eldest son of Ming dynasty

Chapter 962 Postscript ()

When the emperor passed away, it was a national mourning, and the eaves of the palaces in the Forbidden City were hung with white silk cloth.

By the time the palace officially announced the news to the whole country, there was already wailing inside and outside the capital.

The successor emperor named the reign title Zhihe, and conferred the title of Empress Dowager Cisi on his stepmother, Empress Xia, and the title of Empress Dowager Cishun on his biological mother, which brought about great changes in the palace.

Outside the palace, three cabinet ministers, Yan Song, Xia Yan and Xu Jie, also went to work in mourning clothes.

Xia Yan kept talking about the great achievements of the late emperor, wishing that he could leave his old bones in the old era. It was not until the new emperor summoned him that he endured the grief and walked into the Qianqing Palace.

The successor emperor is less than 40 years old, and having trained in the court for more than 20 years under the tutelage of the previous emperor, he is already very familiar with state affairs, and his energy and experience are at their peak.

When they arrived, Prince Yu Zai'e and Prince Yu Zai'ji were already waiting there.

After the ceremony between the monarch and his ministers, the new emperor sat on the dragon throne and said in a deep voice: "The most important matter at the moment is the funeral of the late emperor. Prince Yu is gentle, respectful, and knows the general situation. I intend to appoint him as the minister of funeral affairs and promote him to the cabinet. The three of you must work together with Prince Yu to ensure that the late emperor's body is returned to the dragon's lair."

Allowing royal relatives to enter the cabinet was something that the previous emperor had done. Although it was against common sense before the Hongzhi period, it was enough that Emperor Zhengde had done it.

Not only that, the successor emperor went a step further. The Prince Fu who had entered the cabinet previously always had some flavor of "observing politics", but the Prince Yu was not a confused prince, and he would not be idle after entering the cabinet.

The reason for this arrangement has obvious political implications. The heir to the throne is the fifth son of the emperor. Fortunately, there is the will of the previous emperor, so there are not too many disturbances inside or outside the palace. However, since he is neither the eldest son nor the legitimate son, there are always some hidden dangers.

Now he let the second son enter the cabinet, the same reason as letting the eldest and third sons guard the casket, is to ensure the stability of his own throne.

Once Yan, Xia and Xu understand the emperor's purpose, there is no point in opposing it. This is the bottom line.

So the three gray-haired old men could only bow and nod without saying anything more.

Prior to this, the Duke of Yue and the Prince of Yu had already taken charge of the garrison military districts inside and outside the capital.

In addition to these, there are also some people whose positions must be replaced. This has nothing to do with whether they are good or bad. They must be his own people, so he even issued a grace order and "drove" all the people in the original attendant room out -

It was not a real expulsion, but rather, they were assigned to key positions such as vice minister of various ministries or prefect of Shuntian Prefecture according to the vacancies. They were all the late emperor's confidants, and they should obey the late emperor's will and respect them as emperors. Now they have been promoted several levels, and unless there are special circumstances, they will definitely serve steadily and loyally.

After the original attendants left, Zaizhen began to arrange his own people.

At this time, those who could enter the attendant's room were all future rising stars, and it was an open secret known to everyone. So people discovered that these people actually had such a connection with the fifth prince.

One was Hu Zongxian, the governor of Shanxi, one was Xiang Zhongling, the assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and the last and youngest was Zhang Juzheng, the teacher of the emperor's grandson in his mansion.

Because Zhang Juzheng kept going in and out of Prince Rui's Mansion, he had actually become one with the emperor. After all, even if he wanted to visit another sect, no one else would want someone from Prince Rui's Mansion.

As for Hu Zongxian and Xiang Zhongling, they were both relatively old, which broke the previous emperor's habit of using attendants.

But the successor emperor had no choice in special circumstances. Yan, Xu and Xia were all people employed by the previous emperor. Over the past few decades, it was inevitable that there would be some friction when he was a prince.

This is the evolution of the political and power landscape, which is especially drastic when a new monarch ascends the throne. The status of the cabinet will gradually decline in the next two or three years as the new emperor pays more attention to and trusts the three attendants. Naturally, the power of the attendant room will increase.

Arranging Zai to be in charge of the funeral, the successor emperor said: "When the late emperor was in power, he attached great importance to state affairs. I, who have inherited the legacy of my ancestors, should follow the late emperor's wishes. Elder Yan, Elder Xu, Elder Xia, you will have a hard time during this period, especially the villains inside and outside the court. If anyone takes the opportunity to cause chaos, I will never forgive them. The cabinet must take the responsibility of commanding all officials. During the period of national mourning, everyone should do their job and remember the late emperor. As for the officials, Prince Yu, "

"Brother Chen is here."

"I order you to take charge of the Jinyi School Lieutenant and supervise all places. Although you should pay attention to both the inside and the outside, if you are unable to do so, you should focus on the inside first and the outside second."

He was referring to the intelligence agencies, which must be mobilized at full capacity.

The fourth brother naturally accepted the order.

The three cabinet ministers, however, did not sigh. No wonder the late emperor valued the fifth prince so much. He was well versed in governing the country.

For a powerful country like the Ming Dynasty, the internal situation is always more important than the external situation. Even if there is a little bit of chaos outside, as long as the internal situation is stable, with the military and financial resources of the Ming Dynasty, no matter who is the god, he can be reduced to ashes in a blink of an eye.

But once there is internal chaos, the problem will be serious.

"Your Majesty," Yan Song's beard twitched slightly, "This old minister has something to report."

"Just ask Elder Yan."

"Your Majesty, when the late emperor ascended the throne, the Tatars in the north were rampant and repeatedly invaded the border areas. In the interior, the vassal states, eunuchs, and aristocratic families annexed land, and refugees were everywhere. After 42 years of ruling the country, the late emperor conferred many titles and made many people, ruled Mongolia, and herded the North Sea again; revitalized the border army, marched into the Western Regions, and accepted the barbarians again; built a large navy, and exerted power in the South Sea and the mainland. Such achievements have surpassed the achievements of ancient saints. Even the Heavenly Khan of that time did not rule as wide a territory as the late emperor. Moreover, such achievements are all in the hearts of the people, and will be recorded in the history books for thousands of years. Therefore, I think we should give the late emperor a better title to suit the will of heaven and the people's hearts!"

At first glance, these words may sound a bit exaggerated. After all, the territory is too vast and even the previous Yuan Dynasty had not achieved it. But if you think about it carefully, every word of Yan Song's words is true.

Xu Jie and Xia Yan nodded secretly. Xu Jie said: "The late emperor was extremely wise and had extraordinary talent. I think that the difference between our Ming Dynasty and the Qin, Han, Tang and Song dynasties should be attributed to the late emperor."

Zai Xuan did not intend to deny it. He continued, "The late emperor's great achievements are indeed unprecedented in history, but the temple name and posthumous title have already been decided. What other title do you think would be appropriate?"

Yan Song has already considered this matter.

He then said: "Your Majesty is the descendant of Taizu, and was personally chosen by the late emperor. Any further title should be approved by the emperor himself and used as a common law for the whole world."

"Well, what Lord Yan said is correct." Zaizhen understood it completely, and he added, "When the late emperor was in power, he always attached great importance to the affairs of the country and the nation, and for this reason he listed wise rulers and famous generals to inspire future generations and make efforts to become stronger.

I believe that the late emperor should be included in the ranks of wise rulers, and I have personally granted him the honorific title of 'The Greatest Emperor of All Time'. All textbooks used in colleges and universities and private schools across the Ming Dynasty must contain the late emperor's portrait to widely publicize his achievements.

At the same time, he ordered the Hanlin Academy to compile the words and deeds of the late emperor over the past 42 years, compile them into a volume, and publish it throughout the country so that everyone can know it, and especially the officials in the court, the soldiers in service, and the children in school should review it every day and remember his teachings.

I grew up under the care of the late emperor and have been taught by him since childhood. I will surely enjoy his kindness for a long time. I have already secretly decided to carry on the late emperor's will and never let the Ming Dynasty fall from its peak in the Zhihe era. I swear here!"

The successor emperor said this with gritted teeth.

All the kings and ministers felt this power, so they knelt down at the same time, "We are willing to assist the emperor and accomplish great things together!"

The Emperor Zhihe felt that the Emperor Zhengde had too much prestige among the ministers and the people. No matter what previous dynasties wanted to do, he absolutely could not do it here, otherwise it would definitely arouse dissatisfaction. On the contrary, he had to hold high this banner and spare no effort to publicize how he inherited the various policies of the previous emperor, so that he could gather people's hearts and stabilize the world!

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I was lazy for half a month, read two novels, went out for a walk during the Qingming Festival, and played dozens of ARAM games. I finally recovered. The continuous updates for a year and a half were really exhausting. As for the rest, if I have time, I will write a few postscripts. I can't guarantee how much I will write, but I will write what I want to present.

Also, the new book has not been touched yet.
(End of this chapter)