Chapter 135 (1/2)
Chapter 135: The Couple in Daming Palace
In the early autumn, the Daming Palace in the north of Chang'an was quiet and peaceful among the dense old trees. For hundreds or even thousands of years, these old trees were extremely tall and strong. But they still could not cover the palace's magnificent verve or suppress the solemn atmosphere of the world's political center.
Qing Si Temple was the most beautiful place in the palace. Looking at the back mountain from the lake behind the temple, one could see the gradually withered leaves falling after gusts of autumn winds, and the mixture of lush green with the bright colors like yellow and light red. All in all, the scene had a mysterious enchantment.
The bright-eyed, high-spirited Tang Emperor Li Zhongyi gently held the soft hands of the empress, watching the early autumn scenery in front of the mountains in front of the temple, and then signed softly. ”The trees grow up through thousands of years of trials and tribulations. The Tang Empire was set up to be respected by others through countless wars and sacrifices of numberless famous warriors. In those days, Pei Yan actually sacrificed the Tangs and even the generals for the sake of those Taoist priests from West-Hill. I'm afraid he didn't think it to be such a surprise in the eyes of those Taoist priests. If the Tang Empire couldn't resist the pressure of outsiders to sacrifice its own courtiers, how would such a Tang Empire make the others shudder? As the emperor of the Tang, why didn't I care about it?”
The empress handed the letter from West-Hill back to him, gently leaning against him. There was a natural feminine gentleness coming from her beautiful eyes and brows between glances. She whispered to persuade him. ”It is already in the past. Your Majesty, why
do you bother yourself with it?”
”The dead courtier was still my courtier. If he was not my younger brother, if not...” The emperor looked deeply at the empress and said, ”How can I just spare them for this?”
The empress knew what he wanted to say, and slowly stood straight to calmly look at the mountains as well as the old trees outside of the bar. She said, ”At that time, His Majesty traveled to Nanze. The prince received a letter from Haotian hierarchy and also felt that it was a bit tricky. After all, Zhishou Abbey also broke the silence and showed concern. Who in the world could make sure if the omen indicated by the Seven Tomes of Arcane existed?”
After a long time of silence, the emperor said slowly, ”When I was young and studied in the Academy, the Headmaster of the Academy once taught me that for the temporarily incomprehensible things, one should admit its existence without having to deal with it. If one couldn't even deal with anything in the world, then why bother to think about those things in h.e.l.l?
”After all, the legend is just a legend. The year that I ascended the throne, the three missionaries from the Unknown Place traveled to the Wilderness and didn't have the slightest clue. If the Seven Tomes of Arcane in the temple clearly indicated that, why couldn't those people find it either? In that case, what happened later was nothing more than the wickedness of anxious swindlers.
”You said that the prince might have
have been horrified that year. It's indeed possible. But he has still committed the most fatal mistake. Since childhood, he has grown up under my protection, so he couldn't clearly see the reason why the Tang Empire could keep ahead in the world, regardless of the West-Hill Divine Palace, and even didn't care about the pressure from Zhishou Abbey and Xuankong Temple. In addition to strong national conditions and the Academy's shelter, what is more important... The Tang Empire never compromised.”
The emperor sometimes used ”I” as self-address, for each section's subject he referred to was not the same. The empress quietly watched his familiar side face and noted that he deliberately missed a name. She said, ”I didn't speak for the prince. But this matter involved too many people. He must be cautious.”
”He was cautious for an illusory tale and sacrificed the lives of innocent courtiers and common people for a possible calamity...” The emperor frowned slowly and then mocked himself with a smile. Then he softly sighed. ”I can understand a lot of people's difficulties and pressures. That's one of the reasons why I didn't punish them during these years.”