Xue Xiang died a few days ago. He didn't even have the strength to get up and sit in a wheelchair, so he could only lie down on the bed.
Old Xue had four sons, and now that he was seriously ill, he naturally came to the bedside to take care of him. However, only the youngest, Xue Xuan, was at the bedside, and the other three who were officials outside may not have received the news yet.
Xue Xiang's eyelids moved slightly and he slowly opened his eyes. Hearing a wailing cry, he lowered his eyes and saw that it was Xue Xuan. He couldn't help but continue to exert his strength and said with all his strength, "Shut up! Crying makes me upset."
."
"Dad! Are you awake?" Xue Xuan's face was filled with surprise when he saw his father open his eyes.
"Shut up!"
"Yes, yes, yes, kid, shut up, shut up." Don't say it was his father who told him to shut up. As long as his father gets better, he can remain mute for the rest of his life.
Xue Xiang ignored the son in front of him, raised his eyes to look at Han Du, and said feebly, "Han Du."
"The boy is here." Han Du stepped forward quickly and held Xue Xiang's withered hand in his hands. The originally broad palm could not feel any weight in Han Du's hand, let alone the slightest strength. Just like Han Du
What Du was holding was not a living hand, but a piece of dead flesh.
"I'm going to die. You have to pick me up in the academy, or pick me up if you don't." Although Xue Xiang spoke clearly, it was as if only his lips and eyes could move. Even his breathing was so weak that no one could notice it.
arrive.
Han Du nodded heavily, "Don't worry, sir, the academy cannot be defeated in my hands."
Seeing that Han Du finally took over the academy in person, Xue Xiang immediately showed relief. Then his eyes began to become cloudy and his eyelids slowly closed.
Han Du felt that Xue Xiang's hands were getting colder and colder, and his heart moved. He stood up and motioned to the imperial doctor on the side to come forward.
The imperial doctor stepped forward and took a pulse on Xue Xiang's wrist and neck, and then used his fingers to check his nose. He stood up, shook his head at Han Du, and said in a low voice, "Master, the old Ministry of Works has gone!"
"Father" Xue Xuan was so sad when he heard this, he immediately knelt down and cried bitterly on Xue Xiang's body.
Han Du sighed and shook his head, "Send someone into the palace immediately and inform the emperor."
Generally speaking, only if an important official of the imperial court dies due to illness, the emperor will be specifically reported.
Xue Xiang has retired and returned to his hometown, and is no longer considered a member of the imperial court. However, he has guarded the academy for many years and has great prestige and is admired by people all over the world. Han Du's move is not wrong.
When Zhu Biao heard the news, he immediately put down his government affairs and rushed to the academy as soon as possible. Not only him, but also the queen Han Jingyun came.
When she was in the academy, Xue Xiang did not
She discriminated against her because she was a woman, but instead valued her more and helped her answer her questions and point out problems many times.
Therefore, Han Jingyun respects Xue Xiang very much, just like an elder who treats her well.
Zhu Biao came, took one last look at Xue Xiang, and then comforted Xue Xuan with a few words. Then he ordered, "Order the Ministry of Rites, choose a beautiful posthumous title, and give him a rich burial with excellent regulations."
Zhu Biao didn't think about Xue Xiang's posthumous name at the moment, so he simply gave it to the Ministry of Rites. Anyway, the Ministry of Rites had to ask for his approval in the end. If he was not satisfied with the decision of the Ministry of Rites, he could accept it at any time.
"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty." Xue Xiang had no way to thank him, so he had to pay his father's debt to his son. Xue Xuan quickly thanked him on his father's behalf.
Xue Xiang had just passed away. According to the people of Ming Dynasty, it was impossible to move at this time. If you want to move, you have to wait at least seven days.
Han Du directly ordered someone to build a mourning hall in the academy, allowing Xue Xiang to stay here temporarily, and then move back to Xue Mansion after seven days.
During these seven days, the academy students spontaneously came to see him one by one, wearing silk clothes.
When seven days passed, Han Du personally carried the coffin and sent Xue Xiang home.
The Ministry of Rites also determined Xue Xiang's posthumous title, Wenzhong.
Zhu Biao was satisfied with this posthumous title, so he had no objection and directly issued an order to give Xue Xiang the posthumous title Wenzhong.
From then on, Xue Xiang could be officially called Xue Wenzhonggong.
Although Xue Xiang cannot be like Lao Zhu, he can remain inactive for seven or forty-nine days. But as Xue Wenzhonggong, he can remain inactive for twenty-one days.
In the past, Han Du didn't understand why he had to stay for so many days. But after arriving in the Ming Dynasty, he realized that this was not only a requirement of etiquette, but also a limitation of the inconvenient transportation in this era. Take the Xue family as an example, Xue Xiang's eldest son and second son are all away from home.
Officer, even though they had sent someone to notify them when Xue Xiang was lying in bed, it would still take them a month to get back. In this time, they could only catch up with Xue Xiang for the last time.
.
Han Du had been busy with Xue Xiang's posthumous affairs from beginning to end. He saw Xue Xiang's eldest son Xue Kai and second son Xue Neng. Seeing that the two were in great grief, Han Du couldn't help but stepped forward, patted their shoulders and said, "You guys
Don’t worry, I will find an official position for you in Beijing after three years of Ding You. From now on, you can stay in Beijing and reunite as a family."
When your parents die, as a son, no matter how big an official you are,
, all have to go home to Dingyou for three years. This is an iron rule in the Ming Dynasty. Unless the emperor orders to seize love, no one can make an exception.
Xue Kai is a counselor from the fourth rank, while Xue Neng is only from the sixth rank. With Han Du's current status, it is completely effortless for them to find a position in the capital. But Han Du has been back for so long, Xue Xiang
But not even a word was mentioned.
Han Du didn't know why Xue Xiang didn't speak to him, but now that Xue Xiang had passed away, it was appropriate to take care of his two sons.
Xue Kai is older than Han Du, and is over 50 years old this year. Faced with the death of his father, although he knew that life, old age, illness and death are inevitable, he could not help but feel sad and his eyes became red from crying.
Bowing to Han Du, "Thank you very much for the kindness of Duke Zhen Guo. However, my father once said that once he dies, we two brothers will take this opportunity to resign. Ding You, the two brothers, thanked Duke Zhen Guo for his kindness."
I can only live up to it."
"I want you to resign?" Han Du glanced at Xue Xiang's coffin in surprise, wondering what the old man was thinking.
An ordinary person would wish that his descendants could be princes for generations to come, but Xue Xiang just wanted his two sons to resign.
However, considering that Xue Xiang was unwilling to talk to him about moving his two sons to the capital to serve as officials, maybe Xue Xiang was not optimistic about his two sons becoming officials.
"Okay." Now that Xue Xiang had made arrangements, Han Du couldn't rush in and make changes, so he could only nod to the two of them and said, "No matter what happens to you in the future, you can come to me. Don't be too strong as a person.
Don't be too proud of yourself, it will be difficult to live a comfortable life. Your father has been strong and good-looking all his life, do you think he lives a comfortable life?"
There were some things that Han Du couldn't say clearly. But he was worried that because of their good reputation, they would not come to him for help when encountering difficulties, so he had to mention it in a vague way.
Xue Kai and Xue Neng fell silent immediately. Although they respected their father very much, but if they wanted to say that his father was happy, they secretly shook their heads.
Knowing that Han Du's words were sincere, Xue Kai quickly replied gratefully, "Thank you, Lord Marquis. If I have any difficulties, I will definitely come to ask for help from Lord Marquis."
"Don't have any scruples, these are all things that should be done." Han Du encouraged the two of them again before leaving the matter of Xue Xiang's funeral to them.
On the day when Xue Xiang was laid to rest, Fang Xiaoru and Wang Yuanji, as well as officials and students from the academy, all came to see him off. Countless people came to see him off in person, wearing silk clothes and kneeling down. The crowd stretched for miles.
<
br> In this year, in addition to the death of Xue Xiang, two other people died of illness. One was Emperor Shun of Yuan Dynasty, now the respectful king Tuogu Si Timur; the other was the former king of Goryeo and now King Yongle
.
However, the death of these two people did not cause any waves in the capital. After receiving the news, Zhu Biao breathed a sigh of relief. After instructing the Ministry of Rites to bury them according to the regulations, he ignored them.
However, Han Du went to the palace to see Zhu Biao and suggested that the Ming Dynasty take this opportunity to obtain the two men's credentials to merge the grassland and Korea into the Ming Dynasty.
This is the best time. Although the two people died, it does not prevent Ming Dynasty from producing the certificate of credence. As long as the jade seals of the two people are stamped, and the two people die again, the only right to interpret the authenticity of the certificate of credence is
On the Ming side, not all of the credentials are genuine.
Zhu Biao instantly understood the importance of this matter. It can be said that both of them were the last kings of Beiyuan and Goryeo. If the grasslands and Goryeo were included in the Ming Dynasty in their names, then the Ming Dynasty would get the most important rightful name.
.
No matter how we divide and rule the grasslands and Goryeo in the future, we have the most fundamental basis to rely on.
But after all, this matter was a bit disgraceful. Zhu Biao had always been kind, so he was a little hesitant.
Han Du didn't care about that and led people directly into Prince Gongshun's palace and asked Tianbaonu to hand over the seal of Togu Si Timur. Tianbaonu did not dare to resist at all and handed the things to Han Du obediently.
Han Du took the seal and asked someone to make a certificate of credence with the ancient Timur handwriting overnight, and asked Tianbaonu to personally deliver it to Zhu Biao.
Seeing Tianbaonu tremblingly present the letter of credence and saying that it was written by his father himself, Zhu Biao knew that Han Du had handled the matter perfectly.
So, with a secret sigh, Zhu Biao accepted the last certificate of credence of the Northern Yuan Dynasty, and asked Tianbaonu to succeed King Gong, and increased his salary by 5,000 dan, granted 10,000 taels of gold, 1,000 pieces of silk, and various other rare things.
There are countless treasures.
Tianbaonu was overjoyed when he heard this, and the fearful look on his face disappeared in an instant. He quickly knelt down to Zhu Biao and said, "Tianbaonu thanks the emperor for his kindness. Long live my emperor, long live him~"
If he had known that a letter of credence could bring so many benefits, Tianbaonu himself would have asked his father to write the letter of credence in his own hand. How could Han Du be kept busy for so long?
Later, when the King of Korea was seriously ill, he did not need to be reminded by his son. The King of Korea wrote the certifying document that included Korea as a member of the Ming Dynasty, and sent his son to the palace. After his death, Zhu Biao also asked him to
The son inherited the title of King Yongle and received no shortage of rewards.