Chapter 167 The End of Emperor Xin and Su Daji Huang Fei...
Huang Feihu had rebelled, Chonghouhu was dead. With Wen Zhong's departure, King Di Xin of Shang had lost all his support. The Zhou army shifted from defense to offense, winning victory after victory. Finally, three years later, they launched the Battle of Muye and captured the city of Chaoge.
The last Shang king, Di Xin, set himself on fire in the Deer Tower, sacrificing himself to the heavens.
When the news reached the Zhou camp, the civil and military officials were in an uproar, and even King Wu Jifa was panicked.
He called himself King Wu, and wanted to emulate the first King Wu who lived 500 years ago - King Tang of Shang, who destroyed the Shang Dynasty and established the Zhou Dynasty, making the Ji clan rule the world.
Ji Fa's desire to destroy the Shang Dynasty did not conflict with his admiration for King Wu of Shang Tang.
Ji Fa had repeatedly pondered all the deeds of this wise king whom he admired, and learned everything he thought was useful.
He naturally knew that at the beginning of the Shang Dynasty, a severe drought struck the land. The civil and military officials of Bo and other princes petitioned Shang Tang to offer a human sacrifice, a gesture of weakness to the heavens, and thus alleviate the world's distress.
Shang Tang refused to offer the princes, officials and even the common people as sacrifices. He shaved his head, tied his hands and walked up to the altar to sacrifice himself to God.
——He refused to show weakness to Heaven, and instead, as the King of Men, confronted Heaven head-on.
Even the almighty Heaven could not bear the sacrifice of the common ruler of the world. As soon as Shang Tang ascended the altar, the sky was covered with dark clouds and torrential rain poured down in an instant.
Emperor Xin was at the end of his rope, yet he remained the common ruler of the world. Who knew what he was seeking when he offered himself as a sacrifice to the heavens? Who dared to take that gamble?
As a result, a very funny scene appeared between Shang and Zhou: it was obvious that the Zhou army was the winner, with an army of 100,000 at the gates of the city, but no one dared to cross the line.
When Jiang Ziya and Shen Gongbao found Ji Fa's tent, they saw him kneeling in a circle of shamans, tortoise shell in his left hand and a bundle of yarrow in his right. Twelve shamans, with colorful feathers in their hair and wearing auspicious robes, were chanting a Nuo dance around Ji Fa.
Jiang Ziya was furious. He strode forward, grabbed the wizard who happened to be in front of him, pushed him out of the tent, and turned around to catch the second one.
Upon seeing this, Shen Gongbao recited the incantation without saying a word, and a whirlwind blew up, blowing away the remaining ten.
Ji Fa was startled, and the yarrow in his hand fell to the ground. He subconsciously reached out to pick it up, but instead of catching the yarrow, he dropped the tortoise shell to the ground.
During the divination, the yarrow and tortoise shell fell to the ground, which was a very bad omen. Thinking of Emperor Xin's self-immolation, Ji Fa's face turned pale.
Jiang Ziya sneered, snatched the few remaining sticks from his hand, threw them to the ground and stomped on them, then demanded, "The Shang Dynasty has been defeated, Emperor Xin is dead, and the fate of the world is settled. Why, Your Majesty, instead of leading your civil and military forces to Chaoge, is you here seeking divination from a sorcerer?"
He was not unaware of the panic in the Zhou camp, but as long as Ji Fa could maintain his composure, the people would naturally feel at ease when they saw that the king was calm and composed.
The uncle and nephew came here this time to discuss with Ji Fa how to calm the people's hearts.
Unexpectedly, even Jifa himself was filled with panic, completely losing his former high spirits.
They, the uncle and nephew, were ordered to go down the mountain to help Zhou attack Shang. They had already taken the ninety-nine steps and only needed the final push to complete their mission. However, Ji Fa was dragging his feet. How could Jiang Ziya not be angry?
Although Shen Gongbao didn't say anything, his expression was very bad, and he looked at Ji Fa with a look of disapproval.
Ji Fa looked very exhausted, and he collapsed to the ground, covering his eyes and saying to the two men, "Marshal, Prime Minister, since Emperor Xin set himself on fire, I have consulted the divination thirty-one times, and every time it was a bad omen.
You have always told me that the rise of Zhou and the conquest of Shang were the will of heaven. But did my Ji Zhou really have the will of heaven? Or did it originally have it, but it disappeared after Emperor Xin's sacrifice?
Jiang Ziya sneered, "Divination? You're just an ordinary man, and unlike the previous king, you haven't studied since childhood. How do you tell fortunes? With these few pieces of grass? Or these two pieces of tortoise shell?"
He stepped forward and kicked one of the tortoise shells far away, sneering, "Turtle shells and rotten bones, yarrow and withered leaves, how can you tell good or bad luck?"
Jifa suddenly took his hand away and looked at him with burning eyes.
Jiang Ziya said to Shen Gongbao, "Uncle Master, please give me the List of Gods."
Shen Gongbao said nothing as he pulled the Investiture of the Gods from his chest and raised his left hand high. The rolled-up scroll emanated a soft golden light, illuminating the uncle and nephew like gods.
Jifa turned over and got up, then knelt down in front of the List of Gods. The panic in his eyes gradually faded, and his mind, which had been frightened by the Lord's sacrifice to the sky, became clear again.
Jiang Ziya pointed at the Investiture of the Gods and asked, "Your Majesty, do you know what this is?"
Ji Fa said seriously, "This is the List of Gods bestowed by the immortals."
Jiang Ziya smiled and asked, "Your Majesty, you already knew the name of this list, but you never thought about why it was called 'Investiture of the Gods'?"
Jifa's heart moved, and he had some guesses, but he didn't dare to believe it.
——Does our country with the surname Ji really have such an opportunity and fortune?
The next moment, Jiang Ziya confirmed his suspicions: "Although the Heavenly Emperor reigns in the Upper Realm, there is a shortage of deities and the constellations are incomplete. This Conferred God List, as the name suggests, is used to confer titles upon the gods of the celestial realm.
The List of the Gods was bestowed upon me by my master, Fuli Yuanjun, and is temporarily in the hands of my uncle, Shen Gongbao. Once the army reaches Chaoge, I will ask Your Majesty to construct the Platform for the Gods and invite the gods back to their places. "Your Majesty, with such deep affection, what else do you fear?"
Jifa was completely refreshed.
After Shen Gongbao put away the List of Gods, he jumped up, asked the two to wait for a moment, went back to the back tent, put on his armor, and went to calm the people's hearts with his sword.
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Jiang Ziya's prediction was absolutely correct. When the people in Zhou camp saw Ji Fa chatting and laughing calmly, and knew that Ji Fa had told fortunes, they guessed that the divination was auspicious.
Within three to five days, people's hearts were at peace.
Ji Fa personally, wearing iron armor, led the way into Chaoge City, followed by hundreds of civil and military officials and 3,000 armored soldiers. The 100,000-strong army remained stationed outside the city, awaiting imperial decrees.
After Ji Fa entered the city, the first thing he had to deal with was naturally the old people left behind by Emperor Xin, including eunuchs, palace maids and concubines.
The concubines with many names in Emperor Xin's harem, apart from Su Daji, the daughter of Su Hu who was known throughout the world as the Evil Queen, were only Queen Jiang, Concubine Huang and Concubine Yang.
The last three had already been defeated by Empress Su and Daji. Those little concubines whose names were unknown were of no value, whether they were troubled or given favors. Ji Fa simply followed Jiang Ziya's advice, gave each of them some money, and let them all leave the palace.
Now, the only person who needs to be treated with caution is Queen Su Daji.
Although Su Daji was a famous evil queen and was despised by the people of the world, she was also the queen officially appointed by Emperor Xin and was once the female ruler of the world.
If the other party's crimes were listed and punished accordingly, Queen Su would definitely not end well.
But as members of the same royal family, Jifa could not allow another member of the royal family to be convicted. This was a class issue, not a positional issue.
When two royal families fight for the world, they can fight to the death without caring at all about how many common people will be implicated, and how many wives and children will be separated and their families will be destroyed.
After they have decided the winner, the question of their stance will naturally become blurred. At this time, they are in the same class and will not allow others of the same class to die at the hands of the jailers because of their class hatred of the enemy.
But if he really followed his heart and released Daji without charge, allowing her to be taken away and supported by the princes of the Zi clan who were about to be enthroned, how could he stop the gossips of the world?
Ji Fa was in a dilemma and ordered Shen Gongbao, Jiang Ziya, San Yisheng, Guo Zhong, Guo Shu, Ji Dan, Ji Guan and other important officials and members of the royal family to come to discuss the treatment of Empress Su.
Among the people he called, only Shen Gongbao was confused.
In his simple understanding, since Daji was a demon queen, she should be punished according to the law to apologize to the world. What else was there to discuss?
On the way to meet Ji Fa, Jiang Ziya took the opportunity to briefly explain the severity of the situation to him. Shen Gongbao's face suddenly turned cold and he sneered.
After meeting Jifa, he kept silent and did not express any opinions.
As a minister, San Yisheng understood that this was not a topic he could participate in. King Wu summoned him, just as he had summoned Shen Gongbao; they were both important ministers, and if they were not summoned to such an important decision, it would inevitably lead to speculation.
However, as Ji Fa's nominal father-in-law, Jiang Ziya had more say than even Guo Zhong, Ji Dan and other clan members.
After all, during the six hundred years of the Shang Dynasty, many members of the royal family had usurped power, but no relatives outside the family had ever succeeded. Even Yi Yin, who briefly held power, was soon forced to give it back.
Therefore, although many people were invited to today's meeting, it was actually Jiang Ziya's turn alone.
Jiang Ziya was clear about Su Daji's origins, and he also knew that the grudge between Nuwa Saint and the Shang Dynasty was difficult to determine, so he had no intention of making things difficult for her who just followed orders.
So, when Ji Fa questioned him, he took it upon himself to answer with a serious face, "Queen Su had a deep affection for Emperor Xin. Wasn't she burned with him in the Deer Tower that day?" She had died with Emperor Xin before the Ji Zhou monarch and his ministers entered Chaoge. Why should we worry? What was there to worry about? Wouldn't it be enough to simply hold a funeral for her and Emperor Xin, to save the reputation of the previous monarch and empress?
As soon as these words came out, Ji Fa suddenly understood, clapped his hands and laughed, "That's right."
Then he thought of something and said hesitantly, "Then Su Daji..."
Although it would be announced to the public that Queen Su and Emperor Xin committed suicide by burning themselves together, it was fake after all. What should be done with the real Su Daji?
Jiang Ziya smiled faintly and said calmly, "Your Majesty, please send someone to Shouxian Palace, and the doubts in your heart will be solved naturally."
Ji Fa was skeptical and sent San Yisheng to take the palace maids to Shouxian Palace.
A moment later, San Yisheng returned with a solemn expression and said to Ji Fa, "Your Majesty, Queen Su has passed away in Shouxian Palace."
When he and the maids went in to investigate, the eunuchs and maids from Shouxian Palace had already fled without a trace. They entered the inner chamber unimpeded and saw a beautiful woman in palace attire lying flat on her back on a low couch. Her face was calm and lifelike, but she was no longer breathing.
He did not dare to delay and first ordered the palace maids to stay and prepare the coffin for Queen Su while he went to report to King Wu.
Jiang Ziya understood: It seems that the nine-tailed fox that occupied Queen Su's body has taken the opportunity to escape.
Ji Fa exhaled and said slowly, "Bury Emperor Xin and Empress Su together and announce it to the world."
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