Chang'an is kinda big, I mean an utterly massive metropolis as there's no other word for it, from what I can tell nearly two million people are here.
The bubonic plague would see this as a buffet.
It was easy to break into the city, with a simple flick of my wrist I teleported and quickly mingled into the crowd.
Gotta say, the market stalls are at least still full, plenty of people using Tang coins to purchase their items and here I was taking in the sights.
7th century China was already interesting, no massive skyscrapers, no Industrial Revolution, no Communism; instead, it was a Celestial Government.
The Emperor is considered the 'Son of Heaven' and is considered Divinely appointed to rule.
As such, when I do vassalize Tang, I am considering myself technically above heaven, that'll be a wild thing for everyone to understand when I'm done over here.
Another thing to note is that the architecture is surprisingly stable, you'd think with how often China breaks you'd find unstable buildings ready to break at the end of the century.
"Hello, child" I stood before an old lady who was selling some rather nice silks.
"Getting something nice for your mother?" She asked as I picked up a yellow silk.
"No, she's gone" I tested the texture, despite it being handwoven, it's smoothness rivaled automated clothing from my previous life.
"Ah, something for your school crush?" She still kept her calm smile.
Grandmas…
"…yes" I lied, I wasn't going to say that I'm here to overthrow your government.
That'd be strange.
"Ah, then let me recommend this one" she pulled out a rather nice shade of purple silk and placed it on the table of her stall.
She fully expanded it allowing me to see it, and I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised, along with its rather nice purple color, it also has spots of gold in it.
"That's nice" I commented on it.
"Oh, thank you child" she smiled as a shrill scream cut through the crowd.
I ignored it.
"How much for the silk?" I asked her, yet she didn't answer.
"…ma'am?" I waved my hand in front of her yet she ignored me and instead she kowtowed with sweat on her face.
So I decided to look behind me.
Three people, two men, one female, all three noticeably 'cultivators' but in reality they're just Chinese magi.
They were staring down at a woman with broken arms.
Holy shit, the tropes of Chinese cultivation novels are true!
Wait, I need to watch this.
"Kowtowing now? I already broke your arm, you stole from me, and you expected you: a mortal, to get away with it?" ooo~ drama!
A crowd was forming and I was a part of it.
"Please! Spare me!" The Broken Arm girl screamed out.
Then an idea came to me. I could use this as a distraction to steal the Sui boy, not that I needed one, it'll just make things easier for me.
"Hey, you four, could you kindly fuck off, this little loverspat and kink thing you're doing isn't appropriate for the public" I spoke as I walked forwards.
Ragebait them into causing a citywide attack or something.
"Ex…cuse me?" The center one seemed confused at my words.
"Scram" I shoo'd them away with my hands "you're causing a scene"
"Do you know who he is?!" The other male screamed.
"No, and don't tell me, it simply won't matter" I walked forwards and slightly tapped the center male on the arm.
"I mean, you're here in the street causing a scene as if you matter" I covers my mouth as if I'm talking about gossip.
"Almost like you matter~"
This got him.
"You dare?!" Fire licked at his fingers.
"My cultivation is of-" I cut him off.
"Womp, womp, I don't care, so here's what's going to happen, you're gonna fuck off, kill yourselves, and we're going to continue on with our days okay?" I asked with a smile.
Fire flew past my head and landed on a building, catching on fire.
My plan worked!
The plan was simple: blow up the issue, force the prideful magi to throw a spell that'll cause collateral damage.
And now a building is on fire.
"Let me help you fix this" fire warped around my hands.
"Stop!" Guards surrounded us.
"No" I threw the fire.
You know, with fire now spreading to multiple buildings and with screams now filling the ears, the distraction was complete!
Ignore the fact I'm making up my plan as I go.
The palace was a massive place, even from the outside I could tell it rivaled the one back home, guess I gotta make my own palace when I get back!
Entering it was as easy as jumping from rooftop to rooftop, you see every palace has a prison and finding it was so easy, I mean, just find the bamboo cages.
Entering the building was easy as I turned myself invisible as I just walked in.
Inside were multiple bamboo cages and only one kid inside of it.
Looking at him I was appalled, not at his state but rather how he looked, his right eye was like two inches down from his other, his chin was elongated and he had patchy hair.
"…how inbred are you?"
"Uh" was that all you could say when asked that?!
God, his family tree isn't even a peace sign, it's a goddamn line!
Oh god that woman I was talking to…
"What's your name?" I asked.
"Me name… Hungao" I slowly inhaled.
Peace and calm.
"Alright Hungao, let's make you… an emperor for now" I winced as I tore the bamboo cage apart and pulled him through, I can't get mad at the boy for the way he could be born.
However, I could be upset at the woman for completely not mentioning that.
Then again who wants to say 'were more inbred than the Habsburgs and Targareyens combined!'
Fucking hell.
Moving on, the flames of the city burning made one hell of a backdrop and the need to get Hungao away from the palace, so I can have the Emperor accept vassalization.
Teleporting the four or so old child to the location of Lang'er I was forced to make a decision.
Let the fires burn or put them out.
True decisions here.
Usually I wouldn't care, yet if I don't there could be accusations that 'the Prince of Persia doesn't care about his people!' And what not.
So what to do?
If I put them out I'm faced with a still head on strong Emperor of Tang who's no doubt going to die rather than kneeling to anyone that isn't a literal god.
But, curse my bleeding heart, I'm just going to put out the fires I caused and just force the Emperor to kneel.
Gotta stop overthinking things.
A snap of my fingers and a flick of my wrist I can turn these fires into a downpour!
Or something like that.
Rain started to come down as I ended my invisibility spell, now comes the most important part, first impressions.
First impressions are everything, they are the building blocks of how people will see you for at least a few months and while first impressions are not that high of a deal to some.
For most, they dictate how they'll treat you during your first conversation, as such coming off as hostile during the first impression could have any and all negotiation degrade until nothingness.
Now, am I still upset that Pala was taken from me and I was forced to invade the largest county in the current day in order to complete my goal and now I'm taking out on them?
Maybe.
But that's no reason for me to be hostile to the Emperor.
"Get down here Emperor! Get down here, you inbred trash!"
However, that reasoning dwarfed my other reason: I want to.
Guards poured in, as swords and spears were quickly being pointed at me as guards nicked arrows by the hundreds.
Guess they need thousands or so to guard one man.
The doors to the main palace opened up and a regal looking man walked forwards, he was beardless and his bald head was covered in the rain.
"Who cares to speak this way to the Emperor?!" Then his eyes turned to me and he laughed.
"A child?! Go back home to your mother, I'll forgive your insolence this once, only after you kowtow a thousand times" so this kowtow thing is pretty important here huh?
"No" this one word immediately sent the man into a fury, he wasn't the Emperor, that much I could tell instantly.
"You dare? I am the-" I interrupted him.
"You aren't the Emperor of Tang, as such you are not at the same station to speak to me, now bring him out here, or I will get him out here myself" I waved him off.
"Who do you think you are, child?!?!" He downright screamed.
"Who am I?" Oh, boy, here I go being cringe again!
"I am the 'Flame of Persia' the 'Promised Prince' I and the 'Prince of Perisa' now bring the Emperor out here so he can surrender!" I commanded.
He only laughed.
I didn't.
"Child… I don't know what bet you lost, but, joking about being the enemy of heaven and acting like this… apologize at once and you will return home alive!" He stepped down the stairs as he talked.
I only crossed my arms.
"No, last time I'll ask before I drag him out of this place, bring your emperor here, now" jeeze now that I say it out loud, it does sound kinda bratty.
Must be my voice.
"Seize him!" The man ordered.
The time, I was less kind, almost immediately with a single step forwards from me, all the guards were frozen, instead of elite guards now all that surrounded us were frozen men as the man I was talking to almost immediately fell onto his ass.
"Y-y-you" he stammered, ima call him 'Stammer'
"I asked, once, then twice, so now I'll do it myself, remember this day, as you'll be the only one who'll be able to tell today, everyone else dies" I spoke as I conjured up a small sword.
He shook as I walked by.
Kicking in the doors to the court broke the hinges and immediately forced the courtiers to stand up in shock.
Immediately I locked eyes with the Emperor "You, stay" I commanded as vines and roots locked around him, and I gotta say, magic is such a cheat code.
"What?! How dare you do this!" He spoke as he was slammed into his throne.
"I am the 'Prince of Perisa' and I'm here to vassalize you, or originally to vassalize India, then you took my prize, so now the Heaven of Mandiate is my vassal, please, do me a favor, and resist" blood flew from the throat of the nearest Courtier as his throat was sliced open.
"Guards!" A courtier yelled, yet no one moved to help.
Blood flew from severed limbs and sliced throats, lighting and fire flew from my finger tips as a lot of courtiers were reduced to either bloodied paste or ashes scattered to the wind.
"Please, oh mighty Buddha" a courtier decided his last words as he was beheaded by my blade, usually I wouldn't do this, go to the main person and force him to kneel.
However the Emperor would rather watch his thousand wives or so die with his child inside him than kneel, as such extremes of extremes must be taken.
A complete scorch earth policy.
This would probably make me into a demon in Chinese mythology, but do I care? No.
History is written by the victors, this was seen time and time again; not my fault that the losers don't get their story told.
Let history be murky, there was never a straight story ever told.
Blood and gore covered the palace floor, walls, and even small bits touched the ceiling.
"Tell me Emperor, was this what you thought was going to happen?" I asked as I wiped the blood onto his thigh as he shook.
"Why… why can't you just accept a white piece?" He seems oddly calm.
"Because it's only victory or death, and I do not die by lesser hands" I shrugged as the roots and vines wrapped around him let go and he was free of movement.
"Now, c'mere" I grabbed him by the hair and with a bit of magical strength into my muscles and he flew out of the court and into downpour, and he rolled multiple times down the stairs and even broke a few ice statues.
Excuse me sir, friendly fire will not be tolerated.
Staring down at the Emperor I saw him breathing heavily and him staring daggers up at me.
"What?" I asked him confused.
"Heaven will not bow to you!" He yelled at me.
"It already has" I shrugged and his eyes widened at me.
"Hangao Sui, he still lives, as such he'll kneel to me" I shrugged.
"A dying dynasty? You'd expect me to just allow that?!" He stood.
"I don't need your permission? In what way do you expect that I needed your permission" I asked, confused.
"One day… you're going to have to face whatever saw fit to let you exist and justify your existence!" The Emperor pointed at me.
"I'm the beast of humanity, I existed because none of you could ever pull your heads out of your asses and work together for more than a year without wanting to stab each other in the back" I started oh, yeah, I'm going full into my beast persona, let this historians have a wet dream about this!
"Every action, religious, greed, wrath, list, whatever else, only fuels me into becoming stronger. So here's my question: who are you to deny me anything?" I asked as I sat on the last step of the stairs.
"As for justifying my existence? I don't have to, a higher being than even the heavens have justified me, and I'd you got a problem about it, cry to someone who cares" I kicked him in the ribs forcing him back into the ground.
"Emperor Taizong, you are hereby removed from your position as Emperor, and Hangao Sui will ascend as both Emperor of Mandaite of Heaven and vassal of the Persian Empire" I commanded.
"NEVER!" God he was loud.
Or by Ahura.
I shook my head "you have no say in this fool, and I grow tired of talking to such a man, in one of your sayings you were simply just a fog in a well"
He sneered at me as he slowly got up from the ground I kicked him from, and his rage was more than evident in his eyes.
"What?" I asked.
"I curse you" oh, he was cursing me, does he even have any personal power?
I instead kicked him in the gut again and stabbed him in the throat, I wasn't just going to stand there and let someone curse me! I've seen enough Disney films and similar stuff like that to not let anyone curse you.
"Alright, now it's time for the shit ton of paperwork after this… damn it" I cussed as the sword dissolved into nothingness as I walked away.
A/N: sorry for not uploading yesterday, I was playing Stardew Valley… that's the only reason.