After their laughter, Luo Zhi Qiu looked to Xie Yu, “You have to be cautious in Yi Zhou.”Luo Ze said, “Yeah, even rabbits know how to bite when they're feeling threatened, not to mention people!”

Luo Wei added, “Xie Yu, when you head to Yi Zhou, drop by Xiao Yi Apothecary, take a few Shadow Guards from there with you.”

Luo Zhi Qiu had never asked about the business with the Xiao Yi Apothecary, but he gave Luo Wei a great deal of money to spend there. The one hundred and fifty seven shadow guards at the apothecary was, in reality, property of the Luo estate. “Wei Er, how are those Shadow Guards doing?” Luo Zhi Qiu asked.

“Some have recovered fully,” Luo Wei said, “There are some who still need to rest for a while. Recovery is not something to be rushed.”

“Then Yu Er should go and take a look,” Luo Zhi Qiu turned towards Xie Yu again, “And see if there's anything they need there.”

“Understood,” Xie Yu accepted the task.

As they carefully planned things out in the Luo Estate, in the Hall of the Blossoming Beauty, a shadowy cloud of worry and panic hung about the rafters.

Consort Liu's illness seemed to have gotten much worse. She had been able to get up by herself, but now could only stay in bed.

Liu Shuang s.h.i.+ used visiting her in her time of illness as an excuse, and entered the palace to see his younger sister. Seeing how ill she'd become and the precarious state she'd come to, his heart ached for her.

Consort Liu held Long Xuan's hand as she spoke, “Xuan Er, I've failed you as a mother.”

Long Xuan forced himself to smile, “Consort mother, what are you saying? Isn't it nice for us to spend more time together?”

Consort Liu was crying as she spoke, “You and your uncle have planned for this for so long, who could have expected my body to fail me like this! Does your Imperial Father intend on keeping you in the palace for life? Long Yu was ten when he first left the palace to experience the outside world, your father,” Tears streamed down Consort Liu's face, “How could your father show such blatant favoritism!”

“Imperial consort!” Liu Shuang s.h.i.+ quickly took a few steps closer, standing at the side of Consort Liu's bed, “You can't speak so insolently about His Imperial Majesty!”

Consort Liu replied, “Big brother, Wu Sheng has gone to Yun Guan with that Luo Wei by his side, is he going to ruin everything?”

Liu Shuang s.h.i.+ sighed, “Naturally, Luo Wei's eyes won't let Wu Sheng out of his sight.”

“Then why are we keeping him around?” Consort Liu's voice suddenly gained an edge of steel.

“Consort mother,” Long Xuan said, “If something were to happen to Luo Wei, my Imperial Father would not let my cousin so easily off the hook.”

“The Luo family, it's always this Luo family!” Consort Liu spat with hatred, “It's always Luo family standing in our way!”

Liu Shuang s.h.i.+ said, “The Marquess of Ding Huai has come to the capital for an audience with the emperor. He went straight to see Luo Zhi Qiu after seeing His Imperial Majesty.”

“Concubine Li… that woman,” Consort Liu said, “She's relying on the empress now. That stupid woman doesn't see what lies in front of her. Does she think that as long as she's allied with the empress, she'd be able to take control of the six back palaces? Keep dreaming!”

“Imperial Consort,” Liu Shuang s.h.i.+ comforted, “Don't think about these things right now, recovery and rest is what you need to focus on.”

Long Xuan and Liu Shuang s.h.i.+ both knew very clearly that the Marquess of Ding Huai, Li Sheng, was due to ally with Luo Zhi Qiu, it was only a matter of time. Imperial Concubine Li was temporarily managing the Back Palace, and someone had heard her say once that Consort Liu was a dog that'd fallen into water, the only way is to hit her while she's down and keep her from biting anyone she can reach. With no hand on actual power, but very favored by the emperor, the empress was a definite target for Imperial Concubine Li to get close to. The intrigues of the Back Palace often tugged along whatever powers and alliances were forming on the surface of the imperial court.

“Consort Mother, everything will be fine,” Anxiety was anxiety, but Long Xuan still had to comfort his birth mother, “The plan will move forward if I go or if my cousin goes. There are things that we cannot rush. Do you promise to trust me?”

“If I didn't trust you, who else could I trust?” Consort Liu was speaking the truth to Long Xuan. She had become the emperor's consort when she was only fourteen, acted as a wife for him for years, and birthed two sons for him. But Emperor Xing Wu had tossed her out without a second thought, and with that, her hopes with the emperor had died. Now all she had left was her son, and yet his fate could not rely on her success, so her fate must rely on his.

TRANSLATOR'S NOTE:
A correction from chapter 67, Ding Wei Hou is really Hou of Ding Huai (I misread, yikes), which is to say, the Marquess of Ding Huai… @[email protected] I thought I had escaped these t.i.tles by escaping from the other novel I was translating, but it's even worse here because the author does not specifically rely on historically accurate t.i.tles… The only reference I could find of Ding Huai is that there is a gate named Ding Huai in Nan Jing, which I think is the capital city in this novel… though the novel doesn't ever mention it. Apologies for the confusion!!

Also I want to thank another reader for buying me LOTS OF COFFEE on kofi, i'm really grateful! <3 love="" you="">