“Your humble servant seconds the motion!”
“Your humble servant also seconds the motion!”
“…”
A group of ministers successively echoed the Ministry of Rites official. Now that the Prince of Zhao’s army occupied the entire Chang’an City, and the Crown Prince who committed regicide was imprisoned, they could only follow the Prince of Zhao, as no one wanted to lose their head.
The Prince of Zhao on the throne smiled. These ministers were all very pragmatic. He didn’t care about Xiao Wenxuan’s funeral; he could just be buried in the imperial tomb according to custom. He didn’t even want to spend an extra penny on this matter.
As for the Thirteenth Prince’s enthronement, it was merely a formality. Now that the imperial seal of Great Yu Empire was in his hands, he effectively held supreme power.
Just as the hall was filled with flattery and obsequiousness, an official suddenly walked to the center and cursed the assembled ministers, “A bunch of cowardly, spineless people who acknowledge thieves as their fathers! The spirit of the late Emperor has not yet rested in peace, yet you disregard propriety, righteousness, integrity, and shame to welcome such rebels!”
As soon as these words were uttered, all the civil and military officials in the court angrily said, “Nonsense! What does a petty censor like you know!”
“Audacious! You are being disrespectful to the Prince of Zhao!”
“Shut up! How dare you act so presumptuously in the court!”
“…”
The Prince of Zhao’s smile gradually solidified at this moment. He looked at the official standing at the very end and asked, “Who are you? And what is your position?”
The young man who had angrily denounced the ministers said, “I am a ninth-rank censor, surname Sun, given name Li!”
“Censor!” The Prince of Zhao chuckled disdainfully. He said, “There truly are no decent officials left in Chang’an City if even a petty censor can enter the court.”
Sun Li sneered, “A rebellious traitor still dares to sit on the dragon throne. This court is merely a den of iniquity. If I were not here to denounce you rebels face to face, I would not have come!”
“Bastard! Guards, seize this man and hack him to death!” Zhao Yuanliang had been suppressing his anger since Sun Li’s first sentence, and now he finally couldn’t hold back anymore.
Sun Li looked up at the sky, utterly fearless. He said to the Prince of Zhao, “The Crown Prince’s regicide is an act of great rebellion, but the Thirteenth Prince should also have the late Emperor’s last will. If not, how can you, Prince of Zhao, by your word alone, establish the Thirteenth Prince as ruler?”
The Prince of Zhao’s eyes narrowed, like a beast choosing its prey. He stood up and walked from the throne to Sun Li.
“By this sharp sword in my hand.”
The Prince of Zhao’s face suddenly twisted, and he plunged his sword into Sun Li’s chest.
“Traitor, you will surely die a horrible death!” Sun Li spat out a mouthful of blood, his eyes wide with fury.
The other officials trembled with fear at the sight, and some even collapsed to the ground.
“This Sun Li actually dared to offend His Royal Highness the Prince of Zhao! He deserves to die!”
“Yes, he deserves to die!”
“…”
The officials cheered tremblingly.
The Prince of Zhao’s face was cold, then he suddenly burst into laughter. He held up his precious sword, pointing one by one at the ministers in the court. Any minister pointed at immediately turned pale.
Seeing this, the Prince of Zhao became even happier and couldn’t help but laugh loudly, “Hahaha, my dear ministers, don’t worry. As long as you wholeheartedly assist me, I will surely keep you safe.”
“Yes, Your Highness!” The loyal officials immediately shouted loudly.
The Prince of Zhao nodded and then said, “Since that is the case, let us swear an oath of allegiance. If any of you dare to betray me, your fate shall be like this person’s.”
The officials looked at Sun Li lying on the ground, growing more afraid.
After a pause, the Prince of Zhao said, “Yuanliang, go fetch bowls. Today, all of you will drink this Sun Li’s blood with me.”
“Yes, Father King.”
With that, Zhao Yuanliang sent someone to get porcelain bowls. Before long, the guards came back with porcelain bowls. After filling them with Sun Li’s fresh blood, the guards handed the bowls to the ministers.
Then, some other guards held wine jars and poured wine into each official’s bowl.
Seeing that every minister had a bowl in hand, the Prince of Zhao raised his wine, mixed with fresh blood, and drank it in one gulp, then violently smashed the bowl to the ground.
The officials looked at each other, and not one dared to drink at that moment.
“Hmm!” The Prince of Zhao then let out an angry grunt.
Under the Prince of Zhao’s intimidation, the ministers gritted their teeth, closed their eyes, and drank the wine.
At this point, the Prince of Zhao was slightly satisfied. He said, “Tomorrow, the late Emperor will be buried in the imperial tomb, and the day after tomorrow will be the Thirteenth Prince’s enthronement ceremony.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
The ministers responded.
Waving his hand, the Prince of Zhao ordered the officials to leave. After the civil and military officials departed, Zhao Yuanliang and Wang Xi walked to the Prince of Zhao’s side.
“Father King, this move was truly brilliant. I doubt anyone in Chang’an will dare to oppose us from now on.” Zhao Yuanliang said.
Wang Xi also said, “Indeed. A mere ninth-rank censor dared to insult Your Highness like that. It’s simply rebellious.”
“Such minor officials are best suited for ‘killing the chicken to scare the monkeys.’ No need to take them to heart.” The Prince of Zhao sneered. Then he asked, “Yuanliang, have the Chang’an treasury, grain, and weapons all been tallied and cleared?”
“Father King, they have all been tallied. The treasury contains one million taels of gold, twelve million taels of silver, and seven million shi of grain…” Zhao Yuanliang listed all the various supplies in the national treasury.
The Prince of Zhao nodded with satisfaction. He said, “With this national treasury as our foundation, why should I worry about not unifying the world? It’s just a pity that half of these supplies must be given to the barbarians.”
“It is indeed a pity.” Zhao Yuanliang said, “If we had known that Chang’an City could be taken so easily, why would we have borrowed troops from the barbarians in the first place?”
“Not so. With the fifty thousand iron cavalry of the barbarians, we have an advantage in contending for the world, and each city we conquer will provide us with a large amount of money and grain. This business is still worthwhile.” The Prince of Zhao said.
Upon hearing this, a hint of hatred flashed in Zhao Yuanliang’s eyes. He recalled the humiliation Xiao Ming had inflicted upon him and then said, “Father King is right. There are still many cities outside Chang’an, especially Qingzhou. If we take it, we won’t have to worry about the casting of firearms and cannons.”
“You mean to attack Qingzhou?” The Prince of Zhao frowned.
“Yes, Father Emperor.”
Wang Xi saw the Prince of Zhao’s displeasure and thought that the Prince of Zhao must have other ideas. So he said to Zhao Yuanliang, “Your Royal Highness the Heir Apparent should not be impatient. This King Qi is not a simple person, and the current situation in the world is constantly changing. If we rashly go to war with King Qi, we might only suffer losses in troops and greatly diminish our strength, allowing other vassal kings to reap the benefits.”
The Prince of Zhao’s frown relaxed. This was what he had in mind. All the matchlock guns and cannons in the world came from Qingzhou. Coupled with the barbarians being defeated twice by Xiao Ming, he was not eager to directly conflict with Xiao Ming at this time.
In his opinion, not only should he not fall out with Xiao Ming now, but he should also appease Xiao Ming. This way, he would have time to seize control of the imperial family’s land.
After dealing with the other vassal kings, he would then turn his attention back to completely annihilate Xiao Ming with an overwhelming military advantage, with the help of the barbarians.