How To Hide The Tyrant's Child In The Apocalypse-Chapter 56. Bitten by the mountain snake

AT THE SAME TIME

EMPEROR LIANWEI POINT OF VIEW:

The years had slipped past quicker than I liked to admit. Huan had grown tall for his age, all long limbs and restless energy, though he still clung to that stubborn spark of boyhood that made him dart through the palace halls like a wild fox. Bella, only five, was the opposite delicate as a blossom, but clever enough to wrap every adult around her little finger.

This afternoon, the two of them were in the outer gardens again. Huan leaned over the rail of the stone bridge, skipping pebbles across the pond’s surface with determined flicks of his wrist. Bella sat beside him, crown of flowers on her head, giggling whenever his aim sent a pebble plopping directly into the water instead of skipping.

"I did that on purpose." Huan insisted.

"No you didn’t!" Bella laughed. "You’re bad at skipping!"

Their voices carried like bells in the late sunlight, and I found myself smiling as I watched from the veranda. Zeyrith lounged lazily above the gate, tail swishing, and even the Bai brothers now frequent visitors, much to Huan’s delight seemed content to lean back and observe the chaos. But my gaze wandered past them... to Mei Shen.

She was seated beneath the plum blossoms, her hands folded neatly in her lap as she spoke quietly with Bai He. Her smile was there it always was, but I saw what others missed. The faint pallor of her skin, the shadows beneath her eyes, the way her posture seemed just a touch too still, as though holding herself together required more effort than she let on.

I frowned. It wasn’t the first time I had noticed. Over the past few weeks, there had been moments subtle, fleeting when her laughter faltered a heartbeat too soon, or her hand trembled slightly before she reached for Bella. Mei Shen brushed it off whenever I asked, dismissing it as nothing more than fatigue. But I wasn’t a fool.

"She seems tired." Bai Yu remarked softly, stepping up beside me.

His voice was as quiet as the breeze, but the weight behind it was sharp.

"You’ve noticed too." I kept my eyes on Mei Shen, unwilling to blink.

Bai Jun’s arms were crossed, his sharp gaze fixed on her.

"More than tired. She’s paler than she should be."He said.

Even Bai Rong, usually quick to laugh things off, looked serious.

"You should make her rest, Lianwei."He said.

Rest. As if Mei Shen had ever let herself rest when there were children to fuss over, a household to run, and every god in the heavens seemingly determined to meddle in our lives. Zeyrith yawned loudly from above, though his golden eyes tracked Mei Shen with unusual sharpness

"Mmm. Mortals burn themselves too brightly sometimes. Pretty flames don’t last if they’re not tended."He grinned.

My jaw tightened.

"Enough." I said.

Still, the words cut deeper than I liked.Across the garden, Bella tugged at her mother’s skirts, demanding a story. Huan came running after, nearly tripping over his own feet as he tried to pry his sister off. Mei Shen laughed, brushing her daughter’s hair back gently. To anyone else, she looked radiant in that moment. But I saw the faint stiffness in her movements, the unnatural sheen of her skin.

Something was wrong. I didn’t know what yet. But I swore to myself I would find out before it took her from us.

The garden rang with laughter a moment longer. Huan trying to pry Bella off Mei Shen, Bai He crouching nearby to join their game. It should have been another ordinary afternoon.

And then a thud. The sound was small, almost too small for anyone to notice, but my blood froze. Mei Shen’s chair tipped sideways, her body crumpling against the stone path, her hair spilling like ink across the blossoms.

"Mother!"Huan’s voice cracked as he bolted forward.

Bella burst into tears instantly, clutching at her brother’s sleeve.

But it was Bai He who reached Mei Shen first, her hands trembling as she lifted the hem of her mother’s gown. Her eyes went wide, face paling to near-translucence.

"She’s been bitten!" Bai He gasped, pointing to the angry welt blooming against Mei Shen’s ankle. Two puncture marks, red and swelling. "A snake—!"

The garden erupted.

"Fetch the physician!" Bai Yu’s voice was sharp, commanding.

Bai Jun was already scanning the ground, blade half drawn, searching for the serpent.

Bai Rong scooped Bella into his arms, shushing her terrified sobs.

I dropped to my knees beside Mei Shen, my hands sliding beneath her head, lifting her carefully into my lap. Her skin was far too cold, her breath shallow.

"Mei Shen." I hissed, my chest tight."Stay with me. Do you hear me?"

Her eyelids fluttered, but no answer came. Zeyrith leapt down from his perch, tail lashing, his voice dark with a rare edge of urgency.

"This venom is not ordinary. You don’t have much time." He said worriedly.

Huan pressed closer, tears brimming in his eyes though his jaw was set tight, just like mine.

"Father what do we do?!" Huan shouted in fear.

I gritted my teeth, pressing my hand over the wound, willing every ounce of calm I had left into my voice.

"We save her." I said. "We will save her."

Because losing Mei Shen was not an option.

The courtyard shattered into chaos.

"Physician! NOW!" I shouted, my voice breaking the stunned silence. Servants scattered like startled birds, feet pounding against the stone as they fled toward the inner halls.

Mei Shen’s body jerked faintly in my arms, her lips paling, her skin clammy beneath my touch. I pressed my palm to her wound, but the venom was already spreading, the flesh around it darkening like ink in water.

"Don’t you dare leave me." I whispered fiercely, though my hands shook as I held her.

"Mother!" Huan dropped to his knees beside us, his small fists clenching, knuckles white. "Mother, please! Wake up!" His voice cracked, high and desperate, the boy trying not to cry but breaking all the same.

Bella sobbed into Bai Rong’s shoulder, reaching her tiny arms out as though she could grab her mother back from the brink.

"Ma-Ma! No! Don’t go to sleep!" Bella sniffed.

Bai He’s face had gone sheet white. She pressed her hand against my arm, her voice trembling.

"She’s slipping fast... th-the poison. Father used to say mountain vipers kill within the hour." Bai He said.

The Bai brothers stoicism cracked. Bai Jun’s jaw clenched so hard I thought his teeth would snap.

"Damn it all how did a viper reach here?!" He tore through the shrubs, his sword flashing as if he could carve vengeance from the earth itself.

Bai Yu knelt lower, eyes sharp, steadying himself despite the tension in his frame.

"Hold her steady, Emperor. Do not let her thrash. If the venom spreads further-" He started.

"She is not going anywhere." I snarled, even as fear gnawed at my gut. I felt her pulse flutter weakly against my fingertips, fading like a candle in the wind.

Zeyrith crouched near, ears pinned back, his voice uncharacteristically grave.

"Time is bleeding away. You need more than a physician. This venom... it’s touched by malice." His golden eyes burned into mine. "If you falter, she dies."

Huan’s tears finally spilled over, his small body trembling as he grabbed Mei Shen’s limp hand.

"Father! Do something! Please you’re the strongest... you can save her, right?" Huan cried even more.

My heart twisted at the raw faith in his voice, at the terror shining in Bella’s wide eyes.O bent low, pressing my forehead against Mei Shen’s damp hair, as if sheer closeness could tether her soul to mine.

"You hear that, Mei Shen?" My voice shook, but I forced it steady. "Our children still need you. I still need you. You don’t get to leave."

Her eyelids flickered, a faint, broken sound escaping her lips. Barely there. But it was enough to drive my resolve into steel.I looked up, fire in my chest despite the choking fear.

"She will not die here." I declared, my voice like iron. "Not while I draw breath."

I did not remember crossing the courtyard. One moment Mei Shen was limp in my arms, the next I was barreling through the palace corridors, the children’s cries and the pounding footsteps of Bai brothers, Bai He, and even Henry trailing behind.

"Clear the way!" Someone shouted. Servants pressed themselves flat against the walls as I stormed past, Mei Shen’s head lolling against my shoulder.

Her skin was colder now. Too cold. The physician’s doors flew open, lanterns blazing inside. He stumbled forward, his apprentice scrambling with trays of herbs and copper instruments.

"Lay her down quickly!" He shouted.

I obeyed, but my hands refused to leave her. I gripped her wrist as if my will alone could anchor her here

The physician cut her sleeve back, revealing the angry blackening veins crawling up from the puncture. His face blanched.

"Mountain viper venom." He whispered. "We need the antidote. Fetch the lotus resin! The silver needle kit!"

"Already here!" Henry burst in, clutching a lacquered box, his usually calm face drenched in sweat. He shoved it into the physician’s hands, his breath ragged."Don’t let her go. Not her."

Huan pushed past the guards, ignoring their protests. He dropped to his knees beside the cot, clutching Mei Shen’s hand.

"Mother, please! Stay with us! Please!" His voice broke, raw with fear.

Bella was in Bai He’s lap, sobbing so hard her small body shook, her cries cutting through the chamber like glass.

"Mama! Mama don’t sleep!" Bella kept sobbing.

The Bai brothers circled like restless storms. Bai Jun paced, fists clenched. Bai Rong’s lips moved silently, perhaps a prayer. Bai Yu bent over the physician’s shoulder, sharp eyes darting across every move. Even their stoicism cracked under the sight of Mei Shen fading.

The physician drove the silver needle into the swollen veins, drawing dark venom into the cup. Mei Shen’s body arched, a strangled cry ripping from her throat before she went slack again.

"She’s too weak!" The apprentice cried.

"NO!" I slammed my hand on the table, making the trays rattle. My voice roared like thunder. "You will save her. Do you hear me? She does not leave me!"

The physician met my eyes sweat dripping down his temple but nodded with grim resolve.

"I’ll do everything I can... but emperor, pray she has the strength to hold." He said.

L

I leaned close to her pale face, brushing damp strands of hair back. My throat burned, but I forced the words out steady, for her, for our children.

"You’ve endured worse, Mei Shen. Fight. Stay with us. Stay with me." I whispered.

Her lips trembled, and for the briefest moment her fingers twitched weakly around Huan’s. I needed her to live. I needed my empress.