Chapter 551: The Sage Emperors Intentions! The Storm Over the Capital! (1/2)

Chapter 551: The Sage Emperor's Intentions! The Storm Over the Capital!

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

After what seemed like a mere second and yet like countless epochs, right when Eunuch Gao believed that he would not be able to hear an answer, the great hall resounded with that revered and dignified voice.

”The southwest… It's not the right time yet!”

”Your Majesty!”

Hearing the Sage Emperor's voice, Eunuch Gao mentally shivered. He couldn't help but give a long sigh.

”Is it still because of that child…”

These words were earth-shattering, and if any of the ministers of the court were present, they would definitely have been stupefied. The southwest was on the brink of crisis, yet the Sage Emperor continued to express no stance. The heavens were unfathomable and the Imperial Court's conjectures were fruitless, yet no one would have expected everything to be related to a single youth.

The great hall was quiet, without a single noise. Beneath the many golden curtains, that figure remained unmoving, as towering as the mountains, as distant as the stars. No one knew what the supreme Sage Emperor of the Great Tang was thinking, not even Gao Lishi.

Although he knew many things, he did not know everything.

”Everything has its allotted destiny! Whether it is or it is not, we will quickly find out…”

Behind the curtains, the Sage Emperor did not directly reply to the questions, but these words were enough of an admission.

”But Your Majesty, can five thousand soldiers really change the fate of the southwest? Geluofeng is working together with Dalun Ruozan! The Mengshe–Ü-Tsang army numbers more than five hundred thousand!”

Eunuch Gao pressed his forehead against the ground as he kneeled, the distress evident in his voice.

After serving His Majesty for decades, Gao Lishi had never imagined that he would doubt the Sage Emperor. But the matter of the southwest involved tens of thousands of soldiers and nearly one million civilians! If all their hope was being placed on a single youth, to place their hopes on a hotheaded force that didn't know its own strength, wouldn't they be treating the southwest as a mere game?

The hall was quiet, with no response.

Gao Lishi felt panicked, cold sweat seeping from his forehead, and even his palms were getting sweaty. This was the first time he had ever questioned the Sage Emperor, but as the eunuch who directed the affairs of the Inner Court and one of the Emperor's retainers, there were some words that he had to say.

”In this world, there is nothing that is impossible. Did you forget how We ascended to the throne?”

”Ah!”

As if given a jolt, Gao Lishi suddenly raised his head.

He naturally knew how the Sage Emperor had ascended to the seat of the Supreme Sovereign of the Nine and Five. No one had viewed the Sage Emperor optimistically back then, and none of the other princes had ever paid him any mind. In the end, however, the Sage Emperor had relied on his great talent in strategy to forge a resplendent and flourishing Great Tang, becoming the Emperor beloved by all.

Gao Lishi had also not expected the Sage Emperor to think so highly of that child that he would compare him to himself.

”We have not misjudged him. When the results from the southwest are made clear, all will naturally be understood. Everything has its destiny. Yuanyi, all you need to know is that it is destined that We have favored him. This is enough. Now, withdraw!”

With his last words, that supreme existence behind the curtains had spoken Gao Lishi's layman name.

Everyone knew of Eunuch Gao, Gao Lishi, yet few people knew that before Eunuch Gao entered the palace, he had the surname 'Feng'. 'Yuanyi' was his actual birth name.

His Majesty rarely spoke his layman name, but once he did, it meant that the conversation was over.

”Yes, Your Majesty! Your lowly servant withdraws!”

Gao Lishi didn't dare to further argue, and obediently took his leave.

After leaving the hall, Gao Lishi stood on the jade steps, gazing at the dazzling golden walls of the Inner Court, his mind in turmoil. Even though he had already seen His Majesty and received an answer, Gao Lishi's doubts had only increased, not decreased.

The southwest, the southwest… Ah, His Majesty's mind has grown even more unfathomable. Wang Yan, I hope that your youngest son won't disappoint His Majesty!

With this thought, Gao Lishi quickly descended the jade steps and left the Taiji Palace.

He had an even more important task to carry out.

……

While Gao Lishi was leaving the Taiji Palace, no one knew that an even more important event had taken place.

Flapflap!

In the last light of the setting sun, a flight of carrier pigeons flew in from the southwest. No one noticed that two of these carrier pigeons flew over the southwest walls, over the many buildings and roofs to enter the Imperial Palace.