On the morning of the third day of the ninth moon-phase, shouting broke out by the Gate to the Forbidden City and interrupted the morning salutation. The overseeing magistrate, Fu Yu Yi, stepped forward and presented me with a petition signed by the 900 men and women kneeling before the southern entrance. I had the scroll opened; it was covered with signatures, some beautiful, some hideous, others simple thumbprints: “The sky does not have two suns; the earth does not recognize two kings. Your Sacred Majesty must obey the will of the gods who entrust the sovereignty of the Empire to her. Heaven is commanding her to inaugurate a new dynasty, and to gratify her son, her successor, with her name-Wu. So that henceforth her lineage may prosper and illuminate the four seas for eternity.”

Without waiting for a reaction from the high-ranking officials, I dictated my reply: “I, who obey the wishes of the previous emperor; I who am devoted to serving Heaven and who long for peace in the world and joy in the hearts of every people; I am determined to take on my duties without claiming any glory.”

A ripple rang through the audience hall. Several ministers stepped forward from the ranks, trying to make me accept the celestial invitation and reasons of State. Their numbers were far from the majority. I rejected their request but rewarded Fu Yu Yi, who had understood my intention. I immediately appointed him councilor to the Chancellery.

The following day I learned that the 900 inhabitants of Luoyang had still not moved. They had been joined by monks and Taoists, traders and beggars, children and the elderly. Twelve thousand people were now kneeling before the Forbidden City, determined to rise to their feet only once I agreed to satisfy the petition. Accompanied by my ministers, I climbed to the highest level of the Pagoda of Contemplation and saw a carpet of prostrate figures before the Forbidden City. My heart faltered with emotion. This change of dynasty would see no bloodshed or violence. For the first time in our history, the people were choosing their sovereign. Let their wishes be heard!

Still, I hardened my tone to voice my refusal: “The sun shines, but it wears no crown. The gods govern this earth, but our offerings are paltry in the face of their goodness. Buddha’s power lies in his boundless and universal compassion. He asks only for prayer. The sovereign who transcends divine goodness, and the blessings of our forebears must be the most humble servant of the Empire, an officiator in religious rituals constrained to moral purity. The sovereign should have no belongings or glory. My power was passed on to me by the previous emperor; my vocation was revealed by Heaven. I deserve no special title.”

Two days later there were sixty thousand people outside the Southern Gate; they had come from the four corners of the Empire calling for my eternal reign. During the morning salutation, the officials, officers, princes, and barbarian kings also presented me with a petition. The Great Eunuch Overseer took it upon himself to give me a letter sent by the entire population of the gynaeceum. I also received a letter from my daughter, the Princess of Eternal Peace, expressing the wish of all the women dignitaries to see me found a new dynasty. Finally, my son Miracle, whose silent existence had been a mute form of opposition, announced to the world that he had abdicated. He publicly asked for my permission to abandon his paternal name, Li, and to bear my name, Wu.

Voices strangled with emotion cried out in every direction to try and persuade me: “At dawn this morning, a phoenix flew over the Southern Gate, followed by hundreds of different birds. Then thousands of scarlet sparrows came from east of the horizon, escorted by golden orioles. When the sun rose, clouds tinged with happiness spread over the sky for a long time before dispersing. The whole capital witnessed this marvel, and your servants heard your people proclaiming: ”The presence of these celestial beings heralds a sacred revolution! Scarlet sparrows symbolize fire, golden orioles represent the earth. Now, according to the law of the five elements, fire begets the earth. That is why the golden orioles escorting the scarlet sparrows announce a celestial oracle: The son shall follow the mother, shall bear the maternal name!“

“In the Book of Mutation, the Ancients observed: ”When a great man receives the mandate of Heaven, he can overturn the former order, and his actions are called Revolution.“ Your servants have learned that when a great man obeys the will of Heaven, he becomes invincible; when he obeys the will of the people, his lineage will prosper. Today Heaven has appointed Your Majesty master, and the people have asked for Your Majesty as a mother. The law of Heaven is destiny; the intentions of the people are fate. Your Majesty is disobeying Heaven and showing contempt for the people, but she is choosing virtue and modesty: These actions run counter to the course of history and to the Law of Distribution. Your servants will no longer be able to venerate you! Your Majesty’s refusal is a betrayal of Heaven and a blow to the people: How can you govern now?”

After uttering the refusal three times, in keeping with the ancient code, I bowed before the Will of Heaven. The imperial soothsayers and Great Ministers chose the ninth day of the ninth moon, the day of the Double Sun, to celebrate my enthronement.

On that morning, I wore over my white tunic the indigo-colored imperial cloak embroidered with twelve rows of sacred drawings and painted with dragons riding astride clouds. With the crown of twenty-four tiers of jade pearls on my head and the emerald scepter in my hand, I climbed the steps to the Gate of Celestial Law amid the ringing of bronze bells and the chiming of sounding stones. I was preceded by a cortege of servants from the Inner Court and followed by princes and Great Ministers. I announced to the world the beginning of my dynasty, the Zhou dynasty. Its peace and prosperity would be inaugurated by the Era of the Celestial Mandate. Cheers from officials and shouts of joy from the people rang out. Heaven descended and wrapped me in its crystalline blue. All the power of the House of Tang was expiring, and a woman who had become Emperor was founding her own dynasty without scorching Chinese soil with war. This marvel confirmed once more that I truly was the envoy of the gods.

The whole world knew that my terrestrial legitimacy could be traced right back to the ancient Zhou dynasty whose kings were my ancestors. I took every opportunity to proclaim that I was descended from them by using their crimson banners-the color of fire, the element they venerated. The Sacred Hearth of the Empire was transferred from Long Peace to Luoyang, which was promoted to Imperial Capital. I went back through the family tree, and seven generations of ancestors were given the posthumous title of emperor. Seven temples were built to the east of the Forbidden City, and here their spirits could receive offerings and adorations. My son Miracle became the Imperial Descendent and enjoyed the privileges accorded to the Supreme Son. Piety, Spirit, and Tranquility, the eldest three of my nephews, became kings, and their cousins were raised to the rank of county kings. Having been a wood merchant, a fighting warrior, and then a dignitary kept far from the Court, Father could rise up at last, thanks to his daughter’s accession. In her lifetime, Mother would have been terrified to have given birth to an emperor, a god. As it was, they were both silenced by their pride.

They were exhumed and reburied with the posthumous titles of Emperor and Empress of Pious Clarity.

I stopped asking myself: Who am I? And where do I come from?

The Court had just offered me the title of August Sovereign Divinity. I was the Beginning, the Source of Sources. I was the identity, the root that would become a tree in the centuries to come.