Chapter 41: Debut, a sudden enlightenment

Censor Tang Lian was a Jinshi in the 41st year of the Jiajing reign. He was not admitted to the Hanlin Academy and was sent to the local area to serve as the magistrate of Baodi County.

While in office, he repaired the city and dredged the moat. Because of his contribution in defending the city, he caught the attention of Gao Gong, and was promoted to the director of the Ministry of Works and later changed to the censor.

This is the most typical relationship between sponsor and sponsor in official circles.

Every time Gao Gong was impeached and submitted a petition to retire as per the rules, Tang Lian would join other students and old friends of Gao Gong in begging them to stay as prime minister.

It is this kind of character who is now kneeling on the ground and wailing, trying to distance himself from Gao Gong!

One could even say something like, Gao Gong is insane.

This is a person who is willing to be a traitor and even abandon his good reputation in the scholar community!
The court officials who had not yet read the memorial were even more panicked. What on earth was Gao Gong reporting that even his close friends had abandoned him?

Zhu Yijun looked at Tang Lian and said, "Tang Lian, I asked you to discuss matters, not to criticize your colleagues."

"Yuan Fu is a man of high moral character and prestige. He is the regent appointed by my father. How can you belittle him at will?"

Although Gao Gong really shocked him.

But it wasn't enough to make him lose his mind.

This matter can be big or small.

To put it simply, it was just a moment of impatience and lack of careful thinking.

To put it in a broader sense, it is rebellion!

If he had a brain seizure, he would have either identified it as the latter or turned the table over. How could he bear to let Zhu Xizhong raise the butcher knife until the last moment?

This concerns the stability of the court, and we must not speak carelessly.

Just like Tang Lian, who spoke without restraint, if Gao Gong was a lunatic, then what was the point of the previous emperor who favored him? And what was the point of the new emperor who assisted him?
There are winners and losers in a struggle, but if people are described as being insane, the situation will easily get out of control - unless Gao Gong really has 500 swordsmen and axemen stationed in this side hall, Gao Gong cannot be so insane.

After the ceremonial officer scolded Tang Lian and sent him out of the court, all the officials finished reading Gao Gong's memorial.

During this period, the Minister of Justice was old and weak, unable to stand for a long time, and fainted.

Everyone tried to rescue him, and his physical reactions were fine, but he couldn't open his eyes.

This made Gao Gong's followers even more anxious and at a loss as to what to do.

Zhu Yijun saw everything.

Was Gao Gong's memorial so powerful? Of course it was.

What are the five urgent new policies?

To put it simply, firstly, when the emperor was holding court, all government offices would report to him and the emperor would answer his questions personally, so the Imperial Household Department had nothing to do with it.

Secondly, after returning to the palace from court, the emperor would handle memorials personally, which meant that the two palaces were not allowed to interfere with the memorials.

Third, everything must be reported in person. What if the emperor is in the palace? In case of urgent and important matters, the ministers must be allowed to see him at any time, and no one can stop them.

Fourth, the emperor’s edict must be approved by the cabinet before it can be implemented.

Fifth, you can't just leave it in the middle and not send it out. What if you are stubborn? Then the third rule is tailor-made for you. Don't blame me for being pulled out in the middle of the night.

Any one of them could cause an uproar in the court.

Not to mention that all five matters were reported at the same time.

One can imagine the pressure that Feng Bao and Zhu Yijun were under, as they were forced to stand on the same front.

Zhu Yijun actually wanted to partially agree.

For example, abolishing the Imperial Household Department would help him get rid of Feng Bao. If he was too busy in the future, he could just reinstate him.

But for the rest... I can only shake my head.

The second one seems to be promoting the emperor's views, but don't forget that the country is in a state of uncertainty because the ruler is young.

It would not be fun if the Queen Mother was excluded and he had to face the cabinet alone.

The last three points make people wonder whether Gao Gong has lost his mind.

Without the consent of the cabinet, the imperial edict cannot leave the Forbidden City. So who is the emperor, you or me?
You also want to report to me at any time. If you can wake me up in the middle of the night, then what's the point of me being an emperor?
Zhu Yijun looked at Lu Diaoyang and said, "Mr. Lu, what do you think of what Yuan Fu said?"

He naturally understood why Feng Bao was pulled out to take over.

It would be best to reject Gao Gong’s memorial during the court discussion!

Otherwise, once it arrives at the palace, the people who make the memorial will not be easily controlled by the twenty-odd mouths in the court.

From local governors to provincial governors, there were many students and old friends of Gao Gong.

If the situation really gets out of hand, it won't be that easy to just send this memorial back.

Therefore, he had to step forward and put a stop to this matter in the court meeting.

This is probably one of the countermeasures that Feng Bao and Lu Diaoyang discussed yesterday.

He also responded tacitly and asked Lu Diaoyang what he thought first.

Lü Diaoyang had already prepared a plan in mind, and he bowed and replied, "I don't think so."

"Your Majesty is still in good health. Not only will you study hard every day, but you will also have to attend court. After the mourning period is over, you will also need to learn archery and military skills."

"The Prime Minister is blindly forcing things to happen. He has to answer imperial edicts in person, handle memorials, and meet with ministers at any time. I think this is absolutely unacceptable!"

This attitude is very clear.

The emperor was young and had to grow up, so he was unable to handle so many things.

Gao Gong's memorial obviously had ulterior motives!
Zhu Yijun nodded and looked at Wang Guoguang: "Wang Qing, what do you think?"

The order in which he ordered was naturally calculated.

First circle all the people who oppose it.

Putting aside the fact that people follow the crowd, just the fact that one person opposes it at a time, the psychological pressure alone will make those who are hesitant behind them bow their heads.

Wang Guoguang bowed and replied, "I also think otherwise."

"Just the sentence 'After the emperor has reviewed it, all the draft bills will be sent to the cabinet for review. If it is ready, it will be issued' is really inappropriate."

"According to the custom of the imperial court, not all memorials require Your Majesty to issue a cabinet draft bill before they can be issued."

"For example, the appointment and dismissal of the inner court is never discussed in the court. Otherwise, why didn't the cabinet discuss Li Jin's appointment as the governor of the East Factory yesterday?"

This statement was both speaking on behalf of the emperor and reminding the emperor that this was a real erosion of his power.

They were afraid that the emperor was too young to understand the meaning.

Zhu Yijun smiled and turned to look at Feng Bao: "Feng Daban, what Wang Qing said seems to make some sense, what do you think?"

Feng Bao had a blank expression on his face: "Your Majesty, since the Prime Minister does not need the approval of the Imperial Household Department, why not just ask for the seal directly?"

This is a very hurtful statement.

Your cabinet wants the right to propose proposals and the veto power, and the emperor's edicts must be approved by the cabinet. Why don't you just take the imperial seal as well?

Zhu Yijun didn't respond, and continued to point to them one by one: "Yang Qing, what do you think?"

Yang Bo hurriedly said: "Your Majesty and the Queen Mother's intention is the intention of our Ministry of War."

This old sly guy.

Zhu Yijun ignored all of Gao Gong's students and old friends, and left people like Ge Shouli, Han Ji, Luo Zun aside.

After all those who could be asked had been forced to express their opinions, only Gao Gong's people were left in the court.

Fortunately, it’s finally close to half.

Zhu Yijun ignored some people and said to himself: "Half of the court officials do not agree with the memorial submitted by the Prime Minister, so there is no need to discuss it further."

"Why not ask Yuan Fu to go back and polish it and revise it."

After some revisions and polishing, Gao Gong's memorial to retire had already been approved.

Lu Diaoyang immediately bowed down and said, "Your Majesty is wise!"

Wang Guoguang, Yang Bo, Zhang Siwei and others followed suit and bowed down to receive the imperial edict.

Zhu Heng and others were a little slower and quickly agreed.

At this time, everyone looked at Ge Shouli.

Ge Shouli was stunned for a moment, then finally bowed and accepted the order.

All the officials then breathed a sigh of relief.

Even Zhu Yijun and Feng Bao, who were on the imperial steps, couldn't help but look at each other and let out a sigh of relief.

Just when the two of them relaxed.

Sudden.

The eunuch who had just been sent by Feng Bao to deliver Gao Gong's retirement memorial came in from the side hall with an anxious look on his face.

When Zhu Yijun saw this scene, his heart skipped a beat.

Then he saw the eunuch whispering something in Feng Bao's ear.

Feng Bao's expression changed drastically: "What!?"

Then, he disregarded etiquette and turned around and walked down the imperial steps.

He dragged the young eunuch and left the court from the side!
……

Feng Bao could leave, but Zhu Yijun couldn't give up so easily.

He sat quietly until the court meeting was over.

This is not a mutiny, so there is no need to rush around.

For those in power, being able to remain calm in times of crisis is also an important quality.

After the court meeting ended and all officials left, Zhu Yijun only called out to Lu Diaoyang.

The two of them walked out of Wenhua Hall one after the other.

Zhu Yijun asked first: "Mr. Lu, don't you have anything to teach me?"

Lü Diaoyang practiced Tai Chi and said, "Your Majesty, if you have any doubts, I will tell you everything I know."

Zhu Yijun was in no mood to beat around the bush with him.

He waved his hand and asked directly, "What does Mr. Lu think of Yuan Fu's memorial?"

Lu Diaoyang hesitated and said, "Your Majesty, I have already answered this question in court..."

Zhu Yijun stopped and turned around suddenly.

He fixed his eyes on Lv Diaoyang and spoke word by word, "Mr. Lu, this is a serious matter. Please do not promise me falsely."

Lü Diaoyang had no choice but to sigh and said helplessly, "Since Your Majesty knows, why do you have to force me to do something?"

This is already a complaint.

Lu Diaoyang was really afraid of saying something wrong again.

Zhu Yijun shook his head: "The Prime Minister forced me to do this. Since the two elders are not here, I can only trust Lu Qing."

After saying this, he seemed to lose interest. Without waiting for Lu Diaoyang's answer, he raised his foot and continued walking forward.

Lu Diaoyang looked at the emperor's helpless back and felt inexplicably at a loss.

He paused for a moment, finally gritted his teeth and quickly followed him.

He walked up to the emperor and whispered, "Your Majesty, the Prime Minister's move is to depose the Imperial Household Department! Block the two palaces! Even restrict Your Majesty!"

"If this goes against the rules of a minister, I will not tolerate it!"

Zhu Yijun then slowed down and waited for Lu Diaoyang to catch up.

He turned his head to look at Lü Diaoyang and said in a desolate voice, "Mr. Lü, why does the Prime Minister treat me like this?"

Lu Diaoyang remained silent.

While the two were asking and answering each other, Zhang Hong came jogging over from the distance.

Zhang Hong came closer but did not speak directly.

He just glanced at Lu Diaoyang, his eyes inquiring at Zhu Yijun.

Zhu Yijun was displeased: "Lv Qing is a close and loyal minister. Tell me what is going on, and that means telling Lu Qing what is going on. Why should you be so secretive? Come and tell me what is going on."

Zhang Hong bowed and said, "Your Majesty, something happened at the Tongzhengsi just now."

"Feng Da'an's people went to get the memorial, but the Ministry of Public Administration said that the memorial had already been taken away by the Ministry of Ceremonies."

"The two sides started arguing."

After hearing this, Zhu Yijun took a deep breath to avoid showing his emotions.

He rubbed his eyebrows and seemed to have a headache.

Lu Diaoyang couldn't help but ask directly, "Didn't Feng Dayong go there? Did he get any results?"

Zhang Hong glanced at the emperor and felt relieved when he saw that there was no objection.

He nodded to Lü Diaoyang and replied, "Feng Dayong returned to the Imperial Household Department for this matter, so he naturally asked about it."

"It was the eunuch on duty who took the memorial away."

Lu Diaoyang was startled: "Where is the memorial?"

Zhu Yijun suddenly raised his hand and interrupted the two of them.

He looked puzzled, and muttered, "The memorial... was sent to Ciqing Palace, right?"

Lu Diaoyang reacted!
Shocked!
He looked at Zhang Hong suddenly, hoping to get an answer from him.

Under Lu Diaoyang's horrified eyes, Zhang Hong nodded slowly: "Yes, the eunuch in the hall has submitted the memorial to Empress Dowager Chen."

Zhu Yijun nodded.

He closed his eyes and sighed.

The clouds are cleared and the truth is revealed.

So that's how it is. Everything makes sense now.

Although he was half a step slow, he finally understood what Gao Gong relied on and finally realized what Gao Gong's plan was.

No wonder.

No wonder Gao Gong dared to submit this memorial entitled "Five Urgent Matters for the New Policy".

No wonder he had a close relationship with Chen Hong. When Gao Gong impeached Feng Bao, Chen Hong secretly submitted a memorial on his behalf.

No wonder Gao Gong dared to refute Li's order without restraint.

No wonder Gao Gong dared to promise Wang Chonggu the position of cabinet and dared not care about the emperor's right to education at all.

No wonder he had previously discovered that the two palaces had a bad relationship.

No wonder he was turned away when he went to see Queen Chen for the first time after traveling through time.

They are all actors.

He suddenly understood why the Li family had behaved so contradictory in history.

If Gao Gong was considered to be monopolizing power, he should be deposed. Then wouldn't Zhang Juzheng, who came after him, be even worse? Why were they just allowed to do what they wanted?
She drove Gao Gong away and appointed Zhang Juzheng as the chief minister, in charge of the Ministry of Personnel, the emperor's teacher, and a pillar of the country.

This is a completely advanced version of Gao Gong, why can it be tolerated?

Even if Feng Bao said something nice, he would still be somewhat cautious.

It turns out that the root is here...

He suddenly connected the connection that in history, after Gao Gong was deposed, the first thing Zhang Juzheng did was to give the two palaces the same title, erasing the last bit of weakness of Empress Dowager Li and making Empress Dowager Li equal to Empress Dowager Chen.

He suddenly understood that Feng Bao's bullying of Emperor Wanli, which made the emperor angrily comment that he was "deceiving the emperor and harming the country, with serious crimes", was not executed, but was protected by Li and sent to the main palace in Nanzhili.

Zhu Yijun had originally forgotten these details.

Now when I think about it, I suddenly remembered these details.

He even remembered that before Gao Gong was deposed, the "Memorial on Five Urgent Matters for the New Policy", whose content he had forgotten, was clearly passed!
The sentence "On the fourth day, I reported: I have read your reports, which are more in line with the new policies and show your loyalty and sincerity. All will be implemented as planned." lingers in my mind and cannot be shaken off.

Who passed?
The Emperor and Empress Dowager Li would definitely not approve this memorial, so it goes without saying who else could have done it.

Zhu Yijun finally understood.

The fog of history, half hidden and half revealed.

The records of facts cover up faults and mistakes.

It really was a big surprise hidden for him!
After figuring everything out, he suddenly smiled. Who said that this Prime Minister was not good at scheming?

Zhu Yijun looked at Lu Diaoyang and said, "Mr. Lu, why don't you go back to the Ministry of Rites? If I'm not mistaken, the Prime Minister should be in the Ministry of Rites this morning."

Lu Diaoyang was still in a daze.

Hearing this, he raised his head and said in surprise: "Your Majesty means...?"

Zhu Yijun shook his head and did not answer.

Just standing by the roadside, waiting quietly.

Not long after.

Jiang Keqian appeared in the distance, running towards us.

Zhu Yijun said to Lu Diaoyang, "Mr. Lu, I want to make a bet with you. If the Prime Minister is in the Ministry of Rites this morning, you will enter the cabinet to assist me in implementing the new policy. How do you think?"

When Lu Diaoyang heard this, he became confused.

Just as he was about to answer, the emperor did not give him a chance to speak and walked towards Jiang Keqian.

Lu Diaoyang's mind was still buzzing, and he followed subconsciously.

As soon as he approached, he heard the emperor say, "Is it about the prime minister?"

Jiang Keqian only had time to take a few deep breaths before he said anxiously, "The Prime Minister was at the Ministry of Rites this morning and decided on the titles for the two palaces!"

Lu Diaoyang was shocked!
Combined with the incident of the memorial being taken away just now, I finally understood what it meant!
Holding onto a last glimmer of hope, he asked, "What titles have you discussed for the two palaces?!"

Jiang Keqian is a man who gets things done.

He couldn't remember these things, so he copied them down on paper and kept them.

When asked about this, he took out a piece of paper from his sleeve and presented it to her.

Lu Diaoyang looked at the emperor, only to see the emperor waving his hand casually.

He then took it carefully.

After scanning the room, he muttered incoherently, "The titles of the two palaces are based on the old rules. Emperor Xianzong honored his stepmother, the Empress Dowager, as Empress Dowager Ciyi, and his biological mother, the Imperial Noble Consort, as Empress Dowager."

"Today's incident is exactly the same, so I honor your Majesty's legitimate mother, the Empress Dowager, as the Benevolent and Sacred Empress Dowager."

"Your Majesty's biological mother, the Empress Dowager, is... the Empress Dowager."

After finishing a sentence, he suddenly staggered two steps, his hands suddenly became weak, and he let the paper fall to the ground.

Zhang Hong, who was standing by, was quick-eyed and quickly supported Lu Diaoyang.

Lu Diaoyang came back to his senses, looked at the emperor, and said in a hoarse voice: "Your Highness, return to the Ministry of Rites immediately! Stop the memorial from the Ministry of Rites!"

Zhu Yijun nodded and said, "Zhang Daban, please see Lu Qing off for me."

He watched Lu Diaoyang walk away.

He slowly bent down and picked up the piece of paper.

He naturally knew in his heart that it was too late for Lu Diaoyang to go back now.

Gao Gong presented five urgent matters to the court, forcing them to respond.

It was just to take advantage of Lu Diaoyang's absence to go to the Ministry of Rites to discuss with the assistant ministers and chief priests the titles of the two palaces.

He then took advantage of the fact that he was the only one on duty in the cabinet to pass the draft bill.

By now, the memorial has probably already been sent to Empress Dowager Chen.

Don't underestimate the difference of just two words.

This is status, this is righteousness, this is a reputation.

The difference of two words makes the difference!
If these two words were really to be settled, the Empress Dowager would have no room to fight back against the Benevolent and Holy Empress Dowager.

Gao Gong had the support of Empress Dowager Chen and was almost a replica of Empress Dowager Li and Zhang Juzheng.

Even further! Zhang Juzheng still had to consider Feng Bao's mood when doing anything!

If Gao Gong really took back the power of the Imperial Household Department and transferred it to the Cabinet, he could then use Queen Mother Chen to exercise the imperial power on his behalf.

Everyone will be suffocated by Gao Gong!

Zhu Yijun even doubted his own identity, wondering if he was some kind of innate suppressed holy body.

If an underage emperor is not careful, he will be labeled as unfilial.

It’s okay if it’s just my biological mother, but what can a wild queen mother who is not of the same mind as me use to compete with Gao Gong?
High arch!

What a high arch!

There are so many heroes in this world!
Zhu Yijun put the paper in his arms and wrote down this lesson - the half-concealment of history books eventually caused him to suffer.

He looked at Jiang Keqian and said, "Go, ask Chen Mingyan to come to see me at the Qianqing Palace tonight."

"I will go and see the future 'Benevolent and Sacred Empress Dowager' first."

Gao Gong's skill of hanging the antelope by the horns certainly amazed him.

But he did not forget that Gao Gong was eventually dismissed from office in the end.

This round is not over yet!

　Note 1: On the th day of the th month of the th year of the Longqing reign, the Grand Secretary Gao Gong proposed five urgent matters concerning the new policy… Four days later, he reported: “I have read your reports, which are more urgent than the new policy. I have shown your loyalty and loyalty, and will proceed as planned.” — “Records of Emperor Shenzong of the Ming Dynasty”

　　Note 2: On the first day of the seventh month of the sixth year of the Longqing reign, Grand Secretary Zhang Juzheng said that the Ministry of Rites had discussed the honorific titles of the two palaces... Now the Holy Mother Empress and the Holy Mother Imperial Noble Consort are both equally gracious and benevolent, so how can the honorific titles be different? - "The Veritable Records of Emperor Shenzong of the Ming Dynasty"

　　
　
(End of this chapter)