lcionline Chapter 699 8th Son, the main artifact
Chapter 699 8th Son, the main artifact
With a sharp blade at his side, it would be a lie to say he wasn't nervous. Liu Heizi maintained a relatively calm expression, but his palms were sweating. He quickly reviewed the words Liu Ye had taught him before he left, organizing his thoughts in an attempt to defuse the hostile situation.
"King Li Zicheng, please calm down. May I say a few words?"
Liu Zongmin shouted, "What's the point of listening to him? King Chuang, let me chop him down with one stroke!"
Li Zicheng blinked and waved to Liu Zongmin: "Zongmin, you step back first. It's not too late to listen to him before you kill him. It won't make a difference if we wait a moment longer."
Liu Zongmin, unwilling to accept defeat, pushed Liu Heizi until he stumbled, before angrily retreating to the side.
Liu Heizi touched the spot on his neck where the blade had pressed against it—there was a cut, thankfully just a scratch—and said, “King Chuang, you are opposing the imperial court. We are government soldiers, each serving our own master. Fighting King Chuang in Southern Zhili was our duty, you don’t deny that, do you…”
Li Zicheng's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and he nodded: "Get to the point. Otherwise, if Zong Min were to kill you, it would be because we are each serving our own masters."
"Let's keep things separate. It was my duty to oppose Gao Chuangwang back then, but now I'm here to see him for other reasons. My general was loyal to the court before, defeating the combined forces of Gao Chuangwang and the Eight Kings, and later even achieving a great victory over tens of thousands of Tartar troops, making unparalleled contributions. But how has the court treated its meritorious officials? Has Your Majesty heard about it?"
Li Zicheng remained noncommittal: "Shaanxi is a place far from the emperor's reach. Although I have heard of it, I do not know much about it."
"Yang Sichang, that treacherous minister, was jealous of the general's achievements and bewitched the emperor. Taking advantage of the general's trip to the capital to receive his rewards, he surrounded the general with a large army and fired a hundred cannons at once, intending to kill him. Fortunately, the general was lucky and escaped..."
Li Zicheng and his subordinates exchanged glances. If this was true, then they could vaguely guess the intention behind Qionghai Town's dispatch of their men.
Sure enough, Liu Heizi continued, "The general was furious. After leaving the city, he led a large army, along with troops from Xuanfu and Shanxi, into the capital, surrounded the imperial city, and trapped the emperor and all the civil and military officials in the Golden Palace, demanding an explanation..."
Li Zicheng's eyes lit up. The Forbidden City, which he thought was unattainable, was so easily besieged. It seemed that many things in the world were not as difficult as he had imagined.
"The emperor had no choice but to grant my general a marquisate and the title of Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince, which barely resolved the matter." Liu Heizi licked his lips and got to the point. "After returning to Qiongzhou, the general became increasingly resentful. He had served the court with his life, only to be treated like this—it was chilling. So he ordered me to contact the rebel leader, offering to support him in suppressing all rivals, sweeping his army north, and overthrowing the court to vent his anger!"
With a clang, Li Zicheng drew his sword and pointed it at Liu Heizi's chest, saying menacingly, "Your words are untrue and full of loopholes. Even if the siege of the capital did happen, he clearly had the opportunity to kill that brat Chongzhen and take his place. Why did he retreat to the south and seek revenge from someone else? Besides, there are plenty of rebel leaders stronger than me: Zhang Xianzhong, Luo Rucai, Lao Huihui, Ge Liyan... which one doesn't have more troops and generals than me? Why did he choose me? If you can't answer that, you'll leave your life behind!"
Liu Heizi shrank back and quoted Liu Ye verbatim: "Why not storm the Forbidden City and take his place? The reason is simple. General, you are a high-ranking official of the court. How can you win people's hearts if you commit regicide and rebellion? For example, Gao Yingxiang died at the hands of government soldiers. It would be natural for you, the King of Chuang, to succeed him and take over his generals. But if you personally kill Gao Yingxiang and take his place, will his former subordinates submit to you? And what will the other rebel armies think of you?"
Li Zicheng was speechless; the analogy, though crude, was not without merit. If he had actually killed Gao Yingxiang and taken his place, he would likely have been like a rat crossing the street, hated by everyone. If this was the case among rebel leaders, how much more so for a subject who murdered his ruler?
He pulled the knife back a little and continued to ask, "Even if this logic makes sense, what benefit would it bring to the Liu family if someone else killed Chongzhen?"
"The general said that he was willing to use the Yangtze River as the boundary, to be separated by the north and south, and to share the Ming Dynasty's territory with the rebel king."
Li Zicheng's breathing quickened. Regardless of whether the proposal harbored malicious intent, for a bandit leader still struggling to make ends meet, the goal was far too ambitious, yet an irresistible temptation. He took a deep breath and asked, "One last question: Why me?"
Liu Heizi said solemnly, "The general consulted a master divination and received a prophecy: 'Eighteen sons, master of divine weapons.' It is the mandate of heaven, and he is merely following the will of heaven."
"Eighteenth Son, the main artifact?"
Everyone in the hall, including Li Zicheng, was stunned. These bandit leaders, though largely illiterate, could still grasp such a simple wordplay: eighteen sons, put together, form the character "Li" (李). "Divine implement" could be seen as a metaphor for the throne; this prophecy, translated into plain language, simply meant, "Someone surnamed Li is going to be emperor?"
Liu Ye took a risk with this move. According to his recollection, Song Xianze, who originally proposed the prophecy, hadn't yet submitted to Li Zicheng. In that case, the pirated version became the original, and Li Zicheng was the one who copied it. If history had changed, and Song Xianze was already under Li Zicheng's command, then Liu Ye, who merely parroted others' ideas, would most likely have been beheaded.
“The eighteen sons, the main divine weapon…” Li Zicheng repeated this sentence several times, and couldn’t help but smile. He sheathed the sword and laughed loudly, “What a wonderful destiny! Well said! Since Heaven favors me, Li Zicheng, I will follow Heaven’s will!”
A simple, middle-aged man reacted quickly, stepping forward and saying, "Congratulations, King Chuang! You are destined by Heaven, and one day you will surely obtain the divine weapon and ascend the throne of the supreme ruler!"
Li Zicheng chuckled and said, "Yigong, you're speaking too soon. You have to eat one bite at a time and walk one step at a time. There's still a long way to go!"
Not to be outdone, Liu Zongmin and others also offered their congratulations. If Li Zicheng became emperor, they would be meritorious officials who had helped him rise to power, so everyone was overjoyed.
People in this era believed in such prophecies and sayings, and these sayings, when spread, had a great effect on boosting morale and attracting talent.
Li Zicheng was in high spirits and his attitude towards Liu Heizi changed completely. He asked in a friendly tone, "Since your master said he would help me, how can you tell if he is sincere?"
Liu Heizi replied, "This time I have traveled a long way to Shaanxi, carrying a lot of medicine, cotton cloth, liquor, and cannons that the rebel army urgently needs, on the orders of the general! The convoy is just outside the city. Please take the time to go and check it out, King Chuang."