Bai Xiaowen had conquered Hanzhong, Yizhou, and destroyed Liu Bei's forces, shocking the world once again.
When he returned to Yedu, the emperor led the officials 30 miles out to welcome him.
The show had just begun.
Dong Zhao and Hua Xin both signed a petition saying that Duke Yan had calmed the rebellion, clarified the four seas, and supported the world. The imperial court should promote him to king and add Jiuxi to show that he was different from the other officials.
The so-called Jiuxi was actually nine gifts. It was the nine ceremonial items that the ancient emperors gave to the officials, representing the highest level of respect.
Jiuxi included carriages, imperial robes, musical instruments (Yue Xuan), Zhuhu, Huben, bows, axes, and so on. Throughout the history of Hua Xia, the officials who received Jiuxi basically established their own political power. It could be said that it was a synonym for usurpation.
However, Jiuxi during the Three Kingdoms era could not be equated to usurpation. This was because Wang Mang and Cao Cao gradually started to receive Jiuxi.
In the Spiritual Realm, Bai Xiaowen was the first duke to receive Jiuxi after Wang Mang.
A stone stirred up a thousand ripples.
It was inevitable that there would be discussions in the court, but there were basically no voices of opposition.
The reason was simple. Bai Xiaowen had eliminated most of the vassals, leaving only Jiangdong.
Many people started to count when Bai Xiaowen would truly ascend the throne and replace the Han Dynasty.
Yedu, Grand Sima Manor.
In front of Bai Xiaowen, Dong Zhao and Hua Xin cupped their fists.
"Did Xun Yu not raise any objections?" Bai Xiaowen was a little confused.
Dong Zhao said, "Xun Yu seems to be in poor health and has been bedridden. After we submitted the petition to promote him to King Yan, the Minister of Guanglu's manor closed the door to all guests and cut off all contact with outsiders. "
Hua Xin guessed Bai Xiaowen's thoughts and said, "My lord, ever since Xun Yu joined you, he has not made any contributions to the imperial court. Instead, he has repeatedly stopped my lord from getting the title of Honorific. He has blocked the hopes of everyone alone, causing the courtiers to want to follow him! My lord, you should not keep this person, or else it will hinder your plan. "
Bai Xiaowen frowned and asked, "How is Xun Yu's condition?"
Dong Zhao and Hua Xin looked at each other and shook their heads. The two of them could not enter Xun Yu's residence at all.
Bai Xiaowen sighed and said, "Huaxin, you said that Xun Yu hasn't made even the slightest contribution; that's a bit biased. Xun Yu also played a huge role in recruiting Cao Cao's old subordinates and stabilizing Henan. He was obstructing them now because he was stubborn and couldn't see the bigger picture. I want to conquer the world, how can I not tolerate a meritorious subject? Dong Zhao can order the medical officers to treat Xun Yu with all their might, without any negligence. "
Dong Zhao and Hua Xin said in unison, "My lord's breadth of mind is unparalleled in the world."
Bai Xiaowen waved his hand and said, "You two can rest assured that I will not mistreat meritorious subjects."
Hua Xin understood and said, "We will do our best to urge the imperial court to grant you the title of Prince as soon as possible."
Bai Xiaowen frowned slightly.
Dong Zhao smiled and said, "My lord's virtue and meritorious deeds can't be summed up by the title of Prince of Yan. My lord can refuse, but the imperial court will definitely grant you more titles. If you refuse repeatedly, the people in the world will have nothing to say. "
Bai Xiaowen nodded and revealed a satisfied smile.
It could be seen that Dong Zhao was more comfortable with the people who forced Xun Yu to abdicate. Hua Xin still needed to cultivate.
Bai Xiaowen then said, "Are the hearts of the people in Yedu stable?"
Dong Zhao didn't understand and replied, "My lord, there are no abnormalities in Yedu."
Bai Xiaowen said, "If I grant you the title of Prince of Yan, there might be some changes. Pass down the order, all the palace guards and eunuchs will be replaced. The original eunuchs will expose each other. I want to see who dares to serve the Emperor. "
Dong Zhao was shocked and said, "My lord, did you get some information?"
Bai Xiaowen shook his head and said, "People's hearts are made of flesh. Those eunuchs are with the Emperor all the time, how can they not have any feelings? The current Emperor is also a worrisome person. It is normal for him to win over one or two eunuchs with kindness. "
Dong Zhao thought that Bai Xiaowen got some secret information and was even more shocked. He bowed and accepted the order.
Bai Xiaowen actually didn't get any information. He just wanted to be prepared. He could faintly feel the turbulent undercurrents under the calm Yedu.
With this investigation, the eunuchs exposed each other. They really did reveal a few people who were usually rewarded by the Emperor and the Empress.
Bai Xiaowen personally interrogated the four eunuchs. With his meticulous observation, he quickly determined that three of them were unlucky people who were randomly accused and didn't join the Emperor. Only the last eunuchs could be found through his breathing, heartbeat, expression, and other minute details.
"Mu Shun …"
Bai Xiaowen smiled slightly. He had heard of this person for a long time.
In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Mu Shun received a letter from Empress Fu and passed it to his father-in-law, Fu Wan, to plot against Cao Cao. However, after the plan failed, Cao Cao killed Mu Shun and Fu Wan's entire family.
The advantage of foresight was reflected. Bai Xiaowen did not need to interrogate Mu Shun at all. After having a basic suspicion, he directly ordered the Tiger Armored Soldiers to surround Mu Shun and Fu Wan's house and search wantonly.
It didn't matter if they couldn't find anything. At most, Bai Xiaowen would hold a banquet for Fu Wan to calm down. With his current power and status, Fu Wan didn't dare to say anything.
After a round of searching, they found Fu Wan's letter box. Within the box, they found a secret letter from Empress Fu to Fu Wan.
When Empress Fu asked Bai Xiaowen to give him the title of King Yan, she felt that the Darkhan Dynasty would end in Bai Xiaowen's hands. Bai Xiaowen's usurpation of power was too fast. In just a few months, he was given the title of Duke and King. Everyone knew what Sima Zhao was thinking.
(Sima Zhao: Sorry, I walked into the wrong place …)
Of course, Bai Xiaowen's contributions were great. He had the qualifications and capital to ask for the title of King Yan.
However, Empress Fu didn't want to wait for death. She wrote a letter and asked the eunuch, Mu Shun, to pass it to her father, Fu Wan. She asked Fu Wan to plot to get rid of Bai Xiaowen.
Fu Wan's reply was that it wasn't appropriate to make a move now. However, Bai Xiaowen (Yuan Xi) was about to attack Jiangnan. At that time, Yedu would be empty. If there was a chance, he would contact the civil and military officials loyal to the Emperor and set things right.
Fu Wan left behind Empress Fu's handwritten letter. It wasn't that he didn't do it secretly. It was just that the Empress's handwritten letter was like the imperial edict back then. It was a token that represented the imperial power and could be used to order the officials.
The aborigines of the Three Kingdoms all valued this kind of righteous status very much.
For example, Dong Cheng and the others wrote their names on the edict as an oath. Weren't they afraid that the edict would be found?
It wasn't that they weren't afraid. It was just that the imperial power was very important.
After reading the letter, Bai Xiaowen smiled and said, "Fu Wan, this old fellow, is quite slippery in handling matters. He knows how to protect himself. Unfortunately, he was tricked by his daughter this time. If I don't use thunderous methods, I won't be able to intimidate people. Fine, I'll just borrow this old fellow's head! "
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