Uncle from a poor family

Chapter 403 Everyone is waiting

late at night.

After Zhang Luan woke up from a nap, he felt much better. When he entered the inner hall of the Qianqing Palace, he found Wang Ji still guarding there.

Afterwards, Wang Ji and Zhang Luan left the inner hall together.

Wang Ji explained the situation: "Your Majesty woke up once before, but he was completely confused... If the situation continues to develop like this, some things should be prepared in advance."

"Ugh!"

Zhang Luan sighed, "It's no use telling me. How can I dare to get involved in this matter? Don't you think that everyone in the palace is waiting for news from here? Whatever we do, it's easy to be criticized."

Wang Ji thought, you are now the regent appointed by the Queen Mother, are you still afraid of getting into trouble?
If it weren't for the fact that the Queen Mother and the Crown Prince treat you as their own, why would I tell you what I have to say?

"how's it going?"

As they were talking, Wei Tai, who had just woken up, walked into the hall, looked at the two people who were talking, and asked nervously.

Zhang Luan said: "Your Majesty's condition is not optimistic."

When Wang Ji heard this, he admired Zhang Luan even more.

This old guy was evasive just now, as if he wanted to hide as far away as possible, but now he tells the truth to Wei Tai without any concealment, which shows that you still have some responsibility.

"What should we do?"

Wei Tai was very anxious. "Waiting on is not a solution. Is there any special medicine? For example... medicine that can wake His Majesty up?"

Zhang Luan couldn't help but frown after hearing this.

He thought that it was the best thing for the emperor to die in such a confused state. If he really woke up, even if he did not propose to change the crown prince, he might hold accountable those who treated him.

Only you, Wei Tai, seem to have other thoughts, and are even thinking about making the emperor wake up!
Don’t say I have no way. Even if I had this panacea, I would not give it to the emperor.

At this time, Luo Xiang also went in to check on the emperor. After coming out, he said, "Your Majesty has not eaten much in the past two days. Is this... okay?"

Zhang Luan said, "Everyone, I understand your feelings. But your Majesty's condition has progressed to the point where it is now, and even if I want to do something, it is difficult. You can actually seek the opinions of everyone in the Imperial Hospital and listen to both sides to make a wise decision."

Wei Tai hurriedly said: "Zhang Taichang, it's not that we don't trust you, but... you have to think of a solution quickly!"

"For now... there is no good solution."

Zhang Luan shook his head and said, "How about trying acupuncture again?"

Wang Ji said: "I have already used acupuncture once before, but unfortunately it didn't have any effect."

When Zhang Luan heard this, he thought to himself, you are actually giving the emperor acupuncture to wake him up while he is sleeping?
You have no good intentions, kid!
Zhang Luan was very sensitive at this time, and he was always thinking about the evil hearts of people. To put it bluntly, he had no one he could truly trust. When facing every person around the emperor, he would feel that this person was planning to harm him.

"Zhang Taichang, there is one more thing." Wei Tai reminded, "The Crown Prince will hold a court meeting in Wenhua Hall early tomorrow morning, and I would like you to go with him then."

Zhang Luan said in embarrassment: "How can I get away from here?"

Wei Tai advised: "You should go there in person... The prince relies on you very much. If you don't go, I'm afraid you will disappoint the prince."

"Let me be disappointed."

Zhang Luan decisively refused, "At this time, I will devote my heart to treating your majesty, which is the best way to repay your majesty and the prince. The emperor's grace is great, I can't be a deserter at the critical moment."

"Mr. Zhang, you are truly kind and righteous."

When Wei Tai heard this, he couldn't help but sigh.

Zhang Luan thought, I’m not going, not for any great cause.

It's because I really don't have the ability to provide the prince with more references on state affairs. Maybe it's okay for my son to do this, but if I do it myself, I'll easily show my weakness.

Furthermore, I deeply remember what my step-aunt told me, that I must always keep an eye on this side, as this will be the greatest guarantee for the crown prince's succession to the throne!

I can't let certain people take the opportunity to talk to the emperor about changing the crown prince, so at this moment, the only thing I can do is to stay here and not be shaken.

……

……

Until early morning.

The emperor finally woke up.

Wei Tai, Luo Xiang and others hurried to feed the emperor.

Zhu Jianshen had no appetite and he was still very confused, as if he couldn't even recognize people. He didn't say anything. He just sat there and drank some porridge, then lay down again.

"Your Majesty, do you want to see someone?"

Wei Tai asked with concern, "Many people in the palace know that you are sick and want to come and visit you."

Zhang Luan thought, here it comes, you want to cause trouble again.

Zhu Jianshen shook his head. He seemed to be completely confused at the moment. He had no idea who he was, let alone what he was going to do.

When I feel sleepy, I just follow my instinct and lie down and continue to sleep.

When Zhang Luan left the inner hall, the eunuch Chen Gui, who was ordered to guard outside, approached and asked, "Mr. Zhang, what's going on? Did His Majesty give any instructions? Do you want to invite the Queen Mother to come over?"

"Need not."

Zhang Luan shook his head and said, "Your Majesty got up, ate something, and then went back to sleep."

"This...how could this happen?" Chen Gui also looked very nervous.

Zhang Luan didn't say anything.

After all, he was not a real doctor and had no idea which direction the emperor's condition would develop.

"Eunuch Chen, do you have a way to notify people outside the palace? I want my son to know what's happening here." Zhang Luan asked in a low voice. "Do you want to... tell the second young master?"

Chen Gui looked around and asked cautiously.

Zhang Luan nodded: "That's right. This kid is very smart and can help me with advice when I encounter problems. If possible, I would like him to help me think about it and see what I can do now."

Chen Gui said: "Actually, there is no need to ask. Your Majesty is already like this, what else can you do? But since you have a request, I will definitely send someone to take the message out of the palace and let your son know."

……

……

The meeting begins.

The Wenhua Hall seemed to have never been so lively. The two grand secretaries of the cabinet, as well as the six ministers, vice ministers, and the chief and deputy chiefs of the three judicial departments all came to the palace to attend the meeting.

The purpose of the Crown Prince as regent is to show a new look.

Zhu Youtang also seemed to be using this method to let his ministers know that he was different from his father. He was a good emperor who could work diligently and love his people. His ability was not important, but he would definitely adopt the opinions of his ministers.

For some upright people in the court, it was a very gratifying thing that the prince was so diligent and cared so much about state affairs as soon as he became regent.

But most people still had concerns about the prince holding court meetings.

The reason is that the prince has no real power after all. Even if you make a decision or the court reaches a conclusion, it cannot be confirmed. After all, your father is the one who has the final say.

Don’t say he is seriously ill or anything like that, as long as he is alive, you have to endure it.

"Your Highness, I'm afraid Zhang Taichang won't be able to come."

Wan An introduced the current situation, "He is currently treating His Majesty at the Qianqing Palace and cannot be away. His Majesty woke up once today, but only ate a little and then fell asleep again."

Zhu Youtang said in embarrassment: "My father-in-law is not here. If I have any questions, who should I ask?"

"Prince, if there is anything you don't understand, just ask me. The people present here can also answer your questions." Wan An said, "Also... no one from the Imperial Household Department came today. I don't know what they think. It seems that they may have reservations about your holding of the court meeting."

At this time, Wan'an still did not forget to slander Wei Tai and others.

After all, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It would be best if the prince lost his trust in the eunuchs and listened to the opinions of our cabinet on all matters after he ascends the throne.

Zhu Youtang smiled perfunctorily and then said, "The memorials you showed me in advance about matters to be discussed were all too ordinary, as if there was nothing important to discuss. Could it be that there is no government affairs in the Ming Dynasty that I need to handle for my father recently?"

"This one……"

Wan'an is a little hard to explain.

He thought, isn't it because you suddenly said that you wanted to hold a court meeting, and the people in the court don't know your pulse well and dare not bring up important matters casually?

Furthermore, people nowadays are very smart. They want to see what other government offices have to say, and then check whether the results of the discussion can be implemented before deciding whether to discuss important matters with you.

Or, if your father suddenly wakes up and everything returns to normal, wouldn’t we be in vain?
Now I will definitely just brush you off with trivial matters.

"Lord Wan, what do you want to say?"

Zhu Youtang really didn't like Wan'an's way of communicating, which was that he was hesitant to speak.

Wan An hurriedly said, "I think that the favorable weather and good harvests, peace and prosperity are all good things. It just shows that the peace and prosperity in the world are due to the blessing of Your Majesty and the Crown Prince. You don't have to worry about it. Of course, it is also possible that some court officials are unwilling to discuss the matter with you."

At this moment, Wan'an showed a certain "frankness" attitude, saying something different from time to time in order to gain the trust of the prince.

Zhu Youtang said: "What's wrong with discussing court affairs? I won't act arbitrarily, and I will listen carefully to everyone's opinions."

“They don’t think so.”

Wan An said, "You see, Crown Prince, this is your first time as regent and your first time attending court. When things happen, others don't have much confidence in your abilities, which leads to them taking a wait-and-see attitude.

"How about...Prince, you deal with it today and take care of the less urgent matters. Then they will feel that you are not just dealing with it. Then they will bring out the big things in the future and stop covering them up."

"Oh, is that so? I'm glad to hear your advice."

Zhu Youtang was far superior to his father in terms of being willing to learn from others humbly, and he showed a very positive attitude.

"Your Highness, you must remember to maintain your dignity in front of the ministers. It is not feasible to be as friendly as usual, because most court officials bully the weak and fear the strong. If you act too weak, they will think you are easy to bully..."

Wanan continued to instigate.

Zhu Youtang didn't care at all, and shook his head and said, "As the crown prince, why should I maintain my dignity? As a court official, I have to work for the court. Do I need to disguise myself in front of them? So I won't deliberately maintain any dignity...

"Okay, now that everyone is basically here, let's get started."

……

……

Outside the palace, Zhang’s new residence.

When Chen Gui's people came here to deliver the message, the two Zhang brothers were still sleeping soundly. It was the maid who woke the brothers up.

"What's the matter?"

Zhang Heling rubbed his sleepy eyes, "Don't you know that we two brothers stay up very late? Second brother, you are the same, you like to stay up late when you have nothing to do. Others work from sunrise to sunset, but you are different, you are so busy that it's killing me!"

Zhang Yanling said, "It should be that my father sent a message from the palace."

"Wait, let me go and listen too."

The two brothers came out together and saw a young eunuch.

The young eunuch said, "You two are the young masters of the Zhang family, right? Your father has something he wants to tell you. But it involves palace secrets, so I can't be too obvious. I'll just say a few...key words, and I hope you can understand."

(End of this chapter)