Ming Dynasty 1627

Chapter 2 The Loyal Forbidden City Awaits the Supreme Emperor

"This servant, Tu Wenfu, is here by the Empress's decree to welcome His Highness Prince Xin into the palace."

Zhu Youjian's heart stirred, and he keenly perceived the subtle difference in the words.

It was entering the palace, not entering the palace to weep.

Was this intentional or unintentional?
Enough of this. There's no point in testing them now. Once the tide goes out, the rocks will naturally reveal their stance.

He nodded slightly and said in a hoarse voice, "Thank you for your trouble, Eunuch Tu."

"Your Highness, please accept my condolences," Tu Wenfu said, stepping aside to make way for him with utmost humility. "The palanquin is ready; please proceed."

Zhu Youjian nodded and boarded the sedan chair.

The sedan chair slowly started moving and steadily headed towards the imperial city.

Zhu Youjian leaned back on the soft couch, carefully sorting out his thoughts.

For Emperor Chongzhen, ascending the throne and seizing power was not difficult at all.

With the Emperor's will and oral instructions complete, coupled with the widely circulated phrase in the capital, "My brother can be like Yao and Shun," his legitimacy as he succeeded to the throne had been fully established.

As for the method of physical elimination, don't be fooled by his caution before entering the palace; it was merely a precaution against any unforeseen circumstances.

Poisoning, assassination, foreign troops—any means are acceptable.

With Zhu Youjian dead, Wei Zhongxian would have to face three major problems:
Firstly, he must also kill or imprison his sister-in-law Zhang Yan in order to prevent the recurrence of the imperial edict hidden in the belt.

Secondly, he needed the prestige to persuade the eunuch faction, which had only been together for less than three years, to embark on this perilous journey with him—especially given that he was already 60 years old and still a eunuch.

Thirdly, even if the above two things were resolved, he would still have to win the Jingnan Campaign launched by the Nanjing garrison and various regional princes…

If Wei Zhongxian had such ability and prestige, he wouldn't have died and his entire clan wiped out in just two months in real history.

However, Zhu Youjian still took all measures to minimize the possibility of accidents.

On a macro level, the trend of the times is based on historical materialism; it does not depend on the existence of Yao, nor on the demise of Jie.

But on a micro level, heroic epics have always driven the course of history.

Emperor Shizong of Zhou, Chai Rong, set a grand ambition to "expand the world in ten years, nurture the people in ten years, and bring peace in ten years." He launched campaigns in the east and west, but suddenly died of illness while conquering Yan and Yun.

If it weren't for that, the Zhao brothers wouldn't have had any involvement later on.

Would a powerful figure like Chai Rong still adopt the extreme policy of emphasizing civil affairs and suppressing military affairs, as was the case in the Northern Song Dynasty?

Could a Han dynasty, brimming with martial prowess and dominating the Yan and Yun regions, truly have ended the Mongol Yuan dynasty's rampage?
No one knows what happened before.

Therefore, no matter what, he will always put safety first.

Staying alive is his top priority as a squishy ADC.

As his thoughts raced, the sedan chair shuddered slightly and came to a stop.

"Your Highness, we have arrived at the palace gates."

Tu Wenfu's voice rang out from outside the sedan chair.

Zhu Youjian straightened his clothes, took a deep breath, pushed open the sedan door, and stepped out.

Dusk had already enveloped the entire capital city, and the guards had lit lanterns early on, making the three characters of Donghua Gate shine with golden light.

“Your Highness, it is forbidden to ride in a carriage inside the palace; you must enter on foot,” Tu Wenfu said, bowing.

Zhu Youjian nodded, his gaze sweeping over the guards in front of the palace gate.

He did not step forward immediately, but first pressed his left hand on the hilt of his sword at his waist before taking a step forward.

This was an extremely small action, yet deliberately made conspicuous.

The guards' eyes were immediately drawn to him, and they paused for a moment on Zhu Youjian's hand as he placed his sword.

The group exchanged a quick glance, then looked away nonchalantly, as if they hadn't seen anything.

Upon seeing this, Zhu Youjian became even more certain.

The sword that was temporarily provided before leaving the mansion has perfectly fulfilled its mission.

According to Ming dynasty regulations, weapons had to be removed before entering the palace.

There are only two exceptions: those who serve as imperial guards and His Majesty the Emperor himself.

These guards turned a blind eye, which meant they regarded him as the supreme ruler.

Very good, it seems this is a loyal Forbidden City.

And he, Zhu Youjian... will soon become the master of this deep palace.
-
Meanwhile, chaos reigned inside the Qianqing Palace. The mourning hall was hastily erected, and the coffin of the Tianqi Emperor was placed there.

Wang Tiqian, the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, was methodically directing the eunuchs to set up the mourning hall and assigning the ministers of the Six Ministries to arrange the funeral rites.

Meanwhile, Wei Zhongxian, the powerful official who held immense influence in the court, stood motionless in the hall as if he had lost his soul, his eyes red and swollen, without uttering a word.

His mind was a complete mess, and he was at a loss for what to do.

What should we do now? We can't really rebel like that ignorant woman, Madam Ke, can we?
How could anyone possibly follow a 60-year-old eunuch like him to do such a big thing?!

He glanced around and saw that the fawning faces of the past were now distant and aloof, and his heart turned cold.

After arranging everything, Wang Tiqian, seeing that the ministers of the Six Ministries had all received their orders and left, walked to Wei Zhongxian's side and said indifferently, "Minister Wei, please accept my condolences."

Wei Zhongxian seemed not to hear, still staring blankly at the cold coffin.

After a long while, he seemed to come to his senses and said in a hoarse voice, "Call Cui Chengxiu back and meet him in the side hall."

……

As soon as Minister of War Cui Chengxiu entered the palace, he felt the suffocating atmosphere of oppression.

"You may all leave," Wei Zhongxian waved his hand.

When only the two of them remained in the hall, Wei Zhongxian's carefully constructed facade finally crumbled.

He grabbed Cui Chengxiu's sleeve, his voice trembling slightly: "Shaohua, tell me, what should we do now?"

Choi Seong-soo sighed inwardly; his worst fears had come true.

This powerful official, who could manipulate events in the court, turned out to be incredibly vulnerable once he lost the emperor's protection.

But what could he do? They were all in the same boat, there was no escaping it.

“Don’t panic, Father-in-law,” Cui Chengxiu said in a deep voice as he helped him up. “The best course of action now is not to lose our composure. What we need to do now is to stabilize the situation and observe how things develop.”

"Wait and see? How can we wait and see!" Wei Zhongxian's voice suddenly rose, "That Prince Xin... Prince Xin, he..."

"We need to send someone to sound out Prince Xin's intentions," Cui Chengxiu said in a low voice. "The Prince Xin's residence is currently serving Xu Yingyuan. I remember he is an old acquaintance of yours, Father. I wonder if we can make contact with him?"

A glimmer of light finally appeared in Wei Zhongxian's cloudy eyes.

“Yes, Xu Yingyuan…” he muttered to himself, then, as if grasping at a straw, “I’ll have Yongzhen handle it right away, give him fifty thousand taels! No, one hundred thousand taels! As long as he’s willing to speak up for us!”

“In times of emergency, one must act expediently. A little money or silver, if it can buy peace of mind, is worthwhile.” Cui Chengxiu nodded. “Let him go and scout ahead, to see the new emperor’s attitude. If… if things are truly hopeless, you should make plans as soon as possible, perhaps even resigning and returning to your hometown, just like Zhang Yong did.”

"What Zhang Yong?" Wei Zhongxian looked bewildered.

Despite his anxiety, Cui Chengxiu patiently explained, "Zhang Yong was a powerful eunuch during the Zhengde era, known as one of the Eight Tigers along with Liu Jin. After Emperor Jiajing entered the court, he was impeached and dismissed, but was later reinstated as the Director of the Imperial Household Department."

Wei Zhongxian immediately grasped at a straw, "Good...good, good, I beg to retire!"

Helpless, Cui Chengxiu bowed and withdrew.

After Cui Chengxiu left, Wei Zhongxian forced himself to cheer up and returned to the meeting place.

At this time, the cabinet ministers and a group of eunuchs were arguing about the new emperor's residence.

The eunuchs' intention was to follow the old precedent set by Emperors Shenzong and Guangzong, and to temporarily place the coffin of Emperor Tianqi in the Qianqing Palace, asking Prince Xin to stay temporarily in the palace hall.

"Absolutely not!" Grand Secretary Huang Lijie immediately objected. "Succession from brother to brother is different from succession from father to son! Emperor Shizong also ascended the throne as a prince and resided in the Wenhua Hall. This is an established law of our ancestors; how can it be changed so easily!"

The cabinet ministers echoed their sentiments, their words sharp and vehement.

Wei Zhongxian sat to one side, absent-minded, ignoring the argument before him.

The argument didn't last long before Wang Tiqian readily backed down and adopted the cabinet minister's opinion.

"As the Grand Secretary suggested, the coffin will be placed in a separate hall. Tomorrow, Prince Xin will move to the Wenhua Hall, but tonight he will rest in a separate hall in the Qianqing Palace. The Empress will move to the Cining Palace."

Empress Zhang Yan, her eyes red and swollen, listened silently without raising any objections. She curtsied and then withdrew, surrounded by palace servants.

No sooner had she left than a young eunuch rushed in, knelt down, and reported:

"Your Majesty, His Highness Prince Xin... has arrived outside the palace gates."

　[Historical Materials in this Chapter]

　　1. The claim that someone carried a sword into the palace is historically inaccurate; it's a fabrication I made up. —From "A Piece of Firewood's Nonsense"

　　2. When Emperor Xizong was critically ill, he entered the palace. Tu Wenfu, the commander of the Loyal and Brave Battalion and a member of Wei Zhongxian's faction, led troops to protect him. Later, Wenfu told people that since the Mandate of Heaven had not yet changed, Wei Zhongxian dared not plot a rebellion; otherwise, the emperor's life would have hung by a thread. — *The Records of the Chongzhen Emperor*. This was written by Wang Shide of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and is considered relatively credible. Furthermore, at that point in time, no politically astute individual would have considered rebellion. Based on this, I created the character of Wei Zhongxian in my book.

　　3. More than ten eunuchs urgently summoned Minister Cui, causing the court officials to look at each other in astonishment. Chengxiu entered to see Zhongxian, and they secretly plotted for a long time, their conversation kept secret. Some said that Zhongxian wanted to usurp the throne, but Chengxiu stopped him, saying the time was not right. — *History of Ming Dynasty, Biographies of the Eunuch Party*. This is utter nonsense about the *History of Ming Dynasty*. Two people chatting in a secret room act as if they were right there in the middle of it all. The Qing dynasty's attempt to compile the *History of Ming Dynasty* is a complete mess.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)