After Lu Fang finished speaking, she respectfully handed over the list in her sleeve.
Jiajing took the list from Lu Fang's hand. After browsing the names on the list from beginning to end, after a long while, Jiajing's face was stern and he gave instructions in a deep voice.
"Continue to keep an eye on them, and let the Forbidden Army prepare for it!"
When Lu Fang heard Jiajing's words, a look of shock flashed across her face, and she immediately responded.
"As you command, Your Majesty!"
After Lu Fang left the Yangxin Hall, Jiajing was seen slowly getting up from the dragon chair, and immediately walked out of the Yangxin Hall. He looked at the increasingly dark sky, his eyes full of cold light, and said silently to himself.
"Let me see how many lives you have!"
…
Beijing, Li Chunfang's home.
When Li Ding came out of Li Chunfang's house, the previous look of expectation had long since disappeared, replaced by endless frustration.
He didn't expect that Li Chunfang would actually refuse his invitation!
In his opinion, this is an excellent opportunity to become famous among the scholars of the Ming Dynasty, and the benefits it can bring will be immeasurable.
"Huh, sure enough, the bigger the official becomes, the less he has the character of a scholar!"
"Yan Song is the same, Xu Jie is the same. These two scum of the scholarly community, for the sake of their own glory and wealth, actually helped the emperor and wielded the butcher's knife against the gentry and scholars all over the world!"
After Li Ding comforted himself in this way, he left Li Chunfang's home without stopping. Even without Li Chunfang's signature, he wanted to let the emperor see his determination.
"Scholars should not be insulted, and gentry should not be insulted!"
At this moment, Li Chunfang, who had just sent Li Ding away, still had a look of shock on her face.
As early as when Li Ding came to visit him, he was keenly aware of something wrong. Combined with the current atmosphere in the capital, he could easily come to the conclusion: "This Li Ding must have an agenda!"
Sure enough, the development of the matter was not beyond Li Chunfang's expectation. After a few words of greeting, Li Ding went straight to the topic and asked Li Chunfang to sign his name in the memorial to His Majesty.
When Li Chunfang heard this, her face turned pale with fright, and she immediately rejected Li Ding's request righteously.
Li Ding refused to give up. After that, he repeatedly persuaded Li Chunfang for a long time and listed various benefits. Seeing that he was resolute, he had no choice but to give up.
While Li Chunfang was still thinking about the next response, Li Chunfang's wife stepped into the room.
"Husband, what's wrong? What happened?"
Li Chunfang's wife saw something wrong with the look on her husband's face, and immediately stepped forward and asked.
At this moment, Li Chunfang was in a state of confusion. Seeing the worried look on his wife's face, she simply didn't hide anything and told the whole story.
"Ah, they are clearly trying to force His Majesty to marry you!"
Li Chunfang's wife couldn't help but exclaimed after listening to Li Chunfang's story.
His wife's words were like a bolt of lightning, splitting all the confusion in Li Chunfang's heart. He quickly reacted, looked at the ground, and murmured.
"Yes, yes, why didn't I think of that?"
"They are clearly trying to force His Majesty to marry you!"
"No, I have to go see His Majesty, otherwise, things will be in trouble!"
Thinking of this, after saying goodbye to his wife, Li Chunfang hurriedly asked her servants to prepare the sedan and march towards the Forbidden City.
…
On the other hand, when Li Ding informed everyone about his frustration, everyone's fighting spirit not only did not weaken at all, but became even higher. Everyone started to criticize these senior officials with each other's words.
"Hmph, how can these high-ranking officials be willing to stand with us for their own glory and wealth? They have been in high positions for a long time, and their sharpness as scholars has long been worn away!"
"Even without their support, we can still achieve success!"
"Yes, Your Majesty must have been deceived by the treacherous minister. When we meet His Majesty later, we must clearly state our interests and strive to get His Majesty to take back his life!"
In this way, we will really become famous among the gentry of the Ming Dynasty and be respected by scholars all over the world! "
"Yes, he is admired by scholars all over the world!"
Seeing that the atmosphere at the scene was gradually reaching a climax, Li Ding withdrew his gaze, immediately turned to the side, and said in a deep voice.
"Master Zhang, Master Wang, why don't we take advantage of the moment and go to meet His Majesty!"
"How about we also show His Majesty our determination?"
The two officials called by Li Ding seemed to have had this plan for a long time.
The two parties hit it off immediately, and they decided to go to the Forbidden City to meet the emperor!
Then, Li Ding waved his hand rather boldly and gave instructions in a deep voice.
"Set off!"
Soon, this huge group of people took advantage of the darkness and marched towards the Forbidden City with torches in hand.
But the strange thing is that in this group of people, in addition to officials, there are also some students from the Imperial College and ordinary people who join in the fun.
And those students of the Imperial College believe from the bottom of their hearts that they are speaking out for the scholars all over the world!
In the Yan Mansion at this moment, Yan Shifan relayed the news he had heard to Yan Song just like before.
"Father, what's wrong, not long ago, Li Ding, the right minister of the Ministry of Rites, and other officials led people to the direction of the Forbidden City!"
"Looking at their appearance, they seem to be trying to force His Majesty to marry him!"
"Should we take some measures to intercept them?"
After listening to Yan Shifan's narration, Yan Song shook his head and immediately spoke.
"No, the strategy we should adopt now is to do nothing!"
Yan Song saw the puzzled expression on Yan Shifan's face, sighed, and immediately explained.
"Think about it, even if you can get the news, how can His Majesty not know about it?"
"You're rushing to go now. Who knows what your intentions are?"
"A few of them still want to force His Majesty to take back his life by forcing him into the palace?"
"You know, your majesty is the one who refuted hundreds of officials and asked for honorable titles for the biological parents in the grand ceremony!"
When Yan Song said this, he couldn't help clenching his fists, his face full of reverence.
"Thank you father for clarifying my child's doubts. My child understands!"
After listening to Yan Song's explanation, Yan Shifan suddenly understood and said respectfully, looking sincerely convinced.
…
Forbidden City, Hall of Nourishing Heart.
At this moment, Lu Fang was respectfully waiting beside Jiajing, telling him the news from Jin Yiwei.
"Your Majesty, this is all the news that I have learned so far. Do you want to..."
When Lu Fang said this, the expression on his face suddenly became gloomy, and the meaning of his words was self-evident.
After listening to Lu Fang's narration, Jiajing looked quite calm, waved his hand and gave instructions.
"No need, let them come over, I want to see what kind of waves they can make!"
"If it's only to this extent, don't embarrass yourself in front of me!"
When Lu Fang heard this, she immediately looked stern and responded respectfully.
"As ordered, Your Majesty, I will go and implement this matter immediately!"
Just as Lu Fang was about to leave the Yangxin Hall, Jiajing's ancient well-wound voice came from behind.
"Come over with me later and take a look!"
"As you command, Your Majesty!"
At this moment, the guiding eunuch hurriedly entered the Yangxin Hall, knelt on the ground, and reported to Jiajing.
"Your Majesty, Li Chunfang, the Minister of Rites, is seeking an audience outside. He said he has something important to report!"
(End of chapter)
