Proclaiming Emperor (1)
The Four Great Clans of Wu (四姓) referred to the four prestigious houses that represented Wu Prefecture.
The Wu Prefecture Gu Clan.
The Wu Prefecture Zhang Clan.
The Wu Prefecture Zhu Clan.
The Wu Prefecture Lu Clan.
To revive Jiangdong, the help of its most influential local gentry was absolutely vital. That was why, as a conciliatory measure to win over Jiangdong's native powers, the four great clans had been brought in and entrusted with important positions.
"I have been hearing the Crown Prince's bulletins of victory all this time! Your war record is magnificent."
"You flatter me."
The head of the Wu Prefecture Lu Clan, Governor of Lujiang Lu Kang, had visited Wu Prefecture. Returning to his hometown with his niece after a long absence, Lu Kang laughed heartily and congratulated me on the string of victories.
He must have had a hard time assisting Father.
I paid proper respect to Lu Kang and answered his praise.
"The Crown Prince conquered Xu Province and annexed Jiangdong in a matter of moments. Moved by your great victories, the multitudes of the south now await the enthronement of a new emperor...! Even if only to deal an iron hammer to the arch-traitors who commit tyranny upon tyranny, is it not necessary to hurry the enthronement!"
"I take the Governor of Lujiang's point... but what does the Royal Father think of it?"
"Hmm, he still hesitates. It seems the Crown Prince will have to persuade him personally."
"I thought as much."
You cannot force the imperial throne on someone.
His own intention matters above all else.
Hesitating was only natural.
Was this not an enthronement that would proclaim a new dynasty succeeding the Han?
Liu Chong's character was originally easygoing and clean-handed, so his hesitation was bound to run deeper still.
"Then the Crown Prince should ascend as the new emperor of the Han. If His Highness the King of Chen defers to the very end, could we not serve him as the Retired Emperor?"
"That is not possible. The man the southern people revere for his benevolence is the Royal Father."
I was a figure who embodied the martial (武).
The person who must ascend as the new emperor was rightly Liu Chong, who embodied virtue (德).
King of Chen Liu Chong.
The people revered Liu Chong as a sage-king.
Moreover, Liu Chong possessed the dramatic symbolism of a vassal king who had risen by treading through a chaotic era.
'A founding monarch who establishes a new dynasty does not necessarily have to be a war hero himself. Tang Gaozu Li Yuan also rose to the throne with the help of his second son, Li Shimin... Above all, what matters are the justification of the transfer and its legitimacy.'
Even if you fight dozens of battles and win them all, if you fail to grasp the hearts of the people, you will collapse someday.
Besides, I had already promised that we would recommend Liu Chong as the new emperor.
"Understood. I shall persuade His Highness the King of Chen once more."
"If the local gentry of Xu Province and Jiangdong unite and jointly memorialize for the King to ascend, then in the end the Royal Father will have no choice but to accept, will he not? The Xu Province gentry have already sworn their loyalty... so today I will persuade all the Jiangdong gentry and gather a consensus."
"A wise judgment. Our Wu Prefecture Lu Clan will also assist."
"Thank you."
My niece will assist the Crown Prince.
No sooner had he finished speaking than a maiden in her early teens, her platinum-blonde hair flowing, arrived.
* * *
Lu Xun.
A daughter of the Wu Prefecture Lu Clan.
Governor of Lujiang Lu Kang's niece.
The girl who had been little more than a sniffling child had grown up quite maturely.
Though she was still only twelve.
Platinum-blonde hair lovely as a flower bud.
Blue eyes that held the glint of a crystalline sea.
And a self-assured smile that proved her noble grace and intelligence, all together.
Was it about time I started calling her "young lady"? The girl I had thought of only as a snot-nosed kid had begun to display the mien of a high-born young woman as she started growing up.
"You'll absolutely need me if you're going to persuade the Wu Prefecture gentry! That's why I volunteered!"
"Thank you."
A girl born with the qualities of a wise chancellor.
I decided to meet the gentry together with Lu Xun.
The Wu Prefecture Gu Clan.
First I sent word ahead to Gu Yong, the head of the Wu Prefecture Gu Clan.
"A minor official of Wu Prefecture seeks an audience with the Crown Prince who has pacified Jiangdong. Pray forgive this official's discourtesy in not paying his respects sooner, after the Crown Prince had already wholly pacified Jiangdong."
"It is I who should have sent word first. I am honored to meet a worthy man of Wu."
Gu Yong was a scholar who had been taught by Cai Yong, a celebrated Palace Attendant who represented the Pure Stream Faction. And because he was the finest among Cai Yong's students, he enjoyed great prestige throughout Jiangdong.
The second Chancellor of Wu.
A great scholar famous for his taciturn and composed temperament.
A giant whom even Sun Quan—who turned into a lunatic whenever she drank—was uniquely wary around.
The man in his mid-thirties knelt respectfully and bowed his head.
To match his courtesy, I took a seat.
"May I ask what has brought Your Highness to this humble official?"
"The new emperor of Han will soon hold sway over the south. Lord Gu shall take charge of the new court."
Lord Gu (卿公).
I addressed him with a very respectful term.
Seeming deeply moved, Gu Yong gave an awkward laugh.
"You overpraise me. How could the Crown Prince, who has subjugated the south, seek to make a mere common fellow his chancellor? It is overwhelming; I scarcely know what to do with myself. I am no more than a Confucian scholar who loves learning."
"Even Jiang Taigong, the foremost of great chancellors, was a mere commoner before King Wen of Zhou discovered him, and even Guan Yiwu would not have left a peerless reputation had Duke Huan of Qi not recognized his true quality. Will a man live as a common fellow in a backwater village, or go down as a great chancellor who represents an era of good governance? Is that not decided by how he embraces a golden opportunity?"
No one ever began as a great chancellor.
Hadn't even Jiang Taigong, the standard-bearer of great chancellors, drifted about penniless past the age of seventy?
A reign is not built alone.
The sovereign and his ministers unite in purpose and together achieve good governance.
I hope that capable chancellors who can assist the new emperor will create an era of peace. When Gu Yong heard my sincere reply, he nodded slightly in return.
"I am told that the worthy man of Danyang Prefecture has also answered the Crown Prince's call. How can I, of all people, refuse such exceptional grace bestowed by Your Highness? I, Gu Yong, will spare no effort, as a loyal dog or horse, for His Majesty the Emperor and for His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince. It is an honor to be able to assist the new realm!"
"No, the honor is mine, in bringing in Lord Gu. From now on, assist my Royal Father."
If I had proposed usurpation to a loyal, righteous officer who valued the lineage and authority of the Han Imperial House and its court, he would have resisted at the risk of his own life. But Gu Yong—who had assisted the ambitious Sun Quan, just as Lu Su had—showed a disposition that first prioritized the relief of the people who suffered under tyranny and oppression.
Gu Yong had decided to join.
It would be nice if the other local gentry fell in line this smoothly too.
With that thought, I responded in kind to Gu Yong, who was quietly paying his respects.
"The young lady and the Wu Prefecture Lu Clan have been assisting His Highness the King of Chen since long ago. It was indeed a wise decision. This foolish and benighted official has only now caught sight of the light that will illuminate a chaotic age."
"Heh heh! Because my excellent acumen is never wrong."
Puffing up.
The platinum-haired girl spoke with her arms crossed.
Gu Yong smiled contentedly, as if looking at his own daughter.
"The new realm is not far off. I am honored to join this great cause."
"Yes, it is truly fortunate. It was the last carriage, you see. Uncle has grasped the fortune of Heaven. Once His Highness the King of Chen declares his enthronement... those who dithered over profit and loss and joined late will be treated as a motley crowd."
To a man floundering in the water, a rope is more precious than a thousand pieces of gold. To a man who has already climbed out, the rope is just an old piece of junk.
With any choice, timing is what matters.
Just as even a wise choice becomes a worthless burden if you miss the moment.
If you fail to catch the new current, you are naturally weeded out. That was why Lu Xun wanted the local gentry of her home region to hurry and join the new emperor's rule.
"Next is the Wu Prefecture Zhang Clan and the Wu Prefecture Zhu Clan."
"They'll all readily accept. Elder Gu Yong, the senior figure of Wu Prefecture, has already promised to join, hasn't he? Normally, subordinates follow a senior's decision with total unanimity."
"I heard the enthronement ceremony preparations are proceeding like a knife through bamboo... I can't help feeling uneasy. I need to return to Chen Kingdom as fast as I can and check the situation."
"Not just the enthronement ceremony for the emperor—you must also prepare for the imperial crown prince's investiture."
Imperial Crown Prince.
From the crown prince of a feudal kingdom to the crown prince of an empire.
It was an uncommon case.
Because it was an exceedingly rare thing in any age or country.
Just as Gu Yong had respectfully addressed Liu Chong as "His Majesty the Emperor" and me as "His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince," the emergence of a new emperor was a settled fact. Had not the southern rebels who seized the Imperial Jade Seal now swept the south?
"The things I have to do are piled up like a mountain."
"I already feel daunted myself. I'm about to be chosen as the Imperial Crown Princess Consort..."
"Imperial Crown Princess Consort? You're worrying over nothing—you're only twelve this year."
"I'll grow fast! I'll grow up into a peerless beauty, just you watch!"
The selection of the Imperial Crown Princess Consort would, of course, be complicated too.
But there was one urgent problem I had to address, putting everything else aside.
"Who in the world should be invested as Empress? The Royal Father has over twenty consorts, but... there can't be any woman fit to be invested as Mother of the Nation of a new dynasty. This isn't like picking a village headman; we can't just draw lots."
"I'm not sure. It's too difficult a matter for a hasty judgment."
The Emperor was the Father of the Nation, and the Empress was the Mother of the Nation.
Not investing an Empress was no different from making one's children, the people, a single-parent family. What's more, if no Empress was established, there was a risk that the justification and legitimacy of the dynastic transition itself would be undermined.