The Prosperous Era of Longwan

Gao Zhong led several young chamberlains to the outside of Yongshou Palace carrying today's memorial, but stopped at the palace gate.

Outside the gate of Yongshou Palace, all the eunuchs and chamberlains around Emperor Jiajing can be seen. Only Huang Jin is not here. He should be serving His Majesty inside.

For the close eunuchs who were familiar with Emperor Jiajing, Gao Zhong knew when he saw the situation in front of him that Emperor Jiajing must have taken the elixir inside. Only at this time, after taking the elixir, Emperor Jiajing still had to perform celestial exercises under the protection of the alchemists. , absorb the medicinal power in the elixir, and cannot be disturbed by the outside world.

Under such circumstances, in addition to leaving Huang Jin in Yongshou Palace, other eunuchs and chamberlains would be rushed outside the palace gate to wait.

"Who's in there?"

When Gao Zhong came here, he asked a eunuch in charge.

"Eunuch Gao, Your Majesty is taking the elixir. We dare not disturb him. In addition to Eunuch Huang, there is also Gao Shouzhong and Zhenren Gao who are protecting His Majesty."

"Oh, that's how it is."

Gao Zhong nodded after hearing this. Gao Shouzhong was also one of the worshipers in the palace. He was responsible for refining the daily practice elixirs for Emperor Jiajing and guiding his majesty to take the medicine.

Under such circumstances, they naturally did not dare to go in and could only wait outside.

Gao Zhong stood outside the Yongshou Palace. The servants who had previously crowded the palace entrance consciously separated to make way for them.

Gao Zhong walked lightly along this road to the palace gate and looked inside for a moment. Then he turned back and asked the chamberlain next to him in a low voice, "How long have you been out here?"

"Grandpa, we have been out for two quarters of an hour."

This little chamberlain is Chen Ju's godson. Even though Chen Ju is only eighteen or nineteen, he has already adopted two or three godsons. When he is not in Yongshou Palace, the big things and small things that happen in Yongshou Palace are that his godsons keep an eye on him and look back. tell him.

It's only two-quarters of an hour, so I came a little early, and it won't be over in less than half an hour.

Gao Zhong sighed secretly. If he had known it earlier, it would be better to sit in the ceremonial office for a while longer.

"What's going on, Your Majesty? In the past, I didn't take elixirs at this time."

But Gao Zhong was also wondering, this was not the time to take the elixir.

"The emperor asked me to take out those memorials two days ago and read them again. I became angry and broke my mood, so I took the elixir to calm down."

The little waiter replied in a low voice.

"oh."

Gao Zhong understood that Emperor Jiajing was no longer dissatisfied with what King Hui had done, but was deeply disgusted with it. King Hui was definitely doomed.

The status of Emperor Jiajing determined that he could not take it lightly when the princes of the royal family overstepped their bounds.

Thinking of this, Gao Zhong thought of Huang Jin. When he knew this, he was still a little unsure of His Majesty's attitude, but Huang Jin nodded after hearing this.

It seems that Huang Jin is really the first person in the palace who knows His Majesty.

After finding a seat by the door, Gao Zhong leaned against the palace door and squinted his eyes to rest for a while. It was still early anyway.

He didn't know how long it had passed before he felt someone touching him gently behind him.

Gao Zhong opened his eyes and looked behind him. It was Chen Ju, winking at him and gesturing for him to look inside.

Gao Zhong understood that His Majesty's meritorious deeds in Yongshou Palace should have been completed.

Looking back at the palace door, sure enough, the door of the main hall had been opened by Huang Jin. Emperor Jiajing was in front and Gao Shouzhong was walking out.

Looking at Emperor Jiajing's complexion now rosy, it seems that his skills have improved greatly again.

But soon, the face of Emperor Jiajing, who had been kind and kind before, turned cold, seemingly because of what Gao Shouzhong behind him said.

However, Gao Zhong did not need to stay here anymore at this time. He straightened his robes and walked into Yongshou Palace. Chen Ju and other eunuchs also filed in according to their rank, and entered the square of Yongshou Palace from both sides of the imperial road.

"Don't worry about Hui's affairs."

Gao Zhong walked in front, walking towards Emperor Jiajing with a face filled with joy, ready to flatter him after meeting him and make his majesty happy. However, when he got closer, he heard these words from Emperor Jiajing's mouth.

Don't worry about Hui's affairs. Is Gao Shouzhong trying to help King Hui to excuse himself?

It had only been a few days, and it was impossible for the news to reach Junzhou and then come back.

It seems that Gao Shouzhong usually collects King Hui's property, otherwise he would not speak for King Hui at this time.

Thinking about it, King Hui became favored because the previous generation joined Emperor Jiajing’s Taoist training group. The third generation of King Hui, Zhu Houjuan, became Emperor Jiajing’s because Tao Zhongwen said he liked Taoism and was diligent in practicing. A real person's seal of "Tai Qing Fu Yuan Xuan Hua Zhenren" was originally intended to assist him in practicing Taoist techniques.

The prince did not dare to interfere with the big and small affairs of the court, but he could freely communicate with the Taoist priests. Even if someone checked, it was just that they were exchanging cultivation experiences.

Gao Zhong's heart suddenly dropped, and it seemed that His Majesty was extremely disappointed with King Hui. King Hui's fate was already determined in the emperor's heart.

In the past, I only thought that Liang Gaofu was the only friend that King Hui had, but I didn't expect that Gao Shouzhong also spoke for King Hui.

It seems that King Hui is not a fool. He knows not to make friends with courtiers, so he targets the alchemists. These people have more opportunities to contact the emperor than most courtiers, and most of them are in private situations.

Approaching the emperor, before Gao Zhong had time to kowtow and salute, he saw Emperor Jiajing frowning slightly and asked: "So many memorials today?"

Behind Gao Zhong must be Chen Ju and others who came with the memorial. This time there were many more people than the two or three people who came over in the past. There were six or seven chamberlains carrying the memorial.

"When I return to Your Majesty, most of them are impeachment memorials."

Gao Zhong lowered his head and replied.

"Take it in."

Emperor Jiajing understood what the extra things were. In fact, he noticed yesterday that there were more impeachment memorials, and they were all directed at King Hui.

Afterwards, Emperor Jiajing glanced at Gao Shouzhong, but said nothing, but his meaning was very clear.

"The emperor has many things to do every day, but also pays attention to rest. I will take my leave."

The emperor had to deal with the memorial, which was a national matter, and naturally it was not something that a Taoist priest like him could get involved in.

Gao Shouzhong knew that King Hui might be up to something bad when he mentioned King Hui twice before and received the emperor's answer.

In the past, he had been collecting King Hui's belongings. This time when Wei Guangde impeached King Hui, he didn't take it seriously. But yesterday he heard that many courtiers had submitted impeachment memorials, so the steward sent by King Hui in Beijing hurriedly found him. Please make peace with yourself in front of the emperor.

It had not been there for many years. Thinking about the original situation, Gao Shouzhong naturally agreed with all the gifts.

I just didn't expect that His Majesty directly rejected this matter today, with no intention of letting go.

After seeing Emperor Jiajing nodding in approval, Gao Shouzhong saluted Emperor Jiajing again, then slowly retreated to the entrance of the palace, and then turned and left Yongshou Palace.

After Gao Zhong led his men to deliver the memorial to Yongshou Palace, Emperor Jiajing withdrew his gaze from the palace gate and turned back to the palace.

"Put the impeachment memorial at the end and read the rest first."

Emperor Jiajing sat back in his seat and spoke one after another.

Soon, the palace returned to its previous scene. The young eunuch began to read out the memorials and drafts. Emperor Jiajing responded by knocking on the chime, and Gao Zhong knelt down behind the low table to applaud the emperor.

One memorial after another was processed, and nearly an hour passed quickly.

Seeing that there were no memorials in the young eunuch's hand, but there were several large piles of unread memorials on the table next to him, Emperor Jiajing knew that those were for the impeachment of King Hui.

"Have you checked?"

Emperor Jiajing moved his body and found a comfortable position to lean on the dragon chair and asked.

"After checking, the two fans who were present in Dongchang at the time were also found and confirmed that the matter was correct."

Huang Jin took a step forward at this time, bowed and said to Emperor Jiajing.

"You don't accept this kind of thing in Dongchang?"

Emperor Jiajing said casually.

"Your Majesty, Dongchang only investigates matters within Jijing. King Hui is in Junzhou, and only Jin Yiwei can do that."

Huang Jin said a little aggrieved.

In fact, under his rule, according to Emperor Jiajing's preference, as long as it was not involved in major cases, most of the time Dongchang would just watch on the sidelines and record it silently instead of taking action.

More things are actually done by the Jin Yiwei controlled by Lu Bing.

This is also a tacit understanding between him and Lu Bing. After all, they are both people who came out of Anlu.

Therefore, in recent years, Dongchang’s presence in Beijing has been very low.

"What about the others? What happened to the ministers who presented memorials in the past two days."

Emperor Jiajing continued to ask.

"There are contacts among the ministers from Henan, and they are discussing the impeachment of King Hui together. Many people are aware of what King Hui has done, but they have not written for impeachment. Now I see Qingliu from the Hanlin Academy and the group of new scholars following Wei Guangde I have written a memorial to impeach King Hui, and I am also thinking of submitting a letter to impeach him, but no other abnormalities have been found for the time being."

Huang Jin answered Emperor Jiajing's questions carefully. Now is a sensitive period. Emperor Jiajing's trust in ministers has dropped to a historical low. Even Yan Song has not been summoned in the past few days.

"Who are the memorials for today?"

Emperor Jiajing suddenly looked at Gao Zhong at this time and asked. Gao Zhong was the only one in the room who knew the contents of the memorial. He must have read all those sent here.

"Today, people from the Metropolitan Procuratorate, the Ministry of Rites, and the Ministry of Punishment have submitted letters, and there are also many scientific papers."

Gao Zhong hurriedly answered the emperor's questions without any delay.

"Haha, they are all old foxes. They wait until others are almost done before they follow suit. Haha, they are all my good ministers."

A smile suddenly appeared on Emperor Jiajing's face, but when this smile fell in the eyes of Huang Jin and Gao Zhong, they couldn't help but tremble in their hearts.

"Go back and sort out the list of ministers who submitted the letter. I want to see who they are."

Emperor Jiajing ordered Gao Zhong.

"Yes, Your Majesty, the new Jinshi is still watching the government, do you want to sort out a copy?"

Except for Yijia and Wei Guangde, none of the new Jinshi have been conferred yet. However, some people from the Ministry of Punishments may be conferred and released in the near future, so Gao Zhong wanted to confirm. After all, more than 20 Jinshis from this batch have followed. Those who issue impeachment memorials, are they considered ministers in the eyes of the emperor?

"List them separately. Ask the Ministry of Personnel for a list of official appointments."

After saying this, Emperor Jiajing looked at the pair of memorials and had no intention of listening anymore. He waved his hand and said, "I will keep them all."

Still not giving a reply, no matter whether it is approval or rejection, this means that the situation will become even bigger.

This is the case with courtiers. For some matters, if the emperor does not respond at first, they will become more interested, and they will continue to write letters repeatedly, and continue to expand the situation.

To calm down, it would take a long time until they were exhausted.

To amplify the situation, that is to not respond first and wait until everyone is in trouble before taking action.

This can be regarded as the great ceremony incident. Emperor Jiajing realized a common problem among courtiers. When someone else submitted a letter about something, they would follow, one after another.

As long as it is not a major military matter, the current Emperor Jiajing can handle it with ease.

All you need to do is delay it for a while, wait for the courtiers to make a fuss, express their opinions, and take action at the climax of the letter if you want to deal with it.

Otherwise, it will be premature to take action. No matter what choice you make, there will inevitably be people nagging behind your back.

If you don't want to deal with it, it's easy to deal with it, just keep hanging on and ignore them.

Therefore, in this era, the speed of government affairs processing in the Jiajing Dynasty felt very slow and very inefficient. However, in the eyes of Emperor Jiajing, it was indeed the most effective method.

"Don't worry about Hui's affairs."

Whether intentionally or not, the news that Gao Shouzhong spoke to King Hui in front of Emperor Jiajing spread throughout the official circles of the capital in two days, and everyone could see the emperor's attitude at this time.

Completely contrary to the situation in previous years, Emperor Jiajing's words were equivalent to sending a signal-Zhu Zai was finished.

More impeachment memorials rushed into the General Affairs Department like a flood. As a last resort, the cabinet directly arranged for people to sort out the memorials. They signed all the memorials to impeach King Hui according to the contents of the previous draft and sent them to the Secretary of Ceremonies.

At this time, Yan Song and Xu Jie were too lazy to take another look at such a memorial.

Within ten days, the direction of the entire Ming Dynasty court was unanimously aimed at Prince Hui's Mansion in Junzhou, which was thousands of miles away.

At this time, King Hui had received the news from the capital and was extremely anxious. However, water far away could not quench his thirst. He could do nothing but prepare several carts of property and send them to the capital immediately.

At the very least, King Hui did not dare to write a letter to defend himself before the emperor issued an order to accuse him.

How do you know that the court in the capital is impeaching you? If you can't explain it clearly, you are just spying on the government.

Just when almost all officials in the capital were involved, the time that Emperor Jiajing was waiting for was ripe.

Although the impeachment memorials were not sent back to the cabinet, the cabinet was ordered to discuss with the six ministries and nine ministers to determine a candidate for the imperial envoy to go to Junzhou to verify the misdeeds of King Hui.

Naturally, the court cannot punish anyone just by chance. Necessary review procedures are still required.

The announcement of this decree made the officials in Beijing very excited, as if it was their victory.

Going to Junzhou to verify the misdeeds of King Hui is a good job. For a simple trip, you will get all the credit for your political achievements and get a good reputation. Who wouldn't want to?

The most active departments are the Metropolitan Procuratorate, the Ministry of Rites and other departments. Originally, the Zongren Mansion was the most appropriate department to investigate cases like the prince. After all, it was originally the yamen in charge of the royal family. However, after Yongle, the Zongren Mansion was mostly composed of Xunqi is in charge of affairs, but the matters under its jurisdiction are all handed over to the Ministry of Rites, so the Zongren Mansion exists in name only.

For Wei Guangde, the initiator of the storm, he has naturally gained glory in front of his colleagues and others in the Hanlin Academy in the past few days.

The two impeachments were successful, but Wei Guangde did not dare to be proud because Chen Ju never sent him the results of his plan.