Chapter 411
In the temple in the northwest corner of the imperial palace, Empress Dowager Cining prayed a stick of incense time in front of the pure gold Buddha statue, and then turned to the Taoist temple in the northeast corner, begging for safety from the statue of Sanqing, without any pain in running around.
After worshiping the gods and Buddhas, she still felt that it was not enough, so she went to the Taimiao Temple in the southeast to seek help from the ancestors of the Han family.
After this trip, several eunuchs carrying the sedan chair were so tired that their backs and legs hurt, but they did not dare to complain.
The Taimiao Temple is usually closed without the imperial edict of the emperor and the company of Zongzheng's mansion, especially not for women. The priests and officials greet the queen mother with respect, neither smiling nor grimacing, with a slightly embarrassed expression, and said embarrassedly, "We do not know that the queen mother is coming. , Unprepared, the hall is cold, I am afraid it is not good for the Queen Mother's health."
Empress Dowager Cining stepped out of the sedan chair, looked up at the majestic Taimiao hall, and sighed softly, "I can't enter the Taimiao since the emperor is still alive. I'm afraid this is the last time I see it, and I won't have a chance in the future."
The priest was so frightened that he couldn't bear such a big crime, so he hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed, and respectfully invited the Queen Mother to enter the hall, but he still did not open the main door, only the side door.
The inside of the hall was indeed gloomy and cold, which was different from the coldness outside. It was like a cotton-padded coat soaked in ice water was wrapped around him.
The Empress Dowager Cining took the burning incense from the sacrificial official and inserted it into the copper furnace in front of each tablet, then knelt down to worship the prayer, and finally knelt in front of the Taizu tablet in the middle.
The sacrificial officials and the accompanying eunuchs and court ladies withdrew wisely.
The Empress Dowager Ci Ning whispered at first, and slowly became louder, "Chen and concubine Wang An is the wife of Emperor Huan and the biological mother of the current emperor. Unfortunately, the emperor was in danger and was in a coma for several days. I implore the Taizu to protect the emperor's safety. I would like to accept all punishments in place of the emperor in this body, and I will not complain if I fall ill and lose my life. I just ask the Taizu to have mercy, and the Great Chu cannot be without the current emperor."
The Empress Dowager Ci Ning respectfully kowtowed three times, and then said: "My son has loved the story of Taizu since he was a child. He is the descendant of Taizu, working day and night, just to protect the Han family's country. You distinguish the loyal and the traitor, and rescue my son from suffering."
After a pause, she continued, "Let the disaster befall the chaotic ministers and thieves, that is, they killed the emperor, and they will give away the mountains and rivers that the Taizu had beaten down."
The Empress Dowager Cining lowered her voice again and said a series of names, listing the "crimes" of these people.
After half an hour, she got up, slowly stepped back, turned around after a dozen steps, walked out, stopped suddenly, and looked at the tablet of Emperor Huan on the side, that was her husband, the father of the current emperor, and she also Offering incense, but never thought to ask him for help.
"You have three sons." Empress Dowager Cining said coldly, without kneeling or praying, "one died, there are two left, I know you are partial, but don't think about letting three sons become emperors one after another, If my son can't wake up, you will lose all your sons, not one."
Back in the sun again, Empress Dowager Cining felt a burst of warmth and turned her eyes to a newly arrived eunuch.
The eunuch shook his head, indicating that there was no change, the emperor was still in a coma, the Empress Dowager Ci Ning said nothing and got into the sedan chair, "Cishun Palace."
After worshipping the gods and ancestors, she also asked for a living person.
The Empress Dowager Shangguan in Cishun Palace was neither a fairy nor an imperial doctor, and knew nothing about saving people.
She only knows how to save.
Empress Dowager Cining always remained humble in the Cishun Palace. Even if she was named the second empress dowager, she was not rude. Except for very few formal occasions, she never dared to be side by side with her former mistress.
"What should I do? What should I do?" Empress Dowager Cining knelt on the ground and sobbed on the lap of Empress Dowager Shangguan, still a maid who made mistakes.
There were no outsiders in the room, and the Empress Dowager Shangguan sighed deeply, "Da Chu's ordeal is not over yet, you can't do anything."
Empress Dowager Ci Ning raised her head, "Am I just watching the emperor unconscious? If he...how can I live?"
"Always survive." The Empress Dowager Shangguan is qualified to say this because she has lost her son.
Empress Dowager Cining lowered her head and continued to cry.
After waiting for a while, the Empress Dowager Shangguan said: "Life and death are up to the sky, and no one can interfere. What should you do? If you want to save the emperor, you can't do anything but wait for a miracle to happen. If you want to save yourself, there are some things It can be done.”
"Save yourself?" Empress Dowager Cining raised her head again and stopped crying.
The Empress Dowager Shangguan's eyes were ruthless, "Do you expect me to say everything? If you want to be a good person, don't ask for advice from a 'wicked' person like me."
Empress Dowager Cining showed a hint of surprise, then wiped away her tears, "I want to save myself and avenge the emperor."
The Empress Dowager Shangguan patted the seat next to her, and Empress Dowager Cining slowly stood up and sat on the couch.
"Saving yourself and taking revenge are the same thing. If the emperor is in an emergency, and you have no power or power, what kind of revenge will you take?"
"I can now..."
The Empress Dowager Shangguan sneered, "Do you think everyone's silence is obedience? No, they are observing, you can imprison some people, this does not prevent them from observing, but when you want to kill people and take revenge, there will be many obstacles, and even encounters To blatant disobedience. Unless the emperor wakes up, your power will be less and less."
"What should I do?" Empress Dowager Cining asked again, but the meaning was different. Before, she asked for the emperor, but now she asked for herself.
The Empress Dowager Shangguan looked ahead and said softly, "You know how to do it. The methods are all ready-made, and no one can come up with new ideas. I can't, and neither can you."
Empress Dowager Ci Ning thought for a moment, "The King of the East Sea must never be allowed to succeed the throne."
"Of course not, and the minister would not agree."
After several repeated seizures, there were too many ministers who offended the King of the East Sea, and no one dared to support him as the emperor anymore.
"There are many children in the clan, who should I choose?"
"It's useless to ask me, you have to ask the ministers, this is an unspoken transaction, and in the end, you have to choose someone who is satisfied with both sides. Your son can be the emperor. On the surface, it was my choice, but it was actually won by the ministers. Acquiescence, they were very jealous of the Cui family at the time and did not want to see them stronger."
Empress Dowager Cining thought for a longer time, "As long as I am the empress dowager, you are the empress dowager, and you will always be on top of me."
The Empress Dowager Shangguan smiled, "You are so lucky to have revenge."
Empress Dowager Cining got up and saluted, slowly retreated to the door, and finally said, "If I can't save my son, everything I do is for revenge."
The Empress Dowager Shangguan nodded, not interested anymore.
In the courtyard, the Empress Dowager Ci Ning looked up at the blue sky, she bowed and prayed, and then she had to do some practical things.
First, she summoned Prime Minister Shen Mingzhi in Guanghua Pavilion.
This is not the time to pay attention to etiquette, Shen Mingzhi arrived quickly, and he also needs the cooperation of the palace.
"Does the assassin still have a party left?"
"There must be no more in the city. More than 1,300 people have been arrested so far."
"Hey, I said no before, but... what about Yunmengze? Are you ready to fight?"
Shen Mingzhi hesitated a little, "It's winter now, so it's not suitable to fight, but the imperial court has ordered the deployment of troops from all over the country, only to wait until the spring to annihilate the bandits in one fell swoop."
Spring is too far away for Empress Dowager Cining. She hopes to see the dead bodies of enemies all over the place now, but she wants to be polite to the minister, so she nods, "Women don't understand military warfare, and it is up to the court to suppress bandits. Responsible, I just hope that no one will be spared."
Shen Mingzhi breathed a sigh of relief. At this time, he was most afraid of encountering an unreasonable queen mother, and immediately replied: "The queen mother, please rest assured, the Chu army has a perfect strategy and will definitely wipe out the Yunmengze group of bandits."
Empress Dowager Cining was silent for a moment, "I invited the prime minister to come, not just to inquire about the suppression of bandits."
Shen Mingzhi lowered his head, not daring to answer.
But some words must be made clear after all. The Queen Mother Ci Ning said: "It's not a taboo for now, if your majesty can wake up, everything will be fine, if... if there is an unfortunate event, Da Chu can't be without a ruler for a day, Prime Minister Shen can do it. Are there any clan children you like?"
Shen Mingzhi knelt down and bowed in fear, "I only hope for His Majesty's recovery, but I don't think about it."
"Well, you can think about it now. Even if others don't want to, you are the prime minister, so you should prepare in advance."
"It's all up to the Queen Mother, and the minister has nothing to say."
Empress Dowager Cining smiled slightly. She was still not very good at dealing with ministers, "King Donghai is the son of Emperor Huan and the younger brother of the emperor, can you?"
Shen Mingzhi couldn't be more polite, knelt on the ground and said, "It seems that the guilty minister should not be in the throne."
Empress Dowager Cining nodded and continued to ask, "The King of England is the youngest son of Emperor Wu, can you?"
"It's not appropriate to live abroad and lose everyone's heart."
"When the emperor was besieged Jincheng, didn't the court have a clan disciple?"
Shen Mingzhi shook his head, "That's just an expedient measure, it has not come true and cannot be repeated."
Empress Dowager Ci Ning even mentioned three people, but was rejected by the prime minister. She was not angry, but rather at ease. As long as these three people did not succeed to the throne, there would be fewer obstacles between her and the ministers.
"Shang Shin has to propose one person eventually."
Shen Mingzhi thought for a long time, "I really can't think of a suitable person to come, but there is one person in the court who knows the clan better than the minister in terms of seniority, and is closer than the minister in terms of closeness. Maybe he can share the worries of the queen mother."
"Which one?"
"Zong Zhengqing Han Chou."
Empress Dowager Cining was silent for a moment, "There are rumors that he has something to do with the assassination."
"The rumors in the capital are raging. Han Zongzheng is not the only one who is suspected, but there is no real evidence. If the Queen Mother judges the loyal and traitor based on this, I am afraid that most of the ministers in the court, including the minister himself, will not be able to use it."
Empress Dowager Ci Ning sighed, "Okay, tomorrow morning, please come to Guanghua Pavilion again with Prime Minister Shen and Han Zongzheng."
"Follow the decree." Shen Mingzhi got up, did not retire immediately, and took the opportunity to ask, "What about the Cui family?"
Empress Dowager Cining's face turned cold, "There is no real basis for the rumors about others, the Cui family always has it? Continue the confinement, no one is allowed to let go, including the empress, and the incompetent people around the emperor, as long as they enter the Cui family. People are not allowed to let them out.”
"Comply with the purpose." Shen Mingzhi was relieved after receiving a clear answer from the Queen Mother.