Wang Meng led Xiao Ruoyu to the main hall. Xiao Ruoyu didn't say anything more. As soon as he sat down, he asked directly, "How is the Second Prince and the others doing now? What are the arrangements for today, the Double Ninth Festival?"
Wang Meng then told Xiao Ruoyu in detail about the planned palace coup today, and Xiao Ruoyu was shocked when he heard it.
…
When the half moon was high in the night sky, the palace banquet had reached its climax.
Everyone had already drunk a lot of wine, and many princes and ministers were inspired to write poetry.
The young emperor had not been in a good mood recently because of the Empress Dowager's affairs, but when he saw the ministers writing poems, he gradually became interested.
"Today is the Double Ninth Festival, and I have also improvised a poem."
When everyone heard this, they immediately responded with a smile, "Yes, yes, Your Majesty, please do it!"
The young emperor stood up, glanced around the hall, and then gazed at the moon high in the sky. He then began to chant, "It's Double Ninth Festival again, and the fragrance of chrysanthemums fills the hall. The emperor and his subjects celebrate together, and wish you a long and healthy year."
The guests immediately started to flatter.
"Your Majesty may be young, but your poetic talent is remarkable!"
"Your Majesty's poems are so good!"
“What a poem, what a poem!”
Just as everyone was praising him in turn, Minister Lin stood up with a glass of wine in hand.
Apart from Han Lie, Lin Xiang was the most powerful person in the court. When everyone saw that Lin Xiang had something to say, they immediately shut up and left the space for Lin Xiang to speak.
"Your Majesty, today is the Double Ninth Festival, and the poem you wrote is really appropriate for the occasion!" Although what Prime Minister Lin said was not wrong, his tone was a bit sarcastic.
Xia Miaoyuan looked up at Lin Xiang and muttered to himself, "I don't know what Yue Haoyun and the others have planned for today. Could it be that they're letting this skinny old man take the lead and stir things up?"
The young emperor's heart began to flutter when he heard Prime Minister Lin's words, fearing that Prime Minister Lin might cause trouble at the palace banquet. However, he suppressed his inner worries and asked gently, "Prime Minister Lin, please stand up. But you'd also like to compose a poem to liven up the atmosphere?"
Prime Minister Lin smiled slightly and said, "Your Majesty, I am not good at writing poetry, but I recently heard a poem that I found very interesting. Today, at the palace banquet, the emperor and his ministers are enjoying themselves together, so I wanted to share it with Your Majesty."
The little emperor felt even more uneasy, but since Prime Minister Lin had already spoken, he could only smile and reply, "Okay, Prime Minister Lin, please speak."
Lin Xiang took a big step and stood directly in the aisle in the middle of the hall, chanting loudly: "The bamboo branches sway in the wind, and the bells ring through the sky. I lie in the red tent secretly, and the joy is beyond words."
In an instant, Empress Dowager Zhu Ling, the little emperor, and everyone below all showed expressions of surprise.
Especially Zhu Ling, her face changed drastically, she was angry and embarrassed.
Xia Miaoyuan was so shocked that she couldn't be more shocked. [Ahhh! Lin Xiang's move was really crazy!]
After a moment of silence, whispers were heard from below.
For a moment, the atmosphere in the hall was very awkward.
Prime Minister Lin continued, "This doggerel is something I heard children singing while walking down the street recently. I wonder if Your Majesty has ever heard it?"
The little emperor's lips trembled slightly, and he suppressed his emotions and said, "I haven't heard of it."
"Lord Lin, you are drunk. Please step back and rest first!" Zhu Ling tried her best to speak in a calm tone.
But Prime Minister Lin seemed to have heard nothing and ignored Zhu Ling. Instead, he laughed meaningfully a few times. The laughter was full of sarcasm, and the atmosphere in the hall became even more awkward. The faces of the Empress Dowager and the little emperor were frighteningly ugly.
Seeing this, the guests all kept silent.
Minister Lin continued in a resounding voice, "Your Majesty, you have also studied poetry with your teacher for many years. Do you know the meaning of this doggerel?"
The little emperor's handsome face flushed red with embarrassment. He gritted his teeth and said, "I don't know!"
At this time, Prime Minister Lin turned gracefully and said to the guests, "Hahaha, Your Majesty is still young, so it's understandable that you don't know the meaning of this poem. Do you know what this poem means?"
The Minister of Justice stood up unsteadily, holding up his wine glass, and said drunkenly, "This poem, on the surface, is an erotic poem, but in fact it is also an acrostic poem. If you read the first word of each sentence together, you will understand!"
Someone among the guests shouted out, "So it was Zhu Ling who was having an affair!"
In an instant, the hall was in an uproar. Some were sneering, some were talking among themselves, and some were glancing at Zhu Ling, waiting to see her explode.
"I heard that the people involved in the secret affair mentioned in this poem are the Empress Dowager and Mr. Liang."
"I wonder if she has any other male favorites besides Mr. Liang."
"They say men are like wolves at thirty and tigers at forty, and it's true. The late emperor has been gone for five years, how can she keep him here?"
"Oh, what a sin! The Empress Dowager is actually having an affair with her own son's teacher. How will Your Majesty cope with this?"
"What a shame for Dai Viet! Even the people have turned this erotic affair into doggerel and spread it around."
"The fact that Dai Viet has such a shameless and vulgar Queen Mother is truly a shame for the entire nation."
Xia Miaoyuan ate the grapes slowly one by one, but his eyes were glancing at the Empress Dowager above, waiting to see her explode.
Zhu Ling's face turned pale and red, and sweat oozed from her forehead.
She was so angry that she was shaking all over and yelled out in a panic, "What do you mean?"
"How dare you ridicule me!"
Facing Zhu Ling's impotent rage, Prime Minister Lin showed no fear. He pointed at Zhu Ling and sternly said, "Empress Dowager Zhu, you have disregarded propriety, righteousness, and shame by secretly having an affair with the Imperial Tutor, Mr. Liang, defiling the harem. You are unworthy of being the Empress Dowager of Dai Viet!"
"Now, your dirty deeds have spread among the people and have become a topic of ridicule. You are truly a disgrace to our Great Xia!"
"Today, I, Lin Feng, as the Prime Minister of Dai Viet, am submitting this joint letter of attack on behalf of all the ministers."
"This list lists all the things that have happened to the Empress Dowager. We request that she be deposed!"
As he spoke, Prime Minister Lin took out a memorial from his sleeve and held it up with both hands.
Prince Shen stood up and echoed loudly, "The Queen Mother's virtue is unworthy of her position. We demand that she be deposed!"
Immediately afterwards, the voices of many court officials rang out, "We demand that the Empress Dowager be deposed!"
The little emperor was only fifteen years old and had mediocre talents. When he saw this scene, he was immediately frightened and lost his mind. He just sat there awkwardly, unable to utter a word.
Zhu Ling's face was distorted due to excessive emotion. She grabbed the teacup on the table and threw it to the ground with all her strength. The sound of porcelain breaking broke the shouts of the crowd, and the hall was brought to a moment of silence.
Zhu Ling took advantage of the moment when everyone was stunned and screamed, "Rebellion! Rebellion! I have always strictly followed the rules of propriety and have never done anything to offend the late emperor! You are slandering me!"
"Dare to slander the Empress Dowager, the crime is death!"
Then, Zhu Ling shouted at the palace gate at the top of his lungs, "Come here! Arrest these treasonous officials!"
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