The Entire Capital Regrets After the Young General’s Death in Battle - Chapter 1

It was mid-winter, and the world for ten thousand miles was swathed in silver.

There had been no conflict at the border recently. Ten days ago, the military camp received a secret letter from the Emperor. It stated that as the New Year approached, he wished to show mercy for the soldiers’ hardships and commanded Xiao Biehe, who currently led the army, to bring all troops back to the capital so they might spend the holiday with their families.

“Ah… my shop! Thank you, thank you… Young General?”

Today, the snow had finally stopped, though the north wind continued to howl. A sudden gust had overturned a street vendor’s stall within the capital. As Xiao Biehe passed by, he dismounted to catch the flying stall and spent a few moments helping the vendor gather his scattered goods.

The moment the vendor looked up, his eyes were filled with immense shock, followed by an irrepressible sense of panic and dread. Realizing his reaction was inappropriate and perhaps fearing he might provoke the man before him, he forced a strained smile of reverence toward Great Liang’s sacred and supreme War God. Yet, despite his efforts, his teeth continued to chatter uncontrollably.

It was a simple act of kindness, something Xiao Biehe had done many times before.

Xiao Biehe did not understand where this fear originated, but it was not the first time he had seen it. Every time he stood before the common people, their reactions often suggested they were looking at a heinous villain.

Used to this treatment, Xiao Biehe remained indifferent. He leaped back onto his horse with a calm expression.

Even with an imperial decree, a general was traditionally forbidden from entering the capital without authorization to ensure the Emperor’s safety and prevent rebellion. The soldiers were stationed outside the city walls, and Xiao Biehe proceeded alone to the palace to report his mission.

From the moment he stepped through the city gates until now, more and more citizens were watching him with strange, uneasy, and even horrified looks.

Xiao Biehe had his suspicions, but he had no evidence that the decree was a forgery. To disobey a royal command was a capital offense. Furthermore, the messenger was a trusted confidant from the General’s Manor, and the longing of the soldiers to return home to their families was genuine.

At this moment, Xiao Biehe realized: this was indeed a “Hongmen Banquet” prepared by the Emperor for him and the General’s Manor.

The citizens whispered among themselves. As a martial artist, Xiao Biehe’s senses were sharper than average, and he caught a faint murmur: “Is the General’s Manor really planning a rebellion? Why else would the Young General suddenly return to the capital? Could the rumors be true?”

Xiao Biehe halted his horse and looked toward the person, asking in a clear, cold voice, “What rumors?”

The two young noblemen who had been whispering jerked their heads up. Terrified, as if they had seen a soul-reaping rakshasa, they turned and fled. One cried out in horror, “I… I said nothing! I have elders and children at home, please spare me, Young General!”

Xiao Biehe turned to others: “What rumors?”

After several more citizens ran away, an elderly man who was too slow to flee finally spoke up, trembling. “It… it started two months ago. It spread across Great Liang, saying… saying…” The old man stammered and stopped, not daring to finish. “It spread everywhere after that. Forgive me, Young General, I only heard it through hearsay! It has nothing to do with me!”

Xiao Biehe nodded, choosing not to trouble the innocent old man, and continued toward the palace.

At the palace gates, several imperial guards stood watch. Their faces were filled with astonishment upon seeing Xiao Biehe. After some hesitant nudging, the youngest guard stepped forward to announce his arrival.

A moment later, the guard returned. He was the only one whose attitude was not one of fearful avoidance. He bowed to Xiao Biehe, his youthful face showing a hint of nerves. “His Majesty is currently discussing state affairs with his ministers. He requests the Young General to wait for a moment.”

Though there was no snow today, the wind was fierce. Snow was piled high outside the palace gates as the north wind whistled.

The young man’s hair was tied high with a snow-white silk ribbon, now dancing wildly in the frigid air. The army had traveled for ten days from the border; since entering the capital, Xiao Biehe had traded his armor for a set of plain white robes. In the freezing wind, he appeared exceptionally slender and graceful, his skin as pale as snow and his back as straight as a stalk of bamboo standing against the gale.

The court session ended much later than usual. Nearly an hour passed before the palace gates opened, and civil and military officials in red and green robes began to file out. Every one of them quickened their pace as they passed Xiao Biehe, their eyes wide with shock.

A few lower-ranking young officials gave him a stiff greeting, which Xiao Biehe acknowledged with a nod. Immediately after, those who spoke to him fled in haste.

This only confirmed the grim theory in Xiao Biehe’s heart. On his journey back from the border, everyone had looked at him as if he were a monstrous beast or a ghost-faced demon.

Another half hour passed until the officials had mostly departed.

The young guard went back inside and emerged a moment later, looking slightly dejected. When he looked up at the man who appeared like a banished immortal, a sense of awe rose within him. Like everyone else, he was both inspired and terrified by the War God. He whispered to Xiao Biehe, “Young General, His Majesty is still busy. He asks that you wait a little longer.”

Xiao Biehe nodded. “I understand. Thank you.”

The little guard hesitated for a long time before finally whispering his heart’s truth: “Young General, you really shouldn’t have brought the army back to the capital right now. Now, no matter how much you explain, you won’t be able to clear your name.”

Having finished, the guard didn’t wait for a reaction. He lowered his head and hurriedly returned to his post, terrified that someone might have heard his meddling.

At the highest point of the imperial palace, the middle-aged Emperor, dressed in brilliant dragon robes and exuding a majestic aura, sat smiling as he played chess with the Crown Prince.

The young Crown Prince frowned slightly. In a moment of distraction, another of his pieces was taken by the Emperor. The outcome was clear.

The Crown Prince, Mu Yunfei, glanced down. The wind was so strong that even he felt a chill despite being wrapped in marten furs. Below, the young man’s robes and hair whipped in the wind, yet he remained motionless. He had not shifted his stance once in all this time.

“I have lost,” Mu Yunfei said. “Will Royal Father not summon him in?”

The Emperor smiled as he waited for the Prince to clear the board. “No rush. Let him wait a bit longer.”

Mu Yunfei looked up. “Royal Father, must it be this way?”

The Emperor’s expression shifted instantly. “Are you very fond of him?”

Mu Yunfei remained silent.

The Emperor continued, “Even if you like him, the ‘custom of male companionship’ is a rarity in Great Liang. Furthermore, Xiao Biehe has been at the border with his father since he was a child. Can you be certain he feels the same for you?”

Mu Yunfei lowered his head. He truly could not be certain.

Xiao Biehe was perfect in every way. Exceptionally talented in both civil and military arts, he had taken top honors in both imperial examinations before the age of eighteen. On the battlefield, he was the invincible War God; if a situation grew dire, his intervention would inevitably turn the tide. In terms of literary talent, he could compose poetry with a single stroke. Though he focused on the military and left few writings, whenever his works were printed, they were immediately sold out. Even the illiterate commoners would buy them to keep as treasures.

Mu Yunfei had seen it. Years ago, there were many folk tales depicting Xiao Biehe as a god descended to earth omnipresent and all-powerful.

A man of such capability and talent, who also possessed a face of unparalleled beauty, was undoubtedly a divine gift to the world. Mu Yunfei felt it was only natural to love him; perhaps no one in the world could help but love Xiao Biehe.

However, the most beautiful things are often the most dangerous. One day, they might leave you bloodied.

At fifteen, Mu Yunfei had been determined to marry no one but Xiao Biehe. At eighteen, newly crowned as the Prince, he was willing to fight his Royal Father for him at any cost.

But now, at twenty-three, Mu Yunfei knew that as long as he made no catastrophic mistakes, the entire Great Liang would be handed to him in a few years. It wasn’t just his father’s will, Mu Yunfei himself had struggled and weighed the options: Xiao Biehe could not be allowed to live.

He could not guarantee complete possession of Xiao Biehe’s heart and soul. Therefore, it was better for such a world-transcending talent and legendary general to die.

Neither the title of Crown Prince nor a marriage contract could bind a divine talent like Xiao Biehe. Twenty years ago, the prophecy of the Wuyi tribe had swept through the nations, and it might not have been a lie. Xiao Biehe was a celestial genius, and the Xiao family’s General’s Manor held too much power. If Xiao Biehe ever chose to serve another, or decided to lead his troops in a rebellion to become Emperor himself, the Mu Royal Family would be powerless to stop him.

The Emperor slammed a chess piece down. The smile vanished from his face, replaced by stern authority as he rebuked his son’s weakness. “Softheartedness achieves nothing. How have I taught you all these years? Do you want the throne, or do you want him? The General’s Manor cannot remain, and Xiao Biehe… especially must go!”

Mu Yunfei bowed his head. “Royal Father is correct.”

Xiao Biehe was left out in the cold for another hour.

Finally, a high-ranking eunuch emerged, flicking his horsetail whisk and drawling in a long, high-pitched voice: “Young General, His Majesty summons you for an audience.”

Having stood in the wind and snow for so long, the disabled legs beneath his robes throbbed with excruciating pain. Xiao Biehe’s expression remained unchanged, betraying not a hint of his suffering. He nodded slightly, straightened his clothes and windswept hair, and followed the Chief Eunuch into the palace.

Inside the Golden Throne Hall, the majestic Emperor casually flipped through memorials submitted by his ministers. The Crown Prince stood beside the dragon throne in a deep black robe embroidered with gold thread. The Emperor appeared to be teaching the Prince how to handle state affairs.

Upon hearing the announcement of the Young General’s arrival, the Emperor finally set down his papers and cast a commanding glance at Xiao Biehe.

Xiao Biehe stood with a straight back, as if nothing could bend his spine. The General’s Manor had achieved countless military honors for Great Liang; years ago, the Emperor had personally promised that no member of the Xiao family would ever have to kneel before the Son of Heaven.

This was a unique privilege and honor in Great Liang, but it was also a sign that the Manor’s power rivaled the thrones. Because Xiao Biehe’s reputation was so great among the people at the time, the Emperor had been forced to grant such a right.

The Xiao family had been heavily utilized since the previous Emperor’s reign. Of Great Liang’s three hundred thousand elite troops, the General’s Manor held two hundred thousand. Recruitment was always handled by the Xiao family, and the soldiers were more loyal to the Manor than to the Imperial House. Coupled with the fact that over the last decade, Xiao Biehe’s brilliance had only grown brighter, the Emperor’s suspicion had reached its limit.

However, reclaiming military power was no easy feat. To strip the Xiao family of their influence and ensure that the “genius” stopped growing, the Emperor had exhausted his cunning.

An imperial scribe stood by with brush and paper to record the proceedings. The Emperor acted as if he were blissfully unaware of everything, raising his eyelids to look at the man in plain white who nonetheless seemed to wear all the colors of the world.

He had a slender waist and skin as white as snow. Between his eyebrows sat a scarlet cinnabar mole, so bright it looked like a drop of blood, yet it fit his ethereal face perfectly.

For a man with such an enchanting appearance, he wore simple white robes and possessed a steady, transcendent aura. He appeared like snow or jade cold, clear, yet both seductive and pure.

The Emperor could not understand how a man could be born with such a face. Thinking of his favorite son’s obsession with this man over the years, he believed anyone would agree that this person was capable of throwing the world into chaos.

Nothing escaped the Emperor’s eyes. He knew that for years, Mu Yunfei had sought out men who looked like Xiao Biehe to keep in the Eastern Palace, painting cinnabar moles on their foreheads and teaching them to mimic his grace. He even knew that the marriage decree he issued five years ago was the result of Mu Yunfei kneeling outside the Imperial Study for days on end.

The Emperor feigned a warm greeting: “The Young General’s return was quite sudden. Why did you not inform me? Is everything well at the border?”

At that moment, all of Xiao Biehe’s suspicions were confirmed. He had walked into a trap.

He thought to himself: In all the years past, the soldiers had never once returned for the New Year, and the General’s Manor was no exception. Holidays and festivals had never mattered to the soldiers fighting at the border.

His father had returned to the capital months ago to recover from a serious injury, making him the temporary commander of the camp. From childhood, his father had warned him time and again: A grave on the battlefield is his only true destination.