Chapter 985 Performance Art
Chapter 985 Performance Art (Part )
Now that we have come to this, let’s just leave it at that.
The staff stepped forward, helped Sima Rui up, and walked towards the carriage.
Soon, the sound of Sima Rui's wailing faded away with the carriage.
The military schools issued orders at the appropriate time, and the soldiers returned to their camps and were not allowed to move rashly.
After Sima Rui left, the shogunate officials also followed him.
Liu Wei walked at the back, sighed heavily, glanced at Wang Dao, looked unhappy, and left quickly.
Director Wang closed his eyes and stood in the cold wind.
There were no words, but the deep feeling of fatigue and powerlessness could not be shaken off.
"Father." Wang Yue came over and said, "Everyone should go back to the palace and persuade him to come in."
Director Wang hummed and remained standing there without moving.
Wang Yue accompanied him.
The father and son just looked at the military camp, river, forest and farmland not far away in silence for a long time.
Wang Yue understands his father a little bit.
It’s annoying to do disgusting things all day long!
It just so happens that although the Prince of Langya seems to be modest and self-disciplined, he actually has some ulterior motives and is very good at acting, which makes people feel helpless. Sometimes I want to say, "That's enough."
Moreover, on the one hand, Prince Langya desperately needs his father's help, but on the other hand, he is quite vigilant.
The group of people headed by Liu Wei did not get along well with my father. They found fault and accused him from time to time, which was very annoying.
"Ancestor Shizhi once said that a person should have a beginning and an end." Wang Dao sighed and said, "Let's go."
"Where are we going?" Wang Yue asked subconsciously.
Wang Dao looked at his son's thin body and the way he kept coughing due to the cold wind, and said, "Go back to the palace."
"What about these people?" Wang Yue asked, pointing at the soldiers in mourning.
"Repair the palace city." Wang Dao said, "It was originally the Wu Palace and Garden, but it has long been in ruins. After the king ascends the throne, you can't just make do with it like this."
"That's right." Wang Yue nodded.
"As for the matter of 'the delay in the grain transport', you should instruct others to investigate it, and stay out of it." Wang Dao said, "Your Majesty is too proud. There must be an explanation for the failure of the Northern Expedition. Otherwise, how will you answer when the Jiangdong nobles ask about it?"
After saying this, he got on the ox cart and, under the escort of his entourage, soon arrived at the main gate of the palace.
Unexpectedly, at this moment a gorgeous carriage rushed out at a very fast speed and almost collided with Director Wang's ox cart.
Wang Dao frowned, got off the ox cart, and first calmed the anxious driver, saying, "It's not your fault."
Then he looked forward and found that it was actually the chariot of Prince Langya - in terms of shape, it was actually similar to the imperial chariot. After all, Prince Langya was the prince who "regented the country" and was not much different from the monarch.
A group of breathless people followed behind the chariot, shouting in unison: "Your Majesty, please think twice! Your Majesty, please think twice!"
"Wow!" Sima Rui lifted the curtain of the carriage, and said with tears streaming down his face, "I am a sinner. I can neither fight in the north to avenge my humiliation nor die for my loyalty. How can I be crowned the emperor? Please stop trying to persuade me. I am the Prince of Langya, and I will return to my country and not be concerned with worldly affairs."
Director Wang only felt a slight swelling in his temples.
Seeing Diao Xie running towards him from afar, Wang Dao stepped forward and grabbed him, asking in a low voice: "Xuan Liang, what happened?"
Diao Xie looked at Sima Rui who was still crying, sighed, and whispered: "When you were not here just now, some people took the lead in persuading the king to ascend the throne to continue the country. In the end, the king refused. Then someone banged his head against the pillar and threatened to die. The king's expression softened, but he still refused. He burst into tears and ordered his private servant to drive the car back to the country."
Director Wang remained silent.
The Langya Kingdom is in Xuzhou, and there is indeed a Langya Kingdom in Jiangdong today, but it has no real land.
Some time ago, someone mentioned that a piece of land in Danyang County should be set up to establish Langya Kingdom, but that land did not entirely belong to the court, and they had to negotiate with the Jiangdong nobles, and there has been no result so far.
Return home, return home, return home to which country? Are you going to cross the river and head north to Langya County?
"In other words, now that the Northern Expedition is over, you are unwilling to ascend the throne?" asked Director Wang.
"Yes." Diao Xie sighed.
The King of Langya was indeed kind and benevolent, and he was humble and resigned, and everyone liked him very much.
But sometimes acting is really too much.
Everyone thought that the Northern Expedition was over and Prince Langya had a way out, so he could ascend the throne. But no one expected that he would still put on a show!
You are really a servant girl, which makes me angry.
"Xuanliang, please step down first. I will take care of this matter." Wang Dao took a deep breath, stepped forward a few steps, and said to Sima Rui: "Your Majesty, I have heard that the throne cannot be vacant for a long time, and all affairs cannot be left vacant for a long time. If it is vacant for a day, the throne will be in danger; if it is left vacant for a whole day, all affairs will be in chaos. Since the usurpation of the Western Dynasty, the world has been in turmoil for two months. The four seas are dreaming of the beauty of the rejuvenation of the country, and the people are looking forward to the revival of the country. Loyal and righteous people are all preparing their horses and weapons to fight against the traitors; knowledgeable people are all looking forward to it and are willing to be your servants. The great Jin Dynasty will surely have a master, and who will be the master of the Jin Dynasty is not your Majesty! I ask Your Majesty to take care of the country and not small deeds first; to worry about the people and not to give in, and to advance to the great treasure. In this way, the gods and people will be at peace, and there will be no misfortune."
As soon as Wang Dao appeared, Sima Rui stopped talking and just shed tears.
Wang Dao gave a signal, and Sima Rui's servant immediately turned the carriage around and headed towards the palace.
Hundreds of officials chased after him, out of breath. One of the elderly, who was already in poor health, was anxious and performed a medical miracle to catch up with him. When he heard that the Prince of Langya would not return to his country, he felt relieved and fainted, causing chaos at the scene.
The sound of carriages rumbled and horses neighed. The officers and officials of Jianye, with their hats crooked and armor slanted, ran back and forth and escorted Sima Rui back to the palace.
Well, there is not even a palace, it is just the courtyard where the former Wu royal family vacationed in the garden. But no matter what, now that the Prince of Langya has been brought back, we can proceed to the next step.
A moment later, more than a hundred people stood inside and outside the small courtyard.
After an awkward silence, Wang Dao also took the initiative to persuade: "Shao Xun has stolen the sacred artifact in the northwest, but Your Majesty wants to give it to the southeast. This is called putting out a fire by yielding. Now that things have come to this, Your Majesty should humble yourself and serve the public, ascend the throne, announce it to the world, and call on the loyal people of the 21 states to rise up and fight against the traitors together."
Uh, is this “Your Majesty”?
When Sima Rui heard this, he started crying again and shook his head.
"Your Majesty." As soon as one person spoke, another one followed. Diao Xie jumped out and shouted, "Xun was originally a lowly slave. Once he succeeded, he committed atrocities in Henan. His behavior is despicable and his crime is unbearable. Your Majesty should promote you to a higher position to set things right, so that the world will change its ways and people from far away places should not be allowed to succeed."
"Your Majesty." Bian Xu cleared his throat and said, "The continuation of the Jin Dynasty depends entirely on your Majesty. If you promote it, it will be successful, and it can prosper the prosperity of the restoration; if you let it go, it will be lost, and it will help the traitors to gain power."
Sima Rui's eyelids twitched and his crying stopped a little.
Bian Xu's meaning was very clear. If you retreat, the various princes who have fled to Jiangnan may not have the ability to take over. After all, they have not been in charge of the shogunate for so many years, and many people will inevitably be dispersed.
If we move forward with courage and determination, we may even be able to revive the country.
This sentence was very serious. Having said this, Sima Rui did not dare to say anything more.
"Your Majesty, I have observed the celestial phenomena at night and know that the will of heaven cannot be changed and the calendar will return to its original state. At this time, I should ascend to the throne of emperor."
"Your Majesty, please quickly ascend the altar and burn incense to the God in response to the will of heaven."
"Your Majesty, Shao Xunling has oppressed the royal family and humiliated the royal family. This national hatred and family feud must be avenged!"
"His Majesty……"
Everyone was observing Sima Rui's expressions, and when they saw the change in Sima Rui's face, they stopped hesitating and started to persuade him to go in.
"I am a distant relative of the royal family. There is still a famous prince named Xi in Jiangdong. You can find him here and support him to become emperor." Sima Rui looked at everyone and said in a choked voice.
Holy shit! This is asking everyone to express their opinions in person.
"Your Majesty." Gu He stepped forward and said, "Since we crossed the river, all the difficulties have been overcome by your Majesty. Who else can take the throne except your Majesty?"
This was a statement from the Jiangdong nobles. Sima Rui no longer shed tears and felt at ease.
"Your Majesty." Xiyang King Sima Ying stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, if you do not ascend the throne, you will be defying the will of heaven and the expectations of the people. I have obtained the joint petition of the Jiangzuo clan members to persuade you to ascend the throne. Your Majesty need not worry. You should quickly change your title. The clan members will be very grateful."
Sima Rui was silent for a long time. Just when everyone was getting impatient, he sighed three times and said, "Forget it. I wish to follow the example of the Wei and Jin dynasties and ascend the throne of Jin first. If any member of the royal family fails to live up to the expectations of the world in the future, I will give up this title and avoid the path of the wise."
Everyone looked at each other. Could you please be more straightforward?
But this is also acceptable. We can use the land south of the Yangtze River as the State of Jin, but not call ourselves emperors, just the King of Jin. There is actually not much difference.
And, obviously, this is only temporary.
After a while, he will become the Emperor of Jin.
"Maohong." Sima Rui wiped his tears and said, "All the ceremonies still depend on you."
"I obey your order." Wang Dao replied.
After a lot of trouble, the farce finally ended.
At the end of December in the first year of Kaiping in Daliang (327) and the eleventh year of Shengui in Jin, Sima Rui ascended the throne of Jin and made Sima Fei the crown prince. He designated the next year as the first year of Jianwu and was determined to launch a northern expedition to exterminate the traitors.
There was also a general amnesty for the whole country. The scope of the amnesty was specially emphasized: the traitor Shao Xun and his parents, wife and children were not included in the amnesty.
On the last day of the year, the grain transport commander Shi Chunyu Bo suddenly went crazy and drove his ox cart onto the street. He was later captured by He Xi, the Northern Lieutenant of Jianye.
When Chunyu Bo was arrested, he shouted in the street: "I am innocent. It was Wang Dao who ordered me not to send food and grass."
"Sima Rui and Wang Dao are cowards! They dare not take responsibility, but blame others. With such behavior, how can they be kings and prime ministers?"
"Selling me to stop the world's slander, what can I do to ghosts and gods! If I act like this, will there be any consequences?"
"Sima Rui, your wife and daughter will all be captured by Shao Xun and will serve him naked. Just wait."
Chunyu Bo was killed on the same day for not sending food and fodder and obstructing the Northern Expedition.
After all, Sima Rui's entire army really wore mourning clothes that day, intending to launch a northern expedition, but it ended hastily, so there must be an explanation.
The Chunyu clan was just a small family in Jibei, not even considered a noble family. They migrated south early, but because of their low status, they only got a Cao Lingshi despite the great advantage of migrating early.
He is just a small figure, so it is only right for him to take the blame.
The New Year is coming soon, everything is settled, and everything is covered in wind and snow.
(End of this chapter)