The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 853 The final farewell
The eldest princess was buried on the third day of September in the twentieth year of Guangde.

Because Liu Yufei had too many enemies during her lifetime, in order to avoid her bones being crushed and scattered after her death, her funeral was held in secret and the ceremony was extremely simple.

The eldest princess was finally buried near the tombs of her father, Emperor Liu Zhaosun, and Empress Dowager Cisheng, Jin Yuji. The elderly Liu Kan attended his sister's funeral. Only Jiang Liuer, Chen Mingxia, and a few other trusted ministers accompanied Emperor Guangde.

When the emperor sprinkled the last handful of soil, the gate of the underground palace slowly closed. Emperor Guangde left the mausoleum with a slightly lonely look and boarded the four-wheeled carriage back to Tianxin City.

"Give the craftsmen more silver and send them home. Never let them return to Tianxin City again."

"Your Majesty, the best way to make them shut up is..." Jiang Liuer made a beheading gesture with his hand on his neck.

"Stop killing people. Many people have died in Da Qi over the years." Liu Kan shook his hand gently, and his turbid eyes turned to the shrewd and capable spy chief.

Jiang Liuer retreated angrily.

Emperor Guangde looked at Chen Mingxia who was standing beside him, and the Grand Secretary immediately stepped forward and obeyed his orders.

"How are the British?"

"Your Majesty," Chen Mingxia said, his expression as grim as the gloomy weather outside the carriage. "The East India Company wants us to open more trading ports and offer more favorable tariffs."

Liu Kan nodded slightly: "Anything else?"

Chen Mingxia said anxiously, "The British say that Your Majesty was able to quell Liu Yufei's rebellion this time thanks to the support of the East India Company's fleet, so Da Qi needs to make more concessions."

"More concessions?" Liu Kan played with the jade wrench on his thumb with great interest. The evening light shone through the car window onto the mottled wrinkles on the old man's face, making him look moody.

"Tariffs, trade, low-priced coal and iron ore, isn't what I've given them enough?"

"The British said that from now on, all of Qi's ships, artillery, and fortress construction will be handled by them, and the provinces' grain and cloth trade will have to be done with them..."

Emperor Guangde shook his head impatiently: "Then I will give the throne to the British."

Chen Mingxia stopped talking and stepped aside consciously.

"They are greedy and insatiable! When my father was on the throne, the red-haired barbarians had no place in Da Qi. Now I have given them so many benefits, and they still think it is not enough!"

Crown Prince Liu Wuji looked around and saw that the ministers had stopped talking. He had no choice but to step forward and persuade them: "Father, the British warships are still to our north. We can't break off relations with them now."

Liu Kan coughed twice and said weakly, "The red-haired barbarians are not a concern. Merchants value profit, so just give them more. The most important thing right now is the implementation of the new policy. You should go to the north, to the Princess's old place, and personally supervise those officials who are pretending to obey but actually disobeying, and urge the implementation of the new policy. No more chaos will occur."

Hearing that he would have to leave Tianxin City and the power center of Da Qi again, Liu Wuji was extremely reluctant, but he knew that he could not go against his father's will.

"Father, I am worried about you..."

Liu Kan smiled awkwardly, tightly grasped the prince's hands, and said tremblingly:

"My son, don't worry about me. Unlike Emperor Taizu, I have no desire for immortality, nor do I seek longevity. I never take those lethal elixirs, and I won't die for a while. The eldest princess's rebellion has been quelled, and I will take charge of Tianxin City. You can go to Yanjing and Liaodong without worry, implement the new policies, redistribute the farmland and mineral resources, and execute a group of corrupt officials. This will win the support of the people, and you will be able to sit on the throne with peace of mind."

Liu Wuji nodded heavily, and when he looked up again, his eyes were already a little red.

"Father, please take care of yourself while I'm away."

Liaodong and Yanjing have always been the old rebel bases and the weak points of Tianxin City's rule.

Although the eldest princess is dead, the remnants of the rebels are still there. If there is any change in the world in the future, these two places will definitely be the first to rebel.

Emperor Guangde gave the Crown Prince some further instructions. The carriage left the Imperial Mausoleum and sped northward. Half an hour later, the majestic Tianxin City came into view. As the carriage creaked across the cement pavement, Liu Kan's thoughts raced, thinking of his deceased father and mother, and the eldest princess sleeping in the underground palace.

The Red Haired Barbarians' greed is insatiable. Is the foundation left by my father really going to be destroyed in my own hands? Is it necessary to be as aggressive as my sister to defend the territory of Da Qi?

Emperor Guangde suddenly made up his mind and ordered his personal eunuch:

"Go ahead and tell Governor Jiang to arrange a date with those big-nosed directors of the East India Company. Have the British come from Manila to Tianxin City to meet me. All the trade and commerce matters the British mentioned earlier must be discussed with me in person."

The young eunuch took the order and left. Just as he was about to exit the carriage, Liu Kan muttered to himself again:
"I wonder what the Queen will think when she hears about this? Will she think I'm weak?"

The young eunuch stood still, hesitant to speak, "Your Majesty, do you mean for me to tell the Empress about the British being too aggressive?"

"That's not the case." Liu Kan shook his hand decisively. "If the Queen knew this, it would only add to her troubles."

Although Gu Erye's daughter is Swedish, she is now the Queen of Da Qi. As a woman, she can only resolutely defend her husband's interests, so it is time to cut ties with her homeland.

After the eunuch went down to deliver the imperial edict, Emperor Guangde was the only one left in the luxuriously decorated carriage. Liu Kan played with the jade wrench while muttering to himself:

"Things are unpredictable. I was hoping to join forces with Europa, but I didn't expect them to treat Da Qi not as a friend, but as a lamb to be slaughtered."

~~~~~~~~
On the night of returning to Tianxin City, the Queen could not wait to ask the old emperor how he dealt with the eldest princess, whether it was "lingchi" or "littering by a chariot", and whether he had found out the whereabouts of her remaining followers.

Liu Kan smiled awkwardly and remained silent. Finally, he became impatient and angrily said to the queen:

"Now that Liu Yufei is dead, you still won't let her go? Why are you arguing with a dead person?"

The few remaining maternal instincts in Christina Augusta suddenly awakened. She shook Liu Kan, who was wearing only a single layer of clothing, and screamed hysterically:

"That female devil may be dead now, but she almost killed the Crown Prince! She almost killed our son! Her accomplices are spread all over the country, and they could come back at any time! As the father of your child, can you just let it go like this?"

"Then what do you want?"

Christina gnashed her teeth and said, "Massacre! Kill all her accomplices!"

Liu Kan looked at his wife with strange eyes, and suddenly roared: "Do you want chaos in the world?"

"The assassination of Liu Wuji was originally carried out by the princess's subordinates. It was those warriors who acted recklessly. It was not Liu Yufei's original intention! Liu Wuji's assassination had nothing to do with his aunt!"

Christina squeezed out a few words from between her teeth: "You're still defending her! It's totally unreasonable! If you had even a little bit of your father's courage, so many people wouldn't have died in the empire!"

"That's enough! Stop talking!"

Seeing that the emperor was angry, the Swedish woman mumbled something in Swedish and ignored her husband.

Christina rolled up the quilt, turned her back to the old emperor, and fell into a deep sleep.

The lights flickered, and in the dim light came the heavy snoring of the Swedish woman. The old emperor stared at the ceiling, tried hard to grab the quilt back, and fell asleep unknowingly.

That night, fifty-eight-year-old Liu Kan dreamt of his childhood.

At that time, he and Liu Yufei were hostages in the Forbidden City of the Ming Dynasty. Emperor Chongzhen strolled up to them and looked at the two children with squinted eyes. The emperor turned around and discussed with Wang Chengen how to deal with their father, Liu Zhaosun, the unruly and powerful official who was second only to the emperor.

(End of this chapter)