People from the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Works were the first to arrive at the mausoleum, and they had already begun preparations around the beginning of the Yin period. By the time the remaining officials and concubines and family members arrived, everything had been arranged.
The saint led the ministers to the altar, with the men standing on the east side and the women standing on the west side, performing the ceremony to welcome the gods together.
The sound of drums and bells was heard from the mausoleum one after another, and the imperial soldiers guarding the foot of Ling Mountain could faintly hear the echo.
Ji Xiu personally led people to guard at the foot of the mountain. Hearing the ringing of bells, he subconsciously raised his head and looked at the sky, trying to judge the time with the sun.
However, the sky was dark and cloudy, with dense clouds that lowered the sky.
Seeing this surging situation, Ji Xiu silently tightened his grip on the long knife at his waist.
Just today.
…
In front of the mausoleum, sacrificial matters are proceeding in an orderly manner.
After Taifu Jiang finished reading the sacrificial text, elegant music began to play. Nearly two hundred dancers wearing cicada crowns and green long-sleeved shirts surrounded the altar, moving with the ritual music. The wide sleeves fluttered in the wind, drawing out lines.
A solemn and somewhat eerie arc.
Deacons in dark-bordered dark robes stand on the right side of the altar, each performing their duties: giving praises, handling bottles, holding silks, holding titles, and washing.
After welcoming the gods, it was time to prepare the meal and make the first offering - this process should have been done by the emperor himself, but because Emperor Qing Ming was in poor health, the prince was asked to do it for him.
The prince offered wine in front of the sacrificial table, and offered various fruits for food. He gently pushed each cup forward in order to express his gratitude to his cousins and ancestors.
After entering the meal, you need to kneel down and worship. From the main position, to the secondary position, and then to the subordinate positions, you need to kneel three times and bow nine times.
This is the first offering.
Halfway through the sacrificial process, Xu Mingyi stood in the corridor and glanced at the boy with gray lips and self-support, feeling unbearable in his heart.
His Royal Highness's health seems to be getting worse.
She had sent some conditioning prescriptions before, but now it seemed that they were of little use.
Or maybe he is burdened by recent events and is exhausted mentally and physically, so even the best prescriptions are useless.
Although this child is small, he is much stronger than his father.
But this sense of responsibility was a huge drag on his body.
After the whole ceremony, for two hours, the prince had to kowtow nearly two hundred times.
The wind in early spring was chilly, and the boy's too thin body was almost unsteady in the cold wind.
But the boy could always feel that there was a cold gaze that never left his body for a moment.
He had been tense, but he was almost unable to maintain the tight feeling.
Emperor Qingming, who was accompanied by an imperial physician, was sitting on a chariot chair wearing a royal robe, with a thin blanket covering his legs. His sickly and sunken eyes were cloudy and sinister.
"Burning sacrificial inscriptions, plain silk——" The voice of the person who introduced the praise was loud and long.
The prince felt relieved, it was finally done.
He did not embarrass the royal family, nor did he cause trouble to Mr. Jie and other nobles.
In front of the altar, the tongues of fire in the copper basin swallowed up the sacrificial inscriptions and silk fabrics.
This is a farewell to the gods, and with the final offering, the sacrificial process is complete.
However, at this moment, after the boy bowed to the throne, he turned to the west and knelt down.
Seeing this, the expressions of the officials around him changed slightly.
For a while, no one spoke.
After the boy finished his last salute and the person who gave the compliments was about to declare the "ceremony knot," he suddenly heard a cold laugh: "The prince kowtowed and messed up the order of things. Why didn't you, my beloved ministers, speak up to remind you? Isn't it possible?
Haven't you seen it? - When did our Daqing etiquette become so neglected and neglected?"
The prince's complexion suddenly turned a bit paler.
Did he get out of order?
Yes, it seems to be a mess...
The sacrificial etiquette is no child's play. He has practiced it repeatedly every day in the East Palace for more than ten days, but it is still...
He is so stupid!
And he once heard the Taifu say that in the previous dynasty, there was a prince who messed up the order of kneeling during ancestor worship. He was first punished to kneel in the imperial mausoleum for a day and a night, and then was fined ten years' salary and demoted to a county prince -
—
He is not afraid of being punished!
But he can't bring trouble to Jie Shoufu and the others!
Thinking of this, and meeting those eyes full of coldness and pressure, the boy was a little panicked for a moment. He knelt down quickly, took the initiative to admit his mistake and asked for punishment: "I was careless and made a big mistake. I still..."
Please punish me, Father."
At this time, in full view of the public, we must stabilize the situation. Even if he is punished, it doesn't matter, but we must not disrupt the arrangements of your Lordships these days.
He couldn't let Jie Shoufu intercede on his behalf, which would give his father an excuse to express his anger at others!
At this moment, the boy who was extremely self-blaming had only one thought in his mind.
Emperor Qingming's voice was sinister and sarcastic: "You must know that it is not I who want to punish you, but the Xie family's ancestral system that wants to punish you... The reason why you made the mistake is because you have no respect for your ancestors.
!”
Jie Shoufu's face darkened.
If you are charged with such a serious crime, the punishment will definitely not be light!
The emperor indeed has plans to deal with the prince...
Otherwise, how could he still be staring at the prince without blinking even though he was so sick?
This was done deliberately to find fault. Even if the prince had not made a mistake in order, he would certainly be able to find other shortcomings.
Although the etiquette system is majestic and unbreakable, we must also consider the actual situation - this time the prince worships his ancestors on behalf of the emperor is an unexpected event. In previous years, the prince had never even been to the ancestral mausoleum due to his weak health. How could he do this in a short period of time?
, is an extremely rare thing. What's more, the emperor's intention is not to regulate, but to use this to punish His Highness!
Thinking about the possible troublesome consequences this matter might bring, he was about to step out immediately, but was grabbed by the arm by Taifu Jiang beside him.
Jie Shoufu turned his head and saw the old man shaking his head slightly at him, indicating with his eyes that he would wait and see what would happen.
Young people, don't be too impatient.
Taifu Jiang's overly calm demeanor even reminded Jie Shoufu of the old monk who got up early to knock wooden fish.
"Yes, I realize my mistake and ask my father to punish me." The prince's figure lowered a little, his forehead touching the cold and hard stone bricks.
"Of course you deserve to be punished -" Emperor Qingming held the armrest of the car chair tightly, almost gritting his teeth and said: "Your crime is not just disrespecting the ancestors! Today, I will punish you in front of the ancestors.
The crimes of being unfaithful, unfilial, and treasonous are listed one by one!"
The prince's body froze, and the surroundings were silent but there was an undercurrent surging.
Ji Dong, who was also accompanying him, felt frightened when he heard these words.
Unfaithful, unfilial, treasonous?
By punishing the prince with such a crime, the emperor clearly... has the intention of abolishing the crown prince!
Looking at the emperor's appearance, it's clear that he doesn't have many days left to live. Why is he so troubled at the end of the day?
And His Highness the Crown Prince is obviously someone who cannot bear the torment, but in the end, both father and son are so tormented that no one is left...
Jie Shoufu couldn't listen any longer and stood up with a tense face.
But someone stepped forward faster than him——
Ming Xiaozhi came out of the queue and came to the side of Emperor Qingming. He solemnly asked for his order: "It is better for me to come down and count the various crimes on behalf of your majesty, so that your lords can judge one or two."
Emperor Qingming's energy and blood surged, and there was a cough in his throat. It was when his breathing was particularly difficult, so he said: "Okay... I will let Mingqing make his crimes known to the public on my behalf!"
Under the gaze of everyone, Mingxiao walked up the white marble steps with his back straight, came to the divine case, and stood beside the prince.
Jie Shoufu was stopped by Taifu Jiang again.
"Uncle Ming, don't be impatient..." Taifu Jiang's voice was very low, his eyes fixed on Ming Xiaozhi. His intuition based on experience told him that things may not be as simple as they appear on the surface.
Jie Shoufu frowned and looked at Ming Xiaozhi.
He wanted to see how confused this man named Ming could be——
The emperor is so sick that he has gone crazy. Is the other party also crazy?
Under the gazes of one after another, Ming Xiaozhi opened his mouth, his voice was firm and solemn, and his face was full of coldness and solemnity.
"Poisoning the king's father and colluding with powerful officials to usurp the throne are the first charges!"
When all the officials heard this, their expressions changed.
Poison your father...
The crime of regicide?!
There were not only cabinet officials present, but also other ministers. When they heard this, they couldn't help but speculate.
Jie Shoufu was so angry that he laughed instead.
Previously, he only thought that this person named Ming was a bit rigid and pedantic, and his original intention was not selfish. Otherwise, he would not be able to tolerate him until today——
But now it seems that this is obviously stupid and bad!
Looking at the other party again, his eyes were already extremely cold: "You publicly claimed that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince poisoned His Majesty, which is such a serious crime. Do you have any evidence? If you are just speculating on your own, you are framing the Crown Prince and intending to disrupt the government. He should be executed according to the law.
!”
"I am the proof!"
Emperor Qingming pointed at the prince with a slightly trembling finger: "...it was those doctors he found who changed my prescription and tampered with my medicine, which made me sick for a long time! This traitor colluded
The cabinet officials are keeping me under house arrest and want to poison me in the Yangxin Hall!"
Jie Shoufu did not give in: "Even if you are your Majesty, you must also pay attention to evidence!"
"Of course I have evidence!" Emperor Qingming looked straight at Jie Shoufu, as if he had already regarded him as a dying person: "Mr. Zheng and several others have already detected poison in my medicine.
Before today, my words could not spread out of Yangxin Palace. You controlled the government and had evil intentions...I will clean up all of you rebellious officials and traitors today!"
Hearing that poison was found in the medicine, Jie Shoufu and others all looked at Dr. Zheng with careful eyes.
"..." Dr. Zheng was extremely panicked.
Like everyone else, he himself just learned about this!
He was tested for drugs!
The other two imperial doctors also felt completely unprepared - did the emperor have a show with them in advance?
However, when I thought about it, if the emperor had to say that he was poisoned, then he would have to be guilty of this crime or not. How could they dare to make the second statement in public at this time?
If the only thing I can do seems to be silence.
At this moment, none of the imperial doctors dared to look at the boy kneeling under the divine table.
Because they knew very well that this was not the son killing his father, but the father wanting to kill his son.
The king wants his subjects to die, the father wants his sons to die...
Everyone around also understood the intention behind this crime. Since ancient times, regicide has been the most serious crime, and no other crime can surpass it.
Once confirmed, not to mention the position of crown prince, life will not be guaranteed...
"My son has never had the intention of murdering my father!" The prince raised his head, with tears in his eyes, his voice choked with sobs and a firmness rarely seen in the past.
At this time, almost no one noticed the Ming Yushi standing there, his expression unchanged, as if he had not heard these words.
He continued——
"While his brother was away at war, he murdered his pregnant brother's wife, killing one and two of them. This is the second charge!"
Everything suddenly became silent.
Puzzled, confused, and many strange and probing eyes fell on the face of the Ming Yushi.
Where is the prince's brother...
Where did the brother-in-law come from?
What kind of crazy talk is this!
"..." The first person to change his expression was Emperor Qingming. His body became stiff almost instantly, and his heart beat violently as he struggled to breathe.
He looked at Ming Xiaozhi who was standing there in disbelief. He couldn't understand what happened and why he suddenly said such a sentence!
He didn't have time to think about it!
Immediately he ordered: "Ming Qing may be a little confused today. Someone comes and takes him down to rest!"
Officials have already expressed surprise.
There are no fools here.
Especially those with more seniority, those who still have memories of what happened in Prince Yan's mansion nineteen years ago, have now come to their senses.
Jie Shoufu's expression changed several times.
Ming Xiaozhi's words continued, his neck straightened, and his voice became louder and louder.
"He has repeatedly attacked King Yan, and even used the Purple Star Sect as a cover to openly assassinate King Yan when he left the capital. This is the third crime!"
"Placing an informant in the palace of Princess Jingrong in an unsuccessful attempt to kill the princess is the fourth crime!"
"Killing my father and killing my brothers and sisters. How should we deal with these crimes?"
The Ming Yushi's eyes were like daggers, and he raised his hand to point in the direction of Emperor Qing Ming.
It was shaking everywhere, like shaking mountains and rivers.
"...It's simply ridiculous! Extremely ridiculous! I know, you...even you were bribed by the prince! You are the same as those rebellious ministers in the cabinet! You are working together!"
Emperor Ming put his hands on both sides of the car seat, his face was extremely excited, he tried to stand up and said in a trembling voice: "Are you all deaf! Take this madman out quickly! Wang Tong, where is Wang Tong?! Give it to me!
Take this person away!"
Wang Tong, who was also watching the show... No, Wang Tong, who was also shaken by this sudden turn of events, barely came back to his senses, bowed and said "yes", and immediately rushed forward with a group of security guards.
"Wait!"
On the west side of the altar, among the concubines and female members of the clan, a very clear and powerful voice suddenly sounded.
"I can testify that every statement made by the Imperial Censor is true——"
Emperor Qingming suddenly turned his head and looked at where the sound came from.
Jingrong...
It’s Jingrong!
Princess Jingrong, wearing a crimson sacrificial robe, walked out from the crowd, with her large coat trailing behind her. Her figure was straight and her steps were straight, and her face was solemn.
Everyone was shocked.
Princess Jingrong like this is not even half as innocent and silly as she used to be!
Looking at the person walking towards him, Ming Yushi's eyes were inexplicably hot.
He hasn't seen His Highness like this for a long time.
"Get them all for me!" Emperor Qingming's face was livid and his lips were trembling.
He couldn't, he couldn't let these people ruin everything for him!
Wang Tong bravely stepped forward, only to see the prince who was kneeling there slowly stood up with his palms on the ground, and then stood in front of the Ming Yushi with a white face.
