"Concubine Li, you...you tell me, what do you need? I...I will definitely find a way to help you find it!" Ying Yuan said in a firm tone.

Concubine Li opened her eyes weakly and looked at Ying Yuan, her eyes full of hope: "Your Majesty...I heard...in southern Xinjiang...there is a kind of...divine bird...named...Fire Phoenix..."

Fire Phoenix? Ying Yuan's mind was moved. He had heard of the legend of this mythical bird. It was said that it was bathed in fire and had the ability to bring the dead back to life.

"Fire Phoenix... does it really exist?" Ying Yuan murmured to himself.

Concubine Li nodded and said firmly: "I...I believe...it must exist..."

Ying Yuan looked at Concubine Li's determined eyes, and a glimmer of hope ignited in his heart. Perhaps, there really are miracles in this world?
"Okay! I...I will send people to southern Xinjiang to look for the Fire Phoenix!" Ying Yuan said in a firm tone, his eyes full of determination.

Upon hearing this, Concubine Li showed a relieved smile on her face, then slowly closed her eyes and fell into a coma.

Ying Yuan hurriedly carried Concubine Li back to the bedroom, and then immediately summoned the ministers to discuss going to southern Xinjiang to find the Fire Phoenix.

When the ministers heard this, they all looked at each other and talked about it.

"Your Majesty, this fire phoenix is ​​only a legendary divine bird. Whether it really exists remains to be verified."

"Yes, Your Majesty, the journey to Southern Xinjiang is long, and it is filled with miasma and full of dangers. There may be unexpected events on this journey!"

"Your Majesty, I think the most urgent thing is to find out the condition of Concubine Li first, and then make plans."

……

Ying Yuan listened to the advice of the ministers and hesitated. Although he wanted to save Concubine Li, he did not want to risk the country of Qin.

At this moment, a voice suddenly sounded: "Your Majesty, I am willing to go to the southern border to find the Fire Phoenix!"

Ying Yuan looked in the direction of the voice and saw a young man in white standing in the center of the hall, looking at him firmly.

"Who are you?" Ying Yuan asked.

"I am the imperial guard, Gai Nie." The young man answered respectfully.

Gai Nie? Ying Yuan's heart moved. He had heard of this name before. It was said that this man had superb swordsmanship and unparalleled martial arts.

"Are you...are you really willing to go to Southern Xinjiang?" Ying Yuan asked.

Gai Nie nodded and said firmly: "I am willing to serve your majesty at my utmost!"

Ying Yuan looked at Gai Nie's determined eyes, and his heart was filled with emotion. He finally made up his mind and said, "Okay! Gai Nie, I will appoint you as the Southern Xinjiang Special Envoy. Set off immediately to Southern Xinjiang to find the Fire Phoenix!"

"I obey your order!" Gai Nie accepted the order and thanked the emperor, then turned and left.

Watching Gai Nie's departing back, Ying Yuan's heart was filled with hope. He believed that Gai Nie would be able to find Huo Feng and rescue Concubine Li!

However, he didn't know what kind of dangers and challenges Gai Nie would encounter when he went to southern Xinjiang...

Ying Yuan stared at Gai Nie's departing back, feeling mixed emotions. He knew that searching for the Fire Phoenix was just a move that was better than nothing. Southern Xinjiang was extremely dangerous, and it was hard to predict whether Gai Nie would be lucky or not. He rubbed his brows in annoyance and returned to Concubine Li's bedroom. Concubine Li was still unconscious, her face was as pale as paper, and her breathing was so weak that it was almost imperceptible.

Ying Yuan sat on the bed, holding Concubine Li's cold hand, feeling powerless. He was the emperor, ruling the country, but he couldn't even protect the woman he loved. A rage surged from the bottom of his heart, and he punched the bed hard, cracking the carved wooden board.

"Your Majesty, please calm down!" The palace maids and eunuchs guarding outside the bedroom heard the noise and quickly knelt down to beg for mercy.

Ying Yuan took a deep breath and tried to calm the anger in his heart. He waved his hand and signaled everyone to leave. The palace was quiet again, with only the heavy breathing of Ying Yuan and the weak heartbeat of Concubine Li intertwined.

Ying Yuan quietly watched over Concubine Li until it got dark. Suddenly, he heard a commotion outside the palace. He frowned, stood up and walked to the door, and asked in a deep voice, "What's the commotion?"

An eunuch ran in in a panic, knelt on the ground, and said in a trembling voice: "Your Majesty, something terrible has happened! The Prime Minister...the Prime Minister...he...he..." "What's wrong with him? He is so hesitant, how can he not behave!" Ying Yuan scolded impatiently.

"Your Excellency the Prime Minister...he...he was in the court...suddenly...suddenly died!" said the eunuch tremblingly.

"What?!" Ying Yuan was shocked. Prime Minister Li Si was a close minister left by his father, loyal to him and assisted him for many years, but now he suddenly died. How could he accept this?
"Quick! Take me to see it!" Ying Yuan hurried to the court.

In the court, Li Si's body was lying on the cold floor, and the ministers around him were silent. Ying Yuan walked to Li Si's body and took a closer look. He found that Li Si's face was black and his lips were purple, as if he had died of poisoning.

"How did the prime minister die?" Ying Yuan asked in a deep voice.

"Your Majesty, we don't know either..." a minister replied tremblingly.

"Assholes! The prime minister died suddenly in the court, and you actually said you didn't know?!" Ying Yuan roared.

The ministers were so frightened that they fell to their knees, not daring to speak a word.

Ying Yuan took a deep breath and suppressed the anger in his heart. He knew that now was not the time to pursue responsibility, and the most urgent task was to find out the cause of Li Si's death.

"Call the imperial physician to perform an autopsy!" Ying Yuan ordered in a cold voice.

The imperial physician arrived quickly and conducted a careful examination of Li Si's body.

"Your Majesty, the Prime Minister...died of...poisoning..." the imperial physician reported tremblingly.

"Poisoned? What kind of poison?" Ying Yuan asked.

"This...this...I...I dare not jump to any conclusion..." The imperial physician was trembling with fear.

Seeing the imperial physician cowering, Ying Yuan became even more annoyed. He grabbed the imperial physician by the collar and shouted, "I give you three days to find out the cause of the prime minister's death! Otherwise, I will kill you!"

The imperial physician was so frightened that he kowtowed and begged for mercy: "Your Majesty, please spare my life! I...I will do my best..."

Ying Yuan pushed the imperial physician away and turned to leave the court.

Back in the palace, Ying Yuan felt even more restless and uneasy. Concubine Li's illness and the prime minister's death, one thing after another, made him feel exhausted both physically and mentally.

He sat alone in his bedroom, looking at the dark night sky outside the window, his heart filled with confusion and powerlessness.

"Father, you...you are in heaven...can you see all this..." Ying Yuan murmured to himself, "Your Majesty...your Majesty...is really...tired..."

At this moment, he suddenly heard a slight sound of footsteps outside the bedroom. He was startled and quickly stood up, looking towards the door vigilantly.

A masked figure dressed in black appeared silently at the door.

"Who are you?" Ying Yuan asked sternly.

The man in black did not answer, but slowly took off the veil from his face.

When Ying Yuan saw the face of the man in black, he was stunned.

"You...you are..."

The person who came was none other than Gai Nie.

"Your Majesty...Your Majesty is back..." Gai Nie said in a low voice.

"You...you found the Fire Phoenix?" Ying Yuan asked in surprise. (End of this chapter)