Chapter 52: Pioneering
When everyone heard this, they were surprised and looked at the woman dressed as a female official who walked out from behind the pearl curtain. It was Princess Yongqing, Zhu Youtong.
Compared with her sister, the eldest princess is not very famous. Instead, her paintings are more well-known than her.
No one would have thought that she would appear openly in the court meeting.
Zhu Youtong pulled out a scroll of silk from his sleeve and said, "It has the Emperor's order, written with his own handwriting and sealed with his imperial seal. Who dares to question it?"
Everyone was shocked when they heard this, even Xu Yun and Yu Qian were no exception.
No matter how much the people around the princess exaggerated the matter, it was just for fun. But according to Princess Yongqing, Zhu Zhanji did leave an edict related to Princess Shunde before his death.
And because it was written by the emperor himself and was not handled by the cabinet, no one knew about it. This statement is reasonable.
The only question is what the decree contains and whether it was truly written by the late emperor himself.
Zhu Youtong unfolded the silk scroll, and it was indeed Zhu Zhanji's handwriting. The content did not ask Princess Shunde to succeed to the throne, but ordered Princess Zhu Yuhuan to assist in the administration. However, unlike the will of Empress Dowager Zhang, the time was the end of the ninth year of Xuande, which was earlier than the will left by Zhu Zhanji himself, and happened to be the time when Princess Shunde openly became a nun.
In other words, the late emperor had probably already prepared this decree before ordering the eldest princess to become a nun, and the meaning is self-evident.
There were only a few people in the court who were familiar with Zhu Zhanji's handwriting. The most experienced were Zhang Fu and Hu Yi. Zhu Youtong handed over the silk manuscript and said, "Duke Yingguo and Minister Hu, please take a good look and determine if this is the Emperor's handwriting and seal."
Under the gaze of everyone, the two carefully read the decree from beginning to end. There was indeed no mistake or omission, and it was definitely written by Zhu Zhanji himself. The last mark of the seal was even clearer.
Not only that, the choice of words and sentences can also be seen to be in the style of Zhu Zhanji, which shows that it is a genuine imperial edict of Zhu Zhanji.
Zhang Fu took the imperial edict and confirmed it again, then handed it to Zeng Heling and other cabinet ministers beside him.
Hu Yi has already understood that as long as there is this imperial decree, the eldest princess will have a place in the law.
Even though this decree did not imply that the eldest princess would ascend the throne, the Empress Dowager was still alive at the time, and Zhu Zhanji was considering handing over the post of regent to the eldest princess. How could one not speculate on the meaning behind this?
Zhu Youtong said solemnly, "When the Emperor gave this decree to you, it was out of consideration for His Majesty's youth, and he hoped you could shoulder the heavy responsibility. However, the Empress Dowager was still alive at the time, and you didn't dare to interfere. So you gave the decree to her for safekeeping, and only returned it to you before she passed away. You were worried that if this decree became known, it would not only damage our relationship, but also make it easier for those with ulterior motives to exploit it and affect the overall situation, so you held it back... But what has happened today truly disappoints the expectations that the Empress Dowager and the Emperor had for the Emperor, so I am bringing this decree to you. Do the court officials still doubt your sincerity?"
Zhu Qiyu saw it all clearly from the side and immediately knelt on the ground, saying, "The Emperor has placed great hopes on you. If your uncles, the Princes Zheng, Xiang, Jing, and Wei, see the Emperor's imperial writings, I beg you not to decline and ascend the throne to crush the Wala conspiracy and reassure the people, as the Ming Dynasty is facing a critical moment."
Everyone was stunned by his quick movements, and then they all fell to their knees.
Now that the princess has become regent, the opposition of these ministers will be of little use, and the four Tengxiang guards are guarding outside. No matter how reckless they are, they know that they cannot openly oppose the princess at this time.
Moreover, the princess already has filial piety, God's will, military strength, the will of the late emperor, and the power behind the scenes. Even the King of Qing, who has the greatest possibility of ascending the throne, has no intention of opposing it. How can they have any room to stop her?
Although she already had a vague idea in her mind, when Empress Dowager Sun heard that Zhu Qiyu had handed over the throne to Zhu Yuhuan, a princess who was supposed to marry out, she couldn't help but feel a chill all over her body.
"You...you are an outsider after all, and your child won't have the surname Zhu. Are you ministers crazy enough to support her?"
Han Guilan had been waiting with Zhou Yingying in the back. Upon hearing Empress Dowager Sun's words, Zhou Yingying immediately stepped forward with her two children and said, "Who says your Highness's children can't have the surname Zhu? Empress Dowager Cihui and Princess Shunde care deeply for the prince and princess. Their love is no different from that of a biological mother. Even I, a concubine, would be ashamed to be compared to them!"
Why would Concubine De run into the palace where the court was being held at this time?
Empress Dowager Sun quickly turned to look at Hu Shanxiang. Seeing that she still looked calm, she was furious. She was about to step forward to question Hu Shanxiang, but Ruilan stopped her and said, "Your Highness, please do not act recklessly..."
Empress Dowager Sun was slightly stunned and stared at Ruilan, but she avoided her eyes. How could she not understand?
Even Ruilan, who had always been by her side, had sided with Zhu Yuhuan.
Zhou Yingying had the female officials beside her carry Zhu Jianshen to her and presented him to Zhu Yuhuan, saying, "A good ruler rewards the good and eliminates the people's suffering, loving the people like his own children. Although Your Majesty has made a serious mistake, the child is innocent. The princes and princesses are all descendants of Taizu, Taizong, Renzong, and Xuanzong, and are connected to Your Highness by blood. Your Highness's kindness is known throughout the world. If you show kindness to the people, how much more so to your own blood relatives?"
Zhu Yuhuan exchanged a glance with her, sensing Zhou Yingying's underlying uneasiness. He smiled faintly, then took Zhu Jianshen and said, "As Concubine De said, Shen'er and I are both descendants of the Emperor. How can there be any difference in kinship?"
Seeing that she had truly taken over the eldest prince, Zhou Yingying felt relieved and said repeatedly, "Your Highness is a descendant of the Zhu family, and Shen'er is also a descendant of the Zhu family. Since we all have the surname Zhu, how can there be any distinction between insiders and outsiders?"
Everyone understood what Concubine Zhou De meant. She simply wanted to indirectly prove that the "Zhu" in the eldest prince's name was the eldest princess's "Zhu". She must have taken into account that the emperor no longer had any advantage in filial piety and the kingly way, and it was hard to say whether he could keep the throne. That was why she was so anxious to adopt Zhu Jianshen to the eldest princess.
"But such a thing has never happened since ancient times..."
Zhou Yingying counterattacked without hesitation: "If there wasn't one before, won't there be one in the future? In the past, there were only kings, not emperors. Shouldn't the world have an emperor? Which is more important, bloodline or status? If Shen'er isn't allowed to be filial to His Highness, the elder, does he have to be filial to you officials who are always making excuses? You guys are planning to rebel against the Zhu family! Are you planning to join forces with the Wala and support incompetent people to bring disaster to our country?"
Everyone was speechless after hearing her words, but they had to be wary of her status as an imperial concubine. Only then did they understand what it meant to be "a scholar meeting a soldier, unable to explain himself clearly."
Concubine Zhou De was so aggressive that she wanted to debate with the scholars. Her deterrent power was no less than that of the censors in the Censorate.
Seeing that the situation had completely turned in the eldest princess's favor, Zhang Fu said, "The situation is critical now. I hope everyone will put the overall situation first."
Seeing him like this, Hu Yi also said: "What the Duke of Ying is saying is absolutely right. The overall situation is of utmost importance."
With Zhu Zhanji's handwritten imperial edict, it was at least legally justifiable. He didn't want to get too entangled in this matter. As long as he could be worthy of Emperor Taizong, his mission would be accomplished.
The two spoke very vaguely, but everyone knew at this moment that they were not going to express any opposition or even neutral opinions.
Zeng Heling immediately took the lead and said, "Your Highness, please do not refuse. Take the throne and make a plan to save the city!"
Compared to the ministers who followed Zeng Heling's lead, the voices of the four Tengxiang guards could be heard from outside the palace: "Your Highness, I hope you will not refuse. Once you ascend the throne, you will make a plan to save the city!"
Zhu Yuhuan glanced at the crowd and said, "Since the ministers have petitioned me, and we are facing an invasion, refusing would only benefit the enemy and harm myself. I do not want to feign a false refusal. Preparations for my enthronement must be made as quickly as possible, and the safety of the capital must be prioritized."
When the dust settled, everyone was in mixed emotions, except Peng Deqing, who was almost in tears of gratitude. He had already begun calculating in his mind which day would be the most suitable to ascend the throne.
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