Xu Yan was right; the Xu family was about to face a great calamity.
After the Duke of England withdrew his troops, the Shu King's army, unable to await reinforcements, suffered greatly in morale and suffered repeated defeats in its confrontation with the White Lotus Sect. After more than half a month of holding out, the 100,000-strong army had dwindled to less than 60,000 men.
Xu Yan knew that if the King of Shu were defeated, Zhu Rui would certainly not spare him. The military intelligence from the front was getting worse every day, and he could no longer endure the daily torment. So he made up his mind to flee the capital with his entire family. Having been a seasoned official for more than twenty years, the former Grand Secretary Xu Yan had extensive connections. After a few letters, he quickly determined a place to hide.
Xu Silin had been living in a daze these days, too lazy to think about anything anymore. He did whatever Xu Yan told him to do, just like a puppet on a string.
Unfortunately, reality was not as rosy as Xu Yan had imagined. Huang Heng, acting on Zhu Rui's orders, had already sent men to keep an eye on him, and the imperial guards guarding the city gates had long since been replaced, no longer under Xu Yan's control. Upon seeing him leave the city, the imperial guards arrested them all and sent them to prison.
Ming Xiang is not included among these people.
When Xu Yan decided to flee, Xu Silin released Ming Xiang. Xu Yan was in dire straits himself and couldn't care less about his son's concubine. Although Ming Xiang was reluctant to part with Xu Silin, he refused to take her with him, so she could only bid him farewell in tears, carrying her bundle alone, and return home desolate and lonely.
...
Within a few days, Zhu Rui's imperial decree was conveyed through Huang Heng—the entire Xu family would be executed, and their nine generations of relatives would be exterminated.
Zhu Rui finally regained his senses for a while, but upon hearing the news of Xu Yan's capture, his anger surged again. "Considering his years of service, I wanted to let him live a few more days, but he was unrepentant and still thought of running away. Fine, let him live to this extent."
Ultimately, the imperial court found Xu Yan guilty of dozens of crimes, including framing loyal officials, colluding with princes, and embezzling tax revenue. By order of the Ming emperor, his entire family was to be executed three days later, along with nine generations of his relatives. Furthermore, officials who had close ties with Xu Yan were also dismissed and punished.
Knowing he would be executed in three days, Xu Yan, imprisoned, begged the jailer to see Zhu Rui one last time. The jailer consulted Huang Heng, who hesitated for a moment before going to plead with Zhu Rui, only to find that Zhu Rui, lying on the dragon bed, had truly stopped breathing this time.
He passed away.
Zhu Rui did die before Xu Yan, and he did not fulfill Xu Yan's last request before his death.
Huang Heng immediately reported his death to Crown Prince Zhu Yuluo, who then declared a national mourning. The entire nation was in mourning, and temples across the country rang their bells 30,000 times.
Because the Ming Dynasty was still facing war, and the country could not be without a ruler for a day, on the day after Zhu Rui's death, in order to stabilize the political situation and the morale of the army, Crown Prince Zhu Yuluo ascended the throne as emperor on the advice of his ministers.
The Ming Dynasty has finally ushered in a new era.
After the coronation ceremony, the new emperor Zhu Yuluo received something from Huang Heng—a golden book and iron certificate that the Xu family had been granted by the late emperor.
The Xu family was once a powerful and influential family, and Xu Yan was good at pleasing Zhu Rui, so it is not surprising that he obtained this plaque.
Xu Yan had wanted to see Zhu Rui in the hopes of using the golden book and iron certificate to save his son's life and ensure the continuation of the Xu family line. Unfortunately, Zhu Rui died before he could even see him. Now that Zhu Yuluo had ascended the throne, he could only plead with Zhu Yuluo for mercy.
Treason was a capital offense punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family; dismemberment by five horses, skinning, and dismemberment were all considered extreme punishments. Whether the "golden book and iron certificate" would be effective depended on whether the reigning emperor wanted to recognize it. If he didn't want to recognize it, even if one was spared death once, another pretext would be found to convict him of another capital offense, and then there would be no more certificates to spare his life.
The candlelight flickered gently.
The young emperor sat upright on the dragon throne in the Qianqing Palace, his dark eyes fixed on the iron plaque in his hand. His handsome face, still somewhat immature, remained expressionless, his thin lips slightly pursed.
Xu Yan was first and foremost a traitorous official, and over the years he embezzled vast sums of state funds and public wealth. He even conspired with Consort Zheng to murder his mother. Now he has finally received his retribution, and his death is well-deserved. Xu Silin is his son, and he has helped him with many things in the past two years. Although not the most heinous criminal, he is still culpable. In particular, he even helped Xu Yan frame his own teacher.
His teacher was Zhu Yuluo's teacher.
Should we let him go? If we don't nip it in the bud, it will inevitably cause endless trouble later.
Zhu Yulu was hesitant, but the word "teacher" reminded her of Qingchen.
It had been quite a while since they had last seen each other. Previously, Consort Zheng had imprisoned him in Cining Palace, forbidding him from seeing anyone. Later, Qingchen was unable to return to court after rescuing Song Yue, and then a series of other events occurred, leaving them no time to contact each other. He wondered how she was doing now.
Just as he was pondering this, someone came to report: "Your Majesty, Lord Shen Qingchen has something to discuss with you."
Zhu Yuluo's eyes lit up. "Quickly, let her in!"
Upon meeting Zhu Yuluo, Qingchen first performed the imperial court ceremony, saying, "Your humble servant Shen Qingchen greets Your Majesty the Emperor."
Zhu Yulu stepped down from the dragon throne and approached her excitedly, saying, "Master Chen, it has been a long time since I have seen you."
I miss you.
Qingchen saw that he was dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe, which made him look even more dashing and extraordinary, and she was happy for him. However, she couldn't reminisce with him now; she had come today to ask him for a favor.
Yesterday, Mingxiang heard about the Xu family's situation and came to beg her to help save Xu Silin's life.
Qingchen could tell that Mingxiang was deeply in love with Xu Silin. Her request to save Xu Silin, though seemingly unreasonable to outsiders, was something Qingchen felt indebted to her. Therefore, no matter what Mingxiang said, she would try her best.
Xu Silin probably never imagined that the woman his father had wronged would now be the only one pleading for him. Reality is truly ironic.
“Your Majesty, I have wronged the person who begged me for help. No matter how unreasonable the request may be, I must try my best. Please forgive my impudent request…” she said, bowing her head.
"I agree," Zhu Yuluo replied quickly.
He would agree to whatever she said. If it weren't for her, he might have fallen into Xu Yan's trap, lost his position as crown prince, or even lost his life. How could he have inherited the throne then?
"Perfect timing. Xu Yan has presented a golden edict and iron certificate, pleading for his son's life." The new emperor continued, "For your sake, I will spare his son's life. However, while he may be spared the death penalty, he will not escape punishment. I will order him to stay in prison for ten years before being released. This will also be an explanation to those whom the Xu family has harmed. Master Shen, what do you think?"
The fact that he was spared the death penalty was already an act of great imperial grace, and she dared not ask for more. "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Zhu Yulu smiled. "Master Shen, although I am the emperor now, you are still my teacher. Let's keep things the same as before, okay? It feels too distant. I don't like that."
Qingchen hesitated for a moment, the words "The proper etiquette between ruler and subject should not be neglected" were on the tip of her tongue, but she swallowed them back. Zhu Yuluo's eyes held a longing gaze for someone close to him, making her reluctant to let him experience the loneliness of being on the throne so soon after he ascended it.
"good."
The young emperor smiled with satisfaction, his bright eyes gazing at her delicate and fair face. "I also have some good news to tell you."
What is it?
"I have replaced all the officials in the three judicial departments. I will order a retrial of Song Yue's case. I know in my heart that he has been wronged, and I will clear his name." He knew that she had done a lot for her teacher. She should be very happy that he did this.
As soon as he finished speaking, just as Zhu Yulu had predicted, a smile immediately appeared on Qingchen's face. "That's wonderful. Thank you, Your Majesty..."
The young emperor's heart began to pound as he gazed at her smiling face. Her fair cheeks, clear eyes, and peach-pink lips made her truly incomparably beautiful. The single word "you" struck him deeply.
His ears must be red, Zhu Yulu thought, and lowered his head somewhat embarrassed.
...
Not long after, the entire Xu family was executed, and nine generations of their clan were wiped out. The only survivor was Xu Silin, who lived in a dark and gloomy prison.
Mingxiang asked Qingchen to have someone deliver a letter to him, saying that she would be waiting for him outside.
He was imprisoned for ten years, and she waited for ten years.
You should be as firm as a rock, and I should be as reed as a cattail. The cattail is as resilient as silk, and the rock will never move.
The head of the Three Judicial Offices has been replaced.
The Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, who had previously helped Qingchen, was transferred to one of the Six Ministries, while the other two were dismissed and investigated. Song Yue's embezzlement case was reopened, and the truth quickly came to light; he was found innocent and returned to court. Zhao Qiran and other followers of the School of Mind, who had spent a long time in prison, were also released.
Upon seeing the light of day again, Zhao Qiran remarked with emotion, "Finally, a new dynasty has been established, and the Ming Dynasty is about to see the light of day again."
With Xu Yan's death, the position of Grand Secretary became vacant. Zhu Yuluo, without much deliberation, appointed the Second Grand Secretary Song Yue as the new Grand Secretary, effective immediately. Meanwhile, the cabinet was still one person short, and naturally, there was no other suitable candidate for that position.
This was especially true in his heart.
In mid-August, the new Emperor Zhu Yulu promoted Shen Qingchen, the Vice Minister of Revenue, to Minister of Revenue, and simultaneously selected him for the Grand Secretariat, bestowing upon him the title of Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion. From then on, all civil and military officials addressed Qingchen as "Grand Secretary."
In early September, the Shu King's forces were already in dire straits, and he fought a desperate battle with the White Lotus Sect's 100,000 troops with his remaining 50,000 men.
After more than a month of fierce fighting, the King of Shu suffered a crushing defeat, his entire army scattering. Meng Gexing's men also suffered countless casualties, leaving him with less than 70,000 men. Meanwhile, Lan Tan, who had arrived in the capital to provide aid, was aggressively recruiting the remnants of the King of Shu's army, training them day and night. Combined with his own 20,000 elite troops, they formed an army of 40,000. Lu Shenyun, on the other hand, was still leading 30,000 imperial guards from the capital. Thus, the forces of the Ming Dynasty and the White Lotus Sect were now evenly matched.
Initially, Meng Gexing decided to attack the King of Shu for two reasons: first, the manifestation of Amitabha Buddha made him hesitant and dared not advance rashly; second, he did not expect Lan Tan to have such outstanding command ability, not only repelling the Oirat people in a short time, but also recruiting the remnants of the King of Shu's army upon arriving in the capital.
Seventy thousand men against seventy thousand men—the numbers seem evenly matched, but they had just fought a major battle and were exhausted both physically and mentally. If they were to fight the Ming Dynasty at this time, the scales of victory would not be in their favor.
At this time, some soldiers were complaining because of their injuries, saying that when he shot an arrow at the image of Amitabha Buddha, he angered the Buddha and turned to attack the King of Shu, which went against the Buddha's will, thus leading to his current predicament.
Meng Gexing didn't want to hear any of it. All he knew was that he had to defeat Lu Shenyun in this battle, take control of the Forbidden City, and take Qingchen back.
...
At the same time, Lu Shenyun and Lan Tan had already formulated a battle plan, intending to take advantage of the White Lotus Sect before they could catch their breath and fight them to a swift victory.
Before the Ming army set off, Emperor Zhu Yulu personally poured wine for Lu Shenyun and Lan Tan, and drank with them. After leaving the Qianqing Palace, Lu Shenyun went to the Ministry of Revenue to find Qingchen.
When the officials of the Ministry of Revenue saw him, they asked who he was looking for. He replied, "I am looking for Grand Secretary Shen..."
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