Chapter 1131
Side Story: Picking Up the Person
When Pan Yun returned to the capital with his fellow disciples, it was already late at night, and the emperor was still working overtime.
After dumping the people at the Celestial Master's Mansion's residence in the capital, Pan Yun abandoned them and immediately entered the palace.
The emperor was engrossed in his work and had finally finished reviewing the most important memorials. Seeing a stack of memorials at the very edge, he casually picked one up and opened it.
As if sensing something, the emperor looked up at the palace gate.
The eunuch on duty at the Directorate of Ceremonial tonight was named Liu Jin. He respectfully served tea to the emperor: "Your Majesty?"
The emperor lowered his eyes, thinking it was just his imagination. He put down his pen, took the tea, and after taking a sip, he felt the jade on his chest getting slightly warm, and a sense of intimacy and familiarity washed over him.
The emperor stood up abruptly, swung the teacup in his hand, and spilled the tea.
Liu Jin panicked: "Your Majesty, be careful! Your Majesty, what's wrong...?"
The emperor impatiently pushed the teacup into his hands and waved his hand, saying, "You may all leave."
As the emperor's prestige grew, no one dared to speak out, and they all bowed and withdrew.
The palace doors opened and closed, leaving only the emperor in the vast study. He paced around the hall twice, then called out uncertainly, "Teacher, is that you?"
A soft laugh rang out, and Pan Yun appeared in human form, smiling as she looked at him: "Your Majesty."
The emperor was overjoyed and hurried forward, but seeing that she was an illusion, he was not quite sure: "You are...?"
Pan Yun said softly, "I was worried about you and about Daming, so I came back to check on things after hearing the special prayer."
The emperor then wondered if it was possible that he had been angered to tears by his ministers a few days ago, and that his prayers before the statue of his teacher had disturbed the teacher.
The emperor looked at Pan Yun with deep emotion.
Pan Jun looked the emperor up and down, and asked with great relief, "How is Your Majesty's health?"
"Good, I have been practicing the mental techniques you taught me, and I practice health-preserving boxing every morning, so I rarely get sick."
"But His Majesty has gained a lot of weight, is it because he has a sweet tooth?"
The emperor remained silent, avoiding Pan Yun's gaze like a child.
Perhaps due to his great-grandfather, the emperor appeared robust from a young age, but his health was actually average.
It was only because he met Pan Yun, and Pan Yun had the support of Sanqing Mountain, that he was able to raise him well from a young age, making him appear stronger than his father and uncle.
But it's only slightly stronger.
It's a genetic issue; unless he also embarks on a path of spiritual cultivation, it will be very difficult to completely change the physical ailments he was born with.
But the emperor cultivated immortality...
When Pan Yun faced the late emperor, he said that the emperor of the Ming Dynasty was born with the weight of Heaven and possessed the aura of a dragon. He could not cultivate immortality. If he forcibly entered the path of Taoism, he would surely lose the world.
Therefore, one cannot become an emperor if one wants to cultivate immortality, and one cannot cultivate immortality if one wants to become an emperor.
And this is not something Pan Yun made up.
As cultivation techniques are promoted, the physical condition of the people of the Ming Dynasty will improve and their lifespan will increase. However, no matter how high it increases, their average lifespan will not surpass that of the royal family, who have access to the best medical resources.
Pan Yun also taught the emperor health preservation techniques to prevent the branch of the imperial family from having shorter lifespans than ordinary people.
But practice alone isn't enough; you also have to control your diet.
Cultivating immortality means severing desires, with the desire for food being the most important.
Most of the world's illnesses and injuries are caused by what we eat.
The emperor clearly couldn't control his tongue.
Pan Yun shook her head and handed him a bottle of medicine: "Take one pill each summer and winter solstice. You still need to avoid certain foods and take care of your health."
The emperor was deeply moved and quickly accepted the gift: "Teacher, how can you be illusory? Is this the return of your spirit?"
Of course not, isn't this just to reassure you and keep you from being afraid?
Between the Imperial Advisor whose soul can return and the Imperial Advisor who can shatter the void and return at any time, it's obvious which one the Emperor prefers.
The reason their teacher-student relationship is still so good is all thanks to her rapid ascension.
Otherwise, in a few years, even if she is sensible, the emperor will find it hard to tolerate having a national advisor over his head.
It should be noted that before she ascended to heaven, not only did the people of the Ming Dynasty believe in the National Preceptor, but more than half of the officials in the court also believed in her.
A significant portion of them were Pan Yun's most ardent fans, who worked hard to pass the imperial examinations just to see her.
Even though Pan Yun tried to keep a low profile and put the emperor in the spotlight later on, conflicts gradually emerged between him and his teacher.
Fortunately, she ascended quickly enough.
Ascension is almost the same as death.
The advantage of dying young is that it allows those around you to remember the good qualities in the other person, and the relationship can be rekindled.
That was the situation she and the emperor were in at that time.
She didn't have to come to see him, but while Yin Song and Yin Qingjun could disappear without a trace, Wang Cong couldn't.
Everyone knows this guy loves doing business and making money. He has such a huge business empire, how could he just disappear like that?
Besides, her world is still thinking about establishing a time-space trade route with the Ming Dynasty. If Wang Cong goes there, he will definitely have the same idea.
In that case, we cannot keep it from the emperor.
So she came to see the emperor specifically. Firstly, to check on her prized disciple; although there were conflicts between teacher and student, he had indeed inherited her will to govern the country.
Secondly, she told him that she was going to take Wang Cong to another world, where he might bring back some good things, and perhaps the two worlds could then travel through time and space.
Upon hearing this, the emperor grabbed Pan Yun's hand and cried, "Teacher, am I not your only disciple? You take the eldest brother as your disciple, but not me."
Pan Jun: "If Your Majesty wishes to go, then you must practice diligently and take care of your health. If one day you cease to be the emperor, I will return and pass on a portion of my Yuan energy to you. Once you can withstand a portion of the power of spacetime, I will take you there."
So the premise is that he doesn't become emperor.
The emperor was so tempted that he really didn't want to be emperor anymore.
But thinking of his ancestors and his young son, he silently swallowed his words.
Seeing that he was tempted, Pan Yun smiled slightly, patted his shoulder and said, "Don't be afraid, you know I will always help you."
With tears in his eyes, the last vestige of estrangement in the emperor's heart vanished.
Pan Yun glanced outside and said, "It's getting late, Your Majesty should go and rest. Although state affairs are important, health is also important. Only when you are in good health can you handle state affairs well."
The emperor reluctantly saw Pan Yun off at the gate, but he noticed that none of the eunuchs and guards outside could see Pan Yun; only he could see her luminous silhouette.
Pan Yun disappeared on the spot.
The eunuchs and guards only saw the emperor gazing at the starry sky at a 45-degree angle, his eyes moist, but the corners of his mouth turned up, radiating an aura of "I am very happy, I am very excited".
Liu Jin lowered his eyes, lost in thought. After a moment, he carefully stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, you still have fifteen memorials to review..."
"Take it to my bedchamber; I'll review it before I go to sleep!"
Liu Jin advised, "Your Majesty, it's getting late. You should rest early. It's better to review the memorials you left behind tomorrow."
"No, what needs to be done today must be finished today."
Liu Jin went in and, while collecting the memorials, sighed, "Your Majesty is working too hard. Why don't you have the Directorate of Ceremonial draft the official documents, and then you can check them one last time..."
Under the emperor's gaze, Liu Jin's voice lowered, and he knelt down with a thud, prostrating himself on the ground, trembling.
The emperor looked down at him, and after a long while, said expressionlessly, "Get up."
"I must not hear such words again. The Imperial Preceptor once taught me that I can use the Directorate of Ceremonial, but I must never rely on it. Only a lazy and pleasure-seeking emperor would think of relinquishing his responsibilities and power to the Directorate of Ceremonial."
Liu Jin trembled and immediately knelt down, saying, "I dare not."
The emperor said softly, "I know you dare not, and Liu Daban is only concerned for me. However, Emperor Taizu once decreed that eunuchs should not interfere in politics."
Liu Jin felt that he was born at the wrong time. What did Emperor Taizu have to do with his will? How many of Emperor Taizu's last wills had been changed?
The late emperor and the current emperor have changed so much about the last decree that childless concubines and palace maids should be buried alive with the emperor, as well as the salaries of officials and the strict orders for the remaining people and those of low social status.
Now they say they must abide by the late Emperor Taizu's dying wish that his inner court officials should not interfere in politics.
Don't forget, the tradition of the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs issuing imperial edicts on behalf of the emperor started with your grandfather, and the late Emperor Taizu's dying wish was broken long ago.
But Liu Jin dared not say it.
He felt he was born at the wrong time, and the emperor seemed especially excited and determined tonight.
He had clearly softened under previous subtle probing.
After all, who wants to work overtime every day without rest, without even having time for their own entertainment?
Who wouldn't want to do their work while lying down?
Liu Jin sighed and respectfully served the emperor back to the inner palace.
The emperor, however, had already planned out what he would do tomorrow.
Tomorrow, as soon as he goes to court, he will tell all the officials that his teacher has come back to see him.
He also told them that once a crown prince was raised, he would abdicate and travel with his teacher to another world to see the world and cultivate immortality...
Oh, and we also need to issue an imperial edict to the people of Sanqing Mountain, appointing Wang Cong as a vanguard officer.
Alas, in the teacher's heart, who is more important, me or his junior apprentice Wang Cong?
“Of course you are more important,” Pan Jun said to the fuming Wang Cong. “What I appear before the emperor is an illusion, but what I am before you is a real person. I have been honest with you, so what more could you want?”
Wang Cong was immediately satisfied and squeezed next to Pan Jun, saying, "I knew Junior Uncle was the best to me."
Yin Qingjun thought for a moment and then sat down on the other side of Pan Jun.
Pan Yun, feeling squeezed and unable to bear it any longer, turned to Yin Qingjun and said, "Qingjun, although you don't talk much, in your uncle's heart, you are all the same."
Yin Qingjun was satisfied and moved his seat slightly outward to make her feel more comfortable.
Pan Yun let out a breath. Being an emperor isn't easy. How did they manage to deal with the three palaces and six courtyards?
Yin Song asked calmly, "Where is Junior Sister going next?"
Pan Yun looked up and around, then asked, "Why are there so few people in such a large Celestial Master's Mansion? Is Senior Brother Zhang not here?"
Wang Cong immediately raised his hand to share, "I know! There's something unusual going on at Longhu Mountain. Senior Brother Zhang went back, and I heard that he didn't even go to the capital for the Spring Sacrifice. Instead, the Imperial Observatory had someone perform the sacrifice on his behalf, and the officials are quite dissatisfied with that."
After Pan Yun left, the position of Imperial Advisor was vacant. The emperor did not have a powerful figure to protect him, and Pan Yun did not want anyone to inherit her reputation and oppose the state. Therefore, Pan Yun is currently the only Imperial Advisor in the Ming Dynasty.
Even after she ascended to heaven, when people mention the Imperial Advisor, she's still the only one.
Therefore, the affairs of state sacrifices returned to the Celestial Master's Mansion.
Pan Yun, unaware of the situation, asked with amusement, "What, are those elders of Longhu Mountain going to rebel again?"
"It's not the elders, it's something suppressed at the bottom of the back mountain."
Pan Yun's smile vanished instantly. (End of Chapter)