Chapter 4, Fang Congzhe's Attitude

Wang An felt a chill run down his back and knelt down, saying: "This old servant has spoken out of turn, please punish me, Your Majesty"

Zhu Youjiao could not help but smile slightly

Whether you should die or not is for me to decide; your own words do not count. If I command you to withdraw, then you shall withdraw

Wang An, upon hearing this, hurriedly bowed his head and exclaimed: "This old servant deserves death! This old servant deserves death!"

Zhu Youjiao pondered for a moment and suddenly asked Wei Chao, who was ten steps away: "Who is on duty in the cabinet now"

Zhu Youjiao thus dismissed the thought of reusing the Wei dynasty in the future.

Wang An replied

Zhu Youjiao asked again: "What about Fang Congzhe?"

That afternoon, Fang Congzhe returned and immediately entered the palace upon receiving the imperial decree from Zhu Youjiao requesting to see him

At that moment, Wang An brought a large stack of memorials.

This clearly implies that Wang An and his associates are in cahoots with Liu Yiheng

Wei Chao felt a twinge of displeasure upon seeing Wang An again. He understood that Wang An personally running errands to deliver memorials was merely an attempt to linger by the Emperor's side for a moment longer, while also preserving his own position

Wang An replied: "There are also Zuo Guangdou, Wang Wenyuan, Han Luan ... ... "

Wang An's request for himself to submit Wei Dazhong's memorial to the cabinet for deliberation was merely to provide Liu Yiren with an opportunity to propose a draft for Yang Lian's exoneration, thereby compelling himself as the emperor to take a stance

Zhu Youjiao remembered that Liu Yiyan had already interceded for Yang Lian in front of the Qianqing Palace, and just when the memorials from Wei Dazhong and others were presented to him, it happened that Liu Yiyan was in the cabinet

Assistant Minister Shao Zhan, concurrently serving as the Inspector of Henan Province, Xu Guangqi, and Left Zhongyun, Sun Chengzong

This petition for clemency arrived quite promptly

After Wang An left, Zhu Youjiao suddenly commanded: "Wei Chao, prepare the writing materials."

Upon hearing Wang An mention the two individuals, Zhu Youjiao paused his pen.

At this time, Zhu Youjiao did not express his stance on Wei Dazhong's plea for Yang Lian, but instead asked Wang An: "Which other ministers have submitted memorials pleading for Yang Lian?"

Yes, this old servant will remember!

Old servant thanks Your Majesty, the old servant will take his leave now

Zhu Youjiao noticed that Wei Chao had an unhappy expression, and naturally guessed the reason.

However, Zhu Youjiao did not intend to make it clear, merely stating: "These memorials will be kept in the court, you may leave now."

At this moment, Zhu Youjiao covered the paper on which he had recorded the names of the officials petitioning for Yang Lian, and then said: "Wang An, bring in the memorials from Xu Guangqi and Sun Chengzong."

Wang An also raised his eyes in surprise and glanced at Zhu Youjiao, feeling a slight unease in his heart

Get up

However, Zhu Youjiao indeed wanted to see how many people would plead for Yang Lian

Fang Congzhe did not respond according to Zhu Youjiao's wishes, but instead demanded severe punishment for Yang Lian and Wei Dazhong

After hearing this, Wei Chao looked at Wang An once more.

Wang An faced Zhu Youjiao and stepped back, then deliberately stumbled at the threshold. When Zhu Youjiao turned to look at him, he pretended to be frightened and wiped his forehead.

This servant obeys your command

Zhu Youjiao asked a question

At this moment, Zhu Youjiao did not allow Wang An to enter, but only asked: "Who is present?"

However, Zhu Youjiao did not intend to kill Yang Lian

Zhu Youjiao glanced at it

Zhu Youjiao listened to Wang An recite a long list of names, seemingly with no intention of stopping, so he had no choice but to interrupt Wang An: "Alright, instruct the Secretariat to bring all the memorials requesting leniency for Yang Lian to me; I want to review them one by one"

Wang An replied, feeling quite surprised and suspicious for a moment, secretly wondering why the Emperor, having decided to leave these memorials unaddressed, still wanted to personally review them

Zhu Youjiao nodded and thought to himself: "Goodness, he has already made contact with the people from the Cabinet before even entering the Grand Council."

Zhu Youjiao said a sentence

What Zhu Youjiao truly wished to see was Fang Congzhe, the political rival of Yang Lian, pleading for Yang Lian. Only in this way would he be able to show leniency towards Yang Lian, thereby alleviating the intensifying factional strife within the Ming court that had escalated since the late Wanli period

So many

During this period of internal strife and external threats, any extreme actions will exacerbate the internal conflicts within the empire and accelerate its downfall

Wei Chao was a eunuch who served Zhu Youjiao

While Wang An had not yet left the palace, Zhu Youjiao said once more: "If there are any memorials from the Tongzhengsi requesting leniency for Yang Lian, report them to me immediately! I wish to see them myself!"

Zhu Youjiao glared at Wang An and said: "How can I be an emperor without your guidance?"

Zhu Youjiao smiled faintly, as he was already aware of Wang An's attitude

In Zhu Youjiao's view, it is evident that individuals such as Wang An and Liu Yiren have already guessed that he did not genuinely intend to kill Yang Lian

Zhu Youjiao did not speak again

After the ascension of Chongzhen, he should not have suppressed the eunuchs too harshly, forcing Wei Zhongxian to commit suicide. Similarly, figures like Yang Lian, who represent the Donglin Party's influence, should not have been dealt with too severely.

Upon hearing that Zhu Youjiao wanted him to prepare the ink, Wei Chao let out a sigh and immediately began to grind the ink for Zhu Youjiao himself

Wei Chao replied.

Your Majesty, as a ruler is like a father, Yang Lian's arrogance and disregard for the ministerial code is a great disrespect to Your Majesty, taking advantage of Your Majesty's youth. Such rebellious individuals ought to be executed to uphold the authority of the ruler. Wei Dazhong only speaks in Yang Lian's defense, and throughout his discourse, there is no expression of anger on behalf of the ruler and father. His intentions are worthy of punishment. I propose that he be sent to the imperial prison and sentenced to death

It is ! ''

Wang An had no choice but to comply

Thus, Wang An presented Wei Dazhong's memorial to Liu Yiren while Zhe was not in the cabinet, in order to provide both Liu Yiren and himself an opportunity to forgive Yang Lian, while simultaneously testing his own attitude towards Liu Yiren and Yang Lian

Wang An then brought in the memorial.

... ...

In that case, he is indeed a meritorious minister. If it were not for loyal subjects like him, neither my father nor I would have been able to inherit the throne, would we

As soon as Zhu Youjiao saw Fang Congzhe, he handed the memorial from Wei Dazhong to Fang Congzhe, saying: "Yuanfu, please draft a response. How should we handle Wei Dazhong's plea for Yang Lian?"

Wei Chao is currently in a mood even more excited than Zhu Youjiao, because as Zhu Youjiao's personal eunuch, with Zhu Youjiao becoming the emperor, he is certainly bound to rise in status as well

Next, I will consult with Elder Liu.

Zhu Youjiao cursed inwardly upon seeing this: "Old fool! Since you are being so cautious and careful, why are you still sitting on the side of the civil officials? Don't you think about whose servant you are!"

It is a full two feet thick

However, Zhu Youjiao did not wish to comply with the intentions of Wang An and others, and only said to Wei Chao: "When Yuanfu returns, have him come to see me"

Zhu Youjiao furrowed his brows and said in a nonchalant manner, "It seems that Yang Lian is quite well-regarded?"

Wang An smiled and said: "Before the temple's demise, it was said that Yang Lian was a true loyal subject. The late Emperor was able to inherit the throne, and he contributed significantly to that. However, I did not expect him to behave so inappropriately in front of Your Majesty, just like this old servant, who at that time also forgot his manners and was solely focused on assisting Your Majesty in inheriting the throne"

Once Wei Chao had prepared the ink, Zhu Youjiao instructed Wei Chao to wait outside, and then he began to flip through these memorials while simultaneously noting down the names of the authors of these memorials

Wang An was quite surprised after hearing this. He looked up at Zhu Youjiao and asked, "Your Majesty, retaining this could provoke criticism from the world! Why not issue a draft from the cabinet?"

Zhu Youjiao did not ask any further after hearing this

When Zhu Youjiao was almost finished writing these names, Wang An hurriedly came over and said, "Your Majesty! A new memorial has been delivered."

When Wei Chao heard Zhu Youjiao inquire about Fang Congzhe, he couldn't help but glance at Wang An before replying: "Yuan Fu has gone to inspect the mausoleum of the Great Emperor."