Chapter 988: In the Palace
Because of the heavy snow in the city, lights were lit in the Hall of Supreme Harmony just after Shen Zheng [4 p.m.]. The flickering candlelight made the solemn faces look even more gloomy.
At this time, a guard hurried to the Golden Palace to report that Sun Shaozong, the Junior Secretary of the Dali Temple, had escorted the Crown Prince into the palace and had now arrived outside the Meridian Gate.
The Emperor handed the teacup to the old eunuch beside him and ordered, unable to hide his weariness, "Open the central gate and welcome the Crown Prince into the palace."
The two middle-aged eunuchs next to them immediately shouted in unison:
"The Emperor has ordered that the central gate be opened to welcome the Crown Prince into the palace~!"
The main gate in the middle of the Meridian Gate was a place where only the emperor and the empress on her wedding day could pass through, and only the top three candidates in the palace examination could receive this honor.
At this moment, the emperor announced "open the central gate to welcome the crown prince", which indicated that the crown prince would soon inherit the throne.
When the two gates that had been sealed for many days slowly opened, Sun Shaozong suddenly shook the reins and drove the carriage straight into the Forbidden City.
The carriage stopped outside the palace gate, and the crown prince, dressed in mourning, climbed the stairs in the middle with the help of his mother, while Sun Shaozong followed closely behind.
When he entered the hall, Sun Shaozong glanced around and saw that the six ministries and nine officials were like clay or wooden sculptures, gloomy and gloomy as if they had gone to the underworld.
The Crown Prince was obviously affected by this atmosphere. He grasped the Crown Princess's soft hands tightly and leaned forward unconsciously with his thin body.
Sun Shaozong couldn't help but sweat when he saw this, fearing that he would forget his instructions in his panic.
But when they reached the center of the hall, the Crown Princess had just pulled the Crown Prince to kneel down and pay homage, when the Emperor Retired shouted, "Quick, quick, bring the Crown Prince to me!"
The two eunuchs who were delivering the message hurried forward and carried the prince to the retired emperor.
The Emperor placed the grandson between his legs, stroked his head and sighed, "My poor child, don't be afraid, don't be afraid. Your great-grandfather will take care of you from now on. No one will dare to bully you, an orphan and a widow!"
As he spoke, he signaled the eunuchs to bring in a embroidered chair and place it on the right side of the dragon throne for the Crown Princess to sit on.
When all this was settled, the emperor found that Sun Shaozong was still kneeling in the center of the hall, so he asked loudly: "Sun Qing, have you found the two concubines who escaped from the palace?"
"Not yet."
"In this case, you can step down first and do your best to handle this matter."
But Sun Shaozong did not stand up to leave after receiving the decree. Instead, he kowtowed and said, "Your Majesty, I dare to ask you, where is the King Zhongshun who murdered the king now, and when will he be executed?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the hall suddenly became solemn.
After the crown prince and the emperor died one after another, the emperor retired naturally returned to the center of power . This time he summoned all the ministers in the name of discussion, but in fact he was making arbitrary decisions based on the will of heaven.
All the important civil and military officials were cautious in their words and actions, but Sun Shaozong, a lowly official who came to "crash the meeting", dared to question him face to face!
The kindness on the emperor's face suddenly disappeared. He stared at Sun Shaozong for a long while, then suddenly covered his face with his sleeves and said in a sad voice: "I have lost two sons in a row at the age of seventy. I am already heartbroken and heartbroken. I really can't bear to see another young person die!"
After saying this, he choked up.
"Bold Sun Shaozong!"
As soon as the crying started, Li Sheng, the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, jumped out from the side and shouted angrily, "Who are you to interfere in this family affair?"
Then, he knelt down again and said, "I hope the emperor will take care of himself."
When he knelt, the civil and military officials beside him naturally had to express their gratitude. They also knelt down one after another and begged the emperor to take care of his health.
The emperor emeritus did not observe etiquette and instead cried about the sadness of losing his son in old age. With the addition of the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, how could a minister ask any more questions? How could he dare to ask any more questions?
"Tai Chang is wrong."
However, Sun Shaozong still said solemnly: "This is a family affair, and even more so a world affair! The emperor is deeply in love with his children, and I am deeply moved. But your majesty's body is still warm, and the prince has yet to be buried. If we allow the regicide to live in this world, how can we comfort the souls of your majesty and the prince in heaven?!"
"Alas, how could I not know?"
Before he finished speaking, the emperor sighed, raised his head and shed tears, saying: "Everyone is guilty, and the fault lies with me! If the emperor and the crown prince knew about this, they would only blame me - I have made up my mind, there is no need..."
"Cough, cough, cough, cough!"
The retired emperor was just about to cut off all communication when Sun Shaozong suddenly started coughing violently, the sound of his coughing echoing throughout the hall.
"Bold Sun Shaozong!"
Li Sheng, the Minister of the Imperial Household, immediately jumped up again, pointed at Sun Shaozong and shouted, "How dare you lose your manners in front of the palace? What do you intend to do by disrupting the court meetings again and again?!"
He was rebuking with righteous words, but he saw Sun Shaozong straighten his back, not even looking at him, but looking up the imperial steps.
He cursed inwardly: He is so arrogant at a young age that he doesn't even know how to write the word "death"!
Just as he was about to put more charges on Sun Shaozong, someone behind him said, "Please ask the Emperor to execute the traitor who killed the emperor!"
Apart from Sun Shaozong, this ignorant young man, is there anyone else who dares to offend the majesty of the emperor?
Li Sheng turned back in disbelief, only to see that all the civil and military officials were raising their heads in surprise, looking towards the imperial steps.
On the imperial steps, the grandson who was originally in the arms of the retired emperor had somehow broken free and knelt at the feet of the retired emperor like a little adult. With his back to the civil and military officials, he once again asked, "Please, retired emperor, execute the traitor who killed the emperor!"
this……
Li Sheng was suddenly speechless. He dared to scold Sun Shaozong in the palace, but how could he dare to directly scold the crown prince who was about to ascend the throne?
At this time, the Crown Princess also knelt forward and said, "My granddaughter-in-law also begs the Emperor to execute the traitor who killed the emperor, to comfort the spirits of Your Majesty and the Crown Prince in heaven!"
The retired emperor was now somewhat embarrassed. He had never expected that the five-year-old child, whom he regarded as a mere pawn, would actually take the initiative to attack him.
The Crown Princess is also not an easy person to deal with.
But what he could not tolerate the most was Sun Shaozong, the Shaoqing of the Dali Temple!
Although I have long known that he is very close to the Crown Prince, I did not expect that he would have such influence on the Crown Princess and the Crown Prince, who has always been neglected.
It seems that this kid must not be kept!
"Congratulations, Your Majesty!"
As if sensing the malice of the Emperor, Sun Shaozong straightened his chest again, saluted and looked straight at the dragon throne and said: "The Grandson is only five years old, but he knows how to avenge his loved ones. This shows that he has a pure and filial heart. The Emperor has such a pure and filial Grandson, so why should he be sad about a disloyal and unfilial son who killed the emperor and his brother?!"
As he said this, he bowed his head and said, "I hope the Supreme Emperor will follow the sentiments of the Crown Prince and kill King Zhongshun to uphold the law of the country!"
He prostrated himself and waited for a moment, when he suddenly heard an old voice saying, "Your Highness Xu Furen seconded the proposal. The Supreme Emperor, in accordance with the feelings of the Crown Prince, should kill Prince Zhongshun to uphold the law of the country."
It was actually the Minister of Personnel Xu Furen who came forward!
Originally Sun Shaozong thought that Wang Zhe, who had hinted at something, would be the first to defect.
But the effect was the same. After Xu Furen opened his mouth, there was a chorus of seconding voices from all around. As for a few people like Li Sheng, the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, although they were unwilling to second the motion, they did not dare to jump out and speak out.
This is the situation that the emperor is most reluctant to see and least thinks will happen!
As the saying goes, everything turns into the opposite when it reaches its extreme. Emperor Guangde had endured humiliation and served as a puppet for several years, so he became somewhat self-willed after gaining power. Most of the ministers he appointed were "mature and prudent" people, and there was almost no possibility of them speaking out against him.
That's why the retired emperor believed that he could definitely suppress his ministers - and the first half of the meeting in front of the palace perfectly confirmed this point.
But who would have thought that Cheng Yaojin would appear halfway!
Sun Shaozong originally did not even have the qualifications to participate in the meeting, but he took the opportunity of escorting the crown prince into the palace to interfere and ruined the good situation.
At this time, the retired emperor was very regretful. If he had known this would happen, he should not have promised to save King Zhongshun's life. But now was in a dilemma. If he still refused to change his mind, he would inevitably conflict with his ministers; if he no longer protected King Zhongshun, his own prestige would be damaged.
After weighing the pros and cons again and again, the emperor finally sighed and said, "Forget it, forget it. With such a good grandson here, what's the point of having a rebellious son?"
The most important thing right now is to break the deadlock. As for the loss of prestige, it will not be too late to make up for it slowly after the crown prince ascends the throne.
As the Emperor spoke, he rolled up his sleeves, stepped forward and pulled up the Crown Prince, and then said to the ministers in the hall: "My dear ministers, please stand up."
While he was carrying the Crown Prince back to the throne, he was thinking about how to get rid of Sun Shaozong as soon as possible to avoid any more trouble.
But when he sat firmly on the dragon throne, he found that the Crown Princess was still kneeling there and had not stood up.
The Emperor was startled and said hurriedly, "Is the Crown Princess tired? Go and send her to the Queen Mother to rest."
The eunuchs on both sides were about to step forward to support him, but the Crown Princess knocked her head to the ground first and said loudly: "The Crown Prince is young and has little virtue. I am afraid that he will not be able to live up to the expectations of the people, so I dare to ask the Supreme Emperor to revoke his order and appoint a new emperor."
These words were unexpected by none of the emperor and his ministers in the palace.
The retired emperor was stunned, and secretly wondered if the Crown Princess and the Crown Prince were not on good terms, or that maybe he felt that he was not of the Crown Prince's bloodline and therefore had no right to succeed to the throne?
But no matter what, letting the young grandson succeed to the throne as a puppet was the established strategy of the retired emperor - if he did not choose the grandson, where could he find a four or five-year-old child who could legitimately inherit the throne?
The Emperor then said with a serious expression: "Ridiculous! Since he is the Crown Prince, he should inherit the throne. Moreover, he has been personally trained by me, so he will not make any mistakes!"
After a pause, he continued, "This is a major court matter, and it is not something you women can joke about. Please leave."
The eunuchs were about to do as ordered, but the Crown Princess bowed her head to the ground again: "Since the Supreme Emperor has said this, it is not my place to stop him. However, Your Majesty and the Crown Prince were murdered by traitors one after another, and the palace guards and the Northern Pacification Office were completely unaware of it beforehand, let alone trying to stop it! So I am really worried about Xu'er's safety. If Your Majesty is determined to make the Crown Prince the Emperor, please appoint Sun Shaozong, the Junior Secretary of the Dali Temple, as the Commander of the Dragon Guards to protect the Forbidden City. Only in this way can we, an orphan and a widow, be safe."
The hall fell silent again, and the only response to the Crown Princess was the suddenly heavy breathing of the Emperor.
If the attack just now was a surprise, now it can be said that the real purpose has been fully exposed!
If Sun Shaozong were really allowed to take charge of the palace, I'm afraid the emperor would be wary of him. In that case, how could he hold all the power and make decisions on his own?
But what the Crown Princess said is not without reason. There have been incidents in the palace and the Eastern Palace one after another. The palace guards and even the Northern Pacification Office are to blame. It is only natural to replace someone in charge.
How to refuse this?
"inappropriate!"
At the critical moment, Li Sheng, the Minister of the Imperial Household, jumped out again: "Sun Shaoqing is a civil official, and his official position is only the fourth rank. How can he rashly be promoted to the first rank of the Dragon Guard Commander? If so, wouldn't the court regulations be meaningless?"
"otherwise."
This time, it was the Minister of Personnel Xu Furen who stood up again: "Sun Shaoqing was going to be promoted to the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice after the new year. The Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice is a third-rank official, and according to convention, civil officials who transfer to military positions must be promoted one or two ranks higher."
"That's at most a second-rank official! And it's against the rules to transfer and advance right after being promoted!"
"You can temporarily serve as a second-rank lieutenant general and command the Dragon Guards."
This time it was finally the turn of the Second Assistant Minister Wang Zhe to step forward.
" The Sun family has been a military family for generations. Sun Shaoqing once led 500 soldiers to defeat tens of thousands of bandits. His bravery was unrivaled in the world! If he were to take charge of the Forbidden City, all evil spirits would surely be shunned!"
This is Feng Tang, the right commander of the Five Cities Army.
"Sun Shaoqing is famous for his ability to solve strange cases. If there are any evildoers in the palace, they will not be hidden from his eyes!"
Qiu Ying, the left commander of the Wucheng Army, was not willing to be outdone.
"I second this motion."
Prime Minister He Tiren's words were the shortest, but they were decisive.
The chief and second chief ministers of the cabinet, the left and right palace commanders in the army, and the officials of the Ministry of Personnel have all expressed their opinions, basically forming an overwhelming trend among the court officials.
What's more, the Minister of Revenue, the Minister of Justice, the Chief Justice of the Dali Temple and others are also eager to try!
Seeing this, the Emperor felt his blood boiling, and he suddenly stood up from the dragon throne, not caring that the Crown Prince stumbled, and pointed at the people below the stage and said, "What are you doing...what are you going to do..."
Suddenly he couldn't breathe and fell back onto the dragon throne with his head raised.
