As soon as the Minister of Rites finished speaking, the military generals' courtroom exploded. Many senior officers had no idea what was going on and couldn't help shouting.
Mi Pei, the general of the town army, had a bad temper. He frowned and shouted: "What's going on? Why should you let the two empresses retreat?"
The Minister of Rites quickly raised his hands to tell the generals to be quiet. At the same time, he explained to several important military officials: "Everyone, Concubine Shu and Concubine Hui have withdrawn from the election. It is the two empresses' own wishes. If you don't believe me, you can ask Mr. Feng."
Feng Xiang, the minister of Zongzheng Temple, cupped his hands and said: "That's true. Yesterday, Zongzheng Temple received imperial invitations from Shangyang Palace and Yixiang Palace. Empress Shufei said that she was born as a commoner and was already satisfied with being favored by the emperor and did not dare to expect any more. Empress Hui Fei said that she was born in a merchant family and had a humble status, so it was an honor to be named an imperial concubine. Moreover, her father, Murong Shengshi, had just been killed not long ago, so she decided to quit."
After hearing this, all the civil and military officials in the court couldn't help but look at each other in shock.
The reasons given by the two princesses seemed reasonable, but in fact they were not.
Ma Yunfang's biological father fought in the army in his early years and died for the country. After she was regarded as a hero, plus Ma Hongjie's relationship, she could not be regarded as a commoner.
As for Murong Ling, although Shengtang has always emphasized agriculture and suppressed business, his family has long been separated from the concept of ordinary businessmen. Not only is it rich as a country, but the annual taxes and donations to the country are astronomical, and no one can He would regard her as of humble origin.
As for saying that my father was killed, that is even more nonsense. We are just choosing a queen now, and we are not holding a wedding ceremony immediately. There is no need to observe filial piety and avoid taboos.
However, since Zongzhengji said that this was the intention of the empress, no one else could say anything. Everyone speculated in their hearts that the withdrawal of Concubine Shu and Concubine Hui was probably related to Ma Hongjie and Murong Xue behind them.
Could it be that... someone forced them to give up?
Li Jiangyao originally did not intend to participate in this boring court battle, but when he saw the proud smile on Wei Zixuan's face, he suddenly felt a very unhappy feeling in his heart, so he decided to give up the public discussion on selecting the queen. Make trouble.
He coughed slightly and said loudly: "I think there is something wrong with this."
As soon as these words came out, all the civil and military officials in the court turned their heads and cast their eyes on Li Jiangyao.
"Hey, it's the Protector-General. Protector-General Li is speaking."
"It's terrible, it's terrible, I'm afraid this is going to be a big show."
"Brother Nian, this Li Jiangyao is a leader in the military. It shows that the military is very dissatisfied with this."
"Who says it's not the case? Murong Xue is his sworn brother, and I heard that Ma Hongjie has a good relationship with him. Protector Li obviously wants to stand up for those two families."
"Master Lu, who do you think he is aiming at? There must be a target, right?"
"Mr. Yang, please keep your voice down. Can't you tell? He must be going for the left prime minister."
The officials were whispering and looking at the several important court officials standing at the front of the hall, waiting to see their reactions.
The Minister of Rites was stunned for a moment and asked hesitantly: "What advice does General Li have?"
Li Jiangyao smiled and said calmly: "At the beginning, my lord, you preached the rules of public discussion and listed several criteria for withdrawal. It seems that you did not mention what to do if you give up on your own initiative, right?"
The Minister of Rites was slightly stunned, first turned to look at Wei Zixuan, and then said: "Giving up voluntarily... wouldn't that mean voluntarily withdrawing from the election?"
"This is too childish." Li Jiangyao curled his lips: "Not to mention whether Shu Concubine Hui really wants to retire, even if they are willing, as the emperor's concubines, they are qualified to be made queen by His Majesty. This decision The power belongs to the emperor, not to them, let alone you. Unless someone thinks that the two empresses and their relatives have violated the post-election rules and are not worthy of participating in the election, otherwise...who dares to say no?"
His words immediately won the support of the generals, and many people echoed loudly, saying that most of the words were justified.
Li Jiangyao smiled faintly and asked again: "Master Shangshu, has there been any precedent like this before? How was it handled at that time?"
The Minister of Rites shook his head in embarrassment: "Well... since the founding of the Holy Tang Dynasty, there have been very few cases where the emperor ascended the throne first and then succeeded him. According to the records of the Ministry of Rites... there has never been a candidate who voluntarily withdrew."
Originally, it was a very honorable thing to be able to participate in the selection of the queen. If you were lucky enough and was really favored by the emperor, you would immediately ascend to the supreme position. Your mother would honor the world, your ancestors would be honored, and your whole family would be prosperous. .
Which fool would take the initiative to withdraw from this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity?
"Since there is no precedent, you are too courageous." Li Jiangyao teased: "You take the initiative without permission, set the precedent, and easily decide post-election matters related to the emperor and the Holy Tang Sheji. Tsk tsk tsk, I'm afraid you are not an official. Are you tired of it and want to change your lifestyle?"
The Minister of Rites was so perspiring that he didn't know what to do.
Li Jiangyao's words can be either light or serious. To put it mildly, the Minister of Rites made an arbitrary decision without reference to the court rules and regulations, which was suspected of reckless dereliction of duty; to put it more seriously, it was an attempt by the Minister to intervene in post-election matters with the intention of disrupting the government.
I'm a good boy, I'll be executed by everyone!
The Minister of Rites was frightened for a moment. He hesitated and said hurriedly: "The guardian is right to remind you, it was just the lower officials who were rash. Logically speaking, Shu..."
Unexpectedly, before he finished speaking, Yin Chengyi suddenly snorted coldly: "What a joke! There has been no precedent before, so now we can't make decisions based on reason? Then everything in the world will be difficult to decide! Master Shangshu, don't let others accept it." Interference. Since the two empresses, Concubine Shu and Concubine Hui, have stated that they do not want to be queens, why should we force others to make things difficult for them? If we insist on continuing to recommend them, wouldn’t we be violating the imperial concubine’s will and committing a crime below?”
The words spoken by the second-rank Grand Governor were quite powerful and quite reasonable, which immediately made the Minister of Rites feel at a loss.
The Great Protector and the Great Governor, which side should I offend?
Yin Chengyi's reaction made Li Jiangyao even more convinced that Wei Zixuan's group must be behind Ma Yunfang and Murong Ling's sudden withdrawal. Either the two imperial concubines were under some kind of coercion, or Ma Hongjie and Murong Xue got some kind of hint, in short, they were told to make way for Cheng Wen.
Li Jiangyao is not afraid that Cheng Wen will become the queen. He really doesn't care about him. He just doesn't want to see Wei Zixuan and others succeed in their treacherous plan.
No matter what he does, let’s mess up the bad things of these bad guys first!
Thinking of this, Li Jiangyao laughed loudly and said to Yin Chengyi: "Grand Governor, did you know beforehand that the two empresses were about to withdraw? Or did you read the imperial notice they sent to Zongzheng Temple in advance?"
Yin Chengyi denied with some caution: "Of course not!"
"If not, how can you be so sure and insist that if you continue to recommend Concubine Shu and Hui to participate in the election, you are forcing others to do something difficult and committing a crime?" Li Jiangyao asked calmly.
Yin Chengyi sensed that there was a trap in the other party's words and responded cautiously: "Do you mean that this matter is false? Or do you suspect that the two princesses are telling lies to the court?"
Li Jiangyao smiled faintly: "I didn't mean that. But... I'm curious, does the emperor know about this? Mr. Feng of Zongzheng Temple, have you informed His Majesty of your Majesty's thoughts?"
Feng Xiang was obviously much calmer than the Minister of Rites. He slightly cupped his hands and replied: "General Li, Zongzheng Temple is responsible for handling various affairs of the royal family, clan and relatives. We often receive imperial invitations from the harem or the royal family, and not all of them are... I want to disturb His Majesty."
Li Jiangyao showed an expression like "I knew you would say that" and said with a smile: "Guess what your Majesty will do if he knows about it?"
Feng Xiang replied calmly: "How can I dare to speculate on the emperor's holy will? But according to common sense, your majesty should fulfill the wishes of the two empresses. The imperial concubine will observe etiquette and be humble, and will not compete for the position of queen. It’s a story about virtue in itself, isn’t it?”
"What a story about being polite, humble and virtuous!" Li Jiangyao suddenly sneered: "Another madman who dares to make decisions for the emperor!"
Feng Xiang was stunned by his scolding. He couldn't help but look angry and said angrily: "General Li, why did you say this?! Although the official is one level lower than you, he is also a dignified third-rank minister of Zongzheng Temple. How can you do it in front of everyone? Slander and insult?”
Li Jiangyao laughed loudly and said: "Okay, if you don't know the crime, I will teach you. The forty-eight candidates for the ladies were recommended by the royal family and officials from the second rank and above, and reported to the Ministry of Etiquette. Then the Ministry of Rites sent letters to each government to be selected, asking them to prepare Accept the public discussion in court, right?"
"Right? What's wrong?" Feng Xiang replied, scratching his neck.
Li Jiangyao smiled: "I heard that after receiving a letter from the Ministry of Rites, each government must write a letter of thanks and express its willingness to accept the emperor's selection, right?"
Feng Xiang glanced at the Minister of Rites, nodded and said: "This is a rule, everyone knows it."
"Okay, let me ask you, who wrote the replies from each government? Or who signed them?" Li Jiangyao asked.
Feng Xiang answered without hesitation: "According to the Holy Tradition, if the father is alive, the father will reply to the letter; if the father is not alive, the elder brother will reply to the letter; if there is no elder brother, the elder of the family will reply to the letter on his behalf."
Li Jiangyao looked at Feng Xiang as if he were a fool, and asked the last question that would kill him: "So, where were the official notification letters from the two imperial concubines sent? And who wrote the reply letter?"
After hearing this, Feng Xiang suddenly felt like he had been slapped in the head and was stunned on the spot.
It was only then that he realized: Ma Yunfang and Murong Ling were the imperial concubines. According to the rules of the Holy Cult, it was no longer the elders of the family who could make decisions for them. Not Ma Hongjie, nor Murong Xue, nor Murong Qianqiu, but their husband, Emperor Li Bing!
At home, you obey your father, when you get married, you obey your husband, and when your husband dies, you obey your son.
All ministers, including Wei Zixuan, had previously ignored this obvious but not very noticeable common sense.
