The Tyrant's Beloved Empress

56

After Ji Xue left, Xue Wuyi stood by the window and pondered.

Xue Wuyi made this undercover trip to Liangzhou based on the premise that with Chang Zai Cang's relationship with the Northern Warlord, he would definitely ask for Xiao Zhige's help. He had personally come to Liangzhou in hope of making a deal with Xiao Zhige.

The Xi Wei Empire has been backing up in the corner in recent years. From the day the previous Emperor died, an undercurrent of unease has been surging in this seemingly peaceful kingdom.

The late emperor had been weak in health and had had only one son. When he passed on, the prince's mother, who hailed from a powerful family, had been dissatisfied with him monopolizing control over the court. She had secretly urged the Empress Dowager time and again to meddle with the court's affairs.

Furthermore, the several brothers of the late emperor had been amassing power, vying for the throne. Should something happen to the young prince, any of them could justly crown himself as king.

As such, the court was divided into distinctive parties, each with their own masters and ambitions. Although Xue Wuyi had managed to enlist half the officers over the years, he had not been able to make any progress with the remaining half.

For ten years, he had watched his lord grow into a teenager. However, under the propagandistic words of his mother and those with malicious intents, the child had gradually grown estranged from him.

With the current direction the Xi Wei Empire was heading in, the Xi Wei natives who had been oppressed for so long were bound to cause unrest. With this concern, Xue Wuyi had wanted to implement a set of reformed laws after deliberate consideration. But alas, after discussing it with his confidants, they were still lacking in resources and support to counter the strong opposition that they had anticipated.

A cool breeze blew past, causing Xue Wuyi to cough twice.

He then recalled the young man he had met today on the street.

Hands behind his back, Xue Wuyi closed his eyes and compared the youth's face with the portrait in his possession – it was indeed almost identical.

The only difference was An Nuo's face was more rounded and his eyes were soft. The person in the portrait had the same features but his eyes were more solemn.

One was like the luminous moon while the other was like the burning sun.

Xue Wuyi sighed as another one of the late king's requests came to mind – a secret only inherited by Xi Wei's Emperors, a legacy left behind by Xi Wei's first Emperor, Xue Chang.

It was said that before he died, Xue Chang had hidden troves of treasures in an unknown location, this was all that anyone knew. At his deathbed, he had passed to his heir a portrait and instructed it to be passed on to succeeding generations. Should they one day find the person in the painting, they were to give him that scroll and tell him that Xue Chang had repaid his debt.

Xue Wuyi had no knowledge of the story behind this scroll but the late Emperor had entrusted him with this task.

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This was a debt owed by Xue Chang, their ancestor and as his descendants, they had to repay it.

That said, the Xi Wei Empire was established hundreds of years ago. Even if he had wanted to repay this debt, the beneficiary would've been dead a long time ago.

At present, what Xue Wuyi lacked was gold and since he was not of the Xue bloodline, he placed little importance in returning the debt. What he wanted to uncover was the treasures hidden within the scroll.