82. Chapter 82

"none"

After making proper arrangements, Qi You set off back to the capital.

In recent years, because the journey was too long and he was too busy, the last time he returned to Beijing was four years ago.

Along the way, apart from the bleak winter scene, there was basically no change.

Qi You thought about his past life. Not to mention four years, even in one or two years, the surrounding environment would have changed a lot. Either high-rise buildings would rise from the ground, or the roads would become smoother and wider.

This also indirectly illustrates the point that the Qing Dynasty was too backward in every aspect.

When arriving in the capital, according to the rules, he had to go to see Emperor Kangxi first. Qi You calculated the distance and planned to stay in Shunyi for one night, wash up and recuperate, and then return to the palace.

Who knew that after passing Shanhaiguan, the eldest prince was already waiting there.

When Qi You heard De Gao's report, he quickly lifted the carriage curtain and looked out. On the official road, the eldest prince, bundled up tightly, stood in the cold wind, his hands in his sleeves and his neck stretched out to look in his direction. He was surprised for a moment, then quickly dismounted from the carriage, stepped forward to pay his respects, and took the opportunity to look at the eldest prince.

However, I haven't seen him for a few years. Maybe it's because the eldest prince has grown a short beard, or maybe it's too cold, but he looks more than ten years older than the last time I saw him.

The eldest prince also looked Qi You up and down, looking at the tall young man standing in front of him with gentle and elegant eyes, wearing a thick old robe, but still with a thin figure.

He forced a smile on his almost frozen face and reached out to pat Qi You's shoulder, "Seventh Brother has grown so tall that I can't even recognize him as your brother."

The wind outside was so cold that it hurt his face. Qi You looked at the horse led by the eldest prince's attendant and simply said to him, "Brother, it's cold to ride a horse. You should take the carriage with me."

The eldest prince muttered something, waved to his entourage, and got into the carriage with Qi You.

There was a charcoal brazier in the carriage, making it warm. The eldest prince breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It's freezing outside. I heard it's even colder in the north. I don't know how you've been able to get through all these years."

Qi You smiled and said, "You'll get used to it. Big brother, why are you here?"

The eldest prince glanced at Qi You, suppressed his dissatisfaction, and said, "I received the imperial decree. Khan Ama sent me to pick you up and ordered you to return directly to the palace and not rest in Shunyi. Khan Ama has been planning for a long time and has been looking forward to seeing you. I have been waiting for you in Zhangjiakou for two days. Why are you so slow?"

Qi You paused, then quickly apologized, saying, "I brought a lot of stuff with me this time, so I walked a little slowly on the way. Thank you for your hard work, brother."

The eldest prince felt warmer and in a much better mood. He took off his cloak, chuckled, and said, "It's not hard, it's not hard. I just want to get out of the capital and get some fresh air. Oh, I've been suffocating all these years."

Qi You bluntly pointed the finger at him, saying, "Every year when Khan Ama went to Mulan Paddock, he usually took you with him. He also went south of the Yangtze River with you, and since you were out patrolling the river, how could you possibly hold it in?"

The eldest prince rolled his eyes at Qi You and said, "How can it be the same? Going to the hunting grounds too often is boring. Going to Jiangnan with Khan Ama is not a game. Under Khan Ama's watchful eyes, I dare not even go out for a drink. The same goes for river patrol. I hate the job of river patrol the most. Not only is it troublesome to deal with the water and the embankment, it's also very hard work. Although it's a bit cold to come to Zhangjiakou in the cold wind in the winter, it's comfortable. It's comfortable to talk to you!"

After a pause, the eldest prince sighed, "You are a gentleman, and you truly treat me as a brother. This is all I can say to you in this life."

Facing the eldest prince's melancholy look, Qi You was silent for a while. He didn't know what to say and didn't respond.

Qi You had heard some of the situation in the capital. The struggle between the eldest prince and the crown prince had become increasingly intense in recent years, almost to the point of revealing their true intentions. Add to that the fact that the other brothers had grown up and each had their own plans, and the situation was once again chaotic.

This group of people are the best of the best. They have been immersed in the highest power center since childhood. They are polite and act like brothers on the surface, but they are wary of each other.

It would be a lie to say that anyone could remain calm and undetectable. They knew each other's intentions very well.

Except for Qi You, he is away from home all year round and has a leg disease, so he is one of the few people who can stay out of trouble.

Qi You never thought about arguing with them at this time. It was meaningless to get stuck in a pile of mud.

To develop, Qi You always insisted on one point: productivity must be improved. When the ruling class paralyzed themselves and only considered the supreme throne, productivity would never be developed. This is a vicious circle.

Even if he had won by various means, the Qing Dynasty would still be rotten. Kangxi lived a long life, which meant that he had wasted these decades.

Qi You is planting the saplings of hope. After decades of development, I dare not say that it will become a forest, but at least it will grow into a forest that can prevent landslides.

In fact, the legs don’t matter. There was Zhu Gaochi before and there was Xianfeng after.

Leg disease is not scary, stupidity is scary.

Kangxi was not stupid. All emperors wanted to live a long life and maintain a stable regime.

But deep down in their hearts, they see more clearly than anyone else that the change of dynasties is inevitable.

The Mongol cavalry was unstoppable, and before even a century had passed, the Yuan Dynasty was overthrown. The Ming Dynasty was also powerful enough at first, but the Manchus eventually invaded and replaced them.

The so-called eternal empire will only decline after three or five generations.

Qi You firmly believed that he would become so powerful that Kangxi would have to choose him.

The eldest prince complained all the way, talking about the boredom of the capital and the things that happened between him and his brothers.

Of course, the eldest prince did not complain openly, but his words and actions revealed a strong sense of dissatisfaction.

The bannermen didn't value the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children, and the royal family didn't care about these things either. The eldest prince always believed that he was the eldest and was very capable. Whether it was riding a horse and fighting, or carrying out imperial decrees, he was no less capable than the crown prince.

The eldest prince was still brooding over his inability to go to Western Xinjiang. He angrily said, "Gu Badai is really a fool! You proposed such a great idea back then, but he's been in Western Xinjiang for years and hasn't made any progress. Alas, Tsewang Arabtan's power is growing stronger and stronger. After Galdan's death, he's the only one left in power. He was initially superficially respectful to the Qing, but now he's become even more disrespectful. If this continues, the Qing will eventually come to blows with him."

Qi You frowned slightly and sighed secretly.

He really didn't have the time to take care of the people in Western Xinjiang. His original idea was to establish schools and farmland there to promote cultural integration among the various tribes.

No matter how good a policy is, execution is very important, which is why Qi You always does it himself.

Take Shunyi and Wuchang for example, the establishment of schools was not uncommon. Academies in various places, including the official school in Jingshan, all taught people to read.

These schools were mainly for teaching them how to write eight-legged essays and prepare for the imperial examinations, which were completely different from the schools in Shunyi.

As for the reclamation of the north, if Qi You had not taken charge at the beginning and other people had been left to take charge, it would probably still be a desolate place.

Not to mention how many people would be sacrificed in the initial stages of land reclamation. They would also plant rice, sweet potatoes, and yams according to orders. Qi You could easily imagine what the crops would look like.

Qi You has paved a clear path, and those who follow him will generally not do too badly if they continue to follow his method.

The eldest prince had too many emotions accumulated in his heart and did not need Qi You's response. He kept chattering all the way to the capital.

After entering the city, it was almost dusk. The eldest prince hesitated and said, "Forget it, I'll go to the palace with you and report to Khan Ama."

Qi You's eyebrows moved slightly. The eldest prince had a lot of opinions about Kangxi. He was supposed to go to the palace to report his mission, but he didn't even want to see him.

After the eldest prince finished speaking, his shoulders visibly slumped, and he hunched his neck and cursed the weather, "This damn weather, I guess it's going to snow again."

In order to ease the atmosphere, Qi You told the eldest prince an interesting story about the snow in the north: "The snow in the capital is really nothing. When I was in the north, the snow could reach here."

He pointed at his legs and gestured. The eldest prince was stunned. "Wow, this guy is going to bury everyone."

Qi You laughed and said, "That's right. Every day, we have to clear the snow off the roof while it's still daylight. We also don't dare to sleep too deeply at night, for fear that the thatched roof is not strong enough and will collapse under the weight of the snow."

The eldest prince stared at Qi You for a long while and said, "Seventh Brother, I admire you. You have stayed in such a cold and bitter place for so many years."

At this point, the eldest prince rolled his eyes, nudged him with his shoulder, and said with a malicious smile: "Haha, you haven't married yet, and you're still a boy. You must wait for Khan Ama to arrange for you a wife or concubine. As for the other little princesses, I will find a few for you when the time comes. I guarantee you will be satisfied."

Qi You was speechless. There were already countless women in the eldest prince's mansion.

Qi You was originally far away in the north, so who knew who he had married? The main thing was that the eldest brother, the eldest brother, was not polite at all.

Every time a new bride was brought into the mansion, he would write a letter to ask Qi You for a gift.

The redtail fish and black fungus from the north were the eldest prince's favorites. Kangxi would also reward Qi You with some of the goods he sold to the Imperial Household Department.

Not only was it not enough for him to eat, he also insisted that the food sent to the Imperial Household Department was not good enough. What Qi You gave him was the best.

This is also related to the fact that the tribute presented to Kangxi was not the best.

The superiors and subordinates concealed the truth, and everyone knew the truth, but they all pretended to be stupid to each other, so things got rotten.

After entering the palace from Shenwu Gate and arriving in front of Qianqing Gate, the eldest prince poked Qi You and said sourly, "Look at Liang Jiugong, he's eagerly waiting for you, his neck stretched longer than a goose. Seventh Brother, I've never seen Khan Ama so anxious about anyone. It's really a case of being far away and smelling bad up close!"

Qi You had already seen Liang Jiugong, and was at a loss whether to laugh or cry at what the eldest prince said. He said, "Brother, let's hurry up, so as not to delay Khan Ama's meal."

The eldest prince muttered, "Khan Ama will definitely keep you for dinner, but I don't want to eat."

Qi You ignored him and greeted Liang Jiugong, who came forward with a smile on his face. "Liang An Da, it's been many years since we last met. You haven't changed at all. You're still so young!"

Liang Jiugong's smile deepened, and he couldn't help but raise his hand to touch his face, saying, "No, I'm old. But Seventh Prince, wow, he's grown so tall, so energetic!"

Qi You didn't grow very fast in the past few years, but he suddenly grew up rapidly in recent years.

The eldest prince's expression returned to normal, and he greeted Liang Jiugong with a smile. He turned his head and secretly curled his lips at Qi You, disliking him for lying with his eyes open.

It’s obvious that the wrinkles on Liang Jiugong’s face can kill mosquitoes and flies!

Liang Jiugong turned sideways and said with a respectful smile, "Seventh Prince, the Emperor is waiting for you. Please go in quickly."

Qi You quickly agreed, and several people walked inside together.

The Qianqing Palace was as bright as before, with bright lights as bright as day.

Only the cold wind blew, making the lanterns sway slightly, the light and shadows on the ground were mottled, and the dark clouds hanging low in the sky were rolling.

Kangxi was waiting in the east warm room. Qi You went forward and paid his respects politely. When he heard him being called, he stood up and looked up, and immediately took a breath.

Kangxi wore a kind smile on his face. He was still thin, but his face was noticeably swollen, with bags under his eyes, and he looked exhausted.

But in just a few years, Kangxi had aged so quickly. At this point, it wasn't an exaggeration for Qi You to call him grandfather!

When Qi You saw the eldest prince, Liang Jiugong, and everyone in the palace, they all looked old quickly.

It seems that it is not the passage of time that makes people grow old, but the heavy palace walls and endless struggles that make people neither human nor ghost.

Qi You made up his mind in a moment. After arranging the students in the school, he would leave Beijing as soon as possible.

Instead of getting stuck in the quagmire, it is better to do something practical and not waste every day of your life.

The author has something to say:

Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or provided me with nutrient solution between 2022-11-21 23:23:52 and 2022-11-22 22:58:55~

Thanks to the little angel who irrigated the nutrient solution: 1 bottle of Green Xiaomei Qinglian;

Thank you very much for your support. I will continue to work hard!