Shaojun riding the sea

Chapter 254: Sinner’s Edict

The hall was filled with the scent of sandalwood. It was clearly spring, but there were still several stoves of charcoal burning in front of the bed for heating. The doors and windows were also closed, as if the person on the bed was extremely afraid of the cold.

The man who had been bedridden for a long time and was weak and afraid of the cold was none other than the ruler of Dongmu, Emperor Yun.

He was wrapped in a snow-white fox fur cloak, leaning on the bed, quietly looking at the three people in front of him.

In addition to Yue Wujiu and Shi Xuanling, there was another person who came down from the pagoda today and also wanted to ask Emperor Yun for an answer in person. That person was Yue Hou's first wife, Yue Wujiu's mother, Princess Zhaoyin.

Since Emperor Yun fell ill, he has issued many decrees, hoping that Princess Zhaoyin would come down from the pagoda to visit him. Perhaps it was because a sick person particularly longed for the care of his family, or perhaps it was because he was troubled by the past. In short, Emperor Yun had already issued an edict to exempt Princess Zhaoyin from imprisonment, but Princess Zhaoyin was unwilling to accept the order and leave the pagoda.

Emperor Yun knew that she was filled with hatred, and he also felt guilty. This pair of siblings who used to depend on each other in the palace had now come to this point. It was absolutely impossible to say that Emperor Yun had no regrets in his heart.

Seeing his beloved sister again, Emperor Yun smiled and sighed, "I know that there is only one person in this world who can take you down from the pagoda."

As he spoke, he turned his head to look at the handsome figure beside Princess Zhaoyin. It seemed that he was not surprised by his arrival at all, but heaved a sigh of relief:

"Wujiu, if it is really you, the General Yu of Gumo Country who was a master of military tactics and emerged out of nowhere... If it is really you, I would have known that you are still alive. The little Wujiu who I watched grow up with my own eyes would definitely not die tragically in the cold sea water for no reason. God would not be so cruel to you."

Tears flickered in his eyes, and Emperor Yun was overwhelmed with emotions. He looked much older now, no longer as cold and majestic as before. He just looked at Yue Wujiu and sighed deeply:
"Good boy, you are back, Wujiu, you are finally... willing to come back."

Emperor Yun had actually already vaguely guessed many things. He had been a king for many years and was good at scheming, including the fact that Yue Wujiu had "resurrected from the dead" today and came to form an alliance with him, Dongmu, as an envoy of Gumo. He knew clearly his true intention to see Yue Wujiu. After all, when he executed Yue Baiqing and wiped out the entire Yue family, but saved only Yue Wujiu's life, he knew that there would be such a day.

But if he had to do it again, he would probably still be soft-hearted and would still spare Yue Wujiu's life, so that this child whom he had watched grow up could... survive.

"Wujiu, in fact, ever since I heard the news of your death at sea, I have been unable to sleep at night. I often see you in my dreams, but they are all your childhood appearances. You started to speak, then lay on my back and pulled my beard, and then on New Year's Eve you playfully asked me for New Year's money. Later, I gave you a pony, and after you tamed it, you ran into the palace excitedly and asked me for rewards triumphantly. You called me 'uncle' all the time. In the dream, you were so young and tender, standing in front of me so vividly, laughing and making noises without any worries, but when I reached out to hug you, you disappeared without a trace, just like the countless nights in the past when your father appeared in my dreams but suddenly disappeared. I can't touch your figures, let alone hold... I can't hold your hands."

Leaning on the bed, Emperor Yun recalled the past, his voice like a dream. At this moment, he seemed no longer to be a king, but just an ordinary old man who was lying on his sickbed, nostalgic and sad, longing for warmth.

In the hall, Princess Zhaoyin said coldly: "At this point, my brother still wants to say these hypocritical words, don't you feel that you are extremely hypocritical?"

She gently twirled the Buddhist beads in her hand, raised her head, and her eyes were filled with burning hatred: "If time could go back, when I was young and dependent on my brother, and when I was bullied in the palace, I would definitely tell Yue Baiqing not to lend a helping hand to us siblings, and not to use the entire Yue family to support you, follow you, and support you, because all his efforts were not worth it. It was you who failed him and failed the oath we made when we were young!"

At that time, Emperor Yun was just the least favored prince. He was dependent on others in the palace and was at the mercy of others. He could not even protect his own sister.

During the most difficult and dark time in the deep palace, it was Yue Baiqing who stayed by their side and became their strongest support.

"Why are you crying? No matter how difficult the road ahead is, you still have me. I will never abandon you, and the Yue family will not stand idly by. There is nothing to be afraid of in the open and secret struggles in the palace. It is still unknown who will win!"

The Yue family was a loyal family that protected the country and held an outstanding position in Dongmu, and Yue Baiqing was the most outstanding son of the Yue family at that time. Many princes wanted to get closer to him, call him a brother, and win this great support from the Yue family, but he refused all of them. However, among all the princes who were in great glory, he chose Emperor Yun, who was the least favored and had no hope of succeeding to the throne at that time.

"He chose you, but you betrayed him. You are suspicious, mean, and ungrateful. You are heartless and ungrateful. Everything is yours!" Princess Zhaoyin burst into tears when she recalled her youth. Her hand holding the Buddhist beads kept shaking. She had buried many words in her heart for too long. Today, she could finally pour out this hatred:

"When I was poisoned and silenced in the palace when I was young, you cried and said you wanted to fight for the throne, you wanted to climb to the top, you wanted to make everyone who hurt us pay the price, so Brother Bai Qing followed you wholeheartedly and let you get everything you wanted, but what did you do?"

"It was you who destroyed our brother-sister relationship. It was you who turned evil into evil and took the lives of Bai Qing and the entire Yue family. It was you who grew suspicious and fearful and cruelly eliminated the loyal ministers and generals who had devoted their lives to Dongmu. You broke the sincere oath you made when you were young. It was you who... let down Bai Qing and the entire Yue family. Everything was caused by you!"

The strong hatred made Princess Zhaoyin scream at the top of her lungs, and the string of Buddhist beads in her hand was thrown fiercely to the ground. She had always been patient for Yue Wujiu in the past, until today when her child returned as General Gu Moyu and no one could hurt him anymore. She was finally able to speak out everything, confront her brother face to face, and seek justice for her tragically deceased husband!
Listening to his sister's questioning, Emperor Yun was also very emotional, with tears streaming down his face. After a violent cough, he finally raised his head and said in a hoarse voice:
"I, I did... betray Bai Qing, the Yue family, and now Dongmu is caught in the flames of war, with no generals to use and the country in ruins. If I could do it all over again..."

“There won’t be another chance to do it again.”

In the hall, Yue Wujiu, who had been silent the whole time, finally spoke. His eyes were red, but he still straightened his back, looked directly at Emperor Yun, and said word by word:

"I came to the palace today as an envoy from Gumo. I am not here to reminisce with Your Majesty. We have no old relationship. I just want to seek an answer, an answer that is of vital importance to my father and the entire Yue family."

Noticing that the boy's last voice was trembling, Shi Xuanling, who was originally supporting Princess Zhaoyin, quickly turned her head. She took a step closer to the sword-like figure and quietly stretched out a hand to hold the boy's cold palm.

As if he had been infused with a warm force, Yue Wujiu took a deep breath and continued to look at Emperor Yun, his voice becoming more and more firm:

"The truth. I want to know the truth about the Yue family's treason case. Did my father go to the palace to see the emperor and ask for death? His Majesty knew that he had served the country and the people with an innocent heart, but he still sentenced him to death in order to implement the new policy of reducing the military and consolidate the throne. He also took the opportunity to... uproot the Yue family?"

According to what Lan Yubai told in the bamboo forest at that time, Marquis Yue was deeply loved by the people, and his army was invincible. There was even a nursery rhyme circulating among the people that "We only know Marquis Yue, not the emperor." So Emperor Yun became suspicious, fearing that Marquis Yue would be more powerful than him. Empress Wei's family also fanned the flames, and the situation continued to deteriorate. That tragic ending was inevitable.

"In fact, your father's death is inevitable. I just accelerated his pace a little. The Yue Family Army is becoming more and more turbulent and difficult to control. Emperor Yun's new policy of reducing the number of troops will be implemented sooner or later. The first to be slain will be the Yue Family Army. By then, the army will be in chaos and resentment will spread all over the world. No one can predict what will go wrong. Your father knows this very well, so he can't sleep day and night and is worried. He has to deal with the king above and the soldiers below. He is caught in the middle and suffers a lot. What he fears most is that one day he will not be able to control the situation, and he will be put on a high pedestal by his brothers in the army and have to rebel!"

"So for the sake of the stability of the country, for the dog emperor to sit firmly on the throne, for the lives of countless brothers in the army, and for the people of Dongmu to be spared from the flames of war, he has no choice but to die in order to break the deadlock."

In the bamboo forest that day, Lan Yubai's sharp words are still echoing in Yue Wujiu's ears. He mocked his father for being a great saint who wanted to resolve all conflicts among parties with one person's life in exchange for world peace. However, he did not expect that Emperor Kuang was such a ruthless and ungrateful person. Not only did he kill him, but he also uprooted the entire Yue family!
Even Lan Yubai lamented at Emperor Yun's ruthlessness. He could have spared Yue Baiqing's life, allowed him to retire and enjoy his old age, but he killed Yue Baiqing instead, and took the opportunity to wipe out the entire Yue family without leaving any future trouble. His new policy of reducing the military was easily implemented, and the Yue family army fell apart and scattered in all directions, posing no threat to his throne anymore. The Dongmu kingdom was firmly in his grasp again, and all this was gained at the expense of the Yue family.

"You already know the answer to that, don't you?"

After a long silence in the hall, Emperor Yun finally opened his eyes and looked at the three people in front of him. At that moment, he seemed to have aged ten years.

"It's just that you don't want to believe it, so you insisted that I tell you in person. Wu Jiu, I'm sorry, it's your uncle... who disappoints you."

What truth could there be? Lan Yubai was right. In the face of imperial power, all friendships were in vain and would be completely changed.

Emperor Yun certainly believed that Yue Baiqing would not rebel, but what about the Yue Family Army behind him? They were only loyal to him, and his reputation among the people was so great that it overshadowed him as a king. How could he not be afraid and unable to sleep all night?
He originally sat on the throne with the help of Yue Baiqing and the support of the Yue family. Even if Yue Baiqing had no intention of rebelling, there were always people in the Yue family who were dissatisfied. The Yue family army was even more restless and difficult to suppress. I'm afraid everyone felt sorry for Yue Baiqing in their hearts and felt that he was more qualified to sit on the throne. If he didn't die, how could the Kuang family's regime be stable?
"Your father did go to the palace and asked for death to break the impasse. I couldn't believe it at the time, and my first reaction was to reject him. But he knelt for a long time and we talked all night. It was just a matter of one thought, just a matter of one thought..."

Emperor Yun closed his eyes, his face full of tears, and his voice was hoarse and vicissitudes: "It has come to this point, and it is useless to say anything. I don't have much time left. I am willing to issue an edict of repentance and announce to the world that your father and the Yue family will be cleared of all charges. I was wrong. The thing I regret most in my life and the thing that hurts the most is to issue an edict... to kill your father."