Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 302 Apocalypse's Counterattack

Wei Zhongxian was very angry because of the rumors, and only calmed down after Cui Chengxiu's repeated persuasion.

He asked Cui Chengxiu who in the Donglin Party spread the rumor. Cui Chengxiu told Wei Zhongxian that the specific person who fabricated the rumor could not be verified, but the rumor was first spread by people around him, such as Yang Lian and Zuo Guangdou. This shows that Yang Lian and Zuo Guangdou are the most suspicious.

When he heard the names of these people, Wei Zhongxian was so angry that he gritted his teeth and cursed.

At this time, Cui Chengxiu reminded Wei Zhongxian that the rumors had not yet spread to the palace and the emperor did not know about this matter. The most important thing for Wei Zhongxian right now was to find Emperor Tianqi and explain the matter clearly, so as to avoid being passive after the rumors spread.

Wei Zhongxian was stunned for a moment, then he suddenly realized it and nodded repeatedly to show that it made sense. How could he sit still? He immediately asked Cui Chengxiu to continue to investigate the rumors, while Wei Zhongxian himself hurriedly left the mansion and rushed back to the palace.

After returning to the palace, Wei Zhongxian first went to find Keshi, and then the two of them went to see Emperor Tianqi together.

At this time, Emperor Tianqi had already met the prince from Concubine Fan's place and accompanied Concubine Fan for dinner before returning to the Qianqing Palace. He now had some free time to tinker with his beloved carpentry toys.

Wei Zhongxian and Ke Shi suddenly asked for an audience. The Emperor Tianqi was curious about why they came so late, but he let them in without paying any attention. Unexpectedly, Wei Zhongxian knelt down and cried loudly when he saw the Emperor Tianqi. Ke Shi, the Emperor Tianqi's wet nurse, also cried like rain, looking very aggrieved.

Seeing them like this, Emperor Tianqi was surprised and asked what happened. But Wei Zhongxian and Keshi didn't say anything, just cried and said sorry to the emperor. Wei Zhongxian wanted to die to apologize, and Keshi said she wanted to leave the palace and return to her hometown to live out her life. These words made Emperor Tianqi not know what to do.

After persuading Keshi with kind words, he glared at Wei Zhongxian and asked him to explain clearly, "Why didn't you do it during the day? Why did it become like this in just a few hours? One of them was his best friend, and the other was his wet nurse. They were both his closest people. Why did it have to be like this?"

After finally stopping crying, Wei Zhongxian knelt down and told Emperor Tianqi about the rumors about the Donglin Party. After that, Wei Zhongxian swore to heaven that he had never thought of murdering the empress and the prince. Moreover, because the empress Zhang Yan had always looked down on Wei Zhongxian, Wei Zhongxian always avoided the empress. Even when he met the empress a few times, it was always when he accompanied Emperor Tianqi.

As for Keshi, she felt even more aggrieved. She cried and told Emperor Tianqi that she was just a woman. Because the emperor was loyal and righteous, he kept her in the palace to support her and gave her the title of madam. She just lived in the palace on weekdays and never asked about state affairs. As for the emperor's empress and concubines, he rarely saw them, and even when he saw Keshi, he was polite to her.

Now the Donglin Party had actually falsely accused her of secretly colluding with Wei Zhongxian to murder the empress and the prince. She felt extremely wronged. The Donglin Party had thrown such dirty water on a woman like her, which was simply abominable. This could not help but make Keshi feel scared. It had only been a few years since the palace relocation case, and the precedent of Li Xianshi was still there. The Donglin Party had used all kinds of vicious tricks to drive Li Xianshi away. Didn't even Li Xianshi, the adoptive mother of Emperor Tianqi, have the power to resist in the end?
Now the Donglin Party has turned its attention to her. Compared with Li Xianshi, she is only a wet nurse, how can she be a match for the Donglin Party? If she continues to stay in the palace, she may end up worse than Li Xianshi. In order to survive, Ke Shi begs Emperor Tianqi to let her go back to her hometown because she has fed him milk, maybe she can live out her life.

The words of Wei Zhongxian and Ke Shi shocked the Emperor Tianqi, who had never expected such rumors to spread. He was so angry that he clenched his fists and kicked over an unfinished wooden object.

"Rebellion! Rebellion! They framed me and the queen like this, and treated the people around me like this. Great! What a Donglin Party! What a Donglin Party!"

"Your Majesty, I beg Your Majesty to allow me to have an intact body in view of my loyalty to you, so as to quell the rumors." Wei Zhongxian kowtowed so hard that his forehead began to bleed. The bright red blood flowed down his broken scalp and mixed with his tears.

On the side, Ke Shi also cried and begged Emperor Tianqi to let her return home to save her life.

Looking at their miserable appearances, Emperor Tianqi felt extremely uncomfortable. He suppressed his anger and helped Keshi up first. Then he asked Wei Zhongxian to stop kowtowing and stand up to talk.

Although Empress Zhang Yan gave birth to a stillborn baby, this made Emperor Tianqi sad, but he never thought that it was done by Wei Zhongxian and Keshi. Emperor Tianqi was not stupid. Although Wei Zhongxian had conflicts with the Empress, the Empress was the master and Wei Zhongxian was a servant. How could a servant go against the master? It was even more impossible for him to have such a big courage to reach out to the Empress.

Besides, Empress Zhang Yan never said such a thing. Wei Zhongxian was very busy on weekdays. Not only did he have to deal with the affairs of the Imperial Household Department and the Eastern Depot, but he also had to deal with the trivial matters of local taxes and trade. He was busy every day.

Even when he had some free time, Wei Zhongxian was always by his side. How could he possibly go to the harem and harm the empress? Was he just a decoration? Was he a fool?
Not to mention Keshi, she was his wet nurse, always loved him, and Emperor Tianqi treated her as his elder. The empress was the emperor's wife and the master of the six palaces. How could Keshi not understand these rules after so many years in the palace? It was even more impossible for her to do such a thing in defiance of the world.

As for the fear that he might threaten Wei Zhongxian's position if he had a prince, it was nonsense. How could a prince threaten the position of a eunuch? Moreover, Concubine Fan and the Empress were pregnant at about the same time, and the birth dates were only ten days apart. If Wei Zhongxian and Ke Shi wanted to take action against his prince, why was the prince born by Concubine Fan fine? What's more, what good would it do for them to do so?
Emperor Tianqi himself did not expect that the Donglin Party would spread such rumors. On the surface, they seemed to be targeting Wei Zhongxian and Keshi, but in fact, they were targeting himself. If the people of the world believed this, wouldn't he become a tyrant? And his queen would be worse than a eunuch in the harem? Would she become a decoration to be bullied by others?
The Ming Dynasty had been founded for more than 200 years, and such a thing had never happened. When thinking of what Keshi had just mentioned about Li Xianshi, Emperor Tianqi was even more furious. In an instant, his mind flashed back to the time when Li Xianshi took him to hide in the Qianqing Palace and trembled. He was terrified when facing the Donglin Party members who rushed in, and Yang Lian took him away from his adoptive mother's arms and ran away on his shoulders. Emperor Tianqi closed his eyes in pain. At that time, Emperor Tianqi was still a prince, and he was only fifteen years old. His father died suddenly. He and Li Xianshi were orphans and widows with no strong support outside and no support inside, and could only be manipulated by the Donglin Party members. In the end, such a palace relocation case was made. Under the coercion of the Donglin Party members, Emperor Tianqi had no choice but to issue an order to protect himself and admitted against his will that Li Xianshi was the murderer of his biological mother, and drove his adoptive mother out of the Qianqing Palace according to the Donglin Party's wishes.

This matter has always been a thorn in the heart of Emperor Tianqi. Although three years have passed, he can never forget it.

The current Li Xianshi has long moved to the harem and has lost her former glory. Moreover, because of the Donglin Party, Emperor Tianqi did not give Li Xianshi the title and harem rights she deserved. Apart from asking Wei Zhongxian to take good care of Li Xianshi and give her preferential treatment in life, almost no one remembered this person anymore.

But in the heart of Emperor Tianqi, he had feelings for Li Xianshi after all. As a son, he naturally understood how the charge of murdering his biological mother came about. Moreover, Emperor Taichang chose Li Xianshi as his adoptive mother when he was the crown prince. Emperor Tianqi lived with Li Xianshi for quite a while, and the relationship between the two had always been good.

As an emperor, Tianqi had always felt guilty for mistreating his biological mother and his father's favorite concubine. And now the Donglin Party spread such rumors again, which was a crime worthy of death. Thinking of this, the anger in the heart of Emperor Tianqi was burning, and his hatred for the Donglin Party reached its peak. If it were not for the rational suppression, Emperor Tianqi would have even deliberately ordered the East Factory and the Jinyiwei to arrest all those who slandered and spread rumors and put them in jail.

Taking a deep breath and trying to calm himself, Emperor Tianqi comforted Keshi with a few words after calming down, telling her not to think too much, let alone leave the palace and return home. As long as he was around, Keshi was his elder, and it was legitimate for a junior to support her in the palace.

Someone was asked to help Ke Shi back first. After Ke Shi left, Emperor Tianqi walked slowly in the hall. Under the light of the candles, his shadow was very long.

After a long time, Emperor Tianqi stopped and turned to look at Wei Zhongxian who was standing beside him. When he saw Wei Zhongxian's bloody and disheveled appearance, Emperor Tianqi felt even worse.

"Wei Banban!"

"The slave is here!"

"Pass on my decree. All the maids in the Queen's palace will be sent to the laundry bureau to work. Select some trustworthy people to serve the Queen."

"I obey your order." Wei Zhongxian was overjoyed. Finally, his work was not in vain. The Emperor Tianqi's meaning was very clear. Although the rumors were spread by the Donglin Party, there might be Donglin Party spies in the harem of the queen. Otherwise, how could the Donglin Party members, as foreign officials, know the situation in the queen's palace? How could they describe some details so vividly?

Now that Emperor Tianqi asked him to replace all the people in the harem, it meant that Emperor Tianqi had also noticed this and was cleaning up the harem to prevent similar rumors from spreading. Throughout the dynasties, spying on the palace was a serious crime, so what Emperor Tianqi did was considered merciful.

"Your Majesty, do you want me to investigate it carefully?" Wei Zhongxian asked.

Emperor Tianqi thought about it and nodded: "It's good to check it out. You can do it."

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Wei Zhongxian was delighted. This way he could take action in the Queen's palace. Thinking of Queen Zhang's attitude towards him before, he could take this opportunity to take revenge and vent his anger.

But Wei Zhongxian was planning to do so when the Emperor Tianqi warned him not to have any idea of ​​taking advantage of the Queen. Since there was such a rumor, he should be more cautious to avoid being criticized. Wei Zhongxian was shocked when he heard it and nodded in agreement, suppressing the idea that had just come up.

Emperor Tianqi said calmly, "Issue an edict. There is no evidence that the previous emperor's concubine Li was guilty. All previous charges should be removed. Concubine Li is honored as Concubine Kang. She will be worshipped according to the rules and moved from the Erluan Palace to the Changchun Palace..."

Emperor Tianqi paused for a moment and continued, "The Imperial Censor Jia Jichun will be reinstated, and given 100 taels of silver and the fourth-class clothing... That's it."

"Long live the emperor! Long, long live the emperor!"

(End of this chapter)