Do You Know?: I, the Little Cabinet Elder, Regent of the World

Yelü Longqing was the younger brother of Yelü Hongji.

In the Central Plains dynasties, the imperial family members were mostly "kept" and "raised," but the Liao Dynasty was quite different.

Generally speaking, members of the Liao imperial family held real power, and princes and dukes held diplomatic authority for a long time.

With the old emperor's death and the new emperor's ascension to the throne, the task of rebuilding relations between the two countries undoubtedly requires the involvement of someone of princely rank.

From the right-hand side, a Khitan-looking official stepped forward and respectfully replied, "Yes."

"Send someone to escort the messenger away," Yelü Hongji said sadly.

The sounds of lamentation and sighs were incessant.

Xingqing Prefecture, Baigao Palace.

On the imperial steps, Li Liangzuo, who was twenty-one years old and had been on the throne for nineteen years, sat on the dragon throne with a furrowed brow.

From the imperial steps downwards, officials stood in orderly ranks.

The Tangut official system was similar to that of the Khitan, the difference being that it was divided into barbarian officials and Han officials.

"Passed away?"

In the center of the main hall, several people dressed in mourning clothes held obituaries in their hands.

Li Liangzuo's face was somber, not so much from sadness, but from embarrassment.

In the early part of the eighth year of the Jiayou era, taking advantage of the instability of the regime due to the struggle between him and the old subordinates of his uncle, Meicang Epang, the civil official of the Great Zhou Dynasty, Jiang Zichuan, took command and sent troops to quell the invasion, and captured Lanzhou and Lezhou.

The lands of two states have been lost!

It is almost foreseeable that the mediocre old emperor Zhao Zhen will be highly praised in historical records.

And the steps are him.

Li Liangzuo!

"I am deeply grieved and mourn for him."

Li Liangzuo said indifferently, "Send Wei Ming to visit and go south to offer condolences."

"promise!"

Wei Mingman, a member of the Western Xia royal family, stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

Li Liangzuo nodded, his gaze slightly unfocused.

In the fourth year of the Qingli era, the Xia and Zhou dynasties fought, and the Zhou dynasty was ultimately defeated.

Therefore, the Xia and Zhou dynasties jointly held the "Qingli Peace Treaty," and the Western Xia emperor Yuanhao relinquished his imperial title and voluntarily accepted the investiture from the Zhou emperor.

The Zhou dynasty would bestow an annual "gift," consisting of 50,000 taels of silver, 130,000 bolts of silk, and 20,000 catties of tea. During festivals and holidays, even more would be "gifted."

This contract originally lasted for nearly twenty years.

As a result, Jiang Zichuan's expansion of Xihe led to the swallowing up of two states of Daxia.

In terms of territory, it is already one-fifth the size of the Great Xia.

The old emperor Zhao Zhen suddenly became much more assertive and refused to hand over the "annual tribute".

What's even more distressing is that Xihe's expansion of the borders severed the connection between the Great Xia and Tibet, leaving the Great Xia sandwiched between the Great Zhou and the Liao Dynasty, thus losing the opportunity to unite with Tibet.

(By opening up the border between Xihe and Western Xia, they were tightly pinned down and gradually worn down.)

Li Liangzuo pondered for a moment.

Now that the new emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty has ascended the throne and the regime is unstable, perhaps it would be worth trying to rebuild the "Qingli Peace Treaty".

It's a gift from the year, after all; why not take it?

Alternatively, they could take the opportunity to re-establish contact with Tibet.

In the past, I was not yet strong!

Now, things have changed!

Chapter 177 Imperial Examination and Rewards!

Bianjing, the Imperial Study.

Apart from the eunuchs and palace maids, only the emperor and his minister remained.

"The Emperor who embodies the laws of Heaven, possesses supreme virtue and far-reaching power, is wise, sagacious, and filial?" Zhao Ceying nodded, holding the document.

This posthumous title is very fitting.

Compared to the qualitative evaluation of temple names, posthumous titles tend to be purely eulogies.

The difference lies in the fact that some posthumous titles are meaningful and can summarize the achievements of a monarch's life; while others are purely empty words, praising the monarch in a way that makes one feel ashamed.

Virtue, might, holiness, martial prowess, benevolence, and filial piety.

It not only accurately reflects Emperor Gaozong's achievements in expanding the territory, but also serves as a supplement.

After all, the late emperor had been recuperating for forty years, and such an achievement could not be summarized by the temple name "Gaozong". Adding the words "Renxiao" to his posthumous title further emphasized the merit of his recuperation.

“Excellent.” Zhao Ceying agreed, “This posthumous title will undoubtedly be approved by all officials in court.”

Jiang Zhaoping nodded.

Choosing a temple name is much easier than choosing a posthumous name.

The main difference is that temple names are only one character, while posthumous titles are extremely long, sometimes as many as ten or twenty characters, which can contain a great deal of information.

If you want to add certain achievements, just add two words; there's no need to delete or argue about them.

"In addition to the posthumous title, the new reign title was also drafted by the Ministry of Rites and the Hanlin Academy, and several names were selected."

As he spoke, Jiang Zhao took out a document from his sleeve and passed it over.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Ceying immediately became interested.

Recently, he has been preoccupied with the arrangements for the late emperor's funeral.

The selection of the reign title is definitely a rare matter concerning him.

"Xi Ning".

"Xi Feng".

"Longxing".

Zhao Ceying began to read attentively.

When a new emperor ascends the throne, an auspicious reign title is undoubtedly very important.

"Xi—"

In just a moment, Zhao Ceying made his decision, looking at the two reign titles containing the character "Xi".

His experiences in Xihe meant that he subconsciously leaned more towards the reign titles of Xining and Xifeng.

“Xi Ning,” Jiang Zhao explained, “Xi means prosperity and Ning means stability, so it means peace and prosperity.”

"Xi Feng, Xi means brightness and Feng means abundance, meaning to enrich the country and strengthen the army."

The method of choosing reign titles is different from that of choosing posthumous titles and temple names.

The selection of posthumous titles and temple names is based on the level of the previous user, for fear that the previous user's level was not high enough, thus lowering the value of the posthumous title and temple name.

The reign title is subject to taboos such as repetition and homonyms, in order to avoid being seen as a "shoddy imitation".

Just like "Yongxi", which means a long and prosperous reign, it has an auspicious meaning and is also suitable for Zhao Ceying.

However, the previous user of "Yongxi" was Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei, Yuan Hong, who was almost a legendary emperor throughout history.

Such a reign title would be criticized as "imitating others poorly" if used by anyone, so it was naturally not an option.

Almost all reign titles must be original.

After a few words of explanation, Zhao Ceying nodded repeatedly.

These are all auspicious reign titles.

After pondering for a moment, Zhao Ceying got up and paced back and forth.

After about an incense stick's time, his gaze swept over "Xi Ning" and finally settled on the "Xi Feng" reign title.

Peace and prosperity are certainly desirable, but for him, a strong and prosperous nation is the best choice.

“Xi Feng has an excellent meaning.” Zhao Ceying sat down, patted his knee, and said, “Let’s go with Xi Feng.”

Jiang Zhao nodded and bowed respectfully: "In that case, I will submit it to the Cabinet."

Even though the emperor has made a decision, the necessary procedures still need to be followed.

The decision on the reign title was often made jointly by the cabinet and the emperor.

If the Grand Secretaries think "Xifeng" is not good, then there is no other way but to give up.

Of course, this possibility is not high.

All three proposed reign titles were, without exception, excellent works.

Zhao Ceying nodded in satisfaction.

The initial ascension to the throne involved so many matters that it was impossible to keep up.

Fortunately, with the help of a wise minister like Jiang Zhao, everything was managed to proceed in an orderly manner.

Jiang Zichuan is getting better and better with use!

If the late emperor could achieve a high level of achievement, there's no reason why he could be worse.

After all, the late emperor only enjoyed Jiang Qing's company for less than ten years. He and Jiang Qing are not much different in age, so he should enjoy it for at least several decades.

Shouldn't we have an emperor like Sejong?

With the document in his sleeve, Jiang Zhao noticed that Zhao Ceying seemed a bit dazed. Thinking that nothing was wrong, he prepared to take his leave.

"Not urgent."

Zhao Ceying quickly waved and took out a folded piece of Xuan paper from the corner of the wooden table.

"Zichuan, please give me your opinion on this reward," Zhao Ceying asked.

As the new emperor, he was somewhat unsure about the appropriate degree of reward.

The specifics of how to bestow rewards still need to be discussed with trusted senior officials.

As it happens, Jiang Zhao is the Minister of Rites, and he certainly has his own judgment on whether the bestowal of honors is in accordance with regulations.

Jiang Zhao took it and glanced at it.

Zhao Shiyi was enfeoffed as the Prince of Shun.

Zhao Shiqian was enfeoffed as the Prince of Gong.

Zhao Zhong was enfeoffed as the Duke of Jiyang.

Zhao Shicheng was granted the title of Duke of Gaomi.

Cao Yi was the military governor of Hu Army, and concurrently served as Minister of Works and Chancellor.

Two kings, two dukes, and one minister!

“The Emperor’s decision is certainly excellent,” Jiang Zhao nodded.

According to custom, the members of the royal family, whether dukes or princes, were granted titles and honors based on their bloodline.

However, because Zhao Ceying was a descendant of Emperor Taizu, none of them were related to him by blood.

Thus, the rewards were bestowed based on the individuals' original identities, their loyalty, and their importance.

Among them, Zhao Shiyi and Zhao Shiqian both had fathers who were princes, so their rewards were naturally more generous.

During the Zhou Dynasty, there were many hereditary earls, marquises, and dukes.

But when it comes to princes, there are very few who inherit the title without fail.

Even the two princes vying for the throne, the Prince of Yan and the Prince of Yong, were both princes of various ranks.

When the prince died, his descendants inherited the title by a lower rank.

In other words, if the King of Yan died, his eldest son Zhao Shiyi would inherit the title of Duke of Yan, and his grandson would inherit the title of Marquis of Yan. Each generation would be lower than the last, and eventually they would become idle members of the royal family.