The snow was falling heavier and heavier, and the snow was knee-deep in places where few people walked.
When Deng Ying returned to the Neidong Factory, the Imperial Household Department had already ordered people to deliver the mourning clothes.
Deng Ying lit a candle and sat behind the desk to relax for a while before taking off her shoes and bending down to roll up her trouser legs.
Deng Ying endured the pain as her ankles were so frozen that she could hardly touch them. She was about to move the charcoal fire to her feet when she heard Yi Lang's voice coming from the door.
"Factory official."
Deng Ying was startled, and looked up to see Yi Lang standing in front of the door, his face red from the cold and his whole body trembling.
He was in a hurry to add more charcoal to the charcoal basin, but then he remembered that he had not yet performed the grand ceremony. He did not know what to do for a moment and became embarrassed.
"Stand there and perform your greetings. I will go and add more charcoal."
Yang Wan's voice came from behind Yi Lang. She walked in, rubbing her hands, and as she spoke she closed the door and turned to the charcoal basket.
Deng Ying then knelt down to pay his respects, without even putting on his shoes, and the old wound on his ankle was visible outside his mourning gown.
Yi Lang looked at Deng Ying's injury and asked Yang Wan, "Why can't the factory official's foot injury heal?"
Yang Wan picked up the charcoal basket and said, "Because the factory official has always been disobedient."
Deng Ying hurriedly responded, "Your Highness, please forgive me. I was disrespectful."
Yi Lang shook his head. "I came here rashly. The factory official is not at fault. Get up."
Deng Ying stood up.
Yang Wan moved the charcoal basin to his feet and whispered, "Let me take a look to see if you are frostbitten and swollen again."
Deng Ying said, "Your Highness is here."
Yang Wan smiled and said, "Okay, then you put on your shoes."
After that, he said to Yi Lang, "Your Highness, come here and warm your hands."
Yi Lang obediently squatted beside the brazier and warmed himself with Yang Wan.
Deng Ying then bent down to put on her shoes, lowered her head and asked Yang Wan, "Why did you bring His Highness here?"
Yang Wan looked at the fire and said, "I didn't bring His Highness here. His Highness wanted to come see you on his own."
Deng Ying turned sideways when she heard this, "Your Highness, do you have anything to ask me?"
Yi Lang clenched his hand but said nothing.
Yang Wan tilted her head and said, "What's wrong? Why are you coming here without saying anything?"
"I was wondering... whether I should ask."
Yang Wan was about to speak when she heard Deng Ying say, "Your Highness, please ask. I am listening."
Yi Lang nodded, stood up and said, "Factory Minister, I want to know what will happen to the loser of the party struggle?"
"Death with disgrace."
Yi Lang raised his head and asked, "Will Elder Bai and my uncle do the same?"
Deng Ying nodded, "Yes."
Yi Lang lowered his eyes. "I am still young and don't know how to take responsibility for the people of the world, but before I grow up, I can't let my people die because of me. Minister, if the emperor appoints my second brother as the heir, please tell the elders and uncle that I am willing to leave the capital. Protecting peace in one place is also protecting the country, and I will not let them down."
After hearing this, Deng Ying knelt down and kowtowed to Yi Lang.
Yi Lang looked down at him and said:
"Why is the factory official like this?"
Deng Ying stood up and asked, "Your Highness, are you a loyal subject?"
He changed his address to "minister" which was a humble one, and Yang Wan was stunned.
She looked up at Deng Ying. His hands were pressed on the ground with his knuckles slightly bent. He did not lower his head in front of Yi Lang as he did before. Instead, he looked at him calmly.
Yang Wan knew that Deng Ying, who was castrated when he was only 20 years old, had never forced his identity in his life. The word "minister" that he inadvertently mentioned was the biggest delusion in his subconscious mind. When Yang Wan heard this word, she suddenly understood why he ended up on the execution platform of Lingchi in history.
Make a vow with writing and keep it throughout your life.
He certainly didn't want to live as a slave. Perhaps it was the oppression of various forces that pushed him down, but it was he who took the step forward.
Yang Wan thought about it, feeling both sadness and warmth in her heart.
She found that she did not try to hold him back and stop him from going up. On the contrary, she began to calmly accept the historical inevitability of Deng Ying. However, this did not mean that she had to compromise with this era.
As a historian who traveled through time and space, she experienced separation, struggle, and integration... Yang Wan was fortunate that she respected Deng Ying's life and did not give up Yang Wan's life.
"I believe in the factory minister."
Yi Lang nodded in response to Deng Ying.
Yang Wan rested her chin on her hand and smiled as she added, "I believe you, too."
After saying that, he gathered Yi Lang's fur coat and said, "Your Highness, do you feel better after meeting the factory minister?"
"Um."
"Then I will go back with you."
"good."
Yang Wan stood up with Yi Lang by her hand and said to Deng Ying, "Deng Ying, fight for them. Don't worry about the consequences. I will take care of your life, no matter how long it will be."
***
The fifth day of the eleventh month of the fourth year of Zhenning.
Inside and outside the capital, bells were struck 30,000 times in temples and monasteries. Civil and military officials in the capital, as well as women of the third rank and above, all entered the palace through the Xihua Gate and cried at the Sishan Gate.
Overnight, the whole world was in mourning.
Outside the main hall of the Imperial Household Department, the cabinet ministers, the six ministers, and the left and right inspectors of the Inspectorate were all standing outside the main hall. Except for Yang Lun, they were all shivering from the cold. Minister of Rites Jiang Peng said, "The second son of the emperor and the queen are attending the small funeral ceremony. The edict should be clear about the appointment of the crown prince."
No one responded to his words.
Jiang Peng looked around and felt a little embarrassed. He put his hands back into his sleeves and shrank his neck even more.
Yang Lun patted the snow off his shoulders and looked up at the door of the Imperial Household Department. A eunuch came out of the door and saluted the ministers. "Please come in, my lords. The ancestors are already seated."
Yang Lun lifted his robe and stepped into the hall, and the others hurriedly followed.
The inner hall of the Imperial Household Department was as warm as spring. He Yixian used a silver hammer to knock open a piece of old diamond tea, crushed it with a handkerchief, and handed it to Hu Xiang, "Go and make some."
After saying this, he stood up and greeted the ministers. "The edict has been placed on the incense table. Please obey it, my lords."
The Zhenning Emperor's will only has a few hundred words, which is quite brief. The first half of the will arranges his affairs after his death. The words show his sorrow for the people and the simplicity of funeral rites. The second half decides to appoint the second son Zhu Yijue as the heir to the throne.
After the Minister of Rites finished reciting, no one in the cabinet spoke.
He Yixian coughed and said in a loud voice: "Please obey my order, my lords."
Bai Yuyang said: "This will was written by Your Majesty when he was ill. It was written to consult the cabinet. We still need to consider the wording of the will, so it will be postponed for now."
He Yixian looked at Yang Lun and said, "Is this the intention of the cabinet or the Prime Minister?"
Yang Lun responded: "This is not anyone's intention, it is the rules of the imperial edict."
He Yixian nodded, "Since it is the rule, we, the Imperial Household Department, have no objection. However, how can we hold a grand ceremony in the inner court? The late emperor is about to be buried, and if the will is not issued, who will lead the sacrifice?"
Yang Lun said: "Before the funeral, the cabinet will present the agreed edict to the queen again."
He Yixian tapped the tea hammer in her hand gently, "In this case, I will report the cabinet's intentions to Queen Ming."
After saying this, the tea was served.
However, none of the ministers was willing to drink the tea from the Imperial Household Department.
Yang Lun and Bai Yuyang walked out of the Imperial Household Department together. Bai Yuyang said, "I understand what you mean. You didn't reject the document right away, but this won't last long."
Yang Lun turned around and said, "I understand, but let's delay the execution of the will first, so as not to end up in this dead end."
Bai Yuyang asked, "How about the funeral after seven days?"
Yang Lun said: "During these few days, the cabinet will draft a new edict on behalf of the late emperor, and appoint the eldest son as the heir."
Bai Yuyang was stunned, "What's the meaning of this?"
Qi Huaiyang said from behind Yang Lun: "Are you going to force the Queen to recognize the edict from our cabinet and discard the one from the Imperial Household Department? That's easier said than done, unless we can prove that this edict was not written by His Majesty."
Yang Lun said: "We can't confirm it. When His Majesty was dying, only the people from the Imperial Household Department were by his side."
Qi Huaiyang said: "Then what are our chances of winning?"
Yang Lun asked: "Do you have any other feasible methods?"
Bai Qi and the other man said nothing.
Yang Lun exhaled, "Since there is none, then this method will work. But once the writing begins, the cabinet must be united in this regard, otherwise there will be no chance of success."
Qi Huaiyang sighed, turned around and looked in the direction of the Yangxin Palace, and said softly: "Your Majesty does not trust me, does not trust my son, and only trusts me. These mistakes cannot be written in the will. What else can be written?"
Yang Lun listened to his words and looked towards the Hall of Mental Cultivation. The smoke from the sacrifice could not condense in the snow and wind, but was carried very far away. Even here, he could smell the scent of precious sandalwood.
The entire funeral ceremony was extremely extravagant and extravagant, contrary to the simple language of the will.
Yang Lun retracted his gaze, swung his sleeves and walked forward, "Let's go."
Qi Huaiyang said: "Why are you walking so fast?"
"It's stuffy."
**
In the Silijian duty room opposite the Yangxin Gate, Li Bingbi finally stepped down from the coffin.
He rubbed his neck and walked into the room. He saw a bowl of hot pickled meat on the table. He couldn't help but smile, guessing that it was his godson, Li Yu, who had come. So he washed his face with cold water and was about to sit down to eat when Hu Xiang followed him in and said, "You're back early. The old ancestor asked you to follow the emperor's second son."
Li Bingbi stood up and asked, "Is the second prince of the emperor still attending the funeral today?"
"Even if you are not at the funeral, you still have to serve by its side."
He closed the door and said, "The cabinet refused to obey the imperial edict today, and this has caused uncertainty. The old ancestor is a cautious person. At this time, we need to know the situation of the Queen and the Second Prince."
Li Bingbi said: "I always feel that we shouldn't have written that fake edict..."
"Ouch!"
Hu Xiang interrupted him, "Our ancestors have said it again and again. This is a fake edict. That is the edict written by His Majesty himself, which established the second son Zhu Yilang as the emperor. We raised him up. How could he treat us badly in the future? You have understood this all your life, so don't let it get you down."
Li Bingbi said hurriedly: "Yes... Yes, I know..."
Just as he finished speaking, there was a sudden "pop" sound from behind the suitcase in front of the door, and Hu Xiang almost jumped up.
"who!"
Li Yu stood up from behind the suitcase tremblingly and looked at Li Bingbi in surprise.
“It’s fatal!”
Hu Xiang shouted, and stepped forward to twist Li Yu's arm. Li Bingbi quickly grabbed Hu Xiang's collar from behind, causing Hu Xiang to trip and shout outside, "Someone come! Is there anyone outside?"
Li Yu was a little frightened and looked at Li Bingbi in fear, "Godfather, I..."
"run… "
Li Bingbi uttered a word.
"What… "
"What are you standing there for? Run!"