Wan Dabao was startled and almost dropped the medicine bowl in his hand.
He looked at Concubine Pei alertly, and after a brief inner confrontation, he showed a humble smile: "What do you mean by this, my servant doesn't quite understand."
"How could Eunuch Wan not understand?" Concubine Pei said calmly, "In the entire harem, including the previous dynasty, who has followed His Majesty longer than you? To this day, you are well aware of His Majesty's situation, but how long can you last?
It’s just one day. So what happens after that? Where will Eunuch Wan go?”
Wan Dabao raised his head and looked at Concubine Pei's face in the shadow, his eyes dim and unclear.
His heart skipped a beat, and something he had thought about earlier came to mind.
Concubine Pei, I'm afraid she has no intention of ending her life well.
No, it should be said that there is never a good beginning and there will never be a good ending.
Except for the emperor, no one knew those things better than him.
The emperor at that time was just an idle prince...
Over the years, Wan Dabao once thought that Concubine Pei had forgotten, or in other words, had allowed himself to forget.
What else can a woman do?
The previous husband is dead. Who else can she rely on besides the emperor?
It is better to forget than to be unable to do anything.
This is the smart choice.
But now, he finally knows that Concubine Pei has never forgotten her, and she still misses her even now.
"Empress..."
Wan Dabao was suddenly a little scared. A woman could disguise herself for so long, for twenty-three years, with such true feelings that no one could see. How terrifying is this?
He couldn't help but move his steps slightly.
Concubine Pei laughed: "What are you afraid of, Eunuch Wan? Are you afraid of me?"
Wan Dabao responded with silence.
"You should indeed be afraid, but you should be even more grateful. At this time, I am still here and willing to say these words to you."
Wan Dabao's throat slid slightly and he said: "Empress, Your Majesty doesn't have a few days left, can you just... endure it for a few more days?"
It was almost a plea.
Concubine Pei smiled softly: "My father-in-law is a true servant of God. Even now, I am still worried about Your Majesty." She paused and continued, "But, do we want to make a bet? It's not that I can't help it, but
Your Majesty will not be able to bear it."
Wan Dabao's heart trembled and he couldn't help but look up at her.
"Eunuch Wan, no one knows better than you what kind of person your Majesty is. I think you wouldn't dare to make this bet."
Wan Dabao was silent.
He really... didn't dare to fight.
"But I think that instead of worrying about this problem, it is better to think about what will happen to you." Concubine Pei's eyes were heavy, as if the gloominess of more than 20 years had all been piled together, "Once the emperor and the courtiers, if there are four
When the prince comes to power, where will you go?"
Concubine Pei's words struck a chord in Wan Dabao's heart.
"I don't believe that His Majesty will consider the people around him carefully. Eunuch Wan, to this day, Your Majesty has not said how he will arrange for you, right?"
Wan Dabao responded sadly.
"What's so strange? His coldness doesn't just happen in a day or two. He can even kill his brother who has loved and protected him for more than 20 years without blinking an eye. How can he care about a slave?"
Wan Dabao had nothing to say.
He knew it, of course he knew it.
He calmed himself down and said, "So, has the empress already thought of a way out?"
Concubine Pei said calmly: "I don't need a retreat. The worst I can do is die. For me, living for an extra twenty-three years is enough. The one who needs a retreat is you, Eunuch Wan!"
Wan Dabao remained silent. He knew that Concubine Pei was building up her momentum, overwhelming him step by step, and then making her request.
But how can he deal with it? He has no confidence!
"Mother," he finally didn't wait any longer and pierced the layer of paper between them first, "what exactly do you want to do?"
Concubine Pei laughed: "What do you think, Eunuch Wan?"
"This slave will never attempt to murder Your Majesty!" Wan Dabao said, "If you betray your master, your Majesty will definitely not be willing to stay."
Concubine Pei nodded: "I don't need you to murder him. Today, if you do nothing, how long can he live?"
Hearing her talk about the emperor's life and death in such a calm and indifferent tone, Wan Dabao couldn't help but shudder.
Thinking carefully about Concubine Pei's performance over the past twenty years...she was able to hide herself so well. What kind of goal was she aiming for?
"Empress..." Wan Dabao felt timid in his heart.
"What I want is very simple," Concubine Pei said calmly, "From now on, don't let any words that may become imperial edicts be spread out of this hall."
"Empress!" Wan Dabao was shocked.
Concubine Pei stretched out a finger and put it in front of her lips: "Keep your voice down, otherwise it won't be good if others hear you."
Wan Dabao was so frightened that he looked outside the door and lowered his voice: "How dare you... have such an idea? You can't succeed!"
Concubine Pei's request was to block the emperor's news. What was the use of doing so? It was of course a convenient way to correct the imperial edict.
In other words, she wants to intervene in the matter of establishing a reserve.
Wan Dabao never expected that Concubine Pei had kept her peace for more than 20 years and had done everything perfectly, but in the end something big happened.
Concubine Pei smiled: "Why is it impossible? Eunuch Wan, you know too little!"
Wan Dabao noticed something unusual after being reminded like this by her.
They've been talking here for too long, why doesn't anyone come over?
Concubine Pei sighed: "I don't want you to see it. It seems that I really don't believe it."
Wan Dabao was still thinking about what she meant by this, when another faint voice came from behind him: "Your Majesty, do you have something to tell me?"
Wan Dabao turned his head as if he had seen a ghost.
"Liu Xiaoxi! You!"
Eunuch Liu looked at him quietly, with no smile on his face, only indifference.
Wan Dabao was so frightened that he broke into a cold sweat.
This Liu Xiaoxi is actually a member of the imperial concubine. He is in charge of the Imperial City Department. If something happens to His Majesty, the secret guards will listen to him.
He really knew too little!
Speaking of which...
"Empress," Wan Dabao's voice trembled, "are you going to... establish the King of Yue?"
Concubine Pei smiled softly: "Eunuch Wan is so scared? He took away the position of Prince Sihuai, took away the position of my husband, and now gives him my son, what's wrong?"
Wan Dabao's heart almost stopped with fear.
He previously thought that Concubine Pei intervened to establish the crown prince because she wanted to become the queen mother.
I bet she doesn't even bother to be the Queen Mother in name only, she wants to be the real Queen Mother!
"Eunuch Wan, time is running out!" Concubine Pei said calmly, "The previous court is discussing the matter of establishing a heir, and there may be a result before dawn. Do you want to miss the last chance?"
Wan Dabao was sweating like rain.
Even twenty-four years ago, when I heard about that incident, I had never been so nervous. (To be continued)