Chapter 948 Who is the protagonist?
The huge team came all the way from Chang'an to the eastern capital Luoyang.
Chang'an was chosen as the capital mainly for defense and security, but for the empire, it was too far west. Therefore, starting from the Zhou Dynasty, any regime that established its capital in Chang'an would build Luoyang to monitor the east of the empire.
This is even more true for the Tang Dynasty.
Luoyang has the Grand Canal connecting the north and the south, so grain from Hebei and Jianghuai can be sent to Luoyang. It is the most important city for the Tang Dynasty to radiate to the east.
The emperor went on a journey to offer sacrifices to the gods, and together with the civil and military officials of the imperial court, as well as the accompanying palace maids and troops, more than 100,000 people came here. Offering sacrifices to the gods was an event that would not hesitate to involve fighting.
After years of renovation, especially after Wu Zetian came to power, she invested a lot of resources to renovate Luoyang. Today's Luoyang is much more magnificent than it was during the Zhenguan period. The Tianshou Palace she built in Luoyang is a huge building complex that is in no way inferior to the Daming Palace in Chang'an. After several years, not even one-third of it was completed.
The reason for such a large-scale construction was certainly not for the sake of pure enjoyment. Ever since Wu Zhao took power, she had the idea of moving the capital.
This time, Li Zhi came to Luoyang for the Fengshan ceremony and held a grand banquet for all his ministers in Luoyang. After the banquet, Wu Zetian and Li Zhi took a rest and Wu Zetian took the opportunity to make a formal proposal to Li Zhi to make Luoyang the new capital of the Tang Dynasty.
Li Zhi was very shocked why Wu Zetian would have such an idea, "Queen, Guanzhong is a country surrounded by four barriers and a solid city, which can ensure the prosperity of our descendants for thousands of years. Why do you want to move the capital to Luoyang?"
Wu Zhao had thought about this question countless times before, and immediately said: "Of course it is extremely necessary.
From the perspective of destiny.
The Tang Dynasty was established under the mandate of Heaven by the Su King. Luoyang is a holy city where the emperor received his mandate. Moreover, Heluo was the residence of three generations of kings. What's inappropriate about this place being the capital of the Tang Dynasty?
In terms of food.
Zhou and Han established their capital in Guanzhong because the Guanzhong Plain was better than Luoyang and could support a larger population. Today, the world has been at peace for a long time, and the population has exceeded eight million households and is still increasing. The population of Chang'an alone has exceeded one million, and famine often occurs. The two of us have come to Luoyang for food twice, and even so, many court officials have starved to death on the road. Luoyang connects the north and the south, and has food supplies from Hebei and Jianghuai, so we no longer need to come to Luoyang for food every year.
Politically speaking.
The Tang Dynasty court was deeply constrained by Guanlong. Even if it took care of Shandong, it was still difficult to change the reality of using Guanzhong to suppress Shandong. If we move the capital to Luoyang, we can suppress Guanlong, elevate Shandong, appease Hebei, control Jianghuai, and establish the capital in Luoyang. Bingzhou, Yangzhou, Jingzhou, and Zhaozhou will all be controlled by the court nearby.
From a military perspective.
The capital was established in Guanzhong to prevent rebellion in Guandong, but now the enemies of the Tang Dynasty are not inside, but outside. We live in Luoyang, so we are not afraid of rebellion in Shandong. The real dangers are Tubo and Mobei, and Chang'an is under the iron hoofs of these two. Guanzhong defends both internally and externally. At that time, the Turks were directly at the gates of the city, and Tubo could also attack Chang'an from the plateau at any time. It was too dangerous. If there was a change in the Western Regions and the four counties in Hexi fell, the border defense of our Tang Dynasty would fall in Longyou, which is very close to Chang'an.
Luoyang, on the other hand, is not in such danger. If the army coming from the north wants to capture Luoyang, it must first conquer the mountainous Bingzhou, or the two states of You and Yan, and then go south and cross the Yellow River. Even so, Luoyang can be pushed to Jianghuai and Yizhou, or Jingzhou through the water system. All of them are cavalry armies and cannot cross the Yangtze River and Huaihe River. In today's era, Luoyang is safer than Chang'an.
This is why I want to move the capital to Luoyang. I hope Your Majesty will consider it carefully. This matter concerns the great plan of the country and must be completed."
Wu Zhao's voice was firm. She and Luo Junwei had discussed the matter of moving the capital to Luoyang many times. They had considered almost every situation and believed that it was very necessary. In this era of population explosion, Chang'an was no longer suitable as a capital. After all, it was a joke that Chang'an could not even afford the food supply for the capital.
If after a series of wars, the population was reduced by half to around 30 million, then Chang'an would indeed be suitable as the capital.
As soon as he saw Wu Zhao's expression, Li Zhi knew that this matter was not something he could veto. Although Wu Zhao had discussed it with him, the matter had actually been decided. He was just notified. Moreover, every point Wu Zhao said was in Li Zhi's mind. It was indeed an urgent problem to be solved. "Just do it according to the Queen's wishes. However, as Chang'an is the old residence of the imperial capital, it has a special status, so let's list it as Xijing."
Wu Zhao shook her head and rejected Li Zhi's proposal. "Guanzhong is the place where the Su King was born, and it has a special status. Moreover, the Tang Dynasty also has interests in the Western Regions, and will intervene in the future. We cannot give up. In the bigger picture, the Central Plains is too small. The six kingdoms system proposed by the national teacher should be matched with corresponding systems. At tomorrow's grand court meeting, I want to announce something to everyone."
The bright light of the lamp was reflected on Wu Zhao's face, and her expression was solemn, which reminded Li Zhi of the gods in the temple.
…
The next day, court officials filed secretly into the Tianshou Palace. Fengshan was a very complicated task that required a lot of preparation. Many preparation meetings were required just to discuss the details of the etiquette.
The atmosphere in the palace today was quite different. The emperor sat high on the throne, and the empress also sat solemnly. On both sides stood a group of ceremonial officials, each holding an imperial edict in their hands, leaving most of the ministers confused.
When the court bell rang, Li Zhi did not let his ministers speak, but said directly: "I summoned you all here today to announce some important events. This time, the Queen and I are visiting Luoyang, and there are some things to announce here. You all will obey my orders.
Minister of Rites, you come and give a lecture to the ministers."
Under the gazes of the crowd, Luo Junwei walked out of the ranks holding a court sceptre, then walked in front of the ministers, turned around and faced everyone, and struck the sceptre in her palm with a crisp sound, and then her clear voice like the song of an oriole also rang out in the hall, "Since ancient times, Fengshan has been a ceremony to offer sacrifices to heaven and earth, the so-called Emperor of Heaven, Empress of Earth, and the gods of mountains and rivers. The emperor is the son of the emperor, and he worships the emperor, while the ministers worship Empress of Earth, the god of the land and grain, on behalf of the empress. This time, the emperor will worship the emperor, and the empress will personally worship the gods of the land and grain, as well as the gods of mountains and rivers. You should all be aware of this."
It was unprecedented that half of the sacrificial ceremony was completed by the Queen herself. This was the real purpose of Wu Zhao bringing Li Zhi to Fengshan. Luo Su told her that if she wanted to consolidate her position, she had to learn to arm herself with the sacredness, and there was nothing that could enhance the sacredness better than sacrifice.
There was an uproar in the court, but no one knew what to say. This matter was not worth worrying about, and that was Empress Wu Zhao. In this situation, after the uproar, there was an eerie calm in the court. Even Luo Junwei couldn't help but raise her eyebrows. She was ready to use all kinds of classics to slap him in the face, but she didn't expect that she didn't use them.
Luo Junwei continued, "This time the two saints visited Luoyang. The queen was impressed by the sacredness of Luoyang and believed that the Fengshan event was worthy of celebration by the world, so she decided to make it a big event and change the reign title to 'Tiansheng'. You should all know about this."
It is quite normal to change the reign title during Fengshan, but the reign title is Tiansheng. Uncommon people may not understand it, but those who have been dealing with words, how could they not know what it means?
The so-called heavenly saints are the second saints.
Doesn't this clearly show that the status of the empress and the emperor are now equally high, and that now there are two saints ruling the country?
But how to oppose this?
There are too many interpretations for the reign title. Even if they want to speak to the emperor, they cannot use things they have speculated. Moreover, the court officials looked up at the emperor, but saw that he had no reaction at all. This made many people feel cold. It is impossible for the emperor not to see it, so this attitude means tacit consent.
Many people in the hall were so depressed that they were about to vomit blood. The feeling of allowing the opponent to punch them and every punch hit their flesh was really uncomfortable. What was even more uncomfortable was that they couldn't even fight back.
Luo Junwei's voice remained calm, as if she didn't see the expressions and gnashing of teeth of those people. She was the Minister of Rites, and it was her duty to stand here. "When the emperor passed away, the title of emperor was changed to emperor, and when the empress passed away, the title of empress was changed to empress. The emperor thought it was in line with the ancestors and it was inappropriate, so he changed the empress's title to queen of heaven to avoid taboos. You should all know this."
boom!
There was a real riot in the court now. The titles of Empress and Queen of Heaven sound completely different. Queen of Heaven is obviously a much higher title than Empress, as it is named after Heaven.
"His Majesty!"
Immediately, a minister stood out to protest, "How can the word 'Tian' be added to the title? Your Majesty, please withdraw your order."
Li Zhi and Wu Zhao's expressions remained unchanged, but Luo Junwei raised her eyebrows and finally came to life, asking with interest: "What is wrong with what the prime minister said? Which saint said it, which classic said it, or does the prime minister have any insights? Why not tell me here? I am in charge of the Ministry of Rites, but I don't know what's wrong with this. Now I want to hear the prime minister's opinion. If he can say something, then forget it. If he roars in the court but doesn't say anything, then I want to let the prime minister know what it means to have strict etiquette and laws, like a law and a blade!"
As she spoke, there was no trace of joking on Luo Junwei's face, and her pretty face turned cold and stern.
There was no reason for this. They just didn't want to see Wu Zetian and Li Zhi on an equal footing. The title of Queen of Heaven just touched their nerves too much. But if you look closely, this title is actually not contrary to etiquette or reason. Queen of Heaven, the Empress of the Emperor, there is nothing wrong with this.
"Since you can't say it, then just shut up. In this situation, even if you are a minister, you have no right to be reckless. If this happens again, even the emperor can't save you."
Luo Junwei's words were as sharp as a knife, not giving any face at all. Wu Zhao couldn't help but smile at the top. This scene was seen by the ministers below, who felt ashamed and angry. She snorted coldly and walked into the court.
When Luo Junwei saw him go back, she looked around the palace again, then turned to Wu Zhao and Li Zhi and said, "Your Majesty, Empress, I will take my leave."
Wu Zhao smiled and said, "Minister of Rites, please return to the ranks."
Luo Junwei returned to the ranks, still holding the imperial sceptre in her hand. Wu Zhao stood up and walked down from the throne step by step. Some of the ministers in the ranks had already begun to tremble.
"Today, the emperor and I have summoned all the ministers here not only to announce these few things, but also to announce another important event. I hope you will be aware of this."
Wu Zhao changed her self-proclaimed name to "Zhen", making everyone feel dazed. After coming to Luoyang from Chang'an, things seemed to have changed. This seemed to be Wu Zhao's territory, where everyone had to obey her. Half of the Fengshan rituals, the reign title of Tiansheng, the title of Queen of Heaven, and now calling herself "Zhen". In Luoyang, the two saints ruling the country became a reality, and the Tang Dynasty really changed.
Wu Zhao had gotten everything she wanted, what else should she do now?
Is there anything else worth her saying at the end?
"After discussing with the emperor, I believe that Chang'an is no longer suitable to be the imperial capital. We have decided to make Luoyang the future imperial capital of the Tang Dynasty. In the future, the Tang Dynasty court will reside in Luoyang. This place will have a new title, called the Divine Capital, Divine Capital Luoyang."
Move the capital!
Now almost all the prime ministers spoke out in opposition, especially those who came from Guanlong, who spoke out in opposition without hesitation. However, Wu Zetian listed the reasons she had given to Li Zhi before, one by one. Apart from political reasons, other problems were almost all difficult to resolve in the Tang Dynasty at present. She asked the prime ministers word by word, and their faces turned grim, but they didn't know how to respond.
This shows the importance of Wu Zhao recalling Luo Xuanling and Luo Xuanyun back to the central government to serve as prime ministers. When faced with such a matter, the prime minister could not resist Wu Zhao by making unreasonable demands.
For the Luo family, if it were not for the peace of the dynasty, they would naturally hope that the dynasty would always have its capital in Luoyang. This holy city becoming the capital would bring many benefits to the Luo family. And now making Luoyang the capital was the right thing to do, so the Luo family would not be polite. Luo Xuanling and Luo Xuanyun strongly stood up for Wu Zhao and supported her decision to move the capital to Luoyang.
[Since the collapse of the Mandate of Han, the new dynasty has once again positioned Luoyang as the imperial capital. Your family will receive 10,000 luck points every year.]
It was originally just a matter of Fengshan, but no one could have imagined that Wu Zhao would take the opportunity of leaving Chang'an to do so many things in Luoyang, and the emperor actually condoned all this. This made countless people swallow this loss. After all, this was not their territory now. It was too easy to make a person disappear on the way to Fengshan.
Wu Zhao just wanted to laugh out loud now. It was indeed a brilliant move to transfer these people out of Chang'an. Now that they were in Luoyang, where she had managed for many years, no one else would have a say. Not to mention that it was a long distance from here to Mount Tai. Anyone who disobeyed her will would die along the way.
Now everyone thinks that I am just trying to seize power. Well, now I will let you see that I am not one of those who only knows how to fight for power. Seizing power is just for fun with you.
"I am very pleased that you all agree with my idea.
I have been thinking that the territory of our Great Tang is vast now, but it is still a little far from the six kingdoms mentioned by the national master and the late emperor. When the territory of the Great Tang reaches its limit, the east-west territory will be 30,000 miles, and the north-south territory will be 30,000 miles. It is really vast and boundless, and I will not be able to travel all over the territory of the Great Tang in this lifetime.
Although it has not reached that point yet, I am worried that if future generations forget the great wish of our Tang Dynasty to encompass the six directions and eight wildernesses, then both I and the emperor will be ashamed to see the late emperor.
I have decided to establish the Six Cities System so that the world will never forget it.
Chang'an and Luoyang are the center of the world, Luoyang is the divine capital, and Chang'an is the central capital.
Kharakorum was the northern capital.
Guangzhou is the southern capital.
Yizhou was the western capital.
Then build the Eastern Capital on Sanxian Island.
The Tang Dynasty sent high-ranking officials and feudal kings to guard these six capitals. "
The hall suddenly fell silent.
The political status of each city is different. Counties are divided into high and low levels, states are divided into upper, middle and lower levels, and state governors are also divided into different levels.
The status of the four great governors of Yizhou, Yangzhou, Bingzhou and Jingzhou is also different.
Among them, Luoyang and Chang'an naturally have the most different status.
Raising the political status of a city is a very important thing, it can even change the political situation of a region.
Let’s not talk about Guangzhou. Jianghuai and Jingzhou already have a very high status now, and the south further south is just a foil.
The establishment of Yizhou, the Western Capital, will further elevate the status of the Anxi Protectorate. At the same time, it also means that the Tang Dynasty will once again usher in major changes in the Western Regions. After all, everyone knows that the most suitable city for the Tang Dynasty to be the Western Capital is Shenlin City.
Once the Western Capital is established, the attitude of the Western Regions will definitely change. The two sides have been at peace for many years, but everyone knows that peace will not last forever.
But Wu Zhao did not think so. In her opinion, the location of the Western Capital should be farther away, reaching Central Asia. Shenlin City could only intimidate the Western Regions and Central Asia, but if it went further west across the Pamir Mountains, it could intimidate West Asia, Central Asia, and South Asia. That means bringing the State of Zhao to be established in the future and the State of Chu to be established in India under the scope of supervision.
This is her real goal.
What attracted everyone's attention the most was the setting up of the Northern Capital, which was set up directly in Karakorum. Once the Northern Capital was set up, Karakorum had too many identities. It was not only the Northern Capital, but also the capital of the State of Yan, the headquarters of the Anbei Protectorate, and the meeting place of the various tribes on the grassland.
The undisputed first center on the Mobei grassland.
What would the King of Yan think? Beidu is the capital under the control of the imperial court. No one knows what will happen in a city of such a high level, but it can be seen from this that the imperial court is wary of Mobei, and this fear far exceeds that of other kingdoms.
Even though the current Mobei has neither the Western Regions nor Liaodong, it can be said that its arms have been cut off, and it does not even have the Monan grasslands, but it is still considered dangerous. This is because the Central Plains has suffered too much at the hands of Mobei.
If the Six Capitals System was really implemented, it would have a profound impact on the Tang Dynasty. After all, cities could be lost easily, but if the capital was lost, it had to be taken back, just like when Bingzhou was lost, Li Shimin had to lead his troops to take back Jinyang.
Wu Zhao set up the Six Capitals System, which seemed to show that she didn't care about the life and death of the Central Plains. Her naked ambition for territory and her determination to control the world were almost exposed to everyone. But if it was said that this was in line with the Six Kingdoms System, then who could say no?
"What do you think?"
Seeing that no one spoke, Wu Zhao's voice rang out in the hall, ringing in everyone's ears. Still no one spoke. Luo Xuanling looked around, and then struck the imperial court sceptre in his palm, with a crisp sound ringing in the hall, "Your Majesty, what you said is true insight. Although the Tang Dynasty is large, we have never had an inch of land in excess, but we have never had an inch of land to lose."
As soon as Luo Xuanling opened his mouth, Luo Xuanyun and a group of court officials simultaneously tapped their palms with their court scepters. A crisp "pa pa pa" sound was immediately heard in the hall. This meant that the court officials agreed with Luo Xuanling and Wu Zhao's opinions. Seeing this, the other court officials looked around and also tapped their palms with their court scepters.
Wu Zetian slowly walked up to the throne, dragging her robes along. She walked in front of Li Zhi and asked with a smile, "Does the emperor have anything to say?"
The positions between the two seemed to have been reversed.
Li Zhi was stunned for a moment, then nodded hurriedly and said, "I also think it is very appropriate. Our ancestors have not yet completed their work, and they want us, the younger generation, to forge ahead. My brothers are also pioneering, so I should naturally support them."
After the ministers left the court and walked out of the hall, almost everyone felt as if they were in another world. Many of them even stood there in a daze, and began to recall what had just happened. The more they thought about it, the more they felt that something was wrong. How could these things really happen in front of them?
The Queen became the Empress of Heaven. Is it really the case that the Two Saints are ruling the country?
Is the Tang Dynasty going to start looking outward again?
And we have to move the capital?
Every major issue should require a long period of discussion before a decision is made, so how come it has been passed now?
Looking around again, it feels familiar yet unfamiliar. This is not Chang'an, but Luoyang, the Luoyang of the Queen Wu Zhao.
Here, what she says is what matters.
Fengshan was a long-planned conspiracy designed to accomplish these things, including transferring the Duke of Yong and the Duke of Chen of the Luo family back to the Council of State in advance, and letting Princess Anle Luo Junwei serve as the Minister of Rites. From the Secretariat that made the imperial edict, to the Ministry of Palace Affairs that was responsible for review, to the Ministry of Rites that executed the edict, this set of arrangements could be approved and was legal and valid.
The Queen Wu Zhao had such deep thoughts. She was able to accomplish so many great things without having the upper hand in the government hall. If she had to wait until these things were completed, how many prime ministers would be left in the government hall?
Perhaps all the prime ministers who went against Wu Zetian would be forced to step down and demoted.
…
After a shocking court meeting, Wu Zhao, on the one hand, issued various decrees without hesitation, leaving no one the chance to regret; on the other hand, she continued on her way to Mount Tai. The purpose of this trip was to offer sacrifices to the gods, which was also an extremely important opportunity for Wu Zhao to demonstrate her status.
But the atmosphere along the way was completely different from that when we left Chang'an.
Especially Li Zhi.
His mood was very complicated. If he had known that Wu Zhao would be like this now, would he still choose to promote Wu Zhao?
Li Zhi was thinking about this problem.
But after he thought hard, the dizziness in his mind made him feel a little desperate.
The biggest reason why the situation has come to this point is his poor health. If he was in good health, Wu Zetian would never have known that it would have come to this point. The most she would have done was to assist him in handling some government affairs.
It all seemed like fate. Every time at a critical moment, God would help Wu Zhao and allow her to reach the next level smoothly.
Now he could only let Wu Zhao do it. He couldn't let those prime ministers from other families take power. He didn't trust those people.
but.
Li Zhi's eyes turned to his crown prince Li Hong. At least the crown prince was very much to his liking. If he could pass the throne to the crown prince in advance, would he be able to get rid of the current situation?
But the prince's body.
Li Zhi was a little worried. Crown Prince Li Hong was very smart, but he had been in poor health since childhood. Li Zhi even told him not to come and pay his respects, and asked Li Xian to assist him and help him handle government affairs.
On the surface, it was naturally because Li Hong was in poor health and could not handle government affairs for too long, so he asked his younger brother to help him share the burden. But in fact, Li Zhi was worried that if something happened to Li Hong, he could let Li Xian take over the position of crown prince. Li Xian was also very talented and in very good health.
If Li Hong had not been trained by him for many years, Li Xian would have been a better candidate for the crown prince. However, Li Zhi had already deposed a crown prince, and it was impossible for him to depose another one now. Besides, Li Hong was just in poor health, so perhaps nothing would happen to him.
Amidst this worry, Li Zhi finally arrived at Mount Tai.
Looking at the majestic Mount Tai, Li Zhi's annoyance was swept away and he felt relaxed and happy. No matter how many bad things he had, he had come to Mount Tai now and was going to perform the Fengshan ceremony on this mountain.
Narrate his achievements to the heaven and earth, the sun, the moon, the mountains and the rivers.
This was an occasion that even his father wanted to attend but was unable to do so. Thousands of years later, people will always remember that he, Li Zhi, the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, was enthroned on Mount Tai and was a king who was very prominent in both civil and military affairs.
But in this Fengshan ceremony, the person who attracted the most attention was not Li Zhi, but the Queen Mother Wu Zhao.
Almost everyone saw the Queen Mother standing next to the Emperor, with flames burning in her eyes and a glow rising on her face. She held her head high, as if she was towering over everyone else. Even the Emperor next to her could not conceal her brilliance in the slightest.
No, the sickly emperor with pale cheeks formed a sharp contrast with the radiant empress.
Is this the emperor's Fengshan?
Many people are asking this question in their hearts.
The protagonist is not the one standing in the center of the stage, but the one where the light shines.
Whoever shines on the stage is the protagonist.
In this occasion of Li Zhi, Wu Zetian became the protagonist!
————
In the first year of Tiansheng, Wu Zhao, through a series of precise and rapid political actions, completely completed the division of power. In name, she achieved a political status equal to that of the emperor, and in fact, she was superior to the sick Li Zhi in terms of power. She was the first empress in history to hold the reins of state during the reign of an emperor. The title of "Empress of Heaven" was a manifestation of her unique status, but this was not the end of her unique historical status. Let's wait and see, her time has come. - "The Rise and Fall of the Tang Empire"
(End of this chapter)
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