Episode 69 Supreme Instructions

On the evening of July 5th, Zhu Yourong and Xiang Xiaoqiang sat together in the water pavilion of the Imperial Garden, eating seafood while enjoying the coolness. And their identity as "lovers" has already spread out of the palace, not only throughout the upper class, but also in the streets and alleys. Now, in addition to the Ming-Russian War, this is what the people of the Ming Dynasty talk about the most.

At the same time, cabinet ministers are increasingly worried about the relationship between Xiang Xiaoqiang and the empress. Although the Empress had promised to delegate power within a year after the war and achieve a truly constitutional monarchy, they were always worried that the Empress would still be able to take de facto control of power by Xiang Xiaoqiang. Or what is more worrying is that Xiang Xiaoqiang used the brand of "Empress Husband" to control the People's Guard and become the actual controller of state power.

Now as the relationship between Zhu Yourong and Xiang Xiaoqiang becomes more and more public, the cabinet ministers are becoming more and more unable to sit still. They all knew in their hearts that His Majesty and Xiang Xiaoqiang were deliberate. They deliberately let the rumors flow out, so that the people gradually get used to such an "ambiguous relationship" and then gradually accept it. When it was officially announced that the empress would marry Xiaoqiang, everyone would feel more natural.

Shen Rongxuan originally planned to accept Xiuxiu as his goddaughter, but if he really harvested it, he might be able to come in handy at this time. After all, Xiuxiu is Xiang Xiaoqiang's wife, and she will naturally be jealous of other women, which is natural. As long as you provoke it well, it is not impossible to let Xiuxiu get in the way. But now that Xiuxiu has made herself a princess of the Ryukyus, Shen Rongxuan no longer dares to accept Xiuxiu as her goddaughter.

Xiuxiu was born by the Ryukyu King and Mrs. Shen Rongxuan by fornication, which was a scandal that he tried his best to hide. Although Xiuxiu looks like both the King of the Ryukyus and Shen Rongxuan's wife, no one has contacted them so far, and the concealment is still very successful. But not now, if Xiuxiu is both the daughter of the King of Ryukyu and the goddaughter of Shen Rongxuan, it will make people connect at once. Shen Rongxuan never dared to take this risk. Therefore, since Xiuxiu became the princess of the Ryukyus, Shen Rongxuan automatically never mentioned the matter of his daughter.

……

But now, Shen Rongxuan is discussing with Foreign Minister He Ziguang that he must not "sit still".

"The Cabinet should come up with another marriage proposal as soon as possible," said Foreign Secretary Ho Ziguang, "and at such times we should not be too concerned about His Majesty's preferences." Your Majesty himself can make sacrifices for the long-term future of the Ming Dynasty, and we, as courtiers, should be prepared to make sacrifices for the future of the country. ”

Shen Rongxuan took a sip of tea, glanced at him, and asked:

"What sacrifices did the cabinet make? What do you mean......"

He Ziguang smiled and said simply:

"Now that Your Majesty has announced to the whole nation the decision to reform universal suffrage, it is difficult to recover it. Universal suffrage will be held within a year of the end of the war, so how long will this war be fought? That is, after two years, both sides did not want to fight anymore, and bargained at the negotiating table, and the two sides looked at the fact that they almost signed an agreement to stop fighting. It will be impossible for His Majesty to remove our Cabinet within a year or two. First, the time was too short, and second, during the war. Since it is no longer up to His Majesty to decide whether we will come to power or step down in a year or two, it is better for us not to be too restrained. ”

Shen Rongxuan sighed and said:

"So far...... We'll just have to give it a try. Your Majesty may not necessarily listen to us, but ...... We can make the most of the current situation in Northeast Asia and put pressure on Your Majesty. You see, what are the countries that are suitable for marrying my Daming at present? ”

He Ziguang snapped his fingers and said:

"You see, there are two marriages that are most valuable at the moment: England and Japan. Needless to say, Britain is a traditional friend of the Ming Dynasty. There are many bases of common interest between the two sides, and there are princes of the right age on the part of the British royal family. For so many years, the two countries have not had a single marriage. It is up to His Majesty today to set a precedent. ”

Shen Rongxuan shook his head with a smile and said with a smile:

"One of the biggest problems in Britain is racial differences. The remaining children are mixed-race. If I marry a princess, it doesn't matter. Now the Empress, and the Empress's children will inherit the throne in the future. This is a question of royal blood in the future. Not for mixed-race people. ”

He Ziguang nodded, and said:

"That's Japan. The two countries are both Asian powers, and the time of the Restoration and Rise is almost the same, with the same political system, the same race, and the same culture, so it can be said that they have too much in common. And now that the Ming Dynasty is under serious threat from Russia, and Japan is gearing up to attack Russia, it seems that it will be able to become a united front with the Ming Dynasty. If the two countries join forces, then the defeat of Russia is almost a sure thing. In the future, the two countries can equally divide Russia's interests in the East, Japan will get the Far East, and the Ming Dynasty will get Central Asia, and they can also jointly curb the spread of Bolshevism in Asia. Although both countries are naval powers, a marriage between the two countries can largely eliminate mutual distrust. These are very realistic things. Ge Lao thinks that if these truths are placed in front of His Majesty, how likely is it that His Majesty will sacrifice love for the sake of the country? ”

Shen Rongxuan smiled, pondered for a while, and said:

"If it was the Prince of Siam, I would say there was at least a 60% chance. Now...... I would only say there is a 30% chance of it. ”

He Ziguang high-fived and said:

"Good! Even if it's only 30%, can the elder think that this 30% possibility is worth waiting for us to stand up and fight for the interests of the country? ”

Shen Rongxuan pondered for a moment, nodded, and said with a smile:

"What about Japan? Don't mess with it for half a day, it's our wishful thinking. ”

He Ziguang is very sure:

"As soon as Japan starts attacking the Soviet Union, we will be able to find someone to ventilate. Japan squatted on the shore, as long as it also went into the water, then it would be involuntarily trapped, even if it was trapped on the East Asian continent. Japan is a small country, and its new territories are all barren land, and not a single screw can be produced, so it cannot afford to drag it out. Once Japan enters the war, it will definitely be more urgent than us. As soon as our side proposes it, Japan will only cater to it. Now Hirohito's younger brother, isn't his princess dead, and it's just the right age. This is also very realistic. ”

Shen Rongxuan listened to it and pondered, and finally nodded and said:

"Okay. You have to worry more about these diplomatic things. Your Majesty and Xiang Xiaoqiang, I'll just keep an eye on it. ”

……

At the same time, in the imperial garden, Zhu Yourong was still talking to Xiang Xiaoqiang. Xiang Xiaoqiang's most urgent thing now is to get rid of Zhu Yourong as soon as possible, in addition to guarding against Japan. From now on, he planned to enter the palace every day or two, and to come in for all sorts of reasons. It's really not okay to continue to give Zhu Yourong a "military lesson". I have been chasing Zhu Yourong for a year, and I should have something to gain. After marrying the empress and handing over military power in the past few years, it is the golden time for him to show his ambitions.

At the very least, he has long wanted to build the Ming Navy from a "battleship-based navy" to an "aircraft carrier-based navy", but his identity is the commander of the People's Guard, which basically belongs to the "army", and his influence in the army is limited to the army.

After becoming a prince, Xiang Xiaoqiang's identity was raised from a "land commander" to a "comprehensive height". The identity of "army general" will be diluted a lot, and "Prince Daming" has become Xiang Xiaoqiang's first identity. Those proud admirals and admirals may feel that it is a bit important to have a relationship with a "vice admiral" or even a "queen male favorite". But a prince, the husband of the current empress, associates with them, and they, as courtiers, will never feel the best of it.

Xiang Xiaoqiang was eating seafood with Zhu Yourong and chatting about the general trend of the world, when Wei Zijin ran over along the corridor from the shore, and Wu Yanbin behind him was still holding a radio, also panting.

"Zijin?" Zhu Yourong raised his head and smiled, "What's the matter?" What's the big news? Running in such a hurry? ”

Wei Zijin smiled:

"Your Majesty...... Listen to the radio. Please listen to this paragraph by name of Jinlingtai......"

"Jinlingtai?" Zhu Yourong was stunned, "Let me listen to the name?" What to listen to? ”

Wu Yanbin put the radio on the ground and twisted a button.

The announcer's smiling voice came over the radio:

“…… Jinling Women's Normal College, Jinling University, Meihuashan College, Imperial Medical University, Army University, Nanjing Ship Design College, and, of course, Donglin University. The above are the voices of the academic community. To sum up, 22 universities, 31 companies, and 1,243 people from all walks of life have signed to participate in tonight's blessing event. …… Your Majesty, and Lord Xiang, if you are listening, then I respectfully ask you to look up at the starry sky at eight o'clock tonight...... We have something to say to you......"

Zhu Yourong was stunned again:

"Looking up at the stars? Eight o'clock? Something to say to me? ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang was also stunned, and said strangely:

"And me? No...... Won't it......"

He pulled out his pocket watch and saw that it was almost eight o'clock.

"Miss Wei, Yan Bin," Xiang Xiaoqiang was puzzled, "Do you know what's going on?" ”

Wei Zijin also shook his head and said with a smile:

"I don't know...... My lord, we just listened to the radio as well. ”

Before the words fell, a flash of light flashed outside the water pavilion, and a muffled sound floated in a few seconds later.

Several people immediately walked out of the water pavilion, grabbing the railing and looking into the distance.

I saw that in the distant sky, there was still a fragment of light. - That's fireworks.

Almost at the same time, several flashes of light burst into the sky and exploded one after another. Then, in all directions, far and near, countless bright spots rose, and the entire night sky of Nanjing was suddenly filled with fireworks.

The loud voices overlapped, and the bright light of the Dao Dao was reflected on the people's faces, and several people were looking up greedily in the water pavilion. Zhu Yourong covered his ears, his face full of surprise. Xiang Xiaoqiang and the others also enjoyed watching it, but they didn't understand why.

After a full five minutes of brilliant fireworks, there was a sudden silence and the night sky returned to darkness.

Several people looked at each other and smiled, thinking that it was all over. But......

"Knock !!"

There was a loud sound of the earth shaking the mountains, and the sky was clear. A few people raised their eyes and saw that the fireworks formed a line of large golden characters:

——Congratulations to Your Majesty and Lord Xiang on their final marriage!

……

Xiang Xiaoqiang and Zhu Yourong stared blankly at the big characters in the sky, almost unable to believe their eyes.

At this time, the big words of the fireworks slowly disappeared, and the announcer's voice came from the radio next to him:

"Miss Sun from Imperial Medical University wrote to us: Our Majesty has given up so much for the happiness of the people, and now it is time for Your Majesty to pursue your own happiness. Mr. Zhang from Donglin University wrote and said: Look at the young nobles at home and abroad, who else is worthy of our majesty, except for General Xiang Xiaoqiang? No. Mr. Huang from the Army University wrote to ......"

Xiang Xiaoqiang and Zhu Yourong looked at each other blankly, and no one could speak. After a while, Xiang Xiaoqiang muttered a sentence:

"Damn...... It's really fake......"

Zhu Yourong slowly smiled, and tears rolled out:

"It's ......"

"So what are you waiting for!"

Xiang Xiaoqiang pounced, hugged Zhu Yourong in his arms, and the two kissed deeply. Wei Zijin and Wu Yanbin watched from the side, also smiling from ear to ear, as if they also felt happiness at the moment.

……

At the same time, in the Shoufu Mansion, Shen Rongxuan and He Ziguang stared at the radio, their faces pulling up.

"Alright, don't think about anything." Shen Rongxuan leaned back on the sofa, "Lord He, you don't have to worry about it now." ”

He Ziguang was still unwilling, pointed to the sky outside, frowned, and said:

"Yes...... But what is this? We're here for ...... But the people outside ......."

Shen Rongxuan smiled bitterly and said:

"Okay, admit it. Recognize a truth: If we still want to govern in the future, don't make those people outside angry. ”