The fiefdom of the Prince of Jin, the Longcheng Palace.
After the news of Prince Chen Huai'an of Jin proclaiming himself emperor in Jinling was announced to the world, the Prince's Mansion in Longcheng, his fiefdom, was renamed Longcheng Palace so that Chen Huai'an could govern the country in the name of the emperor.
Recently, the Longcheng Imperial Palace has been reporting a series of successes.
Under the command of Su Chen, the Governor-General of Liangjiang, and Chang Yuchun, the Deputy Marshal of the Longcheng Army, one of the southern expeditionary forces directly attacked the Liangjiang region and brought the region under their control almost without bloodshed.
This was also due to the efforts of Su Muchen, the former brother-in-law of the Emperor of the Great Xin Dynasty and the Prince of Zhongshan.
After all, the Su family has always had influence in the Liangjiang region.
Especially after learning that Chen Huai'an had secretly spared the lives of Emperor Lingwu and his mother, and even adopted Emperor Lingwu as his godson, Su Muchen's hatred for Chen Huai'an seemed to have lessened.
The fact that he didn't harm his sister Su Wan'er already made Su Muchen admire Chen Huai'an immensely.
To be fair, if Su Muchen, who had the spirit of Cao Cao, and Chen Huai'an were to switch places, he certainly wouldn't have been able to remain completely virtuous towards the former Empress Dowager; that's not his style.
Therefore, under the call of Prince Zhongshan Su Muchen, the powerful families in the Liangjiang region voluntarily surrendered to the new dynasty and offered to raise a considerable sum of money and supplies for the southern expeditionary army to show their loyalty.
Another force, led by the valiant General Pang Xianchu and the surrendered Tiger Warrior Tang Ziyi, swept through the remnants of the Daxin regime in the two lakes region with unstoppable momentum, bringing the entire region under the control of the new dynasty.
By the tenth day after the Prince of Jin proclaimed himself emperor in Jinling, the vast Xin Dynasty was only under the control of the remnants of Xin, as well as the Nanzhao and Nanyue kingdoms, in the regions of Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan and Chongqing.
It's only a matter of time before we can retake these places.
For Chen Huai'an, who had just ascended the throne, there was no longer a need for him, the emperor, to personally lead the expedition; he only needed to sit in the rear and command.
But Chen Huai'an didn't relax at all; on the contrary, his nerves were even more tense.
With the new dynasty newly established and everything in need of rebuilding, he had to personally handle almost every matter, big or small.
Besides establishing an empress, another troublesome and difficult matter lay before him: the rewards and honors bestowed upon the civil and military officials who had followed him in conquering the empire.
Although most of the main generals under Chen Huai'an are legendary historical generals summoned from the [Born to be an Emperor] system, they are 100% loyal to him;
However, the system did not tell him whether the descendants of these summoned legendary historical generals would also be 100% loyal to the dynasty he created.
Another issue is how to reward the veterans of the Longcheng Polu Army, including Pang Xianchu, Fan Wuji, and Zuo Liangcai, who have followed him in his campaigns since he launched the Jingnan Rebellion.
"Ah, the ancients were right! It is indeed easier to conquer a country than to rule it!"
Inside the main hall of the imperial palace, Chen Huai'an, dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe, stared blankly at a pile of slips of paper with the names of military officers written on them on the table.
Behind him hung a curtain with three panels on it, labeled with the words "Duke," "Marquis," and "Earl."
At this moment, Chen Huai'an couldn't help but yearn for the time when Zhu Yuanzhang, the grassroots emperor, founded the country. Old Zhu also faced the problem of how to bestow titles upon his generals.
However, at least Emperor Zhu had a virtuous and kind Empress Ma to discuss matters with.
Chen Huai'an, on the other hand, was all alone, with no one to talk to. It was truly tragic!
"It seems it's time for us to consider establishing an empress!"
Chen Huai'an shook his head with a wry smile, and finally put away all the small notes on the table, deciding to discuss the matter of bestowing a title later.
"Report—"
"Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager requests an audience!"
Um?
Inside the main hall, upon hearing the announcement from outside, Chen Huai'an frowned slightly. His mother had actually come to the main hall to find him; this was the first time she had come since he returned to Longcheng after becoming emperor.
Chen Huai'an said urgently, "Quickly, invite the Empress Dowager!"
Soon, Empress Dowager Xu Ruoyun, dressed in a magnificent gown, gracefully arrived, supported by her maids.
She said to Chen Huai'an naturally, "My son, I had the kitchen prepare some Gastrodia elata and black-boned chicken soup for you. You've been working day and night on government affairs and haven't even eaten on time. What will you do if you get hungry!"
As she spoke, Xu Ruoyun waved her hand, and the maid behind her immediately served Chen Huai'an a bowl of chicken soup that had just been brought from the imperial kitchen.
Chen Huai'an knew, of course, that his mother's special trip was not simply to bring him chicken soup.
As he took the chicken soup and began to drink it, he mumbled, "Mother, you came here specifically for more than just to bring me chicken soup, didn't you?"
hehe!
Xu Ruoyun said with a smile, "You're so smart! Have some soup first, there's no rush!"
Only after Chen Huai'an had quickly finished a large bowl of chicken soup did Xu Ruoyun slowly and deliberately speak: "My son, according to custom, the inner palace should not interfere in politics;"
“Even though I am your mother, I should still abide by the rules set by your father before his death.”
"but--"
Xu Ruoyun changed the subject, saying, "I am not here today as the Empress Dowager of the new dynasty, but as your mother."
"The matter we are discussing is not the appointment of a new empress, but my son's marriage!"
brush!
Chen Huai'an suddenly stopped what he was doing and stared intently at his mother. He knew that his mother must have come for something important.
Ha ha!
Chen Huai'an smiled and said, "What a coincidence, Mother. Your son was just about to talk to you about this matter. I didn't expect that we had the same idea, haha!"
He then gestured for her to speak, saying, "Mother, please speak first!"
Um!
Xu Ruoyun nodded, and without beating around the bush with her son, she went straight to the point: "Son, yesterday your mother received the memorials from the civil and military officials of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun."
Um?
Chen Huai'an raised an eyebrow, a playful sneer on his face, and said, "Mother, let me guess, these guys have handed you all their memorials. Did they also say in the memorials that they want me to marry Princess Shujun as soon as possible?"
Xu Ruoyun simply nodded and said, "That's roughly the idea. They believe that now that the world is at peace, the Emperor should also consider his own marriage!"
snort!
Chen Huai'an sneered and said, "They're really meddling in everything. Do I need them to tell me when I'll get married?"
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