I am not Yuan Shu

Chapter 198 Yuan Feng has realized it! (Additional chapter for leader BAD灬JOKER)

Tang Zhen strengthened his belief, stood up, and presided over this brief but meaningful abdication ceremony.

He cleared his throat and announced loudly: "The abdication ceremony begins!"

Then, he muttered something, and his loud voice echoed in Deyang Hall like an ancient spell.

Liu Kui stood on the high platform and raised the imperial seal and the emperor's talisman, symbolizing the transfer of imperial power.

Liu Hong, together with his ministers, bowed to the ground and shouted "Long live the emperor", formally acknowledging Liu Kui's ascension to the throne and his own dethronement.

Liu Hong felt hopeless at this moment, he knew that he was finished.

He lost his throne, his power, and his luxurious life. From then on, he became a fish on the chopping board, at the mercy of others.

His last hope was that Liu Kui would forgive him for the sake of their common clan, and allow him to continue to be a member of the royal family, preferably a king. If that was not possible, it would also be good to be a Marquis of Ting again.

However, his fantasy was unsuccessful.

In Liu Kui's mind, Liu Hong was a villain who usurped the throne that should have belonged to him, and a thief who enjoyed years of wealth and glory on his behalf. If Liu Kui was not afraid of the bad influence, he would have wanted to kill him. How could he give him a good ending?
Therefore, the first decree issued by Liu Kui after he officially became emperor was to declare that Liu Hong was ungrateful, had betrayed the former Empress Dowager Dou, had usurped the imperial power, committed all kinds of evil, colluded with eunuchs, and harmed the people of the world. His crimes were extremely serious and he deserved to be put to death.

But considering that he was once an emperor, Liu Kui spared his life.

Apart from this, there were no other preferential treatments. Liu Kui decided to abolish all his titles and positions. He was first sent to the tomb of Empress Dowager Dou to guard her tomb for three years, and then demoted to a commoner. He was no longer allowed to live as a relative of the Han royal family, and from then on he had no connection with the Han royal family.

Liu Hong was kneeling on the ground. When he heard the verdict, his eyes went dark and he almost fainted on the spot.

Guarding the grave?

Common people?

That kind of thing...don't do it!

Anyway...

At least let me continue to live a life of ease and comfort!
Doesn't losing his royal status mean that even if he can survive in the future he will have to dig for food in the fields?

How could he possibly survive such hard times?
He burst into tears in Deyang Palace and kowtowed continuously, begging Liu Kui to show mercy and not let him become a commoner. He would even let him guard the tomb forever, as long as he was not allowed to become a commoner.

He really didn't want to live a life worse than death.

But how could Liu Li follow his wish?

He looked at Liu Hong coldly, without a trace of emotion in his voice.

"I have been on the throne for four years and have committed countless crimes. I have spared your life because you are young. What else do you dare to think? Come with me! Go to guard the Queen Mother's mausoleum for three years, and then you will be demoted to a commoner and expelled from Luoyang. You will never be allowed to return to the capital!"

Liu Hong was dragged out crying and wailing, without a trace of dignity left.

His cries echoed in the hall, as if it was his final lament for his past extravagant life.

However, no one sympathized with him, as everyone knew that the former emperor had completely lost the possibility of making a comeback.

As soon as he ascended the throne, Liu Kui dealt with the people he hated the most besides the Dou family and the eunuchs. This made all the civil and military officials in the court realize that the emperor was not as tolerant as he seemed.

After all, he is an adult, and the sense of intimidation that an adult emperor brings to his ministers is completely different.

Liu Kui's cruelty and decisiveness made everyone understand that the court in the future might no longer be the same as before.

Yuan Feng gazed at Liu Kui, who was acting like a king in the palace, and suddenly an indescribable emotion surged in his heart.

He recalled what Yuan Shu had said before.

At this moment, he deeply realized the foresight of his youngest son.

The complete eradication of eunuchs was not simply to avenge a blood feud, or to cater to a certain political correctness and put on a show for the people of the world to see.

Behind this, there are deeper and more complex political motives. This move is actually to take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to uproot the eunuch group that might be won over by the adult emperor Liu Kui to help, so as to eliminate future troubles.

This group of eunuchs began to rise in the Liang Ji era. After nearly three decades of political ups and downs, they have already forged a set of effective struggle strategies of their own.

Not only could they express their opinions on national affairs and assist the emperor in governing state, they could also hold military power, launch mutinies, and fight against foreign officials, becoming the most solid wing of imperial power.

Regardless of their positions, their overall fighting ability is truly amazing.

There is a natural complementarity between eunuchs and the emperor, which makes it very easy for eunuchs to become the emperor's most trusted reliance. If they are not eradicated, once Liu Kui ascends the throne, he can almost immediately recruit the surviving eunuchs for his own use and transform them from Liu Hong's confidants into his own confidants.

This group of eunuchs are familiar with the country's rules and regulations, are proficient in the strategies of political struggle, and have quite extensive political connections.

Once they become Liu Kui's helpers, they will be able to quickly give Liu Kui a layer of dazzling golden glory, transforming him into a powerful opponent of Yuan's autocracy.

Under the protection of the righteous cause, the Yuan family will be restricted everywhere, and in the end, they may really have to hand over the hard-earned fruits of victory to others, work in vain, and become a laughing stock.

To be honest, before the ministers entered Deyang Palace, Yuan Feng's heart was still dominated by the feelings of a Han minister. He was still looking forward to assisting the new emperor to revitalize the Han Dynasty, becoming a famous minister, and then leaving a good reputation for generations.

However, in this short moment, Yuan Feng's mentality changed drastically.

He suddenly realized that Liu Kui's ascension to the throne was the result of a desperate struggle between him and his son and the forces of the Yuan family.

If we win, everyone will be happy.

But if they lose, the six generations of Yuan family business will be destroyed.

No one will take responsibility for the consequences for them, no one will back them up, they have no protection and are just gambling.

In this case, they paid for victory with their lives.

And is this sweet fruit of victory going to be handed over to the guy who is lying in an absolutely safe place and just waiting quietly?
How can he be so virtuous?
Why does he get all this?
This thought spread through Yuan Feng's heart like wildfire, quickly devouring the part of him that was a "Han minister".

At this moment, looking at the miserable scene of Liu Hong being dragged out of Deyang Palace with screams and howls, Yuan Feng inexplicably felt a sense of grief for the deceased.

In a trance, he actually replaced Liu Hong's face with his own. He imagined that if one day in the future, all of Yuan's disciples and former officials were caught in one fell swoop, and he, who wanted to be a Han official, was dragged out of this hall like this, then, would anyone stand up to protect him?

Will anyone be able to save him from this dire situation?
The answer is obviously no.

Yuan Feng has always believed that Yuan's disciples and former officials are spread all over the world and occupy a pivotal position in the political structure of the Han Dynasty. Therefore, they will never be wiped out and the Yuan family will never fall.

However, after this thrilling coup, he deeply realized that even if the eunuchs and their cronies were so powerful and dominated the world for thirty years, they could still be wiped out overnight.

As long as the leaders are eliminated, the remaining forces will be leaderless and will not know how to resist even if they want to.

Faced with a powerful opponent who controls the central institutions and the Luoyang Arsenal, and faced with the entire state apparatus of the Eastern Han Empire, they will be powerless to fight back and will be vulnerable.

No one will come to protect him, just as no one stands up to protect Liu Hong today.

In Deyang Palace, no one can be his refuge. Only power, only power can protect him from harm in the center of the empire.

Without power, even the emperor will be crushed to pieces, but with power, even a treacherous person can be powerful.

Therefore, he must not lose power.

Having come to this point, he could no longer be a pure Han minister.

At this moment, Yuan Feng felt a surge of gratitude in his heart, grateful that he had a son named Yuan Shu.

From the very beginning, Yuan Shu seemed to have foreseen this day, foreseen the future they might encounter, and tried his best to smash this future. From the very beginning, this possibility could not be allowed to become a reality, and it had to be strangled in the bud.

Therefore, all the eunuchs were killed without leaving any alive. This was the beginning of the Yuan family's road to glory.

Yuan Feng finally understood this truth.

He got it!
Although Liu Kui's enthronement ceremony was brief and hasty, the established facts could not be changed.

The next step was to send someone out of Luoyang to inform the world of this matter and let everyone in the world know that the Han Dynasty had changed its emperor.

Liu Hong's era is over.

The era of Liu Kui (Yuan family) is about to begin!

This is the first step and the only thing everyone is sure of after this coronation ceremony.

Next, there are still many things that need to be negotiated and discussed.

For example, the issue of rewarding people for their contributions, how to fill the huge power vacuum left after the eunuch group was destroyed, and how to eliminate the remaining eunuchs...

These issues all require careful discussion.

However, these things do not require the participation of the small fish and shrimp standing outside.

They just need to obey orders obediently. Only the big guys in Deyang Palace can decide these important matters.

Furthermore, the real decision-making power is only in the hands of a few of these bigwigs, while others only have the right to make suggestions but not the right to make decisions.

Therefore, the small fish and shrimps were quickly sent back home to rest, and were not allowed to leave their homes. Yuan's soldiers were also arranged to guard the door of each house until the decision here was made.

The officials outside Deyang Palace left soon, and the people inside Deyang Palace also planned to further discuss the matter.

However, at this critical moment, Yuan Feng suddenly made a suggestion.

He faced the palace, bowed respectfully and said, "Your Majesty must be very tired after the long journey and sleepless night. Please move to the palace to rest. We will discuss these minor matters and report to Your Majesty after the discussion."

(End of this chapter)