ATPnovel Chapter 17: The Coup of the Gate, the Restoration of the Southern Palace, and Zhu Qiyu's Frenzi
Chapter 17: The Coup of the Gate, the Restoration of the Southern Palace, and Zhu Qiyu's Frenzi
Xu Miaoyun listened to Liu Yan's voice and said with some dissatisfaction.
"My husband, you're always like this, keeping me in suspense. Tell me, tell me, what happened to this Yu Shaobao who saved the day? Did he become a great hero admired by everyone?"
Liu Yan put down her teacup and pinched Xu Miaoyun's cheek.
Inside the Yongle court, Zhu Di pointed at the sky and roared!
"Speak up! Why do you keep touching my Miaoyun?!"
Unfortunately, Zhu Di could only rage helplessly at this moment, unable to harm Liu Yan in the slightest. Putting down his teacup, Liu Yan's voice also became muffled.
"In the first year of the Jingtai reign, Emperor Yingzong of Ming, Zhu Qizhen, was sent back by the Oirat Mongols. Emperor Jingtai, Zhu Qiyu, placed him under house arrest in the Southern Palace and kept him under strict guard."
"In the third year of the Jingtai reign, the position of Crown Prince was abolished for the deposed Emperor Yingzong's son, Zhu Jianshen, and his own son, Zhu Jianji, was made Crown Prince instead."
"In the fourth year of the Jingtai reign, Crown Prince Zhu Jianji died young, leaving the position of heir apparent vacant."
"Four years later, in the eighth year of the Jingtai reign, in the first month, Zhu Qiyu fell ill, and the Ming Dynasty was once again plunged into panic over the succession to the throne."
"On the fourteenth day of the first month of the eighth year of the Jingtai reign, Shi Heng, seeing that Emperor Jingtai was critically ill, secretly conspired with Zhang Yi and Cao Jixiang: 'It would be better to reinstate the retired emperor than to establish a crown prince; we can gain merit and rewards for this.'"
"They then contacted Xu Youzhen overnight, planning to open the palace gates at night, send troops into the Southern Palace, and reinstate Emperor Yingzong."
Liu Yan’s voice came from inside the Jingtai Court. Zhu Qiyu, who was originally pale from the pain of illness, now had bloodshot eyes and was trembling!
The officials of the Jingtai court were all silent as cicadas in winter! Shi Heng, Zhang Yi, Cao Jixiang, and Xu Youzhen knelt down with a thud, their bodies trembling like leaves.
Zhu Qiyu did not speak, but continued to look at the sky. At this moment, the Jingtai Court was like a long-suppressed volcano, about to erupt!
"On the night of the sixteenth day of the first month of the eighth year of the Jingtai reign, Shi Hengli used his authority to open the Chang'an Gate and let in more than a thousand imperial guards. He then closed the gate to prevent reinforcements from foreign troops."
"The group headed straight for the Southern Palace, demolished the palace walls, and enthroned Zhu Qizhen!"
"Zhu Qizhen, who had been imprisoned for seven years, was carried in a sedan chair straight to Fengtian Hall."
"The journey proceeded smoothly, and as dawn broke, the people moved the dragon throne to the palace, helped Emperor Yingzong ascend the throne, rang the bells and drums, and opened the palace gates."
"When the officials entered the palace, they saw that the emperor on the dragon throne was actually the retired emperor. Since things had come to this, the officials knelt down and the restoration of the Southern Palace was successful."
"On the day Emperor Yingzong was restored to the throne, Emperor Jingtai was demoted to Prince of Cheng and moved to the Western Palace."
"Xu Youzhen framed Yu Qian on the fabricated charge that he intended to install a foreign vassal."
"When Emperor Yingzong was hesitant, Xu Youzhen said: 'If Yu Qian is not killed, this action will be without justification.'"
"On February 19th, Prince Zhu Qiyu of Cheng died suddenly and was buried with the rites of a prince. His posthumous title was Li, and he was removed from the ancestral temple."
Four days later, Yu Qian was beheaded in the marketplace, and his entire family's property was confiscated.
As Liu Yan finished speaking, Zhu Qiyu slowly got up from the bed. At this moment, his face was rosy, and his breathing was like a leaky bellows.
"Hahaha! Hahahaha! Hahahaha!"
Zhu Qiyu laughed uncontrollably! His laughter was filled with sorrow, self-mockery, and despair!
Shi Heng and Xu Youzhen trembled and immediately knelt down.
"Your Majesty, you are wise! We had absolutely no such intention!"
Zhu Qiyu ignored them and swayed as he walked to the group of court officials. He looked at these officials, who usually prided themselves on being loyal to the emperor and loving the country, with despair and asked in a stern voice.
"The restoration of the Southern Palace! The coup d'état! What a grand and imposing event this was, in my opinion!"
"It was just a small matter accomplished by a few thousand men in a few hours..."
Zhu Qiyu was truly devastated at this moment. He never expected that he would be dethroned so easily, as if it were a child's game, or as if he were a useless blanket that was casually discarded.
"Your Majesty! Please calm down!"
The courtiers knelt on the ground, shouting incessantly.
At this moment, Zhu Qiyu found them ridiculous. He pointed at the three Yangs (Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, and Yang Pu) one by one.
"You! You! And you too!"
"Ha ha ha ha!"
Zhu Qiyu's laughter was tinged with sadness.
"You've all wanted to restore Zhu Qizhen to the throne for a long time, haven't you!"
"I'm telling you! I don't care about this throne at all!"
"You gave me this seat! You helped me up here!"
"Now you won't acknowledge anything I say, anything I do, or how well I do it!"
"You only have that gatekeeper emperor in your hearts who destroyed 500,000 elite troops of the Ming Dynasty! He is the rightful heir! As for me! I am nothing more than a temporary plaything!"
"good!"
As he spoke, Zhu Qiyu reached out and ripped off the winged crown he was wearing. The force was so great that it tore open his hair bun, and in an instant, a head of long, black hair fell down, covering Zhu Qiyu's sickly face.
He held the winged crown in his hand and handed it to Yang Rong, saying sternly.
"I'm giving you this throne!"
Upon hearing this, Yang Rong knelt on the ground and shouted.
"I am guilty! I am innocent!"
Zhu Qiyu chuckled self-deprecatingly and handed the winged crown to Yang Shiqi, Yang Pu, and finally to Yu Qian, the only one still standing in the hall.
"I have sat on this throne for seven years! Seven years! I have done nothing to betray you! And how have you treated me?"
Zhu Qiyu walked up to Xu Youzhen, squatted down, and asked.
"Have I mistreated you?"
Upon hearing this, Xu Youzhen broke out in a cold sweat.
"Omi! Guilty!"
Zhu Qiyu stood up and angrily rebuked!
"What crime have you committed?!"
Zhu Qiyu forcefully slammed the winged crown in his hand to the ground, roaring angrily with disheveled hair.
"I am the guilty one! I am the one who is blocking your path to promotion and wealth!"
"It is I who have tarnished your fervent loyalty to the emperor!"
"What am I in your eyes? Nothing more than a handkerchief to be used and discarded..."
Zhu Qiyu staggered.
Upon seeing this, the officials of the Jingtai reign immediately shouted.
"Your Majesty! Please take care of yourself!"
Zhu Qiyu laughed heartily upon hearing this.
"Take care of yourself?"
He pointed to the sky and said sternly.
"Didn't you hear what was said in the heavens? I will die next year! Die!"
"Cough cough cough!"
The intense emotional turmoil caused Zhu Qiyu to cough violently. The eunuch beside him tried to help him up, but he pushed him away with one hand.
Zhu Qiyu staggered back onto the bed as if in a daze, a fierce glint flashing in his eyes!
This is a cold-blooded ruthlessness that comes after extreme anger: Since you don't want me to live! Then I won't let you live either!
At this moment, Emperor Jingtai completely shed his submissive demeanor. Was he a wise ruler? A powerful monarch?
Now all of this is just a passing cloud! At this moment, Zhu Qiyu was fully awakened, like a hungry wolf ready to devour its prey. His gaze swept over the assembled officials and finally settled on the trembling Cao Jixiang.
As if sensing Zhu Qiyu's gaze, Cao Jixiang, the only eunuch in the Ming Dynasty who had ever attempted to rebel and usurp the throne, felt a chill run down his spine.
"Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!"
"This servant is utterly loyal to Your Majesty! Your Majesty, please do not listen to the nonsense uttered by those people in the heavenly canopy!"
Cao Jixiang kept kowtowing, but Zhu Qiyu had already gone mad by this time!
"This servant has betrayed his master! He deserves to die!"
"Guards! Drag him out and beat him to death!"
Guards rushed into the main hall and dragged Cao Jixiang, who had already wet himself in fear, out.
The next moment, a shrill scream came from inside the hall, and Shi Heng, Zhang Yi, and Xu Youzhen were covered in sweat!
The coup d'état occurred because Zhu Qiyu was terminally ill and had lost control of the palace.
However, although Zhu Qiyu is ill, he is far from being terminally ill!
Therefore, at this moment, he is still the only supreme ruler of the Ming Dynasty!
"Shi Heng is ungrateful! He deserves to die!"
"Zhang Yi is two-faced! He deserves to die!"
"Xu Youzhen is despicable and shameless! He deserves to die!"
"They deserve to die! They deserve to die! They all deserve to die!"
"Your Majesty, spare me! Spare me!"
No matter how much they shouted, all they received in response was Zhu Qiyu's icy gaze!
In an instant, the entire Jingtai Dynasty was shrouded in a murderous aura!
Emperor Jingtai, Zhu Qiyu! At this moment, he finally raised the butcher's knife in his hand!