In the 15th year of the Hongwu reign, towards the end of summer, Empress Ma fell seriously ill. The imperial physicians were at their wits' end. In an attempt to cure Empress Ma, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the search for the immortal Zhang Lata (Zhang Sanfeng). Unexpectedly, Zhang Lata had fled in advance. As a result, the Jinyiwei had no choice but to arrest his hapless disciple as a scapegoat.

A luxurious carriage rumbled along the dirt road, leaving two shallow ruts. Despite the sweltering summer heat, it was not hot at all inside the carriage. There were watermelons and plum juice chilled on ice, and the cushions were soft and comfortable.

Li Qing sat in the carriage, not feeling the slightest bit of enjoyment but rather full of anxiety.

Yes, he was that unlucky fellow!

At this moment, his mind was in chaos. That old man had no sense of honor. He ran away without a word. What could he do? He was also in despair!

Not even the entire Imperial Medical Bureau could cure Empress Ma. How could he?

Li Qing was not confident. This time entering the palace was probably... more bad luck than good!

He lifted the curtain of the carriage and looked out. There were over a hundred imperial guards with swords, riding tall horses and looking menacing. The last glimmer of hope of escape in Li Qing's heart vanished.

"Mr. Li, is there anything you need?"

The Jinyiwei hundred - household turned his horse's head and rode parallel to the carriage, with a friendly look on his face.

Li Qing shook his head expressionlessly, feeling even more uneasy. The more polite the other party was now, the more cruel they would be in the future.

He didn't know much about the history of the Ming Dynasty, but he did know about the Jinyiwei. This organization was not to be trifled with. It had created countless unjust, false, and wrong cases.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but curse his unscrupulous master again in his heart. Was this something a decent person would do?

After being depressed for a while, Li Qing gradually calmed down and began to think about how to save himself.

In fact, the way to save himself was simple, that is, to cure Empress Ma's illness.

It sounded simple, but it was not that easy. Otherwise, Zhu Yuanzhang wouldn't have been searching all over the world for the "immortal".

Thinking of this emperor with the most murderous aura in history, he couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart. It was as if he could already see the end of himself being flayed and stuffed with straw.

Li Qing scratched his hair, and suddenly his stomach rumbled. He casually picked up the iced watermelon and punched it open. The watermelon was cool, sweet, and juicy, very refreshing.

As Li Qing ate, he thought about how to deal with the situation.

Suddenly, he remembered what his unscrupulous master had said to him before secretly running away.

[My disciple, I have divined your fate and obtained a twelve - character commentary:

Beyond the Three Realms, not within the Five Phases!

You are a person full of variables and a person forgotten by time.]

I'm not Sun Wukong... Li Qing angrily took a big bite of the watermelon. "Full of variables, forgotten by time... ?"

Li Qing stopped, wiped the watermelon juice from the corner of his mouth, and thought to himself, "Could it be that the old man knew I was a time - traveler?

Because of time - traveling, I'm full of variables. Because I don't belong to this time and space at all, time can hardly leave a mark on me?"

Thinking carefully, he had been time - traveling for ten years. In these ten years, his body and appearance had never changed at all, and he hadn't even been sick.

He remembered that when he first time - traveled, he hadn't eaten for five or six days in a row, but he was still full of energy. Although he was very hungry, it didn't affect his physical functions.

Could this be my golden finger... Li Qing was speechless and complained in his heart, "But this golden finger doesn't seem to be of much use!

I don't have the ability of Sun Wukong. If my head is cut off, it can grow back by itself.

These years, practicing with my master, the greatest achievement is that I have cultivated true qi. But this true qi is not like that in仙侠 novels. It can't defeat hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of enemies.

Relying on force simply won't work!

What does the old man mean by variables... How can I solve it?"

Suddenly, a light bulb went off in his head, and he finally realized what the so - called variables were.

Time - traveling itself was a variable!

Although he didn't know much about the history of the Ming Dynasty, he still knew about the major events and malpractice of the Ming Dynasty. When it really came to the end of the road, he might be able to exchange this for a chance of survival.

Thinking of this, Li Qing felt a little more at ease and started to wolf down the fruit plate.

No matter how hard it is, don't starve your stomach. I'd rather die than be a starving ghost...

...

"Boss, this Mr. Li eats too much and is very picky. Our travel expenses are almost gone." One of the Jinyiwei was a bit exasperated.

The Jinyiwei hundred - household twitched the corner of his mouth. Just as he was about to speak, he heard the person in the carriage say, "One roast chicken, two catties of pig's head meat, and a pot of wine. Thank you!"

"Boss..."

"Go and buy it!" The Jinyiwei hundred - household gritted his teeth. "There's still a day and a half's journey left. Brothers, pool our money together. We won't stay in an inn tonight. Let's travel day and night and try to reach the capital by tomorrow afternoon."

He really couldn't take it anymore. Half of the funds given by the emperor had gone into this guy's mouth. Not only did they not get any benefits from this official mission, but they also had to pay out of their own pockets.

They were the personal guards of the Son of Heaven.

Which court official didn't treat them with great care when they met them?

Especially after the Jinyiwei was reorganized, they were even more powerful. When had they ever suffered such a loss?

But this person was the direct disciple of the immortal Zhang Lata, and they were still counting on him to cure Empress Ma's illness. They didn't dare to be the least bit negligent.

A group of Jinyiwei tightened their belts and pooled a few taels of silver, which was used as Li Qing's living expenses for the next day.

Li Qing also figured it out. Anyway, he didn't know whether he could live or how long he could live. He might as well enjoy every day.

These years in the Taoist temple, his life had been poor. He didn't even have a bit of meat on weekdays. Now that he finally had the chance, he had to make up for what he had missed all these years.

Li Qing took the wine and meat handed to him, thanked them, and started to feast. It didn't take long for him to finish it all.

The Jinyiwei hundred - household was dumbfounded. It was clearly enough for two meals, but you finished it all in one go. Aren't you afraid of bursting?

Li Qing patted his belly and half - lay in the carriage. "It tastes okay. Make the dinner and supper according to this standard too. I'm going to take a nap. Don't disturb me if there's nothing important."

After saying that, regardless of the other person's reaction, he fell asleep with a snore.

The Jinyiwei hundred - household was stunned for a moment, then said in a deep voice, "Speed up. We must reach the capital before noon tomorrow."

The carriage immediately accelerated, and the stable carriage began to jolt. Li Qing lifted the curtain of the carriage in dissatisfaction. "Slow down~"

The Jinyiwei hundred - household clenched his fists hard and forced a smile. "Mr. Li, please forgive us. Empress Ma's condition is not good. Time waits for no one." After saying that, he didn't look at Li Qing anymore, for fear that he couldn't help himself.

...

The next day, at noon.

In front of the vermilion palace gate, although Li Qing had some ideas in his mind, he was still very nervous. "Well... it's time for lunch. Let's go into the palace after eating?"

"Please go and see the emperor immediately, Mr. Li." The Jinyiwei hundred - household said with a cold face, leaving no room for negotiation.

"...Lead the way!"

"Please follow me, sir." The hundred - household admonished, "Don't look around. Just look at the road under your feet."

"Got it." Li Qing nodded slightly.

He was about to meet the legendary Zhu Yuanzhang. His curiosity was piqued, and he wanted to see if this emperor really had a face like a shoehorn. But after all, he was more nervous.

Li Qing was lost in thought all the way. He didn't wake up until the person in front stopped.

The Jinyiwei hundred - household saluted outside the door. "Your humble servant, Liu Qiang, has come to report back."

"Creak~!"

The palace door opened, and a young eunuch with a whisk in his hand and a fair complexion came out. His voice was slightly sharp: "Come in!"

"Ah." Li Qing took a deep breath and walked into the palace hall with heavy steps.

The palace hall was magnificent and spacious. Li Qing didn't have time to look around. He was immediately attracted by the middle - aged man on the gilt jade platform in the front.

The man was burly. He didn't have a face like a shoehorn. He had a square face, big eyes, and regular features. Although he was getting old, he was still very heroic and imposing.

The young eunuch reminded him in a low voice, "Why don't you pay your respects quickly?"

Li Qing suddenly came to his senses and quickly imitated the scenes he had seen on TV, lifting his robe to salute.

"Your humble subject pays respects to Your Majesty, long live the Emperor."

"Get up!" The voice was deep and full of authority. Zhu Yuanzhang stood up from his chair. "Where is your master?"

"Answer... answer to the emperor, your humble subject doesn't know either." Li Qing replied bravely.

He really didn't know. Glancing at Zhu Yuanzhang's displeased expression, he added, "My master may have gone to Jiangxi."

Zhu Yuanzhang glanced at the young eunuch. The latter understood, bowed, and stepped back a few steps, walking out of the palace hall.

Sorry, Master. I really have no other choice... Li Qing secretly prayed, "Please come quickly, Master. I really can't hold up any longer!"

Just as Li Qing was praying, the young eunuch who had just left the hall rushed in hastily, dropped to his knees, his face filled with grief.

"Your Majesty, Her Ladyship's condition has worsened," the young eunuch said with a sobbing voice. "After taking the medicine, Her Ladyship vomited up the food and drink she had consumed, and then... she lost consciousness..."