Chapter 140
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
After sending out the letters, Jia Qing, still nursing his injuries, once again tried to dissuade Wu Shanshi.
His words were harsh and unappealing. After numerous attempts, Wu Shanshi’s anger reached its limit, and he ordered Jia Qing to be thrown into prison.
With Jia Qing locked away, there were no more dissenting voices among his subordinates.
The advisors who truly cared for Wu Shanshi felt a chill in their hearts.
Few would be as rigid as Jia Qing; most knew the importance of being prudent to preserve their own safety. Gradually, the clever and cautious advisors fell silent, while the sycophants and flatterers increased in number.
The once highly regarded ruler, Wu Shanshi, found himself irreparably estranged from his ministers.
One month later, the letters sent by Wu Shanshi to Yanzhou and Qingzhou eventually fell into the hands of Yuan Li.
Yuan Li was inspecting the Liangliao Institution when he received the letters. After reading them, he chuckled and turned to Zhao Ying, saying, “Zhou Gongdan is truly cunning.”
Zhao Ying couldn’t agree more. Besides the master and Chu Hechao, the last person they should offend was this Zhou Gongdan.
Yuan Li was in a cheerful mood. He smiled widely, ordered a brazier to be brought in, and burned the letters, murmuring, “Wu Shanshi is finally taking this step.”
Wu Shanshi was finally planning to declare himself emperor.
Perhaps Wu Shanshi would never know how much effort Yuan Li had put in behind the scenes for this day to come, and how much he longed for it.
Now, he finally had the chance to reap the rewards of his efforts.
With a smile on his lips, Yuan Li instructed, “Prepare gold, silver, and jewels, and send them in two separate routes from Qingzhou and Yanzhou to Jizhou. Make sure that Wu Shanshi believes these treasures are gifts from the governors.”
During the two months of waiting for Che Kangbo and Hui Zizhen’s responses, Wu Shanshi endured great difficulties.
He anxiously awaited the replies from his prospective allies, eager for their support.
Finally, in August, the replies from Qingzhou and Yanzhou arrived.
The two provinces did not send any written messages or letters, but they delivered boxes filled with gold, silver, and jewels. There were also many tribute gifts for the imperial court.
Seeing these riches, Wu Shanshi understood their meaning perfectly.
Overjoyed, and not wanting to disappoint his allies’ expectations, as well as satisfying his innermost desires, Wu Shanshi immediately decided to ascend the throne in mid-October.
He couldn’t wait any longer.
On the 20th of September, the third year of Zhouyan, the sky was cloudless.
Wu Shanshi donned the imperial dragon robe and held a grand coronation ceremony. He visited the local nobles in Jizhou and invited various scholars to witness his ascension. At noon that day, Wu Shanshi read the edict and officially declared himself emperor.
He proclaimed his imperial reign with great pomp and ceremony.
The imperial edict was written in a stern and righteous manner: “Emperor Zhouyan, devoid of virtue, has led to the division of the thirteen provinces, plunging the land into chaos and warfare for years. The people are displaced, suffering from hunger and cold, while Emperor Zhouyan indulges in pleasures without caring for their hardships. My heart aches for them. Now that I have received the will of Heaven, I can become the ruler. As Emperor, I will quell the flames of war, alleviate the suffering of the people, and rescue the common people from calamity and peril.”
This speech was eloquent, and after that, Wu Shanshi couldn’t wait to change Jizhou to Zhao Country and adopt the era name “Chu Kang.” He ordered all officials in the Zhao Country to address him as the Emperor, and the people of Zhao to use “Chu Kang” as the orthodox era name.
Then, Wu Shanshi began to lavish his followers and family with honors and titles.
He bestowed the title of Empress Dowager on his mother, Lady Lin, and the title of Empress on his wife, Lady Lu. Each concubine was granted the title of consort, and his sons and daughters were given the titles of imperial prince and princess. After that, he ennobled his subordinates as civil and military officials.
After ascending the throne, Wu Shanshi’s days were filled with excitement and joy. The only regret was that Zhou Gongdan caught a cold and was unable to witness his coronation or accept the rewards bestowed upon him in front of everyone.
Zhou Gongdan was Wu Shanshi’s great contributor, and he believed that half of his success in becoming emperor was due to Zhou Gongdan.
Wu Shanshi specifically reserved the position of the chief minister for Zhou Gongdan, planning to reward him later when he recovered from his illness, to show his appreciation for Zhou Gongdan’s importance.
After lavishing his own people with titles and rewards, Wu Shanshi did not forget to reward his supporting allies.
Moved, he wrote imperial edicts and sent numerous gold, silver, and jewels to Qingzhou and Yanzhou. He generously granted Hui Zizhen and Che Kangbo the title of Grand General of Zhao, putting them on the same level as Chu Hechao and Yan Hui, both ranking above ten thousand stones.
Wu Shanshi spared no expense in trying to win them over.
The matter of Wu Shanshi proclaiming himself emperor in Jizhou was undoubtedly impossible to conceal. It quickly spread like a tsunami, causing an uproar throughout the entire country, as if a drop of water had fallen into boiling oil.
Wu Shanshi proclaimed himself emperor?
He actually dared to take such an audacious step and declare himself emperor?
How dare he!
Countless proclamations and angry outbursts flooded in from all corners of the country, and the various warlords were stirred up. Not only did they condemn Wu Shanshi, but they also berated Hui Zizhen and Che Kangbo together.
Indeed, these two individuals were no different from Wu Shanshi; they were playing the same game! They were clearly usurping the throne!
If it were only Wu Shanshi alone, the warlords would have already started to take action. But now, both Qingzhou and Yanzhou were onboard the treacherous ship of Wu Shanshi. With three provinces combined, even if two of them were worthless, the warlords were powerless to resist.
Two people were even more perplexed than anyone else – Hui Zizhen and Che Kangbo.
These two men were dumbfounded, completely unaware of what Wu Shanshi meant.
Once you proclaim yourself emperor, you proclaim yourself emperor! Why are you dragging me into this mess? Why should I be appointed as a Grand General? What have I done to offend you?
Che Kangbo and Hui Zizhen were almost driven crazy by Wu Shanshi’s actions. They had no idea why he sent them gold, silver, jewels, and imperial edicts. In order to distance themselves from him, they unhesitatingly refused his “appointments” and made it clear that they had no knowledge of Wu Shanshi’s self-proclamation as emperor.
Even when Yuan Li was just watching the commotion, he could read from their articles a line of dense words: If you want to die, then die, but don’t drag us down with you!
However, in the eyes of the world, their words seemed hypocritical, and nobody believed that they had no connection with Wu Shanshi’s self-proclamation as emperor.
Wu Shanshi was not a fool. If he didn’t have their support, would he dare to proclaim himself emperor so openly?
If they really didn’t know anything, then why did Wu Shanshi choose to appoint only them and no one else? And why did he appoint them as Grand Generals?
No one believed Che Kangbo and Hui Zizhen’s words, not even Wu Shanshi himself. He thought they were just following the customary three rejections before accepting, which he understood. He didn’t mind and warmly appointed his allies once again.
This action only made people more convinced that the three of them were absolute allies, and the previous clarifications from Qingzhou and Yanzhou were now considered mere playacting.
Hui Zizhen and Che Kangbo were infuriated and felt pain in every fiber of their being. They wanted to lead troops into battle immediately, but the two of them had no personal connection. So far, they each believed the other to be the one who was swayed by Wu Shanshi, and they themselves were just innocent victims.
Therefore, they were worried that if they led troops to attack Wu Shanshi, what if their own forces were ambushed by Wu Shanshi’s allies?
Because of these doubts, they could only use feeble language to defend their innocence and once again refuse Wu Shanshi’s appointments.
They knew that mere words would not convince the world, but they had no other choice. They were waiting for news from Chu Hechao and Yuan Li.
The only threat to Wu Shanshi in the north was Youzhou, and Che Kangbo and Hui Zizhen were not worried that Youzhou would not send troops. After all, Chu Hechao and Yuan Li were loyal individuals who killed the traitor Li Li and were recognized as excellent generals and scholars by the world. They were loyal to the Emperor, and they would never tolerate Wu Shanshi’s usurpation of the throne. Once Youzhou sent troops, they planned to follow suit and use that to prove their innocence.
With this plan in mind, the two of them remained inactive in agreement.
However, they waited for two months, and then another two months, but there was no sign of action from Youzhou, as if they had not received any news of Jizhou declaring itself as Zhao Country. Time passed slowly, and before they knew it, it was deep winter, a season when they could not possibly launch a military campaign.
Youzhou’s lack of response surprised Wu Shanshi as well.
He became even more convinced that he was the “Heaven-chosen Emperor.” If it weren’t for the help of Heaven, why would Youzhou still not come to attack him?
In high spirits, Wu Shanshi went to visit Zhou Gongdan in person.
Zhou Gongdan had caught a cold since Wu Shanshi’s enthronement, but instead of improving, his condition worsened with time. Now he was bedridden, and Wu Shanshi felt worried and agitated, fearing that Zhou Gongdan might not survive this winter.
During Zhou Gongdan’s illness, Wu Shanshi promoted a few eloquent strategists. Although these strategists were not as capable as Zhou Gongdan, they kept praising Wu Shanshi, “Long Live Your Majesty,” which pleased him greatly. In a short period, they earned Wu Shanshi’s favor.
Because they feared Zhou Gongdan’s intelligence and status, they were afraid that once Zhou Gongdan recovered, he might steal away Wu Shanshi’s favor. These sweet-tongued but venomous strategists spoke ill of Zhou Gongdan in Wu Shanshi’s ear, focusing on one simple point: Zhou Gongdan’s illness was ill-timed.
Indeed, it was ill-timed!
Wu Shanshi had just proclaimed himself emperor, and Zhou Gongdan fell ill. Moreover, his condition worsened, and it seemed he might die in bed. In the mouths of these strategists, Zhou Gongdan’s illness cast a shadow of ominousness over Wu Shanshi’s enthronement.
Initially, Wu Shanshi did not let this affect his regard for Zhou Gongdan, and he even reprimanded those who spoke ill of him. However, as similar words accumulated and Wu Shanshi visited Zhou Gongdan less often, a faint disfavor began to grow within him.
Indeed, why did Zhou Gongdan fall ill precisely at the time of his enthronement?
If he truly respected Wu Shanshi as his lord and rejoiced in his becoming the emperor, why didn’t he brave his illness to witness the moment of Wu Shanshi’s ascension?
It was inauspicious, indeed, truly inauspicious.
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
