Records of Mysterious Things in the Southern Dynasties

Chapter 495 Epitaphs of the Noble

"The Marquis of Wu is too harsh on himself. If everyone were to examine their souls like him, then all the emperors and generals would be guilty of countless crimes," Su Xiaoxiao sighed.

“It is precisely because of a high sense of morality that one questions and torments oneself.” Chen Lingzhi sighed softly, recalling Ren Yuan’s words, ‘Baseness is the passport of the base, nobility is the epitaph of the noble.’ It couldn’t be more apt.

“The Xiu Gate is not the exit; let’s go somewhere else,” she said calmly to the crowd.

~~
Not long after leaving the Xiu Gate, lightning and thunder suddenly struck the formation, and the blue bricks at the Zhen position rippled like waves. Chen Lingzhi closed his eyes and calculated: "Zhen represents thunder and governs the Mao hour. At this moment, the sun's shadow has passed noon, the Zhen position is empty, and the Sheng Gate will surely move with the stars!"

After saying this, she led the group through the thunderstorm formation, and sure enough, they found the gate of life.

At the Gate of Life, the crowd saw the next string of frenzied words:

"As for the Longzhong Plan, it is even more laughable! It boasts of 'possessing both Jing and Yi,' yet forgets that Jing and Xiang overlook Xu and Luo to the north, and threaten Wu and Kuaiji to the east. How could the likes of Cao Cao and Sun Quan tolerate it? Although Yi is strategically important, the Shu roads are difficult to traverse, and supplies are unreliable. Do you think I am unaware of this geography? Yet you indulged in the unrealistic fantasy of 'a change in the world,' leaving Guan Yu with a lone army, losing Jingzhou; causing the late emperor to be obsessed with revenge, leading to the downfall at Yiling. The so-called 'strategy of Guan Zhong' is nothing but empty talk! Is the failure of this great undertaking, so close yet so far, not my fault?"

However, the gate of life was not the exit, so Chen Lingzhi led the group to continue their search, entering a vast, icy wasteland filled with icicles. After investigating for a while, she said:

"Kan represents water, signifying danger and obstacles; the Injury Gate is here! However, the Tianpeng Star is in a state of rest and decline, indicating that the key to the formation is still not here..."

Through the glistening ice, everyone could indeed see the frozen wound and the frantic writing on it:
"Later, when the dynasty was overthrown, I was entrusted with a post amidst the defeated army, and received orders in a time of crisis. Twenty-one years have passed since then. The late emperor knew of my prudence, and thus entrusted me with important matters on his deathbed—this is merely a facade!"

"For twenty-one years, I have been outwardly 'cautious,' but in reality, I have been unwilling to relinquish power. In the Battle of Jieting, did I not know that Wang Ping was far superior? Yet Ma Su was a member of the old faction from Jingzhou; employing him would have solidified my own faction. When the army marched out of Qishan, I knew Li Yan was only superficially loyal, yet I still appointed him to oversee the transport of supplies, leading to the near-failure of our campaign. All this was because he enjoyed the respect of the people of Shu; demoting him would have allowed me to seize power."

~~
After going around in circles, the group followed Chen Lingzhi to the Du Gate, where they witnessed the fourth instance of chaotic words:

"The so-called 'the late emperor entrusted me with important matters on his deathbed' is nothing but self-praise—the late emperor not only instructed me 'you may take it for yourself,' but also appointed Li Yan to share the imperial decree, clearly preventing me from becoming too powerful! Yet I lacked the capacity to tolerate others, deciding everything myself, large or small, ultimately leading to 'no great generals in Shu, Liao Hua as the vanguard,' truly a traitor to the Han Dynasty!"

Then, at the Jing Gate, we saw the fifth section:
"Now that the south is pacified and our military strength is sufficient, we should lead our armies northward to pacify the Central Plains, exerting our utmost efforts to eliminate the treacherous and restore the Han Dynasty to its former capital—this too is a lie!"

"Cao Wei, seizing the opportune moment, implemented the military-agricultural colony system, allowing farmers to return to their fields and soldiers to join the ranks, thus establishing an impregnable empire in the Central Plains. Sun Wu, with its advantageous terrain, had three generations of rulers and ministers honing their skills, allowing them to sit securely in Jiangdong without worry. Only in my Shu, after three battles, were able-bodied men left to rot in ditches, and fields overgrown with weeds. Mulberry and osage orange trees were all felled for crossbow bolts, and rice and millet were used as military rations. Such a weak and exhausted army, still talking of 'pacifying the north,' is no different from throwing eggs against rocks."

"However, the old officials of Yizhou are indifferent, the new nobles of Jingzhou are vying for power, and the Han and barbarian tribes in Shu are divided. Only by 'exploring the Central Plains in the north and restoring the Han dynasty' can we unite the people and maintain the Han lineage—if we fail, we can blame it on fate; if we succeed, we can offer sacrifices at the ancestral temple. This is not for the unification of the country, but merely for prolonging our precarious existence!"

The sixth gate opened, and the inscription read:
"Whenever I look towards the road to Qishan, I see the old and weak, leaning on their canes, carrying provisions, their bones stained with frost and snow; the young and strong return wrapped in corpses, their rotting blood soaking the desolate hills. How tragic! Back then, during the Longzhong Plan, the words, 'Leading the troops of Yizhou out of Qin Chuan, what people would dare not bring food and drink to welcome the general?' were nothing but the empty words of a scholar, absurd and ridiculous, laughable and contemptible. But when they reached Longyou, the people shut their doors at the sight of banners and fled at the sound of drums and gongs, only then realizing that where war has passed, even the slightest offense can cause disaster."

"Yet I still clung to the banner of the remnants of the Han dynasty, shouting 'The Han and the traitors cannot coexist,' launching six expeditions to Qishan, fighting to the death. I exhausted the strength of the people of Shu, causing the deaths of millions, obsessively pursuing the 'restoration of the Han dynasty,' striving for an unattainable cause. Ultimately, this led to the two sides fighting, while the third party profited, resulting in the sinking of China, with blood and gore everywhere. Am I not a sinner?"

The seventh gate, the Gate of Shock, reads:

"Your Majesty, I have observed that Your Majesty is incompetent and muddle-headed in court, indulging in feasts and pleasures, and favoring sycophants. I have often wished to emulate Yi Yin's exile of Tai Jia and Huo Guang's deposition of Changyi, to depose the incompetent and install a wise ruler, thus securing the state. However, Huo Guang's deposition and installation was historically termed 'usurpation of power'; Wang Mang's regency ultimately became 'usurpation.' I fear incurring eternal infamy, and would rather offer empty advice in the 'Memorial on the Expedition' to 'be close to the virtuous and keep away from the wicked' than dare to undertake any act of deposition or installation."

"The late emperor granted me the right to 'take it for myself,' yet I willingly remained a foolishly loyal subject, forcefully supporting a perilous ruler to preserve my integrity. Now I realize—what I protected was my own 'honorable name'; what I harmed were the people of the world! I have truly failed the emperor's trust; how can I face the late emperor in the afterlife?" Finally, the group arrived at the Gate of Death and saw the last passage of text:
"I am guilty, guilty of valuing empty fame over the common people!"

Your subject is guilty, guilty of failing to uphold the duty of a subject and betraying the trust placed in him by the emperor!

I am guilty, guilty of misleading the world by trying to make a name for myself in history!

I now realize that these three crimes all stemmed from my attachment to "reputation." My claim of "not seeking fame or fortune" is now a laughingstock; my ambition to "restore the Han dynasty" was nothing but self-deception. If I could do it all over again, I would relinquish my official fan and seal, dedicate my life to farming, never leaving Nanyang, to save the empire from falling into chaos, to spare the people from this poison, and to prevent the collapse of the Central Plains. But things have come to this, and even a hundred deaths would not absolve me of my guilt.

I feel ashamed! Ashamed! Ashamed!

Those three shocking scarlet characters for "shame" were actually written in blood!

After a long while, everyone finally snapped out of their shared feelings. Chen Lingzhi sighed, "The core of the formation is actually in the Gate of Death. How can Marquis Wu blame himself for this?" With that, he reached out and pushed open the gate, then went in first.

The crowd followed closely behind.

~~
The next moment, they appeared in Baidi City on Baidi Mountain and saw Zhuge Liang, who was white-haired and emaciated.

"Greetings, Prime Minister." The crowd bowed respectfully in unison.

Zhuge Liang sighed, pressed his hand on the strings of his zither, and said, "You've all read through the articles along the way, haven't you?"

"We have read them all," the group said respectfully.

"Then why are you being so polite to a sinner like me?" Zhuge Liang said calmly.

"We do not know what crime the Prime Minister has committed?" The crowd hurriedly replied, "If the Prime Minister is guilty, then all the emperors and generals of the past deserve to die a thousand deaths."

"You don't need to comfort me," Zhuge Liang said, tossing the Ziwei Sword beside the zither back to A Yao.
"Young lady, are you in a hurry to pass the test?"

"Yes." Ayao nodded.

“Perfect timing. I am the gatekeeper of this level. If you kill me, you can pass.” Zhuge Liang looked up at A Yao, as if he were offering his neck for execution.

Ayao looked at his neck, then at her own sword, and resolutely shook her head, saying, "You are a good person, I cannot kill you."

"That's not true. First, I'm not human, and second, I'm certainly not a good person." Zhuge Liang gave a bitter laugh and said, "It's already clearly stated in the text. Do I need to repeat it?"

(End of this chapter)