When Chen Huai'an, seated on the dragon throne, uttered the eight words, "Today I proclaim myself emperor, and I will ascend the throne in the first month," all the military generals in the Golden Palace looked on with puzzled expressions.
In their view, since His Highness Prince Jin has already proclaimed himself emperor, why has he postponed the date of his coronation until the first month of the lunar calendar?
Shouldn't the Ministry of Rites be immediately ordered to produce dragon robes and prepare for the Fengshan ceremony to worship Heaven?
Chen Huai'an's decision to ascend the throne in the first month of the lunar calendar must have been based on his own considerations.
On the one hand, the Longcheng Jingnan Army has only occupied the capital city and executed the treacherous minister Qin Ruhui, who has brought chaos to the court.
However, in the south of the Daxin Dynasty, in the areas of Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan and Chongqing, the remnants of the Daxin Dynasty were still under their control.
Even in Yunnan, Guizhou, and Guangdong, there were two clowns: Mu Rongfu, the self-proclaimed emperor of Nanzhao, and Li Zongming, the emperor of Nanyue!
Having failed to achieve the great feat of unifying the world, how could Chen Huai'an possibly hold a Fengshan ceremony to announce his ascension to the throne?
On the other hand, Chen Huai'an also needs time to resolve and arrange a series of matters after his ascension to the throne, such as how to balance the interests between the Wu Ning King's faction and the thirty-six kingdoms of the Western Regions.
In layman's terms, it's about whether Princess Shujun or Princess Bijia should be made empress.
Could it be that, just as his mother said, he's setting a historical precedent by establishing an empress for both the East and West Palaces?
Furthermore, the enthronement ceremony he envisioned would undoubtedly be a grand spectacle with all nations paying tribute. Sending his edict of enthronement to the thirty-six kingdoms of the Western Regions and Tibet, as well as the other vassal states, would take time!
Finally, Chen Huai'an hoped to ascend the throne in the first month of the lunar calendar in order to start a brand new dynasty.
Based on all these considerations, he proposed the idea of "becoming emperor today and ascending the throne in the first month of the lunar calendar".
"Today I proclaim myself emperor" is to appease the people and reassure the generals in the Golden Palace who have followed me in conquering the country.
The reason for "ascending the throne in the first month" was to give himself some buffer time so that he could achieve the grand scene he envisioned when he ascended the throne.
He saw the generals in the Golden Palace looking at him with puzzled expressions.
Chen Huai'an immediately explained, "My dear ministers, are you all wondering why I chose to become emperor today, instead of waiting until the first month of the lunar calendar?"
Inside the Golden Palace, all the generals nodded in agreement.
Chen Huai'an said, "I postponed my enthronement for two reasons. First, to allow time for the southern expeditionary army to eliminate the remnants of the previous dynasty. Second, to allow time for establishing the national title and preparing for the enthronement ceremony."
"Throughout history, the transition between dynasties inevitably involves a change of the dynasty's name. Regarding the new dynasty I have established, I have two thoughts on the current decision regarding its name—"
After a pause, Chen Huai'an continued, "Firstly, we will use my title and honorific name 'Jin' as the name of the state."
Secondly, the country was named "Ming," meaning tomorrow and hope.
"emperor--"
Before Chen Huai'an could finish speaking, a military officer stepped forward in the Golden Palace, seemingly objecting to the proposed name of the country.
However, before he could speak, Chen Huai'an continued, "The selection of the dynasty's name will not be discussed at today's court assembly. I am merely proposing it; the specific details will be handled by the Ministry of Rites, who will consult with the Six Ministries before submitting their proposals to me."
As he spoke, Chen Huai'an immediately called out to his troops, "Minister Li!"
ah?
Li Jingyu, the Minister of War who had come to surrender, was taken aback at first. Then, prompted by those around him, he realized that the Emperor was calling for him. He hurriedly stepped forward, cupped his hands in a fist and said, "This sinful subject is here!"
Chen Huai'an continued, "Minister Li, now that the new dynasty has just been established, among all the civil and military officials, only you, the Minister of War, can barely be considered a half-civil official."
"Therefore, I have decided to entrust the important task of reorganizing the Six Ministries to Minister Li!"
Upon hearing this, Li Jingyu, the Minister of War who had surrendered, was almost moved to tears.
You should know that Li Jingyu had not accomplished a single merit under Chen Huai'an's command.
Strictly speaking, when he was the commander of the Tiger Warriors, he was also the vanguard officer of Emperor Jian'an, Zhao Gan. He once led 200,000 Tiger Warriors to attack Yunzhou and had fought against the Longcheng Jingnan Army led by Chang Yuchun.
When Li Jingyu surrendered to Prince Jin, his only intention was to save the lives of his entire family; he dared not even hope to keep his official hat.
Who would have thought that the first thing the Prince of Jin did after becoming emperor was to entrust him, a former official of the new dynasty, with an important task and order him to reorganize the Six Ministries.
This immense wealth had actually fallen into Li Jingyu's lap; how could he not be so excited that he wanted to cry?
Li Jingyu immediately knelt down and once again performed the grand ceremony of three kneelings and nine kowtows to Chen Huai'an on the dragon throne. With tears streaming down his face, he patted his chest and said, "I am deeply grateful for Your Majesty's favor. This sinful subject will surely give his life and never fail Your Majesty's imperial grace!"
"I will devote myself wholeheartedly to the reorganization of the Six Ministries, and will do my utmost to recruit the best talents in the world for Your Majesty!"
Um!
Chen Huai'an nodded; this was exactly the effect he wanted.
The reason he took Li Jingyu under his command was because the new dynasty had no one else to rely on.
In any case, Li Jingyu was the descendant of a famous general of the Great Xin Dynasty, and he was neither a member of Princess Pijia nor Princess Shujun's faction. He was also a surrendered general and a criminal.
This re-appointment of him to reorganize the Six Ministries will not only ensure Li Jingyu's unwavering loyalty to Chen Huai'an, but also serve to inspire other surrendered generals and former officials of the Great Xin Dynasty.
As expected, upon seeing that Li Jingyu had been entrusted with important responsibilities by the Emperor, the eyes of Su Chen, the Governor-General of Liangjiang, who was also a surrendered general and had made military achievements, and Tang Ziyi, the deputy general of the Tiger Army, immediately became lively.
Chen Huai'an then said, "Minister Li, besides reorganizing the Six Ministries, I have another important matter that I need you to handle."
"Draft an imperial edict for me, announcing to the world the passing of Emperor Lingwu and the execution of the treacherous minister Qin Ruhui, and also proclaiming my ascension to the throne today and my enthronement in the first month of the lunar calendar."
"By the way, instruct the Ministry of Rites to send envoys to the Western Regions to inform them of my ascension to the throne, so that all nations may come to pay homage when I ascend the throne in the first month of the year!"
"My lord, I obey the order!"
Li Jingyu immediately accepted the order.
Immediately afterwards, Chen Huai'an issued another imperial edict: "Vice Commander Chang, Minister Su!"
"Your subordinate is here!"
"Your guilty subject is here!"
At this moment, Chang Yuchun and Su Chen, the Governor-General of Liangjiang, who were called out by name, stood up in unison to receive the imperial decree.
Chen Huai'an said, "I hereby order the two of you to lead your troops in the suppression of the remnants of the Xin Dynasty in the Liangjiang region. You have three months to complete this task without fail!"
"Your subordinate obeys!"
"My lord, I obey the order!"
Chen Huai'an continued, "General Pang Xianchu, the Valiant Warrior, and Tang Ziyi, the Deputy General of the Tiger-like New Army!"
"Your subordinate is here!"
"I hereby order you two to lead your troops to Yunnan and Guizhou, and strike directly at the heart of the Nanzhao Kingdom. Do not fail in your command!"
"Your subordinate obeys!"
"Liu Ziyu, Fan Wuji..."
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