Chapter 2034: The Heir to the Throne

Everyone frowned; this was, after all, a tremendous piece of good news.

For the Prince of Yong, his official career had already reached its end; he had long since attained the highest position a subject could reach, with lands enfeoffed to him, and under Liu Zheng's current policies, it was no longer possible for any more Feudatory Kings to emerge.

This was something Liu Zheng would not permit.

Letting the Prince of Yong advance further was Liu Zheng's wish, and it was also the intention of everyone present.

The throne had been empty for some time, and the Prince of Qin, Xie Zhao, was a staunch member of the Royalist Faction; to him, without an emperor, what kind of Royalist Faction member was he even supposed to be?

Rather than letting Liu Zheng ascend the throne, it would be better to let the Prince of Yong ascend; at the very least, he was still a prince of the Xie Clan dynasty!

Xie Zhao stood up, bowed deeply to the Prince of Yong, and pleaded again and again: "Brother, do not decline. The court respects you, and the clan even more so. Now that Chief Councilor Liu has also recommended you, you should shoulder this great responsibility."

Everyone else added: "The Prince of Yong has such virtue and fortune."

The Prince of Yong frowned as he looked at Liu Zheng, not understanding why he would make such an arrangement.

He waved his hand and said: "I am truly ashamed. Where would I have the ability to shoulder such a great responsibility?"

Liu Zheng wore a smile and did not speak again, but Xie Chan walked behind the Prince of Yong, her jade hands gently kneading his shoulders as she said: "Uncle, you should shoulder this great responsibility."

"Your niece believes there are three reasons you cannot refuse?"

The Prince of Yong looked up at Xie Chan and asked with a smile: "What reasons?"

Xie Chan clapped her hands, and the attendants went out to close the door before she said: "You are already in a position of high authority, and this time you have performed a great service. If there is no reward, what will the people under you think?"

The Prince of Yong's expression changed slightly; he had only thought about Liu Zheng wanting to make further progress, but had not realized that he himself had reached this point as well.

Seeing him fall silent, Xie Chan then said: "That is the first reason. The second is that the throne has been vacant for a long time, and it needs someone to sit upon it to suppress the petty and the wicked."

"The current Longyan is at a critical period where Chief Councilor Liu is pushing for reform; if the throne remains vacant for too long, it will inevitably cause some people to harbor disrespectful thoughts. It would be bad if this were to trigger some disasters at this time."

The Prince of Yong pondered, his fingers inadvertently tapping on the tabletop.

Seeing this, Xie Chan smiled again: "Thirdly, this may be mixed with a bit of selfishness, but it is indeed true: the Xie Clan needs a patriarch, an emperor, someone who can lead the entire clan, and someone who can speak on all matters."

"The Xie Clan has continued for over eight hundred years; we need someone who can control the situation..."

These words struck a chord with the Prince of Yong; while nominally urging him to ascend the throne and become emperor, it was actually telling him that Liu Zheng needed him to stabilize the court and the Xie Clan.

It was no wonder that the Prince of Qin, Xie Zhao, had been so proactive in coming to welcome him today, and even attending the banquet.

The Prince of Yong took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

He looked at Liu Zheng; after all, the Xie Clan had been the emperors of Longyan for over eight hundred years, and some things were not something Liu Zheng could change by his own strength alone...

Very well, for him to become the emperor was still much better than letting someone else become the emperor.

Thinking of this, the Prince of Yong stood up abruptly, holding his wine cup high, his eyes sweeping across the room with renewed spirit.

"Since all you gentlemen intend to recommend me, then if I were to decline again, I would be failing to observe the proper etiquette."

"I toast all you gentlemen!"

Seeing the Prince of Yong drain his cup, the Prince of Qin, Xie Zhao, laughed heartily; the Prince of Yong's ascension could be considered the fulfillment of his own wish.

The Xie Clan's dynasty could be considered to have been continued in another way!

He had also realized clearly that the Xie Clan could not fight Liu Zheng; that would only result in mutual destruction, so it was better to go with the flow while he was still around.

"A toast to the Prince of Yong! This act is of great righteousness!"

Liu Zheng took the lead in raising his wine cup, stood up, and returned the toast to the Prince of Yong.

The wine had been served three times, and the dishes had been tasted.

The guests dispersed, and the Prince of Yong and Liu Zheng saw off the last guest, the Prince of Qin, Xie Zhao.

Liu Zheng met with the Prince of Yong privately; some things could only be discussed in private, while some things needed to be said for those outside to hear.

He said: "You should know why I want you to be this emperor."

The Prince of Yong said in a deep voice: "To command the Xie Clan, to consolidate the empire of Longyan..."

Liu Zheng nodded, looked at the bright moon outside, and said again: "It has not been easy for Longyan to develop to this point, but if it is to last, it cannot be in chaos at this stage."

"Those old forces, the old Nobles, need someone to suppress them. You were a general of the vanguard in Europe, and you performed meritorious service in Poland by blocking Tsarist Russia; the people of the old forces respect you, and the people of the new forces also think highly of you."

"That is why I want you to be this emperor."

The Prince of Yong frowned and said: "But Chief Councilor, you have worked so hard for the country; if you do not wish to make further progress, then the people under you..."

Liu Zheng shook his head and said: "Do not worry, they have their own destinations; you will know in the future."

The Prince of Yong glanced at Liu Zheng, sighed, said nothing more, and turned to leave.

Watching the Prince of Yong leave, Liu Zheng looked at the bright moon outside and fell into deep thought.

In the history he had studied in his previous life, Liu Zheng had deeply felt that the birth of any system was not a leap, but had traces to follow.

Take Wang Mang, for example; would you say the policies he promulgated were bad?

They were not bad, such as the King's Field system.

All land was to be returned to the state, private trading was not allowed, and every married couple could own one hundred mu of land, with the imperial court subsidizing any shortfall.

Such a policy could not be called bad; it could even be said to be very advanced.

But when it was promulgated, it was met with resistance from a large number of people, and even led to the fall of the country later.

The reason for this was the historical limitations of the policy at that time; the people of that era simply did not understand the pros and cons of these policies.

However, the landlords who controlled vast estates certainly knew.

Wang Mang had harmed their interests.

Every step Liu Zheng took now was cautious; Longyan had been ruled by the Xie Clan for over eight hundred years, and even though the emperor had fallen, his power was immense.

But the old tree still had residual roots, and the people's thinking had not yet changed from those princes and nobles.

This all required Liu Zheng to change it bit by bit, to realize such a transformation.

Therefore, he could not let Longyan be without an emperor for the time being, even if this emperor was already a mascot.

Even if this emperor no longer had any power.

Longyan still needed such a thing to cover the last shred of dignity of the Xie Clan.

Liu Zheng let out a laugh, always finding this matter quite ridiculous.

And just at this moment, the person in charge of the Generator at the Liangzhou Laboratory came stomping into Longfeng Lou.

"Hey, even if you have an urgent matter, you must let me announce it first and wait here!"

The person in charge shouted angrily: "If you delay a major event, can you afford the consequences!"

Hearing the commotion outside, Liu Zheng frowned.

This is Jinghua, a long distance from Liangzhou; how could the person in charge of Generator research have chased after him at this time?

Liu Zheng pushed the door open and went out, just in time to see that person in charge arguing and shoving with his attendant; he spoke up and asked: "Bo Te, you were doing fine in Liangzhou, why have you chased me all the way here?"

Seeing that it was Liu Zheng who had come out, the two hurriedly stopped shoving; Bo Te shook off the attendant and said urgently: "My lord, the direct current Generator research is a success!"

"We have also used the Capacitor to invent the Telegraph Machine!"

Liu Zheng's eyes lit up; this was truly fantastic news!