Chapter 1042: First Volume, Chapter 1042: Coronation Ceremony

First Volume, Chapter 1042: Coronation Ceremony

However, the Northern Di King's death in defense of his nation created a minor inconvenience for Qin Feng.

According to ritual law, the Northern Di King's body should remain in the palace for a period, so even after "cleanup duties" were finished, Qin Feng and Jing Qianying still could not enter the palace immediately.

After all, if you're going to put on a show, you must see it through—since they had already demonstrated "benevolence and righteousness," they must uphold that identity to the end.

In this way, when Jing Qianying later ascends the Imperial Throne, resistance will be greatly reduced.

Yet Qin Feng refused to wait any longer; even if he could not enter the palace yet, he immediately assigned Li Zhang and others to take control of the Six Ministries, win over the officials, and begin establishing his regime.

A nation cannot go a single day without a ruler!

The succession ceremony would be held at the Li Du Ben Bu, and all officials in Wang Du were required to attend.

The entire Ministry of Rites was packed so tightly that not even a drop of water could slip through.

At first, these officials had hesitated, but seeing so many former colleagues and even the Commander of the Garrison Army present, their guilt naturally lessened.

The crowd gradually began chatting among themselves.

"Director Zhou, long time no see—how have you been lately?"

"Ah, it's Director Wang! Though we were worried when Lord Qin first entered the city, everyone has seen for themselves these past days that Lord Qin has left not a single hair of the people untouched—what is there left to fear?"

"Indeed, I've long heard that Lord Qin is decisive in slaughter, but only targets those in power; with commoners or the innocent, he has always been merciful."

"The entire capital remains intact—that's fortune amid misfortune."

"Yes, yes, yes."

The officials present all nodded in agreement.

The reason they could accept the new regime so quickly boils down to three things.

First: military pressure.

Though it's said a dying camel is still bigger than a horse, even in Northern Di's current state, if all regional garrisons were to assemble, the numbers would still be enormous—more than enough to crush Qin Feng in sheer manpower.

After all, Qin Feng's elite troops total no more than thirty thousand.

But the problem lies precisely in the word "assemble."

Northern Di may have abundant manpower, yet it lacks the strength to assemble them; as the saying goes, "before troops move, grain and forage must lead"—without national strength or grain supplies, even a vast army cannot be mobilized.

And even if they did assemble, what then? Northern Di now has no strength left for offense.

If Qin Feng retreats to Sangzhou, he becomes invincible; then, numerical superiority becomes useless, and they'll be dragged into a consumption war.

Qin Feng's elite will wear down Northern Di's regular soldiers—back and forth, casualties will become horrific.

Most crucially, Northern Di's morale has collapsed; no one dares face Qin Feng in battle. Without even basic morale, no matter how many there are, they're merely a rabble.

The second reason is Qin Feng's mercy in sparing Wang Du.

This capital holds special meaning for Northern Di—it's not only the largest city, but also the historic center of power; if Wang Du were destroyed, it would be an unforgivable blood debt etched into every Northern Di soul.

The final—and most critical—reason is that Qin Feng has never entered the palace.

Even though the Northern Di King and many Harem Consorts have died in defense of their nation, the officials' hatred toward Qin Feng remains low.

Especially since Qin Feng upheld Northern Di's rituals by keeping the King's body in the palace, allowing the imperial clan to guard and mourn him, and even holding the coronation ceremony outside the palace walls—he has shown every sign of benevolence.

If Northern Di officials still refuse to cooperate with Qin Feng now, they would be utterly ungrateful.

Yet even so, not everyone present accepted the new ruler.

Some lay low, waiting for an opportunity, scheming to delay the coronation, hoping a true descendant of the Jing clan would inherit the Imperial Throne.

Zhou Pu, who had just left the palace, stood among the crowd.

He had watched Li Yu, after persuading the last few Imperial Consorts not to hang themselves, take up a blade and cut his own throat—blood sprayed far and wide.

Zhou Pu could not calm the bitterness in his heart.

If he could, Zhou Pu would have followed the Northern Di King in death—but for some reason, Qin Feng had not killed him, and instead ordered him to attend the coronation.

As Zhou Pu silently brooded, someone suddenly pushed him from behind.

He turned to see an elderly man with snow-white hair standing right behind him, staring at him with open contempt.

Zhou Pu recognized him at once—the National Teacher!

His daughter was one of the Harem Consorts, and she too had died in defense of the nation.

Zhou Pu instantly realized: the Old National Preceptor had come to the coronation not to serve Qin Feng, but… to disrupt it.

As Zhou Pu suspected, the Old National Preceptor let out a cold snort.

"Zhou Pu, I never thought you, with your thick eyebrows and honest face, were such a despicable traitor behind closed doors."

"If you hadn't killed the Commander-in-Chief, would the palace have fallen so quickly? Would His Majesty have died?"

"When Qin Feng's army first entered the city, why didn't they kill you, you wretch?"

Facing the Old National Preceptor's sneers and curses, Zhou Pu felt only shame—he said nothing, lowering his head, ready to endure any beating or scolding.

The Old National Preceptor's gaze grew even more contemptuous: "Don't pretend to be a loyal, honest man in front of me!"

"If you truly served Northern Di, you should have led the Imperial Guard to fight Qin Feng to the death—not stand here, betraying your lord for personal gain."

As a warrior, Zhou Pu was straightforward and couldn't withstand this provocation—he longed to draw his blade and kill himself like Li Yu.

Wu Fangxu, standing nearby, heard the Old National Preceptor's words and immediately turned to look.

"It's over now—let's avoid more bloodshed."

"This nation can't endure any more war."

"For the sake of the commoners of Heaven, we must endure humiliation and carry heavy burdens."

Hearing Wu Fangxu's words, the Old National Preceptor spat: "Endure humiliation? What humiliation?!"

"Wu Fangxu, you're a Ministry of Rites official—and yet you betrayed Great Di. You're the first traitor!"

"Don't think I don't know—you helped Qin Feng persuade Li Yu and Zhou Pu to surrender."

"Li Zhang had unshakable integrity—he chose death over submission. But you? You sit back and enjoy comfort—hah! Traitorous scum!"

Wu Fangxu did not deny being a Traitorous, but he did this for the greater good.

Continuing to resist would be no good for this nation, nor for its people.

"Old National Preceptor, what use is speaking of this now? We, as Officials, should place the people first and seek their benefit."