Chapter 695: Supporting Spirit (2)

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

The middle-aged merchant almost knelt down.

He had clearly never done anything wrong in his life. Why did he encounter a ghost!!

Just as he was conflicted about whether to kneel and beg for mercy or pretend that he didn’t know anything and see if he could muddle through, he heard an excited shout from outside the tea shop. “Coming, coming!”

The men and women by the roadside raised their heads in anticipation. Countless shouts rose and fell at different volumes.

In this gloomy weather, the entire official road revealed an inexplicable seriousness.

The middle-aged merchant was stunned. His entire body seemed to have frozen and he couldn’t move. He saw the surrounding tea customers fighting to walk out of the tea shop and talk at once.

“It’s Marquis Gu’s coffin, right?”

“It must be.”

“Marquis Gu’s achievements are great. Now, he can finally return home.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to report it, but the time hasn’t come!”

“Marquis Gu?” The middle-aged merchant couldn’t help but mutter. He realized that something was wrong.

The boss, who was clearing the table beside him, continued, “Sir, you still don’t know, right? Today is the day Young Master Gu returns to the capital with his spirit.”

“Back then, Marquis Gu was wronged, and his bones were incomplete. Last month, Eldest Young Master Gu went south to Yangzhou to find the remaining bones of Marquis Gu. He planned to collect the bones again and bury them in the Gu family’s ancestral grave.”

“The commoners outside are all here to welcome Marquis Gu back to the capital!”

There was a sigh in the boss’s tone, and it was even harder to hide his admiration.

The middle-aged merchant slowly blinked and finally completely reacted. He blurted out, “Could it be that you’re talking about Marquis Gu Ce?”

The boss also looked outside the tea shop and said faintly, “There’s no other Marquis Gu in Great Jin!”

In the past, when others mentioned the Marquis of Ding Yuan, the first thing they thought of was the first generation of the Ding Yuan Marquis, Gu Yao, who had established the Great Jin Dynasty with Emperor Taizu, and now it was Gu Ce.

With Gu Ce’s merits for the Great Jin, it was enough to surpass his ancestor, but he had been wronged for nine years.

The middle-aged merchant hurriedly stood up and said excitedly, “I’ll go out and welcome Marquis Gu too.”

He quickly rushed out of the tea shop and came to the side of the official road. He squeezed through the crowd and looked south.

At the end of the official road, a white figure swayed. White banners surged over like snow waves and gradually approached.

“Marquis Gu, the soul has returned!”

In the crowd, a young man shouted at the top of his voice, dragging his voice. Right on the heels of that, the others also shouted, “Marquis Gu, the soul has returned!”

The shouts of the commoners gradually overlapped in unison. That loud and sorrowful voice seemed to even shake the world!

Ever since the forced abdication in April, the unjust case of the first Marquis of Yuan, Gu Ce, had spread throughout the entire Great Jin.

After Chu You was captured for treason, the three divisions judged him and sentenced him to death. Then, the Emperor issued an edict to tell the public the truth about Gu Ce’s surrender to the enemy back then. Only then did the people know that nine years ago, Gu Ce defeated many with fewer numbers and set up an ambush 15 miles away from Tailing City. He defeated the State of Yue army and killed nearly 20,000 enemies.

Back then, Gu Ce could have beaten the State of Yue’s army out of the territory and returned triumphantly. However, Chu You opened the city gate of Tailing City for his own selfish reasons. Not only did he cause the citizens of the city to die in the hands of the State of Yue army, but he also caused Gu Ce to be attacked from both sides and make a heroic sacrifice.

After that, in order to calm the people and encourage the soldiers, the Sage of the State of Yue hid the defeat of the State of Yue Army on the upper mountain and only announced to the public that Gu Ce had opened the city gate to defeat the enemy. And in order to protect Chu You, the previous Emperor took advantage of the situation.

After the truth spread, the entire country was shocked.

Gu Ce had only lived for a short 30 years, but his battle merits were prominent and his talent was outstanding. It was enough to be recorded in the history books. Be it 15 years ago or nine years ago, he had protected the national gate of Yangzhou for the Great Jin. Without back-up, he defeated many with fewer numbers and defeated the State of Yue.

If it weren’t for the selfishness of the previous Emperor, Yangzhou wouldn’t have lost nine years ago. The Eldest Prince wouldn’t have been sent to the State of Yue to be hostaged for eight years.

Gu Ce sacrificed his life for the great scene, but he bore the injustice for a full nine years. It was really a pity that he was reviled by the world.

It was also because of this that the citizens’ moods were very complicated. They respected Gu Ce, felt guilty, and felt more pity. If Gu Ce was still alive, the Great Jin would have another divine general that was enough to shock everyone.

“Marquis Gu, the soul has returned!”

Amidst the shout, a handsome young man in a frost-white robe with a hemp rope around his waist rode a white banner over. From afar, no one could see the young man’s eyebrows clearly. They only felt that his body emitted a cold and sorrowful aura..