Chapter 231 Who Will Win?
clang clang clang.
The sky had just turned white, and when the bell of Mao hour rang, the civil and military officials gathered in Tiandu rushed towards the imperial city.
This can be regarded as the first major court meeting after the death of the emperor. All civil and military officials of grade seven or above in Tiandu can participate.
Even the big shots from various states sent their own cronies to represent their will to attend this grand meeting.
At this moment, there are still two full incense sticks left before the Da Ming Dynasty meeting starts, but all the officials have arrived and are standing in the square outside the Ming Dynasty Gate.
The civil and military ranks were separated, and the nobles and clan members each stood in their own positions, quietly waiting for the arrival of the big shots.
At such an important time today, everyone looked solemn and solemn, and did not dare to show any playful expressions.
Far away from them, there is a group of people in charge from all forces standing there as witnesses today.
If it were normal times, these high-ranking officials and clans would definitely not let these so-called rogues enter the imperial city.
But there was no other way. Ever since Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty overthrew the previous dynasty Bao Yuan, martial arts warriors had put in a lot of effort.
Therefore, in order to thank these people for their help, during his coronation ceremony, he also invited these people to congratulate him as witnesses.
Later Emperor Taizong succeeded in appeasing the emperor. In order to prove the legality of his succession and to reward those martial arts people who helped, he also followed Emperor Taizu's approach and invited these forces.
It can be said that after the behavior of two emperors including Taizu and Taizong, it gradually became the ancestral system for the succession of the Ming Emperor. It symbolized that part of the legal rationality of the Ming Emperor could not be changed.
Therefore, even after the Tiandu chaos not long ago, these officials still had to pinch their noses to invite these powerful forces to watch the ceremony.
At this moment, Wang Qiong, the Secretary of the Ministry of War, and Yang Tinghe, the Chief Assistant, who were one of the protagonists of this great court meeting, each appeared in the square with their people.
When the two saw each other, they just nodded to each other, and then without saying a word, they each returned to their own positions.
Immediately afterwards, the first ray of sunlight in the morning fell from the sky, illuminating the earth, and the originally silent imperial city began to become lively.
The closed palace gate slowly opened, and a mighty crowd of people walked out, including the imperial guards in flying fish uniforms and the internal officials in eunuch costumes.
Jinyi guards were distributed in all directions, guarding various important roads, while the internal officials erected a screen in front of the square.
Those with sharp eyes clearly saw that the Queen Mother's carriage was carried out from the palace gate and sat down behind the screen.
"Ascension to the court!" Zhongzheng's loud voice sounded in the square.
"See the Queen Mother!" All officials paid homage.
Then, the Queen Mother's voice came from behind the screen: "The late Emperor Long Yu passed away, leaving behind the great Ming Dynasty. Although the Ai family is a woman, she also knows that a country cannot be without a king for a day. Originally, the late Emperor had a metaphor, let The Ai family will choose the best person in the clan to be the king. But the Ai family also knows that it is not up to the Ai family alone to decide who the king is. So today, I invite all the ministers to gather here, and they want to be elected by the Baiguan Court for our great Ming Dynasty. Then a wise monarch will inherit the great rule and protect our Ming subjects."
"The Queen Mother is wise."
All the officials bowed again and praised the Queen Mother.
The Queen Mother paused slightly and continued: "Where is Da Zongzheng?"
Da Zongzheng strode forward and said loudly: "I'm here!"
"Where is Duke Yan Sheng?"
"I'm here!"
"You two, one is the senior of the clan, and the other is the queen of the saint. You two will be in charge of today's affairs."
"I obey!"*2.
The two of them accepted the order, and then showed some humility to each other. Zongzheng spoke:
"According to the late emperor's edict, after discussing with the old ministers of the cabinet, it was agreed that there are two people to choose as the successors of the new king. One is the cousin of the late emperor, King Xing. The other is the grandson of King Anshan."
He looked around at the ministers and said: "Anyone who is interested, regardless of rank or position, can speak freely without restriction."
After these words were spoken, surprisingly, all the officials present were silent, and no one spoke immediately.
After all, today's imperial meeting is very strange. To be honest, today's imperial meeting should not be held at all.
When a new king succeeds to the throne, although every official wants to share the merit of serving the dragon, they must also be aware of the situation.
Originally, they should discuss this matter below, then support it, and nominate representatives to promote this matter.
But in the final analysis, the final decision on who is the emperor should be decided by the big shots, not the little guys like them.
But like today, it can be said that it is the first time that who is the emperor is so openly stated and elected by the court.
How can this not make them panic, how can it not make them worry.
For a moment, no one dared to speak.
Originally, it was decided by the clan and several ministers who would be the new king.
However, these people gossiped, talked loudly in private, and pointed out the country, eager to appoint someone to succeed, which led to today's incident.
But now, at this time, I am too timid to speak. Seeing that the situation was cold, Zongzheng was speechless for a while, feeling disgusted with these people in his heart.
His eyes lingered on the chief minister Yang Tinghe and the Minister of War, and the meaning was self-evident.
It's you who caused the incident, so what's the point of not talking now.
Wang Qiong naturally understood what Zong Zheng meant, and then took a decisive step.
His move made countless people's eyes jump and their hearts beat fast.
You know, according to the process, it is always the subordinates who wave the flag and shout first, and then the big guys will speak.
But Wang Qiong, as a big guy, rolled up his sleeves and went down, which surprised countless people, and even the Prime Minister Yang Tinghe was a little unprepared.
Wang Qiong ignored those people. After he stood up, he said loudly: "The country relies on the eldest prince, and Prince Xing is your majesty's cousin. According to the etiquette of my Ming Dynasty that the elder brother succeeds the younger brother, Prince Xing should succeed to the throne."
Without the slightest cover-up or euphemism, he stood in such a decisive line and waved the flag for Prince Xing, which caught everyone off guard.
Since Wang Qiong has stood up, Yang Tinghe also knows that he can only speak next, after all, the others are not qualified to stand up and compete with the other party face to face.
Pei Xuanjing followed Bai Xiaosheng and stood on the attic in the distance. This was a place arranged by Wang Qiong, the Minister of War, for them. It had a wide view and was just right for the square outside the Daming Gate.
"Who do you think will win?" Pei Xuanjing asked with a smile.
According to their estimation, Wang Qiong and Yang Tinghe were almost evenly matched.
Both of them had extremely strong forces behind them to support them. It could be said that this was a replay of the endless debate in the court when the former emperor wanted to establish a martial arts academy and then send troops outside the pass.
Whether it was the older monarch or the younger monarch, this represented their next actions, which were related to the lives and property of countless people.
Bai Xiaosheng shook his head and said, "I don't know."
Even he couldn't make an accurate judgment.
People's hearts are unpredictable, and no one knows what choice will be made at this time and in this situation.
Sometimes, people will follow the crowd. If one side has a great advantage, it is possible that someone will change sides and change camps.