嫩草影院地址一二三

Chapter 415: 415. Peace and stability throughout the world

Duanmu Chen often felt lately that the things happening to him were somewhat unreal. Since his childhood, he had seen a great deal of intrigue and infighting within the royal family, and he thought that he would inevitably experience the same, because he wanted the highest position.

But looking back, his ascension to the throne of Qian Country was much easier than he had originally imagined, and within just a year, he was actually going to become the Lord of the World?!

With the death of Situ Xie, the royal power of Liang Country was quickly taken over by Qiao Jing, and the military led by Yi Fei had long turned against Liang Country in favor of Qian Country. It was not a simple process, and there were several opposition forces that emerged, but none of them could make much of an impact.

In the face of Qian Country’s promised benefits and new policies after the merger, there was little resistance from the common people of Liang Country. After all, over the years, the Liang royal family had repeatedly demanded provisions and troops for war against Qian Country, increased taxes, and the people were already suffering. They naturally longed for the life of Qian Country’s people, and now becoming Qian Country’s people directly meant that they could at least have peace and tranquility in the future, which wouldn’t be worse than it was before.

What was even more shocking was King Yin of Yin Country, Ji Yuebai. He announced to the world in a single decree: For the sake of unifying the world, he wouldn’t be involved anymore!

There were many opponents within the court and among the people of Yin Country, and there were other members of the Ji royal family who wanted to take advantage of the situation to seize the throne. However, just because Ji Yuebai didn’t want to be emperor didn’t mean he was weak. He could sit in that position because he didn’t want Yin Country to be harmed by incompetent people. How could he possibly let someone he didn’t approve of take that position?

Ji Yuebai didn’t want any more wars, and that was also the reason why he chose to give up the throne and promote unification. Whether the world was divided into three parts or two, the resurgence of war was only a matter of time. Although the saying went “a long union will eventually divide,” what was wanted was a “long union.” A unified and peaceful dynasty could develop better, and the common people could have long-lasting peace.

So, in the past three months, there was only a bit of turbulence in Liang Country, and instead, there were several big fights in the court of Yin Country. However, no one could defeat Ji Yuebai, and he took advantage of this opportunity to eliminate unstable factors during the transition period.

Ji Yuebai knew very well that those who opposed him were not really trying to benefit Yin Country, but simply couldn’t bear to give up their glory and wealth as royals and nobles who had enjoyed a high position all their lives. After all, if they wanted to have a good life in the future, they would have to have real abilities. However, the vast majority of them were nothing more than wine and rice bags, and many even turned out to be hypocritical villains and perverts who bullied men and women with their power. Ji Yuebai dealt with them ruthlessly.

In this process, officials who were truly virtuous and talented didn’t need to worry about their future prospects, since the world, no matter how it changed, would need people to govern it. Ji Yuebai had already said that in the future, if anyone wanted to make a name for themselves, there would be only one way – relying on their true abilities. Clearing away those without abilities actually provided more opportunities for talented people who were unable to achieve their ambitions.

In the past three months, Duanmu Chen had been so busy that he had lost a lot of weight. A huge stuffed pastry pie fell from the sky, and he had to catch it, and catch it steady, so as not to disappoint the good fortune and expectations of Gu Ling and Su Liang that had brought him this far.

During the period of change, many things required his attention, and many new policies had to be formulated and promulgated. Duanmu Chen didn’t call Gu Ling and Su Liang into the palace anymore, and whenever he encountered a problem, he would run to Su Mansion to consult the couple.

At first, Duanmu Chen had doubts about whether Gu Ling and Su Liang knew anything about governing a country, since they themselves said they did not. However, no matter what difficult problem Duanmu Chen encountered, Gu Ling and Su Liang always gave him a satisfactory solution.

As for this matter, Duanmu Chen could only say that the two monsters claimed not to know about governing a country simply because they had never done it before, and they never spoke casually about things they had not done themselves. However, this did not prevent them from being top-level “problem-solving gods” with their starting point being for the sake of the common people. They were extremely thorough in their thinking and had many new ideas that Duanmu Chen could never have come up with.

Despite having the guidance of the two great gods behind him, Duanmu Chen still felt tremendous pressure because he really wanted to do this job well.

Empress Dowager Xiao concocted nourishing soups for Duanmu Chen every day, but still could not stop him from losing weight. However, in the end, he gradually began to enjoy the process, because this was actually his biggest dream since childhood. Since it had been so easy to achieve, he had to cherish it even more.

In Su Liang’s words, Duanmu Chen already had all the basic conditions to become a wise ruler and he would be a qualified good emperor, ruling over the new world.

At midnight, Duanmu Chen opened the last note on the Dragon Desk, which was sent from the south. Nian Jincheng and Lian Shun took over the Yin Country’s army, and there were some uprising incidents, but they had already been quelled. Ji Yuebai was leading the rest of the Ji family on their way to Qian Country’s capital city. This was to reassure Duanmu Chen that the Ji family members would be under his watch, and also to let the people of Yin Country give up hope.

Duanmu Chen closed the note, took a long breath, and stood up from the Dragon Throne, stretching his sore neck and wrists.

“Where will the Emperor rest tonight?” Chang’an asked. Duanmu Chen had never had eunuchs around him, and now, more so on Su Liang’s suggestion, the eunuch system had been completely abolished, and the eunuchs in the palace could either stay or leave as they pleased.

“Let’s take a walk in the garden.” Duanmu Chen said. He actually wanted to visit the children, but it was too late.

Xing Yuyan gave birth to a healthy son for Duanmu Chen. Her delivery was somewhat difficult, but luckily Su Liang was there to help, and there was no danger.

On the second day of Xing Yuyan’s delivery, Situ Yao gave birth to a daughter for Duanmu Chen. She had been depressed throughout her pregnancy, and Duanmu Chen often visited her, trying his best to comfort her and apologize for the past unpleasantness. However, the differences between them were not about feelings but rather their fate. Situ Yao could not get over it, and no one could persuade her otherwise.

As the Situ family of Liang Country fell, Situ Yao could no longer hold on. She had a premature birth, and her weak body and lack of will to live led to the child being taken out by Su Liang by cesarean section. The child barely survived, and Su Liang tried her best to save Situ Yao, but she still couldn’t save her life. At the last moment of her life, Situ Yao shed tears, gripping Su Liang’s hand, and Su Liang knew that Situ Yao was asking her to help look after the child.

Now Duanmu Chen’s daughter was out of danger and being taken care of by Empress Dowager Xiao. She had half of the blood of the Situ family in her veins, and the Situ family was famous for their beautiful women. The little girl was very pretty and loved to laugh. Duanmu Chen named her Duanmu Zhen and let her acknowledge Su Liang as her godmother.

As he strolled through the Imperial Garden at midnight, Duanmu Chen felt much less tired when he thought of his children. As he sat down in the pavilion, he asked Chang’an, “If I hadn’t asked for permission to go to Bei’an County that time, would everything be different now?”

Chang’an nodded, “Yes.”

Duanmu Chen smiled, “This is what they mean by ‘whoever gets Su Liang gets the world.’ I still believe that the stone at Huguo Temple back then was man-made.”

On a beautiful day, Zhengzheng and Ji Xiaoshu were pushing Gu Xiaonuan by the lake to play, when they suddenly heard a vigorous shout, “Nuannuan!”

“Who is that?” Ji Xiaoshu turned back; he saw a white-haired old man coming towards them.

Zhengzheng laughed, “It’s Third Master! Third Master is back!”

Qiao Cong went to the side of the small cart, and seeing the delicate and beautiful baby girl inside, the fatigue from the journey instantly dissipated. His heart melted as he lifted her gently and swung her, “My disciple is the most beautiful in the world!”

Qiao Jing walked over with a smile, greeted Zhengzheng and Ji Xiaoshu, checked on Gu Xiaonuan, and then went to see Nangong Qian.

From the time Situ Xie died until today when they returned home, Qiao Jing’s ears had been filled with Qiao Cong’s constant nagging. Qiao Cong wanted to return early, and so did Qiao Jing, but things had to be done and done well; they couldn’t leave a mess behind. Although Liang Country was a bit better than Yin Country, there were still many problems, and Peng Fan was almost exhausted by Qiao Jing’s “exploitation.”

Qiao Jing had told Qiao Cong many times to return home first, but the older man neither left nor stopped complaining about it. He worried that remnants of the Situ family would come to assassinate Qiao Jing and that Mo Yan’s group might return.

It wasn’t until things were mostly resolved and Xing Ji arrived that Qiao Cong and Qiao Jing were able to return. On their way back, they picked up Min Rou at Xuanbei City. Halfway through their journey, Min Rou returned to the Ministry Mansion and said she would visit Su Liang later.

When Qiao Cong saw Su Liang, he asked if there was any news about Lao Bai.

“Second Master and Fourth Master have gone to Xingluo Island, and there is no news yet.” Su Liang said.

After chatting with Qiao Cong for a while, Su Liang went to the palace. She now checked on Duanmu Zhen every other day.

Duanmu Chen happened to be visiting his daughter in the Empress Dowager’s palace.

“Why didn’t you bring Nuannuan with you?” Duanmu Chen asked, as Su Liang had brought Gu Xiaonuan and Gu Ling with her when she came the day before yesterday.

“My Third Master has returned.” Su Liang said. If she were to take Gu Xiaonuan away from Qiao Cong, he might have gotten angry with her.

Su Liang performed a routine check-up on Duanmu Zhen, and there was nothing wrong. After playing with her for a while, the Empress Dowager took her granddaughter away and let Su Liang chat with Duanmu Chen.

“Any news yet?” Duanmu Chen asked.

Su Liang shook her head, “Not yet.”

Two months ago, Old Mu had returned after receiving Su Liang’s letter about Lao Bai’s whereabouts. At that time, Situ Xie had passed away, and Old Mu said he would go to Xingluo Island to check if he could meet Mo Yan and inform Su Liang about the matters regarding her granddaughter. At the time, Min Rou hadn’t met Mo Yan outside Nanping City, and it was highly likely that He Wei and Sheng Yue had hidden Su Liang’s background and deliberately urged Mo Yan to leave to prevent him from changing his original plan.

Gu Ling and Su Liang had the same idea. However, it was possible that upon Old Mu’s arrival, someone on the island had already been on guard and would prevent him from meeting Mo Yan. But in any case, it was still worth a try.

Because now there was one thing that was still advantageous for Gu Ling and Su Liang: the people on Xingluo Island probably didn’t know that Min Rou had seen the route map to the island and had reported back to Su Liang and Gu Ling.

As such, the situation on Xingluo Island might still be the same as before, meaning that the route provided by Min Rou, along with her suggestion for secretly entering the island, could still be useful.

Old Mu had originally wanted to bring He Qianqian, who was still alive, thinking she could be useful. But in that case, he had to control her and prevent her from running away, which would greatly slow him down. In the end, he decided not to bring her.

Cen Man proposed to go with Old Mu. She had lived on a sea island for many years in the past, and even though she couldn’t see anything at the time, she still knew some techniques for sailing at sea, so the two could take care of each other.

So Su Liang prepared some things and let them set off, telling them to prioritize their safety and flee if the situation was dire.

More than a month had passed now, and there was no news yet.

Duanmu Chen sighed slightly, “Those people will come to assassinate me sooner or later, right? They must have thought about waiting until we unified the world before making their move.”

Su Liang nodded, “It won’t be that easy.”

Duanmu Chen looked around and lowered his voice to ask Su Liang, “Gu Ling can predict the future, right?”

Su Liang shook her head, “Of course not. If he were that powerful, we wouldn’t have to worry.”

Duanmu Chen had a look that said, “I knew you wouldn’t be able to hide it,” he laughed, “Anyway, after that incident, I really don’t worry too much about my safety in the future.”

Su Liang snorted, “What if I don’t stay in the capital city?”

Duanmu Chen’s face froze, “You can’t be irresponsible to me!”

Su Liang: …

Duanmu Chen said solemnly, “This throne and the world are all obtained with your help. If you leave, and something happens to me, will Gu Ling come back to be the emperor?”

Su Liang shook his head, “If something happens to Your Majesty, there is still Ji Yuebai.”

Duanmu Chen rubbed his forehead, “I regard you as my best friends.”

“Just kidding. Your Majesty, rest assured, even if we want to leave, we will solve the problem of Xingluo Island first.” Su Liang said. Duanmu Chen used to be just their partner, but now he is a true friend.

“That’s more like it.” Duanmu Chen stood up, “I’m going to see my son, you go back. By the way, Ji Yuebai should be arriving soon. I plan to make him a prince, but I can’t think of a suitable title.”

Su Liang chuckled, “Prince Yin?”

Duanmu Chen’s lips curled slightly, “If he doesn’t mind, I think it’s quite good.”

When Su Liang returned home, Gu Ling had just finished his work. He had been working on a new weapon recently.

“Zhenzhen is quite good, she still remembers me.” Su Liang told Gu Ling, “If you think about it, you are her close cousin. Today when I saw her, she does look a bit like Gu Xiaonuan.” Duanmu Chen had said so at the beginning, but Su Liang didn’t see it at the time.

When Gu Ling learned that Duanmu Chen planned to make Ji Yuebai a prince, he also suggested, “Call him Prince Yin.”

Su Liang told Ji Xiaoshu during dinner that his father would arrive soon.

Ji Xiaoshu was very happy, “Really? That’s great! Does Uncle Emperor wants me to live with my father? Tell him no way!”

Su Liang couldn’t help but smile, “You can tell him yourself the next time you see him.”

A few days later, Ji Yuebai and his entourage arrived in Qian Country’s capital city. Duanmu Chen had already arranged a large mansion for them, which was fully equipped.

Although Ji Xiaoshu said that he didn’t miss his father at all, he still pleaded with Gu Ling to take him to the city gate to wait early that day.

When Gu Ling said he wouldn’t go, Ji Xiaoshu hung on him like a monkey, refusing to let go.

When Su Liang asked why Ji Xiaoshu insisted Gu Ling take him, Ji Xiaoshu had his own reasons: I have to let my father know that my master loves me!

Su Liang: … Probably Ji Yuebai had said something about Gu Ling being difficult to deal with.

Of course, Gu Ling still cared for Ji Xiaoshu very much. He let him make a fuss for a long time before finally taking him. Ji Xiaoshu also took Zhengzheng with him. They originally planned to take Gu Xiaonuan, but Qiao Cong disagreed.

Gu Ling took the two children to the Wan Family Restaurant and waited for Ji Yuebai to appear.

Ji Xiaoshu was dressed in new clothes today, his hair combed neatly, and there was a small purse made by Gu Ling hanging around his waist. It was his request for a birthday present.

“Why isn’t he here yet? Did my dad get assassinated halfway?” Ji Xiaoshu leaned on the windowsill, half of his body sticking out, looking towards the city gate.

Zhengzheng grabbed Ji Xiaoshu’s leg, worried that he would fall, “Xiaoshu, don’t jinx it. It won’t happen.”

Finally, a procession appeared in their field of vision, slowly approaching.

Ji Xiaoshu’s eyes lit up, as the procession got close, he jumped down from the windowsill, “I can’t let my dad know that I’m waiting for him, he would be so smug! I didn’t miss him at all!”

Zhengzheng suggested, “Xiaoshu, when your dad is about to reach the bottom later, you can use your lightness skill to jump down from above, land on his horseback, and give him a surprise!”

Ji Xiaoshu’s eyes lit up, “That’s a good idea! But it’s not a surprise; it’s to let him know that my lightness skill is very powerful!”

Zhengzheng nodded, “Right, right, you are correct.”

Zhengzheng was in charge of “scouting”, and when he saw that Ji Yuebai was at an approximate position, he gestured to Ji Xiaoshu.

Then Ji Xiaoshu grabbed Gu Ling, “Quick! Master, lift me up!”

Gu Ling skillfully picked up Ji Xiaoshu, walked to the edge of the bed, and “threw” him out.

The crowd on the street was shocked to see a child suddenly fly out of the restaurant, causing a commotion.

Ji Yuebai, who was sitting on the horse, reached out to catch his son. Gu Ling, who was smiling and standing by the window, waved to him, “Xiaogu, nice to see you again.”

Spectators: So, it turns out that this man from Yin Country is acquainted with Marquis Chang Xin?

“Dad!” Ji Xiaoshu called out, “Is my lightness skill good?”

Ji Yuebai paused, “Lightness skill? Where? It’s all because your master threw you well.”

Ji Xiaoshu was so angry that he wanted to get off the horse, “Master, help! My dad wants to hit me!”

Gu Ling silently closed the window, and Zhengzheng sighed, “Now I know who Disciple Xiaoshu inherited his temper from.”

That evening, Ji Yuebai sent Ji Xiaoshu back to the Su Mansion.

When he saw Su Liang, Ji Yuebai bowed and said, “Thank you, sister-in-law, for taking care of Xiaoshu during this time.”

He also thanked Zhengzheng, which made Zhengzheng feel embarrassed.

Only to Gu Ling did Ji Yuebai say, “Xiaogu, I heard from my son that he does the dishes every day at your house and always gets beaten?”

Ji Xiaoshu silently hid behind Su Liang, but Gu Ling calmly nodded, “Yes. If you’re not satisfied, just take him away.”

Ji Yuebai coughed lightly, “No need… Doing dishes is good, and he must have done something wrong if he got beaten.”

Ji Xiaoshu: … Didn’t dare to speak, otherwise, he would really be sent away. Scary. He didn’t want to leave his master’s wife!

While chatting, Ji Yuebai was very talkative, asking about Bai Yang and said that he was grateful to Duanmu Chen for treating Ji Yue Xuan well. He planned to discuss marrying Ji Yue Xuan to Bai Yang when he entered the palace the next day.

Ji Xiaoshu interjected, “Do people have to get married?”

Ji Yuebai smiled, “Not necessarily. But if you meet someone you like, you can get married.”

“I like my master’s wife the most!” Ji Xiaoshu said loudly.

The look in Gu Ling’s eyes became cold, and Ji Yuebai felt embarrassed. Then he heard Ji Xiaoshu continue, “The second person I like is my sister, so can I marry her later?”

Ji Yuebai’s lips curled, looking at Gu Ling.

Gu Ling shook his head decisively, “No, you can’t.”

Ji Xiaoshu hugged Zhengzheng, “Then I’ll marry my big brother, I like him too!”

Ji Yuebai choked on his tea, “Son, you can consider these things when you grow up. There’s no need to rush.”