My father is Jiajing

night.

It was a dark and windy night.

It was a pitch-dark night.

Such a dark night is rarely seen on weekdays.

The entire Xingwang Palace was now engulfed in the pitch-black night, with very few spots of light visible.

The same is true outside the Prince Xing's palace.

Xu Jie sat in his study, not turning a page of the book in his hand for a long time. For some reason, he felt uneasy tonight, as if something big was about to happen.

Guo Pu was also sitting in his study. The two of them sat facing each other in silence without saying anything to each other. Their expressions were serious, as if they had some particularly heavy emotions or things in their hearts.

Just at this moment, a sharp scream suddenly pierced the night sky, like a dazzling light, attracting everyone's attention and making everyone's spirit tremble!
"Go away!"

"It's gone!!"

"Someone come quickly!!!"

Screams of terror pierced the night sky, like a heavy hammer hitting everyone's heart!
When Xu Jie and Guo Pu heard the sudden scream, they both stood up suddenly, with looks of fear in each other's eyes!
Xu Jie stood up suddenly, and the scroll in his hand fell to the ground with a "bang".

Guo Pu rushed out of the room before Xu Jie. Looking at the pitch-black night, he shouted, "What happened?"

The guards in charge of the government offices near the palace, upon hearing Guo Pu's voice, hurriedly came to Guo Pu with torches in hand.

"The palace. It's over there!"

There was also fear on the guard's face!

His voice fell into Guo Pu's ears, and it was like thunder, shocking his mind!

Guo Pu was so frightened that his face turned pale. He looked in the direction of the palace and sure enough, there was a beam of fire shooting up into the sky!

When he saw the fire, Guo Pu felt that spiritual energy was emitting from his heels!
At this time Xu Jie also came out of the house.

His face was also full of shock and fear.

Xu Jie immediately shouted: "Hurry up and put out the fire in the palace!"

After saying that, Xu Jie raised his foot and was about to run towards the palace. However, it was too dark and Xu Jie was old, so he did not pay attention to the road under his feet for a moment and almost fell to the ground with a stumble.

If Guo Pu beside him had not been quick to pull him back, Xu Jie would have lost two of his front teeth from this pounce, even if he had not been disfigured.

After Guo Pu pulled Xu Jie to a stop and stabilized him, he immediately said, "Don't worry, sir!"

Xu Jie looked at the fire in the direction of the palace anxiously, "Quickly let me go! I want to rescue the emperor!"

At this time, all the officials accompanying the emperor in the government office also came out, and each of them had a look of fear on their face.

The guards in the government office also lit torches and lights to illuminate the way for the officials accompanying the emperor.

Xu Jie and Guo Pu were running in front, without paying any attention to etiquette and manners, and they both ran in a very awkward manner.

And at this time, they all hated themselves for having two fewer legs.

By the time Xu Jie, Guo Pu and others ran to the front of the palace, many ministers and guards had gathered outside the palace, and everyone's face was filled with panic.

The ministers who arrived early looked at Xu Jie and Guo Pu, and they also bowed to Xu Jie and Guo Pu in panic, "Lord, Minister, what should we do?!"

Xu Jie stood in the crowd. He stretched out his hand and shouted, "Why are you panicking? The most urgent thing is to save the emperor! His Majesty and the prince are both in the palace. What are you doing standing here?"

Xu Jie questioned the ministers gathered outside the palace.

It was at this time that the gate of the palace was opened.

Li Fang came out and looked at the many people gathered in front of the palace.

He first bowed slightly to everyone, then shouted loudly, "There is an order!"

When Xu Jie and others heard Li Fang's voice, they couldn't help but stop their actions and sounds.

They all looked at Li Fang.

Xu Jie asked first: "Your Majesty and the prince are all right?"

Li Fang glanced at Xu Jie, then at the others who were equally anxious, and said, "Everyone, please be patient, the Emperor has an order!"

Everyone present heard this sentence clearly.

They immediately straightened their manners, stood in order in front of the palace gate, and bowed together: "Greetings to the Emperor!"

Li Fang replied on behalf of the heaven: "I am fine."

Then Li Fang began to convey the order of Emperor Jiajing.

"The fire in the palace has been put out. You should return to your respective offices immediately. Do not come to the palace without my permission. I order you to do so."

Xu Jie, Guo Pu and other ministers gathered here were stunned when they heard this decree.

It was put out so quickly?
At this moment, everyone couldn't help but look up in the direction where they had just seen the fire, and found that there was indeed nothing there.

Seeing this, everyone felt relieved.

After receiving the imperial edict, Xu Jie immediately stood up and asked Li Fang with concern, "Are your Majesty and the prince all right?"

Li Fang said: "Don't worry, elder. Go back and have a rest. It's just a false alarm."

"false alarm?"

Xu Jie narrowed his eyes and narrowed his gaze slightly.

He looked up at the direction where the fire had just started. Although the flames had been extinguished, the smell of burning was still in the air. How could this be a false alarm?

Just as he was about to go forward and ask Li Fang again, Guo Pu gently pulled his sleeve. He turned to look at Guo Pu, who shook his head slightly, signaling him not to act rashly.

That night, Xu Jie tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

He always felt that things were not that simple. Li Fang's attitude was too abnormal, and the safety of Prince Yu and the emperor was also worrying.

What made him even more uneasy was that the emperor had not shown up so far, and had not even said a word to reassure the people.

next day!

Before daybreak, a shocking rumor spread among officials outside the palace.

The news said: Last night, a fire broke out suddenly. Prince Yu was worried about the safety of Emperor Jiajing, so he climbed out the window. As a result, he fell into the pond in the courtyard without paying attention. No one knows what the situation is now.

However, this news still caused panic among the officials accompanying the emperor.

They gathered in front of the palace gate again early in the morning and demanded to see Emperor Jiajing.

However, Emperor Jiajing had no intention of summoning them. Even when Li Fang gave another explanation, he still did not mention a word about Prince Yu's situation.

For a moment, this made everyone present even more confused and frightened.

"Sir, what should we do?"

Guo Pu stood beside Xu Jie with beads of sweat on his forehead, which were obviously cold sweat caused by fear!

Xu Jie did not answer immediately, his eyes were always fixed on the tightly closed palace gate.

Outside the palace gate, the guards looked solemn, as if they were on guard against something. "Mr. Zhi," Xu Jie lowered his voice, "Do you think what happened last night was really just a false alarm?"

Guo Pu was stunned for a moment, then shook his head: "Impossible. If it was a false alarm, why would the prince fall into the pond? Why did His Majesty avoid him?"

Xu Jie nodded, a trace of worry flashed in his eyes: "This matter is strange, we must find out. The prince is your majesty's eldest son. If something happens to him, your majesty will be heartbroken. As a minister, we should share your majesty's worries."

As the two were talking, the palace gate slowly opened again.

Li Fang came out with a few young eunuchs and sighed, "Lord, Minister Guo, why are you still here?"

Xu Jie and Guo Pu looked at each other, then bowed slightly to Li Fang.

Xu Jie asked, "Sir, can you please spare me a moment to talk?"

Li Fang looked at Xu Jie like this and sighed again, "Okay then."

Xu Jie and Li Fang went to the side.

Xu Jie looked into Li Fang's eyes seriously and asked, "It is rumored that the prince fell into the water. Is this true or not?"

Li Fang looked around in panic, then said in shock: "Master, please don't ask about this anymore!"

Looking at Li Fang's expression, Xu Jie couldn't help but feel heavy in his heart.

Li Fang also saw Xu Jie's heavy expression and hurriedly said, "You elders, please go away quickly. The Emperor doesn't like you doing this. And everything is fine in the palace. Don't believe any absurd rumors."

Seeing this, Xu Jie could only step back and bow, "Thank you, eunuch."

Li Fang saw that he had persuaded Xu Jie, and he seemed relieved.

"I will go back to serve the Emperor first. The elder and everyone else should go back early."

After saying that, Li Fang led his men back to the palace gate and closed it tightly again.

Xu Jie and Guo Pu looked at each other and saw deep worry in each other's eyes.

What kind of secrets are hidden within these palace walls?
"In that case," Xu Jie said slowly, "we will wait here until His Majesty summons us."

Obviously Xu Jie and the others did not intend to leave so easily. They all wanted to know what was going on inside.

Another day passed.

Inside the palace, the flickering candlelight reflected on the vermilion curtains, making it seem particularly warm.

Emperor Jiajing was leaning on the couch, playing with a blue and white porcelain cup in his hand, with a rare smile on his face.

Zhu Zaigui was sitting nearby, holding a book in his hands and reading aloud.

"Father, I think the passage in The Analects of Confucius, 'A gentleman is harmonious but different', is quite meaningful." Zhu Zaigui raised his head with a gleam in his eyes.

Emperor Jiajing nodded slightly and said with a laugh, "Yes, I am very pleased that you have such an opinion."

Then Emperor Jiajing took a sip of tea and continued, "This is also the way to govern a country. The ministers in the court have their own opinions, but as long as they care about the country, it is good."

Zhu Zaigui nodded and was about to say something else when he heard a commotion coming from outside the palace.

Zhu Zaigui and Emperor Jiajing both knew exactly what the commotion was about, but it was clear that neither of them wanted to deal with it at the moment and were just waiting.

Outside the palace, Xu Jie, Guo Pu and others were still insisting on requesting a meeting.

But the palace gate was still closed, and the guards guarding the palace stood on both sides with expressionless faces, as if they were blind to the scene before them.

"Sir, this is not a solution." Guo Pu said in a low voice with a hint of fatigue in his voice.

Xu Jie's eyes remained firm: "Zhifu, the safety of the prince and His Majesty concerns the country. As subjects, how can we give up so easily?"

As he was talking, the palace gate slowly opened a crack. Li Fang stuck his head out and said with a sigh on his face: "Lord, everyone, please go back. There is really nothing wrong in the palace."

Xu Jie took a step forward, his voice steady but powerful: "Eunuch, is the prince all right? Is His Majesty all right? As court officials, we should go and pay our respects first."

Li Fang's face darkened: "Lord, are you questioning our family or the emperor? I said nothing is wrong, so it's nothing! What else do you want?"

Xu Jie was unmoved: "We are only concerned about the safety of His Majesty and the Prince. If there is any offense, please report it on our behalf."

Li Fang made up her mind and said, "Okay, let's go and report it."

The palace gate closed again, but Xu Jie's heart became even heavier.

He whispered to Guo Pu: "Zhifu, this is strange. If your majesty and the prince are safe and sound in the palace, why do you ignore the rumors from the outside world?"

Guo Pu shook his head, frowning: "Lord, I'm afraid there is something else going on. We need to find a way to find out the truth."

Xu Jie nodded, his eyes flashing with determination: "No matter what, we can't let the rumors continue to spread. This is not only related to the reputation of the prince, but also to the majesty of His Majesty."

At the same time, rumors about Prince Yu falling into the water had spread throughout Anlu and spread to further places.

At first, some people just said that Prince Yu was frightened and fell into a pond last night and was unconscious. But soon, the rumor became more and more outrageous.

"I heard that after the prince fell into the water, he became unconscious and didn't even remember who he was." A man who looked like a businessman whispered in the teahouse.

"That's right. I have a relative working in the palace. I heard that the prince can't even speak clearly now." Another person echoed.

"What do you think? Could it be that the prince has the same problem as Emperor Wuzong?" a man who looked like a scholar suddenly interrupted.

When this was said, everyone was shocked. Emperor Wuzong fell into the water and contracted a strange disease, which eventually led to his premature death. If the prince also contracted the same disease, then the future of the Ming Dynasty would be in jeopardy.
"Be careful with your words! Be careful with your words!" Someone hurriedly stopped him, "Don't talk about this kind of thing casually."

But the rumor had spread like wildfire and could no longer be contained.

Another day passed.

Outside the palace, Xu Jie and others still insisted on asking for a meeting.

Their persistence attracted more people's attention, and more and more people gathered nearby involuntarily.

"Lord, this is not a solution." Guo Pu said in a low voice, "We have to find a way to let His Majesty know the seriousness of the matter."

Xu Jie nodded, a look of determination flashed in his eyes: "Zhifu, I am going to write to His Majesty and explain the pros and cons. If His Majesty still refuses to see us, we will jointly write to him and request a thorough investigation of this matter."

Guo Pu hesitated for a moment and said, "Lord Xu, this move may anger His Majesty."

Xu Jie took a deep breath and looked determined: "My dear husband, the country is the most important. If we retreat at this time, the rumors will only get more and more intense, and eventually shake the foundation of the country."

Guo Pu was silent for a moment, and finally nodded: "Okay, I will write a petition with you."

Inside the palace, Emperor Jiajing and Zhu Zaigui were still playing chess and drinking tea.

Li Fang stood aside cautiously and reported in a low voice: "Emperor, Xu Gelao and others are still kneeling outside the palace gate, requesting to see you."

Emperor Jiajing smiled and said, "Let them kneel down."

Li Fang hesitated for a moment and asked in a low voice: "Emperor, the rumors outside are getting more and more outrageous. Should we..."

Emperor Jiajing waved his hand and interrupted him: "Don't pay attention to it. Rumors stop at wise people. I know my limits."

Li Fang didn't dare to say anything more and bowed and left.

He also didn't understand why the emperor and the prince were like this?

--------

Ask for monthly ticket~~(End of this chapter)