As the sun slowly rose from the clouds in the northeast, bells and drums suddenly rang outside the Meridian Gate. A messenger slowly walked to the door of the hall and shouted loudly to the ministers who had already frozen outside: "Announce!"

The civil and military officials seemed to have just woken up from a dream. They moved their frozen legs, lined up to enter from the left and right side gates of the Meridian Gate, crossed the Jinshui Bridge, and lined up on both sides of the Taihe Gate according to their rank.

At the front of the civil officials was the chief minister of the cabinet, Grand Secretary Liu Yirong, and at the front of the military officials was the Duke of Yingguo, Zhang Weixian.

Everyone came to the hall and stood still, waiting for the emperor's arrival. They felt relieved. The emperor had been ill for some time and had not attended the morning court. Now, he was finally getting better.

At this moment, Zhu Youxiao was sitting in the warm room, listening to the sound of bells and drums outside, and his heart was very excited.

However, he still did not plan to go to court. Because the morning court was meaningless, the Ming Dynasty had reached its current state, and there was not much he could do. He simply let Wei Zhongxian take the lead and he would be a real carpenter emperor.

The civil and military officials in the hall were eagerly waiting, but they did not see Emperor Tianqi. The whole hall fell into a mysterious silence, as if a storm was about to come.

"Your Majesty, all the civil and military officials are waiting." Wang An didn't wait for the emperor and was anxious. He made an excuse to go to the warm room and saw Chen Hong massaging the emperor's shoulders.

"I suddenly feel tired." Zhu Youxiao felt dizzy and found an excuse to send Wang An away.

This morning court session was cancelled due to Emperor Tianqi's laziness. The Donglin Party members were a little panicked, not knowing what their emperor meant.

Zhu Youxiao paced back and forth in the warm room, not knowing how he could repair the dynasty.

He only remembered a lot of things that happened in the first year of the Tianqi reign. It was in this year that the Later Jin rose to power, Shenyang was lost, and almost all of the three northeastern provinces fell into the hands of the Later Jin. From then on, the Later Jin and the Ming Dynasty began a twenty-year war, and the Ming Dynasty also entered the countdown to its demise from this year.

At this time, the Ming Dynasty was on the verge of collapse and riddled with problems. Although it was known that reform was necessary, no matter where it was moved, the consequences would be enormous.

Years ago, the cabinet chief Fang Congzhe had been impeached many times by the Minister of Rites Sun Shenxing and others, and Fang Congzhe took the initiative to resign.

What does it mean that a high-ranking Donglin Party member impeached the leader of the Zhejiang Party? It is clear that the Donglin Party can no longer hold back.

The Donglin Party was not as simple as it seemed. They wanted to take advantage of Emperor Tianqi's youth and lack of understanding of the situation in the court to cut the Gordian knot and further increase their control over the court.

The current cabinet's Grand Secretary is Liu Yirong, a position he won't hold for long. The Donglin Party wouldn't allow Liu Yirong to be the Grand Secretary. They removed Fang Congzhe from the top spot, not to give Liu Yirong an advantage. They were planning to replace Ye Xianggao, a prominent Donglin Party member, with the Grand Secretary. However, Zhu Youxiao didn't need Ye Xianggao as the Grand Secretary.

Ye Xianggao was a prominent figure in the Tianqi era. Among the Donglin Party, Yang Lian was the most courageous, while Ye Xianggao was the most intelligent.

As a world-renowned old fox who had been struggling in officialdom for decades, Ye Xianggao's arrival marked the heyday of the Donglin Party.

The Donglin Party was very good at making trouble for the crown prince. They were very good at talking nonsense and fooling the crown prince.

Whether it was his cheap father who died after being emperor for only one month, or his younger brother Chongzhen who committed suicide as the king of a fallen country, they were all fooled by the Donglin Party.

"Whether I am right or wrong, it doesn't matter if I don't follow history." Zhu Youxiao sighed in his heart, and at the same time he planned to train his own people.

However, the court was plagued by serious factional strife, and it was not easy to cultivate one's own people. There was only one way out, simple, convenient, and smooth, and that was to cultivate the eunuch party.

Gently putting down the teacup in his hand, Zhu Youxiao waved his hand, signaling Chen Hong, who was massaging his shoulders, to leave, and then ordered in a light tone: "Go, find Wei Zhongxian for me."

Although Wei Zhongxian had been appointed as the chief secretary of the Imperial Household Department at this time, his power was much less. Although he changed back to his original name, he was still far from being the Nine Thousand Years Old in later generations.

If Zhu Youxiao wanted to use someone, this person would naturally be the first choice. If he promoted Wei Zhongxian, he would naturally clash with the Donglin Party and the Qi, Zhejiang, and Chu Party. There were some things that were difficult for the emperor to do, and Wei Zhongxian was just the right person for him.

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Chen Hong didn't dare to neglect it. He nodded quickly and retreated with his body bowed. He was confused in his heart, but he didn't dare to show any neglect on his face.

After a while, Wei Zhongxian came in from outside, bowed, and kowtowed on the ground, saying: "Your servant greets the emperor!"

Zhu Youxiao nodded, leaning back on the couch, looking at Wei Zhongxian and smiling, "I know you're talented, and I've always been good at using people wisely. I heard Madam Fengsheng hasn't been feeling well lately, and the palace doctors haven't been able to help. I've heard you're quite skilled outside the palace, so why don't you go and see Madam Fengsheng?"

The so-called Lady Fengsheng is actually Kebaba - this woman was Zhu Youxiao's wet nurse and a very famous figure in history, of course, with a bad reputation.

There are various legends. Some say that Wei Zhongxian and Kebaba became the confidants and frequent companions of Emperor Tianqi, and taught him to enjoy the pleasures of sex; some say that Kebaba colluded with Wei Zhongxian to abuse power, and in order to consolidate his position, he killed pregnant concubines in the harem to prevent the concubines from giving birth to children and threatening her position. He even killed the legitimate child in the queen's womb.

Zhu Youxiao didn't know how much of this was slander and how much was fact.

However, Zhu Youxiao knew one thing: Wei Zhongxian's collusion with Kebaba was true, and Kebaba was indeed unscrupulous, ambitious, and powerful in the harem. Her son Hou Guoxing, her brother Ke Guangxian, and Wei Zhongxian's brother Wei Zhao were all Jinyi Qianhu.

He didn't care whether Emperor Tianqi and Kebaba had any messy affairs, but this woman was very likely to cause potential danger, so he was not going to spare her life.

Moreover, according to the regulations of the Ming Dynasty, when the prince reaches the age of six, the wet nurse must leave the palace, but this Kebaba refused to leave and stayed for more than ten years. His purpose is self-evident.

Wei Zhongxian wanted to use him, but he couldn't allow Kebaba to fan the flames, nor could he allow Wei Zhongxian to eliminate his trusted eunuchs, such as Wang An and others.

There are countless eunuchs in the palace, and countless people are jealous of this position. Emperor Tianqi wants to tell everyone that he not only likes Wang An, but also wants to use Wang An, and Wang An's position is very stable.

Zhu Youxiao had some understanding of the eunuchs of the Ming Dynasty. When you are powerful, these people will definitely try their best to curry favor with you. When you lose power, these people will definitely be the most ruthless.