Chapter 13: Heaven and Earth Mourn, Gu Xiao Dies

When the news spread that Gu Chen had been expelled from the Gu family for violating Gu family rules, all of Hebei trembled.

Everyone stared in shock, none having anticipated that Gu Xiao would make such an absolute decision.

Gu family rules?

How strict could they possibly be, to make Gu Xiao abandon his own younger brother?

And wasn't the Gu family only just beginning to rise?

How could they even have family rules like these?

No one could fathom why the Gu family would do such a thing, for in their eyes, the Gu family's foundation was still too weak—this move was clearly digging its own grave.

Yet when the ironclad facts lay before them, all could only reluctantly accept it.

What followed was the usual tactic of the great clans.

But with the examples of those officials before them, who now dared to accept bribes?

Gu Xiao now stood firm in Hebei, his presence terrifying.

Who would dare to be arrogant before the First Merit of the founding dynasty?

And now Gu Xiao had even cast out his own younger brother—if anyone were caught taking bribes after this, the consequences could not help but make the officials arriving in Hebei think long and hard.

Some things, once done, must be paid for.

And these people had made their choices clear.

For a time, land surveying in Hebei became stricter than ever.

No one knew whether this was Liu Xiu's demand.

The first to be targeted was Prince Liu Yang of Zhen Ding.

The old prince still hoped to use his old tricks to weather this crisis, but as the most obvious target, no one dared risk helping him.

And he could no longer endure such torment—he died suddenly in his home.

Then came the great clans of Hebei.

Those who submitted and surrendered their interests fared better; any family attempting other methods suffered absolute purge.

The entire land of Hebei shook violently.

Sorrow echoed everywhere.

In response to these great clans' backlash, Liu Xiu's methods were direct.

Anyone daring to rebel would be executed on the spot;

all others who did not rebel but sought to bribe officials would be relocated to other commanderies, severed from all ties to their original regions.

Gu Yi had guessed correctly—Liu Xiu's move was to strip the great clans of the empire down to their bones!

But all of this was now unrelated to the Gu family.

Let the outside world rage and churn—the Gu family watched from the sidelines, looking down upon it all.

From that day forward, Gu Yi devoted himself entirely to the internal affairs of the family.

Beyond daily education, he began studying what rules the Gu family's code should contain.

Gu Yi did not intend to make every Gu family disciple a sage.

After all, the court was treacherous and complex; overly rigid "sages" were easily manipulated by others.

He aimed to establish a precise balance.

He wanted Gu family disciples to have moral flexibility, yet hold fast to an unbreakable bottom line.

—Never harm the people for personal gain.

This was the first ironclad law of the Gu family code: anyone who broke it, regardless of status, would be immediately expelled.

The same applied to abuse of power.

Gu Yi did not want a member of the family who might rebel at the slightest provocation.

Even if such a rebellion succeeded, the entire Gu family's main line would likely be wiped out with the fall of the dynasty.

That was a cost Gu Yi could not bear.

Beyond that, there were other requirements regarding virtue.

Of course, these requirements were nowhere near as severe as the punishment for harming the people.

Moreover, Gu Yi strengthened the family's core philosophy.

That was: do not strive for one generation, strive for ten thousand.

Gu Yi wanted every family disciple to strive toward this goal, repeatedly emphasizing it to Gu Kang and Gu Sheng.

Although Gu Yi did not know whether this would truly have any effect.

But these were things he had to prepare.

Once the family code was finalized, Gu Yi gradually shifted his focus to other matters.

He still did not know how to earn achievement points, but based on past game experience, he had some ideas.

So he began manipulating Gu Xiao to carry out a series of experiments, also preparing for the family's future.

First—agriculture.

Gu Yi told Gu Kang many details about modern agricultural practices.

These practices were common knowledge to modern people, but for the Han dynasty of this era, they were exceedingly precious.

He often deliberately took Gu Kang and Gu Sheng to the fields to observe farmers at work.

He spoke to them about theoretical knowledge, and offered guiding remarks like how tools might be improved.

Gu Sheng showed little interest; though younger than Gu Kang by a year, his physique was already larger, thanks to his extraordinary martial prowess.

But Gu Kang listened carefully.

Especially as he grew older, the things he could consider became increasingly numerous.

Faced with Gu Yi's theories, he would sometimes look enlightened, sometimes sink into prolonged contemplation.

Of course, Gu Yi would not abandon Gu Cheng.

In addition to having Gu Xiao teach him martial arts, Gu Yi was also instilling in him knowledge from modern military training.

Gu Yi would never pull up seedlings to help them grow.

That would only have the opposite effect.

The second generation of the Gu family was the core of the entire clan's development, allowing no negligence.

These experiences had all been tested by Gu Xiao during his military drills in She City.

Improved obedience was crucial in an era still dominated by melee weapons.

Meanwhile, Gu Yi was also compiling books for the family, documenting technologies feasible in the current age.

For example—woodblock printing.

Gu Yi planned to test this: beyond guiding family members to explore on their own, if he left behind clear technological knowledge for descendants to comprehend and complete, would it grant achievement points?

Dual approaches, in a way, served as Gu Yi's safeguard for his future ability to regain control.

As for leaking future events, Gu Yi left not a single hint.

The Gu family's sudden emergence had already altered the current history.

How would the future unfold?

Who could be certain?

Rather than leaving behind so-called future matters to mislead the family members, it was better to strengthen the overall quality of the Gu family and develop steadily.

Of course, Gu Yi would not focus solely on internal development.

Gu Xiao sent letters to Liu Xiu every month, and Liu Xiu occasionally sent letters back to Gu Xiao.

Precisely because of this, Gu Xiao's title of "First Favored Minister" did not fade with time; instead, it grew even louder.

At the same time, Gu Yi was carrying out activities throughout the fiefdom under the Gu family's name.

He repaired water conservancy projects to aid the people and, in alignment with the imperial tax policy, reduced taxes for farmers in the fiefdom at the earliest opportunity.

In addition, Gu Yi established private academies; unlike other great clans that restricted enrollment to their own kin, the Gu family's academies were open to outsiders.

These actions were not considered major events in the current era.

But for the future—

Gu Yi believed they would certainly become one of the Gu family's trump cards.

And days slipped away quietly amid these undertakings.

The good news was that Gu Xiao had another pair of children, but unfortunately, compared to Gu Kang and Gu Cheng, their attributes were extremely ordinary.

They possessed no standout traits, falling squarely within the range of normal people.

Yet Gu Yi did not reduce his cultivation efforts for them in the slightest.

After a series of suppressions, the implementation of the Land Survey Edict had become an irreversible fact.

Liu Xiu's methods proved exceptionally effective.

After a brief period of turmoil, the entire Han Dynasty seemed reborn, radiating a revitalized spirit.

"Cattle and horses graze freely; gates of towns remain unbarred!"

This scene vividly demonstrated the extraordinary effectiveness of Liu Xiu's policies.

Especially after the Imperial Academy students sang his praises, the Han Dynasty now truly exhibited signs of a golden age.

And once the situation stabilized completely, development proceeded exactly as history had recorded.

In the twentieth year of Jianwu, seventh month;

—Crown Prince Liu Qiang voluntarily relinquished his position as Crown Prince; Liu Xiu enfeoffed him as King of Donghai and appointed Liu Zhuang as the new Crown Prince.

Legally speaking, replacing the Crown Prince would stir massive upheaval in any dynasty.

But in today's Han, this event caused no commotion.

After Gu Shengtong was deposed, unless Liu Xiu suddenly died, Liu Qiang's fate had already been sealed.

After so many years, Liu Qiang now had no supporters left.

What kind of disturbance could a Crown Prince without foundation possibly cause?

And Liu Xiu had not forgotten his promise.

The following year, he arranged the marriage between Princess Yuyang, Liu Li, and Gu Kang, the eldest son of Marquis Guan Jun, Gu Xiao.

The moment this news spread, the entire world was stunned!

Faced with Gu Xiao's soaring prominence, everyone assumed he could at best be a minister of one reign—how could his descendants possibly be favored as much as he was?

But now—his son had become betrothed to the Crown Prince's own sister.

Who could not be astonished?

At once, Gu Xiao's title of "First Favored Minister" reached its absolute peak.

And this wedding was destined to be extraordinarily grand.

From the court ministers down to the great clans across the land.

Especially the Hebei great clans who had gradually distanced themselves from the Gu family due to the Land Survey—they all prepared lavish gifts, eager to reestablish ties with the Gu family.

Facing these treasures, Gu Yi directly selected the most valuable ones and placed them in the Gu family's treasure vault.

This vault had been established when Gu Xiao first arrived in Hebei.

Now, the vault was filled with countless priceless artifacts.

Of course, Gu Yi evaluated them by modern standards, selecting mostly items of special significance.

Though remarkable in the Han, these items brought little practical benefit.

But for the modern era, they were entirely different!

For instance, the original scroll of Liu Xiu's enthronement still bore his imperial seal, and even the imprint of the Imperial Jade Seal—later added by Gu Xiao at Liu Xiu's request.

In addition, Gu Yi had placed every single letter Liu Xiu ever sent into it.

Gu Yi did not know how much of these items would remain as time passed.

But how could he care about so much?

Even if just one of these items survived, it would be a national treasure.

During this time, Liu Xiu had sent Gu Xiao multiple letters, urging him to return to Luoyang.

But unfortunately, Gu Xiao was truly old.

As his age advanced, he, like most generals of this era, saw his hidden ailments erupt one by one.

In just a few months.

Gu Xiao went from a robust middle-aged man to bedridden.

When Liu Xiu heard this news, he immediately dispatched dozens of imperial physicians.

But unfortunately, Gu Xiao seemed to have truly reached his end.

Julu.

Looking at Gu Xiao on his bed, all four of his sons had red-rimmed eyes.

Parting in life and death has always been profoundly painful.

"Father, your body—"

Gu Kang, as the eldest son, knelt at the front, his voice trembling slightly, unwilling to tell Gu Xiao the physicians' diagnosis.

But Gu Xiao, as if he had long known the outcome, calmly took up the thread: "I'm dying?"

"Father—"

All of them burst into tears, especially Gu Ling, the girl, who wept aloud.

"Why are you crying!"

Gu Xiao weakly rebuked, his face showing no trace of fear at the approach of death: "My life has no regrets."

"But I must still give instructions regarding my affairs after death."

Perhaps due to a final surge of vitality, Gu Xiao's voice gradually regained strength.

"I, Gu Xiao, lived as a hero; I care nothing for what comes after death."

"Therefore, my funeral must be simple."

"You need not grieve excessively."

"Life and death are ordained; if my Gu clan truly endures for ten thousand generations, I shall rest in peace beneath the earth."

"Tell Your Majesty not to grieve for my death and harm his imperial health."

"."

He quietly gave all these instructions.

Gu Yi had been watching all of this, his emotions complex, making no interference.

Though to him it felt like watching a film he could control, this was still his own ancestral elder.

The final moments with his sons.

He must leave them to himself.

As time slowly passed, Gu Xiao's voice grew weak once more.

Gu Kang, Gu Sheng, and the others realized what was coming, and could no longer hold back their tears.

And just as Gu Xiao began to close his eyes.

Gu Yi felt the scene before him grow increasingly blurred; the sensation that he could control it at will gradually faded.

At the very moment Gu Xiao shut his eyes.

The entire scene suddenly sharpened.

But unlike before—he had lost Gu Xiao's first-person perspective.

The feeling of being able to control everything with a thought vanished completely.

He had truly become a mere observer.

He could only silently watch events unfold, unable to change a single thing.

【The character you merged with has died.】

【As this character was operated by you, no achievement points have been awarded.】

The game prompt instantly appeared.

"Is it over..."

Gu Yi sighed deeply at the prompt, his heart filled with mixed emotions.

But before he could react, the scene before him suddenly shifted.

The sky changed abruptly!

Everything before him darkened gradually; Gu Yi merely thought, and instantly saw the outside world.

The once-clear sky was now rapidly darkening.

The brilliant sun was being slowly devoured by darkness.

It was an eclipse!

—— Jianwu 25th year, third month.

Marquis Gu Xiao passed away; heaven and earth mourned together—the daylight vanished.

—————————

"Compared to the common belief that Wang Mang was the sole time-traveler, in my view, if time travel truly existed, Marquis Gu Xiao was the only one."

Whether it was following Liu Xiu at the Battle of Kunyang, or later retreating to Hebei and launching a surprise attack on Handan,

Even the trait most criticized today—his disregard for family ties—can be seen as wise, judging by the later development of the Gu clan.

His life was legendary: rising from a commoner to Duke of Guanhan in the Eastern Han, laying the foundation for the Gu clan.

He consistently made choices most beneficial to his era.

Throughout his life, he seemed never to have made a major mistake. 」

— Reflections on "The Gu Clan Annals: Biography of Xiao Gong."

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(End of Chapter)