"The Way of Heaven is without feeling and does not aid Tang; Qilin has his fate and lives alongside Tang." Lu Chunshui kowtowed and bowed again, speaking softly.
Silence lingered in the Purple Chen Hall before the Tang emperor withdrew his gaze. "Minister Lu, I understood what you have said a few years after ascending to this position."
Lu Chunshui kowtowed.
"Everything you have said rests on the premise that I can change the theory of Heaven, that the theory cannot act upon Tang without going through Qilin... just as it has been for the past several thousand years, existing only invisibly, with people needing to understand no Heavenly Principles whether they farmed or fought." The Tang emperor turned his head slightly toward him and curled his lips, in what was perhaps the warmest, most genial smile Lu Chunshui had seen on that face in all these years.
"..."
"Yet the course of the theory of Heaven does not follow my desires. What is right is right, and what is wrong is wrong. Now that the Two Heavens Theory has arisen, my following it may well be Haotian's will."
"..."
"As for the successor you spoke of, Qilin has always chosen them, and I have never interfered. That remains true today." The Tang emperor lowered his head and closed the two memorials he had just casually annotated, then looked at him. "Sorry for the trouble of coming to remonstrate so late at night, Minister Lu-how was Zhi'er after returning that day?"
Lu Chunshui paused. "Everything was as usual with the Fourth Highness. His injuries were minor to begin with, and his Mindscape remained clear. But when His Highness rises in the morning, he examines his neck in a mirror and often remains lost in thought for a long while."
"That