Chapter 1433 - 345: The Old Tiger

Chapter 1433: Chapter 345: The Old Tiger

Hundreds of thousands of cavalry, all in a desperate gamble, simultaneously went to war with two countries, ultimately destroying Jin. Now, a million soldiers and civilians are outside Town South Pass, fighting fiercely with the Chu people, along the official roads, countless laborers are heading to the battlefields he designated, stacking up his blueprint of ambition.

He’s always been winning,

Anything daring to block his path will be moved aside by him.

For hundreds of years, Yan has been co-governed by the Ji Family and the noble clans, externally oppressed by barbarians, internally ogled by neighboring states;

Under his rule,

The noble clans have fallen into dust,

The barbarian king married his princess into Yanjing,

The Three Jin joined Yan, Qian State dared not head north, Chu State was teetering on the brink.

He is the emperor, the Emperor of Yan, he is the symbol of Yan!

After years of strenuous effort, he has accomplished what three generations of monarchs could not.

But,

Now,

He openly admits, says,

Himself,

Old.

The princes were shocked to their core.

The more the emperor is talented and ambitious, the less familial affection there is between him and his sons, for his energy has long been spent on the court and battlefield.

The emperor is merciless, the Royal Family, is also merciless.

This generation of Yan’s princes are filled with fear of their father, to the bone.

Because of familiarity,

Because of blood connection,

Therefore,

They can perceive more clearly than others, what a terrifying existence their father truly is.

Except for Ji Chengsu,

The other adult princes,

No one dares truly believe they have any "father-son affection" with their father.

On the day Lord Jingnan exterminated the Tian Clan, the Yan Emperor allowed Empress Tian to return home to visit, letting her witness that night where Tian Residence ran with blood, and kin were annihilated!

The day after he praised Chengjue for resembling himself most, he personally issued a secret decree, ordering Lord Jingnan to flatten the Min Family on charges of treason, Consort Min was granted a white silk.

Chengjue has never forgotten the day he bribed some eunuchs with silver to sneak into the Cold Palace intending to deliver food and supplies to his mother consort, and upon opening the door, what he saw...

Mother consort’s face,

Deathly pale,

Pale to the point of terror,

Mother consort’s eyes,

Splayed wide, eyeballs seemingly about to burst.

Her tongue, protruding outside,

Looks like laughing, yet also like crying.

Chengjue didn’t flee in terror like other children,

He stood below,

For a long, long time,

Just watching, watching his mother consort, watching the favorite consort of his father, watching the straightforward woman admired by eunuchs and servants within the palace.

So,

For many years afterward,

Chengjue never cherished his mother consort, because the scene of his mother consort hanging herself was deeply etched in his memory.

Thinking of his mother consort, it was that kind of image;

No affectionate scenes, no warm memories, only that final image.

So,

He chose not to think.

The crown prince’s body, slightly swayed.

Close to his chest, he had always worn a pouch, inside were dried flower petals.

His empress mother, before her death, actually had been deranged for years.

But even so, upon learning he would get married, his empress mother sewed a pouch for him during her brief moments of clarity each day.

When handing the pouch to him,

Her emaciated face was full of regret,

She said she had intended to personally lead the palace seamstresses in sewing a robe for him to wear on his wedding day, but she couldn’t do it.

Though from the prestigious Tian Clan, her embroidery skills were always good.

Before her marriage, Tian Wujing often wore clothes woven by her, his sister;

After engagement, she even personally tailored clothes for him, sending them to be delivered by Tian Wujing, who liked following the crown prince behind at the time.

She didn’t fight, whether as crown princess or empress.

When Consort Min entered the house, the reception was grand, with cascading honeysuckle like rain, causing all the servants in the mansion to bow to her.

But she neither resented nor got angry, just simply thought her husband supported by Min Clan’s wealth would handle state affairs more comfortably.

Then,

She died.

She died on the eve of the Sixth Prince’s wedding.

That day, a spectacle rarely seen in ten years appeared in Yanjing city, and next morning, the mourning bell tolled in the palace.

She once told him, she only wanted to watch him marry, to see him holding his bride’s hand, walk before her, so she may transfer some of her jewelry to the bride.

She was always waiting, waiting to see him marry, should have been her fervent wish.

But she never lived to see it;

And her death directly became the biggest obstacle to his wedding with the princess.

The crown prince couldn’t help but raise his head,

Looked at his father,

Then silently lowered his head.

Empress mother died suddenly, yet died, so naturally.

But as her son, he dared not scrutinize deeply, nor had the strength to do so.

This father,

This high and mighty father,

This inviolable, godlike father,

He openly admitted,

He... is old.

When a father says he is old,

His sons don’t feel sorrowful but instead, deep within, all spontaneously feel:

You,

Finally,

Are old!

You,

It turns out,

Also will age!

Ji Chengjue opened his mouth slightly and then closed it again, his eyes a bit red. To outsiders, it seemed the Sixth Prince was sad, but in reality, a surging hatred had already arisen within his heart.

The tiger,

Finally old,

So now, could he possibly...