At the tender age of eight, he was hastily dragged out and made emperor!

Shanglin Garden, a vast and magnificent palace and villa where the emperor indulged in all pleasures, was, in Chu Ling's eyes, a safe haven that housed his countless thoughts, plans, and deployments, and an absolute barrier for him to reclaim everything that rightfully belonged to him!

The wind howled.

The sky was azure blue.

"Whoo~"

Panting echoed on a hillside. Chu Ling, draped in a cloak, walked straight ahead without looking to the side. Beside him, Chu Hui followed with a complicated expression. On the hillside, a lone tree swayed in the wind, and memories kept surfacing. This tree was planted by his own elder brother, the Emperor.

Chu Hui remembered it very clearly.

This tree was planted here by my imperial brother after reading the urgent report sent from Chang Le Palace, which was sent back from the northern frontier in an urgent dispatch.

His own elder brother had planted more than a dozen such trees, and he forbade anyone to help him. He dug the soil, dug the holes, planted them, backfilled the soil, and watered them. People around him just stood by and watched. No one knew why the emperor did this. But today, after returning to Shanglin Garden with his elder brother and coming here, Chu Hui seemed to have figured something out.

"Time flies so fast."

Chu Ling stopped and looked at the lonely tree in front of him, with some green spots on some branches. Chu Ling's words were tinged with emotion, "Counting the days, it has been six years since I ascended the throne, and more than a year since I left Shanglin Garden."

"Brother Royal."

Chu Hui stepped forward with a complicated expression.

"Changshou, do you know why I planted this tree?" Chu Ling turned around, looked at Chu Hui, pointed to the tree in front of him, and smiled.

"Your Majesty..."

Chu Hui glanced at Chu Ling, then at the tree, his eyes hardening. “Your Majesty knows that you are trying to remind yourself that the deep-seated hatred between us and the Northern Barbarians will not fade away with time, but will only grow stronger!”

"Haha, you really understand me."

Chu Ling clapped his hands and laughed loudly: "Not only the Northern Barbarians, but also the Western Chuan, the Eastern Yu, and the Southern Zhao. These powerful enemies with whom our dynasty has a long history of hatred and enmity cannot be forgotten. Therefore, I planted these four trees on several earthen slopes outside this training ground. Perhaps I will not stay in the Shanglin Garden often, but the trees I planted and the roots they took are already in my heart."

As he said this, Chu Ling's eyes turned cold.

Looking back on the path he had walked, it was as if he were walking on thin ice. In particular, the upheaval caused by the rebellion of the vassal states was something that Chu Ling would not have dared to imagine if his grandmother had not stood in front of him. Faced with that complicated situation, what could he, as the emperor of the Great Yu, have done at that time?

If his grandmother hadn't taken care of everything for him, how could he have spent three years lying low in Shanglin Garden, gradually bringing his ideas to fruition?

"Everything seems to have returned to the starting point."

Chu Ling's voice rang out, causing Chu Hui's hands, which were hanging down, to tremble slightly.

Chu Hui thought of the current situation. After the Xichuan delegation left Yudu, the Northern Barbarian delegation also left, which caused a lot of discussion in the court and among the people. Under such circumstances, some ministers in the central government, such as Xiao Jing, Bao Yuan, Zhang Hong, Shi Yu, Liu Chen, etc., were doing their duties in their respective positions, but this also caused quite a stir and turmoil in the court.

This situation has led some busybodies to start gossiping among themselves, saying all sorts of things, but some things are surprisingly consistent.

"longevity."

"Your Majesty, I am here!"

Under the watchful eyes of some, Chu Hui walked to the emperor's side.

"You ask me, was it right or wrong for me to push all of this to achieve today's situation?" Chu Ling smiled and looked at the training ground not far away, where people were gathering from all directions, and banners were fluttering in the wind amidst the crowd.

"Grandmother is no longer here. Logically speaking, what the Great Yu should do most is to recuperate and restore its national strength, rather than to wage war. Even if we were to do these things, we should at least wait until the national treasury is full and the people are prosperous before doing such things."

"But I couldn't suppress this fighting spirit. Hehe, to the north of the Northern Barbarians, there is a powerful enemy, the Khanate of Zanpu, invading the Northern Barbarians. There are even more powerful enemies besides the powerful ones. If it weren't for this opportunity, I might have held back. But this opportunity just happened. I only know one thing: if you miss some opportunities, you may regret it for the rest of your life."

"Your Majesty, I believe you have done nothing wrong; this decision is absolutely correct!!"

Following the direction his elder brother was looking, Chu Hui said firmly, "After the passing of our grandmother, some of the things my elder brother did and the things that happened made some people feel that all the intimidation he showed was based on our grandmother."

"But they are so wrong!!"

"I have some of what Your Majesty is thinking. Since some prejudices and doubts have always been buried deep in the heart, let's let them know just how wrong they are!"

"Ha ha!!"

Chu Ling laughed loudly, "You understand me best." As he spoke, Chu Ling's eyes turned cold and sharp, "I want to focus on development to restore the strength of the Great Yu Kingdom and stabilize its fortunes. This will always be a bumpy road, and I will have to devote a lot of heart and energy to it. The civil and military officials I trust will often find themselves caught in the vortex. Since that's the case, let's just temporarily halt this momentum, maintain the advantages we've gained so far, and I will orchestrate a war against foreign powers. Whether we win or lose this war depends on our respective methods."

"On this point, I did not take advantage of their misfortune. Back when the war broke out in the northern border, didn't the northern barbarians do the same thing?"

"It is impolite not to reciprocate!"

"In the Shanglin Garden, I have gathered the most capable and valiant soldiers of the Great Yu, the most loyal Imperial Guards, and countless fine young men eager to make their mark!"

"In the past, I have always suppressed them. I know that there is a great fire burning in their hearts. Today, I will let them release it and vent it. I want to see if they can truly stand up for themselves or collapse in one battle!"

At this point, Chu Ling turned around, facing the cold wind, and quickly walked down the earthen slope. All the people accompanying him bowed respectfully.

Finally, it's finally here.

Following behind Chu Ling, Chu Hui felt extremely indignant. He knew better than anyone what this battle meant for the Great Yu Dynasty, and he was even more aware of what his elder brother had endured. Yet, the blood flowing in his veins began to boil because of what his elder brother had said.

Some things have to be done eventually. If you don't do them now, you'll have to do them in the future. But no one can predict what the future will hold. So why not do them now?