Chapter 242 Live Broadcast from the Sky (22)
Looking at those videos of firearms, who would think that Emperor Yongzheng was weak and easily bullied?
The person outside the canopy looked puzzled. How far have people in later generations developed that they would still have such thoughts?
The outcome of the peace talks was beyond doubt. Yongzheng sent Honghui and the Seventeenth Prince to achieve merit, and in the end, a large amount of land in the Treaty of Nerchinsk signed between Kangxi and Tsarist Russia was recovered. Furthermore, Tsarist Russia also paid a considerable amount of money in reparations for its support of the Dzungar Khanate.
Some people have asked why Emperor Yongzheng didn't take advantage of Russia's internal and external troubles at that time to eliminate it. I feel there are several reasons. First, Russia is cold, and the geographical environment there is not suitable for the people of the Qing Dynasty. Moreover, the Qing Dynasty did not have that many people at that time.
Secondly, no matter how much internal and external troubles Russia faced, it was still a large country and not so easy to conquer. Perhaps with the aid of firearms, it could be taken down in two or three years. However, such attrition was clearly unsuitable for the rapidly developing Qing Dynasty's plans, especially since Emperor Yongzheng didn't have that much time.
If the battle lines are drawn out and he unfortunately passes away, the succession to the throne will definitely affect the war situation, and the consequences will be difficult to control.
Third, Emperor Yongzheng himself stated that he preferred a gradual approach and intended to leave Tsarist Russia to Honghui. To put it bluntly, he wanted to let Tsarist Russia grow stronger before slowly exploiting it. Emperor Chengtai, after ascending the throne, perfectly implemented Yongzheng's idea, frequently engaging in "friendly interactions" with Tsarist Russia on the border, thus avoiding paying for military expenses himself.
Hearing Tianmu speak of Tsarist Russia in this way, Kangxi and his ministers were somewhat dazed. They truly realized how powerful and virtuous the Qing Dynasty under Yongzheng was, and that Tsarist Russia, which they feared, was like a supply depot and a toy for the Qing Dynasty in that time and space.
The peace talks with Tsarist Russia took place in the third year of the Yongzheng Emperor's reign. The victory of the peace talks also meant that the Qing Dynasty's "external troubles" had been basically resolved and its "internal troubles" had long been quelled. The following years were a period of rapid development for the Qing Dynasty without any worries.
The story of Yongzheng's reign after four years—lifting the sea ban, improving agriculture, expanding territory, and stabilizing development—is well-known and will not be elaborated here.
We've been discussing Emperor Yongzheng's early death; now let's talk about how he used his health to quell the final internal strife—the Tong family's rebellion.
At this moment, Tong Guowei, who was confined to his home by Emperor Kangxi, looked up and stared intently at the sky. He wanted to see why he was rebelling in that other timeline.
Speaking of Emperor Yongzheng's health, we must mention one person—the imperial physician Wang Hesheng. Wang Hesheng came from a family of doctors and had exceptional medical talent. He was initially Emperor Kangxi's personal physician.
Until the 42nd year of Kangxi's reign, after the sinking incident, when Crown Prince Yinreng kicked Yongzheng, as compensation, Kangxi ordered Wang Hesheng to take full responsibility for Yongzheng's health.
Wang Hesheng was also the first person to learn about Yongzheng's health condition.
In fact, long before Yongzheng ascended the throne, he had already discovered that he had health problems. At this time, Wang Hesheng found a secret recipe in his family's medical book that could exchange three months of life for three days of health; after three days, a person would fall seriously ill.
This secret formula was clearly only for emergency use, and Wang Hesheng would never have given it to Emperor Yongzheng. But somehow, Emperor Yongzheng learned of the formula and, after ascending the throne, ordered Wang Hesheng to study it.
It's no wonder Wang Hesheng is considered a medical genius. He did improve the prescription, which allowed patients to maintain their health for a longer period and suppressed side effects better, but at the same time, it also consumed more of their lifespan.
Emperor Yongzheng took this modified prescription, thus effectively concealing his health condition.
Who was the first to notice the clues?
That's right, it's our Eighth Prince, Yinzhi.
In the third year of the Yongzheng Emperor's reign, during the summer retreat at the Yuanmingyuan Garden, the Fourteenth Prince was still attacking the Dzungar Khanate, the Eldest Prince had his troops stationed on the Russian border, and the Second, Eighth Prince, and Crown Prince Honghui were the most involved in political affairs. And what was our Yongzheng Emperor doing? He was in the garden watching a play, and then he was captured by the Second and Eighth Princes.
Our former deposed crown prince, now Prince Yinreng, was naturally unhappy. He felt he was busier than when he was crown prince, and he took every opportunity to complain to Emperor Yongzheng.
After he left, the Eighth Prince asked the Yongzheng Emperor, "Aren't you afraid that the Second Prince will really quit?"
How did Emperor Yongzheng respond? He said that Yinreng had a strong sense of mission, and upholding the rule of the Qing Dynasty was ingrained in his very being. Therefore, Yinreng would definitely still return to the Hall of Diligent Governance to review memorials.
It's clear that Emperor Yongzheng truly understood his brothers, which is why he dared to use them with confidence.
But at this moment, Yunsi asked again, "The second prince has a sense of mission, what about you?"
As a good younger brother who was particularly good at understanding people's hearts and knew Yongzheng very well, the Eighth Prince had long felt that something was wrong. He felt that Yongzheng was too hasty after ascending the throne, and that his intention to pave the way for Honghui was too obvious.
Therefore, Yinzhi had a bad feeling, and on this day, he asked about it, taking advantage of Yongzheng's evaluation of Yinreng.
Yongzheng knew his younger brother was clever, so he told him the truth in a roundabout way, only saying that he had some minor health problems but could manage, so that the Eighth Prince could rest assured.
But is Lao Ba someone who can be taken easy?
Of course not. After that, he secretly searched everywhere for famous doctors and precious medicinal herbs. But Yongzheng always appeared to be very healthy, so while the Eighth Prince was worried, he wasn't in a hurry.
As news spread that Emperor Yongzheng was paying more and more attention to Honghui and even sending him to negotiate peace, more and more people secretly began to make moves.
Emperor Yongzheng was a good emperor, and Honghui was a good crown prince—that's beyond doubt. But this "goodness" was for the sake of the country and its people; for those ambitious individuals, it was an obstacle.
Therefore, they did not want Emperor Yongzheng to continue as emperor, nor did they want Honghui to ascend the throne.
Thus, the Tong family's treason case came into being.
This case involved the imperial court, the inner palace, and members of the imperial family. If Emperor Yongzheng hadn't anticipated this and never let his guard down, they might have actually succeeded.
Let's analyze it step by step, starting with the harem.
At that time, Empress Xiaojing Yixiu's position in the harem was secure, which was clearly not conducive to those people's schemes. So they began to create turmoil in the harem, using Ulanara's connections to target pregnant concubines, seemingly pinning the blame on Rouze.
Do you all remember Rouze? She was the legitimate daughter of the Ulanara clan, whom the Yongzheng Emperor insisted on marrying, and who caused him to be poisoned and fall into a coma.
It seemed like the blame was shifted to Rouze, but in reality, it all pointed to Yixiu. With no way to prove it, Yixiu had no choice but to hand over the power in the palace to Consort Hua.
Consort Hua was a secondary consort whom Emperor Kangxi had decreed to marry, and she gave birth to Emperor Yongzheng's second daughter, Galudai. Her brother, Nian Gengyao, was a valiant general who was currently fighting alongside the Fourteenth Prince. Therefore, it was quite reasonable for her to wield power as a high-ranking concubine.
Then, those people used their connections in the palace to poison Yixiu on one hand, and cause trouble in the palace on the other, making the young princes and princesses sick, causing conflicts among the palace staff, and even almost burning down the Imperial Hospital.
Consort Hua was exhausted and overwhelmed, so she had to resign from her post with Emperor Yongzheng. At this time, the other consorts were also preoccupied with their children and were clearly unable to take on the responsibility of managing the harem.
Thus, without any difficulty, Yongzheng handed over this power to Consort Tongjia.
Whoever benefits is at fault. Now you can see who I'm referring to, right? That's right, Consort Tongjia is the mastermind behind the palace intrigue.
Some readers have asked, why would Emperor Yongzheng trust Consort Tongjia? Had he forgotten how he brought down the Tongjia clan in the first place?
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