Chapter 43 Bloody Kingdom
The Grand Chancellor, the Grand Zongzheng, and the late king passed away one after another, and the entire Luoyi was immersed in sorrow. Just when everyone thought that Prince Jin would inherit the throne and start a new chapter in Bang Zhou, an accident happened.
Prince An invited Prince Jin to be his guest in his palace. Prince Jin naturally would not doubt his brother, with whom he had always been close. However, he did not expect that Prince An would arrange executioners at the banquet to decisively and cruelly kill his brother Prince Jin.
He then led an army that had pledged allegiance to him and carried out a brutal massacre in the palace, slaughtering all the royal family members.
That night, the entire kingdom was shrouded in blood.
Queen Chu Mi fled to Chu overnight under the protection of Chu's elite troops.
The next day, the liaison envoys of the princes from all directions who stayed in Luoyi got the news and reported back this shocking event. The whole royal city was trembling under the butcher knife of Prince An.
However, Wang Zian was not a murderer. He killed everyone for political purposes, so these envoys quickly received Wang Zian's comfort and gradually put their minds at ease.
Luo Ren received the news on his way to Luoyi.
"Your Majesty, news has come from the capital of Gao that Prince An has launched a coup and murdered Prince Jin and all the royal family members. According to the news, he is the only one left in the royal family within three generations.
Queen Chu Mi has fled to Chu under the protection of Chu's elite troops, and Luoyi is now under the control of Prince An."
This news was like thunder, which stunned Luo Ren on the spot. His lips trembled slightly, as if he wanted to say something.
"puff!"
Bright red blood spurted out, and Luo Ren was so angry that he fainted. His close ministers hurriedly woke him up. Luo Ren woke up slowly, his face full of tears.
"My Lord! Is this God's will to destroy our Zhou? Luo State has made so many sacrifices, but in the end, it ended up with such an outcome. I cannot accept this!"
The moment before, he was still dreaming that after accumulating for another twenty years, he would lead the coalition forces of the six countries of Jin, Chu, Qi, Luo, Zheng and Ying, and cooperate with the State of Qin to completely drive out the Western Rong who occupied the ancestral temple and complete the great cause of restoration.
As a result, this devastating news came the next moment. Prince An acted quickly and there was no fighting, so Wang Ji's strength was not greatly damaged. However, he completely destroyed the most important legal principles of the emperor.
Who among the princes of the world would obey him?
Without prestige and unable to mobilize the princes, how can you even talk about returning to your ancestral land!
Luo Ren was afraid that Bang Zhou's national destiny would inevitably decline.
The fate of Luo State and Bang Zhou were tied together. If Bang Zhou was destroyed, Luo State would perish as well. His hoarse voice was full of reluctance.
No one would have thought that Ji Fu was so sad and took care of Luo Cheng's funeral and the aftermath that he fell ill and forgot about this matter.
Perhaps deep down in his heart, he didn't want to kill his own son because of unfounded speculation.
"Your Majesty, what should we do now? Should we still go to Luoyi?" The retainer who followed Luo Ren asked at a loss.
Luo Ren slapped the frame of the car hard and said in a painful voice: "Prince An, a traitor who killed his brother and seized the throne, trampled on the clan law, and has no moral integrity. How can I possibly assist him?"
"Then shall we go and defeat him?"
Luo Ren paused for a moment and said in a hateful voice: "The late king only had these two sons, and he himself had no brothers. He also killed all the royal relatives. Even if he was killed, who else could ascend the throne?
The prince dared to do such a inhumane thing because he was very familiar with Luo's style of doing things. This was the reason why he was so fearless.
He has killed all the people in the royal family who could inherit the throne. I have no other choice but to return to Luo State."
Luo Ren was right. Prince An knew well that among all the princes in the world, most of them put their own interests first. Only the Luo Kingdom had a high prestige and acted in accordance with the clan law and discipline.
But although Luo Shi upheld the clan system, his higher priority was the continuation of the Zhou state. As long as he tied the Zhou state to him, he would be invincible.
The reality developed just as he expected, Luo Guo did not take action against him.
"Your Majesty, Prince An has trampled upon the clan law. If I don't respond, I'm afraid I won't be able to explain myself."
After this incident, the whole world will be watching Luo State's reaction. If it really does nothing, wouldn't it be telling the world that the clan system is a joke?
Luo Ren waved his hand somewhat helplessly and said, “Wang Ji Gu will not come here in the future. He will reprimand Prince An in the harshest tone, and Luo State will also stop paying tribute to the royal family.
After the news spread, the State of Luo did not pay tribute to the Zhou for a hundred years.
In the future, you should develop Luo Kingdom well. The royal family is just a pile of mud. It is impossible to rely on them to hold up the banner. "
After saying this with some dismay, Luo Ren began to have his retainers write letters to the princes of the four directions, "First, send a letter to the princes of the four directions, saying that I am not virtuous and capable enough to serve as the emperor's minister, so I will not go to Luoyi to serve, and let the emperor choose someone else.
The second letter strongly condemned Prince An for killing his brother, and said that Luo would not pay tribute to Wangji for a hundred years.
As for not avenging the prince, the reason is very legitimate.
Although it is often said that the crown prince is also a monarch, this is just a respectful term. Procedurally, the prince is indeed not yet a monarch.
Since he is not a monarch, the princes have no obligation to avenge him.
Besides, Prince An was really cruel. He killed all the royal family members who might threaten his throne. Even Luo Hou had to accept him as the king.
The retainers only thought that the two letters were very clever and would not have any impact on the Luo Kingdom. They did not understand Luo Ren’s feelings at all.
Many people felt that there was no need to help the royal family in this way, but the Luo family had no choice but to help. This had been confirmed repeatedly with the ancestors in the ancestral temple.
Although the ancestor did not elaborate, a deep shadow has been imprinted on the heads of every head of the Luo family. Bang Zhou is different. This is the dynasty where the Luo family made their fortune. The depth of the cause and effect entanglement is unimaginable. Wanting to discard it like a piece of trash is just a dream.
After so many years, it has finally been possible to revive the national strength of Bangzhou a little bit, and the royal army has gradually recovered its vitality. Who knows, it may be able to directly return to the ancestral land of Haojing.
As a result, everything was ruined by Wang Zi'an. He was so disheartened that he even felt that the destiny of Bang Zhou was irreversible and just hoped that it could be maintained for a while longer.
The strength of Luo State has recovered well now, but the large number of sacrifices of the royal family cannot be replenished in a short time. Luo Ren feels that he should focus on domestic affairs now.
This matter soon spread to other countries, and the reactions of various vassal states were different.
Jin and Qi scolded Prince An almost at the same time. Although the ties between these two countries and Bang Zhou were not as strong as that between them and Luo, they also benefited from the royal family.
After seeing Luo Ren's reaction, they understood Luo Ren's concerns after a little thought. After a moment of silence, the monarchs of the two countries chose to follow the same approach as Luo Guo.
First there was condemnation, then the tribute to the royal family was immediately stopped.
Although they did not refuse to acknowledge Prince An's throne due to the royal family's current strength, they were obviously not prepared to have any contact with him.
When the Qin State received the news that the Luo State did not pay tribute to the Zhou State, Qin Bo Zaofei had a very strange expression. He felt a little sad, but also a little happy.
Luo Cheng and the emperor are the benefactors of the Qin State. The support of the monarch and his ministers has contributed greatly to the development of the Qin State over the years.
But at the same time, it is a deep bondage, just like the string that ties a kite.
Moreover, the Luo family has always wanted to return to their ancestral land, which conflicts with Zaofei's vision for the future of the Qin State, especially the output of the Haojing City. He has long wanted to intercept it, but he really didn't dare to do so before.
"The royal family will not allow them to pass through Hangu Pass, and the annual tribute from Haojing City will be stopped. This is considered as a way to repay the kindness of the previous king to Qin."
After saying this, Zaofei walked out of the hall. His eldest son followed him. Looking at the vast sky, Zaofei couldn't help laughing out loud.
"Wen Yun, this is the land that God has given us. After I die, you must continue to lead the Qin people to develop this land.
Duke Xuan once said that the Zhou people would lose this land, but he did not expect that his words would come true, and now this land belongs to the Qin people. "
In Ying State, Luo Cheng's younger brother Luo Zhongshu was sealed here. His reaction was almost the same as Luo Ren's. He was so angry that he vomited blood at first, but then he reacted.
The State of Chu was probably going to move north. As one of the barriers for the royal family, he was somewhat conflicted about whether or not to send troops to help the royal family.
At least these countries were relatively calm, following Luo's footsteps and just dealing with the matter coldly.
But the State of Chu could not remain calm. The prince who had Chu blood was about to ascend the throne, but he was assassinated.
How can I not be angry when decades of investment have gone down the drain?
Not only the King of Chu, but almost all the ministers of Chu State were furious.
In recent years, apart from taking a few cities from the States of Shen and Sui, the State of Chu has never attacked these Han River Ji surnamed countries, but has expanded towards the Huaiyi area in the southeast direction.
They were just waiting for the prince to take the throne and start planning benefits for the State of Chu, but now suddenly it's gone.
Who can swallow this?
The Chu State's top leaders unanimously passed the decision to launch an uprising at an unprecedented speed, without any hesitation or delay.
As for Luo Yan’s opinion?
He was the first to propose attacking Zhou!
The Luo family's disciples have always been clear about their identities.
The reason why Luo Ren returned directly the same way and did not kill Wang Zian to avenge Prince Jin was very simple.
Prince Jin was not yet a king, but he was already the Marquis of Luo, so there was no direct relationship of monarch and subject between the two.
The same goes for Luo Yan. He is now a minister of Chu. Chu has suffered a huge loss in this matter. Moreover, it was he who made the promise to Chu on behalf of the royal family.
Now the King of Chu did not blame him at all, which was a great grace and trust to him.
So he must show his attitude.
Although he knew that sending troops would not produce any results, the royal family's strength had recovered very well in recent years. Even after experiencing the incident with Prince An, the royal family would be able to cope with it as long as the princes of the world did not rise up to attack.
In terms of talent for being a king, Wang Zian is indeed better than his brother. At least this coup can be described as swift, accurate and ruthless.
The reaction of the Han River princesses was completely opposite to that of the Chu State.
In fact, they had been a little panicked since the alliance between Chu State and the royal family.
After all, the mission of these countries since their establishment has been to guard against the State of Chu for the royal family. Now I suddenly tell them that the other side has formed an alliance with me.
If it weren't for the strong royal family, these princes would have lost their minds.
Over the years, Shen Hou and others have been suffering, worrying all the time about being stabbed in the back by the royal family and being used to befriend the State of Chu.
This made Marquis Shen, Marquis Sui and Marquis Tang very dissatisfied with the royal family.
Although the royal family had no intention in this regard for the past twenty years and the Luo family was in control of the overall situation in the royal capital, this did not make them feel at ease.
After all, the new emperor is the grandson of the Duke of Chu, so he will definitely favor the State of Chu.
By then, the queen will instill some ideas into him, and these three princes bordering the State of Chu will definitely suffer great losses.
Unexpectedly, Prince An directly killed the prince, which instantly relieved their worries.
Regardless of what the other princes thought, Marquis Shen, Marquis Sui and Marquis Tang were overjoyed and sent their ministers with a large amount of tribute to the royal capital Luoyi to acknowledge Prince An's throne.
There are still many such princes in the world, especially those who did not gain enough benefits last time, and they all hope to gain more when the new king takes the throne.
Faced with the complicated situation and Luo's secret statement, other vassal states, except Chu, stopped making any statement.
But many people realized that such a person who trampled on the patriarchal system could actually become king, which suddenly made many people feel alive.
Marquis Luo no longer served as the emperor's minister, and Marquis Zheng keenly felt that this was a great opportunity.
Zheng State was the largest vassal state of the Ji clan closest to Luoyi, and had sufficient weight among the various Xia states.
As long as he goes to Luoyi to support Wang Zian now, Wang Zian will definitely give him power in return.
Although Luo State did not pay tribute to Zhou, the Duke of Zheng knew the style of Luo State.
In the end, Prince An will definitely be recognized as the king, and once he is able to take over the government, he will be able to obtain countless benefits for the State of Zheng.
Although it was impossible to obtain a transcendent status like the Luo State, under Luo Cheng's rule over the years, the wealth of the royal capital was not small, which played a huge role in expanding the strength and influence of the Zheng State.
Among the various kingdoms of Xia, Jin, Qi and Luo remained silent, Chu raised an army in anger, Zheng stood on the side of Luoyi, Song and Chen waited and watched, Qin and Fei were still fighting bloody battles with the Rong people, and a group of small countries were in constant fear.
This strange atmosphere, a sense of oppression as if a storm is about to come, enveloped the entire world.
…
Regarding the record of "Bloody Royal Capital", in the official history books of the Zhou Dynasty, the reason for the death of Crown Prince Jin was that King Yi had passed away, so he died of excessive grief, and eventually King Xi ascended the throne.
However, this method of concealing the truth was too crude. Thanks to the preservation of historical books by the Luo royal family, we can see that "An killed Prince Jin" clearly recorded in the history books of many vassal states.
This behavior of calling the king by his name without shying away from the taboos proves that King Xi's actions seriously challenged the moral bottom line of the time.
Since King Xi murdered his brother, the entire history of the Spring and Autumn Period has been shrouded in the shadow of assassination. Just a rough count shows that hundreds of well-known princes died in assassinations or direct regicide, and history completely slipped into the abyss of the collapse of rituals and music.
Of course, the most serious impact of this incident was that Luo State stopped paying tribute to Zhou, which dealt a heavy blow to the rule of the Zhou Dynasty. The subsequent statements made by the princes of various countries proved one thing.
Once the State of Luo was forced to sever diplomatic relations with the Zhou royal family under the Zhou rituals, the entire system used by the Zhou royal family to maintain its rule would collapse in an instant.
This also confirms the author's point of view that the so-called restoration of King Yi, which is talked about by historians, is like a castle built on the beach. It is just a flash in the pan at the cost of blood paid by the State of Luo. - "The Rise and Fall of the Zhou Dynasty"
The most classic period of regicide in the Spring and Autumn Period began. In the next three hundred years, more than one hundred monarchs would die at the hands of their ministers and royal family members.
(End of this chapter)
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