After hearing Queen Qian's explanation, Zhu Qizhen glanced at Queen Zhou, the prince, and then looked at Queen Mother Sun.
Queen Mother Sun shook her head and agreed with Queen Qian's statement.
Seeing that even Queen Mother Sun had no objections, Zhu Qizhen couldn't say anything more.
But Zhu Qizhen still had countless questions in his mind: At that time, the harem was in the hands of his mother, so his brother did not do anything nefarious, and neither did his mother. So how did his queen become blind? Why is the leg lame?
Apart from the queen mother and younger brother, the other most powerful people in the harem were the Zhou family and the Wan family.
The Zhou family has one son, and the Wan family has two sons. The mother has some status based on the wealth of her son.
In the harem, these two were the only ones who had some motive, and the other concubines were not enough in front of Queen Qian.
Zhu Qiyu and his two beloved concubines secretly smiled at each other. The three of them knew very well that as a 'mature politician', Zhu Qizhen would definitely choose to accept the reality.
In other words, it is ruthless.
The so-called historical facts that Ming Yingzong and Empress Qian were deeply in love and mutually supportive are pure nonsense.
In history, Zhu Qizhen directly chose to accept the reality that Queen Qian was blind and lame, without even being interested in investigating.
Even in Zhu Qiyu's eyes now, his brother's attitude is too bland.
Sure enough, Zhu Qizhen adjusted his mood quickly and began to come over to meet Zhu Qiyu's family members.
Although Zhu Qizhen looked down on his younger brother's concubines and princesses, he still had to put on a show when it came to face.
Even Zhu Qizhen had to admit that his brother's family had been very restrained. They did not want the position of Queen Mother or Queen, and they abandoned the Forbidden City without anyone coming to compete for the territory.
With this understanding, Zhu Qizhen was at least very polite to Mrs. Wu on the surface and took the initiative to bow to her.
Then looking at his brother's two princesses, Zhu Qizhen was a little stunned.
Zhu Qiyu is on the left and right, and the two princesses beside him are stunning and stunning. That's all. The key point is that they look exactly the same.
It's no wonder that Zhu Qizhen was stunned. From Renzong, Xuanzong, to Zhu Qizhen, the three generations were all lustful. But this has been passed down by three generations for so many years, and no one thought that there would be such an operation as twin sisters.
Zhu Qizhen also had to admire his younger brother. Although he always did ridiculous things, his ideas were often strange and refined, and different from ordinary people.
After the two parties saluted and exchanged pleasantries, they went out to the square in front of Fengtian Hall to entertain the officials.
Normally, women would not attend such banquets, but today's situation is really special.
Having two emperors at the same time was the first time this happened in the Ming Dynasty.
How the two emperors should get along with each other in the future, and how the ministers should treat the two emperors, still need to be formally confirmed.
Although the court had previously agreed on a charter, the unilateral decision made by the court officials alone was meaningless.
It is still necessary to be the emperor and respectfully allow the emperor, empress dowager, imperial concubine, and empress to attend the banquet together.
Then in front of hundreds of civil and military officials, a consensus recognized by all parties was reached.
Only in this way can it be formalized so that ministers can have rules and regulations to follow in the future.
Therefore, this banquet was quite grand, and all parties were present.
Empress Dowager Sun, Dowager Wu, Empress Qian, Empress Zhou, and the two princesses represent the power of the harem of the Ming Dynasty; King Min Zhu Chu and Prince Consort Zhao Hui represent the royal family.
Duke Xu Chengzong of Wei, Duke Zhang Zhong of England, and Xu Heng, Duke of An, represented the three major noble groups; Chen Xun and Wang Wen represented the civil servants of the Manchu Dynasty.
There are representatives from all parties, and today is the most grand banquet in the Ming Dynasty after Tumu Fort.
Every word spoken by everyone present must be carefully considered.
One wrong sentence may ruin a lifetime's future.
After all, not everyone is as lucky as Xu Youzhen, who can be forcibly pulled back by the emperor after making discreditable remarks.
The two brothers Zhu Qizhen and Zhu Qiyu sit side by side facing the south, with Zhu Qizhen on the left and Zhu Qiyu on the right.
Empress Dowager Sun, Empress Qian, and Empress Zhou sat at the same table facing west.
Concubine Wu, the eldest princess of Yongjia, Prince Zhu Min of Min, Prince Zhu Wengui of Dongwu County, and Prince Consort Zhao Hui all sit at the same table facing east.
The two princesses Qianxue and Suxi stood beside Zhu Qiyu, pouring wine for Zhu Qiyu and Wu Taifei.
Sitting at this table were the families of the two emperors, as well as the most distinguished royal relatives.
Other dignitaries and important civil and military ministers sat at a table of ten people and took their seats one by one.
Yu Shiyue, the Minister of Rites, presided over the banquet. He first led the civil and military officials to congratulate the emperor on his return to Beijing, and then the banquet officially began.
Zhu Qiyu first congratulated and toasted to his brother, and Zhu Qizhen then toasted to thank the emperor and his ministers for their hard work in protecting the country and welcoming him back to Beijing after going through dangers.
After drinking for three rounds, let’s get down to business. Zhu Qizhen took the lead to give way respectfully and advised Zhu Qiyu: "Now that the throne has been determined, my brother, the concubine, and my younger brothers and sisters should live in the Forbidden City.
At the same time, the concubine should be honored as the empress dowager, her younger siblings should be canonized as queens, and the younger brother should be asked not to refuse. "
Upon hearing this, all the officials also knelt down and respectfully expressed their respect.
Zhu Qiyu's cronies all knew that the emperor would not accept it, but they could only follow along and make gestures.
Other civil and military officials sincerely wanted the emperor to honor the queen mother, appoint a queen, and live in the Forbidden City.
How can it be appropriate for a majestic Son of Heaven to have a biological mother who is not the Queen Mother, a wife who is not a Queen, and none of whom live in the Forbidden City?
What will happen after the foreign vassal comes? What do local officials who come to Beijing think? What do the people of the world think?
Those who knew it said that Emperor Qian retired, but those who didn't know thought that Emperor Gongjing and the civil and military forces of the Manchu Dynasty united to treat Emperor Jingtai harshly.
Therefore, the ministers from the emperor's faction were particularly determined and had to ask Zhu Qiyu to nod.
Zhu Qiyu himself also had some difficulties. Logically speaking, he had officially accepted Zhu Qizhen's abdication, and he was indeed a legitimate emperor.
The code for 'acting emperor' has been removed. It would be unreasonable to insist on not establishing a queen.
On the contrary, the Queen Mother does not need to be established, because the Queen Mother has already adopted herself to Queen Hu.
Facing his resolute brother and ministers, Zhu Qiyu decided to slowly break it off one by one.
First of all, in response to the proposal to honor Concubine Wu as the Queen Mother, Zhu Qiyu loudly explained to Zhu Qizhen and other ministers: "Brother Mingjian, my mother-in-law has adopted my younger brother to Empress Zhen.
According to the etiquette and law, now that the younger brother is the legitimate son of Queen Zhen, it is really inappropriate to respect the mother-in-law as the Queen Mother.
Besides, the mother-in-law is indifferent to fame and fortune, she is devoted to Taoism and has no yearning for fame, fortune and wealth.
From now on, I would like to respect the Queen Mother's advice and ask my brother and officials not to mention it again. "
When Zhu Qizhen heard this, his expression changed instantly.
No matter how ambitious and talented Zhu Qizhen is, he still knows what it means to be the legitimate son of Empress Zhen.
Unexpectedly, his younger brother was not just pretending, but on such a grand occasion today, in front of the clan's nobles and important civil and military ministers, he had to confirm his status as the legitimate son.
(End of chapter)
