Dong Gong Mei

Chapter 880: Long Live

Gu Yuci's fierce approach really intimidated many people, but it also irritated many people.

On the second day, the atmosphere in the court became a little weird.

All officials were dressed in their hats and ornaments and lined up in the Xuanzheng Hall in advance. Those below the fifth rank waited in the square, while those above the fifth rank entered the inner hall to receive orders.

The ministers got up very early and were now hungry and tired. After waiting for less than two incense sticks, they could no longer hold on.

Only Gu Yong kept his back straight and knelt as usual.

The Imperial Censor in the palace was patrolling with a brush in his hand. Seeing that all the officials looked tired and sleepy, he coughed and said, "Everyone, please pay attention to your appearance when you attend the new emperor's court."

In the past, there would be no need for the censor to remind everyone, as everyone knew that one should not be careless when attending court.

But today, everyone seemed to have made a secret agreement to trip Gu Yong up without making any noise, to test Gu Yong's ability - and to find out the new emperor's abilities at the same time.

Grand Herald Qiao An saw that something was not right and hurried out to smooth things over: "I think the imperial edict was delivered to various departments last night, and the adults were concerned about state affairs, so they didn't sleep well."

Someone said meaningfully: "Of course Lord Qiao didn't sleep well, but we didn't sleep at all..."

Someone immediately followed up: "Being detained in the palace and not allowed to leave, this is the first time in the history of the world, how dare you close your eyes?"

Someone asked in surprise: "What? You didn't even have a place to sleep last night?"

"Yes, there is." Someone said in a long voice, "The Prime Minister arranged it for him to live in Penglai Pond!"

Someone was surprised: "Penglai Pond? The Prime Minister arranged for you to live on the pond?"

Penglai Pond is a place for entertainment. It is surrounded by lotus fields and there are several islands in the pond. There are pavilions on the islands. A group of ministers are arranged to stay overnight on the pond. It seems to be a carefully selected gift, but in fact it is an effortless confinement.

Just from this one move, we can see how cunning Gu Yong's methods are.

Jingzhao Yin Cui Yan sensed that something was wrong and said, "For such a big thing, the Prime Minister must have been awake all night. The imperial edict was delivered to Cui's house at midnight last night. I have to say that the Shangshutai is keeping it a secret!"

As he said this, he gave a look to Shangshu Ling Xue E.

Xue E knew the whole story, and he knelt upright at this moment, not daring to act rashly: "Master Cui is right to blame me, it's all my fault for not doing my job well and disturbing your sweet dreams."

Then he threw the topic to He Kui: "The crown prince is now the new emperor. I wonder when the enthronement ceremony will be held?"

He Kui had expected this to happen, but he remained calm. He just saluted and said respectfully, "I don't know about this matter. Lord Gu was promoted to Prime Minister yesterday, and he is the head of all officials. I think I have to ask the Prime Minister for instructions on this matter."

When the men of the previous dynasty fought, they displayed all kinds of skills and were not inferior to the concubines in the harem.

The topic was like a hot potato. After being thrown around for a while, it finally fell on Gu Yong.

Gu Yong was holding a tablet, kneeling in the seat at the very beginning, turning a deaf ear to everything, as if he were an old monk in meditation.

Everyone felt even more unhappy, so they opened their eyelids, squinted at him, and raised their voices a little: "May I ask, Prime Minister, when will the new emperor's coronation ceremony be held?"

Gu Yong frowned and glanced at him coldly, and the undercurrent suddenly stopped.

A new official has three things to do when he takes office. Even if he is made of clay, he should have a temper.

"Why are you so anxious, my Lords? Whether the new emperor can attend the enthronement ceremony or not, he is also our king. Who dares to have second thoughts?"

He spoke sharply, glancing around: "Your Majesty abdicated the throne to the Crown Prince yesterday. This matter has been reviewed by the Shangshutai and the Prime Minister's Office, and has now been announced to the world. Everyone present here is the backbone of our Great Wei, but there is one thing you must remember-"

"From today on, the prince is the new emperor. You and I must swear allegiance to him until death. Anyone who disobeys us will be executed!"

Everyone was stunned.

Gu Yong in front of him, with power in his hands, was extremely majestic. He was no longer the patient and dormant uncle of the emperor, but the prime minister who was second only to the emperor.

After a complete silence, someone scoffed, "Prime Minister Gu is so arrogant! But I heard that Zhao Ziyi has not been sentenced yet, so why don't you hurry him up? What if something unexpected happens and he returns to the court? How will you deal with it, my Lord?"

Gu Yong's heart stabbed. When the crown prince first became regent, he first used him, his uncle, as an example to scare the monkeys, and sent him to a remote mountain area to be left alone for several years.

When he returned to the capital, the crown prince held real power and Zhao Ziyi was in charge of the central government. He had already missed the best opportunity to cultivate his own party.

No one in the court is an easy person to deal with, and he is indeed a little overwhelmed as he has lost a few years of management experience.

Seeing that he did not answer, the crowd immediately took advantage of the situation and pressed on: "Prime Minister Gu, there is no rush for the new emperor's coronation ceremony. We must first settle Zhao Ziyi's case! Otherwise, if he overturns the verdict, you will definitely lose your position!"

"Master Gu, today is the day for the new emperor to hold court. You and I will jointly submit a petition to His Majesty, asking him to interrogate the Zhao family!"

There was such a loud noise for a while that the junior officials waiting outside the door were so frightened that they stretched their necks and pricked up their ears to listen.

I was listening with great interest when I suddenly saw a canopy of water winding through the Longshou Canal in the distance and coming towards this side.

Everyone in the square was stunned.

"Your Majesty has arrived——"

Everyone in the hall was still holding their guns and sticks, but suddenly they heard the sound of a ceremony. They immediately froze and looked outside.

At the end of the carved railings and jade bricks, the emperor's ceremonial procession was like a dragon. Wherever it passed, the palace maids bowed their heads and avoided it.

In the blink of an eye, the emperor's sedan chair had stopped.

Everyone seemed to have just woken up from their dream, and they hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed: "Your Majesty!"

“Long live my emperor, long live long live—”

For a moment, cheers of "Long live the emperor" echoed throughout the palace.

Everyone was kneeling on the ground. They could not see the new emperor's face. They only saw a piece of black clothes passing before their eyes and the jade pendant hanging from his waist swaying slightly. The new emperor had walked through the hall and went straight to the throne.

"Stand up."

A familiar and majestic voice came, and everyone responded respectfully: "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

After he stood up, he raised his head and looked at the young emperor.

Li Xuanye sat on top, wearing a black robe and red skirt, with twelve tassels of pearls on his head. As the jade tassels swayed, his brows were cold and his majesty was overwhelming.

Everyone lowered their eyes.

The original undercurrent suddenly turned into a stagnant pool of water.

Li Xuanye lifted up the jade pendant, glanced at the seat below, and asked, "What were you arguing about just now?"

Everyone froze.

The emperor abdicated suddenly without any warning and without consulting his ministers. Many ministers secretly had some thoughts on his mind, but as soon as Li Xuanye entered the palace, they completely gave up.

Li Xuanye then said: "I was still outside and heard you making a mess." His voice did not show joy or anger, but it made the ministers' hearts skip a beat.

The prince has been in charge of state affairs for a long time, and they have become accustomed to it. However, the change of the word "I" and the familiar yet unfamiliar pressure suddenly doubled invisibly.

Gu Yong's eyes moved slightly.

Now that things have come to this, why doesn't he simply add fuel to the fire and urge the new emperor to deal with the Zhao family?

"Your Majesty." Gu Yong held the tablet in his hand and bowed solemnly to the throne. "Just now, the ministers suggested that the case of Zhao Ziyi is of great importance. Your Majesty, please try it as soon as possible."

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The festival is coming soon. I helped my mother with work today, cooking, making rice dumplings and cakes, so there is only one update. There may or may not be more later. Don't wait, I'll talk about it tomorrow.