gnovel Chapter 21 Chenqiao Mutiny
Chapter 21 Chenqiao Mutiny
The second day of the Lunar New Year, Chenqiao Post Station.
"We are without a ruler; we beg the Grand Commandant to become emperor!"
"We are without a ruler; we beg the Grand Commandant to become emperor!"
All the soldiers played along with Zhao Kuangyin.
During the Five Dynasties period, the act of donning the yellow robe occurred more than a dozen times, and most of the time it was very hasty, simply involving tearing down a batch of banners and flags and that was it.
Some were even more hasty, like Shi Jingtang, who simply had everyone surround him while he was hunting, kneel down and shout "Long live the Emperor!"
However, Zhao Kuangyin was different. By this time, Chai Rong had been dead for half a year, so everyone was prepared the most and actually brought out a yellow robe, which made it seem as if he had planned it all along.
"What are you doing! What are you doing! You're trying to frame me!!!"
"Brother! He who eliminates the scourge of the world shall enjoy its blessings; he who saves the world from its peril shall reap its peace! In the Great Zhou Dynasty, only you, brother, can eliminate the scourge and save the world from its peril."
"Elder Brother's merits are evident, the people are devoted to him, and the will of Heaven and Man has already been fulfilled. He should be the ruler of the world, to bring peace to the four seas!!"
Zhao Guangyi loudly repeated what Wang Lu had said that day in front of everyone.
"Shut up! If you say another word and implicate me in disloyalty and injustice, I'll go deaf myself."
Zhao Pu chimed in, "Lord, the dragon is a symbol of the emperor."
In fact, given how things have come to this point, everyone knows that Zhao Kuangyin is destined to become emperor; he has no choice but to accept it.
In fact, Zhao Kuangyin was quite passive during these six months. If he had really been scheming, he wouldn't have been able to drag it out until now. During the Five Dynasties period, there was never a time when the country was without a ruler for as long as six months.
What is happening now is just a play. Once the act of being forced to wear the imperial robe begins, it never stops, and you are not allowed to refuse. Those who refuse die a terrible death. For example, Shi Jingtang and Fu Yanqing's second brother, Fu Yanrao, both refused to be forced to wear the imperial robe.
When Shi Jingtang was forced to wear the yellow robe, he berated his personal guards and pledged his loyalty to the court. After that, he and Li Congke were irreconcilable enemies until Li Congke sent troops to attack him, forcing him to cede Yan and Yun and establish the Later Jin Dynasty.
Fu Yanrao was even more ruthless. In order to show his loyalty, he arranged for executioners to kill all the personal guards who had given him the yellow robe, thinking that this would gain the trust of the court. But... anyway, he died a terrible death in the end, so it would have been better to rebel.
Therefore, from then on, there was no option to refuse this thing.
Li Shouzhen, the father of the ex-husband of Empress Dafu, was suddenly forced to wear a yellow robe while on patrol. Knowing that he could not win the rebellion, he still rebelled. The Later Han court sent General Guo Wei to quell the rebellion and killed his entire family.
Then, when Guo Wei returned to the capital in triumph, he learned that his entire family had also died. He then donned the yellow robe and established the Great Zhou Dynasty.
Fu Yanqing's absolute refusal to bring the Tianxiong Army to the capital was probably related to this: Fu Yanran was his second elder brother, Li Shouzhen was his in-law, Shi Jingtang was his former superior, and Guo Wei was his sworn brother.
All four of them were forced to wear the imperial yellow robe, but did any of them have a good ending? Guo Wei's Great Zhou Dynasty is now on the verge of collapse.
He's already 65 this year, what's the point of all this fuss?
The so-called "yellow robe bestowed upon one's head" incident, where the person being bestowed the title was undoubtedly the one who had planned it all along and was overjoyed, was actually completely nonexistent during the Five Dynasties period.
During the Five Dynasties period, the position of Jiedushi (military governor) was almost hereditary, and there was not much difference between them and local emperors. However, if you became emperor, your whole family might really die.
Seeing that Zhao Kuangyin was still putting on an act, the group of personal guards simply drew their knives: "Brothers, you've done such a thing. If the Grand Commandant insists on being a loyal subject of the Great Zhou, where does that leave us?"
Zhao Kuangyin sighed and then fell silent, letting himself be manipulated. After that, the Khitan stopped fighting and returned to the capital to attack Kaifeng.
But calling it an attack was more like taking over. Zhao Kuangyin found a young man he thought highly of named Pan Mei and sent him back to tell the Empress Dowager that he had rebelled.
If the imperial court had even the slightest thought of resistance, Pan Mei would have been killed without a burial place.
Then Pan Mei actually went. Historically, when Empress Dowager Fu learned of this news, she didn't even wait for Zhao Kuangyin to enter the capital. In front of Pan Mei, she immediately stripped her nephew of his dragon robe, threw it away, and got up to leave.
It really doesn't take any effort at all.
This time, however, Zhao Kuangyin stopped Pan Mei and gave him further instructions: "After sending the message, summon Shi Shouxin to Tongjifang to protect the brick and tile workshops there, especially those two, the big one and the small one."
The older one is called Wang Jun, and the younger one is called Wang Lu. Bring them to my family and entrust them to Shi Shouxin's personal protection. Under no circumstances should the mutinous soldiers harm them.
He then instructed Wang Yansheng, who was to be the vanguard and enter the city first, "This time, Han Tong may rise up in rebellion, but he doesn't have many soldiers at all, and I doubt many people will truly be willing to follow him."
Try your best to capture him alive, but don't kill him, and especially don't harm his family. This man is a loyal and righteous one.
"Yes," Wang Yansheng said, clasping his hands in greeting.
Meanwhile, Pan Mei returned to Kaifeng and, with just a few words, persuaded the Empress Dowager to abdicate. He went out to find the Wang family father and son as instructed, but he couldn't find them no matter how hard he looked. Moreover, the brick and tile factory in Tongjifang really didn't need his concern.
The local people had already surrounded the area like an iron barrel, and spontaneously came to help. The guards and soldiers of the Imperial Guard who had not yet sent troops, as well as a large number of military dependents, had also taken various weapons to guard the area.
They certainly couldn't withstand an attack from a regular army, but if it's just some rabble, hooligans, ruffians, and wandering knights, they'd be asking for death if they came.
But where are Wang Jun and his son Wang Lu? Upon asking, it was learned that the two of them were with Han Tong at the moment, but Han Tong's whereabouts were unknown, probably at the Imperial Guard Command.
Pan Mei hurriedly ran to the Imperial Guard Command, only to find it deserted, with not a single soldier left. Upon inquiring, she learned that the remaining troops had all been transferred away by Han Tong.
Just then, Wang Yansheng led a vanguard team in, and Pan Mei quickly went to ask, "Has the Palace Guard been there?"
"The Grand Commandant ordered me to return and take control of the Imperial Guard Command first."
"The Imperial Guard Command is empty."
Suddenly, another soldier ran up shouting, "Something terrible has happened! Han Tong is leading his remaining retainers to attack Dingli Temple, intending to capture the Inspector's family as hostages!"
"What?!"
Dingli Temple was a royal temple. Before leaving the capital, Zhao Kuangyin specially arranged for his family to stay here and also assigned Shi Shouxin to protect them personally.
Wang Yansheng was furious and immediately rode off. Pan Mei quickly grabbed his arm and said, "Don't be impulsive. The Grand Commandant has ordered that Han Tong's life be spared as much as possible. He also has a son-in-law and a grandson, and it was specifically stated that they should be kept alive."
"Who cares about the living or the dead at a time like this? The Grand Commandant's family is all at the Dingli Academy; protecting them is the most important thing!!"
"Hey, you, you wait a minute."
Wang Yansheng took the lead, with Pan Mei close behind.
Then they were at the entrance of Dingli Academy.
Then Wang Jun pinned Han Tong to the ground with a capture move and shouted, "Don't move! The world is without a ruler! The Grand Commandant's merits are evident, and the people are devoted to him. Heaven and man have already chosen him, and he should be the ruler of the world to bring peace to the four seas! Are you all defying Heaven by taking up arms?"
Pan Mei and Wang Yansheng exchanged a glance.
[This sounds so familiar, like I just heard it at Chenqiao Post Station.]