Chapter 67 The Sky Curtain Made Me a Historical White Moonlight The Sky Curtain, for publicity...
The words "annihilation of a nation" were truly alarming. The emperor frowned. Although he wouldn't punish someone for a single sentence, the words "regent" and "plotting a trap" really bothered him.
Fortunately, Tianmu didn't deliberately leave any suspense and quickly said, "By examining historical records, we know that Regent Zhao Ren came from a noble family and was a notorious playboy who was uneducated and incompetent from a young age. However, during the sixteenth year of the Kangwen era, he suddenly revealed his talent and presented many good strategies to the emperor, who regarded him as a capable minister. This change was indeed abrupt and surprising."
“Upon closer examination of those ancient poems and policy essays, we can discover that many descriptions of scenery and details of people’s lives in these poems and essays have no connection whatsoever with this regent. How could this young master from a wealthy family in the capital possibly know or understand the place names mentioned and the taste of people eating grass when they are starving?”
"What's even more chilling is that when we look at the biography of the Prime Minister, we can see that he came from a poor family and saw many problems in the lives of ordinary people. When he was young, he made a vow with his parents that he would correct these problems one by one after entering the court."
"And those questions happen to perfectly overlap with the Regent's strategies, which makes one want to think deeply."
"When we search through the ancient books and miscellaneous writings from that time, we find that there is no point of contact between the Regent and the Minister. It seems that the Regent disliked our Minister from the very beginning and conspired with his uncles and cousins to plot that conspiracy. He seized the evidence and the timing perfectly, leaving our Minister with no room for defense."
"If it weren't for the evidence found by later generations that proved Si Xiang's innocence, he would probably still be misunderstood by people to this day."
As the words were spoken, numerous old letters and physical evidence appeared on the screen. These were things that outsiders could not understand the purpose of, but those who participated in framing the original owner would change their expressions upon seeing them.
If these things were to appear in private, or even in the imperial court, they could still defend themselves and explain that these were just slanders from others, and that the truth was not so at all.
But the one who presented the evidence was a "god," a deity who knew everything in the world, performed such a miracle, and laid out the evidence in the heavens for everyone to see!
Could the words of a deity be false? If they remain unrepentant at this point, loudly defending themselves and claiming that the celestial beings are lying, wouldn't they be struck down by lightning and killed instantly by the enraged deities?!
They were filled with apprehension, terrified by their own delusions. They tried to feign composure and cover up their true feelings, but their acting was too poor to convincingly portray the extreme anger that comes with being slandered.
The emperor turned his head and looked at the people he had sent to investigate Si Qi's case. They were all in a strange mood and looked flustered. He couldn't help but narrow his eyes, which were full of meaning.
The scene fell silent for a moment.
Only the sky above continued to speak.
"Since it's all a conspiracy, can we boldly speculate that the Regent's targeting of the Chancellor might stem from something the Chancellor did that angered the Regent, making him eager to silence the Chancellor!"
"The sudden appearance of articles and poems seemed to be the most logical answer."
Zhao Ren, who was repeatedly addressed as "Regent" by Tianmu, had a sinister expression, and the ferocity in his eyes made those who were cautiously watching around him secretly tremble with fear.
If anyone present believed most in the existence of gods, it would undoubtedly be this man who "foresaw the future."
He firmly believed that his misfortune was a blessing from the gods, an opportunity bestowed upon him by the immortals for this unfortunate man to exact revenge. The "Regent" in the sky was clearly the end result of his efforts. Little did he expect that he had barely begun to harm Si Qi, and hadn't even witnessed Si Qi's death, when the gods sent down another miracle, eagerly vindicating Si Qi!
Why...
Why?!
He clenched his fists, refusing to acknowledge any of this, and roared angrily and resentfully at those around him: "This is all slander!!"
In short, he had already been regarded as a thorn in the side by that deity, and was already being roasted on the fire. If he no longer defended himself, who else would be willing to help him!
He said angrily, "Nonsense, utter lies!"
Si Qi is just a country bumpkin who has just come from the countryside. He doesn't understand politics at all. How could he come up with policies that are suitable for the national conditions?
Let Si Qi come out now and write one for everyone to see! He couldn't possibly write a damn thing!
Seeing Zhao Ren's expression, the ministers all avoided eye contact.
They had actually suspected the origin of those exquisite articles, thinking that perhaps his elders had promoted him by obtaining poems from some scholars and then altering the strategies of his advisors and others to claim that they were his own.
I never expected it to be that top scholar's...
No wonder this year's top scholar has had such bad luck; he's encountered so many problems right after entering officialdom. After the case was uncovered, there were ample witnesses and physical evidence; the investigation was thorough and well-founded, far exceeding the usual work level of those incompetent officials.
It seems that they knew the truth from the beginning, set a trap, and waited for Si Qi to fall in. Then they made a final judgment and beat him to death. The whole thing was seamless, leaving no room for escape.
The emperor took a deep breath and instructed a minister: "Go and investigate each of the clues given above to see if they are true."
"Your subject obeys the decree."
"Your Majesty!!" the implicated ministers cried out in panic, pleading their innocence: "We are innocent, Your Majesty!"
"Your Majesty, I am utterly loyal and hope that you will understand my sincerity!"
Their faces were filled with sorrow, their voices were filled with sobs, and some even took the opportunity to accuse Si Qi, saying with certainty: "This must be the sorcery of Si Qi! Otherwise, why would a dignified immortal care about such a trivial matter? In the past, when dynasties changed and the people suffered, no divine miracles were ever seen!"
"That male voice so highly praised Si Qi, extolling his achievements as unparalleled and immortal, is truly laughable! How can a mere subject compare to His Majesty? He probably already harbors rebellious intentions and wants to use this opportunity to make a name for himself!"
While they argued vehemently, they secretly prayed that their subordinates outside the palace would be quick-witted enough to destroy the evidence on the sky screen and kill the witnesses. Otherwise, if things were exposed, they would all be in deep trouble!
The emperor, with a cold face, ignored him and ordered the minister to investigate immediately. Then, he turned his gaze back to the sky.
Tianmu continued, "Because he was targeted by powerful figures in the court, the Minister of Justice was smeared and should have been executed. Fortunately, the Crown Prince was kind and believed that the Minister of Justice's family did not deserve to die, so he pleaded with the Emperor on his behalf. In the end, the Emperor exiled the Minister of Justice's family, which gave the Great Qi Dynasty a glimmer of hope and prevented the entire country from becoming slaves!"
The phrase "to be a slave" was utterly horrifying. Whether it was the ministers in the palace or the people in hundreds of cities, everyone was filled with fear, terrified that that day would truly come.
"It's a pity about the emperor and crown prince during the Kangwen era. They were wise rulers and promising young princes in history books. If they were still alive then, the Qi Kingdom probably wouldn't have ended up being destroyed. But history is history, it's something that has already happened. After the prime minister was exiled, they were manipulated by the nobles in the court and eventually poisoned to death! The three-year-old eighth prince was installed as a puppet emperor, and the regent seized control of the court, beginning a decade of tyranny!"
"Capable ministers could find no way to survive in such a court and were ousted one by one. Those who remained were either mediocre people who colluded with the corrupt or sycophantic officials who held positions without doing any work. The mighty Qi was quickly devoured by these pests and riddled with holes until ten years later when the Liang Kingdom seized the opportunity to launch a large-scale invasion. Regent Zhao Ren fled without a fight, taking a large amount of treasure with him from the capital, leaving behind a mess that no one could manage, leaving millions of people to be slaughtered by the Liang soldiers! The Great Qi thus perished."
Perhaps due to his anger, the male voice in the sky became agitated, causing the people of Qi below to turn pale.
The emperor's forehead veins bulged. Even with his deep shrewdness, he was furious and could no longer tolerate the news that he and his crown prince had been poisoned and that his people had been slaughtered.
He turned his head, his gaze coldly fixed on Zhao Ren. Seeing the situation was turning against him, Zhao Ren's father and uncles hurriedly stepped forward to plead for him: "Your Majesty, you cannot punish someone based on baseless accusations!"
“My Zhao family has been loyal and virtuous for generations. Our ancestors fought alongside the late emperor to establish this empire. How could we possibly harbor such unrighteous, disloyal, and untrustworthy thoughts! We beseech Your Majesty to see the truth!”
Because they had become part of the "collusion to undermine the emperor" in the eyes of the gods, other nobles quickly stepped forward to echo their sentiments and kept protesting their innocence.
The law does not punish the masses, especially such a large group of meritorious sons and important officials of the court.
The Qi Dynasty was established in just over forty years. The previous emperor and the ancestors of these people fought together to build the country, and many places in the court were controlled by this group of people.
The emperor could not punish these people based on a single word from a deity. Even though he was dissatisfied, he could only pretend to believe them and shut them up: "How could I punish someone for something that has not yet happened? Please don't worry."
The nobles felt a chill run down their spines upon hearing the emperor's choice of words. They thought to themselves, "His Majesty said 'not yet,' which means he might actually do it in the future, right? Otherwise, he should have said 'unfounded matter.'"
This person probably harbors resentment towards them and is expressing their dissatisfaction.
The nobles were all deeply troubled, wanting to argue but not knowing where to begin. Could they possibly fly to the heavens and argue with the gods? They could only endure it.
However, one of the ministers analyzed, "Your Majesty, the imperial voice mentioned 'history,' which suggests that the speaker was not a deity, but a person from later generations."
The nobles' eyes lit up, and they were about to use this to defend themselves when the emperor coldly said, "The speaker may be from the future, but only immortals can play the words of people from the future for us."
This made perfect sense, and the nobles' spirits, which had just been lifted, immediately dampened again.
The emperor said impatiently, "Quiet down, all of you. I want to hear what Tianyin has to say."
The scene immediately fell silent.
Tianyin: "When talking about the fall of the Great Qi, we have to mention our Minister Si."
"After the emperor ordered Si Xiang to be exiled, his entire family was sent to a remote and desolate place near the Liang Kingdom."
"On the way, Si Xiang's parents died of hunger and exhaustion in front of him."
"His younger brother and sister met a similarly tragic end, being killed by assassins sent by the Regent to hunt down the Prime Minister."
As they were talking, the Crown Prince, who was far away in the Eastern Palace, rushed over and saw his father standing outside the palace looking up at the sky. He walked over and said, "Father."
When the emperor saw the crown prince, his ashen face finally softened a little, and he said gently, "The crown prince has arrived. Let us look at this prophecy of the immortals together."
Upon hearing the word "prophecy," Chu Feng immediately understood. He stood respectfully beside the emperor, thinking to himself that the top scholar would likely escape this calamity.
It remains a mystery how the top scholar, burdened with a criminal charge and far from home, escaped from the assassins as the prophecy foretold, and how he managed to save the crumbling empire and leave a glimmer of hope for his Great Qi.
"The appearance of the assassin made Si Xiang dare not stay in the exile group. Even knowing that leaving the group would be an even greater crime and make him a wanted criminal in Qi, he still fled his homeland with the blood feud of his parents and siblings, enduring all kinds of hardships along the way, and arrived in Liang Dynasty."
Chu Feng was shocked and could not believe what the god had said.
Has the top scholar... defected to another country?
While I can personally understand the top scholar's decision when forced into a corner, this—
Sure enough, those nobles who particularly disliked Si Qi seized the opportunity and said to the emperor indignantly, "Your Majesty, this boy is disloyal and unjust, and has no patriotism whatsoever!"
"His parents and brothers were all murdered, so he must be taking his anger out on our Great Qi!"
"If the Liang Kingdom were to invade in the future, this person might instigate it and lead the invasion!"
A group of people shouted loudly, as if they were patriotic loyalists who could not tolerate any injustice, expressing their grief and cursing.
Chu Feng said unhappily, "The immortal just said that Si Qi left the last spark for our Great Qi, saving the people from enslavement. Did you not hear that?!"
The nobles argued illogically, saying, "Your Highness! Merits and demerits cannot offset each other! Even if he later had a change of heart and stopped in time, he was the one who brought about this disaster!"
"Besides, he is a subject of my Great Qi. Even though his parents are dead, he should continue to be loyal to His Majesty! His Majesty spared his life, but instead of being grateful, he directly betrayed the country! He must have had no respect for His Majesty from the very beginning."
Chu Feng sneered: "A group of people who fled first when the country was in turmoil are now pointing fingers at the ministers who did not forget their former country in times of crisis."
The nobles blushed, avoiding any discussion of their "actions," and stated directly: "At least we, your subjects, would not do such a shameless thing as defecting to another country!"
As they spoke, they continued to shout for violence, labeling Si Qi as a criminal to prove Tianyin's mistake and their own innocence.
But then Tianyin continued, "After arriving in Liang, the Prime Minister originally intended to live in anonymity and find a way to survive. However, he could not bear to see the people's suffering and offered them many suggestions, which caught the attention of the local officials."
"The Prime Minister, who was forced into the sights of the Liang officials, was found to be the top scholar from Qi who had been exiled. His situation immediately became very difficult, and he was almost imprisoned as a spy."
Fortunately, the Emperor of Liang was not bound by convention and allowed the Minister of Justice to explain his many good strategies to him in detail. After confirming that the Minister of Justice's words were reasonable, he adopted them.
The nobles' eyes lit up upon hearing this, and they seized the opportunity to say, "See! Knowing his own limitations, he still spoke up for the Emperor of Liang. He was definitely up to no good!"
"The reason why Liang has the confidence to compete with our Great Qi must be due to Si Qi!"
Chu Feng found it amusing: "It seems you all believe that Si Qi is indeed capable, able to assist a nation in its rise?"
The nobles were taken aback, realizing they had inadvertently voiced their subconscious thoughts, and quickly tried to cover it up: "It was just an assumption based on the opening words of that day."
"I believe that his actions in helping the Liang Kingdom are unacceptable. He should commit suicide to atone for his sins when he is summoned by the Emperor of Liang. Only in this way can we honor the years of cultivation that our Great Qi has made for him."
Chu Feng said calmly, "He is not helping the Emperor of Liang, but the people of the world. What's wrong with that?"
All the ministers were startled.
They stared at Chu Feng in disbelief, then looked at the emperor in shock, unable to believe that such treasonous words could come from the Crown Prince's mouth.
The emperor had obviously heard it, but he did not react at all, gazing calmly at the sky, his attitude clearly showing his support for the crown prince.
Everyone felt awkward, thinking that the father and son were oddities in the royal family, and their behavior was too "unrefined".
Tianyin continued, "What's intriguing is that the advice given by the Chancellor in Liang has many similarities to the policy proposals previously put forward by the Regent. We can understand that the Chancellor, who grew up in the fields, knows a great deal about agriculture and people's livelihood, but we can't understand how the Regent, who is used to a life of luxury, could write so many practical policy proposals. Moreover, the two are thousands of miles apart, how could they both think of the same place at the same time? This is also why we believe that the Regent stole the Chancellor's wisdom and plotted to frame and assassinate him in order to silence him, because it's all too coincidental."
The emperor's eyes flickered slightly as he recalled the policy essay Zhao Ren had presented not long ago. It was thoughtful, practical, and completely different from the personality Zhao Ren had displayed recently. Indeed, it was more like the style of an essay written by the top scholar in the imperial examination.
"Starting from this incident, Si Xiang entered the Liang court. His status was awkward, and he had no academic achievements in Liang. As a foreign subject, he had no foundation in the Liang court and was ostracized. He lived a very hard life."
"As we mentioned before, the reason why the Minister of State was not accepted by the emperor and his ministers and could not realize his ambitions stemmed from this."
"The Chancellor had made many contributions, but because of his background, he was never given due attention. Not only were his policies difficult to accept, but even if they were adopted, the credit would be divided among other court officials. The emperor deliberately suppressed him, not giving him real power or a commensurate position. As a result, the Chancellor's name is rarely seen in historical records of this period, and later generations only truly understand the life of this great man by piecing together historical truth from clues."
Many who believed Tianmu's words heard the sadness in Tianyin's tone, thinking that if Siqi were in their Qi Kingdom, he would not have ended up like this.
Unexpectedly, Tianmu then added, "But even if the Prime Minister doesn't have a good life in Liang, he can at least indirectly help the people. But if he stays in Qi, he can only wait to be framed and killed!"
These words made the Emperor of Qi catch his breath. He couldn't help but lower his head, and a sudden sense of anxiety arose in his heart.
Originally intending to thoroughly investigate the matter, he was now eager to uncover the truth of the case and clear Si Qi's name. If what Tianmu said was true, then it was only right to personally apologize to this minister whom even the gods pitied and invite Si Qi to continue serving the State of Qi.
After all, he was misled by a treacherous official.
Meanwhile, the nobles continued their unreasonable arguments, using the situation as an excuse to say that Si Qi should not be allowed to live. They were convinced that Si Qi harbored resentment towards the Liang Kingdom, and that keeping him alive would only be cultivating talent for the Liang Kingdom and strengthening their enemy.
The emperor was annoyed by what he heard, but he was also genuinely worried about the matter.
He feared that Si Qi had truly fallen out with him and would no longer be willing to pledge allegiance to him.
But then a heavenly voice slowly spoke from above: "And so, ten years passed. Ten years later, the State of Qi was ravaged by Regent Zhao Ren and his ilk, leaving its people in dire straits. The Emperor of Liang seized the opportunity and launched a massive invasion of Qi. Regent Zhao Ren and his ministers sensed the danger and fled in disarray. Without a reliable ruler, Qi was quickly routed. The people became lambs to the slaughter, and for a time, bones lay exposed in the fields, and not a rooster crowed for miles."
These words not only broke the emperor's heart, but also terrified the people of Qi, who knelt on the ground, weeping and kowtowing, begging for mercy from heaven.
Only the ministers who were said to have fled looked at each other, feeling guilty, and said, "This is absurd... How could we have done such a thing? Humph, nonsense."
Tianyin: "The Prime Minister couldn't bear to see the people of Qi treated like this, so he stepped forward and tried every means to protect them in the chaos of the world. It's easy to imagine how much trouble he brought upon himself. The people of Qi, knowing what he had done in Liang, assumed he had defected to the enemy and led the army into their homeland. They hurled insults at him, questioning why he hadn't died. The ministers of Liang seized the opportunity to attack him, accusing him of loyalty to his former country and harboring disloyalty. This caused the Liang emperor to despise him even more, calling him an ungrateful wretch. The people of Liang, who had received many favors from him, were unaware of the truth and joined in cursing him for being ungrateful."
"He's caught in the middle, no one can change his mind."
Upon hearing this, many sensible scholars felt sympathy, respect, and admiration for Si Qi. Ignoring the gazes of others, they shouted "righteousness" at the criminal who was about to have his home ransacked and be exiled, calling him "a role model for our generation" and "a hero of our time."
The emperor fell into even deeper silence. After a long while, he sighed deeply and said in a mournful voice, "It was I who failed to protect him."
Upon hearing this, the nobles who had been calling Si Qi a traitor and demanding that the emperor execute him finally shut their mouths in frustration.
"Even though he was misunderstood and cursed by the people, the Prime Minister eventually found a way through the difficulties. He advised the Emperor of Liang, providing a stable method to stabilize the dynasty and help the people of the two countries integrate. He also explained to the Emperor that the people are the foundation of the country, that killing cannot bring prosperity, and that only benevolent governance can make the country prosperous."
"This was the consistent principle of the Qi emperor, but unfortunately these two rulers and ministers missed it from the very beginning, which is truly regrettable."
Others might not have been too moved by these words, but Zhao Ren, who knew the future, looked as if he had swallowed a fly—he knew perfectly well how well the current emperor, the crown prince, and this "key minister" were compatible; even the phrase "a harmonious relationship between ruler and minister" was not enough to describe it perfectly.
He deliberately wanted them to miss each other, which is why he went to so much trouble. But this blind deity insisted on interfering and forcibly connected them!
That's really meddling in other people's business.
In contrast to Zhao Ren's indignation, the Emperor of Qi and Crown Prince Chu Feng were overjoyed upon hearing this. They hadn't expected this capable minister to share such similar ideals with them, and they were even more eager to meet Si Qi soon so that they could work together to develop the Qi Dynasty and bring a better life to the people.
Tianyin continued, "Thanks to the efforts of the Prime Minister, the remnants of the Qi Kingdom survived. In order to enable them to have a better life, the Prime Minister once again stepped forward, under tremendous pressure, and implemented many good policies, working tirelessly, but he has never been understood by the people of the two countries."
"The people of Qi cursed the Prime Minister as a traitor who served two masters and was the main culprit."
“The people of Liang were dissatisfied with the Prime Minister for always siding with outsiders, and they criticized him for not being loyal to his master even when he was acting like a dog.”
“The people are unaware of the truth. They only know that there is a treacherous minister named Si Qi, but they do not know that all their good days are brought about by this 'treacherous minister'.”
"If we go into such detail, we can see that since he became the top scholar in the imperial examination, he has suffered injustices, devoted himself to the country and its people, and yet he has never had a single good day! It is truly lamentable..."
"Decades later, the weathered and frail Si Xiang was old and frail. The Liang emperor was old and ill and wanted to entrust the country to the next emperor. Knowing the abilities of the ministers in the court, he finally chose Si Xiang, a man who truly cared about the world and did not care about personal grudges or gains, and appointed him as prime minister to assist the new emperor."
"I really don't know what Minister Xiao thought when he saw the imperial edict."
"The emperor he had served for decades clearly knew his character, yet he allowed everyone to point at his back and spit on him."
"He was appointed to the post in a time of crisis, without any foundation. His ministers found it difficult to trust him and attacked him relentlessly. The history books are filled with countless slanderous remarks against him."
"But he still endured it. For the sake of the dynasty, for the new emperor, and for the people, he did not dare to give up that crucial position, fearing that powerful ministers would seize control of the government and disrupt the order of the court."
"He sat in that position for five whole years, until five years later when a new emperor was established in the court, and his body could no longer hold on and he completely collapsed."
"Everyone applauded this. The ministers were happy that there was an extra vacancy, and the emperor had one less person who always strictly disciplined him. The last period of the prime minister's later years was extremely desolate."
Outside, scholars and common people, upon hearing that a good official who had devoted himself to serving them had met such an end, couldn't help but cover their faces and weep, cursing the emperor and his ministers of Liang as worthless scoundrels.
You don't care about the Prime Minister, but we do! Such treatment of the Prime Minister deserves to be seen by him, and he should be made to sever all ties with you Liang people and never see you again in this life!
Tianyin slowly said, "The Prime Minister was worried that after his death, the Liang Kingdom would be left without anyone to protect it and would fall into turmoil. So he left behind hundreds of letters for the emperor to refer to. These letters were collected by later generations and bound into a book. Among them are the policy proposals that the Prime Minister tried to advise in his early years but were repeatedly rejected, the ideas that the Prime Minister tried to promote but always failed, and many laws, rules and humanistic concepts that are still in use after a thousand years."
"Many of the farming tools, daily necessities, and mathematical formulas that we take for granted today were originally brought by Si Xiang."
It seemed that only at this moment did Tianmu reluctantly give up praising Siqi (yes, those tragic experiences, though seemingly pitiful, were actually highlighting Siqi's ability to turn the tide in any desperate situation), and finally get to the point.
Waterwheels, seed drills, iron smelting, textiles, shipbuilding, oil pressing, flood control, disaster prevention... Tianyin listed many things that are familiar to later generations, but in the Qi Dynasty, any one of them would shock people's worldviews, leaving the people of Qi dazzled.
The emperor couldn't help but ask, "Did the Minister of Works bring all these things?"
The ministers nearby all turned their heads to look.
Your Majesty, he is only a compiler in the Hanlin Academy now. When did he become the prime minister?
Didn't you see the real Prime Minister standing right here, his eyes practically popping out of his head?
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Author's Note: --
Si Qi: Xiuxiu's video shooting skills are as good as ever, but aren't the lines a bit too embarrassing?
Xiuxiu: Hehe~(*^▽^*) Master praised Xiuxiu.
Si Qi: ...You only heard the first half of the sentence, right?
——
Some content has been added to the end of the previous chapter; those who read it before 1 a.m. yesterday can take a look again.
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