Sir, take me to rebel (14): 

The Si family regretted it.

But regret was useless.

Even if a cut healed, it would still leave a scar, just as what had been done could not be undone, as though nothing had happened.

Now the new emperor wanted to make an example of the sorcerers, forbidding everything related to them. They could no longer collect blood to ask sorcerers to refine it into medicine. In the end, Si Yu still had to leave the General’s Manor. Otherwise, even if they had blood, it would be useless—were they really supposed to risk the emperor’s punishment just to have medicine refined for Si Yu? Si Yu was not without another path to survival!!

Those who had long disliked Si Yu, who even dared not have children because of him, finally breathed a sigh of relief, smiles of genuine joy spreading across their faces.

In contrast, the general’s wife, who had long been obsessed with making Si Yu her own son, went mad. She pounded on the table, struck her own body, and cried out: “You just don’t want to save my Yu’er! You just can’t bear to part with your blood! If my blood were useful, even if it drained every last drop, I would be willing!! How can you be so selfish, do you have no conscience at all? Yu’er loves you all so much!!!”

The men’s faces darkened, but they restrained themselves from arguing with a woman. The other sisters-in-law, however, could no longer hold back. They leapt up angrily, shouting: “Yu’er is human, but my child isn’t? Qingran is only six years old, and you would cut him with a knife—have you ever thought of him as your own junior?!”

General Si looked at the chaos before him, his irritation spiraling into madness. He yanked a few women aside and slapped his screaming wife hard across the face. Her head snapped sideways, hair disheveled, clothes in disarray, looking like a madwoman.

Meanwhile, Si Yu stood to the side, crying softly like a pear blossom in the rain. He tugged at his brother’s sleeve and whispered: “Brother, did Yu’er do something wrong? Please don’t be angry, persuade Father and Mother instead…”

The eldest brother, who had cherished his younger sibling since childhood, looked at his wife’s cold gaze and could no longer endure it. He told Si Yu: “Why would I be angry? If I am angry, it is only at myself for being so blind! You did do wrong. You don’t need to cry to me—just go to Mother directly. Ask her to announce your identity and sever the mother-son bond. Mother listens to you in everything. If you begged her a few times, wouldn’t she agree?”

“Si Qingyuan!!!” The general’s wife clutched her swollen cheek, her shrill voice stabbing at everyone’s ears: “You beast! How can you speak to your brother like this? How can you side with these outsiders?! Do you even have a conscience!!”

The eldest son’s expression stiffened, his voice choked: “Yes, I side with outsiders. In your heart, even I am an outsider! You only have Si Yu as a son, don’t you? Have you ever noticed how many times I’ve been cut over the years? You never cared!”

“But are you dead? Are you dead?!” The general’s wife ignored his feelings, crying as she accused: “I wanted Si Qi’s life, but did I ever want yours? I only asked you to bleed a little for your brother, and you couldn’t even do that?!”

The eldest daughter-in-law rolled her eyes in fury. The eldest son lowered his head, fists clenched, taking a deep breath before saying to his mother: “Yes, just a little blood.”

He touched his arms, where ugly scars rose and fell. For six years, bandages had almost never left his body. Old wounds healed only for new ones to appear. Yet to his mother, all of this was just a “little thing.” In her eyes, not taking his life was already mercy.

He thought back to Si Qi, cornered by everyone, forced down with his head pressed low, nearly killed—his younger brother must have felt the same way, right?

No… it must have been worse. More despair, more pain, more isolation, watching his own kin side with an outsider who wanted his life, cutting his body to pieces…

The more he thought, the harder it became to breathe. He broke down, squatting and clutching his head, sobbing: “He was my real younger brother… what have I done…”

His sudden collapse left many present stunned.

Several elders, who had once forced Si Qi themselves and had even been kicked by him in retaliation, kept stony faces as they ordered servants: “Take the young master back.”

No one mentioned Si Qi’s name, as though none had ever admitted their mistake.

The general’s wife glared with hatred at those before her, her gaze treating them as though they were the executioners who had persecuted her and her son.

Everyone she looked at in this way felt deeply uncomfortable, and their resentment extended to the boy hiding in her arms.

He was already fifteen or sixteen, old enough to start a family, yet still clung to his mother for everything. Innocent? Pure? But with his habit of always acting in ways that only benefited himself, could he really be as naïve as he appeared?

The general’s wife took Si Yu away from the chaotic hall. Wiping her tears, she told him: “Don’t be afraid, Yu’er, Mother won’t let you be wronged. Do you remember what I told you? Back then, the sorcerer said at first sight that you would bring great glory to this house. They are short-sighted, forgetting your worth, treating you so heartlessly. When you recover, they will regret it.”

Si Yu held her hand and said softly: “Don’t worry, Mother. Yu’er will be filial and never disappoint you.”

The general’s wife, touched, held his hand tightly: “Good child.”

Si Yu lowered his gaze: “I only don’t want you to argue with Uncle, Grandfather, and the others. Every time I think of what they’ve done for me, I feel guilty.”

The general’s wife frowned: “You are their junior. It is their duty to protect you. If they hadn’t let that bastard escape back then, you would already be healed, not suffering from illness day after day.”

Si Yu asked calmly: “Do you still remember my brother?”

“He is not your brother,” the general’s wife said angrily. “That heartless wretch—he would rather hide all his life to protect his own worthless life than save you. If I ever find him, I’ll make him taste real suffering!”

Si Yu said gently: “Please don’t be angry, Mother…”

…

After she left, the mess remained. The family, already anxious because of General Si’s defeat and the change of dynasty, grew even more agitated.

“She has long hair but short sight. If the General’s Manor falls, how could a woman and that boy have a good life?” The old patriarch banged his cane and scolded General Si: “If she dares secretly meet a sorcerer and the new king discovers it, all of us will suffer with her!”

General Si’s face was grim: “I indulged her too much before.”

His brother asked: “Is Si Country really that powerful?”

In less than two months, they had marched straight to the capital. The local nobility had barely reacted before the enemy was at their doors.

General Si, utterly dejected, replied: “You weren’t on the battlefield, you don’t understand.”

The man pressed his lips together, unwilling: “But what about our dynasty’s fortune…”

“So what if our fortune was strong?” General Si said wearily. “That national preceptor of Si Country, Si Qi, said sorcerers only shifted the future’s harvest into the present. All the blessings we once enjoyed must now be repaid. Si Country did not rise because of sorcerers. You know the cause, and you’ve seen the result.”

Silence fell.

“Those who recognize the times are wise,” the old patriarch finally said. “In such peril, we must endure humiliation, bow our heads, and perhaps we may still find a path for survival.”

Just then, the distant doors slammed open. Armor clashed, voices shouted commands to arrest. Faces paled as everyone bowed their heads in despair.

General Si stood, straightened his clothes, and tried to preserve a shred of dignity.

When armed soldiers stormed into the hall, he stepped forward and surrendered without being asked. His family watched silently as he was taken.

But in the next moment, the soldiers surrounded them all. Shock and anger burst out: “What are you doing?!”

Why were they being dragged in as well?!

Soon, all the ministers of Autumn Dynasty were dragged into the imperial court. The Si family, pale-faced, was shoved forward into the great hall. Looking around, they realized no other generals’ families had been implicated. Anxiety and indignation filled their hearts.

—Why them?

The eldest son of the Si family, still drowning in guilt, suddenly stopped in his tracks. A thought struck him like lightning, his heart pounding wildly.

“Move!” a soldier behind shoved him. He stumbled forward, head down, into the center of the hall.

Before them stood pale-faced sorcerers in long robes.

The vast hall was silent except for the occasional barked warning from soldiers.

The officials’ faces were grim, eyes darting to their peers in search of solutions—until they noticed the Si family grouped together.

No one knew what crime this family had committed to draw the emperor’s attention.

The emperor had not yet appeared, only Si Country’s soldiers filling the hall.

A moment later, a group of people entered from the side. Relaxed, smiling, dressed in uniforms unlike Autumn Dynasty’s old robes—neat, new, practical.

They stood tall and bright-eyed, in stark contrast to the flabby, cowering officials of Autumn Dynasty.

They spoke plainly, without bureaucratic jargon, conversing naturally, their words full of national planning and development. But the old officials realized they understood barely half.

Some ministers, who thought they could rely on decades of experience to secure their positions under the new emperor, were now sweating profusely.

Si Country was clearly very different from Autumn Dynasty…

Then, two figures appeared. The generals who had seen Si Yi on the battlefield stiffened at once, lowering their heads. Officials quickly fell silent.

Everyone waited for the new emperor to speak. But when he sat on the dragon throne and looked down, he frowned: “Why must we speak like this?”

The ministers were baffled—how else could they speak?

Then Si Yi said: “Bring chairs for everyone. Sit down together.”

The officials were dumbfounded. Some wanted to glance up at the youth, unable to believe it.

The Si Country ministers, long used to sitting in offices around a table with Si Yi to discuss matters, were silent for a moment. Someone gently advised against it, but Si Yi refused: “In Si Country, we don’t believe in one-man rule. Later I will remove this throne and restore the chamber to a meeting hall. For now, let’s just do this.”

The Si Country ministers, moved by their emperor’s unchanged nature, smiled warmly.

After speaking, Si Yi looked at the lone throne and even considered letting Si Qi sit.

The Si Country people were unfazed, but the Autumn Dynasty officials were restless, wanting to admonish him for impropriety.

Yet with their lives at stake, they said nothing, only muttering in their hearts that Si Country had no sense of decorum.

Among the Si family, who all kept their heads bowed, the eldest son cautiously raised his eyes to the youth above. Studying his features, he realized this face resembled the boy in his memory by at least eighty percent. He felt as if struck by lightning, his body swaying, breath coming harsh and ragged.

Standing nearby, General Si heard the heavy panting, turned his head toward his son, and saw his expression twisted as if he were about to die. Thinking his son lacked the mental strength to endure, he warned in a low voice: “Stand properly!”

Large beads of sweat rolled down the eldest young master of the Si family’s forehead. He looked at his father in terror, hissing through his teeth: “Si… Si Qi… it’s Si Qi!”

The Si family members around them, hearing the young master’s broken voice, looked over in confusion. But when they saw the fear in his eyes, a sense of dread welled up in their hearts.

General Si’s younger brother, Si Qi’s uncle, was the first to realize something. He lifted his head for a secret glance at Si Qi, and before long, his body jolted violently and cold sweat drenched his back.

He hurriedly lowered his head, his face pale as death. “Si Qi… it’s Si Qi…”

“What about Si Qi…” someone asked reflexively, only for their voice to suddenly falter.

At that moment, everyone’s thoughts fell into chaos. One after another, they secretly looked up at Si Qi, despair spreading rapidly across their faces. Many who had once cornered him in the small courtyard and forced him to the brink of death felt their legs give way, nearly collapsing.

No wonder they had been tied up and brought here separately… Si Qi’s aunt now hated those people bitterly. She turned toward the general’s wife and Si Yu, spitting through clenched teeth: “It’s you, all because of you!!! Why don’t you just die?!”

The general’s wife stood stiffly in place, her eyes fixed blankly on Si Qi’s face above.

Not long ago, she had fantasized about finding him to flay and torture him alive. Now her face was ashen, flickering between regret and feral rage, twisted like a ghost crawling out of hell.

Many people noticed the disturbance among the general’s household. From his vantage point above, Si Qi naturally saw it as well.

He saw their regret and pleas, and he also saw Si Yu’s unwillingness and hatred.

But he paid no attention to this family, letting them tremble in fear as they quietly awaited the scythe of death. Every second was torture, stabbing into their very souls.

He sat calmly to the side, watching Si Yi distribute rewards for merit.

Si Yi first assigned positions to the ministers who had followed from the Si Kingdom, setting clear divisions of responsibility. Then, looking at the sorcerers and ministers kneeling or standing in the great hall, he spoke slowly, his voice cold enough to freeze men alive: “From this day forward, within the lands of the Si Kingdom, not a single sorcerer is permitted to exist. No one may use arts that manipulate fate, nor may any texts describing them remain.”

No one was surprised at his words. Yet most of the ministers had enjoyed the benefits of manipulating fate for generations, and now they feared being implicated. Sweating profusely, one ventured: “Your Majesty… one cannot judge all cases the same. If properly guided, fate could bless the people, protect—”

Si Yi cut him off coldly: “You presume to teach me how to rule?”

The minister fell silent at once, trembling all over. “This humble subject dares not…”

The other ministers sweated as well. They longed to defend fate’s advantages, but they all knew what torment Si Yi had endured as a child. In secret, many had also taken lives with sorcery, and they knew exactly what cruelties the victims suffered.

Si Yi continued: “Anyone who colluded with sorcerers, who ignored human life to pursue selfish gains with sorcery, will all be punished.”

At his words, the court erupted.

“You cannot do this!”

“This is unreasonable!”

“Everyone did it—you are forcing us to die!!”

Si Yi looked at them expressionlessly. “A new nation has no need for trash that ignores its people’s lives. I summoned you here to give you a chance to survive—so we can see if any of you deserve to live.”

Realizing his resolve, the ministers broke down in wails, claiming innocence, insisting they had only followed custom, doing what everyone else did.

Si Yi ignored their excuses. He turned to the sorcerers below: “Confess all the evil you have committed. Help me erase every trace of sorcery. In return, I will grant you a quicker death.”

The sorcerers did not lose control as the ministers had. From the moment they were captured, they had foreseen their end, along with the Si Kingdom’s rising tide of fortune.

Many of them had long treated human lives as tools, their hearts drowned in darkness. Apart from hatred toward Si Yi, they felt no guilt.

Only a few with lingering consciences bowed their heads and murmured: “We are willing to cooperate.”

“Fate is not something humans should manipulate. It brings chaos and drives nations to ruin.”

“Without you sorcerers, the Autumn Dynasty would not have been doomed to become a wasteland where no one could survive…”

Their faces showed shame, but Si Yi remained cold, unmoved. With a wave of his hand, he ordered soldiers to drag them away. Those willing to cooperate would follow procedure. Those unwilling—Si Yi had no objection to letting them endure the very torment they had inflicted on their victims, again and again, until death.

But just before they were dragged away, one sorcerer recognized Si Qi and said with a bitter smile: “Your name is Si Qi. You are General Si’s son.”

At once, the ministers and officials were stunned.

The Si family stiffened as though struck by lightning. They held their breath, staring at Si Qi to catch his reaction.

But Si Qi did not react—he remained calm, even smiling faintly. It was Si Yi at his side whose face darkened in fury: “You knew? It was you who left my teacher homeless, to be persecuted by the Si family like that?!”

The Si family blanched, trembling uncontrollably.

It was over. Completely over. Si Yi knew! Others might have some chance of mercy for their crimes, but not them—not after offending Si Qi. None of them would survive!

Why had Si Qi survived? Why had he become the legendary Grand Tutor of Si Kingdom? Why was he so powerful? Thinking back to what they had done, the words they had said, the hundred scars carved into his body… he must hate them to the bone!

The sorcerer shook his head. “I didn’t know—only that his bloodline connects to General Si. Back then, General Si sought to kill his own son, transferring his fate onto another child. Every court sorcerer knew it. I heard the tale myself. But I never imagined the Grand Tutor who built Si Kingdom was that very child…”

He did not understand why Si Qi appeared older than expected. He assumed the fate-transferring ritual had stolen years from him, making him age faster.

One minister collapsed, rushing forward to seize General Si by the collar, roaring: “It was you—it was you! Why did you drive your son away? Why commit such a beastly act! If not for your hunt, forcing him to flee to Liang Province, the Si Kingdom would never have risen, the Autumn Dynasty would not have perished, and we would not be ruined!”

The other ministers realized the truth as well. Their eyes turned blood-red as they glared at the general’s family with murderous rage.

“Si Qi could make even the barren Si Kingdom prosper. If he had stayed in Autumn, we would have had a peerless Grand Tutor! Everyone would have benefited, and our positions would have remained secure… It’s all because of you—all because of you!”

Others raved as well: “How could you not treasure someone like Si Qi, yet instead dote on a useless waste like Si Yu? Blind fools! And now you’ve dragged us all down with you!”

The sorcerer added quietly: “Si Yu’s fate was unusual—it drained the fortune of those around him to strengthen himself. Had it been anyone but Si Qi in his place, he would have died long ago.”

On the high platform, Si Yi froze, his face twisting with murderous rage. He would never forgive those who had nearly destroyed his teacher!

“But Si Qi was powerful, and so he survived. Si Yu could only leech off the general’s household’s fortune. I see his fate is still strong, not weakened at all. The general’s family must have supported him all these years. Today’s downfall is your own doing. Had you done nothing, Si Yu would have died long ago.”

The sorcerer’s words stabbed like daggers into the hearts of the Si family.

The women who had married into the family, long resentful of Si Yu, broke down completely. They tore at the general’s wife and Si Yu, scratching and biting, wailing in despair: “I knew it, I knew it! Why did you ruin me?! What did I ever do to deserve this?! My husband slit his wrists every week because of you, my son was never born because of you—I hate you! I hate you! Your whole family is insane!”

As they screamed, they shoved the eldest young master and other men of the Si family. The men stood lifeless, like punctured balloons. The eldest young master let out an animal-like wail, pounding his own head in regret.

The once sweet-faced Si Yu, slapped several times, could no longer keep up the act. He shoved away the woman in front of him and kicked her in the stomach, shouting bitterly: “Did I force you to bleed for me? Did I hold a knife to your throats and make you hunt Si Qi? You chose to do it yourselves! And now you blame me? All I ever did was say a few words! You were just too stupid! You couldn’t even deal with a child! If Si Qi had died back then, none of this would be happening!”

“We’re too stupid? No—it was your scheming!” the women screamed through tears. “Wasn’t it your hints, your manipulation behind it all?! If you hadn’t left Si Qi to die for you, if you hadn’t insisted on staying in the general’s household, why would we have harmed him? Why sacrifice ourselves year after year to save you? You used the whole family as your offering, letting us be slaughtered for your sake!”

Si Yu snapped: “If I really had that power, would my life have been this miserable? You say you wanted to save me, but you ignored the real cures, letting me suffer day and night. I’ve had enough of your hypocrisy!”

The Si family listened, hearts torn apart. “Good. Good. At last you speak your true thoughts!”

The general’s wife collapsed, hair disheveled, staring blankly at her venomous son as if seeing his real face for the first time. Silent tears streamed down her cheeks.

She turned toward the high platform, where Si Qi now stood—noble, strong, revered by all. He looked down on them calmly, without the slightest ripple in his gaze, as if seeing strangers, not his own mother.

Suddenly, she felt it was all a cruel joke, as if the world mocked her blindness. This was her true-born son, yet she had scorned him, treasuring a false gem in Si Yu, letting herself be used like a fool for life.

Her defenses finally shattered. She fell to the ground and wept bitterly.