Palace maids shuttled back and forth in the Hall of Supreme Harmony. Dishes were continuously laid on the tables, and the aroma grew richer.
The Prince of Huainan and the Prince of Ruyang watched the Emperor and the Prince of Yong, who were in perfect sync, their hearts filled with complex emotions.
They were not of the same imperial clan after all. The Prince of Yong could calmly relinquish his feudal state, but they could not, for to them, this was their ancestors’ legacy. How could they easily hand it over? At the very least, the imperial court should give them satisfactory arrangements.
Xiao Ming’s peripheral vision swept over the Prince of Huainan and the Prince of Ruyang. He had a plan in mind.
After a moment of contemplation, he did not rush to mention the reduction of feudal lords’ power. Instead, he greeted them, “Gentlemen, the food and wine are ready. You have traveled thousands of li to get here. Today, I will drink freely with you all.”
With that, Xiao Ming raised his wine cup.
Seeing this, the Prince of Huainan and the Prince of Ruyang immediately picked up their wine cups and drank the white wine in one gulp.
Xiao Ming nodded, also finishing the white wine in his cup. Then, without mentioning anything about reducing feudal lords’ power, he spoke of interesting anecdotes from Qingzhou Province.
After three rounds of drinks, the atmosphere in the Hall of Supreme Harmony gradually relaxed. At this point, Xiao Ming smiled. The time for negotiation had arrived. “The three of you coming to the palace to see me today must surely be for the matter of reducing feudal lords’ power, right?” He finally brought the conversation to the main topic.
The Prince of Yong’s face was flushed from drink. The Prince of Huainan and the Prince of Ruyang also drank heartily.
“Yes, Your Majesty. We came to the capital precisely for this matter,” the Prince of Huainan and the Prince of Ruyang exchanged glances. The alcohol had emboldened them considerably.
The Prince of Yong, meanwhile, directly said, “Isn’t it just reducing feudal lords’ power? Who in the world can’t see it now? Today is different from the past. Your Majesty is a man of grand ambition. This Great Yu Empire can no longer continue in chaos. For the sake of the Great Yu Empire, I will be the first to support Your Majesty.”
After a pause, he continued, “However, as for reducing feudal lords’ power, I hope Your Majesty can preserve our wealth and glory.”
The Prince of Huainan and the Prince of Ruyang nodded. The Prince of Ruyang said, “The Prince of Yong is absolutely right. Now, all the civil and military officials in the court are clamoring for the reduction of feudal lords’ power. This shows that it is the general trend. I, your humble prince, dare not go against the current and willingly accept the decree to reduce feudal lords’ power. However, we have guarded the Great Yu Empire’s borders and expanded its territory for so many years. Even if we have no achievements, we have toiled. I hope Your Majesty will consider this.”
The Prince of Huainan also said, “The matter of reducing feudal lords’ power is already a foregone conclusion. Our request now is not much. We hope Your Majesty will show mercy.”
With the topic now openly discussed, Xiao Ming felt relieved. In truth, he understood that the three had already guessed that reducing the feudal lords’ power was something he supported.
Because articles from the newspaper would not be published without his review, and this was something everyone knew.
After a moment of thought, he said, “My dear ministers, you worry unnecessarily. I have no intention of depriving you of your feudal states, nor do the ministers wish to put you to death. Your feudal states are still yours. However, from now on, military power will be reclaimed. In government affairs, you will obey the imperial court’s orders. From then on, the feudal states will have to pay a portion of their taxes to the imperial court. In other words, you will still be the Prince of Huainan and the Prince of Ruyang in your feudal states.”
This time, Xiao Ming did not wish to carry out the reduction of feudal lords’ power too aggressively, as it would only be counterproductive.
So he decided to adopt a gentler approach: to turn the feudal states into their private domains, merely taking back their military power and making them lose independence in government affairs.
This way, they would become feudal lords in name only, no longer posing a threat to the Great Yu Empire, but merely ordinary officials.
The Prince of Huainan was silent for a moment. For him, this was already acceptable. Everything except military power was retained. In Jingzhou, he would still be a noble prince.
“Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace.” The Prince of Huainan bowed.
The Prince of Ruyang also decided to accept this proposal and stood up, saying, “Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace.”
The Prince of Yong had originally planned to give up his feudal state. Hearing this, he couldn’t help but be overjoyed. He said gratefully, “Your Majesty is wise! Your Majesty is wise!”
Xiao Ming coughed. He said, “However, let me make one thing clear beforehand. You must not be vague about any imperial court decrees. Otherwise, I’m afraid I won’t be able to protect you.”
The three’s expressions turned serious. They bowed and said, “Yes, Your Majesty.”
The matter of reducing feudal lords’ power was easily resolved. Xiao Ming was in a very good mood. In his opinion, the success of this reduction of feudal lords’ power was entirely due to the current strength of Qingzhou Province. Otherwise, this reduction of feudal lords’ power could very likely have led to rebellion.
But now that they understood his strength, the three dared not harbor any adventurous thoughts, because if they did, they would completely lose everything, and even drag down their relatives.
With the emotional burden lifted, the atmosphere in the Hall of Supreme Harmony became even more relaxed. The four resumed drinking and enjoying the delicacies.
The banquet ended at three in the afternoon.
Having Qian Dafu see the three feudal lords off, he himself went to the imperial study to draft an imperial edict. To avoid prolonged delays, he decided to finalize the matter of reducing feudal lords’ power quickly.
Once the imperial edict was issued, this reduction of feudal lords’ power would become a foregone conclusion.
After half an hour spent preparing three imperial edicts, Xiao Ming intended to promulgate them to the three at the court assembly. This way, the matter of reducing feudal lords’ power could be considered concluded.
The next day, at the court assembly, Xiao Ming formally announced the decision to reduce feudal lords’ power. The Prince of Huainan, the Prince of Ruyang, and the Prince of Yong all awaited the imperial edict in the Zhengda Guangming Hall.
At this point, Qian Dafu took out Xiao Ming’s imperial edicts. He read each one and then handed it to the corresponding feudal prince.
In the imperial edict, Xiao Ming clearly stipulated the content of the reduction of feudal lords’ power, ordering the three to formally hand over their military power to the accompanying Imperial Guard generals upon returning to their feudal states.
The Imperial Guard generals would select elites from their armies, retrain them, and integrate them into the Great Yu Empire’s military system. They would no longer have the right to interfere with the military.
Besides the imperial edict, to appease the three, he also bestowed upon them iron certificates exempting them from death, to show his sincerity.
With the grand plan of reducing feudal lords’ power settled, Xiao Ming felt completely relieved. From then on, the Great Yu Empire took another step towards unification. Next, he would focus on dealing with the State of Chu.
At the same time, he also turned his attention overseas. In recent years, the turmoil around the Great Yu Empire often involved Westerners.
This greatly displeased him, but he had endured it for the sake of national unity. Now, with unification in sight, his desire for revenge was once again stirred.
After all, if not for their interference, the Great Yu Empire would not have lost so many people.
As he was thinking, Pang Yukun stepped forward and said, “Your Majesty, the first batch of firearms has already been shipped to Lin’an. It includes twenty thousand matchlock guns and eight thousand flintlock guns. Li Chuyuan is willing to pay three million taels of silver for these firearms.”
“Three million taels of silver?” Xiao Ming frowned. “Tell Li Chuyuan’s people that the imperial court does not accept silver. Have him exchange it for Golden Dragons at the bank before trading with us. And all his transactions with the imperial court must use the new currency.”
Pang Yukun understood. He showed a mischievous smile and said, “Yes, Your Majesty, I understand.”
The novel has already been fully translated up to the final chapter. You can access it on my Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/caleredhair
Check another translation project: Title: Trench, Gun, and Magic. The webnovel blend magic, firearm, war and mecha with the bacground of WW1