Chapter 24: Court Meeting
Boom—boom—boom—!
The morning bell rings three times, and the sleeping imperial city wakes up.
Li Mian, surrounded by officials from the six ministries, walked into the Tianji Palace.
He walked straight to the chair next to the throne and sat down. The other officials stood in two rows behind the long desks on the left and right.
This was the first time that officials from the six ministries entered the palace to discuss matters after the emperor's death.
The Queen and the Crown Prince had not yet come out, and everyone was whispering and discussing in low voices.
"Have all six ministries signed that memorial?"
"Of course. No matter what, we can't let Queen Chi succeed in her scheme. Letting a woman take charge of things will destroy the integrity of the country."
"Don't worry, Prime Minister Li is very experienced. If Queen Chi is truly smart, she will definitely submit obediently. If she drags it out any longer, she won't gain anything."
Song Guangyi, who was standing at the end of the team, felt uneasy when he saw the smug looks of the officials in front of him, because he had bet on Queen Chi.
Born in a poor family, he has never been appreciated by his superiors since he entered the officialdom. In recent years, he has been repeatedly demoted and his situation has become worse and worse.
The last time he publicly supported Queen Ji, he offended Li Xiang's party completely. Now he has no choice but to go down this path.
Otherwise, once Queen Chi loses her power, Prime Minister Li will be free and will definitely kick him out of officialdom and make him pack up and go back home.
He has been struggling in the officialdom, even working like a slave for so many years, just to climb up. How could he be willing to end up like this!
To this end, he united several officials who were also suppressed by the aristocracy, determined to make a desperate move and support Queen Chi to ascend the throne.
But after seeing the situation today, he became a little timid again. How could a few low-ranking officials like them be a match for Prime Minister Li?
He had to prepare for the worst in advance.
If Queen Chi really failed, she could only quickly collect some money and offer it to Prime Minister Li, hoping that he would let her stay in the capital because she admitted her mistakes frankly.
As he was pondering and weighing the pros and cons, the hall suddenly became quiet. Song Guangyi subconsciously looked up and saw that the gauze curtain hanging on the east side of the hall was carefully lifted by the palace servants. Queen Chi, dressed in a Xuantian-colored ordinary dress, walked out slowly.
Following behind her was not the crown prince, but Princess Mingyue, who was only fourteen years old, and a female official serving as a secretary.
The officials all knelt down, and Li Mian also stood up, but did not kneel down, he just bowed.
Chi Yan walked to the throne and sat down. She glanced at the people below with a cold look. Her gaze paused on Li Mian, then she withdrew and said, "Everyone, stand up."
Everyone stood up, and Li Mian sat down.
Without waiting for Chi Yan to speak, he spoke first, "Who will preside over the emperor's funeral? I think we should decide today. If the crown prince is truly unable to take charge, Duke Cao can take over. Your Highness, what do you think?"
The officials standing below were all startled. Prime Minister Li rushed to set the tone for the court meeting, which showed that he did not take Queen Chi seriously at all.
The officials all turned their eyes to Chi Luo, who was sitting at the top, waiting to see her attack, secretly imagining that she was bound to make a fool of herself.
But to everyone's surprise, Chi Qi did not lose her composure. Instead, she remained composed, without a trace of panic on her face. One could even say she was calm.
She spoke slowly, "I understand what Prime Minister Li means. I've also read the memorials from the six ministries. Although I strongly disagree, this is concerning the late emperor. I can't let one person make the final decision. I need to hear everyone's opinions. What do you all think? Please share your thoughts."
This was clearly a subtle criticism of Li Mian's one-man show. The officials exchanged glances with each other, and undercurrents began to stir in the hall.
Instead, Li Mian sat on the chair with his eyes lowered, looking as if he was about to enter a state of meditation, as if he could not hear the implicit meaning of Chi Qi's words.
After all, no one could have imagined that he was laughing secretly in his heart at this moment.
Almost all of the people standing in this palace were his people. Did Queen Chi think that by letting them express their opinions, she could get the result she wanted? What a fantasy!
This would only embarrass her further.
He rolled his eyes slightly and gave a wink to the people below. Minister of Rites Liu Yu immediately responded, "I think we can do as Prime Minister Li said."
His words seemed to flip a switch, and the other officials followed suit, "I second the motion."
Even the neutral faction felt some invisible pressure amidst the overwhelming wave of voices, and reluctantly said, "I second the motion."
Although it was very noisy, the atmosphere in the hall gradually became solemn.
Song Guangyi clenched his fists nervously, wanting to show his courage to stand up and support Queen Chi, but the fists slipped out of his body.
In the end, he remained silent helplessly. Seeing this, his allies knew that the plan was not going to work and also remained silent.
The hall gradually became quiet, and in the end, no one supported Queen Chi.
Li Mian's mouth corners rose slightly. He didn't need to look up to know that Queen Chi's face must be very ugly at the moment.
However, when he saw that the officials were unanimous in opposing Queen Chi, Zhao Mingyue was the first to change his expression.
Originally, Zhao Mingyue was excited about being able to meet the court officials with A Niang, as this was an honor that only belonged to the crown prince.
At the same time, she was also very nervous, worried that she would be questioned by the censors, and even thought about how to refute them.
But now, looking at the solemn expressions of the officials, her heart felt like it had sunk into ice water, freezing cold.
She thought that the poor family would stand up to support A Niang, at least Song Guangyi would stand up, because he had clearly supported A Niang last time!
Is it because of “his position as a man”?
So she looked all over the court but couldn't find a woman. Even if she wanted to form her own team, there was no one to promote.
In a trance, she seemed to have caught a glimpse of something, some kind of indescribable malice, like a tide, surging towards her from all directions.
A drowning-like suffocation enveloped her, making her want to turn around and escape immediately.
It was not until she heard Chi Lun's usual cold voice that the tide that enveloped her body suddenly receded, allowing her to breathe again.
"I just said that I do not agree with your proposal, because after Duke Cao learned the sad news of the emperor's death, he was overly sad and passed away this morning." Chi Luo said in a deep voice.
What? !
Chi Qi's words were like a bomb, thrown into the hall, blowing the court officials to pieces, and the previous solemn atmosphere disappeared without a trace.
Officials from the six ministries were visibly panicking. Li Xiaoci was completely bewildered. "Duke Cao was fine yesterday. How could he have passed away so suddenly without any sign?"
"Then, what should we do now? Duke Cao is gone, who else can take charge?" Liu Yu looked shaken.
If he had known this would happen, he would have listened to Queen Chi. If he fails to handle this matter well, it will be his Ministry of Rites that will be held accountable.
Chi Li looked at Li Mian, a subtle glint of joy flashing in her eyes. "Prime Minister Li, aren't you putting too much pressure on Duke Cao by insisting on having him preside over the state funeral?"
Li Mian's face suddenly changed. He stood up and said excitedly, "This is impossible! This is absolutely impossible!"
He had already imagined in his mind countless times the reaction of Queen Chi surrendering and begging for mercy, but the current situation was completely beyond his imagination.
He had just proposed last night that Duke Cao preside over a state funeral, so how come he died this morning?
In this way, all his plans were in vain!
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