any sudden move would turn his neck into a bloody mess.
“Stay calm, Zhao Tuo, what the hell are you doing? Put the knife down; it’s dangerous.”
“What am I doing?” Zhao Tuo twisted Qin Yuanxi’s arm with force, taking a couple of steps back. He shouted at the officials from the Grand Court, “Get out! Let my people in, or I can’t guarantee I won’t do something that’s not good for His Majesty’s safety.”
“Out, we’re going out, right now.” The Chief Justice’s face changed color.
He had never seen such a turn of events. How could the Prince, who seemed perfectly fine just outside the room, suddenly turn hostile? They were just listening to sweet moments between him and His Majesty a while ago, and now his eyes changed, putting a knife to His Majesty’s neck without a hint of hesitation, and blood was spilling.
This turn of events was baffling, but at this moment, the safety of His Majesty was the top priority. There was no time to delay. They immediately exited, giving Zhao Tuo enough space.
“Zhao Tuo, don’t resist in vain.” Qin Yuanxi clenched his fists, trying to stay calm while strongly persuading Zhao Tuo. “There are no longer your people outside, you know…”
“Shut up!”
A stern rebuke, and Qin Yuanxi’s neck was seized. Instinctively, he tried to pry off the hand on his neck, but Zhao Tuo’s strength was overwhelming. In his grip, Qin Yuanxi was utterly defenseless. Soon, the air became thin, and Qin Yuanxi’s face turned pale, lips bluish-purple. He continuously patted Zhao Tuo’s hand, feeling the onset of loneliness and despair.
This was the first time he genuinely felt that Zhao Tuo might kill him.
“You betrayed me! You betrayed me with him!”
Just when Qin Yuanxi thought he was about to die, Zhao Tuo unexpectedly released his grip. With a loud clang, the knife was thrown to the ground. Zhao Tuo, in pain, clutched his head, his facial expression ugly. “Why did you betray me? Why?! You said you liked me, we could have been fine. Why did you betray me with him?”
“Have I treated you poorly?” He suddenly stepped forward, gripping Qin Yuanxi’s wrist, raising it to the top of his head, pushing him into a corner. “You hid military orders in secret, I pretended not to see. You met him in the dead of night, I pretended not to know. Have I not been good enough to you? Why betray me?”
Qin Yuanxi covered his neck, coughing.
Zhao Tuo’s emotions were highly unstable, teetering on the edge of explosiveness. Qin Yuanxi remained vigilant, fearing Zhao Tuo might go wild again. In his current state, he couldn’t afford to go crazy with Zhao Tuo. Carefully protecting his abdomen, Qin Yuanxi tried to minimize his presence.
“I can kill you!” Zhao Tuo looked up, bloodshot eyes filled with fury. “I spared your life. Why don’t you appreciate it? Why betray me? Why do you have to betray me like him? Why must you betray me?”
“You—” Qin Yuanxi started to speak, but no sound came out.
He was nervous, but he could discern a hint from Zhao Tuo’s words. The ‘him’ in Zhao Tuo’s mouth should be Lu Bohuan, and Lu Bohuan’s betrayal seemed to be more severe than Qin Yuanxi’s.
“I haven’t betrayed you, Ah Tuo. Please, calm down. Let’s talk things through.”
“You think I don’t know?” Zhao Tuo’s expression turned sinister. “You colluded with him, both of you colluded. I should have killed you back then. If I had killed you, he wouldn’t have betrayed me. If I had killed you, there would be no lingering troubles. If I had killed you, he would…”
“Even if you kill me, he won’t rebel with you!” Qin Yuanxi couldn’t hold back, addressing Zhao Tuo. “Lu Bohuan won’t rebel; he never had any intention of rebelling!”
“No, it’s not true!” Zhao Tuo’s emotions had spiraled out of control. “He will, we agreed. Get rid of the incompetent dog emperor who knows nothing. Letting him sit in that position is a calamity for everyone. Get rid of him, only by getting rid of him can we create a new era, achieve glory, and leave a mark in history.”
“It’s you!” Zhao Tuo suddenly stepped forward, once again gripping Qin Yuanxi’s shoulders with resentment. “It’s you! It’s all your fault. You seduced him, deceived him, made him change his mind, made him betray me. It’s all your fault!”
“If it weren’t for you, if it wasn’t because of you, he wouldn’t have betrayed me. He would have been with me, creating a new era together.” Zhao Tuo’s eyes reflected confusion as he repeatedly uttered, “Because of you, he abandoned our initial plan. Because of you, he betrayed me. It’s all because of you!”
“Why can’t you settle down? Why can’t you just stay put here?” Zhao Tuo’s hand rested on Qin Yuanxi’s neck. He wanted to squeeze, veins popping on the back of his hand. The real force didn’t land on Qin Yuanxi’s neck. “If he won’t do it, then I will. I can do it well. I can do everything right. When the time comes, I’ll give him a flourishing world.”
“He won’t do it, but I can do it. Why does he want to stop me? Why does he want to go to any lengths to stop me?”
The roar echoed in his ears, and Qin Yuanxi could sense Zhao Tuo’s breakdown.
Now it seemed that Lu Bohuan originally had thoughts of rebellion and treason. However, Qin Yuanxi’s arrival made Lu Bohuan abandon that idea and be willing to assist him in becoming a qualified leader. Unfortunately, while Lu Bohuan gave up on rebellion, Zhao Tuo did not. Not only did he not give up, but Lu Bohuan’s change directly triggered Zhao Tuo’s actions today.
“Because he’s more rational than you,” Qin Yuanxi felt the heavy breathing by his ear.
He was certain that Zhao Tuo wouldn’t harm him anymore.
Although there were still traces of blood on his neck, it was likely a mistake. Despite Zhao Tuo’s frenzy and inability to control his emotions, despite his several attempts to strangle himself, Qin Yuanxi could sense that Zhao Tuo was in control. Zhao Tuo didn’t want to harm him.
Furthermore, even though it wasn’t the time to say it now, Qin Yuanxi could feel the love from the person beside him.
Yes, it was love.
Regardless of whether it was Zhao Tuo or Lu Bohuan, regardless of their identities, this person loved him.
He was just unwell, his world was chaotic. In this chaotic world, his world was a ruin. Qin Yuanxi was in a corner of this ruin. Even though there were piles of debris beneath his feet, a crumbling wall stood in front of him, shaky but desperately trying to protect him.
Qin Yuanxi wanted to say something to awaken Zhao Tuo’s rationality, but he couldn’t. Just as he was about to speak, Qin Yuanxi felt a sudden, sharp pain in his abdomen. The pain came abruptly. He managed to grab Zhao Tuo’s arm, barely preventing himself from collapsing. His fingers tightly clutched Zhao Tuo’s sleeve. “Quick, quick, call Yan Shaoning. My stomach hurts, something doesn’t feel right. Hurry!”
“What?”
Zhao Tuo was still confused. His chaotic world hadn’t sorted itself out yet when he noticed a pool of blood on the floor. The person leaning on him had a pale face, beads of sweat on his forehead.
Zhao Tuo lifted him and placed him on the bed, shouting outside, “Physician, where’s the physician?!”
“Yan Shaoning, Yan Shaoning is right here. Let me call him.” Qin Yuanxi was about to faint from the pain. The last shred of his rationality was slipping away, but he still insisted on Yan Shaoning coming.
“Okay, I’ll call him. I’ll call him.”
When Yan Shaoning arrived, the palace physicians were all at a loss.
The person on the bed was in a semi-conscious state, almost breathing out more than breathing in. Zhao Tuo was furious, grabbing Yan Shaoning’s collar as soon as he approached. Before he could say anything, Yan Shaoning quickly inserted a golden needle into Zhao Tuo’s wrist and freed himself from Zhao Tuo’s grip.
His tone was urgent and irritable, “Are you all dead? He’s in this state, and you’re just standing there? What are you good for? Hurry up and wake him up. Where’s the ginseng? Get some ginseng in his mouth to help him breathe.”
The palace physicians had never encountered such a situation. Most of them were responsible for checking the pulses of pregnant concubines in the palace and prescribing mildly effective medicines for nourishing the fetus. When it came to childbirth, it was the palace midwives who took charge. Faced with this sudden emergency, no one dared to take the lead.
Not only were they hesitant, but they also had never seen such a scene. Since ancient times, it was women who gave birth. Men—where does the child come from?
Yan Shaoning, holding a golden needle, stabbed Qin Yuanxi’s tiger mouth a few times. The person who was already semi-conscious trembled and weakly opened his eyes. Yan Shaoning pried open his mouth and stuffed in a piece of ginseng, saying urgently, “Hold it in your mouth. Stay awake. Don’t faint. Understand?”
Qin Yuanxi glanced at the anxious Zhao Tuo, and with all his strength, he patted Yan Shaoning’s hand. Yan Shaoning immediately nodded, “I understand. I’ll do as we agreed. Don’t worry; I’ll do my best!”
After giving assurance to Qin Yuanxi, Yan Shaoning turned to Zhao Tuo, who was standing nearby, and said, “Your Majesty is about to give birth. General, please step aside.”
“No.” Zhao Tuo rejected without hesitation. “I must stay here.”
“If you stay here, you’ll interfere with my surgery. In case anything goes wrong, who will be responsible?”
Mocking back, Zhao Tuo retorted, “If having me around could cause such a renowned physician to make a mistake, then you probably don’t deserve the title of a divine healer. Do what you need to do; I won’t disturb. Pretend I don’t exist.”
Yan Shaoning compromised to some extent and went to check on Qin Yuanxi. Zhao Tuo’s presence or absence didn’t affect him; the one at risk was Qin Yuanxi.
The matter of how the child would be born had already been discussed between Qin Yuanxi and Yan Shaoning long ago.
There was no precedent in this world for men giving birth, let alone performing a cesarean section. Generally, people wouldn’t dare to cut a big opening in the belly to take out a child easily. The decision to proceed with this plan was made after numerous discussions between Qin Yuanxi and Yan Shaoning. Qin Yuanxi, of course, was not afraid. Cesarean section surgeries are very advanced, scientific, and well-developed in the modern world, and many expectant mothers opt for it without much trouble.
However, the circumstances were different here. What was commonplace in his original world posed a significant problem in this setting and was quite dangerous. Despite being a routine operation in the modern world, Qin Yuanxi understood that the medical capabilities were not as advanced here. Even with Yan Shaoning, there was only a sixty percent certainty of successfully completing the surgery. The procedure carried risks. When the decision was made, it was agreed that neither Zhao Tuo nor Lu Bohuan would be allowed to be present during the operation.
“No, it’s not allowed.” Qin Yuanxi looked at Zhao Tuo, emphasizing each word. “You go out. I don’t want to see you.”
Zhao Tuo’s expression froze for a moment, as if he wanted to say something but ultimately stayed silent. With a sweep of his sleeves, he turned and slammed the door behind him.
Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters. (๑>ᴗ<๑)
