[Step 1: Contextual Analysis]
Literary genre: This appears to be a historical Chinese fiction novel/web novel, specifically in the imperial palace/court intrigue subgenre.
Language style: Formal narrative mixed with dialogue, with elements of court language and historical Chinese setting.
Tone: Serious, dramatic, with themes of revenge, betrayal, political scheming.
Plot keywords: Imperial court, poison, succession crisis, revenge plot, political intrigue, coup d’état, regency
Characters:
- Zuo Ji (左吉): A eunuch serving in the imperial palace, likely aligned with the Crown Prince faction.
- Wu Wang (吴忘): A man with a hidden identity, originally named Tang Lin (唐霖), seeking revenge for his adopted sister’s death.
- Hua Qingqing (花卿卿): A consort (Princess Consort Zhen/臻妃) who was taking care of the Emperor while he was ill, mother of the Seventh Prince.
- Emperor (皇帝): Currently ill/poisoned, victim of Wu Wang’s revenge plot.
- Li Ying (李影): Prince Wu Zhang (武章王), appears to be working with Wu Wang to seize power.
- Tang Bitong (唐碧彤): Wu Wang/Tang Lin’s adopted sister who died tragically after being forced into prostitution.
- Tang Shaoyuan (唐邵元): Former Crown Prince’s Tutor who was falsely accused and died in prison.
- Seventh Prince/Li Qiong (七皇子/李琼): Son of Hua Qingqing, was about to be named Crown Prince before the Emperor fell ill.
- Empress Dowager (太后): The Emperor’s mother who suspects Hua Qingqing of poisoning the Emperor.
[Step 2: Integrated Translation and Polishing]
Now I’ll translate the text while applying all the rules. I’ll use my knowledge of court intrigue novels and Chinese imperial settings to ensure the language is appropriate and natural.
The narrative appears to be describing a plot to poison the Emperor, carried out by Wu Wang and Li Ying. Wu Wang’s backstory reveals his motivation: the Emperor wronged his adopted sister Tang Bitong, resulting in her tragic death. The poisoning leads to a power shift where Li Ying takes control of the government.
Let me start the translation:
Zuo Ji took the medicinal broth from Wu Wang’s hands.
In front of everyone present, Zuo Ji poured a small amount of the medicine into a tiny cup.
A little eunuch stepped forward, picked up the cup, and drank the medicine inside.
This was the taste-testing procedure.
After waiting quietly for a moment and confirming there was nothing wrong with the medicine, Zuo Ji finally handed the broth to Princess Consort Zhen.
"Please, Your Highness, attend to His Majesty’s medicine."
Previously, Hua Qingqing had been caring for the Emperor during his illness, personally handling tasks like administering medicine. Now that she was here, Zuo Ji naturally handed the medicinal broth to her, taking the opportunity to curry favor.
After all, her son was about to become the Crown Prince.
If nothing unexpected happened, she might even become the Empress Dowager in the future.
At this moment, Hua Qingqing was in low spirits and had no desire to serve the Emperor his medicine.
However, with the broth already presented to her and the Emperor watching, she couldn’t very well refuse.
Hua Qingqing sat at the bedside and began feeding the Emperor his medicine, one spoonful at a time.
The court officials, not wishing to intrude, withdrew behind the screen.
Li Ying was no exception.
As he passed by Wu Wang, the two exchanged a silent glance.
Everything had been arranged perfectly.
Events were unfolding exactly according to plan.
Watching the Emperor drink the medicine sip by sip, Wu Wang felt a surge of satisfaction.
Long ago, Wu Wang wasn’t called Wu Wang. His name back then was Tang Lin.
He was the adopted son of Tang Shaoyuan, the Crown Prince’s Tutor.
Tang Shaoyuan was over fifty years old but had only one daughter named Tang Bitong.
From a young age, Tang Lin had been taught to protect his sister Tang Bitong.
The siblings were extremely close.
When Tang Bitong grew into a beautiful young woman, Tang Lin suddenly realized he had developed feelings for his sister that went beyond brotherly affection.
Even though Tang Bitong had no blood relation to him, they were still siblings in name.
How could he have such thoughts about his own sister? It was simply beastly!
Tang Lin suffered terribly over this, doing everything in his power to suppress these inappropriate feelings.
He even disregarded his adoptive father’s objections and went to the border alone, ostensibly to make a name for himself, but in reality, to distance himself from Tang Bitong.
He thought that with enough time apart, his infatuation with her would gradually fade.
Little did he expect.
Shortly after he left Shangjing, disaster struck the Crown Prince Mansion!
The Crown Prince was found guilty of forming factions and plotting rebellion. The entire Crown Prince Mansion was investigated and seized, and Tang Shaoyuan, as the Crown Prince’s Tutor, was implicated as well.
Tang Shaoyuan died in prison, while his wife and daughter were demoted to slave status and became official prostitutes who could never be redeemed.
Mrs. Tang couldn’t bear the humiliation and hanged herself with a belt.
In the end, only Tang Bitong remained, struggling alone in this cruel world.
The young girl who had grown up cherished and protected by her parents and brother was now forced to sell her body and entertain customers—the humiliation she endured was unimaginable.
By the time Tang Lin rushed back to Shangjing, the Tang family home had already been confiscated.
All that remained for him to see was an empty, dilapidated mansion.
A new Emperor ascended the throne, bringing fresh changes to the capital.
The common people gradually forgot about what had happened to the Crown Prince Mansion years ago.
But Tang Lin was still desperately searching for Tang Bitong’s whereabouts.
He frantically searched every brothel in the capital but never found her.
It wasn’t until two years later that he discovered Tang Bitong had been taken into the palace.
To see Tang Bitong, Tang Lin went so far as to mutilate himself to enter the palace as a eunuch.
When he finally found Tang Bitong, she was already at death’s door—emaciated to skin and bones, her hands and feet rotting from frostbite, her body bearing visible marks of beatings.
Beside her was a frail two-year-old boy.
That little boy was Li Ying.
Tang Bitong’s eyes no longer held the innocence and joy of her girlhood; all that remained was despair and hatred.
She knew she was dying, but she still clenched her teeth, holding onto her last breath, gripping Tang Lin’s hand tightly, and speaking in a hoarse, unpleasant voice.
"My father was falsely accused. You must avenge us!"
Only after Tang Lin nodded and promised to avenge her did she release her grip and breathe her last.
Tang Bitong was only twenty when she died.
Her life had barely begun before it ended.
Tang Lin reached out with trembling hands and gently closed her eyes.
Tears slid down his cheeks as grief pierced him to the core, nearly tearing his heart to shreds.
He had grown up with her, protecting her with all his heart, never allowing her to suffer even the slightest grievance.
He had watched her become increasingly beautiful, gradually blossoming into a charming young woman.
To him, she wasn’t just the woman he loved, but also his sister, his family—the treasure he had sworn to protect for his entire life.
Yet the person he treasured above all else had been discarded like an old shoe by the Emperor.
The reason he gave himself the name Wu Wang was because he would never forget how Tang Bitong looked in her final moments.
Her skeletal frame, her bloodless face, her cracked lips, and those mottled wounds on her body...
Everything stemmed from the Emperor’s actions.
If that was the case, then let the Emperor’s life be the end of it all.
Halfway through drinking the medicine, the Emperor suddenly felt a sharp, twisting pain in his abdomen!
Then he opened his mouth and violently coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood.
The Empress Dowager was frightened pale: "Emperor!"
Hua Qingqing’s hand trembled, spilling the remaining medicine in the bowl.
Zuo Ji cried out in terror.
"Imperial Physician! Quickly call for the Imperial Physician! His Majesty is coughing blood!"
The bedchamber instantly descended into chaos.
After emergency treatment from the Imperial Physicians, the Emperor’s life was saved, but he fell into a deep coma and could not be awakened.
The Empress Dowager suspected poison in the medicine, but the half-bowl that remained had been accidentally spilled by Hua Qingqing, and the medicine that had fallen on the ground had already evaporated.
With no other options, the Imperial Physicians could only examine the medicinal dregs.
After repeated examinations, they couldn’t find any problems in the herbal residue.
The Empress Dowager still suspected Hua Qingqing and ordered her to be sent back to the Moon Viewing Pavilion and placed under house arrest.
Until the matter was resolved, Hua Qingqing could not leave the Moon Viewing Pavilion even one step.
With such a turn of events, the edict appointing the Seventh Prince Li Qiong as Crown Prince was naturally nullified.
A nation could not go a single day without a ruler, yet the Emperor remained in a coma.
After deliberation among the court officials, Prince Wu Zhang, Li Ying, was ultimately selected to temporarily assume regency.
A new year arrived.
The common people were busy visiting relatives and friends, and congratulatory new year’s greetings filled the streets.
They were completely unaware of the massive changes taking place within the Imperial Palace.
After Li Ying took power, the Night Owl Guard’s authority expanded further, and surveillance of court officials intensified. Officials were constantly being investigated for various issues, leading to frequent shifts in official positions.
By the time the Left and Right Ministers realized something was wrong, it was already too late.
By then, even their weaknesses were in the hands of the Night Owl Guard. If they dared to speak out, the Night Owl Guard would expose their past transgressions to the world.
They had no choice but to endure in silence.
In just over half a month, almost all the personnel in the court had been completely replaced.
Those newly appointed were all people Li Ying had secretly cultivated over the years.
The court had evidently become Li Ying’s one-man show.