Chapter 136 Ascending the Throne and Becoming Emperor (The Finale)
Gu Nanxiao was almost moved to tears by Yunxi's words, "My Xiao Lang." He longed to pull Yunxi into his arms and express his joy with a passionate kiss.
However, given the psychological trauma he had inflicted on Yunxi before, he still forced himself to remain still and did not dare to make a move.
After a brief moment of sadness, Yunxi took the initiative to wrap her arms around Gu Nanxiao's neck and tilted her head back to give him a sweet kiss.
This collaboration was initially led by Yunxi, with Gu Nanxiao only daring to cooperate when necessary.
However, due to the vast difference in their physical strength, Gu Nanxiao ultimately took control of the situation. He only ended the encounter hastily, with a sense of unsatisfaction, after Yunxi had been exhausted and fell into a deep sleep once more.
After reconciling, the two decided to prepare for their wedding a month later.
Prince Xian's wedding was a grand affair. Apart from the Empress Dowager, who did not dare to show her face, everyone else attended the wedding with their sincere blessings.
When bidding farewell to her parents, Yunxi allowed only Wu to receive the kowtows from the newlyweds. Zhao Maoquan was not allowed to participate at all.
This incident cast a further shadow over Zhao Maoquan's already troubled official career. He now frequently vents his anger at his wife, Xu Yiniang, and Zhao Yunlu at home.
He had tried to stop Ms. Wu on the street, hoping to beg for forgiveness. But how could a heart that had grown completely cold be warmed again? All his remorse was coldly ignored by Ms. Wu.
Qi Jinxiu watched as the woman he loved ultimately married Gu Nanxiao. His heart, which he thought was finally at peace, still ached with a deep, aching pain.
That evening, after the banquet, he rode alone to the Northern Frontier military camp, where he drank with Feng Xun for three days and three nights before embarking on his journey back to the capital alone.
On their wedding night, Gu Nanxiao was particularly energetic. Yunxi, having drunk aphrodisiac wine, also didn't restrain herself at all throughout the night.
Unable to bear it any longer, Qianyu jumped into the courtyard, picked up Zisu, and headed towards the side room.
Afterwards, Qianyu pulled Zisu, whose eyes were swollen from crying, and stuffed a stack of silver notes into her hand, saying in a muffled voice, "As long as you let me sleep with you, all my silver will be yours from now on."
Unsurprisingly, Qianyu received two bright red handprints.
As the other guards cast mocking glances his way, Qianyu said woodenly, "A bunch of bachelors, you want to get beaten up? No woman will even listen to you!"
Upon hearing such hurtful words, Mo Yu and the others' mocking expressions froze instantly. In a flash, they transformed into a united front of burning rage.
Three more years passed, and the stored grain was plentiful.
With advanced explosives and firearms, Gu Nanxiao swept through all the foreign tribes near the Central Plains, transforming the Great Yan territory into a circle, comparable in size to that of the Tang Dynasty.
Furthermore, they spread the culture and goods of the Central Plains to foreign lands. It is believed that before long, these foreign people will be completely integrated into Chinese culture and become true subjects of the Great Yan.
At some point, Shi Qingchen became involved with the daughter of a prefect. He married into the Li family as a son-in-law. Using the prefect's relatives who held official positions in the capital, he secretly submitted a draft law to the emperor to weaken the power of the regional military governors.
The above list details various instances where vassal kings wielded excessive power in their fiefdoms, maintained their own armies, hoarded grain and fodder, forged ironware, and mined state mines, posing a significant threat to the imperial court.
Therefore, the Emperor was furious upon seeing this and decided to strip Gu Nanxiao of his hereditary title and reclaim his fiefdom. How could Hunan possibly obey his orders? Naturally, he defied the imperial decree.
The Emperor immediately dispatched the Second Prince and the Fourth Prince to lead troops to attack Prince Xian.
This was the outcome Yunxi least wanted to see, because according to her and Qi Jinxiu's plan, the emperor would die young in a few years due to taking elixirs.
After the current emperor passes away, Gu Nanxiao can produce the late emperor's edict and ascend the throne smoothly. This bloodless process will benefit the common people the most.
Now, Qingchen, for his own selfish interests, has plunged the Great Yan Dynasty into war, and he truly deserves to die.
Before the army set out, Gu Nanxiao used the lives of Shi Qingchen and the entire Shi family to sacrifice for the flag, and then marched his army into the Central Plains.
Because the disparity in weaponry between the two sides was too great, the second prince was captured alive in a single encounter.
Subsequently, Gu Nanxiao swept through the enemy lines with unstoppable momentum, quickly reaching the capital. The prefectures and counties along the way, witnessing Gu Nanxiao's formidable military strength and the imperial edict of succession in his hand, all surrendered without resistance.
When they captured the capital, it was without bloodshed, because Qi Jinxiu had already taken control of the Imperial Guards. When Gu Nanxiao and Yunxi arrived at the city gates, he simply opened the city gates and let the army in.
When Gu Nanxiao led his army to approach the imperial city, the palace gates were already wide open. Shen Yujiao presented Gu Nanxiao with the emperor's head, which she had personally severed.
Upon seeing their old friend again, Gu Nanxiao and Yunxi were at a loss for words.
However, Shen Yujiao did not cling to her as usual, but instead walked out of the palace in a daze.
Gu Nanxiao ordered Mo Yu to send two people to watch over her and make sure she was safely returned to her uncle.
After three days of clearing out the palace, the Empress Dowager, Prince Yong, and Princess Consort were all welcomed into the palace.
Three days later, Gu Nanxiao ascended the throne and became emperor.
The Empress Dowager was titled Grand Empress Dowager, the Prince of Yong was titled Retired Emperor, and the Princess Consort was titled Empress Dowager. Yunxi was naturally titled Empress.
From then on, the Great Yan Dynasty entered its golden age, which lasted for more than two hundred years.
Five years after Yunxi and Gu Nanxiao got married, they had a daughter who was given the title of Princess Yuyang.
The following year, she gave birth to her eldest son, who was the empress. After a year of observation, it was determined that her son was healthy and quick-witted, so she immediately named him crown prince.
Bai Qi Jinxiu was granted the title of Duke of Zhenguo and concurrently served as the Crown Prince's tutor. When the Crown Prince and princesses began their education, they were entrusted with the entire responsibility of teaching them.
The retired emperor adored the two children, and every day he spent his time either trying to please the empress dowager or playing with his two grandsons.
As for Consort Xu, she was not allowed to enter the palace at all. Instead, the former Prince Yong's residence was given to her and her two illegitimate sons and one illegitimate daughter to live in.
In the same year that Gu Nanxiao ascended the throne, Feng Xun married Que'er, and like Gu Nanxiao, he never took a concubine for the rest of his life.
Mo Yu took over the position of Commander of the Imperial Guard and married the eldest daughter of a high-ranking official of the third rank.
Qianyu then took over the position of commander of the Imperial Guards and gave Zisu a grand wedding.
In the sixteenth year of the Xuanjing era, the current emperor, Gu Nanxiao, and the Duke of Zhenguo, Qi Jinxiu, got into a fight in the imperial study.
When Yunxi arrived, she saw the two of them tearing at each other's clothes and hair, hurling insults and curses.
Yunxi, feeling a headache coming on, separated the two and then asked what had happened. She saw that Qi Jinxiu, who had been so aggressive just moments before, had instantly become limp. Even his back seemed to be too weak to straighten.
Upon seeing this, Yunxi found it extremely rare and became even more curious.
Seeing that Qi Jinxiu refused to confess, Gu Nanxiao interrupted, "That old scoundrel actually wants to marry our daughter, Princess Yuyang!"
Upon hearing this, Yunxi looked at Qi Jinxiu in disbelief, trying to find a look of denial on his face. But after staring at him for a long time, he didn't utter a single word of rebuttal.
Yunxi was instantly enraged and turned to Gu Nanxiao, saying, "Beat him to death, don't hold back."
Upon hearing this, Qi Jinxiu stopped retaliating and immediately knelt down before Gu Nanxiao and Yunxi, saying sincerely, "Your Majesty and Princess Yuyang are mutually in love. I beg my father-in-law and mother-in-law to grant us your blessing!"
Even Yunxi couldn't stand it anymore. She roared, "Who's your mother-in-law?" Her hand flew with the wind as it slapped Qi Jinxiu across the face.
Just as the fight was about to begin, Princess Yuyang suddenly ran in from outside the palace, crying and protecting Qi Jinxiu. With sorrowful eyes, she pleaded with Gu Nanxiao and Yunxi to agree to their marriage.
Finally, Yunxi and Gu Nanxiao had a double whammy before they agreed to let Qi Jinxiu marry the princess, making him the oldest new consort in the history of the Great Yan Kingdom.
The news caused an uproar throughout the Great Yan Kingdom. Some people criticized Qi Jinxiu for being disrespectful to his elders, while others envied Qi Jinxiu for his unparalleled success in life.
He was already the youngest top scholar in the imperial examinations, and despite his humble origins, he was granted the title of Duke. Furthermore, nearing forty, he married Princess Yuyang, the emperor and empress's beloved daughter—truly a winner in life!
The year after the princess's wedding, Gu Nanxiao abdicated the throne to the crown prince and appointed Qi Jinxiu as regent.
He then took Yunxi and left to live a carefree life, muttering as he left, "I won't be able to quell my hatred until I've squeezed every last drop of value out of Qi Jinxiu!"
Yunxi was helpless against the two people she had been fighting with for half her life. Although she still found it hard to accept that her daughter had married a man more than twenty years her senior.
But in the end, it made up for some of the debts owed to Qi Jinxiu, and it also relieved a major concern in my heart.
In the year Gu Nanxiao turned fifty, a total solar eclipse occurred again. Yunxi, along with Yun Yi and over a thousand secret guards, carrying countless gold and silver jewels, crossed the barrier with Gu Nanxiao, attempting to return to the modern world.
When they finally crossed over, they discovered that the place had already entered the interstellar age.
All those who had gone together in the past extended their lifespan to three hundred years by taking gene-enhancing potions, conquered a planet there, and established the Great Yan Dynasty.
Later, they had more than twenty children. After the children came of age, the interstellar territory continued to expand, and the Great Yan Dynasty became the overlord of that star system.
Qi Jinxiu's eldest daughter has always been a clever and mischievous girl. After discovering the secret of crossing the barrier, she herself crossed it during a total solar eclipse.
Instead, she ended up in a place called the Beastman Continent.
These people, in different times and spaces, are living happy lives.
I also wish all the princesses reading this book smooth sailing in their relationships, sweet marriages, successful careers, and abundant wealth.
See you in the next book.
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