RPAGF Chapter 440 Unless the Empress is buried alive with the Emperor
Chapter 440 Unless the Empress is buried alive with the Emperor
Feng Ziheng knelt and shook his head: "Your Majesty, I have absolutely no such intention."
"You didn't mean that, yet you want me to forbid a member of the imperial clan from being chosen as the heir apparent. What do you mean by that?"
Feng Ziheng lowered his head and did not reply.
There's no way to answer that. If the emperor doesn't appoint someone else as his heir, he has to choose one of his three sons. One of his sons has been demoted to a commoner, and the other dared to try to assassinate him. How could he possibly appoint such sons as crown prince?
As for the Wise King, that's even less likely. He has ulterior motives, and if he were to ascend the throne, he would only cause turmoil and instability in the Zhou Dynasty.
But establishing an heir would only cause more trouble.
When the emperor saw that he did not answer, he became even angrier and grabbed a teacup from the side table and smashed it over the emperor's head.
"I need you to solve problems, not to raise them. Otherwise, what use are you to me? You useless thing, get out!"
Feng Ziheng did not dodge and took the blow head-on. His forehead was broken and blood gushed out. His face turned pale, but he endured the pain without crying out.
Seeing this, Kuang Tiansong was afraid that the emperor would be even more angry and hurt, so he quickly crawled forward on his knees and stood in front of Feng Ziheng, saying, "Your Majesty, I believe that there is nothing wrong with supporting the young emperor to ascend the throne. However, in order to prevent the empress dowager from seizing power in the future, Your Majesty should appoint a regent to assist the young emperor."
Seeing that the Emperor's expression had softened slightly, he turned back to look at Feng Ziheng and said in a low voice.
“Your Highness, His Majesty is unwell. Why are you so stubborn? Choosing a member of the imperial clan to be adopted as the heir is the most appropriate method. His Majesty’s considerations are all for the sake of the country and its people.”
Feng Ziheng shook his head: "I think this is inappropriate."
Kuang Tiansong's expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly said loudly, "There is nothing wrong with it. His Majesty will appoint a regent and will never allow the Empress Dowager to seize power. The Crown Prince need not worry."
Feng Ziheng straightened his back and asked the Emperor, "Your Majesty, do you want the events of that year to repeat themselves?"
When the late emperor was seriously ill, the crown prince acted as regent, but he was too young, and the empress controlled the court. Later, the late emperor passed away, and the crown prince ascended the throne as emperor, having grown up.
The Empress became the Empress Dowager, but she did not relinquish power to the Emperor. Power and desire drove her to oppose him. The bloody power struggles in the court and the palace subjected the Emperor to countless trials before he was forced to retire to the inner palace and cease interfering in court affairs.
The Emperor looked at Feng Ziheng and sneered, "Feng Ziheng, the Empress Dowager is your own aunt!"
Feng Ziheng bowed and kowtowed: "Your Majesty, I am a subject of the Great Zhou, a courtier of the Great Zhou. I should prioritize the affairs of the state. Regardless of who was right or wrong in what happened back then, the court will be unstable for several years. With the court unstable, the Great Zhou will face constant internal troubles and even more serious external threats, causing suffering to the people, especially those on the border!"
Kuang Tiansong felt a headache coming on. How could this colleague be so stubborn?
He turned around and yelled, "Feng Ziheng, are you crazy? Do you only feel satisfied when His Majesty is angry? Don't you even know what time it is?!"
Feng Ziheng kowtowed again: "Your Majesty, after careful consideration, I believe that the three Princes are indeed unfit for great responsibilities, and the most appropriate method is for a member of the royal family to adopt a son. However, since a young son is to be adopted, I request Your Majesty to issue an edict that on the day Your Majesty passes away, Your Majesty should be buried with the Empress!"
"you you you you……"
The Emperor pointed at Feng Ziheng, almost unable to catch his breath, and kept coughing.
Kuang Tiansong, disregarding the need for respect, got up to pat the Emperor's back and asked Eunuch Wu to pour him more tea.
After kowtowing, Feng Ziheng said in a firm tone, "Your Majesty, please issue a decree that if Your Majesty passes away before your heir has come of age, the Empress shall be buried with Your Majesty."
The doors of the Qin Zheng Hall were pushed open, and the younger sister walked in and said loudly, "Can the Crown Prince guarantee that if I were to be buried alive with him in the future, the court will not be thrown into chaos?"
Feng Ziheng was taken aback. He turned to look at his younger sister and frowned, saying, "Your Majesty, this is the Hall of Diligent Governance. It is improper for Your Majesty to come here."
“It is against etiquette, and I have come here many times. I have reviewed eight or nine out of ten of the memorials on the table!” The younger sister strode forward and took the teacup from Eunuch Wu’s hand, offering the Emperor tea.
"Your Majesty is unwell and should not get angry over such trivial matters. Your Majesty, I will handle everything."
She looked at Feng Ziheng again and said, "Can you guarantee that if I were to be buried alive with him, the court would be safe?"
Feng Ziheng remained silent.
The Emperor grabbed his younger sister's hand: "Wan'er, don't talk nonsense. I will not make you be buried alive with me."
The younger sister shook her head.
"Your Majesty, if my death by suicide can ensure that my young heir will safely weather the crisis, what is wrong with that?"
“Your Majesty, if you were to truly pass away, Wan’er would not wish to live on alone. The only reason Wan’er wants to persevere is because she knows that Your Majesty cannot let go of the country and its people.”
Tears welled in the Emperor's eyes as he grasped his younger sister's hand: "Wan'er, it is I who have failed you."
The younger sister shook her head: "Your Majesty, you have never let me down. I remember every little thing you have done for me."
Kuang Tiansong's eyes darted around, and after thinking carefully, he spoke.
"Your Majesty, I understand the concerns of the Crown Prince. But I have something to say."
He turned to look at Prince Feng.
“Your Highness, I believe that if the heir is too young, the court officials may become greedy and try to control the young emperor, which would be even worse. It would be better if someone in the inner palace controlled the government and a regent assisted in governing, so that the young emperor could grow up smoothly and the court could be stabilized.”
"As for the issue of the power struggle between the Emperor and the Empress Dowager that the Crown Prince mentioned, I believe that although there were some twists and turns, the turmoil was not significant. Compared to the upheavals in the court that led to the suffering of the people, that little bit of turmoil is really nothing."
Feng Ziheng remained silent for a long time before finally kowtowing and begging for forgiveness: "Your Majesty, I was shortsighted. Please punish me."
The Emperor closed his eyes and said, "Ziheng, I trust you the most, and I hope that you will not betray my trust in the future."
"Your subject will certainly not fail in his mission."
The emperor then laid out the list of heirs and asked them to decide who to choose.
"The only people I can trust are you. No matter who I choose as my heir, you must not tell anyone else. I will issue a secret decree to seal it, and it can only be opened after I leave."
Kuang Tiansong and Feng Ziheng had no objection to this, and both nodded to indicate that they would keep it a secret.
The one ultimately chosen was the youngest son of Prince Chen. Prince Chen's grandfather and the emperor's grandfather were brothers and had a very close relationship. Prince Chen also enjoyed considerable prestige among the imperial clan.
The eldest son born of the legitimate wife is the heir apparent, while there is another son born of a concubine who is not very talented. This youngest son born of the legitimate wife is the late-life son of Prince Chen and Princess Chen. He looks very much like the heir apparent when he was young, and is intelligent and talented, but is also a bit spoiled and arrogant.
He is the youngest son and does not need to inherit the title, so it is not a big deal if he plays around. However, once he is adopted as a prince and ascends the throne as a young emperor, he will have responsibilities and cannot act as recklessly as before.