Chapter 816 Trampling on the temple name system!
The night was hazy with a crescent moon in the sky. The endless buildings of Chang'an were hidden in the night. Most of the city was pitch black. The imperial city was brightly lit everywhere, and there were dots of light in the area for nobles.
The lights in the general's mansion were bright. At night, many people gathered here. They sat around Cao Chengsi. They were all Cao Chengsi's confidants. Cao Chengsi stroked the armrests of his men and said slowly: "Now that the country has just been settled, I summoned you all here today because I have something to tell you."
Everyone straightened up immediately and lowered their heads to listen to Cao Chengsi's words. Cao Chengsi smiled slightly and said, "The emperor is young and needs wise ministers to assist him. Now there are several ministers assisting the emperor, but without a leader, there is nothing to do.
Since ancient times, it has never been heard of that there were several ministers assisting in the administration of a government without distinction of rank.
I think this is the way to chaos, what do you think?"
Everyone immediately agreed when they heard this, "I think what General Zuo said makes sense, and the country needs capable people to take this position. General Zuo has the ability and ambition to help the world, and he should be the leader of Wei."
Although no one said it directly, everyone knew that Cao Chengsi was issuing a declaration to seize power and was about to start preparing to defeat the other regents and become the one who holds all the power.
There was such a "fine" tradition in the Wei State.
At that time, Cao Rui asked Cao Shuang and Sima Yi to jointly assist Cao Fang in governing the country. The final result was that Cao Shuang and Sima Yi fought fiercely, and even developed to the point of life and death. Cao Shuang monopolized power, and Sima Yi completely lost power.
With such a fine tradition, how could Cao Chengsi be willing to assist in governing the country with others? Moreover, when it comes to power, there is something Cao Chengsi said that is very correct: there must be a leader.
Cao Chengsi's cousin and childhood playmate, the third son of the King of Hedong, Cao Cheng, pondered for a moment and clasped his fists and asked, "Brother, now that the court is just beginning to be established, how should we deal with the former emperor's old subordinates?
There are people of the late emperor in Liangzhou and Yizhou, especially in Yizhou. The general guarding Yizhou is a man of the late emperor. I am worried that he will betray Wei because of the late emperor. The Yizhou nobles are also two-faced people who only want to live in peace in Shu. It is impossible to rely on them. "
After the Luoshui Oath, the Wei State's emphasis on clan members was implemented in all aspects. Not only were clan members important in the court, but also in the garrison generals in various fields.
The general guarding Yizhou was naturally still a clan relative, and also a close relative of Cao Mao by blood. He was Cao Mao's uncle before he was adopted by Cao Rui.
But it is precisely the clan members who are more likely to fear being liquidated by those who killed the king in the court. People's interests do not change because of their blood relationship and identity, just as when the Murong clan of Yan State seized the throne of the Yan clan, there were still members of the Yan royal family standing on the side of Murong Chengguang.
Cao Chengsi's face changed slightly. If the general guarding Yizhou betrayed him, the State of Wei would suffer a severe blow and would completely become the weakest of the four countries in the Central Plains. Moreover, could it really withstand the continued attacks of the State of Yan relying solely on Guanzhong and Liangzhou?
Cao Chengsi did not want to be a king who lost his country. His goal was to become the man appointed by heaven to unify the world.
Will Cao Lu of Yizhou betray me?
Cao Chengsi asked himself, if he did not do anything to remedy the situation, as long as Liang State was willing to accept him, Cao Lu would definitely betray him, and there was no need to think about it.
Cao Lu must be delayed, at least not in the short term, to allow him to defect to Liang State.
This thought almost instantly appeared in Cao Chengsi's mind, "What do you think we should do?"
There was a moment of silence, and then someone suggested: "If you really want to stabilize Cao Lu, the best way is not to recall him to the court, but to temporarily stabilize him in Shu, and promise not to recall him during his lifetime, so that he can feel the sincerity of the court.
When the situation in the country is completely stabilized, we will have more room to maneuver.”
These words coincided with Cao Chengsi's thoughts, which could be summed up in one word: procrastination!
First we need to stabilize the current Wei State. As for future matters, we will solve them one by one. There will always be a day when all of them will be solved. Now we need to control the situation and prevent it from sliding into a worse situation.
As for whether appointing Cao Lu as a frontier official would make him too powerful to be controlled, that was not a problem that Cao Chengsi was considering now, as long as the State of Liang did not become stronger.
“It’s not just Cao Lu’s problem. Others, or rather, all the ministers in the entire Wei Dynasty who have a relationship with the previous emperor, have this problem. If it is not resolved, the current political crisis in the Wei Dynasty cannot be resolved.
If people’s hearts cannot be settled, our Great Wei will fall behind in the competition among other countries, and even fall into the crisis of national extinction.”
Cao Chengsi pondered for a while, and some things gradually emerged in his mind. He told them, and everyone in the room was shocked. After several arguments, they gradually calmed down.
The next day.
The sun rises as usual. Since the coup, the frequency of grand court meetings has increased much more than in previous years. Such high-frequency grand court meetings are naturally not for discussing government affairs, but to provide an opportunity for everyone to communicate.
The empress dowager appeared at the grand court meeting holding the emperor, and four regents stood in front of everyone. All four of them were relatives of the Cao family. With Cao Chengsi's prestige, it was naturally impossible for him to inherit all of Cao Lin's political legacy. The fact that he was able to rise to prominence was already a result of his status and the benefits of the coup.
All the ministers stood in the hall. Cao Chengsi stepped forward and began to talk about what they had discussed last night. Of course, he could not say that Cao Lu might betray him. There was no evidence of regicide. Officially at the Wei State level, it was done by spies from Liang State and eunuchs bribed by Liang State.
Under everyone's gaze, Cao Chengsi spoke loudly, "My fellow colleagues, there have been some rumors circulating among people with ulterior motives in the country recently, and I am very sad.
Are these people trying to destroy the reputation and country of Wei?
Don’t these people know that these words will become the swords used by the enemy countries to stab our Great Wei?
Don’t these people know that this will only bring pain to their loved ones and joy to their enemies?
I have heard my ancestors cursing, I have heard the people of Wei expressing their disgust, I have seen endless blood and tears, this situation cannot continue!
The late emperor died at the hands of a traitor. This is what we have all confirmed. It is recorded in history. Even if the mountains were to be destroyed, it would not change. Even if the Yellow River disappeared, this is the truth. However, some of the late emperor's old subordinates are worried that he died at the hands of the country's ministers.
I am deeply saddened. We were once comrades in arms, but now we have ended up in a situation of mutual suspicion. I also deeply understand them, because their loyalty to the late emperor is just like my loyalty to Your Majesty.
I am in Chang'an City, so I can know the truth. They are all thousands of miles away and cannot know the situation in Chang'an City, so they are deceived by the villains and lies. This is reasonable.
I believe that in order to avoid internal strife and to prevent Yan and Liang from taking this opportunity to attack our Great Wei, we should give greater grace to General Cao Lu, who is guarding Yizhou.
Let him know that the court fully recognizes his loyalty. I suggest that Cao Lu be promoted to General of the Southern Expedition, his fief increased by 1,300 households, and he be given the title of envoy to guard Yizhou for generations. With these, he will surely know the court's sincerity."
Wow!
As soon as Cao Chengsi said this, it immediately caused an uproar in the palace. Anyone who was sensitive to politics knew that Cao Chengsi was trying to appease the hearts of the former emperor's old subordinates. Then, considering that Yizhou had always been the focus of the confrontation between Liang and Wei, Cao Chengsi made such a solemn promise because he was worried that Cao Lu would directly surrender to Liang.
However, this reward of directly dividing Shaanxi and governing it was still a little beyond everyone's psychological bottom line, and this alone might not be enough to appease Cao Lu's heart. No one in the Wei State believed in this kind of political promise a long time ago.
The truth is that the Wei State has been abandoning its people since its establishment, and it has been too chaotic in just a few decades, which makes people feel uneasy. The more they give now, the more worried Cao Lu may be. This is a delaying tactic.
Although in some cases, it is true that this is a delaying tactic. When there is an opportunity, Cao Chengsi will definitely capture Cao Lu and bring him back to Chang'an to eat him alive.
Cao Chengsi saw that everyone was in deep thought and no one objected, so he said, "I have another idea, which I will tell you now. I believe that the late emperor has made great contributions to our Wei Dynasty, and we should give him a temple name to boast to future generations."
Temple name!
After Cao Chengsi said this, the entire palace fell silent, so quiet that one could almost hear a pin drop. Everyone looked at Cao Chengsi in disbelief; they couldn't believe what they heard.
Temple name?
Is the late Emperor Cao Mao worthy of being given a temple name?
But Cao Chengsi looked solemn, and he had no intention of joking at all. Those who were smart immediately guessed that he was still trying to show goodwill to Cao Mao's old subordinates. This was to put the final nail in the coffin, but it was really unbelievable to use the temple name to put the final nail in the coffin.
Someone immediately asked loudly: "General Zuo, the temple name system is of great importance. The late emperor did have great achievements, but isn't it inappropriate to give him a temple name?
During the Han Dynasty, there were only six temple names: Han Taizu, Han Renzong, Han Taizong, Han Gaozong, Han Zhongzong and Han Shizu. Except for Han Renzong, the other five were all kings who could compete for the title of ancient sage kings.
I, Da Wei, am I not…"
He spoke rather tactfully and did not directly say that Cao Mao was not worthy. Besides, even Cao Cao did not have a temple name, so how could Cao Mao possibly get one? This was the common sentiment of the people.
Cao Chengsi felt a burst of sarcasm in his heart. These people were totally out of their minds. What was the use of tradition? Only those who took advantage of these rules could get more.
He said solemnly: "Everyone, the emperors of the Han Dynasty did have great merits, but the emperors of my Wei Kingdom are no worse than those of the Han Dynasty. You should not favor one over the other. In today's world, who is more qualified to be given a temple name than the late emperor?"
This question is difficult to answer. Can they really find a foreign king to say is stronger than Cao Mao?
Cao Chengsi looked around and said, "It seems that all my colleagues agree with what I said. I knew that the late emperor was a man of natural talent. It would be easy for him to get a temple name."
Cao Chengsi's words were so outrageous that some of the scholars who were willing to save their reputations could not stand it. They stepped out of the line and asked loudly, "General Zuo, I have something to ask you. Even Emperor Wu, Emperor Wen, and Emperor Ming did not have temple names. Do you think it is appropriate for the late emperor to have a temple name?
Emperor Wu founded the Wei Kingdom but did not receive a temple name, so how could his descendants be qualified to receive a temple name?"
Most of the people in the hall nodded involuntarily. Yes, they were right. Even the Emperor Wu, who laid the foundation of the current Wei Kingdom, did not have a temple name. Neither did the Emperor Wen. What qualifications did Cao Mao have? He had not even unified the world. It was really shameful for him to have a temple name.
Cao Chengsi didn't think so. He didn't care whether Cao Mao would be laughed at or not, but this could show his loyalty to Cao Mao, and that was enough. He gave Cao Mao such a good thing, so who could say that he was not loyal to Cao Mao.
If the posthumous title had not been shown to Ji Zhao, Cao Chengsi would still have had a little bit of awe. Of course, it was also because other people in the Wei State also had awe and did not want Cao Chengsi to mess around. Cao Chengsi would have definitely chosen a good posthumous title for Cao Mao.
Hearing the scholar's question, Cao Chengsi seemed to have suddenly realized something and said, "This is my negligence. I only thought of giving a temple name to the late emperor who just passed away, but forgot that the ancestors can also be posthumously honored. I think that Emperor Wu should be given the temple name of Taizu, Emperor Wen the temple name of Taizong, and Emperor Ming the temple name of Gaozong. With these temple names, my ancestors will surely be able to be honored in the nine heavens. This is some filial piety as descendants."
quiet!
The hall was silent again. Cao Chengsi did it on purpose, anyone could see it. He was not a fool, so how could he not understand the meaning of these words? He had long been prepared to give temple names to Cao Cao and the others together, and he was just waiting for someone to bring it up.
The scholar who had just spoken felt as if he was about to collapse, his face flushed red, and he was almost fainted by Cao Chengsi's anger. He had not realized before that Cao Chengsi was such a shameless person, and only now did he realize his true nature, but it was a little too late. All in all, Cao Chengsi's behavior was truly filial, and it was not inappropriate to give posthumous honors to his ancestors.
Seeing that Cao Chengsi would succeed if things continued like this, another person stepped forward and said, "General Zuo, the Shang and Han dynasties, which used temple names, attached great importance to the granting of temple names. If our dynasty grants temple names so easily, won't we become a laughing stock in the world?
And General Zuo, aren't you worried about Luo Shen's blame?"
Cao Chengsi waved his hand casually upon hearing this, and then said with emotion: "When choosing a posthumous title for the late emperor, I felt that the posthumous title was too bad. The late emperor could have deserved a better posthumous title, but the posthumous title had to be reported to the Su Wang Shang Huang, and you all insisted on giving it a mourning character, so I had no choice but to accept it.
The choice of temple name now does not involve submitting to any gods, and has nothing to do with King Su and Goddess of Luo River. I can finally make up for my loyalty to the late emperor a little. The Han and Shang dynasties granted few temple names because their emperors were incapable. I am clear about the late emperor's high talent. If it were not for filial piety, I even think that the late emperor could have granted the ancestor a temple name.
Your Majesty was able to stabilize the current Wei Kingdom after Sima Ni's rebellion. This achievement is really great. Every time I think of it, I yearn for it. What do you think?"
Think?
The ministers looked at each other and thought, she is the real mother!
Nonsense, how shameless!
These words were recorded in history, and we all became treacherous and fawning ministers. Cao Chengsi naturally knew what these people were thinking, but he had a deeper understanding of human nature. He believed that after he did this, there would be people who would follow suit. If more people followed suit, then he, the initiator, would be nothing more. And the most important thing was that he didn't care about the future. As long as he could be useful in this life, it would be worth it.
Cao Chengsi rejected several reasons one by one, but no one dared to say the most real reason. The atmosphere in Wei State was a bit strange now. The era of Cao Ang's clear politics was gone forever. Even loyal ministers were almost nowhere to be seen in Wei State now. The whole country had reached a very dangerous level.
It is normal for this situation to occur. After several decades of development, it is reasonable for the country to have reached this point. But the problem is that now only Wei is the most seriously affected. The root cause is that Wei has changed emperors too many times. When other countries generally only have two or three generations or even one generation, Wei has already had the sixth generation of emperors.
This frequent change of emperors resulted in Wei being the only one among the four states that had not carried out large-scale reforms, and thus it encountered the numerous problems it is facing today.
Seeing that no one had spoken, Cao Chengsi laughed loudly and said, "It seems that all my colleagues have agreed. The spirit of the late emperor in heaven will surely be delighted. When we offer sacrifices to the ancestral temple the next day, we will announce this good news to our ancestors. Then we will send letters to every county in the Great Wei so that all officials in the Wei Kingdom will know. In future reports, we must use the temple name and posthumous name together. This is the most important issue and we must comply with it."
The issue of changing the emperor's title has never been simple, and correspondingly the formats of many documents have to be changed, so Cao Chengsi made this statement.
Many ministers of the Wei State left the palace in grief. They walked together in a group and looked back at the towering palace and the magnificent colonnades. The vastness of the place seemed to overwhelm them like a mountain, and they felt a little breathless.
"The gentleman is completely ruined."
"A laughing stock for all eternity."
“How did it come to this?”
"I am incompetent. I am incompetent."
"What can we do? He is holding up the banner of filial piety, can we let him be unfilial?"
"Even filial piety cannot trample on the ancient rules!"
“Isn’t it enough to be trampled?”
"How many of the ancient rules are left now?"
"Why does this world seem so strange?"
“How were these things done in the past?”
"Luo is no longer around, so what Luo proposed is no longer followed."
silence.
The group of people walked like zombies. Everything that happened today hit them hard again. One thing after another happened, making them dizzy, but these were things they had never thought of or seen before.
"I want to beg for my bones, I want to live in seclusion in the mountains.
Don't stay for long in a place full of right and wrong.
Everyone, when I return home today, I will hand in my resignation letter and return to my hometown to teach and educate people. This place may not be suitable for me. "
Silence again.
…
The news from Wei's grand court shocked spies from various countries, who immediately rushed their horses to relay this shocking news back to their home countries.
Everyone's reaction was the same, which was shock and disbelief, especially the Han Kingdom, which was completely dumbfounded.
Liu Chen looked at the news in his hands, and asked the ministers in disbelief: "My dear ministers, has the State of Wei gone crazy?
How dare Cao call himself Taizu?
"The Emperor Gao of the Han Dynasty was the Son of Heaven who conquered the world. King Zhaosheng personally crowned the Emperor Gao in the name of the Supreme Emperor. There is no other emperor in the world who overthrew the tyrannical Qin Dynasty and inherited the Zhou Dynasty's Mandate of Heaven. He has only a small country of a thousand miles and is a usurper. How dare he call himself the Great Ancestor?"
Liu Chen's words were deeply agreed by others. It was really funny. And there was also a very deep reason, that is, Cao Cao could call himself the ancestor, but the emperor of the Han Dynasty could never do so.
The Han Dynasty was a descendant of the Liu family, so if they wanted to give a temple name, they had to take past emperors into consideration. Liu Bei had some achievements, but these achievements were definitely not enough to be called the ancestor, even if he was called the ancestor.
Because in the political logic of the Han Dynasty, only the emperor of a unified country had this qualification. It was absurd that someone could have a temple name without being called the emperor.
Liu Chen threw the letter in his hand away and asked with a frown, "My dear ministers, does the Han Dynasty need to respond to this matter? I always feel that if the temple name is messed up by the Wei Kingdom, it will instantly lose its value. Alas."
"Your Majesty, we should send a letter to Wei State to ridicule it. The theme can be 'What kind of rubbish is worthy of the same temple name as our great Han Saint King and Former Emperor'. Let this matter of Wei State become a laughing stock, just like the 'Collection of Humors' written during the Bang Zhou period. This is probably the only thing we can do.
When the Han Dynasty reigns supreme again in the future, all those messy temple names will be cancelled. For now, we can only endure it for now."
Liu Chen pondered for a moment, and said with an unhappy face: "This is the only way. Find the best writer in my Great Han Dynasty to write more poems for me, write about this matter, and also the matter of Wei's regicide. Wei has been covering it up. Write it all down. I think it was Cao Lin who killed the king. Write it down, don't let future generations be deceived by the villains of Wei."
"Yes, sir!"
…
Xiao Yan sat in the hall sipping tea, his eyes occasionally glancing towards the corner of the hall. Luo Xianzhi was sitting there, having maintained this posture for some time. Xiao Yan could understand Luo Xianzhi's feelings very well.
Although the temple name system was established by the Shang Dynasty, the mortal enemy of the Zhou Dynasty, the current improved temple name system was established by the ancestors of the Luo family in the Han Dynasty. This is another magic weapon left by the Luo family in this world to correct the emperors, and this is the political legacy of the Luo family.
Now, everything left behind by the Luo family is being destroyed one by one. The Luo family's direct lineage has only disappeared for a few decades, and so much has been destroyed. Luo Xianzhi must be feeling very uncomfortable now.
After a long time, Luo Xianzhi finally stood up and sat down opposite Xiao Yan. Xiao Yan asked, "Lingxiu, don't worry too much. This is a matter of time. If Cao Chengsi is not there, there will be another person. The State of Wei could even cover up the regicide, let alone this kind of thing."
Luo Xianzhi said with a complicated expression: "I just feel that I am incompetent and cannot defend the bottom line of the world for my ancestors. The temple name was established to correct the emperor. The temple name is to praise the emperor's merits, not a tool to gild the emperor. Now that it has been messed up by the Wei State, I really don't know what it will become in the future.
Your Majesty, would you like a temple name?"
Xiao Yan was startled when he heard this, and said slowly: "Which king doesn't want a temple name? If it weren't for Qingyun and you, I really would like a temple name of Taizu or Gaozu, but forget it now.
If I can unify the world, then I deserve all the praise and the temple name will naturally be given to me.
If I cannot, then I am not destined to be a temple name, and I am unworthy of it."
Xiao Yan was very honest and said frankly that he really wanted it. Even if Luo Youzhi and Luo Xianzhi did not assist him, he would still want a temple name.
Luo Xianzhi's eyes darkened when he heard this. This was the reality. Unrestrained imperial power would break the conventional political bottom line one by one. The imperial power would take over all the power in the world and then throw out all the responsibilities. This was exactly what the Luo family had been avoiding.
Luo Xianzhi knew that it was not something that he or the Jiangdong Luo family could do, not even if the direct descendants returned now. If the direct descendants really still had this ability, they would not be hiding in Liaodong to lick their wounds.
Luo Xianzhi didn't know when his direct descendants would be able to return, so he bowed to Xiao Yan and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your kindness. Although I cannot influence the whole world, I can influence Jiangdong alone, and that's enough.
I only hope that one day, I can use my abilities to help you become a true Taizu."
Xiao Yan sighed and said, "Let's not talk about these things, Lingxiu. The actions of the Wei Kingdom this time can be described as fast and ruthless. Do you think there is still a chance for us to instigate a rebellion in Yizhou? I think it's a bit difficult.
Wei gave Cao Lu of Yizhou the right to rule Shaanxi, which was almost like making Cao Lu the king of Yizhou. If it were me, I would not surrender either."
Luo Xianzhi smiled slightly and said, "Your Majesty, let's not talk about whether Wei will really give Cao Lu the right to rule Shaanxi. Even if it is true now, it does not mean it will be true in the future. Political trust is not so easy to establish. Moreover, as long as Shu can temporarily remain neutral between Daliang and Wei, I think it is enough.
There is no need to rush for Yizhou. We can wait until we get the real attitude of the Wei central court towards Yizhou, and then persuade Cao Lu to rebel. I believe it will not be difficult. Cao Chengsi of the Wei central court will never really hand over Yizhou to Cao Lu.
Now I think what Daliang needs is to rectify the country, and then start from Nanyang County to attack Heluo and cooperate with Yan's offensive in Hedong. This is our goal. "
————
In fact, the collapse of the temple name system was expected. As I wrote in the preface, the Southern and Northern Dynasties was an era when the old order completely collapsed. The moral system that was once maintained by the Luo family was, to some extent, a castle in the air supported by a single pillar. After the Luo family no longer supported it, this magnificent building collapsed. This was an era of great fission. ——"The Fission of the Chinese: After the Disappearance of the Luo Family"
(End of this chapter)
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