prosperous age

The weather in the capital city is still cold in February, and at Yin time, the night ban in the capital city has been lifted, but there are still few pedestrians on the streets.

At this time in previous years, there should have been all kinds of people riding horses and sedan chairs on the streets of the capital rushing to go to the court, but the current Emperor Jiajing has not been to the court for many years, so although the current Beijing officials also get up early, they still don’t know what to do. There is no need to rush to the Forbidden City against the stars.

It's just that today seems to be different. On the street where there were no people in the past, suddenly many figures popped up. They divided into several groups, running around the gates of the capital and at the intersections of the streets, constantly pasting stickers in their hands on the walls.

In the past, most of the officials posted such things, but they would come out to post in broad daylight to complete the work, but they would not come out in the middle of the night to do such things.

Seeing them haunting and sneaking around in the middle of the night, one can naturally know that what they post is definitely not a beautiful article.

An hour later, when the sun illuminated the entire capital, there were more pedestrians bustling on the road.

But at this time, most of them are in a hurry. They have to run around for a day, so naturally they don't have time to find out the difference between the street and yesterday.

Until the gates of the major cities of the capital were opened, people from outside the city poured into the city, filling up the entire street, and the city of Beijing regained its vitality again, bustling and bustling like before.

Not long after, some passers-by found the stickers pasted on the city gates and the main streets. Although literate people couldn't fully recognize what was written on them, they could probably guess what was written on the stickers. what.

However, all of these people fell silent instantly after reading the words on the stickers, ignoring the busyness of the people around them asking him to explain what they meant, and decisively sneaked into the crowd.

The people around the stickers soon gathered more and more, and it also attracted a lot of scholars who were shopping around to watch.

They are no different from passers-by who can read a little bit before. They shook their heads and read the content on the stickers in front of the audience, but their voices suddenly became quieter when they were halfway through the reading. They read the content on the sticker aloud there, but the ordinary people who understood the meaning quickly dispersed, leaving a good position for the people behind them.

In just half a day, the content of the stickers had already spread on the streets of Beijing.

Although everyone was terrified of what was written on the stickers, they still couldn't help showing the secrets they had just learned in front of people they knew.

"Have you heard? Someone complained about Prince Yu, saying that the emperor did not make King Yu the crown prince. It was the trick of Yan Song, the treacherous prime minister. He deceived the emperor's trust and planned to make King Jing the crown prince."

"There is such a thing, where did you get the news?"

"You go to the street to see, someone put up stickers on the street to expose this matter"

In fact, it’s not a secret. People used to share similar topics when they were free, but today, looking at the words written on the sticker, many people believed it, and only a few old people heard it. When the news came, there was a trace of worry on his face.

All of a sudden, there was a lot of discussion in the capital, and the only folk discussions followed the mouths of the people who entered and exited the city gate of Beijing, and soon spread to the surrounding villages and towns of Beijing, and gradually spread outward.

On the way back to the city, Lu Bing issued an emergency order to immediately confiscate the stickers posted everywhere. The people in the capital must not be allowed to continue spreading rumors like this.

In fact, not only Jinyiwei found out about the stickers, but Bingmasi, Shuntianfu, and even the Daxing and Wanping county government already knew about it, not to mention Dongchang.

The other party was able to put stickers all over the huge city of Beijing overnight, obviously it was well prepared, and it was definitely not a temporary idea.

Following the delivery of the order, the Jin Yiwei, Yamen servants, and Bingmasi personnel all dispatched to forcibly disperse the crowd of onlookers, tore off those stickers, and brought them all back to the Yamen.

If such a big incident happened, naturally it would not just be ruined, but should be traced, analyzed the clues on the stickers and traced to see who was behind the scenes.

Rumors appeared on the streets of the capital claiming that Yan Song was going to murder King Yu and support King Jing. As a Beijing official, he naturally learned about it from his subordinates at the first time. Most of the Beijing officials have sniffed out the difference behind this incident. It means that someone is going to make trouble.

The Metropolitan Procuratorate is a mad dog raised by the imperial court, but after such a major market rumor appeared, it was uncharacteristically silent and no one made any impeachment.

But this is actually not surprising. Zhou Yan, the current censor of Zuodu of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, heard the news and immediately summoned all the censors in Beijing to strictly prohibit them from participating in this matter.

Zhou Yan was a Jinshi in the second year of Jiajing, and he has seen the political struggles of the entire Jiajing Dynasty since the Great Ceremony. Naturally, he knows that this sticker incident may represent the beginning of another fierce political competition in the Jiajing Dynasty. The Metropolitan Procuratorate must not be used as a weapon.

So Zhou Yan said publicly at the rally, "Whoever you want to get involved in, I really don't care, but you have to be careful about your own future."

This is Zhou Yan's naked threat.

As the saying goes, county magistrates are not as good as current ones. The censors of the Metropolitan Procuratorate have freedom of speech and can impeach other officials. If you go to file a letter to impeach, Zhou Yan will send you to patrol Yunnan and Guizhou later, that will be a lot of fun.

Transportation is inconvenient these days, so naturally no one is willing to leave the capital to go to a frontier place like Yunnan and Guizhou thousands of miles away.

As for other yamen such as the Ministry of Rites, the hall officials also gave similar hints to their subordinates. After all, no one produced the big-character poster this time. I was wondering, guessing if it was the incident caused by the other party.

Such news, of course, was reported to Emperor Jiajing's ears by Dongchang immediately, and then Jin Yiwei also secretly reported the matter.

"Are there any memorials about King Yu and King Jing?"

Emperor Jiajing looked at Gao Zhong below indifferently, and asked.

"Reporting to the emperor, in the trend sent by the cabinet today, there is no memorial about King Yu and King Jing."

Gao Zhong hurriedly replied.

"If you have any memorials about them, send them to me as soon as possible."

Emperor Jiajing just said something very plainly. The courtiers still don't understand where the big-character poster was produced this time, and Emperor Jiajing is also muttering at this time.

After Gao Zhong took today's memorials away, Emperor Jiajing asked Huang Jin again: "These days, who did King Yu and King Jing contact? What did they say?"

There are no waves without wind, and there must be a reason for things to happen. Emperor Jiajing also suspected that his two sons were finally unable to bear it, and came up with such a method to test himself.

"The two Highnesses have not gone out in the mansion in recent days, and have not contacted outsiders."

Huang Jin immediately bowed and replied.

"Check again."

Emperor Jiajing just gave an order, and then started today's practice.

By this time, the news of the Nanjing Zhenwu Battalion mutiny had not yet reached the capital, and the messenger was still rushing on the road in the wind and snow.

Although the stickers posted were taken away by the sergeants and government servants in the capital in just half a day, but the rumors in the market are still endless.

Guo Xiyan sat on the chair, and was basically satisfied with the news that her confidant servant came back from her inquiry.

Although he failed to cause a big turmoil in the officialdom, the public was suspicious, and a menacing trend had already formed, not to mention that he wanted to get the top spot from the beginning, even if he thought that the incumbent officials might not dare to act without authorization because of doubts.

One day later, Guo Xiyan put on his official uniform and went to the Department of General Affairs, where he handed in the memorial that he deliberated for three days.

The memorials he presented are naturally based on the theory of "An Chu".

He bluntly stated in the memorial that the emperor once had an imperial edict to "establish the emperor and establish the crown prince", which was passed down from generation to generation, and they all congratulated each other with "establishing the crown prince".

The so-called "established crown prince" refers to the establishment of the crown prince. The crown prince is also called "crown prince", "crown prince" and "national capital".

However, it is difficult to "establish a reserve", so it is better to mention "secure reserve". The so-called "secure reserve" is to ensure the safety of King Yu.

In order to ensure the safety of Yu Wang, the emperor and the prime minister, the second king and the prime minister, the prince and the prince, and the emperor and the prince must trust each other and get rid of suspicion.

He also made an in-depth discussion on the core personnel relationship and power distribution in the court between the two kings and the prime minister, between the two kings, and between the emperor and the two kings. King Jing went to the fief as soon as possible and other specific suggestions.

Guo Xiyan attacked the truth with falsehoods. On the surface, she said that she was afraid that the prime minister and the prince would doubt each other, but in fact it meant that this was the truth, and it was serious enough to threaten the security of the "national capital".

On the surface, he made a gesture of caring for Yan Song, but in fact he added a charge of shaking the "national foundation", which made it difficult for Yan Song to parry.

Guo Xiyan's memorandum fell into Luo Longwen's hands. Although he thought it would be difficult for Yan Song to submit the book, Guo Xiyan submitted the memorandum through formal channels. He went to the cabinet alone with the memorial.

When he arrived at Yan Song's room, he knew from the scribe that Yan Shifan hadn't arrived yet, so he had to be notified before entering the room and handing Guo Xiyan's memorial to Yan Song.

This kind of thing cannot pass through other people's hands. If it falls to Xu Jie, there is no telling how it will be drafted.

Of course, Xu Jie may not be able to draw the ticket, but hand it to the next door.

However, although Xu Jie has always maintained respect for the Yan family, but Yan Shifan told Luo Longwen many times that he should be careful of Xu Jie's children.

Xu Jie was taken to the place by his father Yan Song at the beginning. He did not expect that he could return to the court after a round, and Yan Song was forced to choose him as the only one when there was no suitable candidate. Candidates successfully entered the cabinet.

Xu Jie was Xia Yan's disciple, and he would not dare to forget this easily at any time, so he was always on guard, but Xu Jie was cunning enough to never find a reason to kill him.

"Enxiang, this is the memorial to Guo Xiyan from Zuo Chunfang Zuo Zhongyun in the former Zhan Shifu's residence, proposing King Yu as heir."

After receiving the notification, Luo Longwen stepped into Yan Song's room, handed Guo Xiyan's memorial to Yan Song, and then briefly explained the content of the memorial.

"Guo Xiyan? He didn't go back to Jiangxi?"

How to say Guo Xiyan is also a fellow from Jiangxi. Last year's Ministry of Officials assessment, Guo Xiyan was a bit arrogant on weekdays, and was disliked by many colleagues, so Yan Song did not choose to help him.

I thought this fellow should go back to his hometown, but I didn't expect that he was still in the capital.

"Enxiang, take a look, those stickers from the past two days, maybe he asked someone to put them on."

Luo Longwen analyzed in a low voice, he got through Yan Shifan's relationship, talked to his father, got the official position of Zhongshu Sheren, and was later sent by Yan Shifan to the Minister of General Affairs, so now seeing Yan Song is commensurate with kindness.

Yan Song frowned upon hearing Luo Longwen's words, and then opened the memorial and read it carefully.

Not long after, he finished reading Guo Xiyan's memorial. Thinking of the reactions of all parties and his memorial, Yan Song did not believe that it was written by Guo Xiyan on a whim after hearing the news.

"I didn't expect Xiyan to have such a strategy, hehe."

Although Yan Song was smiling, Luo Longwen could still see the murderous look in his stern eyes, which really made Yan Song angry.

I don't know how to be an official, and I can't stay in the officialdom, so I actually hated the old man. It's your business to make a statement, but you go around saying that the king and the minister are jealous, and you have to guarantee King Yu's Safety, what are you so worried about.

Sima Zhao's heart is well known to passers-by.

However, like Luo Longwen, Yan Song couldn't suppress this memorandum, and now the matter of this memorandum is probably already spread in the six departments and the major yamen in the capital.

It's just that Yan Song thought a little bit more at this time, and then Yan Song drew up a draft note: "Let's discuss it in detail with the radicals."

As for the establishment of a reserve, it is natural that the Ministry of Rites discusses and decides to report to the cabinet, so Yan Song's proposal can be said to be quite satisfactory.

Put the memorabilia among the memorabilia waiting to be delivered to the supervisor of ceremonies, and gossip with Luo Longwen, Luo Longwen retreated knowingly.

The memorial arrived at the Supervisor of Rituals and in the hands of Gao Zhong. Gao Zhong didn't dare to delay after reading the memorial and the bill, and hurriedly sent it to Emperor Jiajing in the Yongshou Palace.

After reading Guo Xiyan's memorabilia and Yan Song's proposal, Emperor Jiajing's expression turned cold instantly.

Yan Songpiao plans to go to the Ministry of Rites to discuss in detail, what to discuss, I am the emperor, and I have the final say on who will be established or not.

"write down."

Emperor Jiajing glanced at Gao Zhong, and said contemptuously: "You are going to look at it, what do you want to do, if you use your words to just tell the suburban temple, how about it."

Gao Zhong had a pen in his hand, but he didn't dare to put it down easily.

Huang Jin on the side hastily bowed and said, "My lord, write like that, Mr. Ge"

"Whatever he does, they can decide who is the crown prince. It only needs to be discussed by the Ministry of Rites. Why report it to me? If you have the result, you can directly report it to the ancestral temple. Just write it like this, without changing a single word."

Emperor Jiajing said angrily, and the tone of his speech was also very unfriendly, "Send someone directly to send the memorial to the cabinet and ask them to discuss it with the Ministry of Rites. Go directly to the ancestral temple and say that I will approve it."

When Guo Xiyan's memorial was sent back to the cabinet, Yan Song was shocked immediately.

"Father, you are confused, how can you predict what you want."

At this time, Yan Shifan was on duty at the house, and when he saw the memorial to criticize the red, he was anxious at that time.

He could see that the old man thought that someone might have ordered Guo Xiyan to write this memorandum, so he drafted it like this.

Yan Song was also dumbfounded at this time, now it seems that he really thought too much at that time, the palace didn't know about it at all.

"I'm in a state of confusion, how to get back on the ticket, come on."

At this time, Yan Song could only choose to trust his son, Yan Shifan, known as the "ghost genius" to make the decision.

Yan Shifan looked at the memorandum, and did not hesitate to draw up a pen to re-draft: "The meaning is suspicious. Today, the Ministry of Rites will discuss the three laws and judges as public opinion, so let's leave it at that."