CH 63

Xu Jie stood up amongst the great confusion from the others and went towards the door and then knelt down in the direction of the Palace of Eternal Longevity, kowtowing three times before he slowly got up again and took a memorial out from inside his sleeve.

“This was an imperial edict that His Majesty gave to me, he told me that I could take it out in an emergency. Now that the Prince is here, and the Grand Secretariat members are all present, even though the timing isn’t great, let’s open it.”

Seeing his serious expression as he said this, everyone immediately imagined what it might be, causing all their hearts to beat ferociously.

The Prince of Yu was extremely shocked: “What does the imperial edict say?”

Xu Jie didn’t speak, and only passed the memorial to him. The Prince of Yu immediately took it from him and his facial expression matched what he was reading – it went from extreme surprise to extreme joy, and he didn’t come back to his senses for a long while: “This… this…. Secretary Xu, is it a genuine memorial from my father1?”

Xu Jie said earnestly: “Even if this official had guts as large as the heavens, I would still not dare to falsify the word of the Emperor. This memorial was given to me by the Emperor himself.”

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At this moment, even if someone was completely ignorant, they could have been able to guess the contents of the memorial, let alone the fact that those who were present were all elite scholars.

The Prince of Yu was so delighted that he was a little lost with what to do with himself, and he passed the memorial to Zhao Su who was standing beside him: “Shaoyong, have a look at this!”

Zhao Su acknowledged him and then opened the memorial and swept his eyes over the contents.

The crux of the contents was that Jiajing Emperor was afraid that his life was not eternal and just in case, he had decided to first draft up a memorial in order to settle the matter of his successor, and in the case of any accidents which may occur and he didn’t have the time to officially draft up an imperial edict in front of all of his officials.

And in that memorial, the successor that he had chosen was naturally the Prince of Yu.

After he finished reading, he passed it over to the person next to him, until everyone had read it and the memorial was passed back into the hands of Xu Jie.

Gao Gong was the first to query this matter: “When did you receive this memorial?”

“A few days after the Emperor met with us.”

“We all went to see the Emperor so why did the Emperor then request to see you alone and give you this memorial afterwards?”

Xu Jie said calmly: “Perhaps because His Majesty trusts me.”

Gao Gong gritted his teeth in anger, and persevered in his questioning: “Since you had this all along, why didn’t you take it out earlier!”

Xu Jie did not lose his calm: “This matter must be treated with the utmost secrecy, it cannot be used lightly. His Majesty originally wanted to declare the news publicly, this memorial was simply a safety measure. I have kept it on me the whole time but would never have guessed that we would be in such a position as now. After that we were unable to leave the palace, and were put under house arrest, so naturally I couldn’t have taken it out then. Although everyone here is loyal and true, there is no way of knowing what is in one’s heart, and it is hard to tell if one of you may be harbouring unfathomable motives. Now that the Prince of Yu is present, I couldn’t care about anything else, who knows if we will even be able to get out.”

Zhao Su thought to himself that this speech seemed a little too well thought out, and he was afraid that Xu Jie was also harbouring some selfish motives of his own. If he had taken it out too early, this great merit would have been shared with the others. Taking it out in front of the Prince of Yu, was ensuring that he was able to gain sole credit, which was what he ultimately wanted.

The others were all having their own various thoughts and Gao Gong was sneering repeatedly inside, only the Prince of Yu could break the tension: “Secretary Xu has been greatly troubled!”

Xu Jie did not express any satisfaction on his face: “They will be changing shifts outside soon, you should take this opportunity to get out of here….”

Just as he spoke, someone opened the door. It was He Zizhong wearing an imperial guard’s outfit who had entered.

“I just went to survey the area but didn’t dare to venture out too far, there are a lot of people watching, even the road that we came from has been blocked now.”

Everyone was greatly shocked, Zhao Su asked: “But no one has noticed our guards here right?”

“No, they don’t seem to be bothered by this end, but there are many people over on the other side.”

“Unless, something has happened to His Majesty?” Guo Po questioned in bewilderment.

He Zizhong had no expression on his face, and just continued talking: “You can’t leave now, you will be discovered.”

“Well what should we do then?” The Prince of Yu was out of his wits.

Zhao Su asked He Zizhong: “If it was just you alone, could you get out?”

“Yes.”

“Time is of the essence, Your Highness2, give the memorial to He Zizhong and let him take it to the princely heir!”

Gao Gong blurted out without thinking: “No way, this is a serious matter, how could we just give it to him!”

Guo Po added: “Yes, Shaoyong, it’s not that we don’t trust him but the princely heir is only nine years old, this…..”

Xu Jie who was still calm and steady didn’t look at them and instead asked He Zizhong: “Are you certain you can do this?”

“As long as I’m alive, the memorial will be fine.” He Zizhong was concise, everyone looked at him not sure whether to believe or not, only Zhao Su knew that if he gave his word that meant that he was sure without fail.

So he looked at Xu Jie and said: “Secretary Xu, Zizhong was trained by Zeng Xian’s subordinate Wang Huan, if he says so, that means he is certain. Aside from this, we also don’t have any other choices.”

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Li Chunfang frowned slightly: “Perhaps we should think of another solution…..”

“What does the Prince think?” Xu Jie cut him off and turned towards the Prince of Yu.

“This prince….. Urm…. I’ll let Secretary Xu decide!”

“Well let’s do that then.” Xu Jie was brief and handed the memorial to He Zizhong and then looked over at him deeply and said: “Everyone here including the safety of the Prince and the Great Ming as a whole is in your hands.”

“This has nothing to do with me. Since I have agreed to do this, I will naturally complete it.” He Zizhong replied coldly then turned and left.

He was only one man, but he was also highly skilled, leaving in this fashion also exhibited his certainty to be able to complete the task.

However, the others were evidently not as convinced as Zhao Su. Guo Pu stood up suddenly and then sat back down continuously, Gao Gong was holding on to some other memorials and fanning himself with them. The Prince of Yu looked towards the door in worry, afraid that at any moment, someone might rush in and attack.

Those who had originally been guarding the door had been disposed of by Liu Da and the others, trussed up with their hands tied behind their backs and then gagged. Liu Da and the others then took their places, acting as the Imperial Guards guarding outside the building. Because they were part of Qi Jiguang’s personal army, they had an imposing manner from the battlefield which made them seem a little out of place, it was just that the Belvedere of Literary Profundity seemed to have been completely forgotten, and no one had come to change shifts so naturally, no one suspected them.

So Xu Jie and others felt hugely grateful even if they also felt it was a little odd.

What they didn’t know at this moment was that the Prince of Jing had actually truly forgotten about them and was fully occupied elsewhere.

Elsewhere, He Zizhong had successfully left the palace and was heading back to the Prince of Yu manor to give the memorial to Zhu Yijun and the others who had been waiting impatiently.

Since Zhu Yijun was still young, when he heard that his father3 and his teacher were stuck in the palace, he was extremely anxious.

“Your Highness, don’t worry. The Grand Secretaries are also there, the Prince of Jing won’t do anything to them for the time being.”

In reality, what Chen Yiqin really wanted to say was that this Prince of Jing was unable to fully rise to the occasion. If it had been someone else, they would have probably usurped the throne already. Seeing that his time was here, the Prince of Jing hadn’t even properly guarded the palace letting He Zizhong enter and leave the palace unimpeded. No matter the reason, since the memorial had fallen into the hands of the princely heir, they had already succeeded almost half their task.

Qi Jiguang said: “Time is of the essence, let’s send troops into the palace and save His Majesty and the Prince, and then, we can consider the deed done.”

Zhu Yijun nodded and straightened his face: “Tutor Chen, Qi da-ren, you are both right, so who should we go find to seek help?”

Qi Jiguang said: “In this kind of situation, the quicker it is resolved the better. The Commander of the Embroidered Guard, Li Shouyou is indecisive and not quick to handle affairs, it’s best not to turn to him. I heard that the Head of the Ministry of War has quit his post due to illness, the three major battalions in the Capital are now managed by the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of War, Li Sui. This person often mobilises the troops, as for what he is like as a person, I can’t say for sure.”

Chen Yiqin said cheerfully: “Luckily you reminded me, Li Sui is indeed a good candidate. He was personally promoted by His Majesty, having earned many merits and titles. He is upright and outspoken, we can go and find him.”

“Your ideas seem to make sense, let’s do that then.”

Zhu Yijun made a sound of recognition, his pale soft face revealed a very mature look – he looked like a mini version of Zhao Su. If the timing had been better, perhaps Qi Jiguang and Chen Yiqin might have even laughed out loud.

After that, everything went smoothly.

Li Sui was from a good family background and was loyal to the imperial court. When he saw that Zhu Yijun had the memorial in his hand added to the fact that he was the Emperor’s grandson, he was naturally very welcoming. They entered the palace with his troops, first liberating the Prince of Yu and the grand secretaries and then they led everyone towards the Palace of Eternal Longevity.

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When the Prince of Jing received the news that the palace gates had been broken, the Prince was standing beside Jiajing’s ta couch. He was extremely shocked and did not answer no matter how the people beside him tried to shake him back to his senses.

“You rebel official, unfilial son, immediately release father!…..”

The Prince of Yu rushed in aggressively with the guards with Xu Jie and the others following behind, but when everyone saw the scene in the palace hall, they were all shocked.

When he had arrived, the road had been unimpeded. The Prince of Jing had originally colluded with the Eastern Depot to control the palace, and then under the pretence of the Emperor, he gained control over the Imperial Guards. But with the arrival of the Prince of Yu along with the grand secretaries and the three major battalions of the Capital, his ridiculous ploy to make the Emperor abdicate finally ended, and the Prince of Jing’s ambitions were also destined to be in vain.

From the time that Zhu Di seized the Emperor’s position from his nephew, to the time when Yingzong lost and then restored his dynasty, this kind of thing was not uncommon during the Ming dynasty. However, luck was not on his side for the Prince of Jing, Zhu Zaizhen. He was smart, but he had no great wisdom. Plus, he was neither the son of the Empress, nor the eldest. He was ambitious and eager to take a chance, but he didn’t have the luck of his brother, Prince of Yu, nor did he have the courage and ability of his ancestors like the Taizu Emperor or Yongle Emperor, so in the end he turned into just a grand joke.

Now, he could no longer even see who was coming in from the outside, he was just staring blankly at his father.

Whilst Jiajing Emperor was sitting cross-legged on the ta couch, his entire body leaning backwards, his hair in a mess, and his two eyes closed. With such a commotion, he had not even opened his eyes.

“The Prince of Jing has committed a great crime, plotting to overthrow the Emperor, he has been caught red-handed, seize him!”

The Prince of Yu had still not recovered his senses, it was Li Sui who spoke first, he waved his hand and the soldiers behind him piled in surrounding the Prince of Jing.

“Let me go!” The Prince of Jing suddenly came back to his senses and began to struggle. “What are you doing!”

Xu Jie slowly approached and reached out with his hand and put it under the Emperor’s nose to test for breathing.

“……. His Majesty has passed.”

Everyone who was present gasped, those who reacted quickly immediately dropped to their knees banging their heads against the ground to kowtow, those who were slow to come back to their senses followed the others in a deep kowtow.

But everyone seemed to be stunned by this sudden news, and no one even cried or shed any tears.

No one would have thought that this Emperor who had reigned for 45 years had unexpectedly passed away just like that.

Wasn’t he cultivating everyday to become immortal, and taking his immortality elixirs. Didn’t he make every high-ranking official write qingci4 in tribute to the Heavenly Emperor, professing to have earned the favour of heaven. How could someone like that unexpectedly pass away like a normal person and in such a sorrowful fashion.

Heavenly law is cyclical, it is the fate of mankind5, not even an Emperor can escape.

Zhao Su had his head to the ground in a kowtow like the others, and felt the ice-cold floor against his forehead, he didn’t know whether to be pleased or whether to feel aggrieved for this Emperor.

Zhu Yijun was next to him and leaning against his as he kowtowed, bringing a slight warmth from his body to Zhao Su.

Zhao Su turned his head and discovered that his little face unexpectedly did not exhibit any facial expression, he was possibly upset but it was more likely that he was perplexed.

At this age, Zhu Yijun still did not fully understand the meaning of death.

Thinking of this, Zhao Su lightly patted his hand to comfort him.

The Prince of Jing was taken away, Xu Jie took out the memorial and read it out in front of everyone.

Jiajing had two sons who were still alive, even without the Prince of Jing having done what he just did, the Prince of Yu still had the title of the eldest son, if Jiajing had not left an imperial edit naming his successor, according to the customs, the position of Emperor would still have fallen to the Prince of Yu.

Naturally, no one objected.

The Prince of Yu stood beside the ta couch, a little washed out and looking a little perplexed like Zhu Yijun. Next to him was his father who would be sleeping eternally evermore.

And then the people in the palace hall finally came back to their senses to greet him.

“Long live the Emperor6!”

Translator Note:

So there you have it, onto the next Emperor…

FYI – this is my last release for this novel until next year so Merry Christmas and Happy New Year guys ~ Get plenty of rest and see your loved ones, I certainly will ♡♡