Nightfall

All was silent in the imperial study. After a long moment of silence, Ning Que suddenly said softly, “Disappointment is inevitable, but I do not feel despair.”

Li Yu smiled.

As compared to the mournful smile earlier, the self-ridicule in this smile was stronger.

She said, “This is really unexpected. I thought you’d have lost all hope in me.”

“You did not dispatch any great army troops from Wu State to Chang’an, and even when I entered Chang’an.”

Ning Que looked at the walls and said, “I admire this. Or perhaps, you no longer have any troops to dispatch. If that is so, I have misunderstood you.”

Li Yu said, “No matter how tough the situation is, at the point between life and death, I will manage to get as many troops as I can. You know how I am, I will always keep some cards till the end.”

Ning Que said, “Actually, I hope that you can use those trump cards.”

Li Yu asked, “Why?”

Ning Que answered, “Then, I can reshuffle your cards. And then, I can kill you when I first see you and will not have any psychological barriers.”

Li Yu said softly, “Why do you want to kill me as soon as we meet? Is it because I altered my father’s edict? Or is it because you found out that I was not the kind of person you imagined me to be and feel angry because you were disappointed?”

“Even though you listened quietly to my fairytale that night by the campfire, I never thought of you as a princess in fairytales. A woman who married far away to the Wilderness but could still return safely is not a simple person. I am not disappointed, so there is no reason to get angry.”

Ning Que said, “As for changing the edict, it might seem immoral to others, but I don’t really care. My cruelty and practicality far exceed your imagination.”

“If you can really make the Tang Empire prosper after helping Li Huiyuan gain the throne, and allow the citizens to live blissfully, then I might even support you two. But the fact is, this is not the case.”

Li Yu’s eyes gradually brightened again when she heard that. She looked at him and said seriously, “You once promised that you’d support me… on this matter.”

Ning Que said, “Wrong. I only promised you to not support the Queen.”

Li Yu said, “Then what are you doing now? Why have you brought that woman and her son back to Chang’an? What reason are you helping her fight for?”

Ning Que said, “You are wrong again, I support His Majesty’s dying wish.”

Li Yu’s expression was somewhat disconsolate. After a few moments, a resolute expression resurfaced on her face again and she said, “This is a matter of the Li family. It is not up to you and the Academy.”

Ning Que answered, “This is the third time today that you’ve said something wrong.”

“Firstly, the Tang Empire does not belong to the Li family. The Tang Empire belongs to the citizens of Tang. Secondly, a thousand years ago, the Headmaster created the Tang Empire single-handedly. So even if the Empire had to belong somewhere, it should also belong to the Academy.”

Li Yu furrowed her brows slightly.

“For thousands of years, Chang’an city had never been breached. If it was breached, it was done so with the assent of the people in the city. You and Li Huiyuan want the throne. I can understand that. However, the timing you chose was wrong, and the method you chose was very bad. As mentioned earlier, this was what disappointed me most.”

Ning Que said.

Li Yu stared at his eyes and said with a trembling voice, “Who do you think can do better than me in such a situation? You… or that woman?”

“I know what you mean. To you, the world is coming for the Tang Empire, hoping to destroy it. The Empire doesn’t have any chances of winning.”

Ning Que said, “But that is normal when we do not have the wits of our enemy and our strength cannot beat the world. But there were some mistakes that should not have been made. For example, Xu Shi should not have died, and many soldiers did not deserve to die.”

Thinking of the tragic images he saw on his way back to the south and of the now silent City of Wei, Ning Que fell silent for a moment before continuing.

“After I killed in the woodshed as a child, I became selfish and cold. I didn’t care about anyone except for Sangsang. It was not until I went to City of Wei that I changed, and then I entered the Academy. Some changes had been quietly happening in my heart, but I had not noticed.”

“On my way to the Lanke Temple the year before last, I saw the wildlands south of the Tang Empire. The scenery was beautiful and the people there were very nice. The Tang Empire is really a great place and I like it a lot. I do not wish for any harm to come to it, but it has been badly hurt and is dying.”

Ning Que looked at her and said, “I believe there are many stupid mistakes not made by you but by him, so I want to know how he is going to take up this responsibility.”

Li Yu clenched her hands tightly and her body trembled slightly. She did not say anything.

Ning Que looked into her eyes and asked, “Where is the Prince?”

Li Yu said hoarsely, “His Majesty is resting.”

The two addressed Li Huiyuan differently, and they also represented two different attitudes.

The imperial study was plunged into silence once more.

Ning Que suddenly said, “Have him abdicate the throne. Let’s talk about the other things later.”

Li Yu shook her head and said, “I cannot let His Majesty abdicate, because this would mean death.”

Ning Que said “There are many people who now know who the Emperor had passed the throne to. The two of you cannot continue with your deception.”

Li Yu said in a cold voice, “You don’t have the edict, and the rescript from the West-Hill Divine Palace clearly states that the woman is a disciple of the Devil’s Doctrine. How many people do you think in court and the military will support her?”

Ning Que said, “You know me, I don’t care how many people will support me, I only care how many people oppose me.”

“Then you will kill all those who oppose you? You don’t care at all that the entire Tang Empire will fall into division because of your actions, and will no longer be able to defend against foreign enemies?”

Li Yu sneered, “You said you did not feel despair because I did not use the army to deal with you. Then you should know why I did not do this! I am my father’s daughter. No matter how much I wish to kill that woman, I do not want the Tang Empire to fall into civil strife in the current situation! What about you?”

Ning Que kept quiet.

Li Yu looked into his eyes and said with a pleading tone, “The Tang Empire cannot be divided now. There cannot be any internal strife; otherwise, no one can bear the terrible consequences. The only way now is for you to stand out and support us. As long as the Tang Empire can be reunited and with the support of the Academy, perhaps we can really turn the tide.”

Ning Que frowned slightly and said, “Have you ever considered that the both of you could show your loyalty to the Empress and the Sixth Prince with your loyal ministers and army?”

“Then what will we do in the future? That woman will definitely kill us! And don’t forget, she is from the Devil’s Doctrine. Even if I speak up for her, there will be many ministers and generals who won’t support her!”

Li Yu said, “I know that you feel resentful and angry, but I have already punished His Majesty heavily. Tomorrow, I will announce his crimes in court.”

“Punished heavily? Did you slap him?” Ning Que looked at her and said sarcastically.

Li Yu was aggravated by his expression and cried, “I only have this brother, and I brought him up myself. How can I just watch him die? I allowed you to enter Chang’an and risked letting you into the palace so we could speak. I just want you to let him off, is that too difficult to do?”

Ning Que looked at the tears on her face and suddenly thought of the past.

If not for Li Yu, he would return to Chang’an too, but he might not have been able to enter the Academy. Without her help, it would not have been so easy to get that letter with the imperial seal.

Looking at it from a certain angle, the beautiful, crying woman before him had changed his and Sangsang’s life.

Li Yu said, tears streaming down her face, “Think of Sangsang, you brought her up yourself. Would you bear to see her come to harm even if she committed the largest of sins? I am his sister, and am in the same situation.”

“That’s why you’ve always doted on Sangsang.” Ning Que said thoughtfully.

The long night passed, and dawn arrived. The chaos in Chang’an had gradually calmed. The scent of incense could be faintly smelled in the mist and the figures of several ministers could be seen.

It wasn’t the day for a court of meeting, but a meeting had been called. Everyone knew why this was so. It was because the Empress and the Sixth Prince had returned and were outside Chang’an.

Some of the ministers even knew that Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, Ning Que, was in the palace. They also knew that he had spoken with the Princess for an entire night. However, they did not know what they spoke about.

The Tang Empire was facing an extremely dangerous situation. And by comparison, whether the edict was real or not, and to whom the throne belonged had become unimportant.

Just as how Li Yu had anticipated, everyone in Chang’an, from the prime minister, the ministers, to the ordinary folk of Chang’an all wished that both parties would come to an agreement quickly so that the Tang Empire would not descend into internal strife.

After ascertaining that Ning Que and the Princess had talked for an entire night, the ministers’ worries were assuaged. Since not any bloodshed had occurred, then this meant that the matter could be discussed.

Even those who supported the Queen who had managed to survive the chaos caused by He Mingchi stood straighter than usual. Their faces were more stern and solemn; they wisely kept silent.

They believed that even if the Academy could not let the Sixth Prince ascend the throne that was rightfully his, then at least the Empress and the Sixth Prince could receive sufficient compensation so that the matter could be settled.

The court meeting began.

Li Huiyuan walked out of his heavily guarded palace after ascertaining that his sister had convinced Ning Que. He sat on the cold throne, his face somewhat pale.

Behind the throne was a bead curtain. Li Yu sat behind that.

The ministers in the hall looked at the spot between the bead curtain and the throne.

Ning Que, who was wearing his black Academy uniform stood on the golden tiled floor, silent.

A eunuch announced the start of the meeting.

The Emperor began to read out his own crimes.

Then, something unexpected happened.

The Emperor left his throne, knelt before the ministers and kowtowed.

The ministers were all stunned speechless, they scrambled to kneel and return the bow.

The Emperor kowtowed toward the outside of the hall, asking for forgiveness for his sins from the Tang Army and civilians.

Finally, he knelt before Ning Que who stood beside the throne. He acknowledged his wrongs gravely and begged for the forgiveness of the Academy.

Had there ever been a Tang Emperor in the past thousand years who knelt during court meetings and acknowledged his wrongs?

The officials loyal to Li Yu’s sister and brother were moved to tears, and even those officials of the queen’s faction felt the sincerity of His Majesty and their expressions softened.

The bead curtain sounded and Li Yu walked out from behind it.

She bowed at the officials present and said, “I only have one brother. As his sister, I should take responsibility for his mistakes. After the war, I will answer to the army and people of the Tang Empire. His Majesty will make the Sixth Prince Crown Prince. Mr. Thirteen will leave Chang’an to inform the Empress later.”

Under the current situation, it was undoubtedly the most appropriate arrangement in order to avoid dividing the Tang Empire and to prevent the ministers, army and people of Tang from making a choice between the two factions.

The approval of the ministers rang out in the hall.

Then, someone spoke.

The hall became deadly silent.

Because the person who had spoken was Ning Que.

“You said that you only have one brother.” He looked at Li Yu, “…but you’re wrong.”

Li Yu felt a little lost, now knowing why he would suddenly say that.

“You have two brothers.”

Ning Que said. Then, he pulled out his podao and hurled it at Li Huiyuan.

There was a clear splitting sound, and Li Huiyuan’s head was separated from his body.

Blood sprayed wildly from the cut, and landing on the floor at an angle.

The golden-tiled floor of the hall was filled with blood.

Ning Que looked at Li Yu and said, “Now, you only have one brother.”

All was silent within the hall.

Nobody could believe what they had just seen.

After a long time, some of the ministers howled in grief.

Many old ministers fainted.

The Tang Empire had existed for a thousand years.

Li Huiyuan was the shortest reigning Emperor.

He was the only Emperor killed in the palace.

Of course, only Ning Que knew that Taizu was also killed by the Headmaster in the palace.

The Emperor’s head was cut off during the court meeting.

The gory scene was unbelievable, and many were stunned.

Li Yu was as pale as snow.

She looked at her brother who laid in a puddle of blood, and she fell to the ground.

Ning Que took out a white handkerchief from somewhere and started wiping the blood off his podao.

Then, he looked at the officials who were still in a state of shock and said, “I heard many ministers talking about several issues like making choices and how to reunite the country. You were all so worried, so I have helped all of you to solve your worries.”

“The Emperor is already dead, so the only remaining son of the deceased Emperor can ascend the throne. Unless the His Highness the Prince is interested in taking this seat.”

Ning Que looked at Prince Li Peiyan who stood amongst the ranks.

Li Peiyan was extremely pale and didn’t hear what he was saying.

“Fear of division, fear of internal strife, fear of making a choice will make the current situation even more serious. So now you don’t have to make a choice, and the Tang Empire won’t have to choose.”

Ning Que sheated his cleaned podao back into his scabbard. He looked at the officials and said, “You don’t have to make a choice because I think that what the Tang Empire needs most right now is unification. I hope that everyone can work with me.”