The sun was already setting.
The afterglow of the setting sun cast long shadows over the imperial city of Jinling, and also stretched the silhouette of Prince Chen Huai'an of Jin, who stood proudly on horseback outside the city against the light.
On the city wall, the treacherous minister Qin Ruhui looked down at Chen Huai'an, the "enemy who killed his son," and suddenly seemed to regain some of his senses.
He raised his sword, its blade pointed directly at Chen Huai'an, and shouted sternly, "Chen Huai'an, you traitorous minister, first murdered the emperor, then usurped the throne!"
"Such disloyal, unjust, and fatherless scoundrels deserve to be punished by all those with aspirations in the world. Your name, Chen Huai'an, is destined to be nailed to the pillar of shame by future historians!"
"I, Qin Ruhui, am the current Prime Minister, a veteran of four reigns..."
On the city wall, Qin Ruhui rambled on and on, denouncing Chen Huai'an's various misdeeds, remaining unmoved despite the Longcheng Jingnan Army pouring in from the various city gates below.
Chen Huai'an, standing below the city, listened coldly to Qin Ruhui's accusations of his various crimes, like an indifferent bystander.
Behind him, the two veterans of the Po Lu Army, General Pang Xianchu and General Fan Wuji, commander of the Iron Pagoda Army and former officials of the Great Xin Dynasty, had already eagerly spurred their horses into the imperial city and rode directly to Qin Ruhui along the wide inner city racetrack.
Qin Ruhui continued his rambling: "Prince Chen Polu of Jin, with his military power, disregards the laws of the country and openly challenges the current emperor. It is only right and proper to strip him of his military power—"
"The traitor Qin Ruhui!"
Suddenly, Pang Xianchu, who had galloped to the top of the imperial city wall, shouted angrily, then drew his sword and held it to Qin Ruhui's neck, shouting, "Qin Ruhui, open your dog eyes and see who is the real traitor who plotted to usurp the throne?"
"You used the guise of loyalty to the emperor to usurp the throne, wreaking havoc on the Great Xin Dynasty and harming the pillars of the court..."
Pang Xianchu showed Qin Ruhui no mercy and continued to berate him, "Now look what's happened! You've even put the dragon robe on yourself! Tell me, where have you taken the Emperor?"
"emperor?"
Qin Ruhui's expression froze for a moment, then instantly reverted to his insane state, grinning maliciously as he said, "Your Majesty, I am the true Emperor, and Zhao Lingzhan is nothing but my puppet!"
"I...I already killed him long ago, hahaha!"
As he spoke, Qin Ruhui raised the self-made Emperor's Sword in his hand and gestured, saying, "With just a light poke, I pierced Zhao Lingzhan in two. He's dead, all of them are dead!"
"This great new dynasty's empire belongs to me, entirely to me, and no one can take it away—"
Seeing that Qin Ruhui had gone mad, and learning that the false emperor Zhao Lingzhan of Hongxi had been killed, the last stumbling block on the Prince of Jin's path to becoming emperor was finally removed.
Fan Wuji and Pang Xianchu exchanged a glance, and the latter nodded firmly at him.
After receiving the approval of the valiant General Pang Xianchu, Fan Wuji, who had long wanted to drape a yellow robe over His Highness Prince Jin and become a loyal subject who would grant him a title and a privilege to his wife and children, no longer had any reservations.
He roared, "The treacherous minister Qin Ruhui has brought disaster to the country and its people, and now he has murdered the emperor and committed treason. According to the Great Xin Law, this is considered treason and his entire family should be executed!"
Click!
The next moment, Fan Wuji raised his knife and brought it down.
Qin Ruhui's head, still adorned with the crown, flew off with a whoosh and landed on the bluestone slab outside the imperial city.
The headless body, dressed in a dragon robe, staggered and finally collapsed to the ground.
On the other side, Pang Xianchu took a four-clawed yellow dragon flag, symbolizing His Highness Prince Jin, from the flag bearer of his personal guards and planted it on the city gate tower of the capital without hesitation.
Immediately afterwards, he shouted loudly towards the outside of the city: "Welcome His Highness Prince Jin into the city!"
"Welcome, Your Highness Prince Jin, to the city!"
Pang Xianchu then said, "Welcome to the Longcheng Jingnan Army as they enter the city!"
"Welcome to the Dragon City Pacification Army as they enter the city!"
Amidst the roars of countless soldiers who ascended the city walls, the cries of welcoming Prince Jin and the Longcheng Jingnan Army into the city resounded through the sky, echoing throughout the ancient city of Jinling, which boasts a history of over a thousand years.
Outside the city, Prince Chen Huai'an of Jin rode forward on his horse, walking step by step along the bluestone road that had already been blocked by the Longcheng Jingnan army, which had entered the city a step earlier, towards the main hall of the palace.
On the 19th day of the seventh month of the second year of the Lingwu reign of the Daxin era, Chen Huai'an, the Prince of Jin, who had raised an army in his fiefdom of Longcheng to quell the rebellion, had fought for a year and nine months.
Finally, he led his Dragon City Pacification Army to conquer Nanjing, the capital city and the seat of the highest power of the Great Xin Dynasty, without bloodshed.
Chen Huai'an rode his horse along the road leading to the Golden Palace, where soldiers of the Longcheng Jingnan Army knelt and bowed to him.
This scene reminded him of three years ago when he accompanied the late King Chen Polu to the capital to attend the birthday banquet of Emperor Zhenwu, the founder of the Great Xin Dynasty.
At that time, Chen Huai'an was still a Confucian scholar with the title of "useless heir," a nobody among those who were qualified to attend the emperor's birthday banquet.
But who could have imagined that this would happen in just three short years?
To be precise, it took one year and nine months for this useless heir apparent, whom all the civil and military officials of the Great Xin Dynasty, to actually wear armor, ride a horse, and walk step by step through the central axis of the palace, toward the Golden Palace, which symbolizes the supreme imperial power of the dynasty.
Behind Chen Huai'an were the Longcheng generals, who had deliberately fallen a dozen or so feet behind on horseback.
In order, they were Chang Yuchun, Deputy Marshal of the Longcheng Army; Wang Jian, General; Pang Xianchu, General of Valor; Qi Jiguang, Admiral of the Navy; Fan Wuji; Liu Ziyu; Luo Yucheng; Su Chen; Tang Ziyi; Li Jingyu, and other generals.
It features legendary historical generals included with the "Born to Be an Emperor" system, generals from the original Po Lu Army, and surrendered generals from the Da Xin Army who defected during the battle.
At this moment, all the generals wore smiles that were quite unusual.
Some generals were excited because they were about to become loyal subjects of the emperor and be granted titles and honors.
Another group of generals were glad that they had followed the right person. Although they could not expect to be promoted to a high-ranking position, at least they kept their official hats and heads.
When the group arrived at the Golden Palace, Chen Huai'an looked at the empty and messy Golden Palace, which had long lost the majesty and splendor he had seen on his last visit.
At this moment, he inexplicably missed the old monk in black, Dongfang Xiao, and the high monk who had boasted that he would give him a white hat to wear.
Chen Huai'an knew all too well that conquering the world was easier than governing it.
His test has only just begun.
Chen Huai'an climbed the nine steps one by one, staring blankly at the dragon throne in the Golden Palace. In the end, he did not sit down, but turned to look at the accompanying military officers in the Golden Palace.
"Your Highness Prince Jin, the current situation remains chaotic, with rebels and bandits rising up everywhere in the Jiangnan region. I believe that a country cannot be without a ruler for even a day. I humbly request Your Highness Prince Jin to follow the will of Heaven and the people, ascend the throne and become emperor, so as to bring peace to the world!"
"We earnestly request Your Highness Prince Jin to follow the will of Heaven and the people, ascend the throne and become Emperor, so as to bring peace to the world and its people!"
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