"There are so many things to do in the palace, why did you come here?"
In the courtyard, teacups were placed on the table in front of Gu Lin, the aroma of tea filling the air, giving him a somewhat refined and otherworldly appearance.
"I want to talk to my father."
Gu Qingyan sat opposite Gu Lin. In the short few days since he became emperor, he felt a very heavy burden on his shoulders, so heavy that he could hardly breathe even in the middle of the night.
Furthermore, he couldn't stop thinking about his past life. He wanted to kill Gu Qingling immediately, and then none of the other guilty people would escape.
"Have some tea."
Gu Lin stared intently at Gu Qingyan for a moment, then asked softly, "Ayan, what does it feel like to become the emperor?"
Gu Qingyan twitched the corner of his mouth. "Father, I can no longer stand by and watch any innocent people of Daqing suffer."
Becoming emperor is not necessarily the most satisfying thing.
The moment he sat on the dragon throne, his fate became inextricably linked with that of the Great Qing Dynasty, and he gained a deeper understanding of some of his father's choices.
"Why are you so nervous!" Gu Lin suddenly raised his voice, startling Gu Qingyan. "Your father is holding you up behind you. Do whatever you want."
"Father."
"You are now the new emperor of Daqing, and soon you will be the new emperor of the world. You must hold your head high and walk forward." Gu Lin poured a cup of tea and placed it in front of Gu Qingyan. "With me here, no one can bully you."
"But Father, I am still young..."
As he was speaking, Gu Qingyan fell silent.
If his mother gave him the gentlest love, making him know that she would always be there to protect him, then his father...
His father gave him unwavering courage.
He couldn't leave his mother and father.
"Father." Gu Qingyan was at a loss for words. He dared not utter the bloodlust hidden deep in his heart.
“When I escaped from Daqing, I thought I would never see you and your mother again.” Gu Lin slowly recounted the experience he was unwilling to mention. “Your maternal grandmother was a princess sent by Da Ning for a political marriage. I watched her weep in the dead of night.”
“At that time, Da Ning was weak, and A Yan, the weak have no face to speak of.”
"So I fled to Da Ning. I want to become the new ruler of Da Ning and lead Da Ning to a more prosperous future."
He terrified all those in Da Ning who dared to defy him, and they watched helplessly as he ascended the dragon throne.
"Father, I will not become a weakling."
But I...
On this day, Gu Qingyan and Gu Lin had a long talk. Gu Lin told Gu Qingyan everything that had happened back then. After returning to the palace, Gu Qingyan's expression was both sad and happy. This trip out of the palace had relieved a lot of the depression in his heart.
But he still really wanted to... really wanted to kill those people.
After Gu Qingyan left, Gu Lin took out another teacup and filled it with tea.
After an incense stick had burned for a while, Jiang He's figure slowly appeared.
"You've come." Gu Lin's expression showed no surprise, as if he had expected Jiang He to come.
"How is Ayan?" Jiang He asked with a serious expression. "Last time, he suddenly said he wanted to go with me to attack Lingzhou, ignoring the advice of the ministers. Why does he hate Gu Qingling so much?"
"Hate Gu Qingling?"
Gu Lin's hand holding the teacup suddenly stopped, and he murmured this sentence over and over again.
Suddenly, Gu Lin stood up abruptly. He understood why A Yan's eyes had been so dark and bluish just now.
"I have something I need to do at the palace."
Gu Lin vanished from Jiang He's sight in an instant. Jiang He looked down at the spilled tea on the table, which reflected a bright light in the night.
......
The Hall of Supreme Harmony.
"Your Majesty, this servant has specially gone to find some calming incense."
Qin Wei spoke with a worried expression, but Gu Qingyan's expression changed drastically in an instant, "I have said before, I do not like burning incense."
He feared that once he started using the calming incense, he would never be able to stop.
"Your Majesty is tossing and turning and can't sleep. What should we do?" Qin Wei said anxiously. "Perhaps I should ask Her Majesty the Empress for a solution."
"No need to tell the Empress Dowager, you may leave. I am sleepy."
The candle was blown out, and Gu Qingyan curled up on the bed. Whenever he closed his eyes, he would think of his mother's tragic death in her previous life. At these times, he could hardly control his hatred.
How dare these people! How dare they betray the Empress Dowager!
Sweat began to bead on Gu Qingyan's forehead. In the quiet of the night, he heard a long sigh.
Gu Qingyan instantly became alert, but relaxed after smelling the familiar scent. "Father."
"Why didn't you tell me when we were at the Marquis's residence?"
Gu Lin sat down beside Gu Qingyan's bed, took out a handkerchief and began to carefully wipe Gu Qingyan's forehead. "It's also my fault, my fault for not thinking it through sooner."
Despite opposition, he insisted on personally leading troops to capture Gu Qingling, driven by his sudden murderous intent towards her.
And... they left Gu Qingfeng and Gu Qingyao in a courtyard near the mass grave.
All of this points to one thing.
Ayan learned about Ayu's fate in her previous life.
A tear slid down Gu Qingyan's cheek. "In my past life, my mother died without a single relative by her side. Father, you and my uncle were not here either. I was useless; I couldn't even collect my mother's body."
He blames everyone, including himself.
The fact that Jiang Yu's body was left exposed in the wilderness was like a thorn in Gu Qingyan's heart.
"I couldn't protect her either."
Gu Lin lay down next to Gu Qingyan and said, "Ayan, you are the one who should blame yourself the least. I am the one who should blame myself."
Father King...
I really will kill all these people.
Gu Qingyan silently spoke in his heart.
"Kill me if you want." Gu Lin's voice rang out. Gu Qingyan did not speak, but lay with his back to Gu Lin.
And so, Gu Qingyan actually fell asleep, and had a rare peaceful sleep. This time, his dream was no longer about his mother's tragic death or himself being pierced by a thousand arrows.
Instead, he sat on Gu Lin's shoulders, and his mother smiled and picked a bouquet of flowers for him.
The three of them chatted and laughed, just like any ordinary family.
"Mother..."
Gu Qingyan's murmurs could be heard from time to time, and Gu Lin did not sleep all night.
How did Ayan know about his past life? Was it all a dream?
The next day, when Gu Qingyan opened his eyes, he no longer saw Qin Wei, but Gu Lin, who was smiling. Gu Lin grabbed Gu Qingyan and said, "It's almost time for the morning court session."
Gu Qingyan's face immediately turned red, and he dressed himself with Qin Wei's help.
Before leaving the Hall of Supreme Harmony, Gu Qingyan paused.
"Father, will you be going back later?"
“I won’t go back. I’ll wait here for you to return from court, and then we’ll go to Zhaoning Palace together to have a meal with your mother.”
Gu Qingyan didn't say anything, but the upturn of his lips betrayed his good mood.
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