Chapter 43: Grand Purge, Dust Settles

——Dead silence!

Complete, utter dead silence!

Inside Chongde Hall.

The ministers stared, frozen, at this scene.

At the sword-wielding man standing beside the young Son of Heaven, their expressions blank.

Who, by now, could fail to see Gu Xi's resolve today?

First, send the Gu clan youths back to Hebei, removing the family's rear worries.

Do not appease the ministers who followed him.

It was to prevent failure at the final moment, dragging too many loyal ministers down with him.

Gu Xi's prestige among the realm is unimaginable.

Should he die, the entire world would shake.

Yan Ji's actions came too fast.

She gave Gu Xi no chance to summon regional lords to aid the throne.

Had she truly sealed this matter shut, no one could say how the situation would have unfolded.

Gu Xi is using himself as the bait.

If he succeeds, all will be settled.

If he fails and dies,

With his prestige, even if Yan Ji truly installs Liu Yi on the throne, it will still shake the realm.

Then the Gu clan youths and these loyal ministers may act as opportunity arises.

Understood!

We all understand now!

Though only for an instant, countless thoughts flashed through everyone's minds.

Yang Zhen and the others moved fastest.

Without hesitation, they immediately knelt before Liu Bao on the dragon throne.

"Your servants, pay homage to Your Majesty!!"

Liu Shou and the other ministers who had sided with Yan were utterly stunned.

Hearing that thunderous cry,

Their faces turned as white as paper; they knelt instinctively, voices trembling: "Pay homage to Your Majesty."

"Your servants know their fault!"

"We beg Your Majesty's mercy."

What can be done?

What else can be done?

Gu Xi's act today—staking his own life—exceeded their wildest imaginings.

He had ruled as regent for years; who in court did not know Gu Xi's methods?

For those among them who had sided with Yan Ji,

To survive now, they must beg mercy from this young Son of Heaven.

But Liu Bao is not Liu Hu.

Looking at the kneeling ministers before him, his gaze showed no panic, yet he said nothing, instead turning to Gu Xi.

Gu Xi did nothing more.

After the ministers completed their homage to the Son of Heaven, he spoke again, his expression unchanged.

"The late Emperor has passed away."

"Cause of death unknown."

"Immediately imprison Fan Feng, Jiang Jing, Yan Xian, and others; subject them to severe torture."

"Extract the cause of the late Emperor's death."

"Liu Shou and others conspired with rebels to usurp the Han dynasty's mandate."

"Strip them of all offices, abolish their noble titles, imprison them all, execute them, and dismiss all family members."

"Empress Yan Ji committed treason."

"Proclaim her crimes to the realm; exile the entire Yan clan."

"Strip her of her honorific title and her status as Empress."

"Confine her within the palace to reflect on her sins."

"Ministers, determine the posthumous title for the late Emperor!"

A cold voice echoed through the hall.

Gu Xi had clearly planned everything in advance; his expression never changed from start to finish.

Instantly, everyone's expressions subtly shifted.

Even Yang Zhen and the others had not anticipated it.

The punishment was too severe.

Others aside, the main target was Yan Ji, the current Empress Dowager.

Strip her of her honorific title, revoke her Empress status.

This was effectively branding Yan Ji a criminal outright.

Remember, even the late Dou Empress Dowager never met such an end!

Yan Ji's expression changed completely; her emotions shattered, and she stared fiercely at Gu Xi, shouting: "Gu Xi!"

"How dare you treat me this way?"

"I am the Empress, appointed by the late Emperor!"

"I am the Empress Dowager!"

"How can you treat me like this?"

Her voice lost all authority, even sounding shrill, like a shrewish woman screaming in the street.

But who would care for her now?

Gu Xi simply waved his hand, and men were immediately ordered to take her away.

Then came Liu Shou and the others.

Wails echoed through the hall; this was destined to be a bloody purge.

Throughout it all, Liu Bao watched silently.

He was still young.

He felt a flicker of fear, yet he forced himself to stand firm.

Only after a long while.

Did the hall gradually fall silent.

Yang Zhen and the others finally came to their senses; their expressions turned grave.

Determine the posthumous title for the late Emperor!

In the past, this matter would have required no further deliberation.

Today's Han Empire is far from the time to arbitrarily assign posthumous titles; the ministers would naturally deliberate fairly.

But now it is different.

As for Emperor Liu Hu, if you ask what achievements he had, there were none.

In his early reign, Deng Sui and Gu Xi jointly ruled the empire.

He held no power whatsoever.

Later, after Deng Sui's death, he gained power—but still entrusted all governance to Gu Xi.

This could be called appointing virtuous ministers.

Yet recent developments contradict this very notion.

Moreover, the Han Empire has now emerged from years of natural disasters, and its strength is slowly recovering.

All of this occurred during Liu Hu's reign.

It cannot be ignored.

But grant Liu Hu a glorious posthumous title?

Not even Gu Xi would agree—and the ministers could never make such a choice.

For Liu Hu,

only the lowest-grade, plain posthumous title is appropriate.

The ministers instantly reached this judgment, yet no one spoke up.

Gu Xi would not let them decide outright at this moment; instead, he continued implementing more prudent measures.

Whatever the case, the court must first be stabilized.

This upheaval had too great an impact.

This is even assuming Gu Xi's actions greatly lessened the fallout.

But having purged the court ministers,

consequences were inevitable.

Gu Yi had been watching it all.

He had never expected the Lucky Card to have such an effect.

"If I draw a similar item in the future, perhaps I can use it on the battlefield."

"Swords and spears show no mercy."

"A significant boost in luck would play a decisive role."

He silently resolved to this, while attentively listening to Gu Xi's orders.

Clearly,

as the Gu family's influence grew, history had already begun to change.

Since the time of Liu Zhao,

the Han Empire had diverged sharply from its original history.

Now it had leapt directly past the reigns of Wang Sheng and Yan Ji, placing power directly into Liu Bao's hands.

This change had far surpassed anything before.

He could not fathom how the future would unfold.

Because Gu Xi was only forty-six!

Though his experiences made him seem ancient, worn by time,

he was still under fifty!

Weathered storms, renowned across the land, yet returned strong and vigorous.

The Longevity Card ensured Gu Xi's body suffered no decline whatsoever.

Even though Gu Yi did not yet know its limits,

as long as Gu Xi lived and remained in court, the Han Empire could never again descend into the conditions of its original history.

After this lesson.

Gu Xi will be far more cautious.

With such uncertain factors, who can see the future clearly?

Night.

The starry sky is vast, the night silent as a dream.

Gu Xi led Liu Bao all the way into the Northern Palace.

After the entire day.

The atmosphere of the entire Han court was extremely solemn.

Liu Bao was only eleven years old, and naturally appeared weary.

Most crucially, he carried deep-seated fear of the palace from years past, silently tugging at Gu Xi's sleeve.

"Grand Tutor."

Just stepping into the sleeping quarters, Liu Bao hesitated repeatedly, then couldn't help speaking: "I—"

"Your Majesty must refer to yourself as 'I, the Emperor.'" Gu Xi gently interrupted him.

Liu Bao seemed to finally realize, quickly correcting himself: "Can I truly become a good Emperor?"

He stared intently at Gu Xi.

Gu Xi did not hesitate, giving a slight nod: "Your Majesty need not worry—I will assist Your Majesty."

"Will Grand Tutor one day leave me as well?"

Liu Bao spoke again, a flicker of anxiety in his eyes.

In response, Gu Xi fell silent for a moment, then smiled lightly: "I am already old."

"But Your Majesty may rest assured."

"Before Your Majesty fully controls the court, I will not depart."

Gu Xi's expression was especially serious.

With the conversation opened, Gu Xi began instructing Liu Bao.

"As sovereign, Your Majesty must never bear the stigma of filial impiety; thus I chose to spare Yan Ji's life."

"Yet this matter must serve as a warning."

"Your Majesty must remember this point in the future."

"As for the families of those ministers, this matter involves too wide a scope—Your Majesty need not harbor resentment."

"Executing their ringleaders is enough to signal our stance to them."

"I have dismissed them all; Your Majesty may later select them anew based on merit."

"This move will surely make them grateful to Your Majesty, swiftly cultivating a core of loyal supporters."

"Our Han dynasty's past emperors always showed benevolence to the people."

"Now that the realm is gradually stabilized, Your Majesty may do likewise."

"Let the people of the realm know Your Majesty's grace, and only then may their hearts be settled."

"."

Liu Bao listened very attentively; after Gu Xi finished speaking, he spoke: "Grand Tutor, I—I wish to promote Gu Shizi."

Though the Gu clan now has over a dozen members serving in local posts.

Within the imperial court, the Gu clan has only Gu Xi.

Even the current Marquis of Guanjun is not in the capital, but in his fief.

This was, in fact, Gu Xi's deliberate arrangement.

He is not Huo Guang.

If family members lack talent, yet still occupy high positions, they are bound to bring disaster.

But Liu Bao clearly did not think so.

At least now, the only ones who could give him absolute security were the Gu clan.

He had spent this time living within the Hou Fu.

He had even formed deep bonds with several Gu Shizi.

Hearing this, Gu Xi felt no surprise, and immediately shook his head: "Your Majesty need not do this."

"The fate of the Gu clan rests with Heaven."

"If family members lack talent, why should they come to court?"

This bond of gratitude between the Gu clan and Liu Bao must not be used here.

Even if Gu Shizi could enter the court,

their lack of talent would inevitably cause this bond of gratitude to grow ever fainter.

Rather than that,

it is better to withdraw.

And wait until the clan produces another talent, then renew this bond of gratitude.

Gu Xi clearly already held the same mindset as Gu Kang had once held.

Liu Bao stared at Gu Xi, surprised by this reasoning; after a moment of silence, he gave a slight nod.

The sovereign and minister began chatting casually.

Gu Xi seemed to sense Liu Bao's fear of the palace.

He took the opportunity to comfort him.

He spoke again of the state mourning and the arrangements for the future coronation ceremony, naturally including Liu Hu's posthumous title.

In truth, Gu Xi felt no such turmoil as the ministers imagined; he didn't care at all.

The Gu clan's descendants each had their own judgment on the bond between ruler and minister.

When Liu Zhao died.

He was deeply saddened.

This was because Liu Zhao was a wise ruler, and they had been harmonious in their ruler-minister relationship.

And at his dying moment, he entrusted his young heir—this was absolute trust.

Deng Sui was not the ruler.

But she was a woman of great talent.

Suppose Deng Sui's position had been replaced by someone like Empress Dowager Dou or Lady Yan.

Han would have surely collapsed amid those unending natural disasters.

And what of Liu Hu?

He had no great achievements, and his final arrangements nearly brought the state to ruin.

For such an emperor,

Gu Xi paid no great heed.

He was a man who did real work; as long as the posthumous title wasn't wildly inappropriate, he could accept it.

The two spoke for a long time.

Only after Liu Bao's heart gradually calmed did Gu Xi depart.

From that day forward, the entire Han Empire seemed to return to its former state.

Jiang Jing, this eunuch, could not withstand the harsh interrogation.

He finally revealed everything that had happened in the palace that night.

Lady Yan watched Liu Hu die on his bed.

She sealed off the entire palace and forged edicts with the imperial seal.

All the details, big and small.

Naturally, this included Lady Yan's revelations about past events.

But who would care about such things?

Moreover, to the ministers, the matter seemed absurd.

Who was Gu Xi?

How could he possibly have acted against a mere eunuch and someone like Wang Sheng?

That meant there must have been hidden motives.

Coupled with Liu Hu's changed attitude toward Deng Sui in past years,

what need was there to guess the reason?

Once this came to light, even the ministers grew disillusioned with Emperor Liu Hu.

Liu Hu's entire series of actions laid bare his stupidity in the most complete way.

Under these circumstances,

the ministers assigned Liu Hu a posthumous title that completely surprised Gu Xi.

——Jingping.

"Jing" implied the Han realm was stable, subtly suggesting "empty splendor," pointing out that this golden age had nothing to do with Liu Hu;

"Ping" directly accused Liu Hu of being foolish and incompetent, blaming him for grave mistakes in his later years.

In truth, this posthumous title seemed highly reasonable, and on its surface, it was far from a cruel one.

But the key was that it did not include the character "Xiao"!

Since the Two Han dynasties began,

apart from Gao Zu Emperor Liu Bang and Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu, these two founding emperors,

every single emperor carried the character "Xiao."

That Liu Hu did not carry it revealed the problem.

The ministers explained: "Liu Hu inherited the throne as the son of Emperor Xiaohe and Empress Hexi."

"But Gu Xi, entrusted with guardianship by both, was suspected by Liu Hu."

This was an act of filial impiety.

Moreover, Liu Hu's final actions shook the very foundation of Han.

Also Heavy.

Therefore, the character "Xiao" must not be included.

Gu Xi made no further comment, but left this decision to Liu Bao.

Liu Bao's wisdom became evident under these circumstances.

Especially after Gu Xi's instruction, though still young, he clearly possessed a measure of governing ability.

Seeing that the ministers all accepted the title,

he immediately agreed.

Yet he publicly declared: "As a son, I must bear my father's faults; in my lifetime, I shall govern as Emperor Xiaowen and Emperor Xiaoming once did, to atone for my late father's sins."

He soothed the ministers and preserved the "Xiao" reputation.

The ministers were deeply shocked that Liu Bao could speak such words.

This was the sign of a wise ruler!

With the state mourning over, Liu Bao held a formal coronation ceremony, proclaimed the new era name "Yongjian," and everything was finally settled.

As for the child Liu Yi,

no one cared at all.

The entire Han court had once again subtly taken on the atmosphere of Deng Sui's time.

The young Son of Heaven sat upon the dragon throne.

Gu Xi governed the realm.

Yet there were differences.

After this upheaval, Gu Xi had truly changed.

In the past, he had never carried a sword into the palace; during court sessions, he would always remain among the ministers.

But now it was entirely different.

At every court session, Gu Xi stood always with sword in hand beside Liu Bao, guarding the young Son of Heaven to intimidate the officials.

Of course, the ministers could also sense Gu Xi's transformation.

Any issue,

he would have Liu Bao consider it first, while he himself acted as assistant.

Nothing like during Liu Hu's reign, when he had monopolized all state affairs himself.

Everyone saw Gu Xi's intention.

Just as Gu Kang had once done, he too seemed to be contemplating retirement.

The ministers' thoughts on this were deeply complex.

Gu Xi had held regency for many years.

The ministers in court had come and gone.

Those who remained now were long accustomed to serving under Gu Xi and held him in deep admiration.

But tell me, among all the heroes under heaven, who does not grow old?

As day after day passed,

Liu Bao grew ever more adept in state affairs, while Gu Xi grew ever more silent.

Everyone sensed it faintly.

A brilliant and glorious era seemed about to turn its final page.

(End of Chapter)