In fact, among the princes who have come of age, Prince Zhi is not the only one who keeps a private army. Even Yinreng's army was originally assigned by His Majesty. The Fourth Prince also keeps a private army, but not in the capital. It is a group of private soldiers he has kept in recent years when he accompanied his father on his southern and northern tours.
When Fourth Master went to Guangdong this time, his private soldiers followed him without his knowledge.
It was an open secret that the princes kept private armies, and they all roughly knew how many they kept. As for how many private armies Prince Zhi kept in secret, to be honest, the Fourth Prince only knew that it was several times his own number, but even the Fourth Prince didn't know exactly how many times.
The Emperor knew that his sons all kept their own private armies. Baoqing's keeping of his private army right under his nose was indeed quite audacious, but in the Emperor's eyes, it was not something that deserved his anger. Baoqing had led troops on the front lines for many years, and it was perfectly normal for him to have some supporters. If he didn't even have any supporters, then in the Emperor's eyes, he would truly be useless.
But what really angered His Majesty was that Baoqing had been caught red-handed, and his private army had been wiped out so easily. What a coward!
Aside from the overt punishments, His Majesty also took Bao Qing's two money bags, and he really didn't take those private soldiers seriously.
However, His Majesty would not be completely unaware of the underhanded dealings behind Baoqing's case.
"The third son is a master at stirring up trouble behind the scenes, and he's even using the fourth son as a pawn," His Majesty said incisively.
Liang Jiugong dared not speak, as it involved the princes.
The Emperor was tired from reviewing memorials. He rubbed his eyes, seemingly thinking of something: "However, the Fourth Prince was used as a pawn quite skillfully, directly seizing Baoqing's weakness, which can be considered a fatal blow."
“Baoqing’s temperament still needs to be tempered. He’s so old, and Hongyu is so old too, yet he’s becoming more and more childish. Things haven’t been peaceful in the north lately, so in a couple of days I’ll have Baoqing lead troops to give them a warning. As for the fourth prince, he’s become a bit more spirited than before, but he’s still a quiet type. He just keeps his grievances to himself. I think he’s too idle.”
"I remember there is a former imperial garden in the western suburbs. The Yuanmingyuan has been abandoned for many years. Hasn't the Ministry of Works wanted to renovate that area for a long time? Let the Fourth Prince take the lead in handling this matter. Once he has completed it, I will reward him with the garden as well. Let him deal with those old stubborn people in the Ministry of Works and see if he can still act like a gourd with its mouth sawed off."
As the Emperor spoke, a faint smile appeared on his face.
I don't know if it was because I was thinking about how the Fourth Prince dealt with those stubborn old men in the Ministry of Works, or because I was thinking about something else.
Liang Jiugong finally smiled and agreed, "Yes, the scenery of Changchun Garden and Qingyi Garden in the western suburbs is also very beautiful."
Speaking of Changchun Garden brings back memories for His Majesty. These princes who are now older all used to study at Wuyizhai in Changchun Garden. Back then...
His Majesty was lost in memories for a long time.
Nothing much happened this year. His Majesty went north in May and returned to the capital in June. His Majesty originally planned to go south in September, but now that Liang Jiugong mentioned Changchun Garden, he misses the scenery of Changchun Garden again.
Before long, His Majesty made up his mind: "Then let the fourth prince lead the people from the Ministry of Works to renovate Changchun Garden, and we will spend the Mid-Autumn Festival in Changchun Garden this year."
His Majesty has made the decision, and then said that he would go to Cining Palace. It's one thing for His Majesty to want to go to Changchun Garden, but bringing the Empress Dowager's words not only shows His Majesty's filial piety, but also makes him less afraid of what the people in the Ministry of Revenue might say about it being a waste of money and resources.
Hmph, he didn't make a southern tour this year. He just went from the Forbidden City to the western suburbs. At most, the Ministry of Works made the Ministry of Revenue pay for the repairs.
...
That day, His Majesty went to Cining Palace to have dinner with the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager naturally agreed, so the next day, the Fourth Prince took on the task.
Well, this job is in the western suburbs, so there's even less chance of seeing my elder brother, Prince Zhi.
Then the Fourth Prince learned that his father had sent his eldest brother, Prince Zhi, away. The small skirmish in the north with less than a hundred people was hardly worth his brother's personal attention. It was clear that his father didn't want to see his brother these days, so he simply sent him far away.
Fourth Master couldn't quite describe his feelings. Although he knew that such open and covert struggles were inevitable, he still couldn't help but feel complicated after actually doing it.
However, the Fourth Prince didn't have much time to be sentimental. After all, the task of going to Changchun Garden was right in front of him. He knew that his father, the Emperor, would be heading to Changchun Garden before the Mid-Autumn Festival. If he calculated carefully, the Fourth Prince and the Ministry of Works would only have seven or eight days left.
The Fourth Prince is really busy now. After receiving his duties that day, he still managed to find time to go to the East Courtyard after returning to the mansion that night. Li Chenjiao is already three months pregnant, but she has not yet informed the Princess Consort. In the end, Li Chenjiao and the Fourth Prince discussed it and decided to wait until they arrived at Changchun Garden for the Mid-Autumn Festival before informing the Princess Consort.
However, whether the Princess Consort will go to Changchun Garden is still uncertain for the Fourth Prince; it depends on what the imperial physician says at that time.
Although the Emperor hasn't yet announced which princes will be going to Changchun Garden, the Fourth Prince has already included himself in the list.
After all, he's already taken on the task of repairing Changchun Garden, so surely Father Emperor wouldn't leave him out? He hasn't made any mistakes lately.
The Fourth Prince did not make any mistakes, and as he had guessed, he was on the list of those who went to Changchun Garden.
On the tenth day of the eighth lunar month, His Majesty finalized the list of princes who would accompany him to Changchun Garden. This time, it would naturally only include His Majesty's concubines, princes, and grandsons.
Prince Zhi is still in the north, so we'll skip him. Naturally, Yinreng will accompany the Emperor. In the past few months, His Majesty has had more free time and has often had Yinreng by his side. Even though Yinreng is no longer the Crown Prince, it's clear to everyone that Yinreng, no longer the Crown Prince, is more favored by the Emperor.
The Third Prince, Fourth Prince, and Fifth Prince were also going to Changchun Garden. The Seventh Prince, who had difficulty walking, stayed behind. The Eighth Prince, Ninth Prince, and Tenth Prince also accompanied them. The Twelfth Prince, Thirteenth Prince, Fourteenth Prince, and several other young princes followed behind.
In short, His Majesty ordered all the places that could be visited, including Changchun Garden.
Clearly, His Majesty genuinely wants to spend a proper Mid-Autumn Festival with his family this year.
The rest was just a matter of each family bringing their female relatives; it was simply a matter of each family finalizing their list and then submitting it to the Imperial Household Department.
After receiving the news, the Princess Consort began making preparations.
But she didn't have time to prepare much...
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