Up to now, more than 40 new scholars have written letters to remonstrate with the emperor.
Zhang Ye and others originally thought that the law would not punish the public. The emperor could not let so many new scholars stand aside.
Never mind, never mind, the emperor's methods are really ruthless.
Regret, the emperor had compromised before and had Shang Ren and Peng Shi return to the capital; he also lifted the empress dowager's ban and rebuilt the Renshou Palace for her, which gave the new scholars the wrong impression that the emperor was weak and could be bullied.
Those treacherous courtiers had seen the emperor's methods and chose to wait and see for the time being. However, the young, energetic and proud new scholars accidentally became pawns for others to provoke and exploit.
The futures of more than forty people were all over in one fell swoop.
The ministers who were interested in Zhu Qizhen were happy. In just a few days, 20% of the young talents selected by the emperor were gone.
The two adults had no choice but to move closer to Emperor Gongrang.
Over and over again, one went down and the other went up, and the emperor suffered a big loss in the end.
In the cabinet, Zhang Ye and others refused to leave and were determined to wait for the arrival of several advisors.
Wang Wen, Huang Pu, and He Wenyuan, the chief examiners of the joint and palace examinations, completely stopped coming.
The two sides are at loggerheads.
…
But in the Nangong Palace, Zhu Qizhen slowly woke up.
Although there was still a tingling pain in his abdomen and his head was still dizzy, after taking the tonic medicine prescribed by the imperial doctor and recuperating for several days, Zhu Qizhen finally got over it.
Several imperial doctors on duty took turns to check the pulse, and then reported to Queen Qian and Queen Zhou who were waiting nearby: "I would like to inform you that your Majesty's health is no longer serious. You only need to rest peacefully and you will recover. "
Queen Qian asked hurriedly: "How long will it take to recover completely?"
The leading doctor replied: "Sickness comes like a mountain, and goes away like a thread. If you want to recover, it will take at least a month, and at most three months. During this period, your Majesty, please eat lightly and stay away from women, otherwise you will have troubles." Possibly repeatedly.”
Queen Qian nodded and ordered the imperial doctors to go out and prescribe medicine.
Under Queen Qian's service, Zhu Qizhen sat up and drank a bowl of white porridge. He reluctantly cheered up and asked, "Where have the Queen placed my sixteen concubines?"
Queen Qian replied: "I temporarily placed her in Yuzhi Palace, but the emperor has agreed to move all his concubines into the Nangong. Therefore, these concubines have to make room for the concubines.
Your Majesty, please tell me where to place it. "
Zhu Qizhen nodded: "Let them move into my Chonghua Palace, live in the side hall, and serve nearby. I wrote a letter in my own hand before, asking my brother to give these concubines a title. Does my brother have a reply?"
Empress Qian replied with a smile: "The emperor issued a decree yesterday that from now on, all affairs in the entire Nangong and the harem will be decided by your majesty.
What position do you want to assign to these concubines? Just order Xing'an to send the order to the Supervisor of Ceremonies. "
Zhu Qizhen was surprised when he heard this: "You mean, the entire Nangong and the harem are all decided by me?"
Queen Qian nodded affirmatively, and Queen Zhou also nodded.
Zhu Qizhen smiled and said: "Then make all sixteen of them noble concubines."
When Queen Qian heard this, she took a deep breath. The eight nobles who had been sent to Wala to serve the Supreme Emperor had all been promoted to concubines. Now, sixteen more concubines were sealed off in one breath. This time, it was like my husband was captured once, and there was nothing else left, only twenty-four more concubines.
After being stunned for a long time, Queen Qian cautiously reminded: "Your Majesty, you now have two queens, one noble concubine, seventeen concubines, and twenty-four concubines.
There are forty-four people in total. Isn’t it too ostentatious?
In addition, the emperor has been streamlining the population of the inner court to save royal expenses. Now that so many concubines have been sealed off, I'm afraid the emperor will be unhappy. "
"What nonsense are you talking about? The wealth in the internal funds belongs to us, why can't I spend it. Order Xing'an to go to the Supervisor of Ceremonies to deliver the order immediately. Go now."
Queen Qian couldn't resist, so she had to send someone to inform Xing'an.
Zhu Qizhen continued to ask: "Where is the prince? Is his health getting better?"
Empress Zhou quickly replied: "Your Majesty, I sent all the people in Kunning Palace away. I didn't expect things to get better that night.
Nowadays, Jianshen can get up and eat. It can be seen that someone from the palace has manipulated Jianshen.
Fortunately, with the blessings of our ancestors, both Your Majesty and the Crown Prince were able to escape the crisis. "
When Zhu Qizhen heard this, his expression turned happy and he nodded repeatedly.
Seeing that the situation was not good, Queen Qian quickly answered: "Your Majesty, Sister Zhou killed most of the people in Kunning Palace without asking for permission. This is an abuse of lynching, and Your Majesty must not ignore it."
Zhu Qizhen waved his hands angrily: "That's enough, just kill them. The Zhou family has done a good job. What are you doing with a group of unscrupulous slaves who want to keep them alive?"
I and three princes are seriously ill at the same time. As my first wife, don’t you see that there is something wrong?
Do you still want to tolerate rape? Could it be that you have also been secretly communicating with your brother?
You go back to your room first and reflect on it. Mrs. Zhou also went back to take care of the prince and called Xing'an in. I have something to ask him. "
Queen Qian and Queen Zhou looked at each other faintly and had no choice but to leave.
After more than half an hour, Xing'an just finished conveying the decree and came to Zhu Qizhen to resume his orders.
Zhu Qizhen asked curiously: "Did the Supervisor of Ceremonies receive the order? Didn't he make things difficult for you?"
Xing'an smiled and replied: "Your Majesty is overthinking. Wang Cheng and others accepted the order without saying a word."
Zhu Qizhen asked again: "What have the two queens done recently?"
When Xing'an asked, he stopped talking.
"You are my confidant, you are only responsible to me. Whatever you know, say it. Tell it truthfully. Don't hide it."
Xing'an had no choice but to reply: "In order to eradicate the traitor, Queen Zhou left behind a few cronies, and all the remaining people in Kunning Palace were killed with sticks.
Empress Qian wanted her slave to tell the emperor about Empress Zhou's abuse of lynching, but the slave did not dare to agree.
It happened that Ruan Xi, the eunuch in charge of the royal palace, came to arrange a house for the concubines. Queen Qian took the opportunity to win over Ruan Xi, who drafted the memorial and went to the western suburbs to present it to the emperor in person.
Then the emperor issued an order to completely transfer the rights of the Nangong and the Harem to His Majesty.
Queen Qian was so happy that she gave most of her private house to Ruan Xi as a reward.
That's how it happened. "
"That's strange. How could my brother be so generous and leave Nangong and the harem completely under my control? It's really unbelievable.
Could it be that Qian was really secretly colluding with his brother and planning something ulterior? "
Xing'an lowered his head and did not dare to answer. What is going on between the emperor and the empress is not something that a slave should get involved with.
Zhu Qizhen asked again: "Which one of you is on duty at the Clerk of Ceremony?"
Xing'an replied: "The servants are in charge of Nangong, and Jin Ying is responsible for keeping an eye on the Shangshan Supervisor to ensure the safety of His Majesty and the ladies. Chen Xiang and Cao Jixiang take turns to be on duty at the Shangshan Supervisor.
His Majesty, the Crown Prince, and the Prince are seriously ill. Public sentiment is raging both inside and outside the court, and most of them are expressing sympathy and support for His Majesty.
Therefore, the trend in the inner court has also changed. The four young eunuchs Wang Cheng, Shu Liang, Zhang Yong, and Wang Qin are simply unpopular. Although our people dare not say that they are the chief eunuchs, the weight of their words is Very heavy. "
After that, Xing'an told the emperor in detail about the recent new scholar's satirical remarks to the emperor, and the emperor's promotion of Enke.
Zhu Qizhen thought for a moment, and then ordered: "You contact the Yanguan, submit a memorial, and ask the emperor to summon the vassal king to Beijing for pilgrimage.
At the same time, spread the rumor that the emperor is about to abolish the prince and replace him with his own son. "
(End of chapter)
