Xue Ye

Biodata

History

Entrusting Xue Qinghe with Imperial Affairs

Xue Ye approved Ning Fengzhi’s acceptance of Xue Qinghe as a disciple, allowing the formal apprenticeship ceremony to proceed 59 60. He subsequently tested the prince’s judgment by asking how the Royal Academy should handle its recommended places and resource allocations 61.

Xue Qinghe proposed retaining noble recommendations while distributing resources according to student assessments. Xue Ye ordered a revised plan within three days and directed the academy to send quarterly resource reviews to the First Prince’s Residence. Although final decisions remained his, this gave Xue Qinghe an ongoing role in imperial administration 61.

He approved regulations granting recommended students basic resources for their first three months, followed by assessment-based allocations. He also instructed Xue Qinghe to attend the next young Spirit Master exchange and distinguish genuinely useful candidates from those whose value depended on their families 62.

Choosing the Crown Prince

Over the following three years, Xue Qinghe’s responsibilities expanded into imperial industries and material scheduling around the capital. When a senior official proposed appointing him heir apparent, Xue Ye deferred discussion until the next day 66.

Earl Morris then accused Xue Qinghe of diverting seven wagons of military supplies. After the supplies were recovered and witnesses exposed the framing plot, Xue Ye ordered Morris and others connected to the transfer detained. He sought Ning Fengzhi’s judgment on Xue Qinghe’s suitability as heir, receiving his endorsement 67.

A subsequent dispute over Northern Border supply routes provided another test. An intercepted report confirmed Xue Qinghe’s warning that the shorter route would be obstructed, and Ge Long supported him for Crown Prince. Xue Ye withheld an immediate announcement, then appointed Xue Qinghe during the royal ancestral sacrifice 68 69.

Following the appointment, Xue Ye expanded the Crown Prince’s administrative access to academy affairs, imperial industries, major material routes, and the Royal Knights’ daily supplies 69.

Palace Coup and Regency

As Xue Ye’s health declined, Spirit Hall instructed Qian Renxue to continue waiting until he could no longer govern. She and Lu Yuan instead prepared an early palace coup 75.

Qian Renxue entered his bedchamber and discarded her Xue Qinghe disguise. Xue Ye identified her connection to Spirit Hall and resisted the takeover, relying on forces beyond the palace, a hidden eight-ring enshrined elder, and a Crimson-Gold Imperial Edict dispatched through a secret passage 76 77.

His defenses failed: Ning Fengzhi and Dugu Bo declined to intervene, Lu Yuan blocked the eastern knights and destroyed the military edict, and Qian Renxue defeated the hidden elder. Xue Ye also witnessed her reject the Papal Hall’s withdrawal order, showing that the coup was no longer simply following Spirit Hall’s instructions 77 78.

With further resistance threatening additional deaths rather than a reversal of the outcome, Xue Ye agreed to issue a Regency Edict and surrender the Imperial Seal. He remained emperor, while Xue Qinghe became Crown Prince Regent and assumed control of the government 79.

Testing the Regent’s Loyalty

After attacks on the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, Xue Ye questioned Qian Renxue about Spirit Hall’s involvement. She acknowledged its responsibility but emphasized the need for corroborated evidence and declared that Tiangou’s interests came first 97.

Xue Ye voluntarily expanded her authority to mobilize regional garrisons during crises. He presented this as a test of whose interests she would defend with the empire’s soldiers. He also revealed an unfinished Succession Edict, withholding it until she resolved the sects’ affairs and demonstrated that she could bear Tiangou’s responsibilities 97.

After the investigation advanced and both sects committed their evidence and assistance, Xue Ye granted the regent direct authority over urgent military and governmental affairs. Satisfied that the empire had avoided chaos, he wrote Xue Qinghe into the Succession Edict as his chosen successor 100.

Drugging and the Imperial Seal Theft

The next morning, Xue Ye lost consciousness before the succession document had been sealed. While the Imperial Clan Court sought to place it in safekeeping, Lu Yuan discovered that the genuine Imperial Seal had been stolen and a counterfeit was being taken to the Ancestral Temple 101 102.

Lu Yuan recovered the seal and captured surviving plotters. A genuine token connected one prisoner to Prince Zhao’s Residence, but Qian Renxue kept Prince Zhao under investigation rather than declaring him guilty. She also refused to stamp her own Succession Edict while Xue Ye remained unconscious 103 104.

After awakening, Xue Ye learned that an unauthorized Spirit-Calming Substance had been added to his medicine. He ordered the palace gates kept sealed and detained those who had handled the medicine, entered his bedchamber, or dealt with the relevant clan documents, as well as Prince Zhao pending investigation 105.

Confirming His Successor’s True Identity

Xue Ye personally stamped the Succession Edict after hearing why Qian Renxue had refused to complete it herself. He then revealed that he knew the real Xue Qinghe had died: he had initially suspected the impersonation and later become certain, though he did not disclose when 105.

He acknowledged hating the deception and having considered ending it. Nevertheless, he explained that writing Xue Qinghe’s name had established his choice of successor, not obliged Qian Renxue to live permanently under a dead man’s identity 105.

Xue Ye summoned the imperial clan, Six Ministries, military, and senior officials to a grand assembly the following day, where he intended to draft a new edict determining the name under which his successor would rule. He told Qian Renxue to remove Xue Qinghe’s face when she next visited him 105.

Appearance

• Elderly: Described as an old man during the palace confrontation 76.
• Pale and increasingly frail: His declining health leaves him with a poor complexion, heavier breathing, and occasional coughing 76 97 105.
• Mentally alert despite illness: His eyes remain clear during discussions of the sect attacks and after he awakens from the drugging 97 105.

Personality

Xue Ye evaluates prospective leaders through practical responsibilities rather than relying solely on rank or praise. He begins Xue Qinghe’s administrative involvement with an academy resource review, demands independent judgment about potential recruits, and later makes further authority conditional on protecting Tiangou during a crisis 61 62 97.

He remains composed under direct threat. During the coup, he conceals his final defenses even after expected allies refuse to intervene. Once those defenses fail, however, he accepts a regency rather than prolonging a struggle that would cost more imperial lives 77 79.

His acceptance of Qian Renxue does not erase his resentment over his son’s death and the impersonation. He ultimately distinguishes that grievance from the question of who can govern the empire, choosing her after observing her conduct as regent. Her insistence on obtaining both the throne and an uncontested succession earns his amused approval 100 105.

Abilities & Skills

Imperial Governance

• Tests and delegates administrative work while initially retaining final decision-making authority 61 66.
• Appoints the Crown Prince, defines the regency, and authorizes additional military and governmental powers through imperial edicts 69 79 97 100.
• Personally validates the succession with the Imperial Seal 105.

Military Command and Contingency Planning

• The Eastern Suburban Direct Knights recognize his written orders 77.
• The West Camp, North Camp, and three outside garrisons recognize the Crimson-Gold Imperial Edict as authority to mobilize 77.
• Keeps an eight-ring imperial enshrined elder hidden behind a secret door in his bedchamber 77.
• His emergency response depends on successful communication: destroying the edict prevents his remaining camps from receiving the authorization needed to intervene 78 79.

Equipment / Items

• Imperial Seal — Dark-gold seal representing imperial authority. Handed over during the coup, later stolen and recovered, and personally used by Xue Ye to stamp the Succession Edict 79 103 105.
• Crimson-Gold Imperial Edict — Emergency military order carried in a crimson-gold dispatch tube; destroyed by Lu Yuan before the West Camp could receive it 77 78.
• Succession Edict — Initially incomplete, later names Xue Qinghe as successor. Xue Ye seals it himself and states that a new edict will address his successor’s actual ruling identity 97 100 105.

Relationships

• Xue Qinghe — His deceased son, whose identity Qian Renxue assumed. Xue Ye eventually confirms that he knew the real prince had died 105.
• Qian Renxue — Impersonator, coup leader, regent, and chosen successor. Their relationship shifts from concealed resentment and resistance to conditional trust based on her governance of Tiangou 77 97 100 105.
• Lu Yuan — Rewards him for recovering military supplies and an intercepted report; later loses his coup countermeasures to him. Lu Yuan subsequently recovers the stolen Imperial Seal 69 78 103.
• Ning Fengzhi — Approves his apprenticeship relationship with Xue Qinghe and consults him on the heir’s suitability. Ning Fengzhi declines to intervene during the coup 59 67 77.
• Ge Long — Military figure whose endorsement supports Xue Qinghe’s appointment. His faction later helps Qian Renxue seize the palace gates 68 76.
• Dugu Bo — A potential source of support during the coup who refuses to enter the Imperial City that night 77.
• Prince Zhao — Detained pending investigation after a token from his residence is found on a seal-theft conspirator; Xue Ye does not treat the connection as a completed conviction 104 105.

Notable Quotes

“Figure out for yourself who is worth using, and who is only worth using because of their family.” 62

“I am still alive. There are still things I can keep in check for you.” 97

“If you truly intend to sit upon that throne, you cannot spend your entire life hiding behind a dead man's identity.” 105