Chapter 142 The Palace's Anger Over the Accusation and Seizure...
After this private conversation, Qi Chengming sorted out his thoughts and the next day summoned everyone to a small meeting in the county government office.
Going to the Prince's Mansion would be too ostentatious, but the magistrates and prefects of Liuzhou would visit the county government office from time to time.
“I’ve been unwell for the past few months and haven’t gone out, so all sorts of demons and monsters have appeared.” Qi Chengming sat in the main seat and sighed, “They even dare to come and offend the Prince’s residence. They have absolutely no respect for my dignity!”
He only learned last night that the governor of Yulin had charged him with spying on the Prince's residence.
"They'll just say to outsiders that I'm arrogant and complacent, and they'll impeach me for daring to imprison a high-ranking official. What do you all think we should do next?"
Prefect Mu's face was devoid of any smile, yet he exuded considerable authority.
Ever since a clan from another region, backed by powerful figures, attempted to seize the money shop, he realized the impending crisis was escalating. Prince Rui was good in every way, except for his lack of manpower, leaving him at a disadvantage in court with nowhere to seek redress.
If impeachment proceedings really take hold, then the blame will fall entirely on them.
Fortunately, although his father was old, he had not yet retired. On the matter of the princes vying for the throne, the father and son were of the same opinion, so they could at least have some say in the matter. It just depended on whether His Majesty would become suspicious.
He hasn't been idle for the past two months.
Mu Maoshi immediately said in a deep voice, "Your Highness should immediately begin writing a memorial to explain the situation to His Majesty and inquire about the follow-up."
The imperial officials detained him in a fit of anger, but they had no choice but to do so, as they had been bullied to the point of humiliation.
The son, having no other recourse, could only cry to his emperor father, begging him to take further action.
—We must act before the news reaches the capital and before anyone in the court impeaches the Second Prince.
Qi Chengming understood immediately. The Emperor Hongren had left him with a line of secret reports, intending to give him a promise that he would have the right to know and inquire about any secrets related to his mother after the investigation.
A wiser prince would know that this power was not something he could actually use regularly; it was merely a symbolic representation of Emperor Hongren's last vestige of affection for his birth mother, Consort Hua.
Now is the time to use it.
Qi Chengming hasn't reached the point where he wants to truly expose himself, so this time he can only show weakness—while he's still weak, showing weakness is the most effective approach.
Qi Chengming then privately summoned Doctor Bian, Qin Liusong, and Prefect Mu, and whispered something to them. Their secret conversation lasted until very late. Finally, they managed to get the arrangements mostly in place.
...
Within five days, the messengers of the secret memorial channel, working at breakneck speed, delivered the letter to the chief eunuch. The eunuch, whose face was obscured, discreetly requested an audience with Emperor Hongren. At such times, even the Grand Eunuch Fuman had to wait outside.
"A letter from Liuzhou?" Emperor Hongren has recently passed the period of being overwhelmed with worries and has finally had some free time to take care of his health, so he is much calmer.
Upon seeing the letter, the old emperor was somewhat surprised, and chuckled, "He still remembers me?"
The hall was empty. The Grand Eunuch knelt silently, and Emperor Hongren didn't need anyone to speak to him. He was in such a good mood that he could even crack a joke, mainly for two reasons:
Firstly, several outstanding figures have emerged on the front lines of the war, preventing a continued rout and resulting in several well-fought battles that have slowed the enemy's advance. This is one of the few pieces of good news this year.
Emperor Hongren immediately wrote a decree, promoting the man to a higher military rank overnight and rewarding him handsomely. The ministers all praised the wise and virtuous ruler, and the previously restless and chaotic state of the capital calmed down.
Secondly, his diligent efforts over the past year had been effective. Three palace maids and one low-ranking concubine became pregnant one after another. Although protecting a child in the palace was never easy, the concubine unexpectedly miscarried. But, weren't there still three left?
Emperor Hongren felt quite pleased with himself, thinking about his still-good virility and abundant harvest.
In this state of mind, he slowly opened the letter, and within moments became annoyed: "The Governor of Yulin? Is it... um, the one recommended by Hanlin Dong?"
Emperors are known for their excellent memories. After a moment's thought, Emperor Hongren recalled when the governor of Yulin had been appointed.
This is a huge disaster.
Those who can patrol the surrounding areas are generally trustworthy.
Although Dong Hanlin held a minor official position, he was a close advisor to the emperor. Emperor Hongren often neglected to read memorials, relying instead on Dong Hanlin to read them aloud. He was also responsible for sorting and classifying memorials based on their difficulty. Actually, there were originally two other individuals involved, but they both fell victim to the case of the eldest prince.
Dong Hanlin, who was not bribed to do anything, was deemed to be of honest and upright character and quickly gained the trust of Emperor Hongren.
The person recommended by Hanlin Dong with such conviction was approved by Emperor Hongren after only a brief hearing. After all, he was originally just a minor official in the capital who had not achieved his ambitions, came from a poor family, and had no particular talent. As long as he had Hanlin Dong's loyalty and honesty and could do his job properly, he would be the best minister... Yulin had recently been cleared up, and the inspection was just a formality; as long as he remained stable and didn't cause any trouble, that was fine.
And then... trouble ensued.
This is outrageous!
He's only been in office for a short time, and he already dares to forcibly seize tributes from the prince?!
What is he trying to do?
Reflecting on these shifts in his emotions, Emperor Hongren's face darkened, and he said in an increasingly angry voice, "Zhao Fuman! Go and guard the front hall. Bring over all the memorials from the past two or three months concerning Liuzhou and Yulin Prefecture!!"
"Yes!" The eldest eunuch outside the door replied without hesitation.
The chief eunuch also respectfully withdrew, leaving only a tense atmosphere in the hall. Emperor Hongren looked at his second son's tearful complaint and his face turned ashen with anger.
He didn't intend to punish the officials based on just one person's words, so he wanted to verify the official reports from both regions to get to the bottom of things. But even before the investigation, Emperor Hongren was furious—if there were any more doubts, what was the perfectly good governor of Yulin doing running off to Liuzhou?!
What could be on his mind? What could possibly be on his mind?!
He offended the prince, spied on the prince's residence, and plotted to seize the tribute... The second prince was still there crying and begging for forgiveness, asking how to deal with the governor of Yulin whom he had imprisoned in a fit of anger!
Is it possible for the Prince Rui's mansion to grow legs and travel all the way from Liuzhou to Yulin Prefecture on its own?
Emperor Hongren was already 80-90% convinced.
He admitted that he disliked the second prince, so he simply sent him far away to avoid seeing him and keeping him at bay. He figured giving him a bowl of rice and letting him live a good life as a vassal king would be enough.
This does not mean that others can presume to know his thoughts and go to make things difficult for a prince!
What makes you, an official of the court, dare to make things difficult for a prince?! No matter what, he is still a noble son of the dragon!
Emperor Hongren was also extremely puzzled and could not understand this behavior.
He suppressed his anger and waited for the memorial brought by Eunuch Fuman. The plump eunuch concealed his gloating and reported in his usual kind and gentle voice, "Your Majesty, Hanlin Academician Dong is outside requesting an audience."
Since the emperor sent Eunuch Fuman to fetch the memorial, it was inevitable that Hanlin Dong, who was on duty that day, would be there. Unlike usual, he wasn't being ordered around. Moreover, the memorial the emperor wanted seemed very specific, and the emperor's angry voice could be heard from afar. Hanlin Dong couldn't help but wonder if something had implicated him, so he came to see the emperor with trepidation.
"Let him wait!" Emperor Hongren smashed an inkstone.
Dong Hanlin, who was standing outside the door, was so frightened that he knelt down on the ground and dared not raise his head, adopting a posture of pleading for forgiveness.
Emperor Hongren personally reviewed each letter without relying on anyone else.
Imperial greetings were often written in flowery language, but contained little substance. Yet, officials stationed outside the capital had no choice but to write them, lest the Emperor forget who they were. No matter how fancy the writing, it didn't amount to anything meaningful.
Emperor Hongren gradually began to see through the situation.
In the past two months, the prefect of Liuzhou mentioned briefly in his memorials that the governor of Yulin had visited.
Looking at the prefect's memorial, it was said that Prince Rui had recently made many moves, which led to friction with a newly arrived official, and they were arguing over the hundred factories.
This was only mentioned briefly in the margin, without specifying who it was.
When he wasn't paying attention, these greetings and memorials were all nonsense, mere amusement that didn't interest Emperor Hongren. But now that he was paying attention, he became extremely annoyed after just a moment's thought.
'A new official?'
Who else could it be? Fighting over factory land? Their audacity is bigger than their appetite!
This matter was originally minor, but Emperor Hongren was petty and extremely concerned with his reputation. He increasingly felt that someone had presumptuously guessed his thoughts, allowing them to act so recklessly towards a prince. All talk of loyalty was just a tale of a greedy, foolish traitor who had betrayed him.
but.
Emperor Hongren became suspicious.
"Hundred factories" in a barren place like Liuzhou... that's practically half of Liuzhou's farmland, right?
The mere governor of Yulin has only a distant connection with Liuzhou. Does he have such a big appetite? Is he willing to risk offending a prince to swallow up the city's military camp?
"Investigate," Emperor Hongren said emphatically, pointing to the name of the Governor of Yulin on the memorial.
This sounds suspicious from every angle.
He no longer trusts Dong Hanlin's recommendation.
Ultimately... for Emperor Hongren, he might dislike a particular prince. But once a prince was enfeoffed, it was only natural for the entire city to support him; otherwise, what would be the point of calling it a fiefdom?
What's the big deal about seizing land? No one was killed, and what they were taking was from his own fiefdom. What kind of robbery is that? This was something that was supposed to be provided.
The second prince's mistake was imprisoning a court official.
However, given that he had come to apologize early and the circumstances, Emperor Hongren had already decided on a course of action—to send someone to reprimand him and that would be the end of it.
The serious problem lies with Governor Yulin.
Emperor Hongren narrowed his eyes, suppressing his unfriendly emotions for the time being. From that day on, he never saw Dong Hanlin again.
This wait lasted for half a month.
Upon hearing the report detailing the complex relationships surrounding the Governor of Yulin, Emperor Hongren was so angry that he sneered, "Very well...Very well, my princes are getting more and more capable!"
Aside from the eldest prince, who had just been reprimanded and forced into silence, living like a ghost in the palace, there was also the second prince, the aggrieved party in this incident. This newly favored prince of the court had quite the nerve, actually getting entangled with all three of his other princes!
"Investigate again!" Emperor Hongren roared angrily.
He wanted to see which of his good sons was behind this. This was bullying his own brother from so far away, thinking the weakest of the two princes wouldn't dare to resist?
At this moment, Emperor Hongren's anger was no longer directed at the governor of Yulin, but was filled with hatred for the prince who had instigated it.
How could someone who had been so wise and capable for most of his life have fathered such a spineless and worthless son? Emperor Hongren wished he could immediately distance himself from this man.
I only dare to step on the least threatening brother from afar...
A prince with this kind of temperament must be thoroughly investigated!
The throne must never be handed over to this person!
If it weren't for the fact that there were so few princes and almost no royal relatives with titles, Emperor Hongren would have almost considered adopting one of his sons.
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