The New Ming Emperor Zhu Cilang is Enfeoffed as Marquis of Great Ming

After making an example of the first few, Gu Hongchen's icy voice rang out through the hall.

"Envoys, since you have come here, you should understand that the Yanhuang Empire does not actually need this peace talk. But His Majesty the Emperor, out of mercy, cannot bear to cause further boundless slaughter, and thus agreed to this negotiation..."

Hearing Gu Hongchen's words, the crowd inwardly curled their lips. Calling Ye Chen merciful? To that, they could only snort.

After all, who didn't know by now that this war was started by Ye Chen himself?

Though filled with disdain in their hearts, they dared not show even a hint of it. Instead, they had to act grateful and nod in agreement.

What choice did they have? The few countries just thrown out were the best example.

The mere hint of displeasure at the Yanhuang Empire sending a woman had been enough for that demon Gu Hongchen to remember them, and she had issued an ultimatum of annihilation without hesitation.

Looking at the crowd below, all wearing expressions of "You're right, His Majesty is a truly good man," Gu Hongchen's face remained unchanged, as cold as ice.

As her words fell, Gu Hongchen gestured for those below to express their thoughts.

After all, this was a "peace talk," so there had to be some talking. Otherwise, why would she have come?

But whether she agreed with their expressed thoughts and opinions was another matter entirely.

And just as she had said, the Yanhuang Empire didn't actually need this "peace talk." Ye Chen simply didn't want to continue endless slaughter. If expansion could be achieved peacefully, he wouldn't mind.

So, peaceful submission and integration into Yanhuang, or having their cities razed and nations destroyed before their territory was absorbed—either way, the Yanhuang Empire didn't care.

Finally, after an hour, the meeting was temporarily adjourned, as the envoys needed to report the results of this "discussion" to their respective emperors.

Three days later.

The Russian Dynasty, Mughal Empire, Safavid Dynasty, Zunghar Khanate, and other nations submitted letters of fealty, accepting the rule of the Yanhuang Empire.

At the same time, the New Ming Empire, established by Zhu Cilang, son of Chongzhen, along with the remnants of the Great Ming, saw its emperor, Zhu Cilang, abdicate and descend to the status of a commoner. In the name of Huaxia's legitimate succession, he welcomed the Yanhuang Emperor to take his ancestral seat.

Yanhuang Empire, Xuanhuang City.

Ye Chen looked at the letter of fealty submitted by Zhu Cilang and shook his head with a smile. "That little Zhu Cilang is probably only about ten years old now—just a brat. He couldn't have come up with this idea himself.

It seems Dukao and the others put in a lot of effort behind this. I just wonder who thought of it—Dukao or Lian Feng.

Probably not that old fool Dukao with his poor judgment. This is most likely Lian Feng's idea.

Still, this is good. It solves a rather troublesome problem for Imperial We. Otherwise, Imperial We would have had to go through quite some trouble."

The mindset of Huaxia's people was different from other nations. Without the name of legitimate succession, any so-called submission was useless, because the Huaxia populace simply wouldn't accept it.

And now, with the Great Ming shattered, the Huaxia heartlands were in chaos and disorder, with no one in charge to step forward.

At this peace talk, only the Qing Empire had shown up, but the Qing was not the legitimate successor of Huaxia and could not represent it.

Originally, Ye Chen's plan had been to find himself an ancient Huaxia ancestor, use that ancestor's name to quell the internal strife in Huaxia, and then take over.

Now, with Zhu Cilang—the Ming emperor, the most legitimate successor Huaxia could have—offering this assist, his takeover of Huaxia would face no further waves.

One day later.

New Ming Empire, Jinling City.

After receiving Ye Chen's reply, the pressure in New Ming Emperor Zhu Cilang's heart suddenly eased.

Ever since the Great Ming collapsed, his father, Emperor Chongzhen, had sent him and his two brothers out of the Imperial Palace. As the eldest prince and the legitimate heir of the Great Ming, he had drawn the most attention.

He had been captured by Li Zicheng, but then some mysterious people rescued him and took him to live in a valley, where he spent years in fear.

Only recently did he learn that those who saved him were former Ming officials led by Dukao. Moreover, Dukao had gathered a group of ministers loyal to the Ming, crowned him emperor, and established the New Ming Empire.

But just two days after his ascension was announced to the world, that bastard Dukao had him issue another decree, abdicating and descending to commoner status.

At the same time, in the name of Huaxia's legitimate succession, he was to submit a letter of fealty to some Yanhuang Empire, inviting the Yanhuang Emperor to take the ancestral seat.

This whole series of moves had left him completely bewildered. He couldn't figure out what Dukao was trying to do.

To which Dukao could only say: he was wronged too, because this idea wasn't his. He was just a tool.

Half a month later.

Outside Jinling City, several aircraft landed, and Ye Chen stepped out.

Behind him, a vast crowd followed in an imposing procession.

At the city gate of Jinling, New Ming Emperor Zhu Cilang, leading a host of officials, waited to welcome Ye Chen's arrival.

Within the city, countless commoners stood neatly lined on both sides, murmuring quietly among themselves.

And among the crowd, Dukao, Lian Feng, and others were clearly present.

Seeing Ye Chen and his party from afar, Zhu Cilang hurried forward and bowed. "Zhu Cilang pays respects to His Majesty the Emperor. May His Majesty live ten thousand years."

At this, the officials and countless commoners behind him all bowed in unison. "Paying respects to His Majesty the Emperor. May His Majesty live ten thousand years."

The sound surged to the heavens, spreading far and wide.

"Rise!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

"So you are Zhu Cilang. Good. A young talent, wise beyond your years. You do not disappoint the Great Ming's—"

Looking at Zhu Cilang, Ye Chen knew that this wasn't something the young man had come up with himself, but that didn't matter—what mattered was Zhu Cilang's orthodox status as the nominal ruler of Huaxia.

Hearing Ye Chen's praise, Zhu Cilang felt deeply embarrassed inside. After all, he had been muddled and confused the entire time; where was he exceptionally intelligent? He couldn't even be remotely associated with the title of a youthful prodigy.

Moreover, the things he was doing now—if the successive emperors of the Great Ming found out, they'd probably crawl out of their graves just to slap him twice across the face.

But to that, he could only say: what choice did he have? When he was ten, Chongzhen had taken his own life for the nation, and he, a mere child, had been captured by the rebel forces. If Dukao hadn't saved him, he would have surely died.

Now, although he had handed over the lands of Huaxia, it wasn't as if he'd given them to an outsider. After all, the meat was still stewing in the same pot.

Looking at Zhu Cilang before him, Ye Chen didn't know what was going through the young man's mind, but that didn't matter.

Then Ye Chen continued: "Yuan Lan."

Hearing this, Yuan Lan immediately stepped forward, opened the imperial decree she had prepared in her hands, and announced loudly: "Enfeoffing Zhu Cilang as Marquis of Great Ming, bestowing one bottle of Longevity Liquid, ten million Yanhuang Coins, and a mansion in Tianchen Domain..."