Huangming

Chapter 17 The Restoration of the Qianqing Era: The Secret Memorial of the Embroidered Uniform Guard
As Consort Li's entourage departed, Consort Zheng's warm smile gradually faded, replaced by a cold and stern expression.

A palace maid standing beside Consort Zheng said, "This concubine is arrogant and disrespectful to Your Highness before. Why should we help her now?"

The palace maid looked indignant.

When Emperor Shenzong was still alive, Consort Li would come to pay her respects every day. But after Emperor Shenzong passed away and the current Emperor ascended the throne, this woman changed her submissive demeanor and even sent a palace maid to say: "In the past, the young lady would pay her respects to the old lady, but now the procedure is to be changed. The old lady will pay her respects to the young lady."

If it weren't for Consort Zheng's deep scheming and her assistance to Consort Li in vying for the Empress's position, she probably wouldn't have had such a comfortable life in the harem.

"It would be best to let such a countrywoman anger the heir."

Consort Zheng said quietly from the side, "I am not helping her, but helping myself."

Consort Li was indeed a foolish woman, but within the harem, she was someone who could leverage her influence.

At this point, it's actually a good thing that Consort Li is a bit foolish.

If she's smart, how can we possibly use her?

"Looking at the eunuchs promoted by the successor, Wei Chao was promoted by Wang An, but not only did he fail to protect Wang An, he repaid kindness with enmity. The successor will definitely not give him an important position. The same goes for Wang Tiqian. As for Li Jinzhong, he helped the successor take back the Qianqing Palace as soon as he was promoted, thus making a contribution. This person will surely achieve great things in the future. Go to the palace and select some treasures to give to Li Jinzhong."

Although Consort Zheng was fifty-six years old, having tasted the power of authority, how could she bear the loneliness?
If he could participate in matters of power through Li Jinzhong, then his Cining Palace wouldn't have become a cold palace.

The personal maid immediately obeyed and left.

It was already noon.

The sun was blazing.

The glazed tiles of Cining Palace gleamed with a dazzling golden light, and the shadows of the roof ridge beasts were like sharp blades slashing across the white marble steps.

Inside the main hall, Zhu Youxiao was having lunch.

Lunch was also simple: vegetarian dishes and soup.

But Zhu Youxiao ate with great relish.

The Imperial Chefs of the Imperial Kitchen could create elaborate vegetarian dishes, not to mention the utensils used by Zhu Youxiao, which were made by the finest imperial kilns.

The bowl is a yellow-glazed bowl with an incised dragon design, used to hold rice.

The plate is a doucai (enamel overglaze) plate with a lotus scroll pattern, used to hold dishes.

The covered jar is a celadon glaze jar decorated with gold-painted lotus scrolls, used to store seasonings and dried fruits.

This is because Zhu Youxiao was also a connoisseur of antiques in later generations, and he could recite the formulas off the top of his head:

The body is thick and heavy, the glaze is rich and lustrous, and the blue and white decoration has a purplish hue and a touch of ethereal blue.

The colors are vibrant and exquisite, the patterns are intricate and the openings are full of light.

These items are genuine products!
Of course, in terms of historical value, these utensils are brand new for this era, undeniably new.

In later generations, this set of tools would be priceless.

Thinking of the current situation of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Youxiao thought: If only he could travel between the two worlds and sell the things of this era to the future to exchange for resources, how wonderful that would be.

unfortunately
That wicked God only allowed him to transmigrate, but didn't give him any special advantages.

After venting his frustrations, Zhu Youxiao felt much better.

At this moment, Wei Chao stepped forward with a smile and said to Zhu Youxiao, "Congratulations, Your Highness! Congratulations! The Consort has been moved to the Huiluan Palace."

Zhu Youxiao nodded and said, "Li Jinzhong is still capable."

This guy was able to live to be nine thousand years old, so he must be quite capable.

It's not just about being good at pleasing people.

Upon hearing this, Wei Chao felt displeasure towards Li Jinzhong.

Li Jinzhong was someone he had promoted, so why does His Highness seem to be more satisfied with him?
"Your Highness, the officials have entered the palace to weep and kowtow. The cabinet's intention is to urge Your Majesty to ascend the throne as soon as possible."

Zhu Youxiao did not refuse, but instead asked, "How are the preparations for the enthronement ceremony going?"

Wei Chao immediately replied, "The Ministry of Rites has been busy with this matter these past few days."

"How will the cabinet decide on the matter of the late emperor's funeral?"

Wei Chao glanced at Zhu Youxiao and said, "Grand Secretary Fang's idea is to follow the regulations, while Minister of Revenue Li Ruhua, citing the empty national treasury, hopes to shorten the mourning period and simplify the repairs of Qingling Mausoleum. The cabinet has not yet finalized the specific procedures."

"According to regulations, can the imperial court come up with two million taels?"

Wei Chao shook his head and said, "Even if we include the imperial treasury, it's far from enough for two million taels. The only way is to requisition funds from the imperial tombs."

Zhu Youxiao shook his head.

“Requisitioning funds from the imperial tombs is absolutely unacceptable.”

Zhu Youxiao knew perfectly well how much tax could be collected at the end of the dynasty.

At most, only 50% or 60%.

This is still an optimistic estimate.

But the amount that those below collected and exploited from the people was far more than that.

Imposing taxes will inevitably lead to rebellion by officials.

Zhu Youxiao would not have considered levying taxes unless he was forced to do so.

"Without money and silk, how can we make up for the shortfall of two million taels?"

Zhu Youxiao sneered and said, "Whoever has money, I'll make money from them!"

Wei Chao was slightly confused and asked cautiously, "What does Master mean?"

"There are many things I don't understand yet, so let's leave this matter to the professionals." The professionals?

Wei Chao's eyes darted around, and he immediately understood what the successor meant.

Who is the most professional in the court today?
Of course, the Minister of Revenue, who was in charge of this matter, was the most professional.

Having received the hint, Wei Chao immediately said, "This servant will go to the inner cabinet right away."

Zhu Youxiao nodded slightly.

When a person dies, it's like a lamp going out. Since you're already dead, why bother with any pomp and circumstance?
Furthermore, Zhu Youxiao was a time traveler, and he had absolutely no feelings for the deceased Zhu Changluo.

You're a dead man, yet you're spending two million taels of silver, making the already impoverished Ming Dynasty even worse off?
I think it's unnecessary.

of course
Even if Zhu Youxiao hadn't traveled through time, the historical Tianqi Emperor wouldn't have had much affection for Zhu Changluo.

Zhu Changluo was subjected to the cold treatment of Emperor Wanli and the suppression of Consort Zheng's faction for a long time due to the "succession crisis". His own position was precarious and he could hardly devote emotional attention to his children.

Zhu Youxiao's birth mother, Lady Wang, died early, and Zhu Changluo was too busy to raise him personally. Zhu Youxiao was cared for by Consort Li and his wet nurse, Lady Ke, during his childhood, and there was very little interaction between father and son.

Emperor Wanli's neglect of Zhu Changluo's lineage affected his grandchildren. Zhu Youxiao "never studied in his childhood and spent his days playing with eunuchs and concubines," lacking a proper education and having a weak emotional foundation with his father.

Furthermore, Zhu Changluo treated Zhu Youxiao the same way Wanli treated Zhu Changluo.

It can be said that tragedy has repeated itself.

Because of the lack of emotional and political ties with his father, he turned to Ke Shi, who had been with him since childhood. This is why Zhu Youxiao indulged Ke Shi in history, which ultimately catalyzed the collapse of the political system at the end of the Ming Dynasty.

"Your Highness, this is a secret report sent by Commander Luo."

Wang Tiqian bowed and entered, holding a secret memorial in his hand, which he presented with both hands.

Zhu Youxiao received the secret report, and just reading it gave him a headache.

As people from later generations, having seen so many simplified characters and vernacular Chinese, we are suddenly presented with a passage of classical Chinese in traditional characters, and many characters are difficult to recognize.

Fortunately, having read so many books, I was still able to understand the general meaning.

Fortunately, his persona was that he was uneducated. Zhu Youxiao tossed the secret memorial to Wang Tiqian and said, "Read it to me."

"The slaves obey."

As he spoke, Wang Tiqian began to read:

Your humble servant, Luo Sigong, Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, respectfully reports:

Your Majesty, I humbly report that the late Emperor has passed away. I have received a secret decree from the succeeding Sovereign and have been monitoring the court day and night. I have ascertained the following unusual behavior among all officials, both inside and outside the court:
I. Grand Secretary Fang Congzhe met with Yao Zongwen, Right Censor of the Ministry of Personnel, at his private residence last night. After dismissing his attendants, they spoke in private for more than three quarters of an hour. When Yao left, he was carrying a nanmu wood box containing two red pills that resembled those worn by the late Emperor. He has already sent his agents to secretly seize and examine them.

Second, Yang Lian, Zuo Guangdou, and others, all Supervising Secretaries of the Ministry of War, gathered at Yang's residence in the capital this morning, feigning mourning but actually discussing His Highness's affairs. Lian quickly wrote down some words, including "The new emperor is still young and has been misled by treacherous officials," and I have already made a copy and attached it to you.

Third, Cui Wensheng, a trusted eunuch of Consort Li, secretly met with Gao Qiqian, a former servant of Consort Zheng, at noon in the alley of Xuanwu Gate, where they exchanged a bag of gold leaves and three secret letters.

The Embroidered Uniform Guards are truly formidable!

Zhu Youxiao sighed inwardly.

Everyone's actions, when, and what they did were all recorded clearly.

No wonder the officials were terrified.

Seeing that the heir had not said anything after listening, Wang Tiqian simply knelt down and waited for orders.

The case of the Red Pill is absolutely inextricably linked to Fang Congzhe.

Moreover, this person is the Grand Secretary, and has no control over the situation at all.

If one wishes to implement reforms, this person's skills, temperament, and abilities are absolutely insufficient.

However, the good thing is that Fang Congzhe's position is unstable and he has something to hide, making him easy to manipulate.

As for Yang Lian, Zuo Guangdou, and the others, they actually dared to discuss the emperor, which shows that they were unwilling to accept that they had not achieved the expected results.

Consort Li and Consort Zheng may have harbored ambitions to seize imperial power.

Zhu Youxiao pondered for a moment, and then asked, "I heard that Consort Li stayed in Cining Palace for a quarter of an hour. What did they say?"

Wang Tiqian quickly replied.

"I heard that it was Consort Zheng who persuaded Consort Li to move to another palace."

Zhu Youxiao remained silent.

Keep a close eye on the people coming in and out of Cining Palace.

Wang Tiqian immediately accepted the order.

"The slaves obey."

Li Xuanshi was like a village woman, with ambition and courage, but little ability.

But Consort Zheng was different.

Zhu Youxiao did not like women who were too intelligent.

Especially this woman, who also wanted to share his power.

How can you allow others to snore on the side of the bed?

After Wang Tiqian left, a commotion suddenly broke out outside Ciqing Palace.

Zhu Youxiao was startled. In broad daylight, within the Forbidden City, could someone be plotting something sinister?

(End of this chapter)