Chapter 79 079 Winter of the thirty-sixth year of Yongcheng, the founding emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty…
Because of the two layers of meaning in the character "蛮" (man), Luo Fu was very satisfied when she first came up with the nickname "蛮儿" (man'er). However, when she learned from Princess Kangping that the Crown Prince had given the nickname "夏" (xia) to the grandson born to his concubine Li Huaixiu, in order to make him and her "蛮儿" (man'er) a perfect match for the two great achievements of a wise ruler who "pacifies the Xia people internally and pacifies the Bai Man people externally," Luo Fu became less happy.
The trouble was caused by Xiao Yu. As soon as Xiao Yu returned to the manor in the evening, he skillfully moved closer to her, and Luo Fu raised her hand and pinched him.
Xiao Yu: "..."
He was in pain, but when he met his wife's angry eyes, which were watery and self-righteous, Xiao Yu immediately reflected on his actions. However, he couldn't figure out how he had offended his wife. Recently, everything had been going smoothly in his official career, and he rarely came home late. He was also able to hand over an extra eight taels of salary to his wife, who was the tutor of the Crown Prince's Palace, every month.
Could it be that he woke up in the middle of the night last night and bothered the lady too much, thus displeasing her?
Xiao Yu quickly denied the speculation, because he could tell whether his wife liked him or not.
"Lost money again?"
Ultimately, Xiao Yu concluded that his wife's anger was related to the card game she had attended at the princess's residence that day.
Luo Fu: "You were just hoping I'd lose, weren't you? It has nothing to do with winning or losing. It was the princess who told me the nickname the Crown Prince gave his second son. Xia Ge'er, did you already know this?"
Xiao Yu had indeed heard the Crown Prince mention it, and asked with doubt, "Isn't this name good?"
Xiao Yu is pleased that the Crown Prince has the ambition and aspiration to be a wise ruler, and the Emperor will surely be pleased to know this as well.
Luo Fu: "You're always thinking about those big things. Why don't you think about my relationship with the Crown Princess? Before Man'er was born, the Crown Princess even gave him the young master's old clothes. But us? Our child was born with a name that was auspicious for both of us, the same as Consort Li's son. I don't know how magnanimous the Crown Princess is, but if it were me, I definitely wouldn't feel comfortable!"
Xiao Yu: "...That does make some sense, but Xia Ge'er is the nickname the Crown Prince gave to his second son, not the one I suggested..."
Luo Fu: "First, I dare not complain that the Crown Prince dared not pinch the Crown Prince but could only pinch you. Second, if you hadn't used something like 'pacifying the Xia people internally and pacifying the Bai Man people externally' to flatter the Crown Prince, the Crown Prince would never have thought of naming his second son Xia."
Her two layers of meaning were already good enough; why did Xiao Yu need to go to such lengths?
If it weren't for the Crown Prince bestowing the name, Luo Fu would probably be very pleased that Xiao Yu had actually learned to flatter the Crown Prince. Unfortunately, his flattery this time backfired spectacularly on the Crown Prince, leaving the couple with a bitter taste in their mouths!
Because of her friendship with the Crown Princess, Luo Fu didn't want to have any connection with Consort Li!
Xiao Yu understood his wife's frustration, but he needed to clarify one thing: "My quotation of the 'Rhapsody on the Two Capitals' was not to flatter the Crown Prince. As the tutor of the Crown Prince, I have a duty to guide him, and it is also my responsibility to encourage him to aspire to be a wise ruler..."
Luo Fu understood what he meant. She wasn't really blaming Xiao Yu for being nosy. In the end, Xiao Yu wasn't wrong, nor was the Crown Prince. It was purely a coincidence that she and Consort Li had children one after the other. But the fact that the two of them were involved could very likely cause a rift in her relationship with the Crown Princess. Including the Crown Prince, Zhi Ge'er, a child who was quite sensible at such a young age. Would he be unhappy that his father had given his half-brother a nickname with such profound meaning?
That's "Xia"! Besides the connotation of "pacifying the Xia people internally and pacifying the barbarians externally," Xia also refers to the Central Plains. It's not a big deal for ordinary people to have this name, since there are people with the surname Xia. But if a prince is given the name "Xia," even if the crown prince doesn't have that intention, can the wives and concubines in the Eastern Palace and even the ministers in the court really not think about it at all?
Man'er was born after she had carried her for ten months with great difficulty, and Luo Fu dared not take anything related to Man'er or her family lightly.
"Hurry up and think of a good name for Man'er. Once he turns one year old, we'll change his name to his formal name. I don't think the name 'Xia Ge'er' for the second son of the Crown Prince will last long."
Luo Fu urged Xiao Yu. It was definitely not acceptable to abandon the character "Barbarian" in advance. After all, in the Crown Prince's eyes, it was an honor for him to give his son a nickname that corresponded to the offspring of a minister's family. Changing the name right after giving the nickname would be an open act of disdain for the Crown Prince and a slap in his face.
.
In the palace, Emperor Yongcheng also mentioned the nickname of his new grandson to Empress Gao.
Emperor Yongcheng spoke while lying down, patting his wife's hand: "I used to think that the fourth prince was a steady and reliable person, but I didn't expect him to become so impetuous after only half a year as crown prince. Xiao Yu used his own child's nickname to encourage him to be a wise ruler in the future. It's good that he had this intention, but he immediately gave his son a corresponding nickname, as if he was afraid that others would not know his ambition to be a wise ruler."
Emperor Yongcheng dared to bet with his wife that if his fourth son were still a prince, he certainly wouldn't have done such a rash thing that would easily expose his ambitions.
Empress Gao nodded. However, with the eldest son around, the fourth son, as the youngest brother, had been steady for over thirty years. Now that he had been named Crown Prince, he was riding high, and it was only natural for him to be a little impulsive at times.
"He has the heart to be a wise ruler, which is better than someone who only cares about pleasure," Empress Gao comforted her husband.
Emperor Yongcheng sighed, “I fear that he will be like me in my younger years, too eager to achieve the great cause of unification.”
If he had more time, Emperor Yongcheng could have conquered Liaozhou himself, or personally tutored his fourth son for a few more years, passing on his experience and lessons learned from over thirty years as emperor. The problem was that Emperor Yongcheng didn't have that much time, and the more he did, the more afraid that the new crown prince he had chosen might also have some flaws that he hadn't been able to see through.
What saddened Emperor Yongcheng the most was that even though the fourth prince had some flaws, he was still better than his two older brothers, who had already shown their flaws. He could not find a more suitable candidate than the fourth prince.
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On October 22, Emperor Yongcheng celebrated his 70th birthday.
Throughout history, emperors who lived to this age were considered very long-lived. However, Emperor Yongcheng, who fell ill after autumn, also reached the end of his life. Just two years ago, the founding emperor could still sit on the dragon throne and drink and make merry with his civil and military officials. At the birthday banquet, he only showed up once, leaning on a cane. He clinked wine cups with Li Gong, the Duke of Dingguo, who had also been brought into the palace by his clansmen, took a sip of wine, and then told the officials to continue drinking and making merry. Emperor Yongcheng then slowly left, leaning on his cane.
With his death approaching, Emperor Yongcheng began to summon his key ministers one by one for private conversations.
The civil officials were doing well. Except for Lin Bangzhen, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, who was too old to retire, the two prime ministers of the Secretariat, the ministers of the Six Ministries, the Censorate, and the Prefect of the Capital were all virtuous ministers trusted by Emperor Yongcheng. Although they were all in their fifties or sixties, they were enough to assist the new emperor for another three to five years or even ten years, until the new emperor used this time to promote his new batch of trusted ministers.
During the transfer of the imperial throne, the military generals who held military power were the key.
The first person Emperor Yongcheng met was Zhang Ji, the commander of the Imperial Guards.
Zhang Ji is fifty-eight years old this year. He is a solitary official who has no wife, concubines, children, or other relatives. The people say that he was born to protect Emperor Yongcheng and has no other desires besides protecting him.
Emperor Yongcheng said to the Crown Prince in front of Zhang Ji: "If you trust Zhang Ji, while he is still strong, let him serve as the commander of the Imperial Guard for a few more years. If you have a better candidate, I will immediately promote the person you recommended to be the commander of the Imperial Guard, dismiss Zhang Ji from his post, give him a generous sum of gold and silver, and send him back to his hometown to live out his old age in peace."
Zhang Ji said with tears in his eyes, "Your Majesty gave me this life. As long as Your Majesty is here, I will be here. If Your Majesty goes elsewhere, no matter where you are, I will continue to follow you."
Emperor Yongcheng: "My lifespan has come to an end. I cannot stay any longer even if I wish. You are still young, so live well. There is no need to rush to find me. I have so many soldiers in the underworld, I will not lack people to protect me."
After the emperor and his minister finished speaking, the crown prince, with tears in his eyes, bowed to Zhang Ji and said, "My father trusts and respects you, and I also trust and respect you. I hope you will help me to successfully inherit the great cause of the country entrusted to me by my father."
Zhang Ji, with tears streaming down his face, kowtowed three times, vowing to be loyal to the Emperor and the Crown Prince to the death.
After Zhang Ji left, Emperor Yongcheng summoned the three commanders of the capital garrison in succession.
Li Wei, the commander of the Eastern Camp, is now the Crown Prince's father-in-law, so he will naturally be loyal to the Crown Prince.
After Li Wei finished expressing his loyalty and withdrew, Emperor Yongcheng said to the Crown Prince: "Li Gong and his son are both loyal and virtuous generals. The reason I previously betrothed Li Wei's daughter to you as a concubine was not because I distrusted the Li family or feared that they would harbor resentment because of your sister-in-law's exile to Lingnan. Rather, it was to thwart the despicable schemes of those who wanted to sow discord between you and the Li family. In short, remember that the Great Zhou cannot defeat the Yin Kingdom without the Li family. You must not let the Li brothers down."
The Crown Prince understood.
Emperor Yongcheng: "It is fine to give important positions to the Li family, but the Crown Princess is virtuous and sensible, and is the only choice for Empress. Zhi'er is also exceptionally talented at such a young age. You must not make a mistake because of the harem."
The Crown Prince said solemnly, "Father, rest assured, I respect the Crown Princess, and Zhi Ge'er was raised by me personally. No one can surpass them, mother and son, in my eyes."
Whether Emperor Yongcheng believed it or not, there was nothing he could do but remind his son one by one.
Next, we met Gao Kun, the Duke of Yingguo and commander of the Western Camp. Gao Kun was the maternal uncle of the princes, and his wealth and status would not change no matter which prince succeeded to the throne, so there was no doubt about his loyalty to the crown prince.
Finally, there was Liang Bizheng, the commander of the Southern Camp, a burly old general who walked with a brisk pace.
Emperor Yongcheng laughed and said, "Back then, I was afraid that Prince Qi would cause trouble by vying for the throne with the Crown Prince, so I had to choose one of your daughters to marry Prince Qi as a concubine to appease him. Are you angry with me?"
Liang Bizheng said nonchalantly, "Your Majesty is overthinking it. I don't even remember how many concubine daughters I have. It is her blessing and my blessing that one of them can serve Your Majesty."
Emperor Yongcheng: "How about I choose another daughter from your household to be a concubine for the Crown Prince?"
Liang Bizheng laughed loudly: "That's wonderful! I have three daughters who are betrothed to the Emperor's three sons. No nobleman in the capital has more prestige than me. However, I understand the Emperor's meaning. I also have my loyalty to show. The Emperor's willingness to elevate my daughters is an honor bestowed by the Emperor and a blessing for my daughters and me. But no matter which prince my daughters marry, my only loyalty is to the Emperor and the new emperor chosen by the Emperor. Heaven and earth can bear witness to my loyalty. I hope the Emperor and the Crown Prince will understand."
Putting aside his jokes, Liang Bizheng said with a resolute expression.
At Emperor Yongcheng's instruction, the Crown Prince personally helped Liang Bizheng up.
Liang Bizheng looked at the Crown Prince in front of him and smiled again: "It is not that I am flattering you, but to be honest, in my heart, the combined virtue of His Highnesses Qi and Shun is not even half a percent of that of the Crown Prince."
Prince Shun loved his prized horse from the Western Regions and would only think of spending money to buy it from him. If it were Prince Qi, Prince Qi would dare to directly snatch it from him, and if he couldn't get it, he would simply kill the horse.
Only this crown prince would reward him with a new prized horse from the Western Regions based on his merits.
These veteran civil and military officials were all willing to support the Crown Prince. After Emperor Yongcheng resolved a major matter, he handed a list to the Crown Prince: "This is a group of new people whom I believe can assist you in the future. There are both civil and military officials. After I go there, you can observe them slowly. If you can use them, then use them. If you can't use them, then I've misjudged them."
"Father!" The Crown Prince knelt before his father, holding the imperial edict in both hands, tears streaming down his face.
Emperor Yongcheng patted the Crown Prince's head: "Don't cry, don't cry. It was bound to happen sooner or later. Take your father's nagging to heart; that's better than anything else."
The Crown Prince choked up and said, “I remember every word Father Emperor said. I remember even more the hardships Father Emperor endured in founding and building the country. Perhaps I will never achieve even half of Father Emperor’s success in my lifetime, but I will definitely work hard to live up to Father Emperor’s expectations, and not let officials and people curse me for being muddleheaded, and not let future generations blame Father Emperor for choosing the wrong crown prince.”
This was fairly frank, and Emperor Yongcheng smiled with satisfaction.
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In the winter of the thirty-sixth year of Yongcheng, the founding emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty passed away, and the crown prince succeeded to the throne according to the imperial edict. The following year, a new era name was adopted—Xianping.
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Author's Note: As we bid farewell to the late emperor and welcome the new one, a new chapter is about to begin. I need to organize my thoughts tonight, so there won't be a double update today!
100 little red envelopes, see you tomorrow! [kiss]
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