The group of Liang Xiao and his companions was startled.
A sworn enemy of the King of the North?
Led by the tomb keepers, they finally found the twelve nameless tombs at the center of the Sword Tomb.
Every tombstone bore a line from the poem "A Knight-Errant's Tale," without exception.
"Though dead, our knightly bones exhale fragrance, Unashamed among heroes of this age!"
"Marquis Anguo is truly a divine being. This line is simply the most perfect interpretation of these twelve righteous souls," the old man said, his eyes reddening. He struggled to control his emotions as he introduced the past to Zhuo Zifang.
"Back then, the Emperor's maternal uncle, Xiu Ping, held the positions of the three dukes, chancellor, and grand general, and wielded absolute power. Later, His Majesty, unwilling to be controlled, could bear it no longer and publicly denounced Xiu Ping for harming the country and plotting rebellion."
"Thus, Xiu Ping and his faction secretly plotted to have the emperor assassinated, after which he, Xiu Ping, would feign intervening to 'quell the rebellion' and 'mourn,' establishing his own power. The Emperor, somehow learning of this news, arranged for a few loyal guards and fled the palace in advance. In his panic, he ran into the marketplace."
"And so, the most incredible scene in the history of our Great Liang unfolded. The dignified Son of Heaven was pursued by rebels and their followers, turning the marketplace into chaos, while the common people and soldiers alike were kept in the dark, disbelieving their emperor's pleas for help."
"But it's strange. At that critical moment, twelve righteous souls heard the news and rushed to the scene. They stood forth with their own flesh and blood to protect His Majesty, who was already being pursued by Xiu Ping's faction. Blood splashed five steps, and the twelve righteous souls killed over a hundred rebels before being hacked into minced meat by the enraged rebels..."
"At the crucial moment, a cry of Xiu Ping's assassination came from the rear. It turned out that the King of the North, wearing a mask, had assassinated Xiu Ping and rushed to the scene with his sword. With his own strength, he fought the remaining fifty-odd rebels, killing every single one of them with a single sword stroke!"
Everyone could not help but marvel.
A single sword stroke killing over fifty people, what exquisite swordsmanship!
"But Xiu Ping had hundreds of followers, and thousands of Xiu family private soldiers were still arriving from the rear. The King of the North and His Majesty were in imminent danger. At that critical moment, the King of the North raised his arm and shouted. The astonished common people surged forward, and even the soldiers who were watching a play joined the ranks, rushing towards the Xiu family troops."
"It was fortunate that most of the Xiu family's private soldiers had their families among the common people, who then defected. A crisis of regicide was unexpectedly quelled, something we still find hard to believe!"
"We later learned what the King of the North had shouted: 'The Unconquered Sword of the Imperial City is here! This is the Emperor of Great Liang who will provide for you, who will one day ensure everyone has food and everyone has schooling!'"
"The Unconquered Sword of the Imperial Dynasty?!" Zhuo Zifang finally exclaimed in disbelief.
The tomb keeper nodded repeatedly, his eyes bright.
"Yes! The King of the North is indeed the sword hero that the people of the capital have longed for! Back then, Xiu Ping held immense power and acted arrogantly, ruining the country. There were too many evil doers from the Spring Revival Sect in the vicinity of the capital of Great Liang who were slaughtering civilians. Yet, an unknown swordsman, wearing a fierce tiger mask, roamed everywhere, killing the evil doers of the Spring Revival Sect and saving thousands of lives!"
"Later, a group of swordsmen, envoys from the country of Youyun, visited Great Liang and insulted our country's swordsmen, setting up a life-and-death arena. They killed eleven famous swordsmen from the capital. It was this sword hero who arrived at the critical moment and, on the spot, killed twelve Youyun swordsmen, remaining undefeated. The Youyun army was annihilated, and only the Youyun envoys, kneeling and begging for mercy. His Majesty publicly bestowed the title 'Unconquered Sword of the Imperial Dynasty' upon this sword hero and gifted him his personal gold-inlaid jade pendant!"
"The people were grateful for this sword hero's kindness and called him 'Unconquered Sword of the Imperial Dynasty.' Later, the King of the North raised this jade pendant to prove his identity and gain the support of the people. This was a miracle that the historiographers from the aristocratic families dared not record..."
Zhuo Zifang and Yue Qingtian and others behind Liang Xiao were stunned.
Thirty years ago, such an incredible past had occurred?
Even Liang Xiao was secretly astonished.
It seemed his father had done many good deeds in Great Liang. No wonder he returned home with injuries and dared not reveal anything...
"Why do you know this?" Zhuo Zifang asked with confusion.
The Great Qian country had sent people to collect intelligence on Great Liang, but they had never heard of this past event.
The story of the Unconquered Sword of the Imperial Dynasty did exist, but the intelligence personnel of Great Qian had always considered it a legend, as the people of the capital generally spoke of it.
The tomb keeper took out his official document and explained, "We were the common people saved by the King of the North back then. We voluntarily came here to guard the tombs. His Majesty was willing to tell us these details, but he warned us not to spread them. Only recently did His Majesty inform us that if Marquis Anguo or Zhuo Lingjun were to visit, we could tell them the truth. From now on, His Majesty will also announce this matter to the world."
Zhuo Zifang could not help but sigh regretfully, "What a pity for such a swordsmanship genius!"
He certainly understood why Liang Anguo had endured in silence.
Like Liang Xiao, he had returned home with injuries. Liang Qing, who was then a general, had no real power, and the Liang family was greatly suppressed by the aristocratic families.
And Liang Anguo had contributed to the Great Liang country. As a person of Great Qian, the aristocratic families would certainly not miss such a good opportunity to impeach him, possibly framing this matter as treason. Liang Anguo was also severely injured at the time, and it was unrealistic for him to want to serve the country and rise to prominence.
The more tragic the past of Great Qian was, the more the people behind Zhuo Zifang and Liang Xiao felt Liang Xiao's image to be towering at this moment.
Nan Jiyun, Nie Yuan, Liang Fu, Lu Yi...
If he had not gradually eliminated the aristocratic families within the country, how many more persecutions and tragedies would there have been...
The tomb keeper sighed, "Those twelve righteous souls were the sworn brothers of the King of the North. They resolutely stepped forward with the King of the North, exchanging their lives for the bright future of Great Liang. The King of the North did not lie to us. His Majesty is truly a wise ruler. Although he could not ensure everyone had food and everyone had schooling, at least he allowed us to live with more dignity than before. The exploitation was not as severe, and at least we could make a living!"
"His Majesty and the King of the North did not know the true names of the twelve righteous souls. They only referred to themselves by simple numbers: Old One, Old Two... Old Ten, Eleven, Twelve. His Majesty erected tombstones for them, naming them by their numbers: Knight-Errant Old One... Knight-Errant Twelve. Later, His Majesty learned that Marquis Anguo had written a poem called 'A Knight-Errant's Tale,' and had an inspiration to change the tomb inscriptions to what they are today. Because they should not just be numbers, but their spirit should be understood by the world!"
After the old man finished speaking, he and the other tomb keepers finally sighed incessantly.
"Later, the King of the North once again charged into battle, leading his troops to scatter the southern barbarians who had invaded the capital. Our country took the opportunity to retake lost territories, but the King of the North disappeared. His Majesty only later conferred the title of King of the North upon him, established the King of the North's Mansion, and set up the King of the North's Guards. However, the King of the North had not appeared for thirty years. It turns out he was..."
As the tomb keeper spoke to the end, he could no longer control himself. However, because his eyes were dry, he could not shed tears, and his expression of grief looked somewhat comical. To Liang Xiao and the others, however, it felt quite poignant.
Zhuo Zifang inquired further, but the tomb keeper could only recount these stories and knew nothing else.
Liang Xiao personally burned incense and paid respects to the twelve righteous souls.
The tomb keepers, seeing Zhuo Zifang leading everyone to worship with Liang Xiao, felt puzzled: "Are you perhaps the son of the King of the North, Marquis Anguo?"
Liang Xiao removed his mask and finally admitted his identity.
All the tomb keepers prostrated themselves, and the old man was so excited that he stammered, "Your respects! Your respects! Marquis Anguo, the newly enfeoffed Princess of the King of the North of our Great Qian country, as well as General Anbei and Jian Fuzi, also come to pay their respects frequently. Half a month from now is the anniversary of the death of the twelve righteous souls, and Jian Fuzi and General Anbei come every year!"