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In the side hall, mother and son stood facing each other.
At this moment, Imperial Concubine Zhen pulled Xiao Ming to sit down. She said, “You have become much more sensible than before. This puts Mother’s heart at ease. You are about to become emperor. From now on, you must consider the greater good of the world, not just your personal desires. After all, what you hold in your hands is the well-being of the common people.”
After a pause, she continued, “Now the Great Yu Empire is precarious and in grave danger. The common people of Chang’an City all know that the Great Yu Empire’s edifice is crumbling. Your Imperial Father truly left this mess to you, which must be difficult for you. But do not blame your Imperial Father. It was already rare for him to maintain peace in the realm all these years. It’s just that in the end, he misjudged Prince Zhao.”
Xiao Ming nodded. Imperial Concubine Zhen’s words were not alarmist. Even if he annihilated Yan, Liang, and Zhao, most of the north would still be in ruins and would require a long time to recover through recuperation. He would also expend vast financial resources to maintain stability in the north.
But even so, war was still unavoidable.
He said, “Nothing ventured, nothing gained. I might just bring a new dawn to the Great Yu Empire.”
Imperial Concubine Zhen’s eyes were filled with a smile. She had originally only wished for Xiao Ming to live a peaceful life in his fiefdom, but now he had completely embarked on a different path.
But no matter where Xiao Ming went, she would continue to support him as she always had.
After observing Xiao Ming for a while, she said, “In that case, after you ascend the throne, Imperial Mother will arrange the matter of taking consorts for you. However, there is one more thing Imperial Mother must discuss with you: where will Cui Xue’er live after she arrives?”
Xiao Ming was startled. He understood that Imperial Concubine Zhen was talking about the imperial palace. The princely estate was simply too small and crowded to accommodate too many people.
After a moment of hesitation, he said, “There’s no solution before the enthronement, but I have already decided to build an imperial palace. There’s an unused civilian area south of Qingzhou City, and I plan to build it there.”
“Then Imperial Mother will be at ease. This imperial palace is not only a place for the emperor to rest but also a place for ministers to work. It is certainly no trifling matter,” Imperial Concubine Zhen reminded him.
Xiao Ming nodded. Indeed, the Qingzhou government office was a bit crowded now, and many institutions were mixed together. After all, many departments were added after the political reform, and these departments all needed separate office locations.
So, after considering all circumstances, he decided to build an imperial city, which would also be a transformation of Qingzhou City. For him, the traditional civilian settlement model could no longer meet the demands of industrial development.
It was now necessary to break the traditional residential settlement pattern and establish an urban structure suitable for industrial development.
Moreover, urban reform could also stimulate Qingzhou’s commercial development. For him, this was killing three birds with one stone.
After briefly discussing this matter, he departed from Imperial Concubine Zhen. He needed to inform the construction camp about this, and also provide them with a blueprint for the imperial city.
For him, the construction of the imperial city needed to consider the issue of electricity. After all, if Qingzhou were to build a power plant in the future, he wouldn’t want the imperial city to be in disarray again, so it was better to reserve this part in advance.
In the afternoon, Imperial Concubine Zhen officially issued an edict to Princess Consort Huainan. This edict, of course, concerned Cui Xue’er, and with it, the matter of taking a consort was formally settled.
On the same day, Xiao Ming also settled matters with Prince Yong and the Prince of Huainan. Although his mood was somewhat complex, he finally breathed a sigh of relief, because with the help of the two princes, he would have an easier time. Feeling somewhat at ease, Xiao Ming once again plunged into the preparations for the enthronement ceremony. There was not much time left until his enthronement.
His only worry now was the battle for Yunzhou City, as this would determine the future situation in the north.
…
Yunzhou City.
With the influx of the Southern Expeditionary Army and the Dengzhou Army, soldiers in groups of three to five could be seen everywhere in this small city. The common people in the city also sensed that a major battle was imminent, because they had never seen so many soldiers stationed in Yunzhou City.
Even in the Battle of Jizhou two years ago, the soldiers in this city numbered only thirty to fifty thousand.
At this time, the atmosphere in the Yunzhou Grand Camp was solemn. Two days ago, Niu Ben arrived here with the Grand General of the Western Expedition’s seal. With the arrival of the commanding general, it meant that war was not far off.
“There are still three days until Your Highness’s enthronement. If Your Highness’s enthronement ceremony suffers any mishap due to the battle in Yunzhou City, none of you will be able to bear the responsibility. However, if we can achieve a great victory this time, all of you will certainly be rewarded for your merits upon your return.” Niu Ben said loudly.
Lu Fei, Luo Xin, Luo Hong, Qi Guangyi, Bai Mu, and a group of other generals were all in the tent. They exchanged glances, their eyes burning with fervor.
After the enthronement ceremony, Xiao Ming would officially become the emperor of the Great Yu Empire, and attacking other vassal princes would be equivalent to suppressing rebels. Moreover, after the enthronement, there would inevitably be promotions for officials and generals.
As the earliest generals to follow Xiao Ming, they were naturally the main force for this promotion. However, before that, they had to ensure that the enthronement ceremony could proceed smoothly.
After all, Prince Yan, Prince Liang, and Prince Zhao did not want Xiao Ming to ascend the throne, especially Prince Zhao. Once Xiao Ming ascended the throne, it meant that he would lose his advantage of commanding vassal princes in the name of the emperor.
“Three hundred and fifty thousand men! These three princes seem to be intent on annihilating our Qi territory.” Luo Hong looked at the sand table with a solemn expression. He had never experienced a war of such a large scale.
The scouts who went to reconnaissance reported that the armies of the three princes were so vast that they covered the sky, and besides the soldiers directly involved in the battle, there were also long lines of civilian laborers transporting provisions.
Now, the vanguard of the allied forces of the three princes had already arrived and set up camp under Yunzhou City, but subsequent troops were still arriving continuously.
Among them, Prince Zhao’s 40,000 cavalry even attempted to bypass Yunzhou City and penetrate deep into the territory to plunder, burn, and kill, but under the pursuit and interception of Bai Mu’s cavalry, they had to abandon this plan.
Because they found that no matter where they went, they would always be discovered first. At this point, risking deeper penetration would likely mean no return.
“Even if another 350,000 come, we’re not afraid. We’ll bring out all the field guns and blast them into pulp,” Lu Fei roared.
Luo Xin raised his eyebrows. Most of the field guns were now concentrated in his hands. He was rubbing his fists, ready for a big fight. Ninety percent of Qingzhou’s ammunition reserves were here this time.
Niu Ben frowned. He said, “His Highness told me before he left that we must do our utmost to eliminate the allied forces of the three princes, so this time, you do not need to show mercy. You must strike hard. Moreover, there are also 6,000 rifled flintlock guns being equipped. However, because His Highness mentioned that the production of smokeless gunpowder is very slow, we still have to use black gunpowder for now. But even so, it will be enough to completely defeat Prince Yan’s musketeers.”