False Prosperity, Full of Useless People

Chapter 143 False Prosperity, Full of Useless People

"Congratulations, Your Majesty! Congratulations, Empress Dowager!"

"Our Emperor has just ascended the throne, and within a year of his reign, our army has won victory after victory. The expulsion of the Tartars is just around the corner. Our Great Jin Dynasty is now a land of peace and prosperity, with its people wealthy and its nation strong. It is truly a golden age unprecedented in a thousand years!"

Inside the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity, dozens of civil and military officials lined up on both sides looked at the courtiers kneeling on the floor tiles in front of them, raising their voices in congratulations. Their faces, which looked different, all showed the same fake smile!

This can be considered one of the few instances of a new emperor and a fresh start for this old and decrepit Jin dynasty.

The late emperor died without an heir, and a son from the imperial clan was adopted to ascend the throne. The young emperor, only five years old, was not yet old enough to see people's true intentions. The two empress dowagers, who were ruling from behind a curtain, were separated by gauze and beaded curtains, so they could not see the expressions on the faces of the ministers below.

Naturally, the ministers were happy to have some free time and didn't need to pretend to be so serious.

Of course, unlike the previous dynasty, the civil and military officials standing in this Renshou Hall cannot be said to be absolutely loyal, but at least the vast majority of them hope that the Later Jin dynasty will prosper.

After all, the better the imperial court was doing, the more comfortable their lives would be.

As one of the few dynasties that were vassals of barbarians and occupied the Central Plains, the precedent of the steppe empires being watched and tortured by the previous dynasty for more than two hundred years after their fall also made the Later Jin, which stole the Central Plains, live in constant fear.

They feared that another Zhu Bajie and Chen Youliang would emerge in the Central Plains, leading a large army to drag them back to the harsh lands of Liaodong.

They were afraid that they would never again enjoy the prosperity and extravagance of the Central Plains.

Therefore, after the Later Jin entered the pass, the suppression of the Central Plains, or to be more precise, the slaughter never stopped: even after they secured the throne, the ruthless methods did not end there.

In other words, the end of the Little Ice Age gave the Central Plains a much-needed respite, and the descendants of Yan and Huang, who have always been able to survive as long as they have food to eat, managed to find a way to live in this narrow crevice.

However, the livelihood of ordinary people does not mean that the Later Jin dynasty will also be swept up by this trend and rise against the tide.

Unending rebellions, the covetousness of various barbarian states, its own moral decay, and even the repeated provocations from former vassal states... everything was slashing at the lifeblood of this dynasty.

Having finally discovered a business opportunity in opium, and transformed itself from a dumping ground into the world's largest producer, it was immediately met with a joint raid from overseas red-haired and golden-haired people.

Just as they were catching their breath, a famine struck Jin again. And in the year the young emperor ascended the throne, the drought began to spread rapidly, plunging half of the Central Plains into a severe drought.

It is truly a case of internal and external troubles, and the country is on the verge of collapse!

The actual situation is one thing, but when it's said, it's another.

Everyone is a loyal minister, but no one is willing to be a loyal minister who dares to speak out. After all, the vast history and countless ancestors have already proven that people who are foul-mouthed but kind-hearted will not have a good ending!

Moreover, the Jin Dynasty is currently in a chaotic period with a young and uncertain ruler, and two empress dowagers ruling from behind the curtain.

Empress Dowager Dong is alright; she understands the big picture, is soft-hearted, and although she is a woman, she has the demeanor of a male emperor. However, the problem is that Empress Dowager Dong is not power-hungry. Her regency during the reign of the late emperor was alright, but when she ascended the throne, she simply let go of power.

On the contrary, the ruthless and cruel Lord Xifo, who now holds power in the court, must be even more careful in his presence, because one wrong move and he could be killed.

Thus, unless the situation had completely collapsed beyond saving, the court officials, though loyal, were more inclined to say things that pleased the Empress Dowager, while avoiding saying anything bad.

We will only consider other matters once His Majesty has grown older and begun to rule in his own right.

In just over ten years, the Great Jin Dynasty must not have degenerated to that extent, right?

From behind the draped beaded curtain, a woman's voice drifted out: "Though Lian Po is old, he can still eat. Minister Zuo is truly loyal to our Great Jin. When he returns to the capital, I will surely have the Emperor reward him handsomely!"

"The Empress Dowager is benevolent, and the Emperor is wise!"

"It's almost time for the Emperor's lessons. Do any of you court officials have any important matters to attend to? If not, a few Grand Councilors, please stay. The rest of you may leave the court!"

"A concubine's son!"

Looking at the court officials kneeling on the ground, bowing and paying their respects, the figure behind the beaded curtain remained silent, but those around her could feel her heartfelt joy.

On the other side, the Empress Dowager, also hidden by a beaded curtain, opened her mouth as if to say something, but seeing that the young emperor had already taken her hand, she hesitated for a moment and her inner thoughts ultimately turned into a sigh.

And it was during this time that all the court officials knelt down, waiting for the two Buddhas and the Emperor to leave.

Suddenly, hurried footsteps and the urgent shouts of eunuchs came from outside the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity.

The crowd, whose attention had been drawn, almost instinctively paused and turned their heads.

About two minutes later, a disheveled, sword-wielding guard strode in from outside the hall. He knelt before the courtiers to pay his respects and immediately said, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, an evil spirit is causing trouble. An hour ago, they broke into the capital and are killing indiscriminately. Some soldiers couldn't hold out any longer and revealed Your Majesty and Your Majesty's whereabouts. They are now heading towards the Summer Palace. We earnestly hope that Your Majesty and Your Majesty can temporarily take refuge and await the arrival of the loyalist army to crush this evil spirit!"

"Huh?" The Western Buddha, who had already taken the young emperor's hand and was about to leave, suddenly turned around. His face, which still faintly showed traces of his former beauty, was filled with disbelief: "My dignified Great Jin Imperial Palace has been allowed to enter and leave at will by a mere Taoist priest, who has been killing indiscriminately?"

"Where are the bodyguards? Where is the Commander of the Nine Gates? Are the elite troops of the Three Banners all useless?"

"It's one thing for foreign devils to come and go in my Great Jin Kingdom, but how come a commoner Taoist priest can now freely enter the imperial palace?"

""

The other courtiers were also astonished and somewhat incredulous, their eyes fixed on the guard with the sword, all waiting for his answer.

waste?

Of course.

The common people may not know, but do the officials of the court not know how degenerate our Eight Banners elite troops have become?

Of course, no matter how depraved they become, with the secret techniques sought by the old emperor, they may not be able to defeat those foreign monsters, but they can still bully the people of the Central Plains. Don't you see Tibetan Buddhist monks traveling in the heart of the Central Plains? And those Buddhist and Taoist sects that have been passed down for several years don't even dare to utter a sound?

But this time, the heretical sect is different from those rebel sorcerers.

He's so strong it's almost inhuman!

In his opinion, even the most powerful and accomplished Dharma Kings in the palace might not be able to compare to this heretical cultivator who had somehow emerged from some unknown corner of the world.

A thousand thoughts raced through his mind, but the guard began to speak out of loyalty: "It is not that we are disloyal, but that this evil path is inhuman. Any living thing killed by it instantly turns into a monstrous army, and blood is everywhere. Warriors die suddenly for no reason... The strangeness of its methods is unheard of."

"Your Majesty, please ask the Emperor and his high-ranking officials to make way for him. The Admiral has already ordered the Dharma King and eminent monks to come and protect him."

""

"boom!"