Chapter 139 The Pixiu Shadow

When the Emperor led the crowd to the Fengling Hall (Hall of Offering Spirits), everything else in the hall, including the coffin, was intact. Only on the brick surface next to the coffin was there a black mark, which looked like a silhouette of a Pixiu (a mythical Chinese guardian lion).

The Pixiu was the totem of Great Yan. The Yan people believed that it could protect their homes, so during the New Year, they liked to paste Pixiu silhouettes on doors and windows.

That spirit of the Pixiu had rushed out, and in the end, it was only to take a look at the late Emperor who was about to enter the imperial tomb.

In any case, it didn't cause any other damage.

The Emperor led the crowd to re-worship the late Emperor, firstly because this ritual was essential, and secondly to calm everyone's emotions.

Immediately afterward,

The Emperor spoke:

"Wei Zhonghe."

"This servant is here."

"Today's events must not be spread in the slightest."

"Your Majesty, rest assured, this servant understands."

The Emperor looked at the important officials who had come with him, paying particular attention to the Marquis of Pingxi,

And said:

"I have startled all of you, my ministers."

"It is we, your ministers, who have startled Your Majesty. We are guilty."

"We are guilty."

"It's alright. I am not too affected. Let us continue to discuss the affairs of the Grand Secretariat."

"Your Majesty, do you need to rest…"

"State affairs are important. This little trickery is just for amusement. How can it delay state affairs?"

"Yes, your servants obey the decree."

"Your Majesty."

"Does the Marquis of Pingxi have something to say?"

"This minister was a little frightened just now and wishes to return to rest."

"Oh? The Marquis of Military Merit, who has repeatedly made great achievements for Great Yan, can't even handle this little scene?"

"Your Majesty, it's not that I can't handle it, but I accidentally aggravated an old injury earlier."

"Then you should return to your mansion to rest first. I will send an imperial physician over later."

"This minister thanks Your Majesty for your grace."

Zheng Fan knew that the Emperor had brought him to the Yangxin Hall (Hall of Mental Cultivation) to discuss matters earlier because he wanted him to act as a deterrent, meaning that the military of Great Yan firmly supported the new Emperor.

At the same time, the Emperor wanted to use the prestige created by the great merit of destroying the royal court to push forward the cabinet system.

His task had actually been completed. Staying any longer would only make him a target for these ministers to exploit, so it was better to withdraw as soon as possible.

In the imperial court, everyone was an old fox. The death of Zhao Jiulang didn't mean that the remaining important officials were all obedient children. With the position of Grand Secretary vacant, the people below would naturally be more eager and attentive.

It was better for the Emperor to deal with it. There was no need for him to stay and play Tai Chi.

As for whether it was too unseemly to just pat his butt and jump out of this circle;

Heh,

A border commander,

If he didn't have a bit of an overbearing aura, others would really treat him as a pushover.

Marquis Zheng felt that perhaps he was too easy to talk to, otherwise, why didn't they dare to ask the Prince of Zhenbei or the Prince of Jingnan to be the Prime Minister?

Bullying the weak and fearing the strong, tsk tsk.

Having received permission,

Marquis Zheng left the palace.

Fan Li was waiting at the palace gate. Seeing his lord come out, he immediately went over and whispered:

"Lord, A Ming and San'er (third son) entered the palace earlier."

His posture was just like snitching.

"They entered the palace?"

Marquis Zheng frowned slightly. He suddenly thought of a possibility. Could the chaos in the palace earlier have something to do with those two?

……

"It rushed out on its own?"

"Yes."

Zi Ke said to Wei Zhonghe.

"What about under the pill furnace?"

"It's still there. What rushed out was just a part of its spiritual body, perhaps… to see off the late Emperor one last time."

"Hmm."

If any irreparable damage had been caused, then today, this red-robed little eunuch would definitely be punished. Even the status of being a closed-door disciple of the Grandfather wouldn't be able to protect him, but the final result was good.

The Pixiu spirit seeing the late Emperor one last time also proved the late Emperor's undeniable greatness, which was also a kind of recognition for them, the old ministers and old servants who had been around since the late Emperor's time.

Therefore, there was no need to mention the matter of punishment again.

"Can you re-strengthen the seal on the pill furnace?"

"I can."

"Do you need to arrange for people from the Astronomical Bureau to come over?"

"No need. It's better to have fewer people in this place."

"Hmm, you, pay attention."

"Yes."

Eunuch Wei left. He still needed to be responsible for "silencing" today's events. Fortunately, the palace had already been cleaned up once. The eyes of each family, well, except for the eyes of the former Sixth Prince's mansion, all the other eyes were gouged out on the day of the enthronement, so the difficulty of blocking the news was not great.

Afterward,

Zi Ke returned to the palace again.

The pill furnace had already closed on its own.

"Brother, you're loyal enough." Xue San stepped forward and punched Zi Ke in the chest, experiencing the touch that was completely different from when he usually tapped his knee.

"Anyway, it didn't cause any harm. It doesn't matter whether I say it or not. You understand mechanisms?"

"Uh, I understand a little bit."

"Is it possible to understand the mechanisms on this pill furnace thoroughly?"

"No."

"Hiding your skills?"

"No, the problem is very difficult and complicated. I was just using possible answers to test it out. I didn't expect it to actually work."

"Answer?"

"Yes."

"Can you tell me?"

"Sure, I'll draw a picture for you later."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. Anyway, this answer will change next time."

"………" Zi Ke.

Xue San wasn't lying. He was a "skilled craftsman," but sometimes, a specific device was a specialized system. It wasn't as simple as mastering one thing and understanding everything.

His previous attempt was just using his experience to piece together the answer.

It was like a math fill-in-the-blank question. The final answer was either π or 1 or 3, which had a high probability. It couldn't possibly be hundreds plus the square root of hundreds over hundreds.

It was really just good luck.

"Still drinking?" A Ming asked.

"I'm sorry, Mr. A Ming, I'm not in the mood to drink today."

"Then I'll go back?"

"Forgive me for neglecting you."

"You're too polite. After all, there's so much wine."

A Ming and Xue San walked out of the palace,

And then,

The door of the palace was slowly closed.

The red-robed little eunuch pressed himself against the pill furnace and closed his eyes.

He could sense that under the pill furnace, there was a Pixiu whose body was decayed, with more bones than flesh, looking very tired.

"The late Emperor rejected you, but don't you still have me?"

……

"So, we're not going to the zoo today?"

After walking out of the palace gate, Xue San asked A Ming.

"Let's go back. This is for your own good. You saw the Lord in the Yangxin Hall earlier, didn't you?"

"So what?"

"If the Lord finds out that you were the one who caused today's events, do you still want to be promoted?"

"The problem is, that little eunuch didn't tell Wei Zhonghe, so how would the Lord know that I did it?"

"Because I'll tell him."

"……" Xue San.

……

Before entering the Marquis of Pingxi's mansion, Marquis Zheng made a special trip to the Prince of Jingnan's mansion next door before returning to his own home.

The Sword Saint was sitting in the courtyard, drinking tea.

"Something happened in the palace?" The Sword Saint asked.

He was here, but he could sense the movements in the palace.

Back then, when he split the Prime Minister's carriage with a sword on Xiping Street, Eunuch Wei was sitting on the roof of the Imperial Study, watching the excitement;

Today, it was the other way around.

"A minor matter. A Pixiu's spirit caused a little trouble."

"Oh." The Sword Saint nodded. "By the way, how long are we going to stay here?"

The Sword Saint's wife was pregnant. Calculating the time, if he hurried back now, he might still be able to make it in time for the birth.

"We have to wait until the late Emperor's coffin enters the imperial tomb. I estimate it will take another four or five days. Or, why don't you go back first?"

The Sword Saint shook his head.

"I'm making you suffer." Marquis Zheng said with emotion.

The Sword Saint shook his head and said:

"It's okay. There will be more pregnancies in the future. I'll be there next time."

"……" Zheng Fan.

The cold wind blew the falling leaves,

Echoing Marquis Zheng's mood when he heard those words.

He pulled up the chair next to him,

Marquis Zheng lay down, letting the sunlight shine on him.

"Lao Yu." (Old Yu)

"Hmm?"

"This time in the capital, it seems like I didn't do anything, but it also seems like I did a lot of things."

Things were actually done, otherwise Zhao Jiulang would still be the Prime Minister.

But killing Zhao Jiulang was just a self-expression after the overall situation had been decided.

In essence, the changes in the imperial court and the inheritance of the Great Yan nation were still a smooth and orderly handover.

"What do you want to do?"

"I don't know either."

"Actually, I can understand your mood. When I drove the barbarians out of Jin, and I didn't die, after being nursed back to health, I had a similar feeling.

On the path of swordsmanship, my heart has long been in a state where if I have it, I have it, and if I don't have it, I don't care.

I've never really cared about wealth and glory.

People,

At this time, they will all have this emotion, especially men.

So,

At this time, you need…"

"Alright, shut up. Are you never going to stop?"

Clearly, Marquis Zheng guessed what the Sword Saint was about to say.

"Hehe."

"There are many famous doctors in the capital." The Sword Saint said.

"I have quite a few famous doctors around me."

"That's true." The Sword Saint nodded. Several "gentlemen" were actually well-versed in medicine. Back then, when he opened the second-grade self in front of Xuehai Pass, he was actually "saved" by them in this way.

"There are also a few relatively effective temples. Want to try?"

"Hehe, the ghosts around me are more numerous than the ones in the temples."

……

The Astronomical Bureau set the date,

Seven days later, the late Emperor's coffin would enter the imperial tomb.

The Emperor led a group of civil and military officials to escort it. Wherever the coffin went, the people spontaneously set up offering tables, burned incense, and hung white cloth.

Finally,

When they saw the late Emperor's coffin being carried into the underground palace, and saw the door of the underground palace being slowly closed,

Inside the imperial tomb,

Everyone knelt down, including the Emperor.

Subsequently,

The old Minister of Rites recited the imperial decree on behalf of the Emperor,

First praising the late Emperor's achievements throughout his life,

And finally,

Decided on the posthumous title.

Zheng Fan knew that the late Emperor had actually prepared his posthumous title long ago, in his last will.

The late Emperor planned to attribute all the fatigue of years of southern and northern expeditions to himself, and the droughts in Yan and the floods in Jin to himself as well, taking all the blame;

Therefore, he had decided on the word "Li" (厉 - severe, tyrannical) for his posthumous title.

Then, when the Emperor died and Ji Chengjue first ascended the throne, because he didn't let the Prime Minister read the edict of self-reproach, it was equivalent to making a clear political stance, so none of the ministers who drafted the posthumous title dared to go in that direction.

But after taking a few neutral posthumous titles, the new Emperor was not satisfied. In the end, the new Emperor personally made the decision and settled on "Wu" (武 - martial).

"Just and righteous is called Wu, just without desire, strong without yielding. Holding loyalty and forgiveness, correcting the crooked and the straight; awe-inspiring power over enemies is called Wu, fighting against the virtuous. Subduing chaos and disorder is called Wu, using weapons to conquer, hence able to stabilize."

Therefore,

When later generations referred to the late Emperor, they would call him… Emperor Wu of Yan.

Zheng Fan couldn't help but feel a little emotional for this pair of father and son,

During their lives,

Father and son turned against each other,

The father was not kind, and the son was not filial;

After death,

Ji Chengjue, who had personally murdered his father to ascend the throne, firmly defended his father's name.

Father-son affection and family ethics intertwined, and in the end, formed such a twisted relationship.

Also on this day, two urgent memorials from the west entered the Imperial Study.

One: Prince of Zhenbei, Li Liangting, is critically ill, requesting the imperial court to send an imperial envoy to the Prince's mansion to formally establish the heir apparent.

Yes,

Although Li Fei had already returned to the Zhenbei Prince's mansion, the imperial court had not formally established him as the heir apparent.

In the past, no one in the Zhenbei Prince's mansion would care about the imperial court's establishment, and even the imperial court itself deliberately ignored this matter.

The previous two Princes of Zhenbei had confirmed their positions as successors to the Marquis on their own, accepted the oaths of allegiance from the Zhenbei Army, and then symbolically sent a memorial to the imperial court to go through the motions.

Now, actively requesting the establishment was actually like the small countries outside Nanguan Pass that had attached themselves to the Yan nation, hoping to obtain legal recognition from the imperial court. It was also equivalent to the fact that the former strong vassal, or rather, the century-old Zhenbei Marquis's mansion, the state within a state of Great Yan, was about to return to the political system of Great Yan.

But in the Imperial Study,

The Emperor did not show any excitement because of this, although centralization was something that every emperor with a normal brain wanted to do.

Centralization was not just blind centralization. If centralization became like the Qian nation, then what was the point!

Commanding generals would indeed be suspected by those in power, but if a country didn't have a few marshals and military gods to guard it, how could this country stand?

"Critically ill,"

Critically ill.

Although there had been speculation and premonitions before, when things actually happened, the Emperor still felt a sense of confusion, and even… anger.

What he inherited from his father was a tired Great Yan, but the spears and halberds were sharp!

Now it was good,

Two great cornerstones of the nation were about to be gone,

How was he supposed to play this game?

When he saw the second memorial,

The Emperor's entire demeanor immediately turned gloomy.

"Wei Zhonghe."

"This servant is here."

"Summon the Marquis of Pingxi."

……

This royal funeral was really much more tiring than the funerals of ordinary people. The funerals of ordinary people involved sending a coffin and some straw, which was just the distance from the entrance of the village to the west side of the village.

But the Emperor had to go from the palace to the imperial tomb far outside the imperial city, and he had to go early.

Just as Sixth Brother Ji had said before, when a brother's close relative dies, you have to come and help, right?

Marquis Zheng had no choice but to go. In fact, he didn't have anything to do.

He didn't need to read the edict, and he didn't need to handle the rituals and rules. He was purely wearing armor and acting as the captain of the guards escorting the imperial tomb.

There was no way around it, who told him to be the only remaining marquis of military merit in the capital?

Although the First Prince was also one, he was a prince. During the great funeral, as a son, he couldn't wear armor and carry weapons.

Therefore,

Marquis Zheng was equivalent to standing at military attention in full armor all day, and because he had a good relationship with the Emperor, he couldn't be lazy or slack off.

How could he not be tired?

Recalling when the western military intelligence was sent, it mentioned that the barbarian royal court's army had just held a grand parade during the day and was ambushed at night, it was no wonder they were defeated.

When he got home,

Marquis Zheng started taking a bath.

While Si Niang was massaging Zheng Fan's muscles to relax his tendons, she was reporting on the packing of luggage and other items, because they planned to leave the capital and return to Jinyang in the next two days.

"Lord, whose massage do you find more comfortable, mine or the Princess's?"

"Naturally it's yours. What kind of massage does the Princess give?"

A standard answer.

"Lord, do you miss the Princess and Ru Qing at home?"

"With you here, I'm satisfied."

Another standard answer.

At this time,

A Ming reported from outside:

"Lord, His Majesty summons you to the palace."

"Sigh."

Marquis Zheng sighed and said:

"That child, could it be that he's not feeling well after burying his father today and wants me to comfort him."

"The Lord should go and comfort him, he shouldn't have come back so early."

"I was just joking, he's not that fragile. Didn't he kill his own father himself?"

With the Sword Saint outside, Marquis Zheng wasn't afraid of eavesdroppers, even if this was the capital.

After tidying up,

Marquis Zheng entered the palace.

As soon as he entered the Imperial Study, he felt that the lights were a little dim.

Marquis Zheng subconsciously looked at Wei Zhonghe, who winked at him.

Zheng Fan nodded, pretending that he understood the meaning of the hint.

After turning a corner and entering the inner room, Marquis Zheng himself was also "whoa"-ed.

Sixth Brother Ji was sitting in a chair,

His dragon robe was pulled open, and his hair was disheveled;

"Zheng Fan."

"Hey, I say, are you alright?" Marquis Zheng stepped forward and carefully sized him up.

A child who killed his father and the ruler shouldn't be so fragile, right?

"Li Liangting sent a memorial, he's critically ill."

"Isn't this something we expected long ago?"

"But now it's come true." Ji Chengjue said, "It's like I just inherited the biggest brothel in the entire capital from my father, but I had only taken over for a few days, and then two courtesans left."

"Your Majesty, aren't you really afraid that the late Emperor will hear these words and come out of the imperial tomb that he just entered today?"

"Damn it!"

Ji Chengjue stood up and threw the memorial on the table,

And then, he slumped back down,

And said:

"Li Liangting said in the memorial below that he hopes that I will send someone to establish the heir apparent."

"As it should be, this is paving the way for the heir apparent."

"That's what it means. I plan to have the First Imperial Brother make a trip to the Zhenbei Prince's mansion to carry out the establishment."

"Hmm, this is enough face." Zheng Fan said, "But, Your Majesty, what did you call me here for?"

Just this memorial wasn't enough to call him over again in the middle of the night.

Ji Chengjue took out the second urgent memorial from today,

And said:

"This one is also from the west, but even further west."

"Hmm?"

"It's a delegation from the Roman Empire, sending a letter of state to me."

"So fast?"

"I calculated the dates myself. This delegation should have been invited to attend the barbarian royal court's conference, but they must have missed the deadline."

Zheng Fan laughed: "Good luck."

Yes, if they had arrived on schedule, that night wouldn't have distinguished between races, and the entire delegation would have been corpses long ago.

"So, they turned around and sent me a letter of state. The general meaning of the letter of state is:

Since the barbarian royal court has been destroyed, then, naturally,

His Roman Empire and my Great Yan,

Will share the ownership of this desert."