Chapter 581

Epilogue · The Blooming Flowers on the Path (I)

Spring was still chilly, the cold undispelled.

When the north wind howled, it sounded like the roar of an angry dragon.

Several battles had already taken place on the path of withered tung mountain.

The ground was littered with corpses; blood flowed across the earth, soaking into the soil, and the surviving remnants of soldiers were fewer than one in ten.

A refined young man shouted in fury: "Damn Qin soldiers! You've already shattered our thousand-year lineage—do you truly intend to exterminate us for the sake of those lowly peasants?!"

"For generations, they were our household slaves."

"The contracts are all here! Does the Qin Emperor deny them?!"

The general of the Fire Qilin laughed: "You fool! Do you think you can bind our Great Qin's founding Emperor with the contracts of the fallen State of Chen?!"

"Our Emperor swept the world with Wu Gong, and within ten years brought peace to all four corners."

"This was both heavenly mandate and human effort—who are you to demand that the Emperor's laws yield to your so-called contracts? Have you drunk so much horse urine you still haven't woken up?!"

This general's tongue was like a blade.

The young man across from him could not match him; his face flushed crimson, his fingers trembling:

"In the annals of a thousand years, they will record you as favoring villains and shunning the virtuous!"

Before he finished speaking, an arrow streaked in, glowing faintly, piercing through his mouth, driving straight through his skull, and embedding itself into the mountain behind, eliciting a shriek.

A junior officer lowered his battle bow, his voice cool: "Too lazy to argue with you."

"What dog is barking so loudly, disturbing our peace?"

"You who trade in human flesh dare speak like this?"

"Damn it, doesn't he know the Fire Qilin's archery is peerless?!"

An elderly man with a kind face shouted in anger:

"That was the past! We haven't done such business for ages—can't you just let us go? We've repented, severed all ties with our former ways!"

The general paused, then smiled lazily:

"My past mistakes have nothing to do with me now."

"Ah, I see. I accept that."

The old man, startled and relieved, suddenly heard the twang of a bowstring—then his daughter screamed, following her brother's fate, pierced through the heart, dead instantly.

The general shrugged, feigning innocence:

"That was the me of a moment ago who killed her—unrelated to the me now."

The old man clutched his children on either side, frozen for a moment, then grief surged—tears streaming, rage and sorrow mingling: "Why won't you give us even one path to live?! We've abandoned all our lineage and gold— isn't that enough?! Isn't it enough?!"

"Isn't it said that laying down the knife leads to instant enlightenment?!"

The general replied, puzzled: "Aren't I helping you achieve enlightenment?"

"You're a strange man."

"You keep saying 'lay down the knife, attain Buddhahood.'"

"But when you actually become a Buddha, you're not happy."

The old man's fury, stirred by this, nearly made him spit blood—he felt only that the general's voice was young, yet his tongue… where had he learned such words?

His tongue was like a blade dipped in poison.

The old man, supporting his children, weeping, suddenly roared: "If you insist on exterminating us, then don't blame us! Warriors, draw your weapons! Even if we die, we'll fight you to the end!"

The surroundings erupted in chaos.

A band of riders surged forth—those in front were armored, wielding crossbows. The general's brows lowered; he had already charged forward, snatching a heavy, hundred-fold forged steel battle halberd into his hand.

"I've had enough of these empty formalities."

"Fire Qilin, form battle array!"

"The Emperor's decree: those who kidnap and mutilate the living—kill without mercy!"

Riding the momentum of the horses, he swung forward violently; his aura exploded, and behind him, a thousand elite soldiers' martial force converged—waves surged around him; then, gripping the halberd with both hands, he swept it through the air.

Whrrrrm!!!

The waves spun violently, forming countless tiny vortices.

The incoming crossbow bolts were flung away by the swirling tide.

The next instant, the general had plunged into the ranks of the broken soldiers and once-noble families; as his halberd reached its peak, faint roars of beasts echoed—he fought back and forth several times, and the ground was now strewn with corpses.

Even those on the other side, armored and armed with crossbows, were utterly powerless against him.

These hidden human traffickers had once lived only in the shadows of the world; even if they'd spent fortunes during the previous chaos to buy crossbows and armor, how could they stand against the Fire Qilin, who had swept the world with imperial might?

Most were cut down on the spot.

The rest were rendered helpless, bound, and awaited a harsher judgment—killing these villains wasn't enough; they must be publicly condemned and punished by law to soothe the people's hearts.

Death?

Far too merciful. Far too light.

Within the Fire Qilin, there were methods left by Mr. Hou Zhongyu.

The ability to make men beg for death but be unable to die—was not rare.

The old man was crippled.

He tried to kill himself, but both hands were pierced through.

He could only lie there, no longer the kind-faced, benevolent man he'd been—now he looked venomous, screaming in agony, cursing heaven and earth: "Qin Huang! Qin Huang is unjust!!!"

"You favor villains, shun noble houses—you consort with those filthy peasants!"

"It won't last! Won't last!"

The young general kicked him hard:

"Fuck your mother!"

The general kicked the old man onto his back, his combat boot crushing down without mercy on his spine. He pulled a scroll from his waist and unrolled it casually. "Zhong Lingyi, of the Qianli family. Over a hundred years ago, your family was recommended as a filial and upright man and entered court service. You bribed extensively. After the Divine Martial King assumed regency, you left officialdom."

"On the surface, you're a landowner with ten thousand mu of farmland. In truth, you secretly traffic in human beings and poison the land. Everything you own, everything you've done, has been recorded by Master Xiao Zhi."

"According to the Fire Qilin Army's rules, we must first verify your identity and explain why you're being arrested."

Upon hearing the name Xiao Zhi, the old man's face shifted through several expressions before turning utterly ashen.

A clatter of hooves announced arrival. Someone laughed: "Captain Xue, impressive work."

The general was merely a Captain. He removed his helmet, revealing a face around twenty years old, a scar across his cheek, sharp brows radiating brutality—the raw ferocity of a man who had fought on real battlefields. He raised his brow and said: "The Right Chancellor had already given us the list."

"The Right Chancellor lashes the great families, but even with his schemes, he can only suppress them temporarily. There will always be people like this."

"Having committed crimes, you not only refuse to surrender—you dare fight back against us."

The newcomer was Shi Yunzhou, dressed as a strategist, but with a sword at his waist—a new regulation in the Fire Qilin Army: each thousand-man unit must include one such person, personally trained by General Fan Qing, the former Lieutenant General of the Martial Integrity Marquis.

Their duty: to reform the minds of ordinary captives and ensure no corruption spreads within the ranks. Of course, Captains must keep them under tight watch. These strategists are resolute, but influenced by a certain purple-eyed strategist whose name is not to be disclosed.

Though their Wu Gong is ordinary, they charge the hardest.

Shi Yunzhou said: "We've tracked these people for months—finally, the truth has come to light. But Captain Xue, why suddenly request leave?"

This Captain Xue was twenty, already a Zhechong Captain—rank above Commandant, below General—commanding three thousand troops. Rumor says he came from a merchant family and earned immense battlefield merit during the war to unify the realm.

He personally fought in the battle with Yuwen Lie, which had the highest casualty ratio.

He crawled out of a pile of corpses.

A military officer who earned his rank through merit.

His mouth was sealed and poisoned—no issues whatsoever.

Captain Xue touched his cheek scar, a soft smile appearing. "My she-wolf... no, I mean, my sister."

"She's finally getting married."

"After I complete this campaign and extermination, I'll take leave to return home and visit my sister's husband. This is my gift."

The soldiers were baffled.

What kind of woman would accept the suppression of bandits and human traffickers as a wedding gift?

………………

The Xue family of Yicheng was unusually lively.

Or rather, all of Yicheng was abuzz.

Even the old Shopkeeper of Huichun Hall couldn't help stealing glances. The roads teemed with processions, their ceremonial instruments solemn and imposing. Master Nan Hanwen of the Ministry of Rites had come in person to deliver gifts.

Ordinary families would never observe such a level of protocol.

This was the founding Emperor marrying a wife.

This was merely the first step. The ancient Six Rites still awaited.

Master Nan Hanwen arrived at the Xue residence. Xue Daoyong was in excellent spirits, dressed in ceremonial robes, waiting outside. Only a few knew the old man had not slept for days since learning the Emperor's process had begun.

From the Listening Wind Pavilion, muffled laughter could often be heard.

Rumor says the old man now calls himself the greatest gambler in the realm.

Even now, dressed in perfectly proper robes, meticulously arranged, his mouth kept twitching upward—suppressing, then rising again, over and over, unable to hold it down.

It was as if the force of that smile could not be contained—even by the hundred-year-old chaos-tiger, a Seventh Heaven Master's might.

Impossible to contain. Completely impossible.

Master Nan Hanwen, a man of refined tastes, pretended to see nothing.

He performed the proper rites, presented the formal letter.

After prolonged polite exchanges, courteous back-and-forth, he finally accepted the Emperor's gifts.

These gifts were not formal betrothal presents.

But Xue Daoyong didn't care.

Inside the inner courtyard of the Xue residence.

Xue Shuangtao wore a simple blue robe, a bamboo flute tied at her waist, her hair pinned with a wooden hairpin, her eyes still clear as apricot pupils, her bearing gentle yet resolute.

Madam Qu was measuring the woman for her gown. The woman, still bearing traces of her youthful beauty, smiled with nostalgia: "More than ten years ago, when the Emperor came to our Xue family as a guest scholar, I made his clothes."

"Now I never imagined I'd be making the wedding robes for both of you."

Madam Qu paused, then couldn't help smiling:

"It's rather amusing."

Xue Shuangtao gazed at her reflection in the mirror, reached out, and brushed her temple hair, smiling: "It was his idea. He said our first meeting, the first person connected to clothing, was Madam Qu. So the wedding robes must be made by her hands."

"Even as the founding Emperor, he still carries the spirit of a wandering swordsman. He says this is how you complete the beginning and end—how you reunite with an old friend."

"I only wonder if it might be too much trouble for you."

Madam Qu felt slightly awkward, yet still smiled: "How could it be?"

"To have this chance—this is something I'll tell my children about when I'm old. With beginning and end, I've indirectly taken part in this great tide of history."

She whispered:

"Though the Emperor often says the great tide of the world is made of countless people like us."

"But I'm dull-witted. Only now do I feel even a whisper of that truth."

Xue Shuangtao's fingers brushed the wedding gown—crimson base, embroidered with phoenixes in gold thread. The wedding robes of imperial consorts throughout history had always used real gold thread, extravagantly luxurious. Xue Shuangtao had wanted to decline, but the Qin Huang insisted.

The Qin Huang declared firmly: "I have gold!"

Then he clanged down a jar.

Inside were countless golden beans.

This time, the gold thread on the wedding robes of Xue Shuangtao and Li Guanyi was special.

It was something that had begun more than ten years ago and continued to this day—the gold beads Xue Shuangtao had given Li Guanyi, drawn out into threads after being melted with the fire of the Scarlet Dragon.

Xue Shuangtao's fingertips brushed lightly across those gold threads.

Candlelight flickered on the gold filaments, and in that fleeting moment, scenes of days past rose up one after another; these gold beads were a trace left behind from the very beginning of their story.

They had met at Yicheng, beginning with a Young Lady who knew nothing of the world and a poor, penniless little pharmacist and little money-lover, and from there it had spread and grown; in that fleeting moment, it was as if beneath the firelight, the Young Lady and the Mr. guest retainer of those days had walked onto different paths amid the chaos.

He was the young man who was the leader of a wandering legion.

She was the Young Lady who presided over the Xue family merchant guild.

He was the Qin Wu Hou, who conquered the four directions with Wu Gong and shook the world at fourteen.

She was the Miss whose heart was clear and pure, leading merchant caravans to liaise with the Great Peace army on all sides.

He was the Fire Qilin who trampled the chaotic age beneath his feet.

She was the Changfeng who, for more than ten years, had always lingered at the Fire Qilin's side.

Wherever the Fire Qilin roared, the Changfeng followed as well.

Now, the feelings of these past dozen years had finally, amid raging fire, turned into thread after thread of silk, winding around the two of them.

Just as these gold beads had transformed into gold threads.

A faint smile lingered on Xue Shuangtao's face.

Envy shone also in Steward Qu's eyes.

Childhood sweethearts, two innocent little ones, supporting each other all the way, and in the end still able to remain deeply devoted—it truly did make one a little envious.

But just at this moment, a sudden commotion came from outside.

A maid hurried over, a look of panic on her face: "Not good, Young Lady!"

"Something's happened outside!"

Xue Shuangtao's voice was calm: "What is it? Don't rush, speak slowly."

The maid spoke rapidly, recounting the whole matter in one breath.

Xue Shuangtao raised a finger, and between her brows—

The commanding presence of the foremost intelligence-house master of the chaotic age emerged.

"Let's go."

?? A side chapter has arrived (peacefully)