northernbook Chapter 302 Backlash
Chapter 302 Backlash
Emperor Jing'an took in everyone's expressions and was not surprised by their reactions.
The Northern Qi envoys deliberately spread rumors that Zhao Yi was his son.
They simply thought they had his weakness in mind, and were certain that he would not dare to reveal Zhao Yi's true identity in order to protect Yi Zhen's reputation, thus causing his two sons to fight against Zhao Yi and triggering internal strife.
My elder sister is right. As an emperor, he cannot have any weaknesses.
So when the rumors started, he decided to go with the flow, turn the tables, and personally expose the secret.
However, he could not directly reveal Zhao Yi's background. Given that Zhao Yi had half of the Northern Qi royal blood, the court officials would not accept Zhao Yi's identity.
Therefore, he led all the officials to the Imperial Ancestral Temple today to first shift the conflict to Northern Qi, stirring up the ministers' hatred towards Northern Qi. Then he listed Yi Zhen's contributions to the Great Zhou, letting them know the stakes involved, and finally revealed Zhao Yi's true identity.
This series of preparations weakened the threat posed by Zhao Yi's background, which made the court officials accept Zhao Yi's existence.
Even ministers who had objections dared not utter another word of dissent.
After all, Yi Zhen made this sacrifice for him, the emperor, and for the Great Zhou Dynasty.
"When I was young, Yizhen protected me and safeguarded the Great Zhou Dynasty. Now that I can command the wind and rain, I can also shelter her from the wind and rain. I will never let her suffer the slightest grievance again. I believe that my subjects feel the same way."
Emperor Jing'an solemnly declared: "Today, I posthumously confer upon Yi Zhen the title of Princess Protector of the Nation, with the posthumous name of Ruian. I hereby order the Ministry of Works to construct the princess's tomb and build a shrine and temple."
The ministers were astonished. Princess Yizhen had given her life for the Great Zhou Dynasty, that much was undeniable. But to posthumously confer the title of Protector of the Nation and to build a shrine and temple for her was simply against the rules…
But with Emperor Jing'an's words weighing on them, they dared not speak out even if they were dissatisfied.
For a moment, the ministers looked at each other, completely at a loss.
"Princess Yizhen, a woman, protects the land and its people of the Great Zhou. Her courage and boldness surpass even those of some young men. The title of Protector of the Nation is truly well-deserved for her."
After saying this, the elderly prime minister knelt down and said, "The people of Great Zhou have received the grace of the Princess Protector of the Nation, and should therefore protect her and her bloodline from the humiliation inflicted by Northern Qi."
Upon hearing the chief minister's words, all the ministers knelt down in unison, echoing his sentiments.
They are dignified men, yet they have received the favor of Princess Yizhen but do not remember her kindness. Aren't they even worse than a mere woman?
Emperor Jing'an looked at the officials kneeling on the ground, and his tightly furrowed brows relaxed.
If the Northern Qi hadn't presented the opportunity to him, he wouldn't have found a chance to publicize Yi Zhen's deeds.
Yi Zhen's memorial tablet could only be hidden behind Yuan Rong's spirit tablet, and could never be openly displayed to receive Zhao Yi's worship.
Emperor Jing'an put down the memorial tablet, looking quite relieved.
He finally dispelled the darkness for her, allowing her to see the sunlight again.
-
After the sacrificial ceremony concluded, Emperor Jing'an issued a posthumous imperial edict and ordered the Embroidered Uniform Guard to spread the story of Princess Huguo's deeds among the people.
The people thought Zhao Yi was the son of Emperor Jing'an, but the truth was not so; Zhao Yi was actually the son of Princess Huguo.
Who is the Princess Protector of the Nation?
She was the younger sister of Emperor Jing'an, born of the same mother, and had been a hostage in Northern Qi with Emperor Jing'an since childhood.
In order to protect Emperor Jing'an and prevent the Great Zhou from being trampled by the iron cavalry of Northern Qi, she was forced by the power of Northern Qi to submit to the emperor of Northern Qi and give birth to a son. In the end, she died tragically in Northern Qi.
The Northern Qi was utterly shameless. They clearly knew Zhao Yi's background, yet they maliciously spread rumors and stirred up trouble, hoping to incite internal strife in the Great Zhou and then take advantage of the situation to attack the Great Zhou.
It's truly hateful.
The people were furious because war meant that their sons, husbands, and fathers would have to go to the battlefield, and no one knew whether they would die on the battlefield and be separated from each other forever.
This also means that their peaceful and prosperous lives will once again be plunged into misery and suffering.
At the same time, the words spoken by Emperor Jing'an in the Imperial Ancestral Temple were relayed by the officials.
The people were even more enraged and flocked to the Siyi Pavilion. When they saw the people from Northern Qi coming out, they threw stones at them.
“Our Great Zhou has always valued peace. It was only because His Majesty wanted to prevent us common people from being displaced and suffering the ravages of war that he agreed to make peace with your Northern Qi.”
“You, a defeated nation, not only do you not know gratitude, but you have also lost all conscience, using the guise of marriage alliances to sow discord in the Great Zhou.”
"The hatred between the nation and the family is irreconcilable. We will not agree to friendly relations, much less agree to a marriage alliance."
"Yes, we cannot make peace with Northern Qi through marriage. The soldiers of Northern Qi killed our closest relatives and even our Great Zhou princess. They must pay for this in blood!"
"Blood debts must be repaid with blood! Blood debts must be repaid with blood!"
Inside the Siyi Pavilion, the envoys and the King of Qi from Northern Qi listened to the increasingly loud shouts of "blood debts must be repaid in blood," and their expressions turned solemn.
At this moment, a guard came in from outside, covering his head: "Your Highness, the outside is surrounded by the people of Great Zhou. When they saw our Northern Qi people going out, they started throwing stones at them."
King Qi looked at the guard with a bloodied head, slammed his fist on the table, and gritted his teeth, saying, "What a bunch of unruly people!"
However, they cannot attack the people of the Great Zhou, otherwise the soldiers of the Great Zhou would surely have besieged and annihilated the Four Barbarian Tribes' Pavilion.
"Didn't you say that Emperor Jing'an wouldn't expose Princess Yizhen's experiences in Northern Qi, let alone reveal Zhao Yi's background?" The Prince of Qi was furious and lashed out at Deputy Envoy Gao: "You good-for-nothing, more capable of ruining things than accomplishing anything, how could Father Emperor entrust such an important task to a fool like you?"
Vice Envoy Gao's face was grim, but he dared not refute King Qi's words. He had always been confident, yet he had never gained the upper hand in the Great Zhou.
This time, he really didn't expect Emperor Jing'an to speak so frankly, without any concealment.
They even used this opportunity to elevate Princess Yizhen to an unattainable status, making her revered by the people of the Great Zhou, rather than a disgraceful figure.
Their situation has now taken a sharp turn for the worse, making it difficult for them to return home safely.
"I miscalculated." Vice Envoy Gao was annoyed that Emperor Jing'an was acting unpredictably. At the same time, he was also flustered when he thought about their situation: "No, if we let things continue like this, we might be arrested by the Emperor of Great Zhou and used to threaten Northern Qi."
Unable to remain calm, Vice Envoy Gao immediately wrote a letter and ordered it to be sent to Northern Qi by express courier.
King Qi was in a bad mood and got up to find Princess Guangning, hoping that she could get in touch with Prince Yu and find a way to save them.
-
Emperor Jing'an vindicated Yi Zhen at the Imperial Ancestral Temple, but did not allow Zhao Yi to be present; instead, he had him stay in the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
After he had settled everything, he changed into casual clothes and secretly took Zhao Yi out of the palace, where they traveled by carriage to Phoenix Mountain.