Looking East Toward Chang'an

Reborn.

Westward from Yangguan, eastward toward Chang'an.

The sons of Danning stand tall beneath the heavens!

They left as bright-eyed young men of the Five Mausoleums, and returned as white-haired soldiers beneath the snow.

The road to Anxi is blocked. I'll take you home, back to Chang'an., Cui Ge

2022/09/09

Second blurb:

In his previous life, Cui Ge, Grand Protector of the Anxi Protectorate, was ordered to go to the capital and put down a rebellion.

The princes of the Danning dynasty rose in revolt, throwing the nation into turmoil.

During the four years of civil war, Tibet took advantage of the weakened defenses in the Western Regions and occupied the Beiting and Anxi Protectorates.

Danning paid dearly to suppress the princes' rebellion, losing countless soldiers and suffering devastating losses. It no longer had the strength to fight foreign enemies, and the lost territories remained beyond its reach.

What Cui Ge didn't know was that the soldiers guarding the frontier had never surrendered to the enemy. They had held their isolated city for twenty-seven years, from their bright-eyed youth until they were white-haired veterans.

Twenty-seven years later,

the last city fell.

Every white-haired soldier in the city died defending it. Not a single one surrendered.

That same year, Cui Ge died of illness. His dying wish was:

May the Son of Heaven continue the western campaign and reclaim the lost lands.

*

When Cui Ge opened his eyes after death, he found himself back at the age of twenty-four,

on the eve of the princes' rebellion.

Given another life, he resolved to treat well the subordinates who had died tragically in his previous one,

and to solve the problem at its root.

He would rather defy the whole world, become a treacherous minister and a corrupt courtier, and bear the world's condemnation

than let the four future rebels live long enough to raise their armies.

But after he did all that,

everyone else branded him a traitor plotting against the throne.

The civil and military officials trembled whenever they saw him.

Even the three-year-old emperor, a tearful little crybaby who depended on him for everything,

distrusted him all his life, feared him all his life, and opposed him all his life.

Cui Ge swore to the heavens, "Your Majesty, I serve the nation with all my heart. I have no ulterior motives."

The little emperor wiped away his tears and sobbed, "But everyone says Uncle is a great traitor. I'm scared..."

Hearing this, Grand Protector Cui Ge pressed a hand to his forehead, then gave a helpless smile.

He had devoted his life to Danning, yet gone from a loyal, iron-blooded general

to a scheming, corrupt minister.

The world misunderstood him, cursed him, and slandered him,

but even if it meant dying nine times, he would never regret it.

Later, people came to realize that Cui Ge, whose power reached the heavens,

and who held the emperor in his grasp to command the feudal lords,

had spent his entire life working for Danning's future:

He built up the army and developed agriculture and the economy, leaving nothing neglected.

He campaigned north against the Uyghurs and west against Tibet,

expanding Danning's territory and ushering in an unprecedented golden age.

2024/03/06

[Reading Guide]

* Probably a short story.

* Updates when inspiration strikes.

* Written for those who happen to find it.

Upcoming no-romance stories

1. Modern supernatural story, "Ignoring the World Beyond the Coffin"

Millennium after millennium, the flowers of the Eight-Hundred-Li Yellow Springs bloomed and withered, while Su Qi fished so many ghost-fish out of the River of Forgetfulness that they were nearly gone.

"An afterlife is long and dull. You should have something to look forward to."

"What are you looking forward to? Fishing here every day?"

"No. I want to be reborn as a person."

Human or ghost, spirit or monster, demon or devil, everyone has a past.

After death, one's soul returns to the underworld. A glance at the Book of Life and Death reveals the date of one's birth and death, the story of one's life, and how much good and evil one did.

But the Book of Life and Death has no record of Su Qi: no name, no life story, no birth or death dates. He cannot be reincarnated, either.

With no past to look back on, Su Qi places his hopes in the future.

He strikes a deal with the Great Emperor of Fengdu: after serving for ten thousand years as acting warden of the Eighteenth Level of Hell, punishing evil ghosts, he will be given the chance to live one lifetime as a human.

Blurb written 2022/6/29

/

2. Xianxia cultivation story, "Inherit the Sword's Name":

"Everyone is born with a purpose."

"What about those with no talent?"

"Even the untalented have talent! Without bitter cold, how could plum blossoms fill the air with their fragrance?"

"Put it plainly."

"If you don't give it a try, how can you know you can't make something of yourself?"

"From this day forward, I'll rename myself Zimu, after the greatest sword under heaven. I'll inherit the name of the Zimu Sword and spur myself on, temper myself, and become someone worthy of it!"

A modest gentleman cultivates himself through humility., From The Book of Changes, Commentary on the Image, Part One: Qian

2022/6/26

Theme: Even if it means dying nine times, I will never regret it