The emperor is embarrassed

There is a clear record in "Dafeng. Emperor Wudi Benji": In the first year of Emperor Wu's Cheng'en, the emperor's dragon body was unpredictable. It was July [-]th, the Zhongyuan Festival, the sky was bright and clear, suddenly there was a roar of thunder, and Qifeng Mountain collapsed. , there is a god iron on the ground, and there are astronomical miracles on it, which are incomprehensible to mortals.

Providence warns.

Almost everyone thinks so.

Qifeng Mountain is not a famous mountain. It is a small bumpkin next to Tianqi Temple, so it has an elegant name.Suddenly, Qifeng Mountain became famous.

On July [-]th, Qifeng Mountain collapsed with a bang. After digging and digging into the ground, a piece of iron head that no one else recognized was found, and there were mysterious and unsolved writing on it.

In ancient times, people often used mountain collapse to describe the passing of an emperor.Suddenly, a mountain collapsed, even if it was a small mountain. People always feel ominous when the emperor is sick.

Furthermore, a piece of Shentie was produced, and there was astronomy on it.

When something like this happened in the imperial capital, it was natural to ask Qin Tianjian what he meant.

Here, the Empress Dowager Wei's cabinet is still waiting for the words of Qin Tianjian, who knows that the left and right will not come, and in a short while, only the deputy supervisor of Qin Tianjian is rushing over, knelt down and said, Lord Qin Tianjian has a good morning! He didn't come to work, and after inquiring, he found out that Master Qin Tianjian hanged himself yesterday.

The Empress Dowager Wei glanced at the people in the Xuande Hall, and said calmly, "Is this a coincidence?"

Everyone is an old fox, so it's impossible to bring out what's on your mind.After a moment of silence, Prince Shen tremblingly said, "Could it be that Qin Tianjian was learning about some terrible secret, why did he commit suicide at this moment? Empress Dowager, this matter is very strange."

Li Pingzhou also said, "Since this is the case, let the Ministry of Criminal Justice investigate and find out the truth. But for those astronomical miracles, the Queen Mother has to make up her mind?"

Empress Dowager Wei calmly said, "I remember when Ming Zhan first established the crown prince, Song Huai, the former governor of Zhejiang and Fujian, wanted to offer auspiciousness. How did Ming Zhan deal with it at that time, Li Xiangke still remember?"

"Yes."

"There are rules and rules." The Empress Dowager Wei held a warm jade ring in her palm, and said in a gentle voice, "Since this thing came from the ground, let it return to the ground. The secrets of the heavens are secrets, and the secrets of the heavens must not be leaked."

According to the Empress Dowager Wei, this matter ended hastily.

However, if the cabinet and clan were so easy to suppress, there would be no need for empress dowager Wei and Ming Zhan to bother fishing.Just as the Empress Dowager Wei suppressed the matter of God's Tie from Heaven, a spokesperson in the court suggested: Your Majesty has been ill for a long time, it is better to be happy immediately.

This method is vulgar, but it is a commonly used method.

Then, someone in the court proposed: the emperor has been ill for a long time, and for the sake of the country, he should establish a prince early in order to stabilize the country.

The matter of setting up the emperor's grandson was mentioned in the court in an open and aboveboard manner.

Of course, there is a third voice in the court: welcoming the Supreme Emperor back to the imperial capital as a temporary regent can also stabilize the political situation.

Huaiyang.

Ming Zhan and Ruan Hongfei spent the Qixi Festival sweetly and sweetly. The two of them were getting bored, and Yaoguang sent a secret letter.

Ming Zhan looked at it at a glance, then handed it to Ruan Hongfei.

"I thought we had to wait another two days. They are too impatient." Ming Zhan leaned on the back of the bamboo chair, shaking Erlang's upturned legs. .”

Turning around the sapphire ring in his hand, Ming Zhan said, "There is a magic iron on the ground, and the vibration is extremely loud. It is estimated that someone buried gunpowder in the ground to make such a big commotion."

"If the army didn't participate, I guess they wouldn't be so courageous." Ming Zhan looked at Ruan Hongfei, "Now the nine admirals are all in the hands of Yongning Hou, but there are also the Imperial City patrol envoys, the imperial army commander, and the Imperial Capital Mansion. Some officers and soldiers. I don’t know which one is involved.”

Ruan Hongfei nodded, "Marquis Yongning has no reason to do such a thing. Yin Tian Wanhua of the imperial capital was pulled out by you, and the Tian family is the mother family of Princess Feng Mingxiang. Princess Tian only has a princess, and now she is involved The establishment of the crown prince is of no benefit to the Tian family. What's more, Tian Wanhua has only been the governor of the imperial capital for only one year. It's something that can't be hidden from other people's eyes."

"As for Chen Sanxian, the patrol envoy of the imperial capital, and Zhao Dongfeng, the commander of the forbidden army, they were all promoted when the nobles were in power." Ruan Hongfei stroked the jade bone folding fan in his hand. Those who can lead troops in the imperial capital are all first-class and reliable people .Even if Ruan Hongfei had been in the imperial capital for many years, he couldn't tell the suspiciousness of these two people.

Sure enough, Ming Zhan sighed, "When Saza came to the imperial capital, Chen Sanxian and Zhao Dongfeng were loyal and there was no change."

Ruan Hongfei said, "Sister Wei can definitely think of what you think of. You don't have to worry about the imperial capital when you are outside."

"Yeah, let's go to Fuzhou first." It's a blessing to be able to enjoy these days, and Ming Zhan can't really think that he came out on his honeymoon, so he took a sip of herbal tea, "Liu Ying is not high-ranking, and his head is poor, no better than Shandong Governor Ji Huaisheng is clever, is he really going to hang himself on the tree of Shao Chunxiao? It’s been a long time since he delivered the news of Duke Min Jing.”

"Even Prince Shen, he is no more aware of current affairs than before." Ming Zhan looked at Ruan Hongfei.

A smile appeared in Ruan Hongfei's eyes, "What's so strange about this? Prince Shen is the only surviving brother of Emperor Renzong. At the beginning, Prince Fu and Prince Shen made friends, and Prince Fu died unjustly. The royal family has always suppressed the clan. Prince Shen has lived in the clan for a long time. He has limited authority and authority. It is normal to be able to choose one or two now."

"I don't have a son yet. At this age, I don't know what to do." Prince Shen's partiality towards the clan made Ming Zhan very dissatisfied.

Ruan Hongfei asked with a smile, "You don't have any sons, so I think you're very excited to be an emperor."

"Didn't I have you?" Ming Zhan flattered Ruan Hongfei and said with a frown, "Prince Shen has the highest seniority in the clan, just like how he treated Princess Xiangyi before, so it's not easy to deal with it." Ming Zhan asked, "By the way, Feifei, can we invite Fu Daxia to go to Fuzhou together? Fu Daxia is Shaoliang's master. Besides, since Fu Daxia doesn't want to show his appearance to others , traveling with us is the best choice. If he really wants to avoid the Fu family, going to sea is also a good choice."

"Let me ask Fu Ning."

Fu Ning has friendship with Ruan Hongfei, and Ming Zhan has a lively nature. Although he and Fu Ning have known each other for a short time, Ming Zhan can't stand Ming Zhan desperately trying to get close to him, and the relationship between the two is not bad.

Fu Ning readily agreed to Ruan Ming's proposal.

Fu Ning asked quite bluntly, "I heard that Shaoliang is now the imperial guard. It's not surprising that brother Du knows, and the little fat brother also knows Shaoliang?" secret.

"That is, Xue Shaoliang is very good-looking, but he is too cold-tempered and doesn't like to talk." Ming Zhan shook the shiny ruby ​​ring on his hand, "He is very good at martial arts, and he has the heroic spirit of Brother Fu , Brother Fu, who will succeed you?"

Fu Ning laughed, "I'm nothing but a warrior."

"Hey, brother Fu, why are you being modest? I heard from Lao Du that when the Supreme Emperor came to power, the Tatars marched to the northwest. Brother Fu, you single-handedly killed more than a dozen members of the Tatar royal family and stopped the Tatars with your own power. The Tatars invaded the Central Plains, what a hero." Ming Zhan punched Fu Ning affectionately on the shoulder, and sighed again and again, "It's a pity that I was born 20 years late, otherwise I will be engaged to go to the northwest, and I will wave the flag for Brother Fu."

Ming Zhan has always been good at flattering. In the past, even Ruan Hongfei could make Ming Zhan dizzy when he patted him. Besides, Fu Daxia is not a reserved person. Ming Zhan can't help but laugh when he says a few words. He smiled at Ruan Hongfei, "Little Fat Brother is young, but he has a lot of knowledge."

Ruan Hongfei handed a cup of tea to Ming Zhan, and another cup to Fu Ning.

Glancing at Ming Zhan, Ruan Hongfei smiled, "That's right, he likes to hear people talk about the past and the present. Brother Fu has a good reputation, and Fatty has long been yearning for it."

Ruan Hongfei and Ming Zhan had a perfect understanding, and they sang together. Fu Ning was proud of his nature, and said with a smile, "No wonder I hit it off with little fat brother."

"Brother Fu, how did you and my old Du know each other? To be honest, I think Lao Du's martial arts is very good, and he can jump to the roof with just one jump. But Lao Du said that he is far behind Brother Fu. "Ming Zhan said with a smile in his eyes, "Brother Fu, you have such kung fu, and Shaoliang's kung fu is also very good. Do you only have Shaoliang as an apprentice? If there is anything else, tell Lao Du that he is in love with His Majesty the Emperor." If you are familiar with him, ask him to recommend it to the emperor, and you have the face of Brother Fu, the future will definitely be different."

Fu Ning shook his head, "In the officialdom, it all depends on one's own luck. The position one can achieve depends entirely on one's own ability, not on anyone's face."

Before Yizheng said a few words, Fu Ning said again, "I do have a disciple in Fuzhou City, and my chubby brother likes to make friends, so I'll introduce you to him."

Ming Zhan responded with a smile, thinking that Fu Ning was indeed enthusiastic.Enthusiastic people are inevitably passionate, and it is even more inevitable that they value love and righteousness. No wonder they are trapped by the family.

Ming Zhan and Ruan Hongfei went straight to Fuzhou City. In the imperial capital, the Shentie that came out of the underground was also placed back underground.

The matter of Shentie can be suppressed, but some things cannot be suppressed, and now there is only one way to face it.Whether it's the Empress Dowager Chongxi, the emperor's grandson, or the emperor's return to the court, the Empress Dowager Wei just takes care of everything. She is always calm and confident, and she has a well-thought-out plan. You are well-informed, can you be clear?"

Li Pingzhou is not a great fairy, how could he know this.Empress Dowager Wei's question was just to ask Li Pingzhou to express his opinion.Li Pingzhou said, "I don't know which lady the Empress Dowager is interested in?"

Empress Dowager Wei really didn't expect that Li Pingzhou would agree with this absurd folk custom, with a soft face on his face, and said in a gentle voice, "I heard that there is a lady in Li Xiang's family who is just young and unmarried. And Li Xiang I and the emperor are fully aware of your loyalty. How about it, Li Xiang? Are you willing to be married to the royal family?"

Li Pingzhou was taken aback by Queen Mother Wei's question, he never expected Queen Mother Wei to have such thoughts!

Li Pingzhou is a loyal minister, but this kind of matter of marrying his daughter to the emperor and then becoming the head of the country...that is his own daughter, not to mention, His Majesty the Emperor is not talking about life and death now?

"Don't worry Li Xiang, the emperor has never been lustful. Now there is only one green noble concubine in the palace. When your daughter enters the palace, I will never let her be a concubine or concubine, and I will directly make her the queen of the palace." Queen Mother Wei asked , "What does Li Xiang think?"

Li Pingzhou has the heart to die, and the glory of Zhonggong is not indifferent because of Li Pingzhou's uprightness.However, right now, His Majesty the Emperor's good or bad luck is unpredictable, not to mention that if he has the honor of the head of the country, and the Li family becomes the family of foreign relatives, how can he be the chief assistant of the cabinet?Furthermore, Chongxi can make His Majesty better, if not, His Majesty dies, and his daughter has no honor, how will I live this life?

"I'm reporting to the Empress Dowager, I heard that the folks are celebrating their marriage, so I want to combine the zodiac signs." Li Pingzhou calmed down and said seriously, "If my daughter is beneficial to your majesty's recovery, I will say nothing." Such a big event , for a while Li Pingzhou really had no idea.However, Empress Dowager Wei spoke up, it was about the dragon body, he couldn't refuse.However, Li Pingzhou didn't want to tell the truth.

"Li Xiangxiang is indeed loyal to the emperor." The Empress Dowager Wei smiled and praised, "Let's leave this matter as it is, and wait for the emperor to be safe. Li Xiang, you are the benefactor of the royal family."

The Empress Dowager Wei even said such words, Li Pingzhou had no choice but to present her daughter's horoscope, and then Qin Tian monitored and counted, if it was a lucky choice, the daughter had to enter the palace.

"As for the establishment of the emperor's grandson, I think that it is most appropriate for the emperor to be in peace and let the emperor decide. What does Li Xiang think?" Queen Mother Wei asked.

"Yes." Li Pingzhou has his own sense of what is at stake here.In the past, Li Pingzhou was not in favor of setting up the emperor's grandson prematurely, but now he has to add the word "more".Li Pingzhou had other intentions and asked, "Empress Dowager, earlier, Lu An Hou Qisun committed treason against His Majesty, and the ministers and others ordered Feng Qinian to return to the imperial capital for trial. Now that he has arrived in the imperial capital and is being imprisoned in the clan mansion, when will Let the trial begin, please ask the empress dowager to express it?"

"Since everyone has arrived, it's better to order the clan's mansion to start the trial sooner rather than later."

"Yes." Li Pingzhou responded respectfully, and the Empress Dowager Wei said, "Since Ming Zhan ascended the throne, Prince Shen has been the oldest person in the clan. In matters of the clan mansion, he needs to be the head of the clan. Prince Shen You are a sensible person, Li Xiang, you are a veteran of the four dynasties and the prime minister of the emperor, if you say it, it also shows the harmony between the cabinet and the clan, doesn't it?"

Li Pingzhou said in a deep voice, "The empress dowager is considerate of everything, I am deeply admired."

Wei Yingjia only entered the palace in the evening, and after the big ceremony, the Empress Dowager Wei asked, "Do you have any clues?"

"Yes." Wei Yingjia said, "Yesterday, there was a lot of movement in Qifeng Mountain. The mountain collapsed and the ground sank. I went to check carefully. There were traces of explosives in the deep pit. There is a deep pit at the bottom of the mountain, the deepest pit. It is about nine feet wide and nine feet wide, so it must be made of high explosives. Folk fireworks and firecrackers may refine elixir, and gunpowder is often used. Moreover, Mr. Xu Bingtang, the Armed Forces Department of the Ministry of War, has been researching high explosives before. People who are knowledgeable have seen that the traces of the drug left in the deep pit are no different from the explosives newly developed by Mr. Xu."

"The minister also ordered people to go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to check. Mr. Xu's explosives are clearly in and out, and there is no suspicion of mistakes. Even the gunpowder reserved by the Ministry of War, after counting, the amount is also correct." Wei Yingjia Seriously, he said, "Of course, there are other sources of gunpowder. Either it was carried by a private person, or someone in the Ministry of War bought it for selfish reasons and kept it in their hands. The source of gunpowder is not easy to find out for a while."

Empress Dowager Wei said lightly, "Although the source of the gunpowder is difficult to find out, it took only a few months for Xu Bingtang to research this new gunpowder formula. This is a court secret, and only a few people know about it."

Wei Yingjia said, "I have ordered someone to check it, and the secret recipe is kept here with His Majesty. Even Gu Yueshan, Minister of the Ministry of War, doesn't know about it, but Xu Bingtang and His Majesty know about it."

That's right, Ming Zhan has always kept the secret of the formula to the extreme. The formula of this gunpowder never went to the Ministry of War at all.

"Xu Bingtang is unlikely to leak the formula." The Xu family has only become prominent since Ming Zhan ascended the throne. No matter whether the Supreme Emperor returns to power or establishes another grandson, the Xu family will not get more than what they have now.When it comes to disobedience, it's never the Xu family's turn.Therefore, Empress Dowager Wei immediately excluded Xu Bingtang, and instead ordered, "You need to check the people around Xu Bingtang, those who assisted him in the research of gunpowder, one by one."

"Yes." Wei Yingjia said, "One more thing, Gu Yueshan sent his staff Liu Yishui to Fuzhou City."

Empress Dowager Wei raised her eyebrows, "When did it happen?"

"Early this morning."

"This is really strange." His Majesty the Emperor has been ill for a long time, and Gu Yueshan is the Minister of the Ministry of War and the cabinet. He is naturally clearer than ordinary people about the suspicions that should be avoided.In this season, how could they send people to Fuzhou City?And the ones sent were not ordinary people. Although Liu Yishui was just an aide, he was Gu Yueshan's right-hand man.And as Gu Yueshan's officials became bigger and bigger, Liu Yishui also gained a small reputation in the imperial capital.

Furthermore, if it's a private matter, Liu Yishui should also disguise himself and sneak secretly, but it's so easy to be detected by others, wouldn't it make people think too much?What's more, if it's something important, there's no need for Liu Yishui to do it himself.

Empress Dowager Wei thought about it for a while, then pondered, "It seems that something happened to the Gu family."

"The Ministry of War has suspicions about the explosives." Wei Yingjia hesitated, "It's just that Gu Yueshan has a bright and upright appearance, which makes it hard for people to see clearly."

Empress Dowager Wei smiled slightly, "Liu Yishui left the imperial capital blatantly, and Gu Yueshan showed his chariots and horses, and what he was doing was a conspiracy. The truth and wrong will be known soon."

"Your Majesty, you still need to be careful about Gu Yueshan, who is building plank roads in the open, and keeping Chen Cang in secret." Wei Yingjia reminded, at this time, there must be no mistakes.

Empress Dowager Wei looked at Wei Yingjia, and said softly, "Yingjia, all the officials are in the imperial capital, the clan is also in the imperial capital, and the emperor and I are also in the imperial capital."

Wei Yingjia immediately woke up, and hurriedly said, "What the Empress Dowager said is that as long as you and Your Majesty are safe, the imperial capital will be safe."

Empress Dowager Wei's eyes were gloomy. Everyone thought that Ming Zhan was recuperating in the imperial capital. At this time, Liu Yishui actually went south. Why?