Donggong Zhangjiao

Pei Yao's health began to deteriorate in the winter of his seventy-fourth year.

In fact, there were warning signs for a long time. Since the spring of that year, Pei Yao often felt uncomfortable and mentally weak. The imperial doctor had been focusing on recuperating him. However, as he gets older, people have a limit after all, and his body can no longer Just like when you were young, you will get better if you take care of yourself.

During the first snowfall of winter, Pei Yao said he wanted to sit around the stove, make tea, and watch the snow on the porch. Even though the servants had taken measures to keep warm, Pei Yao still started to cough at night.

He coughed badly at night, and he was afraid of disturbing Fang Yue's rest, so he got up and drank hot tea cup by cup. Fang Yue noticed it and called for the imperial doctor.

Hearing that the Supreme Emperor had invited an imperial doctor here, the palace people naturally did not dare not tell the fourth prince, oh no, now that he is the emperor, if Fang Yun hadn't sent someone to convey the message, saying that it was a small matter and there was no need to go there in the middle of the night, otherwise it would definitely happen again. He mobilized troops and mobilized a large number of people to visit him.

After all, the fourth prince, who has been on the throne for many years now, is also in his late fifties.

It's hard work to make the trip in the middle of the night.

But the next day, the fourth prince came over immediately after going to court.

"Father, Queen." The fourth prince saluted, and immediately asked about last night's situation, "Is your father feeling better?"

After ascending the throne, the four princes followed the ancestral rules and named the Queen Mother the Queen Mother. The former Queen was the Queen Mother the Queen Mother. They both respected each other, so they are now also called the Queen Mother.

Pei Yao waved his hand, "It's nothing serious. Those minions made too much fuss. I just have a cough. If I don't cough, cough, cough, cough, cough, cough, cough, cough!"

Before he could finish his sentence, he coughed violently.

Seeing this, the fourth prince quickly poured a cup of hot tea and handed it over.

"It's fine. Why are you coughing? Maybe you caught the wind and cold while enjoying the snow yesterday."

"Isn't it just that he caught the wind and cold yesterday." Fang Yue sighed, with worry on his face, "I asked him to drink two more cups of ginger tea to warm himself up, but he refused to listen. Suddenly, he coughed so badly that he didn't sleep well last night."

Pei Yao drank some hot tea and his throat felt better before he said.

"Don't listen to what your mother said. She is just worried. Originally, it was nothing serious. She will be fine after taking medicine for a few days."

"Father, you should take more care of yourself now. My son is here today and has brought some good pills that warm and nourish the lungs. I will ask the imperial doctor to take a look at them later. If you can take them, father will take some." Right." The fourth prince said.

Pei Yao nodded and coughed again.

After the family of three sat there for a while, they heard a report from outside that the queen was coming.

As the daughter-in-law, I naturally wanted to come and take a look at this time.

However, Pei Yao didn't sleep well last night, so the queen only sat for a moment and then left. The fourth prince also left with her, and Fang Yoong helped Pei Yao in to rest.

"Get some sleep, it's always good to get more rest." Fang Yun comforted softly.

Pei Yao lay down, letting her tuck him in, and said with a smile, "When you were young, you were much weaker than me, but now you take care of me."

"I'm seven or eight years younger than you. I'm much younger." Fang Yun was half-joking.

Isn't it? She was seventeen and a half years old when she entered the East Palace. Pei Yao had just turned twenty-five at that time, so he was not seven or eight years old.

Pei Yao was slightly stunned when he heard what she said, and then whispered something after a long while.

"If you don't mention this, I will almost forget it."

"That happened many years ago. Go to sleep. I'll call you for lunch." Fang Yun patted the quilt comfortingly.

Fast forward to these years, the two of them are just like ordinary couples, no longer calling themselves emperor or concubine.

When did it start? It seems to be after Pei Yao abdicated.

Pei Yao said that he would no longer call himself me when he was no longer the emperor. He looked serious and still tired. He called himself me, and Fang Yun no longer called himself concubine.

After many years, I have become accustomed to it.

Seeing Pei Yao sleeping, Fang Yun got up and went out.

I thought this would be a minor illness and would pass quickly, but unexpectedly, as the weather became colder and colder, Pei Yao's cough did not improve.

The imperial doctor said that he should pay attention to keeping warm, so Fang Yun was not allowed to go out all winter. The most he could do was stand on the porch to get some air.

Pei Yao felt too bored, but he had to obey, after all, he was the one who was sick.

Fortunately, the children often come to the palace to see him, and they also bring their grandchildren and even great-grandchildren, which is quite lively.

The imperial doctor also said that after winter, when the weather warms up, things should get better.

With the beginning of spring and the beginning of summer, he was indeed getting better. He hardly coughed anymore, but Pei Yao often felt chest tightness and shortness of breath. The imperial doctor said that it was because he coughed too hard last winter, which hurt his lungs, and he needed to be nursed back to health.

I just kept it warm with medicine, but I didn't expect that it would relapse again when the weather got cold.

Often the relapse of an old disease will be more serious, and Pei Yao was also like this. At the worst time, he coughed up blood.

Everyone was shocked.

When the imperial doctor came to see him, he also looked solemn.

When people get old, they are like machines that have reached the end of their service life. No matter how much they are maintained, they will continue to age and become worse with each passing year. There is nothing we can do about it.

Moreover, if the deficiency is not replenished, Pei Yao's body can only be taken care of gently now, and he cannot take heavy medicines like young people, otherwise it will be even more harmful to the body.

It's equivalent to saying that I have no choice but to do my best to maintain it.

By this time, he knew his physical condition clearly, and Pei Yao also vaguely felt that he had been there for almost a year or two.

So after that winter, when the weather warmed up and his condition improved slightly, he took Fang Yun out for a walk.

Even if you don't leave the palace and just enjoy flowers, feed fish, play with birds, or play chess or drink tea in the palace, it's all good, in short, it's a pastime.

Fang Yun just thought that he was in good spirits and couldn't sit still, so he spent time with him.

As I get older, I don’t have much fun.

It's not like when I was young, I just said it was time to go south or north.

But Pei Yao did this more than just for fun, and he couldn't bear to do it.

When he thought that he would leave one day, he wanted to stay with Fang Yun longer and make more common memories.

Up to now, the two of them have been together for a lifetime, so how could they let go.

When Fang Yun realized something was wrong with him, he woke up in the middle of the night and found Pei Yao sitting next to her and looking at her.

"Why don't you sleep?"

"Can't sleep." Pei Yao smiled and reached out to touch Fang Yun's face, "You also have so many wrinkles."

Fang Yun was helpless, "You are an old lady. Why don't you have wrinkles? You are not an old goblin." "How can you be a goblin? You look good even when you are old." Pei Yao said gently.

"You said these disgusting words in the middle of the night." Fang Yun deliberately glared at him, but he also vaguely felt his emotions, so he sat up and said softly, "Okay, go to sleep, I'm always here."

Pei Yao didn't answer, and whispered after a while.

"I'm afraid, we don't have many days left."

"What nonsense are you talking about? It's very unlucky!"

Fang Yun immediately interrupted him.

But Pei Yao shook his head, "I know my own body best, but don't worry, I like warm weather, and I definitely won't leave when it's freezing outside."

Now, it’s late autumn and early winter again.

Hearing these words, Fang Yun felt a dull pain in his heart, and he said again after a long while.

"Sleep, no nonsense, no random thoughts!"

After saying that, he couldn't help but lay down next to Pei Yao, with a bit of escape in his stubbornness.

But there are some things that can't be avoided just because you want to.

After winter really came, no matter how meticulously he took care of him, Pei Yao still suffered from a recurrence of his old illness.

This time, I didn't attend the palace banquet on New Year's Eve when I was sick. That is, when I was fifteen, I went out to the family banquet and ate a bowl of glutinous rice balls. After the first lunar month passed, I became weaker and weaker.

Coughing and coughing up blood all day are common, and when I am not coughing, I almost fall asleep.

Fang Yun stayed guard day and night, refusing to leave even if there were children waiting for him.

In the past few years, the people she knew when she was young have slowly passed away, and Pei Yao, the person who has been with her for many years, is about to leave, and then she will really be alone.

Pei Yao probably knew that Fang Yun was scared, so he would try his best to talk to her with her when he was awake.

This groggy situation lasted until mid-April. Suddenly, Pei Yao's spirit improved a lot.

In fact, Fang Yun did not want to see such a situation.

Back to light.

Although these four words were reluctant to be uttered, everyone realized that it was probably done.

The weather was excellent that day and the sun was shining brightly. Pei Yao said he wanted to go for a walk in the imperial garden, so the two of them went there together, fed the koi, walked and rested, and wandered around for almost an hour before returning to the palace.

After lunch, the two of them sat together drinking digestion tea, and Pei Yao suddenly said.

"I owe you my whole life."

"What are you talking about?" Fang Yun narrowed his eyes.

Pei Yao just looked at her, "I know that you have been cautious for most of your life. You don't want to be obedient and sensible. It's just that you are afraid and don't dare to be willful."

"That was when I was young, but now I'm too wild." Fang Yun said with a smile.

I am really more wanton in old age than when I was young.

Hearing this, Pei Yao immediately smiled and nodded, but after a while, he repeated it again.

"I still owe you."

This time, Fang Yun didn't answer and just silently added more tea to his cup.

The two sat like this for half an hour. Pei Yao said he wanted to take a nap, so Fang Yun helped him in and lay down.

Fang Yun couldn't sleep, so he copied Buddhist scriptures outside.

Unexpectedly, after copying the Buddhist scriptures, an hour passed and there was still no movement in the room. Fang Yun couldn't help but feel anxious.

He quickly entered the inner room.

After a moment, the palace people outside could hear the Queen Mother's crying exclamation coming from inside the room.

The whole palace suddenly became chaotic.

The emperor has gone.

He walked peacefully, in his sleep.

When the fourth prince arrived, Fang Yun was sitting there with red eyes, and his whole person looked empty, as if half of his soul was missing.

It wasn't until the queen offered to help her to rest elsewhere that she had some reaction, nodded mechanically, and let the queen help her out.

When he reached the door, his steps suddenly stopped again, and he turned to look at Pei Yao, who was lying on the couch.

With just one glance, the person's eyes darkened and he fainted.

By the time Fang Yun came out of this confused state, it was already three months after Pei Yao passed away.

It’s Mid-Autumn Festival again.

Because the emperor passed away and the whole country mourned, no banquet was held, so this reunion festival also seemed cold.

In the evening, the fourth prince, the queen, and several princes and princesses came to accompany Fang Yun for dinner, but Fang Yun was not in high spirits and was not in good spirits, so they quickly left.

After all the children left, Fang Yun realized it later and became deserted again.

Looking at the full moon outside the window, I suddenly remembered what Pei Yao asked her that day.

Owe?
There are probably still some.

Why have I been cautious for most of my life? After all, it is because the status of the two is never equal.

But if you ask her if she regrets it, she can't answer.

After all, Pei Yao treated her well enough. He might not have such a life when he was with others.

But there are regrets after all.

Fang Yun thought, if there is an afterlife, if there is still unfinished fate, then she hopes that by that time, the two of them can be equal and perfect.

end