Chapter 162 The Grand Council
At the grand court assembly, Yinzhen officially announced the news of the military exercises.
Although it had been circulating among several key officials, it had never been put into practice. Now that the court has officially announced it, all departments are following suit.
Knowing the importance of the military exercises, no one dared to be careless. Perhaps to better motivate the court officials, or perhaps because now was the best time, Yinzhen announced the establishment of the "Grand Council," which would hold supreme military and political power, with Grand Councilors to assist him in handling military and political affairs.
Everyone knew that the Grand Council, established locally, would replace the Cabinet as the highest center of power. And those who could serve as Grand Councilors would all be the Emperor's trusted advisors.
Curiosity was piqued, but Yinzhen did not immediately announce who would be chosen as a Grand Councilor, leaving an open question. Instead, this fueled the ambition of the civil and military officials, and everyone turned their attention to the military exercises.
Success or failure hinges on this moment. If they perform exceptionally well in the military exercises, will they be able to secure the position of Grand Councilor?
In the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Yinzhen summoned Yinreng and Yinsi to inquire about the progress of the military exercises.
"The various Mongol tribes have already sent messages by fast horse. Your Majesty, please send the Fifth Prince to me. With him here, it will be easier to reassure the Mongols."
There were no outsiders in the hall, and everyone was sitting and talking, which seemed more like casual conversation. Yinreng even bluntly asked Yinzhen for people right away.
"Okay, I'll assign you Twelve too."
Yinzhen readily agreed. The fifth prince, Yunqi, who was raised by the current Empress Dowager Borjigit, and the twelfth prince, Yuntao, who was raised by Sumalagu, were indeed the most suitable to deal with the Mongols.
"The man from the Dzungar tribe is Batur, a veteran who followed Tsewang Arabtan. He is arrogant and quite dissatisfied with not being able to pay his respects in time. But with Seventh Brother and Ninth Brother working together, he can't cause any trouble."
Yinzhi took a sip of tea and smiled at Yinzhen. "However, Seventh Brother has made a new discovery. Batur is more like an envoy in name only, but he always pays attention to the attitude of the guards around him when making decisions. After Ninth Brother's investigation, it turns out that this person is Galdan Tsering, the son of Tsewang Arabtan, who secretly came to the capital."
"Looks like they've got big ambitions. Tsewang Arabtan even sent his son," Yunreng couldn't help but sigh, not really taking Galdan Tsering seriously. After all, it wasn't a secret that the leader's son had been discovered.
What is this person like?
"He is very much like his father." Yun Si commented calmly. The ninth prince had not worked for nothing in the past few years as a merchant. Along with Galdan Tsering's identity, he had also collected all the information about his personality, status, political views and so on.
Yinzhen nodded, understanding. Galdan Tsering was suited to live and die alongside his father.
"Regarding the establishment of the Grand Council, has Your Majesty already identified a specific candidate?"
The change from "Your Majesty" to "Your Majesty" indicated that the group had entered a period of casual conversation. Hearing Yinzhi's question, Yinzhen smiled and said, "Of course I wouldn't leave out you and my second brother. You two are my right-hand men."
"Heh," Yinreng sneered, having long seen through his good fourth brother's true colors. He was just changing his title to keep them working for free. "Then I must thank Your Majesty for your kindness."
As if he hadn't caught the sarcasm in Yinreng's words, Yinzhen waved his hand magnanimously: "We're brothers, no need to be so polite."
"You really have no manners at all, treating your brother like an ox." Yinreng rolled his eyes speechlessly. He never thought that being a prince would be more tiring than being the crown prince. Back then, even his father, the emperor, was reluctant to let him handle government affairs, but Yinzhen was not worried at all.
What about the emperor's desire for control and his suspicious nature? Sometimes, looking at the pile of unfinished tasks on the table, Yinreng would even have rebellious thoughts. Rebellion probably wouldn't be this tiring.
"What are you saying, Second Brother? How could I treat you like a beast of burden? I'm just very busy with government affairs, so I need your assistance." Yinzhen refused to admit it and looked at Yinreng very sincerely.
"Yes, yes, yes, I'm busy with official duties from morning till night, and you still have time to take a nap and listen to a little tune." Yinreng became more and more annoyed, and indiscriminately attacked Yinzhen, then turned to Yinsi, "Eighth Prince, why aren't you saying anything? Are you unhappy?"
Yinzhi smiled helplessly; he couldn't very well speak well of Yinzhen against his conscience. In fact, as another favored "victim," he wasn't without resentment either.
During the struggle for the throne, he thought that if he succeeded, he would rule the country together with his fourth brother and would definitely give his brother a high position. He also thought that if his fourth brother came to power, he would certainly not mistreat him. Now, thinking back, he realized that he was too young and had not seen through his fourth brother's "true colors." He certainly did not mistreat him, but he was too generous.
I should have fought harder back then. What does it matter if I get scolded by my father? The "importance" from my fourth brother is just too much of a burden. It would have been better if I had failed in the succession struggle and been imprisoned. At least I would have had some peace and quiet.
"Whom does Your Majesty intend to send to the Grand Council?" Yinzhi brought up the old topic again, and under Yinreng's displeased gaze, he immediately made his opinion clear: "I think that if Your Majesty has candidates, you should let them have more exposure to government affairs beforehand to screen them, so as not to disappoint Your Majesty's good intentions."
Yun Si's meaning was clear: quickly bring the candidates in to handle government affairs, instead of just relying on him and his second brother.
"What the Eighth Prince says is true. His Majesty must have someone in mind, right?" Yinreng looked at Yinzhen with barely concealed excitement, wishing he could name a hundred or eighty people right then and there.
Seeing how curious the two were about their future colleagues, Yinzhen no longer hid anything: "To maintain a balance, there are candidates from both the Manchu and Han sides. Besides the two of you, I also think highly of Zhang Tingyu, Jiang Tingxi, and Tongjia Yuexing'a."
Zhang Tingyu and Jiang Tingxi were both Grand Secretaries of the Wenhua Hall, renowned for their virtue and adeptness at handling government affairs. They had worked together when Yinzhen was still a prince, and their political leanings and ideologies were very compatible.
As for Tongjia Yuexing'a, a favored minister of two emperors and the only outstanding junior member of the once-powerful Tongjia clan, he currently serves in the Ministry of War and is not as politically astute as others. However, he is completely devoted to Yinzhen and is a loyal follower to the death.
The mention of these three names was entirely within the expectations of Yinreng and Yinsi, so there was little surprise. On the contrary, Yinreng was somewhat unsatisfied.
"Only three people?"
"Only these three have been selected so far." Yinzhen nodded. There was plenty of labor, but high-quality labor was still scarce. Although he wanted to be lazy, he was also determined to have fewer but better candidates. As an emperor, he was still somewhat picky.
Undeterred, Yinreng continued, "How about the third prince? He's good at both literature and martial arts. Or the thirteenth prince, his ability to handle government affairs has improved rapidly; he's very quick-witted."
"Third Brother's personality is too unrestrained."
Upon hearing Yinzhen's assessment, Yinreng's lips twitched. He suddenly recalled the incident where the third prince shaved his head within a hundred days of Consort Min's death. It was a kind of inexplicable and abstract mistake that the third prince kept making. Thinking about it, it was indeed inappropriate. It was one thing to lose face in front of his own family, but what if he lost face in front of the court officials... Yinreng shook his head, not daring to think about it too deeply. Just thinking about it made him feel embarrassed for the third prince.
"What about thirteen?"
"Thirteenth Prince is still young and somewhat impulsive. He needs a couple more years of training," Yinzhen commented calmly. The current Thirteenth Prince, Yunxiang, hadn't experienced many setbacks and wasn't mature enough. Of course, Yinzhen had no intention of giving up. He planned to nurture him properly, hoping to leave Honghui with a capable "Executive Vice Emperor." Thinking about it this way, he truly was a kind and considerate father.
Yinreng gave up; three is better than none. At this moment, Yinsi stood up, cupped his hands and bowed to Yinzhen: "Since Your Majesty has made up your mind, then I will go and test them for you first. I will go ahead."
“That’s right!” Upon hearing Yinzhi’s excuse for sneaking away, Yinreng also stood up abruptly, speaking with righteous indignation: “Eighth brother is right. I’ll go and investigate Yue Xing’a on behalf of the Emperor. After all, he comes from the Tongjia clan. What if he has any ill intentions?”
Yinzhen quickly urged him to stay, saying, "Why don't you have lunch before you leave?"
"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty. Lunch can be eaten anywhere. The investigation is of utmost urgency."
“Eighth Brother is right. For the sake of the Emperor’s safety and the future of the Grand Council, we two have an unshirkable duty.”
After saying that, the two left in a hurry. It's hilarious. After lunch, they'll probably have to deal with government affairs. They've finally found an excuse to escape, and they won't fall for it again.
"Cough cough cough, are you really leaving?" Yinzhen suddenly felt weak and began to cough.
The two brothers didn't stop walking until they stepped out of the palace gates. Only then did Yinzhi turn back with a smile: "Brother, cough on Seventeen, he still falls for that."
He won't fall into the same trap multiple times. Feeling sorry for the emperor will only add to his workload of official duties. Feeling sorry for the "sickly" emperor will only add to his lifetime of official duties.
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