Chapter 195: There Is No Such Thing as Fate
"Thinking back now, His Majesty was truly an extraordinary man. With a cold-blooded and powerful demeanor, he walked ahead of fate. He did not accept the arrangements of fate but began to decide the fates of others. He did not wait to be chosen by the Grand Ancestor but made the choice on his behalf. He killed everyone, leaving only himself as the Grand Ancestor's son. Then, whether it was the imperial throne or the bloody legend of defying heaven and changing fate, there was no need for further discussion. If we look solely at the results, whether it was the Great Zhou or the entire human world, such highly efficient decisiveness was needed. Back in the Tianliang Commandery, his cavalry was repeatedly crushed by the demon tribe's wolf riders. Later, in Luoyang City, he suffered a disastrous defeat at the hands of Big Brother. But all things considered, whether it was the Demon Lord or Big Brother, neither could match him. He was truly the most powerful man of this era, so it was no surprise that the world ultimately fell into his hands. Of course, too many things happened in this process, and I simply couldn't bring myself to feel happy for him."
"What followed was still as expected. His Majesty began to govern diligently and rule the state with care. The continent gradually calmed, and the Great Zhou's national power grew day by day. The Grand Ancestor Emperor finally grew impatient with dealing with card tables and beautiful maidservants. He closed his eyes and returned to the stars. Perhaps because too much time had passed, His Majesty no longer kept me confined in the deep palace. He sent me to teach at the Star Picking Academy. Teaching while also being able to read—I had no objections to this and was very grateful. Moreover, I was well aware of His Majesty's true intention in sending me to the Star Picking Academy. The day of the northern expedition against the demon tribe seemed not far off."
"After that night at the Hundred Herb Garden, His Majesty and I were no longer friends but sovereign and subject. Although there were many things I was unwilling to do, I was willing to participate in matters like fighting the demon tribe. His Majesty wanted to wash away the shame of the Falling Willow Alliance. Sovereign, ministers, and people all devoted their efforts. In just a few years, preparations for the northern expedition were complete. His Majesty directly appointed me as deputy commander, which sparked much debate in the court. Cheng Fatty was the most furious. Everyone was familiar with each other, and they all thought I was only good at armchair strategies, having never truly led troops. What virtue or ability did I have to take on such an important role?"
"I made no explanation for this. I understood clearly that His Majesty appointed me as deputy commander not only to use the preparations I had made over the past few years at the Star Picking Academy but also to let me decide my own future path—either die in battle against the demon tribe or drift away from the battlefield to find her or find Big Brother. But I did neither, because the war with the demon tribe was not a matter of one or two years. Since I had decided to do this, whether I lived or died, I needed to wait until the human world was free from the demon tribe's threat before making any other move."
"Fortunately, we were victorious."
Seeing this point in the notes, Chen Changsheng took a deep breath. Although his concern was the secret of defying heaven and changing fate, reading the personal account of a famous general from that great war against the demon tribe still stirred his emotions. In Wang Zhice's understated words, there was no telling how much blood, rain, and wind, how many hardships and difficulties lay hidden.
Fortunately, humanity had ultimately triumphed.
"After victory came the rewarding of merits. His Majesty decided to build a Lingyan Pavilion, hanging portraits of all those who had rendered meritorious service. I knew my own portrait would certainly be hung there too, which felt a bit strange, because I always felt that hanging portraits was something like a memorial hall, something that should be done after death."
When Chen Changsheng read Wang Zhice's words, he instinctively looked around. By the light of the night pearls, he gazed at the dozens of portraits of meritorious officials and famous generals, feeling the same sentiment. In the soft light, the people in the portraits stared quietly at him, making him feel a chill.
"After the Lingyan Pavilion was completed, Wu Daozi began painting our portraits. Not long after, Zhangsun died. The Duke of Zheng died. The Duke of Wei died... The people in these portraits hanging in the Lingyan Pavilion slowly passed away. It was around this time that a rumor began to circulate among us old fellows. It was said that His Majesty, in order to defeat the demon tribe, had, like his father, joined hands with the Pope to make a sacrifice to the stars, ultimately succeeding in defying heaven and changing fate. And the sacrifice His Majesty offered to the stars was the souls of the twenty-four ministers and generals in the Lingyan Pavilion."
"On the sixth day after Du Ruyu's burial, it was a drizzly autumn day. Wu Daozi came out of the palace and secretly visited me. The Painting Sage, once so spirited in Luoyang City, now had a head full of white hair and eyes filled with terror. He said to me, 'After I finish painting all twenty-four of you, I will die too.' I knew he had also heard the rumors of His Majesty defying heaven and changing fate and had guessed something. I said nothing and found a way to secretly send him out of the capital. It was said he later went to the Qielan Temple. The reason I didn't speak was that I simply didn't believe in such things as defying heaven and changing fate. Including the Grand Ancestor Emperor's drunken nodding in the deep palace back then and the words he spoke before his death, I thought they were just the ramblings of an old man unwilling to be forgotten, trying to reclaim his authority and power, thus imbuing his life story with a lot of mystical aura."
"It was months later that I truly began to confront the word 'fate' and started to wonder whether the Grand Ancestor Emperor and His Majesty had really used some secret method to sacrifice to the stars and defy heaven and change fate. At that time, Qin Zhong was bedridden due to old war wounds. I rarely went out to visit him, and it happened that the Daoist of Calculations was ordered to treat him. Seeing the Daoist of Calculations' expression, I finally confirmed that something was wrong with this matter."
Reading this passage, Chen Changsheng's hands holding the notes trembled slightly.
Wang Zhice's narrative had finally reached the core of the matter. But what caused such a strong reaction from him was not this. This notebook had mentioned too many legendary names, such as that Big Brother, who should be Zhou Dufu, the one who defeated Emperor Taizong in the Battle of Luoyang. And now, his master's name had appeared.
"As I write these words on paper, seventeen of the so-called twenty-four meritorious officials in the Lingyan Pavilion have already died. Soon, it will probably be my turn. Over the years, following His Majesty's wishes, I have never held any official position in the court, only teaching at the Star Picking Academy. It was difficult to investigate things, so I had to ask Qin Zhong directly before he died. I believed that even if His Majesty truly used the lives of these loyal subordinates as sacrifices to the stars, he would not hide it from people like Qin Zhong. Sure enough, it wasn't just Qin Zhong; Yu Gong and others also knew about this matter."
"That night, I looked at Qin Zhong, who appeared countless times older than his actual age, and was silent for a long time. I couldn't understand why, knowing this, and knowing that His Majesty had told them beforehand, they could still accept it so calmly. Qin Zhong said to me, 'His Majesty treated me as a national scholar, saved me many times. It is only right that I return this life to His Majesty.'"
"There were many people like Qin Zhong and Yu Gong who were willing to sacrifice themselves for His Majesty's grand ambitions. But that didn't include me. I was unwilling."
"The sovereign wants his subject to die, but the subject does not want to die."
"His Majesty has been suspicious of me for years, and I can hardly claim loyalty to him."
"What Qin Zhong said on the night before his death was right. I have never put myself in the right position. I have never regarded His Majesty as my sovereign. I am still the young scholar from Luoyang City back then, too busy admiring the flowers to remember the destination of my journey. I always thought His Majesty was still that dashing young gentleman from those days, still my friend."
"The most crucial point is that I could die for many things. Even when His Majesty's life was threatened, I would be willing to sacrifice myself. To defeat the demon tribe, for the nation and its people to enjoy peace for ten thousand years, I would also be willing to die. In fact, back in the Snow Plain, I had come close to death many times. But I was not willing to die for this kind of thing."
"Because I don't believe in this kind of thing."
"I don't believe in defying heaven and changing fate."
"The Great Zhou was able to establish its nation. The Grand Ancestor was able to break through Luoyang and the capital one after another and finally ascend the throne before the Heavenly Book Mausoleum. It wasn't because he truly sacrificed the lives of his sons to the stars to light up his imperial star. It was because he was extremely fortunate to have these outstanding sons. Under some indescribable pressure, these excellent sons competed with each other. In the remote Tianliang Commandery and later on the continent's stage, they all burst forth with dazzling brilliance. Prince Qi was the standout among them—patient, ruthless, with a strong sense of the big picture, nearly perfect. Without these sons, how could the Chen clan of Tianliang Commandery have achieved such glory today?"
"As for so-called luck, it's just the wild guesses of the ignorant populace. The Grand Ancestor led thirty thousand troops east out of Qishan Mountain, capturing seventeen cities in a row. The first three battles were the most brutal and the most dangerous. But his ability to survive desperate situations never relied on luck. It relied on the three thousand wolf riders borrowed from the demon tribe by Prince Chu and Prince Qi. As for finally lifting the siege of Luoyang, what methods were used? They might fool the enemy and fool the world, but how could they fool close subordinates? Big Brother went on a killing spree in Luoyang City that night. Others might not know, but how could I not?"
"The reason humanity was able to defeat the demon tribe lay in national strength, in a wise sovereign, in preparation, in collective effort, in forming an alliance with the demon territory, in the people's dedication, and also in six consecutive years of heavy snow in the north, and in the internal strife of the demon tribe, where the Demon Lord suffered heavy losses among his wolf riders while suppressing rebellious tribes. What does any of this have to do with defying heaven and changing fate? The twenty-four meritorious officials of the Lingyan Pavilion sacrificed to the stars? There is indeed something suspicious about their deaths. But in my view, it was merely His Majesty's imperial methods—sharing the sovereign's fortunes, dying together..."
On the last page of this notebook, Wang Zhice wrote this:
"In the human world, there are no roads originally. Roads are only beneath our feet. It depends on how you walk and how you choose your position."
"Positions are relative. If I regard the sovereign as sovereign, then I am a subject. If I see no sovereign in my eyes, then I am not a subject."
"Therefore, there is no fate. Only choices."
(There was actually an update at noon. If nothing unexpected happens, there will be another update late at night. Then tomorrow there should only be one update. There is indeed no pattern in the world, nor fate. The parts in the article about roads and no fate, and the earlier part where Chen Changsheng entered the Lingyan Pavilion and stabbed his sword into the wall—these are from Terminator 2. I believe most people have seen it, but if any younger friends haven't, I strongly recommend it. I insist that this is Cameron's best film. Everything he made after that was crap.)