The Bad Guys: Everyone, let’s revive the Tang Dynasty together!

Chapter 397: The Second Xu is Locked in Tongque Spring

When Xiao Yan received the imperial edict conferring him the title of King of Qin, he was still in Chengdu.

It is said that when the news of the demise of Shu and the surrender of Qi reached Chang'an, Zhu Youzhen's face turned pale instantly. He then summoned some court ministers overnight. Without even having time to breathe, they had to discuss how to confer titles and rewards on Xiao Yan.

Within two days, the imperial edict that designated Fengxiang, Dongchuan, Xichuan and other 24 provinces as Qin States and promoted Xiao Yan to the title of King of Qin was delivered to Chengdu without stopping by several eunuchs.

Zhu Youzhen did not even dare to wait for Xiao Yan to return to the capital, as he had already shown his sincerity to the maximum. Almost two-thirds of the territory of the entire Liang Dynasty was used as the fiefdom of the Qin State, and he was also given the power to bestow the highest honors such as the Nine Gifts, the Crown with Nine Tassels, and the Fake Imperial Envoy. It had reached the point where there was no more honors to be bestowed, and if he wanted to bestow more honors, he could only confer them on Xiao Yan's descendants and brothers... But the key point was that Xiao Yan was only twenty-one years old!
All these things showed the panic of the emperor who had been on the throne for only three months.

However, Xiao Yan did not accept it and only left the imperial edict so that he could submit a letter of resignation.

His refusal almost frightened several eunuchs who had been given many instructions by Zhu Youzhen before leaving. Fortunately, there were officials from the Ministry of Rites accompanying the angels, who knew the process. Xiao Yan's three refusal and three declines showed that the Liang Dynasty had legitimacy, and the envoys then rushed back without stopping.

When Xiao Yan returned to Hanzhong Nanzheng from Chengdu, the chief envoy sent by the court was the Minister of Rites and Grand Secretary of Jixian Hall Du Xiao. The rest, apart from the accompanying officials and eunuchs, were a group of officials from the Tiance Palace. It was a grand ceremony.

The second edict was longer and had some changes in content, with more reasons and arguments than the previous one.

The general idea is that the Ghost King and Hades Emperor were arrogant and immoral in the past, causing chaos in the government and the country, inciting party disputes and wasting national strength. Yang Shihou also had ulterior motives and rebelled. Fortunately, the general was loyal to the king and assisted in the administration. He first pacified the Ghost King and Hades, then suppressed the rebellion in Guanzhong, took Qi in the north, destroyed Shu in the south, supported the country, and revived Daliang, which was comparable to Duke Zhou and Duke Zhao.

Daliang survived and expanded its territory because of the loyalty of the general, his far-sightedness, his military and civil skills, his ability to quell rebellions and settle crises, and his achievements were known to the world. Therefore, General Xiao Yan was promoted to King of Qin, and Fengxiang and other 24 provinces were established to control the military and civilians and protect the royal family. Only in this way can the country last long...

As the journey was long, the Nine Gifts were not brought along, as some of the items were large and Xiao Yan could not have anyone carry them across the Qinling Mountains, and he was not in a hurry. However, all the other necessary ritual objects were prepared in good order.

When they returned to Nanzheng to receive the imperial edict, the monarch and his ministers of the Shu Kingdom were also present to listen to the edict and perform the ceremony. By the end, everyone was trembling with excitement to varying degrees. Even the Minister of Rites Du Xiao, who read out the imperial edict, had a strange voice after reading out the very long content of the enthronement in one breath.

The emperor of Daliang behind this edict was just about to write down his true feelings on paper: "I kneel down and beg you, please accept it..."

When he heard the last two words "Qin Zai" and the sentence "Do not Don't forget the roots of loyalty and filial piety, and do not slack off in your hard work day and night" was missing, Xiao Yan smiled, stood up and took the imperial edict, saying, "I will leave the imperial edict so that I can submit a letter to decline. But please ask the minister to take the ritual vessels and other items back to the court. I dare not accept them."

Du Xiao bowed slightly and politely advised: "General, you have made great contributions to the country. If you refuse, I am afraid that Your Majesty and the Emperor will not be happy."

The eunuch who followed was actually Ma Shaojian, the eunuch beside Zhu Youzhen. He was about to cry, and immediately said: "The general has been ordered to found the country and defend the country. This is a blessing for your majesty and the court..."

Well, Zhu Youzhen couldn't wait to ask Xiao Yan to accept the appointment quickly and stop going through the formalities of refusing and declining.

Other officials also said: "The general has the merit of destroying the country. Now he is awarded the title of Dazong to found the country. Who else can it be but you?" "The general's merit is so great that he can convince everyone."

But the truth is not that simple.

Zhu Youzhen was anxious, but Xiao Yan didn't need to be anxious at this moment.

This was different from when he coerced Zhu Wen to confer the title of King on him. From King of Song to King of Qin, it seemed that only the title and the fiefdom became the main ones.

But taking this step is actually very crucial. As long as this step is taken, whatever Xiao Yan wants to do in the future will become a public matter. Those who did not resist this time will hardly oppose it in the future.

Xiao Yan was not only doing the courtesy of refusing three times, but also leaving a buffer period for the entire Daliang court. He needed not only Zhu Youzhen's attitude, but also the attitude of those local military governors.

For example, when Xiao Yan declined for the second time, some sensible people should have written a letter of persuasion to the court. At the same time, the period before and after the third refusal should be used as a dividing line to let those who were hesitant and didn't know whether to write the letter think carefully.

The petition for promotion was naturally presented by the local government to the imperial court, but the list finally fell into Xiao Yan's hands.

The key to the people recorded in this list is not who wrote the persuasion form, but who did not!

So even if everyone tried to persuade him, Xiao Yan just looked around and said calmly: "I used troops against Sichuan and Shu for the sake of reviving the country, and I had no other intention. Besides, I have been conferred the title of King of Song, so why should I accept the title of King of Qin? The King of Qin concurrently served as the General of Tiance, and there are precedents in history. If I accept the title now, won't people in the world suspect that I have a rebellious heart?"

Everyone was stunned for a moment. Wang Jian, who was standing behind with his head bowed, suddenly widened his eyes. He tried hard not to raise his head, but the meaning was obvious: Could it be that you don't have any rebellious intentions? Then why did you go through so much trouble to cross mountains and ridges to destroy my Shu Kingdom?
Fortunately, the Minister of Rites Du Xiao quickly recovered and said, "The general is the pillar of the country, and he has also pacified Qinchuan. It is legitimate for him to be named the King of Qin. How dare others make presumptuous assumptions?"

Ma Shaojian and some other officials also tried to persuade him again, and even Wang Jian tried his best to persuade him a few times.

Xiao Yan was very satisfied, but still said: "People all over the world are talking about this, I really can't accept such an award calmly. Shangshu and you guys should go back and tell the court what I said."

Du Xiao understood immediately after hearing this, so he stopped insisting and said with his hands crossed: "In this case, I will return to Chang'an to report first, but please think twice, General!"

Ma Shaojian and several other eunuchs were extremely anxious, but seeing that although Xiao Yan had a calm expression, a casual glance at him seemed to hide a tiger, they dared not say anything more and followed Du Xiao and other officials from the Ministry of Rites to say goodbye and leave.

Unexpectedly, at this moment, Xiao Yan suddenly said, "I have another petition to submit. Please ask the Minister to submit it to the court on my behalf."

As he spoke, he took the memorial handed over by Gong Yang Zuo and said casually: "The Lord of Shu, Wang Jian, has recognized the will of heaven. I think he can be promoted to the King of Xu and retain his honor."

Du Xiao did not dare to delay and took the memorial with both hands respectfully, without raising any objections.

Wang Jian, who was standing behind Xiao Yan, was stunned for a moment, then he quickly squeezed out a few tears and bowed down in gratitude.

"Thank you, General!"

In fact, Wang Jian's excitement was not entirely fake. He was born in Wuyang, Xuzhou. Although he would not have the opportunity to return to Xuzhou Wuyang to be a fiefdom after being named King of Xu, he was indeed comforted in his heart, and was even more grateful to Xiao Yan for being willing to maintain his dignity.

Some of the former officials of Shu Kingdom who followed him also bowed down with tears of gratitude, and some even cried out loud.

Xiao Yan patted Wang Jian on the shoulder and said a few words to comfort him, then personally escorted Du Xiao and the others to the gate, making the latter look very nervous. After bowing several times, he was led to the posthouse to rest temporarily, after all, they would soon have to rush back to report.

Xiao Yan then led the officials of Tiance Mansion away, but he did not return to where he was staying. Instead, he returned to the government office and took the old ministers of Shu, Zhou Xiang, Zhang Ge and some other former ministers of Shu to discuss some things in front of a map.

It was of great benefit that he allowed Wang Jian to retain his dignity.

After all, Wang Jian, the Emperor of Shu, had a status publicly recognized by the people of the world. He had been managing Shu for nearly twenty years, so it was impossible for him not to have a loyal group. For example, Yu Chuansu, the Left Prime Minister of Shu, was actually willing to serve Wang Jian wholeheartedly until now.

Seeing that Wang Jian was not too humiliated and could still be treated as a monarch, the Shu people would be less repulsive to Xiao Yan. Xiao Yan had been in Chengdu for more than a month, and had met with officials from all over Shu, and had temporarily made some personnel arrangements. Of course, the first thing to do was to send the Shu generals and their families to Guanzhong in batches, and also move some elite soldiers and their families to the Central Plains.

While doing this, he also adjusted the original prefectures and towns of Shu. The map he discussed with everyone was based on Xichuan, Dongchuan, and Qianzhong, and re-divided several roads, including but not limited to taking the strategic Jiange from Dongchuan and incorporating it into the jurisdiction of Hanzhong, and also staggered the division of other passes such as Yinping and Mianzhuguan.

The final practical purpose is to completely separate the economic center and strategic locations of Sichuan. After this division, although the Chengdu Plain and the hinterland of the basin are the richest places in Sichuan, there is no place to defend, and other strategic locations are only important places, unable to achieve complete self-sufficiency.

In this way, the possibility of Shu's re-separatism can be roughly reduced. Later, Xiao Yan will take measures such as moving the Shu nobles out of Sichuan, monopolizing salt and iron, repairing roads, and reducing Sichuan's local reserves. However, the road is long and difficult, and it will not accumulate in the present.

As the saying goes, "Mountains and rivers are not reliable; the support of the people is the key." To achieve this goal, none of the four strategies of "decentralization, control of the military, weakening the economy, and transformation of culture" can be missing. Fortunately, Xiao Yan destroyed Shu personally, so he will have plenty of time to do these things. Moreover, Raojiang and Lingnan are both rooted in the back of Sichuan and Shu, so they can also be prevented and controlled.

Xiao Yan only needs to arrange some matters at the upper level. The subsequent affairs will be supplemented and improved by the officials sent by the Tiance Mansion to stay in Shu.

After returning to Hanzhong from Chengdu, Xiao Yan would be able to return to the capital soon. However, he would not return with a light horse. Instead, he would bring back a large number of Shu ministers and royal family members. For example, some very famous Sichuan scholars such as Zhou Xiang and Zhang Ge would all serve as officials in the Liang Dynasty to reduce the motivation for resistance in Sichuan.

After doing all this, Xiao Yan left his subordinates behind and went to meet Qian Wu who had rushed to Nanzheng from Fengxiang.

When Ji Ruxue wrote to him before, talking about marriage and the crown prince, Xiao Yan actually already knew what she was planning. After all, she had mentioned this matter to Xiao Yan long before she parted with Ji Ruxue in Bianliang. She wanted Xiao Yan to marry the empress to appease the people of Qi.

After all, from the perspective of the people of Qi State, this is indeed a big deal.

At that time, Xiao Yan forced Li Maozhen away and helped the empress regain power in Qi. Some Fengxiang civil and military officials had already known the truth that the King of Qi was actually a woman all these years, and people's hearts were naturally unstable.

The empress then offered land to pacify the people and handed over the entire Qi Kingdom to Xiao Yan, making her, the King of Qi, even less majestic.

But if the two countries were united in the name of marriage, then not only would the ministers of Qi be able to accept it more decently, Xiao Yan would also invisibly elevate the status of the "King of Qi". Although the empress was married off, the "King of Qi" was still there. Even if many people knew the truth, they would be willing to maintain a tacit understanding and believe that the King of Qi continued to exist.

Later, it would be much smoother for Xiao Yan to use the empty shell of "King of Qi" to control the State of Qi. He retained the majesty of the King of Qi, so when he used this empty shell to implement his own policies, he would be able to do so smoothly.

Indeed, there are only benefits and no harm.

"Will they all agree?"

Xiao Yan paused and asked, "I know that Xue'er is stubborn. I'm asking the empress, what does she think?"

Qian Wu was helping Xiao Yan clean the dirt from his hair, and from time to time he touched the scars on his shoulders and back with his slightly cold hands, touching some arrow wounds and scratches.

After Xiao Yan conquered Chengdu, he had no time to rest. He was busy all the time, meeting people and handling affairs all day long. He had not recovered from the weight loss in a month, and he also neglected to take care of his hair. Although he had washed it well before entering Chengdu, he forgot about it later because he was busy. Although he had been wearing a fu hat to cover himself from dust, his hair was still quite dirty after running around for days.

Although those officials in Shu were defeated, they could not be convinced by just any Liang Dynasty general, let alone buy into his ideas.

Although Wang Jian and his crown prince surrendered, the officials under him had no choice but to obey the Liang Dynasty. But if the person who received them was not of high status, they might think to themselves: What's the point of talking so much to you? Will your words work in the Liang Dynasty? What if the things promised are all nonsense? Isn't it just a joke?
Therefore, the first person the Shu officials wanted to see was, of course, Xiao Yan, and only Xiao Yan.

Even if Xiao Yan didn't need to promise anything, his attitude and tone when they met could convey something useful. Anyone with a normal brain would probably know who is in power in the Liang Dynasty now, so Xiao Yan's words must be useful!

Therefore, for many days, Xiao Yan was unable to extricate himself, and even he felt quite tired.

Qian Wu remembered that Ji Ruxue told her that when she first met Xiao Yan, he was very mysophobic.

"My dear, do you want your beard trimmed?"

Qian Wu did not respond to the previous words. He walked around the wooden barrel to the front, bent down and held Xiao Yan's cheek to ask questions.

"beard……"

Xiao Yan touched the short beard that was slightly upturned at the corner of his mouth, thought for a moment, and then asked, "Do you think I should shave it clean?"

"With a beard, he looks more heroic."

Qian Wu said seriously: "But if you shave it off, you will be able to easily win the hearts of some girls."

Xiao Yan laughed loudly and said, "Then keep it."

At this time, he reached out and pinched Qian Wu's buttocks, then leaned back and closed his eyes and asked: "You haven't told me yet, does the empress have any ideas?"

"The Empress..."

Qian Wu carefully trimmed Xiao Yan's beard and said, "She said that she would use the money from her own treasury to build a tall building for her husband."

"What's the point of building a building?" Xiao Yan was very contented, without even opening his eyes, and asked casually, "What's the name?"

"Tongque Tower."

"..." Xiao Yan opened his eyes, somewhat suspicious.

Qian Wu's tone was very calm. She seemed to be unaware of the meaning of the Bronze Sparrow Tower. She just continued, "The Empress said that if you are really interested, this is her attitude. She heard that the concubines of Shu were both beautiful women with world-renowned reputations. Now that you have captured them, she is willing to build a tower for you to hide your beauties."

Okay.

Xiao Yan couldn't help but laugh. The empress was saying that she wasn't the jealous and possessive type. But this matter of building a building to hide a beauty was really...

He grabbed Qian Wu's wrist, suddenly stood up, hugged him, and strode away.

(End of this chapter)