In the Qianqing Palace, Zhu Qiyu sent away the worried Princess Changde. As soon as she sat down, Huai En came to report that it was Ruan Lang, the eunuch in charge of Nangong, who asked for an audience.
Strictly speaking, this should be regarded as the first time that the Emperor's cronies truly walked out of the gate of Nangong.
However, Zhu Qiyu didn't look surprised. He leaned on the couch, took a sip from the tea cup in front of him, and asked casually.
"Did you tell me what happened?"
Wynn bowed and looked a little strange. He paused for a rare moment and said.
"It is said that the Supreme Emperor has a decree for you..."
"oh?"
Only then did Zhu Qiyu become interested. He sat up straight and said.
"Tell him to come in!"
Not long after, Ruan Lang walked in, looking a little worried.
"Your Majesty, my ministers, send you my regards."
"What's the matter?"
Facing the eunuch in charge of Nangong, Zhu Qiyu was too lazy to make excuses. He still leaned on the couch and asked casually, not even intending to let him get up.
Ruan Lang knelt on the ground and unconsciously felt a chill on his back.
It should be said that when he served in the palace in his early years, he often saw the former His Highness King Xi. However, I don't know when, this person had something called the majesty of an emperor inexplicably.
His expression was obviously relaxed and his tone was casual, but Ruan Lang felt inexplicably scared.
This feeling is related to the throne, but it is not entirely the case.
Ruan Lang has been in the palace since the Yongle period. Although he has never been famous, he has seen both Emperor Renzong and Emperor Xuanzong. .
But no one could give him such a great sense of oppression.
Although it was not the first time, Ruan Lang felt suffocated every time he stood in front of this person. There was always a voice in his heart telling him to escape as soon as possible.
However, he couldn't leave, and he couldn't even continue to kneel down like this and reply, because today, he was announcing the decree on behalf of the Supreme Emperor.
Bite the bullet, Ruan Lang said.
"Your Majesty, the Supreme Emperor has a decree. Please accept it... accept the decree..."
Before he finished speaking, he immediately felt a sharp gaze coming from above, and the chill was faintly tangible, making him feel tremendous pressure.
However, what surprised Ruan Lang was that this pressure did not come from the emperor above him, but from the emperor's side. This seemingly unattractive, but recently hot-spotted Supervisor of Ceremonies, Da Jue, Huaien!
As this cold gaze came, Wynn's voice followed closely.
I don't know if he has been with the emperor for a long time. Although Huaien's expression was sharp, his tone was calm and steady, without any waves, he said.
"Eunuch Ruan, His Majesty and the Supreme Emperor are direct brothers. It is normal for them to send messages to each other. It is not unusual to mention the word "edict". Eunuch Ruan's so-called 'edict' was neither drawn up by the cabinet nor six subjects. The signature is nothing more than the personal seal of the Supreme Emperor."
"To put it bluntly, the Supreme Emperor just asked Eunuch Ruan to come over and deliver a few words, so... there is no need to be so particular, right?"
With the last sentence, Wynn's tone became gentler, but the more so, the more Ruan Lang felt like a light on his back, inexplicably thinking of that guy Shu Liang who killed without blood.
After forcing himself to calm down, Ruan Lang tasted the meaning of Pin's words, but found again that although this Huai'en looked young, he was not weak at all in terms of political status.
His words emphasized the brotherhood of the Tian family, but deliberately weakened it. In fact, the relationship between the Supreme Emperor and the Emperor was still that of monarch and minister.
Yes, to all the people in the world, the Emperor, the Queen Mother and the Son of Heaven are all "Kings". However, if we break it down further, to the Son of Heaven, the Emperor and the Queen Mother are also "Kings".
So in fact, there is no problem with what Ruan Lang said himself. The Supreme Emperor and the Emperor are from top to bottom, and there is nothing wrong with using the word "receiver of the decree".
However, when it came to Wynn's mouth, it became the so-called passing of two sentences, and the etiquette in the middle was conveyed in an understatement.
Ruan Lang couldn't refute it yet. After all, Wynn used the Tian family's friendship as a shield. If Ruan Lang forced it, he would become a villain who instigated the brotherhood between the Supreme Emperor and the Emperor.
In addition, what made Ruan Lang even more uneasy was Wynn's next words.
This decree of the Supreme Emperor was indeed not drawn up by the cabinet, nor was it counter-signed by the Sixth Section. It was only recorded in the inner court. Therefore, from a procedural point of view, this can only be regarded as a neutral decree at best.
However, the central decree is also a decree, and it is actually covered with the Supreme Emperor's seal.
However, when it came to Huai En's mouth, the seal made by the Ministry of Rites became the personal seal of the Supreme Emperor.
Just the name is different, but the meaning is completely opposite.
The imperial seal represents the imperial court, while the private seal is just a useless private seal.
You know, let alone the Supreme Emperor, even the Emperor has many private seals with him, some of which are engraved by the inner court, and some of which are simply made by the Emperor himself on a whim.
These private seals could represent the emperor, but they did not have any political effectiveness.
The only thing that has government effectiveness, can represent the supreme imperial power, and can represent the imperial court is the Emperor's Seal produced by the Ministry of Rites.
Wynn's move was tantamount to denying the legal rationality of the Emperor's will.
For a moment, Ruan Lang became very wary of Hua En, who had recently risen to prominence but had quickly established a foothold in the Supervisor of Ceremonies.
This person has the calmness of an emperor, the loyalty and ruthlessness of Shu Liang, and the sophistication of Cheng Jing.
Although it is still a little immature in some places and has not been perfected in every aspect, it is already very scary.
Cold sweat broke out on his forehead, and Ruan Lang was quickly thinking about how to deal with it, when he saw that the emperor finally made a move.
Zhu Qiyu waved his hand gently, signaling Wynn to step back, and then said in a gentle tone.
"Since the Supreme Emperor has a decree, you should get up and speak."
Even so, his posture remained unchanged, still lazily leaning on the couch.
However, after all, it was a step up, so Ruan Lang did not dare to say anything more, took out the yellow silk jade scroll of will from his sleeve, and unfolded it.
"The Supreme Emperor Zhi said: I return to the South Palace and do not intervene in government affairs. All officials in the court and all the people in the world are entrusted to my brother Qi Yu. Although the affairs of the court are busy and the people's affairs are heavy, the heavenly family has etiquette, justice and ethics, which is the foundation of the country. also."
"The emperor and I are direct brothers, and we have a deep relationship. After returning to Nangong, I have become more and more concerned about the close friendship between brothers. Therefore, I have issued this edict. Starting from tomorrow, I will order my brother Qi Yu to go to Nangong every day to pay respects to the Tian family. Family love, appreciate this."
At this point, Ruan Lang didn't expect the emperor to get up and receive the order in a polite manner. After reading the order, he consciously closed the yellow silk and handed it to the eunuch standing beside him, and then forwarded it to On the Emperor's Imperial Case.
Zhu Qiyu listened to this 'will' with a calm expression, glanced at the yellow scroll in front of him, spread it out and took a look, then looked up at Ruan Lang and asked.
"So, the Supreme Emperor wants me to decide between morning and evening?"
This tone was exactly the same as Wynn just now, except that it was more powerful.
Just one sentence caused sweat to break out on Ruan Lang's forehead.
"Your Majesty is serious. The Supreme Emperor just lives alone in Nangong and misses his brothers, so he wants to see his Majesty often. In this way, it is also the brotherhood of the entire Tian family..."
"Then what if I don't go?"
However, before he finished speaking, Ruan Lang heard the emperor's voice ringing again. He didn't expect the emperor to be so direct, so he couldn't help but look up, and saw that the emperor was looking at him calmly, as if waiting. What.
Ruan Lang lowered his head and said.
"Your Majesty is busy with government affairs and sometimes you cannot spare time. If your Majesty insists on not going, this is what the minister will say when he returns to Nangong."
It should be said that this was originally expected. How could the emperor, who was unwilling to kneel down and salute even during the Welcome Ceremony and the Winter Solstice Festival, be willing to go to Nangong every day to pay his respects to the Supreme Emperor?
But, conversely, this is where the Supreme Emperor can best control the emperor, that is, the two words of etiquette and law.
Speaking of which, I learned this idea from the previous King Xiang.
When the Supreme Emperor first came back, King Xiang wanted to submit a memorial, but later, the old King Min forced him to ask the family law, so the memorial naturally dropped.
Many people are speculating that the reason why King Min came forward despite his illness was because he was entrusted by the Emperor. Otherwise, after this incident, the Min Palace would not have quickly formed a knot with the Emperor's most trusted Wu Xun, Jing'an Bo Palace. Became related by marriage.
There was a lot of discussion behind this matter, but most people ignored one thing, and that was King Xiang’s memorial!
Although this memorial was not handed over in the end, it deserves special attention precisely because it was not handed over.
If this memorial can be refuted by the emperor at will, then there is absolutely no need for King Lao Min to drag his sick body out in the wind and snow.
On the contrary, it is precisely because once this memorial is handed over that it will be very difficult to deal with, the emperor will choose to use the method of removing fuel from the bottom of the cauldron to eliminate it directly from the source.
Fundamentally, there is a question of etiquette.
Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, there has been no precedent for the Supreme Emperor. Therefore, many things have to be done tentatively, including how the emperor should treat the Supreme Emperor with etiquette.
There was such a precedent in the pre-Tang and pre-Song dynasties, but today's Tian family is composed of brothers, not father and son, so many things cannot be copied.
In this case, the best way is actually to leave it alone.
If the etiquette between the two brothers could not be solved, then the possibility of meeting would simply be reduced. This was also the reason why the court was silent about King Xiang's beating.
However, because of this, when this will was revealed, it became more and more difficult.
This is exactly what the Emperor wants!
In fact, after a long night of thinking, especially after being angry at the eldest princess of Changde, the Supreme Emperor calmed down and finally realized that the cards he could play now were nothing more than etiquette and principles. .
To put it bluntly, relying on etiquette to make the emperor bow his head, if the other party does not bow his head, then it will be unreasonable.
Although it is said that for the emperor who holds the imperial power, such things as truth are simply ridiculous, but this is the only thing that the emperor can fight for now.
So, Ruan Lang is here...
The emperor's rejection is actually normal!
Even if there was no welcoming ceremony and the Winter Solstice Festival, it was the emperor's performance. Ruan Lang felt that if he were in another place and had basically mastered the entire court, he would not care about someone who had already retired to Nangong. , has very little influence in the court, and only has one name left, the so-called 'Top Emperor'!
Therefore, after receiving the emperor's statement, Ruan Lang didn't want to stay in the Qianqing Palace for a moment longer, so he bowed his hands and prepared to leave.
However, he had just finished the salute and before he could even move, he heard the emperor's voice sound again, saying.
"Go back and tell the people in Nangong to be ready to pick you up early tomorrow morning."
As a result, Ruan Lang was stunned on the spot and raised his head in disbelief, looking as if he was caught off guard.
This look actually made the emperor laugh.
"What, didn't you hear clearly?"
"I don't dare, I don't dare. The minister will go back and report to the Supreme Emperor."
Seeing the gentle smile on the emperor's face, Ruan Lang felt chills in his heart again. He quickly lowered his head and left Qianqing Palace in a hurry.
After watching Ruan Lang's figure disappear from the entrance of the palace, Wynn hesitated for a moment and said.
"Your Majesty is going to Nangong tomorrow? Then I will go down and prepare for Luan Jia..."
He said this, but Wynn's feet seemed to have taken root and he stood still without moving at all. This statement was obviously testing the emperor's true meaning.
Zhu Qiyu glanced at him, then casually unfolded the yellow silk jade scroll on the table and played with it in his hand. His eyes, intentionally or unintentionally, fell on the bright red seal of the Supreme Emperor on the yellow silk.
"Don't go!"
The emperor answered simply and neatly, but Wynn was a little at a loss as to what to do.
After being stunned for a moment, he asked hesitantly.
"Then tomorrow..."
At this time, Zhu Qi Yufang put down the yellow silk in his hand, put it on the case, turned to Hua En, and said.
"If you don't go, you will be disobeying the Emperor's will. I'm afraid Nangong is waiting for me to do this!"
When the decree was sent to him, Zhu Qiyu actually felt confident. As his brother, these were the only ways he could think of.
It's nothing more than creating an image of a victim, nothing unusual.
If Zhu Qiyu did not go, or simply regarded this decree as non-existent, then the label of disrespecting the Supreme Emperor would be firmly slapped on his head.
Of course, as the emperor, there would be no consequences for doing so. At most, there would only be a few censors to give advice.
The truly important ministers in the court would not have any grudge against the emperor over this matter, and they might not even mention it.
However, this influence is subtle. Once everyone accepts by default that the Nangong Emperor is a bullied, oppressed, and wronged object, while the emperor in the palace is a ruthless man who does not respect etiquette and does not recognize brotherhood. When the time comes, the opportunity will come...
Now that he has suffered this loss, Zhu Qiyu will naturally not ask the other party to repeat his old tricks. Of course, if Zhu Qiyu is really asked to help the Supreme Emperor decide the morning and evening, it is also a no-brainer.
As for how to solve it...
"Huai'en, go and summon Shu Liang into the palace. Also, go to the cabinet and tell them to draft an edict. Just say..."
Zhu Qiyu leaned gently on the couch, with a smile on his face.
Speaking of which, it was a coincidence that this decree from my brother appeared at this time, and it really came in time...
