Thousand Verdant Mountains – Chapter 76 Part 2
Chapter 76 Part 2
After the emperor gave his instructions, he glanced at the jade waterclock in the hall and waved his hand: “Go and see if the princess has returned!”
“Yes.” Yuan Zhi took the order and retreated to the palace gate. He was about to leave in a hurry when he ran into someone standing at the palace gate, looking at him coldly.
He was startled for a moment, then reacted, and hurriedly stepped back a few steps, bowing politely: “Greetings, Princess!”
Xuyu walked around Yuan Zhi and turned inside quickly.
The emperor was lying on the couch with his face up and eyes closed, his brows furrowed and his hands rubbing his temples, when he suddenly heard footsteps approaching.
The steps were so bold that others would not dare to take them. Instantly recognizing who it was, he opened his eyes and saw that it was indeed his daughter. He was annoyed at first and immediately sat up, ready to rebuke her for seeking out a man at such a late hour. But then, he noticed her standing before him, her gaze fixed on something on the ground. Realizing what it was, he shuddered, his headache vanishing as he hurriedly reached down, picked up the booklet, and tucked it into his sleeve.
“Give it to me!” Xuyu stretched out her hand, demanding it.
“What do you mean give it to you?” Naturally, the emperor wouldn’t comply, and changed the subject, “It’s so late, did you look for that Pei boy again?”
“Give it to me!” Xuyu went up and grabbed the emperor’s sleeve.
The emperor dodged hurriedly and scolded: “You rude wild girl! How dare you speak to Zhen like that? Go to bed! If you continue to make trouble, Zhen will be really angry!”
The emperor really didn’t want his daughter to see the booklet, so he guarded it tightly. However, he was no match for Xuyu, who quickly snatched it away.
The emperor was so angry, but he couldn’t vent his anger. He saw his daughter looking down at the booklet, her face becoming more and more solemn, and he couldn’t help but feel uneasy. Suddenly, he saw her throwing the booklet on the desk and sneered, “Father, is this how you treat your subjects? You keep saying how much you value them, but secretly you have people watching them like this? Why don’t you just ask someone to get under his bed and record how many times he turns over at night? Who knows, his sleep talk may also prove that he has the intention to rebel!”
The emperor pretended not to hear and let his daughter ridicule him. After she finished speaking, he said, “This is necessary move. You don’t understand and you don’t have to think about it! It’s getting late. There are important things to do tomorrow morning. Father will send you to bed.” As he said that, he took his daughter’s sleeve and wanted to lead her to Yiyue Tower.
Xuyu pulled her sleeves out of the emperor’s hand and said, “Father! Do you think I’m three years old? You summoned him to the capital and gave him important positions, but in reality, you treated him like this. How can you gain his sincere respect and loyalty? You will only push him further and further away from you!”
The emperor’s hand holding his daughter’s sleeve paused in mid-air. After a moment, he finally became angry and waved his sleeves: “What do you want Father do? Do you think Father wants this? Even with him under constant surveillance, he still acts like this—who knows how many unspeakable things he’s done behind Zhen’s back! And if Zhen stop watching him, he’d probably poke a hole through the sky of Chang’an! Zhen need to see what he’s plotting and what kind of storm he’s trying to stir!”
When the emperor said this, he suddenly remembered another incident that just happened, and his expression darkened even further. “And it’s not just that Pei boy defying Zhen at every turn. Even that old rustic Pei Ji has grown bold enough to start helping his nephew to force Zhen! Zhen kindly invited him to escape the summer heat, hoping to have a word with him, but he actually wrote a memorial saying that he’s too ill with chills and dysentery to make the journey to Cangshan! Fine, Zhen could let that slide. But then he sends He Jin in his place! What’s his intent, if not to show his allegiance to his nephew and twist the knife in Zhen’s heart? It’s a blatant reminder of the debt Zhen owe the Pei family.
“Other family’s uncle and nephew are of the same mind, but you, Hao’er, are helping outsiders…”
The emperor was so angry that his face turned blue. His chest tightening as a sudden wave of dizziness struck him. He swayed unsteadily, on the verge of collapsing. Xuyu quickly rushed forward, catching him and helping him to the couch. Supporting him as he lay down, she prepared to order people to call the imperial physicians, but the emperor raised a hand to stop her.
“No need. It’s the middle of the night. Let everyone have some peace. Father is fine. Just need to lie down for a while.” The emperor closed his eyes and said in a low voice.
Xuyu looked at him, and slowly knelt down beside the emperor.
“Father, I have wanted to ask you for a long time, what exactly happened in the Battle of Beiyuan back then?” Xuyu suddenly asked.
The emperor still had his eyes closed, without any reaction, as if he heard nothing.
“Father, if you don’t want to tell me, I can’t force you. But, allow me to ask you one more question. Father, do you really have a clear conscience about what happened to General Pei Gu?”
After asking this question, Xuyu got down from the couch, knelt in front of the emperor, and kowtowed solemnly.
“Father, please answer me!”
After a while, the emperor, who had been silent this whole time, suddenly snorted coldly: “What if Zhen have a clear conscience? What if Zhen have a guilty conscience? Those who achieve greatness do not care about trivial matters. Zhen is more qualified than others to be the emperor of all under heaven! Zhen is worthy of this throne and the world, and that is enough!”
As he spoke, the emperor slowly sat up from the couch, his aged yet resolute eyes fixing firmly on Xuyu, who knelt at his knees.
“Hao’er, Zhen know what you’re thinking. But you have to understand one thing. Zhen is the emperor. Why should Zhen explain to others what Zhen have done? They can think whatever they want. It has nothing to do with Zhen.
“As for this Pei boy, Zhen will tell you the truth. Although Zhen admires him very much and always have high hopes that he will become a national treasure of our holy dynasty in the future, but if he insists on his own way and going against Zhen in the end, Zhen can do nothing about it. When the time comes to kill him, even though it’s a pity, Zhen will not show any mercy. So Father advises you again, stay away from him until Father has a good opinion of him!”
Xuyu knelt at the emperor’s feet, looked up, and stared at her father emperor. After a long while, she slowly said, “Father, I understand what to do.”
She stood up from the ground, smiling: “It’s really late. Let me escort Father to rest. There are important matters tomorrow. Father should conserve your energy, so in the morning, you can lead your daughter to inspect the might and majesty of our imperial soldiers.”
The next day, at Si Hour (9-11 am), the top of Cangshan was clear and cloudless. Under the flat foothills in the south of the mountain, a sea of banners fluttering in the breeze, covering the sky. Along the viewing platform of Zhuque Terrace, hundreds of dignitaries—princes, nobles, officials, and foreign envoys—entered from the east side, taking their seats in orderly ranks. On the west side, beneath an elegantly constructed canopy draped with a thin veil, sat the imperial consorts and noblewomen, who had been granted special permission to attend the ceremony. In the open ground about a dozen in front of the Zhuque Terrace stood 120 warriors, ready to perform the Battle Formation Dance. They were divided into six units representing the Six Armies, led by the imperial prince Prince Kang, and dressed in red, white, and black armor. Behind them were 20,000 soldiers selected from various guards in the capital and surrounding garrisons. They too were organized into six armies, their formations impeccable. Dressed in full armor, their weapons gleaming under the sun, they stood under the command of their silver-armored brigade commander, awaiting the grand arrival of the emperor.
At quarter past Si hour, accompanied by solemn ceremonial music and the flying of dragon banners, the emperor, dressed in military uniform and riding a horse, entered the inspection grounds today under the guidance of the Minister of War, Great General of Jinwu Guard Han Kerang, and Great General of Longwu Guard Fan Ximing. Following closely behind the emperor’s horse were two orderly columns of forty-eight ceremonial guards, led by the chief of the Luwu Division, Pei Xiaoyuan. From him on, everyone wore a military crown, purple chainmail armor, and a scarlet embroidered robe. The sight of the emperor’s elite guard, radiating unparalleled poise and vigor.
As the procession entered the grounds, the crown prince led all the princes and officials to step forward from their designated positions to kneel along the pathway, paying their respects. The six armies saluted in unison and shouted “Long live the emperor!” The unified roar of twenty thousand voices shook the mountains, with echoes rippling endlessly into the distance. The overwhelming sound startled birds for miles around, sending them flapping into the sky in chaotic waves, as if heaven and earth itself were momentarily shaken by the scene.
The emperor ascended the Zhuque Terrace, sat on a high seat under a canopy in the center, and issued the command to rise. His words, conveyed by the ceremonial officers and rapidly relayed by the command officers, traveled through the vast assembly in mere moments. At the emperor’s signal, the troops again resounded with a thunderous “Long live the emperor” before rising to their feet in unison.
Throughout the history of the dynasty, all the emperors inspected the six armies like this before. According to custom, the emperor would now deliver an address and personally strike the ceremonial drum to announce the beginning of the martial exercises. However, today, it seemed a little different.
Though the emperor sat firmly in his seat, he made no move to initiate the proceedings. At precisely the third quarter of the Si hour, the Minister of Imperial Clan, dressed in ceremonial robes, ascended the high platform accompanied by two teams of ceremonial officers. After paying his respects to the emperor, he turned to the people below the platform and announced, “Princess Shouchang has returned. Today, the imperial phoenix graces us in person—
“Passing on His Majesty’s order. all imperial relatives, save for princes; all officials, save for those of the highest honorary rank; and all others present—step forward and prepare to greet the princess!”
The announcement of the Minister of Imperial Clan was quickly spread by the ceremonial officer to the entire venue. Within moments, a subtle commotion rippled through the assembly. It was not only the imperial relatives, officials, noblewomen and ladies who accompanied the emperor to both sides of the Zhuque Terrace who reacted with astonishment. Many among them, forgetting propriety, rose from their seats to glance about or exchanged hushed whispers in confusion. Even the disciplined soldiers of the Six Armies, stationed in orderly ranks, were momentarily struck by surprise, turning their heads to take a look.
Two hundred musicians from the music bureau jointly played the solemn yet melodious music.
The sound of the music quickly drowned out the noise in the audience.
Pei Xiaoyuan was standing at the northwest corner of the Zhuque Terrace, under a dragon banner fluttering in the wind.
He was not far from Minister of Imperial Clan’s position. After he finished his speech, Pei Xiaoyuan came to his senses and felt his heart beating wildly, almost jumping out of his chest.
Was it she who had arrived, the girl who separated from him last night?
Although he had long understood that, sooner or later, she would regain her original noble status and become this dynasty’s princess. He even imagined in the middle of the night when he woke up and couldn’t sleep, what kind of situation she would return under.
But, even in his dreams, he had never imagined that it would be on occasion such as this. While he was completely caught off guard, she appeared before him as a princess.
At this time, the Minister of Imperial Clan had already led the people around him to kneel down and salute. Only then everyone reacted.
Prince Kang was the first. He almost rushed out of the line, bowed on the side of the road, and respectfully called out “Sister.”
The people on both sides of the Zhuque Terrace also quickly stopped talking and came out to greet her respectfully.
Then, accompanied by the orderly rustling sounds of armor and swords colliding, many guard officials led the soldiers behind them and kowtowed in the direction of the princess’s carriage.
Pei Xiaoyuan calmed himself down, slowly turned around, and followed the crowd’s gaze.
In the distance, a jade carriage, led by ceremonial officers and guards of honor, drove in and appeared in his sight.
It’s really her.
She was sitting upright inside the carriage, slowly coming towards the direction of Zhuque Tower where he stood.