Lu Xingzhou, naturally, came to the father to understand his son, wanting to know his perception of King Qi as a father.

He received such an answer, which indicated that Gu Zhanting simply couldn’t believe his son had such capability, preferring to think he had been possessed.

Lu Xingzhou coughed twice, “Um… Your Majesty, are you sure he wasn’t just hiding his true abilities well all along, rather than being replaced by someone else?”

His unspoken meaning was, “What I want is an understanding of your son’s character, not this kind of judgment. Your presumption has made you look foolish multiple times, so I have trouble trusting you. You didn’t even know Tangtang’s leg had healed; what gives you the confidence to make such a judgment now?”

Gu Zhanting shook his head slightly, “Perhaps you think I’ve been presumptuous many times and you can’t trust my judgment… For example, the rumors about you being ‘squeezed dry’ in Longya spread throughout the world, yet I didn’t believe them.”

Lu Xingzhou honestly replied, “A little.”

“But if you put yourself in my shoes, even if you believed it, wouldn’t you just think Long Qinghuang was toying with a young man? Who could believe a generational empress like her truly fell in love with a young man, just as who would believe you if I told you I was deeply in love with some woman and couldn’t extricate myself? Wouldn’t you think it was just some ignorant woman dreaming up stories?”

Lu Xingzhou coughed again, “…That’s true.”

So, was his brother just too extraordinary?

“Some matters, viewed from different perspectives, naturally lead to different conclusions,” Gu Zhanting said. “Another example is Yi Tang’s affairs in Xiazhou. Although I had people report major events, I didn’t have every detail investigated… That’s because I always felt a sense of guilt towards Yi Tang, and subconsciously avoided certain things, letting matters unfold. Otherwise, if I had truly paid close attention, I would have at least known whether her leg had healed.”

Lu Xingzhou said, “I believe that. Your Majesty’s feelings for Tangtang are complex, and your indecision is evident in many places.”

Gu Zhanting said, “Let me put it this way… The former Yi Heng was indeed a cautious and low-key person, and he also liked to engage in minor schemes behind the scenes, much like his current demeanor. Even if you ask Prime Minister Pei or King Dingxi, they would certainly say that King Qi has always been like this… But I, on the other hand, don’t believe it.”

Lu Xingzhou’s expression finally became serious.

“So-called caution, taken to an extreme, becomes timidity and weakness. Yi Heng was like this in his childhood and even his youth. He had ideas but no courage, always hesitant about what he wanted to do. As the saying goes, ‘you can see a person’s old age at three.’ If he was like that as a youth, what kind of change do you think would be necessary for a timid and cowardly person to orchestrate such a massive coup, and dare to plot it even while I am in my prime?”

Lu Xingzhou narrowed his eyes, “Indeed… it would require a crucial change.”

“Yi Heng once colluded with demons and later attacked Yi Tang. I thought he…”

“Wait a minute!” Lu Xingzhou suddenly exclaimed, “Attacked whom?”

Gu Zhanting paused, then chuckled, “Ah, yes, it was I who intervened later. Yi Tang herself didn’t know, so I don’t blame you. At that time, Yi Tang was at the upper-fourth rank and preparing to break through the major third-rank barrier. She specifically came to see me when she was traveling to the capital, hoping for some resource support. She was twenty-two at the time, and breaking through to the third rank at that age has always been incredibly astonishing. It’s only because the breakthrough age of those around you that year overshadowed it, that it doesn’t seem so remarkable now.”

Lu Xingzhou asked, “So you were wary?”

“Yes,” Gu Zhanting did not hide it. “I myself was well into my thirties when I broke through to the third rank. Facing a genius who was preparing to break through at twenty-two, I was indeed jealous and wary. Especially since I saw another Ye Tinglan in her, and the inner demon that had been suppressed for a lifetime burned my soul. Furthermore, since I had sons, I truly didn’t want to pass the throne to a daughter… But at that time, I managed to restrain myself and even gave her a bottle of realm-breaking pills and some treasures beneficial for surviving minor heavenly tribulations.”

Lu Xingzhou said, “I’ve actually considered that point. Even if Your Majesty was wary of Tangtang, it wouldn’t make sense for you to personally act against her before she had even reached the third rank; that would be too… crude. You could have easily arranged for her to ‘accidentally die’ during a mission. Why make it so obvious? Yet Tangtang herself accused you…”

“Someone else was truly stimulated by the news of her impending third-rank breakthrough. Yi Cheng and Yi Heng both became restless, but I originally thought Yi Cheng would be the one to act.”

“So you didn’t intend for her to die in an accident, but rather hoped your son would do it…” Lu Xingzhou’s anger was hard to suppress again. “You truly are a ‘good father’.”

Gu Zhanting waved his hand, “At the same time, I also harbored some intention of testing my sons. So, when Yi Tang left the capital, she was attacked in the suburbs, and I witnessed the entire event. I also knew Yi Heng was behind it.”

Lu Xingzhou’s face was ashen.

“But the suburbs were too close, and Yi Tang’s resistance was extraordinary. The commotion alerted Ye Tinglan. Once Ye Tinglan acted, Yi Heng would be exposed, and he might even be directly cut down by Ye Tinglan before he was even exposed… So, I intervened.” Gu Zhanting paused here, sighing slightly, “Actually, at that time, I thought that breaking her leg and expelling her might not be a way to protect Yi Tang. If she continued to shine, I myself would kill her. I didn’t want to reach that point.”

Lu Xingzhou scoffed, “So, we should thank Your Majesty, then?”

“No need for sarcasm. I know I acted with favoritism and selfishness, to protect Yi Heng and also because of my own wariness, yet I found an excuse of ‘for Yi Tang’s good’ to convince myself, to the point where I even believed it.” Gu Zhanting smiled, “But unfortunately, the me of that time was not like the me now.”

The Gu Zhanting of that time was plagued by injuries, suppressed by Ye Tinglan, filled with obsessions, and rampant inner demons. The ‘Sacrifice of Mountains and Rivers’ had already been secretly arranged.

The current Gu Zhanting, a prisoner, has lost all his cultivation, all his power, and all his obsessions. Naturally, he no longer possesses the extreme self-centeredness of that time, having some of the meaning of “a dying man’s words are good.”

Unfortunately, it was too late.

However, Lu Xingzhou believed Gu Zhanting’s words. The reason for breaking her leg instead of outright killing her did indeed contain a few elements of his self-perceived “protection.” Some of his subsequent wavering and contradictory actions also aligned with this intention.

At the same time, Lu Xingzhou also believed that Gu Zhanting was not intentionally slandering Gu Yiheng, because if it was truly something Gu Zhanting himself wanted to do, he would not choose to act personally in the suburbs. The logic was sound.

So, it was indeed Gu Yiheng who ambushed Shen Tang first.

“Even so, I might not have punished Yi Heng at the time, but he actually ordered the slaughter of the entire Tianxing Sword Sect to eliminate potential threats.” Gu Zhanting said, “It was only then that I felt Yi Heng had gone too far, and I was furious. When he was stripped of his royal status and made a commoner, did you all think it was just to make him take the blame for me? No, I bore one or two parts of that blame; eight or nine parts of it were genuinely his.”

Lu Xingzhou took a deep breath, carefully reviewing everything, and it all fit.

Gu Zhanting said, “I’m not telling you this to justify anything, nor to tell you the truth… I forgot you didn’t know the truth, hah.”

At the end, he even let out a self-deprecating laugh. Lu Xingzhou also smiled slightly, somewhat self-deprecatingly, “What does Your Majesty want to say?”

“What I want to say is, whether it was colluding with demons in his early years, or later attacking Yi Tang, these are not things a timid and weak person would do. Originally, I thought he had grown, from only daring to think to truly daring to act, and I felt a bit of relief. But looking back now, he had no reason for such a change from beginning to end; he abruptly became this kind of person… Doesn’t it seem like possession? His low-key, reclusive life also serves to minimize the possibility of being seen through.”

It certainly sounded like possession, or like an inner demon, amplifying and releasing a suppressed part of one’s character.

Just like Gu Zhanting before, he was also a brilliant and ambitious emperor in his early years. His later transformation was simply due to excessive obsession.

But Gu Zhanting’s transformation had a clear cause and effect, an unhealing injury as a trigger. What was the trigger for Gu Yiheng’s change? There must be a reason, right? Since none could be found, Gu Zhanting believed it was more like possession.

Lu Xingzhou pondered for a long time, finally nodding, “Thank you, Your Majesty, for the peaceful communication and for providing this information.”

“I neither wish to be schemed against by my son to this extent, nor do I want the empire to be handed over to someone unknown, so there’s no need to thank me.” Gu Zhanting handed over the calligraphy he had just been practicing, “For you.”

Lu Xingzhou took it, his heart stirring slightly, “This is…”

He didn’t notice it when looking at it, but holding it in his hand, he discovered faint strands of destiny power within the calligraphy, integrated with the Greater Qian’s imperial aura.

To put it concretely, many people still habitually regarded Gu Zhanting as the emperor. Just as Lu Xingzhou still habitually said “Your Majesty,” Gu Zhanting himself still habitually said “I” (朕), and neither of them felt anything was amiss. Yang Dechang and others had already retreated outside and were not listening, but if they were, it’s likely no one would have found it strange.

This was the inertia brought about by ruling Greater Qian for decades, exclusive to Gu Zhanting, and would inevitably persist in the short term.

Gu Zhanting turned back to continue practicing his calligraphy, “I don’t have many days left to live… He will surely kill me, precisely for this strand of imperial aura that is one with me. Pass this to Yi Tang and tell her…”

Lu Xingzhou said, “To let her set things right in the future and continue your legacy?”

“No…” Gu Zhanting whispered, “I hope she finds peace and joy. This wisp of imperial aura, she can use it if she wishes, or let it dissipate if she doesn’t.”

As he spoke, Gu Zhanting, who had been relatively vigorous, visibly aged. His black hair turned white before his eyes, and his handsome face began to wither.

In an instant, his face was covered in wrinkles, and his hair was snow-white.