In the eighth year of Yuanfeng, February 29th, Guisi, the third day after the ceremony of establishing the crown prince.
It was also the day when Zhao Xu was confirmed as a reserve in his previous life.
But now, he has become the prince ahead of schedule, and has officially changed the name that his father had chosen for him long ago: Xu.
Warmth comes from fire, which warms and warms the sun!
Duke Han Wen of the Tang Dynasty (Han Yu) said: Xu Xu is called benevolence!
The literary world of the Song Dynasty respected Han Wengong. Naturally, the name Zhao Xu placed his father's infinite expectations on him.
At this moment, Zhao Xu held a spoon and brought it to his father's mouth one spoonful at a time.
The female officer in charge of medicine assisted him and fed him the decoction.
However, there was very little that could be fed, and most of the soup eventually flowed out from the corners of the mouth.
Zhao Xu looked at this scene with red eyes.
Chen Yijian, a Chinese doctor serving in front of the emperor, also removed his hand from the emperor's wrist.
He sighed, knelt on the ground, and said, "Long live my minister!"
"In the past two days, the pulse and symptoms of the officials have always been unfavorable. Although the ministers try their best to support them, their manpower is sometimes exhausted..."
"My medical skills have now been exhausted..."
"Begging the Empress, the Queen, and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, and punishing ministers is a capital crime!"
Empress Dowager Gao and Empress Xiang who were in front of the imperial court, after hearing Chen Yijian's words, both slumped helplessly in their respective seats.
Tears kept falling from the corners of his eyes.
Although they had already expected this, it was still hard to accept when they actually heard Chen Yijian admit that they were running out of manpower.
"It's not my fault that I love you!" Empress Dowager Gao said: "In the past few months, you have been suffering from official illness and have been unable to sleep day and night. Both I and the queen have seen it!"
"Thank you for your hard work, ladies and gentlemen!"
"I'm so ashamed!" Chen Yijian nodded and apologized.
Several Chinese doctors from the Imperial Medical Bureau also apologized profusely.
The old doctor Sun Qi outside the curtain even trembled slightly and knelt down to apologize.
"Help Dr. Sun up!" Seeing this, Empress Dowager Gao immediately ordered someone to help Sun Qi up.
"All the Chinese doctors, please get up too!"
Empress Dowager Gao then said to the ministers outside the curtain: "You have all heard what Chen Yijian said..."
"Let's prepare early!"
After saying that, there was a lot of sobbing and choking inside and outside the curtain.
Zhao Xu also started crying.
In the past few days, he has been in front of the emperor in this palace, personally taking care of his father's decoction, and fulfilling the oath he made that day in front of the emperor.
Unfortunately, things cannot always change according to people's objective will.
His father, after all, fell into a dying state on the last day of February just like in his previous life.
The rest of the time was just an unyielding struggle with his life force.
He is still very young, only thirty-eight years old.
If it hadn't been for the cerebral hemorrhage caused by the stroke, he might have been able to rule the country in good health for more than ten or even twenty years.
Zhao Xu lowered his head and sighed softly.
Cerebrovascular disease is a hereditary disease of the Zhao and Song royal families.
It seems that except for that guy Zhao Ji, this has been the case for every emperor since Taizong.
Zhenmiao, Renmiao, Yingmiao, and Zhao Xu’s father.
If Zhao Xu had not died young, he might have had to face the attack of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases after he was thirty or forty years old.
"Queen, take the prince down!" Over there, Queen Mother Gao had noticed Zhao Xu who was crying silently, and immediately said to the queen: "Don't call the prince, it's too sad!"
"From now on, the inheritance of our ancestors and all the people in the world will depend on the prince!"
"The bride respectfully obeys the decree!" After saying this, Empress Xiang walked to Zhao Xu, held the child in her arms, comforted her, and carried her away from the imperial court.
Zhao Xu is now the prince, but he is too young, and his health is not necessarily in good shape.
The day before he was appointed crown prince, he knelt in front of the emperor until night. When he got up, his feet were trembling and he staggered when he walked.
Queen Xiang was so frightened that she cried, and Queen Mother Gao was also frightened.
From then on, Zhao Xu was no longer allowed to kneel in front of the emperor.
Now, Zhao Xu's time in front of the emperor has begun to be restricted.
I'm afraid that he will be too sad and cry his body out!
…
Zhao Xu was led by Queen Xiang to the Kunning Hall in the back garden.
In the past few days, Zhao Xu has been living here, under the personal care of Queen Xiang.
"Brother Six, don't be too sad..." Queen Xiang put Zhao Xu on a small bed specially made for him.
"I know!" Zhao Xu lowered his head and just said, "I just can't bear to leave my father!"
With that said, Zhao Xu hugged Queen Xiang's body and cried again.
He knew that he could only cry for a few days.
From now on, if he sheds tears over other things, he will probably just cry fakely.
After crying, Zhao Xu became tired and fell asleep in the queen's arms.
Queen Xiang looked at the prince sleeping in her arms.
I couldn't help but touch the child's forehead and pink face.
Finally, he reluctantly put the child on the bed and covered him with the quilt himself.
Then she stood up and called Shi Deyi, the big Diao Dang who had been following her into the Kunning Hall, to come to her and ordered: "Shi Deyi, when the prince is resting in the palace, please don't call anyone to disturb the prince. quiet!"
"I know!" Shi De bowed and said, "Please rest assured, Queen, I will never ask anyone to disturb the peace of His Royal Highness!"
Nodding to the Queen, he took Shang Gong and others with him and returned to Funing Palace.
Now she is not only a queen, but also a queen with the power to assist in military and state affairs.
Although her status is lower than that of the Queen Mother, she still has the power to foresee the affairs of the court, listen to the reports of the courtiers and military affairs, and put forward her views and opinions.
However, Queen Xiang was cautious and prudent in exercising her power.
For one thing, Empress Dowager Gao is the concubine after all, and she is just the bride.
The authority of Queen Mother Gao must be respected!
Secondly, Queen Xiang actually doesn't understand government affairs. There are too many national laws, regulations and laws since her ancestors.
Therefore, she needs time to learn and a familiar process.
In the past, based on her character and conduct, she probably wouldn't have bothered with these trivial matters.
But now, Queen Xiang had to learn, become familiar with, and take care of the up and down things.
Because this country belongs to her son.
If she doesn't look after her son, who can look after her son?
Queen Mother Gao?
…
Zhao Xu slept for about an hour.
When he woke up leisurely, more than a dozen bright palace lanterns had been lit in Kunning Palace.
The incense burner in the palace was also lit, and the scent of sandalwood lingered on the tip of the nose.
"His Royal Highness, the prince is awake!" A female official who had been serving Zhao Xu shouted immediately when she saw Zhao Xu waking up.
"Where's the queen mother?" Zhao Xu asked.
"Her Royal Highness, the Queen Mother, and the Queen Mother are in the Funing Hall, listening to the ministers' performance!" Shi Deyi's figure appeared from in front of the curtain, and he bent down to tell Zhao Xu.
Zhao Xu nodded, sat up from the bed, and asked, "Why are the courtiers acting now?"
"But it was Yushi Zhongcheng, Shi Yushi and others who impeached the left prime minister..." Shi Deyi reported in as calm a tone as possible.
This was the most sensational thing in Bianjing City after the crown prince was established.
Wang Gui, the left prime minister, was intensively besieged by Yushitai.
Almost all the censors were involved.
So, yesterday, left prime minister Wang Gui thanked guests behind closed doors, and at the same time apologized and asked to go out.
This is the unspoken rule of the struggle in the Song Dynasty.
As long as a minister does not commit a truly heinous crime, no matter how big a mistake he makes, as long as he is willing to go out and plead guilty, most of them will stop him and rarely pursue him.
This is the privilege of scholar-bureaucrats.
However, what Wang Gui committed was indeed quite serious.
The most important thing is that he was caught!
How dare you say that in the capital hall, in front of other officials, and in front of the people from Zhongshushe who were recording behind the screen in the capital hall?
What an old fool!
After the incident, both Empress Dowager Gao and Empress Xiang were furious when they heard the report.
Queen Xiang's anger is easy to understand.
Mother and son are one. If Wang Gui is not loyal to the prince, he is not loyal to the queen.
Empress Dowager Gao's anger, in Shi De's view, was somewhat concealed.
"Impeach the left prime minister?" Zhao Xu pretended to be surprised: "Why?"
Shi De didn't like Wang Gui at all.
And Wang Gui committed such a serious crime, so naturally it was impossible for him to cover it up for Wang Gui - he couldn't.
Shi Deyi knew that His Highness the Crown Prince had his source of information.
Liu Weijian and Feng Jing would come to the palace every day to pay their respects to His Highness.
When they arrived in front of the prince, when the prince asked, he must have known everything.
Therefore, Shi Deyi replied: "Your Majesty the Crown Prince, the Prime Minister of the Left just recently made a false statement in all halls: The establishment of a crown prince is a family matter of the Heavenly Family, and the outer court should not care about it!"
"This statement was recorded by Zhongshu Sheren and recorded in the national history archives. When the imperial censors heard about it, they were furious. They all thought that the left prime minister had "unpredictable intentions and acted like a rebellious minister" and "disappointed the emperor's favor and acted recklessly as a minister." ', if you are guilty, you will die!"
Zhao Xu listened, the corners of his mouth raised slightly.
Punishable to death?
In the past hundred years of the Song Dynasty, when had any important ministers been killed? Not to mention the prime minister! ?
Believe it or not, when I really want to kill Wang Gui.
Not only all the ministers in the court now, but also the Yushitai censors who seemed to want Wang Gui to die would come crying and begging for mercy.
Even those senior officials who were not aware of the situation would line up to plead for mercy.
You know, Sima Guang, Lu Gongzhu, Wen Yanbo, Han Jiang, Han Wei, and even Wang Anshi are not dead now.
Do they know that this precedent is absolutely unacceptable?
Even if he dies, he will keep Wang Gui's dignity!
And the influence of these elders is enough to save Wang Gui.
In the end, Wang Gui might just be demoted to a remote military state.
He might even be able to become an official with the title of bachelor of Zizheng Palace.
Could Zhao Xu allow Wang Gui to pass the test so easily?
No way!
So, he sighed and asked pretending not to understand: "Why would the left prime minister say that?"
"I remember what my father once told me..."
"The prime ministers and assistants in the imperial court were all chosen by Wenhua of the Song Dynasty to study high school!"
"Could it be that you were wronged?"
Shi De's eyelids twitched as he listened.
But what can he do?
I can only lower my head and close my mouth tightly.
Shi Deyi knew that if His Highness the Crown Prince's words fell into the ears of the Queen Mother, it would definitely cause an uproar!
…
"Is this really what the prince said?"
That night, when Empress Dowager Gao dragged her tired body to sleep on the mattress in the east pavilion of Funing Hall.
She suddenly heard Liang Weijian's report.
Queen Mother Gao's first reaction was to shake her head. The prince was still young, so naive!
Did the censors wrongly accuse Wang Gui?
How can this be? !
Zhongshu Sheren wrote in black and white, recording everything clearly.
The prime ministers who were in the capital hall that day also heard Wang Gui's words clearly.
He did say such stupid things!
However, when Queen Mother Gao calmed down, her brows furrowed.
The prince thinks Wang Gui was wronged?
If this matter is dealt with hastily, will the prince become suspicious when he grows up?
Given the prince’s intelligence, one would definitely doubt it!
Empress Dowager Gao was certain of this.
so……
He will investigate.
What if there is a treacherous minister who confuses me... What if the prince really finds out something...
Queen Mother Gao could no longer sit still.
She knew that this matter must be settled!
Otherwise, her reputation will be stained a hundred years from now!
It is more likely to implicate her favorite baby son - King Yong!
