"Bell-bell-bell-"

In the early morning, the sky was just gray, and the bell and drum tower of the capital began to ring.

The sound of bells and drums let millions of people in the capital know, which is the beginning of the national mourning.

For a while, although all the people didn't dare to say anything, they still couldn't stop muttering in their hearts.

Especially some people who are engaged in the flower willow business and meat business are even more sad.

In the huge capital, when the bell rang, the officials went to the imperial city one after another.

During the national funeral of the Ming Dynasty, on the second day of the emperor's death, the officials who went to work in the capital should wear plain clothes, black gauze hats, and black horn belts, and rush to the inner palace to listen to the reading of the edict.

This is not the end, the officials of various departments still have to fasting in their own official offices, and they also have to go to several banquet halls to cry for a while in front of the mourning hall where the deceased emperor's spiritual seat is stored in the hall.

Such a process takes three days.

Due to Zhu Youzhen's intervention, the palace transfer case did not happen, Concubine Li Kang has been placed under house arrest in disguise, and the Donglin Party has not become famous because of the palace transfer case.

The forces in the court are fairly balanced, and the inner court is fairly stable under the checks and balances of Wei Jinzhong, Wang An, and the Hakka family.

Early in the morning, Zhu Youzhen put on linen and filial piety, abandoned the luxurious elephant wheel, and walked to the hall on foot.

Since Zhu Changluo only had two sons survived, and Zhu Youxiao was the emperor, it was impossible to cry and mourn all day, so the task of crying and mourning fell to Zhu Youzhen.

According to the process, Zhu Youxiao and the cabinet and other ministers only need to cry for half an hour before leaving and going to the Wenhua Hall to deal with government affairs.

However, Zhu Youzhen, if nothing else, he needs to live in the next three days.

Knowing the process, he was really unwilling.

But there was no way, what should be done still had to be done, so he came to the square outside the hall of several feasts, surrounded by several eunuchs and brocade guards.

"Woo woo woo ......"

"The Emperor, ......"

"The Emperor, ......"

Before Zhu Youzhen entered the hall, he heard the cry of a ghost crying and a wolf howling.

He turned his head to look, but a group of familiar people came from the palace gate, scattering blank paper all the way, crying all the way.

"What is this for?" Zhu Youzhen really didn't understand the process after the death of the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and in the days when Wanli died, he was also confused, but now he has the heart to ask others.

Seeing him ask, a eunuch in his early twenties hurriedly explained: "Your Highness, according to the etiquette system, after the death of the first emperor, the queen's concubines need to take off their jewelry and clothes, start crying and mourning from Xihua Gate, and enter the mourning hall of several feasts. ”

"Since the emperor only had His Royal Highness and Banzai, and Banzai had to deal with government affairs, and several banquets needed someone to receive hundreds of officials, so His Highness and Banzai didn't need to participate in this process."

"That's ......" Hearing the eunuch next to him explain, Zhu Youzhen glanced at him.

I saw that this eunuch had beautiful eyebrows and looked very eye-catching, and his name was the famous Cao Huachun in later generations!

That's right, it's that Grandpa Cao.

It's just that this is the Cao Gonggong in history, not the Cao Gonggong in martial arts novels.

Historically, Cao Huachun's family was poor, and he entered the palace at the age of twelve or thirteen under the influence of the atmosphere of "close to the monarch and raising relatives".

Because he was gifted and intelligent, diligent and studious, he received a good education in the inner study hall, and was proficient in poetry, calligraphy and painting, and was deeply appreciated by the eunuch Wang An, and relied on him as a close confidant.

After that, he was sent by Wang An to the Miaoqin Palace to accompany and serve Zhu Youzhen.

In the early years of the Apocalypse, the eunuch Wei Zhongxian was favored and killed, Wang An was killed, and Cao Huachun was implicated and expelled from Beijing, and sent to stay in Nanjing, the capital of the country.

In 1627, Zhu Youzhen succeeded to the throne of the emperor, and the following year changed to Yuan Chongzhen, Cao Huachun was immediately recalled and entrusted with the important task of redressing the unjust case.

Because of his ability to do things, he won the trust and reliance of Emperor Chongzhen.

When the Ming Dynasty fell, Yang Bo of Shuntianfu, Yang Shimao of Wanping, etc., respectively went up to Shu to tell Cao Huachun "Open the door to welcome the thief, the thief entered the city, stood up to serve, and now the Qing Dynasty entered the capital, and returned to the attendant, this traitorous minister, although ten thousand beheadings are not enough to serve the hearts of the people." ”

However, Cao Huachun has been in his old age for six years, and it can be said that he was very wronged.

Because Zhu Youzhen had no one under his hands to use, he asked Wang An to give Cao Huachun to him in advance.

I never thought that this guy was similar to what was recorded in history, and he was really talented and intelligent.

Compared with Wang Chengen's Mu Ne, Cao Huachun is skillful in means and familiar with various etiquette, so he is a good helper.

Zhu Youzhen was quite satisfied with him, so after he explained, he glanced at the long mourning procession, and did not see Concubine Li Kang and Concubine Zheng Guifei in his memory.

"Why didn't Concubine Li Kang and Emperor Zheng participate in the funeral?"

Zhu Youzhen suddenly asked, but Cao Huachun was not flustered, and replied respectfully with a whisk:

"I heard that Wei Jinzhong, the eunuch in charge of the Salary Division, passed on the long live oracle and did not let the two participate in the state funeral of the emperor."

"Well......" Hearing this, Zhu Youzhen didn't bother to think about whether it was his brother's idea or Wei Jinzhong's idea, he walked directly into the hall of several feasts, and then walked to the front of the mourning hall.

At this time, the two little eunuchs hurriedly approached Zhu Youzhen from the left and right, put on two futons for him, and lifted the skirts.

Zhu Youzhen didn't feel anything, and knelt directly on the futon.

He kowtowed several times in a row, all on the small futon in front of him, and then got up and walked to the gate of the hall of several feasts.

Cao Huachun asked the little eunuch to bring tables and chairs, and also prepared pastries and tea, and Zhu Youzhen sat on the chair, ready to start receiving hundreds of officials.

Time passed little by little, and the first to appear at the palace gate of the several feasts were Fang Congzhe of the cabinet, Liu Yixie, as well as the officials of the six ministries, such as Shangshu, Shilang, and Yuanwailang, as if they had made an appointment, and more than 200 people came to mourn together.

"The ...... of the Five Highnesses"

Fang Congzhe took the lead in saluting from a distance, and Zhu Youzhen hurriedly returned the salute, while the other officials had to salute one after another, although they looked down on Zhu Youzhen.

Zhu Youzhen returned the salute one by one, and then said a bunch of good things, which was nothing more than talking about the hard work of hundreds of officials.

As soon as the scene was finished, he shut up and didn't talk about anything else, and let the hundred officials enter the hall for a few feasts, saluting in the hall, and weeping and mourning.

They were all dressed in linen and filial piety, and after the salute, they withdrew from the hall for a few feasts, and the younger officials talked outside the door about the official business that needed to be solved.

The officials with larger positions, such as cabinet ministers, six scholars, and six subjects, were in the hall of several feasts, waiting for Zhu Youxiao to come forward to mourn, and then went to the Wenhua Hall with Zhu Youxiao to discuss state affairs.

Zhu Youzhen didn't go into the hall for a few feasts, just sat at the entrance of the hall, eating some pastries and drinking two sips of tribute tea from time to time.

Not to mention, this tribute tea is fresh and refreshing to drink, and there will be some sweetness at the end, which is much higher than the quality of the camellia that Zhu Youzhen drank in his previous life.

He waited for the appearance of his good imperial brother, and from time to time he also observed the officials standing at the gate of the palace to talk about things, squinting his eyes carefully, not knowing what he was thinking......