I'm in the Red Mansion

Jia Cong could not help but frown and asked, "Master, Prime Minister Qin is a treacherous minister, and even a traitor to the enemy. Why do you still want to use him?"

Upon hearing this, Kou Xiang smiled and said, "Brother Cong, you will soon be sitting in that position."

"As an emperor, you cannot act solely based on your own likes and dislikes, but must weigh the pros and cons and look at the overall situation."

"You said that Prime Minister Qin was a treacherous minister, a traitor who collaborated with the enemy and betrayed his country! Then let me ask you, now that the Qing Dynasty has fallen, does it matter whether he had any connection with the Qing Dynasty?"

"And he is not the only one secretly connected with the Qing Dynasty. Don't you want to use them all?"

"And the fact that Prime Minister Qin was able to serve as Prime Minister for three generations without falling, is it simply because he is good at scheming?"

"Prime Minister Qin is indeed capable of maintaining peace and stability in the country, and his policy of compromising with the Qing Dynasty may not even be considered wrong."

"Because at that time, our Great Xia was indeed no match for the Qing Dynasty."

"When you take that position in the future, you will need talented people to help you govern the country."

"Besides, if you want to make changes, you must have mature and steady people to stabilize the situation."

"Prime Minister Qin is such a rare talent!"

Lin Ruhai also said: "Prime Minister Qin is indeed a rare talent."

"Besides, Brother Cong, are you afraid that you can't control him?"

"As long as you can control it, why not use it?"

"Liu Bang valued Yong Chi, and Li Shimin valued Wei Zheng. Could it be that Congge cannot tolerate a Qin Xiang?"

After hearing this, Jia Cong couldn't help but look thoughtful.

Yes, after he came to power, he was planning to launch reforms such as equalizing the land tax and requiring all gentry to pay taxes together.

However, this change is actually a double-edged sword.

Because it touches the interests of too many people, if it is implemented well, it will be a good policy that benefits the country and the people.

If things go wrong, it may even shake the country.

Therefore, in the process of reform, we must use capable, courageous and responsible officials to do these things.

The candidates in Jia Cong's mind were Kou Xiang and Lin Ruhai.

What he didn't expect was that Prime Minister Kou actually strongly recommended Prime Minister Qin to him.

It can be seen that Qin Xiang must be a very capable person.

Although the Prime Minister of Qin has many shortcomings, it would be fine if we only use his abilities and suppress his evil.

As the saying goes, if a man is too strict, he will have no followers; if the water is too clear, there will be no fish. After all, there is no perfect saint in this world.

……

At this time, sitting in the main seat in the side hall, Jia Cong was still recalling his conversation with Prime Minister Kou and Lin Ruhai.

Therefore, after Liu Xianglian reported the military situation, Jia Cong prepared to hold a small court meeting.

Then he appeased the Prime Minister Qin so that he could be reused later.

However, since Jia Cong has not yet ascended the throne as emperor, his words will not flow smoothly if his name is not right.

Therefore, although generals such as Liu Xianglian had made great contributions, Jia Cong was unable to reward them for the time being.

Of course, these achievements cannot be denied.

After he ascends the throne, he can confer rewards.

Next, Jia Cong summoned officials from various departments and held a small court meeting.

He also invited the captured officials, including Prime Minister Qin, to the side hall.

At this time, all the ministers were speculating on how Jia Cong would treat Qin Xiang and others.

Qin Xiang and others were also very nervous.

After all, these people had offended Jia Cong's faction severely before.

If Jia Cong had not been tolerant, all of them would have been in great danger.

Now, they can only hope that Jia Cong will be tolerant.

After all the officials arrived, Jia Cong first praised Liu Xianglian and other generals, and said that he would reward them for their merits later.

Next, Jia Cong mentioned Qin Xiang and others.

This made many officials feel anxious.

Jia Cong praised Qin Xiang and others, saying that they were in the enemy camp but had the imperial court in their hearts.

And at the critical moment, the rebel was captured in one fell swoop.

After hearing these words, Qin Xiang and others felt a little relieved.

However, I still feel uneasy.

Although it was not the worst outcome, they were not directly labeled as traitors and thrown into prison.

Instead, he praised them.

But there may be revenge later!

Therefore, Prime Minister Qin gritted his teeth and thought of the step he had prepared long ago.

Thinking of this, Prime Minister Qin couldn't help but step out and say, "My Lord, I have something to report!"

Jia Cong was confused, not knowing what the old man was going to do, but he said, "Prime Minister Qin, please speak!"

Prime Minister Qin could not help but say: "My Lord, you have the late emperor's imperial edict, and now you have successfully wiped out the rebels, eliminated the rebellion, and avenged the late emperor."

"And the country cannot be without a ruler for a day! Your Excellency is accomplished in both civil and military affairs, with great talent and strategy. You can turn the tide and save the country from collapse!"

"Therefore, I, your Excellency, respectfully invite you to ascend the throne as emperor. This will be a blessing for the country and the people!"

After Prime Minister Qin finished speaking, all the officials in the palace secretly cursed Prime Minister Qin for being shameless.

This old guy was really cunning and sly. He actually got there first.

The other officials also followed suit and urged: "Please, Lord, ascend the throne and become the emperor!"

Jia Cong was furious when he heard this and said, "No, absolutely not! Are you trying to put me in an unjust position?"

"I am the Marquis of Daxia, loyal to Daxia and the late emperor. Now that the late emperor has passed away, I will choose a son from the royal family to be the emperor."

"I will spare no effort to support the new emperor. Please do not make me appear disloyal or unfilial!"

As soon as Jia Cong finished speaking, Prime Minister Qin said, "My Lord, there is really no one left in the royal family. They were all slaughtered by the tyrant Emperor Tianci and the traitor Wu Sangui."

"Your Majesty is the perfect candidate for the throne. For the sake of our country and the people, please take up this responsibility, Your Majesty!"

Jia Cong said dissatisfiedly: "Even if the royal family really can't find a son, they should recommend a virtuous person to be the new emperor. What virtue do I have? How dare I take on such an important task?"

Go ahead and speak! Jia Cong didn't give anyone a chance to answer and walked out of the hall with a big stride, flicking his sleeves.

Judging from his situation, it seems that he really doesn't want to be emperor.

Of course, there are no fools in the palace.

No one is naive enough to think that Jia Cong really doesn't want to be emperor and really wants to recommend a talented person to be the new emperor.

If there really are such naive people, they would probably die without knowing how they died.

The ancients emphasized humility, courtesy, sincerity, trustworthiness, and friendship.

Especially for a throne like this, one must refuse and give up one's position three times!

This is only the first time I’ve invited you. How far have we come?
Next, Qin Xiangren stood up and argued without giving in.

It is stated that the new emperor must be a marquis, otherwise the country will be in danger and the throne will be unstable.

All the ministers watched the passionate performance of Prime Minister Qin and couldn't help but sigh in their hearts.

This old guy really has something going for him. He deserves to be the prime minister!

So, soon, Prime Minister Qin led all the officials to the imperial study and once again respectfully invited Jia Cong to be the emperor.

Jia Cong flatly refused again. At this point, he had already declined twice and only one final procedure was left to go through.

So, soon after coming out.

Prime Minister Qin once again called on all officials to invite Jia Cong to be the emperor.

Next, Prime Minister Qin led all the officials and came to petition again in a grand manner.

This is the third time. The show has been fully staged and Jia Cong is ready to follow suit.

However, you still have to be humble.

After Prime Minister Qin finished speaking, Jia Cong sighed and was about to agree reluctantly.

But Prime Minister Qin stood up angrily and shouted, "My Lord, why are you still trying to refuse? For the sake of our country and the people!"

"I am willing to sacrifice my life to ask you to ascend the throne!"

After saying that, the old man bent over, accelerated, and slammed headfirst into the pillar in the house!

Jia Cong was frightened.

Oh my god, this old man is so fierce? Is he serious?
After a while, Jia Cong finally reacted and hurriedly asked the guards to hold Prime Minister Qin.

As for the Prime Minister Qin, he had great momentum, but gradually slowed down in the middle.

Therefore, he was easily stopped by two guards.

After being stopped, Prime Minister Qin knelt on the ground, kowtowed desperately, and respectfully invited Jia Cong to be the emperor.

Jia Cong couldn't help but sigh: "You are putting me in an unjust position!"

"Forget it, forget it. If I continue to refuse, it would be inhumane."

"Since this is the case, I will reluctantly agree to it."

When all the officials heard this, they were overjoyed and immediately knelt on the ground, shouting "Long live the emperor".

Jia Cong ordered everyone to stand up.

Prime Minister Qin stepped out again and said, "Your Majesty, please move to the Golden Palace, decide on the name of the country, discuss the date of the coronation ceremony, and announce it to the world."

Jia Cong nodded and said, "Well, that's it."

Soon, the emperor and his ministers went straight to the Golden Palace.

Jia Cong sat on the throne, and all the officials, both civil and military, stood in line.

Until now, Prime Minister Qin did not show up again, but handed the matter back to Prime Minister Kou and Lin Ruhai.

The reason why Prime Minister Qin risked his life just now was just to seek a chance to survive.

He naturally knew in his heart that the two people the emperor trusted the most were Kou Xiang and Lin Ruhai.

At this point, he doesn't need to show off anymore.

If you continue to show it, it would be too much.

At this time, Prime Minister Kou stepped out and said, "Your Majesty once inherited the title of Ningguo Mansion, so Ningguo is also an excellent name for the country."

Officials from the Ministry of Rites also stepped forward to offer the name of the country.

Finally, Jia Cong pondered for a while before saying: "I am highly valued by the late emperor, and I was once a general of Daxia, so we might as well keep the word Xia in the name of the country."

"So, how about adding one more word in front and naming the country Huaxia?"

When the civil and military officials heard this, they were stunned.

Throughout the dynasties, the country's name was given by the same name.

But when it comes to Your Majesty, it becomes two words.

However, the name of the country, China, is also very good.

The prime minister of Qin blurted out: "The beauty of clothing is called Hua; the grandness of etiquette is called Xia. The name of Huaxia is really a great name for the country."

In fact, the name of a country is just the name and code name of a country.

Therefore, the name of the country, Huaxia, was determined.

After deciding on the country's name, they began to determine the reign title.

Before the Western Han Dynasty, China did not have era names.

It was not until the reign of Emperor Wu that the term "jianyuan" appeared for the first time.

The reign title was either drafted by the emperor himself or proposed by the Ministry of Rites, and after consultation and approval by court officials, it was handed over to the emperor for decision.

As for the Chinese, the civil and military officials did not dare to overstep their authority, so they asked Jia Cong to come up with a new era name.

Jia Cong said without hesitation: "Let's name the year Zhongyuan!"

Zhongyuan, Central Plains.

And Jia Cong still has some ambitions in his heart.

This year is the first year of Zhongyuan, and the years will all start with Zhongyuan. In the future, when China becomes stronger and stronger, it will become a world power.

In the future, it may not be impossible for the whole world to start counting years with the Zhongyuan period.

Future calendars will also calculate dates based on the Chinese lunar calendar.

After the reign title was decided, the next day came, the coronation ceremony.

Jia Cong is the founding emperor, and all the ministers decided that the coronation ceremony should be grand.

However, the national treasury is empty now and we cannot take out much silver.

It turned out that Emperor Tianci was already extravagant, and he spent a huge amount of money on redress.

The treasury is not big enough to hold a mole, but it is extremely empty and it is doubtful whether the country can make it through the rest of the year.

Not to mention spending a large amount of money to hold the coronation ceremony.

However, it is not impossible to hold a grand event.

For example, you can ask for sponsorship from wealthy businessmen.

And those wealthy businessmen must be very happy.

However, Jia Cong was not prepared to do so. He planned to keep everything simple.

It was decided to postpone the coronation ceremony to half a month later.

At the same time, this news should be announced to the world.

The next step is to determine the team of the imperial court.

As the saying goes, a new emperor appoints his own ministers. When the new emperor ascends the throne, he will naturally establish his own team.

Next, Jia Cong announced the abolition of the prime minister system and only retained the cabinet.

In fact, the position of the Cabinet Grand Secretary is almost equivalent to that of the Prime Minister.

However, his power and position are slightly smaller than that of the prime minister.

Prime Minister Kou was the chief minister of the cabinet, and Prime Minister Qin and Lin Ruhai also entered the cabinet.

Lin Ruhai's entry into the cabinet was the position of Chief Minister of the Cabinet of Prime Minister Kou, and all officials had long expected it and were not surprised.

However, Prime Minister Qin also entered the cabinet, which was beyond the expectations of all officials.

In the eyes of all officials, Prime Minister Qin had been jumping up and down these days just to save his life to avoid being taken revenge by the emperor later.

He never expected that the emperor not only did not settle the score with Qin later, but also reused Prime Minister Qin.

You know, in the previous dynasty, Prime Minister Qin had offended the pro-war faction so much that the two sides were almost irreconcilable.

Therefore, the broad-mindedness of the new emperor Jia Cong made all the officials admire him.

This also made the conservative officials who were originally captured by Wu Sangui breathe a sigh of relief.

Prime Minister Qin was so grateful that he fell to his knees and cried bitterly.

Being grateful and showing loyalty at the same time.

He was grateful for Jia Cong's kindness in recognizing his talent, and he would devote himself to the cause until his death to repay Jia Cong's kindness.

Next, the positions of other officials were quickly determined.

The overall adjustment is not large, but there are ups and downs.

Jia Cong decided on the adjustment of these officials after consulting Kou Xiang and Lin Ruhai.

And next, we will start to reward the military generals.

First, Liu Xianglian was directly named Duke of Zhenbei and ordered to guard the Qing Dynasty's land. He was also given a house and some silver money.

In fact, Liu Xianglian's contribution to being conferred the title of Duke was still a little insufficient, but because of his merit in following the emperor, he was able to do so this time.

As for the rewards in silver and money, there is not much, and the court is also poor now.

Of course, now that the Qing Dynasty has been destroyed, it can no longer be called the Qing Dynasty, but has been directly changed to Manchuria.

Jia Huan was conferred the title of Duke of Rong and appointed as the governor of the Beijing Camp, which was considered a restoration of his ancestor's title.

Of course, this Duke Rong is not that Duke Rong.

After all, neither of them was from the same dynasty, and Jia Huan did not inherit the title, but earned it himself.

Jia Huan’s military achievements were even less worthy of being granted the title of duke.

But, who can blame him for being the emperor's cousin?

Not to mention being conferred the title of duke, even being conferred the title of king would not be excessive.

Jia Huan took over the post of Jiedushi of the Beijing Camp and shouldered the important task of protecting the security of the capital.

Well, in the Great Xia Dynasty, the Jiedushi of the Capital Camp was once held by a general from the Jia family, and now it can be considered to have returned to the hands of the Jia family again.

After Jia Huan knelt down to thank the emperor, he could not help but say, "Your Majesty, I would like to ask for a reward from you."

He was already granted the title of Duke but still was not satisfied and even asked for more rewards. All the civil and military officials in the court could not help but marvel at this.

This person is the emperor's cousin. If it were someone else, he would not dare to be so rampant.

Jia Cong couldn't help but ask, "General Jia, what other reward do you want?"

Jia Huan said hurriedly: "Your Majesty, I just want to ask for an imperial decree for my biological mother."

Hearing this, Jia Cong was in a trance for a moment.

He vaguely remembered that after he had made great contributions, he also asked Emperor Yonglong for an imperial edict and reward.

Now, it is Jia Huan's turn.

Aunt Zhao's life is worth it to have such a son.

Thinking of this, Jia Cong said happily: "Yes."

When Jia Huan heard this, he was overjoyed and kept expressing his gratitude.

Jia Cong also conferred the title of Duke Zhongyong on Fu Chachusheng and temporarily placed him at home.

Originally, Jia Cong was going to order him to take charge of the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun.

But think about it, the Fucha Army were all surrendered Qing troops, and the Qing troops had caused great damage to the Yanyun area.

It is not appropriate to order him to stay in Yanyun.

Therefore, Jia Cong let him stay at home temporarily.

When Fu Cha was first promoted, he was so grateful for being conferred the title of Duke, especially the Duke of Loyalty and Bravery, that he kowtowed repeatedly to express his gratitude.

After all, his original title of marquis was Xiaoyao Hou.

This title sounds unorthodox. It is a title given specifically to surrendered generals and represents the court's contempt.

But now, Duke Zhongyong is a legitimate title, which he earned through his military merits.

Moreover, Fu Chachusheng, this surrendered general, had no backing and no faction.

All he could rely on was the emperor Jia Cong's trust in him.

Therefore, after being conferred the title of Duke, Fu Cha Chusheng was even more grateful to Jia Cong.

As for other generals, there are no changes for the time being.

Even whether the generals of the border troops would recognize the new court and rebel was still unknown.

However, Jia Cong felt that as long as they didn't do anything stupid, they would obey him obediently.

After discussing all this

At this time, the palace had already been vacated.

Originally, Emperor Tianci and even Emperor Yonglong's concubines were all released.

All the eunuchs and palace maids inside were released and replaced with a new batch of eunuchs and palace maids.

A new year brings new hope, and naturally a new emperor must also have new rules.

Besides, who knows whether the eunuchs and palace maids originally in the palace had any ill intentions?
After the court session ended, Jia Cong ordered people to go to Ningguo Mansion and bring all the women into the palace.

He himself went to the study to review memorials.

After becoming the emperor, the burden on his shoulders suddenly became much heavier.

When he was the governor of Yanyun, he could delegate government affairs to his subordinates.

Now that he is the emperor, he needs to handle these memorials personally.

Although these memorials were first screened by the cabinet, some of them still gave some suggestions for how to deal with them.

However, the memorials that Jia Cong needed to deal with every day were still very complicated.

Moreover, many memorials were long and boring.

Just some words of gratitude and flattery would easily take up hundreds or even thousands of words, giving Jia Cong a headache.

No, next we must standardize the format of memorials, so that they don’t need to be long-winded and use less verbose language, and just state the facts clearly.

After the court officials resigned, the news that Marquis Jia Cong ascended the throne and established China quickly spread.

The people of the capital were in an uproar, and many families started setting off firecrackers.

The title of Champion Marquis is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people.

When Marquis Guanjun became emperor, the people were all delighted.

Even the second branch of the Jia family showed anticipation on their faces when they heard the news.

Especially Lady Jia and Aunt Zhao.

For Lady Jia, if Congge became the emperor, then she would be an old noble lady.

Even though Congge doesn't like her, no matter how much he dislikes her, at least he can't let them live in such a place anymore, right?

Aunt Zhao’s hope is that her status as a mother will be enhanced by her son.

Huan'er has been good friends with Cong'er since childhood.

And Congge'er is a sentimental man. Now that Congge'er has become the emperor, he can't treat Huange'er badly, right?

Now that Huan'er has become successful, as his mother, I should also benefit from it, right?

The news of Jia Huan's title had not yet spread, and they were still unaware of it.

However, the imperial edict conferring the title of Lady on Aunt Zhao had already been issued.

Soon, the eunuch delivering the imperial eunuch arrived at the street where the Zhao family lived.

The streets filled with sewage made the eunuchs frown.

They came to the Zhao family with their noses pinched, and the one who opened the door today happened to be Mrs. Wang.

Now, their second branch has long been in decline, and there are only a few maids in the house, which is far from enough. They have to do many things themselves.

Today, when Mrs. Wang was about to go out to hand in her handicraft, she happened to hear someone knocking on the door, so she opened it.

When Mrs. Wang saw several eunuchs outside the door, she was immediately frightened.

Things are different now than before. In the past few years, their family has hardly encountered any good things.

Therefore, after meeting several eunuchs, Mrs. Wang couldn't help but feel worried.

She couldn't help but ask, "Angel, you are visiting my humble home. What advice do you have for me?"

The eunuchs didn't dare to put on airs.

After all, this is the Jia family, the emperor's family.

Even if the emperor no longer likes this branch, they cannot afford to offend them.

Therefore, the leading eunuch hurriedly asked: "We are here to convey the emperor's order. Please ask Zhao to come out and receive the order."

Zhao?

Aunt Zhao?
She is just a concubine, what kind of imperial decree did she receive?
Mrs. Wang was extremely suspicious, but she had to report it.

Asking Aunt Zhao to come out to receive the imperial edict did not mean she was the only one who came out to receive the imperial edict.

All the family members, including Lady Jia, had to come out.

Soon, the mother-in-law and the daughter-in-law were dressed up, set up the incense table, and knelt down to receive the order.

After the Jia family's internal affairs were ready, the eunuch read out the imperial edict.

Unexpectedly, Aunt Zhao was given the title of Lady of Imperial Concubine.

And she was also a first-rank lady.

This rank is several levels higher than Mrs. Wang's - well, since Jia Zheng has been convicted and exiled, Mrs. Wang naturally no longer has the imperial edict.

Even the original Lady Jia was only a first-rank imperial lady. (End of this chapter)