I served as an admonisher in the Song Dynasty

Chapter 463: Concubine Zhang passed away! The love-minded Zhao Zhen and the sensible Empress Cao

The sixth day of the first lunar month, near noon.

The winter sun is shining brightly.

Rays of golden sunlight poured down upon the city of Bianjing.

Bright and warm.

Citizens in the city were hanging their beddings in the courtyard to dry, and some old people were sitting under the sunny wall, basking in the sun and chatting.

The momentum of the cold epidemic has passed, and the number of people on the streets has gradually increased.

however.

In the imperial harem, Concubine Zhang's illness did not improve.

She suffered from a headache caused by the cold and was in a semi-conscious state. All the doctors in the medical academy were helpless.

at the same time.

Concubine Zhang's uncle, Zhang Yaozuo, who was 68 years old and living in Henan Prefecture, also came to Bianjing City.

Su Liang received news: Concubine Zhang might not live long.

Su Liang disliked Concubine Zhang very much.

Almost all the scholar-officials in the court disliked Concubine Zhang.

She is spoiled, willful and selfish.

Thanks to Zhao Zhen's favor, three generations of the family were granted titles.

Especially compared with the virtuous and sensible Empress Cao, her virtue was not enough to become a noble concubine.

It is only because of Zhao Zhen's favor that he has his current status.

Some people even call her: the Daji of the present dynasty and the Yang Yuhuan of the Song Dynasty.

However, since it involves life and death, Su Liang still hopes that she can recover.

After all, the emperor still loves Concubine Zhang the most.

If she died, it would be a huge blow to Zhao Zhen, and the second prince Zhao Han would also be deprived of maternal love in his childhood.

This is something Su Liang didn't want to see.

……

The seventh day of the first lunar month.

The Liao envoy Yelu Qi and his deputy Zhou Bai came to the Honglu Temple with a handwritten letter from the Liao emperor Yelu Zongzhen.

Yelu Zongzhen has agreed that the two countries should establish permanent embassies and house permanent envoys.

After Zuo Youding reported to the Secretariat.

Prime Minister Wen Yanbo immediately ordered the Honglu Temple to start the permanent embassy plan with envoys from various countries, and to reach a basic agreement before the envoys left.

This plan is actually a plan to eliminate spies.

The envoys of various countries were well aware of this, but they all knew that the whereabouts of their own spies were completely under the control of the Imperial City Administration of the Great Song Dynasty.

If you don't agree, you will be wiped out soon.

Dali, Jiaozhi, Qingtang Tubo and other countries or tribes that had shown friendly relations with the Song Dynasty were very happy when they heard about the permanent embassy plan.

They had no intention of monitoring the Song Dynasty.

The reason they sent spies was because they were afraid that the Song Dynasty would attack them one day.

The permanent embassy can also obtain such information, and future trade and commercial cooperation will become more frequent because of the permanent embassy.

As for the three countries of Western Xia, Goryeo and Japan.

The Liao Kingdom has agreed.

If they objected, they would have to break off diplomatic relations with the Song Dynasty, but they simply did not have the courage to do so at the moment.

The ministers of the Secretariat did not report the matter to Zhao Zhen.

Because at this time, Zhao Zhen's eyes were full of Concubine Zhang. He had been in Qixiang Palace for two days.

……

Early morning of the eighth day of the first lunar month.

Unfortunately, it still happened.

Concubine Zhang died at the age of 31.

Near noon.

Zhao Zhen issued a handwritten edict: suspend court for seven days, hold funeral in Huangyi Hall, and order Wang Zhu, the Chief Edictor, to write a mourning book, and Prime Minister Wen Yanbo to read it personally.

When this imperial edict came out, all officials were shocked!

According to etiquette, a royal concubine is of the first rank and should suspend court for three days, while only the empress is qualified to suspend court for seven days.

Second.

Holding funerals in the Huangyi Hall was the privilege of the emperor, the empress dowager, and the empress; a noble concubine’s rank was simply not enough.

In addition, when a noble concubine passed away, she was not qualified to have a prime minister read the mourning book in person.

It's not in accordance with etiquette everywhere.

Every detail reveals Zhao Zhen's extreme favor towards Concubine Zhang.

……

Near noon.

Piles of memorials opposing Concubine Zhang's funeral rituals were sent to the Chuigong Hall.

at the same time.

Officials from the Imperial Library, the Ministry of Rites, and the Censorate also came to the Secretariat's Council of Affairs.

If these ministers are unwilling to take the lead in opposition, the officials will impeach these people together.

The etiquette system must never be violated.

At this moment, Su Liang also followed He Tan and Zhao Yan to the Council Hall.

Su Liang naturally opposed it.

This time, the government was indeed too willful.

There was a bustle in the government hall.

"My dear gentlemen, how can the Imperial Palace hold a funeral for the Imperial Concubine? The Emperor has shown too much favor to Imperial Concubine Zhang, and this cannot be shown to the world!"

"In the fourth year of the Qingli reign, the King of Jing died, but the court was suspended for only five days. How could the imperial concubine's etiquette exceed that of the King of Jing? This is really absurd!"

"It is absurd for the prime minister to read the mourning book for the concubine. The official's private love has violated the ancient etiquette and it is absolutely unacceptable!"

……

The officials were very angry.

And this moment.

Wen Yanbo, Fu Bi, Zhang Fangping, Wu Yu, Ouyang Xiu, Wang Yaochen, Zeng Gongliang, Liang Shi and other old men were discussing in the inner room.

These ministers have not yet reached a consensus, so they are unable to give an explanation to the officials outside for the time being.

Inside the back room.

Privy Councilor Di Qing stood aside with a confused look on his face and a headache.

The matters of court etiquette were much more complicated than leading troops in battle. In the heated debate among the ministers, he had no chance to get a word in and didn't know how to resolve the matter.

Inside the government hall, there was noise both in the inner room and the outer room.

Zhao Zhen was grieving in the harem and refused to see any outside officials. The eunuchs were preparing for the funeral of Concubine Zhang.

All of a sudden, the entire court was in chaos.

……

A quarter of an hour later.

The ministers came out from the inner room, and Prime Minister Wen Yanbo walked to the center of the hall and shouted, "Everyone, please be quiet for a moment!"

Suddenly.

The entire government hall fell silent.

Wen Yanbo paused and said, "You all should know that the emperor and the imperial concubine have a special relationship. At this moment, the emperor is in grief. Advising him is like adding fuel to the fire and will make him even angrier!"

"I suggest that you give the emperor some time to calm down. After two days, I will personally go and ask the emperor to take back his decision. We also need to give the emperor some time to calm down. How do you think?"

"I can promise everyone that even if I am dismissed, I will never read the mourning book myself. None of the ministers in the two ministries and three departments will do that!"

"Absolutely not!" the gentlemen said in unison.

Some officials thought it made sense and retreated.

Some officials felt that not submitting a memorial of opposition would be a dereliction of duty as a subject, so they chose to continue submitting a memorial of opposition, but they also left the Council of State.

The censors also felt that this was an imperial edict issued because the emperor was overly sad, and that it would be more appropriate to submit a memorial of opposition two days later when the emperor's emotions had calmed down, so they all withdrew immediately.

……

Two days later, early in the morning.

Just as the ministers of the two ministries and three departments were preparing to meet the emperor to advise him, Zhao Zhen issued another handwritten edict and had a eunuch pass it to the Secretariat.

"Posthumously ennoble Consort Zhang as empress, grant her the posthumous title of Wencheng, and ban music in the capital for one month."

If the previous imperial edict was just a bit willful, then this one was really too wild!

Concubine Zhang was posthumously named Empress Wencheng, which complied with all the funeral rites in the previous imperial edict.

But Empress Cao was still alive, so she was posthumously canonized as empress.

It's really absurd.

What would Queen Cao think, what would the Cao family think, and even what would the eldest prince Zhao Kun think?

This move was somewhat disrespectful to Empress Cao.

Since Zhao Zhen still refused to see the outsiders and was in the back hall, the officials gathered again in the Secretariat. This time, after the officials gathered, they did not unanimously oppose like last time.

Some officials even brought up the story of Ehuang and Nvying, arguing that the government's move did not exceed the rules.

obviously.

Either the government or Zhang Yaozuo had instructions for these officials.

There was another quarrel in the hall.

After a while.

Prime Minister Wen Yanbo was so angry that he stood on the table and shouted, "Quiet, everyone, be quiet!"

After all the officials were silent, Wen Yanbo said loudly: "There is already a queen in the harem, but to posthumously enthrone her is not in accordance with etiquette. We must oppose it. Even if I am dismissed from my position as prime minister today, I beg the emperor to revoke the decision!"

Wen Yanbo spoke in a firm tone.

Etiquette and laws cannot be violated, and once Concubine Zhang is posthumously canonized as empress, the possibility of the second prince becoming the crown prince of the Song Dynasty will double.

Today, the emperor arbitrarily confers the title of empress to Concubine Zhang; tomorrow, he may make an exception and make the second prince the crown prince in order to commemorate her.

The royal family has no family affairs; every little thing is state affairs.

The ministers in the Secretariat would never allow the emperor to act so willfully.

at this time.

Several generals walked in quickly, all of them were members of the Cao family.

One of them was Cao Ju, the son of the head of the Cao family, who served as a palace guard on the left.

Cao Yu bowed and said, "My dear husbands, the queen is really wronged. We were not assigned by the head of the family, but we feel uncomfortable... We are willing to seek justice, even if we are punished, we are willing to do it!"

Wen Yanbo nodded and said, "Let's go together, let's go together!"

Not far away, Su Liang frowned.

The Cao family should not be here. If they go to plead for mercy, it will only make the officials even angrier.

The reason why Zhao Zhen posthumously enthroned Empress Wencheng even though he already had a queen was because he knew that Empress Cao was sensible and tolerant.

But if these members of the Cao family make trouble, Zhao Zhen would probably be unable to save face.

This will only get worse.

Su Liang knew Zhao Zhen's character very well.

Zhao Zhen was very kind and wise, but he was also a love-brained person and had always been a submissive person.

Just as Su Liang was about to stop the Cao family, a voice suddenly came from outside: "The Queen is here!"

Queen Cao is here.

This is something no one expected.

Although Empress Cao was the mother of a country, the Council of State Affairs was never the place for her to go.

soon.

Empress Cao then came to the government hall, and all the officials bowed to her.

Queen Cao looked around and fixed her eyes on the several Cao family generals.

"What are you doing here?"

Cao Yu bowed and said, "Your Majesty, the emperor's posthumous canonization of Concubine Zhang as Empress Wencheng is against etiquette, and we would like to seek justice."

"The court etiquette is supervised by the officials of ceremony, the censors, and the ministers of the Secretariat. When is it your turn to say anything? Go back!" Queen Cao said sternly.

As expected of a general’s daughter, her voice wasn’t loud, but it was enough to send shudders down one’s spine.

Cao Yu and others knew Queen Cao's temper and did not dare to refute her at all, so they left quickly.

immediately.

Empress Cao looked around and said gently, "My dear people, please listen to me for a few words."

"I think it's not impossible for the emperor to posthumously confer the title of Empress Wencheng on Consort Zhang."

Hearing this, the officials were all shocked, and even Su Liang looked at Queen Cao in surprise.

"Since Zhang entered the palace, she has been favored by the emperor, and everyone in the court knows about it. After that, Zhang gave birth to three daughters for the emperor. Although they died young, they still made contributions to the royal family."

"Afterwards, Zhang gave birth to a prince and was given the position of Imperial Consort, which was well deserved. Now that she has passed away unexpectedly, the government has made an exception for her and honored her as Empress, which is not unacceptable."

"The emperor and I are husband and wife, and more importantly, we are the emperor and his subject. As a subject, I should be more understanding of the emperor's difficulties. Now that our dynasty has successfully carried out reforms, it is a time of great prosperity. If this incident causes discord between the emperor and his subjects, it will be very harmful to the country."

"For the stability of the court and the prosperity of the Song Dynasty, I hope that you will understand the difficulties of the government and complete the funeral as soon as possible. Even if it violates the etiquette, it will only happen once. The unity of the monarch and his subjects is the most important thing."

After saying this, Empress Cao crossed her arms and bowed to the officials.

When the officials heard this, some of them couldn't help but shed tears.

Queen Cao is so sensible!

Over the years, Concubine Zhang has repeatedly acted like a demon in the harem. If it weren't for Empress Cao's kindness, the harem would have been in turmoil long ago.

All officials were proud that the Song Dynasty had such a queen.

Everyone bowed in return.

After the officials looked at each other, Wen Yanbo said, "Since the Queen has said so, then... for the sake of the stability of the court and the unity of the monarch and his subjects, we will follow the Emperor's wishes!"

The officials nodded.

The biggest victim in this incident was Queen Cao.

For the sake of the overall situation, Empress Cao was unwilling to pursue the matter. If the officials continued to quarrel with the emperor, it would inevitably affect the stability of the court and the relationship between the emperor and his subjects.

Just then, Su Liang stood up.

"No, we must not follow the official's wishes!"

All the ministers looked at Su Liang.

Queen Cao also looked at Su Liang with confusion on her face.

Su Liang was the one who understood the emperor's temper best among the court officials, otherwise he would not be called the emperor's favorite.

Su Liang slowed down, first bowed to Queen Cao, and then said: "The Queen is tolerant for the sake of the overall situation of the court, which makes me admire her very much, but I am afraid that this move will not only fail to satisfy the emperor, but will cause more serious problems in the future!"

"Su Qing, you...what do you mean?"

"The emperor has violated the rules and posthumously named Concubine Zhang as Empress Wencheng. All officials are against it, but under the queen's advice, all officials are willing to give in. The Cao family's military commanders are even more obedient to the queen's orders. If the emperor hears about this, what will he think?"

"The Queen, the civil and military officials, all tolerated it for the sake of the stability of the court and the unity of the monarch and his subjects, but he was the one who did something wrong. Although the Emperor is broad-minded, all the officials are grateful for the Queen's generosity and think that the Emperor is willful. This incident made the Emperor stand on the opposite side of the Queen and the civil and military officials, making him a lonely man."

"If the emperor starts to be wary of the queen, I'm afraid the queen and the eldest prince won't have an easy life in the future!"

Hearing this, Empress Cao hurriedly said, "Su Qing, I... I don't want to isolate the emperor, you think too much!"

Su Liang shook his head slightly.

"Empress, it doesn't matter whether you want it or not. The key is that you have the ability to help the eldest prince ascend to the throne and undermine the government!"

Wow!
When these words were spoken, all the officials were shocked.

Su Liang was really bold.

What he wanted to express was that Empress Cao had won the hearts of all officials with today's events, and had the ability to help the eldest prince ascend the throne at any time.

"Jingming, be careful with your words!" Ouyang Xiu said loudly.

Empress Cao looked at Su Liang and said, "Su Qing, I really shouldn't show up today. My silence is the greatest support to the emperor. Next, how should this matter be resolved?"

Empress Cao was very smart. She understood everything after Su Liang gave her just a little hint.

She is now.

With the Cao family as his backing, Cao Yi, the younger brother of the richest man in Kaifeng Prefecture, and the eldest prince who is first in line to the throne, he must keep a low profile, otherwise everything he does will be just trying to win people's hearts.

Su Liang looked at Queen Cao, made a gesture of invitation, and then said: "Queen, I hope you will never come to the government hall in this life!"

Empress Cao immediately understood and left the government hall with a group of palace maids.

Su Liang's words are quite meaningful.

The current Empress Cao is actually more powerful than Empress Dowager Liu back then.

If Zhao Zhen suddenly encountered an accident, she would definitely rule the country from behind the scenes. Based on her abilities, she might really become the next Wu Zetian.

Su Liang didn't want her to interfere in politics, and Empress Cao was also very smart.

He left immediately without asking how the matter should be resolved next.

At this moment, the officials also understood Su Liang's intention.

Whether Empress Cao intended to win the hearts of the people or not, she had to avoid suspicion.

Otherwise, if someone from the Cao family wants the eldest prince to succeed to the throne as soon as possible and uses some means, things will be bad.

Human nature simply cannot withstand temptation.

Some hidden dangers must be nipped in the bud.

Wen Yanbo took a long breath and said, "Jingming, what should we do next?"

Su Liang smiled helplessly.

"Let me try to persuade the emperor first, and then we can talk about it if it doesn't work!"

If Empress Cao had not appeared, it would have been no problem for officials to go against Zhao Zhen.

Because this was within Zhao Zhen's expectations, he imagined that Empress Cao would be tolerant and all officials would oppose it.

As for the results, it depends on your ability.

But since Empress Cao said this, the officials had to try their best to persuade her, otherwise the meaning of "The Empress and all the officials know the general situation, but only the emperor is too willful" would come true.

When Zhao Zhen realizes that he is alone, the court will become more chaotic and the conflicts between the monarch and his subjects will become greater.

Su Liang doesn't want these problems to occur.

Wen Yanbo nodded, looked at the officials, and said: "Everyone, the New Year has passed, and we must not forget our duties. Don't just think about this matter. This year, our tasks are still arduous, and we must not break the upward momentum!"

"Yes." The officials bowed.

(End of this chapter)