Eastern Jin Dynasty: My powerful father

Chapter 439: The Fall of the Yu State (IV)

After confirming that the Yan army had withdrawn from Hedong, Huan Xi left Xie Ai to lead 40,000 troops back to Jie County. Shen Jin, Yang An and others each led their troops to their respective posts. In addition to the main cavalry, Huan Xi led an additional 20,000 infantry to the north.

To capture a city, you need to use infantry to lead the charge.

When Huan Xi returned to Wenxi County, Wang Yuan also came to find him.

"Congratulations, Lord Liang. Congratulations, Lord Liang. Li Wei has expressed his intention to surrender, so he asked me to go south to discuss the specific matters with Lord Liang."

As soon as Wang Yuan entered the camp, he could not wait to state his intentions after paying his respects.

Huan Xi certainly knew the influence Li Wei had on Empress Dowager Gou, what a pair of bastards they were.

"What does he want?"

Huan Xi asked in a deep voice.

Wang Yuan bowed and said:
"Reporting to Lord Liang, Li Wei hopes to retain his title and asks Lord Liang to show leniency and leave Fu Jian and Fu Xiong's descendants. For the rest, he has no other requests."

Huan Xi couldn't help laughing:
"I thought he only cared about himself. Go back and tell Li Wei that Jin is a superior state. The position of a county duke is beyond the reach of many of my generals. How can I grant it to him? I am willing to report to the emperor and recommend him as a county duke. Even if the situation changes in the future, he will not lose his title.

"As for the people of the Fu family, I am magnanimous and tolerant. As long as they don't think about restoring their country and causing trouble for me, I will keep them safe.

"Also, tell Queen Mother Gou that the throne of Heavenly King will be passed to Fu Jian's eldest son Fu Hong. When the whole country of Fu surrenders, I will make him the King of Guiyi!"

Fu Hong was still a toddler at that time, and Huan Xi asked Empress Dowager Gou to recommend Fu Hong as the Heavenly King only out of consideration for Fu Jian.

If the entire nation of Fu surrendered, according to the rules, they would be given the title of King of Guiyi. It would be better to give the title to Fu Jian's son Fu Hong rather than to Fu Jian's brother Fu Rong.

Of course, Fu Rong was older and more talented, so Huan Xi certainly did not want him to be the King of Guiyi.

More than half a month had passed since Huan Jian's body was returned to the north. Following Huan Xi's instructions, Wang Yuan rode as fast as he could back to Jinyang. It was already the third day of July in the first year of Shengping (357 AD).

Huan Xi only left Fu five days to consider.

Jinyang, the residence of Duke Jianning.

"Is Huan Xi really unwilling to grant me the title of Duke?"

What Li Wei is most concerned about is his own treatment.

Huan Xi only gave him the title of a county duke. After the Jin dynasty abdicated and the Huan family established their own country, according to convention, the titles of the previous dynasties would be downgraded by one level. Just as Huan Xi said, after all the changes in the world, he could still retain his title of marquis.

Wang Yuan nodded and said:
"It is absolutely true. I dare not deceive Lord Jianning."

Li Wei pondered for a long time and asked:
"Do you think I should accept it?"

Wang Yuan smiled bitterly and said:
"Lord Jianning knows my position, so why bother asking?"

Li Wei insisted:

"I want to hear your opinion."

Wang Yuan heard this and stopped refusing. He said seriously:
“If Duke Jianning insists on asking for the title of Duke of a County, when the Huan family establishes a country, many founding heroes will probably have titles lower than Duke Jianning.

"As a surrendered minister, why should Duke Jianning be envied?

"I think that even if Lord Liang grants the title of Duke of a county today, he will find a reason to strip Duke Jianning of his title in the future because of the jealousy of the people.

"Now Lord Liang has promised that even if the dynasty changes, Lord Jianning will be able to pass on the title of marquis to his descendants. Why not do it?

"Please think twice, Lord Jianning."

Li Wei couldn't refute it. He sighed and said:

“A bystander sees more clearly than an involved party. The ancients were not deceiving me.”

After that, Li Wei ordered people to prepare a carriage, and he wanted to go to the palace to meet the Queen Mother. At this time, Fu Jian's funeral had been completed, and the entire process of the emperor's rites had not been completed. Special times require special treatment.

The people of Yu State had already reached a consensus at this time. Whether to surrender or fight to the end, they had to choose a successor first.

The one with the loudest voice was Fu Rong.

In times of crisis, the country relies on its elder ruler, and it is impossible to hand over the burden of the State of Yu to the young Crown Prince Fu Hong at this time.

Before Li Wei left, he asked Wang Yuan to spread the word that Huan Xi hoped to see Fu Hong take the throne. Once the Fu family surrendered, the title of King Guiyi would fall on Fu Jian's descendants.

This move was to tell the people of Jinyang about Huan Xi's attitude between Fu Hong and Fu Rong, and secondly, it also implied that Huan Xi had no intention of wiping out the Fu family.

When Li Wei came to the harem, Empress Dowager Gou was already overwhelmed. The new emperor was still undecided and she had to deal with all matters. However, she had to deal with such a mess. How could a woman like her cope with it?

"Lord Jianning, you are finally here."

Queen Mother Gou said with emotion:

"If you are not in charge of the household, you don't know how heavy the official duties are. Now the ministers are asking for the Duke of Pingyang to be made the Heavenly King. This matter should be settled and cannot be delayed any longer."

Li Wei shook his head and said:

"Please wait one more day, Queen Mother. I will summon all the ministers tomorrow to discuss the selection of the new ruler."

Queen Mother Gou didn't know what he was planning, but she agreed anyway.

The next day, Jinyang Palace, main hall.

Hundreds of officials stood in the hall, each with a solemn look on their face.

Queen Mother Gou took charge of the court and sat on the throne. She said:

"The previous emperor passed away, the crown prince is still young, and the country is in danger of collapse. I summoned you today to hear your opinions. The country cannot be without a ruler for a day, and you are needed to elect a new ruler."

As soon as he finished speaking, all the ministers actively made suggestions.

However, Empress Dowager Gou was surprised to find that many ministers who had previously supported Fu Rong's accession to the throne had now changed their tune.

They instead believed that since the country had already appointed a crown prince, it should be Prince Fu Hong who would take over the throne, without considering whether the young Fu Hong could shoulder this heavy responsibility.

Queen Mother Gou knew that the strange situation must be related to Li Wei, so she excused herself from feeling unwell and left to rest. She called Li Wei to the side hall and asked with a frown:

"Lord Jianning, what on earth is going on?"

Li Wei answered truthfully:

"I released the news yesterday that Huan Xi wanted the crown prince to ascend the throne and was willing to enthrone him as King Guiyi. I guess this is why the ministers recommended the crown prince in the court today."

No matter how stupid Queen Mother Gou was, she knew that Li Wei must have been secretly connected with Huan Xi:
"We sleep in the same bed together. Although we are not husband and wife in name, we are husband and wife in reality. Could it be that even the Duke of Jianning has betrayed me?"

Li Wei explained:
“My humble servant’s action is to let the Queen Mother know clearly that some ministers, who are hypocritical and loyal to the Fu family, actually dare not oppose Huan Xi. As long as the Liang army goes north, they will certainly welcome them with food and drink.

"Queen Mother, things have come to this point and there is no way to save the situation. It is better to follow Huan Xi's wishes so that the Fu family can enjoy wealth and glory."

Li Wei's words completely shattered Queen Mother Gou's fantasy, forcing her to accept the reality of the country's demise. After all, even Li Wei was looking for a way out, let alone others.

"I understand."

When Queen Mother Gou returned to the main hall, she had already made up her mind and did not delay any longer. She said immediately:

"Since most officials support the crown prince's ascension to the throne, Fu Hong will take over the throne of Heavenly King."

(End of this chapter)