Chapter 613: Chapter 82: Benevolent Father, Filial Son—Li Heng Ascends the Throne
"The annals are clear, the pen as sharp as a knife! Your Majesty abandons the nation today, and tomorrow in the historical records, it will surely be...a name cursed for eternity! How can we...how can we serve such a king, what face can we have to stand between heaven and earth?"
"....."
Voices of cursing echoed through the grand hall.
Perhaps it was due to a sense of loyalty, or perhaps due to the feeling of abandonment, or because Li Longji has already left.
These people, without any scruples, started to vent their dissatisfaction right inside the Imperial Palace.
Li Heng kept kneeling in the hall, silently weeping.
He did not intervene in the ministers’ angry shouts, his entire face somewhat pale, seemingly torn between difficult choices.
The air in the hall seemed frozen, with heavy breathing clearly audible.
After a brief release, the ministers looked at each other, seeing nothing but a gray dead silence and overwhelming fear in each other’s eyes.
Nobody wanted to die.
And nobody wanted to die without clarity.
If Li Longji truly took everyone away, these people would surely die.
Even if they escaped like Li Longji, what then?
Many of them, for generations, lived in Luoyang, lived in Guanzhong, how could they so easily give up everything?
To leave their hometown, to abandon everything their families had built over generations, to become rootless drifters in the Shu Region?
This was harder to bear than death!
A deadlock!
This was a suffocating deadlock personally set by their former king!
In this desperate silence, as these people exchanged glances, their gaze naturally fell onto Li Heng.
The next moment, the brief dead silence was finally broken by someone.
"The nation is in turmoil, for the sake of all the people, for the continuation of the Great Tang’s destiny—this old minister beseeches with tears the Crown Prince to immediately ascend the throne, inherit the great line, to turn the tide and save our Great Tang’s land and people!!!"
These words set off the final fuse!
Within the hall, the ministers seemed to have found the only way out, instantly falling to their knees.
"The country cannot go a day without a monarch! Please, Crown Prince, follow the will of heaven and the people, ascend the throne, command all under heaven, and sweep away the rebels!"
"His Majesty abandoned the millions like worn shoes, he is no longer the ruler of our Great Tang! Only the Crown Prince, benevolent and wise, can carry the Celestial Mandate! We are willing to give our utmost, assist the new monarch, and restore the divine capital!"
"The rebel forces are drawing near day by day! The lives of millions in Luoyang depend on Your Highness alone! Please do not hesitate any longer, ascend the throne quickly, command the armies to serve the king, protect our rivers and mountains, and save our people! We will spare no blood or effort!!!"
"..."
Cries continued to ring out.
With these words spoken, the ministers seemed to have finally realized what was at stake, recalling something involuntarily.
"Your Highness," someone immediately shouted, "We again beseech Your Highness to ascend the throne at once, employ the Gu Clan, to resist the rebels!!!"
Although nothing had truly changed.
But with these words, the ministers’ expressions suddenly eased a lot, no longer as tense as before.
Amidst these continuous urgings, Li Heng finally reacted, instinctively declining.
But at this stage—who could care how he felt?
Without any forewarning.
Three days after Li Longji left the city, Li Heng was enthroned under the ministers’ support, and immediately sent envoys to pursue Li Longji, honoring him as Taishang Huang.
The era name was changed to Zhide. .....
——————
"In the fourteenth year of Tianbao, Tubo invaded, An Lushan rebelled in Fan Yang, and pirates took advantage of the chaos.
In this tumultuous time, Emperor Xuanzong fled in haste to Shu, under the pretense of a personal campaign.
Crown Prince Heng was tasked with overseeing the state, soon urged by the ministers to assume the throne in Luoyang, honoring Emperor Xuanzong as Emperor of Heaven, changing the era name to Zhide."
—— "Tang Book. Records of Emperor Su"
