Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 485 Ascension to the throne!!
Yecheng, southern suburbs.

The cold wind howled past.

Flags fluttered in the wind, and densely packed soldiers stood around the altar.

There were tens of thousands of these soldiers. They were arranged in a square formation and deployed around the altar. They were huge and most of them were wearing armor, holding sharp weapons, and looking straight ahead.

Flags stood in the formation, fluttering in the wind. These veteran soldiers who had experienced many battles occupied the entire southern suburbs.

They were all tall, looked fierce, wore fine armor, carried powerful crossbows, held large shields, and wielded long spears.

The entire north was composed of cavalry.

The war horses were tall, and the fully armed knights were pulling on the reins. The horses were also covered in armor and did not move.

Among them, seventy-two places have large battle drums, distributed in various places.

All the officials, wearing brand new official uniforms, stood at the front in the proper order.

Zu Ting was the first to come forward, standing at the front, with many civil and military ministers standing behind him.

Even many local officials, such as Wang Lin, who had just come to Yecheng to report important matters, were standing here.

The officials looked solemn and did not dare to be negligent.

Wei Xiaokuan was actually among them. He secretly looked at the old soldiers from different places who were lined up in square formations around him, his forehead covered with sweat.

This armor coverage rate is really getting more and more exaggerated.

If this trend continues, will the Han Dynasty make the "100,000 Armored Men" a reality? ?

Liu Taozi wore the emperor's attire and a crown with twelve tassels.

He was already tall, and with this robe on, he looked like a god, extremely majestic.

He raised his head and strode towards the altar, on which was a fire.

The etiquette officer quickly followed.

When Liu Taozi walked to the fire, the etiquette officer handed the cloth used for sacrifice to Liu Taozi.

Liu Taozi picked up the cloth and threw it into the fire.

This is a sacrifice to God, telling God Haotian that your son has changed his surname!

Then, Liu Taozi turned around and looked at the officials in front of him.

The ceremonial officer then read the documents for offering sacrifices to heaven.

This ceremonial officer was also a familiar face. He was the minister Lu Sidao who had left Yecheng.

The man recited loudly.

"To the Lord of Heaven."

"I heard that the universe is out of control. Since the emperor has responded to the will of heaven, he has followed the foundation of the world and established a new era to reform the rule! I heard that the divine weapon has changed. It is finally virtuous. Since the Han Dynasty fell, the world has collapsed. The Jin Dynasty lost its virtue and the world was in chaos. The Central Plains was corrupted and the people have been without rule for hundreds of years!"

"Wei was condemned to chaos and was divided between Qi and Zhou because it did not receive the Mandate of Heaven. The ruler of Qi was cruel and perverse, oppressing the people without measure and being tyrannical. The people of the country have suffered for a long time. The Zhou Dynasty lost its order, powerful ministers were in power, regicides and chaos, brothers quarreled, officials were domineering, and all this was not true, nor was it called benevolence and righteousness!"

"Today, the gods descended to bring order to the four seas. The emperor rose from humble beginnings, and brought order to the chaotic land, repelled the barbarian soldiers, rectified the government, promoted education, and his merits and virtues were engraved on Mount Tai, and his reputation was recorded in the East China Sea! The destiny has finally come to an end, and it should be now!"

The ceremonial officer read aloud for a long time and finally completed the notification ceremony.

"The destiny of heaven is with Han!!!"

Liu Taozi drew out his ceremonial sword and pointed it at the distance.

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The familiar sound of war drums suddenly rang out.

The sound of the war drums was like thunder, booming continuously, and the soldiers shouted, "Long live!"

"Long live!!!"

Tens of thousands of soldiers shouted at the same time, the soldiers clash their swords with their shields, their horses neigh, and their spears lean on the ground.

The ministers headed by Zu Ting were the first to bow and kneel before the emperor.

"Long live your Majesty!!"

Then, batches of ministers kept bowing and kneeling.

Liu Taozi put away his ceremonial sword and got on the carriage. The emperor's carriage passed through the square formation of soldiers, and only the shouts of "Long live the emperor" could be heard in his ears.

The officials immediately made preparations and quickly headed to the Taiji Hall.

After offering sacrifices to the heaven, it was necessary to present the seal and issue an edict in the Taiji Hall to formally declare the emperorship and the founding of the country.

Zu Ting hurriedly jumped into the carriage and rushed quickly towards the imperial city.

The rest of the officials also got ready and headed to the venue of the next ceremony.

Zu Ting sat in the carriage, feeling extremely excited.

After destroying the Zhou Kingdom, Liu Taozi finally stopped delaying and formally decided to establish a country and proclaim himself emperor. He accepted the mandate of heaven and began to work on the next great unification.

This is a top priority for the entire Han Dynasty.

Zu Ting dared not be negligent.

He has been looking forward to this day day and night!

The rewards for officials and generals will also be announced after the official enthronement! !

Zu Ting was already getting impatient.

When they arrived at the Taiji Hall, the etiquette officers were conducting a final check to make sure they had not made any mistakes.

Zu Ting was just about to take the seal when someone hurriedly grabbed him.

"Grandfather! You are wrong! You are wrong!"

Zu Ting was furious. He turned around and saw that the person who grabbed him was Wei Shou. At this moment, Zu Ting became even angrier.

"Does Duke Wei think that the emperor is immoral and unworthy of the mandate of heaven?"

Wei Shou's legs went limp, realizing that he had said the wrong thing, and slapped his mouth hard, "Absolutely not, it was the Heaven-telling Ceremony just now!"

"According to Han etiquette, sacrifices are only made with livestock, but only the Xianbei people use burning to make their sacrifices known!"

"The officials of the Ministry of Rites have failed in their duties! How dare they use Xianbei rituals to humiliate His Majesty!!"

Upon hearing this, Zu Ting burst into laughter.

His expression suddenly became fierce and he grabbed Wei Shou by the collar.

Although Zu Ting was old and thin, he was tall. When he was grabbed and looked down, he was really scary.

He asked angrily: "I only heard that there are Turks in the north and Chen people in the south, where are the Xianbei people?!"

Wei Shou was so frightened that he trembled and could no longer speak.

Zu Ting pushed him away and walked quickly into the Taiji Hall.

The emperor made preparations again. This time, he changed his clothes. The emperor's clothes are divided into many types. The clothes worn during sacrifices are the most special type. It is not allowed to wear sacrificial clothes under normal circumstances.

Zu Ting personally held the jade seal.

If it was a relationship of abdication, the previous emperor should have been the one to give the imperial seal, but Liu Taozi ascended to the throne on his own, so it was his confidant who granted the seal.

Zu Ting volunteered to take on this task.

After Zu Ting respectfully presented the jade seal to the emperor, the ministers congratulated him again.

Liu Taozi sat on the dragon throne, even though he often sat on it on weekdays.

The officials bowed again.

Liu Taozi issued an imperial decree.

There are many imperial edicts.

"He established a new country, and named it Han."

"The reign title is Tianyuan."

"Establish a temple for Emperor Zhaolie, the founder of the Han Dynasty, to inherit his legal tradition and confer corresponding titles upon him."

"Liu Zhang is honored as the Empress Dowager, Liu Taozhi is honored as the Supreme Emperor, and Huluqian is honored as the Empress."

"Grant Liu Wu the title of King of Yong."

Liu Taozi's legal lineage can be traced back quite far, and he directly denied the previous dynasty, and even the Han Dynasty's abdication to the Wei Dynasty. He directly respected Liu Bei as the master of the temple and inherited his legal lineage. Although this was not in accordance with etiquette, Taozi never cared about etiquette!

After determining the origin of the country, the country's name and reign title, and its special position, Liu Taozi began to reward his ministers.

This was the original announcement of the award, but this time it was announced in the most formal way. Zu Ting was officially appointed as prime minister.

When Liu Taozi's decree was issued, everyone was shocked.

The position of prime minister is quite rare, even in Qi State. The only ones who have the title of prime minister are guys like Gao Yan and Gao Zhan who are about to usurp the throne.

Some are angry, some are disdainful, some are sad, and of course, some are happy.

Zu Ting stood up again and faced the ministers. His eyes finally stopped automatically locking onto those who were fighting with him. His eyes were bright and clear, and he looked confident.

After many benevolent policies of the new dynasty such as rewards and tax exemptions, the ceremony was over.

The new empire rose in the Central Plains, and was only one step away from unification.

The ceremony ended and everyone left with a sense of reluctance.

Zu Ting followed Liu Taozi with a calm expression and walked into the other hall. He ordered the soldiers to keep Wang Lin and call him in.

Not long after, Wang Lin appeared here confused. Looking at the new emperor and the new prime minister in front of him, he hurriedly bowed to greet them.

Liu Taozi sat in the upper seat and asked Wang Lin to sit down.

Although there was only a slight change in the name, it still touched Wang Lin.

Especially today, when Liu Taozi raised his sword and the soldiers cheered "Long live the emperor", the scene was moving.

Wang Lin, who has always been open-minded, became much more restrained.

Zu Ting cleared his throat and said, "Prince, I asked you to come in to discuss an important matter."

"Now that the enthronement is complete, it's time to tell us the purpose of your visit."

Wang Lin asked, "Your Majesty has just ascended the throne, so there must be a lot of things to do, right?"

Zu Ting waved his hand and said, "Don't worry. There is nothing more important than destroying Chen right now."

Liu Taozi nodded and spoke, "Just speak frankly, Lord."

Wang Lin's expression became more and more solemn. He said seriously, "Your Majesty, the soldiers in the country are all eager to destroy the State of Chen and complete the great cause. Even those around me are eager to make achievements, but this is wrong."

"The national strength of Chen may not be as strong as that of Zhou, but they have the natural barrier of the river, plus their powerful navy, which cannot be underestimated."

"Since ancient times, there have been many cases where the powerful northern country has attacked the weak southern country and suffered defeat. There are many reasons for this."

"Therefore, I think we should not be too hasty in attacking the State of Chen."

"The first is to shrink the defense line in all areas, whether it's Gangneung, Haian, or Gwangju. I think we should shrink the defense line and move the shipyard back to show the enemy that we are weak."

Zu Ting couldn't help but laugh. Sure enough, Wang Lin's strategy was just as he had imagined.

However, there are indeed many additions. After all, Zu Ting is not the commander of the navy, and he does not see many things as clearly as Wang Lin.

Wang Lin proposed to recruit soldiers from Lianghuai and even Jingzhou, because these people were more familiar with water and could adapt to the climate in the south. He proposed to reorganize the current navy, unify the navy's organization, add special naval officer positions, and set up three naval training bases in the rear for continuous training every day.

When it comes to building warships, he prefers to concentrate his efforts on building small and medium-sized warships and purchasing large ships from the Southern Kingdom.

The reason why he came in person was that his proposal contained a lot of sensitive content, which could easily get him into trouble if he was not careful, so he needed to explain it clearly in person.

Wang Lin's strategy started from four aspects: hiding, creating, changing and practicing, with a total of twenty-seven strategies.

Of course, he had already written the corresponding content. Zu Ting took it and looked through it carefully, searching for any inappropriateness.

It wasn't that Zu Ting was looking for trouble on purpose, it was just such a big matter and there couldn't be any mistakes.

"My Lord, you said you wanted to conceal your strength, but this strategy says you want to explore the islands along the coast and occupy them. Isn't this a conflict?"

Wang Lin shook his head. "No, Grandfather, you don't know that most of these islands are deserted. Only some useless pirates like to occupy them as their rear camps. Some of them can't even find water to drink and can't survive. As long as we are secretive enough, we can arrange the manpower. The Chen people are very frightened and have begun to block the river. How dare they go out?"

"If we occupy these places in advance, we will have more routes to send troops and even be able to contact the rear of the State of Chen."

"General Ouyang He used to be stationed in the south of Chen State. He had great prestige in the hearts of the local barbarians. He even presided over their ceremonies on his own initiative. He was also feared because of these actions. After General Ouyang surrendered, Chen Xu killed many people in the south, causing dissatisfaction among many local people. If we can contact them, with General Ouyang's reputation, we can let them involve Chen's army from the rear."

"I see."

Zu Ting had no more questions and looked at other strategies.

"As for the purchase of the large ship, the confrontation between Han and Chen is becoming more and more obvious, and the people of Chen are on high alert, making it difficult to pass through. Is your Excellency really sure?"

"I'm 100 percent sure."

Wang Lin couldn't help but laugh. He looked at Liu Taozi and said, "Your Majesty, do you know how long a giant ship can be put into battle?"

"I don't know."

"For example, the Han Dynasty's Gai Hai has been in existence for sixty-two years and is still going strong."

"Generally speaking, if ordinary warships are maintained in time and have not encountered tragic battles, they can serve for a hundred years! If they are repaired and rebuilt by experienced craftsmen, they can continue to serve!"

"As for the other types of boats, their lifespans are shorter due to the different types of wood they are made of, but they can still be used for more than ten or even dozens of years!"

"But the warships of the Chen Kingdom are being consumed at a very fast rate. In the past ten years, not counting the losses in war, even in non-wartime situations, they have already had three large warships that were too old to be used and had to be abandoned."

Zu Ting was stunned. "Three ships? Three huge ships were lost in ten years?"

Wang Lin nodded, "Yes, three. Zhou Kingdom is short of money, so we can only afford three giant ships."

Zu Ting suddenly understood.

"Those huge ships of Zhou Kingdom?!"

"Yes, it was sold by the Chen people, and the Zhou people modified it and used it themselves. Among the Zhou people's giant warships, only one was built by them."

"It's not just the giant ships, the same is true for ordinary warships, which are replaced and eliminated every year. In the past, when they were trading, those merchants were able to mobilize warships to escort them. Where did these warships come from?"

"Even when Chen Qian was still in power, he couldn't completely stop this from happening. How can Chen Xu stop it?"

"At the beginning, Chen Baxian was eager to ascend the throne, so he had to win over everyone and continue to respect monks and worship Buddha to unite everyone. Whether it was monks or those big families who had lived in Jiangdong for a long time, they were all happy to sell warships to us. They didn't care whether we would attack them or destroy them after taking the warships. No barrier could stop them."

"As long as we don't act too aggressively, we can continue to purchase warships from them."

In the end, the three of them roughly determined the strategy for attacking the State of Chen.

First put away your fist, step back a few steps, and then hit again.

This will hurt more and make it easier to knock your opponent down.

Zu Xiang left the palace with a happy face. He wanted to go out and show off.

The ancients said: If you don't return to your hometown when you are rich and powerful, it's like wearing brocade clothes at night. But for Zu Ting, if you don't go to meet your enemies when you are rich and powerful, it's like wearing brocade clothes in vain.

The next day, Zu Ting could not wait to summon all the ministers to discuss important matters.

Zu Ting had considerable power as prime minister. He was different from Yang Yin, the prime minister. Yang Yin was honored as prime minister because he served as Shangshu Pushe and Shangshu Ling, because the power of this official position was almost the same as that of the prime minister. However, Zu Ting was a real prime minister, without any water in the sand, and he was the kind of prime minister who could really execute officials during the court.

No matter how much dissatisfaction, resentment, and jealousy they had towards the prime minister, they were all obedient and respectful at this moment.

Zu Ting enjoyed this feeling very much.

However, he was not so self-deprecating as to bully his past enemies. He just showed off, put on some tone, and said a few empty words to make them bow down to him.

After satisfying his addiction to being a treacherous minister as usual, he did not forget to give orders for important matters.

Although there is a rush to replenish the number of officials in various places, nothing can be done in a hurry, especially for local officials. If they recruit officials to make up the numbers in a hurry to get things done, or even skip the civil service examination and do not pay attention to the people they promote, they will be arrested and punished.

Officials, especially local officials, are the ones who have to face the people directly and execute orders directly. No matter how urgent the situation is, they cannot just fill in the gaps and must be qualified!
The ancestor was very powerful and gave stern orders to everyone.

No one dares not to obey.

As for Liu Taozi, he was receiving another important official at this moment.

That was Lu Qubing, who was about to go to Guanzhong to serve as the acting Shangshu Ling.

In order to speed up the recovery of Guanzhong and Bashu, Liu Taozi specially selected two confidants to serve as the Shangshu Ling of the two places respectively. One was Lu Qubing and the other was Tian Zili.

These two have followed Liu Taozi for the longest time and are known to everyone as his top confidants.

Only people like them can hold such an important position in a place.

Lu Qubing still felt a little reluctant.

He looked at Liu Taozi, who was wearing the emperor's clothes in front of him, with complicated eyes. He always felt that all this was so unreal.

Liu Taozi spoke first, "Why don't you call me Taozi today, but Your Majesty instead?"

"Your Majesty appointed Cui Jishu as Sikong. He is good at fighting and I am afraid he will beat me."

Liu Taozi finally couldn't help laughing.

It was the first time that Lu Qubing saw Liu Taozi laugh so loudly.

He laughed too.

The laughter could be heard from far away.

ps: I am a bit behind the times, my typing speed is extremely slow, I will adjust as soon as possible, it seems that after this is finished, I have to take a break for a year or so, to gather my energy before starting another book, I will never start writing easily, it is too difficult
(End of this chapter)