Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 355 I Am King

"Aren."

"Aren."

A deep voice came from the darkness.

Bloodshot eyes suddenly appeared from the darkness.

"what!"

Lou Rui yelled and sat up.

The room was pitch black. Lou Rui could only hear his own heavy breathing. His whole body was soaked with sweat.

He lowered his head and looked around. In the darkness, there was no more calling or any eyes appearing.

Lou Rui got up and put on his clothes quietly.

He flung the door open.

The biting cold wind mixed with some snow hit his body hard.

It was still late at night outside, and the stars were twinkling in the sky. The sky tonight was exceptionally dark, so dark that it looked as if it had been splashed with ink.

The strong wind whistled past, and the house was completely silent, with no one to be seen around.

Lou Rui stood at the door for a long time, staring into the distance.

The cold wind was still blowing, and the sky was gradually turning whiter. After an unknown amount of time, the inky black began to fade away bit by bit.

Lou Ziyan pushed open the door of the inner courtyard and led a few people, walking quickly towards the inner room.

I had just walked through the corridor and when I looked up, I saw the inner room with the door open.

Lou Ziyan was shocked and quickly quickened his pace and rushed to the door. As soon as he leaned inside, he saw Lou Rui sitting at the desk.

Lou Rui placed the table not far from the door, with a pot of wine on it.

Lou Rui was wrapped in thick clothes, his face was red, his eyes were swollen, and he looked listless.

Lou Ziyan hurriedly asked someone to light candles and close the door.

"Grandpa, it's so cold outside, why are you leaving the door open?"

Lou Rui glanced at him and then looked outside the door.

"It's very stuffy, let's get some fresh air."

"Why are you here so early?"

"Grandpa, aren't we going to the governor's office to pay a visit to the general today?"

"You told me to come earlier."

Lou Ziyan was even more confused. His grandfather looked a little strange.

Lou Rui just remembered this matter. He was silent for a while, then suddenly asked, "What about the Grand Marshal? Any news?"

Lou Ziyan shook his head in bewilderment. "Since the general told me about that incident last time, there has been no further news."

Only then did Lou Rui struggle to get up.

Lou Ziyan stepped forward to help him up. Lou Rui patted his thigh, muttered a few words, then began to change clothes and wash up. Without eating anything, he took his son out the door.

It was very lively outside the city and was not much affected by the cold wind.

There were many people with obvious southern accents selling winter clothes and other cold-weather supplies.

Lou Rui and Lou Ziyan sat in the car, looking at their father who was much quieter than before. Lou Ziyan couldn't help but ask, "Grandpa, is there any bad news?"

"Could it be that the general can't tolerate us?"

Lou Rui shook his head.

"In a few days, it will be my aunt's death anniversary."

"I've been dreaming about her a lot lately."

"It seems like he is blaming me for not being able to protect my legacy."

Lou Ziyan's face changed drastically and he started coughing hurriedly, trying to drown out Lou Rui's voice.

Lou Rui looked at him dimly, and Lou Ziyan lowered his voice, "Grandpa, please don't say that. We are now under the command of the general, and such words will easily arouse fear."

"This foundation has long been lost. What can be done if the Grand Marshal takes the army to Heluo?"

"What if he occupies Henan?"

"I have often heard of the bravery of the Grand Marshal, but I have actually seen the bravery of the General."

"Besides, the best troops in the world are all in Hebei. What is the situation in Hebei? What is the situation in Henan?"

"The general is not only good at fighting, but also has many talented people under his command. They are equally good at civil and military affairs. He has ten provincial governors under his command. Their reputation for good governance has spread to the south of the river."

"I have heard nursery rhymes in various places: One wise king, three wise ministers, five tiger generals, ten good shepherds, nine states and the world."

"The one wise king is the general, the three ministers are Zu Ting, Gao Yu, and Cui Jishu, the five fierce generals are Gao Changgong, Hulugu, Bao Xian, Wang Lin, and Yao Xiong. Together with the ten provincial governors, we can conquer the world."

Lou Rui suddenly asked, "I can understand everything else, but how did Yao Xiong get into the Five Tigers?"

Lou Ziyan didn't know why his grandfather's topic changed so quickly, but as long as he didn't talk about things like his ancestors' legacy, he was willing to continue talking to him, so he changed the topic for now!

He quickly replied: "My grandfather may not think highly of Yao Xiong, but he is quite lucky. He has made many contributions over the years. When Yang Zhong led the people to attack the north, he chopped off the head of the enemy general. Later, when he and Gao Changgong went to fight the Turks, he chopped off an Eastern Khan. Then when he went to attack the Zhou people, he chopped off several Zhou generals."

Lou Rui then remembered that this guy seemed to have stolen quite a few heads.

Lou Ziyan tried his best to change the topic elsewhere, and Lou Rui did not mention the foundation matter again.

Lou Ziyan was really scared. He didn't believe that Duan Shao could rebuild his foundation, nor did he think that Da Qi had any hope of survival. Dugu Yongye was a man with a bad nature. It was good enough that they didn't fight among themselves. How could they still want to protect their foundation?

They arrived at the gate of the government office, where quite a few people had already gathered.

Lou Ziyan followed his father into the inner courtyard.

Liu Taozi sat in the upper seat, and many generals and officials sat on his left and right.

After meeting everyone, Lou Rui sat close to Liu Taozi.

Liu Taozi is now reading out the rewards for the soldiers who went on this expedition.

The first credit for this battle was given to Wang Lin.

This made General Wang feel a little ashamed. He really felt that he was not the first to make the contribution. Lou Rui, the commander-in-chief, and Shi Wansui, who had defeated the most enemies, were more qualified than him.

However, Liu Taozi believed that many deployments in this war came from Wang Lin. Relying on his familiarity with the local area and the enemy, Wang Lin provided Liu Taozi with accurate intelligence and appropriate strategies time and time again, which enabled him to accomplish so many things. Even the matter of Wu Mingche was also the one that Wang Lin was responsible for, so Wang Lin should bear the greatest credit.

Shi Wansui and others certainly had no objection to this. If it weren't for Wang Lin, they wouldn't even understand what the water attack was all about.

Wang Lin was named the General of Gwangju, or the General of Gwangju.

Compared with Shuozhou General Yao Xiong, Lingzhou General Gao Changgong and others, he has an additional "Da" character in his name, which is actually a recognition of his qualifications. Under Liu Taozi's command, many veteran generals also have the character "Da" in their names.

In charge of Gwangju military affairs.

He was also granted the power of Yitong Sansi and other officials.

The rest of the people also received rewards.

Zu Ting sat aside, stroking his chin with a complicated expression, but did not interrupt Liu Taozi.

After rewards, of course, there will be punishments.

Many defeated generals in the Southern Kingdom were also given different punishments. Wei Pohu was kneeling in the hall. When he heard that he would be demoted to a commoner for his defeat in the war, he finally breathed a sigh of relief and had no more worries.

He thanked Liu Taozi again and again, stood outside the door, and prepared to leave after finishing.

Liu Taozi did not specify the reward or punishment for Lou Rui. Lou Rui sat quietly aside. After Liu Taozi announced everything, he hurriedly left with his children without asking any questions.

Everyone left because they had important things to do.

At this moment, Zu Ting was sticking to Liu Taozi, looking worried.

"General, there can be no further delay in what I have said."

"Duan Shao's independence in the south has already caused some impact. He has already announced that we are no longer Qi's subjects, but traitors."

"What shall we do with this title?"

"So should we keep the title and office of Qi? The prince has the office of General of the Cavalry, what should we do?"

"There are also people like Lou Gong, what should we do?"

"What about the royal families in the country?"

Zu Ting hurriedly said, "My Lord, you must give the order as soon as possible. We should refute Duan Shao, accuse the false emperor, and establish a new emperor. Otherwise, these problems will emerge one by one and we will be in disarray!"

"If you leave Qi just like that, then we will no longer be orthodox. What will the Qi royal family members like Gao Yu and Gao Changgong think?"

In the eyes of people at that time, abdication was still an orthodox act. After all, it was to imitate the wise kings of ancient times. Abdication would not abolish the legal system of the previous dynasty, but would continue. Given the character of the general, the royal family of the previous dynasty would not suffer any unfair treatment, the ancestral temple would be preserved, and they could continue to serve the new king. But if they directly broke away and acted as rebels,

Then the titles and honors of the previous dynasty would have to be revoked, and everything would have to start from scratch. The new regime would no longer be a successor to the previous one, but would destroy the previous one, which would cause a lot of trouble.

Moreover, the official position of our lord was given by Emperor Xiaozhao, and it would be most appropriate if his son abdicated.

Liu Taozi glanced at Zu Ting and said, "Wait for me here for a while."

Zu Ting had no choice but to stand where he was.

Liu Taozi walked out quickly.

Wei Pohu was standing at the door with a smile on his face. Wei Pohu's father was the cousin of Changle King Wei Jing. Although he looked old, he was actually not that old. He did not like reading very much since he was young. He loved horses the most in his life. He collected a lot of different war horses in his own mansion. Later, he inherited his father's official title and was stuffed into the army when he was young. He was promoted step by step to his current position.

It cannot be said that he knew nothing about military affairs, after all, he had fought in wars. However, in terms of how well he fought, he was only at an average level. As a defensive general, he was okay in training troops, but if he were to be called out to fight against top generals like Huang Fachi and Wu Mingche, he would have no chance of winning and would lose every time he fought.

After this defeat, he has been very worried, fearing that he would be directly punished for the crime of defeat.

Now that he was merely demoted to a commoner, Wei Pohu was still quite happy.

He had long been tired of the war, and it would be nice to be able to go home to herd cattle and raise horses.

He walked out of the mansion alone and was about to mount his horse when a hand suddenly grabbed his shoulder. The huge force pulled him to the side. He staggered and almost fell.

Wei Pohu raised his head and saw Liu Taozi standing in front of him.

"General."

"Where are you going?"

"Reporting to the general, I am preparing to return to Shuozhou, my hometown of Youyu, to herd horses and sheep."

"Well, when I arrived in Shuozhou, your people led troops to resist and were killed."

"General, I know about this."

Liu Taozi looked at the soldiers in the distance, asked for a pen and paper, and started writing in front of Wei Pohu. He wrote something and then handed it to Wei Pohu.

Wei Pohu picked up the document in his hand with some surprise.

"With this document, you can exchange it for a stallion and six sheep from the Shuozhou government. I'll lend it to you. Go back and live your life well. If any villain comes to you with the intention of provoking you, don't trust him."

Wei Pohu carefully put away the letter and bowed solemnly to Liu Taozi.

"Thank you, General."

Liu Taozi turned and left. Wei Pohu lowered his head and watched the general return to the office. Then he jumped onto his horse.

"drive!!!"

At this moment, Zu Ting was pacing back and forth in the room.

It has been some time since the general returned to Gwangju, and Zu Ting's confidence in the general's ability to establish a new king has been decreasing.

The news of Duan Shao's self-determination had spread throughout Guangzhou, but the general did not respond at all.

He neither wrote a document to reprimand Duan Shao for his betrayal nor accused the new monarch of illegality.

It was like he didn't care at all.

Zu Ting was so anxious that he was running around in circles.

Logically speaking, the general is not a pedantic gentleman. Flooding and killing people are easy tasks for him. Why is he hesitating now?
Just when Zu Ting was thinking about how to persuade the general, Liu Taozi finally returned to the house.

He motioned Zu Ting to follow him, and they sat down one after the other.

"My Lord, we can no longer hesitate to establish a new ruler."

"Even if you are not in a hurry to establish a new monarch, you should still condemn Duan Shao. I have written a document listing Duan Shao's ten major crimes, all of which are unforgivable. As for the new monarch, he has no right to ascend the throne. The queen mother is still here with us, so we can use her name."

"Unforgivable crimes?"

"What crime did Duan Shao commit?"

"My lord, let alone the crime of regicide, it is enough to bring ruin to his reputation!"

"He killed the king!"

Liu Taozi's face was not moved at all. "I have never heard of killing a king, but I have heard of killing a tyrant."

"If Gao Wei hadn't been concerned about the large number of soldiers in Jinyang and wanted to wait until their food and grass were exhausted before attacking, I would have already rushed to Jinyang and demolished him with my own hands."

Zu Ting was stunned for a moment and said with a wry smile: "I know that the lord wants to kill Gao Wei, and Gao Wei really deserves to die, but this is just an excuse."

Liu Taozi looked at Zu Ting and asked again, "Will it be very harmful if we don't establish a new king?"

"big."

"The royal family and generals in the country will all be affected."

"But I don't care about them."

Liu Taozi was very calm, "I have never cared about these royal family members, old general."

"I am not a gentleman. When you mentioned Li Xinjun, I pondered for a long time."

"Establish a little emperor, and then use his name to fight the enemies and appease the rest. This is orthodox and legal."

“There are indeed many benefits.”

"But what's the price?"

Zu Ting's expression turned serious.

"There are indeed many capable people in the royal family, but there are also many beasts. Do we have to keep them as well? Do we have to keep their titles?"

"Old generals and old ministers, how many of those titles are worthy of them?"

"My Xingtai and my office are all of one mind. I know there are factions within the office, the Cheng'an faction, the Dingzhou faction, the border faction, the Yecheng faction, those who came first and those who arrived later."

"But at least, even though we have disputes, we can still work together. After a decision is made, there is no disagreement, and we can work together even if we disagree."

"Just like Zugong, you spread nursery rhymes, but included Cui Jishu, who you hate the most, because he is very famous and it can have a good effect."

"But if there is a little emperor, whether we like it or not, two completely different factions will emerge in the country. There will always be people who want to surround the little emperor and regard the little emperor as their own opportunity. From ancient times to the present, no matter how small the emperor is, no matter how incompetent the emperor is, there is no shortage of such people around him. Since ancient times, those who support the emperor, no matter how powerful they are, no matter how outstanding their talents are, can never get rid of endless temple struggles and rebellions."

"I lost many people and put in a lot of effort to kill those termites and clean up the north."

"Grandfather, I am not a gentleman. When I was ten, I dared to fight with my father. When I was fifteen, I dared to hit him in the face. When I was twenty, I dared to establish a border stronghold and ignore the emperor's edict."

"I am a rebellious son, I am a traitor, I don't care about orthodoxy, and I don't care about reputation."

"I just need to keep the present clean and make the whole world become like the north with one mind."

"I have many royal family members and old ministers under my command, but if they want to stop me from doing something big, I will not keep them. I will kill them, whether it's Gao Changgong, Gao Yu, Lou Rui, Hulugu, or even Liu Taozhi."

"I only want a group of people who have the ambition to pacify the world, to follow me and repair this world. If they are reluctant to give up their titles, wealth, and homeland, they can be buried with their homeland, and I can send them off."

Zu Ting’s eyes widened and his lips trembled.

He tried to calm himself down, but it was not easy.

Liu Taozi looked at him straight in the eyes. "I have come to this point with the help of the horse under my crotch, the knife in my hand, and the people around me. I don't need to use a little emperor who will be killed after use to prove the legitimacy of my great cause."

“Whether it is legal or not is not up to them to decide.”

"what do you think?"

Zu Ting nodded repeatedly in a daze.

"Correct."

"However, there is no emperor in the north right now, so we need someone to lead the army."

"I will do it myself."

"Go and revise your manifesto."

"Don't accuse Duan Shao of regicide."

"To criticize Gao Yang's brutality."

"Go and reprimand Gao Zhan for his absurdity."

"To expose Gao Wei's atrocities."

"Go and announce to the world that the cruel and brutal Qi State has been destroyed. Those who escaped are just those ambitious people who still have evil intentions and are seeking wealth and fame."

"I am the king."

"All the people of the world, including scholars, farmers, merchants, and businessmen, and all the officials and generals, will follow me to end the war and create a peaceful world."

"Those who follow the will of great things will prosper, and those who go against it will perish."

(End of this chapter)