Chapter 234: Eldest Brother Xiao’s Ambition
Chapter 234: Chapter 234: Eldest Brother Xiao’s Ambition
The next day, Gu Qingping opened his eyes and looked at Ms. Li, who was sitting at the dressing table. He called out, “Xiu’er.”
Ms. Li turned her head. A flicker of confusion crossed her eyes before she tentatively asked, “Husband?”
“Yes, we are married.” A flash of joy lit Gu Qingping’s eyes. My sister’s medicine really worked; it made her forget some things. If I increase the dosage, she’ll forget everything from the past. I still held back a bit, not making her forget completely; otherwise, it would be hard to explain to her maiden family. Anyway, as long as she forgets what happened in Beijing, that’ll be fine.
“Oh, I see.” Ms. Li nodded, then glanced at Gu Qingping with a puzzled expression. How could I not remember when we got married? It’s so strange; I just feel like something is off.
「In the afternoon」
When Gu Qingping returned to the residence, he heard the servants discussing how Gu Xicheng had been demoted and relegated to a fifth-rank Compiler position at the Hanlin Academy.
So ruthless! Gu Qingping was shocked. To be demoted from the first rank all the way to the fifth—the Emperor is truly merciless!
Gu Qingping knew his father well; he definitely wouldn’t have made any major mistakes. He immediately hurried towards Gu Xicheng’s study.
「In the study」
Gu Xicheng was sipping tea, a special blend Gu Qingli had prepared just for him. He had become addicted after the first taste and would rush back to drink it as soon as court adjourned.
“Dad, are you alright?” Gu Qingping asked worriedly.
Gu Xicheng was in high spirits. Now that I’m away from that place of strife, the imperial court, what could possibly be wrong with me?
“I’m perfectly fine, son. Come, try this tea your sister made.” Gu Xicheng beckoned Gu Qingping over.
Gu Qingping went over and sat down. Seeing his father beaming, he felt relieved and decided to have some tea as well.
「In the blink of an eye, April arrived.」
The snow in Beijing began to melt, and the weather started to warm up. Everyone shed their thick, padded cotton clothes and changed into lighter jackets.
Gu Qingli’s movements had become increasingly laborious; walking and sleeping were painful for her. This made Xiao Yunjing live each day on tenterhooks, even more anxious than Gu Qingli herself.
「At night」
Xiao Yunjing said to Gu Qingli, “Li’er, Eldest Brother and the others sent a letter today.” He hadn’t wanted to tell Li’er, but this matter concerned their future, so he had to discuss it with her.
“What did it say?” Gu Qingli, lying on her side, looked up and asked.
“Eldest Brother said they’ve conquered Beijiang Kingdom. His intention is for them to temporarily take control of Beijiang and then merge it once Daqian is also conquered.”
Gu Qingli was silent for a long moment. Who wouldn’t understand Eldest Brother Xiao’s intentions? As for merging in the future, who would believe that? I’m not angry. With the throne of Beijiang Kingdom in their grasp, it’s impossible for them not to have their own ambitions and just hand it over. I can completely understand this. The allure of holding great power is too tempting; no one would willingly give it up. What I’m wondering is, once Eldest Brother Xiao becomes the Emperor of Beijiang Kingdom, what will he do about Mr. Xiao, who is in Yanshan County?
“Do you agree? And do you really think they’ll be willing to give it up in the future?” Gu Qingli asked.
“Even if I don’t agree, what could I do? If we hadn’t withdrawn Yun No. 2 back then, they wouldn’t be in this position. As for the future, who would willingly give up the emperor’s throne once they’re firmly seated on it? If it were me, I wouldn’t hand it over either.”
Xiao Yunjing pondered this, a few thoughts stirring in his mind. Having been reborn, I originally never wanted to go out and conquer territories. I just wanted to stay by Li’er’s side and live an ordinary life. But alas, fate doesn’t always grant one’s wishes. We had no choice but to carve out a domain of our own just to survive peacefully. Yet, I never imagined we’d end up paving the way for others.
Gu Qingli patted him. “Forget it. Since it has come to this, let them have it. You were the one who gave them the opportunity. Also, withdraw all our people from Beijiang, and the Gu Clinic too. In short, don’t leave any of our personnel there.”
“Alright.”
Xiao Yunjing’s eyes narrowed slightly. From now on, it will just be me, Li’er, and our three little ones.
After kissing Gu Qingli on the lips, Xiao Yunjing held her close as they drifted off to sleep.
「In the Imperial Palace of Beijiang Kingdom」
Eldest Brother Xiao, Xiao Yunfeng—oh, no, he was called Emperor Xiao now—sat on the emperor’s throne, his face filled with irrepressible joy.
“Second Brother, our next target is Xichen Kingdom. Once we conquer it, Xichen Kingdom will be yours. How about that?” Emperor Xiao said, looking at Second Brother Xiao, Xiao Yunran, with great delight.
Xiao Yunran simply nodded. “Tomorrow, let’s arrange for First Sister-in-law and Ms. Wang to be brought here.”
“Naturally. Now that we’ve essentially parted ways with Third Brother, they certainly can’t stay in Daqian.”
Xiao Yunran frowned. “Then what about Dad? What are your plans, Eldest Brother?”
Xiao Yunfeng’s eyes tightened. He stated forcefully, “Naturally, he will continue to guard that place. In the future, not only Xichen Kingdom and Fengli Kingdom, but Daqian too, will sooner or later belong to our Xiao Family.”
He stepped down from the emperor’s throne, walked over to Xiao Yunran, and placed his hands on his shoulders. “We’ve come this far; we can only advance, not retreat. Eldest Brother doesn’t want to pave the way for someone else, understand?”
This “someone else,” of course, referred to Xiao Yunjing.
For his sake, our family endured humiliation for ten years, living a life worse than animals in the countryside, and Dad even lost his official position. If Grandfather hadn’t risked his life to smuggle him out of the Imperial Palace back then, wouldn’t he have died in there just the same? This world… it must be compensation for our Xiao Family!
Listening to Xiao Yunfeng’s speech, Xiao Yunran, to be honest, wasn’t nearly as optimistic. Has Eldest Brother even considered that the army that conquered Beijiang Kingdom belonged to Xiao Yunjing? And what about his Secret Sect members? If Xiao Yunjing withdraws his men, our strength will diminish greatly. If he were to turn around and attack Beijiang Kingdom, we would be powerless to resist. However, knowing Xiao Yunjing’s personality, he probably wouldn’t attack us. But he will most certainly withdraw his people.
He said, “Eldest Brother, let’s focus on properly defending Beijiang Kingdom for now and not think about other ambitions yet. Since we’ve reached this point, Father and Mother must also be brought here.”
“Why would you think like that?” Xiao Yunfeng retorted.
Xiao Yunran brushed Xiao Yunfeng’s hands aside. “Eldest Brother, haven’t you considered that Third Brother will withdraw all his people? How much military strength will we have left then? How much combat capability? Surely it won’t be just the two of us brothers going off to attack several major kingdoms, will it?”
Xiao Yunfeng scoffed, “His people? You think he can actually withdraw them?”
Xiao Yunran scoffed inwardly. Eldest Brother has only been Emperor for a few days, and he’s already this confident and arrogant. If he doesn’t believe it, well, he can just wait and see.
“If Eldest Brother doesn’t believe it, then never mind,” Xiao Yunran said, then turned and walked out of the main hall.
“If they leave, so be it. It’s a perfect opportunity; I can establish my own army,” Xiao Yunfeng said coldly.
「During the court session on the third day」
Just as expected, a report came from the military barracks: all of Xiao Yunjing’s people had withdrawn. Even the Gu Clinic had vanished completely overnight.
Only then did Xiao Yunfeng panic. He hurriedly dispatched men to Yanshan Pass to bring Mr. Xiao.
His father is an old general; the army needs him to take command. To put it bluntly, Xiao Yunran and I are just unseasoned bumpkins. We haven’t had formal training. Without Xiao Yunjing’s people supporting us, we’re nothing. We’re not only clueless about matters of state, but our way of leading troops relies purely on brute force. For anything that requires strategic thinking, we still need Mr. Xiao.