Chapter 613 612 Earthquake

"Noon."

King Yu set a time, and Chen Yiqin's errands were finished, so he had to leave.

"Yifu, don't worry yet."

Just when Chen Yiqin was about to leave, Prince Yu stopped him and said, "Do you know the progress of my father's Yongling Mausoleum?"

Speaking of Emperor Jiajing's mausoleum, the site had actually been selected and started construction very early. However, due to the financial difficulties of the imperial court, funding was intermittent, so the progress of the project was extremely slow.

In fact, all the ministers in the DPRK knew this, and Chen Yiqin certainly heard about it.

"The progress of the Yongling project is not optimistic, but now the Ministry of Industry should speed up the project so that it will not be delayed."

Chen Yiqin could only answer vaguely.

"You first go to the cabinet and tell all the ministers that Emperor Daxing built the Yongling Mausoleum in Yu today. It has been a long time. He ordered a senior official from each of the two departments of Rites and Gong to meet with the internal officials to come there to respectfully inspect and discuss the modifications."

Of course King Yu knew the situation, but he still asked. The purpose was naturally to let the court know that the construction of the mausoleum must be accelerated without delay.

After all, the coffin of Emperor Jiajing cannot be kept in the palace for a long time and must be buried as soon as possible.

Wei Guangde on the side thought for a while before saying: "If His Highness directly instructs the officials of the Second Department of Ceremony and Work to take charge, it will avoid the subordinates passing the blame and making it difficult for the senior minister."

Having King Yu directly appoint him would save him a lot of trouble. At the very least, the person being appointed would be afraid of being delayed.

"Is there any candidate for Good Loan?"

After hearing what Wei Guangde said, King Yu thought he wanted to recommend someone to him.

In fact, Wei Guangde had nothing worth recommending. The people he wanted to recommend had low official positions and could not afford such a big job.

However, he still thought for a while before saying: "Pan Sheng, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites, and Xu Gang, the right minister of the Ministry of Industry, both say that the old ministers are cautious and will not make mistakes."

After thinking about it for a while, he continued: "Qintian Supervisor Deputy Yang Hui will also go. After all, they specialize in this."

Wei Guangde didn't know Yang Hui before. After going to Qintian Prison today, I saw that he was very safe in his words and actions. He was also the only person who raised objections to the choice of being ugly.

When Yongling is completed, King Yu will definitely reward them for their merits.

Not to mention Pan Sheng and Xu Gang, Yang Hui should also be praised.

"Okay, that's it. Please Yifu, please go to the cabinet and ask them to place a note."

"Yes, Your Highness."

Chen Yiqin naturally would not object to King Yu's order and agreed before saying goodbye and leaving.

"Shandai, are the two people you recommended trustworthy?"

After Chen Yiqin left, King Yu asked aloud.

Wei Guangde understood that King Yu had misunderstood, and hurriedly explained: "Your Highness, I am not familiar with them. I just heard that they are very calm in their work and will definitely complete your Highness's instructions.

But that Yang Hui deserves praise."

So Wei Guangde told King Yu what he thought after seeing the enthronement ceremony and what he saw and heard in the Qintian Prison. He also expressed his thoughts on how to deal with the matter.

"Shandai means just forget it and don't check it?"

King Yu asked strangely. There was no anger in his words, only curiosity.

"Your Majesty, you don't have to worry about such young people."

Wei Guangde just said.

Those who can pull off these shameful tricks, that is, those few, will be bailed out or not when the time comes.

Guaranteed, he would not be happy in his heart, but if not, those same years who didn't know the inside story didn't know what they would say.

Forget it, just pretend you didn't notice it and let them go.

During this period, the affairs of the palace were complicated, but with Huang Jin in charge, everything was handled in an orderly manner without any mistakes.

The originally scheduled time was to hold the enthronement ceremony of King Yu at an auspicious time on December 26th, so on the 25th, Wei Guangde and Li Fang began to inspect various places, including Zhongji Hall, Huangji Hall and Chengtianmen. Waiting for the layout of the place to ensure that nothing goes wrong, then go back and resume your life.

At night, Wei Guangde was lying on the bed, with his wife Xu Jianglan beside him.

Xu Jianglan is pregnant, and Wei Guangde will certainly not make any mistakes. Now that time is sensitive, he is not in the mood to go to the next door room.

I don't know what day it was, but Wei Guangde, who was sleeping soundly in bed, suddenly felt his big bed shaking, and said casually: "Don't shake, I have a lot of work tomorrow, so I have to rest well."

Following King Yu these days, Wei Guangde didn't do much, but he still felt very tired, and he didn't know if his waist was bad.

But thinking about it, it shouldn't be the case. Just looking at King Yu every day and thinking that he will soon be the emperor, it is still a bit stressful.

"Master, madam, get up quickly, the ground is shaking."

The maid next door rushed over in her coat and woke up Wei Guangde and Xu Jianglan in front of the bed.

Only then did Wei Guangde realize that the shaking just now turned out to be an earthquake.

What a coincidence. King Yu will ascend the throne tomorrow, and there will be an earthquake tonight. Who knows what kind of trouble will be caused in the court.

When a room full of people came out, Chen's mother had already rushed over with her clothes on, but she was in a hurry and looked disheveled.

But this is the backyard. Apart from Wei Guangde and Wei Dacheng, there are no other men in the yard.

"Help me take out the official uniforms. I want to go to the palace and have a look."

Wei Guangde has calmed down and knows that after this incident, tomorrow's enthronement ceremony may change a little, and he has to be by King Yu's side.

Although the palace is strictly forbidden and officials are not allowed to enter or exit at night, but the current situation is special, even if they can't get in, they can just wait outside.

Wei Guangde was dressed, and the backyard had already notified the front to prepare the carriage. As soon as the earthquake started, the people in the front yard had already gotten up.

Tonight, no household in the capital was destined to have a good rest.

Wei Guangde got on the carriage and hurried to the palace, where many sedan chairs and carriages had already stopped.

"Find a place to park, I'll get off here."

Wei Guangde only gave an order, and jumped off the carriage after the coachman stopped the carriage.

In the palace gate, cabinet members Xu Jie and Gao Gong had already arrived, and the Minister of Rites Gao Yi and the Minister of Personnel Yang Bo were also there. They were also blocked here and could not enter the palace.

Although there was an earthquake, Wei Guangde did not see any houses collapsed along the way, indicating that the earthquake was not high in level or not destructive, but the shaking was very strong, which might be what experts call a "shallow earthquake."

Moreover, from what Wei Guangde saw along the way, many night patrol soldiers had already patrolled the streets, including the official army of the Beijing camp and the runners of various government offices, so there would be no chaos.

The capital is still very stable.

Wei Guangde went to greet several adults, and they were not surprised to see him coming.

These days, Wei Guangde has been with Prince Yu most of the time, and they are no longer surprised.

If there were no rules in the palace, Prince Yu would have let him stay overnight like Prince Yu's mansion.

"I still think the enthronement ceremony should be postponed."

After Wei Guangde stood up, he heard Yang Bo saying there.

"The auspicious day has been selected and it is not appropriate to change it."

As the Minister of Rites, Gao Yi naturally disagreed with Yang Bo's words.

The two people argued with each other, while Xu Jie and Gao Gong did not speak.

After a while, Li Chunfang also rushed to the palace gate and stood beside Xu Jie and Gao Gong, and remained silent about the argument over there.

After all, Prince Yu had to make a decision on this matter, and their opinions could only be used as a reference.

In this case, it is better to wait for Prince Yu to express his position.

The situation at the palace gate had already been reported by the eunuchs. After all, it was not right for several important officials in the court to be blocked outside the palace gate.

Prince Yu's decree was issued: everyone was allowed to enter the cabinet to discuss matters.

As a result, the palace gate was opened, and the officials gathered here followed Xu Jie and Li Chunfang to Wenyuan Pavilion directly.

The lowest who came here was the assistant minister of the six ministries, a third-rank official, and Wei Guangde, a fourth-rank official, could only be ranked behind everyone.

After entering Wenyuan Pavilion, the debate continued, and even Chen Yiqin seemed to be shaken, thinking that the enthronement ceremony should be slow.

The idea of ​​heaven and man's induction was deeply rooted in the Ming Dynasty. The earthquake before Prince Yu was about to ascend the throne had more or less an impact on Prince Yu.

However, for most of the assistant ministers present, most of the people from the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Revenue and other government offices were watching the show calmly without saying anything, because their bosses did not speak.

On the contrary, the officials of the Ministry of Personnel stood on the side of Shangshu Yang Bo because of his proposal.

As a result, the faction of the Minister of Rites gradually showed that they were alone and isolated. They didn't see that Chen Yiqin was silent after saying two sentences.

"Since most people's opinion is to postpone it."

Seeing this, Xu Jie knew that the opinions supporting the postponement of the enthronement ceremony had already occupied the majority. As for the more people who did not express their opinions, they were fence-sitters and had no opinions of their own, so they were not considered.

In fact, this also showed that Yang Bo did have a great influence in the court, far exceeding the Minister of Rites Gao Yi.

"No."

Just when Xu Jie also chose to occupy the most powerful side, that is, to support Yang Bo, Gao Gong suddenly spoke first.

"The enthronement ceremony should be held on an auspicious day and time. It cannot be changed since it has been decided."

Gao Gong's sudden speech surprised many officials. You know, many of their attitudes were decided after seeing Chen Yiqin give in. Unexpectedly, Gao Gong, who had a greater influence on Prince Yu, actually opposed it.

Wei Guangde knew in his heart that Gao Gong's move might not be aimed at Chen Yiqin, but more at Xu Jie.

After Gao Gong made his statement, Guo Pu also followed suit and expressed his support for Gao Gong. Only Li Chunfang sat there without saying a word.

"Shaandai, what do you think?"

At this time, Gao Gong suddenly asked Wei Guangde, who was sitting at the back, for his opinion.

"The auspicious day and time cannot be changed. The enthronement ceremony should be carried out according to the ritual."

Although Wei Guangde did not like Gao Gong from the bottom of his heart, he had to stand up and support Gao Gong at this time, "The officials can be temporarily exempted from the court meeting and postponed for one day."

Wei Guangde added that his meaning was naturally that the emperor's enthronement should be carried out according to the specifications of the grand court meeting, but since the earthquake had just occurred, it should be simplified, and only officials of the fifth rank or above in Beijing should be allowed to participate, and the others should be forgotten, and they should do their work in the government office.

As for the grand court meeting that should be held, it should be postponed for one day.

After Wei Guangde finished speaking the rest of the words, he was actually beating his head.

He was a little redundant, but he still said it, because no one had mentioned it before.

Now he said it not to show off himself, but to see if there were any officials in the court who were close to him.

Since he entered the government, he has never had anyone above him, and he has to do everything by himself.

The fundamental reason why he can get to this point is because he has a strong supporter.

Although Prince Yu did not give him a promotion or salary increase during this period, his trust in him is obvious to all. Wei Guangde wants to know if there is anyone among these court officials who is willing to be close to him. It is time for him to organize his own strength.

When Xu Jie heard Wei Guangde's proposal, his eyes were obviously stunned, and then he quickly guessed what he was planning.

After all, there were not many people who could guess Wei Guangde's intention, and most people still insisted on their previous attitude.

Only Gao Gong and Guo Pu unexpectedly expressed their support, but their support was not what Wei Guangde wanted, so Wei Guangde could only sigh in his heart. It seemed that his low official position would not be in the eyes of others after all.

Chen Yiqin and Zhu Heng were the only officials at the level of assistant minister who expressed their support. Yang Bo hesitated a little but still insisted on his previous proposal.

Most people have expressed their attitudes, and it is time for Xu Jie to make the final decision.

Gao Gong had interrupted him before, and this time Gao Gong had already expressed his position, so he would naturally not interrupt again.

"Then submit both suggestions and see how Your Highness chooses."

In Xu Jie's place, everything that Gao Yi insisted on before was naturally abandoned, and he chose to postpone the time to choose another auspicious day and Wei Guangde's enthronement ceremony remained unchanged, and postpone the grand court meeting for one day. The two plans were submitted, which also saved the face of the people in Prince Yu's Mansion.

At least, Wei Guangde's proposal was supported by the people in Prince Yu's Mansion. If it was rejected directly, it would seem a bit disrespectful to the new emperor.

Next, Li Chunfang, the deputy assistant, quickly wrote a petition of the previous discussion and sent it to Prince Yu.

Time is urgent, but there is no time to delay.

There are two opinions, one is the opinion of most ministers in the court, and the other is the opinion of people in Prince Yu's Mansion. Which one will Prince Yu choose in the end?

For Xu Jie, this seems unimportant, but in fact it is of great reference value to him, because from it he can know Prince Yu's governing style, whether he takes the overall situation into consideration and follows the court's consensus or appoints people based on personal connections and trusts old ministers.

Not long after, Chen Hong, the chief eunuch of the Silijian, personally came to Wenyuan Pavilion, and he also brought Prince Yu's order.

"The enthronement ceremony on the 26th should be held on an auspicious day, and all officials will be temporarily exempted from the court, and it will be postponed for one day."

From Chen Hong's mouth, Xu Jie knew Prince Yu's choice, although this was not what he wanted to see.

Prince Yu finally chose the opinion of the people in Prince Yu's Mansion, and the enthronement ceremony was held as usual half a day later.

"Your Highness has already made a choice, and you should all do your job."

After Chen Hong left, Xu Jie regained control of the situation and spoke.

After tonight's events, many people were tired and wanted to leave the palace and go back to their respective offices to rest for a while, and then come to attend the enthronement ceremony later.

Everyone said goodbye to several cabinet elders and left.

When Wei Guangde went out, he unconsciously glanced at Xu Jie from the corner of his eye and found that he was staring at him with a complicated look, and from time to time he would look at Gao Gong next to him.

Xu Jie was actually a little discouraged at this time. He let Zhang Juzheng enter Prince Yu's Mansion, and he actually wanted a position like Wei Guangde.

Unfortunately, it seems that Zhang Juzheng is still a little inferior to Prince Yu, and he was a little later than Wei Guangde in hugging thighs.

Prince Yu's current temperament is really hard to deal with.

It is necessary to divide the people in the palace, otherwise he, the prime minister, will become a decoration.

He was secretly happy that Chen Yiqin and Gao Gong had different opinions before, but it seems that Wei Guangde is the second Gao Gong among the people in Prince Yu's palace.

Wei Guangde certainly couldn't guess Xu Jie's thoughts, he was worrying about where he should go?