2 Empress
She did not say "I do" or "I want to be emperor", but just chose the most high-sounding reason.
Because she knew that from the moment she stepped into this imperial city, her wishes no longer mattered.
Upon hearing this, Grand Tutor Xu's face lit up with satisfaction. He led the crowd in shouting, "Your Majesty is wise!"
"Your Majesty is wise!" All the officials echoed in unison, and their voices seemed to shake the tiles on the roof of the hall.
"Your Majesty", this title was like a heavy shackle, instantly put on Li Zhaoyi.
She watched as all the officials stood up and stood respectfully on both sides, waiting for her to enter the hall that symbolized supreme power, and suddenly felt extremely ironic.
Yesterday she was chasing butterflies in the imperial garden, but today she has to step on the blood of her relatives and sit on the cold dragon throne.
Eunuch Zhang held her arm and said softly, "Princess, it's time to go into the palace."
Li Zhaoyi took a deep breath, lifted her heavy skirt, and walked into the hall step by step.
The dragon throne was placed in the center of the hall, carved with intricate dragon patterns, and shone with a cold and hard luster in the sunlight.
She walked forward, her fingertips lightly brushing the armrests of the dragon throne. The cool touch from her fingertips reminded her of her father's cold hands.
"Your Majesty, please ascend the throne." Grand Tutor Xu knelt before her, holding the crown.
The crown was adorned with pearls and gems, and looked gorgeous, but was incredibly heavy.
Li Zhaoyi bent down and let Tutor Xu put the crown on her head. In an instant, a heavy pressure came from the top of her head, making it almost impossible for her to breathe.
She turned around, sat on the dragon throne, and looked down at the officials of the palace. They all knelt on the ground, shouting "Long live the emperor, long live the emperor, long live the emperor".
But she could not see any true submission in those lowered heads, only awe of power and wait-and-see attitude towards the future.
"Everyone, please stand up." There was a barely perceptible tremor in Li Zhaoyi's voice, but she tried hard to maintain the majesty of the emperor.
All the officials stood up and lined up on both sides.
Grand Tutor Xu stepped out and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, the rebellion has just been quelled, the court is unstable, the Xiongnu in the north are restless, and the south is suffering from floods, with refugees everywhere. I beg Your Majesty to make a decision quickly and stabilize the court."
Li Zhaoyi gripped the armrests of the dragon throne, her knuckles turning white.
She knew that what Grand Tutor Xu said was the truth, but she had never dealt with state affairs before. Faced with this situation of internal and external troubles, she felt at a loss.
"Taifu Xu," she began, trying to keep her voice calm. "You have been at court for a long time and are very experienced. I order you to temporarily manage state affairs. You will discuss countermeasures with the other ministers and report to me tomorrow."
"I obey your order." Taifu Xu bowed and accepted the order.
Other ministers also submitted memorials, some saying that the administration should be rectified, some saying that the refugees should be appeased, and some saying that the military should be strengthened.
Li Zhaoyi sat on the dragon throne, listening to their conversations, and felt her head buzzing.
She tried hard to remember every word they said, but those unfamiliar official titles and complicated policies were like a tangled mess that made her feel heavy-hearted.
It was not until the sun set that the officials gradually left.
Li Zhaoyi was the only one left in the hall. She took off her heavy crown and threw it on the table beside her. She leaned tiredly on the dragon throne and closed her eyes.
The wind from outside the hall blew in through the window, bringing a hint of coolness.
Li Zhaoyi recalled that when she was a child, her father would hold her in his arms and sit on the dragon throne, telling her interesting stories from the court. At that time, she felt that the dragon throne was so big and warm.
But now, it was as cold as a huge rock, pressing her so hard that she couldn't breathe.
"Eunuch Zhang," she called softly, with a hint of fragility in her voice, "I want to return to the East Palace."
The East Palace was where she used to live. There was her familiar bed, her favorite flowers and plants, and the memories of her eldest brother and third brother playing with her.
Eunuch Zhang hesitated for a moment, then said softly, "Your Majesty, you are now the Supreme Lord. According to etiquette, you should move to the Hall of Mental Cultivation. The Eastern Palace... is no longer suitable for Your Majesty to live in."
Li Zhaoyi's heart sank. Yes, she was already the emperor, no longer the princess who could act like a spoiled child in the Eastern Palace.
Her past, her family, and her warmth were all left in the past forever with the palace coup.
"Then let's go to the Yangxin Palace." She stood up, her steps a little unsteady.
Eunuch Zhang helped her out of the Hall of Supreme Harmony. The afterglow of the setting sun sprinkled on the palace walls of the imperial city, dyeing everything golden, but this golden color carried a kind of tragic desolation.
Li Zhaoyi looked at the palace in the distance, thought of the fire and blood last night, and suddenly felt extremely lonely.
She walked towards the Yangxin Palace step by step, following the shadows of the setting sun. The palace was magnificent and gorgeous, but there was no trace of people around.
She sat in front of the dressing table, looking at herself in the bronze mirror. She was wearing a bright yellow dragon robe, with a heaviness on her face that did not belong to her age.
"Can I really be a good emperor?" She asked herself in the bronze mirror softly, her voice full of uncertainty.
No one answered her, only the sound of the wind outside the hall, sobbing, as if sighing for her.
Late at night, Li Zhaoyi lay on the large dragon bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
She remembered the look in her eldest brother's eyes as he looked at the rockery before he died, the gentle smile of her third brother, and the warmth when her father touched her head... Tears slid silently down her face, soaking the pillowcase.
She knew that from the moment she put on the crown, she had to be strong.
Without the protection of her family and the right to act like a spoiled child, she can only rely on herself to support this crumbling kingdom.
The moon outside the window climbed to the zenith, and the cold moonlight shone into the hall and sprinkled on Li Zhaoyi's face.
She opened her eyes, looked at the exquisite carvings on the ceiling, and silently said in her heart: Father, eldest brother, third brother, don't worry, I will definitely protect the Li family's kingdom and live well.
When the third candle in the Yangxin Palace burned down, Li Zhaoyi finally turned to the last volume of the mountain of memorials on the desk.
Her fingertips slid across the four large vermilion characters "Urgent News from the Northern Border". Her fingertips curled up unconsciously, and even the jade pen she was holding trembled slightly.
The moment she unfolded the memorial, the ink characters pierced her eyes like ice-hardened needles. The Xiongnu cavalry broke through three border towns in three days.
The defending general was killed in the battle, and more than 10,000 soldiers and civilians were killed or wounded. Now the enemy has arrived at Yanmen Pass. If there is no reinforcement, Yanmen Pass may be difficult to hold.
"More than ten thousand casualties..." Li Zhaoyi repeated these four words in a low voice, her throat feeling like it was blocked by a ball of hot cotton.
Although she had never been to the battlefield in person, she could imagine the scene of corpses everywhere and rivers of blood.
Those dead soldiers and civilians were once parents and children of others, and they once lived a stable life on this land, but now they have become cold numbers on memorials.
She suddenly remembered the report she had received from the south last night. The flood had submerged five counties, hundreds of thousands of refugees were displaced, and there were starving people everywhere. In some places, there were even signs that refugees were gathering to cause trouble.
The northern border is in crisis and the south is in turmoil. This imperial city, which has just experienced a palace coup, is like a lonely boat drifting in a storm and may capsize at any time.
"Your Majesty, it's almost dawn. Would you like to rest for a while?" Eunuch Zhang walked in with a bowl of warm ginseng soup. Seeing her pale face and bloodshot eyes, he couldn't help but persuade her softly.
Li Zhaoyi shook her head, pushed the memorial aside, and rubbed her swollen temples: "I can't sleep. Look at these memorials, the Xiongnu in the north,
The floods in the south, and the ministers in the court blaming each other... Why is this country so difficult to defend?"
There was a hint of fragility in her voice that she wasn't even aware of.
Only three days after ascending the throne, she thought she was ready. However, faced with the crises that followed one after another, she realized that her so-called "preparation" was nothing but self-deception.
She was like a toddler who was suddenly pushed onto a steep cliff. She could only struggle in fear but could not find the direction.
Eunuch Zhang handed the ginseng soup to her and sighed, "Your Majesty is still young, and it is not easy for you to hold on until now.
I remember that when the late emperor was on the throne, he would always consult with his ministers whenever he encountered a problem. Perhaps... Your Majesty could listen to the ministers' opinions at court."
Li Zhaoyi picked up the ginseng soup, the warm liquid slid down her throat, but failed to warm her cold heart.
She knew that Eunuch Zhang was right, but when she thought of the ministers in the court who had their own thoughts, she felt powerless.
The palace coup had just happened and people's hearts were still unstable. Who knew whether the "good strategies" spoken of by those ministers were for their own interests?
"Forget it, let's go to court first." She stood up and straightened her dragon robe. The girl in the mirror was wearing bright yellow imperial clothing. She had a thin figure, but her eyes carried a hint of determination that she forced herself to hold on.
At the court meeting, Li Zhaoyi made the reports from the north and the south public. As soon as she finished speaking, the court exploded.
"Your Majesty, the Huns are going too far! I request your permission to lead the troops to fight and drive these barbarians out of our territory!" Minister of War Zhou Lei was the first to step forward, his voice like a bell and his face full of indignation.
"Mr. Zhou is wrong!" Wang Chengzong, the Minister of Revenue, immediately retorted.
"The treasury is now empty, and we still need to allocate funds for disaster relief for the floods in the south. If we mobilize troops to march north again, I am afraid it will be difficult to sustain. I think the most urgent task is to appease the refugees.
Stabilize domestic affairs, and wait until national strength recovers before planning a Northern Expedition."
"Lord Wang is afraid of the enemy and is afraid of fighting!" Zhou Lei glared at Wang Chengzong.
"If we allow the Xiongnu to wreak havoc, where will our dynasty's dignity be? If the neighboring small countries follow suit, won't our dynasty be doomed to eternal damnation?"
"Lord Zhou only cares about showing off his bravery and doesn't care about the lives of the people!"
"you……"
The two men argued endlessly, and other ministers also took sides. Some supported the Northern Expedition, some advocated disaster relief, and some proposed peace talks with the Huns. The court was as noisy as a pot of boiling porridge.
Li Zhaoyi sat on the dragon throne, looking at the ministers arguing below, and felt dizzy.
They all had their own reasons, but no one could come up with a practical solution, let alone consider whether it was the Northern Expedition or disaster relief.
They all require someone to coordinate and dispatch, and they need sufficient ability and prestige to win the support of the people.
At this moment, the silent Grand Tutor Xu suddenly stepped out, knelt tremblingly on the ground, and said in a voice with a hint of urgency: "Your Majesty, the country is in crisis now. There is only one person in the court who can solve this urgent problem."
Li Zhaoyi's heart moved, and she quickly asked, "Who is Grand Tutor Xu talking about?"
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