Chapter 532 Let her oversee the country
The Great Xia capital city finally ended its closure. The development of events was beyond the expectations of Xiao Xinyan and others. Initially, they hoped to finalize the selection of a new emperor as soon as possible and did not want the royal family outside the capital to get the news and come to cause trouble. But now they couldn't wait for tens of thousands of royal family members to come and challenge Qin Mo.
More and more members of the royal family received news of Emperor Zhaowu's death and rushed to the capital. The Imperial Clan Court was in an uproar every day.
"A country cannot be without a ruler for a single day. How can we delay like this? The outside world is in such a state of chaos every day. What kind of behavior is this?"
"The late emperor's body is not yet cold, yet we are making a ruckus here. Shouldn't we be keeping vigil for the late emperor?"
"Your Highness, you insist on waiting until after the Empress gives birth before deciding on a new emperor. Are you suggesting we keep the late Emperor's body in state for six months?"
After Emperor Zhaowu passed away, the court did not immediately announce his death because no successor had been chosen. To this day, Emperor Zhaowu's body is still kept in his palace awaiting the funeral. Originally, this was the idea of Xiao Xinyan and others, but now someone is using it to criticize Qin Mo.
"How long the late emperor's coffin is kept is a matter for the Ministry of Rites and the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs. What does it have to do with me? And who are you?" Qin Mo had been watching these royal family members, who didn't know their own worth, argue and bicker for days, and he was very annoyed. Now that someone had actually jumped out to question him, he was furious.
"I am Qin Hezhi, the sixth-generation descendant of the Prince of Changping. I have heard that His Highness Prince Heng supports the late emperor's heir as the new ruler, but it is still unknown whether the late emperor's heir is male or female..."
"A sixth-generation descendant of the Prince of Changping? How come just anyone is allowed in? Minister Qin... Qin Xiaoxin, how did this person sneak in?"
Qin Mo was already furious halfway through Qin Hezhi's sentence. The title of Prince Changping was stripped in the third generation, and now a sixth-generation descendant was brazenly appearing in the Imperial Clan Court, loudly questioning him, "Who the hell do you think you are? Why don't you say you are a descendant of Prince Jing of Zhongshan?"
“I am a direct descendant of the Prince of Changping… I am royalty… I am qualified…”
Qin Hezhi was dragged out, but his mission was already complete. Everyone would then pin the blame on themselves for keeping Emperor Zhaowu's death a secret for several days.
"Your Highness, although Qin Hezhi has offended you, the late Emperor has been gone for a long time, and we really cannot wait any longer!"
Qin Mo glanced sideways at the grief-stricken Prince Chenliu and sneered, "Who told you to wait? I never said I wouldn't hold a funeral. Don't try anything funny or scheming. If you push me too far, I'll just break off all relations with you. You can elect a new ruler, but I won't recognize him."
"This... Prince Heng, please don't act rashly..."
"...Prince Heng, please be careful with your words..."
Qin Mo had been very restrained these past few days, but now he suddenly showed his intention to declare himself king, which immediately startled a group of royal family members, young and old. In particular, several royal nobles who held a neutral attitude, such as the Marquis of Kaiyang and the Prince of Anyang, all spoke up to persuade him.
Even Yan Wang Qin Mu and others were scratching their heads. They wouldn't care if others declared themselves independent or rebelled; they could wipe them out in the blink of an eye. But if Qin Mo rebelled, it would definitely be a sign of national chaos. With two super-level powerhouses, Allen and Wang Yushi, backing him up, and the First Army of Great Xia stationed in Tianjin, they had the strength to back him up.
“Very well! Let us first take care of the late emperor’s funeral!” In the end, Qin Mu was the first to nod.
"That's fine! The late emperor hasn't even been laid to rest yet, and it's improper for us to be making such a racket here!"
"With the late emperor's funeral procession, envoys from various countries will surely come to pay their respects. We haven't even chosen a new emperor yet, which would be a huge joke... What... what should we do?" Hong Yan, the Minister of Rites, said anxiously as more and more people agreed to proceed with the funeral.
The saying "A country cannot be without a ruler for a day" is not just a casual remark. According to the tradition of the Great Xia Dynasty for thousands of years, a new ruler must be supported immediately after the death of the emperor. Otherwise, it will affect the fortune of the Great Xia Empire and the normal operation of the court.
In the days following Emperor Zhaowu's death, the pile of unprocessed documents in various government departments had reached several feet high. This was because the senior officials were busy electing a new emperor and had no time to deal with state affairs, so their subordinates naturally did not rush to take responsibility.
On the day of the king's funeral, envoys from various countries stationed in the capital will also come to pay their respects. That should be the time for a new king to take the stage, but there is still no suitable candidate. Anyone can see that there are problems with the internal affairs of the Great Xia.
The Minister of Rites' gaze fell on Qin Mo, seemingly intentionally or unintentionally. Finally, Zhao Qirui spoke up and asked, "Qin Mo, do you have any good ideas?"
“We will choose our own new ruler. What business is it of theirs? If they are worried about being laughed at by the envoys from those vassal states, then let the empress oversee the country for the time being.”
As soon as Qin Mo finished speaking, the Imperial Clan Court fell silent. Many people stared at Qin Mo in shock, while a few others exchanged glances, revealing expressions of "I knew it."
"...This is His Highness Prince Heng's true intention, isn't it! Why don't you oversee the country yourself? Heh!"
"You want me to be your regent? Fine! I won't object! Hahahaha!"
“........”
Everyone was speechless upon hearing Qin Mo's laughter; they were all frustrated by his suppressed laughter.
The term "Regent" was a political system in the Xia Dynasty, typically referring to a high-ranking official (such as the crown prince) remaining in the palace to handle state affairs when the emperor was away. It also referred to a situation where, when the monarch was unable to rule personally, someone else would act as regent.
Whether it was Xiao Xinyan back then or Qin Mo now, they both had the same plan: to support Emperor Zhaowu's posthumous son to ascend the throne and then have their own people oversee the country. The only difference was that Xiao Xinyan wanted to oversee the country himself, while Qin Mo wanted Wang Yushi to do the work.
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