Qin Kan left Qianqing Palace with a smile on his face. The smile on his face was very relaxed, as if the purpose of entering the palace today was really just to drink tea and chat with the emperor, and talk about his ideals and life.
The border army officers and soldiers were still gathered around the gate of Qianqing Palace, watching Zhu Houcong's every move viciously. Ding Shun pressed one hand on the embroidery knife at his waist, glaring at Zhu Houcong murderously, with a fierce light in his eyes, as if he had the will to kill him. The emperor had the urge to kill him with the sword, but when he thought of Qin Kan's cold face, Ding Shun was trembling and had to quietly put away the fierce light in his eyes.
Zhu Houcong was still sitting in the hall blankly, staring at the empty tea cup on the tea set in front of him, not knowing what he was thinking.
In the silence, a graceful and graceful figure quietly appeared outside the palace door.
Ding Shun and countless other soldiers hurriedly stepped aside, bowed and clasped their fists in salute, and said in unison: "I've seen the fourth lady."
Tang Zihe walked slowly and walked into the palace with lotus steps. He stood in front of Zhu Houcong and bowed before him, saying: "The Tang family of Qin clan pays homage to your majesty."
Zhu Houcong's dull eyes slowly turned to her: "Qinmen? Are you Qin Kan's wife?"
Tang Zihe smiled and said, "Yes, she is just one of the ladies."
"What do you want to see me for?"
Tang Zihe raised his head and looked at him without any scruples. There was a smile on his pretty face, but his eyes were colder than cold iron. Zhu Houcong felt uncomfortable for a while, only to feel a sharp blade scraping back and forth on his face. Somewhat embarrassed.
After a long time, just when Zhu Houcong was about to get angry, Tang Zihe spoke quietly.
"The right time, right place and right people, really he has taken advantage of everything. No matter how many years older he is, he won't be able to achieve anything, and no matter how many years younger he is, he can't achieve anything. It's just luck given by God."
"What on earth are you talking about? Did Qin Kan send you to humiliate me?" Zhu Houcong's tone increased.
Tang Zihe smiled softly and said: "My master only sees the world in his eyes. Even the rebellion is fought openly from the city gate to the palace gate. How could he be so narrow-minded and send his wife to insult you? Your Majesty is really worried. "
"What on earth are you here for?"
Tang Zihe¡¯s face was full of smiles. But he deliberately sighed and said: "The master does things neatly and neatly, but unfortunately he is a little sloppy. As a wife, I have a hard life, so I have to help him clean up the aftermath. Although he works hard and never complains, he often scolds me and scolds me. You say my fate Isn¡¯t life miserable?¡±
Zhu Houcong said angrily: "What do you think this has to do with me?"
"Of course it does matter. Didn't I just say that? I help him deal with the aftermath everywhere. Today, Your Majesty is one of the people I need to deal with the aftermath"
"What mean?" Zhu Houcong looked at her pretty face, as beautiful as a peach and plum, but it seemed as if he saw a poisonous snake with beautiful stripes spitting out its seeds in front of him, and his expression couldn't help but feel a little frightened.
Tang Zihe took out a brown-red pill from his sleeve, placed it in the teacup in front of Zhu Houcong, and filled the cup with water. The pills quickly turned into nothingness when they met the water, but the glass of light yellow water gradually turned red, as red as blood.
"Your Majesty, don't worry. Since my master has said, 'The king is still the king, and the minister is still the minister', we will not harm your life, but that's it. Don't worry, you have to let my master rest assured. You said Is it right?"
Zhu Houcong stared at the blood-red potion and said in horror: "This, this is"
Tang Zihe talked eloquently as if he was chatting with a close friend for many years: "This is a medicine made of seven kinds of poisonous weeds and seven kinds of poisonous insects. Yes, it is a highly poisonous medicine. When it attacks, it is like thousands of arrows piercing the heart. The internal organs in the abdomen will rapidly It swells, then shrinks rapidly, and finally dies, making life worse than death, so I gave it a nice name, "Erotic Belly", but although this thing is poisonous, its toxicity is slow. If you take the antidote once a year , it can inhibit the effects of the medicine and never cause an attack. If you forget to take the antidote for a yearwell, that will be terrible, even gods can't save you."
"I figured out this poison in my spare time. Even though there are countless famous doctors in the world, no one can solve it because no one knows what the seven poisonous weeds and seven poisonous insects are, let alone the origin of each poison. To put it bluntly, I am the only one who can cure this kind of poison. Of course, starting from tomorrow, my master can also cure it. Why don¡¯t you give it a try? I added a little honey to it, and the taste is still very sweet ¡¡±
Tang Zihe talked a lot, like a medical representative selling medicines, trying his best to coax the little emperor to take medicine, with a very kind and kind expression.
Zhu Houcong turned pale with fright, looked at the blood-red cup of medicinal soup in front of him in horror, pursed his lips and shook his head vigorously.
The failure to become emperor does not prove that he is stupid. On the contrary, he is much smarter than most of his peers, otherwise he would not have brought so much trouble to Qin Kan at his young age. Obviously, the so-called "taste" Such a tempting advertising slogan is "Sweet".It can't move him. This is poison. If you drink it without taking the antidote, you will die. Zhu Houcong is not a foodie like Xu Pengju. How dare he eat it no matter how sweet it is?
Tang Zihe reluctantly tried to persuade her a few more times, with a sincere and sincere expression like an old military doctor on a telephone pole advising a patient not to give up treatment. After half a stick of incense, Tang Zihe finally lost his patience and showed his ferocious face.
The heroine, who kills hundreds of people with just a smile, has never been very patient, and today is an exception.
"Who do you think you are, Your Majesty, at this time today?" Tang Zihe's eyes shot out a sharp cold light.
Zhu Houcong flinched and said calmly: "Qin Kan said I am still the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty."
Tang Zihe's seductive cherry lips curled up quietly, and he said softly: "It seems that Your Majesty is still not satisfied with his situation. From today on, my master is a swordsman and Your Majesty is a fish. Can't Your Majesty still see the current situation clearly?" "
Zhu Houcong was shocked and angry, full of grief, anger and hatred, but he did not dare to show up in front of Tang Zihe. He lowered his head and stared at the tea cup in front of him in silence.
After a long time, Zhu Houcong finally sighed resignedly, picked up the tea cup with tears, and drank it silently.
A night of fierce fighting, inside and outside the city, was covered with the corpses of soldiers in front and behind the palace. The white jade floor tiles in the palace were stained dark red with blood. At dawn, more than a thousand eunuchs in the palace, led by the eunuchs, were carrying The wooden bucket and brush vigorously washed the dried and solidified blood everywhere in the palace. They kept washing and brushing. Not long after, the blood was finally washed away, and the white jade revealed its original noble color again, as if everything had been obliterated and nothing happened last night.
The officers and soldiers of the border army guarded Qin Kan, and everyone slowly walked out of the palace gate.
The frightened eunuchs and the surrendered Han generals hurriedly opened the gate of Chengtian Palace and watched Qin Kan slowly walk out in awe. They know that from today on, the Ming Dynasty will change. From now on, the real person in charge of the huge country will be the world-famous Duke Qin Perhaps, he will soon become more than just a Duke.
Ding Shun followed Qin Kan, faintly one step behind. Reporting the results of last night's battle.
"Last night the regiment was defeated. The frontier cavalry killed more than 20,000 soldiers of the regiment. The rest retreated and fled into the countryside and mountains. They were allowed to retreat according to the Lord's instructions."
"In the early hours of this morning, Duoyan tribe's 10,000 elite cavalry arrived outside Tanghe Town. They were encountering the troops of Miyun, Yanshan and other three guards. The two sides fought at the first touch. Duoyan tribe Tana killed the Yanshan guard's forward in front of the formation, and several times After charging, the three guards were defeated"
Qin Kan nodded while listening, but didn't say a word.
¡¡¡¡
The palace door opened, and golden sunlight poured in. The light shone warmly on Qin Kan's body, but Qin Kan suddenly stopped.
On Chengtianmen Square, nearly a thousand ministers stood quietly in their respective court uniforms. The ministers were surrounded by armored soldiers of the border army, with their swords unsheathed and arrows cocked. He stared at these ministers with cold and alert expressions.
Yang Tinghe, Liang Chu, and Jiang Mian, the three cabinet bachelors, stood in the forefront, followed by the six ministers and ministers. Behind them were rows of six members, chief ministers, chief ministers of various temples, young ministers, and chief officials of various departments and bureaus. There were more than a thousand people, large and small, standing there. It could be said that almost all officials from the capital were present at this moment.
Not far from the minister, there were still some nobles and generals standing. They were in clearly different camps from the minister. However, everyone's eyes were fixed on Qin Kan at the same time, with anger, sadness, hatred, and joy. foot.
Facing all kinds of looks with different meanings, Qin Kan looked at everyone calmly, his eyes were magnanimous and fearless.
After a long time, Jiang Mian, the great scholar of Jinshen Palace, took a step forward and said, "Qin Kan, where is the Holy Emperor?"
Qin Kan cupped his hands and said, "The Holy Emperor pays his respects."
Liang Chu, the great scholar of Huagaidian, took another step forward and said angrily: "You want to usurp the throne and become emperor, have you ever asked us, our loyal and upright ministers?"
Qin Kan smiled: "I have not usurped the throne, and I will not proclaim myself emperor."
Yang Tinghe looked at Qin Kan with complicated eyes. For a long time, he lowered his head and sighed, remaining silent.
Liang Chu looked up to the sky and smiled: "Haha, last night the Liaodong Frontier Army killed Tuanying and Tengxiang's Fourth Guards Camp in mountains of blood and corpses inside and outside the city. They were defeated in a sea of ??blood. Finally, you broke into the palace. The Holy Emperor did not know whether he was alive or dead. You killed so many people. After paying such a heavy price, you claim that you will not usurp the throne and deceive me that all the people in the world are fools? You are making nonsense and making people laugh!"
Qin Kan still smiled and repeated again: "I have not usurped the throne, and I will not proclaim myself emperor."
Jiang Mian let out a "poof" and said angrily: "Ask the ministers in the court, who will believe your lies? You traitor, if you want to become emperor, you must kill all the civil servants and scholars in the world."Absolutely, otherwise, you can't be the emperor! "
Huang Shishan, a member of the household department, suddenly came out of the crowd, pointed at Qin Kan and said with a sad smile: "You are the king of the country that has perished, and I am also the minister of the country that has perished. I am only loyal to Zhu Ming, and I will never recognize a traitor who steals the country and usurps the throne. New Lord! Qin Kan, you only occupied the imperial capital of the Ming Dynasty, but you did not occupy all the state capitals in the world. The vassal kings and guards from all over the Ming Dynasty will definitely mobilize their armies to march to the capital to serve the king. Rebels, wait for heaven to take you! Late Emperor, I am It¡¯s up to you¡ª¡±
After saying that, Huangshishan stomped his feet heavily, lowered his head and hit the steel knife held by the guarded frontier soldiers next to him. A member of the Baihu family was unable to dodge, and the tip of the knife hit Huangshishan's chest, and instantly penetrated Huangshishan's chest. Grinning miserably, he hung his head and died.
The square became quieter and quieter. Huangshishan's death for his country made everyone look more angry and sad. Everyone looked at Huangshishan's body in silence. Many people lowered their heads and sobbed. A deep-seated hatred gradually filled the air and spread.
The mournful atmosphere infected all the ministers. Soon, two more ministers came out of the crowd, pointed at Qin Kan and cursed "traitor" three times, then slammed their heads into the palace pillars of Chengtianmen and died, and then the fourth One, the fifth
The civil servants of the Ming Dynasty were hypocritical, greedy, selfish, and arrogant almost all the despicability of human nature can be found in them. However, at this moment when the country was destroyed and the city was overthrown, they finally had the responsibility of being human ministers. He chose to die with his country in his own way.
How can the two words "good" and "bad" be used to describe the human heart in this world?
Qin Kan calmly watched one minister after another die generously, with the expression on his face like a pool of stagnant water, without any ripples, until more than sixty corpses were piled up in the square, and there were no ministers left. When he had the courage to choose to die, Qin Kan suddenly looked up to the sky and laughed.
this. Is this the taste that Wanfu is referring to?
Yang Tinghe finally took a step forward and said in a trembling voice with tears in his eyes: "Qin Kan, that's enough. Too many people have died. It's really enough!"
"A heart of ice is in a jade pot, even if tens of millions of people die in front of me, it can't affect my ambition!" Qin Kan turned away from his usual gentle image, stared at his red eyes, and roared at the ministers with a ferocious expression.
Liang Chu knelt in front of the corpses of more than 60 people who had died for his country and cried loudly. He turned his head and stared at Qin Kan angrily: "Traitor, what are you going to do? You can't be the emperor. Even if you kill all the ministers and scholars in the world, you Can you kill the human heart in the world?"
Outside the crowd. Suddenly there was a familiar sigh.
"He can't, I can."
Everyone turned around in astonishment, stared closely, and couldn't help but turn pale with shock.
Two teams of frontier soldiers were surrounded by a man wearing a golden dragon robe and a golden pterodactyl crown, but it turned out to be the Zhengde Emperor Zhu Houzhao, who had been missing for many days without news!
"Your Majesty!"
"Your Majesty!"
After all the ministers were astonished, they all knelt down and worshiped.
Zhu Houzhao ignored the kneeling ministers and walked slowly through the crowd surrounded by soldiers. When he walked up to Qin Kan and saw Qin Kan bowing his head and kneeling in front of him, Zhu Houzhao glanced at him with complex eyes, and then saw the more than 60 corpses of those who had died for the country. After staring for a moment, Zhu Houzhao suddenly shed tears. .
"They are all loyal ministers, and they are all heroic and generous people. Those who come will be buried with the courtesy of a national scholar."
"yes."
Zhu Houzhao endured the heartache, slowly looked around the ministers, and cried: "I. After all, I have failed the world."
"I would like to congratulate Your Majesty on your recovery and your return in good health."
"Your Majesty, I have committed a crime of stealing the country and usurping the throne, and plotting rebellion to force the palace. I will not pardon ten fines for major crimes and thirty fines for minor crimes"
"Your Majesty, the Qin Kan rebels conspired with Ye Jinquan, the governor of Liaodong, to rebel. Please punish them severely!"
¡°¡¡¡¡±
After a brief moment of consternation, voices of disapproval arose from all directions, and the square soon fell into chaos and noise.
Zhu Houzhao looked at everyone until the voices of Shen Cai became smaller and smaller, and finally became silent. Zhu Houzhao sighed quietly: "Am I still the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty?"
The ministers were startled and heard the meaning of Zhu Houzhao's words. After looking at each other, Mao Cheng, the Minister of Rites, stood up, hesitated for a moment, and said with regret: "I am waiting for death. Your Majesty has not been heard from that day. The country cannot be left without a master for a day. After the court discussions, they had no choice but to choose Zhu Houcong, the son of King Xingxian, as the emperor. He had been enthroned a month ago and became the emperorAccording to the system, your majesty is the supreme emperor."
"The Supreme Emperor?" Zhu Houzhao curled his lips: "Is this the result of your court discussion?"
"yes¡¡"
"So, where is the edict of succession?"
As soon as these words came out, all the ministers' expressions changed, and they were suddenly dripping with cold sweat.This is a very serious problem. Before the death of emperors in the past dynasties, they would usually write a posthumous edict. If some emperors passed away without having time to write the edict, then the ministers would write the edict on behalf of the emperor, in the order of eldest, youngest and descendants. Designating the heir to the throne is both legal. However, a big problem arose in the succession of the throne in the Zhengde Dynasty, that is After the heir to the throne selected by the ministers' court ascended the throne, the previous emperor appeared inexplicably!
This is unprecedented in ancient times. The previous emperor has appeared, so is the succession edict drafted and promulgated by the cabinet minister still valid? In other words, is the status of Zhu Houcong, the new emperor who has only been on the throne for just one month, still legal?
The ministers broke out in cold sweat. From ancient times to the present, monarchs and ministers have paid attention to "the name is correct and the words are correct." If the name is not correct, the words will not be correct, and everything will be in vain. Thinking about it more deeply, if Zhu Houzhao shakes his head at this moment and denies Zhu Houcong's status as emperor, then, Zhu Houcong is really not an emperor. What Qin Kan did last night has immediately changed its nature. It is tantamount to punishing the hypocrite, diligent in the king's affairs, and a just act of clearing the palace. And the Tuanying and Tengxiang Four Guards who fought hard to guard the palace are also tantamount to It is to help the evil lord to do evil.
"This, this" Even though Mao Cheng was well versed in etiquette from ancient times to the present, he was sweating profusely and his face was pale. He could not find any examples from various dynasties. It was so difficult to find, from ancient times to the present. There has never been an example of the former emperor returning after the new emperor ascended the throne. Even the case of the former emperor lying in the coffin pretending to be dead has never happened.
Zhu Houzhao looked at the reactions of the ministers, smiled faintly, and said: "Since I have not issued an imperial edict, do you recognize me as the emperor now, or do you recognize Zhu Houcong as the emperor?"
Yang Tinghe¡¯s eyes flashed, and the sadness in his eyes was no longer there, replaced by a deep joy. Hearing this, he hurriedly said: "If your name is not right, your words will not be right. I respect your majesty as the only emperor of the Ming Dynasty."
Yang Tinghe took the lead, and the ministers thought about it and felt that this was really the case. The real emperor had returned, and the Jiajing Emperor Zhu Houcong was no longer a legitimate emperor from any point of view.
So all the ministers knelt down in submission and said in unison: "Long live my emperor."
Listening to the overwhelming cries, Zhu Houzhao didn't look happy at all, and said calmly: "This scene in front of me seems very familiar. After the civil revolution, Emperor Yingzong was captured by Walaye first. The courtiers would rather die than surrender, and elected Jingtai as the emperor. , took charge of the government and fought against Oala. Later, Yingzong was released by Oala and imprisoned in the palace by Emperor Jingtai. Finally, Yingzong launched a mutiny, captured the Nine Gates, and finally ascended the throne and proclaimed himself emperor again. This situation today is so similar to that of the past, dear ministers Do you think so?"
The hearts of all the ministers sank.
Zhu Houzhao¡¯s words were naturally not just telling them stories and chatting for no reason. They must have a purpose.
Seeing that all the ministers did not answer, Zhu Houzhao continued: "Last night, there was a sudden change in the city palace. The Liaodong frontier army attacked the city and the defenders fought fiercely. Everything was my order. Ning Guogong Qin Kan actually did it according to the order. The ministers reprimanded him. It is extremely inappropriate to usurp the throne and rebel"
Turning his head and giving Qin Kan a meaningful look, Zhu Houzhao said in a more serious tone: "Qin Kan will not usurp the throne, let alone proclaim himself emperor. I believe that he is a loyal minister."
"But His Majesty mobilized the border troops and killed countless soldiers in the regiment and the city guards. This matter is completely unreasonable! Your Majesty entered the palace grandly, how could the ministers deny it?" Liang Chu suddenly said angrily.
Zhu Houzhao sighed: "Loyalty and treachery, black and white, how can I tell the difference until the critical moment? Mr. Liang, can you tell the difference clearly? There is another emperor sitting in the palace. If you were me, would you really dare to be alone? Enter the palace grandly and compete with him for position?"
"Old minister I don't dare."
The hearts of all the ministers were already cold. Zhu Houzhao's words were like finalizing the battle last night. Qin Kan was no longer someone who stole the country and usurped the throne, but was a loyal minister with a red heart.
There were hurried footsteps behind the palace gate, and then Zhu Houzhao knelt down heavily behind him.
"After the emperor's brother presented himself as king, Zhu Houcong paid homage to His Majesty the emperor. Your Majesty it's great that you can come back. The emperor was overjoyed." As he spoke, Zhu Houcong burst into tears.
This sentence was by no means hypocritical. It was actually true and he was overjoyed. Zhu Houcong was really afraid of the emperor. In the end, even his own life was in the hands of others. How could he be like this for a few more years? Life?
Zhu Houzhao turned around and looked quietly at his cousin, who was more than ten years younger than him. The two emperors finally met at this moment.