But even so, when they found out that one of the waiters, Zhang, was nearly two months pregnant, everyone was still shocked.
Especially the royal family and important officials who had been fighting over the selection of the new emperor.
If they had known this, why would they have bothered with this?
Now that their merits in following the emperor were gone, and they had also incurred the empress dowager's displeasure, it was clear that their future would be difficult. Perhaps the empress dowager wouldn't do anything for a while, but having nominated other members of the royal family, they would undoubtedly be feared by those in power.
Everyone's mood is quite complicated.
Of course, there's still a chance of a reversal. After all, the child is still in the womb, and it's still unclear whether it will be born, or whether it will be a boy or a girl.
If she fails to hold the throne or turns out to be a princess, it will be their chance again.
At that time, we will still come back to the current problem.
So everyone looked at each other and remained silent, listening to the imperial physician's long speech congratulating Minister Zhang and the Queen Mother.
Empress Dowager Lin, however, was beaming with joy. She gently comforted Attendant Zhang and told her to stay with her in Kunhua Palace for the time being, instructing Aunt Qiu to arrange for more servants to attend to her. After Aunt Qiu had escorted the people away and the imperial physicians had departed, she straightened her face and said to the assembled crowd, "Heaven has mercy on me, leaving me with an heir. There's no need to discuss the previous matters anymore; everything will be settled after the child is born."
"Yes." Everyone agreed.
The news that His Majesty had left behind a posthumous child spread throughout the capital that very day. The original plan to appoint a new monarch naturally fell by the wayside, and state affairs were temporarily handed over to the gentlemen of the Council of State. The Empress Dowager assisted in the administration from behind the scenes, and no major disturbances arose.
However, those royal relatives who had the opportunity to go further had different feelings.
…
Xue Zhizhi returned to his residence in a rather low mood. The five people in the Council Chamber—two Vice Ministers and three Councillors—were supposedly equal in rank, but generally speaking, they were ranked according to the order in which they entered the Council Chamber. Only when the emperor on the throne was powerful enough would they be ranked according to the emperor's reliance on them.
Among these gentlemen now, Xue Zhidao is the one who entered the government hall the earliest and has the longest seniority, so he is the leader among them.
He was the first to raise the issue of selecting a new ruler. A country cannot be without a ruler for even a day, and Xue Zhidao has always believed he should shoulder responsibility in such matters. So he didn't regret speaking up. Some things have to be done by someone.
But the result was different from what he had imagined, because he had overlooked something in his considerations. After this incident, the Queen Mother was probably already resentful of him. If Zhang Shichang was indeed pregnant with a son and inherited the throne, his biological mother, now the Queen Mother, would undoubtedly harbor resentment towards him.
Under such circumstances, Xue knew very well that there was little hope for him to continue staying in the court.
At his level, he could foresee many things and handle them calmly. Rather than waiting to be ousted, it would be better to ask to leave on his own initiative, saving both sides some dignity and avoiding a complete fallout. So, as soon as today's events were over, Xue Zhidao began planning his departure.
However, over the years, the emperor has not taken care of state affairs, and the government has fallen into the hands of these ministers, which has actually caused chaos.
If there is no one in the court who can stabilize the situation after he leaves, I'm afraid something big will happen.
Most of the scholars have some thoughts about their country and the world in their hearts. Moreover, Xue Zhidao has been in the government hall for many years and is the actual ruler of the Great Chu Empire, which is gradually showing signs of decline. Naturally, he wants to leave behind a stable team after he leaves.
He sat silently in his study all night, going through the comings and goings of so many people in the court, and finally found that there was only one person who was the most suitable.
Sometimes God has plans in advance.
Xue Zhidao sighed deeply, looked up, and realized it was already late at night. He hesitated for a moment, then wrote a letter and sent it to a trusted family member in the dead of night. Then, by the lamp, he began to ponder his petition for retirement.
The days that followed were peaceful, firstly because the biggest problem in the palace had been temporarily resolved, and secondly because everyone was so busy with the funeral that they were too tired to have any other interest.
In the blink of an eye, it was March of the third year of Tianshun. All the funeral rites of the late emperor had been completed, and the coffin was moved to the imperial mausoleum on the outskirts of the city.
Everyone gradually recovered from the funeral and began to consider other arrangements. The prince was still in his mother's womb, and determining his status was a very difficult question. There was still much that needed to be done to stabilize the court.
No one dared to bring up these matters. After all, if they were not careful, they might not only gain no credit, but also get themselves into trouble. Even if they chose the right side now, if the child they gave birth to in the future was not a dragon child, it would be in vain.
However, at this moment, a memorial broke this secret balance and stalemate.
Gu Zheng, the head of the Hanlin Academy, submitted a petition requesting that Empress Dowager Lin be given the title of Grand Empress Dowager, and Minister Zhang be given the title of Empress Dowager. The unborn child of Minister Zhang be designated as the Crown Prince, with the title and status determined first. The enthronement ceremony would be held after the Crown Prince was born.
In this way, the status is determined and the people of the world can rest assured.
Empress Dowager Lin naturally agreed with all her heart.
Apart from anything else, once her status as Grand Empress Dowager was confirmed, even if she gave birth to a girl in the future, or if... a new emperor was chosen, her status would not change. This wouldn't put her in an awkward position, as He Qing had speculated, because the new emperor would confer titles on her biological parents.
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