Shi Muyuan wasn't a fool. Naturally, she knew that the loss of military strength was like a catastrophic disaster for a city.
She pursed her lips and without hesitation, asked someone to bring paper and a writing brush.
"Let me write to the emperor myself and ask him to send troops. You just wait. It won't take long."
Seeing this, the official was moved to tears.
"The Empress Dowager truly cares about the common people. With you around, I believe our Great Liang will surely prosper."
Shi Muyuan had heard such polite words too many times and didn't take them to heart at all.
"Alright, send a message by carrier pigeon. Report this to the emperor as fast as you can."
"Your servant understands."
...
When the young emperor received the message, most of the poison in his body had been cleared.
San Qi seemed to have shed a heavy burden that had been on his shoulders for years. He looked completely relaxed.
He put away his medicine chest and stared at the person sitting on the high throne. "Your Majesty, if you take the medicine I prescribed, you'll recover soon. I won't come to the palace again. I hope Your Majesty can convey my gratitude to the Empress Dowager on my behalf."
Hearing this, the young emperor sensed something was wrong.
"Is the divine doctor planning to leave?"
San Qi looked around and let out a long sigh.
"I thought it would take me many more years to find out the truth. I really owe this to the Empress Dowager this time."
"If the divine doctor really wants to thank the empress mother, why not wait until she comes back and thank her in person?"
"No need. I want to go back and bury my friend properly. I won't come out of seclusion again."
Although Ji Heng was still young, he could understand that after all that San Qi had been through, he must be in a bad mood.
He sighed and finally didn't try to persuade him to stay.
"Then take care, divine doctor. I'll send someone to escort you out."
Just as he finished speaking, a eunuch rushed in from outside.
"Your Majesty, an urgent report from the south of the Yangtze River."
The young emperor quickly opened the envelope. Seeing the familiar handwriting inside, he frowned. Normally, the empress mother would never write in person unless it was something really important.
Sure enough, after reading the content, he quickly ordered someone to summon the Minister of War.
"You must send reinforcements to the south of the Yangtze River immediately. There's a mutiny there. We in Changjing City can't just stand by and do nothing."
The Minister of War was a bit reluctant after hearing this.
"Your Majesty, the Ministry of War is short of manpower recently. We really can't spare any troops. How about asking the Shi family to send someone to help?"
As soon as he said this, the young emperor slapped the table.
"How dare you question me!"
The Minister of War wiped the sweat off his forehead and knelt on the ground straight.
"It's not that I'm unwilling. It's really that the Ministry of War has no available troops."
"Anyway, you must handle this properly."
The Minister of War wanted to say something else, but seeing the young emperor's expression, he swallowed his words.
Ji Heng had thought that after giving the Minister of War a warning, he would be a bit more restrained. But in the end, he realized he had thought too much.
The next day.
As soon as he went to court, he immediately noticed something was wrong.
"Why isn't the Minister of War here today? Didn't anyone tell me?"
Helplessly, Fu Lu stepped forward to answer.
"Your Majesty, just now we received a message saying that the Minister of War is ill today and is recuperating at home. He really can't come."
A sneer appeared on Ji Heng's lips. He knew very well whether the old man was really ill or not. It was impossible for him to escape the matter of the south of the Yangtze River in this way.
There was a hint of concern on his face. "Since he's ill, we should send someone to check on him. Alas, to be honest, the minister is so old and frail, yet he still serves the common people in the court. I really feel quite sorry. How about this? After court, we'll all go to the minister's mansion together."
Everyone else looked surprised.
Since the founding of Great Liang, no emperor had ever led so many officials to a minister's mansion on his own initiative. They thought the Minister of War didn't deserve such an honor.
"Your Majesty, the Minister of War suddenly fell ill. We don't know what the illness is for the time being. Let's not go. We might catch the illness. Please take care of your precious body."
Although what they said made sense, Ji Heng had made up his mind and no one could change it.
"Alright, it's settled then. You all should prepare well. Besides, there are imperial physicians in the palace. What are you afraid of?"
Helplessly, everyone had to follow the young emperor to the Minister of War's mansion.
When they saw the Minister of War, everyone's gazes turned into sharp knives. They wished they could cut the flesh off his body.
The Minister of War didn't expect the young emperor to make such a big fuss. Now he felt really embarrassed.
"Your Majesty, I'm really being impolite. I originally wanted to relieve Your Majesty's worries, but I didn't expect such a situation to happen suddenly. I really feel ashamed."
The young emperor seemed magnanimous on the surface and didn't seem to mind.
"Alas, the minister has worked hard for so many years, all for the common people and this court. I understand your situation. So I've come here specially to tell you that if you really can't handle the job, you might as well let someone else take your place. You can also retire and enjoy your remaining years at home."
At first, the minister thought he had made Ji Heng a bit afraid of him. But he didn't expect the latter half of the sentence to be such a bombshell.
The Minister of War was stunned for a long time.
It was his wife who kept reminding him.
"Husband, the emperor is talking to you. Why don't you answer?"
The Minister of War gritted his teeth and knew the purpose of the young emperor's visit today.
He took a deep breath.
"Your Majesty, please rest assured. I'll recover soon. Then I'll surely go back to relieve Your Majesty's worries. By the way, I plan to let my student handle the matter you assigned me yesterday. He's someone I trust completely."
"Okay, you can arrange it as you see fit. Anyway, the south of the Yangtze River must be defended."
After saying that, seeing that it was almost time, Ji Heng turned around and left.
The other court officials pretended to console the minister and then quickly left.
Although everything seemed calm on the surface, the Minister of War knew that he had offended all his colleagues because of today's incident. He didn't know how many people were waiting to see his joke next.
His wife also noticed something was wrong.
"Husband, what on earth happened? Why did the emperor come here in person? Did you do something?"
The minister was already in a bad mood. Hearing her words, he got even more annoyed.
"Alright, what do you women know? I can handle these things myself. Just take care of the inner courtyard and don't cause me any more trouble."
The minister's wife felt a bit wronged.
"Your servant understands. Husband, please rest assured."