The Command to Pamper the Husband - Chapter 180

Today was the agreed-upon day to meet with Master Deqing.

Early in the morning, the Emperor sent someone to Deqing Temple to fetch him. After the morning court session, the Emperor dismissed all ministers who wished to discuss matters in the Imperial Study, clearing his schedule specifically to wait for Master Deqing.

Now, the little eunuch who had gone to invite Deqing returned with startling news: Master Deqing was dead!?!

“What happened?” the Emperor asked.

“Your servant went to Deqing Temple to invite Master Deqing. When I arrived, Master Deqing was still in seclusion. I waited outside, but during that time, I overheard his two disciples anxiously saying that ever since he went into seclusion, he had neither eaten nor drunk anything, which was very unusual.”

“I felt something was wrong, so I intended to knock on the door. At first, Master Deqing’s two disciples didn’t dare to disturb him, but seeing that there was no response after several attempts, they got scared and joined me in knocking.”

“No matter how much we shouted, there was no response. In a panic, I broke down the door, only to find Master Deqing lying on the altar, his body pierced with weapons.”

The Emperor was about to scold the little eunuch for rambling, but upon hearing this, his eyes widened in shock, and his heart tightened.

“Weapons?” the Emperor asked.

The little eunuch nodded in terror.

Master Deqing’s death was too gruesome; the image was seared into his mind. “Master Deqing was covered head to toe in weapons, blood splattered on the altar. When I entered, the blood had already dried.”

The Chief Eunuch looked down and saw the Emperor’s hand, resting on the table, trembling.

“Upon witnessing this, I hurried back to report. Currently, Master Deqing’s disciples are guarding his body, not knowing what to do.”

His body was full of weapons. If they were removed, Master Deqing’s body would be riddled with holes, possibly disintegrating entirely. But if they weren’t removed, would he be buried looking like a porcupine? Such a cruel death.

How did this happen…

The Emperor’s trembling hand slowly clenched into a fist. He turned to the Chief Eunuch and said, “It’s her, she’s back.”

The Chief Eunuch shuddered, quickly signaling the little eunuch to leave.

The little eunuch, uneasy, left quickly. As soon as the door closed, the Chief Eunuch said, “Your Majesty, please calm down.”

The Emperor’s eyes were unfocused. “How could he end up with his body full of weapons? It must be her, she’s back for revenge.”

Seeing the Emperor in a near-delusional state, the Chief Eunuch boldly pushed his shoulder. “Your Majesty!” he raised his voice.

The Emperor snapped out of it, his eyes regaining clarity.

His clenched fist slammed heavily on the table. “Summon the people from Deqing Temple!” the Emperor ordered.

The Chief Eunuch immediately issued the order.

The little eunuch hurried to carry it out.

Half an hour later, the two monks who had been guarding the altar were standing in the Imperial Study. Their faces still bore signs of severe shock and grief.

“What happened exactly? Did anyone approach the altar in the past few days?” the Emperor asked.

The Emperor had regained his usual cold and stern demeanor. The two monks trembled with fear and fell to their knees.

“Reporting to Your Majesty, when Master was performing the ritual, no one approached. We were always guarding,” one monk said.

The other monk quickly added, “Except for the first day of the ritual, the Fourth Prince came once.”

The Emperor frowned, “The Fourth Prince?”

The monk quickly said, “It was on the way back to Deqing Temple from the palace. The Fourth Prince said he had some questions for Master and was holding a painting. Master took him to the altar. They were inside for about half an hour, and then the Fourth Prince left.”

“What about Deqing then?”

“Master was still inside. He said he needed to perform the ritual and would meet Your Majesty in two days.”

“Was the Fourth Prince gone by then?”

The two monks nodded in unison. “The Fourth Prince had already left, leaving Master alone in the room.”

The Emperor’s frown deepened.

When Shen Yue left, Master Deqing was fine, and after that, no one approached the room with the altar, yet Master Deqing ended up dead inside.

Finding no more useful information, the Emperor dismissed them. “Properly bury your Master. Select a new leader for Deqing Temple. I will not treat you unfairly.”

The monks were slightly surprised. However, the Emperor’s words somewhat eased their grief and fear. They bowed and withdrew.

Once they were gone, the Emperor turned to the Chief Eunuch. “What do you think?”

The Chief Eunuch lowered his head. “This servant dares not speculate. However, I believe it has nothing to do with the Fourth Prince. When the Fourth Prince left, Master Deqing mentioned he would give Your Majesty an answer in two days, indicating he was capable of performing the ritual freely at that time.”

The Emperor nodded.

The Chief Eunuch hesitated, then added, “Could it be that Master Deqing, during the ritual, accurately saw that person’s face and identity, and suffered a backlash from the spiritual power?”

Given the ritual, Master Deqing must have used immense spiritual power. If he faced a backlash, causing the weapons in the room to attack him, it wasn’t impossible.

After all, Master Deqing had previously said that person’s spiritual power was a hundred times stronger than the late Empress. If the late Empress could control weapons, so could that person. The person might have used Master Deqing’s spiritual power to counterattack, causing the weapons in the room to attack him.

This explanation was quite reasonable. The Emperor’s horror subsided slightly. He wasn’t afraid of a real, existing person. In fact, compared to the late Empress coming back for revenge, he could more easily accept that someone else had killed Master Deqing.

“Unfortunately, he was about to tell me who that person was,” the Emperor sighed regretfully.

The Chief Eunuch, however, thought of something else. “Your Majesty, with Master Deqing dead, who will control the Thousand Mechanism Poison? While the main Poison is with Your Majesty, the secondary Poison was with Master Deqing. It’s probably gone now too.”

The Chief Eunuch’s reminder made the Emperor recall the matter of the Thousand Mechanism Poison.

He had originally summoned Master Deqing to the palace to activate the Thousand Mechanism Poison and use its poison to identify the person. Before it could be activated, Master Deqing died.

The Emperor’s dark face turned cold. “The main Poison is the most important. The secondary Poison’s death isn’t a big issue. Right now, the most important thing is to find the next person who can control the Thousand Mechanism Poison.”

The Emperor immediately summoned the shadow guards and issued orders: at all costs, find someone who understands the Thousand Mechanism Poison and bring them to the palace.