CHAPTER 580: CHAPTER 559 ANOTHER UPDATE

Qi Zhu staggered backward, unable to let Zheng Nianru in either, clutching the corner of Zheng Nianru’s robe with one hand.

Zheng Nianru couldn’t move and turned her head to glare at Qi Zhu, who then dared not pull any harder.

"Empress, Empress, please have mercy for the sake of the deceased Qi Ling—don’t make it difficult for your subordinate," Qi Zhu’s voice was low. The current Emperor was not as easy to serve as before, taking all the blame on himself. If it weren’t for the sleep-inducing ingredients added to his medicine, the Emperor would surely stay awake tirelessly, striving to break free from the predicament before him.

Zheng Nianru suddenly fell silent. Nanny Yun and the others had just come in, and upon hearing the name Qi Ling, they were instantly so frightened they dared not move—a completely inappropriate time to bring him up, his death had deeply grieved the Empress.

"Empress, this servant deserves to die—" Realizing something, Qi Zhu quickly knelt down.

"Hmm—" Another muffled groan, pushed to the limit, came from inside the room. Qi Zhu hastily looked over, unable to hide his concern.

"Qi Zhu, if something happens inside, can you stop it? Or can I?" Zheng Nianru spoke, gazing steadily at Qi Zhu on the ground.

Qi Zhu was slightly stunned, then suddenly understood the implication in Zheng Nianru’s words. They didn’t dare to defy the Emperor’s commands, but the Commandery Princess was different. Oh, the Empress could stop the Emperor.

Hope filled Qi Zhu’s eyes immediately. Without waiting for Zheng Nianru to speak, he moved aside, casting a glance at the inner chamber behind him and whispering close to Zheng Nianru.

"Empress, the spells the Emperor is testing this time are extremely dangerous. Last night, he already lost consciousness three times. I fear the situation is ominous, but the Emperor..."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Nianru fiercely poked Qi Zhu’s forehead. Why hadn’t he reported something so critical? What was the use of having servants like them?

Zheng Nianru had no time to settle scores with Qi Zhu and headed straight for the inner chamber. The eunuchs guarding the door, seeing it was Zheng Nianru, wanted to stop her but didn’t dare to, and could only watch as she walked in.

A thick fog swirled around. It was the first time Zheng Nianru saw the figure amidst the smoke. The floor was a mess, with spilled water stains, broken lamp fragments, and a towel bearing brown stains—indistinguishable if it was blood or something else.

A man stood to one side in a panic, cluelessly watching Zheng Congyuan lying on the ground.

Ju Nanyi charged over instantly with swift steps, followed by a few who appeared to be from the Fire Order Squad, but they didn’t quite look like members of the squad.

At that moment, no one had time to pay attention to Zheng Nianru’s arrival. It seemed as if an accident had just occurred a moment before she entered.

"Mage, how is he?" Ju Nanyi immediately asked someone next to him. Only then did Zheng Nianru remember she had seen this man before—he was brought from the Northern Border by Ju Nanyi, seemingly a Mage from Qiandao Temple.

The man’s expression was grave as he tore open Zheng Congyuan’s clothes to reveal skin covered in a blackness spreading along the meridians across the entire chest.

Zheng Nianru’s figure swayed, and she nearly lost her balance, clinging tightly to Nanny Yun’s hand.

The man hadn’t yet spoken when Ju Nanyi noticed the grave situation and grabbed him.

"Find a solution—quickly!" Ju Nanyi bellowed, his command amidst the chaos acting like a plumb line, snapping everyone back from their panic.

The man glanced at the Steel Ring on the ground. The ring had worked well the previous two times. Although the Emperor suffered immensely, it truly forced out some of the black evil energy. But during the third attempt, something seemed to have gone wrong.

The man on the ground gritted his teeth, thinking of a solution. He watched the blackness spread out from all of Zheng Congyuan’s meridians. If he didn’t act quickly, it might be too late.

The man picked up the steel ring from the ground, and this time, without any surefire protection, just as the black qi was surging up the meridians toward the heart, he directly placed it over the direction of Zheng Congyuan’s heart. The person who had been previously stunned also moved forward at the same time, quickly stroking the steel ring while murmuring words that were different from the previous two occasions. The ring visibly slowed its shaking until it gradually "quieted" down and lay on Zheng Congyuan’s chest.

Slowly, the "black qi in the meridians" began to fade, and everyone finally took a deep breath of relief.

Ju Nanyi looked up and only then did he notice Zheng Nianru, his pupils constricted, his brain went momentarily blank, but in the next instant, he regained his composure, gently laid Zheng Congyuan down on the couch, and then stood up to pay his respects.

"Your servant greets the Empress—" The words of Ju Nanyi sent everyone into a panic, dropping to their knees, but that very panic in their gaze was enough to stun those who were now seeing the legendary Empress, who had resolved the crisis in Nanzheng, for the first time.

Even, some faintly felt that perhaps the rumors were not...

After all, the Young Master of Ghoul Ravine had revived Zheng Congyuan for the Empress, and had been forgiving enough...

Zheng Nianru didn’t speak, merely cast a cold glance at Ju Nanyi. If it weren’t for the fact that she had virtually no dealings with Ju Nanyi in this life, she would even suspect that Ju Nanyi had ulterior motives, intentionally seeking to harm Zheng Congyuan.

"How is The Emperor?" Zheng Nianru’s foremost concern was still Zheng Congyuan on the couch, whose chest rose and fell faintly, nearly imperceptibly, but his eyelids quivered and struggled as though he was trying hard to open them.

Zheng Nianru already strode forward, her loose skirt gliding over the wet floor, the hibiscus flowers on the hem splashed with droplets of water blooming into a bewitchingly red haze, bursting with life.

Everyone dared not move, and in the next moment, the vibrant hibiscus flowers moved out of their line of sight.

"I am alright—" Zheng Congyuan spoke, struggling to lift his hand as Zheng Nianru, wanting to come closer but not daring to, simply stood still in front of him.

Qi Zhu had already rushed over, carefully helping up his master, and seeing that Zheng Congyuan’s breathing was gradually returning to normal, he finally felt relieved.

Zheng Nianru withdrew her gaze, glanced at the people on the ground, and picked a chair that was relatively clean to sit down.

The people on the ground turned in her direction, still kneeling properly; they realized that the Empress had something to say.

"Speak, after all these days of trouble, what have you achieved?" Zheng Nianru, barely containing her impatience, especially at the thought of Zheng Congyuan’s pale face, felt like she could kill them all.

The individuals on the floor all looked towards Ju Nanyi, not daring to speak.

"Reporting to Her Majesty, we haven’t reaped any results so far." Ju Nanyi replied calmly, as he had expected, the talent of Li Yinhe was not something an ordinary person could match.

"Hah—" Zheng Nianru let out a cold laugh, "No results, and you dare to let The Emperor experiment with something so uncertain?" Zheng Nianru felt her heart had been too soft; she should have taken action earlier.

"Nian Ru—" Zheng Congyuan’s voice came through, by this time he had caught his breath and was trying to stop Zheng Nianru...

Zheng Nianru had already stood up.

"Lord Ju, whatever you want to do in the future, first find someone to test it. If it’s safe, bring it to me and with my consent, then proceed..." Zheng Nianru said.

"Your Majesty, to find someone with the same physical constitution as The Emperor would be difficult..." Ju Nanyi immediately spoke up, for the injuries on Zheng Congyuan’s body were indeed very unique.