Witchcraft and sorcery, the ruin of the House of Han.
Under the setting sun, blood flowed like a river through the city of Chang'an. The sycophantic official Jiang Chong had falsely accused Crown Prince Liu Ju of using witchcraft to curse Liu Che. Combined with the fact that father and son could not meet to clear the air, this tragedy was forced into being.
Wei Zifu used her empress's seal to open the armory and issue orders, but Liu Che's authority was overwhelming, and Liu Ju's forces were defeated.
Inside Jiaofang Hall of Weiyang Palace.
Qingnu looked at Wei Zifu, who had dismissed her palace attendants and appeared remarkably calm. She asked, "Do you regret it?"
Hearing this, Wei Zifu gave a faint smile and shook her head. "I do not! As a disciple of the Master and a member of the Wei family, I should have had this resolve. Since the defeat is already a foregone conclusion, I simply accept it with composure."
Qingnu looked out from the hall.
Hongluan flew back and whispered a few words into her ear.
Qingnu murmured, "The last time Chang'an saw such military strife was Xiang Yu, a hundred years ago."
Wei Zifu rose and bowed deeply toward Qingnu.
"Master, Zifu wishes to ask one thing of you..."
"Speak."
Qingnu looked back at Wei Zifu.
Wei Zifu said, "I have sent Ju'er toward Yongcheng to seek the protection of the King of Qin. I dare not hope for his position as crown prince anymore; I only ask that you preserve his life!"
"Who may live and who must die—is that truly for me to decide?"
Qingnu sighed softly, looking at Wei Zifu. "Since we were teacher and student, I will do my best."
After hearing these words, Wei Zifu said no more. She bowed solemnly to Qingnu once more and then hanged herself. The Wei clan had flourished because of her, and now, it would fade because of her.
Inside Weiyang Palace, Qingnu waited for the men sent by Liu Che. She drove them away, demanding that Liu Che come in person.
The Liu Che of today no longer possessed the divine martial aura of his youth.
He was merely an old man showing every sign of exhaustion.
"Our Lady the Jade Maiden?"
Liu Che trembled slightly upon seeing Qingnu.
Seeing him greet her, Qingnu gave a mocking laugh. "I thought you would look at her first..."
She turned to look at Wei Zifu, who was no longer breathing, having been gently laid upon the couch by Qingnu. She asked slowly, "If witchcraft were truly effective, why did you not see it curse the Xiongnu to death? You seek immortals and question gods, imitating the First Emperor of Qin from years ago. But since even he did not achieve longevity, do you think you can?"
"If the First Emperor of Qin could not, it does not mean I cannot!"
Liu Che reflexively retorted. But after saying those words, seeing the trace of pity in Qingnu's gaze, he fell silent again.
Liu Che lowered his head and said with a self-mocking tone, "I understand. With your divine grace and celestial stature, if you say it is impossible... then I suppose it truly is impossible!"
He knew his own body. It was precisely because of this that he had been so enraged by the witchcraft incident.
Qingnu walked out of Jiaofang Hall and gazed at the sky.
Under the dark night, the Han palaces were illuminated by soaring flames. The Yulin Guards held torches, guarding every palace gate and corridor, while the imperial guards searched Chang'an for rebels.
"Witchcraft, witchcraft... so many innocent, so many innocent..."
"Liu Ju is in Yongcheng. Go there yourself; do not let others handle it. Let the strife within Chang'an come to an end!"
After leaving these words, Qingnu departed from the Han palace.
After she left, Liu Che remained speechless for a long time.
Even Liu Che did not dare disobey her words. The turmoil in Chang'an ceased by the following day. Qingnu took Hongluan and walked throughout the city, comforting the commoners who had been hurt by the chaos. Within the Shrine of the Jade Maiden, she encountered an old acquaintance.
Princess Wannian, Chen Ajiao.
At this time, Chen Ajiao was nearly seventy years old.
The two met again after decades, yet there was little to say. Qingnu told her of Wei Zifu's death. After hearing it, Chen Ajiao could only sigh with regret.
Court struggles were but yesterday's mist; now, only the sorrow of departed friends remained.
Liu Che went to Yongcheng and brought Liu Ju back.
He did not commit suicide as he had in history, but he had been severely wounded during the military conflict. His heart-meridians were damaged, and the imperial physicians predicted he had no more than ten-plus years to live.
As for the Crown Prince's family, the casualties were countless. The only survivor was an infant.
Liu Che did not depose Liu Ju from his position as crown prince; he had no time left to train a new successor.
When she heard this news, Qingnu laughed loudly.
"Who may live, and who must die? Heaven follows its own path; those who live must die. Such is fate, such is fate..."
Qingnu stayed in Chang'an for several months. After seeing Chen Ajiao off on her final journey, she finally set out to return to Mt. Tai. Along the way, she saw what looked like the sunset of an empire. After the deaths of Wei Qing and Huo Qubing, the Han court's military campaigns against the Xiongnu saw more defeats than victories. Every time the army was raised, it was the commoners who suffered.
She spent several more years traveling the land, relieving suffering and delivering people from calamity.
When she finally returned to Mt. Tai, she soon saw Liu Che's grand procession arriving on an Eastern Inspection. He brought Huo Guang with him, and Huo Guang led a small child.
The three of them ascended Jade Emperor Peak to pay their respects to Qingnu.
That child was Liu Bingyi.
Liu Che asked Qingnu to be Liu Bingyi's teacher and guide him to adulthood.
However, Qingnu no longer took disciples and told him to go back.
No matter how much Liu Che pleaded, he could not change Qingnu's mind, and he could only leave dejectedly.
Shortly after returning from Mt. Tai, Liu Che passed away from illness.
Crown Prince Liu Ju ascended the throne.
He was not as obsessed with military conquest as Liu Che had been. He allowed the people to rest and recover, abolished many harsh laws, and removed many cruel officials from their posts.
The empire, which had been running at full speed for decades, finally slowed down, regaining its vitality.
However, Liu Ju did not have Wei Zifu buried with Liu Che. He ordered a new site to be chosen and a new mausoleum constructed, its scale no less than that of an emperor's tomb.
Because it was located in Wannian County, it was named Wannian Tomb!
Liu Ju buried Wei Zifu there. From then on, any Han emperor who wished to pay respects to the empress of Emperor Wu would have to visit two different places.
In the Han court, which highly valued filial piety, this should not have been allowed!
However, Wei Zifu's teacher was Qingnu.
Even though Qingnu had not even shown her face regarding this matter or spoken a single word, no one dared to ignore her existence. No one knew if Qingnu cared about such things, so the court officials saw no need to oppose the Emperor and an immortal over the matter of a tomb.
As for where people were buried after death, Qingnu did not care.
If it was an acquaintance, just putting more treasures in the tomb was enough; they could serve as a spare treasury for her.
If an immortal snake came to sweep the grave, that was a blessing earned through many lives!
Qingnu did not leave Mt. Tai for over ten years. She studied medicine under Chunyu Tiying on the mountain. Although she could observe qi, her path in medicine was not particularly smooth.
Even after more than a decade, she still could not compare to Chunyu Tiying, who had researched this path for many years.
"Sigh... medicine is truly not something for humans to learn!"
Qingnu looked at the pile of medicinal herbs on the table before her, cleared a space, slumped onto the table, and sighed in complaint.
To one side, Hongluan was grinding herbs and said, "Stupid snake, you aren't human!"
"It's not working for a snake either!"
Qingnu sat up with a start, grabbed a dried snake gall, and said to Hongluan, "Look at this, a snake gall! One of my kin!"
Hongluan: "..."
Hongluan had doubts about whether these ordinary snakes could be considered Qingnu's kin.
Most likely, from the moment she was plucked from the Wei River by Huangdi, she was no longer of the same kind as these common snakes!
Chunyu Tiying returned from the foot of the mountain carrying her medicine bag.
As soon as she entered the door, she said to Qingnu, "My Lady, I heard at the foot of the mountain that the Emperor has died again."
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