Chapter 37 A dispute
When everyone heard him say this, they couldn't help but gasp in their hearts. Even Xu Yun couldn't help but rub the sweat from his palms secretly, wishing he could go forward and cover Yu Qian's mouth.
Even though the emperor is not around now, the empress dowager is still an elder in the royal family, and her status is second only to Empress Dowager Cihui. Yu Qian's open questioning can be seen as a concern for national affairs at best, but at worst, it is an act of insubordination.
How could such offensive words to the royal family be spoken so casually?
But everyone also knew clearly that only in this way could they dispel Empress Dowager Sun's unrealistic plans.
As expected, Empress Dowager Sun's face turned pale and red. She asked, "You...what do you mean?"
Yu Qian remained calm and said, "Your Highness, Yu Qian, is the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of War. A few days ago, due to a shortage of staff within the Ministry, I ended my mourning for my father and am temporarily taking over the management of the Ministry from Minister Kuang. The Empress Dowager doesn't even know my name. How will I handle the upcoming changes?"
Queen Mother Sun's voice became even sharper when she heard this. "I don't know. Does she know?"
"I was recommended by the Princess in the fifth year of the Zhengtong reign. I returned to the capital to oversee the military examinations and other matters, and was later appointed by Your Majesty as Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of War." Yu Qian spoke frankly, "Your Majesty and Your Highness certainly did not rashly appoint me without knowing anything about me. Furthermore, the Empress Dowager has long lived in the inner palace and has no understanding of government affairs. How can she deal with the Oirat Mongols? How can she defend the capital?"
Empress Dowager Sun shouted, "You are committing treason by saying this!"
In fact, she was very clear that she did not understand political affairs, but Empress Dowager Sun also knew that this was the last chance she could seize. If Princess Shunde was allowed to serve as regent, the emperor would never be able to return to the capital in his lifetime, and she would never have the chance to escape the shadow of the mother and daughter.
Zeng Heling saw that the situation was not good and immediately stepped forward and said, "Minister Yu is overly worried and his words were indeed offensive. I ask the two Empress Dowagers to fine him as a warning."
Empress Dowager Sun was choked by the words of a veteran like Zeng Heling. She stared for a long time without saying a word.
In the current cabinet, the chief minister Cao Nai was taken away by the emperor to patrol the border, and he is likely to be in danger. The second minister Ma Yu is seriously ill and cannot attend court. The next ones are Zeng Heling and Chen Xun. If nothing unexpected happens, Zeng Heling will take over the position of chief minister of the cabinet. Naturally, his words at this moment carry weight.
Yu Qian paid no attention to Zeng Heling's "rescue" and simply bowed, saying, "I know my crime. To transgress against one's superiors is disloyalty, and I did indeed behave in a discourteous manner." He quickly straightened his chest, glanced around, and said, "But everyone in the court knows this. I mentioned the eldest princess not only for the sake of the country, but also for the sake of Your Majesty and the Empress Dowager. If the capital is safe and sound under the supervision of the eldest princess, everyone will be happy. But if the Empress Dowager is allowed to argue for a while, it will harm the country. All of you here today, including me, will be cursed by future generations. Who knows if this moment will be seen as a tragic retelling of 'Man Jiang Hong' in the eyes of future generations?"
Empress Dowager Sun was nearly fainted by the outburst of this man. She trembled and said, "Even if I'm not familiar with government affairs, don't the civil and military officials in the court know about it? Were your words just now spoken for the sake of the country, or for the sake of the ulterior motives of those of you who are colluding with Princess Shunde?"
Xu Yun was sweating profusely at Yu Qian's overly strong words, and couldn't help but secretly sigh that this Minister Yu was too radical.
But he had already spoken, and there was absolutely no reason to retreat at this moment, so Xu Yun followed suit, saying, "With war looming, the most important thing is that the regent has an understanding of military affairs and political affairs, and has prestige among the people. If the Empress Dowager finds someone more qualified to take on this important task, we dare not disobey. Even Minister Yu should be unable to find fault with him."
Compared to Yu Qian's blatant questioning, Xu Yun's words seemed much softer.
But if you think about it carefully, Xu Yun's words were just as devastating to Empress Dowager Sun.
According to Xu Yun, Empress Dowager Sun lacked both the ability and strength, as well as the prestige and manpower. In contrast, the unmentioned Princess Shunde possessed both, making her the best candidate.
But his words sounded two-sided, making it impossible to directly refute him.
Xu Yun just lowered his head, not daring to look at Empress Dowager Sun's expression at this moment.
Princess, oh princess, he's risked his entire fortune, you must not let me down...
Seeing that the eldest princess was becoming more and more popular, many people followed suit and repeated all the glorious deeds of Zhu Yuhuan in the past in assisting the emperor in managing internal affairs and conquering foreign enemies, trying to prove that the eldest princess of Shunde was the best choice for the regent.
Yu Qian had already said all the more powerful words, so it was nothing for them to just follow behind and take advantage of any loopholes.
Empress Dowager Sun was already a little dizzy from being attacked from both sides by the two of them, one yin and one yang, one soft and one hard. But she still said stubbornly: "You are threatening me and abandoning the emperor..."
Before she could finish her words, Hu Shanxiang, who had been silent all this time, finally shouted, "Shut up!"
No one had expected that the always gentle Empress Dowager Cihui would suddenly speak at this moment, and they were all stunned.
Hu Shanxiang stood up, opened the beaded curtain, walked to the front of the crowd, and said, "The current situation is not optimistic. The safety of the people in the capital is the most important thing. Is it more important to protect the capital and preserve the country, or to fight for fame and fortune and commit violence? You know it better than anyone else!"
Everyone knows that Empress Dowager Cihui has a kind and generous personality. How could she have ever been so harsh and aggressive as she is today?
The officials finally came to their senses and lowered their heads, not daring to look up again.
Empress Dowager Sun, who was originally quite arrogant, was interrupted by her sudden shout and remained silent.
Hu Shanxiang then spoke, "The most urgent task is to appoint a regent to oversee the country, manage the overall situation, unify the people, and find out the emperor's current situation. The overall situation is more important, and life and death are at stake. If you keep confronting each other like this, isn't it just a matter of the fisherman profiting from the conflict?"
Zhu Qiyu took in the entire dispute and knew that if he didn't speak up now, all the problems would be blamed on him.
He was about to speak when Duke Yingguo Zhang Fu, who had been silent the entire time, said, "The Empress Dowager is absolutely right. The position of Regent at this moment is of great importance. Why not allow all the ministers to return home today to deliberate further and reconsider tomorrow? For now, let the Empress Dowager Cihui take charge of state affairs temporarily. Troops will be transferred from Northern Zhili, Henan, Shandong, and other places to prepare for emergencies. The granaries in the capital are still quite abundant. If we need to supply the army long-term, we will need to transfer them from other places. There is no need to rush this matter."
Hu Shanxiang nodded slightly, glanced around, and said, "That's very good. Everyone, please withdraw for now. The troop deployment will be handled by Duke Yingguo Zhang Fu and the Ministry of War. Left Vice Minister Yu Qian will temporarily assume the position of Minister of State and be in charge of the mobilization of officers and soldiers. The verification of the quantity and quality of weapons will be handled by Vice Minister Xu Yun of the Ministry of Works. Please ensure that the specific number is determined as soon as possible. If there is any shortage, we will facilitate the transfer of more from various warehouses. As for the matter of regent... we will discuss it tomorrow."
"yes."
Seeing that he failed to shirk the responsibility of being regent, Zhu Qiyu could not help but sigh in his heart, secretly blaming himself for being too cowardly and not speaking up in time.
Considering that Zhu Yuhuan had never appeared at the court meeting, Zhu Qiyu felt even more uneasy.
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