So what? It was just four words. However, after they came from the Emperor's thin and emotionless lips, it seemed to add layer after layer of frost to the royal study. A boundless and endless coldness appeared out of nowhere and froze all of the glass windows, mahogany tables, and green potted plants in the room. It was as if there was a white frost invisible to the naked eye spreading across these things and then spreading out, enveloping the entire cold Royal Palace and turning the cold into ice. The coldness even pierced into the sky, attacking the balls of gray clouds in the distant eastern horizon.
The cloud was like a frightened little animal. Stimulated by this chill, its entire body rapidly shrunk and shivered. Its color gradually darkened, and it had no choice but to squeeze out some of the moisture that was deeply hidden in the clouds.
The wetness condensed into water and rain, slowly falling from the sky. In the gray Jingdou and Royal Palace, everyone who had already woken narrowed their eyes and looked at the cloud in the sky. Only now did they know that the first rain of early autumn had finally fallen. The weather was about to turn cold.
…
…
However, the coldness on the Qing Emperor's body did not oppress the heavens and the earth. There was not a single gap. The color of his thin lips was not very pretty, but there was still a sliver of leeway in his heart. Chen Pingping sat in his wheelchair and looked calmly at the master he had served for decades, waiting for his next words.
If the Qing Emperor had never felt a sliver of guilt for what happened in the past, if there was not a sliver of hidden pain in the depths of his heart, and if his heartless nature was truly at its extreme, then he would be the person with the least flaws in the world. Regardless of who stood in front of this Emperor, they would involuntarily feel a sense of submission and retreat in defeat. They would not look at him coldly like Chen Pingping.
The corners of Chen Pingping's eyes drooped. If the Emperor's heart was truly as cold as thousand-year-old ice, then why did he need to say those words? Although they were the coldest words, they were still words.
The Emperor did not accept that in Chen Pingping's heart, he could not compare to Ye Qingmei. That was why he was truly angry.
"For you, Ye Qingmei is still not a passerby …" Chen Pingping sighed faintly. His eyes flashed past the Emperor's shoulder and looked at the wall behind the royal study. It was as if he wanted to look through the wall until he saw a certain portrait.
His Majesty smiled. His smile was light, cold, self-deprecating, painful, and complicated. After a long silence, he said, "I don't want to talk about the past."
"Why not?" Chen Pingping narrowed his eyes and looked at him. "Do you feel that she is too dazzling and has completely overshadowed Your Majesty's pride, so you have always felt uncomfortable in your heart?"
The Emperor smiled mockingly and did not explain anything. He only said, "Xiao Yezi has never been someone who likes to show his face in public."
"So you also know." Chen Pingping cackled. There was a trace of resentment in his hoarse voice. "What on earth can't you tolerate?"
"I can't tolerate it, or this world can't tolerate it?" The Emperor slowly raised his head and looked straight into Chen Pingping's eyes. Coldly and solemnly, he said, "Perhaps you people have never thought of this question."
His cold voice came to an abrupt end. It was clear that the Qing Emperor did not want to talk about anything related to the past. Even when faced with a companion who had accompanied him for decades, even in such a situation, he still valiantly held onto the piece of underworld in his heart and did not want to touch it.
However, Chen Pingping had returned to the capital to meet his death in order to tear open the veil that had isolated this middle-aged man for thousands of years in this seemingly undefeatable man's heart. He wanted to reveal the wound that might exist in his heart. Only then could he weaken him.
Chen Pingping stared into the Qing Emperor's eyes and said, "Was it the empress dowager's great displeasure, the powerful backlash of the nobility, or your pride that made you make such a cold-blooded and heartless decision?"
The Qing Emperor's face was indifferent. He did not answer his question, but his eyes gradually grew empty. Their focus drifted somewhere. Coldly, he changed the topic. "Then, what made you make such a treasonous decision? You are a eunuch. Do you like women? "
"A eunuch …" Chen Pingping slowly lowered his eyelids. "I said earlier that I would be good to whoever was good to me. I have always remembered her kindness to me. Her death was tragic. Presumably, it was also puzzling. I have waited these decades to ask you on her behalf. "
"Did I not treat you well?" The Qing Emperor's gaze gently swept across Chen Pingping's old face. Faintly, he said, "I have bestowed upon you supreme glory. I have bestowed upon you a position that normal officials would never have. I have bestowed upon you trust. Yet, you have come to ask me because of a woman who has been dead for 20 years?"
Chen Pingping gazed at the Emperor with a not-quite-there smile and suddenly said, "She treated me well like a friend. Your Majesty treated me well like a servant. How can they be the same?"
The Emperor waved his hand tiredly. He didn't want to talk about this question that had no answer. The encounters in one's life were always wondrous, particularly with the Qing Kingdom's former companions. The entanglements between them probably could not be explained even if they talked for three days and three nights.
Chen Pingping continued, "I was only a eunuch in King Cheng's manor, but she never showed any disdain for me because of my crippled body. She treated me sincerely and as a friend. Ah, this is a treatment I have never enjoyed in my life. Not before her and not after her."
He suddenly smiled slightly and said, "Fortunately, Fan Xian is more like her."
In the quiet royal study, Fan Xian's name was particularly ear-piercing. The Emperor, who had maintained his coldness with a powerful state of mind, furrowed his brows slightly when he heard Fan Xian's name.
"I don't want to talk about what Xiao Yezi has done for the Qing Kingdom, the Li royal family, and us." Chen Pingping sighed tiredly. There was no need to talk about the past. It was all stored in the hearts and minds of these companions. No one would purposely remember it, but no one would forget it.
His voice was slightly sharp as he said, "Yes, when you first ascended to the throne, the court was not stable. You wanted to push through new policies, but the backlash was too great. The Overwatch Council I controlled monitored the governance of officials and also caused some instability in Jingdou. Furthermore, the empress dowager was always afraid of that woman who refused to enter the Palace, particularly when she discovered that woman's influence on you was far above hers! That stupid empress had just married you and didn't know why you didn't stay in the Palace every day and instead went to Taiping Courtyard to climb over the wall! "
"Ye Qingmei has helped you. By the seaside in Danzhou, the picture she once promised has gradually unfolded. The old Ye family has already built three workshops in North Min. The foundation of the Qing Kingdom has been firmly established. It seems that she no longer has any use for Your Majesty. On the contrary, she is the most unstable factor in the court. If her picture continues, the Qing Kingdom will not be the Qing Kingdom it is today. Your Majesty, it is impossible for you to allow such a thing to happen. Furthermore, in the process, you may offend all the officials and gentry in the world."
Chen Pingping's eyes narrowed slightly and he said with slight mockery, "If you want to achieve something extraordinary, you need to have extraordinary boldness, but you don't have this boldness. You also don't want to give up everything you already have. As long as Ye Qingmei dies, you can enjoy everything she has given you but don't need to bear any of the dangers she brings."
"A thousand reasons, ten thousand reasons, even if you have countless reasons to kill her because of this throne, this country, and your own ambition." Chen Pingping pressed his lips together and shook his head disdainfully. "But, this person is you. You don't have any right to do this."
The Qing Emperor's gaze remained empty. It was as if he had not heard Chen Pingping's questions that pierced straight to his heart. He only slowly said, "There are still words left in King Jing's manor. Presumably, you still remember them clearly. Although her strange thoughts that deviated from the human heart were beautiful, they were poisonous flowers. Once they bloomed in the fields of the Qing Kingdom, the entire Qing Kingdom would probably fall because of them. As the Emperor of the Qing Kingdom, I have to be responsible for the people. "
"In my life, I cherished that woman the most." The Emperor turned his head and looked coldly at Chen Pingping. "I cherished that woman more than anyone else in the world."
"What does that have to do with the people? Your Majesty and I both know what kind of person Xiao Yezi was. She was never someone who had empty thoughts but no strength to put them into practice. The words she said and the words she left behind were perhaps only things she wanted to leave behind. " Chen Pingping looked coldly at the Emperor. "You, on the other hand, were shocked by those terrifying thoughts. Your Majesty, you suddenly realized that her thoughts were too damaging to this throne. Even if she didn't do it now, the fire she left behind might, at some point, burn this bright but actually rotten chair to ashes."
"Rotten chair?" The Emperor smiled strangely and looked at Chen Pingping. "I didn't think that you, an old dog, would be such a person."
Chen Pingping did not answer. He coughed twice and continued to say weakly, "Your Majesty, why do you have to explain so much? Why don't you just say what you said earlier … You are just greedy for this chair. You have too many lofty aspirations, or rather, ambitions that you want to fulfill. How can you allow someone to jeopardize this process? Going back to what happened earlier, you can't forever let a woman vaguely suppress you. "
Hearing these words, the Qing Emperor was silent for a long time. No one knew if this was tacit agreement or if he was thinking about his most obscure inner thoughts back then. After a long time, he coldly said, "Did she not give me any ambitions or aspirations?"
"Back then, I was only an unremarkable heir in King Cheng's manor. Although I had lofty aspirations, pitied the people's hardships, and wanted to change everything in the chaos of war, what ability did I have to realize all of this and even dream of all of this?" The Emperor said with slight mockery. "It was her, you, Fan Jian, and everyone else who allowed me to walk step by step to the throne and have all of these dreams and the possibility of realizing all of this."
The Qing Emperor's gaze sharpened. His voice became steady and loud as he said sternly, "Since I have sat on this throne, I will complete my thoughts back then. No matter who it is, do not try to stop all of this!"
"Thoughts back then?" Chen Pingping looked at him and coldly said, "Your Majesty, do you still remember our thoughts back then?"
"I know what you want to say, old dog." The Emperor sat on the soft couch. The sleeves of his dragon robe spread out like clouds. A powerful and solemn aura rose from his entire body like a god among the clouds. In a low voice, he said, "I wanted to conquer a vast country and unify the entire world so that the billions of people in the three countries would no longer have to suffer the pain of war for generations to come. Was this not her wish?"
The Qing Emperor's voice gradually rose. He looked at Chen Pingping with a sinister coldness. "It's been a long time since we've had a conversation like today. Only now do I realize that you, old dog, are still a character who bemoans the world. But, don't forget, I am the Qing Emperor. I don't care at all about the agreement back then or what I once betrayed. But, I care about her. I have done everything I promised her. So, regardless of whether it is you or Fan Jian, even if she comes back from the underworld and asks me about my actions these decades, I can look at you disdainfully and say that only I can do all of this!"
Chen Pingping sank into silence.
"She is a mysterious woman, but, in the end, she is a woman. She is very childish. However, I had not thought that you were also childish." The Emperor slowly closed his eyes. Only his thin lips opened slightly. His words were full of coldness. "Governing a country is not like supporting flowers and weeding out weeds. It is not something that can be accomplished by that useless King Jing complaining about himself every day. As an Emperor, in order to achieve a goal, anyone can die. "
"Anyone can die."
"So, she died." Chen Pingping's body was hunched over in his wheelchair. Sorrowfully, he said, "All of the causes of chaos within the Qing Kingdom can die, such as the empress, the Eldest Princess, the Crown Prince, and many others. But, I don't understand. What is the difference between the Qing Kingdom of today and the Qing Kingdom of the past? What is the difference between this world and the world 20 years ago? Your Majesty, you say that you are the one chosen by the world. For the sake of your goal, you can sacrifice everything. But, if one day it is your turn to be sacrificed, will you be willing to do so? "
"I will certainly be the master of the world, the King of the world," the Qing Emperor said coldly. "As long as I exist, the world will be better off."
"It is still an empty title," Chen Pingping sighed. "Your Majesty, you are extraordinarily energetic, and your eyes are as bright as torches. The Qing Kingdom's governance has never been better. But, what will happen after you die? People will always die. "
Shortly after, the old cripple in the wheelchair waved his hand and lightly said, "After you die, even if the flood surges to the heavens, I suddenly think of these words. I suddenly think that this question is unnecessary. Your Majesty, I still overestimated you. In the end, you are just a normal person whose heart and body have been completely taken over by ambition. Regardless of whether you are a Great Grandmaster or an Emperor, you still cannot escape this point."
The Emperor was not angry. He only looked at him and lightly said, "At least the things I promised her back then have been done one by one."
"Is that so? Before I die, can I listen to Your Majesty's explanation so that I can die with peace of mind? Just take it as the last grace Your Majesty has given me. "
The Emperor noticed the glimmer of mockery at the corners of Chen Pingping's lips. For some reason, the Emperor's heart suddenly trembled slightly. Boundless anger rose in him. As an Emperor, particularly one like him, the thing he could not tolerate the most was being ignored or purposely looked down on the achievements he had made in this land.
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Slowly, he said, "I don't need to explain anything to a eunuch like you. After I die, I will tell her one thing at a time."
"Your Majesty, do you have the face to see her after you die?" Today, Chen Pingping was completely different from the past. When a person was about to die, his heart was clear, and his aspirations were strong. In front of the most powerful person in the world, he coldly and harshly scraped at his heart. "I heard that by the Danzhou sea, you once explained these so-called … things to Fan Xian. Are you trying to comfort yourself, or do you want to use Fan Xian to have her, in the unseen world, forgive you?"
These words were light, but they just happened to pierce the Qing Emperor's heart. The Qing Emperor opened his eyes. They were still that strange emptiness, but his face was slightly pale.
"Why would I not dare to see her?" The Qing Emperor was silent for a long time. He then suddenly laughed. His laughter echoed through the royal study. "That year by the Danzhou sea and in King Cheng's old manor, I have already done or will do what I promised her. Everything I have done in my life, are they not things she has once hoped for endlessly?"
Chen Pingping only looked at him coldly.
The Qing Emperor's voice became low. He coldly said, "She wants to reform and root out the evils of the court. Fine, I will do as she says. I will change the reign, change the system, and carry out new policies."
"She said that you must listen to advice, so I granted the Imperial Censorate the right to discuss matters."
"She said that establishing a postal system within the country is of great benefit to business and the people. Fine, I spared no expense in national funds and used the shortest amount of time to build a postal system throughout the country."
"She said that the eunuchs in the Palace are pitiful and hateful." The Qing Emperor glanced coldly at Chen Pingping. "Thus, I abolished the custom of sending eunuchs to each manor and duke's manor, dispersed half of the eunuchs in the Palace, and strictly prohibited eunuchs from interfering in politics."
"She said that a country cannot be rich without commerce. Thus, I greatly supported the merchants and sent Xue Qing to be permanently stationed in Jiangnan to prevent the court from interfering in the business of the people."
"She said that the country would not be stable without agriculture. Thus, I put great effort into irrigation and set up a river transport yamen to repair the long river dikes."
"She said that she wanted newspapers, so I made newspapers."
"She said that she wanted lace, so I painted lace."
…
…
The Emperor spoke faster and faster. His eyes grew brighter and brighter. In the end, he seemed to be moved. Looking at Chen Pingping, he loudly reprimanded, "Whatever she wants, I will do. What right do you have to criticize me?"
…
…
Chen Pingping smiled. It was a very happy and strange smile. He gazed at the Emperor and quietly said, "You said these words very skillfully. Presumably, other than by the Danzhou sea, you often talk to that portrait in the little building. Are you trying to comfort her in heaven, or are you trying to drive away the coldness in your heart?"
The Qing Emperor's expression changed slightly. Chen Pingping slowly straightened his body and looked at him, enunciating each word clearly.
Looking at him, he enunciated each word clearly, "Carrying out a new policy is not a new policy just by changing the year name a few times. Restructuring is also not changing the Ministry of War to the Ministry of Military Affairs and then changing it to the Bureau of Military Affairs. Your Majesty, do you remember what the Imperial College was called in the beginning? Do you remember that there was once a yamen called the Institute of Education? The Tongwen Pavilion? What is the Transfer Office? What is the Transport Office? "
"The new policy is not a new name. It is a new policy!" Chen Pingping's sharp voice was like a whip, striking the Emperor's face. "Restructuring is not a change of name. What bullsh * t new policy! Making the officials and people not know what the yamen is called is a new policy? Are you deceiving the people of the world, or are you deceiving yourself? "
"The Imperial Censorate discussed rumors? In the end, how did it become a lump of mud in the hands of the Eldest Princess of Xinyang? Allowing them to discuss without charge? In the autumn of the fifth year of the Qing calendar, the Imperial Censor of the Left surrendered. Those Imperial Censors wearing brown official robes were cruelly flogged because of Fan Xian. Who gave this order? "
"Not to mention the postal route system! This is a complete joke. Sending a letter costs a tael of silver. Other than the children of officials, who can afford it? Other than feeding a large group of lazy relatives of officials in the courier stations, what use is this postal route? "
"Strictly forbidding eunuchs from interfering in politics? Who the hell was Hong Siyang? An assassin entered the Palace and involves court and national affairs. He is a commander eunuch, yet he has the authority to lead the investigation. Fine, even if his identity is special, then let me ask Your Majesty. When Eunuch Yao goes out, a large group of second- and third-level officials have to bow and make way. What does this mean? "
"The court greatly supports the merchants? The court does not interfere with the business of the people? " Chen Pingping's voice grew sharper and sharper. With disdain, he said, "How can the Ming family have so many shares of the nobility? If Your Majesty does not interfere with business, what did Fan Xian go to Jiangnan to do? Right now, the merchants are nothing more than a flock of fat sheep raised by the court. "
"Building irrigation works and ensuring agriculture?" Chen Pingping's smile became more and more out of tune. "Haha, the river transport governor's yamen is the blackest yamen in the world. I wanted to investigate many years ago, but Your Majesty, you have the heart of an emperor. You know that this yamen hides the connections of half the world's officials. You don't want to shake the court, so you can only allow it to rot. What happened in the end? When the river broke its banks, how many people drowned? How many people froze to death in the winter between the fifth and sixth years of the Qing calendar? Even if Fan Xian and his wife desperately stuffed silver into it these two years, they could only keep it going. "
"There's also that troublesome newspaper and lace." The corners of Chen Pingping's eyes narrowed as he looked mockingly at the Qing Emperor. "The newspaper she spoke of is something to open the people's minds, not some useless dog shit from the internal court. It shouldn't just have the story of me, an old dog. There should be other contents. Your Majesty, do you think I'm right?"
The Emperor's face grew paler and paler until it was almost transparent. He did not hear Chen Pingping's last words at all.
"Perhaps you can convince Fan Xian and yourself that during these years, you have worked hard to do something for the Danzhou seaside and King Cheng's manor. You have worked hard to make up for something and put into practice something." Chen Pingping looked at the Emperor harshly. "But, you can't convince her in the portrait. It's just that she can't speak now. Your Majesty, you also can't convince me. Unfortunately, I can still speak now. "
The Emperor was silent for a long time. His pale face matched his slightly trembling fingers. One could imagine the extreme anger and hatred in the depths of his heart. He slowly raised his head and looked at Chen Pingping. Coldly, he said, "The worst thing I did in my life was when I was still the Crown Prince. I heard her say that the officials of the court needed an independent yamen to supervise them. So, I ignored everyone's opposition and wrote to my father to forcefully establish the Overwatch Council yamen."
"All the more reason I shouldn't have listened to her and let you, an old dog who can't be raised, a eunuch covered in the stench of urine, become the first Director of the Overwatch Council." The Qing Emperor's voice was calm, but there was a boundless coldness in it.
Chen Pingping was silent for a long time. He then raised his head and calmly said, "Even the Overwatch Council, the Overwatch Council that I, an old dog, have guarded with my life for decades, is probably not the Overwatch Council she wants to see."
The Emperor listened to the old cripple faintly say, "The Overwatch Council is an organization to supervise the officials. It is not the strange and powerful secret service organization it is now, particularly when this Council is yours."
Chen Pingping suddenly smiled awkwardly. His eyes stared straight at the Emperor's face. "Do you still remember what was written on the stone tablet in front of the Overwatch Council?"
It was a line of shining golden characters that forever shone in front of the Overwatch Council's sinister and square building. It attracted the gazes of countless Jingdou people. However, no one would ever see these characters clearly. The officials of the Overwatch Council all memorized them clearly, but they did not know the meaning hidden behind these words.
Most importantly, perhaps those people back then knew the full text of these words. Regardless of whether it was the Emperor or anyone else, perhaps they had all unconsciously forgotten this point. In the entire world, only Chen Pingping and the earliest people of the Overwatch Council still remembered these words.
"I hope that the people of the Qing Kingdom can all become uninhibited people. When being mistreated by others, one must have a heart that will not yield. When being attacked by evil, one must have a heart that will not be frustrated. If there is something wrong, one must not have a heart that is afraid to correct. One must not suck up to wolves and tigers … "
These were the words Ye Qingmei left for the Overwatch Council. However, she did not finish. There were two more lines that, for some reason, disappeared into the dust of history.
Chen Pingping gazed indifferently at the Emperor. His dry lips trembled slightly. Enunciating each word, he said, "I hope that each of the people of the Qing Kingdom can become a King. They can all become the one and only King that rules over the territory they call their own."
"Your Majesty, my King." Chen Pingping's gaze carried a burning passion and a stubbornness that he was willing to give everything for.
"From the beginning, the Overwatch Council was used to monitor you."
…
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