Not to mention requesting the establishment of a prince.
The establishment of a prince is a topic that even the court officials dare not easily mention.
A commoner, although she has the title of a County Magistrate, is still seen by everyone as merely a commoner, yet she dared so openly to request the emperor to establish a prince.
And she said this to uphold orthodoxy.
Uphold orthodoxy.
She means that the current emperor is not orthodox.
In an instant, the officials present felt as if they had been doused with icy water in the height of summer, startling their very souls.
Their souls, startled, left them in a daze, faintly recalling a past scene.
This phrase was not unheard of.
When the former Crown Prince suddenly died, the emperor wanted to establish Prince Qi as the crown prince, but many ministers wanted Prince Huai, who was then the imperial crown prince's son, to be the prince. At that time, an old minister said it was orthodox.
As a result, he was beaten to death on the spot outside the imperial palace by the Jinyiwei.
The Jinyiwei conveyed that the emperor was furious, saying any of his sons was orthodox.
Since then, no one dared to mention this phrase again.
No one expected that after so many years, a young woman would stand up and utter this phrase again.
Will she, too, be beaten to death on the spot by the Jinyiwei this time?
The eunuch's face turned pale.
"You, you are bold." he shouted shrilly, his voice changing tone, "Someone, someone!"
The Jinyiwei standing behind stepped forward.
"Quickly seize her! Seize her!" the eunuch shouted shrilly, pointing at Miss Jun.
But the Jinyiwei did not beat the woman to death with clubs as everyone expected.
"Eunuch, His Majesty is still waiting for a reply," a Jinyiwei said woodenly.
The eunuch was taken aback, indeed, such defiant matters must be immediately reported to His Majesty. He fiercely glared at Miss Jun before turning and hurrying inside.
The Jinyiwei turned and followed, the rest stood quietly in front of the door, as if they had heard nothing.
Miss Jun also stood quietly in her place, her expression calm.
The officials wanted to say something, but strangely, they didn't know what to say for a moment.
Logically speaking, with such defiant and absurd words, without reporting to the emperor, these courtiers should rebuke her.
But facing this woman, they found it difficult to speak up.
This woman, who spread medical techniques, developed a smallpox vaccine, and alleviated a plague threatening countless children.
This woman spent her wealth to rescue refugees in the northern lands and led troops to the Jurchen Territory to relieve the Duke of Chengguo's siege.
Also, this woman, in times of crisis, stood up to calm the people's hearts and resisted the Jurchens' encirclement of the city.
This woman, for the country and its people, is irreproachable, hence they found it difficult to rebuke her.
"Miss Jun, you have overstepped,"
It was Ning Yan who first stood up, saying solemnly.
"You are using your merits as leverage."
Indeed, leveraging merits, interfering where you dare not interfere, asking for what you should not ask.
Miss Jun looked at him.
"No," she said, "I am just speaking a fair word."
This fair word, with just a few characters, had been stifled in her throat since the moment of her death, reborn step by step, year by year, until now she could finally say it out loud.
Ning Yan was right, she was leveraging her merits.
These words were overstepping; they were not hers to say.
But aside from her, who else in the world would say them?
She had to say it; only by saying it would she remind the officials, let the people see that the former Crown Prince's lineage still existed, especially in contrast to an emperor who was timid, benighted, and only abandoned the populace in his repentance edict.
She now had enough merits, enough prestige, and her Jiurong also had sufficient reasons to stand in the people's sight again.
At this moment, not leveraging her merits would be betraying the justice granted by Heaven.
She looked at Ning Yan, her expression solemn and sharp.
Are you trying to stop me?
You can't stop me!
No one can stop me anymore!
With a crash, the emperor overturned the desk in front of him.
The eunuchs immediately knelt to the ground.
"I understand now." The emperor growled angrily, his face livid, "I see why she's been stirring up so much trouble!"
Jiuling Hall.
Miss Jun.
Once, a woman named Chu Jiuling rushed into the palace and nearly stabbed him with a sword. Now, a woman named Miss Jun stood up and suddenly struck him with a sword, though it did not pierce his body, it struck at his deepest taboo, shattering the barrier he had constructed over several years, once again bringing to light who would inherit the Chu family's empire for the world to see.
"Jiuling." He said through gritted teeth, articulating each word.
This was no coincidence.
This has been planned for a long time.
From the moment this name appeared in the capital.
"Lu Yunqi," the emperor called.
Lu Yunqi responded woodenly from the side.
"You go kill her for me," the emperor said fiercely, pointing outside.
Lu Yunqi had not yet acted when Ning Yunzhao first spoke.
"No, no," he said, stepping forward, "Your Majesty, this won't do."
The emperor's expression was cold and stern.
"Why not? Just because she has some reputation among the people?" he said. "So what? Didn't the old ministers say they'd rather beat them to death back then? What does reputation, public opinion matter? Once it's over, no one remembers."
He said this while looking at Ning Yunzhao.
"What? You're reluctant?"
He finally remembered that Ning Yunzhao once had an engagement with Miss Jun, and seemed to have deep affection for her.
There was also Lu Yunqi, who had always wanted to claim Miss Jun for himself.
Are the two of them... shielding her wholeheartedly?
The emperor's gaze flickered over the two of them.
"Your Majesty," Ning Yunzhao shook his head with a hint of helplessness, "This is not a matter of reluctance."
Then what is the issue?
The emperor looked at him coldly.
"Your Majesty, reputation is not to be feared," Ning Yunzhao said solemnly, "but the crucial point is, she has the Qingshan Army."
The Qingshan Army?
The emperor was slightly stunned, then his face turned ashen again.
"I know the Qingshan Army is part of the Great Zhou Army, but Your Majesty is wise and must also know that the Qingshan Army originally belonged to this Miss Jun," Ning Yunzhao said with calm and gentle voice, "It wouldn't matter at any other time, but with woodcutters still near the capital, and the Qingshan Army chasing them down, the troops from the northern lands can't make it in time; the capital is still in crisis. If something happens to this Miss Jun now, I'm afraid the Qingshan Army will turn against us, and by then the troops in the capital wouldn't be able to hold them back."
The Jurchen people fled upon seeing the Qingshan Army, so what can the troops in the capital do about them?
The emperor's face turned blue and white.
He was even unsure whether to be relieved or infuriated that it was the Qingshan Army that came to rescue the capital.
The saying "blessings and misfortunes come in pairs, both have their advantages and disadvantages" was indeed true.
"So are we just going to let her continue this defiance?" he said through gritted teeth.
"Your Majesty, she is indeed defiant," Ning Yunzhao said with a hint of a smile, "But what is there to fear?"
The emperor frowned and looked at him.
What do you mean?
"Your Majesty, no matter who hears of her actions, they will consider it defiance, abusing her power," Ning Yunzhao said, "Thus, what is there for Your Majesty to worry about? Better to go with the flow, one will show Your Majesty's magnanimity, and the other will fuel her arrogance, allowing all to see what kind of person Miss Jun is."
The emperor understood now.
"You're suggesting that I agree to her demands?" he exclaimed angrily.
"Your Majesty, even if you agree, what then?" Ning Yunzhao said, with a profound expression, "Prince Huai is only nine years old."
Only.
The emperor was stunned again, his eyes flickering slightly.
He understood what Ning Yunzhao meant, he was in his prime age, and a nine-year-old child, even if made the prince, doesn't mean he will immediately ascend to the throne. There are unforeseeable changes in that period that can also be manipulated by humans.
"Right now, the most important thing is the stability of the capital, expelling the Jurchen people, so that Your Majesty can return to the Imperial City," Ning Yunzhao continued, bowing sincerely after he spoke, "This is what this humble minister cares about the most and is most reluctant to let go of."
The future of officials like Ning Yunzhao was tied to him, only when the emperor's position is secured can they be secure.
This is the whole point and purpose of seeking a position from afar.
Indeed, once he is back, everything will return to the right track, the throne will be firm, and dealing with them won't be too late.
The emperor's eyes flickered.
........
......
When the eunuch came out again, his face was still pale, but the Jinyiwei did not pounce on Miss Jun to kill her like wolves.
"What Miss Jun has requested is of great importance, the ministers are to discuss it," the eunuch said in a trembling shrill voice.
This order for the ministers to discuss clearly means no opposition, at least not explicitly expressed opposition.
Unexpectedly...
The officials present were astonished and a clamor arose.
In the midst of the uproar, Miss Jun stood quietly, as if all these had nothing to do with her.
Ning Yan withdrew his gaze from her and looked towards the Imperial Mausoleum.
Unexpectedly facing such provocation, the emperor didn't even dare to rebuke or lash out, though he knew the emperor must be furious upon hearing such words, he chose silence for the sake of temporary peace back in the court.
"Courage is dissipated," he murmured, "Cannot achieve great things."
....
.....
(Today's one update, I will try to adjust today and resume two updates tomorrow)