Shuhan

In Luoyang in the third year of Yanxing, the autumn wind blew the golden fallen leaves of the Koelreuteria tree across the palace walls. In the bronze crane incense burner in front of the Taiji Hall, the curling green smoke and the drifting sweet-scented osmanthus fragrance were entangled together.

Liu Chan, the Emperor of the Han Dynasty, was reclining on a nine-dragon gold-lacquered couch. The bamboo slips and documents piled on his desk almost half covered his entire body. Only his pair of bloodshot eyes were fixed on the military report stained with the yellow sand of the Western Regions in his hand.

Li Xian, the Imperial Court Minister, hurried into the hall, holding a military report in his hand. He was wearing a dark purple official robe, with a jade belt around his waist swaying gently with his steps, and his face was filled with excitement and nervousness that were difficult to conceal.

"Your Majesty, the Second Prince Liu Xuan has completely opened up the Western Regions. Shanshan, Khotan and other countries have surrendered to him. The Silk Road has been reopened!"

His voice was high-pitched and passionate, echoing in the empty hall, startling the swallows and sparrows perched on the beams, and the sound of their flapping wings broke the silence in the hall.

Liu Chan, who was reviewing the memorials, sat up suddenly. The five-clawed dragon embroidered with gold thread on his black dragon robe tumbled with his movements, like a living thing. His fingers tightly grasped the brush, and the ink from the tip of the brush dripped onto the bamboo slips, leaving a dark mark. The jade pendants on his waist collided with each other, making a crisp and ethereal sound, but it could not cover up his rapid breathing.

Liu Chan stared at the military newspaper in Li Xian's hand, and a complex light flashed in his turbid eyes.

He stretched out his hand tremblingly, took the military newspaper, and his skinny fingers repeatedly stroked the words "Kucha destroyed the country" on it, as if he wanted to carve these four words into his bones.

In a trance, he recalled the scene before the death of the late Emperor Liu Bei. That calloused hand tightly grasped him, and the breath was weak but every word was powerful: "Restore the Han Dynasty and return to the old capital."

The past came flooding back to my mind. Although the late emperor was seriously ill at that time, his eyes were still as firm as an eagle, and he was full of hope for the revival of the Han Dynasty.

His throat rolled, and an indescribable excitement and emotion surged in his heart.

"Draft an edict!" Liu Chan suddenly slammed the table and stood up, his voice full of determination.

His action caused the bamboo slips on the table to rustle. A few of them slid to the ground and made crisp impact sounds on the blue bricks.

Li Xian was startled by this sudden action and almost dropped the pen and ink in his hand. He quickly bowed and responded, took out the bamboo slips and brush, and prepared to record the order.

"The emperor's son Liu Xuan is appointed the King of Qin, with a fief of three counties west of Chang'an and a territory of one hundred miles! He is allowed to establish a government and appoint his own officials!"

Liu Chan spoke word by word, as if he had exhausted all his strength in every word. His eyes sparkled with pride for his son and expectations for the future.

He knew that this was not only a gift of honor, but also a heavy responsibility. He hoped that Liu Xuan could continue to expand the territory for the Han Dynasty and consolidate the foundation of the Han Dynasty in the Western Regions.

Before he finished speaking, a cold wind suddenly blew in from outside the hall, bringing with it a bone-chilling chill.

The wind seemed to carry some mysterious power, blowing away the ink that had not yet dried on the table, and casting mottled shadows on the blue brick floor, like an abstract ink painting.

Liu Chan looked at the ink on the ground, and a trace of inexplicable worry rose in his heart. Although the Western Regions had been opened up, the situation was still turbulent with foreign enemies such as the Xianbei and the Xiongnu.

Liu Xuan's journey ahead was full of unknowns and challenges.

Li Xian carefully recorded the decree, and secretly guessed the emperor's thoughts in his heart. He knew that this decree was of great significance, not only related to the future and fate of the second prince Liu Xuan, but also to the future of the Han Dynasty. He did not dare to slack off, and the brush in his hand wrote on the bamboo slips like flowing water, recording the emperor's decree word for word.

This news exploded in Luoyang City like thunder. The morning mist in Luoyang City had not yet dissipated, and the bluestone slabs on Zhuque Street were already covered with a thin layer of frost.

Smoke rose from the wine shops and teahouses along the street early in the morning, and the hot air, wrapped in the aroma of meat and tea, lingered in the cold air. When the night watchman struck the gong at 15:30 in the morning, a piece of news spread like wildfire throughout the city.

"Dear audience! Listen to this strange story from the Western Regions--" In front of the carved railing on the second floor of Zuixian Tower, the storyteller Lao Zhou, wearing a faded lake blue gown, the copper bells tied around his waist jingled with his movements. He slammed the gavel in his hand, the sound like a loud bell.

"His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin led the Han cavalry and slaughtered the Xianbei in the Western Regions until they cried for their parents! The head of the King of Kucha was hung on the tower of the Governor's Mansion that night!"

As soon as these words came out, everyone in the room was shocked. The sound of tea cups colliding and wine bowls slamming on the ground came one after another. The old shopkeeper by the window forgot to wipe the wine pot in his hand, and the rice wine leaking from the spout of the pot formed a small puddle on the counter; several peddlers who were chewing on sesame cakes dropped their food and stretched their necks to get close to the storyteller; even the wealthy businessman in brocade robes in the private room on the second floor lifted the curtain and leaned out half of his body, for fear of missing a word.

"Is this true? The Kingdom of Kucha was a powerful country in the Western Regions!" A white-haired old man in the front row had his beard trembling, his cloudy eyes full of disbelief.

Old Zhou raised a smug smile and opened his folding fan. The four golden characters "Debate with Scholars" were faintly visible in the morning light. "Old man, is this true? The military report arrived yesterday. His Majesty has issued an order to confer the title of King of Qin on the Second Prince! Please listen to me as I explain in detail—"

As he spoke, he lowered his voice and vividly described how Liu Xuan used clever strategies to divide the countries in the Western Regions, and how he defeated the larger force with a smaller one on the battlefield, leaving the Xianbei in disarray.

Passersby on the street downstairs were also attracted by the noise.

An old man selling candied haws stopped with his load on his shoulder. The hawthorns on the string were covered with crystal icing in the cold wind. A few children were running after the wind, their rosy faces were frozen purple, but they kept muttering "King Qin, King Qin" in their mouths.

Even the usually dignified women gathered in groups of three or four at the street corners, mending shoe soles and whispering to each other.

"I heard that Prince Qin has such ability even though he just tied his hair. It's true that a good father will have a good son!" exclaimed a middle-aged woman in coarse linen clothes, her eyes full of envy.

"That's right. How can the grandson of the Guan family be any worse?" Another woman smiled. "Back then, General Guan passed through five passes and killed six generals, shocking the whole of China. His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin is probably even more powerful than his grandfather!"

But the scene in Changle Palace at this time was quite different.

Within the palace walls, the fragrance of plum blossoms floats in the air, and the accumulated snow bends the bamboo branches.

In Guan Yinping's bedroom, the gilded stove was burning brightly, filling the room with warmth.

In front of the bronze mirror, Guan Yinping, wearing a goose yellow skirt, was pinning flowers on her hair in front of the mirror.

The palace maid Cui'er held a lacquer tray with an exquisite golden hairpin on it. The pearls and jade pieces on it sparkled in the candlelight.

"Your Majesty, this hairpin goes perfectly with your dress." Cui'er said with a smile.

Guan Yinping took the hairpin and was about to put it in her hair when she heard hurried footsteps outside the door. Her personal maid Qiu He ran in with a happy face and shouted breathlessly: "Madam! Great news! The Second Prince won a great victory in the Western Regions, and His Majesty has made him the King of Qin!"

The golden hairpin in her hand fell to the ground with a clang, and the broken jade splashed on the brocade skirt. Guan Yinping sat in front of the dressing table, speechless for a long time. Past events came to her mind like a tide - she remembered that when Liu Xuan was young, he always loved to pester her to tell stories about his grandfather Guan Yu. The little person opened his big eyes and listened attentively, his eyes full of admiration and yearning; when he was a little older, he followed the generals in the army to learn riding and shooting, and never cried out in pain even when he was covered with wounds; now, he can make such a great military exploit in the Western Regions and stand on his own.

"My son..." Guan Yinping suddenly covered her face and smiled, but tears slipped through her fingers, wetting her delicate makeup.

She stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the towering palace walls in the distance. She couldn't stop smiling, "I finally lived up to the Guan family's talent! If your grandfather is still in heaven, he should be relieved..."

Qiu He and Cui Er looked at each other and their eyes also turned red. "Madam, we should celebrate!" Qiu He said. Guan Yinping nodded, turned around and ordered: "Go, start preparing the snacks that the prince likes to eat, and have someone fetch the jar of girl's red wine in my room. When His Highness returns to the court, I will personally welcome him!"

At this time, the cold wind swept across the palace walls, blowing off the snow on the branches.

In the distance, the eaves of the Taiji Hall sparkled in the sun, as if they were also shining for the good news.

Spring of the fourth year of Yanxing.

The King of Qin returned triumphantly.

At the city gate, people stood on tiptoe and looked forward to seeing what was happening. Children rode on adults' shoulders and waved homemade colorful flags in their hands.

When the black-armored cavalry covered in frost and snow appeared at the end of the field of vision, cheers rose one after another and resounded through the sky, startling the white doves roosting on the city walls.

Liu Xuan sat upright on a tall horse, his black cloak still condensed with dust brought from the Western Regions, but his shoulders were covered with ginkgo leaves from Luoyang City.

He looked at the familiar yet unfamiliar palace wall, and his memory suddenly flashed back to the day when he went to war - at that time, he was just a frustrated prince, but now that he has returned, every inch of land where the horse's hooves stepped tells of the bloody storm in the Western Regions.

Inside the Taiji Hall, spices offered as tribute by the Parthians were burning in copper furnaces, and curls of green smoke were swirling between the Panlong pillars.

Liu Chan leaned on the dragon couch, his expression unchanged, still looking calm.

When Liu Xuan stepped into the hall, the heavy footsteps made him look up, and the moment their eyes met, it was as if time had gone back.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you." Liu Xuan knelt on one knee, his armor making a crisp sound. He lowered his eyes to stare at the dust in the cracks between the blue bricks, not daring to look up.

Liu Chan sat up straight, and the five-clawed dragon embroidered in gold thread on his dragon robe twisted and deformed with his movements.

"Get up." His voice was as hoarse as sandpaper rubbing against copper.

"In the battle of Kucha, how did you come up with the idea of ​​using quicksand to defeat the enemy?"

The hall fell into a brief silence, with only the sound of dripping water from the clepsydra being clearly audible.

When Liu Xuan stood up, the jade pendant with dragon pattern on his waist swayed gently. It was a relic left by his mother.

"My father, there is a lot of desert outside the city of Qiuci. I have observed that the Hu horses are afraid of the sound of quicksand..." He described every detail in detail, from how to send people to dig sand pits to using sheepskin drums to create roars and lure 30,000 enemy troops into a death trap.

Liu Chan listened attentively, his skinny fingers unconsciously stroking the armrests of the dragon couch.

When he heard that Liu Xuan had personally rushed into the enemy camp to save the injured Han general, he suddenly coughed violently, shaking the bamboo slips on the table: "Do you know that if you make a mistake, the great cause of the Han Dynasty in the Western Regions..."

Liu Xuan's heart tightened.

"My son, I know my mistake."

He knelt again, forehead touching the ground.

"But the soldiers have given their lives, and I cannot retreat."

Suddenly a strong wind blew outside the hall, blowing ginkgo leaves against the window frames.

Liu Chan was silent for a long time, then slowly stood up and walked in front of him.

"Good, very good, this is the prince of my Han Dynasty, my bloodline, you have lived up to my expectations."

The second prince was deeply moved when he heard this. For many years, he had always wanted to get his father's recognition, and now he finally got it.

"I am not even a fraction of what I was in my father's time."

Three days later, during the enthronement ceremony, the streets of Luoyang were deserted.

The square in front of the Taiji Hall was covered with scarlet felt carpets, like a flowing river of blood, leading directly to the majestic Jinluan Hall. Thirty-six golden-armored warriors held long halberds, with red tassels rustling in the autumn wind, like a burning flame.

The people crowded outside the palace wall, standing on tiptoe to look around. Children were lifted above their heads, looking curiously at the King of Qin who was about to be enthroned.

Liu Xuan was wearing a royal robe with a black background and red patterns. The dragon pattern embroidered with gold thread glowed coldly in the sun. The dragon on the jade belt buckle raised its head as if it was about to fly, echoing the emperor's crown tassels in the distance.

He stepped onto the white marble steps one by one, the corners of his robe brushing against the cold stone steps, making a rustling sound. With every step he took, he could feel the people's fiery gazes and hear their whispers of admiration and discussion.

When he knelt in front of the white marble steps, the coolness from his palms made him sober. Looking up, he saw Liu Chan sitting on the dragon throne wearing a crown with twelve patterns. His face was blurry behind the pearl curtain, but his eyes were staring at him intently.

"Qin King Liu Xuan conquered the Western Regions with his power and achievements will be remembered for thousands of years!"

The Yellow Gate Minister unfolded the bamboo slips, and the sound echoed over the square. Every word of the edict was like an inscription engraved on a bronze tripod, solemn and majestic. Liu Xuan looked at the ginkgo leaves falling in the air, and suddenly thought of the sandstorms in the Western Regions - every grain of sand there had witnessed the passion and loyalty of the Han army.

"Give the King of Qin a golden seal and purple ribbon, three counties as fiefs, and a government office!"

As the imperial edict was read, the golden seal and purple ribbon were slowly presented. The moment Liu Xuan reached out to take it, he touched the dragon and tiger button on the seal, and the cold touch spread from his fingertips to his whole body.

He looked up at the dragon bed, and through the swaying bead curtain, his eyes met Liu Chan's - in his eyes, there was no longer the majesty and scrutiny of the past, but a hint of relief, a hint of reluctance, and a warmth that he had never had before.

When the ceremony was over, bells and drums rang. Liu Xuan stood up and turned around, looking at the cheering people in the square and the fluttering Han flag, and an indescribable sense of pride surged in his heart.

He knew that from this moment on, he was no longer just the second prince, but the King of Qin who was responsible for the peace of the Western Regions and the smooth flow of the Silk Road. And behind the majestic canonization, he finally understood his father's silent fatherly love - it was the expectation hidden in the imperial edict, the concern that he wanted to say but hesitated in front of the dragon bed, and the deepest concern of an emperor for the continuation of his bloodline. (End of this chapter)