On the seventh day of the fifth month of the eighteenth year of Hongzhi, the emperor Zhu Youzhu died of illness in the Qianqing Palace at the age of Chinese New Year's Eve.

The sound of the death knell in the middle of the night echoed in the sky above the Jingshi, and countless ministers and people gathered in front of the Chengtian Gate, crying and crying like rain.

Everyone's grief is from the heart, the Ming Dynasty has been established for more than 100 years, there are really achievements, there are not many emperors who are benevolent, starting from Hongwu Yongle, until Xuanzong Xianzong, these emperors are either violent or mediocre, and the style of governance is different, but if you talk about the emperor who is really benevolent, only Emperor Hongzhi is the emperor.

After 18 years of hard work, he has won the hearts of the people all over the world.

The eunuchs and maids in the palace began to get busy, and the white silk filial piety belts that had been prepared were held out by the eunuchs and tied to everyone's waist and crown, and the officials of the Ministry of Rites and the Daolu Division led a group of monks and Taoists holding various magic weapons into the palace in a hurry, and on the square in front of the Fengtian Palace, the huge spiritual platform began to be built in an orderly manner.

In the atmosphere of grief, all matters related to the funeral are proceeding rapidly.

Empress Zhang has been helped back to Kunning Palace by the palace maid, she fainted twice in excessive grief, Xiao Jing of the celebrant had to order the eunuch to send her to Kunning Palace to rest, and all the rest of the funeral matters do not need the queen to worry about, and the officials of the Ministry of Rites will arrange everything properly.

The body of Emperor Hongzhi is still lying on the bed, cold and stiff, and his face is covered with a bright yellow silk cloth.

Zhu Houzhao knelt in front of the couch with a sluggish expression, and the three scholars and Xiao Jing and the others tried their best to speak, but he still didn't move. Without spirit and thought, it is like a wooden statue, and the tears have dried up, leaving only the tear stains on the face.

Qin Kan stood outside the hall, staring at Zhu Houzhao, who seemed to be demented in the hall, and sighed heavily.

Liu Jian and others never persuaded the prince to leave. couldn't help but shake his head helplessly, during the period of national mourning, many funerals must be performed by the prince. As the next monarch of the Ming Dynasty, the eyes of hundreds of millions of subjects in the world are staring at him, how can he ignore everything in a daze in the Qianqing Palace at this time?

However, seeing the prince's heartbroken and sad appearance. But the three scholars could no longer bear to speak of comfort.

Zhu Houzhao didn't know much about state affairs and politics, he only knew that he had just lost a great father who loved him and loved him, and what he wanted to do was to sit in front of his father's body and accompany him on his last journey.

As for the many funerals, to hell with them.

Li Dongyang wiped away his old tears, turned his head and saw Qin Kan standing quietly outside the hall, so his old eyes lit up and he walked quickly to Qin Kan's side.

"Qin Qianhu, the prince was too sad and unwilling to leave. You help the old man persuade him, the first emperor dragon returned to heaven, and the subjects were sad and painful, everyone was waiting to see the new monarch's weather, and His Royal Highness couldn't sit in the Qianqing Palace in a daze all the time. ”

Qin Kan also knew the importance of this moment. So he nodded: "Xiaguan try your best." ”

Slowly walking into the hall, Zhu Houzhao was still motionless like a statue.

Qin Kan knelt down beside him, looked at the body of Emperor Hongzhi, then kowtowed three times, straightened up and said to Zhu Houzhao: "The emperor has returned to heaven, Your Highness take care of your body." There is no resurrection from the dead. ”

Qin Kan's familiar voice made Zhu Houzhao's empty eyes regain a trace of vitality, Mu Ran turned his head and said, "Qin Kan, my father is gone, he said he was tired......"

"Your Highness, the emperor not only has the most noble status and power in the world, but also has the heaviest responsibility, and the emperor is indeed tired."

Zhu Houzhao cried sadly: "I didn't understand before, I just felt that my father sat at the desk every day to give a few words to the book, or chatted with the scholars about a few words of state affairs, that's it, I didn't expect my father to be so tired, I ...... It's so ignorant. ”

Qin Kan was silent for a while, and said: "Your Highness, the emperor has left, you are already the new monarch of the Ming Dynasty, and it is still too late to be sensible, men should have the courage to take responsibility and help your father and emperor carry the Ming Dynasty on their shoulders." ”…,

"Jiangshan ......" Zhu Houzhao looked stunned.

Qin Kan pointed to the outside of the hall and said, "Hundreds of millions of eyes of the subjects of the world are looking at you, do you feel it?" They are all waiting for the new monarch to stand up with his head held high and bring them happiness and stability, you hide in the Qianqing Palace and mourn the past in vain, and if there is a spirit in the sky, Your Majesty will definitely be disappointed in you. ”

"Your Highness, you are no longer the crown prince, but the emperor of the new generation of the Ming Dynasty, and the subjects are waiting for you to reign over the world and conquer the world!"

Zhu Houzhao's eyes gradually brightened, pursed his lips, Zhu Houzhao kowtowed respectfully to the body of Emperor Hongzhi, and then stood up, his face clearly had a slightly green imperial demeanor.

"Qin Kan, you're right, I want to carry this country on behalf of my father, my father is tired, I'll carry it!"

…………

…………

Qin Kan accompanied Zhu Houzhao out of the Qianqing Palace, but saw that the black pressure outside the door was full of kneeling, Liu Jian and other three bachelors, including several big eunuchs of the celebrant eunuch, and all the warriors and eunuchs in the palace knelt down in front of Zhu Houzhao.

Liu Jian wept in tears: "Your Majesty passed away, the subjects lost the hero, for the peace of the people of the Ming Dynasty, for the funeral of the first emperor, the old minister asked His Royal Highness to endure the mourning of the loss of relatives, moved to the Fengtian Palace, issued a national funeral edict, guarded the soul of the first emperor, and prayed for the subjects. ”

Zhu Houzhao helped Liu Jian up and said, "Mr. Liu has worked hard, I will go to Fengtian Palace, and all the ministers will come with me." ”

Seeing that Zhu Houzhao cheered up, the ministers couldn't help but be overjoyed, and got up after bowing three times.

Li Dongyang walked towards Fengtian Hall with everyone, and glanced back at Qin Kan as he left, his eyes full of gratitude.

Qin Kan smiled faintly at Li Dongyang, and after arching his hand, he turned around and walked outside the palace, Zhu Houzhao's duty is to guard the spirit, and tomorrow Liu Jian will read out the will of Emperor Hongzhi, ready to ascend the throne as the emperor, tonight is a blank period for the high-level power of the Ming Dynasty, and he can't be careless at all.

There was a sea of people outside Chengtianmen, and when it was ugly in the middle of the night, the ministers and the people knelt on the square full, crying one after another. Endlessly, the death knell on the Wufeng Tower is still ringing again and again, listening to the unusual midnight bell, many unaware people have felt that something big has happened in the palace, so more and more people are gathering to Chengtianmen.

Five Cities Soldiers and Horses, Beijing Battalion, Jinyi Guard. The East Factory, including the Shuntianfu officials, etc., all the dispatches that can be dispatched. They surrounded the square with weapons in hand, their vigilant eyes constantly sweeping through the crowd.

The grief of the subjects shows that the emperor has won the hearts of the people, and it is a good time to proclaim the emperor's prestige. However, we can't help but beware of people with intentions to incite chaos, after all, at this time, the emperor has just passed away and the new monarch has not yet been established, which is the easiest time to cause chaos.

As soon as Qin Kan walked out of the palace gate, Ding Shun and Li Er greeted him and hugged him heavily, although there was a look of grief on their faces, but it was obvious that they were a little pretentious, they were just the most basic Jinyi Wei Baihu, and the emperor's death may not be a good thing. But it is unrealistic to expect them to be in pain, they just eat the emperor's food, and that's it.

"There's no chaos, is there?" Qin Kan asked lightly.

"There are a few splashes who want to take advantage of the troubled waters to steal the people's money, but they were taken down by us, and nothing major happened." Ding Shun grinned.

Qin Kan nodded. I was just about to explain a few words, but I heard a commotion outside the Chengtian Gate.

The kneeling crowd was rudely whipped away by a group of sergeants, and the crowd screamed and quickly got out of the way, and Zhu Chenhao, the king of Ning, who wore a filial piety belt around his waist and a white silk tie on his head, cried and was surrounded by the sergeants.

"Brother Huang! O Emperor! Heaven is unfair, and he treats me like this. The younger brother is one step late, how painful! ”

Zhu Chenhao walked towards the palace gate while crying, and the officials and people along the road frowned, but they had to make their debut. …,

Qin Kan was independent of the palace gate, and watching Zhu Chenhao get closer and closer to him with a sad face, Qin Kan's heart sank in vain.

Look at this situation, does King Ning want to enter the palace to mourn?

At this time, it was only an hour before the emperor's death, the funeral ceremony of the Ministry of Rites was not ready, the edict of Emperor Hongzhi had not been promulgated in the world, and Zhu Houzhao had not yet ascended the throne......

King Ning entered the palace at this moment, what did he have in mind? He didn't know that this was the most sensitive moment for the palace? In history, there are still few cases of taking advantage of the emperor's new funeral to seize power and become emperor?

Zhu Chenhao got closer and closer, Qin Kan's eyelids jumped, and he suddenly raised his hand and shouted, "Stop coming!" ”

Zhu Chenhao's cry suddenly froze, and after seeing that it was Qin Kan, he was furious for some reason, and probably remembered something that annoyed him, so he fixed his body and said angrily: "Bold!" This king is the brother of the first emperor, and if you want to enter the palace to mourn the emperor's brother, you dare to stop me? ”

"Lord, at this time, there is quite a lot of chaos in the palace, and the officials of the Ministry of Etiquette are arranging funeral matters, and when they are properly arranged, they will tell the princes and princes of the vassal to enter the palace to mourn, and the prince has not been ordered to enter the palace, and the officials will not dare to let him go."

Zhu Chenhao was furious: "Condolence is the proper meaning of Lunchang, can I use you, an outsider, to stop the affairs of my Zhu family?" ”

Qin Kan stared at him coldly, took a step forward and said, "The lower official is a foreign minister, he only knows the edict of the Son of Heaven, and the prince has not been edicted into the deep palace, what is his intention?" ”

Zhu Chenhao was probably stimulated too hard, his mind was hot, and he said a very brainless sentence: "The Son of Heaven has passed away, where did the Son of Heaven come from?" ”

As soon as the words came out, Zhu Chenhao suddenly knew that something was wrong, because this sentence was heard by many people.

University scholars and officials of the Ministry of Rites are in the palace to perform funeral ceremonies, at this moment kneeling in front of the palace gate are the ministers of the dynasty, from the Shangshu to the head of the six departments, the black pressure knelt on the ground, including many noble princes, King Ning's words came out, everyone suddenly raised their heads, and the tears in their eyes showed an angry light.

The bones of the first emperor are not cold, and King Ning dares to say such a rebellious remark, deceiving me that there are no loyal ministers in the Jingshi court?

A smile appeared on Qin Kan's face, and the smile disappeared in a flash.

When the first to attack was Li Mengyang, who was the head of the household, after beating Shouning Hou angrily, Emperor Hongzhi promoted him from the chief to Langzhong in order to appease his heart. The old man was jealous and hateful, and his eyes could not be mixed with sand, and King Ning's words aroused the old man's anger.

Li Mengyang stood up, rushed forward two steps, and smashed a pair of old fists towards Zhu Chenhao.

"The old man has such a violent temper!" Li Mengyang roared angrily and murderously: "The traitor is so bold, the heroic spirit of the first emperor is not far away, you actually speak out of the big rebellion, watch the fight!" ”

Zhu Chenhao was shocked, although he was the respect of the vassal king, but he didn't count as a fart in the Beijing court, the courtiers of the Ming Dynasty flaunted loyalty and integrity, and in the name of loyalty and integrity, they dared to point their noses in front of the emperor and scold the faint monarch, prince? Sort of a fart!

Although Li Mengyang's temper is explosive, he is old after all. was not athletic enough, and punched it, but was blocked by the guards beside Zhu Chenhao.

Li Mengyang was furious: "The old man is a household minister, and the civil official is here!" How dare you stop me? ”

King Ning's guards froze for a moment and looked at each other.

Li Mengyang took the opportunity to hit another old punch angrily.

Bang!

The guards didn't dare to stop it anymore, but they couldn't hurt the prince, so they had to take this punch with their chests up. As a result, the guards didn't do anything, but Li Mengyang's fist was like hitting an iron plate, and he lost consciousness in pain.

"The old man is here!" Li Mengyang drank again.

Qin Kan's eyes are quick. Without saying anything, he snatched a golden gourd hammer from the hand of the Han general on duty at the palace gate and quickly stuffed it into Li Mengyang's hand.

Li Mengyang was stunned, and Qin Kan hurriedly smiled: "Familiar, right?" ”

Of course it's familiar. When Li Mengyang Wenhua chased Shouning Hou in the palace, the weapon he used was also a golden gourd hammer.

Zhu Chenhao and his guards suddenly turned green, .........

got the familiar weapon, Li Mengyang's murderous aura became more and more fierce, he looked up to the sky and laughed twice, and with a shake of the golden gourd, he smashed his head towards King Ning.

As soon as the hammer was struck, the guards hurriedly blocked it with their arms, and they heard a muffled snort, and cold sweat broke out on the guards' faces holding their arms.

Zhu Chenhao saw that the situation was not good, and hurriedly said: "Slow! Won't this king succeed if he doesn't enter the palace? ”

Qin Kan hurriedly grabbed Li Mengyang. As soon as the emperor died, the palace was a mess, and at this time, there was no more to add to it, since King Ning was no longer in the palace, the matter could be revealed.

Li Mengyang stopped. The golden gourd hammer and pestle supported his body on the ground and gasped violently, his eyes stared at Zhu Chenhao hatefully, and he said angrily: "The first emperor died, and the new monarch has not yet been established, as Qin Qianhu said, what is the intention of the prince to enter the palace at this time?" Don't go back quickly! Think you're a vassal king, so you don't dare to join you? ”

Zhu Chenhao glanced at Qin Kan hatefully. Then he stomped his foot and turned his head and left.

Staring at Zhu Chenhao's back, Li Mengyang scolded unsatisfied: "This person harbors evil intentions, and he is not a good minister." ”

Zhu Chenhao took two steps, and couldn't help but turn around and say, "This king really just wants to enter the palace to mourn ......"

Li Mengyang's face changed, and he roared: "Dare to talk nonsense!" The old man's temper ......"

Sou!

The gourd hammer was thrown out of his hand, and King Ning's guards were shocked: "Be careful!" ”

As he spoke, he flew in front of Zhu Chenhao.

Bang!

The guard was hit by a flying gourd and fell to the ground unconscious.

Zhu Chenhao was scared, he finally saw the power of the civil officials in the Beijing court, Li Mengyang was not exaggerated, he was really a violent temper.

"Pick him up and we'll go!" Zhu Chenhao hurriedly retreated a little embarrassed.

Li Mengyang snorted heavily, and swept it in a blink of an eye, but a golden gourd hammer appeared in front of him, Qin Kan took it and handed it forward, and smiled very sinisterly: "Lord Li, should you chase after the poor man with the rest of the Yong?" The subordinate will provide you with weapons ......"

Li Mengyang glared at him fiercely, brushed his sleeves and said angrily: "You are not a good thing!" ”

The night passed, and there were eunuchs in the palace who came out, and at the moment of the morning Fengtian Palace court meeting, all the civil and military officials above the fifth grade in Beijing and the princes and nobles were all in the court.

The officials waiting outside the Chengtian Gate got up one after another, and the eunuchs in the palace had distributed the white silk to each official, and many people kneeling behind them also wrapped their own white silk around their heads.

At the end of the day, the palace gate was opened, the whole city was silent, and the whole country was sad.

The generals of the Han Dynasty lined up on both sides of the palace gate, and the officials lined up according to their ranks, and entered the palace one after another into the Fengtian Palace.

At two o'clock, the net whip outside the Fengtian Hall sounded nine times, and then four elephants, six tigers and leopards opened the way, the brocade army in the color of the big red flying fish suit followed closely, the huge screen wings crossed, the gold boring, the incense burner, the scepter and other ceremonial guards passed one after another, and the most important thing was the emperor's imperial chariot with a white silk filial piety belt, the prince Zhu Houzhao's eyes were red, and he walked slowly beside the imperial chariot silently.

Seeing the emperor's imperial chariot, there was a sudden cry in the Fengtian Palace.

Zhu Houzhao's face was expressionless, and after entering the hall, he walked through the ministers and walked to the dragon chair to stand still.

Bi Zhen, the eunuch on duty, shook off the dust, shouted loudly and was silent, the ministers stopped crying, and the hall was silent.

The first assistant of the cabinet, Liu Jian, a scholar of Wuyingdian University, turned to face the courtiers after leaving class, slowly unfolded the yellow silk in his hand, and said loudly: "Xuan." Emperor Hongzhi of the Ming Dynasty passed on the edict of His Majesty, and the Chinese and foreign ministers knelt to listen. ”

The ministers of the palace and the envoys of the vassal states of Korea, Ryukyu, and Cochin who came from Hongroji Temple bowed down one after another.

Liu Jian cleared his throat and said, "The edict said: I bow down and look up to Pixu." He has been on the throne for eight years out of ten. Respect the heavens and the people. Filial piety. I have been working hard all night, but I am afraid of the entrustment of the emperor. Now that the disease is dying, the death can be raised. Common sense of life and death. Although the Holy Wisdom cannot be violated. I hope that I will succeed to the unification, and I will have no regrets. The crown prince is kind, intelligent, benevolent and filial. To nature, it is appropriate to be the emperor. It is committed to the law of the ancestors, filial piety to the two palaces, study and cultivate virtue, and appoint the virtuous. Spare your lover, don't be arrogant or slack. Chinese and foreign civil and military ministers are united to assist in order to jointly protect the cause of the sect for thousands of years. ”…,

After Liu Jian finished reading the edict, there was another cry in the hall, which shook the court and made people cry.

The next procedure was for the ministers to pay homage to Zhu Houzhao. Zhu Houzhao was like a puppet, reminded by the three scholars and Wang Qiong, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, to carry out their instructions in a wooden manner.

The ministers bowed and invited the prince to ascend the throne in unison, and Zhu Houzhao read the manuscript written in advance. The first prevarication.

The ministers bowed again, imploring the prince to ascend the throne, and Zhu Houzhao resigned.

The ministers bowed three times, and Zhu Houzhao resigned.

After the three invitations and three resignations were completed, Zhu Houzhao finally bowed down under the ministers, and Wang Qiong, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, was in front of the ministers. Zhu Houzhao was given a golden crown of pterosaurs symbolizing the identity of the emperor, and the ministers bowed three times and bowed nine times.

At this time, Qin Kan had rushed from the palace gate to the gate of Fengtian Palace, seeing Zhu Houzhao wearing the imperial crown on his head, the monarch of the ministers, his demeanor was dignified, and he looked forward to his majesty, Qin Kan watched all this quietly outside the palace, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but smile a little.

The new monarch of the Ming Dynasty ascended the throne, what will this most unique scenery of the Ming Dynasty make in the future that will make the world jaw-dropping?

I'm looking forward to it......

Zhu Houzhao sat on the dragon chair and accepted the worship of the ministers, but his eyes suddenly became a little more confused and uneasy.

The palace is full of ministers, I can only see their black and oppressive heads, but I can't see any of their faces clearly, can I only see the back of these heads and backs that seem to be respectful from now on?

An indescribable sense of loneliness inexplicably rises from the bottom of my heart, lonely, lonely, it turns out that this is self-esteem, why can't I feel the slightest happiness?

Zhu Houzhao twisted his body uncomfortably, and looked for it in the dark crowd in the hall with some unwillingness, but it was still just a prostrated head facing the gold brick floor.

As if being pulled by some kind of qi machine, Zhu Houzhao looked up at the palace gate and looked at it for a while.

Outside the palace gate, Qin Kan was wearing a red brocade robe with a white filial piety belt around his waist, and he was also quietly looking at him.

Qin Kan's gaze was very warm and peaceful, looking at him calmly and fearlessly, as if looking at an old friend, neither humble nor arrogant, but it made Zhu Houzhao sincerely happy.

When the two met their eyes, Qin Kan suddenly grinned at Zhu Houzhao, and Zhu Houzhao also smiled.

Liu Jian, the bachelor who presided over the enthronement, was unhappy, he didn't understand that on such a solemn occasion, the new emperor didn't laugh at anything, this move was very inappropriate, so he frowned and coughed twice, Zhu Houzhao immediately withdrew his smile, and kept his face silent, like a puppet.

…………

…………

The edict of succession has been issued, this is only the first procedure, Zhu Houzhao wore the crown of God, and the moment he sat on the dragon chair, his status as an emperor was reasonable and legitimate, and was recognized by the subjects of the whole world.

After the ministers worshipped, some of the ministers did not know whether they missed the various wisdom and benevolence of the first emperor, so there was a faint crying sound in the hall, one spread ten, ten spread hundreds, the crying became louder and louder, many old ministers could not control their emotions, knelt on the ground and cried, and hit their heads on the ground, and some even knocked blood.

The scene fell into a sadness again, Zhu Houzhao was obviously also infected, sitting on the dragon chair suddenly deflated, and cried loudly, the Golden Palace became more and more chaotic, the emperor cried, how dare the minister not cry?

Qin Kan stood outside the hall, with tears in the corners of his eyes, raised his head and wiped it, staring at the hall, and couldn't help frowning.

When Zhu Houzhao was crying so much that he couldn't help himself, he saw Qin Kan beckoning to him with red eyes outside the hall, Zhu Houzhao's crying gradually stopped, and he looked in the direction of Qin Kan's finger, and after observing for a long time, Zhu Houzhao suddenly became angry, and his face suddenly turned red.

Liu Jianzheng, a scholar, slowly unfolded another yellow silk, and the next procedure should be an amnesty for the world, the new emperor rewarded the ministers, and before he could speak, he had just ascended the throne, but the newly baked Ming Emperor Zhu Houzhao made a move that stunned the ministers in the palace. …,

I saw Zhu Houzhao prying the hem of the dragon robe he had just put on, ignoring everyone's strange eyes, he jumped up from the dragon chair angrily, and then rushed to the middle of the golden palace like an enraged bull, reached out from the court, grabbed the placket of a minister, and was the most rear...... Angrily punched out, striking the minister in the face.

The whole hall is full of uproar!

Everyone stared at it, but it was Hu Ruli, the right attendant of the household department, who was beaten, Hu Ruli was inexplicably punched by Zhu Houzhao, and screamed in pain, Zhu Houzhao still couldn't understand his hatred, and punched him hatefully.

"Your Majesty, stop!" Liu Jian was shocked and angry, and ran to Zhu Houzhao in a few steps to stop him.

"Today is the enthronement ceremony of His Majesty, why did His Majesty fight the courtiers?"

Zhu Houzhao pointed to Hu Ruli, who covered his face and said angrily: "The hall is full of mourning, when I read my father's benevolence, this scum actually howled in his throat, and there was not a single tear on his face, it was clearly hypocritical, such a disloyal minister, shouldn't I beat him?" ”

There was silence in the hall, and the ministers were dumbfounded, and this reason ......

Liu Jian's old face twitched twice, and he said that the new emperor has a new atmosphere, and this new emperor's new atmosphere is really a little ...... It's horrifying.

Today is an important moment for Emperor Daming to ascend the throne, and Liu Jian, as the first assistant to the cabinet, cannot let the ceremony become a farce no matter what, otherwise the news will not make the world laugh?

"Ahem...... Your Majesty, Hu Shilang howled in his throat, this matter ......" Liu Jian coughed and looked for a reason to calm down the situation, and after a glance at it, he couldn't help but say: "Huh? Hu Shilang was obviously crying, His Majesty looked at it, did you see it? There were two lines of tears of grief on Hu Shilang's face......"

Liu Jian pointed to Hu Ruli's face and was pure and seductive: "Your Majesty, please look, you are clearly crying, how about this matter?" Your Majesty, the ceremony has to continue. ”

Zhu Houzhao stared at the past, an angry Ming Emperor, a helpless cabinet first assistant scholar, facing the stunned and complicated eyes of the ministers in the palace, squatting in front of Hu Ruli, the household servant who was beaten to find his teeth, looking for his two lines of sincere tears......

PS: Sorry for being late, this chapter counts yesterday, and one big chapter counts as two chapters. (Your support is my biggest motivation.) )