Chapter 9: Du Yu (IV)

In a side hall of the inner palace in Luoyang, An Qingxu stood with his hands behind his back, letting out a long sigh.
“Is that old scoundrel dead?”
Li Zhur, who was kneeling nearby, serving him, smiled seductively and said, “Dead, dead! I saw with my own eyes his intestines flowing out of his belly. How could he possibly still be alive? Your Highness… oh, no—your Majesty, you are now the emperor of Great Yan.”
An Qingxu suddenly turned around and said coldly, “It was all that old scoundrel who forced me to do this. He forced me! I can’t blame myself!”
If it weren’t for that old scoundrel’s attempt to displace the heir, he wouldn’t have ended up like this. It was all his doing; he was just protecting himself. He couldn’t blame him—it was all his own fault!
Perhaps too agitated, his body began to tremble, and sweat seeped from his back.
“Your Highness, please calm down. Things are now settled. You should focus on the next steps to ascend the throne smoothly.”
Yan Zhuang, who had remained silent until then, stepped in to advise An Qingxu as he lost control.
Killing An Lushan wasn’t difficult. By now, blind and almost helpless, An Lushan relied entirely on his servant Li Zhur for daily tasks. With their special status, An Qingxu could easily buy over the imperial guards outside the palace and kill An Lushan without any trouble.
But keeping the situation stable and bringing under control the hundreds of thousands of cavalry left by An Lushan was a real challenge. Although An Lushan had declared himself emperor the previous year, he was still just a top-ranking warlord among the rebel heroes. Below him, figures like Shi Siming, Tian Chengsi, and even Sun Xiaozhe and Cui Qianyou all had the ability to raise their own armies.
Yet, fearing An Lushan’s power, they had suppressed their ambitions and maintained a superficial balance. But that balance would shatter quickly after An Lushan’s death. What was most important for An Qingxu now was to cultivate loyal followers and seize military control, rather than getting entangled in trivial matters of family loyalty.
Once he chose this path, there was no room for regret. History was written by the victors. As long as An Qingxu could unite the various factions and seize the Tang dynasty’s throne, he would become another Emperor Taizong. Who would care about his past act of regicide? It would remain an eternal mystery.
After hearing Yan Zhuang’s analysis, An Qingxu said, “Your advisor’s analysis is good. I was rash just now. But right now, Shi Siming is fighting against Guo Ziyi and others in Hebei, and Tian Chengsi is stationed in Xingyang. There’s no one in the court who can threaten my position.”
Yan Zhuang gently shook his feather fan and smiled slightly. “Your Highness has forgotten one person.”

“Who?” An Qingxu pressed repeatedly.
“Cai Xide!” Yan Zhuang said, his eyes gleaming, emphasizing each word. …
Early the next morning, the Luoyang palace was shrouded in thick mist.
Civil and military officials entered the palace through Ying Tian Gate, then proceeded along the path leading to Han Yuan Hall via Qian Yuan Gate, waiting for the eunuchs to announce their audience. Logically, it should have been the sixth day of the first lunar month, and the Emperor of Da Yan should have held a grand court session in Han Yuan Hall, but after waiting for so long, there was still no sign of the session.
Soon, the officials began to discuss among themselves. Some bold ones even speculated about reasons why the emperor could not attend court. Some said the emperor had strained his back while indulging his concubines the previous night; others claimed the emperor’s energy was depleted from spreading his favor too widely and needed rest. In short, nothing was too outrageous for these officials to say.
Actually, this was not hard to understand. After all, the Da Yan Empire had just been founded and urgently needed civil and military officials to fill its courts. They couldn’t conduct imperial examinations like the Tang Dynasty, as that would be far too slow. Thus, at the advice of advisor Yan Zhuang, the emperor of Da Yan ordered the recruitment of Tang officials to serve in his court and assign them important positions.
However, this measure did not yield good results. Some renowned officials of the Tang court disapproved of An Lushan’s actions and firmly refused Da Yan’s offers. Even those with lower-ranking positions were waiting for the right moment to demand better terms. In the end, few were willing to serve in the puppet court.
With no other choice, the emperor of Da Yan, again at Yan Zhuang’s suggestion, recruited many clerks from nearby prefectures to serve as officials. It was thus understandable that the Da Yan court had a more mercantile atmosphere and less solemnity.
Fortunately, Da Yan did not yet have a overly complex bureaucratic system. Compared to the Tang Dynasty’s redundant positions, it appeared much more streamlined.
“Look, Lord Wu, what do you think is going on—why hasn’t the emperor held court yet, leaving us standing around like this?” complained a middle-aged man in a purple robe, wearing a silver fish-shaped pouch, as he stroked his three-inch short beard. It was a cold winter day, and they had been summoned to court, yet the emperor refused to appear. Even an emperor couldn’t be this unreasonable, right?
An old man with gray hair beside him shook his head and said, “No, no. Perhaps the emperor has encountered some difficulties we’re unaware of. Let’s wait a bit longer.”
The middle-aged man with the silver pouch shrugged resentfully and said, “I knew you’d say that.”

After a while, he seemed to notice another man in a crimson robe beside him again. With a flattering smile, he said, “Prime Minister Chen, you have served two emperors across two dynasties—surely you understand such matters well. Please tell us, why on earth is His Majesty delaying things like this?”
The Prime Minister Chen he referred to was Chen Xilié, the former left prime minister of the Tang Dynasty.
After the rebels captured Chang’an, they gathered together all the officials who failed to escape. About ten days later, troops took them to Luoyang. Chen Xilié thought he would surely die, but he remained calm. Unexpectedly, An Lushan spoke to them kindly, hoping they would become key ministers in the Great Yan State.
When under someone else’s roof, one must bow their head—this was something Chen Xilié, who had spent many years in the political arena, understood well. Whether out of necessity or coercion, Chen Xilié eventually became a senior minister in the Great Yan State, second only to Yan Zhuang, one of the founding heroes.
By now, he was an elderly man in his seventies. Hearing the middle-aged man’s mocking words, the corners of his mouth twitched.
“Stop talking nonsense!”
With that, Chen Xilié snorted coldly and strode away.
Watching Chen Xilié’s hunched and desolate figure, the middle-aged man sneered, “A whore trying to build a memorial arch—what a joke!”……
The chaotic situation in front of the Hanyuan Hall didn’t last long. Li Zhuer, a favored official by the Great Yan emperor, arrived at the hall under the protection of armed soldiers, carrying an imperial edict to deliver to the civil and military officials.
It turned out that the emperor had suddenly fallen ill the previous night, unable to speak or see. In urgent circumstances, he ordered an edict to pass the throne to the crown prince, who would have sole authority over military and state affairs.
Although many loyal officials doubted this decision, no one dared risk their lives under the glinting swords of the imperial guards.
Li Guiren, the commander of the imperial guards, had locked all nine gates of the palace, preventing even a mosquito from getting in.
Under such circumstances, the civil and military officials were forced into the Hanyuan Hall to attend the new emperor’s coronation ceremony.
To everyone’s surprise, the coronation proceeded smoothly, without any signs of chaos, as if everything had been prepared in advance. But no one bothered to discuss such trivial matters. In a harmonious atmosphere, the officials knelt down to pay homage to the new emperor, chanting wishes for the prosperity of Great Yan and the emperor’s long reign.

The new emperor of Great Yan also waved his hand with magnanimity, signaling to his ministers to stand up and encouraging them to work hard. Finally, he honored An Lushan as the Retired Emperor and established the era name Zai Chu. After everything was arranged, the emperor of Great Yan issued several decrees.

First, he ordered Shi Siming, the governor of Hebei, to return to defend Fanyang once again, while dispatching Cai Xide, who was previously in charge of Luoyang, to march north to besiege Taiyuan.

Second, he ordered Tian Chengsi, the Grand General of Huaihua, to advance south from Xingyang to besiege Ningling, thereby opening the way to Jianghuai.

Third, he appointed Li Guiren, the commander of the imperial guards, to take control of all troops surrounding the eastern capital of Luoyang, centralizing power in his hands.

Upon hearing these three decrees, all the civil and military officials felt deeply concerned. They realized that the emperor had long had plans in place, arranging everything even before ascending the throne. Facing such a heroic and divine emperor, harboring evil thoughts would surely be seeking death.

Finally, led by Prime Minister Chen Xilié, all the civil and military officials cheered “Long live the emperor!” and performed a deep bow of three kneels and nine prostrations, concluding the coronation ceremony. …

As darkness covered the stars, the prime minister’s residence was brightly lit.

Ping’er, one of the concubines, picked up a corner of the scarlet cloak and draped it over Chen Xilié’s shoulders.

“Sir, it’s cold. Put on more clothes.”

Chen Xilié was momentarily stunned before saying, “I’m not cold!”

“Sir, your health has always been weak. The imperial physicians said you need to take good care of yourself and avoid catching a chill.”

Ping’er refused to agree and continued to argue.

Chen Xilié was surprised and asked, “You… you still remember such things so clearly?”

Ping’er smiled gently and said, “As someone who serves you, I naturally need to remember such things clearly.”

“Sigh, you must be suffering a lot. Sometimes I feel that living in such a petty manner is a disservice to myself, to the Tang Dynasty, and to the emperor.”

Chen Xilié shook his head and sighed deeply. “I really don’t know if, once the Tang Dynasty quells the rebellion, I’ll be labeled as a traitor. Hehe, hehe…”

“Sir, why worry about such empty titles?”

Ping’er tied the cloak around Chen Xilié and said softly, “As long as the Tang Dynasty remains in your heart, you are still a Tang person. Isn’t that map of the rebels’ positions in the Western Capital the best proof of that?”