sbdcsierra Chapter 501 Cause and Effect Reincarnation 21
Chapter 501 Cause and Effect Reincarnation 21
Xi Xun slowly walked forward, knelt down at the bottom of the steps, and respectfully performed the salutation of a subject. He said loudly, "Your subject arrived too late to save the Emperor, causing him to be in grave danger and killed by a traitorous minister. Your subject deserves to die a thousand deaths!"
Upon hearing this, the emperor, seated at the head of the table, paused, staring intently at the person kneeling upright below the steps.
Suddenly, a smile appeared on his lips, and then he clapped his hands and laughed, "Good, good, what a fine story of being killed by a traitor! I underestimated the Prince of Huainan."
Xi Xun had already stood up, dusted himself off, crossed his arms, and looked at the person in the dragon robe in front of him with a calm and lifeless gaze.
It was like looking at a clown.
The emperor sat upright on the dragon throne, his back straight, as if he were trying his best to support himself.
His gaze fell on the plaque above the Golden Palace, where the four large characters "Jianji Suiqiu" came into view.
His voice drifted away, his finger trembling as he pointed upwards, "Ninth Brother, can you do it?"
Xi Xun looked up and saw the gilded plaque with the words "Jianji Suiqiu" gleaming.
He glanced sideways at his defeated opponent on the dragon throne.
Looking up at his third brother, who was only ten years older than him but whose temples were already gray, he felt a strange sadness welling up in his heart.
"I will certainly do it. I will ensure that all my subjects live a good life!"
The man in the dragon robe nodded. "Good, that's good! You are the most talented among us nine brothers. When we were young, our father praised you for your talent in governing the country. I'm the one who took your place."
Xi Xun frowned.
Is this person trying to gain my sympathy?
When talking about childhood memories, do you think I'll let him off the hook?
He hadn't forgotten that this man had formed a clique in the Imperial Study when he was a child, leading his brothers to isolate him.
Doesn't it seem ridiculous to reminisce about it now?
He wanted to say something more, but then he saw the person in front of him slowly stand up, his slender figure swaying.
Dressed in a royal robe, the twelve-tasseled crown on his head jingled as it swayed. His back was ramrod straight, as if he would never bow his head. Then, he grabbed the national treasure sword from the shelf beside him, raised it, and committed suicide.
Blood spread out before Xi Xun's eyes, forming a beautiful flower, yet it seemed to be fleeting, vanishing in an instant.
The entire dragon throne and the golden steps were splattered with blood, like a flower blooming rapidly, breathtakingly beautiful yet sorrowful and desolate.
With a loud clang, the heavy sword fell to the ground. The man who had just been stubbornly refusing to bow his head was now lying motionless beside the dragon throne.
Bright red blood slowly flowed from the mangled wound, down the steps, and reached Xi Xun's feet.
The eyes that had always held resentment and bitterness in my memory were now lifeless, dull and empty, staring blankly at Xi Xun.
Xi Xun was unsure of what to think.
Everything happened so fast that he didn't have time to react.
All the past grievances eventually turned into a sigh, and Xi Xun, dressed in blood-stained silver armor, climbed the steps.
Gu Yao looked at him and suddenly realized that this Prince of Huainan was only twenty-two years old.
His handsome yet cold face remained expressionless as he slowly knelt down and closed the eyes of the last emperor of the dynasty with his hand.
"I will do better than you and Father!"
His voice was indifferent yet firm.
The four characters "建极绥遒" shone brightly.
The edict left behind the plaque also brought an end to this war, which was ostensibly to uphold orthodoxy but was in reality a rebellion.
His elder brother had no children, and Xi Xun had a will, making him the rightful heir.
However, he did something extremely controversial: he declared himself emperor and established his own dynasty, named Da Xuan.
In front of his confidants and family, he declared, "From this day forward, I, Xi Xun, will create a new era, leave my mark on history, and write my name, Xi Xun, at the very beginning!"
His words were arrogant and unruly.
Many of his subordinates opposed him, but he suppressed them all.
Later, he truly kept his promise.
After ascending the throne, he worked diligently to govern the country, develop agriculture, and build water conservancy projects, enabling the people to live and work in peace and contentment, and greatly restoring the livelihood of the people.
In the fifth year of Cheng Yu's reign, the Xiongnu invaded the border of Da Xuan. Xi Xun personally led a large army deep into Xiongnu territory and won a great victory!
They marched all the way to the capital of the Xiongnu, forcing them to sign a peace treaty and pay tribute to the Great Xuan every year.
It laid the foundation for a century of peace for the Great Xuan.
In the ten years since the founding of the dynasty, Xi Xun has completely eradicated the powerful clans, established the imperial examination system, and set up schools, giving those from poor families the opportunity to serve in the court and realize their ambitions.
He dedicated his life to the country and its people, working tirelessly until his death at the age of fifty due to overwork.
He married only one woman in his life and had two sons.
After Xi Xun's death, his eldest son succeeded to the throne, while his youngest son was enfeoffed as the Prince of Huainan.
After the palace coup, Gu Yao chose to settle down in Chang'an.
The previous rulers were incompetent, and one of them was particularly fond of studying the path to immortality, which led to a decline in the overall social atmosphere.
Unrestrained and free-spirited, indulging in unrestrained and extravagant behavior.
There are quite a few men who are attracted to homosexuality.
Although it's not something that's commonly seen in the open, it's not a big deal either.
In the back alleys of the city, he and Shen Juan opened a pastry shop, among which osmanthus cake was the most famous.
They live like ordinary residents, working from sunrise to sunset every day.
Gu Yao's favorite thing to do was to steal money earned at home and go to teahouses to listen to storytellers, who mostly told tales of the current emperor's heroic deeds.
He got so excited that he casually gave away half a month's earnings from the pastry shop as a tip, which made him known to everyone in the teahouse.
They also knew that the owner of the Shen family's pastry shop was a very fierce person.
Here we go again.
"Gu Yao, what brings you to the teahouse again? Did you get some money again?"
Then a handsome man stormed in.
At times like this, the young master Gu would always smile and take the rolling pin from his hand, put his hands together, and say, "Madam, please keep your voice down, give me some face, please be kind."
Then he pulled the person towards the private room.
The familiar customers in the lobby would joke, "Hey, Mr. Gu, did your wife find out you've been secretly hiding money again?"
At such times, Gu Langjun's wife would always glare at him.
Without turning his head, Gu Langjun replied, "This is my only hobby. My wife at home is very strict with me, so I always have to find a way to manage it."
The hall erupted in laughter once again.
Meanwhile, the wife of that young master Gu was angrily dragged into a private room.
The two would sit until sunset, then chat and laugh as they walked away together.
Over time, everyone in the West Alley knew that the young master of the Gu family was afraid of his wife.
People would often tease Gu Yao about this, but the gentle-faced young man would always just smile and say, "My wife is naturally the best in the world."
On the day Xi Xun died, Gu Yao and Shen Juan also regained their appearance and left Chang'an.
Lying on the oxcart, Gu Yao, with a blade of grass in his mouth, looked up at the blue sky, leaned against the straw, covered himself with his straw hat, and fell asleep.
Meanwhile, Shen Juan, dressed in coarse linen clothes, drove the oxcart expressionlessly, glancing sideways at the young man who was fast asleep.
The afternoon sun was blinding, and the straw hat had gradually slipped off. Gu Yao frowned impatiently, as if the sunlight had disturbed his peaceful dream.
Shen Juan sighed helplessly, pulled the straw hat back up, placed the insect-repellent sachet next to Gu Yao, and then turned back to drive the oxcart.
Their next stop on their journey around the world is Jiangnan.