Although this matter was raised by a head of the Ministry of Rites, Huang Qiong knew that the background of this matter was not simple, and at least it represented the opinions of a large part of the ministers. The old man has been in power for more than 20 years and has been very dictatorial. He has promoted countless ministers. Even if there are many of them who are just dawdling around and have no virtue or talent. But at least for now, he can't replace all the people in the old man's court.
Especially many of them, even themselves can only find ways to support them. Promote him to a higher level and let him give up his responsibilities. It was the head of the Ministry of Etiquette who came forward to issue the honorary title, but behind him stood a group of bachelors, including many officials from Zhongshu Province, Menxia and Shangshu Province, who were probably also involved. At least the Minister of Rites and the two assistant ministers probably couldn't escape this connection.
What do they want to do? Is it the rabbit's death and the fox's sorrow? The old man who promoted them has abdicated, and they have no backer. They are sad and sad here, and they are struggling for the last time? Or are you unwilling to do so, planning to make trouble there, or even sow discord between your father and son? The problem is that now there is a rebellion in the south of the imperial court that has swept through the Five Routes, and in the north there is a large-scale invasion of Bei Liao.
Now is the time when the country is in danger. Is now the time to raise this issue? It is true that in the former Tang Dynasty, starting from Empress Zetian, it became popular to take honorary titles during their lifetime. But they were all in prosperous times, when the country was rich and the people were strong. Even Tang Xuanzong, who triggered the Anshi Rebellion, also created a prosperous Kaiyuan era. The old man has been in power for more than 20 years, but he has become so virtuous that he has left himself in a mess.
Wouldn't it be a big joke to still be given the honorary title? Moreover, whether you accept this suggestion or not is related to your attitude towards the old man, the Supreme Emperor. The old man has now given up the throne. With his stubborn character of saving face, he must have attached great importance to his subjects and their evaluation of him in power for more than 20 years. It would be strange for the old man to feel comfortable if he stopped him.
In fact, it doesn't matter to me whether I get this title or not, but the problem is that this is really not the time now. But if he doesn't agree to take this title, what will the old man think? The old man is very sensitive to other people's evaluations, and now he is also very concerned about his own attitude. If he didn't take this title, even if the old man wouldn't say anything on the surface, he would definitely feel uncomfortable in his heart.
But if you agree to it yourself, the question is what the people in the world think of it. Nowadays, the world is at war, and Baixing Pavilion is suffering. I am still looking for trouble, giving the instigator a title of honor and unlimited praise. Thinking of this, Huang Qiong wanted to be a coward and kick the troublesome head of the Ministry of Etiquette to death. But Huang Qiong also knew that there were too many people behind this guy just thinking about it.
It's even possible that the old man, who cherishes his own feathers very much, did it himself. Before the coronation ceremony, Huang Qiong finally figured out why the old man was in a hurry to pass the throne when he was meditating in the Palace of Honoring the First Emperor in the palace as usual. Not only is he helpless about the current general trend of the world, but another key problem is that he cares too much about the evaluation of himself by history books.
While he is in office, if this rebellion cannot be put down or causes turmoil in the world, his reputation will not be good. Just like Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, even if he created a prosperous Kaiyuan era, the Anshi Rebellion disrupted all his honor and good reputation. Even in some history books, he is no different from a faint king. The old man is now hurriedly passing the throne to himself.
There is only one real purpose, and that is to cherish the old man who is his king's feather. I don’t want to be the king of a subjugated country, and I don’t want to have the slightest possibility. I don't even want to become Tang Xuanzong of the Qi Dynasty in the history books. Therefore, I focused on dumping this mess on myself early on. Huang Qiong was really speechless for trying to cover up the truth to the extent of the old man.
The reason is there, but how to deal with it is a thorny issue. The key thing is that now is not a good time to take on any honorary title. But this matter was obviously caused by some people, even the old man himself. If I don't agree, I'm afraid I'll be labeled as unfilial and will be slapped on my face immediately. Accepting the honorary title is also an acknowledgment of the old man's twenty years of governance.
This would make the old man feel better. I just wanted to think about it, but after pondering for a long time, Huang Qiong did not agree immediately. Instead, he directly said: "Giving the title to the Supreme Emperor is a great thing, and I will naturally not disagree with it. But at present, wars are raging in the north and south, and the overall situation has not yet been decided. The time is right. It’s still a little inappropriate.”
"Furthermore, this dynasty has never had this practice. Taking the honorary title and changing the ancestral family law at this time can easily lead to some topics that should not be discussed by the rebel king, and a more appropriate reason cannot be found. Although this matter is good, But the time is not up yet, we still need to wait. In this way, as long as one of the two battlefields in the north and south achieves a great victory, I will immediately comply with the request of the ministers and give the title of Supreme Emperor."
Huang Qiong neither vetoed nor immediately agreed to this decision. It's just that this matter should wait for an appropriate time. And considering the old man's thoughts, he still gave a prerequisite that was not too difficult. However, sometimes chance is just a coincidence. You want to delay it, but often changes in the situation may not give you the opportunity to push back.
Just as Huang Qiong finished announcing his decision, he had not yet waited for the officials to react. A sixth-grade official outside the palace suddenly ran in in a hurry, shouting as he ran: "Great victory in Jiangxi, great victory in Jiangxi. Your Majesty, great victory in Jiangxi. Our army in Jiangxi has defeated the rebels. This is where the hypocrite is. The Ganzhou Prefecture was also captured by the government troops. The Jiangxi rebels have collapsed on the Fujian Road."
This official was one of the young officials who was on duty at the Military Aircraft Department today and Huang Qiong personally pulled him out. According to Huang Qiong's customization, no one is allowed to leave the Military Aircraft Department at twelve hours a day, and someone must be on duty at all times. Since the beginning of the counter-insurgency war, Huang Qiong has been demanding that no matter what time or what he is doing. As long as battle reports are received from the northern and southern fronts, they must be reported to him as soon as possible.
It was Huang Qiong's request that made this official, who had just received the battle report from Jiangxi, take a quick glance at it. Full of joy, he immediately rushed to the morning court, located behind the Hanyuan Hall, which was only opened for various major ceremonies, and the second Li Zhengdian, to announce the good news to the new king. Because as the new king's personal official, he knew what the newly minted king was most concerned about.
Upon receiving the good news from Jiangxi, Huang Qiong was quite surprised and asked the official to read it out. After hearing Huang Qiong's instructions, the official was stunned for a moment, then hurriedly opened the book and read it out. It turned out that ten days ago, Ouyang Shan, who led the army to bypass the Fujian Road, commanded the army to fight three consecutive battles with the rebels in Ganzhou. He defeated 30,000 rebel troops and horses in Ganzhou and captured 20 rebel cannons.
Immediately, they used the captured rebel equipment and cannons to storm Ganzhou Prefecture. After breaking through the puppet headquarters of Ganzhou Prefecture, the rebel king and the puppet emperor fled to Nan'an Prefecture. Ouyang Shan seized a large amount of baggage, gold and silver in Ganzhou City, captured more than a hundred civil and military officials of the puppet dynasty above the fifth rank, and seized the escape route of the 50,000 rebels who were confronting Zhao Wuhu in Jiujiang Prefecture. Cao Rui led the army and was also outflanking the rebels.
After receiving this news, Huang Qiong did not show too much joy even though he acted very calmly on the surface. But inside, I was extremely excited. The battle in Jiangnan was so beautifully fought, and the good news came so timely. This battle was won, and his throne was at least stable now. As for the Jiangxi battlefield so far, it can basically be said that the initiative is firmly in the hands of the government and the army.
Now on the battlefield in Jiangxi, we are in a position where we have both advantages and disadvantages. As long as the rebels in the Jiangxi battlefield are eliminated, Cao Rui's troops in the Jiangxi battlefield can attack Fujian Road to the east, directly attack Guangnan West Road, the rebel base camp, and cut off the rebels on Huguang South Road to the west. Huang Qiong, who was overjoyed to win such a great victory in Jiangxi, directly issued an imperial edict to Cao Rui and promoted the generals at all levels below.
This good news from the south of the Yangtze River can be said to be the biggest gift for his ascension to the throne. As for the trophies Ouyang Shan seized in Ganzhou, Huang Qiong did not ask. Even though the pressure for money and food is extremely high now, Huang Qiong still didn't ask. Huang Qiong knew that with Ouyang Shan's personality, he knew how to deal with it. It was only after reading out the news of victory that Huang Qiong realized that he was facing a very serious problem.
I had just promised that as long as there was a victory on either of the northern and southern fronts, I would agree to give the old man a title. Just after I finished saying this, I received this report reporting the victory, which made me really speechless. Jun Wuxi said that he couldn't slap himself in the face, and he couldn't swallow what he just said. After pondering for a moment, Huang Qiong sighed softly in his heart.
Forget it, giving the old man an honorific title can be considered as appeasing him and repaying the kindness of the old man in passing the throne to you. Looking down at his ministers looking expectantly, Huang Qiong finally agreed to give the old man a title. After the morning court, Huang Qiong thought for a while and decided to talk to the old man. It was only when Huang Qiong arrived at Tingxuexuan that she found out that the old man had moved away early in the morning.
He took his mother, his daughter, and Shouyang to Yongfu Palace. Because he was busy in the morning, he didn't say hello to himself. The old man asked Gao Wuyong, who stayed behind to deal with the aftermath, to tell Huang Qiong that the country had been left to him. If nothing happens in the future, don't go to Yongfu Palace to disturb his Qing Dynasty. As for the concubines he left behind in the palace, the old man asked Huang Qiong to take good care of them for him.
Hearing that the old man had moved away early in the morning, Huang Qiong looked at Gao Wuyong speechlessly. Gao Wuyong was also a little embarrassed. He looked at Huang Qiong's livid face, hesitated for a while and finally persuaded him: "Your Majesty, the Supreme Emperor has been in a bad mood since discussing with you. There are also some problems with his body and bones. Although he is here, It's not a big problem under the care of the empress, but he suddenly looks a lot older."
"It wasn't until you completed the enthronement ceremony in the Hanyuan Hall yesterday that he seemed to be relieved of a heavy burden. The Supreme Emperor said that he could only hinder your affairs here. If he moves out early, it will be more conducive to your governance. He let My servant tells you that he is an unworthy descendant of our ancestors. Now he only hopes that he will die in the future, and Emperor Taizong will not blame him. I ask you to do your best, and he will completely hand over this huge burden to you. "
Listening to Gao Wuyong's narration of the old man's words, Huang Qiong pondered for a moment before speaking: "Gao Wuyong, I still need a general eunuch here to take care of the affairs of Wende Palace for me. You know the importance of Wende Palace. Yes. The few minions now are always not very effective. If you are not willing to follow the Supreme Emperor to Yongfu Palace and want to stay with me, then follow me to Wende Palace."
After Huang Qiong finished speaking, Gao Wuyong knelt down directly to Huang Qiong, kowtowed and said, "Long live my lord, this servant was transferred from Xijing to Jingzhao Mansion, and has been following the Supreme Emperor ever since. The Supreme Emperor has always been served by his servants in his daily life. I would like to thank you for your consideration, but I am worried that the Emperor is used to using his servants. If the servants leave at this time, I am afraid that the Emperor will be very sad."
