My father is Jiajing

Zhu Zaigui took a deep breath, looked up at Emperor Jiajing, and finally took firm and powerful steps, walked up from the center of the Danbi in front of Emperor Jiajing's dragon throne, and came in front of Emperor Jiajing.

Emperor Jiajing reached out and wanted to grab Zhu Zaigui's hand. Zhu Zaigui immediately took a step faster and held his hand in the palm of Emperor Jiajing.

"Father."

Zhu Zaiqi shouted nervously.

Emperor Jiajing held Zhu Zaigui's hand and laughed, "I am a little excited. I never dreamed that I would see this day. I originally thought that you would ascend to the throne only after I pass away."

"No need for that now. I can watch you ascend the throne with my own eyes, shoulder this heavy responsibility for me, and continue to lead the Ming Dynasty towards a prosperous and rejuvenated era."

Zhu Zaigui held the hand of Emperor Jiajing tightly and said seriously: "I will definitely live up to my father's expectations and continue to lead the Ming Dynasty. Building on the foundation laid by my father, I will make the Ming Dynasty great again!"

Emperor Jiajing was deeply moved when he heard Zhu Zaigui's words. He felt that the burden on his shoulders could finally be safely lifted, and he could finally earn himself a name that would go down in history.

So at this moment, Emperor Jiajing couldn't help but feel an unprecedented sense of relaxation.

Emperor Jiajing borrowed the strength from Zhu Zaigui's hand and suddenly stood up. "Come and help me walk outside. I haven't seen snow outside this winter."

When Zhu Zaigui heard what Emperor Jiajing said, he couldn't help but said nervously, "Father, it's cold outside."

Emperor Jiajing laughed and said, "It's okay. I can still handle it. Li Shizhen always makes a fuss about nothing. He doesn't even look at my health this year. I'm much better than last year. What's wrong with going out to see the snow? Besides, I'm not going far away. I'm just taking a walk in the yard."

After listening to what Emperor Jiajing said, Zhu Zaigui realized that he could not go against Emperor Jiajing now.

Moreover, since the weather turned cold, Emperor Jiajing has indeed been staying in the warm Wanshou Palace and has not gone out.

After being depressed for so long, one can't help but yearn for freedom.

Fortunately, the weather is pleasant at the moment, with no wind or snow, and the sun is warm.

Therefore, Zhu Zaigui did not say anything else. He helped Emperor Jiajing get down from the dragon throne and walked out of the hall.

Huang Jin and other eunuchs and palace servants serving in the Wanshou Palace saw Zhu Zaigui supporting Emperor Jiajing walking out of the hall. They quickly reacted and knelt on the ground to pay their respects.

After Emperor Jiajing stepped out of the door, he looked at Huang Jin kneeling on the ground and couldn't help but say, "Get up, you are so old, and you are still kneeling on the ground, it's so cold. I still hope you can stay with me for a few more years."

Huang Jin couldn't help being moved when she heard what Emperor Jiajing said. She wiped her tears and said, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. I will always be with you."

Emperor Jiajing laughed and said, "That's fine, let's just make it a deal."

Huang Jin couldn't help crying for joy after hearing these words, and the smile on his face couldn't be hidden.

At this time, Emperor Jiajing said again: "Tomorrow you should hand over your responsibilities, and let Meng Chong, who is beside San'er, take charge of the Silijian and Dongchang on your behalf."

Huang Jin replied: "Yes, I have wanted to hand over these responsibilities for a long time, and now I finally have the emperor's will. From now on, I can concentrate on serving the emperor."

Emperor Jiajing laughed again and said, "Really? The Imperial Household Department and the Eastern Depot have considerable power. Are you really willing?"

Huang Jin said quickly, "I am willing! These powers were granted to me by the Emperor, and I am really old. I can no longer handle the tasks of the Imperial Household Department and the Eastern Depot as carefully as before. Therefore, the Emperor asked me to hand over the Imperial Household Department and the Eastern Depot to Meng Chong, and I am willing to do it."

Emperor Jiajing smiled and looked at Zhu Zaigui again, and said, "What do you think?"

Zhu Zaigui said, "I will follow your father's arrangements, but Meng Chong, this servant, still needs some experience. I think it would be better to let Chen Hong take charge of the East Factory's mission."

Emperor Jiajing looked at Zhu Zaigui in surprise. He never expected that Zhu Zaigui would mention Chen Hong.

You must know that Chen Hongke is now imprisoned in the Dongchang prison and may be secretly executed at any time.

But now Zhu Zaigui let bygones be bygones and wanted to use Chen Hong again, which was really beyond the expectations of Emperor Jiajing.

Zhu Zaigui looked at the surprised Emperor Jiajing and continued to explain, "Father, although Chen Hong has many faults, he still didn't make a big mistake in the end. Moreover, Chen Hong, this servant, is cruel and courageous enough. If I ascend the throne, there will be some things in the early stage, and I will need a servant like Chen Hong who is bold and ruthless to act as a knife to deter those old guys who pretend to obey but actually disobey."

"So, for the time being, let Chen Hong stay alive and continue to play his due role. This is the best use of his talents."

After listening to Zhu Zaigui's reasons, Emperor Jiajing nodded and said, "Yes, that's right."

Then Emperor Jiajing could not help but sighed: "I am really old. If I were your age, I would not dare to use a servant like Chen Hong so confidently. If I had such a broad mind and foresight back then, and dared to use Gu Dayong left by Emperor Wuzong as a knife, maybe I would have solved the problem of grand etiquette long ago."

Zhu Zaigui smiled and said, "Father, there is no need to be so regretful. The situation back then was different from now. Back then, father came from Anlu alone, without any support or foundation, except for a few close followers who were truly useful and trustworthy. An old slave of Emperor Wuzong like Gu Dayong really cannot be trusted."

"What if he colluded with Empress Dowager Zhang, Yang Tinghe and others? Wouldn't it ruin my father's plan? But now I dare to use Chen Hong, relying on the confidence that my father left for me."

"So, the situation I am facing now is many times better than the situation my father encountered when he came from Anlu forty-five years ago. And this is all thanks to my father!"

Emperor Jiajing laughed and said, "Not bad, not bad. That's exactly what I thought back then. Gu Dayong didn't know me well enough after all. Besides, right after Emperor Wuzong passed away, he couldn't wait to show his loyalty to me. It's hard for me not to doubt his intentions."

"So, even if I wanted to use him at that time, I had to wait until I stabilized the overall situation. But when I really stabilized the overall situation, he would be of no use."

At this point, Emperor Jiajing sighed again: "It can only be said that Gu Dayong was born at the wrong time and failed to secure an opportunity to serve me and share my worries. Now Chen Hong is much better than him, and he is lucky enough to be favored by you again."

Zhu Zaigui also laughed and said, "Father, what you said really leaves me speechless. Chen Hong is really lucky. But he was able to enjoy this good fortune because of your father's help. Otherwise, I wouldn't dare to employ him."

Emperor Jiajing laughed again, turned around and said to Meng Chong who came with Zhu Zaigui: "Did you hear that? You should be more down-to-earth in the future, serve the prince well, and help the prince keep an eye on Chen Hong."

Meng Chong quickly knelt on the ground and bowed, "I will remember this."

Emperor Jiajing nodded in satisfaction, and then asked Zhu Zaigui to help him walk around the courtyard, looking at the familiar scenery outside and basking in the warm sun. After a long time, Emperor Jiajing felt a little tired, so he stopped and asked Zhu Zaigui to take him back to the temple.

After sending Emperor Jiajing back to the Jingshe, Zhu Zaigui also came out with a formal edict of succession.

At the same time, Huang Jin also came to the cabinet with an imperial edict officially announcing Zhu Zaigui's accession to the throne, asking the cabinet and the Ministry of Rites to prepare for the crown prince's coronation ceremony on the auspicious day of the Beginning of Spring.

After hearing the imperial edict, Li Chunfang, Gao Gong and others were extremely excited. They finally had the correct news.

Although there are only a few days left until the auspicious day of the beginning of spring, it will not delay anything. You have to know that this is the capital city, and there are plenty of manpower and resources.

Even if the coronation ceremony was to be held the next day, they were able to come up with all the necessary ceremonial procedures and ceremonial utensils.

Therefore, there is no need to worry about the rush of the coronation ceremony.

After receiving this decree, the cabinet immediately took action. A series of administrative orders regarding the coronation ceremony on the auspicious day of the Beginning of Spring were issued from the cabinet, requiring all government offices in the capital to fully cooperate with the work of the palace and the Ministry of Rites.

At this moment, Minister of Rites Gao Yi also had his highlight moment.

According to the usual coronation ceremony, it is usually held after the death of the previous emperor.

Therefore, the etiquette procedures of these coronation ceremonies can only be used as a reference and cannot be copied in full.

After all, Emperor Jiajing is still alive and well in the Wanshou Palace.

The only case in the Ming Dynasty where a coronation ceremony was held for the next emperor while the current emperor was still alive cannot be used as a reference.

Because at that time, the still living Ming emperor was studying abroad in Wala, and although the capital had supported the new emperor, the atmosphere was not joyful and jubilant.

Therefore, this only precedent is not of reference value.

Therefore, the Ministry of Rites began to frantically read history books, looking for cases that had occurred.

So, the Ministry of Rites looked through the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, all the way to the Sui, Tang, Southern and Northern Song Dynasties. Finally, after intense discussions within the Ministry of Rites, they came up with the etiquette precedents of abdication by emperors of the Tang and Song Dynasties, and then sent them to the Cabinet, asking the Cabinet to express its opinions and views.

This precedent proposal was then presented to the Eastern Palace and the Wanshou Palace, asking Emperor Jiajing and Zhu Zaigui to make up their minds.

After reading this thick memorial of suggestions, Emperor Jiajing threw it back and issued an order, "Everything shall be subject to the order of the crown prince."

So at this time, whether it was the cabinet or the Ministry of Rites, they could not help but turn all their energy and attention to Zhu Zaigui.

When Zhu Zaigui saw this thick volume of memorials on the cases of the enthronement ceremony, he could not help but take a breath. Were the ancients so idle?
But Zhu Zaigui also understood that after all, this was an issue related to the handover of the highest power of the dynasty, and etiquette must not be sloppy.

Moreover, even if we look at the era before Zhu Zaigui traveled through time, whether it was an authoritarian country or a so-called democratically elected country, their top leaders had to go through a complete set of ceremonial procedures when exercising the highest power to demonstrate the transfer and stability of power.

Therefore, it can be inferred that if it were placed in the feudal Ming Dynasty, which placed greater emphasis on etiquette, it would be even worse.

Therefore, even if Zhu Zaigui felt that the matter was cumbersome, he had to read it patiently and decide on one of the plans as the ceremonial blueprint for his coronation ceremony.

For this purpose, Zhu Zaigui carefully reviewed and compared them several times, and finally chose the enthronement ceremony based on the rituals of the emperors of the Tang and Song dynasties who abdicated the throne to the crown prince while still alive as a model. He asked the cabinet and the Ministry of Rites to consider it and put together a set of enthronement ceremonies that were in line with the characteristics of the Ming Dynasty.

After receiving Zhu Zaigui's reply, the Cabinet and the Ministry of Rites immediately started thinking, and a brainstorming session regarding the crown prince's enthronement ceremony broke out among them.

At this moment, they all seemed to have transformed into old scholars who studied ancient etiquette and felt that no one understood the coronation ceremony better than themselves.

So when the cabinet and the Ministry of Rites finally presented the memorial on the ceremonial procedures for the enthronement ceremony to Zhu Zaigui for his review, Zhu Zaigui was also shocked by their shocking etiquette procedures!
How could these guys do this?
Not only did he borrow the ceremonies of the coronation ceremonies of the Tang and Song dynasties, but he also creatively used the etiquette procedures that had been used in the coronation ceremonies of the Ming Dynasty throughout the dynasties.

If this set of cumbersome rituals were followed, Zhu Zaigui would either be exhausted to death or tortured to death after the coronation ceremony!

Zhu Zaigui did not even think twice and directly rejected the extremely cumbersome memorial on the etiquette of the enthronement ceremony, saying bluntly: "It is cumbersome and repetitive, piled up and incompetent, and has no atmosphere of the Celestial Empire at all!"

When this news reached the Cabinet and the Ministry of Rites, cabinet members such as Li Chunfang and Gao Gong, as well as officials in the Ministry of Rites who were responsible for formulating etiquette, all had burning embarrassment on their faces.

Gao Gong couldn't help but say, "Your Highness is right. Take a look at it yourself. Is this reasonable? It wants everything, but in the end it looks like nothing. It really doesn't have any style at all!"

Gao Gong then said excitedly: "Let's start over again. If we can't come up with a rule tonight, no one will leave!"

The cabinet chief sitting in the prime minister's seat looked at Gao Gong giving orders without authorization, and a hint of dissatisfaction flashed in his eyes.

Then Li Chunfang stood up from his seat, looked at everyone and said, "The Deputy Minister is right. The crown prince's enthronement is a major event for the country. There can be no negligence or laziness. Look at the crown prince's instructions. Do you think this set of etiquette is really appropriate?"

"From now on, I will stay here with you until a new set of coronation ceremony is prepared that satisfies the Crown Prince, and then you are allowed to leave."

Li Chunfang repeated Gao Gong's words almost again, but this was not a simple repetition, but a display of hierarchy, to let the people in the room know who is the leader whose words count!

This made Gao Gong's face turn ugly, but he couldn't lose his temper.

Otherwise, he would definitely be criticized, which would be detrimental to his future fight with Li Chunfang.

So Gao Gong could only hold back his displeasure and followed Li Chunfang and said, "The Prime Minister is right."

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