HCB Chapter 391 Dream of the Past Life
Chapter 391 Dream of the Past Life
Emperor Shenwu only felt waves of icy chills in his dream.
Emperor Shenwu felt something was wrong. He seemed to wake up and then took two steps back. When he took two steps back, he found that he was lying on the ice jade coffin. He was shocked and took two more steps back before he could see the whole scene clearly.
Lan Qingwu lay quietly in the ice jade coffin. Her face was pale, her eyes were closed, her expression was peaceful and tranquil, but her chest was not moving at all!
It turned out that Emperor Shenwu actually dreamed of Lan Qingwu’s life-and-death ordeal!
A sense of fear surrounded Emperor Shenwu. He looked carefully at Lan Qingwu in the ice jade coffin. The cold air in the ice jade coffin came out in waves. The crystal clear ice jade emitted a soft light, making the stunning beauty in the ice jade coffin look like a fairy as white as jade.
But all this seemed so terrifying to the Shenwu Emperor! He slowly surveyed his surroundings, confirming that this was the underground palace of the Miaoling Palace. On either side of the walls were carved lifelike mythical beasts, each with its own unique demeanor. Occasionally, a clump of unidentified flowers grew robustly in the corners.
The scene in the dream suddenly changed. In the dream, Emperor Shenwu left Lan Qingwu alone in the underground palace of Miaoling Palace and returned to the imperial city alone.
On the surface, everything was normal for Emperor Shenwu. He handled state affairs and visited his concubines as usual. Only in the dead of night did Emperor Shenwu deeply realize that he was just a walking corpse. His eyes could no longer see the colorful colors, and his world was only black and white!
The Shenwu Emperor grew increasingly silent and cold. He had little patience for the previous dynasty and was suspicious and wary of the concubines who were close to him. A few years later, Prince Zhou Qihuai of Shen County rebelled. Enraged, the Shenwu Emperor personally led his army to suppress him, personally beheading him in Jiazhou City. He then deposed him as a prince and removed his name from the imperial family tree. He buried his body in the desolate mountains.
Empress Dowager Li fell seriously ill and broke with Emperor Shenwu. She fled from the Cining Palace to the Yunfo Temple on the outskirts of the city, without any regard for Emperor Shenwu's face.
There were also many people in the former dynasty and the harem who believed that Emperor Shenwu was decisive, ruthless, and too ruthless. You must know that Prince Shen was Emperor Shenwu's brother from the same father and mother. Even if Prince Shen made a big mistake, he could be punished in other ways. What's more, Emperor Shenwu did not care about his biological mother at all.
People are so strange. When Prince Shen rebelled, everyone gnashed their teeth and wanted to tear him into pieces. But once the criminal was at a disadvantage and the leader acted decisively, others would criticize him for not being merciful enough, and they would worry that the monarch they were loyal to would use the same method against them!
After this incident, Emperor Shenwu became increasingly lonely. He often sat alone on the high Nine Dragon Steps for most of the day, feeling increasingly lonely at such a high altitude!
A few years later, a war of varying degrees broke out on the border, and the grassland tribes began to stir again.
Emperor Shenwu seemed to have opened a certain mechanism. He ignored the opposition of his ministers and insisted on leading the army in person. Most of the court officials were forced to follow the emperor to the border. Emperor Shenwu set up the Linzheng Hall at the border, which was like another small court outside the imperial city.
Emperor Shenwu lived up to his name. He personally went to the battlefield and commanded every war. Wherever he went, he was invincible, blood flowed like a river, and no grass grew, which made the enemy terrified.
The grassland king of the newly emerged tribe, the new king of Beinar, Unard Eagle, is also a ruthless and scheming hero, but unfortunately he met the Emperor Shenwu!
The war intensified, with the Shenwu Emperor winning battle after battle. Even when the grassland tribes showed signs of decline, he didn't slow down his pace. Instead, he pursued them even more fiercely, finally slaying Unad Eagle seven months later on the battlefield! The Shenwu Emperor led his troops deep into the heart of the grasslands. Wherever his army passed, there was burning, looting, and wailing. He slaughtered all the adult men and made slaves of the women and children.
It was a truly barren land, with blood flowing like rivers! All the small tribes that had not originally participated in the war were forced into this seemingly endless, one-sided war of slaughter.
Emperor Shenwu was so obsessed with killing that he ignored and refused to listen to the advice of those around him. One day, General Qian Hui plucked a half-withered, unknown pink flower from the edge of a recently concluded battlefield. He presented the flower to Emperor Shenwu, saying he couldn't sustain the delicate flower.
Emperor Shenwu stared at the flowers for a long while before sneering, "What a pity! The one who truly cherished these flowers and plants is no longer with us!"
Having said that, Emperor Shenwu still put aside the war that was in full swing and finally ordered the Dasheng army to return to defend.
He quietly came to the big peach tree where he first met Lan Qingwu. The big peach tree was still lush and growing vigorously. It bloomed in spring and bore fruit in autumn. It seemed to be more loyal than some people.
A few days after Emperor Shenwu visited the peach tree, something bad happened. A vengeful group of people from the grasslands sneaked into the city, came to the small peach orchard, and set a fire that destroyed the big peach tree and all the surrounding scenery.
When Emperor Shenwu arrived upon hearing the news, he saw only a burnt black earth with smoke still rising from it. The past of the big peach tree and Lan Qingwu was ultimately destroyed by the fire, leaving nothing behind.
Emperor Shenwu stood there in a daze for a moment. He looked at the scorched earth and remembered his first meeting with Lan Qingwu here. He covered his chest, suddenly spit out a mouthful of blood, and fell straight down.
Emperor Shenwu was seriously ill. The civil and military officials who had been stationed at the border for nearly a year were both hopeful and worried about the emperor's health. You know, Emperor Shenwu had not yet established a foundation for the country. After returning to the imperial city, the former court and the harem might start another war without gunpowder.
Emperor Shenwu ordered Qian Hui to stay at the border to deal with the aftermath.
After returning to the imperial city, as expected, the ministers began to take sides, with the eldest and second princes having the most support. Both came from similar backgrounds, but the eldest prince was a martial artist with courage but little strategy, while the second prince was more benevolent and thorough. Emperor Shenwu privately preferred the second prince. However, he remained hesitant and undecided. He felt that while the second prince seemed the more suitable of the other princes, he was still a little less capable. The second prince was too kind and had a softer personality, and he feared he would be easily influenced.
If Lan Qingwu had given birth to an heir, this wouldn't have happened! The Shenwu Emperor was so certain for some reason. As for the Third and Fourth Princes, the Shenwu Emperor hadn't considered them at all. He had four princes in total, and by the time he reached middle age, he couldn't find a single heir he was satisfied with.