Chapter 253: The New Emperor Is Crowned a Marquis, and the Reactions of All Parties

Just as the Minister of War Li Jingyu had expected, the emperor's edict to confer the title of Loyal and Brave Marquis to Lu Jiang, the vanguard commander of the southern expedition army, would surely cause a stir.

The first to react were the civil officials and military officers of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, headed by Wuning King Liu Xinwu.

After Chen Huaian proclaimed himself emperor in Jinling, the Wuning Palace in Changshan County became a gathering place for the old officials of the previous dynasty, and Liu Xinwu naturally became the backbone of this group of people.

The last time, the civil officials and military officers of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun gathered at the Wuning Palace, it was to let the new emperor Chen Huaian enthrone Princess Shujun as the empress of the new dynasty.

This time, as the emperor's edict to confer the title of Lu Jiang, the vanguard commander of the southern expedition army, was announced to the world, the civil officials and military officers of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun became restless again.

Even Liu Ziyu, the adopted son of Wuning King Liu Xinwu, who was supposed to be training soldiers in the army, took leave to return home and went to Wuning King's Mansion to complain.

In the study of the palace, Wuning King Liu Xinwu, Liu Ziyu, the deputy general of Longcheng Southern Expedition Army, and several civil officials and generals of the third rank and above in the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun sat down as host and guest.

The shrewd Wuning King Liu Xinwu was slowly and happily sipping the best West Lake Longjing tea.

He always had a smiling expression, and his true thoughts could not be seen at all.

As a representative of the second generation of generals of the previous dynasty of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, the deputy general Liu Ziyu, who was in his early thirties, seemed much more impatient.

He said angrily: "Father, you have seen the imperial edict that the emperor conferred the title of Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery on Lu Jiang, a surrendered general of the Liangjiang New Army, right?"

"Lu Jiang, a mere fourth-rank military officer, actually became the first general in the new dynasty to be conferred a title of marquis, just because he killed the Nanzhao Emperor Mu Rongfu in the Pyu Kingdom?"

Liu Ziyu said indignantly: "Father, I really feel unfair for you. Whether in terms of seniority or merit, you should be the first person in the new dynasty to be conferred a title of marquis and appointed as prime minister. Why should a little-known villain like Lu Jiang take the top spot?"

"In fact, the emperor was able to be a marquis in the land back then. My father made great contributions to the defeat of Zhao Gan at Mubao. Is this achievement not as good as Lu Jiang's killing of the self-proclaimed emperor Pingxi Wang in the Pyu Kingdom? "

After a pause, Liu Ziyu continued: "Also, the emperor has been reluctant to express his position on the matter of enthroning the empress of the new dynasty, and has completely ignored the letters and advice from the civil and military officials of the Sixteen States of Youyun. Does the emperor want to cross the river and burn the bridge? "

"Father..."

Liu Ziyu, who was born as a military officer, was quick to speak. In front of Wuning Wang Liu Xinwu and the civil and military officials of the Sixteen States of Youyun, he expressed his dissatisfaction with the new emperor Chen Huaian without hesitation.

With Liu Ziyu taking the lead, someone immediately agreed: "General Liu is right. In terms of seniority and military exploits, the one who should be bestowed with the title by the emperor, besides the prince, is General Liu;"

"If the general had not cleared a path in Wuzhou City, the emperor would not have been able to easily lead the special forces to attack thousands of miles away and set up an ambush in Tumubao to defeat Emperor Jian'an Zhao Gan;"

"After that, General Liu personally led a large army to capture Kaifeng Prefecture and made great contributions to the emperor's recovery of the territory north of the Yangtze River. No matter what, he should be on the list of the first batch of marquisates!"

Someone else said: "Not only the marquisate, but also the emperor's reconstruction of the six ministries. The officials of these six ministries are all former officials, and they are all southerners. There is not a single northerner in our Youyun Sixteen Prefectures in the entire six ministries;"

"But when the emperor was fighting for the country, our Youyun Sixteen Prefectures contributed the most. , give people when you want people, give money when you want money;"

As he said this, he also turned the topic to Wuning King Liu Xinwu, saying: "Prince, we all know that you are a man of high moral character and indifferent to fame and fortune-"

"But, Prince, you must point out a clear path for the descendants of our Youyun Sixteen States!"

"If there is no prince to support the younger generations of our Youyun Sixteen States in the new dynasty, within ten years, the entire Youyun Sixteen States will probably have difficulty in having a say in the court of the new dynasty!"

"Prince-"

Gradually, the core content of the conversation of these "united" Youyun Sixteen States civil and military officials also shifted from criticizing Lu Jiang for being named the Loyal and Brave Marquis to dissatisfaction with the new emperor Chen Huaian;

Some even directly hoped that Wuning King could represent the Youyun Sixteen States in politics and seek a certain right to speak for the younger generations of the Youyun Sixteen States in the court of the new dynasty.

Obviously, after the last time the civil officials and military officers of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun jointly wrote a letter to the new emperor Chen Huaian to enthrone Princess Shujun as the empress of the new dynasty, these civil officials and military officers left over from the previous dynasty did not give up;

They also wanted to take advantage of Chen Huaian's conferring the title of Marquis of Lujiang Zhongyong to continue to put pressure on the new emperor in order to seek more say for the interest groups of the civil officials and military officers of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun in the court of the new dynasty.

Under the system of feudal dynasties, such situations of a certain interest group or aristocratic family banding together for warmth are not uncommon, and the most prominent representative is the Li family in Guanlong area.

Even Zhu Yuanzhang, the Hongwu Emperor who "started with a bowl" later, had to face the pressure of Huaixi nobles after he ascended the throne.

At this time, the new emperor Chen Huaian would still face the same situation when governing the country.

This is also the reason why Chen Huaian wanted to promote the reform of the imperial examination. What he wanted to do was to break the monopoly of the aristocratic family on the recommendation of court officials, so that local officials in charge of one side would serve the imperial power rather than the aristocratic family.

The only difference is that Chen Huaian has 800,000 absolutely loyal private soldiers, which is enough to intimidate any interest group that wants to "force with force".

However, these aristocratic interest groups, which have existed for hundreds or thousands of years, are naturally unwilling to be manipulated by the new emperor Chen Huaian.

If the military method doesn't work, then try the literary method!

Therefore, the civil and military officials of the Sixteen States of Youyun once again prepared to write to Chen Huaian to seek more say in the new dynasty by taking advantage of the new emperor's title of nobility.

Regarding this matter, Liu Xinwu, the King of Wuning, who is the representative of the interest group of the Sixteen States of Youyun, is also in a wavering and ambiguous attitude at this time.

On the one hand, Liu Xinwu, who is already over 60 years old this year, is no longer as eager for fame and fortune as before;

On the other hand, he is worried about his only daughter, Princess Shujun. If he dies after a hundred years, his daughter Shujun will have to rely on the support of her uncles and brothers to gain a foothold in the harem of the new dynasty;

Even further consideration is the matter of the new dynasty's future establishment of the crown prince.

If there is no powerful interest group to support her, her daughter's life in the palace may not be easy.

If that happens, even if I go to the underworld, I will not be able to rest in peace!

Cough cough cough!

Finally, the main seat, Wuning King Liu Xinwu put down the teacup in his hand, and after a few dry coughs, the originally noisy study in the palace suddenly became quiet.

The civil and military officials of the Sixteen States of Youyun, led by Deputy General Liu Ziyu, all looked sideways with expectant eyes, and stared at the backbone of the Wuning King Liu Xinwu.

Liu Xinwu said calmly: "Everyone, the emperor has a reason for conferring the title of Loyalty and Bravery to the vanguard general Lu Jiang. This is a done deal, so why bother?"

"Besides, although the emperor has reorganized the six ministries, the new dynasty has not yet been established, and the emperor has not yet held the coronation ceremony and the Fengshan ceremony. Everything in the new court is still uncertain. Why are you so anxious?"

"But-"

As he said, Liu Xinwu changed the subject and said sternly: "Since you have already spoken out today, I will take your thoughts to Jinling City;"

"It can be regarded as reporting the public opinion to the emperor!"

"Finally, I still want to advise you that when it comes to the affairs of the new court and any decision made by the emperor, you must not make any comments. Do your part well and be a good parent official for the emperor!"

"Okay, this matter ends here, let's disperse!"