The war between the Great Jin and the Southern Chu has ended.
Just as Su Wan had hoped, the Great Jin and the Southern Chu concluded a peace treaty. It took the Jin army a full month to return to the capital from the Southern Chu.
The emperor immediately issued an edict of abdication, humbly stating that the throne originally belonged to his younger brother, and that he had only acted as regent while his brother was campaigning against Southern Chu. Now that his brother had returned victorious with his army, he should abdicate and return home to recuperate, as living a couple more years would be the proper course of action.
The army and the people naturally had high hopes for Wei Jingzhuo's ascension to the throne. Wei Jingzhuo declined, saying it was against ancient principles.
The Prime Minister, leading a group of civil officials, cited numerous classical texts and extensive evidence to demonstrate that Wei Jingzhuo's ascension to the throne was not without precedent. He argued that even the founding emperor of Southern Chu, Chu Ming, had voluntarily abdicated to his younger brother. He asserted that since the Jin dynasty was also a case of the elder brother yielding to the younger, what was wrong with that?
As long as there is a precedent, everything will be fine.
There was a precedent, but Wei Jingzhuo still declined, humbly saying that he was not worthy of the position and could not ascend the throne.
Su Wan grew impatient and said privately, "Ah Jin, really! The army has generals who support you, the people want you to be emperor, and I, the goddess, am here to back you up. Why do you always make excuses?"
Wei Jingzhuo said, "I know what you're saying, Awan. The emperor's succession cannot be so hasty."
"How is that hasty? The emperor's edict has already been issued, so you should just accept it."
"Too early. This is only the first time. I can only agree after at least the third time."
Su Wan was completely confused and couldn't figure out why Wei Jingzhuo would refuse three times, so she simply asked him something that interested her.
"Was Chu Ming, the founding emperor of Southern Chu, one of two brothers?"
"Yes, would you like to know?"
"It's better to talk than to just sit there putting on airs."
“I’m not putting on airs,” Wei Jingzhuo said with a smile, pulling her into his arms. “These are all matters of the court, and since you’re not interested, let’s talk about Southern Chu.”
"Hmm... hurry up and tell me," Su Wan yawned widely, squirming in Wei Jingzhuo's arms.
Wei Jingzhuo asked with concern, "Why are you sleepy at noon? Didn't you get enough sleep last night?"
Su Wan shook her head and said, "No, I just got sleepy listening to you talk about being modest."
Wei Jingzhuo held Su Wan's small hand and felt its icy coldness. He frowned and said, "It's already mid-June, why are your hands so cold? Are you getting sick?"
Su Wan pulled her hand away and said, "No, my hands are just a little cold, my blood circulation isn't good. I'll take some Chinese medicine to regulate them later. Tell me about what happened in Nan Chu."
“Alright, alright, I’ll tell you,” Wei Jingzhuo said, holding Su Wan in one arm and pulling a thin blanket over her with the other. “The territory of Southern Chu originally consisted of five tribes. The Chu tribe, located in the south, was originally the smallest. These tribes were constantly at war with each other, and the people suffered greatly. Later, a genius commander emerged from the Chu tribe, who led the tribe’s army to defeat two of the tribes in succession.”
“No wonder Brother Chu has so many schemes,” Su Wan said. “So he already had that gene back then. Who is that genius?”
"The father of the founding emperor Chu Ming," Wei Jingzhuo smiled and continued, "was also a very powerful tribe at the time. Eventually, the two tribes became locked in a power struggle. The two sides fought a battle at what is now Yanxun Pass."
"Wait, let me guess the result." Su Wan raised her hand and said, "Since the founding emperor is Chu Ming, the battle must have been lost."
“Ah Wan is so smart,” Wei Jingzhuo said, affectionately rubbing her head. “Indeed, we lost that battle, and Chu Ming’s father died in battle. The enemy’s army was pressing in, wanting to annex all the territory in one fell swoop. And Chu Ming and his brother didn’t have many troops and were powerless to resist… What happened next has a bit of a folk legend feel to it.”
"A legend?" Su Wan leaned lazily against Wei Jingzhuo's chest. "What legend?"
"Legend has it that Mount Jinhua descended from the sky, and a goddess appeared to help the Chu brothers defeat the enemy. They then unified the entire territory of Southern Chu and established the Southern Chu Kingdom."
"So the goddess existed from that time onwards?" Su Wan asked. "And then what?"
"After the establishment of the Southern Chu Kingdom, it was rumored that Emperor Chu Ming of Southern Chu originally intended to launch a large-scale attack on the Great Jin, but for some reason, he suddenly stopped. He also abdicated to his younger brother, and his whereabouts became unknown. It is said that he went to cultivate immortality with a goddess. Since then, although the emperors of Southern Chu have all had the idea of attacking the Great Jin, it was not until Chu Yi that they took concrete action."
Su Wan smiled and asked, "Ah Jin, do you believe in these things?"
Wei Jingzhuo said, "I definitely didn't believe it at first, but after seeing the ghost army and the miraculous medical skills of the divine physician family, I don't know whether I should believe it or not."
Su Wan said, "Would you be surprised if I told you that Chu Ming is still alive?"
Wei Jingzhuo was taken aback and shook his head, saying, "How is that possible? More than five hundred years have passed. How can anyone in this world live that long?"
"Just kidding," Su Wan said. "Hold me tight, I'm a little sleepy, let me sleep in your arms."
"It's more comfortable to sleep in bed."
No, I want to sleep in your arms.
Wei Jingzhuo smiled, gently shifted Su Wan's body to make her more comfortable, and said, "Sleep, I will hold you until you wake up."
Su Wan closed her eyes, a sweet smile on her lips, and gradually drifted off to sleep.
Wei Jingzhuo remained still, only looking down at her small face peeking out from under the blanket, even his breathing was very soft, afraid of accidentally waking her.
Half an hour later, Su Wan still showed no signs of waking up.
The door creaked open, and Lin Qingfeng appeared in the doorway.
Before he could even open his mouth, he was startled by Wei Jingzhuo's icy gaze.
The master's gaze spoke volumes, and the meaning was very clear: Do not make a sound.
Lin Qingfeng swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue. But this matter was too important to keep silent. He looked around, tiptoed to the desk, picked up a pen, and began to write on the paper.
Unlike the guards below, Lin Qingfeng was not only literate but also wrote quite well. After finishing writing, he tiptoed over to Wei Jingzhuo with the paper between his fingers and showed him the words on the paper.
When Wei Jingzhuo looked at the paper, it read, "My lord, the Prime Minister, along with all the civil and military officials, are kneeling at the gate of the Prince's Palace, requesting that you ascend the throne."
After returning to the capital, Wei Jingzhuo temporarily stayed in a prince's mansion, which was only two streets away from the imperial city.
He looked down at the sleeping Su Wan and shook his head at Lin Qingfeng.
Lin Qingfeng looked troubled, then turned back to the table, wrote something down, and brought it back to Wei Jingzhuo to see.
"My lord, there are nearly a hundred ministers outside."
This time, Wei Jingzhuo stopped shaking his head and instead stared at Lin Qingfeng with eyes like two sharp swords.
Lin Qingfeng shivered and quickly tiptoed to the door. As he moved out, he carefully turned the door with both hands, managing to close it without making a sound.
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