The appearance of Zhou Gaozu the next day caused some stir, but few people questioned it. This was because anyone who had reached a certain level of martial cultivation possessed a keen bloodline perception, allowing them to sense familial closeness.
When faced with someone who looked exactly like Gaozu, possessed Martial God cultivation, and shared a bloodline connection with them, no member of the imperial clan could possibly believe it wasn't Gaozu himself.
Thus, the familial recognition was granted without any obstacles.
Gaozu's identity was also confirmed beyond doubt.
With Gaozu's personal endorsement, recognizing Ding Yun as the Imperial Crown Princess, Ding Yun's approval rating, which had been at most fifty percent among the court officials and imperial clan members, instantly rose to over eighty percent.
An ancestor of Martial God level had acknowledged her.
What could they do?
It was better to cease any further trouble.
However, Zhou Gaozu did not linger. After spending a few days in the imperial capital, he personally visited the major martial arts sacred lands and top sects, letting them know he was alive, that he was the Martial God-level guardian of the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty, and that they should behave themselves. Afterward, he departed the Great Zhou and headed directly for the Gui Xu.
Unknown to everyone,
They merely assumed he had gone into seclusion or for a tour once again.
Following this event, the simmering situation that had arisen due to Emperor Qianyu's severe injury and the emergence of Ding Yun as the Imperial Crown Princess was instantly quelled. After all, they weren't foolish. No one believed they could defeat a Martial God. Previously, they had only speculated that the Great Zhou ancestor might still be alive and had achieved Martial God status, and even then, they dared not target the imperial family. Now, it was confirmed.
Naturally, they became even more apprehensive about acting recklessly.
Both Emperor Qianyu and Ding Yun were spared considerable trouble because of this.
And many fewer complications arose.
What followed was a long period of stable development and transition, a period for Ding Yun's growth and for Emperor Qianyu to gradually transfer power to Ding Yun.
Ding Yun undertook extensive preparations during this process.
Over more than a decade, Ding Yun had prepared all individuals and resources that might be needed in the future.
And a decade quickly passed.
Upon sensing that he had less than a year of lifespan remaining, Emperor Qianyu decisively made arrangements for his affairs. He then sealed himself in the Ten Thousand Year Xuan Bing. Ding Yun, naturally, followed his will.
She arranged a funeral that was to his liking.
And observed mourning for three days, treating each day as a year.
She officially ascended the throne.
On the day of her coronation, Ding Yun, following her original plan, broke through to the Martial God realm on the spot. All the attendees were stunned into silence, and no one dared to harbor any rebellious thoughts, let alone openly oppose her.
The Martial God realm was sufficient to solidify Ding Yun's position.
And as Ding Yun officially became the Empress, her first act was to apprehend Prince Ning and Xu Taiwei. She then publicly revealed all the evidence of crimes committed by Prince Ning's lineage, collected over the years from their inception to the present.
Following this was the rightful punishment according to the law: execution for those who deserved it, exile for others. The descendants who were law-abiding and unaware of these crimes were released.
In short, even if Ding Yun sought revenge against Prince Ning,
She would not violate the law.
However, even without violating the law, the evil deeds Prince Ning had committed over several hundred years were enough to warrant seventeen or eighteen deaths.
Therefore, he was definitively sentenced to death.
After dealing with Prince Ning's lineage, Ding Yun officially commenced her earth-shattering, thorough reforms.
For instance, the widespread promotion of the high-yield grain species, spirit rice.
For instance, the establishment of fully free new educational systems.
For instance, the enfeoffment of the Prince of Zhenxi as the King of the Western Regions.
For ordinary citizens, the first two matters were undoubtedly significant and of utmost concern. However, for wealthy families and imperial clan members with considerable influence, the radiance emanating from the last matter was enough to overshadow the previous two, causing them to disregard the latter entirely and focus solely on the final point.
Everyone was frantically trying to ascertain what had happened, what Prince of Zhenxi had done, and how he had suddenly been granted kingship over territory.
And how the Western Regions had come to belong to Prince of Zhenxi.
Neither Ding Yun nor Prince of Zhenxi made any attempts to conceal matters.
They allowed everyone to investigate and impeach them.
Seizing this opportunity, Ding Yun also officially introduced a new policy: the "Order for the Expansion and Colonization of Territory."
The first article of this order stated that members of the Great Zhou imperial clan and citizens of the Great Zhou were permitted to expand their territories outwards. Once a certain degree of territory was opened up, they could petition to be enfeoffed as kings.
Becoming vassal states and tributary states of the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty.
Imperial clan members expanding territories abroad would establish vassal states.
Citizens expanding territories abroad would establish tributary states.
This was the core of this command, and the remaining provisions were mostly details revolving around this core content, including, but not limited to, the minimum conditions permitted by Ding Yun and factors such as their responsibilities and obligations.
In essence, it was quite simple: to restrict large-scale population migration, the depletion of resources, and to ensure that regardless of the size of the territory conquered, the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty would be recognized as the suzerain, with regular tribute rendered. Betrayal would result in a joint invasion by all states.
It was largely based on the system of the Ji Zhou,
Just with slightly more restrictions in various aspects.
Nevertheless, as soon as this order was issued, those who possessed power, wealth, or influence all began to form ideas. Some large families, even if they weren't prepared to move their entire clans, planned to send branches, meaning one or several lineages from the family, to strive abroad.
Princes like the Prince of Zhendong and the Prince of Zhenbei,
Responded even more enthusiastically.
In an instant, the prices of all war-related items within the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty surged. Some families directly led their servants to conquer cities and seize territories.
Certain sects also followed suit.
Especially those with religious affiliations.
Within the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty, they could only meekly serve as ordinary sects recruiting disciples. However, if they could truly conquer territory abroad and gather some populace, they might indeed be able to attempt their noble ideals of building a terrestrial Dao kingdom or a terrestrial Buddhist kingdom.
Through these endeavors, although prices rose considerably and even the domestic population decreased significantly, the forces that might have obstructed Ding Yun's governance essentially disappeared. Consequently, Ding Yun's subsequent measures proceeded exceptionally smoothly, including, but not limited to, the large-scale construction of female schools, the establishment of women's workshops, and the appointment of women trained over the past decade to official positions.
In less than ten years, eighteen tributary states and seven vassal states emerged outside the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty. The changes within the empire were even more astonishing. The nationwide martial arts plan was officially successful, the status of women was greatly elevated, with female officials constituting about forty percent of the national administration. Grain production, industrialization levels, and population, among other aspects,
All experienced significant progress.
And this was only the first decade.
In the second decade, the achievements were consolidated. Industrialization reached the level of the Second Industrial Revolution. The population doubled, and the quality of the population saw literacy rates exceeding ninety percent and martial arts practice rates exceeding ninety-eight percent.
Resources from beyond the domain continuously flowed into the country.
The number of tributary states grew to forty-three, and vassal states to fourteen. For the first time, the total land area outside the empire surpassed that of the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty, covering an area equivalent to two and a half major continents.
In the third decade, Ding Yun began her outward expansion.
When she undertook territorial expansion, it was not the petty skirmishes of others, conquering a few thousand or tens of thousands of square kilometers and declaring themselves a nation. She directly annexed major continents, eliminating two major continents in ten years.
The next decade was for consolidating the conquered territories.
The decade after that was for continued conquest.
Although the territory of the world was vast, Ding Yun's lifespan was also exceptionally long. Everything progressed steadily and systematically, without any need for haste.
Ninety-four years after her ascension,
That is, in the early July of the ninety-fourth year of Yuxia.
The achievement of unifying the Nine Provinces and bringing the world under one rule was finally realized. Although there was still a continent and a half that had not been directly incorporated into her rule, remaining as tributary states and vassal states, they all recognized Ding Yun as their suzerain.
Coupled with the fact that her influence was sufficient for her to inscribe her mark, Ding Yun ultimately did not take action against the remaining tributary states and vassal states. She merely ordered them to attend the sacrificial ceremony for the unification of the Nine Provinces in the imperial capital.
Any who did not attend would have their states abolished.
Facing Ding Yun's stern demand, and with no ability to resist, the tributary states and vassal states could only grudgingly agree. Either their rulers would come personally, or they would send their heirs or crown princes to participate in the sacrificial ceremony.
However, they were greatly mistaken. Ding Yun had no intention of acting against them. The sacrificial ceremony proceeded according to the procedure, and they were not troubled. At the moment of sacrifice, Ding Yun successfully inscribed her mark.
But with the Nine Provinces having just been unified, there were still many issues to resolve and handle. Moreover, Ding Yun had no heir. Therefore, she did not leave immediately. Instead, she stayed, took three consorts and seven male consorts, had several children, nurtured them to maturity, and selected a suitable successor before abdicating.
She then ostensibly went on tours of scenic spots.
In reality, she had left that world.