Guangzong Yaoming

Chapter 16: If the world doesn't doubt the Imperial Concubine, who will?

Countless people in the capital city had trouble falling asleep, and Shen Yikuan already had dark circles under his eyes.

Wang Dewan... He was one of a group of officials who were added to the cabinet's list and the emperor rarely failed to report on them.

How can we not save the vote that Shen Yiquan drafted?

If he doesn't speak out impartially as a censor, he will be attacked again.

[I believe that the emperor has established a long-standing moral code and is beyond doubt. Now Dewan has made this report because the rumors are spreading all over the streets, in order to make the emperor's intentions known. I am afraid that the emperor may not investigate and use his majesty...]

Starting from the next day, the court was in chaos, with various memorials and petitions coming in one after another.

Zheng Guotai requested to hold his coming-of-age ceremony first, but was severely criticized by a group of censors and censors led by the Minister of Rites.

Xie Tingzan was persuaded by Yao Jike, but some people still accused the Ministry of Revenue of harboring evil intentions and colluding with the rebellion to push for the abolition of the eldest son and the enthronement of the youngest son.

Zheng Guotai further argued that the memorial was not submitted by him, but someone had impersonated him in order to harm the emperor's relatives.

But what was even more exciting after daybreak was, of course, Wang Dewan's lightning-fast imprisonment and the memorial accusing him of "making irresponsible comments on the palace's forbidden affairs."

The Minister of Personnel Li Dai and many others came to the court to speak for Wang Dewan.

The result of the collision was that Zhu Yijun became angry again.

Except for Li Dai, the great heavenly official, the rest of the people had their salaries taken away for one year to eight months.

This time, the emperor reacted quickly!
Shen Yikuan hurriedly came to the "Tianjie" outside Chengtian Gate, where the five prefectures and six ministries gathered.

The sun was already scorching before the Dragon Boat Festival. When Shen Yikuan arrived here, he saw many officials gathered on Tianjie Street discussing whether they should go to the Wumen Gate to cry together.

"Everyone, please calm down, calm down!" Shen Yi Guan shouted, "Just now, His Majesty has sent a clerk to convey the order to the cabinet!"

The actual "sole prime minister" came over, and the others gave him face and listened quietly for a while.

Then more people came out from the doors of various departments, including Li Dai and several other ministers.

After greeting everyone one by one, Shen Yi Guan spoke earnestly.

He first relayed the contents of the emperor's instructions to the cabinet. To convey the instructions to the cabinet, doesn't that mean that the cabinet should tell all officials again?
The Emperor meant:

Wang Dewan has no martial ethics!
Queen, that is the original wife chosen for me by the Queen Mother.

You have served me for many years, and I have always been considerate and tolerant even if you made slight mistakes.

There is evidence!
Didn’t I let her brother inherit the title of Earl?

Yes! Sometimes she was a little bit violent, and I taught her a lesson about "being a good woman" and she said she would repent.

But how can I say that I am depressed?

Wang Dewan was a "beast" who "spoke wildly and misled the audience."

You are my assistants and right-hand men. At this time, you should uphold the principle of unity between ruler and subject!

That's it.

All the officials saw Shen Yikuan stop talking and looked at him in surprise: That's it?

"My Lord, when has the Empress ever made any mistakes or behaved violently?" Yu Jideng, the Minister of Rites, was unhappy. "Your Majesty, I'm afraid that the government and the public are misled by your words!"

He has obeyed the emperor and is now catching traitors and investigating the origin of the rumors.

Now look what happens, has the “traitor” jumped out on his own?

How can you characterize the Empress as "brutal"?

What is Shen Yikuan's intention in coming here to spread the news?
"Please be patient, be patient!" Shen Yi Guan looked at him, "Let the Grand Master of the Imperial Clan and all of you know that His Majesty has another decree, ordering the Ministry of Rites to choose an auspicious day as soon as possible, and the eldest prince will move in and start teaching within the month!"

Yu Jideng was stunned, but someone spoke up: "In the first month and the second month, there were imperial decrees to choose an auspicious day. Within this month, next year... How many times has Your Majesty said this?"

There was an uproar and much discussion, and everyone agreed that the emperor had no credibility on this issue.

He also said that the Empress had faults and was a bit violent, and tried to appease the ministers by making empty promises about the foundation of the country. What does that mean?
"An imperial decree has also set a date, so we can't make any more noises now, right?"

Xie Tingzan seemed to have suddenly realized something and flew into a rage: "Wang Zichun is still suffering in the imperial prison. Are you trying to put us in a dilemma? If we petition for his rescue, it will delay the eldest prince's relocation. If we don't petition, how can Wang Zichun escape his guilt?"

"That's exactly the reason, Lord..."

Shen Yikuan finally felt the treatment he received from his predecessors: as soon as our main players came on the field, the crowd became excited.

"Your Majesty, the Empress and her husband have been together for twenty-four years!" Shen Yi Guan pressed his hands hard and said in a hoarse voice, "Your Majesty's love for the Empress should be known to heaven! I also have a reply: if from now on, the favors are slightly reduced, the world will be suspicious and the suspicion will grow day by day!" He looked at everyone with great sorrow, especially winking at Xiao Daheng: "The admiration of all generations depends on this one move! Everyone, I have said so much, what else do you want?"

Xie Tingzan also shut up.

These words were indeed harsh and shut the emperor up.

There are already rumors anyway. If you treat the Queen badly in the future, it will only fuel the rumors.

Hundreds and thousands of years from now, Your Majesty, you don't want your reputation to be ruined because of this incident and the rise of unjust imprisonment, right?
Xiao Daheng immediately said, "If Prince Chun is guilty, how can our Ministry of Justice stay out of it? In the current situation, what is the point? The eldest prince will move and give lectures. If it cannot be done within a month, it will not be too late for everyone to speak up!"

With the help of Xiao Daheng and others, and after Shen Yikuan repeatedly assured that he would continue to rescue Wang Dewan, everyone finally calmed down their anger.

Because the emperor had issued an edict, there was a clear time point for the eldest prince to become the crown prince, and everyone gave Shen Yikuan another month.

The three rituals will be initiated once the relocation is completed, as the emperor had clearly stated in his previous decree.

In the imperial prison, Wang Dewan was indeed "suffering".

But with Tian Yi's help, they just kept asking questions intensively, without using any torture.

"I have just arrived in Beijing, but do I need someone to lead me in speaking the truth?"

Wang Dewan has been interrogated all night long and even though he is very tired, he still shows a disdainful expression.

"In the 21st year of Wanli's reign, His Majesty ordered the Ministry of Rites to confer titles on three princes as heirs, and the court and the public were in an uproar. At that time, the six secretaries went to the Prime Minister's house to question him, but Wang Taicang avoided them and dared not meet them. That year, rumors spread all over the court and the public. Didn't the factory guards know about it?"

Wang Dewan sneered, "'If the world doesn't doubt the Imperial Concubine, then who will? If the Imperial Concubine doesn't take responsibility for herself, then who will?' This is what Taicang Gong said in the inscription, word for word!"

"Rumors are just rumors. But to believe in rumors and to expose the palace's forbidden rights and wrongdoings is something that requires one to risk one's life. Lord Wang, are you saying that this time it was the cabinet ministers who instructed you to do so and that's why you're willing to take that risk?" The person questioning him smiled.

"I'm sure you all know about my colleagues who welcomed me into the city yesterday. Then how could you not know what I did after entering the city?" Wang Dewan looked at him sarcastically, "If you say that I was ordered to do this, it was just public interest. Whether it's the cabinet ministers or other officials in the court, anyone with public interest is the mastermind."

"...Don't bite recklessly."

"You want to get close to the cabinet ministers because I quoted the words of Lord Taicang." Wang De was calm and composed. "If you insist on getting close, I'm happy to see it happen. Why not arrest them all? The Ming Dynasty court will be held in the imperial prison, which will be a wonder in history! If this can let Your Majesty know the people's wishes and establish the foundation of the country early, I will have no regrets even if I die."

The person on the other side was speechless.

In the Forbidden City, Zhu Changluo knelt in front of Zhu Yijun.

"Your palace servants ran to such a filthy place without permission and revealed countless secrets of the Forbidden Palace!"

Zhu Yijun threw the list of eunuchs who were found to have left the palace without permission during this period in front of Zhu Changluo, and Li Jinzhong, who was caught red-handed last night, was on the list.

Plus Zhao Jinjiao and others who came before.

Zhu Changluo looked up at him, suppressing his anger.

There's no point in reasoning with him, and this guy isn't here to reason with him. He just wants to use this excuse to get back his face and suppress his "arrogance" at the same time.

"You are still bragging in front of the Imperial Concubine, saying that you will discipline the servants in the palace." Zhu Yijun pointed at him, "After protecting Wang An, the people below have become bolder! This Li Jinzhong just came to Jingyang Palace to work, and after hearing your prestige, he dared to go out and talk about a rich and prosperous future!"

Zhu Changluo narrowed his eyes slightly and didn't look at him for long.

Doesn't he know what kind of people are the servants in Jingyang Palace and who arranged them, except for the companion who had studied in the inner study hall and the old man of Concubine Wang Gong?

"These servants have violated the palace rules, so Father will punish them severely."

Zhu Changluo will not protect them this time. It is a good thing whether these people are driven out of the palace or beaten to death, although the subsequent additions will probably be similar.

Before his status was clarified, Zhu Changluo had no say in these matters.

"You failed to discipline me, allowing me to speak freely outside the palace, causing rumors to spread and slandering my virtue!" Zhu Yijun said in a cold voice, "I will punish you by confining you to your room for three months and let you reflect on your mistakes behind closed doors!"

Zhu Changluo took a deep breath and raised his head again: "Father, I don't agree with what you said! I can't bear the responsibility of spreading rumors outside the palace to slander you!"

"...This is outrageous!" Zhu Yijun couldn't bear to see him strongly refute, "Isn't it your palace's dog servants who are talking nonsense outside without restraint?"

"There are more than just a few bad servants in my palace who are involved in the exchange of information in and outside the Forbidden Palace." Zhu Changluo picked up the list beside him. "With so many people, why did father say that the source of the rumor was Jingyang Palace?"

Can he deny the thing he just threw at me?
Are all those people above from Jingyang Palace?

Zhu Yijun's expression froze, but he still gritted his teeth and said, "You have no fault at all?"

Zhu Changluo was so angry that his liver hurt. Was this the "ignoring the facts" method?

Where is my knife? !

(End of this chapter)