Chapter 586 585 Hu Zongxian's Resurgence

For three consecutive days, Yan Ne's memorials were continuously sent to the West Garden, and then rejected, and then sent again, and rejected again.

The nobles and well-informed officials in the capital had roughly guessed what was going on, but most people still didn't understand it. In a daze, the cabinet ministers and the emperor completed the procedure of three requests and three resignations.

Wei Guangde came to visit Yan Ne when he submitted his second memorial, so that he didn't seem intimate or distant.

Knowing that Yan Ne was not sick, he still pretended to care about his condition, and asked about his health before leaving.

When leaving, he inadvertently looked at the packages that had been packed in the mansion. He thought that if Emperor Jiajing gave a red envelope, Yan Ne would leave the capital immediately.

Why bother.

He just entered the cabinet and wanted to replace Xu Jie before he even got warm.

A cabinet minister for more than ten years, who could defeat Yan Song, was not a good person.

Think about Zhang Juzheng after Xu Jie, who also held the position of Prime Minister for more than ten years. Even when all the officials in the world opposed it, he pushed the reform forcefully to prolong the life of the Ming Dynasty. He was more courageous than Xu Jie.

Suddenly, Wei Guangde felt cold all over.

It was not because of the weather. Although the temperature in the capital had begun to drop at this time, it was not to the extent that he felt cold.

Wei Guangde had to seriously consider how he should treat Zhang Juzheng as a minister or cabinet minister during his reign.

The reformists, that would be crushed to pieces if they were not careful.

After walking out of Yan Ne's mansion, Wei Guangde couldn't help but look back at the open door.

Xu Jie was still okay. He had the mind of a Prime Minister and didn't kill him. I just don't know what Zhang Juzheng was like.

Zhu Yijun was already two years old, so naturally he hadn't arranged for school enlightenment yet. After all, the child was still too young.

Although Prince Yu had already agreed with him that he would be one of the little prince's teachers, Wei Guangde vaguely remembered that Zhang Juzheng was also his teacher and exerted great pressure on him.

Thinking about Prince Yu, Wei Guangde also found it interesting. He played behind him every day, but he never saw any maid give birth to a prince for him.

Zhu Yijun was likely to be the emperor after Prince Yu, as long as Princess Chen had no children.

Emperor Jiajing finally approved Yan Ne's fourth memorial.

Since he had made up his mind to return, it would be useless even if he stayed behind.

When Yan Ne left Beijing, Wei Guangde did not see him off. The loser in the political struggle was not worth Wei Guangde's time on him.

As long as Zhang Juzheng did not fall, Yan Ne would have no chance to return to Beijing.

But thinking about what Zhang Juzheng was like at that time, and looking at Yan Ne's age, he probably would not be able to wait for that day.

However, on the afternoon of the day Yan Ne left Beijing, Wei Guangde received another note from the eunuch of Prince Yu's mansion.

There were only two words on the note, "Illness".

The fact that Prince Yu's Mansion sent a note showed that Emperor Jiajing's illness seemed serious this time. Wei Guangde packed up the books on the desk before the court was dismissed and hurried to Prince Yu's Mansion.

At this time, there was no faster way to receive news from the palace than here.

In fact, since the death of Prince Jing, the eunuchs around Emperor Jiajing have used various methods to show their favor to Prince Yu's Mansion, and their intentions are clear at a glance.

So, no matter what Emperor Jiajing was thinking, he could no longer control the idea of ​​his subordinates to seek personal gain.

However, whether it was Zhu Xizhong of the Five Military Commander's Mansion or Zhu Xixiao who was in charge of the Jinyiwei, they still did not have any intimate actions with Prince Yu's Mansion, nor did they have any secret communication.

"How is your majesty?"

Wei Guangde's thoughts were extremely complicated at the moment. He hoped that Prince Yu would take office as soon as possible, but he also hoped that Emperor Jiajing could live a few more days. One year after another, maybe he could be promoted one level a year like when he first entered the officialdom.

He didn't expect Gao Gong to promote him, so he was thinking about Chen Yiqin. If there was another person, it would be Emperor Jiajing.

No one was serious and diligent in proofreading books, and the purpose was naturally to show it to Emperor Jiajing.

Although he couldn't write brilliant and brilliant Qingci, Wei Guangde did the things that the old emperor wanted to do diligently and conscientiously.

"Your Majesty suddenly fainted while sitting in meditation this afternoon, and the Imperial Hospital's Xu Wei has been summoned to the palace for treatment."

Yin Shizhen next to him took over.

"Is Your Majesty awake?"

When Wei Guangde heard that Emperor Jiajing fainted, he naturally wondered if he could wake up.

Emperor Jiajing's body, in the words of the doctor, was erysipelas, and ordinary medicine was difficult to cure.

Before Yin Shizhen could speak, Prince Yu had already shook his head gently.

Today's Prince Yu seemed very dull. From the moment Wei Guangde entered the room, he had no expression on his face.

At this time, there were footsteps outside the door. Wei Guangde thought it was Zhang Juzheng, but he saw Li Fang walking quickly.

Turning back, the person who came was just a eunuch. He handed Li Fang a note and left quickly.

Li Fang didn't look at it and handed it directly to Prince Yu.

Prince Yu opened it and took a look, and said, "Xu Ge Lao and Li Ge Lao went to Wuyi Hall."

"Your Majesty is awake?"

Wei Guangde asked immediately.

"I don't know, it's not on the note."

Prince Yu answered, and then handed the note to Li Fang, who showed it to Yin Shizun and Wei Guangde.

Sure enough, a eunuch from the Imperial Horse Administration led Xu Jie and Li Chunfang into the West Garden, and took away the memorials and other things left by the cabinet.

"Nothing, Your Majesty has already made arrangements."

Seeing that it was the Royal Horse Supervisor who was sent out this time, Wei Guangde knew that Emperor Jiajing should have made arrangements to prevent this situation. When he was unable to serve as director, he temporarily used the cabinet to continue running the court without stagnating. .

The role of the royal charioteer is actually to control the cabinet ministers to prevent anyone from having inappropriate thoughts.

Although Wei Guangde said this, the atmosphere in the room was not lively at all, and everyone was very dull.

Everyone knew that as long as Emperor Jiajing didn't wake up or there were no eunuchs from the palace coming to Prince Yu's Mansion, everything would be full of variables.

"Shandai, do you think that this time when Mr. Yan Ge returns to his hometown to recuperate, will my father increase the number of people in the cabinet?"

At this time, King Yu suddenly asked.

Wei Guangde noticed that after King Yu asked this question, both Yin Shizhen and Li Fang looked at him.

After Yan Na left, Wei Guangde had never thought about whether Emperor Jiajing would add more people to the cabinet.

I remember that when Yan Song left, Xu Jie and Yuan Wei had been in charge of the cabinet for a long time.

If it weren't for the thought that Yuan Wei was ill and unable to govern, Yan Ne and Li Chunfang would have continued to wait and would not have been able to join the cabinet at all.

In response to King Yu's question, Wei Guangde lowered his head and thought for a while before speaking: "This time there is a gap between Mr. Xu Ge and Mr. Yan Ge. With Li Ge's character, I think your Majesty will add more people to the cabinet, and he should Not one."

Xu Jie is now the undisputed boss in the cabinet, not only because of his high status and being the first assistant, but also because he has been working hard in the cabinet for many years and has already become a climate.

At this time, the newcomer's entry into the cabinet would have little impact on him, or in other words, disperse Xu Jie's authority.

Thinking about Yan Ne and Li Chunfang entering the cabinet, Emperor Jiajing's plan at that time should be to use Yan Ne to fight Xu Jie and use Li Chunfang to mediate the conflicts among the cabinet ministers.

Now that Yan Na is defeated, Emperor Jiajing will most likely increase his manpower, and may arrange for two more people to join the cabinet, bringing the number of cabinet ministers to four, which will take away at least half of Xu Jie's power.

"Guo Pu, Gao Gong?"

Yin Shizhen said in surprise.

Guo Pu is the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and Gao Gong is the Minister of the Ministry of Rites. All the conditions have met the requirements for joining the cabinet.

"Master Guo should be the candidate for cabinet ministers that His Majesty has long decided, but Brother Su Qing may not be the case. He still lacks experience in the civil service department."

In response to Yin Shizhen's interruption, Wei Guangde just said leisurely, "Your Majesty should limit Elder Xu Ge's power. Lord Shan Guo is afraid that he is not strong enough to fight him, so although Brother Su Qing is almost experienced, Your Majesty will still bring him into the cabinet." Go and help Mr. Guo fight against Mr. Xu Ge."

"Why did Master Gao help Guo Shangshu?"

King Yu frowned and asked.

"They are fellow villagers from Henan."

Wei Guangde answered simply and simply, this answer alone is enough.

After leaving the yamen, both Chen Yiqin and Zhang Juzheng came to Prince Yu's Mansion, but Gao Gong did not come to avoid suspicion.

"Master Gao said before I came that he was going to Xiyuan to check the situation."

Although Prince Yu's Mansion now has people in the palace, these people were actually on the fence before, so Prince Yu is naturally worried.

And the people he was relieved of had not yet reached that level and could stay in the palace during this critical moment and know the emperor's physical condition at any time.

Although Gao Gong has not officially received the decree from Emperor Jiajing to be summoned to Zhilu, according to the usual practice, all ministers of the Ministry of Rites must be admitted to Zhilu.

This may be the reason why Gong Gong was originally promoted to be the Minister of Rites instead of making up for his lack of qualifications to serve as the Ministry of Officials.

Of course, this is Wei Guangde's guess.

It's just that I don't know whether Emperor Jiajing forgot about this or why. Gao Gong never received the order from Zhizhi after he was promoted to Minister of Rites.

Thinking so, Wei Guangde didn't know if Gao Gong or anyone else had the same idea, but he wouldn't say it anyway.

In fact, just as he thought, Emperor Jiajing did have this plan.

He knows his body well, so he has to leave a backup plan.

However, he never realized that his body could not hold on for long. Although he was prepared, he was still hesitant.

This is especially true when he has not yet determined that his end is approaching.

After being the emperor for decades, he could not bear the consequences of losing power.

Handing over power will have to wait until the day when he is completely incapacitated.

Dinner, of course, is at Prince Yu’s Mansion.

In the middle of Haishi, news finally came from the palace. Half an hour ago, Emperor Jiajing finally woke up.

Your Majesty is fine, so Wei Guangde and others naturally bid farewell to King Yu.

This point is equivalent to around ten o'clock in the evening in later generations, which is already very late.

It would be fine if Emperor Jiajing just didn't wake up, but if it were really pursued, it would be troublesome to explain that so many people gathered in Prince Yu's mansion at this time.

The next day, Xu Jie and Li Chunfang moved back to the cabinet for business, which also showed that Emperor Jiajing was in good health.

"Your Majesty should be angry."

In the study room of Wei Guangde's home, Chen Ju, who had not been here for a long time, suddenly came to the door again and said when Wei Guangde asked about what happened yesterday.

"Angry? Who?"

Wei Guangde wondered.

"Cum Sheng."

Chen Ju named a person, but Wei Guangde naturally didn't recognize it.

"He was in charge of the service storehouse. Two days ago, he reported that there was a fire in the service storehouse, and more than 188,000 kilograms of incense was burnt. Mr. Huang sent He Jin, the chief ceremonial supervisor, to check, and it was found that the keeper committed theft."

Chen Ju continued, "I set off a small fire and burned so many spices. I'm really crazy about money."

Chen Ju was a decent man, so he naturally looked down on these frivolous things, so he sounded very disdainful.

"How did the palace handle it?"

Wei Guangde asked curiously.

"Issuing the imperial edict, Ji Sheng and his associates Lu Tianbao, Chaoyong and others were imprisoned, and some of them were handed over to Zhang Yue and Yushi Dong Yao who were involved in the incident to strictly check the actual number."

Chen Ju replied, "Actually, in the past, there was less warehousing or stealing of spices. I guess this time the number is too big to handle, so I falsely reported a fire and wanted to settle the account."

"How is your Majesty's health?"

This matter did not spread to the outside world. It must be that the palace blocked the news. After all, it would not sound good if it spread.

As for chasing stolen goods, Wei Guangde is not worried.

How can a eunuch resell more than 100,000 kilograms of spices? This time the merchants who cooperated with him must be in bad luck. Those who participated must have been eaten up, and even those who did not participate will probably be scraped off. A layer of skin.

There is no other reason, just because you and Ji Sheng are close and are old merchants.

In fact, these businessmen who cooperate with the inner treasury have more or less privacy, and they can only admit that they are unlucky if the ship capsizes.

When Chen Ju heard Wei Guangde's question, he didn't answer immediately. Instead, he stood up and walked to the door. He opened the door and looked around before returning to the house. He lowered his voice and said to Wei Guangde: "There shouldn't be any serious problems in a year or two. The main thing is to pay attention to his recovery." If you don’t get angry, you won’t be like yesterday.”

"After His Majesty fainted, was it Eunuch Huang who made the decision in the palace?"

Wei Guangde asked again.

"Yes, Eunuch Huang directly summoned the Royal Horse Supervisor to pick up Mr. Xu Ge and the others, and also dispatched Jin Yiwei to ambush each gate in Xiyuan."

When Chen Ju said this, he suddenly approached Wei Guangde and whispered: "Actually, at that time, I was detained in Yongshou Palace. I stayed in the room all the time. I was not allowed to go anywhere."

"Why? Eunuch Huang doubts you?"

Wei Guangde asked in surprise.

"It's hard to say. Maybe they are asking me to go to Prince Yu's Mansion to deliver a message. After all, His Majesty's affairs have nothing to do with me."

Having said this, Chen Ju chuckled again and said: "I came here today because I haven't visited my brother for a long time."

Now Prince Yu is the backbone of everyone. If my guess is correct, in a situation like yesterday, Eunuch Huang would probably send me to Prince Yu's Mansion to welcome Prince Yu into the palace. ’

After saying this, Chen Ju rolled his eyes again and continued: "I may also be asked to mobilize the capital camp to enter the city. After all, those who were left in the house by Eunuch Huang at that time were all like me who stayed in the Yongshou Palace for a long time. old man.”

Last time something happened, Chen Ju was assigned to go to the capital camp, so this time he was not sure what he would be sent by Eunuch Huang.

Welcoming King Yu into the palace was naturally something that all the eunuchs were scrambling to do.

But at least nothing happened, it was just a false alarm.

"hehe."

Wei Guangde just smiled when he heard this. He knew that it seemed that the relationship between him and Chen Ju had changed. In the past, he respected Chen Ju. Even though Gao Zhong was gone, he still had Gao Zhong's group of old buddies.

But now, the two of them are relatively equal and each has his or her own desires.

"Also, I have some news here. Shandai will definitely be interested."

At this time, Chen Ju suddenly said.

"Um?"

Wei Guangde was suspicious and looked at Chen Ju in confusion.

"Hu Zongxian may be resurrected."