Just then,
Two figures appeared at the grand entrance, shouting,
"Your Excellency! Something has happened..."
Upon seeing them, everyone realized it was Guo Pu, the former Minister of Personnel, and Yuan Wei, the Vice Minister of Personnel, who had been out of sight for some time.
Yan Song, sensing a shift in the situation, stepped forward and asked,
"What has happened?"
Guo Pu took out a small booklet from his robe and, panting, said,
"Your Excellency, look, this is printed by Zhu Mo... He sacrificed to Confucius in Quzhou, then killed two hundred Japanese pirates the next day, and then had Hu Zongxian communicate with various countries to withdraw their declarations of war! Alas..."
Yan Song's head buzzed, and he murmured, "How could this be? How could this be?"
Yuan Wei also took out a piece of paper and handed it over, saying, "Your Excellency, this is Zhu Mo's sacrificial text for Confucius. Alas, it's full of nonsense, yet so many people are copying it!"
The people present had actually heard some rumors a couple of days prior. Yan Shifan had discussed it in a small circle and felt it was not a major issue, but they hadn't heard about any booklets or sacrificial texts.
At this moment,
Yan Shifan stepped forward a few paces, snatched it, and saw the sacrificial text begin with "Our dynasty was founded on the great principles of Yao and Shun..." He immediately felt an ominous premonition, spat, and murmured, "What kind of rubbish is this again..."
As for Yan Song, he was holding the "Warning to the World on the Sin of the Zhoushan Public Office War," lost in thought. After flipping through a few pages, he immediately came to his senses and blurted out,
"Have any of you been to the Ministry of Rites recently? Has anything been unusual?"
Guo Pu sighed and said, "Alas, Your Excellency, I came for this very matter... Hu Zongxian's Governor-General of Zhejiang and Huguang yamen, along with the Zhoushan Public Office, and Zhu Mo, signed together and sent communications to various countries through the Department of Host and Guest, enclosing this booklet, asking them to withdraw their declarations of war..."
Oh...
Yan Song pondered for a moment and murmured, "It's nothing, nothing... But we must be quick! Let's go now, tell them to hurry, all of them to the Temple of Heaven... We should still make it..."
Their minds couldn't match his. At this point, it was clear—
Zhu Mo had sacrificed to Confucius first, and then used powerful means to force back the twelve countries... Now, it was a matter of whether the Emperor could react in time. If he could beat Prince Yu to it, even if he was half a beat slower than Zhu Mo, it wouldn't matter. After all, Zhu Mo was a heretic, as everyone in the world knew. Nothing he did would be surprising, and people wouldn't think that far or that deeply.
Seeing Yan Song so solemn, everyone felt something was unusual.
Yan Shifan shouted, "Let's all hurry then! Don't dawdle!"
With a rush!
Everyone surged out.
But just then,
A voice suddenly came—
"Yan Song, Yan Shifan, receive the imperial edict!"
Nearly a hundred people were instantly stunned.
Two palace attendants strode in and shouted again at the entrance:
"Yan Song, Yan Shifan, receive the imperial edict!"
Yan Song and Yan Shifan were extremely surprised, but they could only lead the way in kneeling, and everyone followed suit, kneeling on the ground.
The palace attendants announced:
"By the sacred edict: Our dynasty, according to the teachings of the Three Sages, was founded on the principles of Yao, Shun, Yu, Tang, Wen, Wu, Zhou, and Confucius. The former wise kings were continuously worshipped. His Majesty, mindful of the great principles, personally sets the imperial examination questions every year, so that the holy learning has a lineage. Now that the Japanese pirates have been pacified, and the birthday of Nidan is also approaching, it is ordered that Prince Yu represent His Majesty in offering sacrifices to the great teacher. Yan Song, as the Chief Grand Secretary, shall attend the sacrifice. Respect this."
Hiss!
Swoosh!
"It's over..."
Yan Song, Guo Pu, Yuan Wei, and a few other seasoned officials secretly despaired, while others did not quite understand and exchanged confused glances.
Yan Song remained stunned for a long time before slowly kneeling and saying hoarsely,
"Your subject Yan Song receives the edict."
"Your subject Yan Shifan receives the edict..."
...
This turn of events was so swift that Yan Song felt as if he had been struck by lightning. Based on his understanding of Jiajing, he shouldn't have been so quick, and this matter would likely have succeeded... It seemed Zhu Mo's actions had alerted him?
Hoo...
Taking a long breath, Yan Song suddenly felt his eyes go black, his head swim, his legs weaken, and he collapsed to the ground.
"Your Excellency! Your Excellency..."
"You can't do this! Your Excellency!"
"This is not the time for mistakes!"
"Little Excellency, quickly find an imperial physician!"
"..."
Yan Song fainted and remained unconscious until evening, when he slowly opened his eyes. Some of the outer officials were still waiting outside, while the inner circle had stayed by his bedside. Yan Shifan paced back and forth anxiously. At this moment, he exclaimed, "Old man is awake!"
Yan Song was like a trapped beast, his eyes losing their usual clarity, now somewhat clouded. However, the determination in his gaze remained undiminished. He shifted his body with effort, half-reclined, and said,
"Shifan, I will dictate, you write..."
Yan Shifan grumbled,
"I say, Father, what are you still writing about now? Let's talk about it after you recover! Anyway, you don't have to go to the Temple of Heaven, so let things be as they will!"
Yan Song didn't have the strength to argue with him and said again, "Write a memorial of self-reproach, saying that even Yao and Shun needed the Four Superintendents to assist them, and the great principles need the great teacher to elucidate them, cough cough cough..."
Everyone saw his renewed weakness and immediately panicked.
Yan Song gasped for a moment, then sighed,
"You still don't understand, do you? Writing a memorial of self-reproach is to first protect us... They are already investigating the dealings with the Japanese, don't get involved. Do you understand? Cut all the threads... Shifan, hurry and write, as I just said, clarify that the sage's system does not conflict with the great principles of Yao and Shun... And then add a final sentence... cough cough..."
At this point, everyone understood a little—
Yan Song was retreating and consolidating. He first firmly defended the status of the sage and sage learning, solidifying his position, and then he would have a chance to survive. But what was this last sentence?
Yan Shifan suddenly had an inspiration and said, "Old Father, is the last sentence asking His Majesty to let us write the sacrificial text for Prince Yu's sacrifice to Confucius? Written according to your intention?"
Yan Song nodded. A trace of warmth finally appeared on his pale face. He sighed deeply and said, "Shifan, I told you to read more, but you wouldn't read... Alas, look at Zhu Mo, how well he writes? Write it, write it..."
After saying a few words, he felt completely weak and simply closed his eyes.
Guo Pu and Yuan Wei were both first-class civil officials. At this moment, they advised, "Dong Lou, write it. We will all discuss it and stand firm first..."
Yan Shifan, after all, was a talented scholar of the realm, claiming to be one of the three great talents in the world. At this moment, his mind was clear, and he quickly drafted a memorial. The seasoned officials all nodded upon seeing it.
...
That night,
Prince Yu's residence.
Xu Jie, Li Chunfang, and Prince Yu had been talking for a while.
Prince Yu sighed, "Esteemed Grand Secretary Xu, Master Li, His Majesty's imperial edict has completely disrupted the Yan family's plans. Our father is truly wise... This has been chaotic for quite some time. I was always terrified hearing about the 'Eight Oxen Dying Together'... Now, things have finally settled down, haven't they?"
Xu Jie nodded, but his face was filled with worry, saying, "Your Highness, this was truly a close call... We two old fools are no longer useful. We failed to anticipate the tricks of Yan Song and his son. We deserve death, we deserve death..."
He shakily stood up. Li Chunfang also rose, and the two of them bowed respectfully to Prince Yu, saying, "Your humble servants failed to understand the situation, please punish us, Your Highness!"