FIMA Ch98: Sharing the Glory

Both Gu Siyuan and Xie Xuan were very decisive in their actions.

About a month after the decree establishing Xie Xuan as the crown prince was announced to the world, the edict for Emperor Jianzhao’s abdication was also issued.

On the eighth day of the eleventh month, under the witness of civil and military officials, Xie Xuan formally ascended the throne.

Standing on the steps in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, looking at the crowd below, he suddenly felt a sense of vastness.

However, when he turned his head, he could see Gu Siyuan standing beside him with a sword. No matter how vast the world, he still had this person by his side.

The grand ceremony concluded.

Xie Xuan and Gu Siyuan returned to the harem. Xie Xuan couldn’t wait to throw off the crown on his head. The twelve jade beads clinked lightly as they collided.

He then pounced into Gu Siyuan’s arms as usual, acting spoiled, “I’m so tired.”

Gu Siyuan held him, weighing him a bit, and said calmly, “If you’re so tired, it seems tonight’s plan to visit the Golden Throne should be canceled.”

“…” Xie Xuan.

Gu Siyuan, if you’re not up for it, just say so.

However, although Xie Xuan had thought about it for a long time, and Gu Siyuan had secretly wanted it for a long time, it didn’t happen on the day of the enthronement.

Because that evening, an urgent report arrived, bringing news from both the northern and border regions. The grassland people had raised an army of 100,000, directly attacking the three cities of Xueling.

In just a few days, they had captured two cities. If the last city of Xuanzhou fell, the grassland people would open the northern border gate and march straight to the capital in the future.

Over the years, the grassland people had been restless in the northern border.

Especially in winter, they frequently raided caravans and harassed border cities. But it was always minor skirmishes, never a full-scale invasion like this.

Upon receiving the report, Xie Xuan was so furious that he laughed, “The grassland people are really focused on our capital. They must have guessed the turmoil in the court, and that I just ascended the throne, so they chose this time specifically.”

Gu Siyuan held his hand and said softly, “Watch how I vent your anger, Your Majesty.”

Xie Xuan nodded naturally, “Mm-hmm.”

In the following days, both Xie Xuan and Gu Siyuan were so busy that they hardly slept or ate.

The lights in the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue never went out, preparing supplies, military equipment, and issuing orders.

It wasn’t until the day before Gu Siyuan was chosen as the commander to lead the reinforcements to the northern border that they had time to be together.

The long-anticipated moment finally had a chance to happen.

Perhaps because of the impending separation, the usually passive and lazy Xie Xuan was uncharacteristically enthusiastic this time.

Gu Siyuan looked at the person sitting on him and said solemnly, “When I return from the northern border, we must do this again.”

Xie Xuan, tilting his slender neck, struggled to catch his breath, “No way…”

It’s too tiring for him to take the lead.

This time was a special situation.

Gu Siyuan, dissatisfied, pulled him into his arms, pushing deeper inside him.

“Ah…” Xie Xuan whimpered.

His pale, slender feet curled tightly on the golden dragon throne.

That night, Xie Xuan was tormented more than ever before, finally passing out completely.

The next day when he woke up, there was no trace of anyone beside him.

Xie Xuan looked at the bruises all over his body and cursed that person a thousand times in his heart.

But he couldn’t bring himself to say any harsh words. With the unpredictability of war, he dared not say anything he might regret, fearing it might come true.

Following that, orders flew out from the palace.

Since Gu Siyuan was already on the battlefield, he had to ensure everything was arranged properly at the rear.

This time, Gu Siyuan rode swiftly to the border, bringing only the cavalry camp and the Shenji camp from the capital.

With two of the three Snow Ridge cities lost, many soldiers and civilians had retreated to the last city, Xuanzhou, but many more were left behind.

The commander of Xuanzhou, though not a great general, was tenacious, steadfastly defending Xuanzhou, waiting for reinforcements.

Xuanzhou had been besieged by the grassland people for nearly a month. With the recent influx of people from the other two cities, their supplies were running low.

When Gu Siyuan arrived outside Xuanzhou, the first thing he encountered was a group of Xuanzhou soldiers transporting supplies, surrounded by grassland attackers.

His gaze darkened, and he said coldly, “Save them!”

The eyes of the cavalry and Shenji camp soldiers behind him lit up. They had been waiting eagerly for this moment.

During the palace coup, the General had resolved everything almost without bloodshed, leaving them no chance to show off.

The grassland leader, who was directing the attack on the Xuanzhou soldiers, noticed Gu Siyuan and his men and brightened up, delighted. “These must be their reinforcements. Sound the horn immediately and have our comrades from other directions surround them. We’ll catch them all in one sweep!”

The besieged Xuanzhou soldiers’ faces changed, feeling a bit resentful. If they were reinforcements, why didn’t they bring more men? Just a few thousand seemed like fodder.

However, soon enough.

They watched as the seemingly weak reinforcements pulled out black objects from their saddlebags and rolled out a large iron barrel from their ranks.

The cavalry commander rode forward, shouting loudly, “All Xuanzhou soldiers, crouch and cover your heads, or face the consequences!”

As the words fell, the mouths of those iron objects simultaneously spewed out faint yellow flames.

On the plains, roars echoed, and blood and flesh flew everywhere.

The surrounded Xuanzhou soldiers hesitated no longer, immediately crouching behind the carts.

After an unknown period, the noise gradually subsided, the flames extinguished, and the smoke dispersed.

The Xuanzhou soldiers stood up slowly, staring blankly at the scene before them, completely stunned.

The grassland cavalry, who had been pushing them back repeatedly, had fallen so easily?

What kind of divine weapon was this?

No wonder the reinforcements dared to come with so few men.

Before Gu Siyuan and the grain transport soldiers could enter the city, they encountered the reinforcements summoned by the grassland horn.

This time, it was a clean and decisive encounter battle.

The grassland people had brought 100,000 men, and in these two battles, they lost 10,000.

When the news reached the main camp, the central command was shocked.

After that, the grassland people hesitated no more, deciding to fight to the death, gathering all their forces to besiege Xuanzhou, vowing not to retreat without breaching the city.

However, this plan naturally fell through.

With nearly a hundred cannons and thousands of muskets brought by Gu Siyuan, they suppressed any grassland soldiers attempting to storm the city.

After one wave of assault, only heaps of corpses remained outside Xuanzhou city.

The grassland people could only kneel and pray for their gods’ protection.

But in front of Gu Siyuan’s weapons, even their gods had to retreat.

By the end of the night, of the grassland’s 90,000-strong army, less than 20,000 scattered soldiers fled back in the direction they came.

A month later, the other two Snow Ridge cities occupied by the grassland people were reclaimed by Da Liang.

However, the original population of Da Liang citizens in these cities had decreased by nearly one-third during the two months of occupation.

Because of this, Gu Siyuan directly refused Xie Xuan’s imperial edict summoning him back to the capital.

The grassland people had occupied their two cities and killed so many of their people; how could he let this go?

Thus, the roles of attacker and defender were reversed.

The ensuing war between Da Liang and the grassland people continued for a year without cease.

It wasn’t that the grassland people were particularly brave or skilled in battle, even Gu Siyuan’s modern weapons couldn’t completely defeat them. It was the vast and sparsely populated grasslands.

Most of Gu Siyuan’s army’s time was spent traveling rather than fighting.

By the third summer, over ten grassland tribes collectively surrendered, and the remaining stubborn grassland forces were forced westward to foreign lands.

Da Liang’s border fortifications extended deep into the grasslands.

Cities were built across the grasslands.

While Da Liang was a feudal society, the grasslands operated under a slave system. Most people were slaves, beaten, killed, and traded by their masters, living lives far more miserable than Da Liang’s citizens.

After occupying these areas, Gu Siyuan freed all slaves. Those willing to stay were governed by the protectorate and became Da Liang citizens; those wanting to move to Da Liang for a better life were registered and distributed across various states, counties, towns, and villages.

To prevent these people from banding together and causing trouble, no village was allowed to have more than two households of them.

After announcing these basic governance policies, it was time for Gu Siyuan to return to the capital.

…

Meanwhile, in the capital.

Xie Xuan angrily threw aside the reports from Xuanzhou.

Hmph, finally decided to return. Why not stay on horseback forever?

According to his plan, after ascending the throne, they should have led a carefree and shameless life. But that annoying Gu Siyuan had left him alone in the dragon bed for over a year.

When that fellow comes back, I’ll definitely leave him alone for a whole month.

Hmm, Xie Xuan hesitated, furrowing his attractive eyebrows… Is a month too long? Maybe ten days, ten days?

But Gu Siyuan was expanding the territory for him, would such a punishment be too unkind? How about three days, three days without talking to him or letting him touch him.

Xie Xuan thought fiercely.

At this moment, Yuan Bao walked in: “Your Majesty, there is news from the Jingchang Palace.”

Yuan Bao was originally Xie Xuan’s close eunuch. After Xie Xuan ascended the throne, he became the chief eunuch, taking over the Ministry of Rites from Wang Chengying.

Jingchang Palace is located in Fangshan, built by the founder of Da Liang, usually used for summer retreats and vacations.

However, after Xie Xuan ascended the throne, he had Emperor Jianzhao and Xie Huan confined there.

Xie Xuan looked up at him: “What trouble have those two caused now? Are they secretly contacting local garrison troops to rebel against me, to depose me? Do they have such guts?”

Yuan Bao chuckled and said obsequiously, “They wouldn’t dare now. They have internal conflicts.”

Although Emperor Jianzhao and Xie Huan were initially intimidated by Gu Siyuan’s military might, after Gu Siyuan left for the northern border, they began secretly acting up again.

Emperor Jianzhao, having ruled for so many years, managed to gather some strength through bribery and other means.

A year ago, they attempted to secretly contact external forces and sent messages to the garrison troops in Tongzhou and Bazhou, planning to stage a coup and dethrone Xie Xuan.

However, they naturally did not succeed.

Xie Xuan had already anticipated everything. The troops were intercepted by his forces equipped with firearms before they could enter the capital. In the end, the official road to the capital was stained with blood, reddening half the sky.

Since then, everyone, including Emperor Jianzhao, knew that Xie Xuan had a batch of divine weapons, making any thought of rebellion seem like suicide.

These weapons were left by Gu Siyuan before he left, fearing that there would be troublemakers after Xie Xuan’s recent ascension. Unexpectedly, they indeed came in handy.

Thinking of Gu Siyuan, Xie Xuan felt both sour and soft-hearted.

…Maybe he should forget the three-day punishment?

No.

Xie Xuan firmly rejected the idea. Gu Siyuan would never realize his mistake that way.

Forcing himself to change his mind, Xie Xuan diverted his attention back to Yuan Bao, asking gleefully, “You said they had internal problems, what happened? Did that scoundrel Xie Huan beat up my good father?”

“…” Yuan Bao nearly rolled his eyes.

Your Majesty, you sure can imagine. Since his last failed attempt, Xie Huan has been living in constant fear, afraid that you would find an excuse to kill him. How could he dare to beat the retired emperor?

But Yuan Bao still explained with a smile, “It was Xie Huan’s wife, Madam Jiang. Yesterday, she suddenly went mad and cut off Xie Huan’s…thing with a pair of scissors…”

“What did you say…” Xie Xuan widened his eyes in shock.

After all, a man could deeply empathize with injuries in that area.

He swallowed, “What about Madam Jiang now?”

Yuan Bao said, “The retired emperor was furious and wanted to kill her, but the palace guards stopped him. Now, Madam Jiang is locked in the firewood room.”

Xie Xuan laughed loudly, mocking, “Why lock her up? Go, pass my order, release her. Let the dogs bite each other, it’s more interesting that way.”

Yuan Bao hesitated.

Xie Xuan looked at him, “What’s the matter?”

Yuan Bao glanced at him cautiously and then explained, “That Madam Jiang is really mad. She even spoke disrespectfully about you, claiming to be your wife, saying she should be the empress now, and she keeps demanding to see you…”

Hearing this, Xie Xuan sneered, “If not for that bastard Gu Siyuan, I almost married her back then.”

Tch, why did he think of that bastard Gu Siyuan again?

He pondered for a moment, then said, “There’s not much to do today. I haven’t seen my father in a year. I’ll go to Jingchang Palace today!”

“Yes,” Yuan Bao responded quickly.

After arriving at Jingchang Palace, Xie Xuan first went to see Emperor Jianzhao and Xie Huan.

However, Xie Huan, after waking up and learning he had become a eunuch, was in so much pain that he kept crying out, wanting to die, while Emperor Jianzhao and Concubine Li were trying hard to restrain him.

Seeing this harmonious family scene, Xie Xuan didn’t want to disturb them and instead went to see Jiang Yuan.

Of course, he didn’t lower himself to go to the firewood room, but waited in the main hall.

Soon, the palace guards brought in Jiang Yuan.

Contrary to his expectations, Jiang Yuan’s eyes were clear, her clothes and hair tidy. Although she looked more haggard than when she was in the capital, she didn’t seem like the madwoman Yuan Bao described.

As soon as she saw Xie Xuan, Jiang Yuan’s eyes lit up and she rushed over eagerly, “Your Highness… I knew you would come to see me.”

“What are you doing? How dare you be so disrespectful to His Majesty?” Yuan Bao immediately stepped forward and scolded loudly.

Jiang Yuan was startled by him.

The next moment, the guards behind her pressed her to kneel.

Xie Xuan raised an eyebrow at her and said indifferently, “I heard you wanted to see me. What is it?”

Jiang Yuan knelt there, seemingly not understanding. After a while, she mumbled, “You’re the emperor now, you’re the emperor, it’s different from the last life…”

Xie Xuan frowned at her words, “Last life…what last life?”

Jiang Yuan suddenly closed her mouth. She crawled a few steps forward, “Your Highness, I was supposed to be your wife. I should have married you. In the last life, you loved me the most, treated me the best. Take me away, Xie Huan is not a good person, I’ve already avenged myself on him.”

Xie Xuan raised an eyebrow, “It seems you’ve gone mad. There’s nothing more to say.”

With just that, he prepared to leave.

Jiang Yuanyuan’s attitude turned intense as she grabbed his hem, “Your Highness, I was wrong. In my past life, I shouldn’t have conspired with Xie Huan to betray you and ultimately cause your death. Will you forgive me? You’ve always treated me so well; you will surely forgive me, won’t you?”

Xie Xuan paused, his cold gaze fixed on her, “Cause my death? In your past life?”

After a long moment, Xie Xuan took a sip of the tea in his hand, processing the so-called past life events Jiang Yuanyuan had just spoken of.

He looked again at the person kneeling before him, his expression calm, “So, in your past life, starting from the sacrificial ceremony incident, I faced hardships all the way, was betrayed by you, executed by the former emperor, and then you were abandoned by Xie Huan after being married off like a discarded dog.”

Jiang Yuanyuan nodded, recalling how Xie Huan treated her in the past life, a look of intense hatred flashed in her eyes.

Xie Xuan chuckled softly, “This story is quite interesting.”

Then he put down his teacup and stood up to leave.

Jiang Yuanyuan immediately panicked and reached out to grab him again, but was forcefully pushed aside by the guards.

She fell to the ground, reaching out and crying, “Your Highness, Your Highness, I am your wife! Will you abandon me?”

Xie Xuan glanced at her, as if looking at an insignificant speck of dust, “Even if that was just a story, if it were true, do you think I would be so foolish as to keep someone who once betrayed me?”

After speaking, he strode out the door, where the sunlight was bright.

Jiang Yuanyuan’s expression changed dramatically, “Your Highness, but I have realized my mistake. You once truly loved me, how can you be so heartless…”

But Xie Xuan could no longer hear her.

After leaving the Jingchang Palace, Xie Xuan headed back to the capital.

He sat in the carriage, pondering Jiang Yuanyuan’s words.

Though he appeared calm at the palace, the reality in Jiang Yuanyuan’s words stuck with him, even making him a bit fearful.

Thinking carefully, starting from the sacrificial ceremony incident, if not for Gu Siyuan’s sudden alertness, everything might have unfolded just as she described.

Gu Siyuan…

Xie Xuan chewed over the name, feeling an urge to swallow this person whole.

This annoying guy dared to leave him for over a year.

The more he thought about it, the more suffocating it felt.

Xie Xuan raised his hand, lifting the curtain of the carriage window.

The weather was great today, the sky was a vast blue, and flocks of wild geese occasionally flew by.

Even the wild geese were in pairs, but he was alone.

Hmph, when Gu Siyuan returns, he must make him suffer.

Unless… unless he appears in front of him right now, then he might have a tiny bit of a chance to be forgiven.

Xie Xuan’s thoughts wandered wildly.

Just then, the carriage curtain suddenly shook.

Xie Xuan blinked and turned to look, thinking it was Yuan Bao reporting something.

However, in the next moment, he stared wide-eyed at the person half-kneeling across from him.

Gu Siyuan also looked at the person opposite him, still as exquisite and noble as before, with fair skin and a beautiful face. Though his eyes were wide open in a bit of a daze, it didn’t diminish his beauty and grace.

All the longing in his heart turned into a torrent, flooding out in an instant.

He reached out and pulled his little emperor into his arms, his weathered face rubbing against Xie Xuan’s soft cheek, sighing contentedly, “I’ve missed you so much.”

He had ditched the main group, riding day and night alone to rush back to the capital, all for the person in his arms.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he entered the outskirts of the capital, he saw the imperial convoy.

They truly had a mutual understanding.

Gu Siyuan held the person in his arms for a while, but this little devil who was usually so mischievous was strangely quiet today.

He loosened his grip slightly, only to see his little emperor still stiff, with a dazed expression, seemingly maintaining this look since he entered the carriage.

Gu Siyuan found it novel, pinching his soft cheeks and lightly biting his red lips, but his little emperor remained motionless.

Gu Siyuan narrowed his eyes, pulling him onto his lap, his large hand slowly measuring from his waist up.

His little emperor seemed unchanged from before.

Gu Siyuan felt relieved, yet dissatisfied.

Not losing any weight, did he not miss him at all?

However, Gu Siyuan quickly found an excuse, maybe it was because Xie Xuan was still dressed, so it couldn’t be measured accurately.

He immediately reached to undo his belt.

A breeze blew through the carriage window.

Xie Xuan shivered, feeling a bit cold.

Instinctively looking down, “Huh?”

Only then did he notice his outer robe was gone, and a large hand was on his thin inner garment.

“…” Xie Xuan.

Suddenly, all his memories returned. Just now, did he see that bastard Gu Siyuan?

Xie Xuan quickly looked up, right into a familiar pair of calm eyes.

Gu Siyuan pinched his chin, leisurely saying, “The Emperor has finally come to his senses. Just now, I thought the Emperor’s soul had left.”

Xie Xuan immediately opened his mouth and bit his shoulder, feeling the familiar firmness.

Then, the abs, yes, they felt right too.

Finally, he solemnly reached further down, still right, it was this.

Gu Siyuan initially remained composed, but as Xie Xuan continued, he couldn’t help but breathe a bit heavier.

His little emperor was straightforward, heading directly toward the ultimate goal.

Habitually, he weighed the person sitting on his lap, thinking: His second brother also missed home; it hadn’t been inside for over a year.

Xie Xuan, having confirmed everything, proved that what he saw wasn’t an illusion.

Immediately, he raised his head to glare at him, preparing to scold him and demand an explanation.

However, “Mmm…” he didn’t even have a chance to open his mouth.

Moreover, from that moment until they entered the palace gates, he had no opportunity to rest.

…

Gu Siyuan’s campaign to expand the territory of Da Liang was a monumental achievement.

The next day, when Xie Xuan held court, he directly bestowed the title of King of Liang upon Gu Siyuan and granted him the Sword of the Son of Heaven.

These two honors immediately stunned everyone.

“Liang” was the name of the nation, how could it be a title for a king of a different surname? King of Liang, King of Liang, if this spread to other countries, they’d think Gu Siyuan was the ruler of Da Liang.

And the Sword of the Son of Heaven, typically given to a regent by a dying emperor to protect the young emperor, seemed unnecessary given the current emperor’s age.

Moreover, with the military seal still in Gu Siyuan’s hands, wasn’t the emperor worried about a powerful minister overshadowing the throne?

But Xie Xuan didn’t care about their concerns.

Not only did he disregard them now, but he also ignored later suggestions about appointing an empress or filling the harem.

And Gu Siyuan, disappointingly, didn’t become a powerful minister overshadowing the throne.

When there was a war to fight, he went to fight.

When there wasn’t, he served as a civil official, recording the emperor’s daily activities.

Occasionally, he invented small things to improve the lives of the people.

Thus, twenty years into Xie Xuan’s reign, Da Liang had undergone tremendous changes, and the people’s lives were thriving.

Under Gu Siyuan’s guidance, Xie Xuan began to reform laws, change the education and official selection systems, subtly transforming the political system from hereditary rule to a constitutional monarchy.

Perhaps in the near future, it would evolve into an even more equitable and just democratic system.

In the fifty-eighth year of Xie Xuan’s reign, he passed away in the Huangji Palace, and the nation mourned.

The following day, the King of Liang also passed away.

The new emperor followed the late emperor’s will, burying them together in the imperial tomb.

…

“Alright, today we will discuss Emperor Wu of Liang, Xie Xuan. During his reign, our country’s territory reached its historical maximum, a size maintained to this day. As a feudal monarch, he proactively reformed corrupt laws, returning power to the people, transitioning our country from a feudal society to a capitalist one, showcasing a vision ahead of his time…”

In a university history classroom, the teacher opened a PowerPoint and began lecturing.

The students below were already chattering away, discussing topics completely unrelated to what the teacher had just said.

“Every time I hear the posthumous title ‘Emperor Wu’ and see the beautiful Xie depicted by our Lord Gu, I feel the faces don’t match at all,” a female student said with a grin.

Her deskmate, also an active participant, agreed, “Yeah, such a fierce posthumous title, but he was such a stunning beauty!”

“Well, he did achieve great things.”

“Bah, what great things? He was just a useless person taken along by Gu Siyuan,” a male student in the back suddenly said.

The two girls glared at him, “What did you say?”

The boy, clearly a die-hard fan of Gu Siyuan, retorted, “Did you read the historical records? Whether it was the coup at Wenhua Hall, driving out the steppe people, expanding the territory, or the later inventions and political reforms, which of those weren’t Gu Siyuan’s achievements? Xie Xuan was just lucky to ride his coattails.”

The girls, undeterred, shot back, “So what if he rode coattails? Gu Siyuan was willing. Not only did he ride achievements, but they also slept in the same bed at night, huddling together.”

The boy, even angrier, snapped, “Stop talking nonsense! Gu Siyuan wasn’t like that.”

“Oh, didn’t you mention historical records? Didn’t they state ‘Siyuan often shared the emperor’s bed’? Or do you choose to ignore that?”

Their historical knowledge solid, the girls continued, “And why did General Gu never marry? Why did he die the day after Emperor Wu? Why were they buried together? Think about it.”

Just then, the class bell rang.

The boy left angrily, determined to look up more historical materials to prove his idol preferred women and wasn’t riding on Xie Xuan’s coattails.