Why did the emperor rebel?

Chapter 811: All parties cooperate

The next day, the wind was clear and the sun was strong. After a night of torrential rain, the sky looked blue and blue, with white clouds drifting past, as peaceful and peaceful as if yesterday's torrential rain did not exist.

However, what has happened has happened, and it is impossible for it not to exist.

As expected by Yu Qian and others, there was no way to block the news of the mysterious eunuch's attack on the Xiangting Pavilion because too many people saw it.

In just one night, the whole court has spread the matter.

At the same time, rumors spread everywhere, sometimes it was said that someone had resentment towards the royal family and deliberately took revenge, and sometimes it was said that someone wanted to prevent His Highness the Crown Prince from leaving the cabinet smoothly.

Especially regarding the identity of this eunuch, there are many speculations. Some people think that he is just an ordinary eunuch, some think that it was ordered by the court ministers, and some even think that it is planned by the concubine in the palace.

Of course, the most widely circulated one, and the one everyone dared to discuss privately, was whether the matter was ordered by the emperor to interrupt the process of the prince's leaving the cabinet.

After all, before this, although the emperor used the excuse that the prince was still young and should not be too tired, in the end, in the eyes of those who cared, it was also an excuse that he did not want the prince to leave the cabinet.

Some well-informed people even found out the succession and the Zen throne dispute that the emperor had argued with the ministers before he ascended the throne, in an attempt to prove that although the emperor clearly learned from right and wrong in many government affairs, it was not related to the succession of the throne. , may not be able to really be sober.

In just half a day, there were undercurrents in the government and the opposition, and all kinds of opinions were clamoring. However, the strange thing was that the court was quiet, and no one came out to speak about it.

All the ministers seemed to have lost their voices collectively.

In the cabinet, Wang Ao sat in the public room, looking at the memorials that had been spread out on the case, holding a brush in his hand, but his thoughts had already drifted to nowhere.

In recent days, the life of the chief assistant is not very good, the reason is that...Xiao Ying woke up!
Although, he is still well-raised at home, and he is still wearing a sinful body.

However, judging from the frequent visits of Du Ning, Minister of Dali Temple, to his residence, this Xiao Xueshi still doesn't know what kind of truth he has revealed.

Every time at this time, Wang Shoufu regretted that he had believed Jiang Yuan's nonsense.

Although he didn't directly touch the matter of the palace examination, if Xiao Yi started biting at random, it would be difficult for him to explain clearly.

In particular, when the emperor temporarily handed over the Hanlin Academy to him, as a vested interest, Wang Shoufu felt that he couldn't explain clearly.

In all fairness, he was not afraid of what Xiao Yan would really say, but this feeling of being indifferent was really uncomfortable.

Of course, if that's the case alone, then it wouldn't bother him so much that he couldn't even deal with government affairs.

What really worried him was the attack on Xiangting that happened yesterday.

The matter of Xiao Ying is still pending, but this case is right in front of us.

Although Wang Ao was in the cabinet, before he came to the Yamen, and even on the way here, he heard a lot of various rumors.

Up and down the ruling and opposition parties, people's hearts are now floating, and there are many speculations.

In this situation, no matter what the truth is, as long as the emperor makes a move, then, together with the public opinion in the outer dynasty, the people in the cabinet must be responsible for coordination.

But, having said that, even Wang Ao himself was beating drums in his heart about the truth of this case.

Although intellectually speaking, he felt that the emperor would not do such useless work.

However, to say something disrespectful, all the people in the capital, except the emperor, are the ones who can benefit from the prince's departure from the cabinet.

So, when something like this happened, no one would dare to make a conclusion if it was said that it had nothing to do with the Son of Heaven...

"Master Shoufu, I have a purpose."

At this time, the Zhongshu Sheren outside suddenly came in and clapped their hands.

So, Wang Ao put down the pen in his hand and walked outside. When he got to the hall, he saw all the cabinet ministers gathered.

After taking a look at a certain assistant who was so calm and shameless, Wang Ao didn't speak, and came to the head of the class to stand still.

Not long after, Wynn in python came in and said.

"Sacred decree, yesterday, the crown prince came out of the pavilion with an incense pavilion outside the Fengtian gate. A thief entered from the outside and beat the incense pavilion with a red stick and said: "First strike the eastern Jiayi wood, and the internal envoys will hold it. Order the guards in Jinyi to investigate carefully. The prince Leave the cabinet as scheduled, hereby."

"The minister waits for the order."

This is an oral order, and the next step is the work of the cabinet. It is necessary to form this oral order into a standard imperial decree, and after passing through the six departments, it will be issued to each yamen.

It's all familiar work, and there's nothing special about it. It's just that all the ministers present heaved a sigh of relief as soon as the ordinance was announced.

Regardless of the rumors outside, what the court is most afraid of now is that this matter will delay the process of the prince's leaving the cabinet.

With this oral order from the emperor, they can put their hearts in their stomachs.

However, for some reason, Wang Ao always felt that when this oral order was announced, everyone looked as expected.

Could it be that he is the only one in the cabinet who can't hold his breath?
Moreover, the rumors about this incident were raging, and in just one day, public opinion spread everywhere. It can be seen that there must be someone pushing behind this.

If combined with various speculations, no matter what the truth is, at least now, there are signs of defamation of the emperor's reputation.

In this case, with the character of the emperor who never suffers, it is really surprising that he just let it go so silently.

You know, although the time is not long, it is enough for them to obtain detailed information. The eunuch who attacked the Xiangting Pavilion died on the spot. He was obviously prepared and wanted to track him down. not easy.

That being the case, the Son of Heaven still insists on not bringing up the matter now. Could it be that it is really the people in the ruling and opposition parties who are talking about it?

Or, in this situation, the emperor can only restore the influence by continuing the ceremony?
His mind was chaotic for a while, and when Wang Ao woke up, he found that all the other ministers had already returned to their public rooms and started to deal with official duties.

The setting sun was slanting, and the sky was smeared with a brilliant cloud. Following the afterglow of the setting sun, the elders finished their busy day, went back to the government office, and prepared to participate in the ceremony on the second day.

Like the other cabinet ministers, Zhu Jian left Donghua Gate in a sedan chair after leaving the Yamen. However, he did not go back to the mansion directly, but headed somewhere in the east of the city.

Stopping in front of an alley, Zhu Jian got off the sedan chair, and soon, a carriage came from a distance, and stopped staggeringly, a middle-aged man in his forties got off the carriage, and faced Zhu Jiangong He clapped his hands, said.

"I've seen Duke Ming."

"Well, let's talk on the way, don't delay the time."

Seeing this person, Zhu Jian nodded and said.

Immediately, he and this person got into the carriage one after another, and headed towards the west city...

"You should already know about the imperial decree, right?"

The carriage looked ordinary from the outside, but it was very comfortable inside. Zhu Jian sat on the soft couch and asked a question.

The middle-aged man on the opposite side replied immediately.

"Understood, apart from Zhan Shifu, all yamen should have received it."

This person is none other than Xu Youzhen, the current Zuo Chunfang University Bachelor!

During these days, Master Xu, as one of the few officials of the Eastern Palace, is also very busy. However, in addition to being busy, Master Xu does not forget to do his extra-staff work well. In addition to attending the regular meeting of the Supreme Emperor's Party , It is to connect with Zhuge Lao.

In line with the principle of being civil servants, after these days, Mr. Zhu Ge has regarded Mr. Xu as his junior, and has a very close relationship with him.

"Well, I said at the beginning that His Majesty would not be so impulsive and stop His Highness the Crown Prince from leaving the cabinet because of such a mere matter, but these people were deluded and insisted on doing this. Now, the East Palace is in trouble, and the government and the people are chaotic. , the old man wants to see if they dare to continue to show their heads!"

When this matter was mentioned, Zhu Jian's face became a little ugly, and he snorted softly, with a bit of sarcasm in his tone.

Others don't know what the truth is about the attack on the Xiangting Pavilion.

However, he knew it.

Behind this is Zhang Yu's group of nobles who are making troubles. Their purpose is to take this opportunity to stir up the court situation so as to restore Cheng Guogong's mansion.

And the reason why he knew about this matter was that...

"Minggong calm down, after all, it is the emperor's will, and it cannot be violated. The students also feel that this is inappropriate, but for the sake of the overall situation, they have to do it."

Although the carriage looked rickety, it was very stable inside.

Xu Youzhen lowered her head, cupped her hands and said.

There are often many kinds of truth about one thing. People often think that what they know is the truth, but most of the time, it may not be the whole truth.

Logically speaking, the fewer people who know about the attack on the Fragrant Pavilion, the better. The reason why Zhu Jian knew about it was because Xu Youzhen was also involved in it.

The reason why the ruling and opposition parties are talking about it now is not that there are no discerning people, but that this matter is so seamless that it all points to the emperor.

However, it is actually very difficult to achieve such a level. The reason why it can be achieved requires the cooperation of multiple parties.

The eunuch's identity is true, but the person who entered the palace was not the person in the history. He bribed the steward who was in charge of purifying himself, and sent one or two young eunuchs into the palace to do chores. Silver can do it, and the nobles in the past, for the sake of some acquaintances in the palace, can inquire about the news in the palace, and they will do this kind of thing.

Later, when the emperor ascended the throne, the inner palace was cleaned many times. In order to facilitate the contact with the Holy Mother in the palace, the British government also arranged some people to enter the palace. Now, the place is being used.

The person came from the Zhang family, but the news had to be provided by Xu Youzhen. He was an official of the Eastern Palace, and he participated in almost the whole process of the arrangements for the ceremony related to the crown prince.

He knows exactly where the incense pavilion is placed and when it will be put up. Even the poison sac that the little eunuch used to commit suicide was placed in the corner of Qingning Palace by virtue of his status, so that the The little eunuch went to fetch it.

In addition, there is also the forbidden army. You must know that the inner and outer palaces in the imperial city are distinct, and the little eunuch usually has a fixed errand route, which basically does not involve the front of the Fengtian Palace.

Therefore, in order to do this, there must be two necessary conditions. One is that the guards guarding the gate can let him pass, and the other is that he cannot be patrolled by the square when he is approaching the Xiangting Pavilion with a red wooden stick. found by the imperial guards.

It is very difficult to do this without leaving traces.

However, no matter how difficult it is, there will always be someone who can do it, such as... the young master of Cheng Guogong's mansion!
The little prince himself was on duty in the imperial army, so it was not difficult to find out when the imperial guards were patrolling and changing their defenses. Taking advantage of this small moment, it was entirely possible to sneak in and attack the Xiangting.

As for the other point, it is not difficult to let the forbidden army of Guijimen let people in, but the difficulty is not to be traced afterwards.

Therefore, people who cannot use themselves, even those who have a little relationship with Xungui, cannot be used.

Speaking of this, Xu Youzhen herself admired the young master's resourcefulness.

It is true that he has no good friends with the various governments, but he has inquired about the man who was on duty at the Guiji Gate that day, and then rewarded his imperial guards with good wine and meat. After that, they ate and drank together, got rewards, and ate wine together, and diarrhea continued.

Unable to be on duty, he replaced the second group of people in order, and the little leader in this group was always greedy for money. Yesterday, the little eunuch spent a lot of money, Sure enough, it was put in.

It is very difficult to investigate this method, every step seems to be a coincidence, but no evidence can be found.

In this way, with the cooperation of all parties, there was this case of attacking the Xiangting Pavilion.

There are certainly risks, but with the joint efforts of all parties, the final result is that only the Son of Heaven can do this.

In this way, the goal is achieved!
Of course, this is the truth that Zhu Jian knows, and Master Xu knows it on a deeper level.

For example, he is very clear that the whole matter is under the eyes of the emperor and his old man, who can see clearly that Zhu Yi and Zhang Wei think that things are done flawlessly, but they don't know that someone has already done it. Talk about their plans...

This plan is so complicated, and has mobilized the forces of all parties, with only one purpose, that is, to help Duke Cheng to restore his title.

Ideally, it would be natural for the emperor to be furious and order a thorough investigation, causing a commotion in the court and the public, and at the same time suspending the ceremony of the prince's departure from the cabinet.

In this way, the nobles can take advantage of the problem and remonstrate the emperor.

But since the emperor knew about this matter, how could they succeed?
Nowadays, although the ruling and opposition parties have been instigated, the emperor didn't make a big deal about it, and didn't even mention it too much. He just let the cabinet pass the decree and everything went as usual.

In this case, if there is any more noise, the traces will be too obvious...

In fact, this is also the reason why Zhu Jian objected at the beginning. No matter how perfect the case of attacking Xiangting was done, no evidence could be found, but as long as the emperor stands still and does nothing, then, whoever comes forward to make a fuss about this matter , it must be the mastermind behind the scenes.

Most of the time, there is no need for evidence for court affairs!
Even if it is to help Duke Cheng to obtain the title, such a risk is not worth it.

After all, in this way, even if it is not easy for the emperor to deal with the honorable people, it makes the officials of the imperial court feel more disgusted with the Supreme Emperor.

One must know that after the Spring Hunt, the Duke of Cheng's Mansion can be regarded as the spokesperson of the Supreme Emperor in any sense.

The Son of Heaven reacted in this way, if Cheng Guogong's mansion finally gets into trouble and finally benefits, then there will be a lot of people with discerning eyes...

(End of this chapter)