FIMA Ch81: Means

Wang Chengying said softly to Gu Siyuan, “General, please, the emperor is waiting for you!”

Gu Siyuan slightly softened his expression, “Sorry to trouble you, Chief Wang.”

Wang Chengying was the chief eunuch beside Emperor Jianzhao, in charge of the Directorate of Ceremonial and the entire inner palace, deeply trusted by the emperor.

Even if the original person was known as the cold-faced Yama, he still had to be polite to this person.

Under Wang Chengying’s lead, when Gu Siyuan entered the central military tent, several figures were already seated inside. Besides Emperor Jianzhao sitting at the top, there were also various princes and courtiers below.

Emperor Jianzhao was now over fifty years old, slightly plump, but it could be seen that he had good foundations in his youth.

When he cast his gaze on Gu Siyuan, it was so deep it was frightening.

However, given the original person’s character, Gu Siyuan naturally could not react to this and directly and coldly bowed, “Gu Xun greets Your Majesty.”

Emperor Jianzhao’s gaze softened slightly, revealing a kindly smile, and he raised his hand and said, “Siyuan, sit down. Today you have made a great contribution by saving Xuan’er. I must reward you well.”

Upon hearing this, Xie Xuan, sitting on the lower right of Emperor Jianzhao, also bowed again to Gu Siyuan, “Thank you, General Gu.”

Gu Siyuan glanced at Xie Xuan expressionlessly, then ignored him and only bowed to Emperor Jianzhao, “Gu Xun thanks Your Majesty.”

After saying this, he turned and walked to the lowest seat on the left side and sat down.

It was as if Xie Xuan were a virus, and he wanted to stay eight feet away from him.

Seeing Gu Siyuan’s rude behavior, the smile in Emperor Jianzhao’s eyes deepened.

However, he lightly scolded, “Gu Xun, what kind of temper is this? Xuan’er is talking to you.”

Listening to this affectionate tone, compared to the deep gaze when he first entered, Gu Siyuan felt that Emperor Jianzhao shouldn’t be an emperor; he should go on stage and act.

But since the emperor had spoken, he naturally couldn’t pretend not to hear.

He slowly raised his head to look at Xie Xuan and replied coldly, “Sixth Prince, there’s no need to be polite. This is my duty, as I was responsible for the security of the sacrificial ceremony today.”

“…” Xie Xuan pouted and silently rolled his eyes.

Hmph, you better keep it that way.

For some reason, even though Gu Siyuan had always treated him poorly and he never cared, today, he inexplicably felt a bit of humiliation and anger.

Could it be because he was held by Gu Siyuan on the altar earlier? Did something go wrong because of that?

Hmph, this brute, isn’t he just a bit stronger and has a harder chest? What’s so great about that?

Hearing this, the eldest prince Xie Hong laughed and praised, “General Gu is young and diligent in his duties, truly skilled.”

The second prince Xie Kuan also followed suit in praising Gu Siyuan.

Although Gu Siyuan was only a fourth-rank Zhonglang General of the Imperial Guards, he was responsible for the emperor and the palace’s safety, a very crucial position.

Moreover, his identity was somewhat special. Gu Siyuan’s father had been a milk brother to Emperor Jianzhao and had even taken an arrow for him during the throne-struggle chaos over ten years ago.

Gu Siyuan himself hated evil, was unyielding and ruthless, never associated with any prince or courtier, and gave face to no one but Emperor Jianzhao. Over time, the emperor naturally grew to trust and rely on him more and more.

However, what happened this morning still made Emperor Jianzhao somewhat suspicious.

The fourth prince, Xie Huan, kept secretly observing Gu Siyuan.

Three months ago, a great victory was reported from the southeastern coast.

This was the biggest victory against the Eastern Sea pirates since Emperor Jianzhao ascended the throne.

On the recommendation of the officials, it was decided to establish an altar in Qing County, on the outskirts of the capital. The current emperor would personally offer prayers, not only to celebrate the great victory and boost the morale of the soldiers but also to mourn the tens of thousands of Da Liang soldiers and civilians killed by the Eastern Sea pirates over the years.

Ten days ago, the altar was completed.

The Ministry of Rites and the Imperial Astronomical Bureau chose an auspicious day, and it was supposed to be this morning when Emperor Jianzhao would lead the princes and civil and military officials to hold the grand ceremony.

However, early in the morning, it was suddenly reported that Emperor Jianzhao was unwell, and the person leading the ceremony was changed to the sixth prince, Xie Xuan.

At that time, the officials looked at each other, thinking that a major change was coming.

Since ancient times, the only one who could replace the emperor in offering sacrifices to heaven was the future crown prince. The emperor’s favor towards the sixth prince was excessive, and it seemed he had decided to make Xie Xuan the crown prince.

Of course, Emperor Jianzhao’s last-minute decision was not to give Xie Xuan a title but to undermine him.

Over the years, perhaps Emperor Jianzhao had hidden it well, coupled with Xie Xuan’s own abilities. Even though Consort Lu was rumored to be a femme fatale, many forces in the court were still leaning towards Xie Xuan.

Especially recently, the only daughter of Zhejiang’s governor, Yu Zhiyao, fell in love with Xie Xuan at first sight. Yu Zhiyao, who always doted on his daughter, planned to ask Emperor Jianzhao for a marriage alliance during the rewards for merits and achievements.

For a minister to ask the emperor to grant a marriage to a prince was a great honor, not something just anyone could do.

However, Yu Zhiyao was not just anyone. He was the general who had recently defeated the Eastern Sea pirates, leading to the coastal victory, and his Yu family army was highly reputed.

If such a powerful and prestigious military figure became Xie Xuan’s father-in-law, it would greatly enhance Xie Xuan’s chances in the succession struggle.

At this moment, the world’s male protagonist, the fourth prince Xie Huan, had thoughts of sabotage.

Having Emperor Jianzhao directly refuse would be the easiest, but on the surface, Emperor Jianzhao always seemed to favor Xie Xuan excessively. If he was too forceful, it might arouse Xie Xuan’s suspicion.

Therefore, it would be best if Yu Zhiyao voluntarily gave up the idea.

So, after discussing with the female lead, Jiang Yuanyuan, Xie Huan came up with a good plan.

This plan involved using the sacrificial ceremony.

This ceremony, besides celebrating the victory, was mainly to pay homage to the soldiers and civilians killed by the Eastern Sea pirates along the coast.

If, when it was Xie Xuan’s turn to perform the rites, the altar suddenly collapsed, and the rumors of divine retribution were spread, given Consort Lu’s reputation as a femme fatale, not only would Yu Zhiyao not dare to marry his daughter to Xie Xuan, but Xie Xuan’s reputation for being unworthy and divinely warned would spread. How could such a person qualify for the throne?

And in the original storyline, things indeed developed this way.

From then on, Xie Xuan’s reputation plummeted.

Yu Zhiyao, under external pressure, abandoned the marriage proposal.

Later, the female lead Jiang Yuanyuan, showing her support in difficult times, married into the sixth prince’s residence without any hesitation.

Because of this, Xie Xuan felt even more grateful and affectionate towards Jiang Yuanyuan, leading to deeper betrayal later.

But now, this well-arranged event was disrupted by Gu Siyuan, who publicly pointed out that the collapse of the altar was man-made and even captured the assassin alive.

This not only left Xie Xuan unharmed but might also arouse Xie Xuan’s suspicion.

How did things turn out this way? How could it be such a coincidence?

Yet Gu Siyuan had always been at odds with Xie Xuan.

He had even publicly stated that Consort Lu was a femme fatale and that the emperor favored the sixth prince too much, and he would eventually arrest those who rose to power through connections with Consort Lu.

Emperor Jianzhao’s deep gaze once again turned towards Gu Siyuan, as if trying to see through him.

However, before he could ask anything, Gu Siyuan took the initiative and said, “Your Majesty, I have something to report.”

Emperor Jianzhao immediately narrowed his eyes. Could it be that those captured fools had said something they shouldn’t have?

Did those fools want their families executed?

After a while, he coldly continued, “Is it about the assassins this morning? Do you have any leads?”

Gu Siyuan nodded.

Seeing his certainty, Emperor Jianzhao’s gaze grew even colder.

The majesty of the emperor was fully revealed.

Everyone in the tent, whether intentionally or unintentionally, shivered slightly.

At this moment, a report came from outside the tent.

Soon after, a figure in official robes walked in and immediately knelt before Emperor Jianzhao, crying out in a miserable tone, “Your Majesty…”

The voice dragged on, sounding extremely pitiful.

Emperor Jianzhao’s expression changed, and he frowned.

The person in front of him was Chen Hexi, the Chief Minister of the Court of Judicial Review. After hearing that Gu Siyuan had captured the assassin, he had sent Chen Hexi to interrogate them together.

“Minister Chen, speak clearly. What happened?”

Chen Hexi straightened up, pointed at Gu Siyuan, and looked like he didn’t know what to say, “General Gu… General Gu… it’s really…”

Emperor Jianzhao, impatient with his stammering, directly asked Gu Siyuan, “Siyuan, what did you do?”

Gu Siyuan stood up, his usually stern face showing rare helplessness, “Just now, I was about to report to Your Majesty that these assassins dared to attack the emperor. They are desperate men, and during my interrogation, I might have been a bit heavy-handed. Minister Chen is not used to such scenes and was frightened.”

As he spoke, he gave Chen Hexi a disdainful look.

Chen Hexi: “…”

Was I frightened? I was furious!

Also, do you call that a bit heavy-handed?

Chen Hexi kowtowed a few times and sincerely said to Emperor Jianzhao above, “Your Majesty, I can’t investigate this case anymore. With General Gu’s methods, those assassins probably won’t survive tonight. I won’t be able to extract any information from them.”

Although Emperor Jianzhao did not want those assassins to live either, he was still stunned for a moment after hearing this: “These assassins were brought back to the camp less than an hour ago, how did things become like this?”

Chen Hexi looked at Gu Siyuan angrily and said, “Although it is said that General Gu is usually iron-faced and ruthless, how can an interrogation be conducted like this? Those assassins were tortured with red-hot irons and flayed alive; they are hardly human anymore. If these assassins were not personally captured by General Gu, I would have suspected him of killing them to silence them.”

Emperor Jianzhao understood, and any suspicion he had of Gu Siyuan completely vanished.

He smiled lightly and sighed, saying to Gu Siyuan, “Siyuan, you are a military officer, so for now, don’t get involved in the interrogation. I will leave it to the Court of Judicial Review and the Directorate of Ceremonies.”

Gu Siyuan gave Chen Hexi a cold look and reported to Emperor Jianzhao, “Yes, Your Majesty. I am not interested in these tedious interrogations; I only care about capturing and killing people.”

Xie Xuan pouted: “…”

Indeed, just a brute.

Emperor Jianzhao nodded, his expression becoming more kindly, and said, “Well, regardless, your primary contribution to this case is certain.”

Gu Siyuan straightforwardly cupped his hands in salute: “Then I take my leave.”

After speaking, he lifted the curtain and walked out directly, as if the others did not exist.

Qing County is near the Grand Canal, a rare place in the north with beautiful mountains and clear waters.

In the wide forest, petals and leaves fluttered, and sword shadows flew.

Of course, the most captivating was the tall and slender figure wielding a sword.

Xie Xuan hid behind a big tree, watching with great interest.

“Swish…” A silver light flashed, and before Xie Xuan could react, a cold sword was already pressed against his slender, white neck.