Time Travel to 1859: The Iron-Blooded Soldier King

Cixi gritted her teeth and said, "Sister, whether it works or not, we have to give it a try! We can't just let Sushun do whatever he wants. I don't believe no one can control him. What a pity... Otherwise, I will definitely deal with him!"

It was a pity that Cixi didn't say that, but in her heart she naturally thought of Liu Ye, the omnipotent Liu Ye, whether in bed, on the battlefield, or in foreign affairs. If the emperor had not suddenly sent him back to the capital, how could she be so anxious? After all, he had been with her that time, and he would definitely do his best to help her.

However, in such an occasion, such words must never be told to Ci'an. Otherwise, it would seem that the harem officials and foreign ministers were too close, and the dignified and solemn Holy Mother Empress Dowager would not tolerate any sand in her eyes!

Ci'an asked, "Sister, what are you going to do?"

Cixi whispered, "I can still find a few people at court. I plan to have them submit a memorial to request that the two Empress Dowagers rule the country from behind the curtain!"

Ruling behind the scenes?

Ci'an was horrified and said anxiously, "Sister, this has never been done before. If we break the rules of our ancestors, even if we are the Empress Dowager, we will not be able to escape the consequences..."

Cixi replied in a low voice: "So, sister, I asked someone to submit a memorial. If it fails, it won't have any impact. At worst, we won't print it and pretend it never happened. The blame will all be on the person who submitted the memorial. If it succeeds, we will have some power in ruling the country from behind the curtain, and we can always put some constraints on Su Shun! Besides, if we don't make some noise, how can that Sixth Brother show up? He is very cautious..."

As expected, the next day, the Supervisory Censor Dong Yuanchun submitted a memorial, saying that the current emperor was young and unable to handle state affairs. Even if there were ministers to advise him, they were all outsiders, which was inappropriate. Therefore, he respectfully requested the two Empress Dowagers to rule the country from behind the curtain and select two princes from the close relatives to enter the Grand Council to handle state affairs.

As soon as the memorial was submitted, Sushun and the other eight were already furious. What did they mean? Ruling from behind the curtain? How could that be possible? Not to mention that there had never been such an ancestral system since the founding of the Qing Dynasty. Even Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang, who assisted three emperors, did not do so. Two ignorant women wanting to rule from behind the curtain? Isn't that like a hen crowing at dawn? Absurd! Another point, what does it mean to select two more princes to manage the government? A close prince? Isn't that obviously to let Gong Laoliu enter the Grand Council? If that guy with the iron hat prince was admitted to the Grand Council to assist the government, where would they be able to show their talents? Even more absurd!

Su Shun was the first to jump out, shouting, "Ridiculous! Ruling from behind the curtain? The Qing Dynasty has been established for nearly two hundred years, and we've never heard of such a thing. Are you trying to emulate the Empress Wu Zhou? Dong Yuanchun, where do you think the Qing Dynasty stands? Come, take away Dong Yuanchun's hat and feather!"

Follow the example of Wu Zhou?

Not to mention Cixi, even Ci'an's face changed drastically. How outrageous! Sushun was so bold!

"Sushun, you are so rude! What do you think of me and the Empress Dowager Donggong? That Wu Zetian who usurped the throne of the Tang Dynasty? You are so outrageous! I think you should be the one to have your hat and feather removed!"

Cixi roared angrily, she really couldn't bear it anymore. This was tantamount to slapping the two Empress Dowagers in public. There was no greater act of disobedience than this!

Sushun was also shocked and realized that he had said the wrong thing. After all, the two Empress Dowagers were the nominal holders of the highest power, and the two seals were in their hands. What he had just said was really too much.

Sushun lowered his head, stopped talking, and winked at Du Han beside him. Among the eight ministers of state, there were not many who had real abilities. Sushun was one, Du Han and Mu Meng were one, and the rest were not something that could be known to outsiders.

Moreover, Du Han's father was the emperor's tutor, who enjoyed all the honors and favors of Emperor Xianfeng's reign, and his status was extremely transcendent.

At this time, it was Du Han's turn to speak up.

Du Han bowed and said, "Empress Dowager, Su Zhongtang was anxious and spoke without thinking. Considering his devotion to the country, please forgive him."

Cixi and Ci'an snorted angrily and looked at each other. It was impossible to overthrow Sushun for such a small matter. There was no benefit in dwelling on this.

Du Han then continued, "Empress Dowager, Lord Dong Yuanchun's memorial is truly absurd. Although Su Zhongtang's words were inappropriate, one thing is undoubtedly correct: there has never been such a practice in all dynasties. Allowing the harem to rule from behind the curtain is against etiquette. Even the virtuous Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang would not dare to think of such a thing. Moreover, if they select princes to assist in the administration, aren't Prince Zheng and Prince Yi princes themselves? In my opinion, Dong Yuanchun must have been instigated by others!"

Cixi shouted angrily, "Enough! Du Han, Su Shun, do you think you can cover up everything and do whatever you want? Don't you think there can be other people to assist in the administration besides the eight of you? How can this be absurd?"

Prince Yi Zaiyuan jumped out and roared, "Your servants dare not do whatever they want, but even so, we absolutely cannot allow the Empress Dowager to disrupt the ancestral rituals and break the rules. Ruling the country from behind the curtain is unprecedented!"

Du Han's expression was expressionless as he continued, "Empress Dowager, we, the ministers, are deeply grateful for the late emperor's grace. We all remember him day and night, and are wholeheartedly devoted to the country. However, the affairs of state are governed by the late emperor's will, and naturally, the regents will handle all matters. I have already drafted the imperial edict, so please use your seal!"

After saying this, Du Han took out the imperial edict that had been prepared long ago. When Dong Yuanchun's memorial was submitted to the Grand Council, it had already been seen by several people. However, it was a memorial from the Censor, and no one had the power to withhold it. It could only be submitted. Several people did not take it seriously. He was just a small Censor and could not cause any trouble. So they just added an imperial edict, stamped it with the seal, and severely reprimanded Dong Yuanchun.

Unexpectedly, something went wrong here. Now Cixi was determined to fight to the death with the eight people, and what she said just now about Wu Zhou was so hurtful that even the usually steady Ci'an was furious!

Use the seal? Dream on! I absolutely won’t let you use the seal! I’ll fight you to the death!

Cixi snatched Dong Yuanchun's memorial with one hand, picked up the seal of Tongdaotang with the other hand, and pressed it down hard!

At this time, Ci'an could no longer remain immune to the consequences. Seeing that Cixi had already stamped the document, she naturally took out her own seal and stamped it on the document!

Cixi threw the memorial to Sushun below and shouted coldly, "Dong Yuanchun's memorial, the two of us have approved it!"