Emperor Ming: Your Majesty, you have caused me so much suffering.

In Renshou Palace, when Empress Dowager Sun saw that Cheng Jing had taken away her handwritten letter, she was slightly stunned and looked out of the palace. This strong woman, who had been strong for half her life, could not help but shed a few bitter tears.

She couldn't understand why her son couldn't comprehend her current situation and the good intentions behind all her actions.

In Empress Dowager Sun's view, all the scheming and forbearance had only one purpose: the safe return of Zhu Qizhen. As long as Zhu Qizhen remained emperor, there would never be a day when he would return.

Although Empress Dowager Sun was unwilling to admit it, it was an undeniable fact that his true value did not lie in his name, Zhu Qizhen, but in his status as the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

Empress Dowager Sun no longer expected Zhu Qizhen to regain power; she wanted to plan for Zhu Jianshen and for her own position.

Only if Zhu Qizhen can return to the capital safely will those ministers who support the primogeniture system have a chance to unite and rally around Crown Prince Zhu Jianshen.

Crown Prince Zhu Jianshen would not be easily deposed, and the throne would eventually return to his own lineage.

If Zhu Qizhen could not return, these officials were wavering in their hearts. Some even believed that if Zhu Qizhen died in the Oirat Mongols, all would be lost.

The reason why Zhu Qiyu can now be almost unhindered in the court is that none of the officials dare to be sure that Zhu Qizhen will return, after all, the two emperors of the Northern Song Dynasty have already provided a reference answer.

If Zhu Qizhen doesn't return, Empress Dowager Sun will be unable to support the government alone. If this continues, siding with Empress Dowager Sun will mean facing obstacles in his career at every turn, and even making it impossible for him to advance further in his career. Only someone suffering from hysteria would take such a gamble.

There are hardly any truly morally upright people in this world; most are driven by self-interest.

Now that Zhu Qizhen has become the retired emperor, his value in Esen's hands has greatly diminished. Recently, there have been growing calls to welcome back the retired emperor, which has pleased Empress Dowager Sun greatly.

I've always hoped that Zhu Qizhen would issue the edict readily and then report back to the court about the harsh conditions in the north, so that he could morally blackmail Zhu Qiyu.

Zhu Qiyu inherited the throne, and the retired emperor, understanding the bigger picture, relinquished the throne. However, life in the north was so difficult that people were starving. If the retired emperor was not welcomed back as soon as possible, Zhu Qiyu would inevitably face public condemnation.

Everything was planned perfectly, but Empress Dowager Sun did not expect that her son would directly extinguish the calls to welcome the emperor back, and even give her a blow.

At this moment, Empress Dowager Sun truly understood the saying among the common people: "It would be better to give birth to a pig than to Zhu Qizhen!"

Zhu Qiyu received the letter from Empress Dowager Sun in the Wenhua Hall, but never opened it to read. Even without reading it, Zhu Qiyu could guess its contents, so why bother and risk being looked down upon?

Yue Qian and Ji Duo, who were bowing to the ground inside the palace, felt like they had been cursed for eight lifetimes, and that they still had to make a trip to face that eccentric retired emperor.

Zhu Qiyu, perhaps sensing their predicament, said, "You two have worked hard and made great contributions. It would be unbecoming of a ruler not to reward your merits! You two will be promoted to Commander-in-Chief. If you can complete the mission successfully this time and return, I will still be willing to grant you the position of Vice Commander-in-Chief of the Five Armies!"

The "cake" that Zhu Qiyu gave him was fragrant and round, and extremely tempting.

"Your Majesty, we are grateful for your great favor and will certainly live up to your trust."

Upon hearing this, Yue Qian and his companion felt as if the storm had passed and the sun had finally come out. Overwhelmed with joy, they immediately bowed down, for this was clearly a holy ruler!

Now that he has been promoted to the second-rank military commander, although his rank as the vice-commander of the military governor's office remains unchanged at the second rank, can this be the same for officials in the capital?

Seeing the expressions on their faces, Zhu Qiyu realized that this tactic was indeed effective. He then revealed another matter on his mind: "We still need to gather more information about the Oirat army on this trip. In addition, I need to know about a eunuch named Xining. If there is an opportunity, we should get rid of him. If there is no opportunity, we should not act rashly. We should report any relevant information about him immediately."

When Zhu Qiyu asked Cheng Jing to compile a list of officials both inside and outside the court today, he remembered this person. When Liang Gui returned to the capital to report to Zhu Qizhen on his northern capture, he mentioned that this person had already betrayed the Ming Dynasty and defected to Esen.

This was originally an insignificant minor character, but his resume surprised Zhu Qiyu. He had served as a eunuch in the Imperial Horse Administration and had previously served as a military supervisor and garrison eunuch, accompanying Zhu Qizhen on expeditions.

In this way, as long as this person is not a good-for-nothing, he will probably know all the details about the Ming Dynasty's borders.

The Oirat army was already quite powerful. With the help of such a guide and Zhu Qizhen as a door knocker, it was very likely that the Oirat would quickly break into the capital.

During the Han Dynasty, Zhongxing Shuo, a powerful eunuch who defected to the Xiongnu, caused the Han Dynasty to suffer considerable losses.

Historically, the course of history has often been altered by seemingly insignificant figures, so Zhu Qiyu had to treat this matter with utmost care.

Although Yue Qian and his companion did not know why His Majesty was paying attention to this person, they did as he said.

"Your Majesty, we obey!"

After Yue Qian and the other man left, Zhu Qiyu simply summoned Xing An and Lu Zhong.

"You two should increase manpower to monitor all officials at all times. If any bad rumors are circulating and there is solid evidence, arrest the person directly without asking for instructions. If the evidence is insufficient and there is any doubt, you can report it in advance."

Zhu Qiyu was certain that today's events would spread, because none of the parties wanted to keep the news a secret.

The ministers who supported Zhu Qiyu needed this news to unite the wavering ministers, for only by resolutely supporting Zhu Qiyu could they avoid being purged.

Some cunning officials simply wanted to use this to argue that Zhu Qiyu's ascension to the throne was illegitimate.

Some people are happy to see infighting within the imperial family and a weakening of imperial power, so they can take advantage of the chaos and profit from it.

The struggles between ministers never discriminate based on the occasion. Expecting ministers to be mindful of the bigger picture and prioritize the overall situation is something only a few can do. Most ministers simply don't care about the current situation.

Even though the Ming Dynasty fell in history, these people still couldn't resist fighting amongst themselves.

Seeing that the two men had accepted the order, Zhu Qiyu continued, "There is one more matter. I have heard rumors recently that the Emperor Emeritus is not the son of the Empress Dowager, but rather the son of a palace maid. Have you two heard such absurd rumors?"

Lu Zhong, lacking a bit of common sense, upon hearing such explosive news, hurriedly shook his head in denial, saying, "Your Majesty, I have never heard of such a thing!"

Xing'an pondered for a moment, unsure of Zhu Qiyu's meaning or why he would utter such a rumor. He then mustered his courage and said, "Your Majesty, I have overheard that royal secrets are not uncommon. Even Emperor Taizong in the past encountered various secrets. Some even say that Emperor Taizong was not born to Empress Xiaoci. Such secrets are not rare. I request that they be thoroughly investigated."

Zhu Qiyu glanced at Xing'an meaningfully. This maid's words were loaded with meaning. No matter how the news spread, it could be disseminated openly.

Even someone as wise and powerful as Emperor Taizong had his stories fabricated, let alone this Emperor Men, who doesn't look like a ruler at all, much less like a pure-blooded dragon. He's probably the son of a crude person, otherwise his aptitude wouldn't be so poor.

Although Lu Zhong was a bit simple-minded, he was still intelligent enough. Upon hearing Xing An's words, he began to consider them carefully and said, "Your Majesty, there have been many rumors lately, and I haven't been able to verify them in time. Perhaps there are such rumors. I will go and verify them immediately."

Zhu Qiyu nodded and said, "You two should investigate this matter immediately. Such things are often spread from within the palace, so take this opportunity to interrogate them thoroughly."

A hint of joy flashed in Xing'an's eyes. A few days ago, some palace servants had slipped through the net during the Qing Palace cleanup. Because of Empress Dowager Sun, they couldn't find a suitable reason to get rid of those palace servants who were attached to her. Now, wasn't this the opportunity?

Such a rumor must have originated from someone who served Empress Dowager Sun afterward.

If, by chance, we can actually get some information out of them during the interrogation, that would be even better!