At this court meeting, Zhu Si showed an anonymous memorial to the ministers in public, allowing them to discuss it.
"Dear ministers, I have asked someone to transcribe a thousand copies. In addition to giving them to all ministers, the Hanlin Academy, Guozixue and various government offices in the court will also send a few copies to let the scholars know the importance of the Ming Dynasty ceremony. Everyone.
There is no need to avoid taboos in the Qing family. You can speak freely during discussions. I will not hold anyone responsible for admonishment.
"After a full discussion, I will choose another day to have a good discussion with all the ministers. This time, the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Personnel will take the lead. Each ministry will come up with their own opinions, talk about everything they know, and summarize it...
Therefore, if you all have opinions now, you can leave them alone for the time being. When you go back, you can sort out your thoughts and report them to each level, and then debate them again when the matter is discussed again.
"Retreat!"
Zhu Si probably knew that these ministers would not follow any rules when it came to opposing him, the emperor, and would just say whatever they had.
How many more days can we wait?
Today I will chase him and beat him fiercely, criticizing him to the point of doubting his life.
So the best way is to put down your words and leave the court immediately, so that you can't vent your opinions.
"His Majesty……"
"Jiang Zhongtang, look..."
"If you don't want to talk about anything else, let's just talk about the things I gave you yesterday. How many of you went back and looked carefully?
Jiang Mian himself did not have Yang Tinghe's courage to do things. As the successor of the first assistant bachelor, his reputation and abilities were far inferior to those of his predecessor. Now that he had no choice but to retreat, Jiang Mian still showed an evasive attitude.
The next morning, Qiao Yu appeared in the courtroom.
The three cabinet ministers in Beijing returned to the duty room together. Before his colleagues could sit down, Jiang Mian had already waved to Fei Hong and Liu Chun to join him.
Liu Chun reminded: "In the past two years, there may have been some discussions among the people about the gift that are different from the mainstream. However, there are very few people who have spoken out in the DPRK, and most of them are foreign ministers. There is no new news at the moment. Is it possible that His Majesty is planning to summon the local government?"
Officials entering Beijing?"
"... Dear lords, didn't you hear what I said clearly yesterday? I gave you the opportunity to object, but not now, let you go back and discuss it. Now you don't even discuss it, and just use your inherent opinions to refute me...
…Have you ever given me any face?
Jiang Mian suddenly wanted to understand something and lost his voice: "Then hurry up!"
Fei Hong had already received instructions from Jiang Mian, pointed to Wang Jun and said: "Such a major matter, the Ministry of Rites should coordinate the opinions of the civil officials. You should discuss it with Wang Shangshu first."
Liu Chun took the initiative and said: "It is our duty to uphold the dignity of etiquette. I will go to Hanyuan later to pool our efforts to overcome the difficulties."
So at this moment, many ministers showed their extreme "loyalty" to ethics and deliberately loudly accused the emperor of being dishonest in his words, as if these words were not meant to be spoken to the emperor at all, but to be heard by the people around him and let others know that they were
A staunch defender of morality.
But in fact, Qiao Yu is the first of the six ministers. When encountering major issues, Qiao Yu's opinion should come first.
Shi Yun was afraid that Liu Chun would think too much, so he explained first.
The purpose of his coming to court was very simple, which was to cooperate with Wang Jun, the Minister of Rites, to prevent the emperor from changing the rituals and to block the emperor's ambition to change the course.
…
"Um."
Wenyuan Pavilion.
…
Liu Chun had just arrived at the Hanlin Academy and was going to talk to two Hanlin bachelors, Shi Yuan and Feng Xi, about the ceremony. However, he was told that they were meeting with guests from the palace, which surprised Liu Chun.
As the chief minister of the cabinet, Jiang Mian tried his best to avoid coming out on this matter.
In terms of prestige, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel can rival the chief minister of the cabinet. Now that Yang Tinghe has retired, and Jiang Mian seems to be timid and afraid of getting into trouble, if he doesn't look for Qiao Yu now, when will he wait?
…
Fei Hong frowned: "Your Majesty just raised it today to explain that he came prepared. Is there any problem in it..."
Jiang Mian's confidence suddenly doubled.
Regarding the fact that the emperor was going to watch the opening of the train in five days' time, both the civil and military officials in the DPRK and China knew about it within one day.
Previously, there was just a little leak. The emperor summoned Wang Jun, the Minister of Rites, to raise the matter of the great ceremony. Now it has officially kicked off.
For the ministers, they could only launch a counterattack after the emperor announced it in public.
Fei Hong asked: "What is fast?"
After leaving Fengtian Hall, a group of civil servants surrounded Jiang Mian.
"I'll give it to you then."
…
Everyone thought that the emperor sent his cronies Huang Jin to the Hanlin Academy to find the two Hanlin bachelors, and they must have come to seek support. However, they did not expect that the emperor's envoys did not even mention the matters discussed in the ceremony after their arrival. Could it be that the emperor had long ago
Clearly, the people in the Hanlin Academy must be on the side of "succession to succession"?
"Why did Mr. Liu Ge come here?" Fengxi asked.
This was held almost at the same time as the Great Ceremony.
Since the emperor has said that in the subsequent debates on great etiquette, the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Personnel should select representative viewpoints for debate at the same time. Then you can’t just ask me, the Minister of Rites, but you also have to add Qiao Yu, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
superior.
Unexpectedly, now Liu Chun not only supports the idea of inheriting the throne, but also seems to want to use his reputation to mobilize the people of the Hanlin Academy. After all, Liu Chun has a very high reputation in the Hanlin Academy system, and he is one of the four members of the current cabinet.
As the oldest, most knowledgeable, and most virtuous person among the people, it seemed appropriate for Liu Chun to contact the Hanlin Academy.
Sure enough, there was a minister who looked like he was remonstrating and screamed at the top of his lungs, but Zhu Si turned a deaf ear and left the main hall of Fengtian Hall without looking back.
Shi Yun thought about it seriously, and after looking at Feng Xi for confirmation, he shook his head: "No."
Liu Chun asked: "Didn't you propose a big gift?"
The emperor has made a move, and there must be back-up plans. Can you just rely on such a thing to win back public opinion? I'm afraid it won't be that easy.
…
Each cabinet has its own division of labor.
Liu Chundao: "It's better to listen to Jingzhi. Now I have to say hello to the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Personnel."
Jiang Mian said bluntly: "Although the cabinet should not take the lead in this matter, it should advance and retreat together with the civil servants."
This means that since even Zhang Cong has not arrived in Beijing yet, we should take advantage of the fact that there is no one around the emperor to cut through the mess quickly and promote the court discussion as soon as possible without delaying it.
Recently, Yang Tinghe became an official, and Qiao Yu is still recuperating at home. The emperor has granted permission not to participate in court affairs, so many people have almost forgotten Qiao Yu.
Is the emperor planning to bribe people from the Hanlin Academy to endorse him?
But is it useless to bribe two Hanlin bachelors?
To bribe, directly bribe the cabinet bachelor or the Minister of Rites. Shi Yun and Fengxi are now in an awkward position in the court. How much influence can they have?
After all, Liu Chun was not Jiang Mian or Mao Ji. He was cautious by nature. Since there was an angel from the palace in the bachelor's room, he would not rush in to ask for an audience.
Fei Hong remained silent from beginning to end.
Jiang Mian immediately made arrangements, "No matter what conclusions the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Personnel come up with, they must fully express the views of my cabinet. This matter must be done quickly and accurately. As long as everyone in the court agrees, it is expected that Your Majesty will have no chance to change it."
Already have an opinion.”
Wang Jun became the target of public criticism for a while. He felt relieved and frightened at the same time, but he said: "I think we should discuss the matter with the officials."
Now that Mao Ji went to Shandong to worship Confucius, the little emperor deliberately pulled out Jiang Mian's wings first, leaving Jiang Mian, the chief minister, alone in the cabinet.
After the people left...they still left through the back door, he entered the bachelor's room and found out that the person who came was Huang Jin, who had just resigned from the post of Director of Ceremonies, Bingbi, and was now in charge of the Queen's Supervisor and the Admiral of the East Factory.
Because looking at the overall situation, Yang Tinghe believed that the emperor only needed to seize Liu Chun's "loophole" in the cabinet to get rid of Jiang Mian, Mao Ji and Fei Hong at once, leaving Liu Chun as a confidant to complete a smooth transition.
"Let's put it this way, I will give you four more days. After four days, I will prepare to go out of the city to watch the train opening ceremony. You can go with me. I will set up a big tent at that time, and no matter who you are, you can go inside.
Speak freely.
…
…
Since there is a debate in the court, and the civil servants on one side are almost all participating in the battle, the other side can't just send Zhang Cong to fight, right?
Originally, the person Jiang Mian was most worried about was Liu Chun. After all, Liu Chun was highly recommended by the new emperor and included in the cabinet. Before Yang Tinghe left, he reminded Jiang Mian that the person he was focusing on was Liu Chun.
Fei Hong shook his head: "I still don't understand. His Majesty has made it clear that he wants to openly discuss this matter in court, but except for Zhang Bingyong, who was summoned to return to Beijing and is still halfway there, who will stand by His Majesty without hesitation? Also
, whose hand did this thing issued by His Majesty come from?"
This is a kind of statement.
Liu Chun will explain: "This is to discuss the great ceremony. The whole court should advance and retreat together, and cannot fight independently. The Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Officials will submit a joint memorial in the next two days..."
Liu Chun went to the Hanlin Academy, while Fei Hong went to the Shangshu's official residence to meet Qiao Yu.
Jiang Mian was a little worried and asked sideways: "Zichong, do you have any objections?"
Let Zhang Cong talk against the Confucian scholars?
Is he worthy?
Jiang Mian hesitated for a moment, but couldn't think of an answer.
Compared with Liu Chun's mere statement, Fei Hong's idea is closer to reality.
In the palace, all the ministers were filled with indignation.
Jiang Miandao: "The great ceremony is related to the legal system, and it is also related to the long-term stability of the Ming Dynasty in the future. Since your Majesty has no one to help you for the time being, it is necessary to finalize the matter before the dissenters arrive in the capital. If it is too late, there will be changes."
Jiang Mian also considered that Fei Hong and Liu Chun were not cabinet ministers who supported the view of "succession to succession" in the strict sense, so he had to warn them in advance to let them know that they would advance and retreat together with the civil servants... No matter you
Whatever views we held before, we must be united this time.
…
"Mr. Liu Ge, it's like this. Eunuch Huang came to convey His Majesty's will. He said that in five days, the railway that he had been working hard to build would be opened to trains. He asked people from the Hanlin Academy to go to the west of the city together in the name of Qiu Shou.
Watch the opening ceremony."
Liu Chun was shocked.
The emperor did this skillfully without showing any trace.
"If you are not in the court, you don't need to care about the rules and regulations in the court. Whoever wants to say can say what they want. Even if someone wants to insult me or be disrespectful to me and my ancestors, I will never pursue it!
"But I have to say my ugly words upfront. You can discuss them in any way you want, but after they come out, no one is allowed to mention them again, let alone settle accounts later. Whoever settles the accounts based on the views at the time will be treasonous, and even I can't do it...
...If I violate it, I will be punished. At worst, I will no longer be the emperor!"
Zhu Si is coming and he is going to hit hard.
The ministers present saw that the emperor wanted to leave no room for retreat.
I originally wanted to object on the spot, but I hesitated.