The third emperor of the Sui Dynasty

Chapter 96
The news that Yu Wenhuaji mutinied in Jiangdu and killed Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty had spread all over Jizhou.After Yang Tong returned to Zhuojun, he immediately ordered all the counties to mourn for ten days, and the soldiers and civilians all wore plain clothes to mourn the death of the Sui Emperor.Although Yang Guang was unpopular, he was the emperor of the Sui Dynasty after all, and the news of his death still made countless people feel sad.

On February 14, [-], the fleet carrying Empress Xiao, Concubine Xiao (Yang Gao's biological mother) and others finally arrived at Lushui Estuary (Haihekou, Tianjin)!

The pier is already full of people!

Yang Tong, Yang You, Concubine Wei, Concubine Liu, Princess Lujiang, Wei Fengwu, Shui Tianji, Changsun Wugou, Yang Gongren, Yang Shidao and other family members were all waiting in plain clothes. Fang Xuanling, Wei Zheng, Kong Yingda, Qin Qiong, Luo Shixin, Pei Xingyan, and others, as well as the prefects, tongshou, and prefects of the counties in Jizhou, all came... Even Li Jing, Pei Renji, Yang Shanhui, Wei Yunqi, Deng Hao, Yang Yuanhong, and Gao Yaxian from Bianjun were all generals. The important task is handed over to the deputy...

Finally, the largest dragon boat stands firmly on the shore!

At this moment, Empress Xiao came down from the boat with a one-foot-square jade box in her arms!
Yang Tong and others who knew her were all shocked!

Empress Xiao, who was dressed in plain robes, was still as gorgeous, but her hair was full of snow!

"Meet the Queen Mother!"

"Meet the imperial grandmother!"

"Meet the Empress!"

"..."

At this moment, all the people in Jizhou, headed by Yang Tong, knelt down on the ground together.

When Empress Xiao saw her daughter, daughter-in-law, grandson, grandson-in-law, and old ministers such as Yang Gongren, Yang Shidao, Li Jing, Pei Renji, Yang Shanhui, Wei Yunqi, Deng Hao, Yang Yuanhong, etc., she could no longer hold back the tears she had endured for several months The flow flowed down, and he said with a choked voice: "Everyone get flat."

Concubine Liu and Princess Lujiang stepped forward to support Empress Xiao.

"Although the father and emperor have passed away, I still ask my mother to take good care of the phoenix body. Zhuojun is our home, and this is still the Great Sui Dynasty. I ask my mother to live here with peace of mind. With the Dong children around, no one can hurt my mother."

Talk and talk!

Concubine Liu burst into tears.

Empress Xiao nodded with tears in her eyes. She stroked the large jade box in her bosom, and tremblingly said to Yang Tong beside her, "Dong'er, your grandfather, Zhao Wangshu and Yang Shangshu guarded the country and set themselves on fire in Jiangdu Palace! He is martyrdom!" Now, cut off the middle finger of your right hand and write the last imperial decree. Here is your grandfather's finger, which was picked up by General Shen Guang... Now, I will leave it to you!"

Yang Tong took the jade box with both hands, his eyes turned red, his lips moved, but he couldn't say anything.

"Gao'er, Gao'er, only a few hairs..."

Concubine Xiao handed a small jade box to Yang You, howled miserably, and passed out.

Everyone who heard it wept.

Princess Lujiang couldn't hold back the grief in her heart any longer, and tears welled up in her eyes, "Mother!" She shouted, threw herself into Queen Xiao's arms, and burst into tears.

……

This suffocating reunion took more than half an hour!

Back in Zhuojun, put the relics of Yang Guang and Yang Gao in the red sandalwood coffin that had been prepared.At the same time, a coffin was set up for Yang Yichen, which contained the armor he left in Jizhou!In "Shuo Tang", Yang Yichen is the younger brother of Yang Lin, the backer king, but in fact he is the prototype of Yang Lin. He is loyal to the Sui Dynasty and never married!
With Yang Yichen, Wei Xuan, who died for the sake of the Sui Dynasty, was naturally inevitable.

After the arrangement was complete, the coffins of Yang Guang, Yang Gao, Yang Yichen and Wei Xuan were moved to the Xuanwu Hall of Linshuo Palace together.

Hundreds of officials wear hemp, and the three armies wear filial piety.

in the temple.

The clan headed by Empress Xiao all wore sackcloth and filial piety for the emperor to guard the spirit.

Three days later, Empress Xiao read Yang Guang's edict in public in front of Yang Guangling, and asked Shen Guang to explain the whole process of Yang Guang, and then gave this edict to Concubine Wei, Concubine Liu, Princess Lujiang, and Yang Tong. , Yang You, Yang Gongren, Li Jing, Wei Yunqi, Pei Renji and other old officials of Yang Guang to identify the authenticity one by one!

Everyone is Yang Tong's courtiers, of course there is no reason to object to Yang Tong being the third emperor, and now there is Yang Guang's own edict, everyone is happy and encouraged.

"Dong'er, today the world is not peaceful, and to be loyal is to be filial. When your grandfather is buried... you can choose a day to ascend the throne."

After Yang Guang's death, Empress Xiao's heart has been ashamed, and now she only wants to put aside everything to be a filial piety for Yang Guang!I don't want to pay attention to the others, and if Yang Tong ascends the throne as soon as possible, the benefits will outweigh the disadvantages both in public and in private.

Yang Tong stood up slowly, first saluted to Yang Guang's coffin, then to Empress Xiao, then turned around and met the delighted eyes of all the ministers: "We will talk about enthronement later! Don't worry at all. !"

"This……"

Everyone was amazed, this one was justified, and it was Empress Xiao who made the decision, why didn't she take advantage of the trend to ascend to the throne?

Empress Xiao looked at Yang Tong in amazement, thinking that he was posturing, so she said, "Dong'er, the imperial court cannot be without a ruler for a day, and the world cannot be without a master for a day!"

Yang Tong shook his head and said: "Grandmother, eldest brother has become Emperor Tai with the support of Wang Shichong and others, Yu Wenhuaji also established Yang Hao as emperor, and Yang Huai who came out of nowhere was also embraced by Li Yuan." If you become an emperor, there are already three emperors in the world, so your grandson will not join in the fun."

Empress Xiao said softly: "Dong'er, whether it's Tan'er, Yang Hao, or Yang Huai... are all false emperors."

The people also mean this.

"Everyone in the world knows that Yang Hao and Yang Huai can't be counted, but the elder brother is a direct descendant of the Yang family... If I become the emperor at this time, the elder brother and those under his command will definitely say that I am a fake for the sake of so-called orthodoxy. ;And I have to say that he is a fake in order to rectify his name. This is not that we brothers are fighting, but that the current situation forces us to attack each other. At that time, our Yang family will have two emperors directly, and we will fight for orthodoxy The whole world knows about it, what do people in the world think of our Yang family? This must be a laughing stock, a joke, a joke, a joke..."

Grandmother!With the martyrdom of the emperor's grandfather, the last bit of majesty of the Great Sui court has been torn to pieces by Yu Wenhuaji. Now there is no orthodoxy, and some only respect the strong.The place my grandson is in charge of now is so big, and being an emperor won't give me an extra inch of territory... Apart from making our Yang family a joke in the world, there is no benefit at all. If that is the case, then what am I going to do as an emperor? "

Yang Tong looked at the crowd, and continued: "Cao Cao's coercion of the emperor to command the princes has indeed attracted many talents for him, and made him go very quickly in the early days. But those old and young of the Han Dynasty used the Emperor Xiandi of the Han Dynasty time and time again for their own interests. To make troubles, Cao Cao's later stage narrowed down, and more than half of his energy was devoted to internal fighting. It can be said that Xiao He was successful and Xiao He was defeated."

"If I proclaim myself emperor according to the imperial grandfather's edict, then I will be the orthodox of the Sui Dynasty. Many old officials will defect to Zhuojun. Unwilling to be unwilling, they will quickly form a huge faction, the generals who plan to fight on the battlefield all day long, and the capable ministers and officials who plan to do practical things all day long. And these people are mostly people from big families. If they are reused, I will thank them. The system I worked so hard to build will collapse. If I don’t claim the title of emperor, no matter how thick-skinned these people are, they won’t be ashamed to join me. In short, I don’t want the emperor’s courtiers.”

Empress Xiao frowned and asked, "But the orthodox emperor's appeal to the world is beyond your imagination."

"Even if I'm not the emperor, I still have appeal."

"Oh?"

"Ascension to the throne brings nothing more than talents. But fair and just imperial examinations are more beneficial to humble scholars than any orthodox name, so I am not worried about the lack of talents. Whether these people use them or not, and how to use them are all up to you." I have the final say, the initiative is mine, and the key is that they know how to be grateful. If they are coaxed to vote, even if they are mediocre, I have to admit it. This will create many redundant officials and redundant staff who have nothing to do. It’s a matter, if I don’t use it, the hearts of the people in the world will be chilled, and I’m very passive.” Yang Tong smiled, and said: “For ordinary people, the land equalization system, perfect tax system, and clear and bright bureaucracy are enough.”

"What about the land? Many local officials are loyal and loyal ministers. If you become emperor, they will definitely offer land to you." Empress Xiao asked again.

Yang Tong shook his head: "If the counties and counties donated by these people are far away in Jiangnan, Guanzhong, Bashu, or Lingnan, we won't be able to keep them for a few days. If we lose a county today, we will lose a county tomorrow If it spreads to Zhuojun, the morale and confidence of the army and the people will be severely damaged. In short, not only can I not get an inch of those lands, but it has become my trouble, and I have to fight in the end, so we don’t want the short-lived false name.”

"..." Empress Xiao was speechless.

(End of this chapter)