In the palace, His Majesty the emperor kept himself in the royal study. Right now, he held in his hands his eldest prince"s, Supreme Earth"s, will.
He had read Supreme Earth"s letter, again and again, already memorizing each word and punctuation written inside, committing them to memory. However, he could not bear to put the letter down; he wanted to keep on reading it.
He had the strangest feeling that if he maintained this, his son would not be deceased; it was like his son was still by his side.
The emperor cried, sobbing soundlessly. The floor underneath his feet was already drenched with his tears. His pair of eyes were swollen like two peaches. He kept shaking, calming down only after some time, and heaved a soft sigh.
Pa.s.sing the royal edict, he summoned Qiu Jianhan, Fang Qingtian, and Leng Daoyin to enter the palace for a discussion.
…
"Supreme Cloud has arranged the final battle at Tianxuan Cliff with the Four Seasons Tower. What do you all think about this? Speak what"s on your mind freely. Don"t keep any thoughts or suggestions to yourselves."
In spite of this, the three military kingpins were silent.
"What do we think?"
"What can we possibly think?"
The emperor looked serious when he said ceremonially, "Supreme Cloud is a significant pillar of this empire. He"s the spiritual leader of Yutang, the guardian of the nation! All along, he"s fought at all fronts for the empire. His brilliant achievements were unparalleled. He"s done so much for the empire and today, he"s taken the enemy away for the country and the empire."
"In addition, for the empire, he has never taken offense at the endless wrong accusations he"s suffered. He insists on tearing himself away from any possible political whirlpool. Everything he"s done, he has done for the security of the empire, the future of Yutang…"
"To this day, are we still going to watch Supreme Cloud bear such a terrible weight alone? Are we going to enjoy the fruits he sowed so righteously without any tinge of guilt?"
The emperor questioned sharply, "Are we going to watch unblinking as Supreme Cloud goes to fight for the country alone? How can we a.s.suage our conscience? How can we stay at peace with ourselves?"
"The Four Seasons Tower has never been exclusively Supreme Cloud"s enemy. They"re the enemy of the whole Empire of Yutang!"
"Right now, the few of us already know what many people in Yutang have done in the previous battle at Tianxuan Cliff! Then, can we do something, anything, in this upcoming battle at Tianxuan Cliff?" His Majesty spoke in outrage.
Old Marshal Qiu and the rest of his military colleagues grew increasingly silent in the face of the emperor"s questions. They said nothing for quite some time.
"What can we do about the approaching Tianxuan Cliff battle?"
"Honestly, we want to do a lot. Even if our lives are sacrificed, we don"t mind – as long as we can help Supreme Cloud, even in the slightest!"
"No matter how unwilling and how guilty we feel, though, we can"t do anything."
"Any reckless move now is biting off more than we can chew – it"s futile, it"s suicide. If it"s only a waste of effort or drowning ourselves in the whirlpool, it"s fine. Supreme Cloud may very well be dragged into the mess also just because of our overestimation and mindless actions. That, instead, will make us become a ma.s.sive burden, weighing him and ourselves down."
"Your Majesty, the empire doesn"t even have any martial manpower who can intervene in this battle. Not only will forcing things to happen worsen the situation, but it"ll also become a load that burdens everyone…" Qiu Jianhan heaved a long sigh, resignation filling his breath.
The Emperor closed his eyes, nearly choked by the reply.
"Hear my command!"
His Majesty"s eyes were still shut, his voice devoid of any emotions as he said, "Get Fu Baoguo out of the Fortress of Resilience to standby and follow Tianxuan Cliff"s movements closely so he can back up Supreme Cloud at any time. If Supreme Cloud is at risk, even if the eastern front"s four hundred thousand army has to be sacrificed to a man… his safety must be guaranteed!"
"Your Majesty, do remain calm. Please do not act rashly," Fang Qingtian urged with no small amount of surprise.
"I am very calm right now. This is a decision upon careful contemplation," the emperor said softly, "I must do something. Otherwise, how can I face my conscience?"
The military trio sighed simultaneously, understanding that His Majesty was resolute in his decision and there was no other way to change his mind. All three of them thought that the action was foolish and irrational, unreasonable even; there was simply no benefit to the empire and this could even sabotage the overall plan. In spite of this, what was remarkable was that everyone felt a gush of warmth and comfort within them.
Serving an emperor like this, whatever the end was, it was well worth it. For what could have happened, he could already see everyone"s sacrifice and contribution, and he, too, had given an equivalent response.
This in itself was more than enough!
"At the same time, go and investigate in secret," said the emperor, "I remember when Supreme Cloud snuck into Ziyou for a ma.s.sacre, he… had some sort of… acquaintance with the Unrivaled Swordsman, Jun Moyan…"
"Try everything possible to visit Jun Moyan. Let"s hope that he can a.s.sist Supreme Cloud in this battle. Any terms that he has, agree to them immediately, including for the western line to retreat from Ziyou."
"Your Majesty, how – how can this possibly happen? The western army"s conquest is victorious – completely taking over Ziyou is already an outcome set in stone, lacking but a bit of time. How can Ziyou be given a chance to catch their breath at this juncture? This mustn"t be carried out!"
"Why not? If Supreme Cloud can return safe and sound from the battle, so what if we let Ziyou live temporarily? The Empire of Ziyou is left with the last bit of sparkle now, on its last legs. If this can be exchanged for Supreme Cloud"s life, then this is how it should be!"
"As you say, Your Majesty. It shall be done right away."
"This shall be all for now." His Majesty waved his hand tiredly. He seemed to suddenly have thought of something and said, "Gather up the officials and people to support Supreme Cloud and Nine Supremes and build a monument in Tiantang"s square."
"Let us confer Supreme Cloud as the Holy Guardian of the nation!"
"For years to come, as long as Yutang"s bloodline still rules in the world, Supreme Cloud is to be paid respect first before the ancestors in any major offering ceremonies or national providence sacrificial ceremonies!"
The three military kingpins were aghast from the shock.
This was a very significant edict indeed! This meant that from now on, there was no doubt Supreme Cloud reigned higher than the imperial power.
However, it was evident that His Majesty thought it was not enough. He added, "From now on, Supreme Cloud is a living deity in Yutang! From this day onwards and for eternity to come, he shall be deified by the people and enjoy Yutang"s providence!"
…
During this time, Yun Yang and Ji Lingxi were already out of Tiantang City, leaving towards the south gate.
Bai Yixue and Fang Mofei stood by the city"s gate, looking far and away to send the couple off. Reluctance was painted all over their faces.
"All of you have your own path. Move forward diligently, don"t slow yourself down."
"If you were to keep following me, you"ll lose yourselves, you"ll become my family men, you"ll become my subordinates. However, this isn"t an outcome that I wish to see."
"I hope that each of you will become an independent individual. Each one of you has your own silver lining."
"Each one of you can become a hero of your story."
"I shall become your friend and brother."
"These three rings – there"s one for each of you, leave one for Lao Mei."
"Parting today, maybe I"ll come back. Maybe I"ll leave with no possibility of return."
"Should the fates decide it, let us meet again in the Bound of Universe."