When Empress Zhang faced her brother Zhang Guojun and uncle Mao Youlun, who came to persuade her to resign, her face turned pale with anger and she could hardly breathe. She, who had always been gentle, opened her eyes wide and screamed at her brother.
Zhang Guojun sighed, "Calm down first. If you had listened to a few words of advice from me, things wouldn't have come to this. But now that you've reached this point, there's no point in regretting it."
The queen became even more angry, "What benefits did he give you?"
Zhang Guojun smiled sarcastically and said, "It's okay. I'm just thinking about you and the Ninth Prince. Now that the matter has come to this, you have to consider the Ninth Prince. Can you really bear to see the Ninth Prince being deposed at such a young age?"
For common people?"
Mao Youlun sat on the edge and remained silent. He didn't want to come, but he had to come.
Before the emperor summoned them, Ma Jixiang of Jin Yiwei came to visit them first. Ma Jixiang came to visit, and naturally there was nothing wrong with him. He carried two boxes to Zhang Guojun, which were filled with some illegal matters related to Zhang Guojun and the Zhang family in Ningbo.
Big or small, they are all handles.
If Jin Yiwei handles the matter impartially, he only needs to send these things to several major newspapers, open the lid first, and then public opinion will ferment. When the public is outraged, Jin Yiwei will then hand over the evidence to the Three Laws Division. By then, Zhang Guojun, the Zhang family, and even the Queen
There is no way to escape the relationship.
If the emperor comes and says to deal with it impartially, the Zhang family will be doomed.
The situation of Mao Youlun and the Mao family is better than that of the Zhang family, but he serves in the military, his status is sensitive, and he is the uncle of the queen. If you are trying to find fault with some matters in the family, he will naturally not be able to withstand the investigation, especially his second son.
Using the banner of his descendants, he illegally contracted and operated many mines, which caused quite a lot of problems.
His wife even killed a maid and concubine with a rod, which was also a crime of murder.
According to the law of the Ming Dynasty, if a slave is guilty, his parents and relatives, such as grandparents, will be punished with a hundred sticks. If a slave is killed without a lawsuit, he will be punished with a stick of sixty and one year, and all the people in the household will be released.
Ma Jixiang came to the house and offered kind words. He only asked the two families to self-examine and correct themselves and to restrain their children.
This leaves room.
Then the emperor summoned the two men separately and named Mao Youlun the Marquis of Shaoxing and Zhang Guojun the Marquis of Ningbo. He even selected the daughter of Mao Youlun's eldest son's family and Zhang Guojun's daughter to enter the East Palace together as the crown prince's concubine.
Prince Zhu Hongjia has been exchanging letters with Zhang Huangyan's daughter recently, and their relationship has become much closer. The marriage is basically settled.
The emperor planned to formally arrange a marriage for the prince after moving the capital. At that time, the prince would be engaged to Zhang Huangyan's daughter Zhang Jinghui. He would also be engaged to Wang Zhiren's son Wang Mingqian's daughter, Zhang Mingzhen's daughter, Zhang Guojun's daughter, Mao Youlun's granddaughter, and one concubine and four concubines.
.
This can also be regarded as Zhu Yihai's compensation to the Zhang and Mao families. He deposed Empress Xiao Zhang, but allowed the girls from the Zhang and Mao families of Empress Xiao Zhang's natal family to enter the East Palace as concubines.
This is a deal.
If Mao Youlun and Zhang Guojun had a way, of course they would not accept it, but now the situation was stronger than others, and the emperor actually did not give them any choice.
When things got to this point, there was nothing they could do, especially Zhang Guojun who was the first to compromise.
Even though this uncle of the state is usually very cool, he does not have much power. At the beginning of the uprising, he was also a follower of Long Yuanxun, but later he accepted bribes and sold his official position. As a result, he was directly stripped of his position by the emperor and kicked out of the court, leaving him as a lifelong earl.
As a wealthy uncle, even if your business is doing well, it will all be taken care of by the emperor.
Empress Zhang looked at her brother and uncle in despair. She thought they were the solid backing of her family, but unexpectedly they came to persuade her to resign due to illness.
His whole body was shaking with anger, and in the end he could only cry in despair.
Zhang Guojun said impatiently, "Okay, let's not get into trouble now. You know better than us who that person is. You yourself have no ability to protect the status of the Ninth Prince. Instead, you directly made him a slave."
I've already done this, but now the emperor is angry again, please calm down and don't let anything happen again."
Empress Zhang turned away, not wanting to pay attention to this so-called natal brother. It was her father and brother who had the full decision to marry her to King Lu who fled south, and now they persuaded her to resign. They didn't consider their own feelings at all.
, just looking out for your own interests.
She was sent to the palace to seek wealth and honor, but now she is asked to resign to protect their wealth.
Empress Zhang even thought about death.
The feeling of being abandoned by the whole world.
But in the end, I thought about those young sons, but I couldn't bear to let them go.
"Okay, I'll write, I'll write the speech list!"
The desperate and disheartened Empress Zhang resigned from the throne.
After writing the resignation list, the queen turned away and left without saying a word to them again.
Zhang Guojun looked at his sister and sighed, but he still followed, "There is one more thing. His Majesty said that you should rest in peace first. I hope you will leave the two princesses Lanling and Yongjia to Concubine Chen and Concubine Ruan respectively.
The eldest princess and the fifth princess are now accompanied by two noble concubines respectively, and they also have a companion.
Also, Your Majesty, Your Highness, the Ninth Prince, must personally take care of and educate you."
Queen Zhang didn't look back, but her shoulders were twitching.
"If he wants me to die, why go to all the trouble? Couldn't he just ask you to give me three feet of white silk or a pot of gold shavings?"
Zhang Guojun persuaded, "Don't think too much. Those three children were born to you, but aren't they also His Majesty's flesh and blood? Your Majesty is also afraid that you won't be able to take care of them for the time being, so you can rest in the palace and the children can be taken care of at any time."
Go and see.”
·······
In February of the fifth year of Shaotian.
Empress Xiao Zhang came to the table and said that she was too ill to rule the Sixth Palace. She asked to resign and give up the throne so that she could rest in peace. The emperor refused several times, but the empress strongly resigned, and finally agreed.
An edict to the world.
Empress Zhang resigned from the throne and was given the title of Immortal Master Jing'an, who lived in a separate palace and practiced cultivation, and her treatment was not reduced.
His brother Zhang Guojun was granted the title of Marquis of Ningbo during the Jin Dynasty, and his uncle Mao Youlun was granted the title of Marquis of Shaoxing during the Jin Dynasty.
The Ninth Prince, Hongzhi, Prince of Yongning County, was renamed Prince Ning.
As soon as the edict came out, the whole world was shocked.
After Empress Zhang was deposed, the emperor did not appoint a fifth queen. Of the four queens he had established, his first wife was Zhang, who married Zhou, then Zhang, and named the crown prince's biological mother Chen. Three of them died.
One was scrapped.
The harem is presided over by Concubine Chen Huang, the daughter of Chen Hanhui and the biological mother of the fifth prince, and Concubine Ruan Gui, the daughter of Ruan Dacheng and the biological mother of the thirteenth prince.
This is a big thing, but it is nothing compared to the fact that the imperial court is about to move its capital to Beijing.
After all, when the personal prestige of the emperor is so high, such harem matters are not that important. Those who are smarter have already realized that this matter is essentially a follow-up to the eldest prince's appointment as prince. To abolish the queen is tantamount to
The Ninth Prince's position as legitimate son was abolished.
Previously, the Ninth Prince suddenly surrendered the title of Prince Yongning, but now the Queen has abdicated and has returned to the title of Prince. This is very obvious.
Of course, some people felt sorry for Empress Xiao Zhang, and some even felt it was unfair for the Ninth Prince.
However, the officials in the court, especially the important ministers and the generals in the army, all expressed their support for this matter. The reason is simple. Although this matter is not fair to Queen Zhang and the Ninth Prince, since the eldest prince has been established,
While the Ninth Prince is still young, it is also in the country's interest to eliminate this last hidden danger.
Zhu Yihai took the prince to see Empress Zhang in person, but she still refused to see them, but Zhu Yihai still took the three children away.
He personally raised the Ninth Prince in his own palace. He took him with him when he was free. When he was not free, he was looked after by the palace servants around him. He also allowed the prince to get closer to him when he had time.
This can be regarded as a little compensation for Xiaojiu.
There wasn't much of a commotion after his deposition. The emperor's prestige, the prince's virtuous reputation, and his descendants' lack of power and courage eventually made the matter pass quickly.
February is still very busy.
Envoys from various places returned to their places one after another, and some foreign envoys were still in Beijing.
The Ming Dynasty's mobilization of Yarkand and Oirat in the Western Regions did not go smoothly. Yarkand asked the Oirat to return the captured Turpan, Hami and other places, and also hoped that the Ming Dynasty would return the Kansai Four Guards that they had taken advantage of.
Junggar not only wanted to win over the Ming Dynasty and seize the power of Chashu, but also wanted Eqil Tuchchen Khan to hand over Turpan and Hami to him. He was willing to use some other pastures in the northern Tianshan Mountains as compensation.
This year, although the Kazakh Yangjier Khan also sent envoys, they had deep grievances with the Junggars and hoped that the Ming Dynasty could restrain the Junggars. They also hoped to trade with the Ming Dynasty.
The Torgut people, one of the four Oirat tribes on the Volga River, traveled thousands of miles to pay tribute, hoping to buy more muskets, artillery, gunpowder, etc. from the Ming Dynasty to deal with the Tsarist Russians.
Several companies are looking for Zhu Yihai, and they all want to use Zhu Yihai's banner to seize the dominance of the Western Region.
Zhu Yihai wants to balance all parties, preferably so that no one is strong.
He not only wanted to maintain the balance of power in the Western Regions, but also wanted to restore the Silk Road and increase the volume of trade in the Western Regions. After the year, Zhu Yihai organized several meetings, from the four Oirat tribes to the Yarkands, and then to the Kazakhs and the people who moved westward.
Pulled over the Turghuts who entered Qinghai-Tibet, and the Heshuotes who entered Qinghai-Tibet.
In the end, the three Mobei Mongolian tribes were even brought in for talks.
The main thing to talk about is demarcation, and everyone should stop fighting. For this reason, Zhu Yihai even found their common enemy, Tsarist Russia. Tsarist Russia was extremely aggressive and kept expanding eastward, from Torgut on the Volga River to the west to Kazakhstan.
The country, the four Oirat tribes, and the Mobei Khalkha Mongolia were all invaded by Tsarist Russia at this time.
After being squeezed by the Dzungars in the Western Regions, Torgut moved west angrily and went to the Volga River Basin of the Caspian Sea, which had a great impact on the Tatar tribes after the disintegration of the Golden Horde. These Tatar tribes,
They are no longer the same thing as the Mongolian Tatars. They are a new ethnic group that was born after the Golden Horde converted to Crescent Christianity and the descendants of Mongolia in the territory mixed with the surrounding Turkic and Slavic ethnic groups.
Before Torgut moved westward, warlords fought in the Volga River Basin and a separatist regime called the Astrakhan Khanate emerged. They were descendants of Jochi, the eldest son of Genghis Khan. After the complete demise of the Golden Horde, Astrakhan Khanate
Trahan stood on his own feet.
Later, the independent Grand Duchy of Moscow, which also separated from the Golden Horde, expanded to the Volga River Basin. Astrakhan first surrendered to them, and then switched to the Crimean Khanate, a Tatar force that also came from the Golden Horde.
and the Nogai Khanate.
Later, the Russian Tsar sent troops to destroy Astrakhan, but his control over the grasslands around the Volga River was limited, so it was controlled by the Nogai people. These Nogai people claimed to be the descendants of Nahai, the great-grandson of Jochi, who was also the Nogai.
Gai is actually the same word, but the Chinese translation is different.
Nogai and Crimea fought against Tsarist Russia together, but the Nogai people were not strong.
Torgut was squeezed by the Junggars in the Western Region, so he sent people to look for new pastures, and discovered the beauty of the Volga River grassland, but the Nogai people were not strong.
Finally, Orlek and I decided to move westward, leaving this old land that was constantly invaded by Tsarist Russia, had constant internal strife, and was suffering from disasters and famine.
The Heshuote, Dulbert, Huite tribes, and even some tribes of the Junggar tribe also moved westward. In the end, 50,000 households and 250,000 people moved westward.
They left the Torgut base camp of Talbahar (Tacheng) and moved westward, first to the northwest and then to the southwest. After two years, they defeated many Tatars along the way and finally arrived in the Volga River Basin, and
Defeated the Nogai people there and settled there.
Some Nogai people surrendered to Torgut, while others moved west to join the Crimean Khanate. As a result, several wars broke out between Torgut and Crimea.
Three years ago, the leaders of Torgut and Orlek were defeated in the war with Tsarist Russia, and their vitality was severely damaged.
After they moved westwards, they lived a relatively stable life for ten years, and established the Torgut Khanate with Orluk. Following tribal traditions, they established Otuoke to manage the tribesmen, and also established Zargu, which consisted of eight people.
It is composed of nobles and serves as the highest decision-making authority to help them handle state affairs.
However, Mikhail Fedorovich, the first tsar of the Romanov dynasty of Tsarist Russia, regarded them as a threat and restricted their trade and nomadic life. In retaliation for Orlak, he moved his teeth to Astrakhan.
Nearby, threatening Tsarist Russia's trade.
As a result, the relationship became more tense and worsened. A few years later, in order to fight for trade rights, he moved his teeth to the town of Kabardino, which is closer to Kazan, Kiev and other Russian hinterlands.
A war broke out between the two sides.
He Orlek gathered 180,000 young men from all the Khanate and launched an attack on Astrakhan. As a result, the Tsarist Russian army ambushed them. As a result, Torgut suffered heavy casualties. Almost all the soldiers died on the battlefield, including He Ork.
Erlek and his two sons were killed in the battle.
It is said that in this battle, Torgut dispatched 180,000 troops, but the result was a complete defeat.
And Orlek's son Shukur Daiqing succeeded to the throne in danger. After this battle, Torgut was seriously injured and had to retreat to the grassland to lick his wounds. Tsarist Russia did not have the strength to directly control the grasslands of the Volga River Basin, so the two sides temporarily lived in peace.
nothing.
Torgut paid tribute to Tsarist Russia in exchange for temporary peace, but all the Turghut people were full of shame.
After the defeat three years ago, Torgut has not yet recovered. Shukur Daiqing was very active in wooing the Ming Dynasty. He not only sent envoys to pay tribute, but also took the initiative to send his sister and daughter to marry him, and also sent his nephew to join the Ming Dynasty.
The court took pledges and sent tributes.
They hope to receive weapons support from the Ming Dynasty, especially firearms, and are willing to trade. Although they still regularly participate in the alliance in Oirat, they no longer actually participate in the affairs of the alliance.
The Tsarist Russians wanted the Turguts to convert to Orthodox Christianity, and they also forced them to pay more tribute, and even asked them to send troops to fight for Tsarist Russia. The oppression of Tsarist Russia was getting bigger and bigger, and they urgently needed to strengthen their arms.
