A delighted voice chimed in, “That’s right, we’re blood relatives. Even if I bully you, it counts as teaching. Master wouldn’t blame me.”
“Mhm, I was delayed because I wanted to be close with my family, not because I was playing around and didn’t finish Master’s task.”
The little girl jumped off the large bed, hands on her hips, domineeringly declaring, “During this ritual, my master will perform magic to connect the Yin-Yang realms to see me. You know what to say, right?”
Dark strands of hair still coiled around her ankles, sending faint stabs of pain. Li Yue forced himself not to collapse, nodding fiercely in agreement.
He needed to discuss carefully with his ministers how to skillfully lodge a complaint!
…………
This turmoil inevitably spread, and everyone learned that Ling Xiao’s legendary master was coming to see his disciple.
For people of ancient times, a master was of utmost importance—Heaven, Earth, Sovereign, Family, and Master, none were as revered.
From the fragments Ling Xiao revealed, everyone could vaguely guess that after her death, it was likely this master who took her in, allowing her to transform from a wandering ghost.
If not now, when else would be the time to cling to this powerful figure?
Wang Yi and a group of senior ministers decisively rejected the Emperor’s proposal.
They lined up, earnestly persuading him: “Do not come between close kin. Your Majesty, what tiny ant are you to go complaining to such a great figure?”
Then they expressed their own boundless admiration for Taizu and their fervent desire to properly express it.
Li Yue pretended to be troubled, much like a young widow stirred by spring passions yet still somewhat reserved.
He feigned reluctance while hinting at something, his words ambiguous.
Song Ren, the most talented literary figure of the time and leader of the contemporary literary world, composed a flowing and elegant piece titled “Remembering Taizu.” Its beautiful phrasing, unrestrained rhythm, and irrepressible brilliance made it an instant sensation upon publication, causing paper prices in Luoyang to soar.
Scholars and literati echoed it unanimously, and for a time, a flood of excellent poetry, long rhapsodies, and powerful essays emerged from the scholarly circles.
Among the common people, enthusiasm for Taizu’s various deeds reignited—his great talent and bold strategy, rising from humble origins, saving the masses from suffering!
Song Ren, holding a white jade chess piece, smiled leisurely. This way, His Majesty wouldn’t have the heart to leave him behind, right?
“You have your strategies, I have my methods.” Prime Minister Wang Yi ingeniously invited the meritorious nobles from the founding era.
They jointly petitioned to worship Taizu together, with elderly ladies and gentlemen from each family taking turns entering the palace to pester the Emperor and Empress, selling their old faces and weeping about the past.
One day, someone brought a basket of cherries, saying, “Back then, my father led troops a thousand miles to rescue Taizu. Without drinking a drop of water, he picked wild cherries and offered them to Taizu first.”
The next day, another held the Empress Dowager’s hand, weeping about her father-in-law, who suffered too many injuries for the great cause and died before reaching fifty.
Each showed their unique skills, like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea.
Soon, news came from the palace: they were permitted to go. Wang Yi clapped his hands and laughed, while his son flattered him, saying his father had the cunning of Zhang Liang.
Suddenly, the steward entered with a troubled expression, hands tucked in his sleeves, smiling apologetically. “Prime Minister, you asked me to keep an eye on Minister Xu. He…”
“He must be out of ideas, right?” Wang Yi excitedly interrupted the steward, muttering to himself:
“The literati and the nobles have been divided between Old Song and me. No matter what, he’ll have to bow his head.”
It felt like drinking a mouthful of ice-cold sour plum soup on the hottest summer day—Prime Minister Wang felt every pore on his body relax.
His eldest son lowered his head, secretly amused. His father, a dignified prime minister, insisted on competing with Minister Xu, and it wasn’t even an act.
When one saw the other in trouble, they would clap and cheer, often tripping each other up. But when it came to real action, they backed down.
The steward smiled bitterly. “No, Lord Xu… he escorted his aunt to the palace!”
Aunt? Wang Yi was puzzled at first, his long eyebrows furrowed together.
Suddenly, he remembered why Xu Yan, eight years his junior, had become the Minister of State.
His mother was the third daughter of Taizu, the Grand Princess of Qing!
The Princess of Qing had passed away early, and Xu Yan himself was talented, so over time, this connection was gradually forgotten.
But although the Princess of Qing had died young, there was still another Grand Princess in the imperial clan, titled the Grand Princess of Wei—his so-called aunt.
Wang Yi’s eyes widened, and he roared in fury, “This infuriates me!”
After the Grand Princess of Wei entered the palace, the imperial clan also became increasingly active, exchanging meaningful glances with Li Yue.
At this time, only three generations had passed since the dynasty’s founding, and the imperial clan was not large in number. All were descendants of Taizu’s bloodline—how could they be left out of ancestral sacrifices?
With various factions stirring things up, the scale of Taizu’s memorial ceremony grew larger and larger. The highest echelons of power in Great Jin cooperated as never before.
Ling Xiao, at the center of the storm, acted as if it had nothing to do with her, even showing signs of restlessness.
Those with keen insight smiled knowingly. Li Yue, for one, eagerly anticipated his grandmaster unleashing his might and giving Ling Xiao a harsh lesson.
…………………………
Ten days passed quickly, and seven had gone by. The ceremony to honor Taizu was held at a location not far from the palace.
It was a spot Ling Xiao had casually pointed to while skipping around.
Li Yue looked left and right but saw nothing special about that shabby place. Mainly, it had once been an execution ground—a place where people were beheaded—and was considered inauspicious.
“What do you know?” The little girl crunched on palace-made candies, rolling her eyes arrogantly:
“Now is not like ancient times, when the Three Realms of Heaven, Earth, and Humanity were all connected. Whether it was the Ghost-Gods of the underworld or the celestial immortals of the heavens, they could freely come and go to the human realm. Wandering around recklessly would get you killed.”
“Oh, why aren’t they connected now?” A tone of faint disappointment.
Li Yue had listened intently just moments before, not daring to miss a single word, imagining the distant era, the magnificent and vast human realm…
At the same time, he firmly remembered that there were once Three Realms coexisting: Heaven, Earth, and Humanity—the heavens, the human realm, and the underworld. It wasn’t hard to understand their meanings.
Yan Pei, who was accompanying them, risked great disrespect by slightly raising his eyes and listening attentively.
Ling Xiao’s eyes darted around, and she coughed lightly twice, indicating that the sweet treats were a bit too rich.
The next moment, tea was handed to her. Sipping the freshly harvested Mingqian tea from this spring, she continued:
“Master said that in those days, Spiritual Qi permeated between heaven and earth. People could cultivate immortality, practicing cultivation, Daoist arts, and supernatural powers. Cultivators who endured three calamities and five tribulations could ascend to immortality. Doesn’t that sound wonderful?”
Everyone in the hall nodded. Ling Xiao scoffed, speaking with disdain, “Emperor, let me ask you: are immortals and humans the same kind?”
Li Yue was stunned. He had originally thought, of course they were, but the words stuck in his throat and refused to come out.
Immortals dwelling high in the heavens, with endless lifespans and the power to move mountains and overturn seas—were they truly the same as humans, who suffered from birth, aging, sickness, and death?
Impossible!
Seeing the Emperor fall silent, Ling Xiao tilted her head cutely and brushed the powdered sugar from her fingers.
“Some immortals and gods regard humans as pigs and dogs, controlling and toying with them at will. And then there are the various demon clans and the dragon clans of the seas, all considering themselves superior to humans.”
“If that’s the case, how did our ancestors free themselves from this suffering?” Li Yue imagined the pitiful state of humanity, his heart sinking to the depths of despair. Clinging to a sliver of hope, he asked.
At some point, everyone in the hall had stopped their work and raised their heads. Their faces were etched with anger, resentment, and hope…
“Because there was an emperor among humanity—one with great ambition, immense courage, and extraordinary vision—who accomplished one thing.”
“What thing?” The tone grew increasingly fervent, as if the climax of fate was about to unfold, evoking an almost predestined feeling.
Ling Xiao looked deeply at Li Yue. “The grandson of the Yellow Emperor, Gao Yang’s descendant—Zhuan Xu!”
Without waiting for a reaction, a torrent of words poured forth. “After Zhuan Xu ascended the throne, though he established the calendar, regulated marriage, and accumulated boundless Merit, in the eyes of the celestial beings and immortals of heaven and earth, he accomplished only one earth-shattering deed.”
“Severing the connection between heaven and earth.”