I, Emperor Chongzhen, have extended the life of the Ming Dynasty by five hundred years.

The night sky before dawn is the deepest.

Everyone stayed up all night, busy with preparations, just waiting for Liu Fangliang's army to enter the city.

Chen Yan was still uneasy and personally inspected every place, fearing that there might be any oversights or that the Shun army might be neglected.

In particular, the scale and etiquette of the welcome need to be carefully considered.

Because Chen Yan had served as Minister of Rites, he knew these intricacies better than anyone.

Although Liu Fangliang was only a marquis, he led a large army on his own, making him second only to Li Zicheng in status. Now that Li Zicheng had declared himself emperor, Liu Fangliang should at least be treated with the courtesy due to a duke.

To be on the safe side, Chen Yan ultimately decided to raise the rank of Duke to another level.

All the formalities and arrangements for welcoming the princes in the city were prepared in accordance with those for a vassal king.

After much busy work, everything was finally ready, and they were just waiting for the Shun army to enter the city...

"Lord Chen, Lord Chen!"

Zhang Wenyuan rushed over, as if something urgent had happened.

Chen Yan hurriedly asked, "Has the person arrived?"

"They've come, but... but..."

Zhang Wenyuan paused, seemingly unable to find a better way to express himself, so he changed his approach: "Our scouts have reported that we spotted a troop of soldiers five miles ahead!"

Chen Yan was somewhat surprised: "You're here so early! Go and get ready!"

"Lord Chen..."

Zhang Wenyuan's face was grim. He said, "Something's not right!"

Chen Yan asked, "What exactly happened?"

"Our scouts spotted a yellow flag!"

"What did you say? A yellow flag? Did you see that clearly?"

Chen Yan's expression changed drastically. This Liu Fangliang was far too inconsiderate!

Yellow banners were reserved for emperors. You were merely a marquis appointed by Li Zicheng; could you use them freely?

Zhang Wenyuan also looked worried and said, "I initially thought I was mistaken last night, but the scouts all said the same thing, so it seems to be true!"

Chen Yan was shocked and said, "If that's the case, it can only mean one thing: Liu Fangliang doesn't submit to Li Zicheng at all and is preparing to declare himself emperor!"

Zhang Wenyuan asked, "Did this person originally harbor ambitions to seize power? Why is he suddenly revealing his intentions now?"

Chen Yan pondered for a while and said, "These people are all from bandit backgrounds. They have no sense of hierarchy. It's all about who has more troops and who calls the shots."

"Take Li Zicheng for example. He was just a lowly soldier under Gao Yingxiang. He was once defeated by Sun Chuanting and his army was almost wiped out. He hid in the mountains for several years before daring to come out."

"The rebel army was never a monolithic entity. Zhang Xianzhong had already declared himself emperor in Sichuan, and Liu Fangliang was naturally unwilling to remain subservient for long. Now, with 200,000 troops under my command and Beijing so close at hand, he could absolutely challenge Li Zicheng!"

After listening, Zhang Wenyuan asked, "What should we do if Liu Fangliang and Li Zicheng fight for the throne?"

Chen Yan thought for a moment and said, "Let's take it one step at a time. If it really doesn't work out, we can always try again!"

Zhang Wenyuan nodded repeatedly: "Master Chen's insight is brilliant. However, we were unprepared beforehand. How should we greet you?"

"That is a problem..."

Chen Yan paced back and forth, frowning in thought.

The incident happened so suddenly that he had no idea the other party had such intentions.

The reception standards in the city are all set now, and there's no way to change them in a short time!

Since Liu Fangliang wanted to compete with Li Zicheng, the number of regional princes was clearly insufficient.

If we neglect them, the consequences will be unimaginable!

What should we do?

Zhang Wenyuan said, "Lord Chen, in my humble opinion, to show our sincerity, we should go to the city gate and kneel to greet you!"

Chen Yan raised an eyebrow. This idea is feasible!

According to the previously agreed terms, once the Shun army captures Beijing, he will remain the Grand Secretary.

Liu Fangliang's status was roughly equivalent to Xu Da in the early Ming Dynasty. The two were civil officials and military officers, and in theory, they could be on equal footing.

Now that Liu Fangliang has the ambition to become emperor, they can no longer be treated as equals.

In that case, why not set an example and personally lead all the officials to kneel and welcome them at the city gate?

I greeted him with the courtesy due to a ruler and his subject; surely that would show my sincerity!

"It seems this is the only way. However, we have no idea what era name or imperial title this person has suddenly adopted!"

Zhang Wenyuan scratched his head: "It's too late to ask now, you see..."

"Never mind that for now!"

Chen Yan waved his hand and said, "There's no time to lose, let's go!"

Having made up their minds, the two hurriedly set off for the city gate.

The sky was beginning to lighten, and a few lanterns hung at the city gate, their light dim.

When Chen Yan arrived, he saw a dark mass of people kneeling on the ground.

"Who are these people?"

Zhang Wenyuan replied, "The gentry and wealthy households in the city are those who gave money to Chen Gong."

Chen Yan nodded and then said, "Tell them to step back a little and make room for me."

"yes!"

Zhang Wenyuan quickly sent men to drive them away, clearing a vacant lot at the city gate.

The gentry and wealthy families had been kneeling for half the night, some even kneeling before dark, all to grab a good spot. Now they were being pushed to the back, and although they were unhappy, they had no choice but to accept it.

Sun Laiwang and his son arrived a little late and didn't manage to get a good spot, which displeased them.

Seeing that the good seats had been moved to the back, and his own seat had become more forward, he was overjoyed.

"See? This is what they call 'better to arrive at the right time than to arrive early'!"

Sun Laiwang looked at the others with schadenfreude, feeling incredibly pleased.

Chen Yan walked to the open space and knelt down properly.

Zhang Wenyuan and others knelt down beside him in turn, and the city gates were wide open, waiting for the Shun army to enter the city.

The air was eerily quiet, with only the sound of breathing rising and falling.

As dawn broke in the east, and in the hazy light, the sound of horses' hooves finally broke the silence ahead.

Da-da-da, da-da-da...

The sound grew louder as it approached, and it seemed to involve a large number of people, at least several thousand.

Chen Yan lowered his head, secretly calculating in his mind that Liu Fangliang's troops numbered over 200,000, but their cavalry was very limited, numbering only a few thousand.

They must have brought cavalry with them when they entered the city, so the numbers match up.

Da da da……

The sound of horses' hooves reached the city gate, and everyone held their breath, their hearts pounding in their throats.

Finally, a horse walked through the city gate.

Then came the second horse, the third horse...

Chen Yan lay on the ground, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw the horse's hooves treading on the paving stones as it slowly approached him.

He took a deep breath, straightened his clothes, and silently recited the words he had prepared.

"Your subject Chen Yan, leading the soldiers and civilians of Baoding, respectfully welcomes His Majesty the Emperor!"

Even if I don't know the reign title or the emperor's title, it's not wrong to address him as Your Majesty the Emperor, is it?

"Welcome, His Majesty the Emperor!"

The officials and the gentry and wealthy people kneeling in the back row all shouted in unison.

In an inconspicuous corner, Sun Wei asked softly, "Father, which emperor is this?"

Sun Laiwang looked puzzled: "I don't know either!"