Chapter 291

Liu Che had been walking with a spring in his step for the past few days.

The Wolf Mountain had been taken, the Xiongnu had been crippled, and the national treasury was piled high with gold and silver sent from the Western Regions.

The people were eating snow-white fine salt, and steam engines were rumbling outside Chang'an City.

He felt that he was a more decent emperor than any Liu before him.

But he made a decision—he was quitting.

"You want to abdicate?"

Liu Bang held his tea bowl, eyes wide as he looked at Liu Che, almost spilling the tea.

Liu Che nodded, his attitude very serious: "Gaozu, I want to follow the Immortal Master to cultivate immortality."

Liu Bang opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but turned to look at Gu Shanhe and closed it again.

He himself was also following Gu Shanhe to cultivate immortality, so he had no right to criticize others.

Ying Zheng sat to the side, drinking tea with a blank expression.

He was also following Gu Shanhe to cultivate immortality, so he had no right to criticize others either.

Gu Shanhe was very calm: "Have you thought it through?"

Liu Che nodded: "Thought it through. The Crown Prince is already an adult, and the court is stable."

"I have done what I should do in my years on the throne, and I will leave the rest to the young people."

Liu Bang muttered: "I said that back then too."

Liu Che's Crown Prince, Liu Ju, was summoned to the palace and heard his father say he was going to pass the throne to him.

Liu Ju was stunned for a long time, then knelt down and kowtowed three times, saying: "Your son will definitely not fail your trust, Father Emperor."

Liu Che looked at his son kneeling on the ground and suddenly felt a bit sad.

This kid had been raised as his successor since he was young, reading, practicing martial arts, and managing government affairs, all without fail.

But when it was really time to hand over the position, he was a bit reluctant.

What he was reluctant to part with wasn't the throne, but his son.

Gu Shanhe patted him on the shoulder: "Let's go, you can come back whenever you want."

Liu Che took a deep breath, stood up, took one last look at the palace he had lived in for decades, and turned to walk into the light gate opened by Gu Shanhe.

Ying Zheng and Liu Bang were already waiting inside.

The light gate closed, leaving only Liu Ju alone in the hall, kneeling on the ground, not rising for a long time.

When the light gate opened again, what came into view was an unfamiliar palace.

This was the Eastern Han imperial palace, smaller than his Weiyang Palace, but the layout was similar.

The court was full of civil and military officials, each wearing official uniforms he wasn't familiar with.

In the middle of the court, a young man sat on the throne, listening to ministers reporting matters.

When the light gate appeared, the entire court exploded.

"Assassins!"

A civil official shouted at the top of his lungs, his voice sharp enough to cut glass.

The palace guards rushed up with a clatter, swords drawn, surrounding the light gate tightly.

Then Gu Shanhe walked out.

Ying Zheng walked out second, in a black dragon robe, expressionless, his gaze sweeping over the palace guards, who retreated half a step inexplicably.

Liu Bang came out third; he smiled and waved at the guards:

"Don't be nervous, don't be nervous, I'm not here to fight."

Liu Che came out last; he was wearing the crown dress of a Han emperor, exactly the same as the clothes on the young man on the dragon throne.

The palace guards were stunned.

Not because they recognized these people, but because—

The three behind were wearing dragon robes, and they were authentic dragon robes.

"Bold!"

An old minister stood out tremblingly, pointing at Ying Zheng.

"Who are you people, daring to wear dragon robes privately? This is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine clans!"

Ying Zheng glanced at him without speaking.

But that look made the old minister's legs shake.

He didn't know why, but this person's gaze had more pressure than any emperor he had ever seen.

The young man on the dragon throne stood up.

He wasn't panicked, nor did he shout, but squinted his eyes, carefully examining the four people who walked out of the light gate.

His gaze stopped on Liu Bang for a moment, then on Liu Che.

Then his face changed.

Not fear, but shock.

He walked down from the throne in two or three steps, pushed aside the guards blocking the front, walked quickly to Liu Bang and Liu Che, and bowed deeply.

"Junior Liu Xiu, pays respects to the two Gaozu!"

The entire court was dumbfounded.

Gaozu?

Which Gaozu?

A few quick-witted old ministers knelt down with a thud.

Han Gaozu Liu Bang, Han Emperor Wu Liu Che, their portraits had been hanging in the Imperial Temple for two hundred years; they hadn't seen the real people, but they had heard of their appearances.

The person in front of them was at least ninety percent like the portraits.

Liu Bang laughed heartily and helped Liu Xiu up: "Good kid, worthy of being my descendant!"

Liu Che also smiled and patted Liu Xiu on the shoulder: "Emperor Guangwu, you've really brought honor to your great-uncle."

Liu Xiu looked up, his eyes a bit red.

The biggest regret of his life was not being able to see Gaozu and Emperor Wu.

Now that the two ancestors were standing in front of him alive, he almost couldn't hold it together.

Gu Shanhe cleared his throat, pulling everyone's attention back.

"I am the issuer of the Sky Screen rankings."

He said it very casually, as if introducing himself.

"This is Qin Shi Huang Ying Zheng, and these two are Han Gaozu Liu Bang and Han Emperor Wu Liu Che."

The entire court exploded again.

Qin Shi Huang?!

That Qin Shi Huang who swept through the six directions, unified the script and the carriage tracks?!

That Qin Shi Huang who had been cursed as a tyrant by them for hundreds of years?!

Ying Zheng swept a glance at the ministers expressionlessly and said lightly: "I don't eat people, no need to be afraid."

Liu Bang laughed out loud to the side.

Liu Xiu was worthy of being a founding emperor; shock was shock, but he stabilized quickly.

He turned to the soldiers who were still stunned and said: "Retreat."

The soldiers looked at each other, but still sheathed their swords and retreated outside the hall.

Liu Xiu then ordered the eunuchs: "Grant seats."

The eunuchs scrambled to move four chairs and placed them next to the dragon throne.

Liu Xiu didn't sit back on the dragon throne himself, but stood beside Liu Bang and Liu Che, serving like a junior.

Gu Shanhe took something out of his sleeve.

It was a golden scroll, not big, only about a foot long, but a faint halo flowed on it.

He threw the scroll into the air, and it slowly unfolded, radiating golden light, forming a huge light screen above the court.

This was Gu Shanhe spending two million emotional points in advance to redeem a new ranking list.

On the light screen, several large characters slowly emerged.

【This Ranking: Top Ten Ancient Battles】

【Ranked in chronological order, from back to front. This time, only ranking, no comparison.】

【Ranking Top Ten Ancient Battles · Part One】

【Battle of Lake Poyang】

Almost at the same time, the Sky Screen connected all dynasties.

From the Qin Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty, the sky of every era lit up.

Chang'an, Luoyang, Kaifeng, Lin'an, Dadu, Yingtian, Beijing—

Above every imperial palace, the same Sky Screen appeared, broadcasting the same content.

Emperor Wen of Sui, Yang Jian, was reviewing memorials, heard the eunuch shout "The Sky Screen is here again," put down his pen, and walked outside the hall.

Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, was discussing matters with Wei Zheng, saw the Sky Screen light up, and smiled: "It's here, let's see what's being ranked this time."

Emperor Taizu of Song, Zhao Kuangyin, was practicing martial arts, heard the movement, put away his staff, and looked up at the golden light screen in the sky.

Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang was losing his temper in the Yingtian Palace—he had just received a battle report from the front line, and things were not going well at Lake Poyang.

Then he heard the name on the Sky Screen.

Battle of Lake Poyang.

Zhu Yuanzhang was stunned.

【Battle of Lake Poyang】

【Time: 1363 AD】

【Location: Lake Poyang (now Jiangxi)】

【Opposing sides: Zhu Yuanzhang vs Chen Youliang】

【Overview: The largest naval battle in the late Yuan Dynasty. Chen Youliang led an army of 600,000 and giant warships to attack Zhu Yuanzhang. Zhu Yuanzhang used the flexibility of small boats, adopted fire attack tactics, and took advantage of the east wind to burn Chen Youliang's fleet. Chen Youliang died from a stray arrow.】

【Why famous: The largest naval battle in the medieval world. This battle eliminated Zhu Yuanzhang's biggest opponent, clearing the obstacles for his northern expedition against the Yuan Dynasty and the establishment of the Ming Dynasty.】

In the Eastern Han court, Liu Xiu looked at the text on the Sky Screen, his brows slightly furrowed.

Zhu Yuanzhang, he had heard the Sky Screen rank before.

But words like "600,000 army," "giant warships," and "largest naval battle" made him realize the weight of this battle.

Ying Zheng also watched very seriously.

He had fought many battles, but naval warfare was not his strong suit.

A naval battle of 600,000 people—he couldn't imagine what that scene was like.

Liu Bang was relaxed: "600,000 people? Good guy, I didn't have that many troops when I fought Xiang Yu."

Liu Che didn't speak; he was calculating—600,000 people, how much food would it take just to eat for one day?

Being able to organize so many people to fight a naval battle, this Ming emperor named Zhu Yuanzhang was truly not simple.