Chapter 557
“What? Change the dynastic name?” The hall erupted at once. The voices of a dozen officials sounded louder than a crowd of several dozen.
By contrast, Emperor Mingxi and the Crown Prince—the imperial father and son—were surprisingly not the most agitated.
Emperor Mingxi frowned. Rather than flying into a rage, he pondered for a moment before asking cautiously, “Lord Wei, why do you have such an idea?”
Wei Ping bowed and replied, “In response to Your Majesty, this humble servant believes that since some among the people of Great Yan hold themselves above the people of the other five states, thinking themselves a cut above them—then what if Great Yan were to cease to exist?”
Wei Ping had truly thrown caution to the wind this time. The moment they heard him say that Great Yan should cease to exist, Cai Xian and the others broke into a cold sweat for him, afraid the Emperor would lose his temper.
Yet Emperor Mingxi did not grow angry as everyone had expected. His brows merely knit tighter, and his voice gave no hint of pleasure or displeasure. “Go on.”
Seeing this reaction, Wei Ping relaxed somewhat. “This humble servant was thinking: since that is the case, why not adopt an entirely new dynastic name? Let the people of all six states begin anew. Then, in a certain sense, would they not be starting from the same place?”
Wei Ping straightened. “From then on, there would no longer be any distinction between the people of Great Yan, Southern Yue, Southern Zhao, Northern Li, Western Qiang, and Eastern Yi. From that day forth, everyone would be equal.”
He cupped his hands in salute. “This is merely this humble servant’s foolish suggestion. Whether it is feasible still requires Your Majesty and my fellow officials to deliberate upon it.”
Deliberate? Everyone turned to look at their Emperor. A matter as momentous as changing the dynastic name was not something they could decide.
Great Yan had been named by Emperor Gaozu himself. In the end, whether they could defy the laws and traditions of their ancestors had to be decided by Emperor Gaozu’s descendants.
When Emperor Mingxi saw the looks his trusted ministers were giving him, he nearly laughed in exasperation. You’re afraid Emperor Gaozu will come knocking on your doors in the dead of night—do you think I’m not afraid too?
He was not afraid of his own father, but he was afraid his imperial grandfather might pay him a midnight visit and call him an unfilial descendant.
Still, Wei Ping’s proposal had stirred his heart in a most shameful way.
He glanced at his fine eldest son, who was looking at him as well. If he did not do it himself, he could hardly leave this hidden danger for his descendants to deal with. He had Fuguang as his backing; his sons and grandsons might not have the same advantage.
In a sense, he himself was the founder of this newly unified realm. And as its founder, what was there that he would not dare to do?
At last, Emperor Mingxi came to a decision. Yet he still asked, “What do you all think of Lord Wei’s proposal?”
The officials looked at one another. Finally, Yu Chongshan stepped forward and said, “This humble servant believes Lord Wei’s words are sound. Even if the dynastic name is changed, the country will remain the same country, and the realm will still belong to the Xie family. That will not change in the slightest.”
The others nodded in agreement. “Senior Mr. Yu speaks wisely. We will still be Your Majesty’s subjects. We simply wonder what the Grand Preceptor thinks. Should we not also ask the Grand Preceptor’s opinion regarding the adoption of a new dynastic name?”
“Ask me?” The moment Yue Fuguang arrived at court, Emperor Mingxi and his ministers tossed this question her way.
Her face was full of helplessness. She was hopeless at naming things—what good suggestion could she possibly have?
But then... Yue Fuguang rubbed the teacup in her hands. “System, you know, Wei Ping’s idea might actually increase the people’s sense of belonging. At the very least, as subjects under a new dynastic name, the six states would all be equal.”
The system data flickered rapidly. 【Host, according to the system’s calculations and assessment, this method has a sixty percent chance of succeeding.】
Sixty percent was not bad!
And even if it failed, it probably would not have any terribly adverse effects on Dayan, would it?
All at once, she understood why the ruler and ministers of Dayan had asked for her opinion. They wanted to make use of her influence among the common people!
Emperor Mingxi would bear the blame for changing the dynasty’s name, while she would be responsible for choosing the new one. That did not seem so bad.
“Your Majesty, my lords, have you truly decided to change Dayan’s national title?” Yue Fuguang asked again for confirmation.
If the ruler and ministers of Dayan had truly set their hearts on it, she would not come up with a name herself—but she could copy one. What harm was there in helping them plagiarize an impressive new national title?
“After discussing the matter with the ministers, we all believe this would be a feasible way to erase the divisions among the people of the various former states. What does Fuguang think?”
Within Xuanzheng Hall, candlelight gleamed upon twelve folding screens depicting rivers and mountains. The screens had been made recently, painted with the former territories of the five states. The ink was still fresh, carrying the faint scent of pine soot.
After Dayan had destroyed the five states and unified the realm, Emperor Mingxi had indeed discussed changing the national title with his ministers several times in private. Yet no matter how many candidates they had in mind, everyone in the Dayan court shared an unspoken understanding: the person who would make the final decision was not their emperor, but the Grand Preceptor.
Yue Fuguang nodded in agreement. “I also think Your Majesty and the ministers have a good idea. As for the name, what do Your Majesty and my lords have in mind?”
She did not believe they had no ideas of their own.
Emperor Mingxi smiled helplessly. “Yesterday, while you were absent, the court debated the new national title for an entire hour.”
Yue Fuguang took a bite of her apple. “Oh? Then let us hear it. What brilliant opinions do you all have?”
Ever since the five states had been unified, Yue Fuguang had become increasingly casual in both word and deed. As she crunched away at her apple, an elderly Hanlin scholar with a grizzled beard stepped forward first, entirely unfazed by her manner.
“Reporting to the Grand Preceptor, this humble official believes we should choose the character ‘Yong.’ Yong signifies harmony—may the realm prosper in harmony.”
Before the old scholar had even finished, a younger Hanlin scholar stepped forward.
“This humble official believes that, with the five states only recently pacified, we should choose the character ‘Zhen,’ to establish our might!”
Yue Fuguang shook her head inwardly. Setting aside whether the purpose of changing the national title was to project military might, the name Great Zhen simply did not sound very good.
“Improper, improper! Such a name runs contrary to the original purpose of changing the national title. This servant believes we should choose the character ‘Zhao,’ to proclaim Heaven’s mandate!”
Yue Fuguang did not even need to reject it before someone else leapt forward in opposition.
“Your Majesty, this servant believes we should—”
“Improper, improper. This servant believes—”
The voices gradually grew clamorous, like a pot of porridge brought to a rolling boil. When it came to voicing their opinions, not a single civil official lacked a sharp tongue.
Seeing that the scene had once again become exactly like yesterday’s, Emperor Mingxi frowned slightly. He raised a hand, and the hall fell abruptly silent.
“This matter still requires the Grand Preceptor’s final decision,” he said, his tone leaving no room for dispute.
The ministers came to their senses. In the heat of the argument, how had they forgotten that the Grand Preceptor had been meant to serve as judge from the very beginning?
No matter how fiercely they argued, if the Grand Preceptor did not approve, even the most reasonable justification would be futile.
In the vast Xuanzheng Hall, no one spoke again. All eyes turned toward Yue Fuguang, who was watching their quarrel with keen interest.