Establishing a thousand-year family from the nobles of the Western Han Dynasty

Chapter 115: The new king will ascend the throne, Wang Mang is showing his talent

The eunuch trotted into the Weiyang Palace and said in a trembling voice, "Your Majesty, Prime Minister Xu...is ill and can no longer handle this matter."

At this time, the gathering of Confucian scholars had not yet entered the palace, and Liu Ao still held on to a glimmer of hope.

What is an emperor? He is the supreme throne in the world, holding great power, and deciding the life and death of any of his subjects with just one word! No one would want to give up such a position.

Power is a bottle of poison. Once you have tasted it, there is no turning back. It will always tempt you to move forward, and it will not stop even if it is a bottomless abyss!

Although the times are different now, with powerful officials controlling the government and power falling into the hands of others, the emperor is still the emperor after all! Liu's authority has not completely disappeared.

Even those people in the Imperial Academy don't dare to support someone with a different surname. At least for now, the emperor can only have the surname Liu!

Although the local Xu family gave up Liu Ao, their loyalty to the Liu family never changed.

At the local level, Xu Zhong and Xu Min both held the military and political power of a state. If there were any changes in the central government, they could easily mobilize hundreds of thousands of people to go to Beijing to support the king.

Even Wang Feng, who held the power of the imperial guards, had to be defeated when faced with attacks from local forces. He could not compete with the entire Han Dynasty relying solely on Guanzhong.

The governor of Yizhou and the prefect of Shu County were former officials of the Wang family, but the prefect of Hanzhong was named Xu!

Therefore, if the Wang family rebels now, all they can mobilize is the wealth of Guanzhong. Although the imperial guards are strong, people also need to eat, and this amount of food is not enough to support these few people.

The imperial guards will mutiny if they have no food to eat.

So strictly speaking, the conditions for usurping the Han Dynasty were not yet met. It was necessary to eradicate the Xu family's local power, or at least take control of Hanzhong.

"What did you say?" Liu Ao stood up suddenly, his eyes filled with shock and despair.

He didn't expect that even Xu Bo would betray him! Was killing Chen Nian really a mistake?
The eunuch knelt on the ground, but he knew that his majesty had been forced into a desperate situation and was deserted by his friends and relatives.

Perhaps the only ones who supported him were the two concubines beside him.

Unfortunately, these two people did not intend to fight to the death. Even if the emperor abdicated, they could still become empress dowagers and concubines and still live a life of wealth and glory.

"Your Majesty, the situation is hopeless. You...you should abdicate." Zhao Hede hugged the emperor's shoulders, her voice pitiful, as if she was thinking about Liu Ao.

"Yes, Your Majesty, even if you abdicate, you are still the emperor! Chen Nian has already been offered sacrifices to the heaven, so you will surely live a long life. Maybe you will have a chance to rule Weiyang again." Zhao Feiyan also did not want to be buried with him.

Supporting the new emperor to ascend the throne is also a merit!

"Have you... betrayed me too?" Liu Ao looked at them expressionlessly, as if he had been prepared.

Of course he knew the moral character of these two concubines. He spoiled them just for pleasure, one for sex and the other for power. How could he have the courage to perish together with them?

"I dare not." The two of them knelt on the ground.

"Well, forget it. Go and get the imperial seal. Since you all want me to abdicate, I will grant your wish."

After a long silence, Liu Ao had no choice. As the two men said, voluntarily abdicating could still preserve some dignity.

Moreover, there may be a chance for him to make a comeback in the future. Prince Liu Xin's father was a short-lived man, and his son will probably not live long either.

At that time, he will be reinstated as the emperor emeritus, which is reasonable and legal!
"Your Majesty, here is the imperial seal." The eunuch came over holding the seal carved from the Heshi Bi.

"Huh..." Liu Ao picked up the soft jade with trembling hands. On it were engraved eight words written by Li Si, the former prime minister of Qin: "Received the mandate from heaven, long life and prosperity."

It is worthy of being the treasure that King Zhaoxiang of Qin was willing to exchange for more than a dozen cities. It is indeed extremely gorgeous.

Of course, this is secondary. The most important thing is that it represents supreme power! Especially from the moment Emperor Gaodi Liu Bang re-used it, the century-old Han Dynasty once again deepened the sacredness of this object.

These eight words have run through more than 2,000 years of Chinese history. They have been fought over by countless heroes and countless people have lost their lives because of them.

Now I have to give up.

"Save the country!"

"Save the country!"

"Save the country..."

When the shouts of protest from the Confucian scholars were heard, everyone in the Weiyang Palace felt terrified. This supreme palace was being trampled by outsiders for the first time.

Liu Ao closed his eyes, stroked the milky white imperial seal for the last time, and said, "Change my clothes, I should take a rest."

.........

The once supreme emperor was now standing in front of the long steps of the Weiyang Palace, holding the imperial seal, his face pale.

He walked down slowly, holding the imperial seal tightly in his hand.

The Confucian scholar below, who had just been filled with indignation, immediately shut up. Although he said that he wanted the emperor to abdicate, the Liu family's century-old sacredness was there.

Back then, Taizu rose from a commoner and founded the Han Dynasty, which was already the will of heaven. Coupled with several generations of wise rulers such as Wen, Jing, Wu, Kang, and Xuan, the word "Liu" has become associated with the emperor.

This was the first emperor who voluntarily abdicated while holding the imperial seal. Perhaps from then on, Liu's majesty would plummet.

Until that Liu Zi once again picked up his sword and conquered the world...

"I ask Your Majesty to follow the example of Yao and Shun and give up the throne to others!" Li Nianzhao did not back down, but took a step forward.

Although he was wearing a thin green shirt and had no weapons in his hands, he still had a strong sense of oppression, making people inexplicably tremble with fear.

When the emperor is angry, millions of people will die, but when an ordinary man is angry, blood can splatter five steps away!
Within ten steps, the imperial power could no longer be restrained.

In other words, this Confucian scholar could kill the king at this time! And no one could stop him.

Although Liu Ao was panicked in his heart, he still maintained his dignity on his face. An emperor also has his own way of leaving.

"I am old and unable to handle government affairs, so I plan to abdicate and let Crown Prince Liu Xin take over."

Li Nianzhao raised his head and glanced at His Majesty, then continued, "Your Majesty, please issue an edict of apology! Redress the injustice for the countless loyal officials who died!"

"That's natural. Chen Nian's death was indeed my fault. Prime Minister Chen has worked diligently for many years and has made remarkable achievements. I plan to posthumously confer the title of Grand Tutor on him. What do you think?"

Liu Ao raised a smile and said with a sinister tone.

The great scholar's face instantly turned pale. Isn't this just Chunchun deliberately looking for trouble? A typical example of flattery! If this is true, then Chen Nian will undoubtedly become a laughing stock for countless scholars in the future.

Who is the Grand Master? Xu Zhen, the father of the Saint Master Xu Gong and the first meritorious minister of the Han Dynasty. The position of Grand Master is almost tied to him, and no one else has the guts to accept it. After all, even Xu Gong was only a prime minister before his death, and he dared not act presumptuously.

"Chen Nian De is unworthy of the position, and of course he is not qualified to be the Grand Master. Your Majesty only needs to confer the title posthumously and clear his name."

Although Li Nianzhao knew that His Majesty was venting his dissatisfaction, he did not dare to act presumptuously. Liu Ao had already made concessions, and it would be their fault if they continued to be aggressive.

"Hehe... Let the new emperor handle this matter. I am no longer the emperor, so why should I interfere in internal affairs?"

Liu Ao sneered and slowly placed the jade seal on the ground, then left with his two concubines. This was his last act of stubbornness.

Even now, the dignity of the emperor cannot be lost! This is a matter of principle.

Li Nianzhao didn't even look at it, he picked up the jade seal silently, and said in a deep voice: "Go and inform Wang Feng and Brother Xu to welcome the prince into the palace to inherit the throne. We can't make the decision on such a big matter, so let's leave now."

"The world ultimately belongs to the Liu family. The goal of our trip is just to force the tyrant emperor to step down and seek justice for countless loyal ministers. That's all."

After that, none of the thousands of Confucian scholars dared to stay and they all left the palace and headed towards the Imperial College.

To be honest, they all felt like they were in a dream. They didn't expect that they would actually force the emperor to abdicate! It was too unbelievable. This was a very treasonous thing.

In the future, he will surely become famous and go down in history! This event will become a milestone in history. The people's will defeated the imperial power. This is a great victory, and everyone will be praised.

They were very excited when they thought of this. What was the lifelong pursuit of scholars? Wasn't it to open a separate line of history? Now it has really been realized.

So everyone was satisfied, and no one dared to stay and ask for more.

The news of the emperor's abdication first spread throughout Chang'an, and then spread from one person to another, and almost everyone in Guanzhong heard about it.

The people all applauded. They had long known that the emperor was incompetent, and now they could finally get rid of him. They hoped that the new emperor would treat them well after he ascended the throne.

The world has high hopes for Liu Xin, but no one knows whether it is a blessing or a curse. If his achievements and abilities do not meet expectations, he will inevitably suffer backlash!
The louder the praise, the louder the abuse will be.

"Father, the emperor has abdicated." Xu Hua, the eldest son of Henan Xu, walked in slowly. This was no longer a secret.

It has long been known to everyone that Taixue's ability in transmitting intelligence is unquestionable, and it almost always has first-hand information.

"Hmm..." Xu Bo seemed to have known it for a long time. He put down the things in his hands, slowly stood up and looked out the window.

"I must be present when the crown prince ascends the throne. It will soon be a new era."

In fact, Liu Ao was not completely useless. After all, he was the son of Emperor Yuan, and the authority of the Liu family had not yet declined when he succeeded to the throne.

Therefore, he was able to have a deterrent effect on the Wang family's external relatives, and no one dared to go too far. If Liu Ao chose to focus on supporting the Xu family to balance the power, such a situation would never have occurred.

Unfortunately, he trusted the wrong person. The relatives by marriage were more difficult to deal with than the eunuchs. Except for the Tang Dynasty in later generations, there has never been a case of eunuchs becoming powerful.

The eunuchs in the Eastern Han Dynasty sounded very powerful, but in fact they were all controlled by the emperor and were just tools. The so-called Ten Attendants were completely meaningless in the face of absolute military power.

This time when Liu Xin succeeded to the throne, he inherited an authority that had been greatly compromised, unless he could carry out drastic reforms, suppress the Wang family, and achieve certain results.

Otherwise it will be difficult to gain recognition from people all over the world.

Once the backlash began, it would be the beginning of the Wang family gradually replacing the Liu family in reputation. After all, Confucian scholars longed for the emergence of a "sage" emperor in the traditional sense.

This way, there will be room for maneuver, and one can slowly establish his own character and gain the favor of Confucianists and the people, who will transfer their hopes of saving the country to the Wang family.

This is what Wang Mang did. His usurpation of the Han Dynasty was popular among the people, and even the Liu clan members did not oppose it much.

Unexpectedly, the situation got worse and worse. As the saying goes, the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment. A huge peasant uprising immediately broke out.

The original "savior" Wang Mang was once again abandoned by the whole world and quickly collapsed.

"Father, please take care of yourself." Xu Hua said worriedly. At this time, Xu's power was all in the local areas, and there was only one person in the central government struggling to support it.

This is quite dangerous. The reason why the Wang family dared not move is because they were afraid of Xu Bo and his reputation.

Xu Hua might be able to inherit the official position, but it would be difficult for him to inherit the fame, because fame takes time to accumulate. Even with the blessing of the title of "Saint Family", it is still far from enough.

It is still too difficult to suppress Wang Feng, but fortunately the general's health is not that good, maybe neither of them can survive.

In fact, according to the original trajectory, Wang Feng should have died in the third year of Yangshuo. Perhaps because he put on more clothes in the winter and paid more attention to his diet, he actually lived for another seven or eight years.

I don’t know when he will die, but I guess it will be soon as he has contracted a serious illness.

As for the successor, he has already been chosen. He is Wang Feng’s younger brother, Wang Gen, Marquis of Quyang. He inherited most of the Wang family’s power and the most core military power.

Among them, one junior stood out.

The Wang family was already a large family, with nine of them being granted the title of marquis. They were extremely prominent, and although they were far behind the Xu family in terms of land, their wealth alone surpassed that of the Xu family, which had just bled.

They were usually extravagant and dissolute, had thousands of slaves and spent money without restraint. However, this younger generation named Wang Mang was different. He was usually humble and frugal, and devoted himself to serving his mother at home, taking care of his widowed sister-in-law, and raising his eldest brother's children.

He has always been known for his wisdom and integrity, and is the only younger generation of the Wang family who is loved by the doctors of the Imperial Academy.

He is undoubtedly an outlier in the extravagant Wang family. At the same time, he is very much liked by Wang Feng. Now he is Guanglu Dafu and Shizhong, and is a close minister of the emperor, although he does not have much real power.

This is the person Xu Bo fears the most. Although the elders of the Wang family hold great power, they are extremely extravagant and have no sense of self-discipline, so it is difficult for them to get the collective support of Confucian scholars.

If he cannot surpass Liu in reputation, he will always be just a powerful official. Sooner or later, he will decline and fail to achieve anything great.

Only Wang Mang was different. He valued reputation! This was the most terrifying thing, and it made him fundamentally different from other Wang family members.

"I won't live long. Although I won't outlive Wang Feng, you still have to rely on yourself from now on."

"Wang Mang is now a popular figure in the Imperial College. Although he is not as good as you, you should know the reason."

"Your ancestor is Xu Gong! This is the only thing Wang Mang is not as good as you. I am very worried. Remember, anyone in the Wang family can rule except him."

Xu Bo coughed a few times and it seemed that his physical condition was quite bad.

Xu Hua nodded respectfully, "Yes, I will definitely pay attention!"

"Well, that's good. When the new emperor ascends the throne later, I will recommend you to be the Minister of Agriculture. After I die, you can immediately become the prime minister and compete with the Wang family!"

Xu Bo nodded, then left with his crutches, supported by his eldest son. He was going to the palace, as the new king needed three people to support him in his succession to the throne.

Grand Marshal Wang Feng, Prime Minister Xu Bo and Queen Mother Wang Zhengjun!
(End of this chapter)