Chapter 187: Sudden Storm
Chapter 187: Sudden Storm
All at once, everyone below the High Altar froze!
They looked at Zhu Houzhao, all showing confused expressions.
What was happening now?
Zhu Houzhao’s true nature as an actor was completely exposed.
He wailed, tears falling down.
He cried so hard that his whole body trembled, looking utterly devastated, as if his longtime companion Liu Jin or a beloved pet dog had died.
Fang Jifan felt his shoulders about to dislocate.
“Heavens!” Zhu Houzhao lamented, with a passion as exaggerated as an actor, causing Fang Jifan’s face to turn red from strain as he desperately held him tightly.
“If Heaven wishes to punish Great Ming, punish This Palace instead! What fortune do the people have, what fortune do the common folk have…”
Fortune…
Fang Jifan was instantly stunned, his clear eyes widening in shock as he stared at Zhu Houzhao. But it was only for a brief moment before he understood.
Darn you, Zhu Houzhao.
You really read from the script. Not only did you read from the script, you read the wrong character! It’s not ‘fortune’, it’s ‘innocence’! What fortune are you talking about? Are we celebrating that Heaven hasn’t sent rain for two months?
In that brief moment of distraction, the overacting Zhu Houzhao continued shouting.
“If This Palace must die to appease Heaven, and that can bring a downpour from the skies, then This Palace will die today to see.”
Seeing that Fang Jifan hadn’t held him back, and that he was now a step ahead, Zhu Houzhao was briefly confused. Wasn’t this just acting? Why didn’t you hold me back, Old Fang?
Noticing Fang Jifan still hadn’t reacted, he panicked momentarily, but quickly caught himself, slowing his pace slightly as he continued forward.
Luckily, after their initial shock, Liu Jin and the others finally snapped into action!
A group of eunuchs swarmed forward as if their own mothers had died. One hugged Zhu Houzhao’s legs, another pulled his hands, a third wrapped around his waist, someone else wailed while hugging his head, and some even knelt on the ground begging.
“Your Highness, Your Highness! You must not do this! Your Highness is the Heir Apparent, the Heir Apparent of our Great Ming! Your Highness cannot die! If Your Highness dies, none of us, Your Servants, will be able to live!”
For a moment, the sounds of lamentation and pleas from the previously quiet crowd echoed to the heavens.
“…”
Yang Tinghe and Wang Hua remained bewildered. In fact, the officials behind them were also wide-eyed and stunned as they watched in amazement.
The Crown Prince’s performance today was completely beyond their expectations.
They looked at Zhu Houzhao, their hearts filled with mixed feelings.
Because… was what the Crown Prince just shouted true or false?
If it came from his heart, even though the Crown Prince was being mischievous, at least his intentions were genuine, for the sake of the common people… hmm… since when did the Crown Prince have such awareness?
But what if this was just another one of the Crown Prince’s tricks?
At this thought, everyone’s hearts sank. They felt like dying, truly dying. The Rain Prayer Ritual was already mischievous enough—if another… performance was added, Yang Tinghe and Wang Hua would rather climb the High Altar and jump off, dying right here, than remain in the House of the Crown Prince.
Of course, they discovered the most critical problem.
That was… they could never discern the truth.
Because the other party was the Crown Prince. You couldn’t arrest him for torture, nor could you do anything to him. Moreover, you couldn’t even doubt him. The Crown Prince is the Heir Apparent, and the Heir Apparent is also a ruler. In the Ruler and Subject Relations, how dare you question the Crown Prince?
So… this possible truth was… whether real or fake, it had to be treated as real.
Since it was real…
Yang Tinghe immediately began his standard action, dropping directly to his knees, tears welling in his eyes.
“Your Highness, you must not! Your Highness upholds the State Altars! If someone must die, let it be this lowly official! Your Highness treats the people as his own children—this official admires you immensely.”
He kowtowed and performed a grand ceremony. If the ruler wants to die, can the subject not make a show of it?
Then he made as if to rise and go die.
But in the House of the Crown Prince, it seemed Yang Tinghe’s connections weren’t strong enough. Everyone was focused on stopping the Crown Prince. When he said he would die, no one paid him any attention.
Yang Tinghe, having earned the Metropolitan Graduate degree, was no fool. Finding it pointless, he collapsed again as if overwhelmed with grief, saying, “Your Highness… your sincere heart will surely move Heaven and Earth, Your Highness, oh Your Highness…”
…
Of course, Li Chaowen knew nothing of the commotion below.
On the High Altar, he only felt his heart racing, his breathing quickening. His tear-filled eyes lifted slightly to gaze at the sky.
The sunlight remained bright, even painful to the eyes, though scattered clouds drifted by. Li Chaowen trembled violently—how could there be rain in such weather?
Martial Uncle… you’ve tricked me.
What kind of past-life karma did I accumulate? How many people did I pillage and violate in my previous life to deserve this retribution today?
The intense heat, combined with his nervousness, drenched Li Chaowen in sweat. His bloodshot eyes contracted and dilated as he couldn’t help but roar at the sky.
“What sins has this humble Taoist committed? Heaven, take this humble Taoist! Come on! I, Li Chaowen, since I must die today, then let me die cleanly! If Heaven has eyes, take me, and with a thunderbolt, take Martial Uncle Fang too!”
Boom!
At that moment, a sudden clap of thunder roared from the horizon.
Reflexively, Li Chaowen threw himself flat on the High Altar, his rear end sticking up high. Covering his ears and closing his eyes, he dared not look at the scene before him. His mind was completely in chaos.
Heavens…
Re… really, Heaven is going to strike Martial Uncle with thunder…
Boom!
Another thunderclap startled him into opening his eyes.
Eh…
He seemed to be fine. Li Chaowen cautiously raised his head, looking left and right…
It didn’t seem like it…
It looked more like…
On the horizon, dark clouds rolled fiercely, like churning waves.
Li Chaowen’s eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at the sky.
The rolling dark clouds, like a thousand troops and ten thousand horses, swept across, blotting out the sun and sky…
Heavens!
It really was going to rain.
Li Chaowen felt as if he couldn’t breathe, his lips trembling slightly.
Martial Uncle did not deceive me.
Boom…
The earth-shaking thunder sounded again.
Below the altar, the earlier commotion had quieted completely.
You could hear a pin drop.
Everyone shivered in unison.
Zhu Houzhao’s face turned pale with fright, unsure what was happening. The eunuchs still clung to his hands, hugged his legs, and held his waist.
However, their movements had stopped abruptly. The group huddled together in panic, then froze like statues, as if time had stood still.
Only the sudden wind whipped at their robes and skirts, stirring up clouds of dust.
Fang Jifan had just been about to open his mouth and shout, “I want to die too!”
But as his mouth opened halfway, a cold shiver ran through him, and his voice did not come out.
The sky was filled with dark, raging waves that churned madly. After several claps of thunder, everything changed in an instant—lightning flashed, and thunder roared.
Damn!
Fang Jifan thought to himself, the ancestors really provided a way out.
It really rained.
He was so moved that tears welled up in his eyes. With this, I, Fang Jifan, can live off the ancestors for a lifetime.
This is history—whether it is national history, provincial history, county history, or even clan history and family history—the people who recorded it wrote that it would rain at noon today, and the rain at noon had come…
Yang Tinghe, still lying on the ground, stared blankly at the sky. He was completely speechless and had no energy left to pretend.
Wang Hua raised his head and remained silent.
Everyone lifted their heads.
No one shouted to take in the clothes because of the rain.
They only looked up at the sky, wondering when people had started to long for rain so deeply.
The heavy rain hadn’t fallen yet, but the thunder and lightning had arrived. Within the dark, churning waves, a silver snake suddenly flashed, and after that brilliant, firework-like light, everything returned to silence and darkness.
“It’s… raining…”
Xiao Jingteng, who was hanging under the High Altar, cried. He really had an eighty-year-old mother above and two children below.
And now…
He looked up at the sky, laughed, and wept. “Heaven pities me, Xiao Jingteng…”
Countless people craned their necks and looked up at the sky.
And outside the Eastern Palace,
even more pairs of eyes stared in disbelief at what was happening in the sky.
Some trembled and wept.
It was raining.
It was finally raining.
“Heaven has shown mercy!”
Someone sang a mournful song, yet it seemed like a cheer.
Then, someone knelt down.
In the face of such a miracle, it seemed there was no other way to express their feelings than worship.
One person knelt.
Two people knelt.
More and more people knelt like waves.
Another bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, a blinding streak in the gloomy heavens.
Then, the thunder grew louder.
Under this lightning, thunder, and vast sky, how insignificant humans were. Weren’t they just like ants?
Some chanted “Amitabha.”
Some excitedly shouted “Boundless Heavenly Lord.”
Some said, “The ancestors have protected us.”
Some cried, “Long Live the Emperor!”
It seemed as though everyone was seeking some spiritual comfort.
Only six people stood frozen among the countless excited figures.
They… seemed long numb to any strange phenomena.
Ouyang Zhi stared blankly at the sky.
It was raining.
Was it strange?
A little strange.
But… this couldn’t scare him.
What hadn’t he seen? What storms hadn’t he weathered?
It was only rain.
His nerves were always a step slow, and by the time he caught up, the excitement that should have come felt dull instead.
So he just watched the sky, listened to the countless voices around him, and watched everyone kneeling like waves. Yet he stood out, just as the Grandmaster said, like a true commander!
The fierce wind continued to blow, but Ouyang Zhi remained unmoved, standing proudly between heaven and earth.
Tang Yin stood with his mouth wide open. At that moment, he wanted to compose poetry and paint. Inspiration had struck—he was already searching his mind, trying to capture the lingering essence of that spark.
Xu Jing trembled, his eyes lighting up. He had realized something. His Mentor… was brilliant. His Mentor was truly undefeated, always right. He could already foresee the gains his Mentor would reap after this heavy rain—wealth and honor were within reach.
Only Wang Shouren stared blankly at the sky, his bright eyes full of shock. He was utterly stunned.
It… was going to rain!