The Imperial Family (Part Two)

Seeing this, the boy and woman did not comfort the emperor on the couch, but instead got up and knelt down.

The woman's jeweled attire lost its luster at this moment, her dignified and noble face became dull and lifeless, tears streamed down her face, and she choked out:

"Father, ever since the Qin Emperor Human Dao Attainment Position, the Human Dao has seemed to be Curse. Fathers suspect sons, and sons resent fathers. Since the end of the Han Dynasty, the various states have been at war for many years. The Liu family of the Former Zhao plotted against each other, and the Shi family of the Later Zhao devoured each other. The Murong Tribe clan killed their own family members three times in four generations due to the struggle for the throne. The Helian clan established its state for less than two decades, and the son killed his father to establish himself. The emperors of the Gao Qi were either killed by their sons or slaughtered by their brothers. The Yuwen clan ruled with harsh laws, yet their descendants killed each other. In which dynasty, in which generation, was the Human Dao Attainment Position not soaked in blood?"

She straightened up, turned around, and looked at the man on the bed who had walked alongside her for tens of thousands of years, her voice trembling:

"Later, Taizu Emperor Gao restored the Human Dao Attainment Position, changed the Emperor Position, established the Crown Prince Position prince, and divided the Vassal Prince Position. It was thought that the fate of father and son killing each other had finally come to an end. But now... but what has happened now?" She clenched her hands tightly, and said nervously, "The imperial family has shallow blood ties, and is inherently more indifferent than ordinary families. But indifference as it may be, they are still father and son. How did it come to this?"

Her voice trailed off, as if she were asking the person on the bed, or perhaps the silent heavens and earth within the hall.

Mysterious and enigmatic words came from an unknown place:

I once said: This daughter-in-law is good to my family.

Xuan Yin paused:

"But if this man hadn't married you and had Ji'er, I would have naturally passed the Emperor Position to the Prince of Han. Only the Prince of Han can carry on my ambition and emulate my six armies' repeated campaigns to clear the dust from the North of the Desert."

As soon as she finished speaking, tears streamed down the woman's face, and she murmured:

"Father, why has it come to this? The Prince of Han is cruel and inhumane; how can he possibly uphold the legacy of Taizu Emperor Gao?"

The boy beside him also spoke up:

"Grandfather, Father..."

But before he could speak, he was interrupted by a voice behind him:

"Ji'er, don't say anything more."

Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince turned around and looked at his father, whom he had always disliked, on the couch with a complicated expression.

A pang of pain shot through my heart, and I thought to myself:

"Parents who love their children plan far ahead for them... this is no exaggeration!"

Then, the emperor on the bed turned over and vomited violently towards the ground, first as streaks of broken starlight, then as the sun and moon shone brightly.

Then several more insects were spat out of His mouth and flew away...

Seeing this, the woman and the boy quickly got up to help him, but He waved them away.

"So be it. Since Father doesn't like me, he might as well take me in sooner rather than later, so that Ji'er can succeed to the throne and carry on your grand ambitions."

After speaking, He laughed heartily, but the mysterious voice never sounded again.

Outside the hall, the eunuch's voice rang out at just the right moment:

"Your Majesty, the Crown Princess has arrived."

The emperor looked at the boy:

"You may go now, lest you worry the Crown Princess."

The boy was taken aback by these words, but did not rise. Seeing this, the emperor angrily said:

"Roll!"

Seeing this, the woman had no choice but to nudge the boy and nod to signal him to leave.

Seeing this, the young man had no choice but to stand up, bow, and then turn and leave.

The third day of the third lunar month is the Shangsi Festival.

In previous years, pear blossoms would have covered the mountains and fields by this time on Qixia Mountain, but this year not a single flower has bloomed.

Jueming walked ahead, then suddenly stopped, gazing at the bare pear branches covering the mountainside, and said softly:

"In previous years, the pear blossoms would have been in full bloom by this time. Daozi once said that pear blossoms are elegant and unassuming, only fit to bloom in the mountains. But now it's the third day of the third lunar month..."

Nannuo followed him upon hearing this, standing beside him and softly comforting him:

The flowers refuse to bloom; perhaps the time is not yet ripe.

Upon hearing this, Jueming looked up into Nannuo's eyes and choked up as he said:

I fear that when the time comes, the flowers will bloom, but he will have forgotten us.

"No, it won't." Nannuo's tone was soft, yet firm. "I believe in Daozi."

Jueming didn't respond; he just lowered his head.

After a long silence, he finally said in a muffled voice:

"... I miss Michiko."

After she finished speaking, Nannuo didn't reply, but her eyes were filled with tears.

At the foot of Golden Ao Mountain, pear blossoms are in full bloom, like white snow covering the branches.

As Su Yao walked through the Pear Garden, he glanced sideways towards the South Sea, wondering to himself. "I wonder if the pear blossoms on Qixia Mountain are in full bloom this year?"

After gazing for a long time, Liu Yunhe appeared behind Su Yao and said softly, "Daozi, the assessment is over. It's time to go see who to recruit."

Su Yao then came to his senses and casually said, "You can decide. This is just a separate courtyard, an escape route. Just have a few disciples keep the mountain gate from being empty."

Upon hearing this, Liu Yunhe looked somewhat embarrassed. Su Yao glanced at him and asked, "What's wrong? Is there something you're unsure about?"

Liu Yunhe breathed a sigh of relief and quickly said, "There are eight people taking the exam. Five of them are easy to deal with. Li Mosi's grand-nephew has decent talent and a respectable family background; Yang Yanchang's younger brother has good talent, although his Cultivation Method doesn't suit the clan, he is still a decent person. The other three are the children of villagers from the foot of the mountain. Although their talent is not outstanding, they have Root Bone foundations and simple minds. We can keep them and teach them slowly."

He paused, a troubled look on his face:

"There are two others we simply cannot control. One is a young man in black from a small village five hundred miles to the east. He doesn't seem to have any major flaws, but he's a bit withdrawn, and we can't quite figure him out yet. The other is a young Bai People from the southern shore of Cibi Lake. He wouldn't have been a problem either, but he brought a scholar in a blue robe with him, who also passed the test. He said he was a friend and came to see if Golden Ao Mountain was reliable. The scholar kept him close behind him the whole time, looking at us like we were thieves."

Su Yao raised an eyebrow slightly upon hearing this, somewhat surprised, and smiled:

"Then let's go take a look."

After saying that, he turned and walked towards the Embracing Rosy Clouds Hall.

Seeing this, Liu Yunhe quickly followed.

Upon arriving at the Embracing Rosy Clouds Hall, Li Siyi and the other three were sitting on chairs in front of the palace, their faces solemn.

Below, there are five people, three men and two women, gathered together, all dressed in Hanfu (traditional Han clothing).

Not far away, a young man dressed in black stood alone.

Behind them stood a young man dressed in Bai People and a scholar in a blue robe.

Just as Liu Yunhe had said, the scholar in the blue robe looked at Li Siyi and the others above with wary expressions, protecting the young Bai People behind him.

Su Yao arrived a short distance from the front of the hall and stopped Liu Yunhe from speaking.

He secretly moved Prism to scan each of the men.

First, he scanned the five people gathered together, finding nothing unusual.

Then he looked at the boy dressed in Bai People and the scholar in blue. The boy dressed in Bai People had good aptitude, which surprised Su Yao. As for the scholar in blue, he had a strong sense of Confucian School Vast Righteousness Qi in his heart. Now he thought that he only needed the right Cultivation Method to enter the Dao.

As for the boy in black...

Under Su Yao's gaze, aided by the Prism, his body radiated a Heavenly Governance Silver Light, resembling the light emanating from the Spirit Omens Mystery-Inquiring Tube.

However, compared to the Spirit Omens Mystery-Inquiring Tube, the Heavenly Governance Silver Light emanating from the young man was even more dazzling.