Jingtai: Making the Ming Dynasty Great Again

Silence is the hallmark of the court today.

According to Yang Jun's report, after Yang Hong refused to open the door, Zhu Qizhen immediately gave Yang Hong a severe scolding.

They said he disobeyed the imperial decree, and that they would make him pay when he returned to court.

After scolding him for a while, Zhu Qizhen then offered to reward Esen's army on the grounds that Esen had gone to great lengths to bring him back.

Zhu Qizhen ordered Yang Hong to send some gold, silver, jewelry, cattle, sheep, and fine wine out of the city, and also instructed Yang Hong to send someone to inform Empress Dowager Sun.

Yang Hong could disobey the emperor's orders and refuse to open the door, but he could not disobey orders to deliver things, after all, it was the current emperor.

Finally, Yang Hong transferred two hundred taels of gold, ten thousand taels of silver, and a number of cattle, sheep, and liquor from Xuanfu and sent them out of the city.

Immediately afterwards, Yang Hong used the excuse of needing to go to the capital to report to Zhu Qizhen and Esen to ignore them.

"Good! General Yang did well!" Zhu Qiyu was the first to break the silence.

The courtiers below seemed to come to their senses only then, and some began to weep.

Some nearly collapsed to the ground, only managing to stand up with the help of their colleagues.

Zhu Qiyu observed that the people in the court could be divided into two categories.

One type was those who wept uncontrollably. Among these people, Yang Shan, the Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, cried the most sincerely, his body covered in tears and snot.

Another category consisted of officials from the Six Ministries and Five Offices, led by Yu Qian and others. These people mostly had serious expressions and were filled with grief and indignation.

Yu Qian opened his mouth several times, but couldn't say anything.

What else can be said?

The Ming Dynasty spanned from Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang to Emperor Taizong Zhu Di, and then to Emperor Xuanzong Zhu Zhanji.

Which one didn't send the various tribes of the grasslands running for their lives in disarray?

As for the Ming Dynasty today, let alone conquering the grasslands.

Even the emperor was captured by the Oirats!

The capital of the Ming Dynasty is about to be attacked!

"Stop crying!" Zhu Qiyu shouted irritably, "The Ming Dynasty is still here!"

Many of the weeping ministers were jolted awake by Zhu Qiyu's roar and gradually stopped crying.

Yu Qian's eyes lit up, and then he stepped out of the ranks with a firm expression, knelt down and said, "Your Highness! The Emperor is in distress, and the Oirats are holding our Emperor hostage, attempting to subjugate our country without a fight."

"The only course of action now is for Your Highness to follow the will of Heaven and the people, and ascend the throne as soon as possible, so as to appease the hearts of the people and extinguish the hopes of the invaders!"

Zhu Qiyu quickly refused, saying, "With His Majesty still alive, how dare I overstep my bounds? This is not the way of a subject."

Throughout history, the throne obtained through abdication had to be declined three times before finally being accepted reluctantly, in accordance with the established rites.

Yu Qian bowed again and said, "Your Highness! This is for the sake of the country and the people, not for personal gain."

In the past, Emperor Gaozong of Song also ascended the throne during a time of crisis, thus preserving half of the country.

If the court is without a leader and the army is demoralized, the bandits will advance unimpeded and destroy the ancestral foundation and the lives of millions of people!

"Your Highness's ascension to the throne is precisely to ensure the continuation of our Great Ming Dynasty!"

Just as Zhu Qiyu was about to refuse again, an official wearing a blue robe with a mandarin duck tattooed on his chest stepped forward: "Your Highness, I, Heng Cong, a Supervising Secretary of the Ministry of Rites, hereby report."

The Minister's words are unacceptable. The Emperor is still alive; how can we carry out such a deposed and installed act?

Even if a new emperor is to be established, according to the established rites, the current crown prince should ascend the throne!

Zhu Qiyu searched his memory, but it seemed that no information about this person had been recorded in history.

It seems that Zhu Qizhen had quite a few followers.

Zhu Qiyu silently added this person to his list, then said, "This is the proper ceremony. Even if a new emperor is to be established, it should be the crown prince who ascends the throne. How can I be the one to do it?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than another person stepped forward: "Your subject, Chen Yi, Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, seconded the Minister's words."

The crown prince was young and inexperienced, and unable to manage state affairs.

We urgently need a council member, and none other than Your Highness is more suitable!

At the same time, several others stepped forward: "We second that proposal!"

"Your Highness..."

Just as Yu Qian was about to speak, Zhu Qiyu interrupted him: "I am now in charge of state affairs. This is the trust of the Emperor and the Empress Dowager. I must not overstep my bounds."

If you want to establish a new emperor, then choose the crown prince!

That's the end of it. Don't say any more.

Even though I know the outcome, I still have to keep acting.

Having lived in this era for twenty-one years, Zhu Qiyu had come to understand that sometimes etiquette even outweighs the law!

Moreover, the more unified the world is and the more prosperous the nation is, the more important etiquette becomes.

Unless one can gather the power of heaven and earth into one's own body, killing anyone who gets in one's way and even Buddha if he gets in one's way.

Zhu Qiyu changed the subject: "By the way, Minister Yu, could the Ministry of War compile a list of the reasons for this defeat?"

The Ministry of War will participate in every war from start to finish.

From the initial planning of the itinerary and the allocation of troops and supplies, all the way to the post-war summary of victory or defeat.

This defeat is a "miracle" that has been created in history, and the Ministry of War must carefully summarize the lessons learned from this failure.

Yu Qian replied, "Some of the information has already been compiled. The Ministry of War is urgently interrogating the soldiers who escaped and comparing their testimonies."

However, most of those who escaped were low-ranking soldiers who were not very familiar with the orders from above.

However, Your Highness, please rest assured that we will report the results to you as soon as possible.

Zhu Qiyu nodded, then glanced around and said, "I see you're all no longer in the mood for court, so let's adjourn the court."

Xing'an announced from the side, "Court is adjourned!"

Zhu Qiyu left the Wenhua Hall, but none of the ministers in the hall left.

Minister of Rites Hu Ying spoke first, saying sternly, "Minister Yu, your words just now were a bit too bold."

As the 74-year-old Minister of Rites, Hu Ying valued etiquette above all else.

However, the old minister's caution prevented him from criticizing Yu Qian earlier.

Now that it's not a formal court meeting, he doesn't have as many concerns.

Yu Qian explained, "Minister Hu, under normal circumstances, I would never dare to commit such a rebellious act."

But now is a time of national crisis.

If the court does not establish a new emperor, what will happen to the soldiers on the front lines?

If the emperor knocks on the door again, will the soldiers guarding the city open the door or not?

If a battle breaks out and the Emperor stands before the enemy lines, will the soldiers attack or kneel in submission?

Yu Qian's questions not only left Hu Ying speechless for a moment, but also caused all the ministers in the court to fall into deep thought.

Yes, if the emperor were to order the soldiers guarding the city of Beijing to open the gates...

Esen led his army in close pursuit, but would he open the gate or not?

If Esen were to attack the city along with the Emperor, would the cannons on the city walls dare to be fired?

The Minister of Personnel was the first to recover: "I agree with Minister Yu's opinion; the Emperor must remain in Beijing!"

Hu Ying also realized what was happening and his attitude was no longer so tough: "The founding emperor once established an ancestral rule that the eldest son of the legitimate wife should be chosen in this dynasty, not the eldest son. Even if a new emperor is to be established, the crown prince should be the one to inherit the throne."

Yu Qian sighed: "Of course I know this rule, but these are extraordinary times, so we have to resort to extraordinary measures."

To be honest, given the current situation, Beijing will eventually be able to muster approximately 200,000 soldiers.

However, most of these people had never experienced battle and were merely there to boost morale.

If you want them to fight desperately, you have to give them hope.

And that hope was for the emperor who could lead them to protect their homeland.

He is the emperor they can see.

He is an emperor who can issue commands.

Not a two- or three-year-old toddler!

Yu Qian's words shocked those who had not previously expressed their opinions, especially the people of the Five Military Commands.

Do you say no clothes?Wear the same clothes as your son.Wang Yu Xingshi, cultivate our armored soldiers, and walk with you!

The Ming Dynasty became what it is today because the emperor personally led military campaigns.

But to save Beijing from this crisis, the Emperor himself must lead the expedition!