Chapter 78 Another Southern Tour
After the southern tour ended, winter had already arrived. The last major event of the 41st year of Kangxi's reign was probably the dismissal of Songgotu's younger brother, Hesheli Xinyu, for abusing his family members, resulting in their tragic deaths.
The person who exposed this matter was Orondai, the eldest son of the late First-Class Duke Tong Guogang.
The opposition between the Tongjia and Hesheli clans was nothing new to the people of the capital. However, after the Longkodo incident, the Tongjia clan, having been silent for a long time, made a move again, targeting the Hesheli clan, and was even rewarded by the emperor.
This sent a new signal to everyone: Tong Guowei's lineage had fallen. But Tong Guogang's descendants rose again, shouldering the glory of the Tongjia clan once more.
The price of rising to power was becoming a tool in Kangxi's hands, used wherever the emperor pointed.
Yes, everyone could see that this was Kangxi deliberately targeting Empress Heseri. Not only with Xinyu's dismissal, but in fact, starting with the corruption case in Jiangnan, Kangxi had made no attempt to conceal his dissatisfaction with Empress Heseri.
The situation had calmed down considerably during the southern tour, and even when the crown prince fell ill, Kangxi urgently summoned Songgotu to attend to him. However, for some reason, after the crown prince recovered, Kangxi began to heavily rely on Orondai and once again targeted the Hesheli clan.
Even though there weren't any major upheavals after Xinyu's death, the astute court officials could all see that Kangxi was growing increasingly dissatisfied with Suo'etu.
Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, it was the forty-second year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign.
Not long after the New Year, Kangxi embarked on another southern tour. This time, Kangxi seemed to have no reservations about entrusting the important task of overseeing the country to Crown Prince Yinreng, leaving the Eighth Prince Yinsi to assist him, and bringing along the Third Prince Yinzhi, the Fourth Prince Yinzhen, and the Thirteenth Prince Yinxiang.
This was Emperor Kangxi's fourth southern tour, less than six months after his last. The primary political objective of this costly and short-term southern tour was to consolidate his rule. After all, the environment in the south was far more complex than in the north, and he had not yet fully grasped its potential.
Therefore, he brought three princes with him. In the south, Yinzhi was the best in literature, Yinxiang was the best in martial arts, and Yinzhen was the best in academics. It can be said that Kangxi brought neither more nor less of them.
On the 24th day of the first lunar month, the Emperor arrived in Jinan Prefecture. To prevent the Jinan officials from putting on a show, Emperor Kangxi left Yinzhi to receive the officials, while he changed into ordinary clothes and took Yinzhen and Yinxiang on a private visit to the countryside.
Crossing the quaint little bridge, you'll find the most bustling market in Jinan Prefecture. Vendors on both sides hawk their wares, offering everything from fresh fruits and vegetables to exquisite silk ornaments and delicious snacks.
The passersby all wore smiles and were full of energy. Every now and then, children would run and play with sugar figurines, laughing and frolicking among the crowd. Not far away, many people had gathered to watch acrobatic and circus performances, their cheers ringing out continuously.
What a bustling and lively scene!
"What do you think of Jinan Prefecture?" Kangxi, dressed as a wealthy merchant, walked through the crowd with his two sons and guards. Seeing the happy smiles on everyone's faces, Kangxi turned to ask Yinzhen and Yinzhen.
"I think it's great. It seems like the people are living a good life. Children can run around freely, which shows that the officials here are doing a good job."
Yinxiang helped a child who had almost bumped into him, and as he looked into the child's innocent smile, he couldn't help but smile back.
"Is that so? What do you think, Fourth Prince?" Kangxi remained noncommittal and then asked for Yinzhen's opinion.
"Regardless of the state of the region, the officials of Jinan Prefecture are certainly adept at currying favor," Yinzhen commented casually, glancing at the mutton-fat jade pendant on the painting-selling scholar.
"You're quite mischievous."
Kangxi couldn't help but chuckle. Yinxiang, standing to the side, was somewhat puzzled and asked, "What do you mean, Fourth Brother?"
Since Kangxi didn't stop him, Yinzhen walked over to Yinxiang and gestured for him to observe carefully. "Look," he said, "this vegetable vendor is more radiant than the vegetables themselves. His hands are white, his feet are spotless, and he's wearing silk, the kind of clothing most unsuitable for manual labor. I'd believe you if you said he was some pampered young master, but you say he's a vegetable vendor..."
"Not at all like it..." Upon hearing Yinzhen's reminder, Yinxiang instantly noticed numerous flaws in the vendors. And it wasn't just him; Yinxiang turned his head and, prompted by his fourth brother, looked at the vendors on both sides again, finding problems everywhere. Even the running children were too fair-skinned and adorable.
Although Yinxiang had little experience with ordinary people's lives, he wasn't stupid. With a little prompting, he realized that no matter how wealthy ordinary people were, they wouldn't be this rich. The people in front of him—the merchants, passersby, and children—all seemed to live in wealthy families.
On the entire street, perhaps only the acrobatic troupe was real. But judging from their superb skills, they didn't seem like an ordinary troupe that needed to beg for food at the street corner.
"This...this is blatant fraud!" Yinxiang took a deep breath, shocked by the extravagance of the Jinan officials.
"I suppose they knew the Emperor had a habit of traveling incognito, so they made special preparations." Because there were many people around, Yinzhen used a pronoun when he spoke.
"This..." Yinxiang was dumbfounded. Although he had accompanied his father on several inspection tours before, this was the first time he had directly witnessed the methods officials used to deal with inspections. "Aren't they afraid that the Emperor will find out?"
"A bunch of fools have been high and mighty for too long, they don't understand the real lives of ordinary people, so naturally they won't think there's anything wrong with their arrangements." Yinzhen's words contained a hint of murderous intent.
“Alright, we’re here for a leisurely stroll, not to investigate a case,” Kangxi shook his head. The Fourth Prince’s clear-cut love and hate and his impartial personality were both good and bad. He had already wiped out half of Jiangnan, and Jinan Prefecture couldn’t withstand his antics right now. “Let’s go. Since we can’t see the truth in the city, let’s go for a walk outside the city.”
After Emperor Kangxi gave the order, the group headed out of Jinan Prefecture.
While touring the surrounding villages, I found that the people there weren't exactly wealthy. But because of their proximity to the prefectural city, their lives were passable. However, compared to the performances in the city, the difference was enormous.
As night deepened, the group, unable to return to the city in time, chose to stay in Nanshan Village. They rented the best courtyard in the village, but the villagers' lives were generally simple, and the courtyard was not large. Kangxi occupied one room by himself, while Yinzhen and Yinxiang shared another.
"Fourth Brother, is this what life is all about?"
Lying on his less-than-comfortable bed, Yinxiang recalled how the villagers, dressed in patched clothes and with less-than-prosperous faces, spoke of their lives with satisfied smiles, and he found it hard to fall asleep for a long time.
"The common people are the easiest to overlook, and also the easiest to satisfy. As long as they can survive, that's enough," Yinzhen replied calmly. No matter what world you're in, the common people are always like this.
"Should we survive?" In the past, Yinxiang's mind was only focused on achieving great deeds, national affairs, father-son relationships, and brotherly bonds, but not on the common people. Now, he has truly imprinted the people in his mind, but he cannot help but feel guilty and ashamed.
As if knowing what he was thinking, Yinzhen's comforting words came from the side: "Now that you know, in the future, you should consider the people more in your actions. The people's demands are very simple, but it is very difficult to always keep the people in your heart. But I believe in you, Thirteenth Prince, you can do it."
"I understand, Fourth Brother. I will do it and will not let you down."
"Alright, don't overthink it. It's late, get some rest."
"good."
...
Under the comforting words of Yinzhen, the passionate Yinxiang gradually drifted off to sleep, cherishing his ideals of bringing happiness to the people and making a difference.
As the night deepened and dark clouds obscured the moon, the quiet night was suddenly shattered by screams.
"Fire! Fire! Wake up!"
The orange-red flames silently climbed onto the windowsill, stirring up plumes of smoke right before everyone's eyes...
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