Chapter 204

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Protagonist:

Shaowei

Liu Qi

That so-called overwhelming grievance, however, did not stem from any earth-shattering cause; it was even so ordinary that everyone could relate to it.

The Prince of Liang, tears in his eyes, asked first: "May I ask Imperial Brother, from when did the thought of seeking longevity arise?"

The Emperor did not answer; the Prince of Liang continued on his own: "It began when Imperial Brother's body declined and could no longer bear the strain, when illness entangled you."

"Imperial Brother was merely troubled by common ailments, yet you became frantic and uneasy, unable to find peace, even growing irritable and suspicious, your temperament greatly changed..." The Prince of Liang raised his chain-bound hands, looking at his limp legs: "Then what about me? What sort of state of mind should I be in?"

"The Immortal Master sought me out and cured my mind; from then on I could never know peace again... I used to spend my days on horseback in the military camp, yet now I even need people to carry and lift me just to relieve myself!"

The Prince of Liang's tear-filled eyes were like a pair of desperate beast eyes locked in a cage: "Body ruined, reputation gone, courage rotted along with it, as if countless bone fragments had pierced through the gall, spilling bile all through the belly, so bitter one simply cannot go on living!"

A trace of unbearable pity flashed in the Emperor's eyes; he pressed his trembling mouth corners tight.

"Imperial Brother knows me — when have I ever cried a few times before? But ever since regaining clarity, this useless wreck of me... cries night after night!" The Prince of Liang gritted his teeth: "So I regret it; I regret blocking those falling stones for Imperial Brother back then!"

The Emperor clenched his hands tight, knuckles white.

"But at that time I still only thought myself weak and worthless; though I had regret, I never resented Imperial Brother... because I have always revered and loved Imperial Brother; when we fought as children, it was always Imperial Brother protecting me; when the household lacked grain, Imperial Brother always gave me the first share!"

The Prince of Liang's voice choked at the end, large tears rolling down his cheeks: "I remember it all! I devoted myself wholeheartedly to loving and serving my elder brother, so I fought desperately to kill enemies for him, always willingly!"

"We have never shortchanged you either!" The Emperor spoke, voice hoarse and grief-stricken: "We know your suffering; how could We not know? That is why We gave you Liang Guo, gave you powers no other Vassal King possesses..."

"You gave them! But with this crippled body of mine, what use are they!" The Prince of Liang cut off the sovereign's words: "Precisely because I am a cripple, Imperial Brother knows I pose no threat, so he dares give me these! But what after I die? Will Imperial Brother then suspect my children are not loyal enough! Imperial Brother's so-called generosity, I fear, will in the end only cause my descendants to die badly!"

The Prince of Liang spoke word by deliberate word: "This matter has precedent; the things were given by Imperial Brother's own hand, yet having given them away, Imperial Brother still suspects and still fears!"

The Emperor's face darkened to the extreme; he pointed a finger downward past the imperial steps: "Liu Fu, you..."

The Prince of Liang also pointed upward, dragging his chains: "The Immortal Master spoke true; I, Liu Fu, am the one Heaven's Mandate belongs to!"

The Emperor shook his head in resentful anger: "You have been used and blinded by a state-ruining demonic heretic, truly muddle-headed and foolish to the extreme, to actually believe such words..."

"I had no choice but to believe." The Prince of Liang's gaze was aggressive: "If I had not saved Imperial Brother back then, I would be the rightful Son of Heaven; a single thought's difference turned me from a nation's ruler into a crippled wreck!"

The Emperor found it absurd: "So you listen to a demonic priest's words, collude with Yi Ming to set up an evil formation, steal some Dragon Fortune, deludedly hope the Mandate returns to you — even if your own disability cannot be cured without medicine, even if you cannot seize this throne, you still scheme for your sons..."

"For this you stop at nothing, harming who knows how many innocent children." The Emperor's eyes held immense disappointment: "Before, you were most protective and cherishing of your clan kin, yet now you even killed Chuntian — he was only a few years old..."

"Your Majesty kills his own children!!" The Prince of Liang suddenly raised his voice to the maximum, blue veins bulging on his neck, straightening his upper body.

Aside from the hidden guards, the empty palace interior fell instantly silent.

"What qualification does Your Majesty have to make me grieve to the core?" The Prince of Liang: "At first, no matter how bitter or regretful, year after year I silently endured, yet never once thought to hate my elder brother; I originally thought that when I could endure no longer, I would simply end my life and be done with it!"

"But I happened to hear the news from Chang'an that Your Majesty killed your son... you killed Si Bian, you killed the Ling Family siblings!"

Even greater disappointment surged from the Prince of Liang's eyes — an almost physiological, near-vomiting outpouring of disappointment; he witnessed an utterly unrecognizable imperial brother, just as horrifying and nausea-inducing as seeing bloody severed limbs after killing an enemy for the first time.

If he were anyone else it would be fine, but he had given Imperial Brother far too much, heavier than life itself — and what made him willing to give it was that Imperial Brother worthy of his respect; otherwise, pure regret would inevitably turn into unwillingness and remorse.

He abandoned everything, desperately saved — just what kind of thing was it?

Years of torment and suffering instantly found a justified outlet... he had hate, he had regret, he was unwilling, he would not submit.

"It was Imperial Brother who changed first; Imperial Brother betrayed the past promises and bonds first; I merely seek justice for what I gave back then!"

The Prince of Liang's face was full of contempt: "You commit acts unbefitting your position; naturally you are no longer worthy of receiving my, Liu Fu's, loyalty and respect!"

The Emperor's eyes widened uncontrollably, unable to blink for a long time; only now, with a trembling blink, could he finally speak: "Nonsense... it was they who betrayed Us first; this matter has instead become your excuse for betraying Us... utterly preposterous!"

"Who the betrayer is, Your Majesty knows clearly in your heart!" The Prince of Liang's spine straightened, tear-light like blade-light: "If Ling Ke truly colluded with the Xiongnu disregarding the common people, why did he not rebel then? Why did he sever his own arm to request an audience!"

"Is Your Majesty truly ignorant, or simply unwilling to admit it!"

"Shut your mouth!" The Emperor suddenly slammed the table and rose, face darkening to the utmost; he circled the dragon desk, angrily demanding: "You are heartless and deranged, foolishly ignorant, reversing black and white... We ask you, what did you and Si Tui say last night!"

The Prince of Liang suddenly laughed; know the father like the son — the son knows the father's guilty conscience, so he went to see him, and used this to make the father agree to see him.

"Naturally spoke the truth." The Prince of Liang looked at the Emperor's gloomy face: "He suspected the one who forged Ling Ke's secret letter of collusion was me; I kindly reminded him — Ling Ke once practiced calligraphy with Your Majesty; when it comes to imitating Ling Ke's handwriting, Your Majesty is naturally the most skilled."

The Emperor gritted his teeth: "Not enough that you plot rebellion, you still want to sow discord between Us and Our son!"

"But that brat wouldn't believe it! So he investigated again and again these years!" The Prince of Liang's eyes held a trace of mocking sympathy: "I guess he dares not believe... he is too young; how could he dare believe his own birth father is actually such a wolfish visage? If he believed, he would surely be unable to live on, just like me!"

"He is exactly like his elder brother — to death they would not believe that the father who raised them on his shoulders would actually kill his son... forcing such innocent children to death, does Imperial Brother truly not get trapped by nightmares at night?"

The Emperor's eyes were blood-red, throat seemingly blocked by blood; those words usually unthought, also unspeakable by anyone, were now forced into his ears, clear and distinct.

"Imperial Brother thinks no one dares speak, so it truly ceases to exist?"

The Prince of Liang's voice continued: "Those who experienced that year's events — regarding right and wrong — are all just as clear as I am! No one truly submits to Imperial Brother from the heart anymore!"

"Imperial Brother, keep killing — kill all who refuse to submit, kill Si Tui this future trouble as well, kill until no successors remain, kill until the realm has no one to guard it, kill until war disasters link up, kill until the world we brothers fought desperately to win is destroyed in an instant, bodies shattered to powder!"

"There is no longevity medicine in this world; Imperial Brother will die sooner or later; when that time comes underground, I will have Father and Mother judge — see whether I am wrong, or Imperial Brother is wrong!"

By the end of the words, accompanied by the sound of chains, there was even a childlike angry grievance.

The closest kin who grew up relying on each other amid war and poverty — how could there be no true affection?

Without true affection, back then it would have been impossible to risk death to save; and if there had never been true affection, there would be no need to insist on meeting, no need to pour out this bitter water face to face.

The death warriors hidden in the dark also held their breath.

And after a moment of silence, the tearful Emperor suddenly let out a contemptuous sneer.

"We understand."

He looked at the Prince of Liang and said: "You yourself committed a grave error, yet want to frame Us — only because you want to survive, so you want Us to believe you did not intentionally rebel, but because of a misunderstanding toward Us you forged this mistake, truly deserving of sympathy, so Our heart softens, the net opens a face, sparing your life..."

His words were not finished when he suddenly heard the Prince of Liang shout in a booming voice: "— This General is Liu Fu of Pei Commandery, today I come to punish traitors for my father and brothers!"

Caught off guard, accompanied by these old words, it was as if he once again saw that year's white-robed general on horseback, high-spirited, long spear in hand, conquering territory and capturing cities for his father and brothers, punishing traitors and slaying enemies.

Even more resounding and awe-inspiring words followed, striking the ground: "Traitor! Receive death!"

Accompanying the words, the sound of chains moved; Prince Liang exerted all his strength, bracing his hands on the ground, and suddenly lunged forward.

No matter how he exerted all his strength, it was impossible to ascend the high imperial steps, but the dead soldiers in the dark had to perform their duty, and they soon appeared to protect the carriage; and by the time they drew their blades and reached the Holy One's side, accompanied by a crashing sound, blood had already spattered.

Bright red blood burst from the crevices of the sunken skull, staining the imperial steps, splashing onto the Emperor's face.

The Emperor did not move at all.

The splashed blood was not much, only a few drops.

He was a monarch who had fought wars, his body and face stained with countless blood; how could he fear this?

What does this count for? This fundamentally does not count for anything.

But many things in this world are merely a kind of bowl-vessel container; the container itself possesses no lethality; what is held inside is the main point; whether it is clear water or poison inside depends on who is the person doing this thing.

Blood itself is not frightening.

What is frightening is the person who shouts "punish the traitor" while destroying himself.

The last traitor he punished in this world was himself; he executed himself before the imperial steps, before his imperial elder brother.

He did not come to preserve his life; he did not fear death; he sacrificed himself with his old sincere heart.

A few drops of fresh blood remained on the Emperor's face, like a few flakes of gold lacquer peeling off, exposing the rotten flesh and blood beneath.

The rotten flesh and blood were also human flesh and blood, not truly a true dragon divine statue cast of gold and copper.

The Emperor stared blankly at the person in the blood pool; his mind flashed back to that year when he himself lifted his younger brother's blood-covered body from under the chaotic stones, weeping in panic and having someone bandage and treat him.

Liu Fu gave him two lives face-to-face in this lifetime.

The first time was to save his body; the second time was to kill his heart.

A buzzing sounded in his mind; breath surged in his chest cavity; the Emperor suddenly leaned forward and vomited a large mouthful of fresh blood.

Myriad noises clamored; images also intertwined; consciousness fell into countless layered illusions.

When he finally opened his eyes, in a trance he could not distinguish reality from illusion or what year it was; he only knew that in his hazy gaze, he saw a youth with a pretty silhouette, tense and concerned: "Imperial Father, you're awake."

The Emperor murmured: "Sibian, you're here too..."

The youth's expression froze in a daze.

Guo Shi kneeling to the side felt his heart skip a beat, and hurriedly reminded in a low voice: "Your Majesty, this is the Sixth Prince."

Si Tui has actually grown into a youth as big as Si Bian?

This thought merely flashed by in an instant; the Emperor's gaze passed over the youth before him, the inner attendants, and looked toward Liu Cheng, Rui Ze and the others behind.

The momentary chaos from waking from unconsciousness dissipated with what was seen in his gaze; nothing had changed; everything was something that had happened.

Meeting the Emperor's gaze, Rui Ze hurriedly saluted, but his heart was shaken and uneasy because of that indistinct "Si Bian".

The attending physicians hurried forward to take the pulse; before long, warmed medicinal soup was brought by palace maids; Liu Cheng received it, knelt by the bed, and served the medicine to his sovereign father.

Liu Qi wanted to help the sovereign father lying on the bed sit up; the Emperor slightly raised a hand to stop him, saying in a hoarse voice: "You are still recovering from serious injuries; don't move recklessly..."

Liu Cheng, following the sovereign father's raised hand, looked at his sixth brother; for a moment, he lowered his eyes and concentrated on serving the medicine.

After the Emperor finished taking the medicine, his eyes had already regained clarity.

At this time, an inner attendant bowed and entered: "Your Majesty, the Tai Puzhe has brought his master into the palace seeking an audience; they are waiting outside the hall for the summons."

Only then did the Emperor realize: "I have been unconscious for this long..."

Guo Shi answered from the side: "Yes, Your Majesty... you have been in a deep sleep for a full day and night."

But the news of the Emperor vomiting blood and falling unconscious was not widely publicized; therefore Shaowei also pretended not to know, and still entered the palace for an audience on schedule.

Rui Ze looked at the witchcraft-attired young woman walking in.

After nearly ten days, this was the first time seeing this Tai Puzhe, Tianji, since Lingxing Shan.

He had people send many tonic precious gifts and greetings; the other party gave no response whatsoever.

Looking again at that Female Monarch sitting in a wheelchair, pushed in by inner attendants; this time, with the concealment and bloodstains washed away, she actually had a still-youthful, carefree and elegant face; vaguely seeming familiar from somewhere, but upon careful thought, no impression could be found.

After Shaowei finished her salutations, her gaze swept over Liu Qi; his face had no expression, but when she looked over, a trace of extremely fast amusement flashed in the depths of his eyes, one only she could capture.

This person has come to perform filial piety again.

Others may not know, but Shaowei, who corresponded closely with him, knew that the reason Prince Liang was able to die as he wished in the Emperor's house was due to his pushing.

First angering Imperial Father half to death, then running over injured to perform filial piety — truly, even without the opportunity to perform filial piety, he had to actively create it; such forced filial piety is a rarely seen great filial piety through the ages.

And only when Shaowei stepped forward to examine the Emperor's pulse did she realize with alarm that this bout of filial piety, if not careful, would turn from performing filial piety into wearing mourning.

The Emperor's heart orifice was damaged; it was clear he had undergone a rare severe blow.

Shaowei couldn't help but think of the words Jiang Fu had said in the carriage on the road.

Shaowei originally believed that someone like the Emperor, alienated by power into a ruthless solitary person, though his emotions would surely have moments of fluctuation, it should be impossible for him to severely injure his body over an emotional matter.

But Jiang Fu told her: people eat the Five Grains and give rise to the Seven Emotions; emotions cannot be completely self-controlled, nor can they be entirely erased; and the reason this Emperor in his youth received the allegiance and support of countless followers, among them were not a few who exchanged true hearts.

He was originally a person full of emotion; suspicion and ruthlessness were originally just another extreme manifestation of abundant emotion.

Prince Liang held a different significance for the Emperor; he could tug at too many buried emotions; coupled with the Emperor being ill for many years, a momentary tug aggravated his physical illness; not dying on the spot already counts as him being stubborn and unyielding enough.

"You all withdraw."

The Emperor dismissed everyone, including Guo Shi and the other inner attendants, who all withdrew together.

Looking at the person helped down from the wheelchair and kneeling on the straw mat, the Emperor said slowly: "So the master of Tianji is actually my National Preceptor."

Jiang Fu smiled faintly: "Indeed, Your Majesty; not seen for many years; is the Dragon Body well?"

The Emperor gave a weak chuckle: "I am half-dead half-alive like this, yet you still deliberately mock me... appearance changed, temperament still the same; no wonder you never truly became an immortal."

?? Shaowei's eye's six seven: 【Fully Automatic Integrated Filial Piety Machine】

? Updated achievement: National Day Eight Days Fun!

? Good night everyone.