The outer hall of Changle Palace was in chaos.
"Quick, inform the emperor, the empress dowager..." the elderly eunuch said hurriedly.
"Godfather, what do you say?"
"Yes, godfather, how do you report this?"
Several young eunuchs looked at the old eunuch miserably, and they were all panicked. They could clearly hear the Emperor's cry and knew that something big had happened, but they did not dare to say casually such words as "The Emperor has passed away."
Without knowing the details, how can you say such nonsense?
"What are you talking about..." The old eunuch was about to curse, "Just say that the Supreme Queen's life is hanging by a thread, hurry up..."
If such a big thing goes wrong, slaves like them will definitely be in disaster.
"Ah yes, sons, go right away."
…
Yongning Palace.
Zhu Jianshen, who was sleeping soundly, was awakened. Before he could get up and get angry, he heard that the Queen was critically ill and the Emperor was crying.
He hurriedly stood up and pushed Zhen'er, who was half asleep and half awake, "Zhen'er, wake up, stop sleeping, something happened."
Before Zhen'er could get up, he had already gotten out of bed, getting dressed and walking out, "Immediately notify the Queen Mother, Concubine Chen, Concubine Shu, Concubine De, and by the way, the Crown Prince, the Prince... call them all together, quickly." Go to Changle Palace."
"Yes, slaves, go now."
At this time, Zhen'er also learned the news and quickly put on clothes, but her heart was in a state of confusion.
She quickly came outside the palace, only to see that the emperor's husband had already left the door.
"emperor…"
Zhu Jianshen stopped, turned back and pulled her in, and said hurriedly: "The queen is critically ill, let's get there quickly."
"I am... afraid." When the matter came to a close, Zhen'er was ready to tell the truth.
Unexpectedly, Zhu Jianshen already knew about it and said: "I know about that. The Supreme Emperor has said it. Don't worry, he will not take revenge on you. Hurry up. This is a big deal."
Hearing this, Zhen'er was slightly relieved. Although her worries were still lingering, she had no choice but to follow suit.
In this matter, whether she wanted to or not, she could not escape. gōΠb.ōγg
~
Changle Palace.
Zhu Jianshen and Zhen'er came first.
The inner hall and bedroom are brightly lit.
The young eunuchs were already kneeling at the entrance of the palace and sobbing softly. When they saw the emperor's concubine coming hand in hand, they just kowtowed and did not stop crying.
Zhu Jianshen passed through the slaves and walked straight in, and Zhen'er followed quickly...
"Father..." Zhu Jianshen called softly.
Zhu Qizhen seemed unaware. He sat on the bedside, holding his beloved wife's hand, his lips trembling and he didn't know what to say.
Qian lay flat on the couch, and the bright candlelight could not hide her pale face. She had already reached the end of her life.
"Father..."
Zhu Jianshen called out again, but there was still no response.
Zhen'er pulled his sleeve and shook his head gently.
She didn't dare to say anything. After winking at the emperor's husband, she knelt down and worked on her emotions...
Zhu Jianshen stepped forward slowly and knelt down in front of the couch.
"Queen mother..."
Qian was still conscious. She glanced at him when she heard the call, a smile appeared on her lips, and then she looked at her husband.
She no longer had the strength to speak, so she could only listen to her husband.
Then, Empress Dowager Zhou, Empress Wang, Prince, Concubine Shu, Concubine Chen, Concubine De and others arrived one after another.
The wind blew in with these people, and the candlelight flickered in the wind, making Qian's pale face look even paler, as if it would be extinguished at any moment.
"Close the door, close the door..." Zhu Qizhen murmured.
Zhu Jianshen listened several times before he understood what his father said. He quickly turned around and said, "Close the door and don't let the cold wind blow in."
Turning his head, he wanted to call the imperial doctor, but he never said it.
He understood that it was not necessary.
Zhu Youtang walked to the couch and knelt down. He called out "Grandma Huang" and lowered his eyes. He was in a low mood and didn't know what to say.
Three generations of grandparents and grandchildren crowded in front of the couch, one sitting and two kneeling, leaving no room for others.
Queen Mother Zhou did not come forward. She did not want to and did not dare to come forward. She stood aside with an anxious and sad expression.
After her, the concubines, the little prince, and the little princess, headed by the queen, all knelt on the ground. The adults were filled with grief and silently wiped away tears, while the children lowered their heads and were quiet and well-behaved.
Zhu Qizhen said hoarsely: "Xiao Qian, your children and grandchildren are here to see you."
"Hmm..." Qian's eyelashes trembled slightly, and he breathed out like a low groan, his face becoming increasingly gray.
Her vitality was passing quickly, like a rotting dead tree in the cold winter, desolate and fragile, incompatible with the fiery red that filled the palace.
She lost control of her expression, frowning, showing pain...
She wanted to laugh and give her husband the last moment of happiness, but she was unable to do so.
The pain became more and more intense, spreading to all the limbs and bones, and the haggard face was slightly distorted, which was definitely not good-looking... She was very sorry.
Zhu Qizhen watched helplessly as she lost her life little by little. Her painful appearance was like a needle piercing his heart, and his emotions collapsed...
I shouldn't stop her, I shouldn't let her sleep, I should let her go peacefully... Zhu Qizhen collapsed, he was too selfish, too selfish.
Zhu Qizhen opened his mouth wide, cried hoarsely, and murmured: "Blame me, blame me..."
"No, no... weird." Qian's eyes gradually lost focus, and her expression gradually solidified...
"Little money, little money..."
This time, there was no response.
"Ah..." His voice was hoarse and low, like the whine of a wounded beast licking its wounds, with hot drops hitting his cold face...
"Mother...!" Zhu Jianshen was frightened and cried out.
As he cried, the sound of crying in the palace became continuous and lingering.
The old eunuch shouted in his sharp, plaintive voice: "The Queen is dead."
~
It was not yet the fourth watch, and the palace that should have been silent was now filled with loud cries. All the slaves were mobilized, and they were even busier than during the day.
Remove all the red lanterns and replace them with pure white...
At the fifth watch of the day, hundreds of officials go to court.
As soon as they entered the palace, they were informed that the Supreme Empress had passed away. They had no time to be shocked, so they immediately tied on their mourning belts and, led by eunuchs, gathered in front of the Changle Palace, wailing bitterly.
"Cry~"
"Stop~"
Following the eunuch's guidance, the sound of mourning came one after another, each wave getting louder than the last.
The entire palace was immersed in an atmosphere of sadness.
The New Year is approaching, and with such a big thing happening, the New Year will definitely not be successful, and naturally there will be no way to attend the morning meeting. Zhu Jianshen had no choice but to give an order to report anything.
There is heavy snow in the sky, and the wind is like a knife, blowing on the face and causing pain. Crying in this extremely cold weather requires extremely high physical fitness of the officials.
Even though he was dressed warmly enough and had cotton padding under his knees, he still felt a little unbearable after kneeling on the cold floor for so long.
"Don't let them howl." Zhu Qizhen looked silent and said: "The funeral should be simple. Officials will come to mourn for a quarter of an hour every day, and the people will wear mourning for three days. After three days, everything will be as usual."
"Father, how can this be done?" As a son, Zhu Jianshen naturally could not easily agree to such a request.
"As long as I say yes." Zhu Qizhen said calmly: "Why do you do so many useless things? Your mother Xi Jing, just do as I say."
"Then...hey, okay, my father is benevolent."
Zhu Jianshen looked reluctant and issued the decree as required.
As a result, the pressure on both the officials and the people was greatly reduced, and even the morning court could proceed normally.
However, Zhu Jianshen still stopped his morning court.
It's not that he is lazy, but that the Empress Dowager passed away, so this must be done. This is filial piety.
There were only a few days before the Chinese New Year, so Zhu Jianshen simply postponed the court meeting until the 19th year of Chenghua.
The ministers had some matters to communicate with each other and sent them to his imperial desk through the General Affairs Department. The court stopped early in the morning, but Zhu Jianshen did not slack off in his administration.
Not only was he not relaxed, but he was even busier and more tired while managing politics and observing filial piety.
Fortunately, he is the emperor and only needs to observe mourning for three days.
…
According to Zhu Qizhen's request, Qian's death did not affect the people. People still celebrated the New Year normally, the shops on the street were not closed, and even the restaurants were open as normal.
Entertainment industries such as theaters and brothels are temporarily closed, but this has almost no impact on the people...
In the nineteenth year of Chenghua, late in the first lunar month.
Twenty-seven days after the coffin was laid, Qian was buried in Yuling.
On the day of burial, Zhu Qizhen also came.
From the time his beloved wife's coffin was placed in the tomb to the last handful of earth sealed in it, he watched the whole process...
After returning from the funeral, he fell ill.
The condition was not serious, and he recovered after taking a few doses of medicine.
It's just that although the disease is cured, the person still loses his energy and energy and is depressed all day long.
Zhu Jianshen was really worried that he was good or bad, so he asked the princes and princesses to often go to Changle Palace to accompany him. After all, he was his father and there was no conflict of interest.
However, Zhu Jianshen broke his promise.
Qian had come to him before and asked him to find a concubine for the Supreme Emperor after her death.
Zhu Jianshen agreed readily, but when the matter came to pass, he never mentioned it.
He was the only son of his father. No matter what, the succession to the throne would only be in his lineage. He didn't want his father to have other sons.
Besides, his son is much better now.
There is no need to worry about the scarcity of blood and the unsafe inheritance of the throne.
However, what he didn't know was that even if he was willing to give his father a concubine, his father no longer had that intention.
After Qian left, Zhu Jianshen stayed in Changle Palace all day, reading story books or chatting with his grandson and granddaughter who came to pay respects, without even leaving the palace gate.
As time went by, the visits of these grandsons became less and less, and he did not say anything and remained bored in Changle Palace.
He didn't make any demands, didn't cause trouble to anyone, and lived silently alone.
Read a book, be in a daze, go to bed when it gets dark, and get up at dawn.
The whole person is confused...
He didn't blame anyone, he felt that this was all retribution and he deserved it.
As time went by, he became completely silent, barely talking to anyone, and preferring to be alone in a daze more and more...
~
In May, military information came.
Without asking for instructions or saying hello to anyone, Wang Zhi and Wang Yue led 20,000 cavalry to march day and night. They went deep into Mobei and caught a main force in pursuit. They fought all the way to the Weining Sea and won a great victory!
This battle dealt a serious blow to the strongest force in Mobei Grassland at this stage. It can be predicted that the road to unification of Mobei Grassland will be delayed for at least another ten years.
