chsdbacks Chapter 324 Xu Longxiang broke down. What happened to the popular support? Why is everyone worshippi
Chapter 324 Xu Longxiang broke down. What happened to the popular support? Why is everyone worshippi
"Empress Zhao Qingxue of Liyang is going to marry our Emperor."
Upon hearing this, Xu Longxiang's fingers slowly tightened inside his sleeve.
"Your Majesty was able to conquer even the Empress of Liyang. What in this world is there that Your Majesty cannot accomplish?"
His knuckles began to turn white.
"Now that Li Yang has joined forces with us, his northern border is isolated and helpless. What trouble can he possibly cause?"
His fingernails were deeply embedded in his palms.
"His Majesty was able to marry even the Empress of Liyang, so why would he be afraid of a mere prince from the Northern Border?"
A sharp pain shot through my palm.
But he couldn't feel it.
Only one image remained in his mind.
Zhao Qingxue, dressed in a phoenix coronet and embroidered robe, walked in through the palace gate and stepped towards Qin Mu.
She lowered her head and let Qin Mu put the phoenix crown on her head.
They went through the wedding ceremony, exchanged vows, and became husband and wife.
The hall was filled with guests, their voices mingling with laughter and toasts.
He could only sit in the corner and watch.
There's nothing we can do.
A cold smile slowly curved the corners of Xu Longxiang's mouth.
There was no smile in that arc, only a deep, etched hatred.
He picked up the cup of tea, which had gone cold, and drank it all in one gulp.
The tea flowed down my throat, icy cold, like the wind from the North.
He put down his teacup and stood up.
Beneath the shadow of the straw hat, a turbulent storm was brewing in those deep brown eyes.
But there was no expression on his face.
He paid for the tea, turned around, and walked downstairs.
His steps were steady and slow, each step firm and solid.
It felt as if the stairs beneath my feet weren't wooden staircases, but rather a mountain of knives and a sea of fire.
The murmurs behind me continued.
"Your Majesty is truly amazing..."
"That's right, even Empress Li Yang has been conquered by His Majesty..."
"This world will belong to Qin sooner or later..."
He walked down the stairs, through the lobby, and across the threshold.
Sunlight streamed in from outside, making him squint slightly.
He lowered his head and pulled his straw hat down even further.
Then he stepped into the crowd.
Those sounds gradually faded into the distance.
But those words were like nails, driving one into his heart.
I can't pull it out no matter what I do.
He walked aimlessly along the street.
All around me were the cacophony of hawkers' cries, laughter, and children chasing and playing.
Those voices were so vivid, so real.
It has nothing to do with him.
He was like a wandering soul, drifting in this city that did not belong to him.
He drifted amidst laughter and joy that didn't belong to him.
He walked through one street after another.
We crossed one bridge after another.
He stopped walking after an unknown amount of time.
Raise your head.
Before me stood a majestic palace wall.
Crimson red, towering into the clouds, stretching as far as the eye can see.
Beyond the palace walls lies the imperial city.
It is Qin Mu's imperial city.
This is the imperial city where Zhao Qingxue is about to marry into.
Xu Longxiang stared at the palace wall for a long time.
Time passed until the sun moved from the east to the west, and time passed until the number of pedestrians on the street decreased and then increased again.
He still didn't move.
His dark gray cloth robe blended almost seamlessly with the tree trunks in the twilight, and his straw hat was pulled low, obscuring most of his face.
Only his sharply defined jawline was visible, taut like a fully drawn bow.
The number of pedestrians on the street gradually decreased.
Nobody noticed him.
In this bustling imperial city, he was just the most inconspicuous of all the faces.
No one knew that this silent man dressed in gray cloth and wearing a straw hat was the master of the 300,000 iron cavalry of the North.
No one knows how many lives he has held in his hands, or how many enemy heads he has slain.
No one knows what turbulent emotions are churning within him as he stands here, gazing at the vermilion palace walls.
Xu Longxiang slowly raised his head.
The shadow of the straw hat slipped off his face, revealing a pair of deep brown eyes.
In the twilight, those eyes were dark and gloomy, like the sky before a storm, without a single ray of light.
He recalled the things he had heard in the teahouse earlier that day.
Every word was like a dull knife, slowly cutting into his heart.
He originally thought that he was the one who truly represented the people's will.
This thought had lingered in his mind for so long that he couldn't remember when it started.
Perhaps it was during the year Qin Mu ascended the throne, when rumors circulated throughout the court and the public that the new emperor was dissolute and neglected state affairs.
Perhaps it was on the day her elder sister was forcibly taken as a concubine, when all the officials dared not speak out against her anger.
Perhaps it was during those late nights when he was in Zhenyue Hall, reviewing the intelligence reports sent back from the capital, and seeing those secret reports about how Qin Mu squandered the national treasury, indulged in sensual pleasures, and neglected state affairs.
Each piece of intelligence was like a stone thrown into the lake of his heart, creating ripples.
The ripples spread out in concentric circles, eventually converging into a giant wave that propelled him forward, telling him:
See, the people's hearts are with you.
Look, the people have suffered under Qin for too long.
You see, as long as you raise the banner and shout, countless people will respond, countless people will defect, and countless people will flock from all directions, forming a torrent strong enough to overthrow that tyrannical ruler.
But this time, his arrival in the capital was completely different from what he had expected.
What he saw was a bustling market street, filled with a dazzling array of shops.
What he saw were the peaceful smiles on the faces of the people, the carefree laughter of children chasing and playing at the alley entrance, and the serene expressions of the elderly as they strolled leisurely in the sunset.
What he heard was the pride and joy of the tea drinkers when they talked about Qin Mu, and their heartfelt praise for the tax reductions, the repair of the dikes, and the great victory in the western border.
It was their heartfelt support for that "tyrant".
There was no anger, no complaints, no public resentment as he had imagined, no long-brewing grievances just waiting for a spark to ignite.
All that exists is peace.
It's the kind of peace that only truly content and happy people possess, a peace that comes naturally from their very core.
Qin Mu's reputation completely reversed after the news of his marriage to Empress Li Yang spread.
Xu Longxiang's fingers slowly tightened inside his sleeve.
He suddenly had some doubts. He doubted whether he could still successfully raise an army.
The thought had barely crossed his mind when he forcefully suppressed it.
You cannot think, you cannot doubt, you cannot back down.
He told himself that there was still a chance, there must still be a chance.
Empress Liyang's marriage into the Qin Dynasty was not necessarily voluntary; she must have had her reasons.
Liu Hongyan's betrayal may not have been genuine; she was likely enduring humiliation and hardship.
There are still 300,000 iron cavalry in the North, as well as veteran generals who have fought alongside the Xu family for decades, and brothers who are willing to die for him.
He still has a chance.
There must be more.
Xu Longxiang took a deep breath.
He remembered the purpose of his visit to the capital.
Looking for Liu Hongyan.
Ask clearly.
Ask her why she betrayed him, ask her why Zhao Qingxue married Qin Mu, ask her what exactly happened.
He believed that Liu Hongyan had not betrayed him, that she definitely hadn't.
She was one of the people he trusted most in the North. She had followed him for so many years, risking her life for him, and had never let him down.
Such a person would not betray without a reason.
She must have her reasons, her own reasons, and a deeper plan that he is unaware of yet.
But now he doesn't know how to contact her.
Before she was arrested, they had a fixed way of communicating.
But now that she's been arrested, that method of communication is obviously no longer usable.
He could only wait, either for her to come to him, or for him to find her himself.
Unless... you sneak into the palace.
This thought had been swirling in Xu Longxiang's mind from the moment he stepped into the imperial city.
The last infiltration went smoothly. He hid on the artificial hill and watched Qin Mu and Qing Xue stroll in the Imperial Garden. He then watched as the dark figure darted out from the shadows and struck Qin Mu in the back with a palm.
He saw Qingxue rush forward and stand in front of Qin Mu. The palm of his hand grazed her shoulder, and blood droplets bloomed in the air like tiny red plum blossoms.
That was the first time he had witnessed Qin Mu's strength firsthand.
His panicked expression and flustered reaction undoubtedly proved that Qin Mu's strength was nothing special, and that there were no real experts in the palace; it was all an act by Qin Mu.
A cold smile curled at the corners of Xu Longxiang's lips.
So he decided to sneak in again.
He had to see Liu Hongyan and find out what had happened.
He suspected that Liu Hongyan and Zhao Qingxue might have been deceived by Qin Mu's disguise.
Just then.
"Your Highness."
A voice came from behind, very soft, with a hint of suppressed worry.
Xu Longxiang didn't turn around. He recognized the voice; it was Fan Li.