It was not until the intruders had sent troops to attack Kaifeng that the memorial about the fall of Luoyang and the suffering of King Fu was sent to the capital of the Ming Dynasty.
The reason why the news was delayed was because the fall of Luoyang and the death of King Fu were too serious, and Li Xianfeng, the governor of Henan, had previously led the army to rescue Luoyang. The officials in Kaifeng did not dare to report to the court until they had confirmed it.
Regarding Li Zicheng's deeds, there have been some rumors in the capital in the past few days, but they are only limited to people's talk after dinner. However, all the officials above the imperial court are tight-lipped, and no one dares to talk about it.
No matter how Zhang Xianzhong, Li Zicheng and other thieves wreaked havoc in Huguang, Sichuan, and even Henan, they were all too far away from the capital of the Ming Dynasty to affect the lives of people here.
But when Li Zicheng invaded Luoyang and officially reported the Tang Bao and memorial to kill King Fu to Beijing, it was like a bolt from the blue, shocking everyone in the capital, from the emperor to the court officials and the common people.
From then on, whether it was in the capital's yamen, the residences of kings, marquises, nobles, teahouses and restaurants, or the small people in the streets, the fall of Luoyang and the disaster of the Fu clan became the central topic.
…………
Emperor Chongzhen received Feizou from Kaifeng just before lunch.
His face changed suddenly, and he felt his head was in a blur. He could hardly hold on, his body was swaying, and he stamped his feet repeatedly, saying: "Hi! Hi! Hi!"
Then he burst into tears.
The eunuchs and maids in the Qianqing Palace were all very panicked. The prominent ones knelt on the ground and softly tried to persuade them, while the shameless ones retreated outside the curtains and stood under the eaves, holding their breath, not daring to make any more noise.
Emperor Chongzhen cried for a while, and stopped crying when he thought of having to deal with the aftermath of Luoyang. He called Wang Dehua, the eunuch in charge of rites, and ordered him to summon some courtiers in the afternoon to deal with Luoyang's affairs.
After Wang Dehua left, Emperor Chongzhen felt sad and had no intention of reading the documents. With a feeling of hatred and anger, he whispered to himself: "My ancestors have never seen such a tragic change in the country for three hundred years. Since I have been in the imperial court, I have never seen such a tragic change.
He respects heaven and his ancestors, works diligently and loves the people, and has never done anything unethical.
Unexpectedly, the bandits were so rampant and difficult to control, and the chaos intensified. Eventually, Luoyang fell and Prince Fu was executed. The prince died of bandits for the first time in three hundred years.
How can I be worthy of Grandpa Shenzong!"
In order to "save his guilt" from heaven, he also ordered that today's lunch should be done away with and that he would "eliminate pleasure and reduce meals". He also issued an order to the imperial kitchen, ordering no more meat dishes to be prepared for him within a hundred days.
The little eunuch was ordered to go to deliver the order. Emperor Chongzhen walked to the window. He sighed first and then said to himself: "I have been suppressing thieves every year and every day, but I have achieved this result!
I am not a weak king, I am always working hard for the country, working hard to govern and rejuvenate the Ming Dynasty. Unfortunately, God does not bless me and punishes me. I do not eat meat or drink alcohol. I just want to be grateful to God and restore Tianxin.
I hope God will understand my difficulties and bring blessings to my Ming Dynasty!"
…………
In the afternoon, several assistant ministers of the cabinet, the Minister of Rites and the left and right ministers, plus Chen Xinjia, the Minister of War, and several ministers from the two departments of etiquette and military affairs, including the Censor of Henan Province and the Censor of Huguang Province, were summoned.
palace.
In addition, the old consort Ran Xingrang, who was very senior, had white hair hanging down from his chest, and was well-dressed, was also summoned into the palace.
They first met outside the Jinshui Bridge inside the Huangji Gate, then passed through the Hongzheng Gate, the middle left gate, the right back gate, and bypassed the back of the Jianji Hall to reach the Qianqing Gate.
There are two tall gilt-bronze lions outside the door, one on the left and one on the left. They sparkle with golden light under the bright sun. After entering the Qianqing Gate, there is the royal road, which is protected on both sides by white jade railings and railings with exquisite carvings and thick and soft lines.
The ministers walked north along both sides of the imperial road until they reached Chongshi, which is the south-facing Danbi. In the middle is a huge stone slab, carved with two dragons protecting the sun, full of auspicious clouds, and the tide below. Its structure Rigorous, complete, and extremely vivid.
Walking up the stone steps on both sides, you arrive at the platform in front of the main hall of the Qianqing Palace, which is the so-called Danqi. On the Danqi there are gilded bronze dragons, bronze turtles, and bronze cranes, all more than five feet high, paired in pairs. Along the royal road, the east and west face each other, and there are also furnishings such as tripods, incense burners and so on.
As soon as you enter the Qianqing Gate, you can feel the very solemn and solemn atmosphere. The further you go, the more you feel the respect and fear for the imperial power. When you reach the main hall of the Qianqing Palace, you simply don’t dare to express your dignity. Already.
The little eunuch who led the way did not lead them directly into the main hall of Qianqing Palace, but turned eastward from the eaves of the main hall until they reached the east corner gate.
There is a small building next to the corner gate, with a yellow brocade curtain hanging down and a small plaque hanging on the forehead with the words "Zhaoren Hall" written on it.
The young eunuch standing in front of the palace door opened two brocade curtains in succession. After everyone bowed in, they turned eastward and opened two more brocade curtains. Only then did the ministers enter the innermost room. This was where Emperor Chongzhen summoned them. The place.
Emperor Chongzhen's face was very haggard and his eyes were red and swollen. It could be seen that he had been crying just now. He was sitting on the imperial couch covered with yellow satin mattress.
There is a small rosewood table on the couch, with several documents on it, and a tea bowl with a lid placed on a lotus leaf-shaped silver tea tray. There is a small plaque hanging on his left, which is written by Emperor Chongzhen's imperial pen. The book contains four words: "Conquer oneself and restore etiquette".
After all the ministers had kowtowed, Emperor Chongzhen asked them all to get up, and then sighed again, and then said with a sad expression: "I have been in the imperial court for ten years. The country is troubled, and we have suffered from successive years of famine. Everyone is in trouble." Eating each other is a pity.
Recently, alas, alas, the chaos has become more and more intense. The traitors have not yet been exterminated and executed, intruders have become more popular again, Li Zicheng captured Luoyang, and King Fu, who was my uncle, was slaughtered by the bandits."
At this point, Emperor Chongzhen's eyes were red, and tears were still rolling in his eyes, but fortunately they had not fallen. He shook his head sadly, and then said: "Mencius once said: 'Be kind to the people, and be kind to the people. Love things.'.
But I can't even save my own uncle. This is all due to my bad behavior. I really deserve to die!"
Suddenly, his nose felt sore, and he couldn't hold it back. Tears rolled down from his eyes. He sobbed involuntarily, and for a while he burst into tears.
None of the ministers dared to give advice. The old prince-in-law Ran Xingrang and the first assistant Fan Fucui had just stood up. Seeing this, they hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed. They advised Emperor Chongzhen not to be sad and to take care of the health of the holy body. They also said that this was all caused by Qi. Sincerely, if you are not a saint, you have no virtue.
Emperor Chongzhen barely stopped sobbing, wiped the tears from his eyes and face, and then choked: "This...can't be said to be all caused by Qi.
Even if the situation is caused by luck, we must do our best to remedy it. How can we make any progress in the past few years?"
Several other courtiers in the Zhaoren Palace heard the reproach in the emperor's words and hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed, not daring to say a word.