Chapter 331: The False Emperor Kills the True Emperor, and the Demon Queen Completely Collapses
The Demon Queen was slightly startled, and then walked directly in front of him, raised her slender neck, and her charming and affectionate fox eyes trembled slightly: “Really not going?”

“I’m tired today.” Zhu Qizhen said lightly.

The Demon Queen wrapped her arms around his neck, her long sleeves slowly falling down, revealing her fair wrists, and she pursed her red lips: “Then I will serve you, it will be very comfortable.”

Zhu Qizhen looked down at her, and suddenly he felt a little bored. He really liked the witch queen, and of course he wanted to have sex with her the most, but after all these years of living together day and night and using each other, he had a complicated relationship with her.

But when he saw the Demon Queen begging him for mercy because she wanted to save someone, his eyes flashed coldly, and he pulled the Demon Queen’s hand away, saying, “Go back, it’s cold at night, I’ll see you another day.”

After saying that, he strode away without looking back.

The Demon Queen looked at his resolute back, tears welling up in her eyes, and her slender fingers clutched the corner of her clothes.

Zhu Qizhen did not return to the Qianqing Palace, but came to the other courtyard. Aisha was chatting with a woman. When she saw him come in, she immediately stood up and bowed slightly: “Greetings, Your Majesty.”

“Who is this?” Zhu Qizhen raised his hand and his eyes fell on another woman.

The woman was wearing a black and red long dress. Her figure was extremely proud, even taller than Aisha. She was tall, with a beautiful face, elegant and heroic, with a kind of superior temperament. She looked at Zhu Qizhen indifferently with her beautiful eyes.

“Tuma, come and meet His Majesty.” Aisha waved and winked.

The woman stood up, walked to Zhu Qizhen and bowed slightly: “Timur Tuma, I pay my respects to your Majesty.”

Zhu Qizhen then remembered that she was the queen of the Timurid Empire and was sent back to the capital as a gift by Cao Qin after he conquered Samarkand.

“So it’s you.” He raised his hand, “That’s good, you two will have a companion in the future.”

Tuma said calmly, “Your Majesty, can I leave the palace?”

“Where do you want to go?” Zhu Qizhen asked back.

“I want to… go and take a look at the Daming Shenjiying.” Tuma said.

Zhu Qizhen remembered that Cao Qin had said in his memorial that it was this queen who had guarded the city of Samarkand and she was even able to lead troops into battle.

“I can arrange it, but the Jinyiwei must follow.” He smiled.

Tuma bowed again and said, “Thank you, Your Majesty. I will return to my room now.”

After saying that, she turned and left. Zhu Qizhen looked at her back and thought to himself that this woman was so tall, almost as tall as himself, the tallest woman he had ever seen.

“Your Majesty, are you tired?” Aisha said, holding Zhu Qizhen’s arm. “Do you want to take a bath?”

There is a bath in her room, which was built by Alena. The largest bath in the entire palace is in Kunning Palace, and the Queen likes to take a bath the most.

“Okay.” Zhu Qizhen said, “I am indeed tired today.”

Soon, Zhu Qizhen lay comfortably in the bathtub, with steam rising in front of his eyes. The warm water seemed to relieve his worries of the day, and he leaned against the wall of the pool and closed his eyes to rest.

There was a sound of water splashing, and Aisha swam over and leaned into his arms. Feeling the warmth in his arms, Zhu Qizhen opened his eyes.

Surrounded by a light mist, Aisha’s perfect oval face became even more charming, her fair skin was like white jade, and her water droplets were crystal clear, adding to her beauty.

“Your Majesty, I heard about what happened today.” Aisha said gently, “Lie down, I’ll give you a massage.”

Zhu Qizhen nodded slowly and closed his eyes again.

Aisha stretched out her slender hands and gently pressed his shoulders. Her long hair was tied up behind her head, and a few strands of hair fell on her fair and delicate cheeks.

“Your Majesty, are you very conflicted now?” she asked while pressing lightly.

Zhu Qizhen still closed his eyes, put his hands on her long legs, and sighed softly: “Even you can see it.”

“If he were the emperor of the Ottoman Empire, he wouldn’t have any hesitation,” Aisha said.

Zhu Qizhen pinched her long legs and opened his eyes: “Oh? If it was your emperor, what would he do?”

“Kill!” Aisha said affirmatively.

Zhu Qizhen frowned. Aisha reached out and gently smoothed his frown, and continued, “Your Majesty, you know that our young emperor killed his infant brother at the very beginning of his reign.”

“That’s cruel enough.” Zhu Qizhen said. He asked himself, if it were him, he would definitely not be able to do it.

“Haha, the bloodshed that accompanies the succession of the sultan in our empire is no less than that of your Central Plains Dynasty.” Aisha sighed. “After ascending the throne, the fourth emperor of the empire, Bayezid I, immediately hanged all his brothers to prevent them from planning a coup.”

Zhu Qizhen probably knew the history of their Ottoman Empire. There had been many rebellions due to the succession to the throne, which had plunged the empire into crisis.

“Our young emperor believed that killing each other among brothers was better than a rebellion within the empire,” Aisha said. “For this reason, he promulgated the ‘Parricide Law’. Once the old emperor passed away, the new emperor would have to execute all of his brothers and sisters, eliminating potential threats to the succession to the throne from the root.”

Zhu Qizhen patted her long legs and said, “It’s really cruel.”

He understood what Aisha meant by telling him this. She wanted him to be more ruthless. This was a fight for the throne. Besides, they were not brothers.

……

The moon and stars are rare.

The capital of the Ming Dynasty, which was already the world’s capital, naturally had no curfew.

The streets are lined with bright lights, various stalls are lined up, and colorful lanterns are hung high, making the night warm and bright. The hawkers’ cries are heard one after another, interweaving with laughter.

In this bustling crowd, foreigners can be seen everywhere. They either look at the vendors around them curiously, or excitedly communicate with the stall owners in simple Chinese, and try all kinds of new foods and handicrafts.

The patrol guards were dressed in uniform and walked through the streets and alleys to maintain the order and safety of the night market. In addition to them, there were also plainclothes Jinyiwei who lurked in secret and monitored everything in the capital.

Outside Fahai Temple.

Because it was sealed off by the Imperial Guards, the gate of the Zen temple was tightly shut, and not even a single light could be seen inside the temple. The once bustling Zen temple now stood quietly in the darkness.

As the breeze blew, a faint smell of blood could be smelled coming from the temple. At this moment, three old men knelt outside the gate and kowtowed respectfully to the Zen temple.

The old man in the middle turned out to be the former Duke of England, Zhang Fu.

The Jinyiwei hiding in the dark witnessed all this. Ding Xiu, who was standing under a big tree, had a sharp gaze, but a helpless look on his face as he sighed, “Duke Ying, why are you doing this? Are you going to ignore your grandson and granddaughter just for the sake of so-called loyalty?”

A Jinyiwei ran up to him and reported in a low voice: “Boss, there are more back doors, and many old officials have come to pay their respects quietly. I have noted them all down one by one.”

“Is Hu Yi here?” Ding Xiu asked.

“He didn’t come.” The subordinate answered affirmatively and continued to report, “Almost all the dukes and marquises went there.”

Ding Xiu frowned, “I can understand them. After all, they are all old ministers from the time of Emperor Taizong and the previous emperor. But Your Majesty may not understand them.”

He looked up at the night sky, and the crescent moon seemed to have turned blood red.

……

The next day, morning.

The Minister of Works Gao Gu reported on the current progress of the road construction. The Vice Minister of Works Wang Hao, who was at the front, handed in a memorial requesting a large amount of materials.

Zhu Qizhen approved all the requests and said in a deep voice: “If we lose the war in the Western Regions, we will be punished by military law. Gao Gu, tell Wang Hao that if the project cannot be completed on time, I will hold him accountable.”

“As you command!” Gao Gu was very confident. “Your Majesty, I am the Minister of Works. If you fail to complete the task, I will be punished as well.”

Zhu Qizhen was very satisfied: “Very good, this confidence of yours is what I want.”

The atmosphere in the court became much milder, and the court officials did not mention the release of Yu Qian and Shang Lu. Duke Zhongguo Shi Heng stood up to report on the war in the Western Regions.

“Your Majesty, the remaining forces of the Timurid Empire are no longer a threat.” Shi Heng said, “Yang Guifang won another great victory in the Pamir Mountains. He will soon join forces with Cao Qin in Samarkand. Then, they will continue to move westward and attack the Black Sheep Dynasty.”

Duke Chen Mao of Jing State continued, “The Black Sheep Dynasty will definitely not be able to stop us. We must now prepare to face the Ottoman Empire head-on. This is the real threat.”

“The old Duke hit the nail on the head.” Zhu Qizhen laughed loudly, “In the end, it’s us who are competing with the Ottoman Empire for supremacy. I’ve learned that the Ottoman Empire is no worse than us. It also has powerful firearms and will be a terrifying opponent.”

Shi Heng patted his chest and said confidently: “Your Majesty, our Hongwu muskets and Hongwu cannons are definitely more powerful than theirs. Of course, we can’t underestimate them and have to prepare in advance.”

Zhu Qizhen frowned.

In war, intelligence is the most important thing. Now that we are still allies with the Ottoman Empire, we should send spies there first. Knowing ourselves and the enemy will help us win every battle.

“The Ministry of War and the Five Military Commands’ Office, please submit a report.” He said in a deep voice, “What kind of preparations should we make before breaking with the Ottoman Empire?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Shi Heng accepted the order.

Yu Qian has now been dismissed, and Shi Heng is in charge of military affairs in Beijing.

……

After court, Qianqing Palace.

Zhu Qizhen convened a small court meeting to discuss some government affairs details and asked the cabinet to implement them.

After all the ministers left, he began to review the memorials quickly. While reviewing, he complained that the emperor was also a beast of burden and had to work every day. He thought about how to change it. In ancient times, many emperors, once they gave up this right, either the imperial power fell into the hands of others or was sidelined.

Didn’t Emperor Taizu Zhu Baba abolish the position of prime minister in order to centralize the imperial power? But this job is too tiring, and no one can compare to the hardworking Zhu Baba.

“Your Majesty, these are newly-delivered memorials, sent directly to the Imperial Household Department.” Cao Jixiang came over carrying a stack of memorials.

There are two main types of memorials: the title and the show. The title is mostly used to report routine affairs, such as financial income and expenditure, military camp management and training, etc., while the show is handed directly to the gate officials in the name of individuals through officials, and then passed to the emperor by the gate officials to report important matters or make suggestions. The show will not be made public before the emperor has read it, nor will it be handed over to the six departments of Langfang for copying and registration.

The procedure for delivering memorials is relatively complicated, and mainly involves the following steps:

Writing and submitting: Ministers first need to write memorials, and then choose the corresponding submission channel based on the nature of the memorial (political, military, supervisory, etc.).

Inspection by the Tongzhengsi: All memorials from inside and outside the capital must first be inspected by the Tongzhengsi to see if they comply with regulations.

Cabinet’s proposal: After the examination of the Ministry of Public Administration, the memorial will be submitted to the Cabinet. The Cabinet will make suggestions on the memorial, and this process is called “proposal”.

The emperor’s approval: The draft of the memorial by the cabinet will be presented to the emperor for approval. The emperor will make the final decision on the memorial based on his own judgment and the cabinet’s opinions.

However, there are some exceptions. For example, the emperor gave some ministers the power to make direct reports. Their reports would be sent directly to the Imperial Household Department, which would then hand them over to the emperor.

These memorials will definitely be dealt with first. Zhu Qizhen picked up the memorials handed over by Cao Jixiang and opened the first one, which was from Ning Rongrong. In her memorial, she talked about the current situation in Japan, without mentioning Xiyao’s death. The other memorial was from Bai Wuqi, and his memorial also talked about the current situation in Japan, which was similar to what Ning Rongrong said.

The conflict between Hosokawa Katsumoto and Yamana Mochitoyo intensified, and both sides began to gather their forces, and a war was imminent. Ning Rongrong had made sufficient preparations, and took advantage of the chaos in the Japanese government to escape the territory.

“Ning Rongrong is still under control at the moment.” Zhu Qizhen said to himself.

He picked up his pen and wrote a reply.

Use Ning Rongrong to contain Japan, and when the Ming Dynasty’s invincible fleet appears, there will be no need to worry that she will disobey.

……

“Your Majesty, Jinyiwei’s pacification envoy Ding Xiu requests to see you.” Cao Jixiang came in to report.

Zhu Qizhen handed the letter to Cao Jixiang and said, “Send the letter from Japan as quickly as possible.”

“Yes.” Cao Jixiang took the letter and walked out.

Soon, Ding Xiu came to the palace, paid homage, and reported: “Your Majesty, many old ministers of the Celestial Empire have quietly gone to the Fahai Zen Temple to kowtow, including the Duke of Ying, the Minister of Revenue Chen Xun, and the Minister of Works Gao Gu.”

Zhu Qizhen’s eyes suddenly became sharp, and murderous intent flashed across them.

Ding Xiu described in detail what he had seen. Most of the old ministers were at the back door of the Zen temple, kneeling in front of the door and kowtowing towards the inside, whispering something, but it was too far away to be heard.

However, they looked sad, and some even shed tears. Some of the brave ministers openly kowtowed at the front door, and the scene was quite touching, with them falling to the ground and crying bitterly.

“You are really loyal.” Zhu Qizhen sneered.

“Your Majesty!” Ding Xiu bowed, “Do you want to arrest people? If you arrest a group of people, no one will dare to go.”

Zhu Qizhen waved his hand: “No hurry, just wait a little longer. Yu Qian, after Shang Lu and the others were released, have there been any movements in the mansion?”

“Some ministers who went to Fahai Temple to kowtow also visited Yu Qian and Shang Lu.” Ding Xiu frowned, “But Yu Qian and Shang Lu never left their homes.”

Zhu Qizhen’s eyes were filled with murderous intent again: “Keep watching, I want to see how many people will side with the Zhengtong Emperor.”

“Yes, sir.” Ding Xiu stepped out.

Zhu Qizhen sat on the imperial chair, murderous intent flashing in his eyes from time to time.

He didn’t expect that so many ministers would go to pay homage to the Zhengtong Emperor, including two Shangshu.

“They still believe that the orthodoxy is that of the Zhu family.” He clenched his fists.

At this time, Cao Jixiang came in again and bowed, saying, “Your Majesty, Duke of Jing Chen Mao and Minister of Revenue Chen Xun request to see you.”

“Announce.” Zhu Qizhen regained his composure.

Soon, Duke of Jing Chen Mao and Minister of Revenue Chen Xun came to the palace. Chen Mao, with his white hair, walked with a slight stagger. Chen Xun, with his white hair, was in good spirits.

“Your Majesty.” Both of them bowed respectfully.

“Stand up.” Zhu Qizhen raised his hand with a smile, “Why did you two come together?”

Chen Mao and Chen Xun looked at each other, as if to encourage each other. Chen Xun bowed first and said, “Your Majesty, I have read Emperor Hui of Han recently and was quite moved.”

Then, he actually recited a passage from “The Chronicle of Empress Dowager Lü”:
“In the second year of Emperor Xiaohui’s reign, the King of Qi came to the court. Emperor Hui and the King of Qi drank together, and he was as polite as a family member. Empress Dowager Lü was angry and was about to execute him. The King of Qi was afraid that he would not be able to escape, so he used the advice of his internal historian Xun and offered Chengyang County as a bathing place for Princess Yuan of Lu. Empress Dowager Lü was pleased and she gave up and returned the King of Qi.”

Chen Mao, who obviously had not read many books, praised him: “Emperor Hui is so kind that he protects his brothers even at the cost of offending the Queen Mother.”

Chen Xun nodded, and then recited another passage:
“The Queen Mother was angry, so she ordered the King of Zhao to be expelled, and then summoned Zhao’s Prime Minister Zhou Chang. When Zhou Chang arrived, he met with the Queen Mother. The Queen Mother was angry and scolded Zhou Chang, saying: ‘Don’t you know that I hate the Qi family? Why don’t you send the King of Zhao?’ After Chang was summoned, the Queen Mother sent an envoy to summon the King of Zhao. The King of Zhao did come. When he arrived in Chang’an, she ignored him in his residence and ordered the guards to surround him, so that he could not leave. The Queen Mother summoned the King of Zhao and made him stay in Changxin Palace. She ordered the eunuchs to poison him to death. The Emperor went out to shoot in the morning. The King of Zhao could not get up, so the Queen Mother sent someone to give him poison to drink. At dawn, the Emperor returned, and the King of Zhao was dead.”

Zhu Qizhen had certainly read this history. Looking at the two people in front of him who were singing the same tune, his face became terribly gloomy.

“What do you want to tell me?” he shouted coldly.

The two men knelt down, and Chen Xun spoke: “Your Majesty, I will tell you straight away. Please spare the emperor in Fahai Zen Temple. You can imprison him or send him overseas. He is also a pitiful man, so please spare his life.”

“Yes, Your Majesty, we are loyal to you and have no second thoughts.” Chen Mao bowed and said, “Please have mercy on him and spare his life.”

Snapped!
Zhu Qizhen slammed the table and shouted angrily: “I don’t need you to teach me. Considering your contributions, I will spare you this time. Withdraw.”

Chen Mao was about to say something, but was stopped by Chen Xun, and the two of them left the hall. Walking on the imperial road, Chen Xun sighed, “We have done our best. How the history books will be written in the future will be up to future generations.”

……

Wow!

Zhu Qizhen angrily swept all the memorials on the imperial table and dropped them to the ground. The eunuchs and palace maids in the palace were extremely panicked and knelt down, trembling with fear.

“Your Majesty, calm down.” Cao Jixiang knelt down.

Zhu Qizhen flicked his sleeves and strode out. Cao Jixiang winked at the eunuchs and palace maids, and they hurried to pick up the fallen memorials, while he followed closely.

“Don’t follow.” Zhu Qizhen waved his hand.

He walked out of the hall. It was sunny outside and the breeze was gentle.

The female imperial scholar Liu Wanqing came over and knelt down in front of him: “Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you.”

“That’s great. Come walk with me.” Zhu Qizhen waved his hand and walked down the corridor in front of the palace.

Liu Wanqing followed behind him, smiling slightly: “Your Majesty, I just ran into Duke Jing and Minister Chen on the road. Did they make you angry?”

“Hmph, two old men come to tell me about Emperor Hui of Han.” Zhu Qizhen said coldly, “Do you think I don’t know what they are thinking? They just want to leave a good reputation in history books.”

Liu Wanqing followed closely, but remained in one position, and said, “That’s not entirely true. They may be expressing their feelings. I believe that they are still loyal to Your Majesty.”

“I know that too, otherwise, I would have put them in prison.” Zhu Qizhen snorted.

“However, they are loyal to Your Majesty, but not necessarily loyal to your future crown prince, or the successor monarch.” Liu Wanqing said.

Zhu Qizhen stopped suddenly, his eyes flashing coldly: “You are right!”

“Your Majesty, Emperor Jianwen was also kind to Emperor Taizong back then.” Liu Wanqing said, “He even told Li Jinglong, who was leading the army, not to hurt his uncle. In the end…”

Zhu Qizhen sneered: “In the end, he lost his kingdom.”

He stopped, looked at the sky, was silent for a long time, and waved his hand: “I need you to do something, you should also avenge your master.”

“I have no choice but to do it.” Liu Wanqing was overjoyed.

……

Fahai Temple.

Liu Wanqing led two eunuchs into the meditation room in the backyard.

The orthodox emperor was sitting cross-legged on a futon. He was slightly startled when he saw them come in. His eyes fell on Liu Wanqing and he asked, “Who are you?”

“Liu Wanqing from the Hanlin Academy.” Liu Wanqing looked coldly.

“Oh, this year’s female imperial scholar?” The Zhengtong Emperor looked puzzled. “What are you doing here?”

Liu Wanqing said lightly: “I’m here to see you off.”

The Zhengtong Emperor was horrified and said in panic, “You want to… kill me?”

He saw the two eunuchs, one of whom was holding a tray with a jug of wine and a small bottle on it.

“Your Majesty will reward you with a bottle of poisoned wine.” Liu Wanqing sneered, “From now on, there is only one Zhu Qizhen in the world.”

She waved her hands fiercely, and the two eunuchs placed the plate in front of the orthodox emperor. She laughed heartily: “Hahaha, I didn’t expect that I could kill an emperor of the Zhu family myself. Master, this can be regarded as revenge for you.”

The orthodox emperor seemed not to hear what she said. He held the pot of wine with trembling hands, and recalled his life in his mind.

“Are you scared?” Liu Wanqing said coldly, “If you don’t want to drink, you have to drink too.”

The Zhengtong Emperor raised his head and laughed at himself: “This day has finally come. Tell the emperor to spare my children, spare my mother, and spare the princes of the Zhu family. All grudges will end after my death.”

After saying this, he opened the bottle of poison and drank it all.

Then he clasped his hands together and closed his eyes.

Liu Wanqing watched the Zhengtong Emperor die in front of her eyes, with a wanton smile on her face. At this moment, Shi Biao rushed in with the Jinyiwei. Seeing the Zhengtong Emperor bleeding from all seven orifices, he was furious: “Who told you to kill? Come, take her down.”

The Royal Guards caught Liu Wanqing in an instant. Liu Wanqing shouted angrily: “What are you doing? It’s His Majesty’s order…”

At this point, her expression changed drastically, and disbelief flashed in her eyes: “Your Majesty, he… is using me?”

“Send him to prison.” Shi Biao sneered.

……

Kunning Palace.

The Queen Mother was somewhat uneasy today. She stood up and walked to the window, looking in the direction of Fahai Temple.

Shuangxi came in hurriedly, his face pale: “Madam, something happened, the Majesty of Fahai Zen Temple was poisoned to death.”

The Queen Mother staggered and fell down.

……

Ps: It’s getting close to the finale, so I’m writing slowly. This book obviously has many shortcomings, and the results are very poor. It can’t support the author. The new book “Ming Dynasty: Grandfather Yan Song, taught me to be a treacherous prime minister” can be seen by clicking my author name. I implore all brothers to help collect and read it, and invest in it. The contract was signed today. There is also a beautiful empress dowager, Wanli’s mother, but the new book is written in a completely different way. The protagonist is very treacherous, and he is Sima Yi who took Zhang Juzheng and Kangxi’s script.

This book will definitely continue, and I will be able to think of an ending that will satisfy everyone.

(End of this chapter)