Chapter 012 The Su Family Tradition of Fearing Internal Threats
"System, I'm done for, right...?"
Ever since leaving the Observation Pavilion, from afternoon to night, Wei Wanlan's porcelain-white little face had not regained its color, his fingertips icy cold.
He had originally intended to interrupt the wicked merchant, but ended up mistakenly hitting the main villain! The Regent Prince must be angry.
His palms were sticky with cold sweat, and Wei Wanlan's ears kept replaying the sound of the Regent Prince crushing the pebble with one hand as he fled, the crisp sound as if crushing his own skull.
Ka, ka, ka ka ka...
Wei Wanlan covered his head with his hands, wishing he could hide himself in his sleeves, knowing it was a foolish ostrich-like behavior yet unable to help it.
At this moment, someone knocked on the door of the bedchamber, and Wei Wanlan trembled as he asked, "Who is it?" Afraid it was the Regent Prince coming to deal with him after finishing off the merchant.
The eunuch An Ruyi spoke softly and gently, "Your servant has brought Your Majesty a late-night snack. It is coconuts from Danzhou, the shell is hard, but the inside is full of juice. We need a specially made iron tool to pry open the coconut shell."
An Ruyi came in holding a small hammer.
But looking at the coconut, the size of a hairy head, Wei Wanlan's scalp tingled: "No no no, I don't want to eat it, just take it away quickly QAQ."
An Ruyi looked puzzled. Strange, doesn't His Majesty love sweets and sugary drinks the most?
"Then shall I crack some walnuts for you?"
Those walnuts looked like they were the size of a brain...
Wei Wanlan's teeth went soft: "Please leave, I want to be alone!"
"Alone?" Not knowing who this 'Alone' person was, An Ruyi shook his head slightly, picking up the coconut and closing the door to the bedchamber, "Please ponder on it, Your Majesty."
Wei Wanlan continued to shiver while holding his head.
[The year and month are known, how far is it from knowing His Majesty's birth date?]
The system calmly brought out the voodoo doll again, the pure white little figure floating in midair, vermilion lips, a ghostly smile. Wei Wanlan was startled by the vermilion on the doll, his eyes hurting a bit.
[Host, the Tianlu Pavilion.]
Hearing this name that sounded like it was from a martial arts novel, Wei Wanlan opened his eyes, blurred with tears: "You mean that even if I die, I can still reincarnate into other background books?"
[I'm saying you should not forget that the Tianlu Pavilion can be checked.] The system's voice was calm and unruffled, even hearing Wei Wanlan's nonsensical question, still showing the basic qualities of a seasoned strategist who had seen it all, [The Tianlu Pavilion is the Imperial History Museum, the Regent Prince's birth date may be recorded in one of the historical materials there.]
"Does the Imperial History Museum even record birthdays?"
[It will record information on important figures. Your own diary will also be placed in the Tianlu Pavilion in the future. Go take a look.]
Treating the dying horse like a live one, before he could think of a better way to find out the Regent Prince's birth date, Wei Wanlan had to hurry to the Tianlu Pavilion to collect the information.
The Palace, the Tianlu Pavilion.
The Tianlu Pavilion is located on high ground in the southeast corner of the palace, surrounded by water on all sides. The pavilion is divided into three floors, the first floor storing books, the second and third floors being the offices where the historians copy and compile historical materials.
The pavilion guard with a sword at his waist patrolled back and forth, his eyes gleaming coldly, his thumb constantly rubbing the hilt of the sword.
The system habitually lectured: [For a feudal dynasty, a rich and detailed set of historical materials can demonstrate the comprehensive quality of that dynasty from another perspective, as the saying goes, 'Prosperous times make for good history writing'.]
But Wei Wanlan wasn't listening at all, standing on the first floor of the Tianlu Pavilion, his eyes wide open. He was astonished.
Countless tall wooden bookshelves, reaching up to the ceiling, each shelf packed with historical materials, both bamboo slips and books, neat and dense, each bookshelf as grand as a small mountain.
Trying to find a book recording the Regent Prince's birth date among so many history books, this... would be harder than finding a needle in a haystack, right?
The Emperor stood there for a long time, not knowing where to start searching.
"Your humble servant greets Your Majesty."
"Huh?"
Soon, Wei Wanlan turned around, and a civil official in a scarlet robe slowly approached. The official was around forty years old, with a square face, thick eyebrows and star-like eyes, a thick black beard like iron that seemed unmoved by the wind, a steady and solemn appearance.
[He is Ling Huzhen, the chief archivist of the Tianlu Pavilion... never mind, the director of the Imperial History Museum.] The system, having already lost hope in Wei Wanlan's political acumen, said, [This person is the only loyal minister in the book who opposed the Regent Prince's usurpation, and he recorded the Regent Prince's evil deeds in the last history book of the Great Wei, dying as a minister of the Great Wei.]
Wei Wanlan stood up respectfully and nodded.
His watery eyes lingered on Ling Huzhen for a moment, again stunned by the man's awe-inspiring bearing and demeanor. He didn't even notice the system's impolite "never mind".
Ling Huzhen.
Indeed, a righteous man, looking righteous, even his name sounds righteous.
Ling Huzhen bowed deeply, his steady voice: "Why does Your Majesty stand outside the Tianlu Pavilion and not enter?"
Uh, he can't just say he was dumbfounded by the sheer number of books and was at a loss as to how to find the desired birth date record, right?
Can't ask too directly, the system criticized him last time, don't get electrocuted.
Wei Wanlan stammered for a moment: "I... I, want to read the history books."
To check the Regent Prince's information is equivalent to reading history books, right? This isn't a lie.
Unexpectedly, these words had a huge impact on Ling Huzhen, causing him to widen his eyes, his breathing pausing for a moment.
After a while, the great Ling Huzhen finally emerged from his shock, the gleam in his eyes burning, his steady voice trembling: "Your Majesty is wise! Your Majesty is wise! Your servant has served in the Tianlu Pavilion for many years and knows every history book here! I will guide Your Majesty."
Yay!
Gaining an on-site bookshelf and a human search engine, this is awesome.
How did I become wise again? Ancient people are so strange. Wei Wanlan's delicate little nose twitched, but he didn't know why. As he followed Ling Huzhen into the Tianlu Pavilion, he suddenly felt anxious.
He glanced back at the empty stone bridge leading to the pavilion, the night sky only with a few dark clouds, nothing else:
"..."
Two imperial guards emerged from the Tianlu Pavilion, reporting the Emperor's whereabouts to the Regent Prince.
***
"Our dynasty's national history has been compiled since the founding over a hundred years ago, with additions from each dynasty, as well as books donated by the people every year, resulting in the Tianlu Pavilion's current collection of two hundred thousand volumes of historical texts." Ling Huzhen patiently and gently explained.
Two hundred thousand volumes, what a concept? Just a lot of books, too many to find what you want.
Leading the Emperor to a round cushion surrounded by peony flowers, Ling Huzhen had him sit down, the note-taking official brought hot tea, and Ling Huzhen carefully held the cup, feeling the temperature just right before handing it to him: "Your Majesty, please have some tea."
"Huh?" Wei Wanlan didn't dare to take it at first, tilting his head to observe Ling Huzhen, seeing that he maintained the posture of humbly offering the tea, only then did his delicate fingers accept the cup, the warmth seeping up through the crevices, his nasal bridge suddenly aching.
Since transmigrating into this world of scheming, no one had ever treated him so purely.
Wei Wanlan softly asked, "System, is he a loyal minister?"
[Yes. A great loyal minister. A historian.]
So Wei Wanlan smiled even more sincerely, looking up to the elder like a young disciple, sweetly saying, "Thank you, Director."
Ling Huzhen leaned back slightly, "Director?"
Inadvertently using a modern term, Wei Wanlan stuck out his tongue to cover up: "I want to see the history books about the wars of our dynasty."
If he wants to find information about Su Jingzhi, he should be able to start from the military history, right?
Just... narrow down the scope first.
Raising this request, Ling Huzhen was even more deeply moved, his eyes showing approval. If one wants to become a formidable ruler, one must have achievements in military exploits, expanding the territory, with iron horses and golden armor, only then can one live up to one's life, with the hope of the Great Wei's mountains and rivers.
Ling Huzhen cleared his throat solemnly, "Please wait, Your Majesty!" With that, he disappeared into the vast sea of books.
When he returned to the table, Ling Huzhen was carrying a pile of books: "Your Majesty, please look at these, they are all historical materials related to wars since the founding of the country."
The pages had a faint ink fragrance, slightly yellowed.
Wei Wanlan raised his nose to sniff, then randomly opened a history book, pages of dense vertical classical Chinese text without punctuation jumped into his eyes, scaring Wei Wanlan to quickly close his eyes, almost throwing the book away.
Goodness, the fear of density is about to strike.
Are all ancient books like this?
Wei Wanlan's face scrunched up, the paper a bit hot to the touch.
Ling Huzhen gently guided, "If Your Majesty wants to understand a certain aspect of the war history, this humble servant is also willing to explain to Your Majesty."
- The Regent Prince's birth date.
[Don't ask so directly!]
So Wei Wanlan tried to be indirect: "I want to know more detailed information about the famous generals of the Great Wei."
The system was relieved: [Well done.]
Ling Huzhen was not surprised, but rather more delighted. At this age, the Emperor's interest in heroes is only natural, he should let the Emperor have role models to inspire him to work hard and govern, the Great Wei's rivers and mountains will be blessed!
Ling Huzhen's official robe fluttered as he excitedly laid out several history books.
On the cover, Wei Wanlan recognized only four out of the eight characters: "... 'The Biographies of the Su Clan'?"
"A war history of the Great Wei, spanning six generations of the Su family." Ling Huzhen opened the preface of the history book, starting from the founding general Su Wuyang, blending the rigor of historiography and the interest of storytelling, "Wuyang, meaning 'without disease', the first general, who does that make Your Majesty think of?"
"Xin Qiji, Huo Qubing."
[Nice, host!]
The light in Ling Huzhen's eyes grew even stronger, continuing the topic: "The previous dynasty was tyrannical and the people could not live, General Su Wuyang rose up, his most legendary battle was when he single-handedly led the enemy away on horseback to protect the villagers, fighting to the death in the mountain pass, wounded by several swords, killing nearly a hundred enemies..."
Wei Wanlan couldn't help but lean forward: "Then what happened?"
"His white robe was dyed red like a red robe, the place of that battle is now called Red Robe Ridge."
Wei Wanlan's eyes flowed with a captivating liveliness, his ear tips twitching, seeming to have absorbed the story.
Ling Huzhen felt affection and continued, "After Su Wuyang's death, his son Su Pingjing went out to the Yanmen region, reclaiming the Yellow River loop, giving the local people decades of peace."
"The third generation Su Yangsheng, the founder of the military garrison system, before that the border regions were barren, relying on the Central Plains for grain and forage, afterwards the military garrisons developed, the border people became prosperous, the court saved a lot on military provisions."
[He means they set up farming in the border regions.]
Wei Wanlan nodded.
Seeing the Emperor listening attentively, Ling Huzhen pressed on: "The fourth generation General Su Yuanning, improved the armor and weapons, forging the invincible reputation of our Great Wei's Jinchuan Iron Cavalry."
[Organized heavy cavalry units.]
"Oh, oh."
"The fifth generation General Su Zhenwei," Ling Huzhen stroked his beard, eyes like the crescent moon, "he was an amazing person, fierce and ruthless towards enemies, repelling the Turks in the north and pacifying the Baiyue in the south, waging war like a killing god, but completely changed inside the home, gentle and obedient towards his wife."
Translation: Afraid of his wife.
"This... can also be written in the history books?" Wei Wanlan's interest in gossip was ignited, his eyes shining.
"Yes," Ling Huzhen nodded and explained, "because when his wife Lady Rong was pregnant and afraid of the cold, the general wore a layer of soft cloth over his armor, intending to keep his wife and child from being chilled during intimate moments, but the Turks didn't understand the meaning, and they also wore a layer of soft cloth over their armor... the two armies faced off, all wearing the same attire."
Wei Wanlan burst out laughing. That's good, the reputation of the Su general protecting his wife even reached the Turks, it's hard to imagine what Su Zhenwei must have felt when he saw the enemy wearing the same outfit.
Probably thinking, the enemy has increased their population a lot!
But the fifth generation Su general and his wife, aren't they the Regent Prince's parents?
How come the parents are good-natured, but the Regent Prince's temperament is so bad? This Regent Prince has a lot of problems, not inheriting any of the good traits from his parents at all?
While Wei Wanlan was criticizing the Regent Prince, Ling Huzhen suddenly cleared his throat, taking out another history book and flipping to a certain page: "This sixth generation famous general is our current Regent Prince, Su Yan."
[Note, he is about to talk about information regarding the Regent Prince.]
Wei Wanlan perked up his ears.
That unease that had been lingering in his heart since earlier became more pronounced.
Outside the Tianlu Pavilion, the dark clouds were getting denser, the Jin Wu Guard completely surrounding the Tianlu Pavilion, the sharp blades gleaming with a cold light, the killing intent silent yet palpable…
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