Chapter 528 Lingjue Twelve Years, Everything is Completed
After all the ministers paid their respects in unison, the Three Dukes, Nine Ministers, kings, marquises and other important officials of the court came forward in order to pay their respects.
Among the three sons of the Luo family who came to Chang'an this time, Luo Lan is the Wushuang Marquis, and also the commander of the Temple Army, a leading figure in the Western Regions.
As soon as he arrived in Chang'an, he went into the palace with Marquis Anyang to meet the emperor and Huo Guang. It was also a good opportunity to report on his work and tell the emperor about the current situation in the Western Regions. The King of Dayuan East and the King of Wusun were both relatively long-lived and showed no signs of death.
Luo Qing was the chief academic officer of the Imperial Academy and the director of the Imperial Observatory, the most prestigious positions in the court, an important official with a rank of two thousand stones, and also one of the teachers responsible for teaching Liu She.
Um……
What Luo Qing taught Liu She was not the mindset of an emperor or the way of checks and balances, but the authentic Confucian and Taoist Huang-Lao school of thought.
Because of the lessons learned from Emperor Li and Crown Prince La, the Empress Dowager and Huo Guang naturally went to extremes in educating the future successor to the dynasty.
Liu She's character was a bit soft, so soft that he had no ambitions. He even had no desire for imperial power because he obtained the throne so easily.
An emperor who wanted a minister like Huo Guang, who was in charge of the government, to work for a few more years would be quite outrageous among emperors.
When the two men came forward to pay their respects, Liu She returned the greeting with a very solemn expression, especially to Luo Qing, he bowed solemnly as he would do when paying respects to a prime minister.
Luo Bai and Wang Wenjun stepped forward to pay their respects.
"May the Emperor be safe and sound."
This was the first time Liu She had seen Luo Bai in his seventeen years of life. In the fifth year of Lingjue, when the Luo family presented the "General History of the Xia Dynasty", it was Luo Qing who came, but Luo Bai did not.
Liu She looked at the middle-aged man in front of him with some curiosity, and then looked at Wang Wenjun beside him. Like everyone else, he was shocked and returned the greeting solemnly: "My lord, I wish you all the best.
I heard about you from the chief priest when I was young, and today I finally get to see your true appearance.
One hundred and fifty years ago, your ancestor King Zhaosheng and my ancestor Emperor Gao jointly destroyed the tyrannical Qin Dynasty. Then the Mandate of Heaven descended, the Han Dynasty was born, and the State of Zhao was established.
After one hundred and fifty years of mutual support, today the Han Dynasty is at its peak, the Zhao State is thriving, and the Liu and Luo families are famous throughout the world.
May the Han Dynasty and the Zhaogong Kingdom be united forever and resonate with the other states. May the Liu family and the Luo family walk together to the end of time."
Luo Bai had long heard from Luo Qing that the current emperor had a gentle and even naive character. Seeing that it was indeed true, he bowed again to express his gratitude.
Liu She looked at Wang Wenjun again and said, "Good luck to you, Madam.
I have read widely, and I like to read the Book of Songs and Chu Ci the most. There are many descriptions of Xizi, the ancestor of the Luo family, in them. Especially since the Book of Songs and Chu Ci are gorgeous and full of imagery, every time I read them, I am fascinated but also confused.
The people of Chu compared Xishi to the goddess of Chu and to a fairy concubine.
But how could there be someone in the world who is praised no less than the fairy concubine?
After meeting your respected wife today, I realized that the legend of Xi Shi, which has been passed down for hundreds of years throughout China and even praised by Confucius as the most beautiful woman in the world, was not false at all.
Only then did I realize that what Gongzi Bai said was true. There really are women in this world who are so beautiful that even a country would lose everything to them that it is hard to forget them.
I wish you and your wife to be together forever. If a child is born and grows up, he can be sent to Chang'an and I will bestow him with a high position and noble title.
With the looks of you and your wife, the children you give birth to will surely be outstanding. My Han would like to take advantage of your and your wife's aura."
What Liu She actually wanted to say most was that after meeting Wang Wenjun, he finally believed that the stories of Jie of Xia and Mei Xi, Zhou of Shang and Daji, and You of Zhou and Bao Si were true.
It turns out that there really are women in this world who are so beautiful that they can make kings give up their kingdoms.
But it is too impolite to say this, because it is not appropriate to praise someone by the term 'a beauty that brought disaster to the country'. So, Xi Shi, a woman who also married into the Luo family, was used as a comparison. Xi Shi was probably the only woman in the pre-Qin period with peerless beauty who had not been involved in the destruction of a country.
Wang Wenjun's only impression of the emperor in front of him was that Luo Qing said he had difficulty in having children, so he married hundreds of beautiful women, which he found quite funny. Upon hearing the emperor's blessing, Wang Wenjun and Luo Bai thanked him again.
Huo Guang looked at this scene and nodded with a smile. The Empress Dowager, the princes of Guandong and a large number of other people nodded secretly. The good relationship with the Luo family was a key factor in ensuring the stability of Guandong, just like maintaining the relationship with the Lingnan Kingdom to ensure the stability of Lingnan.
The emperor has done a good job, and this is what a benevolent emperor can bring.
The ministers came forward one by one to pay their respects.
“Ding! Ding! Ding!”
Three clear and dull bells rang out, and the musicians in the hall slowly began to play grand and solemn ceremonial music. The palace maids danced gracefully in the hall with slender figures and elegant dance moves.
After three rounds of drinking, the Empress Dowager looked at the whole audience and said loudly: "Now the Emperor has a son, but the Queen is vacant. The country cannot be without a king, and the king cannot be without a queen.
If this continues, the yin and yang of the world will be thrown into disarray and disasters will abound.
I believe that you all are well aware of my intention to select a queen for the emperor.
The Queen of the Han Dynasty, the mother of all people, is of vital importance.
I have to be cautious and want to choose a lady from a prominent family who has noble character, is well-educated, and knows when to act.
After much deliberation, I finally chose the candidate for the empress, who is the noble daughter of the Marquis of Huaiyin.
Marquis Wumu of Huaiyin, the first contributor to the founding of the Han Dynasty!
I have always respected him. He has worked diligently and obeyed the imperial family for one hundred and fifty years. I can rest assured of his loyalty.
I love the noble lady from the marquis's family very much. She will definitely be a good match for the emperor.
A day has been chosen for the wedding of the Emperor and the Empress, and the Grand Marshal and General Huo Guang has been appointed as the Chief Ambassador. Please congratulate them and go to the Marquis of Huaiyin to pay his respects. "
The noble lady of Huaiyin Marquis’ family!
Unexpected, yet reasonable, this was the thought of the ministers in the palace.
There were rumors before that because the emperor was fond of Confucian classics, he wanted to marry a woman from a Confucian classics family.
But in the end, a noble lady from the founding marquisate's family was chosen as the queen.
This has always been the choice of the Han emperors. Since the daughters of the Luo family basically did not marry outside the family, the first choice of the Han emperors was always the daughters of the marquisates. The royal princesses also married into these marquisates' families. This was to learn from the experience of the harmonious and close alliance between Ji and Jiang during the Bang Zhou period.
Emperor Xiaowu and Emperor Xiaoxuan were special cases.
Marquis Huaiyin was both happy and worried about his daughter being chosen as the queen. If he said he did not want the position of queen, it would be too arrogant. The Han family was not the Luo family, who could treat the position of queen as nothing. Only when Luo Cai led the Han family did he not take the position of queen seriously.
Especially at a time when the marquis families were generally in decline, once the Han family left the county where they lived, their prestige and power would be greatly reduced.
If his daughter became the queen, no one in the world would dare to be arrogant to Han.
After all, the most powerful family in the Han Dynasty will always be the family of foreign relatives. The most prominent times of the Zhang family of Xinzheng and the Lu family of Jimo were when they were foreign relatives.
Look at the Xu family now. They were just an ordinary family in the beginning. When the Empress Dowager became noble, the Xu family rose in status and even became one of the ministers of the late emperor!
The worry is that there are many pregnant women today, and if their daughter is not favored when she marries, there will be nothing they can do.
However, at this point, no one could oppose what the Queen Mother, the true supreme ruler of the world, said. Even the current Duke Zhao no longer had the prestige to interfere in the affairs of the Han court because of his relatively small achievements and his ability to protect himself. This matter had become a foregone conclusion.
After the ministers paid their respects to Marquis Huaiyin, they waited for the future queen to appear. The empress dowager and Marquis Huaiyin exchanged marriage certificates. Many people in the palace had seen Marquis Huaiyin's daughter.
The youngest daughter of Marquis Huaiyin is unmarried and quite beautiful. Previously, some princes of the Liu clan and the Xiao clan of Lanling wanted to marry the Marquis Huaiyin, but unexpectedly, the Empress Dowager fell in love with the daughter of the Han clan. The head of the Lanling Xiao clan and other princes could only shake their heads helplessly.
The attempt to kidnap a bride has landed them in the royal family, probably because they don't want to continue in this business anymore.
The Empress Dowager then summoned the future Queen. The woman was very gentle and beautiful, and her every move was virtuous and polite. Even though Wang Wenjun was a pearl and a beauty who dominated the world before her, everyone had to admit that she was a great beauty. She was dressed in palace clothes and looked like a lady from a noble family.
But the hall suddenly fell silent, and then everyone in the hall bowed in unison, "Congratulations, Your Majesty!"
There were expressions of shock in everyone's eyes. She was a beauty, yes, and the daughter of Marquis Huaiyin, yes, but she was not the Marquis Huaiyin's youngest daughter!
Everyone thought that the queen would be the unmarried younger daughter of Marquis Huaiyin, but who would have thought that she would be his widowed eldest daughter!
The Han Dynasty indeed had no concept of chaste and heroic women, but after carefully selecting for such a long time, everyone turned their attention to Liu She. It turned out that the emperor was not looking for her to give birth to a prince, but for a really beautiful woman!
The musicians played music and the hall was filled with joy. Everyone watched with a smile as the Empress Dowager and Marquis Huaiyin exchanged marriage certificates. Just when they thought the big event at the banquet had ended like this.
Huo Guang suddenly stood up and said loudly: "Your Majesty the Empress Dowager, Your Majesty the Emperor, I have something to report!"
The hall fell silent instantly, and everyone stared at Huo Guang. The Empress Dowager asked, "What's the important matter, General?"
Huo Guang bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I have been able to assist Your Majesty because of the trust of the late emperor. For the past ten years, I have been trembling with fear and treading on thin ice. Since last year, my health has been getting worse.
I am like the setting sun, and Your Majesty is like the rising sun. Now that we are married, we can take charge of the government. I am willing to follow the wings of King Luo Wen, beg for my bones, and only wish to live out my days in peace. I hope Your Majesty will grant me permission."
Huo Guang's voice echoed in the hall. Liu She was so shocked that he couldn't speak. The Empress Dowager suddenly realized what had happened. All the ministers looked at Huo Guang who was bowing in shock.
Return power!
Huo Guang actually wanted to return power and take back the supreme power in the world.
This is true!
It leaves one speechless!
Liu Xiang was the first to react and quickly stepped forward and said, "Please ask the Empress Dowager and Your Majesty to take charge of the government."
In theory, the empress dowager must be in charge of the government before the emperor is crowned.
"I can't lose the general!"
Liu She looked around and sighed, "General, please don't abandon me."
Huo Guang coughed twice and said, "Your Majesty is gifted by nature, but I am old. I am afraid that God will not grant me more years."
Poor health, this reason is really irresistible. Liu She looked at the empress dowager for help. Xu Pingjun understood that Huo Guang had wanted to step down a long time ago. The couple had tried to sound her out many times, and then they said, "The general has worked hard for the country. I agree, but the general must not leave Chang'an. If there is anything important, the emperor and I will ask about politics."
Huo Guang instantly breathed a sigh of relief when he heard this. He turned around and looked at everyone in the hall. Even Prime Minister Liu Xiang was looking at him with admiration. He felt filled with pride.
From now on, I, Huo Guang, will be different from you guys!
He has great achievements but does not overshadow his master; he takes power but does not cling to his position!
————
Huo Guang, the Grand Marshal, the General, the Marquis of Bowang, was the second best among the dukes of the Han Dynasty, the King of Luo Wen! ——"Miscellaneous Sayings of the Han Dynasty"
(End of this chapter)
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