Thousand Miles of Heaven

When the sky was just beginning to brighten, a few small soldiers at the South City gate walked out of their duty room, yawning and rubbing their hands. The snow that had fallen all night had piled up to almost half a leg high, and they left footprints in the snow as they walked.

The soldiers waved their brooms around, but not many of them were actually cleaning. Anyway, the gate was closed, and no one was coming in or out. No matter how chaotic it was inside or outside the city, they, as the gatekeepers, could laze around.

The soldiers who had been on duty on the city wall all night came down, but the ones who were supposed to replace them were still lingering in the duty room.

At first, one of the soldiers who was absentmindedly sweeping the snow heard the sound of a carriage coming from a distance so he rubbed his eyes and looked ahead, making sure he wasn’t mistaken, and quickly alerted the others.

Someone cursed and went forward to try to stop the carriage. It had been more than a month since the city had been under martial law, and everyone kept their gates tightly closed and rarely went out. Who would come to the South City gate on such a snowy day? Were they looking for trouble?

It wasn’t until the carriage approached that they realized it was the princess’s carriage, followed by several guards, eunuchs, and palace maids.

The carriage stopped in front of the gate, and before the soldiers could even ask any questions, an eunuch stepped forward with the Empress Dowager’s decree and read it aloud, ordering them to open the gate and let Princess Leping out of the city.

As soon as they heard the decree, the soldiers fell to their knees in panic. When they heard that they were being asked to open the city gate, they were even more frightened.

“We…we need to go ask our superior…” one of the soldiers stammered.

The eunuch shouted sternly, “Are you trying to disobey the decree?! Look at this decree, it was personally written by the Empress Dowager!”

He opened the decree, and the golden seal of the Empress Dowager was clearly visible on it, proving that it was indeed from the hand of Empress Dowager Zhao.

The soldiers on their knees still hesitated, but then they heard Leping’s voice from inside the carriage. “I’m going to the temple outside the city to light incense for the Empress Dowager. I’ll be back soon. Just open the gate halfway and let me out. What can a little girl like me do early in the morning?”

When they still refused, Leping warned them, “Otherwise, if anything happens to the Empress Dowager because of your delay, when I report back to the palace, I will tell the truth, and you will have to bear the consequences.”

The eunuch who was delivering the decree shouted again, “Open the gate now! Are you really going to disobey the decree?!”

After a moment of stalemate, the leader of the soldiers gritted his teeth and ordered someone to open the gate.

The heavy gate, which had been closed for a long time, slowly opened halfway, and Princess Leping’s carriage drove forward, crushing the accumulated snow. The eunuchs and palace maids followed, and finally the guards. Suddenly, the leading soldiers saw a flash of cold light in front of them and looked up. More than ten guards had already drawn their swords and swung them together, cutting down the soldiers standing by the city gate.

Suddenly, a chorus of footsteps echoed outside the gate. Taking advantage of the delay in changing guards on the city wall, several hundred people had already laid an ambush at the foot of the wall and rushed into the inner city gate.

Further away, soldiers who had been silently hiding in the alleys of the residential area now surged out like a tidal wave and pressed towards the gate.

Upon hearing the report that the inner city gate had been opened, Xie Chaoling, from within the Capital Guard Army, finally breathed a sigh of relief and put down his teacup.

Ten days ago, the rebel army from the northwest marched to the capital to suppress King Huai and his supporters. The entire court was shaken. The West Gate Camp, which had been waiting and watching, immediately sent a message to Xie Fengjue. Government officials also fled back home, afraid to associate with Xie Chaoqi and the Zhao’s faction. Even though the rescuing army had arrived in the capital, the others remained entrenched within the inner city walls and stubbornly resisted until today. Finally, Princess Le Ping, acting on the orders of Empress Dowager Zhao, opened the city gate and let the vanguard troops of the rescuing army, led by Xie Fengjue, Li Congyu, and the Xiao clan, enter the city.

Xie Chaohui stood up and reminded Xie Chaoling, “Wait a moment, Your Highness. The alley fighting inside the city won’t end so soon. Let’s wait until the roads are cleared before sending someone to take you back to the palace.”

“And what about you?” Xie Chaoling asked him. “Where are you going?”

Xie Chaohui put on his helmet and said calmly, “I’m going to King Huai’s Mansion.”

Xie Chaoling seemed to have already anticipated his decision and sighed, “He’s really gone insane. He chose to join forces with the Zhao faction. Perhaps, he’s been completely insane since the day his guard died. He wishes to kill everyone in the world to bury with his guard, and he’s even willing to kidnap and imprison the Emperor. I’m just a little curious. No matter what others have done, the person who will ultimately be blamed for the guard’s death is the Emperor. Who do you think he hates the most?”

“It’s the Emperor,” Xie Chaohui said firmly. Xie Chaoqi was a person with a strong personality, and he did not care about the so-called principles of loyalty between sovereign and subject or father and son. In his eyes, there was only one person, Jiang Shi, and the person who killed Jiang Shi was their father, the Emperor, whom he hated the most.

“But since the rescuing army from the northwest decided to march on the capital, Zhao’s faction has hinted several times that he should strike first, make the Emperor die and ascend to the throne directly. As long as he can stabilize those cabinet ministers and high-ranking officials, making them acknowledge the new emperor, he will be the rightful ruler. The rescue army will then be in a passive position, and it will not be easy to deal with him than it is now.”

“But he didn’t. Instead, he chose to drag it out and resist like a trapped animal. Do you think he had a change of heart?” Xie Chaoling asked.

“No, of course not,” Xie Chaohui replied. After a moment of silence, he said nothing more, tightened his helmet, and walked out.

Half an hour later, Xie Huizhen was escorted over. Xie Chaoling was ready to return to the palace.

Seeing Xie Huizhen, Xie Chaoling didn’t say much. He patted him on the shoulder and praised him, “You did a good job.”

Empress Dowager Zhao was abandoned by Emperor Qianming in the Beihai Palace to live or die on her own. The Zhao clan had no time to care for her, and during this time, Xie Huizhen played tricks on the old Empress Dowager and even made a fake imperial edict using her golden seal, which was not difficult for him.

However, for a child who was only eight or nine years old to have such courage and bravery, Xie Chaoling still looked up to Xie Huizhen.

“I want to go into the palace with Fifth Uncle Crown Prince,” Xie Huizhen said.

Xie Chaoling smiled and touched his hair. “Alright, I’ll take you.”

Then the two of them got on the carriage and were escorted back to the city by soldiers.

After the south gate of the inner city was broken, two other gates were opened by the guards in the city. The fighting in the alleys of the city was not yet over, and the soldiers of Zhao were still struggling, but the road back to the palace had already been cleared.

Xie Chaoling sat in the carriage with his eyes closed, resting. Xie Huizhen asked him tentatively, “Where did Fifth Uncle Crown Prince come from?”

“I have been in the Eastern Palace all along,” Xie Chaoling said.

Xie Huizhen understood his meaning and wisely suppressed his doubts, no longer speaking.

In King Huai’s Mansion, the servants were in chaos, constantly running in and out to report on the situation outside. Xie Chaoqi, who was sitting with his eyes closed in the hall, remained calm and did not even frown when he heard that the rescuing Army had entered the city.

It was not until his attendant brought in the trembling Song Shi who wanted to flee that Xie Chaoqi opened his eyes. He looked at the man on the ground with disgust and asked him in a calm voice, “Where are you planning to go? Do you want to sell me and defect to the rescue Army? Do you think anyone would listen to you at this point?”

Without waiting for Song Shi to answer, Xie Chaoqi continued, “Do you know why I have kept you alive until now?”

Song Shi gritted his teeth and did not dare to answer.

Xie Chaoqi sneered, “Your former master told me before leaving the capital that you were indeed the long-lost younger brother of Jiang Shi.”

Song Shi, who was prostrating on the ground, suddenly looked up in disbelief. “No, that’s impossible…”

He was just an orphan who grew up in a brothel. He was sent to King Ke’s Mansion and then to King Huai’s Mansion because he admired King Ke and was willing to do things for him. King Ke had fabricated a false identity for him and sent him to serve Xie Chaoqi, but he had betrayed King Ke’s trust and was too cowardly to risk his life. How could he really be the younger brother of Jiang Shi?

“There’s nothing impossible. Otherwise, why would he send you to my King Huai’s mansion? Do you really think I am so easily fooled that I would accept you without verifying your background? It’s true,” Xie Chaoqi said coldly. “But you are nothing compared to Jiang Shi, not even a finger. I kept you only because of him, but…”

Xie Chaoqi drew his sword and slapped Song Shi’s face, his face became even colder. “Today, I will also die. I am going to meet Jiang Shi, and you will come with me so he won’t feel guilty for losing you when he was a child. I couldn’t save him back then, couldn’t help him avenge his family, but now I can at least help him find his little brother. This way, I will have face when I meet him.”

Song Shi’s eyes widened in shock, but he couldn’t even speak a word of retort before he spat out a mouthful of blood. He instinctively looked down and saw that Xie Chaoqi’s long sword had pierced his heart.

With a casual stroke, Xie Chaoqi withdrew his sword, which was dripping with blood. He noticed bloodstains on his sleeve and finally frowned, taking out a handkerchief to wipe it clean. This was the outfit that Jiang Shi liked to see him wear, but it was now ruined.

The body of Song Shi was carried away, and Xie Chaoqi ordered the attendant next to him, “Go and invite the consort over.”

Fifteen minutes later, the consort entered the room. 

She had been living in the backyard of King Huai’s mansion since she married, never stepping out. This was her first time in the front hall, and her expression was even colder and more numb than Xie Chaoqi’s. Xie Chaoqi didn’t even look at her, handing the piece of paper to the attendant next to him, who then handed it to her.

Seeing what was in her hand, King Huai consort’s eyes, which had been calm and undisturbed, widened in shock, and she quickly turned red.

“The prince wants to divorce me?” she asked.

Xie Chaoqi said indifferently, “You can go now. Go back and pack your things. Leave through the side door of the mansion within half an hour, take this with you, and go back to your mother’s house. From now on, the fate of King Huai’s mansion has nothing to do with you.”

Xie Chaoqi never looked at her, picked up the blood-stained sword from the ground, and walked out step by step.

The rescue army broke through the front gate of King Huai’s mansion, and Xie Chaoqi stood in the courtyard with his sword, coldly watching Xie Chaohui approach. After just two moves, Xie Chaoqi dropped his sword, and Xie Chaohui’s sword was already pointing at his throat.

“You are selfish, cowardly, greedy for life and fearful of death. You caused the death of your older brother and mother, and committed outrageous acts, such as blowing up the army’s weapons depot and causing innocent people to suffer. You colluded with traitors and let the border regions suffer from war. You are disloyal, unrighteous, unkind, and unfilial. You plotted with flatterers to imprison your father and deceived your emperor. Your death is not regrettable,” Xie Chaohui denounced him word by word.

Xie Chaoqi sneered contemptuously: “When we were young, our older brother only taught you swordsmanship and refused to teach me, saying that I didn’t have enough strength in my hands and it wouldn’t matter if I didn’t learn. Someone will always protect me. In the end, I am left with Jiang Shi, and none of you cared about his life. If that’s the case, why should I care about anyone else’s life? I don’t regret dying, and it doesn’t matter. Everyone has to die anyway.”

“What about you? I heard that you and your consort are affectionate, and you treat the little princess as your own daughter and protect her. Third brother, are these the days you really want?”

Xie Chaoqi’s eyes revealed sarcasm: “You’re just a coward.”

Xie Chaohui’s pupils suddenly shrank. Xie Chaoqi had already grabbed his sword with both hands and forcefully inserted it into his own throat.

Blood spurted out, staining his jade-green finger ring red. Xie Chaoqi’s body fell back, and the gradually dispersing pupils reflected the dazzling sunlight.

He silently recited that person’s name in his heart and finally closed his eyes.

In the carriage, Xie Huizhen suddenly said: “Although fourth uncle has committed a great crime and seems to be unafraid of gods and ghosts after going mad, I feel that he still has something he fears.”

“En,” Xie Chaoling said what he had not said in front of Xie Chaohui earlier, “killing a ruler and a parent will only lead to reincarnation as an animal. Even if he doesn’t believe it, he would still hesitate and be afraid.”

If he couldn’t be a human being in the next life, how could he continue his previous relationship with his beloved? Therefore, he dared not.

The palace gate had been broken a quarter of an hour ago, and Xie Chaoling did not return to the East Palace. He went straight to the bedroom of Emperor Qianming.

On the jade steps, seeing Xie Chaoling approaching, King Lu trembled and pointed at him, shouting with both anger and fear: “What… what is your intention? You are no longer the Crown Prince. You colluded with the Xirong people to betray Da Liang, and now you have surrounded the Emperor’s bedroom with soldiers. What do you want to do?!”

Xie Chaoling had not expected to see this old man in the end. He went step by step up the jade steps and said in a low voice, “It’s clearly you, King Lu, who colluded with King Huai. You have a wolfish ambition. You confined the emperor and me and falsely transmitted imperial orders, intending to rebel. Now that death is at your doorstep, you won’t repent?”

“You are spouting nonsense!”

Xie Chaoling walked closer and closer, and the guards behind King Lu were unconsciously retreating from his imposing manner. King Lu’s legs were also trembling, but he still tried to hold on. He was a highly respected old King. Although he had been disliked by the emperor before, now that the emperor was seriously ill and unconscious, how could Xie Chaoling say that he was a traitor and rebel!

Xie Chaoling’s mouth curled into a cold smile.

Xie Chaoyuan was right. It was really tiring to wear a mask of being courteous and modest every day. Dealing with these kind of old things who didn’t know their own limits required being ruthless, so that people would know that he, the Crown Prince, was not a weak and powerless and incompetent Crown Prince who can be bullied by anyone.

So he looked at King Lu and slowly raised his voice: “King Lu has taken the emperor hostage and opposed the rescue army. He will now be immediately killed!” 

As the last word fell, the sword pierced through the chest of the old lord in front of him. 

King Lu’s eyes widened and he fell to the ground with a loud thud, dying with his eyes open. 

The black bird on the eaves cried out mournfully, flapping its wings and flying away. 

The weapons in the hands of the rebels fell to the ground one after another, and they knelt down one after another. 

Without even glancing at them, Xie Chaoling strode into the palace.