455 Worshipping the Heavens (1/2)
_Nanjiang Governor-General Manor, Wuji Palace._
Under the help of his servant, Ouyang Shuo donned his coronation costume and crown. On the left side of his waist hung the Chixiao Sword, while the Qilin Golden Seal hung on his right.
After he wore everything, he walked out of the Wuji Palace, and exited through the gates.
At the main gate, a carriage specifically crafted for the Lord was already prepared. Five elite Qingfu Horses pulled the carriage, their fur entirely green.
The entire carriage was not locked up but open instead. On the top, there was an imperial canopy design. Ouyang Shuo boarded the carriage and walked toward the Temple of Heaven. Along the way, the Divine Martial Guards stood at attention.
Under the blue sky, the marble floored Temple of Heaven seemed endless and vast.
The Divine Martial Guards carefully guarded the Temple of Heaven. Sentries stood guard every three to five steps. This subgroup of the Divine Martial Guards only had two hundred people; they were the core strength that guarded Ouyang Shuo. They never headed out to war with the army.
They all had solemn bearings, as their fresh red divine martial capes floated in the wind.
On the Temple of Heaven square, in front of the Yellow Emperor Temple, all the important generals and civil servants apart from Baiqi had gathered. According to their ranks, they stood orderly on the sides of the square.
Elder Official Xiao He stood at the front of the group.
Beside him was the principal of the Army Military Academy, Sun Wu.
Closely behind them were the four directors, then Honglu Temple Zhang Yi, Shanhai Magistrate Zhang Wenzhong, and Lianzhou Governor Wei Ran. Lastly, there were the secretaries and the few prefects of Lianzhou Prefecture.
They had also invited the various deans and lecturers of Xinan University and Army Military Academy to the ceremony. Apart from that, they also invited two hundred odd student representatives from the two schools.
All of them wore a standardized uniform, and they all looked majestic.
On the left side of the square, naturally, it was the philosophers.
The ancestor of philosophy, Jiang Shang, was the deacon of the ceremony. As such, he stood at the front.
Closely behind him was Kong Zi, Lao Zi, Mozi, and Han Feizi. Further behind was Zhuang Zi, Meng Zi, Lu Buwei, Sheng Dao, Xun Zi, Huishi, Zhou Yan, and Su Qin, the representative figures of the nine school of thoughts.
Lastly, there stood the representatives of the other factions and school of thoughts.
Apart from that, they also extended an invitation to the scholars who decided to move into Shanhai City.
This was also the first time that all the philosophers had gathered together.
Such a scene would only occur once in a lifetime.
At the two sides of the Yellow Emperor Temple stood a hundred odd ritualists and music officials the Culture and Education Division trained. The ritualists were in charge of arranging the sacrificial ceremony items, while the music officials were in charge of all the tunes and music during the ceremony.
On the large square stood four hundred odd people, but it was not a tight fit at all.
Each group stood orderly and strictly arranged by rank.
Although the ceremony had not begun, the square was utterly silent and extremely dignified.
Undeniably, they needed to conduct this worship ceremony before the philosophers’ debate. Ouyang Shuo wanted to use this chance to display the power and ability of Shanhai City.
The carriage stopped at its designated area and Ouyang Shuo slowly disembarked.
Under the shine of the sun, Ouyang Shuo seemed larger than life, his presence domineering.
Secretary Bai Nanpu loudly proclaimed, “Shanhai City Lord, Nanjiang Governor-General, Lianzhou Lord arrives!”
The Nanjiang Governor-General post that the imperial court granted him was just a position. To Ouyang Shuo, the Lianzhou Lord title held the most value, and it was also one of his significant titles as a Lord.
”Greetings, Lord!”
Xiao He led the officials to greet and bow to him.
”Greetings, Lianzhou Lord!”
Jiang Shang led the philosophers; they similarly bowed, as they greeted.
In the entire square, only Ouyang Shuo still stood up straight.
Seeing such a scene was enough to make one's blood boil.
When he saw Kong Zi and the others bow to him, Ouyang Shuo felt an immense sense of pride.
During the Spring and Autumn Warring States Period, the philosophers were really respectful to the Lords. Hence, in such a situation, Ouyang Shuo could accept their bows and greetings.
The taste of power truly made one feel drunk.
Even if the road forward had many thorns that he would have to face alone, Ouyang Shuo would have no regrets.
His mindset was slowly improving.
A truly mighty Lord was rising in the wilderness. The future Ouyang Shuo would act even colder; he would toss aside his burdens completely and use his own power to climb to the apex.
He had to complete his mission to become an overlord in this life.
Ouyang Shuo nodded, “Do away with the formalities.”
”Thank you, Lord!”
”Thank you, Lianzhou Lord!”
Under the guidance of the ritualist, Ouyang Shuo sat right in front of the offering.
Observing this, Xiao He announced, “Please take your seats, the offering has begun!”
”Welcome, Xuanyuan Yellow Emperor.”
As his words finished, the music officials started playing the music and the drums.