"Go call the palace physician, my wife needs some medicine, and after that, he will return back to his glorious day as my beautiful Empress, Empress Xiuying."
Meilan couldn't believe what she just heard. Was this the same man who ignored her master for two years, punished him, hurt him, and even went as far as starving her master, Bai Yunyu, until he died out of starvation and malnourishment?
How could he say something utterly stupid when the fact was present right in front of his eyes.
"My master is dead! Stop it! He is dead because of you! My master, Bai Yunyu, is dead because you hurt his heart and starved him to death, you bastard Emperor!"
"SHUT UP!" Huang Shu really had no patience dealing with a maid right now. He glared at her and said, "You're just a mere maid! Go call the palace physician now! I don't want my wife to get sick!"
…
Meilan kept staring at the Emperor. She knew that her master couldn't be saved. But in the end, she left the Cold Palace to find the palace physician.
Huang Shu caressed Bai Yunyu's sunken cheeks and commented, "Look at your cheek, it has sunken. Did you not eat anything that I send to you? I will call the palace cooks later, and you can have anything you want, okay?"
…
"Wife, your body is so cold, it makes you look like you're a corpse. Don't scare me like this. You're also a warrior. How could a warrior die by mere cold?"
…
"If you are mad at me, then you can always hit me. But, I don't mind, as long as you open your eyes now. I will let you do anything, just… open your eyes… please."
…
"Wife…"
Huang Shu buried his face in Bai Yunyu's bony chest. He still couldn't believe that his beloved wife actually died out of malnutrition. He thought, at least, Bai Yunyu would beg for more food, right? How could he endure extreme hunger for months?
Huang Shu slowly leaned in and put his ears above Bai Yunyu's chest. He wanted to hear the heartbeat of his wife again. Because this Bai Yunyu was too foreign for him.
He wanted the see the energetic Bai Yunyu once more.
One second.. two seconds… three seconds…
He couldn't hear the heartbeat of his wife, and Bai Yunyu's body started getting colder.
"No, there must be something wrong. I believe my wife will not die so easily…" Huang Shu continued denying it until the palace physician came in. The physician saw the condition of the Empress, and his feet went cold.
Because he knew that Empress Xiuying was dead already.
"You, go check on my wife. Make him healthy again. I will pay you as much as you want as long as you can restore my wife's health back."
The imperial palace physician knew it was a fruitless endeavour. Even with one glance, he knew that Empress Xiuying died four hours ago. But to appease his Emperor's request, he acted as if he was treating the Empress.
When he opened the Empress' shirt to check his heartbeat, he was shocked at how thin Empress Xiuying was.
"Y—Your Majesty, this…" the palace physician pointed at Empress Xiuying's extremely thin body, with his skin sunken until there was nothing but skin and bones. It was already a miracle that Empress Xiuying could survive for so long.
"Your Majesty, how could the Empress..."
"I punished him for his offence, but… I will lift the punishment now. All you need to do is heal him back to full recovery. You can do it, right? You are the best physician in the empire!"
…
The Imperial physician felt it was too stupid of him to lie even longer. If this was a punishment, then it was just a worse death sentence. At least a death sentence would be an easy, painless death.
"Your Majesty, His Majesty Empress Xiuying… has passed away," the physician said. He was ready to deliver the cold hard truth. "The punishment caused it. Your Majesty, your punishment killed the Empress. Do you remember the last time he had a proper meal?"
"B—But… but I send food every day until I ration it—"
"THAT'S BECAUSE MY MASTER REFUSES TO EAT!" Meilan suddenly snipped. "My master is too broken hearted to eat, so he keeps thinning! You bastard Emperor, my master, has been thinking about you every day!"
The physician took a deep breath and bowed his head, "Your Majesty, I cannot turn back the time. Empress Xiuying's death is because of constant neglect over his health, especially with your punishment to ration his food."
"Your Majesty, I excused myself."
…
The Imperial palace physician left the Cold Palace. He also dragged Meilan out, telling her not to pester with the Emperor and the late Empress' affair. At least, not now.
**
Huang Shu stared at the corpse of his wife. Even after he told him there was no way to save the Empress, Huang Shu still couldn't accept Bai Yunyu's death.
Slowly, he climbed the bed and laid beside Bai Yunyu's body. He gently hugged Bai Yunyu's waist and kissed his cheek, "Wife, please wake up, okay? Your bed here is so cold, and damn, I'm afraid you'll catch a cold."
…
"Wife, I'm sorry for neglecting you. I really didn't know that you've suffered so much. Will you forgive me? Please, wake up. I can give you everything you want since I am the Golden Emperor, remember?"
…
As he kept calling his wife's name and showered him with praises and apologies, Huang Shu gradually came back to his sense as he realized that his wife was dead and all that because of him.
Maybe he did too much, or maybe it was his pride that made him the jerk who killed his own wife.
Huang Shu kissed Yunyu's cold cheek and stared at his wife. Soon, he realized there was a drop of water on Yunyu's cheek. Huang Shu wiped it with his sleeve, but there was another one, and the drop of water continued falling until Huang Shu realized that it was his tears.
The Golden Emperor finally cried for so long, but it was to cry for his own mistake. Because he killed his wife.
Unable to handle this overflowing grief in his heart, Huang Shu hugged Yunyu tightly, and he felt even more hurt after he realized that he was hugging the skin and bones of his beloved one.
Huang Shu hugged tighter and finally let out all his cries.
He cried loudly, unable to contain the true grief in his heart. He cried a lot as he kept calling Yunyu's name.
"Yunyu, please wake up…"
"Yunyu, I'm sorry, I'm too prideful, too ignorant."
"Yunyu, will you really leave your husband alone? I don't want anyone other than you!!"
"Yunyu! Please, please, I'm begging you!!!"
…
Nobody answered Huang Shu's plea except his own cries.
Huang Shu cried shamelessly as he abandoned the mightiness of a Golden Emperor.
Because he finally realized that title was empty without Bai Yunyu by his side.
But it was too late.
He was the moron who killed his wife out of pride.
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