Huangming

Chapter 87: Ministers Kneel and Beg, Conspiracy and Scheme

For the next three days, the sky over the capital seemed to be shrouded in a very gloomy atmosphere.

Three thousand Zhejiang soldiers and five hundred former troops of Qi Jiguang's army, led by Tong Zhongkui, deputy commander-in-chief of Liaodong, and Qi Jin, the commander of the Zhejiang soldiers' battalion, quickly entered Beijing.

On that day, the emperor summoned Tong Zhongkui and Qi Jin to the palace for an audience.

Then the emperor issued an edict to replace the Four Guards and the Beijing Garrison in the key areas of the palace with Zhejiang soldiers.

October 11th of the first year of the Taichang reign.

The snow came earlier than usual in early winter.

Snowflakes drifted down slowly, melting into the still-warm earth before disappearing completely.

Since the emperor's assassination attempt, the court officials have been in a state of panic, and martial law has been in effect in Beijing and the Forbidden City ever since.

Even the most oblivious ordinary people in Beijing knew that something big had happened.

For three consecutive days, the emperor did not attend the imperial lectures.

The imperial guards acted swiftly.

After severely torturing Li Xiong, a eunuch in the Imperial Kitchen, he confessed to a series of names.

For the past three days, the Imperial Guards have been making arrests without stopping.

Panic.

The courtiers trembled with fear.

However, the emperor was not completely cut off from the outside world.

The fact that he continued to review memorials every day was good news to everyone in the cabinet.

However, apart from reviewing memorials, the emperor could not be seen, which made everyone very worried.

Wenyuan Pavilion.

Inside the council chamber.

Liu Yijing's old face turned sour, and he kept sighing.

"Your Majesty has been assassinated, and we, your subjects, are guilty beyond reproach! However, the Eastern Depot and the Embroidered Uniform Guard are now fabricating charges against you with increasing intensity and expanding their reach, which may lead to a repeat of the tragedy of the Eastern Han Dynasty's Party Proscription! Right now, the heads of the Six Ministries are trembling with fear as if walking on thin ice, and the Nine Ministers are filled with anxiety like frightened birds. This is by no means a blessing for the country!"

Liu Yiju looked at Fang Congzhe and said, "Prime Minister, we should petition His Majesty to follow the precedent set by Emperor Chengzu after the Jingnan Rebellion, which was 'punishment limited to Fang and Huang,' and quickly identify the mastermind and issue a decree to the whole country. If we allow the Embroidered Uniform Guard to arrest people everywhere, I'm afraid it will chill the hearts of scholars throughout the land, leading to empty courts and vacant positions in prefectures and counties. Wouldn't this be destroying benevolent governance with harsh punishments and damaging the emperor's virtue with harsh scrutiny?"

Fang Congzhe thought so too.

The Imperial Guards went out in all directions and arrested many people, but few of them were officials in prominent positions. Most of them were merchants, which seemed to be the emperor taking the opportunity to crack down on merchants and seize their wealth.

Moreover, the emperor did not carry out a massacre in the deep palace; instead, he promoted a group of eunuchs.

Now, Fang Congzhe has gradually come to realize what he's been thinking.

This assassination attempt on the emperor was either orchestrated by the emperor himself, or the emperor knew about it beforehand and deliberately used it to further consolidate his power.

Otherwise, it wouldn't have been such a coincidence that the assassination attempt occurred during a banquet for the cabinet ministers.

Fang Congzhe glanced at Liu Yijun.

He saw it, and there was no reason why Liu Yiju wouldn't.

But many things, even if you understand them, it's useless; even if everyone else understands them, it's useless.

Because this really happened.

The emperor can play this card to its full potential.

Fang Congzhe pondered for a long time, then sighed, "We have been submitting our petitions to the palace these past few days, but His Majesty has not summoned us. What can we do?"

Liu Yijing gritted his teeth and said, "Then we will go to the Qianqing Palace, kneel down and beg for forgiveness, and humbly beg Your Majesty to calm your wrath!"

Fang Congzhe glanced at Liu Yizhu.

Begging on your knees?

Is this an attempt to show weakness to His Majesty?

It seems that the Donglin Party members were also afraid that the emperor would use this as an opportunity to unleash a massacre.

After all, this is something an emperor would do.

Although the Embroidered Uniform Guard has not arrested many officials, its agents are frequently seen outside the residences of various officials, which has terrified many of them.

In particular, the previous purge of the inner court in the Forbidden City implicated many people, but the emperor did not punish or implicate them. Now that the assassination attempt has occurred, will His Majesty, in his great anger, investigate the crimes of the officials outside the court?

Oh, my dear uncle!

With that sword hanging overhead, threatening to fall at any moment, who wouldn't be afraid?
Liu Yijuan also faced pressure from below.

Fang Congzhe looked at Zhu Guozuo and the other cabinet ministers and asked, "What do you think?"

Zhu Guozuo immediately nodded in agreement.

Sun Ruyou and Li Ruhua exchanged a glance and nodded.

These two were staunch supporters of the Emperor, possessing far more information. Although newly appointed cabinet ministers, Fang Congzhe and Liu Yizhu still sought their opinions when trying to discern the Emperor's intentions. Seeing that Sun Ruyou and Li Ruhua had both nodded, Fang Congzhe immediately said, "Order the officials of the Six Ministries to immediately go to the Qianqing Palace to apologize to His Majesty!"

And at this time.

Inside the East Warm Pavilion.

Zhu Youxiao sat upright on the throne.

Below him, kneeling were Wei Zhongxian, the eunuch in charge of the Eastern Depot, and Luo Sigong, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Wei Chao hurriedly entered and reported, "Your Majesty, Grand Secretary Fang Congzhe, along with the cabinet ministers and the heads of the six ministries, are pleading guilty outside the East Warm Pavilion. This is their joint petition to plead guilty."

Zhu Youxiao accepted the memorial with a blank expression and read the signature and contents.

Ha ha.

These court officials were finally willing to plead guilty.

Ultimately, he overestimated the patience of the court officials.

In the month since he ascended the throne, he has done things that have offended the interests of too many people.

The fire at the Huiluan Palace that he expected did not happen; instead, an assassination attempt was launched.

For the sake of personal gain, he committed regicide and patricide; he truly is a good subject of mine.

However, this also gave him a good opportunity to seize power.

And it's a legitimate and aboveboard power!
Zhu Youxiao placed the joint memorial on his desk and immediately got into the zone.

The audience has arrived, so the grand show is about to begin:

Zhu Youxiao, his voice filled with anger, loudly questioned Wei Zhongxian:

"You mean, you haven't found out who's behind Wang Dayu in the three days I gave you?"

Zhu Youxiao's eyes narrowed slightly, like a volcano about to erupt, ready to unleash a thunderous rage.

The emperor's voice naturally drifted out of the East Warm Pavilion, and the officials kneeling outside the pavilion felt a chill run down their spines upon hearing it.

Sun Ruyou and Li Ruhua touched their heads to the ground, kneeling in perfect posture, knowing that the emperor was about to begin the lesson.

"Your Majesty, this is my report."

Wei Zhongxian hurriedly said, "Aside from discovering that Wang Dayu colluded with other Shanxi merchants and border generals from Datong and Xuanfu to sell firearms to the Jurchens, we have not yet found any connection between him and the court officials."

He has already given it his all.

His Majesty the Emperor did not grant him the authority to act expediently, so even if he wanted to frame someone, he wouldn't dare.

"hehe."

Zhu Youxiao sneered and said, "It seems the traitor is still hiding deep inside. Good! Good!"

He said fiercely, "Investigate! Investigate thoroughly! If you can't find the merchants, investigate the clerks! If you can't find the clerks, investigate the officials! If you can't find the officials, investigate the nobles! I don't believe that even if I turn the entire Ming Dynasty upside down, I still can't find these regicides and traitors!"

The emperor's roar was like a dragon's cry, and outside the East Warm Pavilion, the faces of the cabinet ministers and officials of the Six Ministries turned deathly pale.

If the emperor can't find anything out.

岂非
Will my Ming Dynasty be stained with blood?
Wei Zhongxian, sweating profusely, immediately responded.

"This servant will immediately dispatch the Imperial Guards to thoroughly investigate all the clerks, officials, and nobles in Beijing, and will certainly give His Majesty an explanation!"

In the East Warm Pavilion, Zhu Youxiao said coldly, "Is that so? Now you're making such harsh statements. If that's really the case, how come you can't even get a job done in three days? Or is it that you can't find these regicide traitors, but that you're sitting idly by and watching them go unpunished, acting as accomplices! Or perhaps you are the regicide traitors yourselves!"

I have been on the throne for over a month, and the things I have done have made you restless and anxious. You want to force me to abdicate, and you want to harm me!

Oh dear~
"I understand now, I understand everything! So, your kneeling outside the palace was a plea for me to abdicate and yield the throne?"

Upon hearing this, Wei Zhongxian and Luo Sigong immediately knelt down and shouted, "We dare not!"

The people outside the pavilion were stunned and disoriented.

Your Majesty, we came to apologize, how did it become a coup?
For a moment, all the officials felt that the floor tiles outside the East Warm Pavilion were extremely hot to the touch, and they all turned their attention to Grand Secretary Fang Congzhe.

To everyone's surprise, Fang Congzhe was kneeling upright with his head resting on the marble slab, like an ostrich, and it was unclear whether he was dead or asleep.

Immediately afterwards, the ministers turned their attention to Liu Yizhu.

Grand Secretary Liu, you've brought us here; it wouldn't be right for you not to resolve this matter, would it?

Liu Yiju gritted his teeth; now, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and go for it.

Thunder or something else.

Swords or blades, it doesn't matter!
The Ming Dynasty cannot continue like this!

The impact of the assassination attempt on the emperor must not be allowed to spread further.

He immediately stood up and shouted towards the East Warm Pavilion: "Your subject, Liu Yizhu, the Second Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, has a memorial to present!"

(End of this chapter)