"Dong dong dong!"
The earth-shattering sound of horse hooves made the ground seem to tremble slightly. Amidst the billowing smoke, a group of knights galloped on horseback. They were wearing leather armor, with swords, guns and crossbows hanging on the sides of the horses. They looked like they belonged to the imperial court. Soldiers and horses.
This group of knights went straight into Chang'an City, and then went straight to Zongzheng Mansion. The leading knight jumped off his horse and said loudly: "We came from Huainan Kingdom. The king passed away. We came to Chang'an on the order of the queen to report his funeral."
The guards were shocked when they heard the words, and quickly ran in to report. The group was allowed to enter Zongzheng's mansion. Zongzheng Liu Cheng hurriedly walked to the courtyard. He didn't even wait for the messenger to speak and asked eagerly: "Is the King of Huainan really dead?"
It's really not surprising that Liu Cheng was so eager. You have to know that this King of Huainan is probably the eldest person in the Liu family today. After Liu Bang put down the rebellion of Huainan Wang Yingbu, he granted the Huainan Kingdom to himself. Brother.
It turned out that this one was really alive, and actually survived Liu Bang, Lu Pheasant, and Liu Ying. Liu Bang's other brothers had all passed away long ago. All the vassal states were second-generation or even third-generation vassals. Only Huainan Kingdom was still one generation.
At that time, Yingbu relied on the Huainan Kingdom to rebel. Although it was a mantis mantis who did not know his own strength, it can still be seen that the strength of the Huainan Kingdom was strong.
Liu Chengneng can serve as a key Jiuqing like Zongzheng under strong men like Lu Pheasant and Luo Xin. One can imagine his position.
In fact, Liu Cheng was the confidant of Lu Pheasant and Luo Xin in the Liu clan, and was now the emperor's loyal supporter Liu Heng.
He had long been worried about the powerful strength of the princes and kings. Now that he heard that the king of Huainan, the backbone of the kings south of the river, passed away, he almost wanted to laugh out loud.
If the King of Huainan knew secretly that his nephew could not wait to see him die, he didn't know how he would feel.
Naturally, these knights didn't know what Liu Cheng was thinking, so they made tears and said sadly: "Report to Zongzheng, the king has indeed passed away, and he has gone to see Emperor Gao. We will go to Chang'an first to report the funeral, and the Huainan Kingdom delegation will arrive soon." .”
Liu Cheng forcibly made a mournful gesture and said: "You all should take a rest first. After I report to Your Majesty, we will discuss the future affairs of King Huainan."
When a vassal king dies, the court needs to do a lot of things, such as agreeing on the posthumous title, preparing ritual vessels, arranging the affairs of the vassal state, and the subsequent succession of the vassals.
Even under the complete feudal system of Bang and Zhou, the vassal states were almost completely independent from the Emperor of Zhou, but the succession of new vassals still required the canonization of the Emperor of Zhou.
This is called taking orders from the king!
Naturally, this rule would not change in the Han Dynasty. If the emperor was too strong to allow the prince of Huainan to succeed to the throne, there would be a stalemate.
Liu Chengan settled the group of people who came from Huainan Kingdom and rushed to the palace with a face full of joy. He was considered to be a high-ranking official in the Han Dynasty.
"Can the Prime Minister be in Changle Palace?"
Liu Cheng directly stopped the palace attendant waiting in Changle Palace and asked.
"Returning to the truth, the Prime Minister is managing politics in Changle Palace."
Liu Cheng heard this and went straight to the side hall of Changle Palace.
Luo Xin looked at Liu Cheng, whose face was full of joy, and joked: "Mr. Liu is so happy, but is he suddenly pampered, old trees blooming, and newly blessed with a precious son?"
When Liu Cheng heard this, his old face turned red immediately, and he waved his hands quickly and said: "Prime Minister, don't make fun of your humble position. I came to see you this time to report something important."
"happy event?"
Liu Cheng frowned slightly and thought, then said: "Yes and no."
Luo Xin raised his eyes and looked at Liu Cheng, who was Zongzheng, and said thoughtfully: "Is it worth your while to make a trip in person? Could it be that one of the princes and kings has passed away?
Could it be the long-lived old turtle of King Huainan? "
Hearing this, Liu Cheng said excitedly: "The Prime Minister is indeed a genius. It is the King of Huainan who has passed away. I received the news and came to see you in a hurry."
When Luo Xin heard that it was indeed King Huainan who died, he also showed a cheerful smile on his face and said: "This King of Huainan seems to be loyal and kind, but the information collected about him over the years shows that he is a sinister and vicious person. .
He seems to have a good reputation in the country, but he has calculations in his heart. He has denied the imperial court's policies in every possible way over the years.
Now that he is dead, his contribution to the world will be greater than his lifetime. "
Then seeing the historian walking in, Luo Xin immediately made a sad expression. Liu Cheng also put away his smile and said solemnly: "The King of Huainan passed away, and the country sent people to Chang'an. If I want to do this, please ask the regent." Prime Minister, please show me."
Luo Xin sighed slightly and said: "The Huainan Wang clan has a strong family, and your Majesty's elder passed away suddenly. It is really a great loss to the clan."
Liu Cheng responded with the same sadness: "What the Prime Minister said is that it is really a great loss for the Zong family."
Luo Xin added: "The taxes paid by the Huainan Kingdom to the court have been increasing year by year. This is the credit of King Huainan. The court cannot treat such a meritorious minister lightly."
Liu Cheng nodded heavily and said: "The Prime Minister is right, you cannot treat such a meritorious official lightly."
Luo Xin pondered for a moment and said: "As for the posthumous title of King Huainan, the imperial court will discuss it. Zong Zheng will return to the official office first to appease the Huainan envoys who will arrive later and tell them that the imperial court will definitely give a decent vassal like Huainan King. .”
When Liu Cheng left, Luo Xin sat there and closed his eyes without moving. Countless storms began to unfold in his mind. He thought deeply for a long time, and finally slowly opened his eyes and said softly: "If you build the princes with less effort, then Let’s start from Huainan Kingdom.”
…
The dignitaries of Chang'an City soon met the delegation from the Huainan Kingdom. More than three hundred people came, including two or three sons of the King of Huainan.
Everyone was covered with white cloth and dressed in obvious funeral attire, and soon the news of the death of King Huainan spread.
Ordinary people just have more to talk about in the streets, but for the dignitaries in Chang'an City, this is a major matter related to the family's wealth.
Soon news came out from the palace that Luo Xin summoned some important ministers to discuss the posthumous title of King Huainan.
Although many people here wish that King Huainan would die early, they still have to be as fair as possible regarding the posthumous title. After listening to some opinions, Luo Xin finally decided to be as fair as possible and a little more generous, naming King Huainan As "Xiang", this is considered a higher posthumous title.
Liu Cheng took Luo Xin's decree to the palace where the Huainan Kingdom's envoy was staying, and a large number of people bowed to receive the decree.
Liu Cheng said loudly: "In response to the imperial edict of Emperor Renzong Xiaohui, acting on behalf of the emperor, and the edict of the regent Prime Minister:
Wang Chang of Huainan is the elder brother of Emperor Gao. He is an elder with outstanding moral character in the clan. He obtained the throne by virtue of blood. For twenty or thirty years, he must have worked diligently as the emperor's vassal. It would not be enough if the court did not reward such a loyal clan. Reflecting benevolence.
After deliberation among the courtiers, the king of Huainan was given the posthumous title of "Xiang", and he was called King Xiang of Huainan. He informed the world that everyone knew about it. "
When everyone heard the posthumous title given by the imperial court, smiles of surprise appeared on their faces. King Huainan had indeed made contributions to the country over the years, but these contributions were relatively vague. When it comes to the posthumous title, it is like snake oil, which can be higher or lower. It's okay, they didn't expect to get such a good posthumous title.
This is considered by many to be the court's friendliness towards the Huainan Kingdom.
"There is still a will!"
Liu Cheng took out another decree and said loudly, and everyone who had just straightened up bowed again.
Liu Cheng said loudly: "The king of Huainan has a good way of educating his children, which is known all over the world. The Han Dynasty has just been established, and the clan is in need of work. When the prince of Huainan enters the palace in Chang'an, I will give him a test on his behalf. If he is talented, The nobles of the heavenly family should not be allowed to wander in the wilderness."
Everyone who heard this decree was a little confused. King Huainan taught his children well. How could they not know that King Huainan had a good reputation, but no one in the Huainan Kingdom knew that he did not care about the bastards, and was not even willing to hire teachers for them.
Although it is taboo to spoil a concubine and destroy a wife, treating a concubine so harshly is also against the moral values of this era.
After all, Luo is the benchmark for all morals. Luo always treats his concubine kindly. During the Zhou Dynasty, in addition to the legitimate son of the royal family, the most trusted helper of each generation of kings was his half-brother.
King Huainan suffered criticism from many people for doing this, but it was a family matter after all, so it didn't make a big fuss.
The three concubines of the Huainan King who came to Chang'an this time were not liked by the queen in the country, so they were sent to Chang'an in the Longtan Tiger's Den. However, they did not expect that the attitude of the prime minister was unexpectedly good. He even wants to summon them and reuse them.
The three brothers looked at each other for a few times, and the joy and shock in their eyes could not be concealed at all. If they could leave Huainan Country, then the sky would be as high as birds can fly, and the sea would be as wide as fish can leap.
Some people in the Huainan Kingdom's delegation frowned. These were sent by the queen, and some did not expect why Luo Xin wanted to see these concubines.
I couldn't help but murmur in my heart: "The regent, the prime minister, is busy with everything, so why would he care about a few small princes, kings and concubines?
These people can't even inherit the title and can only be an idle clan.
Not to mention that compared with the princes and princes, he was not even as good as ordinary dignitaries, and he could be said to be worthless to the regent.
How strange.
We can only ask after they come out of the palace. "
No one dared to openly question Luo Xin's will at this time. Liu Cheng looked at the people in front of him with incomprehensible eyes, put away his will, and said to the people in the front: "Brothers, please come with me." Palace, the Prime Minister has many things to do every day, and time is precious, so don’t keep the Prime Minister waiting in a hurry."
According to the genealogy of the Liu family, Liu Cheng is really the elder brother of these people, so he said this to show his closeness. He knew that it must be useful for Luo Xin to let these Huainan kings into the palace. As Luo Xin's confidant, he naturally wanted to Get closer to these bastards and let them cooperate with Luo Xin's actions.
The three of them stood up and apologized and said with a smile: "I'm sorry to bother you, brother, but I can't delay the Prime Minister's affairs. I will follow my brother to the palace."
After saying that, Liu Cheng took the three people to the palace, leaving the remaining people standing there and watching.
(End of chapter)
