Chapter 863: Jingcheng in Shock

The Emperor was captured, and the officials of Jingcheng gathered in the grand hall, engaging in heated debate.

"Yexian has sent a state letter demanding we cede the Yan-Zhao lands to him and open the gates of Xuanfu, so he may personally return the Emperor to the capital!"

"Do you really believe that? Once the city gates are opened, it will be hard to close them again!"

"How did His Majesty fall into Yexian's hands? Were the more than two hundred thousand troops accompanying him all made of straw?"

"Is this the time to assign blame? The urgent matter is to decide what we should do—and what to do for His Majesty!"

This statement itself was not wrong, but the man who spoke it was the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Ma Shun.

He was Wang Zhen's confidant.

So when he spoke, the officials who had learned of Wang Zhen's death and part of the truth about the northern campaign exploded in rage, pointing at Ma Shun and shouting: "It is you treacherous eunuchs who have misled Great Ming! Such a man as Wang Zhen, even dead, deserves extermination of his entire clan!"

Ma Shun, of course, disagreed.

If Wang Zhen's clan were to be exterminated, would it not mean purging his followers?

It was well known that he was Wang Zhen's confidant.

So Ma Shun fiercely opposed it.

Wang Hong, the Vice Minister of Revenue, was utterly enraged; years of resentment toward Wang Zhen and the Embroidered Uniform Guard erupted. The Emperor's capture had thrown his emotions into turmoil, and seeing Ma Shun show no concern for rescuing the Emperor, but instead desperately defending Wang Zhen, he flew into a rage, clenched his fists, and charged forward.

Once one man started, the rest, inflamed by emotion, followed, charging forward with clenched fists, punching and kicking.

Yu Qian was caught in the crowd, feeling as if the sky were collapsing.

Such fury, if later held accountable, would shatter the entire imperial court.

He pushed through the crowd, his sleeve torn off on one side, grabbed the pale-faced Prince of Cheng who was trying to leave, and shouted: "Your Highness, Your Highness, Ma Shun and the others deserve death a thousand times over—kill them without mercy! Now that His Majesty is in distress, the entire realm looks to you!"

Hearing this, the crowd gradually regained composure and looked around—Ma Shun was already dead, lying motionless on the ground.

Yu Qian acted as if he had not seen it, pulling the Prince of Cheng to sit in his original seat while ordering guards to drag Ma Shun's corpse away.

At that moment, someone pushed through the crowd and rushed to Yang Dan's side, grabbing him: "Yang Dan, your family is waiting outside the palace—Prime Minister Yang… he… he died upon hearing the news that His Majesty was captured."

Yang Dan's expression went blank; after a long moment, he reacted, shoved aside his colleagues, and turned to run—then remembered something, turned back, and knelt heavily before the Prince of Cheng, weeping: "Your Highness—"

The Prince of Cheng had also leapt to his feet upon hearing the news; hearing Yang Dan's cry, his heart shattered, and he could not help but weep aloud: "Mr. —"

The Three Yangs had all served as teachers to the Emperor; as the Emperor's younger brother, the Prince of Cheng had also studied under them for a time.

Later, when his elder brother learned how to be an Emperor, he was sent to learn how to be a loyal minister, and thus stopped studying with them—but he had always, in his heart, regarded them as his own teachers.

Yu Qian's eyes also grew slightly red, but he knew this was not the time for grief; he gripped the Prince of Cheng's hand and whispered: "Your Highness must order the Ministry of Rites to bury Prime Minister Yang with the highest honors, then issue a proclamation to the realm, ordering the reserve troops of the Two Capitals and Henan, and the coastal defense forces of Shandong and Nanjing, to march to Jingcheng for defense."

The Prince of Cheng nodded repeatedly.

But some court officials voiced opposition; Xu Cheng, long known for his knowledge of celestial phenomena, stepped forward and shouted: "Your Highness, celestial signs are ominous; remaining in Beijing risks collapse. I urge the court to relocate south, returning the capital to Nanjing."

Yu Qian, upon hearing this, flew into a rage and shouted: "Those who propose relocating south deserve execution! Jingcheng is the foundation of the realm—once moved, all is lost. Have you not seen the fate of the Southern Song?"

Xu Cheng, ever pragmatic, fell silent immediately upon Yu Qian's fierce opposition.

But other ministers who also favored relocation refused to retreat, insisting: "As long as the green hills remain, there will always be firewood. We must preserve our strength and relocate south now; otherwise, if we fail, the realm will be truly lost."

Yu Qian gazed at the assembly and declared fiercely: "If we lose the Central Plains and allow Great Ming to suffer the same fate as the Southern Song, forcing the Han people to endure again the hardships of the Northern Yuan—what face will we have to live on?"

At these words, no one in the hall dared suggest relocation again.

The Prince of Cheng also did not wish to relocate: "Our Ancestor Taizu deeply despised the Northern Yuan. I am his descendant—how could I abandon my brother and the people to flee south?"

Since relocation was off the table, the next task was to resolve the crisis.

After the grand assembly, the Prince of Cheng saw that the entire court was in panic—everyone feared making mistakes, yet all were extreme; the only one capable of leading was the Vice Minister of War, Yu Qian.

Thus, the Prince of Cheng immediately appointed him to take charge, ordering reserve troops from all regions to march to Jingcheng to resist the Oirats.

In addition, they needed to immediately issue orders to border garrisons such as Datong and Xuanfu: whether to hold firm or first attempt to retrieve the Emperor, a clear plan was required.

Everyone understood: retrieving the Emperor was nearly impossible. At this moment, only the fate of Great Ming and its people mattered.

The fate of the Song Emperors Huizong and Qinzong loomed before them—only if the Emperor became a corpse could he be reclaimed.

Yu Qian looked up at the Prince of Cheng and knew: the only course now was for the Prince of Cheng to ascend the throne, reducing the captured Emperor's status to insignificance, rendering Yexian's hostage powerless.

As soon as the grand assembly ended, Yu Qian sought out Wang Zhi and other senior ministers, pulling them to see the Empress Dowager.

The inner palace was in chaos.

Upon hearing the news of the Emperor's capture, the Empress Dowager fainted; when she awoke, the Empress was packing her personal belongings, planning to send them to the frontier to ransom the Emperor.

The Empress Dowager wept uncontrollably; she knew the Emperor could not be ransomed, but hearing that the Oirats and the Commander of Xuanfu, Yang Hong, demanded wealth, she decided to send money to improve his condition.

Thus, the Empress Dowager did not stop the Empress, but instead added her own private treasures, intending to send them all to the frontier.

News of the events in the front hall quickly reached the inner palace; upon learning that Ma Shun had been beaten to death by enraged ministers, the Empress Dowager turned pale, sensing something profound.

She never interfered in state affairs.

When her son was young, the Grand Empress Dowager was still alive; she only needed to respectfully serve her.

After the Grand Empress Dowager's death, her son had grown, with strong opinions of his own; Empress Dowager Sun had always been gentle and valued her bond with her son, so she never interfered in state affairs.

Thus, few matters ever reached her.

Whenever they did, they were grave matters.

Empress Dowager Sun was terrified; she was well-read in the classics, and before Yu Qian even arrived, she guessed what he would say.

Indeed, upon meeting, Yu Qian proposed that the Prince of Cheng ascend the throne: "Your Majesty, the state is on the verge of collapse; the Emperor is held hostage by Yexian, and China will be coerced. I beg Your Majesty to enthrone the Prince of Cheng as Emperor, and declare the Emperor Retired Emperor, to preserve the realm."

Empress Dowager Sun turned pale and asked anxiously: "If the Emperor becomes Retired Emperor, will your ministers still rescue him?"

Yu Qian replied solemnly: "Even for an ordinary commoner, we must spare no effort to save him, lest we betray our offices—how much more so for a Retired Emperor?"