Watching Yun Xiaoyao turn and leave without a word, Qiu Jianhan sighed in melancholy and turned to leave as well.
Leng Daoyin and Fang Qingtian looked at each other, their hearts heavy.
Old Mistress Shangguan chuckled coldly and stared at the rubble of Supreme Cloud's statue for a long time before she stomped her dragon-headed walking stick and left with a smirk.
When the morning assembly came the next day, Old Mistress Shangguan presented her report. She said that the world was at peace, the sea was clear, the rivers were clear, and the nations had come to pay their respects. There was no internal rebellion and no external war. The Shangguan Family wished to resign from the title of a family of generals, relinquish all military authority, and return to their hometown, never to meddle in the affairs of the world again. She had even asked her grandchildren to send her back to her hometown to live out the rest of her life.
The crown heir tried to persuade her to stay, but the old mistress was adamant. The crown heir had no choice but to comply.
The moment the crown heir made his promise, Qiu Jianhan's eyes almost popped out of their sockets. He mumbled unconsciously as if he wanted to say something, but not a word came out. His expression was filled with sorrow.
Old Mistress Shangguan kowtowed to thank the emperor and left the hall, turning to leave.
Until the old mistress disappeared from the hall's entrance, all the civil and military officials remained silent.
Everyone knew clearly that an era had come to an end.
Therefore, the Shangguan Family of Generals that had dominated the world for centuries and shocked the entire continent had disappeared from Yutang's military and Yutang's imperial court!
The night was filled with stars, and the world's warriors respected the Shangguan!
This phrase had become a legend, or perhaps, the beginning of another lie!
Everyone from the Shangguan Clan moved quickly. They left all the gifts bestowed by the Emperor in the courtyard of the old mansion, and kept them in the storehouse. They didn't take anything with them. The only things they took were the memorial tablets of their ancestors who had died in battle.
The few young brothers of the Shangguan Family, who had just begun to come into contact with the military and had just begun to build their reputation, resigned from the court along with their Old Ancestor. There were two who were unwilling to leave because of the crown heir's promise and relationship, but Old Mistress Shangguan ordered them to break their legs and carry them away.
On the day the Shangguan Family of Generals left the capital, outside the southern gate.
Qiu Jianhan and the other military higher-ups had rushed to send them off, sighing.
"Old Madam, please take care of yourself. When you arrive, please let us know so that we can be at ease." Old Grand Commandant Fang Qingtian said with a trembling voice.
"The world is fickle and cold. Everyone, you have a bright future ahead of you. There is no need to let the past linger in your hearts. Once we part ways today, we will never meet again." Old Mistress Shangguan's face was cold. She said indifferently, "I don't dare to tell anyone where I'm going to settle down. If the Shangguan family name ends here, how will I have the face to see my old man in the underworld? How will I have the face to see my ancestors in heaven?"
As soon as Old Madam said this, everyone was silent for a long time. No one stepped forward.
"I used to think that what happened back then was just a coincidence, that it was only the work of those with ulterior motives. Now, it seems that there is no lack of people with ulterior motives. The family of generals is like that, and so is Supreme Cloud. From now on, the Shangguan Family will be the Shangguan Family. We will no longer be involved in the imperial court, nor will we be involved in the disputes of this world. We, the Shangguan Family, are afraid, afraid that we won't be able to keep our last bit of reputation!"
Old Mistress Shangguan said faintly, "If we retreat now, we can probably retreat unscathed. If we wait for a few more days … perhaps the memorial tablets of the Shangguan Family of Generals will be overthrown. This old lady is afraid, truly afraid. "
Afraid!
These two words rendered everyone speechless.
The Shangguan Family of Generals that had dominated the world and intimidated the continent, the Shangguan Family of Generals that had never been afraid of blood and sacrifice, the Shangguan Family of Generals that had protected the Empire of Yutang for centuries, were afraid!
These two words were heart-wrenching.
Everyone was speechless, not knowing what to say.
Old Mistress Shangguan waved her hand. "Take care, everyone. We will never meet again."
"Please wait for a moment. King Yun Xiaoyao hasn't arrived yet. Old Mistress, it's best that you wait. After this farewell, I don't know when … we won't meet again. It would be such a pity."
Old Mistress Shangguan laughed and said sadly, "Yun Xiaoyao won't come. Why would he come?"
Before her words echoed in the air, Old Mistress Shangguan turned and left.
The Shangguan Family's carriage, escorted by five thousand family warriors, left the capital's territory as if it was flying. It was so fast that it looked like there were countless beasts chasing after it.
On the second night, Qiu Jianhan received news that the Shangguan Family had disappeared mysteriously after turning into a forest. There were only thousands of warhorses left in the forest.
Everyone from the Shangguan Family of Generals had vanished like they had evaporated from the world, leaving no trace behind.
Qiu Jianhan's old tears streamed down his cheeks.
"Old Marshal, we've discovered a troop that has been following the Shangguan Family all the way. After discovering that the Shangguan Family has disappeared, the troop has continued to search in the forest …"
Qiu Jianhan ordered fiercely with tears streaming down his cheeks, "Tear this troop and those who are related to them into pieces! All of them! Find out everyone's identity and execute their entire families! Annihilate their entire families! "
…
Old Grand Commandant Fang Qingtian submitted his resignation a few days later.
"This old official is old, I fear that my days are numbered … I only wish to return to my roots, my soul to my homeland …"
Like how he treated a family of generals, the crown prince tried to persuade the old Grand Commandant to stay, but to no avail. In the end, he bestowed the title of Imperial Protector to the Old Grand Commandant, a hereditary title, and approved his resignation.
After the Shangguan Family, Old Grand Commandant Fang's family became the second noble family to disappear from the capital.
After the old Grand Commandant resigned, several hundred of the old Grand Commandant's disciples and soldiers left without saying goodbye, their whereabouts unknown.
A group of up-and-coming talents quickly took over the positions. The situation was calm and did not cause the slightest ripple.
Half a month later, Leng Daoyin's old injury relapsed and he was bedridden. The eldest son of the Leng Family went to the palace to beg the imperial physician. After the physician examined him, he said that the Old Marshal did not have long to live; he had ten more days at most. Leng Daoyin was bedridden, muttering every day, "Go home … go home …"
The Leng Family submitted their farewell and sent the Old Marshal back to his homeland. His eldest son said that Ding You would return after three years, and the crown prince approved it.
The entire Leng Family left the capital then, their whereabouts unknown.
A few months later, it was confirmed that the entire Leng Family had not returned to their homeland; no one knew where they had gone.
The border marshal, Sun Zihu, was assassinated one day when he was patrolling. Three thousand soldiers and four generals were assassinated along with him, shocking the entire nation.
The Empire of Yutang's actual First Marshal, Tie Zheng, suddenly roared after getting drunk one day, "Go and rest! Go and rest! "
It was on that night that the entire Tie Family vanished, leaving only corpses strewn all over the ground. It was written with the words, "Your father is gone!"
According to investigations, these people were the royal spies that had been planted into the Tie Family in recent years.
No one was spared, all of them killed in Tie Zheng's residence.
The crown prince was enraged, ordering the entire nation to capture Tie Zheng. A group of military generals were filled with righteous indignation, requesting for Tie Zheng's arrest. A few of them had led teams to capture Tie Zheng, but they had vanished like the ocean after leaving Yutang's capital city.
The only old man left in the capital, Old Marshal Qiu Jianhan, seemed to have gone senile with age.
Every day, he would order his guards to carry him to the city gate, wrapping himself in a thick marten coat as he stared into the distance.
Watching the people going in and out of the city gate, he would tear up as he watched.
He mumbled, his expression and actions filled with sorrow.
However, no one could hear what he said clearly.
"The Empire of Yutang that was once prosperous has finally come to this …"
Every day, the old marshal felt as if his heart was being split into eight pieces.
"I want to see … I want to see …" He roared, his words unclear, "I want to see how far you all are going to go!"
The human heart was treacherous, it had always been so, be it cultivators, the common people, or those in positions of power, it was the same!
It was nothing more than that!
Perhaps, it was just like the saying went, "In this world, it is fine if anyone is missing, but no one is indispensable!"
Yun Yang had ascended to the Bound of Universe and left Yutang alone, but Yutang was still at peace, ruling over the world and bringing peace to the universe!
The Shangguan Family of Generals no longer interfered with the imperial court, but Yutang's military was still majestic!
Even when Tie Zheng, Sun Zihu, and Fu Baoguo had left, the old marshals were nowhere to be seen, and the officials in the imperial court had been changed, Yutang was still Yutang. It was as if the world had not changed with the departure of these meritorious officials. It had lost its stability, its glory.
Until now, most of the Nine Supremes' traces had been erased from this continent, but the world was still peaceful. There was no war. Even when small rebellions broke out occasionally, they would be over with a snap of a finger, hardly causing any trouble.
At least, the lives of Yutang's people who were gradually getting used to peace and comfort were not affected. They were mostly talking about the heroes of the new generation.
The biggest characteristic of humans was forgetfulness. Especially when it did not concern them, half a year was enough for them to forget everything, much less five or six years.
Furthermore, there were new rumors that kept rising. Legends …
Slowly, there were many different opinions, and all the events of the past were covered in layers of rumors and fog …
Yun Xiaoyao watched everything unfold coldly from the sidelines.
Until now, he still could not believe that the child who had walked out of his home, the intelligent Bao'er, the treasure that Yun Yang had protected with all his might, would actually do such a thing.
He would rather believe that it was his royal brother Yu Runze who had done it, that he was the mastermind behind it.
If that was the case, perhaps he would still be heartbroken and disappointed, but at least he would not be hopeless!
A year before Yun Yang left, he had sent Bao'er to the palace. Including this year, Yun Yang had been gone for seven years.
Could such a drastic change happen in seven years?
What had caused such a change? Was it really that child?
A year and a half ago, Supreme Cloud's statue had been toppled and smashed.
That night, His Majesty came to Yun Xiaoyao's residence in plain clothes and sighed.
"Although I don't want to say it, nor do I want to admit it, that child is truly born to be an emperor. He is decisive in his actions and rarely hesitates," said His Majesty.
Yun Xiaoyao did not say a word, remaining silent.
"Although his methods are too extreme and immature, he has gathered all the power in his hands after all. This is already the behavior of a qualified emperor." His Majesty's expression was complicated.
"If I'm not mistaken, when he's done cleansing the imperial court and the military and completely removed Supreme Cloud's influence, his last step will be to deal with me."
"Although I've given him the power to be the heir to the East Palace and let him be the heir to the throne, I'm not a threat to him at all, and I've even made it clear that I'll pass the throne to him when the time is right and everything is just a matter of time … he still won't be at ease when it comes to me. He's still very cautious."
"Even if I pass the throne to him now, it still won't be enough … Everything will only end when I die!"
"Even if I give up all my power and abdicate the throne to him, I'll still be a threat to him as long as I'm alive. A threat can only be eliminated while it's still budding. Therefore, he will definitely kill me. He must kill me!"
His Majesty smiled faintly, as if he was not talking about himself but someone else's fate.
"So many of your old brothers have been slaughtered, banished, and imprisoned by your heir. Are you just going to watch it happen?" Yun Xiaoyao finally spoke, and his first words were straight to the point.
"The succession of imperial power is inevitable," the emperor said. "A new emperor brings his own courtiers. It's been the case since ancient times, and it's the same now. I've done my best to preserve their lives and riches. This is the limit of what I can do. I can't give more than that. I can't afford to give them anything more."
"A monarch's centralization of power and his words are the law. This is the current trend. I think I've done a good job as emperor, but I'm compassionate and soft-hearted. It's hard for me to establish my authority, which is a great taboo for a monarch. This child is doing much better than I am now. "
"As a loner, he should only have eyes for imperial power. He should be the only one above everyone else. Very good, very good."
His Majesty's words had a strange ring to them. It seemed to be a sincere compliment, but at the same time, it seemed like he was expressing his inner mockery.
"I can kill him. Ever since that day, I've wanted to kill him more than once!"
Yun Xiaoyao said quietly. His tone was as calm as still water, but it was laced with murderous intent.
"Even if I really die, you can't kill him," the emperor said faintly, "Not only is he a qualified candidate, he's also the only heir to the throne."
"From ancient times until now, this continent has never been truly unified. Perhaps, it can be done in his hands. "
His Majesty even had some expectations for this.
This was his lifelong dream.
Yun Xiaoyao remained silent, but his expression grew colder.
"Xiaoyao, you should give up too. If you don't give up, if you don't leave, sooner or later … he'll make a move on you. "His Majesty chuckled bitterly." No one in this world can stop Yu Qiankun now! "
Yun Xiaoyao said coldly, "I only need a swing of my sword to kill him!"
His Majesty chuckled bitterly. "Then why don't you kill him?"
Yun Xiaoyao gritted his teeth.
His Majesty sighed softly. "Now … other than Yun Yang descending from the sky and being able to intimidate him and change the situation … no one else has this possibility."
"It's been almost seven years since Yun Yang left. There's no news at all … Separated by two worlds, it's easy to go up, but difficult to come down. Perhaps he'll return one day, but … we might not be able to see it, because who knows how many years later that will be … "
"Xiaoyao, just like your name, how about going free and unfettered?"
His Majesty said softly, "At least for now, I can still ensure your freedom for the rest of your life!"
Yun Xiaoyao sneered. Lowering his gaze, he raised his teacup. "Send the guest off!"
…
Ever since His Majesty left the Residence of Yun that day, Yun Xiaoyao had never seen him again.
Even when he came, Yun Xiaoyao still refused to meet him. Even when they met, he still did not say a word.
It was obvious.
"You're waiting for death. If you want to wait for death, it's all your business. Don't let me know, I don't want to know."
Yun Xiaoyao knew that the emperor's body was already failing. Yun Yang had cured him after he was poisoned, but it had also left a lingering illness. Now, he would faint whenever he was overworked, and his body was getting thinner by the day. His once muscular body was now less than eighty catties, only skin and bones were left.
This was also the reason why the emperor could not wait to delegate his authority.
He was afraid that he would die too quickly, and his grandson would not be able to learn in time.
Now, however, it seemed that he had learned too quickly …
…
It had been raining heavily for five consecutive days …
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