The Empress issued an imperial edict reprimanding a high-ranking official, which was a rare occurrence in the Ming Dynasty in recent years; such a thing had never happened before.

After all, the last person who could do this was Empress Ma, and after her death, there was no woman in the Ming Dynasty with such great power.

At this moment, Yu Xin and the others had nothing to say and walked towards the Meridian Gate under the supervision of the female officials and eunuchs. This wasn't a matter of losing face; if they wanted to talk to He Xu Miaoqing, they could, but at this moment, they could only obediently kneel down.

The reason is quite simple: Xu Miaoqing is the empress and the emperor, while Yu Xin and others are merely subjects. The difference is that obvious.

Some could have guessed that the Empress's sudden order was likely due to Yu Xin's previous dissent against the Emperor. However, no one expected that the Empress would be the one to fire the first shot, catching many off guard.

As Yu Xin and the others walked towards the Meridian Gate, Xu Miaoqing, dressed in court attire, looked so dignified and solemn. Female officials and eunuchs cleared the way, while others followed cautiously.

The palace can't keep any secrets, especially big things, which can spread in an instant.

The Ming Dynasty had not had an empress for fifteen years. It had been far too long since an empress had reprimanded officials or even appeared to interfere in politics. Naturally, there was no room for 'keeping a low profile' in this regard.

As Xu Miaoqing and her entourage headed towards Fengtian Hall, Lian Qiongqiong was only accompanied by her daughter. Wang Shi, who was about to give birth, was filled with envy but remained indifferent. As for Li Shi and Wang Shi, they could only feel envy; the difference in status between them and the Empress was simply too obvious to be compared.

As for Zhu Biao's concubines, those with children left the palace with them, including Lady Lü. Those without children mostly stayed to guard Zhu Biao's tomb; their fates were essentially sealed—either guard the tomb or become nuns.

Fortunately, Zhu Yunying opposed the practice a few years ago; otherwise, the old Zhu really wouldn't have minded sending these people to accompany his son. The practice of funerary sacrifice had already been revived in the Yuan Dynasty and, before that, the Ming Dynasty.

As for Zhu Yuanzhang's concubines, some should be envious, while others should remain calm. Previously, they had the Empress Dowager to look after them, and now they still have Xu Miaoqing. These concubines only thought about gaining status through their sons; having children was already a blessing.

Don't think too much about the others. They were just imperial concubines, which would be considered concubines in other families. They could not be enshrined in the ancestral temple.

Upon hearing the news, Shuangquan immediately rushed over to report the situation to Lao Zhu.

Old Zhu, who was looking at the memorial, was taken aback. He put the memorial down and said, "This brat, how many times have we told him that the empress dowager must not interfere in politics! I'm afraid he's just ignoring what we say."

Shuangquan and the others kept their heads down and remained silent, having no right to speak at this point.

Old Zhu glanced at Shuangquan and said, "Bring out our court robes. Since the emperor wants to cause trouble, we'll help him make things bigger."

Shuangquan immediately turned around to fetch his court robes, but Old Zhu asked again, "The Empress's decree refers to Hongcang?"

"Your Majesty, Her Majesty the Empress reprimanded the officials of the Ministry of Revenue for their negligence in allocating supplies to Hongcang." Shuangquan quickly turned around and said again, "The Empress is furious and has ordered the officials of the Ministry of Revenue to kneel at the Meridian Gate, while the Empress herself went to the Fengtian Hall to plead guilty!"

Old Zhu narrowed his eyes slightly and scolded, "Is this just the Empress's business? Hong Cang is the Empress Dowager's business! When she was alive, she loved her people the most, and these scoundrels dare to neglect her?! If you ask me, these people in the palace are also lazy, relying on their status and children, they dare to take a break?!"

Zhu Yuanzhang was furious because Hongcang was founded by his most beloved wife, Empress Ma. Empress Ma was extremely frugal during her lifetime; the concubines and princesses in the palace all had to help with weaving and needlework. Over the years, the Ming Dynasty had become wealthy, and the lives of those in the palace had improved, but some good habits had been lost.

Old Zhu was furious and said, "Issue an imperial decree that all women, except those who are pregnant or whose children are young, regardless of age, must kneel before the ancestral temple! When the Zhu family holds an event, it must be a grand and lively affair!"

Well, the concubines in the harem who wanted to watch the drama were in for a rough time, regardless of whether they were the concubines of Emperor Zhu or Emperor Xiao. Even the unmarried princesses were not having an easy time at this time, as they all had to go and "receive punishment."

Old Zhu is never stingy when it comes to treating his own family well. But he is also ruthless towards his own family.

Remembering something, Old Zhu said, "Go to the school to pick up the Crown Prince, and we'll wait for him at Fengtian Hall!"

Shuangquan was taken aback, then whispered a correction, "Your Majesty the Retired Emperor, His Majesty the Emperor is handling state affairs in the Wuying Hall!"

"We've figured it out!" Old Zhu laughed in exasperation, pointing at Shuangquan and saying, "It's only right that our emperor sent you to serve us! You blockhead, you can't think straight. If you had any brains at all, you could be following the emperor too!"

Shuangquan quickly put on a fawning smile, "Your Majesty, this servant is foolish and only knows how to follow orders."

"Since you're obeying orders, whatever you say goes!" Old Zhu said, both amused and exasperated. "Be smarter; you've been following me for so many years. That Wang Chengen is much better than you. I don't know why you, you good-for-nothing, haven't improved at all after all these years!"

This is where things get interesting. The chief eunuch serving Emperor Zhu was arranged by Zhu Yunying. As for Wang Chengen, he was placed by Emperor Zhu to serve Emperor Xiaozhu.

If you didn't know better, you'd think there was some kind of misunderstanding between the Ming Dynasty's imperial family, with each side planting spies around the other. You might even think that it's hard to say who these two powerful eunuchs, Shuangquan and Wang Chengen, truly served.

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