Eunuch Lu stole a glance at Xiao Quan seated on the Dragon Throne, feeling that ever since the Celestial Screen began recounting the Qian-Severing Rebellion, even Xiao Quan—who usually appeared somewhat abnormal due to his Madness Disorder—now seemed weathered.
And exceptionally normal.
It would be good to have more of this.
Many of the civil and military officials in Jinling City were those Xiao Quan had brought back from the battlefield years ago, which was why, despite his frequent bouts of madness, countless people still followed him.
Because when Emperor Yunqi had a life to save, he truly saved it!
The officials who had once been brought back by Xiao Quan, upon hearing this, immediately prostrated themselves and bowed: “We are eternally grateful for Your Majesty’s grace! Even in death, we would not hesitate to die ten thousand times!”
Xiao Si of the Black Dragon Guards, perched in a tree and covertly observing the ministers, suddenly felt something was off.
Why were those ministers bowing in the direction of the tree where he was hiding?
Damn, so everyone knows where the Black Dragon Guards are!
Xiao Si was dazed. Since transmigrating to the Qian Dynasty, the situations he encountered had grown increasingly bizarre. Leaving aside the question of what this Celestial Screen—something only found in Celestial Screen genre stories—was all about, and whether it would later show something like the Multidynastic Multiverse System broadcasting Qin Shi Huang riding a polar bear, the current situation alone was enough for him to digest for a while.
So all the officials under surveillance knew the locations of the Black Dragon Guards? Then what exactly was he monitoring?
No wonder his predecessor had told him not to casually change his surveillance position—it turned out it was because both sides had an unspoken understanding: you know me, and I know you…
This is way too much about social niceties, isn’t it?!
Grumbling, Xiao Si continued recording: All ministers, moved by the emperor’s grace, knelt in gratitude; the depth of their prostration increased with their rank.
No wonder they hold high positions—it’s all because you didn’t kneel hard enough!
[How chaotic was the situation back then? Even Qi Zhou, who had been Chanyu Lie Ri’s study companion since childhood, was kicked out of the convoy due to the scarcity of packhorses. This was a sworn brother who had grown up with Chanyu Lie Ri.
When Xiao Quan encountered Qi Zhou, the latter was in a pitiful state, hiding among a pile of corpses pretending to be dead. If not for having grown up together, Xiao Quan might not have recognized him.
Fortunately, Xiao Quan did recognize him. Fortunately, Xiao Quan pulled him out. And this one pull secured the entire future of Northern Qian.]
(Not exactly sworn brothers)
(Actually, it’s quite the opposite)
(More like a good punching bag. When it comes to brothers, Chanyu Lie Ri only has Emperor Yunqi as his blood brother)
(Chanyu Lie Ri: Just kidding, Emperor Yunqi gets kicked too! Maybe even harder!)
(Ah! I’ve realized it! Chanyu Lie Ri has the bearing of a founding emperor! Who says Qian and Han aren’t both Han!)
(Thank you, Emperor Yunqi, for saving the Prime Minister. Otherwise, the Prime Minister would have really been game over)
(Then Northern Qian would have been game over too. Without Northern Qian blocking Chanyu Lie Ri, Nan Qian probably wouldn’t have lasted long either, and Da Qian would have ended just like that)
(Then Emperor Wu would have become Emperor Guangwu. Has anyone drawn an if-line scenario?)
Xiao Jingchuan cried out in anguish: “Don’t turn everything into an if-line! You’re having fun, but what about the original work? My Da Qian!”
Dian Cui exclaimed: “Wow! Your Majesty is quite familiar with the terminology of storybooks, huh? Seems like you’ve read quite a few in your spare time?”
Xiao Jingchuan fell silent again.
【After the Yumen Pass Rebellion, Chanyu Lie Ri advanced with unstoppable momentum. Before they could rest for even two days upon returning to Chang’an, the Shuo Army pursued them. With the fall of Yumen Pass, the strategic advantage of the Guanzhong Plain was lost. Chang’an fell, forcing millions of nobles and officials to migrate eastward.
During this journey, Xiao Quan and Qi Zhou traveled together for a short while—only three days—but it was by the Luo River that a dialogue destined for the Historical Records took place.】
Fusang’s figure vanished, and new scenes appeared on the Celestial Screen.
At that time, rain began to fall as the procession rested by the banks of the Luo River.
The sky was a blanket of gray, shrouding the entire land. A fine drizzle fell, staining the ground in varying shades of darkness, much like the chaotic mess the empire had become.
By the rain-drenched Luo River stood a bamboo grove, where bamboo cultivators had built small huts for harvesting bamboo shoots. The procession temporarily halted to rest in these huts. Once everyone was settled, Xiao Quan invited Qi Zhou for a game of chess.
Though called a game, it was merely a way for the two to pass the time in the bamboo hut. Xiao Quan was distracted, while Qi Zhou, though younger—having just come of age—remained composed and dignified in his responses.
More than just dignified, his gaze was sharp—so sharp that meeting his eyes felt like being assessed and calculated.
As Xiao Quan placed a piece, Qi Zhou suddenly spoke.
Qi Zhou: “Does the King of Jinling believe it can be retaken?”
Xiao Quan looked up at him in surprise, his expression instantly turning solemn and silent.
Qi Zhou did not elaborate, but they both knew what he meant.
They stared at each other without a word, as if the fate of nations and the vastness of the empire were reflected in each other’s eyes.
For a moment, the only sounds in the space were the suffocating wind and the patter of rain on bamboo.
The entire Jinling City seemed to fall silent all at once.
Eunuch Lu nervously glanced at Xiao Quan beside him and saw a terrifyingly bright gleam in his eyes—the look of someone who had finally found what they had long sought and followed. Eunuch Lu suddenly felt a chill down his spine, for he was no stranger to such a gaze.
As an old-timer in the palace, he remembered that Emperor Ling of the North had worn the same expression when he was rescued from bandits by a monk and gazed at the prayer beads around the monk’s neck.
It was the look of someone who had found spiritual solace.
On the Celestial Screen, Xiao Quan and Qi Zhou remained silent, but in Yunsu Hall, Xiao Quan burst into laughter: “Truly the act of an Immortal, truly the work of the Fusang Envoy! Lu Mu, do you see? Do you realize that these scenes on the Celestial Screen are identical to the dialogue in my memory, down to the sound of the wind? How could such a restoration be achieved without divine power?”
He stared blankly at the Celestial Screen, as if it had transformed from a mere historical evaluation into a true miracle—a miracle bestowed by Fusang, the Junior Fate Master, one of the Nine Songs’ Divine Shamans!
“Wonderful… The Immortal I have pursued exists, the immortality I have sought exists. Since the Divine Shamans are real, I can naturally cultivate into a true Immortal… I can naturally—”
Eunuch Lu could only kneel on the ground with a bitter smile, offering flattery.
This job is truly exhausting—how has the boss fallen into Madness Disorder again!
The scenes on the Celestial Screen continued.
Xiao Quan understood Qi Zhou’s meaning; Qi Zhou was almost explicitly hinting at it.
Emperor Ling of the North was captured, and Chanyu Lie Ri advanced with unstoppable momentum. With army morale at its peak and the nation in turmoil, a leaderless state lacked order and could accomplish nothing.
They needed a leader to gradually restore order and consolidate strength; otherwise, Da Qian’s lands would fall inch by inch into the hands of the Shuo Army.
And what did the Shuo Army do to the territories they passed through?
Fusang’s narration emerged at just the right moment.
[“Records of the Shuo Dynasty: Military Achievements” states: “When the Heavenly Wolf Banner entered Yumen Pass, the Chanyu followed the ancient ritual of smearing blood to worship heaven, decreeing ‘red springs irrigate the desert, bones enrich the yellow sands.’ Yet his actions far exceeded ancient customs—the thousand-mile Hexi region instantly became a living hell.”]
[Not only that, to completely dismantle Da Qian’s rule, Chanyu Lie Ri also issued the Three Lights Decree.]
Fusang’s voice grew heavy with sorrow: [What are the Three Lights?—”Burn what can be burned among pillars and beams, carry away what can be carried among gold and stone, drive away what can be driven among the populace.”
First, burn cities to ashes: within just three days, thirty border towns successively sent up smoke signals over seven days, reducing nearly a millennium of ancient wooden structures from the previous dynasty to scorched earth.
Second, plunder treasures to the last: countless silk manuscripts from Hexi’s scripture caves were torn into filthy paper, while gold leaf from paintings in various commanderies, counties, and towns was ground to dust beneath horses’ hooves.
Third, displace people entirely: survivors of the war were forced to trek far into the northern deserts, leaving their homes behind.]
[Chanyu Lie Ri was an exceptionally ruthless man, yet he was also highly capable, knowing exactly how to thoroughly conquer a land. He personally drew a full longbow to shatter the plaque of Yumen Pass, crushing the hopes of all defending troops, and implemented three eradication policies.
First, Plowing the Courtyard: excavating and destroying ancestral tombs of noble families, mixing bones into rammed earth.
Second, Eradication of Texts: confiscating texts like “Da Qian’s Laws” and “Records of Rites,” repurposing parchment into quivers.
Third, Changing Customs: forcing all conquered lands to adopt the grassland customs of the Shuo territories.]
Fusang let out an almost mournful, drawn-out sigh:
[“Nan Qian: Records of the Remnant People” documents: “The Shuo people crafted Human Skull Cups, carved the feet of beauties into dance instruments, and threw infants to mastiffs to fight over. When the provinces heard of Hexi’s fate, city defenders fought until their blades broke, with no further thought of surrender.”]
Thus, Qi Zhou’s eyes grew even more resolute.
He had witnessed all this, experienced it firsthand, and seen with his own eyes how everyone under the Shuo Army became equal sacrifices to heaven.
So it was almost an invitation he extended to Xiao Quan.
Your servant begs the prince to proclaim himself emperor.
But on that day, after a long silence, Xiao Quan shook his head and spoke only six words.
“To you, I am not the right man.”
He declined Qi Zhou’s invitation, for he was not the sage ruler Qi Zhou envisioned as a stark contrast to Emperor Ling of the North. In the beginning, he had tried to confront the Shuo Army—but he failed. He believed he lacked both the ability and the courage.
Stepping forward might lead to an endless abyss, but it could also achieve great deeds, making him a revivalist ancestor like Emperor Guangwu of the former dynasty, extending Da Qian’s reign for another century.
But he dared not gamble.
Before the true Dragon Gate that needed crossing, Xiao Quan lacked the courage to leap, much like all the noble youths clinging to survival in Jinling City.
He was not the true dragon Qi Zhou sought.
“If that is so… then I am not the right minister either.”
Upon hearing this, Qi Zhou smiled. His smile was not lighthearted, but it could hardly be called disappointed.
Fusang sighed: [Many people have pondered the meaning of this phrase, and countless interpretations have been offered. But in my view—let me preface this by saying it’s just my subjective opinion—it’s actually quite simple, which is—
Since you don’t know what’s good for you, then I’m going to become a treacherous rebel!]
(It’s hard to hold back—later, Qi Zhou indeed did exactly that. He forcefully reopened the battlefield against Shuohuo in the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun, and supported Emperor Yunqi and the eight-year-old sister of Emperor Ling of the North as the emperor of Northern Qian. In a sense, this also established a separate Northern Qian.)
(Of course, this sister was also an acquaintance—the later Emperor Wen.)
(Emperor Yunqi’s father was also something else—he had only three children, and all three became emperors: Emperor Ling of Gan, Emperor Yunqi, and Emperor Wen.)
(Alas, for Qi Zhou, it was quite poignant. After being rejected by Emperor Yunqi, he searched among the chaotic armies for many members of the royal family. In the end, the one willing to stand up and join him in fighting Chanyu Lie Ri was an eight-year-old child.)
But at the time, Qi Zhou did not know his own future. He was simply determined to carry out his convictions. So he bowed deeply and saluted Xiao Quan, bringing an end to their years of friendship.
You wish to go south, I shall head north; from now on, we shall not meet again, neither in the blue skies nor the Yellow Springs.
The wind howls, the Luo River runs cold.
Thus, Qi Zhou saluted and departed, moving northward against the tide of fleeing nobles and officials. Hand in hand with Emperor Ling and the eight-year-old sister of Emperor Yunqi, Xiao Yao, he established the capital in Beijing (Yanjing), historically known as Northern Qian.
Meanwhile, Xiao Quan led the noble families southward, crossing the Yellow River and the Yangtze River, and established the capital in Nanjing (Jinling).
Historically known as Nan Qian.