It was the first day of November in the sixth year of Longyuan.

Although it was a great court meeting, in order to take care of the emperor's physical condition, the morning court time was not moved forward, but moved to Chenzheng [eight o'clock in the morning].

Therefore, Jiao Shun didn't panic when he got up early in the morning, and even took the time to joke a little with Xue Yan, making the little girl's eyes light up with joy, and bared his teeth at Zi Juan.

After making an agreement with Shi Xiangyun to go home together after the office was dismissed in the afternoon, Jiao took the carriage rented by Lao Xu and rushed to the Meridian Gate.

It was just past midnight when we arrived outside the Meridian Gate, but the square was already filled with carriages and sedan chairs, and hundreds of officials of fifth rank and below were gathering in groups at the foot of the imperial city with the wind behind them.

As for court officials above the fourth rank, they were allowed to enter the palace in advance and wait in front of the Jinshui Bridge for the official start of the court meeting.

This sounds like an honor, but in front of the Jinshui Bridge there is a lot of ventilation and strict control. In fact, it is better to wait outside the palace gate and feel more comfortable.

So Jiao Shun originally thought of just finding a place to hang out for a while, but who would have thought that the palace specially arranged someone to lure him into the palace gate as soon as he landed. For this reason, he aroused the envy and jealousy of many people.

Fortunately, Jiao Shunru Mang was used to it and didn't take these people seriously at all.

When we arrived at the palace, the number of people was obviously reduced by an order of magnitude. Most of the people we saw were familiar officials of the dynasty. The most conspicuous among them were naturally the three elders at the front.

Because it was not yet the time to line up, the three of them formed a loose "pin" shape, but if you look closely, it is actually a non-equilateral triangle. The second assistant He Ge Lao and the Wuying Palace bachelor Xu Ge Lao are obviously closer to each other.

Closer.

Jiao Shun's eyes focused on Mr. Wang Zhe and Mr. Wangge for a while. After today's meeting, the two of them could be regarded as "officials in the same government office". He didn't know what Mr. Wangge would do after his failure last time.

He became more restrained and still tried to win the game.

But it doesn't matter. He is now being marginalized in the cabinet, and the New Confucian school he founded has become a joke. Even local officials in his hometown have switched to other people's schools. Even if he is unwilling to make a comeback, Jiao Shun is not afraid.

he.

Several officials at the end of the team were whispering among themselves, but when they saw Jiao Shun approaching, they immediately stopped and stopped making any movement.

Jiao Shun was happy with the peace and quiet, so he simply closed his eyes to rest and thought about Daiyu's entry into the Rong Mansion.

Anyway, today's court meeting is just a formality to announce the appointment of officials in Zhan Shifu and the exact time to appoint the crown prince. He does not need to do anything from it, so he is naturally happy and relaxed.

Just like that, seeing the rising sun, several young and strong eunuchs waved their whips at the head of the Jinshui Bridge as a signal, and the officials immediately arranged themselves into four columns according to their official positions - of course, the front was still in the shape of "pin"

The three pavilion elders lined up.

After the officials of the fourth rank and above were arranged in order, those outside of the fifth rank and below were let in one after another, and silently lined up behind Jiao Shun, the quasi-fourth rank.

Probably in order to take care of the emperor's physical condition, all the customary ceremonies before ascending to the imperial court were simplified and canceled. After a while, with Dai Quan's powerful shout, the procession of hundreds of officials rushed across the Jinshui Bridge and headed to the Hall of Supreme Harmony.

go.

However, the only ones who can really enter the palace are those court officials of fourth rank and above. Most of the officials are lined up outside the palace gate, waiting for the eunuchs to pass on the news like a stream of water.

Of course, if there is something important to report at the imperial meeting, lower-level officials can also take the initiative at this time. As for whether to summon it or not, it is the emperor who has the final say.

Unsurprisingly, Jiao Shun was specially named to enter the hall and stood at the very end.

At this time, Emperor Longyuan was already sitting on the dragon throne, looking at his slender figure from a distance, calm and calm, which surprised many courtiers. Didn't they say to themselves that the emperor's condition has worsened recently?

It seems like you are more energetic than in the past few months?

In fact, to put it bluntly, it's simple. I just learned Jiao Shun's levitation trick and secretly added some support into the yellow robe.

To be honest, after successfully sitting upright with the help of external objects, the emperor's intimidating power in terms of appearance alone was more than ten times stronger than before - the half of his face that was distorted and ferocious due to paralysis, paired with the whitened skin of a dead fish.

Eyes, most people really can't handle them.

However, Emperor Longyuan glanced at the ministers with one eye, and then nodded slightly at Dai Quan. Dai Quan immediately took half a step forward and read out the personnel appointments of Zhan Shifu straight to the point.

The first one mentioned on the list is naturally that Wang Zhe and Wang Ge are old.

This appointment had been announced half a month ago, and everyone present was not surprised. However, several officials immediately put on a 'fighting stance', apparently wanting to wait for Dai Quan to finish reading it out before they criticized the appointment.

Raise an objection.

This is not beyond Jiao Shun's expectation. Who caused Wangge Lao to lose power and be considered a traitor to Confucianism? How could it be so easy for him to take over Zhan Shifu without a war of words today?

?

This was also one of Jiao Shun's reasons for recommending him. With the traitor Mr. Wang Ge standing in front of him, he, the young man, would be able to avoid a lot of unnecessary troubles.

However, something unexpected by everyone suddenly happened at this moment!

I saw Wang Ge Lao Yue coming out of the crowd, and without saying a word, he turned over and knelt down on the throne.

All the court officials couldn't help but be shocked when they saw this.

Why did you kneel down so quickly? Even if you want to take over your new job, you are not in such a hurry, right?

When everyone was puzzled, they heard Wang Zhe raise his head and cup his hands and said: "Your Majesty, I may not be able to be used in a big way. Please take back your appointment and choose another person with high moral character and respect to fill this position."

Now everyone is getting more and more puzzled by Monk Zhanger. Everyone knows that today's meeting is just for formality, but why doesn't Wang Ge always play his cards according to the routine?

You must know that although Zhan Shi of the East Palace is only a third-rank official and holds an official position concurrently, he is the head of Qiandi Conglong. Basically, holding this official position concurrently is equivalent to booking a seat in the cabinet - Mr. Wangge is now worried about his unstable position.

, this appointment supposedly just solved his urgent need.

Why can't he win over someone when he is being fought over? Who would have thought that he would still want to push her away?

What kind of medicine did you buy in this gourd?

At this time, Emperor Longyuan stared at Wang Zhe condescendingly, his single eye full of sullenness. In his opinion, Wang Zhe refused early in the morning and late in the day, and refused at the court meeting, which was clearly to embarrass himself.

For a moment, he felt that the left side of his brain was beating wildly, and his temple was itching and hurting. He subconsciously wanted to scratch it, but he forced himself to endure it, and said in a loud voice, word by word: "Why did Mr. Wang Ge say this?"

Originally there were more severe questions below, but after saying this brief sentence, he felt painful and continued to speak.

Wang Zhe waited for a while and saw no further words, then he said loudly: "I founded the New Confucian school in order to preserve the teachings of the saints and prevent the country from being in trouble. It was definitely not out of selfish motives - but now almost 30% of the New Confucian schools are

Just joking, how can I remain in the court?"

As he spoke, he slowly took off his official hat imitating the bright wild goose wings and placed it beside him: "My lord, please beg for the bones. I hope your majesty will show mercy and grant you permission."

As soon as these words came out, there was an uproar in the palace!

No one expected that Wang Zhe would show up like this at the court meeting!

Even Xu Furen, who was most hostile to him, was at a loss at this time. Could it be that Wang Zhe founded New Confucianism, really not to fight for fame and fortune, but to serve the public good?

Impossible, absolutely impossible!

"You, you..."

On the imperial steps, Emperor Longyuan subconsciously wanted to get up, but before he could get up, his neck was grabbed by the 'exoskeleton' under the yellow robe, making him unable to move at all.

As a result, he became more and more angry, gritting his teeth and just about to speak, when the left side of his head suddenly felt an unprecedented sharp pain, which made his vision go black. Unable to bear it any longer, he raised his hand and scratched the left side of his forehead randomly.

Since most people's attention was still focused on Mr. Xu Ge, and the emperor was still sitting upright, not many people noticed anything strange about Emperor Longyuan.

This even included Dai Quan, who was standing in front of the emperor.

"I thought~"

At this time, Jiao Shun, who was at the end of the team, came out and said loudly: "This is a serious matter and it is not appropriate to make a hasty decision. Your Majesty, please postpone it until the meeting and consider it carefully!"

Everyone was baffled when they heard this.

You said it's not appropriate to make a decision on the spot, and it's fine if you need to carefully consider it, but why do you want to postpone the court meeting? This court meeting has only been open for less than a quarter of an hour, okay?

However, at this time, Dai Quan, after being reminded by the young eunuch, had already discovered something was wrong with the emperor. He immediately walked down the slope and said: "Your Majesty has a decree. This matter can be discussed later. Retreat from the court!"

As he said this, he urged the courtiers to leave.

At this time, many people saw something strange, so they took the lead and walked out of the hall. Everyone followed suit, and soon the hall was completely empty.

"His Majesty?!"

At this time, Dai Quan hurriedly rushed to the emperor's side, but saw that the left side of the emperor's forehead had been scratched and dripping with blood. He hurriedly controlled the emperor's remaining right hand and shouted in panic: "Imperial physician, imperial physician, hurry up and send the imperial physician!"

Several imperial doctors who had been waiting at the back of the palace immediately rushed out, followed closely by the queen, Concubine Wu, Concubine Xiande, Concubine Rong and others.

Seeing that the imperial physician's sect had already surrounded the emperor, the queen did not move forward. She turned around and asked Dai Quan, "What's going on? It's only been less than a quarter of an hour. Why did your majesty suddenly become ill?"

"It's all the trouble caused by Wangge Lao!"

Dai Quan said angrily: "If you don't tell me sooner or later, you have to resign at the court meeting and beg for his body. This is not a fight... His Majesty was furious for a moment and then - Thanks to Mr. Jiao's timely response and took the initiative to postpone the court meeting, this That’s why I didn’t lose my dignity in front of the courtiers.”

The queen sighed secretly when she heard this, thinking that even if she could temporarily save her face, wouldn't the courtiers still be able to figure out what happened afterwards?

However, there have been rumors and speculations inside and outside the court for a long time. Now, the emperor's illness has only been confirmed, and it will not cause any further confusion in the hearts of the people. It's just that the emperor has fallen ill. What should be done with the ceremony of establishing the crown prince in five days?

At this time, I heard the emperor let out a bad breath and cursed angrily: "How dare you do this, old thief?!"

The queen thought that his condition had improved, so she breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly approached him. However, she saw that after the emperor finished scolding him, he rolled his eyes and passed out.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty?!"

The queen called several times but saw no effect, so she turned around and asked the head of the Taiyuan Hospital: "How is your majesty's condition? When will you wake up?"

The man in the courtyard was sweating coldly and answered the question: "It is inconvenient for Your Majesty to move now, so we need to temporarily build a shelter here to shelter from the wind. After His Majesty's condition improves, we can move to Qianqing Palace to rest."

Although this remark did not give a direct answer, it also showed that the emperor would probably not wake up soon, otherwise there would be no need to build a shed to block the wind.

The queen hurriedly ordered Dai Quan to hang up the curtains on all sides. At this time, Concubine Wu came closer, glanced at the emperor with hidden disgust, and then whispered: "Sister, will this miss the enthronement ceremony on the fifth day of the lunar month?"

How can you ask this clearly?

The queen rolled her eyes at her and scolded her in a low voice: "What's the rush? Just look at the present first!"
To be continued...