"Two hundred years later, the descendants of the sea monster landed on the island with advanced weapons and then invaded half of the continent."
"After that, for half a century, foreign powers plundered the wealth of the homeland, and in the following fifty years, it split into countless modern countries. Finally, a people's army began to recover the territory and complete the unification."
Achina was killed by the soldiers of this people.
Xie Lanzhi finally understood why Aqina was in such a hurry to invent firearms, even before unifying the country. It turned out that the Central Plains was already considered backward and could be destroyed with minimal effort.
Aqina mentioned this when he was a child, around sixteen years old. Now that Aqina is thirty-six, it means that in two years, the sea monster will invade the coast.
So, Aqina delayed unifying the Central Plains for several years because he didn't want to bear the historical blame, which is why he kept waiting. Once the sea monster landed two years later, he might use firearms to eliminate the sea monster, thereby raising the banner of saving the world and unifying China, and claiming himself as the legitimate successor of the Chinese and barbarians. At that time, he could achieve both fame and fortune, and make a name for himself in history.
Xie Lanzhi couldn't help but sneer: "She's really getting all the good things."
"They were still thinking of leaving the only stain on Little Phoenix's history."
Even a warlord would care about his place in history.
He not only knew the course of history, but also deployed troops in advance, waiting for Xie Guang to walk right into his trap. In fact, it was all premeditated.
She must hold Aqina accountable for the debt of 30,000 Xie people.
Xie Lanzhi herself was also guilty. If she hadn't undermined the morale of the army, Xie Guang wouldn't have been in such a hurry to launch an attack on Xi Kingdom.
“I am deeply sinful. Even if I did not cause it myself, it was caused by me.” Xie Lanzhi looked at Aqina’s ambition and his memories. She closed her eyes and sighed deeply: “He used his status as a stranger and his knowledge to change the course of this world.”
"It was my arrogance that led to the current situation, and I must take full responsibility for this chaotic world."
"So it's only right that the Heavenly Dao here rejects me, this variable. I shouldn't be selfish anymore."
Xie Lanzhi seemed to have accepted her fate.
She said, "Now that Little Phoenix is on the right track and can stand on her own, she no longer needs me."
"I am willing to leave this world and let it return to peace."
She had regretted not knowing the contents of the second half of the original work and had even considered changing the tragic ending that the author had deliberately set. But now she knows it wasn't a novel, but ancient history from another world. Now she sees the future unfolding in Aqina's dream.
Xie Lanzhi felt relieved.
At least the Empress established the Western Jin Dynasty. The Western Jin Dynasty lasted for more than two hundred years.
For over two hundred years, meaning her little phoenix would marry and have children with others, thus ensuring that her empire would have descendants to inherit it. This lasted for two centuries, becoming the last feudal dynasty of modern times.
In fact, Xiao Fenghuang embodies progressive ideas. Unlike feudal emperors, she is open-minded and knows how to integrate into the lives of ordinary people. Based on this, Xiao Fenghuang is essentially an emperor ahead of her time.
Xie Lanzhi could sense it. Even if it was her influence, it might have been the seed that the course of history was meant to sow.
She merely gave a push; it wasn't a contribution.
"If you're still watching over me, then send me on my way." Xie Lanzhi was reluctant to part with her lover, but her lover's mission was both arduous and sacred. She shouldn't be an obstacle to him, nor should she allow him to become a sinner in history.
As for the Xie family, Little Phoenix, out of consideration for their past relationship, would certainly not make things difficult for them. Even if they were demoted to commoners, at least they wouldn't be dead yet.
And Xie Guang and Shang Guang. I just hope they don't feel guilty; she left not because of them, but because it was her own choice.
Xie Lanzhi felt the revolving lantern suddenly disappear, and the surroundings were pitch black, with only a faint white light in the corner in front of her, which became the only guiding light.
Like a moth drawn to the light, she instinctively moved towards it. With each step, her feet felt heavy, and with every movement, the metal of the locks clanged against each other.
She looked down and saw that her feet were shackled and chained together.
"Little Phoenix".
"Fu Feng".
"Si Xitong." Finally, Xie Lanzhi walked towards the faint light, her figure disappearing into the darkness. And then vanished completely.
The soul-summoning bell in the hands of a priest at the Star-Picking Tower suddenly and inexplicably broke apart, falling to the ground with a clanging sound.
The priest's expression immediately changed: "A terrible omen!"
The other priests were immediately terrified: "How are we going to explain this to His Highness?!"
At the same time, Qianqian looked at Xie Lanzhi, pouted, and immediately burst into tears: "Mother!"
Lu Qing quickly patted her back: "Qianqian, what's wrong? What happened?"
"My sister is dead."
These words were spoken.
Si Xitong quickly got up, his cold gaze fixed on Lu Qing and her daughter. The hands that were holding Xie Lanzhi suddenly slipped and fell to the edge of the bed. Xie Lanzhi's head turned to one side, and her face instantly lost its luster.
"Lanzhi!" Si Xitong glanced at the person on the bed again. Her pupils dilated and then trembled. Finally, everything went black and she fainted to the ground.
"Princess sister!" Qianqian exclaimed in surprise.
Lu Qing's voice was also muffled and urgent.
Si Xitong could no longer hear anything; she seemed to have fallen into a deep sleep. Suddenly, a torrential rain began to fall outside, cascading over the glazed tiles of the palace and spreading across the white jade and stone square. Yet, the water flowed orderly out of the palace through the drainage channels under the bridge.
The south gate of Tianjing was submerged by the floodwaters overflowing from the abandoned canal.
For seven days and seven nights, torrential rain fell in Tianjing and even the entire Southern Central Plains. Many villages were flooded, and the total number of people affected reached one million, including those in the southern regions of Lu and Huayin. In addition, 500,000 refugees continued to flee to Tianjing.
Ma Hong led his men to maintain order, while the Xie family distributed their wealth and grain reserves to quell the panic in Lu State, Huayin State, the Southern Region, and even among 500,000 refugees.
The women of Anyi specially returned to the capital to maintain order.
This rainstorm was like a cleansing operation; the number of casualties was much ado about nothing, only three hundred people, all of whom couldn't swim.
However, the property losses were enormous; officials at the Mingsuan Gate estimated the total loss at 150 million taels of silver.
Although the two masters of Lanzhang Palace had not yet woken up, their subordinates tacitly concealed the fact that the two were unconscious, and shifted all their attention to Xie's feat of spending 50,000 taels of gold to save millions of people.
The southern regions of Tianjing, including the kingdoms of Huayin and Lu, all began post-disaster reconstruction thanks to this money.
What was supposed to be a heavy rain turned out to be a false alarm.
As 500,000 refugees began to return home, the Xie family would send a team to escort them back and maintain order.
As the troops dispersed, the Xie clan's forces in Tianjing dwindled to nearly 50,000. One hundred thousand more followed the refugees across the country. Furthermore, the Xie clan issued an order that these soldiers who left were to establish their own families elsewhere and were forbidden from returning to Tianjing.
Xie Bing and his men all accepted the offer. The loss of 30,000 men was a devastating blow to them.
Since the Marshal fell into a coma, the matriarch revealed the truth about the Xie clan's fate. Upon hearing this, the Xie clan members, instead of being initially fearful, readily accepted reality and the arrangements made for them.
Therefore, after learning that the Xie family had given away all their wealth and that 100,000 people had migrated, local gentry and wealthy people vied to recruit members of the Xie family to repay the Xie family for their contributions to the world.
Many people lamented that the once powerful Xie family, a dominant force in the south, had been reduced to half its strength due to the marshal's coma.
However, it is surprising that the Xie family did not engage in internal strife or war because of this.
Scholars, on the contrary, praised the Xie family's heroic act of disaster relief and saving the Central Plains. They jointly petitioned various regions to recommend the Xie family to be promoted from the top ten of the Hundred Family Surnames, and to be recorded in local county annals as the largest clan in the Central Plains. This was to commemorate the Xie family's contribution to the life of the Central Plains.
This initiative has been embraced by millions.
As a result, the Xie family members who migrated to various places became highly sought-after by the local people. When their daughters married off, or when they were allocated land, the local government would also make a point of arranging for them to register their household registration.
Within a month, order was restored in Tianjing City. Minister of Works Wei Zhao, together with merchants from all over the country, donated money to repair the land, and merchants from all over the country contributed money to increase the construction of cement roads.
People's attention gradually shifted from the marshal's coma to road construction.
Inside the Star-Picking Tower, the priests and Lu Qing discussed how to proceed with the soul-summoning ritual.
Qianqian sat on the edge of the bed, watching her two older sisters sleep soundly with their eyes closed, sharing a pillow. Before she knew it, she too grew tired from lying there.
Until a hand gently lifted and touched her head, it quickly drooped down again.
"elder sister!"
Qianqian's cry of "Sister!" drew everyone's attention.
Lu Qing and the priests gathered around the bed, looking at the two of them with surprise and excitement.
Lu Qing even came over and held Xie Lanzhi's hand. Feeling that her body temperature had almost recovered, she couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief: "Go and cut another piece of the thousand-year-old ginseng for the Marshal to suck on."
She bent down again to check Si Xitong's pulse, and it felt the same as usual, except that today when she turned her head, she looked like a child who hadn't had enough sleep.
"Your Highness?"
When Si Xitong opened her eyes, the dim light was so bright that she couldn't open them, but Lu Qing and the priest were overjoyed.
The priests went out to spread the news.
Si Xitong felt weak. She moved, and the person lying next to her suddenly turned to their side, as if they hadn't had enough sleep.
She froze for a moment, her eyes fixed on her. After a quick glance, she regained her senses and her hand trembled as she touched Xie Lanzhi's face. She felt that Xie Lanzhi's body temperature was normal and her breathing was smooth.
Si Xitong's eyes instantly welled up with tears, and droplets of water dripped down her cheeks.
Lu Qing picked up Qianqian and said with some emotion, "Anyway, I don't know what happened. After His Highness fainted that day, the Marshal regained his breathing."
"Then you all fell into a coma for a month. During that time, I was worried about you..." She paused, then happily added, "Anyway, you're all alright now."
"The great flood in Tianjing turned out to be a false alarm. Now, Lord Li, General Ma, and the Xie family have all stepped in to quell the disaster. Not many people were injured. Although the losses were severe, the Xie family managed to save the people by giving away all their wealth."
Lu Qing recounted the recent situation.
Finally, Qianqian whispered to Si Xitong, "Princess sister, you're alright now. You'll never be unlucky again."
Lu Qing knew what her daughter wanted to say, so she organized her thoughts and said, "The Marshal must have been accepted by the Heavenly Dao."
"I don't know how she was accepted. It must be that she had severed all ties with that other world. That's why she was able to return here."
Perhaps it's related to the Xie family squandering their fortune. Or perhaps it's His Highness's stubbornness. Regardless of which side is involved, at least the situation of divine retribution will not occur again.
Lu Qing said, "Heaven was angered by the Xie family's invasion, so it sent down punishment to take the marshal away."
"Now, the Xie family has given away all their wealth to save the people and accumulate countless merits for the sake of the Marshal. It can be said that they have done their best and left the rest to fate."
Fortunately, the outcome was good.
Si Xitong's voice was a little hoarse when she spoke: "Thank you, I...I have failed in my duty."
"Don't say that, it's not your fault." Lu Qing suddenly looked worried: "That heavy rain came on strong and went away quickly, just like you suddenly fainted."
"Isn't this the final test?"
She should have realized long ago that Heaven was testing the marshal, but she wasn't born with the ability to see, and her daughter was too young to understand, so she could only guess.
My guess is pretty accurate now. The fortune-changing treatment has truly taken effect.
Lu Qing announced, "Your Highness, from now on, the Marshal is a native of this place."
"Everything she did will be recorded in history."
Xie Ying's infamy of killing his father and relatives will forever be etched in history. This is history's reckoning. But the good deeds the marshal did, and the Xie family's generosity in giving away their fortune, will also be recorded in history.