Anti-Qing: Starting from the Jintian Uprising

Chapter 394 The coronation ceremony!

Inside the Qianqing Palace, everyone took their seats.

The palace maids and eunuchs came forward to arrange the dishes and pour the wine.

Li Yi took the lead and raised a glass.

"I would like to offer this first cup to the Heavenly King, the Southern King and other leaders of the Heavenly Kingdom."

“If it weren’t for the sages who led the people to rise up in arms, set off a huge anti-Qing upsurge, and ignited the anti-Qing enthusiasm of the people of all walks of life, there would be no glory and wealth we have today.”

"Everyone, let's drink together!"

Whether from the anti-Qing standpoint or from personal feelings, Li Yi was very supportive of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

You know, when he first started his army, he relied heavily on the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

This is a favor, you have to acknowledge it!
Upon hearing this, Shi Dakai also raised his glass and drank the wine in one gulp.

Li Yi continued.

"The second cup is dedicated to all the heroes who sacrificed their lives heroically in the fight against the Qing Dynasty."

"Whether it is the Tang Dynasty, the Heavenly Kingdom, or other righteous armies, if it were not for these heroes who continued to devote themselves to the anti-Qing cause, we would never be able to repeat the great feat of Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty in expelling the Tartars and restoring China."

"Everyone, let's drink together!"

Upon hearing this, everyone raised their glasses and drank up the wine in their glasses.

Li Yi continued.

"This third cup is for my brother Dakai."

"Since the 30th year of Daoguang, we have been leading the Yishi Division in Jintian, Guangxi. Now, five years have passed."

"Five years of chaos and five years of war, the people of the world have suffered greatly."

"Now that the Dakai brothers have understood the greater good and led their troops to return, this has greatly accelerated the process of unifying the world."

"Let the people of the world suffer less from the suffering of war!"

“It’s a great achievement!”

"Brother Dakai, let's drink this cup together!"

Shi Dakai was deeply moved when he heard this. He could feel that Li Yi valued him.

He immediately raised his glass.

"Wei Chen obeys!"

After he finished speaking, he raised his hand and drank the wine in the glass.

Li Yi's face was full of smiles, and he was just about to invite everyone to start the banquet.

Then Shi Dakai stood up from his seat, walked to the center of the hall and bowed.

"Your Majesty, I have something important to report."

When Li Yi heard this, his expression was obviously a little surprised, but he still spoke.

"Brother Dakai, if you have something to say, just say it. There's no need to kneel down all the time."

"Our Tang Dynasty is not the Qing Dynasty. We don't follow this."

In the Tang Dynasty, except for some specific occasions like grand court meetings, the kneeling ceremony has almost been abolished.

Li Yi really doesn't like others kneeling in front of him!
Shi Dakai heard this but still did not get up from the ground.

He took a deep breath, as if he had made up his mind, and spoke.

"In reply to your Majesty, I would like to resign my title of king."

"Your Majesty is willing to confer the title of king on me, which shows your high regard for me."

"But I know that I am not talented and virtuous, and my achievements are limited. I dare not take credit for it. I ask Your Majesty to withdraw your order..."

When Li Yi heard this, his expression was obviously surprised.

Now he really couldn't understand what Shi Dakai was thinking.

When the two sides were discussing the terms of surrender, he took the initiative to express his desire to be crowned king.

Li Yi agreed!
But now he has taken the initiative to resign.

Li Yi was really confused.

But he spoke anyway.

"Why does your family have to do this?"

"Since I have promised your family the reward of being crowned king, how can I go back on my word?"

"Besides, your family has offered three provinces to the people, saving them from a few years of war. It is only natural that you should be rewarded with the title of king."

"No one in the world can say anything against it!"

Although deep down in his heart, Li Yi was a little reluctant to give Shi Dakai the title of king.

The matter of crowning a king involves too many things.

But once words are spoken, they can be spilled.

Li Yi felt really embarrassed. Shi Dakai had just brought it up and he took back his words so easily.

Otherwise, he was afraid that someone would stab him in the back.

Li Yi has been building up his character for such a long time, and has gained many advantages because of this character. He doesn't want to destroy his character so easily.

It is easy to destroy a character, but difficult to establish one!

Upon hearing this, Shi Dakai asked for his resignation again and expressed his fear.

After several rounds of tug-of-war, Li Yi finally gave in.

"Since you insist, I agree."

"However, since your family is unwilling to accept the reward of being crowned king, then other rewards cannot be refused..."

Li Yi immediately ordered people to prepare an imperial edict, conferring the title of Duke of Yiguo on Shi Dakai, concurrently as Deputy Chief of the General Staff, with the rank of Marshal, and granting him a red-lettered iron certificate and a mansion in the capital.

In addition, Li Yi also planned to give him more compensation in terms of gold, silver, land, mansions, beauties, etc.

……

As night fell and the banquet ended, Shi Dakai left the palace drunk.

After leaving the Forbidden City, he went to his own granted residence under the guidance of several guards.

This granted residence is located in the inner city of the capital, on the western edge of Qianhai and the southern bank of Shichahai, not far from the Forbidden City.

The geographical location is very advantageous!
The building is magnificent, very neat and yet exquisite. You can tell at a glance that a lot of thought went into its construction.

The group arrived outside the mansion. Zhang Zhidong, who was ordered to lead the way for Shi Dakai, introduced Shi Dakai.

"Duke Yiguo, you don't know that this mansion was originally the residence of Prince Gong, and it was the residence where the evil chieftain Yi of the Qing Dynasty lived before he ascended the throne."

"In addition to Yi, Heshen, Yonglin and others also lived here."

"After the Tang Dynasty recaptured the capital, all the generals in the army wrote to Your Majesty, asking Your Majesty to reward them with this mansion."

"But His Majesty refused!"

"But now he has awarded it to the Duke despite all objections, which shows how much His Majesty values ​​the Duke."

Upon hearing this, Shi Dakai took a deep breath and said excitedly.

"Your Majesty, your kindness and generosity will never be forgotten by Dakai, never forgotten!"

Zhang Zhidong smiled and continued to lead the way to introduce the various arrangements in the granted house to Shi Dakai.

"The entire Prince Gong Mansion covers an area of ​​30 square meters, with more than building complexes."

"In addition to the main residence of the palace, there is also a garden called Cuijin Garden, which covers an area of ​​2.8 square meters. The buildings in the garden are divided into three roads: east, middle and west. Each road is composed of multiple courtyards with a strict central axis running from south to north."

"It is the largest palace in the Qing Dynasty..."

Shi Dakai was brought into Prince Gong's Mansion and then arranged to stay there.

After doing all this, Zhang Zhidong said goodbye to Shi Dakai and prepared to return to report to Li Yi.

……

Time passes quietly!
The New Year passed quickly.

The fifth year of the Tang Dynasty’s Zhaowu reign, the first day of the first lunar month in the year 1856 in the Western calendar.

Coronation Ceremony!

The sun rose in the east, and a hint of paleness appeared on the horizon.

When the first rays of morning glow shine on the gate of the Qianqing Palace.

With a creak, the gate of the Qianqing Palace was opened.

Li Yi, wearing a crown and robes, opened his eyes facing the morning glow, took Luo Caiyu's hand, and the two walked hand in hand towards the outside of the Qianqing Palace.

Li Yi arrived outside the Qianqing Palace, and the emperor and empress boarded the sedan chair that had been prepared long ago.

Accompanied by three whip cracks, the imperial carriage set off towards the Meridian Gate.

On both sides of the imperial carriage were elite soldiers of the Imperial Guard.

Wherever the sedan chair passed, the palace maids, eunuchs, guards and ministers all bowed down like wheat waves blown by the wind.

Li Yi sat upright on the sedan chair with a solemn expression.

There is a hint of excitement in my heart!
The emperor left the Qianqing Palace, passed through the Qianqing Gate, and arrived at the Baohe Hall, which was renamed Shendu Hall by Li Yi's order.

Further ahead are the Ziji Palace and Chengtian Palace.

After passing through Chengtian Gate and crossing the Jinshui Bridge, you will arrive at the main gate of the Forbidden City - Wumen!
By the time Li Yi walked out of the Meridian Gate, the sky was already completely bright.

Li Yi, sitting on the sedan chair, narrowed his eyes slightly, enjoying the warmth brought by the sun.

Taking a deep breath, Li Yi became more and more excited.

The imperial carriage went along the road in front of the Meridian Gate towards the Temple of Heaven.

Li Yi was preparing to offer sacrifices to heaven at the Temple of Heaven and ascend the throne.

On both sides of the road, people were kneeling down and praying with incense burners in their hands. At a glance, there was no end in sight.

"Long live my emperor, long live, long live, long live!"

"Long live my emperor, long live, long live, long live!"

"..."

Waves of cheers and worship almost turned the entire capital city upside down.

In the viewing group, British Minister Bruce was whispering with French Minister Baldwin.

"The power of the Eastern Emperor is truly unbelievable..."

"Yes, for a coronation ceremony, there would be so many people participating and kneeling in worship."

"Compared to the emperors in the East, the power held by our queen and emperor is as small as a pitiful creature."

Not far away, the Russian ambassador Nicholas just curled his lips when he heard this, and didn't seem to care much about it.

Because the Tsar is also a representative of the real powerful monarch in Europe, and their Tsar has power that is no less than that of the Eastern emperor.

Well, although Tsarist Russia and Britain and France are now mortal enemies, this does not prevent Nicholas from eavesdropping on the conversations between the British and French envoys.

Or perhaps it was precisely because Tsarist Russia and Britain and France were mortal enemies that Nicholas pricked up his ears to listen to the conversation between the British and French envoys.

I was afraid that they were discussing how to deal with Tsarist Russia!

Amid the cheers and congratulations of the people of the capital, the imperial carriage arrived at the Temple of Heaven.

Li Yi stepped down from the sedan chair and headed towards the Temple of Heaven which had been arranged in advance.

He stepped onto the Temple of Heaven, holding three incense sticks in his hands.

After burning incense, Li Yi took a sacrificial text for heaven and began to recite it himself.

"Your servant, Li Yi, pays respect to Haotian, Houtu, and the four gods."

"Since the Jiashen year, the Jian barbarians have invaded the country and ravaged the country. China has suffered for two hundred years..."

"Yi inherited the mandate of heaven and rose from humble beginnings. After five years of fighting, he returned to his old capital and the world was finally at peace..."

"Today, at the Temple of Heaven in the capital, I respectfully announce to heaven and earth that I have ascended the throne and proclaimed myself emperor!"

After saying this, Li Yi threw the sacrificial text in his hand into the bronze tripod in front of him.

With a bang, the flames burned and engulfed the sacrificial text.

Around the Temple of Heaven, countless people bowed down and cheered in congratulations.

"Long live my emperor, long live, long live, long live!"

"Long live my emperor, long live, long live, long live!"

"..."

Li Yi stood in front of the Temple of Heaven, closed his eyes, and enjoyed the cheers from the mountains all around him and the countless people bowing to him.

At this moment, Li Yi's blood was boiling.

This is the taste of power!
Truly fascinating!
(End of this chapter)