Chapter 769: Ascension to the Throne (Finale)
On the eighth day of the fifth month of the second year of Daoming, Xie Zhan, the regent of Dali, met with Lu Songli, the governor of Pingzhou, at Lumingtai in Fengdu, Fuling. Xie Zhan set up many traps there, but they were all defused by Pingzhou one by one. He himself fell into the flood due to his injuries and drowned.
Lu Songli took the injured and unconscious Qin Sheng back to Pingzhou for treatment.
After seeing off Lu Songli and his group, Qin Heng suppressed his worry for his brother and began to lead the army to recapture Yizhou.
After retaking Yizhou, Qin Heng ordered the army to rest temporarily and wait for other armies to join him.
The rest of Pingzhou's army was rushing in at full speed, preparing to launch a final attack on Dali and besiege Yongzhou.
In the Chang'an Palace, Empress Dowager Ye Xian (the title bestowed upon the new emperor a year ago after he ascended the throne) scolded Xie Zhan for being a traitor. She said he should have been able to send Lu Songli away immediately, but he had been nagging her for so long, falling for her stalling tactics. How despicable!
If Xie Zhan's spirit were here, he would surely sneer. Ye Xian wanted him and Lu Songli to suffer losses, so that she could reap the benefits? Was she worthy of this?
Li Jieying, who had been promoted to the chief steward of the harem, looked up at the sky and thought to himself, "My Lord Buddha, it's still broad daylight and you haven't woken up yet."
The young eunuch Xiaodouzi next to Li Jieying lowered his head and looked submissive. He admired Li Zongguan very much.
Now the Pingzhou army is about to reach Chang'an, and there is a bit of chaos in the palace. He knows that General Li is still quite leisurely.
"Master Li, the situation is about to change. We palace maids and eunuchs don't know what our fate will be in the future."
"Don't worry so much. There's no point in worrying so much. I heard that the Governor of Pingzhou is quite kind and he won't kill people at will."
"Hearing what you said, Steward Li, I feel relieved. Steward Li, you are truly capable. You've risen to the position of Steward in just a few years. Your words must make sense."
"Hey, that's nothing." Li Jieying waved his hand at Xiaodouzi's compliment. "My family has told you time and time again, don't be afraid to spend money. As long as you're willing to spend, you can work your way up to the throne. The first year I entered the palace, I was also a young eunuch."
Xiao Douzi nodded. After entering the palace, he had been working in the same palace with Li Zongguan. Li Zongguan was just a small eunuch leader at the time, but he had climbed up the ranks and never seemed to lack money. So he asked Li Zongguan for advice on how to make money.
Li Jieying felt amused. There was no such thing as a way to make money. His way of making money was to have a good master behind him.
The troops from various directions in Pingzhou gathered towards Yongzhou.
As the armies from Pingzhou approached, the atmosphere in Chang'an City became extremely tense.
It's not that the people in the city don't want to leave, but where else can they go? The area outside is already Pingzhou's territory. And if they leave, what will happen to their houses, shops, and so on? Will they abandon everything? They can't bear to do that.
At this time in Chang'an City, except for a very small number of people, most people hoped that Dali would surrender to Pingzhou so that Chang'an City could be safely handed over to Pingzhou without any war.
Now Dali only has Yongzhou left, and the situation is hopeless. It can be said that the current Dali emperor has become the governor of Chang'an County, and his orders cannot leave Chang'an. What is there to hold on to?
The civil and military officials of Dali all persuaded the young emperor, or rather, the Empress Dowager Ye Xian, to surrender to Pingzhou.
Ye Xian was furious when she heard these ministers' words of advice. In the past, Lü Songli was just a criminal woman! Were the ministers asking her to submit to Lü Songli?
In fact, even people from her own family came to persuade her. In the current situation, it is obvious that she cannot prevail over the opponent.
Ye Xian still refused to give in. She finally gave in because she found out someone had poisoned her food, which was accidentally eaten by her trusted palace maid.
This frightened Ye Xian, and her family members came to the palace to persuade her, saying that if she did not compromise, her life would be lost. So Ye Xian compromised and agreed to surrender to Pingzhou.
After Ye Xian gave in, important officials of Dali, led by Prime Minister Chen Wan, Shangshu Ling Sang Baiqing, Dali Temple Minister Wang Yuan and Imperial Censor Zhou Chengzhong, went to discuss with Qin Heng about Dali's surrender to Pingzhou.
Lin Ran escorted them there.
However, Qin Heng did not meet them. Instead, he asked Zhou Da to tell them, "Our general said that if you, Dali, want to surrender to our Pingzhou, you can, but you must show sincerity."
Chen Wan and the others suspected they had misheard. What did this mean? They were representing Dali to negotiate surrender, yet they were expected to show sincerity before Pingzhou would negotiate with them?
"Is that what you mean?" Chen Wan asked.
Wang Yuan: “Probably.”
Shen Wan and others were furious when they heard this.
At this time, Lin Ran said quietly, "It's not wrong for them to want sincerity. At Lumingtai in Fuling, Governor Lu and General Qin Sheng were plotted against. General Qin Sheng is still seriously injured and has not woken up..."
Chen Wan and Sang Baiqing exchanged bewilderment. If they really wanted to make a fuss, the regent of Dali had died in the struggle. Well, under someone's roof, one must bow. Pingzhou was simply trying to use them to get rid of some people.
Chen Wan and others invited Zhou Da again, and he agreed, saying that he would show his sincerity.
Zhou Da nodded, then called Xian Feng over and said, "Let him take some people with you back."
This is surveillance. Is Pingzhou still afraid that they will cheat? Even though they are dissatisfied, Shen Wan and others still pinched their noses and took the people back.
Xue Xu secretly instructed Xian Feng to find a way to get rid of the young emperor of Dali and Xie Zhan's offspring...
Dali's sincerity was quickly revealed.
Xian Feng also saw it.
Upon receiving Dali's sincerity, Qin Heng finally agreed to meet with Shen Wan and the others, and they reached two or three simple points of agreement. For example, they agreed on the time when Dali would open the city gates to welcome the Pingzhou army; agreed that the Pingzhou army would not injure anyone after entering Chang'an; and agreed that the defense of Chang'an would be handed over to the Pingzhou army before the city gates were opened.
When the news reached Changli, Lu Desheng jumped up excitedly, "Chang'an is going to surrender?"
"Yes, a date has been agreed upon."
Lu Desheng was extremely excited. What did this mean? This meant that the world would be unified!
Unexpectedly, never expected, they actually did it!
After the excitement subsided a little, Lu Desheng asked his wife, "How is my son-in-law?"
Jiang shook his head, "Still unconscious."
Lu Desheng's excitement subsided a little, but he was still very excited when he thought that the whole world would soon fall into his daughter's hands.
He stood up and said, "No, I have to go to Xilin Cemetery."
Jiang was puzzled, "Why go to Xilin Cemetery?"
Lu Desheng was so happy that he couldn't suppress the smile, "Tell the late emperor." The emperor takes turns, and this year it's my turn, hehe.
Jiang: ...Are you sure you are not going there to irritate the late emperor?
Before she could say anything, Lu Desheng had already arranged for people to prepare sacrifices.
Jiang: Forget it.
Chang'an
As the gates of Chang'an opened, Qin Heng led the Pingzhou army into the city and began to deploy defenses along the way.
After everything was done, he stood in front with all the Pingzhou generals, and the important officials of Dali stood behind to welcome Lu Songli into the city.
On both sides of the road, behind the guards stood the common people who came to watch the ceremony.
"Welcome the Governor to the city!"
Lu Songli's carriage was large, covered in a light veil. She knelt, her hands folded on her stomach, her entire body looming. Beside her, Qin Sheng lay fast asleep.
Old friends like Sheng Huaixing, Wang Shancun, and Yao Zining caught a glimpse of Lu Songli's youthful and elegant face, and their hearts were filled with mixed emotions. They still remembered the scene when the Qin family was exiled and left the capital in disgrace.
Who would have thought that seven years later, Lu Songli led the Qin and Lu families to overthrow the Dali Dynasty and establish a new policy in just seven years.
In fact, Sheng Huaixing and others thought that it was easy for Lu Songli to conquer the country, because they did all the difficult things.
Among these old friends, the one who felt the most miserable was definitely Zhao Yutan.
Zhao Yutan was standing in a very remote position and could only watch Lu Songli's carriage and pomp from a distance.
God is so unfair.
In her opinion, all the honors that Lu Songli has received now are just the result of good luck and choosing the right person.
But no one has ever told Zhao Yutan that choice is more important than hard work.
But it is not easy to make a good choice, because behind the choice, it represents a person's vision and cognition. If you hit it once, it is luck, but if you hit it two or three times in a row, it is based on a person's knowledge and vision.
The Luo family looked dazed. Was there going to be a change of dynasty?
Luo Da lowered his head in fear. "They've already conquered the old Dali Dynasty? What about the new dynasty? Will it have any impact if they stay in Chang'an?"
The common people of Chang'an looked at Lu Songli, the new master of Chang'an, with great interest.
Because Dali surrendered voluntarily, their shops and houses were basically preserved, which shows that their new owner is quite law-abiding.
These people did not know that because of Dali's voluntary surrender, it was difficult for them in Pingzhou to plunder the wealth of Chang'an, which led to complaints from her followers. Lu Songli had already made up her mind to move the capital to Beiping.
At this time, Lu Songli looked at the people who were looking at her through the veil, and felt deeply the weight of the burden on her shoulders.
Now that the country has been conquered, how to govern it becomes the top priority.
Lu Songli did not live in the Taiji Hall, which represented the emperor's status, but chose a spacious and open side hall to live in.
At this time, the people below handed her a memorial, asking her how to deal with the old lady Ye Xian and Zhao Yutan?
After the death of the young emperor, the empress of Song Mo and Emperor Ai of Song had taken her own life with a white silk scarf. Now, only Ye Xian and Zhao Yutan, two women of special status, needed her approval to deal with.
Lu Songli understood that this was also a test from the former officials of Dali. Through her treatment of the two people, he could infer her likes and dislikes towards these old officials.
For the old lady Ye Xian and Zhao Yutan, Lu Songli gave two different ways of dealing with them.
Ye Xian looked at the three items before her—the white silk, the poisoned wine, and the dagger. She also learned that Lv Songli had spared Zhao Yutan, and her entire body trembled. "I refuse to accept this! I want to see Lv Songli! Why did she sentence me to death, but let Zhao Yutan go so easily?"
Lu Songli didn't meet her, but sent a message, "I killed you because I don't want the world to be in turmoil, not because of personal grudges. Everything is because of your identity."
Not killing Zhao Yutan was naturally to show her magnanimity as a monarch.
This word also spread, and everyone understood that Lu Songli killed people only because of the harm they caused, not because of personal grudges.
Because she did not kill people indiscriminately, she reassured many civil and military officials of the Dali Dynasty.
After moving into the side hall, Lu Songli has been very diligent.
Xue Xu knelt down and begged Lü Songli to ascend the throne, "Governor, the country cannot be without a ruler for a day."
Other ministers also knelt down and begged Lu Songli to ascend the throne.
Lu Songli said, "The Qin family has made an indelible contribution to the Pingzhou uprising, its development to this day, and the conquest of the country..."
Lu Songli meant that she and Qin Sheng ascended the throne together and were called Qin Emperor and Lu Huang.
Xue Xu was stunned. Emperor Lu and Emperor Qin? Although General Qin Sheng was in a coma, it would not affect the governor's exercise of the emperor's power. However, this would take away the governor's glory.
Ji Wuyin quickly pulled him back. He felt the governor's decision was a wise one. He whispered, "We can't let the governor pursue empty fame while bringing real harm."
Xue Xu then remained silent.
In this way, after Lu Songli and the court officials declined and requested again and again, he finally agreed to ascend the throne.
A month later, the 23-year-old Lu Songli and the unconscious Qin Sheng offered sacrifices to heaven and ascended the throne at the top of Mount Li in Chang'an.
The sacrificial fire burned and rose in the cauldron.
Lü Songli burned incense and announced to heaven and earth:
"The Emperor of Heaven is above, and the Earth is below."
"Your servant, Lü Songli, and your husband, Qin Sheng, have been granted this order by your grace. I belong to Xiu Liyuan."
"When the Xianbei invaded the south, he raised an army with great rage. After seven years, he defeated the Xianbei and pacified the world."
"Now that the fate of the Great Li Kingdom has come to an end, my wife and I have been entrusted with carrying on this fate. We will help those in need and save those drowning. Our merits and virtues have earned us the support of the world."
"Mao Jin, who cultivated virtue, became the Son of Heaven, but Li still refused twice, and three times. All his subordinates said in unison, 'The Emperor's order cannot be delayed. How dare we not respectfully accept it?'"
"Today, I, your humble servant, and I, in compliance with the will of Heaven and the will of the people, will offer sacrifices on the summit of Mount Li on the second day of the eighth month, announcing to Heaven and Earth the founding of the Ming Dynasty and the establishment of the reign of Tianxi."
As soon as Lu Songli finished speaking, the ministers and soldiers around him cheered enthusiastically, "Long live, long live, long live..."
Qin Heng, Lu Desheng, Xue Xu, Guo Chong and others all watched this scene with excitement. When choosing the name of the country, Emperor Lu personally chose the word "Ming".
A minister asked, what is the Ming Dynasty?
Her explanation is: All places covered by the sun and the moon are bright lands.
Lu Songli looked at everyone and promised loudly, "After the founding of the Ming Dynasty, peace will be brought to all quarters, the world will be unified, the country will be prosperous and the people will be safe, and the country will prosper forever."
Hearing this, everyone shouted at the top of their lungs, "Long live the Emperor Lu!"
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