Chapter 1: The New Dynasty's Appearance, the End of the Aristocratic Families

Chapter 1: The New Dynasty's Appearance, the End of the Aristocratic Families

The national mourning period of the twenty-third year of the Zhenguan era was spent in an indescribable solemnity and a touch of mysterious legend. Chang'an was draped in white mourning clothes, with mournful music playing incessantly. The people spontaneously wept and offered sacrifices, mourning the great emperor who had brought about the prosperous Zhenguan era. Official gazettes and proclamations to the world all stated that Emperor Taizong had "passed away on his dragon throne, his soul returning to Penglai," though the wording was vague, it draped the emperor's passing in a veil of ethereal grandeur, aligning with the popular imagination of the final resting place of a sage ruler, and cleverly concealing the inconceivable truth that had unfolded that night in the Liangyi Hall.

The new emperor, Li Chengqian, shocked by his father's passing and burdened by the weighty responsibility of his will, quickly stabilized the court with a composure and iron fist beyond his years. Following the national mourning period, the new emperor's enthronement ceremony took place. The ceremony was solemn and dignified. Li Chengqian, dressed in a twelve-symbol imperial robe and wearing a crown, received the congratulations of the officials in front of the Taiji Hall, officially assuming the throne and changing the era name to "Yonghui".

The day after ascending the throne, Emperor Yonghui, Li Chengqian, issued several imperial edicts, showcasing a new dynasty atmosphere that differed from that of the late Zhenguan era.

The first decree was the investiture of Wu Zetian as Empress. The edict praised her for her "outstanding virtue and ability to give birth to virtuous sons, making her suitable to rule the central palace." Although this decision was met with some debate (after all, Wu Zetian did not come from a top-tier aristocratic family and was promoted from a concubine to Empress), no one dared to openly question it given the Emperor's strong push for new policies and suppression of powerful families. Wu Zetian had cultivated her power over many years, acting with composure and maturity, and had given birth to several healthy princes, especially her eldest son Li Hong, who had already been made Crown Prince, thus securing her position as Empress.

The second measure was the grand bestowal of titles upon the imperial concubines and princes. Apart from the Empress, the concubines received drastically different treatment based on their families' performance during the previous turmoil (especially their allegiance before and after the Xuanwu Gate Incident). Those concubines from powerful families who remained neutral or subtly aligned themselves with the Crown Prince at crucial moments received relatively high ranks and rewards as a gesture of appeasement and appeasement. Concubines whose families had clearly sided with Changsun Wuji, or who themselves had engaged in inappropriate words or actions, were either demoted, sidelined, or even, in some cases, relocated to other palaces under false pretenses. The Emperor used the harem's ranks to clearly send a signal of clear rewards and punishments to the court and the public, further deterring the remaining, opportunistic powerful families.

As for the princes, Crown Prince Li Hong's position was secure, and he received the best education and resources. The other princes were granted titles and rewards based on their birth mothers' status and the current situation of their maternal families, but none of them gained real power or excessive favor. They were strictly confined within the regulations for princes to avoid the formation of new maternal relatives or the initiation of princely infighting.

The third, and most crucial, decree concerned the power structure and future direction of the court. Emperor Li Chengqian formally appointed Prince Li Zhi of Jin as Minister of the Imperial Secretariat (though largely an honorary title, its symbolic significance was immense), granting him overall command of the three ministries of the Chancellery, the Secretariat, and the Ministry of Personnel, and endowing him with considerable political participation and some decision-making power. The edict explicitly stated: "Prince Li Zhi is loyal, filial, and of utmost virtue, possessing profound wisdom and insight, and can be entrusted with the affairs of the state and the management of the yin and yang." This practically placed Li Zhi in the position of "vice-emperor."

At the same time, the emperor vigorously promoted officials from humble backgrounds who had performed well in the previous struggles, as well as some scions of small and medium-sized aristocratic families who were steadfast in their stance and outstanding in their abilities, to fill key positions in the Three Departments, Six Ministries, and the Censorate. As for those representatives of the old aristocratic families who survived the purge but whose power had greatly diminished, they were mostly given honorary titles, transferred from positions of real power, or sent to local areas to assume sinecure positions.

In the imperial court, a new power structure rapidly took shape, with Emperor Li Chengqian at its core, Prince Li Zhi of Jin as a key advisor, and commoners and newly promoted officials as the main force. The power of the old aristocratic families was further marginalized.

Without his father's constraints and final concerns about his reputation for "benevolence," Emperor Yonghui, Li Chengqian, entered the final stage of his crackdown on aristocratic families. His methods became more systematic, precise, and thorough.

Economically, the Ministry of Revenue implemented a stricter "Two-Tax System" pilot program nationwide (although not fully rolled out, the pilot areas were mostly within the traditional spheres of influence of powerful families). This required landowners (mainly powerful families) to truthfully declare their land holdings and pay taxes per acre, and also investigated and dealt with any concealed population, significantly increasing the tax burden on powerful families and weakening their economic foundation. Simultaneously, the imperial court strengthened its control over key economic lifelines through state-run handicrafts and improved systems for grain transport and the salt and iron monopolies, squeezing the profit margins of powerful families in these areas.

Politically, the imperial examination system was elevated to new heights. Not only was the number of candidates increased, but the examination content also expanded to include practical subjects such as law, mathematics, and current affairs, while lowering the requirements for purely Confucian classics. This allowed more scholars from humble backgrounds with genuine talent to stand out. The Ministry of Personnel's evaluation system also became increasingly rigorous, making "political achievements" and "integrity" the most important criteria for promotion and demotion, eliminating many scions of powerful families who rose through patronage but were ultimately incompetent.

Culturally, the emperor supported official historical compilation and encyclopedic writing, and encouraged private writing, rewarding all authors as long as they did not involve sensitive politics. This, to some extent, broke the monopoly of aristocratic families on the right to interpret and speak about culture. The court also established official schools throughout the country, selecting impoverished children to enroll, with the state providing subsidies, to cultivate a new generation of talents loyal to the court.

On the legal front, the revision of the Yonghui Code was carried out intensively, with the emperor personally overseeing the process. He emphasized the uniformity and authority of the law and formulated stricter punitive provisions for the oppression of the people and interference with the judiciary by local powerful families and aristocratic clans.

Prince Li Zhi of Jin played a crucial role in this process. With his unique gentleness and meticulousness, he assisted the emperor in handling a large number of specific political affairs, mediating conflicts between various parties, and implementing various policies. He was often able to find a buffer and compromise between the emperor's overly harsh policies and the remaining power of the aristocratic families, ensuring the general direction of the policies while avoiding overly violent backlashes, thus allowing this "soft purge" against the aristocratic families to proceed relatively smoothly.

The court and the public gradually realized the situation: the Yonghui era was no longer an age where aristocratic families could wield absolute power. The emperor was resolute and decisive, with the Prince of Jin providing devoted assistance, and newly promoted officials brimming with ambition. The remaining aristocratic families, having endured the bloody purge at Xuanwu Gate, were already terrified and faced comprehensive economic, political, and cultural pressure, leading to internal divisions. Some began to actively align themselves with the court, cooperating with the new policies and relinquishing some interests to ensure their survival; others chose to lie low, shifting their family focus to culture, education, or local affairs, no longer interfering in court politics; and a few die-hards struggled in increasingly shrinking spaces, unable to stir up any trouble.

The conversations in Chang'an gradually shifted from reminiscing about the past glories of aristocratic families to enthusiastically discussing the new dynasty and the emergence of talented individuals from humble backgrounds. The once unattainable mansions of the five prominent families and seven prestigious clans gradually fell into disuse, while the residences of some newly emerging officials began to see a constant flow of carriages and guests.

The system of shared rule and checks and balances between imperial power and powerful clans during the Zhenguan era was being rapidly and resolutely broken under the iron fist of Emperor Yonghui (Li Chengqian) and the assistance of Prince Jin (Li Zhi). A new era of greater centralization, unprecedented strengthening of imperial power, and the rise of the commoner scholar-official class had begun.

The golden age of aristocratic families has irrevocably come to an end. The source of all this can perhaps be traced back to the harrowing night at Xuanwu Gate at the end of the Zhenguan era, to Emperor Taizong who chose to "leave" in another way, and to his two sons who ultimately chose "brotherly unity."

Qixia Garden remained empty. The palace servants cleaned it regularly, but the mysterious immortal was nowhere to be seen. Only a very few who knew the inside story would occasionally glance at the desolate garden in the still of the night, a fleeting thought passing through their minds about the "Penglai" promise that had taken the late emperor away. But that thought, like the bamboo shadows swaying in the wind in the garden, was ultimately just a distant and mysterious backdrop in the grand narrative of this era of transition and power shifts.

In the first year of the Yonghui era, everything was renewed. Under the helm of Li Chengqian, the great ship of the empire broke through the old, stagnant ice and rumbled toward an unknown but destined-to-be-different future.