Chapter 116 Enthronement and Conferment

Yinzhen did not immediately agree to the demands of the civil and military officials.

We have both the moral high ground and the proper status, so why rush things?

Emperor Kangxi ascended the throne on the third day after Emperor Shunzhi's death due to special circumstances. However, the power transition between Yinzhen and Kangxi was smooth, so Yinzhen was more willing to observe the mourning rites, hold the funeral first, and postpone his ascension to the throne.

Therefore, on that day, after the court officials suggested that he ascend the throne, Yinzhen proposed to temporarily replace "ascension to the throne" with "enthronement," and not to hold the enthronement ceremony first, but to prioritize Kangxi's funeral.

Seeing that the new emperor was filial, the ministers naturally did not object.

Thus, before Kangxi's coffin, and witnessed by civil and military officials and his brothers, Yinzhen completely completed the transfer of power. Because no enthronement ceremony was held, strictly speaking, Yinzhen can only be considered a "regent emperor" at this time.

After the simple enthronement ceremony was completed, Yinzhen issued an edict that the emperor's death would be a national mourning, which naturally had to be announced to the world, and all the people should observe mourning together.

From the day of Emperor Kangxi's death, civil and military officials and all common people were forbidden from engaging in entertainment for one hundred days, from slaughtering animals for forty-nine days, and from getting married for one month.

Regarding this matter, Yinzhen entrusted the supervision to the newly appointed "Prince Li," Yinreng. Yes, under the pretext of the late emperor's concern for the deposed crown prince, Yinzhen completely lifted Yinreng's confinement and handed over this task to him.

However, under the pretext of fearing that he might have difficulty handling his duties, he bestowed upon him the title of Prince Li. Of course, his primary responsibility was to oversee ministers and members of the imperial clan; commoners were not included.

The civil and military officials and members of the imperial family didn't care about the new emperor's leniency towards the common people. What they cared about was that, at least Yinzhen had shown enough filial piety and tolerance so far, not even minding the deposed crown prince. They assumed that after ascending the throne, he wouldn't be as harsh on his ministers as before.

To outsiders, it seemed the new emperor was starting to cultivate a good reputation. A good reputation was a relief; they no longer felt like they were risking their lives to carry out their duties. For a time, Yinzhen's public image improved considerably, and political affairs proceeded much more smoothly.

Kangxi's coffin was placed in the Qianqing Palace, with a red banner placed outside the palace gate. Yinzhen ordered his ministers to propose a posthumous title and temple name. During the 27-day mourning period, as the "acting emperor" who had not yet ascended the throne, Yinzhen strictly followed etiquette when reviewing the memorials from his ministers, using blue ink for all of them, a practice known as "blue annotations".

Twenty-seven days later, Kangxi's coffin was moved to the funeral palace for temporary storage, awaiting burial. Once the nearest auspicious day was chosen, the coffin was sent to the Eastern Qing Tombs for burial.

After the tomb was sealed, a ceremony was held in the Long'en Hall to inscribe the spirit tablet, placing the written tablet on a seat and offering incense and scriptures. After the ceremony, the spirit tablet was escorted back to Beijing and placed in the Imperial Ancestral Temple on the east side of the Forbidden City.

After nearly two months of twists and turns, Kangxi's funeral was finally brought to a complete end. During this period, Yinzhen's hands-on approach to affairs, filial piety, brotherly love, and benevolence deeply moved the hearts of many veteran officials and members of the imperial clan.

The new emperor's filial piety spread far and wide, and shortly after the funeral, many ministers submitted another memorial, respectfully requesting that Yinzhen hold a coronation ceremony.

This time, Yinzhen did not refuse.

In the early morning, sunlight shines on the golden roofs of the Forbidden City, gleaming with dazzling light.

Inside and outside the palace, a scene of bustling activity unfolded in an orderly fashion. Ministers, dressed respectfully in their court robes, stood in neat rows on the square in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony.

As the solemn bells rang, the coronation ceremony officially began.

Wearing a dragon robe and a crown, Yinzhen, surrounded by guards and eunuchs and under the watchful eyes of the crowd, slowly ascended the throne in the Hall of Supreme Harmony.

At this moment, Yinzhen was cold and dignified. His aura was so imposing that people dared not look him in the eye. His majestic imperial presence was nothing like that of a newly enthroned emperor, but rather that of a wise and enlightened ruler who had ruled for many years and held power in his hands.

Only at this moment did the princes fully realize that the emperor in power was no longer their father, but their brother. Their minds were filled with countless thoughts, yet they didn't know how to express them.

After Yinzhen took his seat, the Minister of Rites read out the edict of accession, announcing the new emperor's ascension to the throne.

"Your Majesty, we pay our respects! Long live the Emperor!"

The courtiers knelt before the new emperor, demonstrating their submission. This was followed by a series of sacrificial ceremonies, offering sacrifices to Heaven, Earth, and the ancestral temples, and informing the emperor that they were ordained by Heaven and their ancestors.

Everything went smoothly, and soon the final ceremony arrived—the issuance of a general amnesty. This meant pardoning all criminals in the land, demonstrating the new emperor's benevolence and tolerance.

However, a slight mishap occurred at this step. Although Yinzhen issued an amnesty decree, he did not grant a general amnesty. He explicitly stated that those who were "rebellious," "surrendered," "wicked," or "immoral" would not be pardoned.

This means that he would not be pardoned for the four serious crimes of rebellion and usurpation of power, treason, intentional murder, and harming the people. Furthermore, he would not be pardoned even if he was granted one, and his treatment would be the same as that of Longkodo in the past.

Now that the imperial edict has been read aloud, can anyone still object?

Moreover, given Yinzhen's past image, the fact that he pardoned so many people and issued the edict was already a great relief to the court officials. Indeed, becoming emperor changes everything; he's become much more lenient, and the ministers have more hope for the future.

After Yinzhen ascended the throne, the first person he appointed was the Empress. This time, there was no so-called Empress Chun Yuan; Yixiu became the Empress Yuan, both nervous and excited, to rule the world.

[I, the Emperor, believe that the Way originates from Heaven and Earth, and that Heaven's beginning depends on Earth's completion. The transformation of the nation and its external affairs always rely on internal governance. Having been chosen as the consort, she is rightfully placed in the rightful position of honor. Therefore, I hereby appoint your Empress, Ulanara, of noble birth and illustrious lineage. You are gentle and kind, possessing exemplary virtues and conduct, embodying all six virtues, and long renowned for your virtuous conduct. You have promoted the four teachings within the palace, truly embodying the ideal of motherhood for the world. Now, by the benevolent decree of the Empress Dowager, I hereby appoint you as Empress. You must be filial and respectful, be benevolent to your subjects, diligent and frugal, and faithfully perform sacrificial rites. May you observe the completion of your blessed reign, strive to continue your virtuous legacy, and contribute to a peaceful and prosperous reign. Respectfully yours!]

The Empress's investiture ceremony was grand, held together with Yinzhen's coronation ceremony. Yixiu was delighted, unaware that Yinzhen simply wanted to save money.

After all, such a grand investiture ceremony was extremely expensive, and holding just one was enough to make him feel the pinch. In the past, he didn't care about money that wasn't his own, but now that he was the emperor, Yinzhen felt that Suhe was doing a very good job as the Minister of Revenue.

After the empress was officially appointed, all the affairs of the inner palace were handed over to Yixiu to handle.

Yixiu quickly adapted to her role, taking the memorial regarding the ranks of the women in the inner palace to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to pay her respects to Yinzhen. To show his respect for Kangxi, Yinzhen did not reside or conduct business in the Palace of Cleansing, but instead moved into the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects."

"Get up." Yinzhen closed the memorial and looked gently at the radiant Yixiu. "How come you have time to come to the Hall of Mental Cultivation? Have you sorted out all the matters in the harem?"

"Your Majesty also said that you have pushed all the affairs of the harem onto me. It is not something that can be sorted out in a short time."

"Haha, Xiao Yi is capable, so he should do more work."

Yinzhen smiled guiltily, and seeing this, Yixiu gave him a coquettish look. Yinzhen entrusted all the affairs of the harem to her; wasn't that a form of trust? Although this trust was somewhat heavy, Yixiu was still happy to have this sweet trouble.

Getting back to the main topic, Yixiu handed over the memorial in her hand. "Your Majesty, I have indeed come today with an important matter concerning the inner palace. The ranks of my sisters have not yet been determined. So, I have prepared a memorial and would like to submit it to Your Majesty for review."

"Alright, then I'll take a look."

Yinzhen opened the memorial, glanced at the series of ranks proposed by Yixiu, raised an eyebrow, and thought that Yixiu was indeed a virtuous and magnanimous empress.

Concubine Nian Shilan had a daughter who was granted the title of Imperial Noble Consort; Concubine Qi Yuebin had an adopted son who was granted the title of Imperial Consort; and Concubine Song Wan'er had a daughter who was granted the title of Imperial Consort.

Princess Li Jingyan, Niohuru Yuyao, and Geng Shanyun all had sons and were granted the title of Consort.

Mei Qiyue, the concubine who gave birth to the second prince, and Feng Ruozhao, Lü Yingfeng, and Cao Qinmo, who entered the mansion in the forty-third year, were all granted the title of Noble Lady.

The last to enter the mansion were Fei Yunyan, her concubines Yuan Yuxiu, Liu Qingxue, and Feng Changzai.

Even Rouze, whom Yixiu disliked the most, received the rank of concubine.

After reading it, under Yixiu's somewhat uneasy gaze, Yinzhen said gently, "The Empress is magnanimous. There's no need to grant her such a high position, as it would make future promotions difficult."

"Your Majesty was negligent..."

Yixiu wanted to kneel down and beg for forgiveness, but Yinzhen stopped her, saying, "It was just idle talk between husband and wife, there's no need to beg for forgiveness."

"Yes, thank you, Your Majesty. Then, Your Majesty, how should it be revised?" Yixiu smiled gently, appearing very moved. She looked at Yinzhen with dependent eyes for help, but wasn't this also a test? By elevating his rank so high, she was testing Yinzhen's intentions.

If Yinzhen agreed, it would establish her image as a virtuous empress; if he disagreed, it would allow her to gauge his opinion of the women in the inner palace. Yixiu had become quite adept at using such harmless tactics.

"In my opinion, Shilan is fit to be made a concubine, with the title 'Hua'; Yuebin... I'll also bestow upon her the title 'Duan'; Wan'er is raising my eldest daughter, so making her a concubine would be appropriate, but I won't grant her a title for now."

Hearing the arrangements for the concubines' positions made by Yinzhen, Yixiu understood. Among the three, Nian Shilan was the most favored, but in terms of influence, Qi Yuebin was the most important. It seemed that the Emperor knew about Qi Yuebin's health condition.

Of the remaining people, some were promoted and some were demoted.

Li Jingyan was made a concubine without a title; Niu Gulu Yuyao was made a Xi concubine; Geng Shanyun was demoted to a Noble Lady because she had once harmed Nian Shilan.

Mei Qiyue was made Ning Guiren, Feng Ruozhao was made Jing Guiren, Cao Qinmo's rank remained unchanged, and Lü Yingfeng was demoted to Changzai because of her bad speech.

Fei Yunyan was brought in by Nian Shilan's subordinates after Nian Shilan gave birth to her daughter. Out of respect for Nian Shilan, she was promoted to Consort Li.

Yuan Yuxiu's rank remained unchanged, while Liu Qingxue, like Geng Shi, was demoted to the rank of "Ying" (a lower-ranking concubine) due to her past actions.

As for Rouze, Yinzhen demoted her to the rank of Noble Lady, but gave her the title "Wan".