At Changchun Garden, Kangxi looked at his son in front of him, a hint of unfamiliarity and bewilderment flashing in his eyes. Yinzhen had already resolved the matter.
"You did a great job."
He was better than him, and did many things that he dared not do, or could not do.
The Kong family fell just like that. It sounds easy, but it wasn't so easy.
"Your Majesty has entrusted the Qing Dynasty to your son, and I dare not slack off."
As an emperor, once you reach that position, as long as you have some ambition and ability, it's actually quite easy to spot some problems. But spotting problems is simple; the difficult part is knowing how to solve them without causing a backlash.
Yinzhen did it.
"There's something I want to ask you: Did you attack the Kong family for the sake of the Chang family, or for something else?"
After the downfall of the Kong family, Yinzhen officially handed over the Agricultural Academy and the Academy of Natural Sciences to Le Shu for management. Many people believe that Yinzhen did this because the Kong family had pressured the emperor and made things difficult for the empress.
Emperor Kangxi had heard of this.
"What does Father Emperor think of me?"
Emperor Kangxi, unusually, didn't understand and didn't answer him.
Yinzhen then said, "I have both, but the Kong family used the pens of scholars to coerce me, so I moved up the timeline."
Overthrowing the Kong family was part of his plan, but something went wrong, causing Yinzhen to bring his plan forward.
Kangxi's eyes were filled with complex emotions: "What you're doing is tantamount to changing the world!"
Since Dong Zhongshu proposed the idea of dismissing all other schools of thought and exclusively honoring Confucianism during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, Confucianism has relied on imperial power, and the two have become intertwined.
"Isn't this too risky?"
Emperor Kangxi admitted that he was somewhat confused and couldn't understand where he was leading the Qing Dynasty.
"Father, I have read many books from overseas. The Qing Dynasty has developed very well under your rule. The people's lives are among the best in all dynasties, and the population is at its peak."
But Father Emperor, the world outside has changed drastically. If the Qing Dynasty does not adapt, what awaits it is not only destruction, but also endless humiliation.
During the reign of Emperor Kangxi, regardless of whether it was a prosperous era dominated by potatoes or not, even if it was a prosperous era fueled by potatoes, potatoes were still vigorously promoted by the emperor.
Emperor Kangxi truly excelled in prioritizing agriculture and people's livelihoods.
It was probably a regime ruled by ethnic minorities. The emperors of the Aisin Gioro family were actually somewhat apprehensive at heart. There were too many Han people, and they always knew that if they did something wrong, the Han people could overthrow them at any time. No one would say that those who rebelled were rebelling; they would only say that they were restoring legitimacy.
They were too focused on playing it safe.
Those who are stable are afraid of change, so even if they understand that things are changing outside, they are still afraid of change.
Kangxi remained silent. He had read many overseas books and was not completely oblivious to them, but his understanding was not deep enough. After all, they were just books to pass the time, and he could not possibly know everything about them.
Yinzhen: "Father, I will have some books from overseas sent to you when I return. You can take a look at them."
Kangxi: "You've put your heart into this."
He wanted to know what kind of book had brought about the changes in his son.
Suddenly, Kangxi asked him, "Everyone says that the Aisin Gioro family produces many romantics. My father is not one of them, but I can tell that you are. Aren't you too attached to Lady Chang? Aren't you afraid that there will be a time when two emperors rule, and the Qing Dynasty will have a female emperor?"
Emperor Kangxi disapproved of Emperor Shunzhi's favor towards Consort Dong'e, but after becoming emperor, he realized that the favor did not necessarily contain only love, but also his resistance.
He needed to use a woman to resist the control that Mongolian women had over the emperor's harem.
But now, he clearly sees Yinzhen's exclusive favor towards Lady Chang.
Yinzhen smiled and said, "Now that the court is in power, I no longer need to use the harem to maintain balance. It is lonely at the top. I want the world, but I do not want to be a lonely ruler."
Emperor Kangxi laughed, mocking his naiveté: "With two sons in the Chang family, the emperor is destined to be a lonely ruler."
Everyone has selfish desires.
This is the price of rights.
Emperor Kangxi believed that no one could enjoy supreme power without paying a price; there was no such thing as having the best of both worlds.
Yinzhen knew this, so he left himself no way out. He and Le Shu held power together, and if their relationship were to break down one day, it would mean that their shared interests were in jeopardy, which would be a disaster for the country.
Neither Yinzhen nor Yue Shu would allow such a thing to happen, so they couldn't regret it.
Kangxi knew too little, and Yinzhen wouldn't tell him either.
Yinzhen simply said, "Your subject will certainly not repeat the same mistake."
Whose mistakes will we repeat? Whose tracks will we follow?
It was naturally Emperor Kangxi and Prince Yinreng.
Kangxi snorted coldly: "Get out of here."
It's infuriating. Now that he's become emperor, he's started speaking with such arrogance. Before, Yinzhen would never have dared to treat his father like this.
The world is going to the dogs, and people's hearts are no longer what they used to be.
After leaving and returning to the palace, Yinzhen went to Yongshou Palace immediately.
Le Shu was trying on a dress, a ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress). When she saw him coming over, she turned around and stood in front of him: "How is it? This dress was newly made by Xiulan. Does it look good?"
With an appreciative look in his eyes, Yinzhen said, "She's beautiful, a bit like a newlywed young woman from the Song Dynasty."
This ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) has a Song Dynasty style, and the hairstyle is also the "fallen horse bun" popular in the Song Dynasty. There are not many jewelry pieces. Le Shu likes pretty jewelry, but she doesn't like to wear too much on her head in daily life. Most of it is used for collection.
She would wear it occasionally when she felt like it, but not for very long. She had a lot on her mind, and wearing too many things on her head made her feel heavy and inconvenient for her work.
Hearing him say that, Yue Shu's eyes darted around, and she waved to the palace servants, saying, "You may all leave."
Yinzhen smiled, waiting for her to "tease" him.
"I'm afraid it's inappropriate for Your Majesty to summon me alone!" Le Shu said nervously, looking at Yinzhen with fear and unease in her eyes.
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