Before this, if Prince Yu made such a major personnel adjustment, his imperial decree would only be effective within the imperial city. Outside the Forbidden City, who would listen to him? But it was different now. With the authority of Xu Jie and Zhang Juzheng backing him, the officials would believe that the court had returned to the right track, and since the Yan family had no objections, it would naturally go through.
Zhang Juzheng nodded and said, "Your Highness, this is excellent. Once the military situation in Liaodong is pacified, the world will be at peace again."
Xu Jie wanted to object but couldn't find an excuse, so he could only say, "Your Highness, Dong Lou was also supposed to come today, but it's already Chen Shi and he hasn't arrived. Should I send someone to urge him?" He was naturally very worried about the Yan family's next move. After all, with his understanding of the father and son, Xu Jie couldn't believe they would give up so easily.
Prince Yu smiled and said indifferently, "If he doesn't come, then he doesn't come... Our priority is still to do serious business... Minister Zhang, draft the imperial decree now, and send it out this afternoon?"
Zhang Juzheng agreed, immediately picked up his brush, and wrote it down quickly. Prince Yu glanced at it and sent it to Jizhou by express messenger. Xu Jie was helpless, but in this way, it was also a statement to the court, so he just smiled.
Prince Yu left Jianji Hall and was about to leave the palace when he suddenly saw a crowd outside the palace gate, at least five to six hundred people, all of whom were officials from the capital. In the past, so many people gathered would have been noisy, but today it was strangely quiet. Having suffered a loss last time, he immediately sent someone to summon Wang Tingxiu and bring five hundred palace guards.
At this moment, the crowd remained still, but did not enter the palace. Instead, they knelt uniformly outside the Meridian Gate. Prince Yu walked closer to see – it was actually the Yan father and son! Kneeling behind them were officials, big and small, of the Yan faction. A large piece of white cloth, inscribed with shocking characters, read: "Your subject Yan Song, Yan Shifan, and others request that the court punish us for rebellion!" Two servants held it up with bamboo poles, three feet wide and ten feet long, hanging over everyone's heads. Far behind the officials from the capital, there was a dense crowd, all watching the excitement!
It was clear that the Yan father and son had walked through the streets and alleys carrying the banner, naturally attracting the attention of many people. After all, the Yan faction had been arrogant for twenty years, and countless people had suffered from their oppression. Not to mention ordinary people, even officials of the third or fourth rank who had been severely wronged by the Yan faction numbered at least eight hundred if not a thousand. Therefore, when everyone saw the Yan family parading with such an unbelievable banner, they naturally followed to watch.
By this time, everyone in the capital knew? The Yan family and the Crown Prince had clashed, and they had been arrested by the Duke of Qian. Yesterday, Xu Jie, as the acting Minister of the Directorate of Military Affairs, had released over two hundred members of the Yan faction. The once all-powerful Yan family had lost all its authority, and everyone expected to see the Yan family's tragic demise…
And this morning, the scene was completely different. The Yan family had impeached themselves for rebellion? What was going on? Were there such foolish people in the world? The court had released them, and hadn't pursued them, yet they themselves came to say they had rebelled? Many ordinary people watched from afar, not daring to get closer, but whispers were endless, igniting people's anger.
"The Yan family says they rebelled?"
"Are you stupid! The father and son are crying injustice!"
"Who ever said they rebelled?"
"Xu Jie is in charge of court affairs, and they've already been released. Why are they making trouble again?"
"Heh, that's not just to show the Crown Prince…"
"The Yan family really has some skill to think of this…"
"Alas… a thousand years of disaster…"
"Yes, the Crown Prince is really good. Halving taxes is something that hasn't happened since the founding of the dynasty…"
"The Crown Prince has also figured it out and started to reform, but this Yan family just won't let him!"
"Otherwise, why call them a villainous faction!"
"Bah! Yan Shifan, you beast!"
"…"
…
At this moment, Zhang Juzheng and Xu Jie had also arrived and were looking out from within the Meridian Gate. They saw that Prince Yu did not step forward to speak, but paced back and forth in front of everyone. Xu Jie sighed and murmured, "Taiyue, look, where is there any peace…"
Heh heh, Zhang Juzheng couldn't help but admire – the Yan family's move was truly too malicious! Their request for punishment for rebellion was a slap in Prince Yu's face! At the same time, it was a demonstration of force to the court… After all, the Liaodong military situation was dire, Liaoyang would likely fall, and the Tumen could invade at any time. Yang Bo's attitude was ambiguous, and it was possible there was collusion. If the capital was in danger, and the court was embroiled in such a strange and dangerous internal struggle, how could it be resolved?
It was obvious that the Yan father and son had calculated this, intending to turn defeat into victory and completely force Prince Yu to his death… In this way, how could the Emperor not express his stance? If he didn't, the Yan faction throughout the country, and the Yan faction in the nine border regions, would cause trouble, and the Tumen, Jurchens, and Xina would invade. Even without external pressure, Yan Song was the Grand Secretary. If he openly cried injustice like this, how could the court stand by and do nothing?
This was equivalent to publicly announcing to the world – the Crown Prince falsely accused the Yan faction of rebellion and intended to exterminate them. Even the Qingliu faction could not help but support them. After all, they were all ministers. If the Crown Prince, who was supervising the state, was so tyrannical and unrighteous, everyone would naturally feel endangered… Anyone who spoke for the royal family at this time would be cutting themselves off from all the officials and gentry in the world.
Zhang Juzheng thought for a moment and knew that even if Yang Bo was involved now, it would be as if no change had occurred. With the situation having escalated to this point, who in the Yan faction would still abide by the rules? Since they were all facing death, what difference did it make whether they obeyed or disobeyed?
At this thought, he also sighed, "The military situation is urgent, and this has happened. How can it be pacified?"
Heh heh, Xu Jie smiled wryly and murmured, "To this day, there is no longer any court politics to speak of… What use are we in the Directorate of Military Affairs? Taiyue, forget it…"
Zhang Juzheng, despite having read all the books of ancient and modern times and witnessing thirty years of court disputes, had truly never expected such a move! If things continued like this, there would indeed be no court politics, and it would all turn into a deadly struggle between officials and the royal family. Alas…
"We can only wait for great chaos…"
He sighed deeply, put his hands behind his back, and quietly walked out of the Meridian Gate, taking another route. Xu Jie looked at Prince Yu in the distance and the kneeling Yan father and son, suddenly lost all interest. He no longer wanted to persuade them and turned away sadly, returning to Jianji Hall. He had always been wondering why Yan Shifan hadn't come to the Directorate of Military Affairs. Although he had guessed that the Yan family would not give up so easily, doing this was too self-destructive. It was simply treating the safety of the world as a child's play! But after all, he knew the power of the Yan faction and guessed that the Emperor would have to give in.
…
Not long after, in Yuxi Palace.
Jiajing listened to Lu Fang's report, but remained expressionless. Instead, he walked out of the hall with great ease and paced slowly in the courtyard. It was late autumn, and the sudden sunlight was very warm. Jiajing greatly enjoyed this warm feeling and walked for several laps. Lu Fang followed, wanting to speak several times, but not knowing where to begin.
After an unknown amount of time, Jiajing spoke first, "Lu Fang, did you expect this? Yan Song can be so shameless…"
Heh heh, Lu Fang smiled, "I really didn't see it…"
"Has Prince Jing left the city?"
Upon hearing this, Lu Fang's mood changed greatly. He guessed that Jiajing wanted to replace Prince Yu, and couldn't help but feel a surge of sadness. He softly said, "He left last night. He's probably in the capital's garrison now…"
Hmph, Jiajing glared at him and said indifferently, "What are you unhappy about…"
Lu Fang sighed, "This servant thinks Prince Yu is also a pitiable person…" He wanted to say more but held back.
Jiajing nodded, and a hint of sadness flashed across his face. He sighed and said, "This Prince Yu, for decades, has only done one thing right…" He didn't say it, but Lu Fang knew it was yesterday's imperial decree. This imperial decree allowed the royal family to escape their passive position and gain the sympathy of the world, while the Yan faction completely lost popular support. But Lu Fang also knew that the Yan faction had never cared what the common people thought. They only considered officials, gentry, and scholars. As long as these people supported them, their reputation didn't matter.
His only doubt was – why was Yan Song so confident? He actually wanted to support Prince Jing to ascend the throne? What confidence did the father and son have? He had asked about this several times, but the Emperor had never answered. Perhaps the Emperor was more confident in his own son?
In any case, this matter was truly strange…