376 Challenge the Throne of the Emperor
Qi Tianchen stroked his long beard lightly.
Ye Xiaoying tightened his grip on the hilt of his sabre, ready to draw it any time.
"You’re very much like your father, but your father would never do something like this," Qi Tianchen said slowly.
Xiao Lingchen returned arrogantly, "Because when my father met with that grievous incident, he wasn’t young anymore. But, I’m still young! I’m allowed to make mistakes!" Xiao Lingchen waved his whip furiously and galloped ahead, not caring at all whether Qi Tianchen would make a sudden move.
Qi Tianchen sighed lightly, then turned and left. The way Xiao Lingchen was riding his horse through Heavenly Revelations looked so much like Langya Prince, it was as if the late Prince had reappeared in this world. Wherever he passed, his full abilities would be on display, and everybody could only retreat and avoid him.
Ye Xiaoying followed on his horse and glanced at Qi Tianchen’s retreating back, muttering to himself, "I can’t tell what’s happening in this Heavenly Revelations City anymore."
Jin Wei and Jin Yan Gonggong had also appeared next to the Imperial Ancestral Temple. Jin Wei Gonggong exhaled a sigh of relief. "I thought the State Preceptor would attack."
"The State Preceptor and Langya Prince were old friends. I’m afraid there’s no way to know whose side he will take this time." Jin Yan Gonggong turned around. "You should continue to escort Xiao Lingchen to enter the palace. I will go meet shifu and the others."
In front of the Hall of Calming Purity, Mingde Emperor called out softly, "Lao-Liu."
Xiao Se turned around. "Father."
"You grew up together with Lingchen. When the time comes, please persuade him with righteousness. The Xiao Clan cannot suffer internal strife. The grievances between Ruofeng and me belonged to our generation. They must end here," Mingde Emperor said.
Li Changqing said anxiously, "Your Majesty, don't do this!"
Xiao Se shook his head. "Lingchen is here for the sovereign, not rebellion. Father, please do not worry."
The sovereign?
Li Changqing thought to himself, how did everything get so crazy so fast? Xiao Lingchen was the son of a rebel and he was leading an army to conquer Heavenly Revelations. How could he become the sovereign? He mopped the sweat on his head. Yong’an Prince must be befuddled. How could Xiao Lingchen be the sovereign?
Xiao Chong remained silent but he looked at Xiao Se and realised that Xiao Se’s expression was as serious as he had ever been.
Xiao Yu felt a twinge in his heart. He watched Xiao Se and thought to himself, Based on what Xiao Se is saying, perhaps he knows about the business with the Dragon-Sealed Scroll too? If Xiao Se had also made plans for what happens today, then this is going to get complicated.
"The sovereign," Mingde Emperor said the word with a heavy heart.
Outside the palace gates, Xiao Lingchen had arrived with his army.
Li Changqing shouted loudly, "All army, on guard."
Mingde Emperor raised his voice above his and shouted, "Open the palace gates!"
"Your Majesty!" Li Changqing exclaimed anxiously.
"There’s no need for unnecessary damage and injuries. I will wait for him here!" Mingde Emperor said sternly.
As he spoke, the palace gates were pulled open.
A bright red armour, the Dragon Blood spear.
A young man decked out in bright red armour and armed with a long spear rode into the palace on his horse.
At that moment, Mingde Emperor also felt as if he was seeing the young Langya Prince riding his horse into the palace.
"He really looks like him," Mingde Emperor said with emotion.
Li Changqing jumped to his feet and drew the long sword at his waist. "Your Majesty has shown favour to the army, but the army also aspires to serve the country. I have served Your Majesty for seventeen years, and I can’t stand by and watch Your Majesty suffer from the actions of rebellious subjects! I am first a soldier, and I will take the lead with the spirit of my sovereign king!"
"Changqing." Mingde Emperor reached out a hand to stop him, but Li Changqing had already charged towards Xiao Lingchen with his sword. He walked down the steps, flipped onto his horse and yelled angrily, "Rebels and traitors."
The Imperial Army and the Brave Tiger Guards also placed their hands on the hilts of their blades, on the verge of drawing them. Although Mingde Emperor gave the order not to engage the enemy, their commander had already stepped into battle alone and they couldn’t just stand by without taking action.
Lanyue Marquis couldn't help but sigh. "Commander-general Li came from a military family, and his blood is no less than that of his ancestors."
Li Changqing rode his horse up to Xiao Lingchen and slashed down angrily with his sabre. Xiao Lingchen leaped into the air, raised his Dragon Blood spear and deflected Li Changqing’s long sabre with a strike of his spear. He landed back on his horse, and didn’t continue fighting. Instead, he kicked his horse and continued riding towards the hall. Li Changqing was about to pursue him, but he heard an angry roar from behind. He spun around and saw two heavy sabres smashing down at him.
As the commander-general of the Imperial Army, Li Changqing's martial skills were naturally higher than average, but when he raised his own blade to block the tyrannical and chilling twin blades, his hands trembled with pain.
"Ye Xiaoying!" Li Changqing yelled angrily.
"Commander-general Li," Ye Xiaoying growled and his twin blades danced furiously. Everybody knew that the two most powerful martial experts by Mingde Emperor’s side were Grand Eunuch Jin Xuan and State Preceptor Qi Tianchen. Li Changqing was not considered powerful and very soon, Ye Xiaoying's twin blades had completely suppressed Li Changqing's power.
"You rebels and traitors, how dare you conspire to rebel! Ye Xiaoying, how could you forsake His Majesty's trust in you?" Li Changqing shouted.
"The winner is the king, and the loser is the bandit. If you want to castigate, you need to defeat me first!" Ye Xiaoying smacked Li Changqing aside with a heavy blow.
"Support Commander Li!" Suddenly, one of the Brave Tiger Guards yelled.
All the soldiers of the Imperial Army and Brave Tiger Guards drew their swords. Their ancestors died before the Hall of Calming Purity for Mingde Emperor. This was not pain, but glory!
But suddenly, the sound of thunderous hoofs approached.
Right behind Xiao Lingchen and Ye Xiaoying, the Langya Army had also arrived in the palace city. There were three men leading them: one armed with a long spear, one armed with two short spears and one armed with a longbow strapped on his back. Wang Pichuan, Xiao Zhanjiang and Xue Duanyun.
The former three heavenly generals of the Beili Central Army. Right behind them were the soldiers that surrounded the Imperial Army and Brave Tiger Guards like a wave flowing into iron barrels. They finally understood why Mingde Emperor ordered them to abandon the notion of resistance.
In the face of absolute power, sometimes, the strength of the spirit did not really serve a purpose.
Li Changqing's armour was shattered, and he lost his grip on his sabre as he fell to his knees on the ground. Ye Xiaoying withdrew his twin blades, rode on his horse and looked down at him. "Before the Langya Army, your loyalty is worth nothing."
The Imperial Army and Brave Tiger Guards hesitated. The cavalry had already surrounded them, and the moment Ye Xiaoying gave the order, they would be trampled into minced meat.
Xiao Lingchen finally rode his horse up to the Hall of Calming Purity. He flipped off his horse and walked up the steps of the hall, one step at a time. Ye Xiaoying did not follow and only an adjutant wearing a full set of iron armour followed him. As he walked up the stairs, his armour grated against itself, emitting a sharp metallic sound.
Xiao Chong took a step forward and pressed his hand on the long sword at his waist.
"Chong'er," Mingde Emperor called out.
Xiao Chong shook his head and said to Xiao Lingchen, "That’s as far as you go."
Xiao Lingchen really stopped. He raised his head and looked at Xiao Chong. "Chong huang-xiong, you can see now."
"I just didn't expect that after regaining my sight, I would see you raise an army in rebellion," Xiao Chong replied softly.
Xiao Lingchen turned around and looked into the distance. "I didn't raise an army in rebellion. I’ve only returned to my home."
In the distance, at the palace gates, another squadron of men on horses entered. They were all riding white horses and decked out in white-coloured armour with a white cloth tied around their foreheads. Only one army in Beili was dressed like this.
The Mausoleum Guards Sovereign Army.
*
Note about the chapter title:
问鼎九五 wen ding jiu wu
Challenge the Throne of the Emperor
Literally, the translation for the title is “inquire about the tripods, five nines”. First, the tripod refers to a tripod cauldron, usually made of bronze. The larger and the number of tripods represented the status of nobles. To inquire about, i.e., to challenge the tripods (问鼎) is to covet the throne, from the phrase “King Chu inquires about the tripods” (楚王问鼎) during the Western Zhou dynasty. Since then, 问鼎 (wen ding) has become synonymous with “usurp” (the throne).
Note: in a similar usage earlier in the novel, Lei Wujie and others often “inquire about the sword” (问剑) when they issued a challenge. E.g. 问剑雪月城 is literally, “inquire about the sword of Snow Moon City” but means to challenge the sword of Snow Moon City, or a more proper translation: to challenge my sword against Snow Moon City.
The second part of the title, “five nines” (九五) was explained before in Chapter 336. In the Yi Jing (Book of Change), an unbroken line in the hexagram is called ‘nine’. Five nines refer to five unbroken lines in the hexagram which represents the zenith of the dragon’s constellation in the sky, representing the most auspicious and peak of power for the emperor. Hence, jiu wu is a term which represents the throne (position) of the Emperor.