Zhao Huan stared blankly at his nineteen-year-old son without saying a word, his brows frowning more and more.
It's not because of this palace change...in fact, he is a little tired of the hot power. Such power is extremely sweet to those who can control it.
For Zhao Huan, who was unable to control power and was even being mercilessly swallowed by power, it was simply torture!
He feels a little regretful now. He should have resolutely given up the position of crown prince to Zhao Kai when he was in Kaifeng Mansion. In this way, Zhao Kai will stay in Kaifeng Mansion to take charge of the overall situation, and he, Zhao Huan, can escape with the late Emperor Zhuang Zong... He no longer has to worry about the world that he cannot save at all.
And today, Zhao Huan's official career has really reached the point where he can no longer work... If he continues to work, he will definitely become Zhuangzong's second in command!
Therefore, it is actually a beautiful thing to have a son with outstanding ability to take over his duties so that Zhao Huan can enjoy life.
But the problem was...he suddenly felt that his son looked very much like Zhao Kai!
It's not that they look alike, Zhao Chen neither looks like Zhao Huan nor Zhao Kai. He follows his mother and looks very similar to Zhu Lian.
But his demeanor, temperament, hobbies... and his courage to initiate palace changes are exactly the same as Zhao Kai!
Zhao Huan will never forget the way Zhao Kai looked when he launched the palace coup. His face was red and swollen, just like Zhao Chen now - actually it was quite different. Zhao Kai was just trying to make a fool of himself. As for Zhao Chen, his mother is prone to obesity and has a lot of fat on his face. And that red face is the result of being exposed to the Guangdong sun through training every day!
In addition, Zhao Chen, like Zhao Kai, both favored martial arts but despised literature (Zhao Huan actually thought that his younger brother, the number one scholar, was gentle in literature), both liked to study military strategies, and both hung out with a group of warriors every day.
Moreover, Zhao Chen's political views are very similar to Zhao Huan. Both men advocated the distribution of land to warriors and the use of land to support warriors... because the proportion of the revenue the court obtained from the land through officials accounted for a very low proportion of the total output of the land. A few kilos of millet could be harvested from an acre of land, but not even a handful would reach the hands of the imperial court.
And if such a good land is left to the soldiers to collect rent, is it reasonable not to charge 50% of the output? How much of this land did the scholar-bureaucrats and landlords receive? It won’t be less than this number, right? But how much did they pay to the court?
Moreover, how much of the taxes paid by the landlords ended up in the pockets of the soldiers? One-third or one-fifth?
Therefore, the Southern Song Dynasty court clearly had much more industrial and agricultural output than the Northern Song Dynasty court, but the number of soldiers it maintained was only half of its opponent... Zhao Chen had already told Zhao Huan more than once. At that time, Zhao Huan just listened casually and didn't take it seriously.
Only now do I realize something is wrong. This idea is exactly the same as Zhao Kai’s. It is clearly hereditary...
"Father, father..."
When Zhao Huan was in a daze, his son Zhao Chen couldn't wait any longer and reminded Zhao Huan... hurry up and pass the throne! What are you waiting for? No one will support you!
Zhao Huan was in a trance. When he heard his son's call, he suddenly woke up from his thoughts. Oh, he was not completely awake, so he blurted out: "I am not your father. I don't have a son like you... ....”
What?
The courtiers in the main hall and Zhao Chen himself were all stunned by these words!
what's going on?
Zhao Chen didn't expect that his father would say such things... Wasn't he just taking over in advance? If it weren't for the fact that his father's job as an official was so bad, he wouldn't have stepped forward to take over!
And this is not his personal intention. Most of the important ministers in Guangzhou support Zhao Chen's coming to power early. The current situation is like this. If Zhao Chen doesn't come on stage, this stage will be gone!
The ministers' eyes changed when they looked at Zhao Huan - how could an official say such a thing? The prince was so filial and couldn't bear the officials to be bullied by Zhao Kai again and again, so he stepped forward and asked to ascend the throne in advance. It was too late for the officials to be happy. How could he say such hurtful words?
If the prince is not the son of an official, whose son can he be? He can't be Zhao Kai's son...
Zhao Huan, who was completely awake, also knew that he had made a mistake... This is the most ruthless emperor's family! For the sake of imperial power, father and son would kill each other. If they were not relatives, wouldn't it be more cruel to kill each other?
When Zhao Huan thought about his miserable life, he cried "Wow".
When he cried, the ministers below all felt a little sympathetic - so pitiful, how many years had he been a cuckold?
But Zhao Chen was made very embarrassed by Zhao Huan, and he was also confused. He didn't know the relationship between his mother and Zhao Kai at all, and no one told him! He has never doubted his bloodline...how could there be a problem? Zhao Chen was born sixteen months after Zhao Huan and Zhu Lian got married!
Moreover, Zhao Huan was already the prince before marrying Zhu Lian. How strict are the gates of the prince's mansion? How could Zhao Kai get in? If Zhao Kai really went in without anyone noticing, wouldn't it be better to give Zhao Huan some arsenic and send him away?
If Zhao Huan had died at that time, Zhao Kai would definitely be the prince!
So Zhao Chen didn't know how to persuade his father. He held it in for a long time before he said: "Father, if you don't cry, I will be filial... I will be filial to my father in the future!"
When he said this, the ministers below quickly followed him!
If Zhao Chen is Zhao Huan's son, then he will be the next leader of Nantian! If he is Zhao Kai's son...then his future future will be even worse.
"Officials, don't worry, the prince is a rare benevolent and filial master..."
"With the prince in charge of the affairs of the country for the officials, the officials will be able to live a long life!"
"Guan Jia, you have worked hard for the country and the people for so many years, it's time to take a rest..."
"The official family is facing a great crisis. The prince is not strong and decisive enough to save the country and turn the tide..."
"Guan family, please let His Highness the Crown Prince lead us to fight with the north again!"
Zhao Huan already knew that the situation was irreversible at this time, and now the important ministers unanimously asked him to abdicate!
No one supports him anymore, an official who has been failing!
He could only sigh deeply, shed tears, and looked at the "suspected bastard" Zhao Chen, "I am indeed ashamed of my ancestors and the people of the world... I am also ashamed of the officials and soldiers who followed me here." ! The prince is a young hero with a strong spirit. He is indeed much better than me. I will take the title of prince in Zen, retire to the mountains and forests, and stop asking questions."
Finally retired!
Zhao Chen breathed a sigh of relief, and so did the ministers.
But the matter of the Zen position is not over yet... the procedures of three bows and three concessions are indispensable. Since Zhao Huan sincerely wanted to give up the throne, then Zhao Chen should pretend to push the throne away!
Of course, this matter must be done today and cannot be postponed until tomorrow.
These are extraordinary times, with long nights and many dreams!
Thinking of this, Zhao Chen said to Zhao Huan sincerely: "Father, I am young and inexperienced, so I may not be able to take on a big position. Please choose a wise man from among my brothers to be your king!"
Zhao Huan knew what his son meant, but he still had to cooperate with the play...
...
Thanks to Zhao Huan's cooperation, the palace change immediately became very smooth. After all, it was the consensus of the entire Wu and Song ruling group that Zhao Huan abdicated and Zhao Chen ascended the throne.
Therefore, the palace changes were carried out very smoothly, and people outside the palace did not even notice it at all.
So early the next morning, Zhao Shu, Zhao Qi and Zhang Bangchang entered the palace and found out that the king had been replaced. The person sitting on the throne was no longer Zhao Huan, but Zhao Chen.
"What? My eldest brother...he has quit?"
"Brother, what's wrong with him? He's fine, but... isn't it because he's acclimatized and can't afford to fall ill?"
"Your Highness, your Majesty, no, your Majesty, is your Majesty in good health?"
After hearing the three people's questions, Zhao Chen just smiled and said: "Fifth Uncle, Sixth Uncle, and Bachelor Zhang, don't worry. My father is doing well. He is just tired of worldly things and wants to retire to the palace and enjoy leisurely life. Regardless of worldly affairs... Gu Jia is a filial son, so of course he cannot disobey his father, so he has no choice but to take over the throne reluctantly."
All three people breathed a sigh of relief - it seems that Zhao Huan has not been killed yet!
"In that case," Zhao Qi said with a smile, "then I wonder if my nephew is willing to serve as the king of South Vietnam?"
Zhao Chen nodded and said, "I wish I could have asked for it! Please tell the three uncles of the Gu family that the Gu family is willing to guard Tiannan for the imperial court and forever guard the minister's integrity!"
Zhao Shu, Zhao Qi, and Zhang Bangchang were all very happy. This Zhao Chen knew more about current affairs than his father... This is great, and the world will be settled from now on!
Zhang Bangchang smiled and said to Zhao Chen: "Your Majesty, I and King Jing have also been ordered to go to Annan and inform the Annan Protectorate about the establishment of the Nanyue Kingdom by the imperial court... I wonder if it can be convenient?"
This convenience is not very convenient!
Because Zhao Chen wants to be called the Southern Emperor!
The influence of the Southern Emperor and the Nanyue King are completely different... The Zhao Dynasty of Nanyue Kingdom is called "Zhao Dynasty" by the Vietnamese, and is regarded as the same as the Wu Dynasty, Ding Dynasty, Li Dynasty, and Li Dynasty It exists, it's just older.
Therefore, Zhao Chen, who is called the King of Nanyue, has no way to use the power of the "Celestial Kingdom" to subdue the southern countries... He can only use the banner of the Southern Emperor.
Thinking of this, Zhao Chen smiled and said to Zhang Bangchang: "Xueshi Zhang doesn't know something. The Protector of Annan has long disrespected us in the Song Dynasty. Now the Li family of Annan has long been proclaimed emperor, and the country is named Danan. The capital of Annan Protecting and so on are just false names used to deceive me, the Song Dynasty. In fact, what the Annan Li family did is the same as the Western thieves, so we should call them Southern thieves!"
Of course the Song Dynasty knew about Li Chao's proclaiming himself emperor. This was not something that just happened. Moreover, the Li Dynasty was not the first Vietnamese dynasty to proclaim itself emperor. The previous Le Dynasty and Dinh Dynasty also proclaimed themselves emperors.
Zhao Shu, who had fought with the Li Dynasty, also nodded and said: "It is indeed true, and the Li family of Annan not only arrogated the title of emperor, but also claimed to be a foreign country and asked the southern countries to pay tribute to them. In recent years, they It is really hateful to form an alliance of eight countries and attempt to invade the Central Plains from the north!"
Zhao Chen nodded and said: "Uncle Wang's words are reasonable. The Gu family thinks that it is useless to issue edicts to such rebellious ministers and traitors... They must be attacked and completely eradicated by a large army!"
