Chapter 169: Guiming Hou
After accepting everyone's greetings, Quan Minghe and Shen Yuning sat on the high seats.
The strong gaze she had just felt did not disappear, and it still lingered around her.
Shen Yuning did not look directly for the source of the gaze, but quietly looked at him with the corner of her eyes and soon identified the person.
It was a man wearing a blue brocade robe and a mask on his face. Judging from his attire and position, he should be a member of the royal family of the former Jinlin Kingdom?
Shen Yuning felt it was strange, but she didn't have time to think about the reason.
When the ceremony ended and the banquet began, that gaze was still following her like a shadow, always making Shen Yuning feel vaguely, as if there was a pair of eyes silently watching her in the dark.
Quan Minghe, who was sitting next to her, seemed to notice her absent-mindedness, and his hand hidden under his wide sleeves squeezed her hand quietly.
"What's wrong? Are you tired?"
Shen Yuning shook her head slightly, and her body leaned towards Quan Minghe.
He lowered his voice and asked, "Your Majesty, why is there a man wearing a mask in the palace? Judging from his attire, he looks like a member of the royal family of the previous dynasty."
She seemed curious.
Quan Minghe followed her gaze and moved his eyes to the masked man who was drinking with a minister beside him.
"He is a member of the royal family of the former Jinlin Kingdom."
When Quan Minghe mentioned the former Jinlin Kingdom, his eyes became gloomy.
In the beginning, he either conquered by force or accepted surrender, but he eventually unified the country and laid the foundation for the prosperity of his dynasty.
Under his attack, the Canglan Kingdom and the Youming Kingdom were unable to resist and were recaptured by force.
Seeing that the situation was hopeless, Zichuan and Jinlin chose to surrender.
As an emperor, Quan Minghe naturally accepted and upheld the concept of "divine right of kings" since childhood. The emperor is the spokesperson of God chosen by heaven, and is responsible for governing the world and stabilizing the people.
Although he overthrew the previous regime, the royal family of the previous regime still promoted such ideas.
Treating the royal family of the previous dynasty well is to uphold this concept and make the people sincerely convinced and have no intention of resisting.
Since ancient times, dynasties have replaced each other like the ebb and flow of the tides, but no matter how they change, there are always unwritten yet crucial rules.
Even if there is a change of dynasty, the new dynasty can kill the royal nobles who resist stubbornly with the sword, but it must never kill the rest of the royal family without any reason.
The reason for this is not only out of benevolence, but also out of consideration for the general trend of the world and long-term rule.
At the moment, the act of annihilating all the people would only add more turmoil to the already turbulent situation, making the people who had just been brought under the rule of the dynasty feel fear and resistance.
How could the people willingly submit to the Xin Dynasty if they thought it was cruel and brutal?
If the people's hearts are not stable, how can there be peace in the world?
Furthermore, looking at the long term, dynasties rise and fall, how can one last forever without changing?
If Quan Minghe kills the royal family of the previous dynasty today and wipes out the entire royal family of Jinlin Kingdom, although it may eliminate some hidden dangers for a while, it will invisibly sow the seeds of disaster.
After the dynasty has gone through years of changes and reaches its end, what was done in the past will become a handle and an excuse for other people with ulterior motives to incite the people and stir up trouble.
By then, I'm afraid I'll suffer the same backlash.
Moreover, the world had just been settled, and various forces were undercurrents, all watching in secret.
The people of those countries that surrendered were already worried about how the new dynasty would treat them.
When Quan Minghe accepted the surrender of Jinlin Kingdom, he not only took over the land and population, but also continued the royal orthodoxy of Jinlin Kingdom.
Only by treating the royal family of Jinlin Kingdom well and allowing them to retain a degree of respect and dignity in the Gan Dynasty can we show the people of Jinlin Kingdom that the current emperor of the Gan Dynasty cares about the world, is generous and kind, and truly regards them as his own people, and is willing to accept them and protect them.
Only in this way can we soothe the hearts of those who are anxious due to the change of dynasties, let them willingly integrate into the dynasty and become part of the prosperous era, thereby reducing civil unrest and consolidating the hard-earned unified situation.
The situation in Jinlin State at the time was quite complicated, and there were internal disagreements on the issue of surrender.
The King of Jinlin State knew that the general trend could not be violated, so in order to protect the people, he chose to surrender, which was a move in line with the trend of the times.
But the Feng family behind the queen, out of their own selfish desires and fearing that their family would be swallowed up by the new dynasty and their family power would fall into the hands of others, stubbornly advocated war, hoping to turn the tide.
But in the end, it failed to stop the King of Jinlin from deciding to surrender.
After Quan Minghe unified the world, he treated the royal family of Jinlin Kingdom well.
But the Feng family is like a poisonous snake in the gutter, insidious and cunning, hiding in the dark.
In recent years, they have secretly killed almost all of the royal family of Jinlin Kingdom.
Then they spread rumors in the former Jinlin Kingdom that Quan Minghe wanted to kill them all, in an attempt to stir up hatred among the local people so that they could profit from it and continue to maintain their ulterior ambitions.
Even in the court, people from the Feng family changed their names and infiltrated the court in an attempt to secretly disrupt the situation, but Quan Minghe was not unaware of it.
It's just that without solid evidence, he didn't want to alert the enemy and cause unnecessary turmoil.
What he needs to do is to stabilize the overall situation, remain constant in the face of ever-changing circumstances, and make those with ulterior motives lose their composure, and then find an opportunity to catch them all in one fell swoop.
The masked man today is the only descendant of the former Jinlin royal family. He also inherited the title that Quan Minghe gave to the former Jinlin royal family - Guiming Hou.
It is strange to say, the Feng family acted ruthlessly and almost slaughtered all the royal family of Jinlin Kingdom in secret, but for some reason, they only left Guiming Hou.
But perhaps the people of the Feng family did not dare to act rashly.
As long as the Feng family dares to kill Guiming Hou, Quan Minghe can directly send troops to wipe out the Feng family in order to give an explanation to the people of the former Jinlin Kingdom.
After all, the former Jinlin Kingdom surrendered, and the previous dynasty was established less than ten years ago, and the people still have deep cultural and emotional ties with the former royal family.
If the royal bloodline is cut off in the hands of the Feng family, how can the Gan Dynasty, as the orthodox successor to the Jinlin Kingdom, sit idly by?
However, those people in the Feng family are not easy to fool.
They might be waiting for Quan Minghe to take action first, as long as Quan Minghe kills the only Guiming Hou.
Then they can take the opportunity to incite the people, under the banner of reviving Jinlin Kingdom and revenge for the Jinlin royal family, to provoke a war and disrupt the peace that was hard-won.
Quan Minghe's mind is as clear as a mirror, so he will not be easily calculated by them, and will not act rashly.
Just like playing chess, whoever acts rashly first will inevitably be caught and the other party will seize the opportunity to counterattack fiercely.
It all depends on who can hold their ground in the end.
Shen Yuning became even more confused.
From the former Jinlin Kingdom?
She calmly shifted her gaze to the masked man.
Why does it always feel familiar?
But when she looked closely, the figure and voice were not those of someone she was familiar with.
Perhaps sensing Shen Yuning's doubtful and inquiring gaze, the masked man who was originally chatting with others seemed to have noticed something and turned around to look over.
However, his behavior was frank. He even raised his wine glass. There seemed to be a smile in his eyes through the mask, but it was impossible to tell what he was thinking.
Quan Minghe naturally saw their eyes meet, and he lowered his head to introduce her in her ear: "He is now the only bloodline of the former Jinlin Kingdom royal family, and has inherited the title of Guiming Hou."
Shen Yuning frowned.
Guiming Hou?
It seems that such a character has never appeared in the main storyline of the novel.
That shouldn't have much to do with her.
"Yes, I understand. Thank you, Your Majesty, for clearing up my confusion."
Gui Minghou narrowed his eyes slightly, as if there was an undercurrent surging. He looked at the intimacy between the two people above, and the hand holding the wine glass exerted a little force, and the knuckles turned white.
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