Established a millennium family since King Wu defeated Zhou

Chapter 976 A Grand Ceremony and Death

  In the sacred capital Luoyang, there is a Wanxiang Temple, and in the Wanxiang Temple, there is a divine pillar that reaches the sky.

In the fourteenth year of Tianbao, the people of Shendu learned that a new wonder was being created.

Its name is Tiantai, which means a high platform close to the sky.

It covers a very large area.

The rooftop looks like an artificial rockery.

The entire structure is made of bluestone cast in molten iron. It is square, jade-green with a hint of black, and looks profound and majestic.

On one side of the rooftop, facing south, there are thirty-three floors built up one step at a time.

Legend has it that there are gods and immortals in the thirty-three heavens.

The emperor wanted to use this high platform to replace Mount Tai.

On the platform above the thirty-third floor, there is a palace, which offers a panoramic view of the city of gods. The palace may not be big, but being able to build a thirty-three-story high platform and a palace on top of these thirty-three steps is something that only a prosperous era could afford.

The purpose of building this platform is to hold grand ceremonies. This pinnacle of prosperity should be demonstrated to everyone on an unprecedentedly magnificent platform.

The emperor stands in the place closest to the sky.

Communicate with heaven and offer sacrifices.

In the twelfth year of Tianbao, the Crescent Empire was defeated.

After five years of recuperation, not only the Central Plains have recovered, but also those areas in Central Asia and West Asia that have been devastated by continuous wars have recovered.

In the seventeenth year of Tianbao, the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty issued an edict.

Send an allied force of twelve countries in Central Asia and West Asia and march into India. This is the future strategic direction of the Tang Dynasty.

The twentieth year of Tianbao.

After six years, the platform was finally built, but there was no time to hold a grand ceremony.

In front of Tianshou Temple.

Taiping was wearing a royal robe, but she sat directly on the white jade steps in front of the hall. Luo Qianqiu sat beside her. Taiping leaned against Luo Qianqiu. Her face was a little pale, and Luo Qianqiu's face was full of wrinkles as if they were cut by a knife or an axe.

The most ruthless thing in the world is time.

No matter how beautiful and powerful you are, in the end you will be nothing but a beauty with white hair and a hero in his twilight years, and turn into a handful of earth.

"The emperor has been on the throne for fifty years."

Taiping smiled and said, "I am also one of the rare ones in history. I am very lucky."

Luo Qianqiu and Taiping looked at the magnificent rooftop together, and the red setting sun hanging above the rooftop.

Luo Qianqiu seemed to remember something and suddenly laughed out loud. Taiping looked at him with a puzzled look.

  "It suddenly occurred to me, is there any prince in the world who has been on the throne for more than 40 years?

That's our son. If it were someone else, I'm afraid he would have already...

Hey. "

Taiping's puzzled expression instantly turned into a smile, and he shook his head helplessly.

"Our son is, of course, a good boy."

Taiping's face was full of happiness, "I am so lucky in my life. The throne fell on my head inexplicably, and Luo's husband fell on my head. I inherited such a huge empire. For fifty years, I have walked to this day in peace and stability.

There were some twists and turns in the process, but it went smoothly in the end.

Many people in the world praise me, and sometimes I feel very nervous.

Maybe, if it were someone else, they could do it just as well. "

Luo Qianqiu shook her head, "Madam, don't be so self-deprecating.

  Wasn’t Emperor Yang of Sui also a king who inherited a prosperous foundation?

But what was his final fate?

The most difficult thing in the world is to restrain oneself. In this regard, you have done very well. If it were someone else, they might be able to create a prosperous era, but could they keep it unchanged for fifty years?

The smooth and fulfilling lives of both of us are inseparable from your temper.

Many kings always say that if they had the assistance of so-and-so, they would also be able to achieve great things.

But they never think about why he has no wise ministers to assist him, while those wise kings in history have good ministers.

Feng Changqing, Gao Xianzhi, Geshu Han, Wang Zhongsi, Li Siye, Guo Ziyi, Li Guangbi, and Pugu Huai'en.

These names, one by one, were invincible in the 20,000 miles of territory from east to west of the Tang Dynasty, and thus they were recorded in history and had a good end.

Is it possible that if they were under another king, they would not have the fate they have now?

A king like you who is both majestic and kind, and who does not doubt his meritorious officials, is rare even in history books."

In the past fifty years, Luo Qianqiu has said this type of words many times.

"My husband."

Taiping's pale face suddenly smiled, "You are always like this, with endless courage and determination, no matter what happens, you will never be depressed.

People like you should be rare."

  Luo Qianqiu's eyes were deep, "The Tang Dynasty is invincible in the world, and you and I, as a couple, are invincible in the Tang Dynasty. This is the confidence that reality gives me, so what else can make me depressed?

Maybe it can only be the God in the dark."

Taiping was stunned. "Heaven, isn't it the Suwang Patriarch? Heaven is on our side too."

Luo Qianqiu didn't say anything, but just hugged Taiping.

This is indeed the case for ordinary people in this world. With the progress of Ji Zhao's changing the sky, it is now Su Wang, the sky, who decides everything.

Ji Zhao's subconscious affects everything.

Things like the Prairie's Destiny have long since disappeared, and the fog of the world no longer exists. Zhu Xia can appear anywhere, and the world now is a fairly free world.

But as long as Ji Zhao has not succeeded in completely changing the sky, a part of the former sky will still exist.

The day before was now only aimed at the Luo family.

The whole world was freed from its constraints, and only Luo still had some shackles on his body. These shackles could only be completely removed at the ultimate moment.

"Do you think there will be an afterlife?"

"If you believe it, you have it; if you don't believe it, you don't have it."

"Then I believe it."

"Do you have any regrets in this life?"

"No, I just feel like I haven't lived enough."

Luo Qianqiu burst out laughing.

"Will we still be husband and wife in the next life?"

"Will do."

"You lied to me. You will stay with Su Wang Shang Huang Tian. There will be no afterlife."

"..."

"It's good to have this life. If life is like this, what else can I ask for?"

Taiping smiled, "If there is really an afterlife, I still hope it will be like this, with peace all over the world, food to eat and clothes to wear in every family, the flag of the Tang Dynasty flying in all regions, and everyone praising the emperor for his wisdom.

Even.

Even.

Even if I can't meet you, I am willing to exchange it for this magnificent scene, a peaceful and prosperous country."

Luo Qianqiu looked at Taiping. The sun had set and the brilliant lights of the palace were reflected in her eyes. Her tone was so firm and unquestionable.

"Your Majesty is holy."

Luo Qianqiu's eyebrows and eyes were raised.

"I am not wise."

Taiping said seriously, "I'm just talking some stupid nonsense."

"Madam, what you said is the words of great love from a saint."

Luo Qianqiu hugged Taiping tightly and said, "See you in the next life."

……

In the twentieth year of Tianbao, on the first day of the twelfth month of winter, the empress died suddenly in Tianshou Palace and was buried in the Ming Mausoleum.

On the fifth day of the twelfth month, the late emperor was posthumously named Emperor Wu to commend his contribution to expanding the territory, and was given the temple name Shizong, one of the four great temple names. Because the late emperor inherited the throne from Emperor Rang and the lineage was transferred, he was given the name Shizong.

On the eighth day of the twelfth month, Li Shengyi, who had been the crown prince for more than forty years, accepted the worship of all officials in the Tianshou Hall and received the title of emperor, and then the title of Son of Heaven.

The reign title was changed to Mingguang.

On December 21, Prince Luo Qianqiu died in the Prince Luo's Palace. The emperor was extremely sad and suspended court for a month. His ministers proposed a posthumous title for him, "Mingwu". The emperor ordered Prince Luo to be buried in the Ming Mausoleum with Emperor Shizong.

On December 28th, Luo Shengxi, the successor King of Luo, the only brother of the current emperor, inherited the throne of Luo and at the same time the position of the head of the Luo family. All the branches of the family came to congratulate him.

The world changed dramatically, and an emperor with Luo blood finally ascended the throne.

The first month of the first year of Mingguang.

When the emperor in royal robes and the Prince of Luo in the robes of a feudal prince appeared in the court at the same time, if it were not for the holy marks, who could tell them apart? This scene was so confusing.

The Luo family's luck is increasing crazily.

  [Family reputation: (unparalleled in the world; powerful in all Xia; pillar of heaven in the country; wise in the state and county; wise clan in the countryside)

Central Plains: The Power of All China

Liaodong: Unrivaled in the World

Grassland: Terrifying the World

Western Region: Powerful to All Xia

Plateau: Unrivaled in the World

  Patriarch's reputation (Luo Shengxi): (famous all over the world; well-known; emerging; newcomer; unknown)

Zhongyuan: Famous all over the world

Liaodong: Famous

Grasslands: Notorious

Western Regions: Famous all over the world

Plateau: Famous

When Li Shengyi's gaze swept down, almost no one dared to look at him, especially when King Luo Shengxi, Luo, who was holding a sword, was standing next to him.

Li Shengyi is probably the most special prince in history.

Excluding the crown princes in troubled times, the crown princes in peacetime were basically kept in the palace or the imperial capital and never went out.

But Li Shengyi is not like that.

He has been working since he was a young man. Perhaps because of his special status, he cannot accomplish some things, but he is still not comparable to ordinary princes.

Moreover, he had been the crown prince for more than 40 years, and his character had long been tempered to be extremely tough. He even had nine sons and thirteen or fourteen daughters.

Over the years, Luo Shengxi has been following him, going in and out of water and fire, running to the western regions of Liao, Penglai and Lingnan, with a sword in hand, beheading and killing people.

……

The third year of Mingguang.

After Li Shengyi ascended the throne, he implemented the domestic policy strategy of the Tianbao period internally and continued to attack India externally, with the intention of advancing all the way from Central Asia to the sea.

After six years of conquest, the Tang Dynasty achieved great results. The land of the Tang Dynasty in Tianzhu increased by about ten times. Li Shengyi divided the Chu State of Tianzhu into five parts, east, west, south, north and center, and established five Chu States. He asked his sons to go to East Chu, North Chu and West Chu, and divided the original Chu State into South Chu and Central Chu. There were as many as 73 vassal states in Tianzhu that paid tribute to the Tang Dynasty, and these were the local states with names. There were even more secondary states that were not qualified to pay tribute, and those people could only pay tribute to the kingdom.

The current Emperor of the Tang Dynasty is not someone to whom just anyone can pay tribute.

Wherever the Tang army went, Luo's Money House would be opened there.

The expeditionary force certainly could not be composed of government soldiers, and the ever-expanding Tang army eventually resorted to the inevitable recruitment system.

These armies that are dedicated to fighting have stronger combat effectiveness and almost no need to go home. Money and glory are all they have, and the whole world is their home is their motto.

Paper money appeared in almost every corner along with the footsteps of the Tang Dynasty soldiers. A large number of merchants relied entirely on the soldiers for their survival, and every day when military salaries were paid was the most prosperous day.

Merchants traveled around the Central Plains and the surrounding vassal states. Straight roads were built into the distance, and post stations for travelers to rest appeared on both sides of the road.

Although the central government did not mobilize troops against India, it provided full support in all aspects except the army, especially in terms of money. The expenditure of the central government alone was as high as 300 million strings of cash. It can be said that the military expenditure was wasteful.

All this changed after news came from the State of Song.

A son of the previous King of Song, who according to the regulations of the Tang Dynasty was the Duke of the Kingdom, actually committed suicide.

Suicide was not a particularly big event. Although he was born into wealth, such things were not particularly uncommon in powerful families.

What really confused the imperial court was the tearful letter submitted by the wife of the Duke.

This blood letter revealed the secrets of the Song State.

The Duke actually couldn't pay off his debts, so he even sold his house. The more he thought about it, the angrier he got, and finally he committed suicide out of shame.

A Duke could not pay off his debts, and most importantly, he was forced to commit suicide. This is a unique case in the Tang Dynasty.

The current Li family can be said to be the most powerful royal family since the establishment of the royal family. From Persia to Penglai, from faraway Eastern Europe to the northern desert, and then to Central and South China, there are relatives of the Li family everywhere.

The Luo family has not yet become unrivaled in the world because there are too many relatives in the Li family and their combined power is too strong.

Even if the Duke cannot repay his debts, he will not be forced to death.

The whole story of this matter was clearly written in the letter from the Duke's wife.

What happened in the Song State over the past few decades has finally been exposed.

In fact, the imperial court had always felt that something was wrong with the State of Song. After all, the imperial court did not send a lot of resources there, but the development of the State of Song was much stronger than that of the State of Chu, which was obviously wrong.

But after a closer look at the configuration south of the Yangtze River, the court no longer paid attention to it.

Can't change the world.

Penglai, the Western Regions, Central Asia, and West Asia, these are the real battlefields.

In fact, the Tang Dynasty never took the south seriously, whether it was Central and Southern China or India. It regarded it as a place that would be dealt with after dealing with other areas.

This has been the political status of the South since ancient times.

Taiping and Luo Qianqiu's requirements for the areas south of the Yangtze River are to carry out cultural exchanges and pay taxes on time. These things have been done very well over the years, which is in line with the Central Plains' long-standing impression of Jiangnan and Lingnan.

No one had expected that the incident in Zhongnan would cause such a big mess.

The affairs between the Jiangnan gentry, the Guangdong and Guangxi dignitaries, the Annan Jiedushi's office, the Yunnan and Guizhou princes and nobles, and the princes and nobles of the Central and Southern Song Dynasty were all exposed.

After fifty years of development, the situation here is different from what Luo Su saw at the beginning.

At first, Luo Su thought that King Song would be able to take back power sooner or later, but that was not the case. The same power would have different meanings in different hands.

The King of Song had a bad character, and neither did his successor. Two generations had failed to take the power back, and now, with the fifth generation of King Song, the power really cannot be taken back.

That's right.

Sixth generation.

Perhaps because the environment was still bad, the Song kings did not live long. The first generation Song kings were of the same generation as Li Zhi, Li Shengyi was only the third generation, and the Song kings are now the sixth generation, a twelve-year-old kid.

The current Song State has basically achieved an offline monarchy system.

It doesn't matter whether there is a King of Song or not. From beginning to end, from the government office to the merchants outside, including the army, there are basically no confidants of King Song, but rather a group formed by the powerful and wealthy merchants below, and a series of intermarriages.

The status of King Song is still quite honorable. After all, if the title of King Song is lost, the court will have to send a new King Song, which is something no one wants to see.

But the lineage of King Song has completely lost the power of the monarch.

In everyone's eyes, the current King of Song is just a noble like them. To a certain extent, the nobles of Song have a strong sense of ownership and they really regard Song as their own.

After all, almost every family has a large amount of forestry and mining, land tenants, and silk production workshops. They intermarry with each other and hold shares in each other. This is still one of the few regions that have their own money.

The Song Dynasty's lineage perfectly embodies what it means for power to flow from the bottom up.

The reason why the King of Song lost power was not simply because he had no confidants or loyal ministers, but because of changes in people's hearts. Among the powerful people in Song, an idea that was very unorthodox towards the Central Plains emerged.

That is - "This is our Song Kingdom, not the King of Song alone."

The huge profits make all the powerful people defend it fiercely.

The most important thing is safety.

The nobles of Song found that they were much safer when the King of Song did not have such great power.

The era of the aristocratic families in the Central Plains seemed to have returned again, and they had learned their lessons. They no longer engaged in empty talk, but actually went deep into the army and all aspects of life, training their children so that they could take on important responsibilities and prevent the rapid decline of their families.

The emergence of this kind of thinking was fatal to the power structure of King Song.

Once the King of Song gains a little more power, all the families will work together to defeat the King of Song first. When the King of Song's power weakens, they will work together to restore the King of Song's strength.

Finally, by the time of the previous generation of King Song, King Song had completely become an ordinary noble, and the relationship between those nobles and King Song had basically nothing to do with the relationship between the monarch and his subjects.

The King of Song did not dare to report this matter to the court.

No matter what the final result is, King Song will not end up well, and his position as the number one is still well-deserved. In this case, there is no need to destroy this system.

To a certain extent, in order to prevent the King of Song from gaining military power and launching a counterattack, other powerful people sent their own sons to the battlefield. This made the King of Song's lineage more prosperous, and basically no one died on the battlefield.

This may be considered a blessing in disguise.

The State of Song already had the flavor of the aristocratic republic of Rome in the West.

……

When these things spread to Luoyang, Li Shengyi was stunned. Even the knowledgeable Luo Shengxi was a little confused.

If this incident had not happened in Song State, but in any country in Central Asia or West Asia, Li Shengyi and Luo Shengxi would not have been so surprised.

After so many years of exchanges, the Tang Dynasty has a relatively good understanding of Rome's somewhat strange history and system.

The official name of the Roman Empire was the Senate and the Roman People. Previous emperors were elected, and later emperors were inherited by blood, but it was not a strict system of primogeniture. In theory, any citizen of the Roman Empire was qualified to become Roman emperor, and the new emperor basically would not liquidate the old royal family because Rome did not have a patriarchal system.

Very strange.

But it seems reasonable when put on Rome.

It would be reasonable if the State of Song appeared in an area close to Rome.

But Central and Southern China have nothing to do with Rome, and the books from Rome were never passed on, so how could such a strange system come about?

and.

The system of the Song Dynasty was extremely rubbish in every aspect and was a step backward in history. It could neither guarantee the stability of the regime nor completely abandon the current system of the Tang Dynasty.

"Axi, what do you think we should do?"

Luo Shengxi knew Li Shengyi too well. When he heard the tone of his words, he knew that his brother had already made up his mind to kill, and he himself also made up his mind to kill.

But Luo Shengxi thought about it and said softly: "Royal brother, it's not easy to kill."

Li Shengyi certainly knew that it was not easy to kill him.

The State of Song is different from the original Penglai. Penglai is isolated overseas, which is both an advantage and a disadvantage.

The advantage is of course that it can keep the enemy out and maintain a certain degree of independence. It is difficult for the Central Plains to detect any news about Penglai. An open-air gold mine with such a large reserve can be hidden for so many years. You can imagine how secretive Penglai is. Many people who have committed crimes in the Central Plains have fled to Penglai and waited for amnesty before coming back.

But its disadvantage is that it is too independent and not closely connected with the Central Plains. Once something really happens, it can only confront it head-on. The court's war against Penglai can proceed so smoothly because it is a war between two interest groups. The court, whether it is officials or nobles, wants to destroy Penglai and plunder its interests.

The situation was different in the State of Song.

Although the Duke's wife only mentioned it briefly in the letter because she had limited access to information, it is still terrifying when you think about it carefully.

How many families south of the Yangtze River are involved in this? What are the identities of these families? Do they simply contribute money, or do they have family members or hidden households joining the army in the State of Song, and even become powerful people in the State of Song.

To what extent has the collusion gone on?

  If the imperial court continues to investigate, should they bring the army with them? Can the logistics pass smoothly south of the Yangtze River? If the Song State resists, how should they fight this war?

There was no way to transport food and grass by land. The journey was too long and there were too many mountains. With the strength of the Song State, it would require at least 200,000 troops, and food and grass could only be transported by sea. But if they went by sea, there would be even bigger problems. Would they have to land and fight again?

Thinking of this, Li Shengyi rubbed his head and suddenly asked: "Axi, if the country west of the Pamir Mountains rebels, can I quell it?"

Luo Shengxi was stunned. What a good question.

"Once is fine."

"Twice is barely enough."

"Three times it was suggested that the land be abandoned directly."

"It is not worth it to mess up China because of a remote country."

Luo Shengxi spoke out the cruelest reality in plain words, that is, although the territory of the Tang Dynasty is vast, it now mainly relies on ruling means, through economic means, political organizational structure, imperial reputation, close relatives, and the Tang Dynasty expeditionary force to maintain its rule.

If it were not for the paper money and money banks we have today, and if the Tang Dynasty still followed the previous method of collecting taxes in kind, it would not even be able to collect taxes. Now at least part of the taxes can be collected.

"The prefectures and counties directly under the jurisdiction of the Tang Dynasty are the extreme points where the imperial court can balance its revenue and expenditure. To the west is the Pamir Mountains, to the east is the Jizi Peninsula, to the north is Liaodong and Mo Nan, and to the south is the Han Jiaozhou.

Although I really hope that the Tang Dynasty can directly govern more land, I have to admit that this is the reality. The Tang Dynasty is currently expanding its territory only because it is worried that other ethnic groups will become powerful in the future. "

Some of the words do sound unpleasant, but they are facts, facts that cannot be disputed.

Li Sheng's eyes lit up when he heard this, "That is to say, at least part of the territory of Song State in the north can be directly governed by the imperial court."

Luo Shengxi nodded and shook his head and said, "Of course, we can. After all, once we reach Lingnan, there is fertile land to the south. It would be a joke to say that we cannot rule it.

But the Han people must be relocated there.

Once a piece of land is filled with Han people, the probability of the central court ruling it will directly increase by at least half. Bingzhou and Yizhou are both natural places for separatism, but every time the world is unified, they have never succeeded in separatism, because they are all Han people. "

Li Shengyi understood what Luo Shengxi said, and said thoughtfully: "Axi, what you mean is that when dealing with those people from Song State, don't be hasty, do it step by step, don't think about killing them indiscriminately and then end it, but take it step by step."

Luo Shengxi nodded and sighed, "Directly using force will only lead to a full-scale confrontation between the Song State and the imperial court. By that time, we will have to recruit civilians and food from Jiangnan and other places, and there may be some other matters. It is really inappropriate to act rashly when we are not sure about the enemy and ourselves.

Besides, no matter how much harm the Song nobles did, they were just paying back their debts, which was only natural. They were not rebelling. They were just trying to seize power. In fact, this was the case in West Asia and Central Asia, but it was only the nobles who took the initiative in Song. "

Repaying debts is justified.

This is the thing that gives Li Shengyi a headache the most. Judging from the consequences, the powerful people in Song State should have died a thousand times. However, this matter is a typical case of a fly not biting an egg without a crack. The root cause is that there is something wrong with the King of Song.

If the imperial court intervenes now, the most they can do is charge you with contempt of the royal family. The King of Song was conferred by the Emperor, and to sideline the King of Song now is to contempt the Emperor, which is a crime of great disrespect.

But this is actually far-fetched.

Because there were so many people who were rude to members of the royal family, after this was extended, any official could say that he was appointed by the emperor and could start to make accusations.

"Once the imperial court knows about this, it should spread throughout the Song Kingdom very soon. Let's see how the Song Kingdom reacts then."

Li Shengyi finally decided to wait and see for the time being.

Luo Shengxi said goodbye to Li Shengyi.

When Luo Shengxi walked to the front of the palace gate, Li Shengyi looked at Luo Shengxi who was about to leave, and thought of those vassal states, and suddenly asked: "Axi, will the Luo family always stand on the side of me and the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty?"

Luo Shengxi paused, turned around and said, "Your Majesty, as long as the emperor is willing, the Luo family will always stand on the side of the emperor."

(End of this chapter)