Chiyuan, the living shall go no further, any intruder will have their bones crushed and scattered to ash.
Great Qi Dynasty ,21st Year of Qizheng, Frost Descent*
*18th solar term, last solar term of autumn, during which time the weather becomes much colder than before and frost begins to appear.
A group of cavalrymen wildly galloped on horses along the public road. Both men and horses were utterly exhausted b. Suddenly, the young cavalryman, the one who was riding ahead of them to clear the way, shouted, "The boundary marker is here!"
Not too far away, one could see a vertical stone pillar on the side of the road. The stone pillar was about three or more meters high, and bloody characters of flamboyant and cursive calligraphy were written on it, ominous and threatening: Chiyuan, the living shall go no further, any intruder will have their bones crushed and scattered to ash.
At the front of the stone pillar, a middle-aged general and a row of guards donning spiked armors greeted them. The guards were all lined up, and when they saw the man who just arrived, they knelt down altogether, "Your Highness Crown Prince."
"Shhh----"
The young cavalryman jumped from the horse's back. But he did it too quickly and soon stumbled under his feet. The general hurriedly stepped forwards and held him.
"Your Highness, please be careful."
"it's fine," the young man waved his hand and asked, "My uncle...where is Royal Father?"
Before he had even finished speaking, he heard someone call his childhood name from nearby.
"Xiao Tong'er, come here."
With prestige, the young Crown Prince followed the voice. The voice came from a man who was wearing black attire. He stood alone at the boundary stone pillar with his back to everyone. The young prince glanced at the bloodied words on the pillar and, resembling a young calf who did not fear a tiger, rushed forwards and passed by the pillar. He knelt down in front of the man in black.
"This subject*...."
*He's usingㅁㅁㅁ, how a prince addresses himself in front of his older family members.
The man in black reached out and pulled up the prince lightly to stand up. "Be at ease, you don't need to."
The way this man talked was steady and gentle, every movement had the presence of a deep, high mountain. His side profile might seem aged, but when he turned his head, a youthful face with facial features that lacked the trace of hardships was revealed. It had a somewhat strange incomparable feeling.
Just by looking at the face, who would have thought that he was Emperor Qizheng who had already reigned for 21 years---Sheng Xiao.
He was born with upward slanting eyebrows. The peak of his eyebrows wasn't prominent and his sideburns were inclined up, but the corners of his eyes were slightly drooping, giving out a somewhat tender and sentimental feeling. He was also glowing with health and vigor, seemed absolutely friendly, and had an elegant and upright appearance.
The Crown Prince stood straight and called in a low voice, "Uncle*."
*The prince called himㅁㅁ which means "father's younger brother (uncle)".
It turned out that this Crown Prince wasn't the biological son of Emperor Qizheng. Since Sheng Xiao didn't have a son, he adopted the orphan son of his elder brother and made the nephew an heir to the throne. This Emperor Qizheng's nature was alienated and indifferent; he didn't enjoy being close to anyone. Thus, the Crown Prince called him "Royal Father" in front of the public, but in private, these two men called each other "uncle" and "nephew."
Sheng Xiao said towards the Crown Prince, " Accompany me for a walk. Are you afraid?"
The Crown Prince said," I'm not afraid. When Uncle was young, you suppressed the evil spirits and beheaded millions of ghost soldiers in Chiyuan. Although I'm not as good as Uncle, I do not dare to recklessly say the word 'afraid' and ruin your military prestige."
" Military prestige.... what a vicious name," Sheng " Xiao smiled and slowly walked forward. "Can you hear it?!
The Crown Prince listened with rapt attention. After he listened for a long time, the world was still silent, and he could only hear the sound of the wind. He blankly said, "This subject can't hear anything."
Emperor Qizheng smiled. " Yes, there is nothing."
The Crown Prince looked distracted and suddenly recalled folklore he had heard when he was young---it was said that there were millions of resentful spirits sealed in the fiery sea of Chiyuan and their grievances soared through the sky. Thus, throughout the year, gales blew on both sides of the vast valley, whimpering incessantly. And if one stood outside of the pillar, they would be able to hear the screams and cries coming through day after day.
However, at this moment, he walked past the boundary pillar, safe and sound. All four sides were very quiet, and except for the unbearable sweltering heat, he didn't feel anything horrible.
The Crown Prince thought to himself: Folklore, those are indeed false stories with too much exaggeration.
After walking past the boundary pillar and moving forwards for merely a hundred meters, one could already feel the heawave coming to their face. At this moment, according to the solar term, it was already late autumn. The Crown Prince was only wearing. flimsy clothes, and yet, a layer of hot sweat already came out of his forehead. He secretly hoping glanced at his uncle and restrained himself from wiping it.
People said that Emperor Qizheng who was iron-blooded and ruthless, was a temperamental lunatic. He was born during the bloodbath between his father and elder brother, and was born with bad luck They also said that he murdered his mother, his teacher, burned many books, forbade freedom of speech, liked flattery, loved going to wars, and persecuted the honest and the virtuous.
However, in the young Crown Prince's heart, he was his only family.
No matter what happened, this man always looked gentle and serene and he had never seen him speak in a strident tone or was disheveled. The Crown Prince looked up to this uncle ever since childhood. Now that he had grown up, he was already able to draw the heaviest bow and supervise the country, yet he was still following his back.
When the two men had crossed over the boundary pillar for more than a mile, Sheng Xiao halted his footsteps. The smell of sulfur surrounded the air. The young Crown Prince almost couldn't breathe, but he firmly refused to let it show.
"Alright, that's all for this year." Sheng Xiao turned around, pulled out the sword which was hanging on the Crown Prince's waist, and thrust it into the ground, "You can't walk any further yet, it's unbearable for you."
The Crown Prince didn't understand, "... this year?"
"Yes, this year."Sheng Xiao returned and pulled out the Crown Prince's sword, which was engraved with a protective incantation. The blazing wind of Chiyuan swept across the sword, and the charm on the sword blade became suffused with red. Sheng Xiao inserted the sword back to the ground. "This is the first thing I am going to explain to you, and also the most important: I've been entangled with Chiyuan all my life, and finally, I get some results. If my calculation is good enough, this sword will move forwards five li* every year, and in less than ten years, Chiyuan's fire will be extinguished completely. When the gale dissipates and the sword arrives at the cliff, you can send someone from the 'Qing Ping Division' as a representative."
The Crown Prince looked distracted and vaguely heard another meaning of his words. "Unc... Royal Father, you..."
Sheng Xiao faintly said, " This one * will pass the throne to you."
*ㅁㅁ, pronoun used by emperors to refer to themselves
The Crown Prince's knees dropped to the ground with a thud.
Honestly, the Crown Prince's heart was slightly prepared. As early as a year ago, Emperor Qi Zheng had shown his intention to abdicate. He went on two inspection tours, letting the Crown Prince supervise the country. At the same time, he quelled the disturbances everywhere and methodically paved the way for the future generations.
However, until this day, the young Crown Prince was still confused and didn't know how to do it properly.
"Everything that must be taught, I've already taught you, "Sheng Xiao said indifferently, " Zhang Bo and Kong Yu are useful, Zhao Kuan is still in prison and was accused wrongly. When you go back, release him and provide Zhao family political rehabilitation. The son does not speak of the father* --- in the future, it will do you no good to speak ill of me. Push Yang Dong to step down, that boy is not a good thing. These years, he ate until his brain and intestines were full, and now, in the new year, it's time for him to finally go out. This is my new year's gift for you."
*Shortened version of The Analects by Confucius: "The father conceals the misconduct of the son, and the son conceals the misconduct of the father."
The Crown Prince leaned deeply on the ground. "Royal Father, you're still at the prime of your life---"
Sheng Xiao smiled, " What, are you planning to let me work until I'm old, or even until I'm buried and at rest? Your uncle has been worrying for half a lifetime and it greatly brings me pain -- the imperial edict for abdication, Zhang Bo and Feng Chun each have it in their hands. Old Feng will bring am imperial guard and escort you to return to the capital. He was your father's best friend when he was alive. He will protect you, don't be afraid."
The Crown Prince's eyes were red.
CHAPTER 1 WILL BE AVAILABLE IN FEW DAYS