Chapter 122: The Progress of an Era: Glory and Decline (Requesting Monthly Votes)

Faced with Gu Ling's plan, even Gu Yi fell silent.

He could not stop Gu Ling.

Whether as a physician or as a daughter of the Gu clan;

her actions were entirely justified.

Gu Yi understood this well, and could only choose to offer her appropriate aid.

Although Gu Yi himself knew nothing of medicine.

But as a man of the modern age, he could still provide Gu Ling with basic assistance.

Gu Ling did not choose to leave Lingnan immediately.

Though determined, she needed to summarize the key lessons of this journey, including studying the methods of these local shaman-doctors.

Gu Yi grew busy once again.

Before this,

the overall situation in Lingnan had stabilized, but with nearly twenty thousand Han people flooding in, it was certain to bring new instability to Lingnan.

Even Gu Yi needed to plan rationally where these people should go.

To maximize their impact during this critical period.

Gu Yi did not know how much time Heaven would still grant Gu Ye.

But what Gu Yi understood was—

he could not waste a single second.

For the civilians who had migrated here, Gu Yi had already prepared thoroughly.

He planned to assign these civilians to reclaim land and engage in farming.

This was an advantage the Yue people lacked.

No heavy intervention from Gu Yi was needed— the Han people's innate agricultural nature would take root and flourish on this barren land.

As for the Yue people—

they would continue to be responsible for developing the Mei Pass Ancient Road and the canal.

During this time, they could absorb farming knowledge and also gain opportunities to begin integrating into Han culture.

The development work must not stop.

If this devastating loss could not be resolved, even if Gu Yi made Lingnan as excellent as possible, he could not ease the divide between Lingnan and the Han.

Friction was inevitable during this period.

The initial fusion of two cultures, including the Yue people's resistance to Han civilians and the Han civilians' innate arrogance.

Under the weight of all these factors, this fusion was filled with contradictions.

Gu Yi could only suppress everything and mediate through the Gu clan's prestige.

Including spreading Han laws and codes.

People died every day.

In this early era of reclamation, casualties were entirely unavoidable.

But as the migrating civilians gradually adapted to the climate, their inner resilience emerged.

The Han people could certainly be called one of the most resilient peoples on Earth.

On this barren land,

they, like their ancestral generations who had once opened up the Central Plains, poured their sweat into this wasteland.

And during this time—

Gu Ling and the physicians sent by the court also traveled tirelessly across the land.

Reducing casualties while summarizing experience and absorbing knowledge.

This was destined to be a long and arduous path.

If Gu Yi could fully open a route from Han to Lingnan in his lifetime, he would be content.

As for the remaining great deeds, he could only leave them to future generations.

Time slipped away swiftly.

With a fresh influx of blood into this land, and with the current situation stabilized, Lingnan was undergoing earth-shattering changes over time.

Centered on Panyu,

vast tracts of land were undergoing earth-shattering changes.

One after another, paddy fields were reclaimed.

And due to Lingnan's climate, the people had already begun sowing even as they reclaimed the land.

Even Gu Yi had not anticipated it.

Among the Gu clan youths who had come on this journey, there was a hidden talent.

His name was "Gu Cheng."

Though his attributes were average, he possessed a cleverness others lacked.

Without Gu Yi's notice, he had begun experimenting with crossbreeding Lingnan's upland rice with Central Plains' rice.

This was perhaps the wisdom of the laboring masses.

Gu Cheng had previously been in Julu, responsible for overseeing farming matters.

Even Gu Yi had never considered this possibility.

Though it was still unknown what this simple crossbreeding would yield, it was highly promising.

The most crucial changes were not just these— the entire city of Panyu was transforming remarkably.

Cultural fusion had given rise to an entirely new market.

The Han people, including the Yue people, carried out trade among them.

Including the Han people's academies, which finally welcomed more and more Yue people.

The Gu clan disciples who came from Julu, although their talents were indeed quite ordinary.

But leading a few scholars to teach children was indeed a little too easy for them.

Although it had only just begun.

But as the cultures of both sides continued to blend, the contradictions among them grew fewer and fewer.

The entire Lingnan region, under such circumstances, actually gained a sense of all things renewed and thriving prosperity.

Gu Shizi still had many thoughts.

He even had the idea of rebuilding Panyu City.

According to Gu Yi's Thought.

He wanted to designate Panyu City as a port city, and use it as a base to thoroughly open up the Maritime Silk Road.

This move could not only benefit the Nine Provinces;

For the Gu clan as well, it was likewise an unprecedented opportunity.

But for now, such things could only be thought about; what he currently had to do was complete the expansion of the Meiguan Ancient Road and the digging of the canal within the Ling mountains.

The situation grew ever more stable.

But Gu Ye still could not enjoy a moment's peace.

Letters from the court arrived from time to time.

Liu Chen, just like Liu Shan back then, grew increasingly worried about Gu Ye's health and wanted him to return to Luoyang.

But how could Gu Ye possibly leave?

This matter, whether for the Nine Provinces or for the Gu clan, was of critical importance.

Before the overall situation was settled.

Gu Ye had to remain in Lingnan all along.

Without even needing Gu Yi's interference, Gu Ye himself had already made this choice.

The twenty-fifth year of Qianji, April;

Luoyang once again sent news.

Zhang Hua had passed away from illness.

He ultimately failed to wait for the day Gu Ye returned to court, leaving his life behind within the Great Han court.

The times were finally about to turn a page again.

This glorious era was also finally about to enter its countdown.

Liu Chen did not ask Gu Ye for his views on the position of Chancellor.

He was different from Liu Shan; although his intentions toward the Gu clan were not far apart, he was absolutely more befitting of an emperor.

June;

Zhong Hui likewise chose to retire and return to his hometown.

Zhang Hua's passing seemed to have finally made him realize that his prime years were gone.

His own ever-slowing thoughts were something a proud man like Zhong Hui could not accept.

He was different from Zhang Hua.

Zhong Hui only wanted to leave his peak self at court.

Ignoring everyone's opposition, he actually wanted to come to Lingnan to take a look.

Although Liu Chen assigned him many people.

But with a scholar's body like Zhong Hui's, combined with his advanced age, he too died along the way.

His body was buried at the border of Lingnan.

Under the sweltering climate, Gu Ye didn't even have the chance to see his corpse, and could only have people build his tomb a little more grandly.

Old acquaintances departed one after another.

This dealt Gu Ye an enormous psychological blow.

People, once they reach a certain age, often grow inexplicably nostalgic.

Gu Ye was now just like that; even Gu Yi could not ease the growing twilight air about him.

Clearly, the time left to him was no longer abundant.

The twenty-seventh year of Qianji, July;

After years of hard struggle.

Finally—

The expansion of the Meiguan Ancient Road was completed; Gu Ye even personally walked it once, and after confirming the project was sound, he once again memorialized Liu Chen.

Planning to launch the second migration.

The Han people in Lingnan were still not enough.

Hearing of this matter, Gu Ling did not hesitate in the slightest and directly chose to leave.

Her footsteps over these years had never stopped.

She had always wandered among the sick, growing her own experience.

Exactly how many common folk she had saved, even Gu Yi could not determine.

But in just these past few years.

Nursery rhymes about her had already begun to circulate throughout Lingnan.

Calling her the Holy Maiden from the Gu clan.

Some tribes have even equated him with Gu Ye and begun to worship him.

Compared to the last migration.

This migration did not create much commotion.

People follow profit.

Lingnan is still in its development phase; all its advantages have not yet been fully revealed.

Those clans that had always sought profit naturally had little interest.

Gu Yi still planned to begin from Julu.

As for the commoners of other prefectures and commanderies, those willing to follow may follow as before.

This time, a full fifty thousand commoners slowly moved toward Lingnan.

The journey was still arduous.

But casualties this time were far fewer than last time.

Nearly forty thousand commoners successfully arrived in Lingnan.

For this era, this was nothing short of a miracle.

Not only because the Mei Pass Ancient Road was open, but also due to Gu Ling's efforts.

——She had truly succeeded.

Through years of observation in Lingnan.

She integrated local shaman-medic practices with Central Plains medicine, greatly reducing the spread of diseases.

And with these commoners arriving once more.

Gu Yi could finally begin his next plan.

The twenty-eighth year of Ganji;

A canal, beginning at Panyu, finally began to be excavated.

Gu Yi had no great ambition.

This canal was confined within Lingnan; its purpose was to make connections between regions more convenient, aiming to establish a "special economic zone" centered on Panyu.

At the same time, he also renovated the entire city of Panyu.

It was not a large-scale reconstruction.

Only the harbor was repaired.

He intended to use this opportunity to firmly establish the development path for Panyu and all of Lingnan.

Everything gradually fell into order.

Liu Chen truly wanted Gu Ye to return to Luoyang as soon as possible; he had already sent many officials to assist Gu Ye.

But Gu Ye's stance remained resolute.

At least for now—

He absolutely could not leave Luoyang.

To this day, the benefits of Lingnan had been fully revealed.

Notably, hybridization had actually succeeded.

Lingnan's drought-resistant rice hybridized with Central Plains rice produced a new variety; though by modern standards its yield was still quite modest.

But compared to the original yield, there had been clear progress.

Gu Yi named it "Panyu Rice."

And, following Gu Cheng's suggestion, he began gradually promoting it.

Lingnan's climate was extremely suitable for Panyu Rice, ensuring two harvests per year.

As land continued to be reclaimed.

The yield became astonishing.

The situation grew increasingly stable; Panyu City now fully enabled coexistence between Yue and Han peoples.

And most crucially, with rising productivity;

The inclusiveness of Huaxia civilization immediately became evident: though little time had passed, many Shan Yue tribes had already begun integrating into it.

They abandoned their old customs.

Gradually blending their tribal cultures into Han culture.

No intervention from Gu Yi was even needed.

This pace of change far surpassed that of the northern frontier, for Gu Yi had not relocated commoners to the northern frontier; the progress could not be compared.

Gu Ling still traveled throughout Lingnan practicing medicine.

In addition—

She also began teaching local children medicine, as she had once done in Julu.

Perhaps due to the sheer number of Julu commoners.

Though far from home, the Gu clan's prestige remained undiminished, even growing higher.

Originally, among the Shan Yue tribes,

The only person they could remember was Gu Chen.

Even Gu Xi was not among them.

But now, under the influence of countless Julu commoners, they gradually developed faith in the Gu clan.

Everyone is influenced by their environment, including them.

Especially under current conditions—where hunger no longer threatens life—this faith required no deliberate effort.

Just as in Julu.

No one even needed Gu Yi to suggest it—people spontaneously built a ancestral hall and stone statues for the Gu family's forebears.

Every day, countless people journey to the ancestral halls across the land to pay their respects.

It is these very people who are steadily expanding the Gu family's influence across Lingnan.

Gu Yi paid little attention to these matters.

His focus was almost entirely on the construction projects across the realm, determined to see them fully completed within this generation.

Even the sugar production and Hu Jiao plantations received only brief instructions.

He then entrusted these affairs to trustworthy officials.

Everyone sensed Gu Ye's attitude.

Many officials urged Gu Ye to cease his labors and rest properly.

After all, for the Great Han, he had already done more than enough.

No—

It was not merely for the Great Han.

Under Gu Yi's manipulation, Gu Ye's achievements across the Nine Provinces were no less than those of Gu Xi and Gu Chen.

Whether in ethnic integration or reform of the imperial examination system;

All these deeds propelled the Nine Provinces forward by a great stride—an accomplishment unmatched by any.

Yet whether facing Liu Shen's letters or the officials' pleas,

Gu Ye gave direct answers without needing Gu Yi's manipulation.

"Opportunity waits for no one."

"There are things I absolutely cannot leave to future generations."

With Gu Ye's resolve,

The entire Lingnan region changed almost daily.

Finally—

In the twenty-ninth year of Ganji, October;

As the final shovelful of earth was dug away, a torrent of water surged into the new canal.

A canal linking the two parts of Lingnan was finally completed.

This should have been a cause for great joy—at least, a milestone achieved.

But Gu Ye could not bring himself to feel joy.

The reason was simple—Gu Han was dying.

Though younger than Gu Ye, he had reached the end of his life.

Panyu.

Gazing at Gu Han, barely breathing on his bed, Gu Ye's eyes burned red as he gripped Gu Han's hand tightly.

Gu Yi's heart was heavy too.

He could not save Gu Han.

Gu Han's death was truly natural.

A person's lifespan depends on many factors; one cannot judge solely by age.

If it had been possible to save him, Gu Yi would have done so.

For Gu Han had truly accomplished much.

Beyond opening up Lingnan, he had spent years mediating between Han and Yue peoples, playing a vital balancing role in the early days.

But alas, life and death are fated.

Even figures like Gu Xi and Gu Chen could not defy time—he was powerless.

"Elder brother."

At that moment, Gu Han slowly awoke, his gaze fixed on Gu Ye, voice like a thread, trembling: "I am about to join our ancestors… Elder brother, you must preserve your health—do not work yourself to exhaustion day and night."

His voice was weak; each word trembled slightly.

"I understand," Gu Ye replied, unusually gentle, gripping Gu Han's hand tightly and soothing him softly: "Do not fear. Go ahead—I will follow you soon."

His words carried complete calm.

Though the Gu family's ancestral teachings had been interrupted for one generation, their fearless composure before death had quietly endured.

"Ancestors?"

Hearing this, Gu Han's dim eyes flickered with sudden light.

Then, he gripped Gu Ye's hand in return, his voice gaining strength: "Elder brother… will our ancestors accept this unworthy descendant?"

—Unworthy descendant!

This had been Gu Han's self-judgment for years.

Even now, transformed beyond recognition, his past foolishness still haunted him, impossible to forget.

"Our ancestors will be deeply proud of you," Gu Ye answered without hesitation, firm as iron.

At these words, Gu Han's gaze softened.

He tilted his head slightly, his eyes seeming to pierce through the ceiling beams toward the heavens.

After long silence, he spoke slowly: "Elder brother… have my deeds in this life ever been worthy of the Gu name?"

Even so,

He still doubted himself.

Gu Ye's eyes reddened; he squeezed Gu Han's hand tightly and spoke with earnest sincerity: "Brother, since you turned your life around—"

"You have devoted yourself entirely to family and state, and every act you've done has been for the greater good."

"My ancestors of the Gu clan, look upon me—I am sure you will approve wholeheartedly."

"You have lived your life with integrity, bringing honor to the Gu clan—how could you have any regret?"

A faint smile appeared on Gu Han's lips; his eyes were filled with peace as he murmured, "This... is good... very good..."

His voice grew even weaker, his breath becoming increasingly labored.

"Brother... to have a brother like you is my fortune..." With his last ounce of strength, Gu Han spoke these words, then slowly closed his eyes, his hand slipping from Gu Ye's grasp, and passed away peacefully.

Gu Ye gripped Gu Han's now-cold hand tightly, tears bursting from his eyes and falling onto Gu Han's hand.

The entire room fell into deathly silence.

Gu Ye desperately tried to hold back his tears, but could not stop them.

He wanted to rise.

But in the very moment he tried to stand, he stumbled.

Even Gu Yi failed to react in time.

The next instant—

Gu Ye collapsed completely.

This news sent shockwaves throughout Lingnan and swiftly reached Luoyang.

Although after Gu Yi used the "Instant Cure Talisman,"

Gu Ye awoke that very night.

Yet the news still spread rapidly in all directions.

Gu Ye's influence was too great.

One could say that Lingnan's stability to this day owes an irreplaceable debt to Gu Ye.

Now his body had suddenly failed.

Though Lingnan's situation had gradually stabilized, it was certain to cause massive upheaval.

"General!"

"Brother!"

Seeing Gu Ye open his eyes, Gu Ling and several Gu clan youths, along with Wen Yang and other officers, rushed forward.

Every face was filled with worry.

Gu Ling seized Gu Ye's arm at once, taking his pulse, then a look of surprise flashed across her face.

But before she could speak further,

Gu Ye rose at once and said to Wen Yang, "Wen Yang, send men immediately to investigate all quarters—anyone who dares to stir unrest, execute on the spot!"

The situation had just stabilized; Gu Yi would not tolerate any error in Lingnan now.

"General!"

Wen Yang wanted to say more, but seeing Gu Ye's resolute expression, he held his tongue, bowed deeply, and left at once.

He was no longer young.

Compared to his younger days, he now had far more experience with such matters.

After Wen Yang left, Gu Ye turned again to his brothers and said gravely, "The funeral for Mo Qing must be entrusted to you."

The room was heavy with sorrow.

All were worried about Gu Ye's health, until Gu Ling spoke.

"Brother's body is unharmed."

Hearing this, the others relaxed slightly and soon departed.

"Brother... you are likely..."

After everyone left, Gu Ling's expression collapsed into despair—she felt the weakness in Gu Ye's pulse.

This was the sign of approaching death.

Gu Ye shook his head and said nothing more.

Though his body remained extremely weak, Gu Ye still insisted on appearing before others, to reassure them.

He also swiftly sent word to Luoyang, claiming his health was fine.

But Liu Chen's imperial decree arrived immediately.

This was the first time Liu Chen had been so stern.

He demanded, at all costs, that Gu Ye return to Luoyang at once.

Gu Yi did not interfere.

He was not a heartless man.

Gu Ye had done enough. Now that the final hour had come, he was willing, as he had been when Gu Xiao passed, to give Gu Ye the time he needed.

And Gu Ye's choice remained unchanged.

He submitted a solemn memorial, explaining fully to Liu Chen the reasons and consequences.

He made his stance clear.

If all was completed, and he still lived,

He would return to Luoyang at once—no matter what, he would return, even if he barely made it.

But if things remained unstable,

Dying in Lingnan might be fate.

Either way, he would not depart so abruptly.

This was his declaration.

From this point onward—

It didn't even require Gu Yi's control—Gu Ye himself picked up his old work again, drawing up expansion plans for all of Lingnan, and no one could shake his iron will.

PS: Begging for recommendation votes and monthly tickets~~~

(End of this chapter)