The edict was issued quickly.
Yu Shiyue, the second assistant to the cabinet, was transferred to the position of Shangshu of the Ministry of Justice, the crown prince's Taibao, and concurrently in charge of Zhan Shifu of the East Palace. Xiao Xi, a bachelor of Wenhua Palace, was added to the position of Shangshu of Hubu, a young master of the crown prince, and was promoted to a bachelor of Jinshen Palace.
Luo Qi, the bachelor of Wuyingdian, the bachelor of Wenhuadian; the bachelor of Wenyuange, Sun Yuanzhen, the bachelor of Wuyingdian; the bachelor of Dongge, Yu Shan, the bachelor of Wenyuange, the minister of the processing department, the prince Shaobao; the imperial censor Zhu Jianjia, the prince Teacher, he was appointed as a bachelor of Dongge University and served as counselor of Wenyuan Pavilion for machine maintenance.
Everything has settled, but the shock to the court has just begun.
The first is Yu Shiyue. The appointment of the Minister of the Ministry of Punishment to concurrently serve as the Zhan Shi of the Prince's Palace indicates that a new round of power changes will soon form in the recently peaceful court situation.
In addition, it is quite surprising that Xiao Han, who joined the cabinet at the same time as Luo Qi and whose connections and power were not as good as Luo Qi's, could suddenly become the second assistant after Yu Shiyue.
The content of this private court meeting was not considered confidential, so many people soon learned that Xiao Han's promotion was directly ordered by the emperor.
Therefore, regarding this appointment, two completely different views were quickly formed in the court. One group believed that Xiao Xi gained the favor of the emperor and became the second-ranked member of the cabinet in less than two years after joining the cabinet. Assistant minister, it can be seen that his future is bright.
This faction is generally dominated by Qingliu. Although Xiao Han has always served in local governments and his official experience cannot be regarded as a real Qingliu in a strict sense. However, in the current situation where Qingliu talents are withering and being suppressed, they have No one cares that much anymore.
In addition, the other faction held the completely opposite attitude. They believed that although the emperor promoted Xiao Han, he took away the Zhan affairs of the Prince's Mansion that were originally tied to Ci Fu. In this way, Xiao Han's future In other words, the power has not actually improved much, but may appear to be a bit outstanding.
After all, he joined the cabinet late and lacked qualifications. He was promoted to the position of second assistant all of a sudden. Overtly or covertly, he was bound to be hated by others. Whether it was a blessing or a curse was yet to be determined.
It just so happens that the New Year is approaching, and all the government offices have become quiet. With such good conversation resources, all the restaurants and tea shops in the capital are basically full every day.
In addition, this kind of personnel change in the center will inevitably be accompanied by a new round of division of power. Therefore, these high-ranking ministers, even the controversial Xiao Han, are also visited by a constant stream of people in the mansion. Continuously.
In the midst of such hustle and bustle in both the government and the public, the curtain of Jingtai's five years quietly came down...
These days during the New Year's Day can be said to be the busiest time in the palace, with various rituals and celebrations coming one after another, especially on the Zhengdan day. After the court meeting, there are offerings to the heavens, and then there are offerings to the ancestors. .
At the end of the ceremony, in the Fengxian Hall, Zhu Qiyu was wearing a black crown, but he did not leave. He just knelt and sat quietly on the futon, like a sculpture, motionless.
The north wind blows fiercely outside the door, and the snowflakes are flying, as if everything is buried in the beautiful jade trees.
In the shadows, Shu Liang's figure appeared silently, bowed and said.
"Your Majesty, everything is ready."
As a result, Zhu Qiyu opened his eyes. His eyes passed over the tablets in front of him, and finally landed on the last one, 'Emperor Xuanzong Zhang'.
He sighed softly, his expression was a little complicated, but soon, his emotions were swept away.
Waving his hand gently, Shu Liang stepped back knowingly. Zhu Qiyu turned around again, with a sharp edge in his eyes.
This New Year... I'm afraid no one can live peacefully!
The sky is getting dark, but the lights in the palace are brightly lit. According to the custom, it can't be regarded as a custom. To be precise, it is a new link in the past two years. On the first day of the year, the clan kings who come to the capital will be entertained.
Since the establishment of Zongxue, the relationship between the vassals and the imperial court has been getting closer and closer. After Zhu Qiyu issued a decree to allow clan relatives to visit relatives in Zongxue, this year many vassals have expressed their wish early. Intention to enter Beijing.
Of course, they said they were coming to visit relatives, but in fact, these vassal kings used this excuse to want to travel around. In addition, as the imperial estate slowly opened up, various regulations and procedures, Even the division of powers and conflicts with the mining tax eunuchs gradually emerged.
This once-a-year opportunity to go to Beijing is obviously a channel for direct communication with the emperor. Therefore, there are quite a few vassal princes coming to Beijing this year. Basically, all the vassal princes who have set up imperial palaces in the imperial court are present. There are fourteen people in total, and if the county kings are included, the number will be even higher.
Because of this, although this banquet is a family banquet, it still cannot be careless. The Ministry of Rites has prepared a grand song, dance, and music. In addition, all the civil and military ministers in the court are also sitting with them, and the banquet is full. Covered the entire Fengtian Hall.
The brightly lit palace is set against the snow-covered square, which is very interesting. In the palaces and pavilions, there are bursts of singing and music, and people are drinking wine. Zhu Qiyu is sitting sideways, sitting at the front with several senior vassal kings such as King Zhou and King Min. While talking, the ministers and other vassal kings below were enjoying the songs and dances while discussing the scenery of the capital, and the atmosphere was harmonious.
However, at this moment, two chamberlains suddenly walked in hurriedly at the side door, looking a little anxious. Wynn frowned and was about to go down to scold him. However, after hearing the other party's urgent words, Wynn frowned and went down to scold him. After saying this, his expression suddenly changed, he turned around and returned to the imperial court with the same eagerness, and whispered.
"His Majesty……"
Logically speaking, Zhu Qiyu was talking to King Zhou at this time. As a eunuch, even if he was the emperor's personal servant, it was really rude to interrupt. This behavior made King Zhou look unhappy immediately.
However, he soon saw that after listening to Wynn's words, the emperor's face, which was still smiling, suddenly solidified.
However, in a short period of time, the emperor seemed to realize what the occasion was, so a smile quickly appeared on his face, and then he whispered a few instructions to Wynn beside him, so, The latter immediately said yes.
In this situation, the feudal lord below also realized what might have happened, so they began to chat with each other in a tacit understanding, pretending not to notice what was happening here. However, the curiosity in their hearts was always unavoidable. Let's talk about tonight's events. The moon was really beautiful, but many people were still quietly looking at the emperor above them from the corners of their eyes.
So, they soon saw that Wynn retreated, and not long after, when he came back, there were several strange eunuchs beside him. At the same time, Wynn had a small brocade box in his hand. .
This appearance even made the vassal kings on the side a little surprised and confused. The oldest King Zhou seemed to have vaguely thought of something, and his expression suddenly changed.
Then, the brocade box was opened, and King Zhou sat in the position closest to the emperor. Therefore, at a glance, he saw a round token lying quietly in the small brocade box.
This order is five inches long and three inches wide. It is made of black iron. It has a flying dragon on the top and a unicorn on the bottom. Twelve characters are engraved on the plate, saying... The emperor's imperial edict, it should be sent out at the same time, and those who don't believe it will be killed!
Horse talisman!
As the oldest vassal king in the clan, King Zhou was naturally knowledgeable and immediately recognized what the token was.
At the same time, his heart suddenly lifted.
The Ming Dynasty's troop deployment system was very strict. To put it simply, it had to go through two steps, namely receiving talismans and asking for treasures.
Since the beginning of the founding of the country, Taizu has attached great importance to the mobilization of the army. Therefore, various unexpected situations have been anticipated in advance. Whenever troops need to be mobilized, talismans must be used. There are two types of talismans. One is called the precious gold medal, and the other is the precious gold medal. Made of gold, engraved with patterns of flying phoenixes and unicorns, and engraved with the words: Wherever the talisman comes, follow it immediately, and those who violate it will be punished.
The precious gold medal is used to mobilize the army on a large scale. However, it cannot directly mobilize the army. Instead, it is used to confirm the authenticity of the intention to mobilize the army. There are two of them, one is hidden in the palace and the other is stored in the Ministry of War.
If it is necessary to mobilize troops, the messenger will bring the emperor's edict and the treasure gold medal hidden in the palace to the Ministry of War. After seeing it, the Minister of War will take out another gold medal. After verifying the two, he will go to the Ministry of War to mobilize troops and survey, holding two Enter the palace and hand the gold medal back to the emperor in person. This is the talisman.
After receiving the talisman, it is the real process of mobilizing troops. After the emperor meets with the ministers of the Ministry of War and gets another treasure gold medal, he will take out the iron token in front of him. This token is called the walking horse talisman. There are forty cards in total, each with a different function.
According to the number of troops that need to be mobilized, their location and other conditions, the emperor will send multiple envoys, holding the Zouma Talisman and the Ministry of War to coordinate the alliance. The emperor will send an edict to mobilize the troops. The Governor of the Five Armies will see the Zouma Talisman before he can mobilize the troops. Otherwise, All are illegal actions.
Therefore, generally speaking, the golden treasure card cannot be played, and the horse talisman card cannot be played. However, there are also special situations, that is, when the forbidden army needs to be mobilized.
The Forbidden Army in the palace has eight special horse talisman. In case of emergency, holding this talisman can directly mobilize the Forbidden Army. Of course, not all the Forbidden Army. Each talisman has its own fixed guard station that can be mobilized. .
This system, on the one hand, allows the Forbidden Army to be mobilized as quickly as possible after an emergency situation occurs. On the other hand, it also prevents a certain Talisman Card from being used privately, and other Talisman Cards can be used to mobilize another Forbidden Army to suppress it.
If King Zhou guessed correctly, there should be special characters engraved on the back of the token in the brocade box. With this token, you can mobilize the designated guard or guards of the forbidden army.
But no matter what, when the Horse Talisman was taken out, something big must have happened...
At this thought, King Zhou felt more and more uneasy. He picked up the wine glass in front of him and took a sip before he managed to calm down.
Now, the only thing that can make him feel at ease is that the emperor still doesn't look panicked. At least for now, the emperor doesn't even have the intention to stop the palace banquet.
In this case, it may mean that this matter should, maybe, probably not be a big hindrance...
At this moment, the banquet in the palace has already reached its second half. Although it is said to be a palace banquet, most people do not dare to be arrogant, but there is also a bit of drunkenness among them, because it is a festive gathering. Therefore, many people were more casual, enjoying singing, dancing and chatting.
Naturally, the only ones who noticed what happened here were some of the nearby vassal kings. The brocade box was not big, so those who could really see clearly that it contained the horse talisman, that is, the few sitting closest to it. Just a few people.
Except for King Zhou, other people sitting close to each other quickly reacted. Several vassal kings looked at each other. Soon, they made the same decision tacitly. They lowered their heads and drank. Didn't see anything...
Perhaps because of this incident, the emperor seemed to be in no mood to socialize anymore, and just sat leaning on the throne, his eyes slightly closed, and he was resting his mind.
It didn't take long, even under the noisy ceremony and music in the palace, some people began to notice that something was wrong. Because it was a big banquet, the palace door was not closed. Therefore, the minister sitting closest to the palace door was the first to notice. I don't know when. , there were many soldiers wearing helmets and carrying armor outside the palace gate.
Continuing to look outside, in the square in front of the palace, there are also more than ten teams of forbidden troops, each spreading out, with one guard every five steps, and one post every ten steps, and all of them are in strict formation. At a glance, there are at least thousands of them. People move in.
It was obvious that this was not a normal guarding posture. Such a look immediately caused many ministers in the palace to panic. As a result, discussions started among some low-ranking ministers at the palace gate.
This slightly panicked discussion was obviously different from the casual chat just now, so it was quickly noticed by the important officials at the front.
So, they also stopped chatting with the people next to them and began to ask what happened. After a while, they all learned what happened outside, and then the faces of these ministers became serious.
After looking at each other, Wang Wen from the Ministry of Personnel and Wang Ao from the Ministry of Military Affairs stood up first and walked towards the front of the palace. However, at this moment, two chamberlains walked down the imperial steps and came to their room. In front of him, he cupped his hands and said.
"My lords, Your Majesty has told me that there have been some changes outside, so it is necessary to dispatch some forbidden troops to deal with it. Please be patient and calm. If you have any questions, we will talk about it after the banquet is over."
this……
Everyone present looked at each other, and instead of dispelling the doubts in their hearts, they became even more worried. You must know that he is the banquet lord now. At this time, even a small matter is a big deal.
What's more, the mobilization of the imperial army clearly meant that something big had happened.
After pondering for a moment, Wang Wen spoke.
"I would like to ask my father-in-law to report to Your Majesty that the mobilization of the imperial army is not a trivial matter. The banquet is now coming to an end. If something really happens, the banquet may be ended early."
Under this situation, as the head of the hundred officials, Wang Wen must step forward and find out what happened as soon as possible.
The eunuch who came to deliver the message hesitated for a moment, then cupped his hands and said.
"Everyone, please wait a moment. We will report to His Majesty right now."
"Excuse me, father-in-law."
Wang Wen and others reluctantly sat down, but the worry in their eyes became more and more serious. In the current situation, the emperor obviously did not want to interfere with the banquet due to this incident, so it was not a wise choice to directly go up to play the duel. He could only rely on this way to convey the message.
However, for some reason, they vaguely felt that it was probably not accidental that something like this happened at this time...
