"Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager asked if King Zhong is here?" Just as the Orthodox Emperor was pacing back and forth there restlessly, the eunuch, the chief of internal affairs of the Cining Palace, walked out of the inner hall quickly, bowed down and said to the Orthodox Emperor.

Since the Empress Dowager Zhang fell ill this time, every time she recovered from her sleep, she always asked Li Yuntian if he had returned to Beijing.

The Empress Dowager Zhang, a civil and military officer in the capital, has already instructed them all, and now Li Yuntian and Ma Yu are left in the field, especially Li Yuntian, who is very worried about the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family.

Hearing this, the orthodox emperor couldn't help but look at Song Dashan on the side, Song Dashan is now in charge of the security of the Forbidden City, and if Li Yuntian enters the palace, he will be the first to know.

"Your Majesty, Prince Zhong has not yet entered the palace." Seeing this, Song Dashan hurriedly stepped forward and bowed back.

Although the orthodox emperor had known this result for a long time, there was still a trace of disappointment on his face, since the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family fell ill, she was most concerned about Li Yuntian, and she had a lot of things to tell Li Yuntian before leaving.

At this time, the civil and military ministers not far away couldn't help but glance at each other.

According to the diagnosis and treatment of the imperial doctors of the Tai Hospital, the Empress Dowager Zhang's condition is very bad, and she may die at any time, to be honest, the Empress Dowager Zhang's ability to last so long has exceeded the imagination of those imperial doctors.

Zhang Fu, Yang Shiqi and others knew that the reason why the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family was holding on now was because she wanted to see Li Yuntian, and the most trusted of the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family in the civil and military forces of the Manchu Dynasty was undoubtedly Li Yuntian.

"Your Majesty, Prince Zhong and Ma Ge Lao have entered the city, now go home to bathe and change clothes, and then they will enter the palace to meet them." Just when the eunuch, the chief of internal affairs of Cining Palace, wanted to enter the inner hall to tell the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family, Li Yuntian, that she had not come, an inner servant hurriedly walked into the palace to report to the orthodox emperor.

"What?" Hearing this, the orthodox emperor and the ministers on the scene were taken aback, and no one expected Li Yuntian and Ma Yu to come so quickly.

"Quick, tell the Empress Dowager, King Zhong will be there immediately." The orthodox emperor quickly came to his senses and hurriedly shouted to the eunuch, the chief of internal affairs of Cining Palace, wanting to tell the Empress Dowager Zhang the good news.

"Your Majesty, King Zhong has not yet entered the palace, and it is not appropriate to tell the Empress Dowager this news at this time, so as not to disturb the Empress Dowager's recuperation." Without waiting for the eunuch in charge of internal affairs of Cining Palace to leave, Hu Ying, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites on the side, suddenly spoke up to stop him.

The reason why the Empress Dowager Zhang has been able to hold on to the present now is completely by virtue of the breath in her chest, if she learns that Li Yuntian is coming, then this breath will dissipate, so it is better to let the Empress Dowager Zhang continue to hold on to this breath.

"Tell the Empress Dowager that King Zhong is close to the capital." Although the orthodox emperor was young, he also knew that the Empress Dowager Zhang was waiting for Li Yuntian's arrival, and he couldn't let the breath in the chest of the Empress Dowager of the Zhang clan be dispersed.

"Send someone to the Zhongwang Mansion and let the Zhongwang enter the palace immediately, don't stick to the subtleties!" Subsequently, the orthodox emperor turned around and ordered Song Dashan on the side in a deep voice, and now the situation is critical, and all etiquette should be simple.

Song Dashan didn't dare to slack off, bowed to the orthodox emperor, and left quickly, arranging for someone to send a message to Li Yuntian.

When the guards in the palace rode to the Zhongwang Mansion, Li Yuntian was wearing official clothes under Zhou Yuting's service, he knew that the Empress Dowager Zhang was seriously ill, so he quickly finished bathing and washed away the dust.

This made the guard not wait long, and a moment later, Li Yuntian, who was dressed in new clothes, rode a horse and rushed to the Forbidden City under the escort of all the guards.

Along the way, Li Yuntian's expression was serious, his face sank like water, as soon as the Empress Dowager Zhang died, the various factions in the capital would definitely fight openly and secretly, and they would fight each other, he really didn't want to see this scene happen, but he was helpless.

In front of the gate of the Forbidden City, Li Yuntian met Ma Yu who came on horseback, and Ma Yu naturally did not dare to delay, and after hurriedly taking a bath, he entered the palace to meet the Empress Dowager Zhang and the Orthodox Emperor.

"The minister greets the emperor." After entering the palace gate of Cining Palace, Li Yuntian and Ma Yu bowed to the orthodox emperor one after another.

"Don't be polite, don't be polite, come in with me to see the Queen Mother." After seeing Li Yuntian, the uneasy orthodox emperor couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, greeted Li Yuntian and led him into the inner hall.

"Imperial Grandmother, King Zhong is here!" In the inner hall, the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family was lying quietly on the bed with her eyes closed, and she didn't know if she was asleep, and the orthodox emperor came to the bedside and leaned over and whispered in her ear.

The orthodox emperor didn't want to disturb the Empress Dowager Zhang's rest, but he had to do so, because the Empress Dowager Zhang's illness was serious and she could die at any time, so he wanted to let the Empress Dowager Zhang see Li Yuntian as soon as possible, so as to fulfill the wish of the Empress Dowager Zhang.

"King Chung is here?" Hearing this, the Empress Dowager Zhang slowly opened her eyes and turned her head to look at Li Yuntian, who was standing beside the bed.

"The minister greets the Empress Dowager." Seeing this, Li Yuntian hurriedly bowed down and said to the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family.

"Come on, help the mourning family up." Seeing Li Yuntian, Empress Dowager Zhang's eyes lit up, her cloudy eyes suddenly became clear, and she said to Empress Dowager Sun and Empress Hu who were guarding the bedside with a bed in her hand.

Empress Dowager Sun and Empress Hu naturally didn't dare to slack off, and hurriedly stepped forward to help the Empress Dowager Zhang up.

"King Zhong, how are things going in Jiangnan?" The Empress Dowager Zhang looked at Li Yuntian with a smile, her spirit looked very good, her face was radiant, and she was like two people who were weak before.

"Back to the Empress Dowager, the Jiangnan tax reform has been smoothly implemented." Seeing this, Li Yuntian couldn't help but sigh secretly in his heart, and then bowed down to answer.

The abnormal behavior of the Empress Dowager Zhang at this time is what people usually call "returning to the light", which means that she has run out of oil and has no strength to return to the sky.

"King Zhong, you were promoted to Beijing by Emperor Taizong, Renzong and Xuanzong are very favored by you, and the mourning family also relies on you, and you have not lived up to the expectations of the first emperor and the mourning family and the emperor.

The Empress Dowager Zhang smiled slightly when she heard this, and she was naturally extremely concerned about the tax reform in the Jiangnan region, and then waved her hand at the attendants, palace maids and imperial doctors in the house, signaling them to step back and said solemnly, "Daming has a mainstay like you, the mourning family is very relieved, and after the mourning family leaves, it will depend on you to assist the emperor in balancing the situation." ”

"The Empress Dowager is serious, this is the duty of the minister." Hearing this, Li Yuntian hurriedly bowed down and replied, "The Empress Dowager is the body of Luan Feng, and she will live a long life!" ”

"Your Majesty, although King Zhong is a courtier of the Ming Dynasty, he is also your commander, and he has the merit of protecting Renzong and Xuanzong, and he is the minister of my Ming Dynasty. The Empress Dowager of the Zhang family knew that Li Yuntian was really relieved to her, so she didn't believe in the body of Luan Feng, smiled slightly, turned to the orthodox emperor, and admonished with a serious expression.

"Rest assured, grandmother, I will keep it in mind." The orthodox emperor nodded again and again, grabbed the hand of the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family and said, his eyes were ruddy, he was brought up by the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family since he was a child, so he had a deep relationship with the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family.

"Your Majesty, you have to remember that the eunuch is a servant of the royal family, and he can only be used and not indulged, otherwise there will be endless troubles." The Empress Dowager Zhang's eyes showed a look of relief when she heard this, but she was still a little uneasy, and said in a deep voice, "Governing the country also needs the civil and military ministers in the court, and at the beginning of the founding of the country, Emperor Taizu cast an iron plaque in the palace in order to prevent the harem and eunuchs from interfering in politics, and the emperor should be vigilant with this, and not go to Li Tang's back!" ”

"I remember." Tears flowed down his cheeks as the Orthodox Emperor nodded in agreement.

"King Zhong, the mourning family gives you a decree, if there is an eunuch who relies on the emperor's favor to abuse power and disrupt the country, you can rely on this edict to get rid of it and prevent future troubles!" Seeing this, the Empress Dowager Zhang also felt a little sour in her heart, how much she hoped to live for a few more years to see the orthodox emperor in person, and then her words changed, and she said to Li Yuntian in a deep voice, "The mourning family believes that King Zhong can handle this errand well. ”

As she spoke, the Empress Dowager Zhang motioned to the eunuch, the chief of internal affairs of Cining Palace, to bring a decree that had already been drafted and handed it to Li Yuntian.

Li Yuntian couldn't help but smile bitterly in his heart, where is the Yizhi in his hand, but a hot potato, although it is extremely honorable but also easy to be suspicious of the outside world, it is a double-edged sword of honor and disgrace, especially those eunuchs in the inner court will definitely regard him as the first threat, after all, no one wants to be put on the neck with a knife.

In addition, the Empress Dowager Zhang had already said before that the eunuchs were the servants of the royal family, so if something happened, the royal family would naturally punish him, how could he just be a foreign minister and go beyond the orthodox emperor to deal with those eunuchs?

Besides, those eunuchs who can abuse power must be the henchmen of the orthodox emperor, how does the orthodox emperor view him? The only person who can decide a person's life and death is the orthodox emperor, not the prince Li Yuntian.

"The Empress Dowager, this move must not be done." Therefore, Li Yuntian made up his mind not to accept the edict of the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family, knelt on the ground with his legs bent, raised the edict in his hand and said in a deep voice, "The emperor is talented and intelligent, and he will definitely be able to control those eunuchs, so he doesn't need his ministers to intervene in this matter, and ask the Empress Dowager to withdraw his fate." ”

"Your Majesty, King Zhong has high hopes for you, you have to remember that everything is discussed with King Zhong, and you must not be blinded by some minions, otherwise you will be sorry for the Ming Dynasty." Hearing this, the Empress Dowager Zhang's eyes flashed with an imperceptible light, and then a relieved smile appeared on her face, she did not force Li Yuntian to accept the decree, but bitterly admonished the orthodox emperor.

Li Yuntian keenly noticed the gleam in the eyes of the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family, and was suddenly taken aback in his heart, it seems that the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family was deliberately testing him just now, to see if he would take over this decree that gave him great power, and then override the orthodox emperor, which is a royal taboo.

Obviously, the Empress Dowager of the Zhang family was very satisfied with Li Yuntian's reaction, and if Li Yuntian accepted the decree, I am afraid that he would encounter great trouble in the future.

As for the edict, the Empress Dowager Zhang then asked the eunuch, the chief of internal affairs of the Cining Palace, to throw it in the brazier and burn it in public, and at the same time, it also gave the orthodox emperor a warning, warning him not to be overly favored by Song Dashan and Wang Zhen and others, and to be like Emperor Yongle, Emperor Hongxi and Emperor Xuande.