I heard that some friends don't like the dialogue in these chapters. I'm sorry, the beginning of this chapter is still dialogue. I won't stop until the words between the Qing Emperor and Fan Xian are all said and done. I've written this story for a year and a half. Isn't it just for this to be said and done at the end? Oh, right, after reading this chapter, give me some monthly votes. It was really hard to write. This is not a lie. If I drag it out, unless I want to drag myself to death …
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At night, the little building was brightly lit. Numerous eunuchs and serving girls surged in from all over the abandoned garden like magic. All kinds of dishes, fruit trays, and pots flowed into the pavilion. The Emperor and Fan Xian chatted happily as they ate and chatted downstairs. That woman, the woman who stood between the Emperor and Fan Xian in the history of the Qing Kingdom, sat quietly on a piece of paper in the room on the second floor, watching everything calmly.
What should have been the beginning of a battle had become the last dinner between father and son. Fan Xian knew this and accepted it. A battle between two people could not be fought by one person. Since he had already endured for so long before making such a brave and ruthless decision, what difference would another night make? More importantly, it was just as the Emperor had said earlier when he easily broke through the situation and left. Since this was a battle between two people, then there had to be some time left for the Emperor to do what he had already tacitly agreed to Fan Xian.
Would one night be enough time?
"Your Majesty, Ruoruo has come to bid farewell to you," Eunuch Yao said respectfully with his head lowered as he stood below the little table.
"Let her come in." The Emperor smiled slightly and glanced at Fan Xian, meaning to say, "Naturally, I will do what I promised you."
A slightly cold wind swirled the snowflakes into the building. A woman like ice and snow entered with the wind. Her steps were steady, and her expression was calm and unchanging. She bowed slightly in front of the Emperor. It was Fan Ruoruo.
After bidding farewell to the Emperor, this woman, who had been under house arrest in the Palace for many months, slowly turned around and looked calmly at her brother. Gradually, a faint moisture appeared in her eyes.
Fan Xian stood and smiled slightly as he shook his head. "Don't cry."
Fan Ruoruo did not hide it. She firmly bit her lip and forced a smile. "Brother, long time no see."
It had indeed been a long time. Ever since Fan Xian had gone to Dongyi, the two of them had not seen each other. After Fan Xian returned to the capital, he had only seen that early autumn rain. At that time, Fan Ruoruo had already been under house arrest deep in the Palace as a hostage.
Fan Xian walked forward and gently wrapped his arm around his sister's thin shoulder. He hugged her and said quietly by her ear, "Be good in the future and show more filial respect to father and mother." As he said these words, Fan Xian felt that time had turned back. The icy woman in front of him seemed to be a little girl who could not even speak clearly in Danzhou many years ago.
Fan Ruoruo made a sound of assent and then left. She knew why the Emperor had allowed her to enter the Palace today. It must be because her brother and the Emperor had reached some kind of agreement. She trusted her brother's teachings and arrangements the most in her life. She did not have any doubts. She only calmly and silently accepted all of this.
The Emperor and Fan Xian paused at the same time. It seemed that they had not expected the Third Prince to appear here at this time. They also did not expect that Shufang Palace would not be able to stop this youth.
The Third Prince walked into the building and bowed toward the Emperor and Fan Xian. In a muffled voice, he said, "Greetings, father. Greetings, sir …"
Miraculously, the Third Prince turned and left after saying these words, not caring about any etiquette or rules at all. He left the Emperor and Fan Xian, who had sunk into silence.
The two of them had seen clearly the Third Prince's expression earlier. They both saw that the rims of his eyes were already red. Presumably, he had already cried outside the building. The Emperor looked at the empty ground. After a moment of silence, he suddenly smiled with a complicated expression. There was a faint sense of loss, but there was also a glimmer of admiration that could not be hidden.
The Emperor looked at the empty ground. After a moment of silence, he suddenly smiled with a complicated expression. There was a faint sense of loss, but there was also a glimmer of admiration that could not be hidden. Li Chengping had come to this little building to see Fan Xian off. This kind of affection and courage was very much in line with the Emperor's personality.
"Not bad, right?" Fan Xian asked.
"You've taught them well. That's what I've always admired about you. I've never seen you treat them well, but regardless of whether it's the officials in the court, your subordinates, or even my sons, they all seem to be willing to stand on your side," the Emperor said.
Fan Xian was silent for a moment. He then replied, "That is probably because I have always treated them equally."
Eunuch Yao walked into the little building for the third time. Calmly, he said, "Someone outside the Palace has delivered the manuscript that Sir Fan junior needs and … a sword."
The sword was the Wei Emperor's sword. It was quietly placed on the table in front of Fan Xian. The manuscript was a list of the He faction's crimes written by former members of the Overwatch Council. It was to be used by the Emperor to announce edicts in the future.
Eunuch Yao stood in front of the Emperor and calmly described what had happened outside the Palace. The internal court had a number of spies in Jingdou. There was no need to make any special inquiries to know about the chaos that had been stirred up in Jingdou.
The Imperial Censorate's Imperial Censorates were kneeling in the snow outside the Palace and crying endlessly, asking the Emperor to severely punish this heinous criminal. Fan Xian was not a homicidal maniac. The lives that had died in Jingdou were all the backbone of the He faction. As for the pedantic Imperial Censors, they were still alive and well.
Other than these Imperial Censors, the civil officials of the various ministries and temples in Jingdou also began to communicate in secret, preparing to exert pressure on the Palace. All of this was because the court system had been shaken by the massacre that happened today and felt boundless terror, so they had to stand out.
Fan Xian entered the Royal Palace through the Hall of Governmental Affairs. Many court officials were waiting outside the Royal Palace. They were waiting for the Emperor's edict. A day had passed, and it was already nightfall. The Royal Palace was still silent. The officials began to feel angry and afraid. Did the Emperor still think of the relationship between father and son and not punish Fan Xian after he had done so many heinous and bloody things?
It was precisely because of the peace in the palace and the worry of the ministers that the imperial censors once again kowtowed outside the palace.
The wind and rain were coming, and the pressure was great. The mountains were about to collapse, and the lakes were about to surge.
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Eunuch Yao's report did not change the atmosphere in the little building at all. Regardless of whether it was the Emperor or Fan Xian, neither cared about the pressure of the court officials. Furthermore, after tonight, one of the father and son would have to give some sort of explanation to the world.
The Emperor smiled and raised a cup of wine to slowly drink. He then brought up a topic that the two of them had not touched on before. "If you die and stay behind, will you be able to control the group of madmen under your command? If you can't, why did I promise to let them live? "
"Because you have to gamble that my words can control them. Otherwise, if the world falls into chaos, it will not be a scene you want to see."
The Emperor's finger gently spun the wine cup. Narrowing his eyes, he said, "Are you not worried that if I kill you, I won't do what I promised you?"
Fan Xian lowered his head slightly. After a moment of silence, he calmly said, "The Emperor's words cannot be taken back by four horses."
"Four horses … not one horse," the Emperor smiled and said. "It's four horses. Your mother said this strange phrase in the past, so I remember it. I just didn't think you would also know. "
The Emperor then sighed and said, "In today's world, if the person I was facing was not you but your mother … no matter what, I would not give her the right to a fair battle."
Fan Xian said mockingly, "Back then, you indeed did not give her any fairness to speak of."
The Emperor shook his head and coldly said, "I did not give her such a right because I knew she would never use the world to threaten me. Using the world as a bargaining chip is throwing all the people in the world into the casino. She was unwilling to do so, but I was willing to do so."
"I was willing to use the lives and deaths of the people in the world to threaten you," Fan Xian replied calmly. "This is the difference I spoke of earlier."
The Emperor shook his head again and said, "That is why I still do not understand. Since you love this country and care for the people in the world, how can you use this to threaten me?"
"First, I have to love the people by my side. Furthermore, I have always been a shameless and afraid of death. If I am truly forced to a dead end … Of course, this dead end does not just refer to me … I do not mind dragging the entire world and Your Majesty's lofty aspirations down with me." Fan Xian lowered his head and said, "Actually, I have been waiting for someone this entire time. However, that person never comes back. I have no choice but to risk my life myself."
The words "risk my life" were spoken with a wretched and helpless tone. However, the Emperor's eyes gradually lit up. He knew who Fan Xian was waiting for. In the Emperor's view, in the present world, only that person could threaten his life and rule. Ever since the bloody case in Taiping Courtyard many years ago, he had always been faintly wary of that person's existence. He had even sent the last emissary the Temple had sent to the alley beside Fan manor.
Even so, Wu Zhu still did not die.
"He won't come back." The light in the Emperor's eyes gradually faded. Slowly, he said, "It's been three years. If he wants to find out who he is, he can only go to the Temple. If he truly returns to the Temple, how can he come out again?"
Fan Xian nodded and accepted this reality with some sorrow. If Uncle Wu Zhu was still connected to this land, he would not be so passive in front of the Emperor, to the point of threatening to take him down with him.
"Back then, how did you make the Temple stand behind you?" Fan Xian furrowed his brows and looked at the Emperor. This was one of the great questions in his heart.
"I have never been to the Temple. After spending a long time with your mother, I know that the Temple is actually a place that is gradually declining and desolate. The Temple has never cared about the affairs of the world. This is true. " A mocking smile rose to the corners of the Emperor's lips. "However, the Temple has always quietly influenced this land. Unfortunately, I am a person of the world. They cannot do anything to me. However, your mother and Lao Wu are people of the Temple. This small difference is enough. I know how to use it."
Fan Xian sighed and shook his head. He couldn't help but admire the Emperor's powerful will. The Temple that everyone in the world worshipped, in the end, was nothing more than a sharper knife in the Emperor's eyes.
"During the Northern Expedition, the meridians in my body were all shattered. I couldn't move a finger. My eyes couldn't see, my ears couldn't hear, and my nose couldn't smell. I was like a dead person. However, my soul was hidden in that broken shell, unable to escape and unable to be free." The Emperor suddenly began to coldly narrate the events of the past. "It was like enduring the torment of loneliness in the endless darkness. This kind of pain strengthened my resolve."
Following the Emperor's narration, the lights in the little building dimmed. It was as if they were about to sink into an inescapable sea of darkness.
"Other than myself and the loneliness I can experience, nothing is real," the Emperor said. "Other than myself, I don't trust anyone else. In order to achieve my goal, I don't need family or friends. "
"When I woke up in the darkness, the first people I saw were Chen Pingping and Ning 'er." The Emperor narrowed his eyes slightly. "Thus, I trusted them the most. You don't have to worry about Ning 'er's safety."
"However, I had not thought that Chen Pingping would betray me." The Emperor's eyes narrowed even more. A cold light shone through them. His tone was faintly angry and sorrowful. Mockingly, he said, "I trusted the wrong person, and it led to the situation today."
"You have never experienced the pain of waking up in the darkness, so you don't understand what I am saying."
"I have experienced it before." Fan Xian shook his head. He would not explain. It was a long, long time ago, when he had encountered a change in that world. "However, I have not become like you. My personality just decides my fate."
He suddenly narrowed his eyes and said, "If Ye Qingmei had not appeared in this world, what would it be like now, Your Majesty? Would it be a bit more beautiful? "
The Emperor's eyes gradually grew icy as he stared at Fan Xian's face. A glimmer of anger appeared and was immediately hidden. Coldly, he said, "Let's not talk about what the Qing Kingdom would be like without your mother. You only need to remember that back then, the Wei Kingdom was at its peak of decay. Not to mention not being able to compare to the Qing Kingdom under my rule, it was a far cry from the present Northern Qi. "
"Although the Wei Kingdom was rotten back then, it was still a colossus. When your mother came to this world, she at least smashed that mountain to pieces. Why is it that none of the former Wei Kingdom's people miss the previous dynasty? Why is it that in the thousands of li of land I have conquered, there has never been anyone who cares about the former country and rebelled? "The Emperor smiled coldly." Think about it yourself. "
Fan Xian smiled and said, "I can't be bothered to think about it. My parents were both remarkable figures. For me, as a son, it is not a very glorious thing."
The Emperor finally laughed aloud. The two of them continued to eat, drink, and chat. This father and son, ruler and official, were actually very similar. They were both cold and emotionless. However, they had different opinions about the world, the past, and the present. They had different opinions about everything. However, this did not affect the trust and respect the two of them had shown each other these years and firmly occupied the peak of the world.
They listened to the wind and snow all night in the little building. This was their last dinner and their last long conversation.
Deep into the night, the two of them sat on two chairs under the light of the lantern and began to meditate and rest. Even the True Qi that flowed through their bodies was so harmonious. Other than being domineering, each of them had a kind of power that could tear everything apart. When combined, they were actually so harmonious.
Without realizing it, the sky brightened. The morning sun came out. The snow outside stopped, and the wind stopped. The thick layer of snow on the ground was like a woolen blanket. It reflected the clear light from the sky and lit up the large abandoned garden in the northwest corner of the Royal Palace particularly brightly.
Fan Xian woke up and sighed in his heart. Standing up, he picked up the sword of the Wei Emperor on the table with his right hand and walked to the door of the little building. He then turned around and calmly looked at the Emperor in the chair.
The Emperor slowly opened his eyes. His pupils were unusually clear and bright, unusually calm and cold. There was no longer a glimmer of emotion that a mortal should have. Everything that needed to be said had been said. From this moment on, there was no longer a shred of familial affection between the two of them.
Fan Xian raised his right arm, from his shoulder to his elbow to his wrist, and then to the hilt of the sword that he held steadily in his right hand. That unshakable and terrifyingly steady tip of the sword pointed directly at the Emperor's face.
The sword was still in its sheath, but it began to make the cry of a dragon. It hummed and hummed, like the strings in Chen Garden playing. Thick Tyrannical zhenqi flowed into the body of the sword along the web between Fan Xian's thumb and index finger. It was as if it wanted to bring the sword to life. A glimmer of light that was faintly visible to the naked eye began to spread through the cracks in the sheath.
The body of the sword struggled desperately in the sheath. It wanted to break out of the sheath but could not find a way out. The pain and suffering made one's heart palpitate just by hearing it.
Fan Xian didn't know how much zhenqi he had poured into it to construct such a shocking scene. The Emperor's pupils constricted slightly. His hands remained on the chair and he did not rise. However, the only remaining Great Grandmaster in the world discovered that his favorite son was more powerful than he had expected.
In the cold winter day, a drop of sweat fell from the tip of Fan Xian's brow. His delicate face was filled with a heavy and unswerving determination. He had accumulated power for a long time, but the Qing Emperor had not acted. He could not wait forever. The sword he held in his hand was almost out of control.
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With a light clap, Fan Xian's right foot took a step back and landed heavily on the doorstep. The sword he had stabbed out with his right hand in the form of the Burning Sky had finally exploded out.
The white light in the gap of the scabbard in his hand suddenly disappeared. There was no sound in the small building. That scabbard could no longer withstand the anger of the Emperor's sword inside the scabbard. It struggled, clashed, and silently and strangely, like an arrow, pierced towards the Emperor's face!
Fan Xian's first strike was the sword sheath.
The sword sheath was imbued with his seven days of hard thought, the accumulated power of a long night of talking, and thick Tyrannical zhenqi. In an instant, it shot out. Its speed made the sword sheath, like Yan Xiaoyi's arrow in the past, easily tear through the air and surpass the limits of time. In an instant, in the blink of an eye, it arrived in front of the Emperor's eyes.
At this moment, a hand appeared in the air. It was an incomparably stable hand. It was a hand that had shaken the wind and rain on Dong Mountain and had a layer of calluses on its middle finger because it had gripped the imperial brush for too long.
This hand caught the sword sheath like catching a firefly in the flickering light or a speck of dust in thousands of snowflakes. This hand was too fast. It was fast enough to catch light and fast enough to catch shadows. How could it not catch the sword sheath, which had form and substance?
The calmness of the little building was immediately broken. The dragon's cry and humming from the sword sheath rang out again, but it suddenly stopped.
Fan Xian's sword sheath, which had been accumulating power for a long time, was like a huge dragon that had its throat grabbed by someone. It stopped breathing and hung its head dejectedly and powerlessly as it lay in the Emperor's palm with its last breath.
The Emperor slowly rose. His expression was unusually calm. However, he had to admit that Fan Xian's realm had exceeded his expectations. This strike, which was like a flying dragon from beyond the heavens, seemed to faintly have the feeling of leaving space.
There was no one in front of the little building. The Emperor looked coldly in that direction. The chair behind him shattered with a rustling sound, turning into powder, powder, and nothingness, scattering all over the ground.
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Fan Xian had used all the power in his body to activate the sword sheath. It looked like he had staked everything on one throw. There were no spectators around the little building, so no one expected that after that moment, his body would float up at an even faster speed, sweep up, and fly up.
His body was like a large bird. No, he was lighter and faster than a bird. He was like a snowflake swept up by the howling wind. With a speed that was impossible for a human to reach, he suddenly floated a distance of 150 feet from the door of the little building.
Snowflakes began to fall from the sky again.
In the process of flying, Fan Xian almost stopped breathing. He only relied on the book of spells Ku He left behind before he died to feel the coldness around him in the flow of air. Going with the flow, he floated forward.
As he floated, he had time to think. There was a distance of 12 feet from the Emperor's chair to the outside of the little building. The Emperor had to catch his strike and think. Presumably, he would not come out too quickly.
The four Great Grandmasters had already transcended mortality and transcended sainthood. In the end, they were not immortals. They each had their own weaknesses. Master Ku He's weakest point was his old physical body. Ye Liuyun's strongest point was his cloud-like movements. If the Great Grandmaster in the little building was Ye Liuyun, Fan Xian would not have had the extravagant hope of keeping him in the building.
However, the person in the building was the Emperor. His zhenqi cultivation was the best in the world. It was abundant to the peak. Relying on zhenqi to move, the physical body would always be limited. Moving in a small area required supernatural skills, just like how Ye Liuyun faced a sky full of crossbow bolts.
However, the Emperor might not be able to forcefully sweep out of the little building in such a short time. What followed immediately was an attack without any gaps.
Fan Xian's feet slid two feet on the snowy ground, revealing two snow ditches. His figure landed on the snowy ground. Sword light flashed and he held it horizontally in front of his face. His front knees were in a half-crouch. It was a posture for a fatal attack.
At the same time the cold sword light illuminated his delicate face, a sudden, vigorous, and rapidly burning fire swallowed the entire little building in an instant. A sea of fire appeared in the snowy Palace.
With a few muffled sounds, countless tongues of flame shot into the sky and surrounded the entire little building. The red and burning light immediately warmed the cold sword in front of Fan Xian and made it red.
Such a large and quickly lit fire could not have been formed naturally. No one knew what Fan Xian had prepared in the little building.
What made Fan Xian feel slightly disappointed was that a streak of aura flowed through the sea of fire. A human figure stood brilliantly in front of the sea of fire, looking coldly at him. He stood in the snowy ground, leaving the sea of fire behind him.
Some places on the Emperor's dragon robe were already charred. His hair was also slightly burned. His face was slightly pale, but he still stood arrogantly and looked coldly at Fan Xian.
"When did you move the gunpowder of the Third Bureau into the Palace?" The Emperor narrowed his eyes and looked at Fan Xian.
Fan Xian smiled widely and gripped the hilt of his sword tightly. "Three years ago, during the Jingdou rebellion, when I was regent, it was not difficult to move as much gunpowder as I wanted into the Palace."
The Emperor slowly walked closer to Fan Xian. His eyes narrowed slightly. In a cold voice, he said, "So, for today, you prepared for three whole years!"
Fan Xian narrowed his eyes like the Emperor to prevent the bright sea of fire from affecting his line of sight. Pressing his lips together, he said, "I just thought that if my mother's portrait was placed in this building, presumably she would also feel angry. Since that is the case, then it would be better to burn it."
If the Emperor had not summoned Fan Xian in front of the little building yesterday, if the Emperor had not acted immediately and instead had a long conversation with Fan Xian in the little building, Fan Xian would not have been able to find any opportunity to activate the mechanism or ignite the gunpowder. Fan Xian would not have been able to find any opportunity to activate the mechanism or ignite the gunpowder.
Up until the moment Fan Xian broke the door sill, Fan Xian had full confidence that the Emperor would choose this little building in the abandoned garden as the final battlefield.
There was a portrait of Ye Qingmei on the little building. The Emperor would certainly choose to completely end the decades of gratitude and grudges between them in front of this woman's portrait.
Fan Xian was certain of this because he knew the Emperor's intentions better than anyone else in the world. He knew what kind of person the Emperor was. The Emperor was a cold and emotionless but hypocritical person who thought he was kind and affectionate. Fan Xian was also very hypocritical. Using the words of that world, the father and son both liked to pretend to be a little bourgeois. Without question, the little building was the best stage for the two of them in this great show.
The moment the fire ignited, Fan Xian's heart jumped. The reason he had chosen the gunpowder that had been buried for three years as his ultimate weapon was because Chen Pingping's wheelchair in the royal study had given him confidence. Faced with an attack that came from all directions and had no space to dodge, even a Great Grandmaster would not be able to create something from nothing and find a way to dodge. The iron pellets and steel balls shot out by the gun in the chair were like this. Presumably, the fire raging everywhere was also like this.
Unfortunately, the Emperor was still standing in the snow. Although his face had been slightly pale earlier, presumably because he had escaped from the sea of fire and expended a great deal of his yuanqi, this sky-burning fire did not cause him any irreversible injuries.
"The fire is too slow," the Emperor said without a trace of emotion as he looked coldly at Fan Xian.
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