Chapter 8 Prequel to Empress Dowager Cixi (4-1)

Similarly, in Rehe "Mountain Resort", from the inside to the outside, it is also shrouded in an atmosphere of suspicion and anxiety. After all, autumn has already begun. Although the daytime is still hot and humid, sooner or later there is a sense of autumn, and the wind and dew at night are the most painful. The emperor felt the wind and cold, coughed a lot, and could hardly sleep all night.Any prescription for nourishing the lungs didn't work, and the emperor was so angry that he called the imperial doctor "a useless". There is a saying: "The emperor's external influence is just worse, it's a big disaster!" It spread throughout the forbidden garden and deep palace.It is rumored that this sentence was said by the imperial physician, but the imperial physician did not know about it, and no one dared to inquire about it, let alone talk about it openly, they just whispered behind their backs.

As a result, there were many bizarre and weird news.Eunuchs and court ladies are the least courageous, have the most taboos, and most believe in the sayings of ghosts, where there are foxes on the ceiling, and where there are snakes under the stones, all of them respect ghosts and gods, and respect them as "temple gods"—— It is best not to meet the god of the temple, so as not to rush into trouble, so before entering the palace that is not often visited, you must give a "warning", either by coughing loudly, or shouting: "Open the palace!" , Somehow, this one also said that he ran into the temple god, and that one also said that the temple god appeared somewhere.However, it is not a good thing for all the gods to appear. When they said those words, they clearly expressed a kind of feeling of "ghosts tricking people".

There was even an old eunuch who said he saw "Master Jiaqing"! "That night, it was time for me to 'sit up'. It was cool, and I was dozing off in a daze." The old eunuch told his colleagues in the imperial tea room where the news "originated", "Suddenly, I felt someone Kick me, open my eyes, my mother, scared my soul out, guess who I met? " "Don't guess! If you have something to say, quickly say it, and if you have to fart, let it go!" A little eunuch in the Lifei Palace picked up a copper bucket of hot water on the ground, "Our master is still waiting I wash my face with Choshi water."

"What are you in a hurry for? You'll be shocked when you say it, it's Lord Jiaqing!" "Ah!" Everyone exclaimed in unison, and someone asked anxiously, "How are you doing?" "What else can I do? Kneel down in a hurry. Lord Jiaqing asked me: 'Where does the eldest brother live?' I said: 'The eldest brother lives in the row of bungalows behind the queen's bedroom." Lord Jiaqing said: "Then it's inconvenient for me to go." After finishing speaking, I was stunned for a while at Yanbo Zhishuang East Nuan Pavilion, and left with my hands behind my back, sighing. When I walked into the yard, I didn't know how to shake it, but there was no one. At this time, I Thinking about it, ah, it has been 40 years since the funeral of Lord Jiaqing, why did you tell me to see him today? Could it be that I was dreaming? Don't worry, let me try it myself. I just put my finger in my mouth bite……."

Before he finished speaking, someone rushed to ask: "Is it a dream?" "Look!" He stretched out an index finger of his left hand, the bite marks were still there, proving that he was not dreaming. "Bah!" The little eunuch in Concubine Li's Palace said mercilessly, "Look, Lord Jiaqing saw that you were cautious in your errands back then, and he is about to send you back to serve." This harsh remark made people laugh.But that is only a limited number of people, the vast majority of eunuchs believed the words of this old eunuch who had stayed in the summer resort for more than 40 years, and at the same time, they were thinking about the "Jiaqing Lord" who collapsed here 41 years ago. Because of the sudden appearance.

It depends on each person's "ghost cleverness" to explain those "nonsense".The ghost who had been dead for forty years suddenly appeared, and looked at the emperor's residence, shaking his head and sighing. What kind of misfortune does this mean?Even unintelligent people can guess it. Another thing is that even people who are not very confused think it is ominous.These days, the emperor often speaks some "guilty words" unconsciously, which seems to be idiomatic prophecy. In addition, the emperor has been particularly attached to the empress recently, either inviting her to Dongnuan Pavilion for a chat, or struggling to come to the empress for an afternoon.On the right side of the queen's bedroom, there is a water pavilion with curved sills and corridors, and it faces the Guangchi. White lotus, talking about the past with the queen.

In the past ten years, it is really unbearable for the emperor to look back!At the beginning of his accession to the throne, it was the year of the weak crown, and his body was extremely strong. How would he have imagined such a decline as today?Think about it for yourself, in the past ten years, internal and external coercion, coping with the corrupt situation, exhaustion of body and mind, is indeed the cause of the disease, but indulging in sensuality, self-willedness, and not knowing how to cherish it, I really regret it. Of course, he would never express his remorse.But being attached to the queen is just an expression of repentance.But the queen is honest and honest, so she can't see what he means.

The emperor was very weak and tired of talking too much.However, he always felt that he had something to say, and he wanted to tell the queen, and he himself understood that if he didn't say a few more words at this time, he would have no chance to say it again. In order not to make the empress sad, he avoided the tone of solemnly asking for the funeral, and many very important words were revealed in the way of chatting when he thought about it and talked about it.Fortunately, the empress is very convinced of the emperor, and she keeps every word of his in her heart, and the emperor is not worried that she will ignore those important words.

Once talking about the character of the ministers, the emperor mentioned the famous Confucianism ministers of the previous dynasty, and told the empress about the friendship of Tang Bin and Zhang Boxing in the Kangxi Dynasty. , Li Tangjie, who lectured on Confucianism, the emperor said that he was a true Taoist who had a good character and learning, and could be entrusted with important tasks.He also talked about Wo Ren, a Mongolian bannerman who was stationed in Henan. He used to be the master of King Dun, and now he is the governor of Fengtian. The queen remembered the two names Li Tangjie and Woren in her heart.

Once when talking about Sushun, the queen told the emperor tactfully about her complaints about Sushun from Concubine Yi and the palace, which meant that she hoped that the emperor would suppress Sushun's power. "I also know that many people are dissatisfied with Su Liu." The emperor said very calmly, "What do you mean by 'resentment'? This is resentment! If he hadn't stood in front of me in everything, I would have been in a lot of trouble!" "I also know that he has shared a lot of labor for the emperor. But...," the queen said seriously, "you have to pay attention to the system in everything. I think he is a bit rebellious."

"That can't be generalized. For example, for you," the emperor continued after a pause, "I know he respects you very much. You can rest assured." "I'm not worried about anything!" The queen hurriedly argued, "With the emperor here, what else should I worry about?" The emperor responded with a wry smile, and there was something he didn't say: What if I'm not here?The queen tacitly expressed her meaning and deeply regretted her slip of the tongue.It would have been possible to talk in-depth about the great affairs behind the emperor, at least as for the origin of Prince Gong, you might as well take a look at the emperor's tone. After this small setback, the opportunity was lost, and there will be no such opportunity in the future. The next day, the twelfth of July, was the queen's birthday.Beforehand, the empress asked the emperor again and again to waive the due etiquette on the grounds that the times were not good, but the emperor was also very firm, saying that this was her first birthday after fleeing, and she must have a good time as a commemoration.It is true that the emperor likes to be lively. If there is a way to make him happy, she will never object, so she finally obeyed the emperor's wishes. In the early morning of that day, the princes and ministers, wearing python robes and mending gowns, went outside the gate of the queen's bedroom to wish Qianqiu respectfully.The few Fujin wives in Rehe went to the palace to congratulate the queen with heavy make-up.At noon, the play started with a banquet in the Danbo Jingcheng Hall. The emperor came to congratulate the queen in person, and seemed to be in good spirits and spirits. The plays were ordered by the emperor himself, and they were all stories of persuading goodness and punishing adultery, and karma, which was most loved by the empress.But just after watching it, the emperor said, "I can't sit still because of the noise," and immediately got up and drove back to the palace. This is like the situation on the day of Emperor Wanshou on the ninth day of June, a grand banquet full of flowers and flowers was eclipsed only because of his hesitation.In order to maintain the system, the queen had to sit there very calmly, but her heart was agitated and extremely uneasy. The emperor liked to listen to operas the most, and after taking his seat, he couldn't sit for a long time. This was the first time in her memory. The emperor is abnormal!I'm afraid his illness will change drastically. Therefore, the eunuch Chen Shengwen, the leader of the respect room, went to inquire about the news according to Yi's decree.When he arrived at Dongnuange, the imperial doctor was asking for his pulse—Since the ninth day of June, Mrs. Luan and Li Deli have been taking care of him in shifts day and night, so they arrived as soon as they were passed.Chen Shengwen didn't dare to enter the house, but just looked out the window.The emperor was lying on the bed, covered with a yellow dragon quilt, the ground was flat, and there seemed to be nothing underneath. Li Deli was kneeling in front of the bed to get his pulse, and not far away were the imperial ministers Sushun and Jingshou. Except for the sound of the emperor panting, the room was so quiet that even a needle could be heard falling on the ground.Finally Li Deli kowtowed and said as usual: "Your Majesty Wanan!" The emperor closed his eyes, with an air of distaste for hearing these words. Li Deli withdrew, Sushun followed behind, their faces were terribly gloomy as soon as they left the emperor's sight, neither of them seemed to have seen Chen Shengwen, they kept walking outside, to the side room where the eunuch rested to prescribe medicine . Chen Shengwen had to ask the truth before he could go back and report.After walking a few steps, Su Shunfa saw him and waved to him. "Go and report to the queen, elder brother don't go far away! The emperor might want to see elder brother anytime." "yes." Chen Shengwen went back and quietly reported to the queen, and soon everyone in the palace knew that the emperor was in danger.Everyone hung their hearts high and prepared to adapt to unexpected changes. Only Concubine Li did not give up. She got up in the middle of the night to pray to God and lend her lifespan to the emperor.She doesn't know if God is willing to bless her?But after doing this, it seemed that I felt much better. Of course Concubine Yi will not feel better.Although the emperor seems to have reached the point of utterly benevolent to her, after all, there are still days when he dotes on the sixth palace, thinking about the past kindness, it is inevitable to face the storm.But this is not the time to be sad, she is very clear that she is at the most critical moment in her life, and she must not be negligent in the slightest, especially when it comes to her elder brother, she must work harder to hold him tightly. She taught the elder brother a lot of things, the most important of which is only one sentence: "Feng'er Niang is the queen mother." Falling behind the queen again, instead of conferring on the same day, the two palaces have the same respect.But let's not say it's too early, if the emperor is still alive, the elder brother will cause great disaster for her if he says these words.It would be best to say this in the first sentence as soon as the emperor dies and the eldest elder brother ascends the throne. Concubine Yi was there to plan for her own fame and status. Similarly, Sushun also made active arrangements in various aspects to maintain her power.On the day of the Queen's birthday, he had another assignment: "The Minister of the Department of Zhenghuang Banner Guards", and the "Imperial Guards" and "Qianqing Gate Guards" who were on duty in the inner court were all in the "Zhenghuang" and "Zhuanghuang" offices. Select from the so-called "Shang Sanqi" and "Zhengbai".Due to this errand, Sushun gained the power to command the guards of the Zhenghuang Banner, and gained more convenience in controlling the traffic at the palace gate. The second is to discuss the list of ministers to be appointed. Apart from Zaiyuan and Duanhua, there is only one Duhan with whom they secretly discussed. The location of the secret meeting was in a water pavilion of Sushun's house, which was isolated on three sides, and the only access was a small winding bridge, and trusted family members were sent to guard the entrance.Because it is so strict, everyone does not need to have any scruples when speaking. Of course, Sushun was the first to speak, "The disease from above is much worse than what the outside world knows!" The heavy burden is on us. We should let him say something while he still has breath!" "Isn't it just a matter of sending Minister Gu Ming?" Zai Yuan responded, "Anyway, you can't put Gong Lao Liu in it." "Jiyuan," Sushun looked at Du Han and said, "Do you have any good ideas? Tell us and listen." After all, Du Han had read a few sentences, thought for a while, and said slowly: "Minister Gu Ming, many relatives ordered, and there is no example that a minister intends to submit. If he speaks out boldly and arouses resentment, it is not as expected. Isn't it self-defeating?" "It won't." Su Shun said with certainty, "I'm sure." "Okay, then let's think of names!" Duanhua pointed with his snuff-stained fingers, "You, him, me, and him. There are four of them here." "The whole class of ministers of military aircraft." "No, no!" Sushun corrected Zaiyuan's words, "How do you mean the whole class? Wen Bochuan is not included." "Then there are four. Mu, Du, Kuang, Jiao, and our three elder brothers, a total of seven. Enough, enough!" "There should be one more." Sushun said this, looked at Du Han and asked again: "Do you understand what I mean?" "I understand what Zhongtang means." Duhan nodded. Not only Du Han, but Zai Yuan and Duan Hua also understood Su Shun's intention after a little thought.The family law of the Qing Dynasty attached great importance to the words "respect the virtuous and the virtuous", and the appointment of ministers to protect the young master should not violate these two rules. Chen Duan, "Kiss" relatives cannot be excused at all. Close relatives are like siblings, and the emperor was once raised by Empress Dowager Xiaojing. In this way, there is no better relative than Prince Gong. Therefore, in the list of Minister Gu Ming, If Prince Gong is to be pushed out, there must be a suitable person to replace him. Jing Shou is the son-in-law of the forehead, the emperor's direct brother-in-law, who is older, and is appointed as the minister of life by taking care of the elder brother's study affairs as the former imperial minister, which does not lose the meaning of "kinship". A taciturn and kind old man came to resist Prince Gong, and he could barely talk about it. Gu Ming's eight ministers are considered.Then a list of "Ministers of Funeral Rituals" was drawn up. This is an honorary title and a meritorious distinction. As long as the list is on the list, after the funeral is over, there will be rewards as usual.Sushun didn't have any prejudice against these irrelevant lists, so Prince Gong was also one of the default candidates.However, he set a principle that the "Ministers of Funeral Rituals" in Beijing do not have to travel, but only work in Beijing as errands.Of course, this is also boycotting Prince Gong. Of course, this is a matter after the emperor's death, and it can be written on a piece of paper, so there is no need to rush it at this time.On the contrary, the officials of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, who specialize in weddings and ceremonies in the court, will be very busy these days, just like the days before Emperor Wanshou. Pre-arranging funeral affairs should not be done with joy and openness like the grand ceremonies of longevity and big weddings.So Sushun called a secret meeting to pre-check the preparations. The first thing is to ask for money, of course.But there are two other things, which are more important than money. They are readily available in the capital and can be done immediately, but in Rehe they must be arranged early. The same is the emperor's coffin. The weather is too hot, and it has to be encoffined as soon as it falls down.The emperor's coffin is called the "Golden Chamber", and the material has long been available. It is a pair of gloomy wooden boards, its color is dark, and it makes the sound of gold and stone when it strikes the abyss.This kind of rare and rare material is produced in the mountains of Yunnan, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs has reimbursed 400,000 taels of silver for the shipping cost of this pair of boards.The materials are stored in the "Huangmu Factory" in Beijing, and Sushun ordered: transport them quickly, quickly, and in secret. Another item is white cloth.As soon as the emperor enters the "Golden Chamber" and the young master wears clothes, inside and outside the palace, concubines, family members, civil and military officials, all have to change into white cloth filial clothing, and many places have to change into white cloth filial curtains, most of which have to be supplied by the Ministry of Internal Affairs .In Beijing, as long as a few shopkeepers of silk and satin shops of the "Xiang" brand are passed on, how much they want and how much they want, but in Rehe they have to make preparations in advance. In addition, there are thousands of items that should be prepared in the funeral ceremony, and if one is missing, it will be charged with "neglecting the funeral ceremony", and no one can afford it.However, if things are done smoothly, there is a lot of money to be made, and in the insurance case of future performance, there will be a great benefit of being promoted.Therefore, the officials of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, with joy and fear, closed the door, checked the meeting code, found the case, adjusted the old file, opened the bill, checked the amount of money, handled it with style, and moved the official business. , very busy, which is quite different from the laziness and boredom of those military aircraft Zhang Jing who "drink their sorrows with wine and cheer them up with cards". The more leisurely the military plane was, the more anxious the emperor was.The emperor of the Ming Dynasty did not visit the court for forty years, hiding in the deep palace and setting up an altar to practice Taoism.The emperor of the Qing Dynasty felt uneasy if he failed to dismantle the military affairs of the country one day, let alone for several days in a row, let alone when the military situation was urgent?Therefore, although Sushun repeatedly comforted him, saying that all places were extremely stable and free from worries, the emperor on the sickbed was always concerned, but he didn't even have the spirit to inquire about military affairs and government affairs. In the afternoon of this day, I took the medicine of reusing Shenling, ate a bowl of bird's nest porridge with rock sugar, took a peaceful nap, and woke up suddenly feeling refreshed.He knew that this was an extremely precious moment, and he didn't dare to spend it leisurely, so he summoned Sushun. Seeing that the emperor was sitting on the soft couch in good spirits, Sushun was very surprised, and immediately congratulated him when he knelt down: "The emperor is very happy! Shengzheng has really improved a lot!" The emperor shook his head and said only: "You tell everyone to leave and send guards to guard the gate. No one, even the queen, is allowed to come in." This is an extremely important and extremely confidential thing to say, Su Shun comprehended the order, made arrangements, returned to the front of the imperial court, and stood with hands down. "There is no one else here, you move a stool and sit on it." The more pretentious the words were, the more Su Shunfan dared not exceed the etiquette, knelt down and played back: "Slave dare not!" "It doesn't matter! It's convenient for you to sit down and talk." It's not bad to think about it, he stood and listened, and the emperor had to look up and say, it was hard, so Sushun kowtowed, thanked him, took a prayer mat, and sat cross-legged on the ground. "Su Liu, how will I treat you?" With this sentence, Sushun hurriedly got up and kowtowed: "The emperor treats the slaves with great kindness. The slaves' children and grandchildren will never be able to repay them as dogs and horses." "It's good that you know. I'm confident that I'll treat you well. It's just that our monarchs and ministers have nothing more to do! Don't think I'm in good spirits for a while. I know it myself. This is the so-called 'return to the light'." Before he could finish his words, Sushun was touched by his acquaintance, touched his heart, exchanged tears for a moment, sobbed and cried and said: "Your Majesty, don't say such words again! Your Majesty is rich in spring and autumn, and there will be a catastrophe." What? The slave will serve the emperor for decades, and wait for the emperor to bestow the slave's posthumous posthumous title..." The more he talked, the more sad he became, and he couldn't speak. The emperor was sad and relieved, but he was really impatient with his behavior, "I know you are a loyal minister, the important thing is important, don't cry!" The emperor said in a low voice, "While I am in better spirits, I have a few important words. I want to tell you!" "Yes!" Sushun slowly stopped crying, wiped his tears with his horseshoe sleeve, and still knelt there. "I know that you respect the queen all the time, but in the future, you should change the normal way, just like I did in Japan." These words implied sharpness, Sushun couldn't help being embarrassed, and swore at each meeting: "If a slave dares to disrespect the master, I will punish the slave!" "In addition to respecting the queen, you also have to protect the queen. This is not easy! Concubine Yi will definitely want to climb on top of the queen in the future, and you have to find a way to stop it. However, she should also have her due. .” The emperor paused for a moment, and then said with great difficulty: “I can’t tell for a while, but we must guard against her, but don’t go too far!” This is because Concubine Yu Yi may gain power after she becomes the empress dowager, so Su Shun is specially assigned to prevent it.In fact, even if the emperor did not make such instructions, as long as Sushun had power in his hands, he would definitely do so.But since the emperor mentioned it at this moment, he might as well seize the opportunity and ask for clarification. "The slave is ignorant. If there is a sentence that I don't know how to say, I dare not say it!" "You said it." "After ten thousand years of the emperor, if someone proposes to hang the curtain, I don't know what to do?" The emperor nodded: "I have thought about this too. There has never been such a system in this dynasty. I think no one dares to play lightly." Although this is not a direct answer, the emperor will never allow the system of hanging curtains to appear, and the meaning is very obvious.Since the young master is in power, it is not the empress dowager who hangs the curtain, who is in charge of the court, or the special ministers who are concentric and assist the prime minister, Sushun thought, this is the end of the story, let's just bring up the list of ministers who have ordered Gu Ming! After thinking about it for a while, he still used a roundabout way of probing, "The emperor is holy!" He knelt and said, "Respect the heavens and the ancestors, and pay attention to the ancestor's system. The slave accepts the emperor's grace and entrusts him with great things. Report. But I have something to say at this moment, dare not risk my life to Chen Zou, the responsibility will be heavy in the future, I always ask the emperor to send a few more loyal people to work with me, so that I can handle it." Sushun's eloquence is usually very good, but his words were fragmented and inappropriate.Fortunately, the emperor understood what he meant, so he immediately asked, "Are you talking about Minister Gu Ming?" Sushun didn't dare to agree openly, but only met again and again. "Ah!" The emperor suddenly sighed, "This matter is so difficult!" The tone was not good, Sushun was a little worried, and had to take a step forward: "The emperor has something embarrassing, let the slaves handle it!" "This is something you can't do." The emperor shook his head and said: "In your opinion, who can be ordered?" "This must come from Chen Gu, the slaves dare not speak rashly." Sushun purposely chose to retreat in such a way. "It's okay to talk about it, I can consider it." So Sushun replied slowly: "The two kings Yi and Zheng were the old ministers who were ordered by the previous dynasty. The four army planes accompanying the emperor are the ministers of the emperor's special brief. Consciously not as good. These people, slaves dare to protect, and will never let down the entrustment of the emperor." "Mmm, um." The emperor responded like this, and closed his eyes, struggling to beat his waist with his hands. Seeing that the emperor was tired, Su asked for a rest by the way.This secret conversation had to end.Sushun originally planned that within a day or two, the emperor would make such an arrangement.Let's talk again - there are obviously many important things that should be done, as well as doubts that the emperor can't resolve, such as Prince Gong, what is the emperor's attitude towards him?It must be clarified. But on the next day—July 16th, the emperor still had a good appetite for breakfast. In the afternoon, he suddenly fainted. He carried the emperor back to Dongnuang Pavilion with eight feet and placed him on the imperial couch. Jing Shou is a person who can't make up his mind. King Chun is young, and when he experienced this kind of scene for the first time, he was more flustered than anyone else, so the East Nuan Pavilion was in chaos and almost did nothing.As soon as Sushun arrived, everyone's hearts settled down.He also didn't have time to ask in detail, the first order was to summon the imperial doctor, and the second order was to report to the queen and ask the elder brother to come to attend to the illness immediately.The eunuchs promised to run away and notify separately. At that time the imperial doctor had received the news, Mrs. Luan rushed here with Li Deli and Yang Chun out of breath, saluted in a hurry, and came to the imperial couch together, Mrs. Luan took the pulse.But he himself was panting, his hands were shaking, and the emperor's pulse was weak, so he put two fingers on the emperor's wrist, and he was still at a loss for a long time. The three imperial ministers all stood behind him nervously, waiting for the result, Sushun was the first to get impatient, and asked in a low voice: "What's the matter?" Mrs. Luan didn't know how to answer, but Li Deli said, "Naturally, it's exhaustion." "Then follow the treatment method of collapse, and save it quickly! We can't waste any more time!" At this moment, Mrs. Luan felt her pulse accurately, "It's a collapse!" He said with a worried expression, "It's not too late. Bring the ginseng soup first!" The ginseng soup was ready-made, and the little eunuch immediately went to get it. Li Deli and Yang Chun personally pried open the emperor's teeth and poured it spoonful by spoonful with a golden spoon.Although there is no immediate recovery, but the ginseng soup can still be poured, which is very good. At this time, Luan Tai had already prescribed a prescription, "Tongmai Sini Decoction" used ginseng and aconite. After opening it, I personally gave it to Sushun and said, "Please take a look at Zhongtang." "Don't read it. Go cook the medicine!" Sushun waited for him to hand in the prescription, and asked again: "How is the situation?" Mrs. Luan replied with great difficulty: "I'm afraid it will be very embarrassing!" "You have to try your best to find a way! Estimate what medicine you need to use, and tell me as soon as possible that there is no one here. I will send someone to Beijing overnight to get it done." "If you go back to Zhongtang," Mrs. Luan replied, "I have used all kinds of prescriptions for the emperor's disease. This is the original disease, and it all depends on..." "Stop talking!" Sushun reprimanded displeasedly, "Who does it all depend on? Don't you rely on you to be doctors when you are sick? You don't need to waste your time here, you should discuss it with your colleagues!" Mrs. Luan hit a snag and dared not argue.After discussing with Li Deli and Yang Chun for a while, they were unable to do anything. Only by seeing the effect of "Tongmai Sini Decoction" can we decide on a further solution. At this moment, Zhang Wenliang hugged his elder brother and rushed towards him like flying.The three imperial ministers came out of the house to greet him one after another, but they did not know what to say to the elder brother after they received him.The elder brother didn't know what happened, he just felt that he was running all the way first, and then he saw all the people with different expressions than usual, he couldn't help being scared, and cried out with a "wow". Zhang Wenliang quickly covered his mouth and coaxed him, "Don't cry, don't cry! Play here for a while, and then we'll go back." "Hug the elder brother away first!" Sushun told Zhang Wenliang, "Don't go too far! The emperor might want to find elder brother anytime! " Zhang Wenliang promised to take the elder brother to the back of the hall to play, but when it was getting dark, there was still no movement. At that time, the news had spread widely, and inside and outside the palace, princes and ministers, civil and military officials, all expressed surprise and anxiety, hoping to know the details of the emperor's fainting situation, but Sushun had already ordered the news to be blocked, even in Yanbo Zhishuang Hall. In the court room outside, the princes who were waiting to greet them, including the "Old Fifth Lord", Prince Dun, and Prince Rui Renshou, etc., did not get a single word of news, which made them anxious and worried. Angry, I feel that Sushun's control is too much and too terrible! The only exception is the queen, Sushun keeps reporting her news.After taking the "Tongmai Sini Decoction", the emperor has already returned to Su, but there is really not much difference between waking up and coma.The emperor's pulse was weak and his breath was dying. Not only could he not speak, he could not even obey. His mind was dissipated, and he could only breathe.Mrs. Luan warned that the emperor needs to be absolutely quiet at this time, and it must not cause sadness and anger, so all relatives are not suitable to see. He had to listen to the imperial doctor's words, but Sushun had to be on guard that the emperor would die at any time, and if he just ignored it without a last word, it would be a waste of money.But as long as the emperor can say a word, it must be beneficial to himself, it is only passed down by word of mouth, and must be seen and heard by all, so he wants to keep King Chun and Jing Shou as witnesses.Jing Shou didn't have so many thoughts, but King Chun had somewhat the same thoughts as Sushun, knowing that this moment was of great importance, and he had to pay close attention to what the emperor had to say?So the three of them stood guard in front of the imperial couch, not daring to leave even one step, forgetting all the people outside who were waiting for news. Finally, Jing Shou remembered, "Sixth Brother!" He quietly tugged on Sushun's sleeve: "Big Brother should be sleeping at this time, let Zhang Wenliang send him back first!" "That's right!" Sushun immediately called someone to notify: "Send Eldest Brother back to the Queen's Palace." Eldest brother fell asleep a long time ago, and Zhang Wenliang carried him to the Queen's Palace. It was already dark at that time, but the princes in the court room outside the Yanbo Zhishuang Palace, and the military dog ​​ministers who were waiting in the military aircraft Zhilu, Seeing that there was no news at this time, and when he concluded that the emperor was dying, he was even more afraid to leave. Finally, the emperor was able to turn his eyes sideways and speak, "I can't do it!" He turned his face to look at Sushun and said in a very low voice, "You find someone! Elder brother, Zongling, Junji, all kings! " "Yes!" Sushun knelt down and replied, "Your Majesty, please rest assured, let the imperial doctor take the pulse first." As he spoke, he gestured outward. Mrs. Luan, Li Deli and Yang Chun who were standing at the door hurried forward to kneel down. Mrs. Luan checked the pulse, kowtowed and said: "The six pulses are peaceful, the emperor is very happy!" "Should we enter something?" Sushun asked. "As long as the emperor likes it, anything can enter." "I'm a bit hungry." The emperor's expression seemed much refreshed again, "Is there any duck porridge?" "It's been prepared for Long Live!" Chen Shengwen, the leader of the respect room, knelt and said: "There is also the rock sugar bird's nest porridge from the queen, and the milk roll from the concubine Li..." "Is the milk roll too tired?" Sushun asked Mrs. Luan. "It's okay! It's okay! As long as the emperor likes it." "Then pass the meal!" Sushun ordered. When the dining table was set, it was still the abbot before the food. Sushun personally helped the emperor up with the eunuchs, but when he looked at the dining table, he shook his head, not wanting to eat anything.The imperial ministers and the imperial doctor tried hard to persuade them, and managed to drink a few mouthfuls of bird's nest porridge, but the sweet soup made from rose hawthorn marinated seeds and honey seemed to be able to cure the thirst in the emperor's mouth, and he drank a lot. Just sitting together like this made the emperor tired again, and he fell asleep with his eyes closed, panting with his mouth open.The people to be summoned at this time, except for the elder brother who is said to be awakened from his sleep, who is very unhappy, crying and making noises, and trying to comfort him, the rest have arrived.But looking at the situation at this time, the emperor didn't have the energy to deal with it, so Sushun asked King Chun to explain the situation to everyone, and on the other hand, he found Mrs. Luan a quiet place to discuss secretly. "Look, how long can the emperor wait like this?" Sushun said bluntly, "You don't have to be afraid of taboos if you tell the truth." "I can guarantee it tonight, it must be fine." "But how did it become like this?" Sushun worried, "There are so many important things that have to be ordered by the emperor. At least people must have the spirit to say a few words!" "This..." Luan Tai said slowly, "Maybe there is a way." "As long as there is a way. You should find a way!" So Mrs. Luan wrote another prescription, and went to the imperial pharmacy to check the medicine, put it into the medicine pot, fried a small bowl thickly, and Sushun personally brought it to the imperial couch for the emperor to take. Sure enough, the medicine was very effective, and the sluggish and stiff emperor, with radiance in his eyes, gestured to the left and right, helped him up, sat on the bed, and ordered Sushun to summon the prince and military ministers to come in. Headed by Prince Hui Mianyu, one by one quietly entered the East Nuan Pavilion, arranged shifts, and kowtowed to say hello, but the only one who spoke was Prince Hui, who was ordered not to bow down, and said in an expressionless voice: "Your Majesty, please rest easy !" "Fifth uncle!" the emperor said with difficulty, "I'm afraid it will only be these two days." Before the sentence was finished, the people kneeling on the ground already cried out.Two glistening teardrops also fell on the emperor's withered face, and the groaning sound became more and more one after another, and Su Shun sternly shouted: "When is this, and you still make the emperor sad?" After drinking, the sound of squeaking slowly stopped.Su took a step forward on his knees, kowtowed and said, "Please the emperor make a plan early to reassure people's hearts. Once people's hearts are reassured, the holy worry will be forgiving. If you take care of yourself slowly, you will surely recover." The emperor nodded, and said word by word: "The clan's major plan should be decided early. Although there is no system of establishing a crown prince in this dynasty, the situation is different now. Eldest brother can be established as the crown prince first." This is an inevitable trend. Prince Hui repeated it on behalf of all the people who took the order, expressing the imperial edict: "Yes! Eldest brother is the crown prince." "Brother is still young, you must do your best to help. Now, I will appoint a few people to be responsible for the prime minister." It was the most critical moment, all the princes and ministers of military aircraft were all focused and listened attentively, fearing that they might have misheard a word. "Zaiyuan, Duanhua." The emperor stopped after reading this, and did not make another sound for a long time. Everyone is guessing that the next name the emperor reads is probably Yixin!Even Sushun thought that the emperor's hesitation might be a temporary change of mind, and he was considering the name of Prince Gong. However, they all guessed wrong, and the emperor continued to announce the list, which was: "Jing Shou, Su Shun, Mu Yin, Kuang Yuan, Du Han, Jiao Youying." This time, Sushun's party was overjoyed.But naturally it was inconvenient to show various colors. Zaiyuan looked at Duanhua and Sushun, kowtowed his head, and stammered: "The ministers are entrusted with their kindness, and I am afraid that their talents are not enough to take on the heavy responsibility. We can only do our best to help, If there is any disagreement, heaven and earth will perish, please rest assured, Your Majesty." Although these words were inappropriate, they were finally explained. The emperor nodded and asked again: "Where's big brother?" Not long after the elder brother was hugged by Zhang Wenliang, Zhang Wenliang put him down on the ground according to the order, and said half coaxing and half threatening: "The emperor called, go obediently! Remember, you have to learn You look like an adult, understand the rules, what the emperor says, what to do, don't cry, if you cry, Zhang Wenliang will be unlucky, maybe he will be locked up, and tomorrow he won't be able to play with big brother." The elder brother in robes heard what Zhang Wenliang said, and he responded, but when he lifted the curtain, he saw people kneeling all over the room. behind. "Master, little ancestor!" Zhang Wenliang was sweating profusely, "Go in! Don't be afraid!" Fortunately, Jing Shou showed up in time, and the sixth son-in-law was familiar with him. The elder brother was a little more courageous, and asked him to hold hands until he knelt down in front of the imperial couch, and called out, "Ama!" Seeing that his son was only six years old and had to take on a dilapidated country, the emperor had mixed feelings. He felt sorry for his ancestors and his descendants. Only now did he realize how cruel and merciless the limit of life and death is!It's hard to let go of everything, but you have to let go, there is nothing more tragic than this in the world.Just like this, there was a sharp pain in my heart, and I was sweating coldly again, and I couldn't stop panting. The elder brother panicked, "Ama, Ama!" shouted and threw himself on the imperial couch and grabbed the emperor's hand. This was a great comfort to the emperor, that small, warm hand seemed to have a wonderful force pouring into his body, his breathing stopped, his heart became calm, and it was no longer like that The fear is completely ignored, and there is nothing to rely on.He smiled and stretched out his skinny hand, touched the big brother's face, looked at Zai Yuan and said, "I hand him over to you!" "Yes!" Zaiyuan replied solemnly: "Brother was born with pure filial piety, so he must be the lord of life." "Teach well. Li Hongzao alone is not enough." The emperor bowed his head and said to the elder brother: "You also recognize the eight ministers entrusted by me. Give them a bow!" On behalf of Gu Ming, Zaiyuan resigned from the eight ministers, but the emperor refused.The emperor was tired of this pushback, so the "Old Fifth Master" spoke to dissuade him, and Gu ordered the eight ministers to stand in a row, facing the elder brother.While bowing, kneeling down to return the salute, so that the emperor has entrusted Gu face to face. In addition to the form, there is the most important procedure.Sushun ordered people to bring some cases and prepared Dan Hao, and asked the emperor to write Zhu Yu himself, so as to be cautious.But at this time, the emperor could no longer write, and the hand holding the pen kept shaking. He couldn't write a word for a long time, so he could only throw the pen in vain and say: "Write to express the purpose!" This "writing to express the purpose" should be the "clearly issued an edict" written by the Minister of Military Aircraft after accepting the order, but time is running out, and there is no time to deal with it according to the prescribed formula. It should be concise, so as not to harm the meaning of the word and give rise to different interpretations.Therefore, Du Han purely thought that the emperor was acting as a ghostwriter, so he simply wrote two "manual orders" and handed them over to Mu Yin, the most senior military minister. Once again, he was very satisfied, and then put him on the table next to the emperor, and personally held a golden candlestick in the shape of a crane, reflecting the emperor to read the two documents. "Read it to everyone!" "Yes." Sushun put down the candlestick, handed the two written instructions to Mu Yin, and then returned to work and knelt down to listen. Holding the imperial edict, Mu Yin stood facing south, and read aloud: "The eldest son of the emperor, Zaichun, is the crown prince. Special edict." Then he read the second way: "The eldest son of the emperor, Zaichun, is now the crown prince, and Zaiyuan was appointed as the crown prince. , Duanhua, Jingshou, Sushun, Mu Yin, Kuangyuan, Duhan, and Jiao Youying devoted themselves to assisting the prime minister and supporting all government affairs. Special order." The words "praise and support all government affairs" were added by Du Han himself, but since the emperor approved it, it was just from the mouth of the emperor, and no one dared to speak.It's just that people with a calmer mind are already wary. This group of "loyal ministers" who have taken care of their fate have shown signs of seizing power from the very beginning. After this important event, the emperor, who was reluctantly holding on, lost his energy all of a sudden, bowed his head, his eyes seemed to be closed, so the old fifth grandfather said: "The emperor rests!" Everyone knelt down and quit. Except for the eight ministers of Gu Ming, none of them felt heavy hearted. It is not a good sign that the ministers of Gu Ming do not have Prince Gong!I'm afraid there will be troubles in the court from now on.Of course, there are also some people who are afraid that Sushun's power will become more and more powerful, and his arrogance will become higher and higher, and it will be more difficult to get along with from then on, while some people are just afraid that for the sake of King Gong's injustice, with his status and talent, he should say nothing He was excluded from the ranks of Minister Gu Ming. However, at this time, he calmly made up his mind, and the only one who wanted to fight Sushun was Concubine Yi, who was accompanied by a lonely lamp in the deep palace. She can always get accurate reports on everything in Dongnuange.It is not news that Eldest Elder Brother was established as the Crown Prince, and Minister Gu Ming did not have the name of Prince Gong. Although it was expected, it still couldn't help but shock her!After the matter became clear, the cause and effect had to be re-evaluated.The emperor's final fate is like this, which means that he will not understand Prince Gong until his death. Why are the brothers and sisters so suspicious and twisted into such a knot that can't be untied even if they die?Naturally, this is Sushun's attempt to sow discord! Thinking of this, Concubine Yi felt shuddering.It is said that Sushun is domineering and vicious, but only today did he discover that he still has an extremely sinister side.This made her quickly think of the situation in the past few days. Sushun's promotion of the empress everywhere has clearly shown that he will only respect one empress dowager in the future, and he will use that loyal and honest empress dowager to catch the young and ignorant emperor , titled Tianxian, give and take! "Hmph!" Concubine Yi gritted her teeth and sneered, "Su Liu, don't dream!" The more annoyed she was, the calmer she became. She didn't even say a word about what was going on in her heart to Xiao Anzi. She just looked at the fading short candle on the table and thought about it silently, over and over again until it was dusk. A day's activities in the palace all started before dawn. The eunuchs and maids came and went quietly, busy with their duties.Although Concubine Yi didn't sleep all night, she felt strangely excited and didn't want to sleep anymore, so she opened the door and asked someone to fetch water to wash off her morning makeup. "Master got up early!" Little Anzi knelt down to get up, and then bowed his hands in greeting, "Master is overjoyed!" "What joy?" "Eldest elder brother can be crowned as the crown prince," Xiao Anzi dropped a sentence: "The master will be the mother of the country!" "Hmph!" Concubine Yi sneered back. As soon as he heard her sneer, Xiao Anzi's back would feel chills for no reason.He didn't dare to say anything, he just helped the maid to wash and wash, and when he saw Concubine Yi's yellow face, blood-stained lips, and well-made bed in the mirror, he asked in surprise, "Master, you haven't slept all night?" "What's the matter?" Concubine Yi turned to look at him and asked. Xiao Anzi knelt down and replied: "Master, please take care of yourself! Elder Brother is still young, so he has to rely on Master to make decisions for him. The whole world of the Qing Dynasty is in Master's hands." 'Duh! Concubine Yi shouted, "What do you know?"Stop talking nonsense! " Unexpectedly, Xiao Anzi ran into another hurdle, and he really didn't understand this thorn. Thinking about it for himself, what he said was not wrong, and Concubine Yi's temper was unreasonable.Thinking of this in my heart, I couldn't help but have a look of grievance on my face. Concubine Yi naturally understood what was going on in his heart, but it was inconvenient to give any explanation at this time. Instead, because of Xiao Anzi's words, it aroused vigilance and felt that she must warn. So she lowered her face and said loudly: "Xiao Anzi! Tell everyone here, who wants to talk nonsense behind everyone's back these days, talking about the elder brother becoming the crown prince and what will happen to me in the future? If you let me know these words, I have nothing else to do, and I will immediately upload them to the respect room, and I will smash my two legs before I say it. I can tell you one more thing," she said in a voice as cold as ice and as sharp as a knife. He also said, "Even including you, it's the same." Xiao Anzi was so frightened that he couldn't even feel the grievance. He only heard this passage. The situation was serious, and there was no discount for it. He quickly agreed, stood up and said to the four or five maids in the room: "You can I heard what the master said! Be careful, be careful!" After finishing speaking, he hurried out and solemnly conveyed Concubine Yi's warning to every eunuch and court lady.