Ming Jiajing: Starting from Immortality

Chapter 192: Overstepping the imperial authority, the night of the palace coup!
The next day.

The sun is shining brightly and the sky is clear.

The moat water melted the frost and flowed clear blue.

Thirty-six royal chariots with red letters on a white background and flags hanging from them, including "King of Liao", "King of Chu", "King of Qin", "King of Jin", "King of Zhou", "King of Huai", "King of Rong", and "King of Ji", slowly drove in, very eye-catching.

The guards were lined up in a row, standing like nails beside the carriage. Opposite them were the civil and military officials of the imperial court.

Zhengyangmen.

Four gates, three bridges, and five archways!

The arrow tower is four zhang high, and the doorway has five vaults and five arches.

The Kaitai Gate is located in the middle of the nine gates in the inner city. It is the only gate with an arrow tower and an opening, and is used exclusively for dragon chariots and phoenix chariots.

The ministers were divided into civil and military officials, standing on both sides of the imperial road.

The twelve Ming dragon flags were held by the Imperial Guards, and the twelve palace lanterns were held by the eunuchs of the Imperial Household Department.

Prince Yu Zhu Zaihou walked out of the doorway, looked at the royal carriage which was gradually stopping, and said in a cold voice, "Play music!"

The sound arises upon command.

On the city gate tower, the musicians from Shufangzhai played peace music.

The powerful and majestic music could be heard from far away, and the kings in royal robes lifted the curtains of their carriages and stepped down from them at the same time.

From teenagers to old men in their seventies and eighties, the princes each have their own style and aura.

Zhu Xian, the King of Liao, looked at the magnificent and tall city towers and arrow towers and was suddenly filled with emotion. The emperor's residence was much grander than that of the prince.

Standing next to him was the King of Chu, Zhu Ying, who frowned and said, "Brother Liao Emperor, listen, what kind of music is this?"

No matter how it sounds, this doesn't sound like the triumphal music composed by Emperor Taizu Gao for the kings returning to the capital.

During the Hongwu period, Emperor Taizu Gaodi enfeoffed the princes and ordered them to defend the country and garrison the border. The princes' return to the capital was considered a triumphant return, so triumphal music was composed.

Although Emperor Chengzu Wen, after ascending the throne after the Jingnan Rebellion, reduced the power of princes and their guards and granted them fiefs inland areas, which was not entirely in line with Emperor Taizu Gao's wishes, the triumphal music remained unchanged.

The music coming from Zhengyang Gate, including the sounds of large bronze horns, small bronze horns, golden horns, cymbals, pipes, flutes, and other instruments, were all inconsistent with the custom.

The kings were a little confused after listening to this, and felt that something was wrong. There was a little commotion as they whispered to each other.

"It's like Taipingle." King Liao said uncertainly.

For a moment, the kings became even more agitated. "Taiping Music" was the imperial music that could only be used when the emperor returned to the capital.

Anyone else using it, including the prince, would be considered an usurper.

Although we know that the emperor's sudden summons to the capital has ill intentions, but setting a trap before they even enter the city, isn't it a bit too hasty?

After all, he was a young man with sharp ears and eyes. The King of Chu pointed at the Ming dragon flag and palace lanterns and said, "Brother Liao Emperor, the number of dragon flags and palace lanterns is not correct."

The King of Liao and the other kings hurriedly counted, their faces becoming uglier and uglier. "There are twelve flags and twelve lanterns. These are the etiquette used when the emperor returns to the capital. If the formation is not right, don't move!"

So insidious!

If the kings were not prepared and walked towards the twelve Ming dragon flags and palace lanterns while listening to the peace music, they would immediately be guilty of usurping the throne and the punishment would be death.

The princes did not move forward, but Prince Yu Zhu Zaihou led Zhao Zhigao and other civil and military officials to greet them. At the bridgehead, they shouted, "Zhu Zaihou, in compliance with the imperial order, leads the officials to welcome the princes to the capital."

talking.

Zhu Zaihou was the first to kneel down.

Zhao Zhigao and other civil and military officials followed suit and knelt down.

Needless to say, this is also the etiquette that only exists when the emperor returns to the capital. The King of Liao waved his hand and asked the guard commander to come forward and said respectfully to the Prince of Yu: "My princes have something to say, but the etiquette is not in accordance with it. I dare not cross the bridge!"

Prince Yu made a gesture.

Zhao Zhigao, who was taking over the position of the Ministry of Rites, gave the order: "Take down the four dragon flags, remove the three palace lanterns, and play the triumphal music instead!"

Seeing this, the kings gradually relaxed their vigilance. The King of Liao and the King of Chu called on all their brothers and younger brothers to cross the bridge together.

Seeing this scene, Prince Yu laughed, Zhao Zhigao also laughed, and all the civil and military officials who were familiar with etiquette also laughed.

……

cabinet.

Gao Gong, Hu Zongxian, Li Chunfang, and Chen Yiqin all had subtle changes in their expressions as they listened to what was happening in front of Zhengyang Gate.

It is clearly stated in the "Imperial Ming Ancestor Instructions" of Emperor Taizu Gao that all the royal relatives who come to pay homage are not allowed to arrive at the same time. Only one king must come to pay homage and return to the country safely, and then report to other kings before they are allowed to come to pay homage.

All the kings, regardless of age, come from the eldest to the youngest, with the legitimate son arriving first. After the legitimate son has finished his court service, the concubines come, and they also arrive in order of age. This cycle repeats itself in a cycle without losing the order.

The kings did not fall into the trap of dragon flags, palace lanterns, and rituals, and performed well, but then they fell into the trap of ancestral rules.

When the princes came to Beijing collectively, they could only go forward one by one. After one entered the city, the next one could go forward. How could a group of people be welcomed into the city together?
Is there still a distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children? Is there still a distinction between the old and the young?
The most important thing is that the kings' action of advancing and stopping together would be a manifestation of brotherly love and respect if it were ordinary people, but this was a royal family.

No emperor wants to see harmonious relations among the royal family. Even if the kings do not have military power and the Jingnan Rebellion will not happen again, it will still make the emperor suspicious.

The kings were so used to being arrogant and domineering in their fiefdoms that it was already difficult for them to remember the difference between peace music and triumphal music. As for the ancestral system in "Huang Ming Zuxun", they probably had forgotten it completely long ago.

I guess he didn't expect that there would be another trap after the one he set, so he stepped into it.

Prince Yu was receiving imperial orders to welcome the king. The cabinet was not sure whether this was the emperor's intention or Prince Yu's own.

If it was His Majesty's intention, it might be to test the character of the kings, or it might be to find something to hold against the kings.

If it was Prince Yu's own idea, the cabinet really couldn't understand why Prince Yu deliberately set traps for these relatives he had never met?
The emperor is still here!

It is not Prince Yu's turn to worry about the affairs of the royal family and the imperial court.

Liu Tai, the secretary of the cabinet, entered the government hall and reported, "Lord, Eunuch Lu is here with the imperial edict."

Gao, Hu, Li and Chen stood up immediately, ready to receive the order.

Lu Fang took Chen Yiqin, who was also the Minister of Rites, to Yuxi Palace to prepare for the royal banquet.

His Majesty gave a banquet at Yuxi Palace to entertain all the kings.

……

Chaoyang Gate.

Jinyiwei Commander-in-Chief Lu Bing changed into casual clothes to welcome the guests from afar.

Under the guise of the kings coming to the capital, the soldiers of the Shenshu Camp, one of the three major camps in the capital, under the instructions of their commander Tang Kekuan, split up into small groups and entered the capital in disguise.

Under the order of the emperor, the Jinyiwei who had been monitoring the actions of the Shenshu Camp did not choose to stop it, but anyone could see that a palace coup was imminent.

The emperor originally wanted to let the Five Military Camps and the Divine Machine Camp enter the city under the leadership of their commander, but when he heard that two earls from the Ming Dynasty were about to enter the capital, he asked the Embroidered Uniform Guard to deliver an imperial edict first.

He temporarily took over the position of commander of the First Five Military Camps and the Shenji Camp.

The Beijing troops were unruly, and the time was so short that Lu Bing always had doubts about whether the two earls could successfully follow the emperor's will.

It wasn't until I saw Qi Jiguang and Yu Dayou leading the soldiers of the Five Army Camp and the Shenji Camp in disguise that I finally felt relieved...

(End of this chapter)