Chapter 244 Ascension to the throne
The enthronement ceremony took place before the spirit tablet of the late emperor, as if the late emperor had personally handed over the rise and fall of the dynasty to the next ruler. Hongzhao also personally accepted this supreme position before his father's coffin.
Because he was required to wear plain clothes, after ascending the throne, Hongzhao only changed the apricot-yellow belt he wore to a bright yellow one as a sign of respect.
"Your Majesty, we pay our respects! Long live the Emperor!"
Even though the enthronement ceremony hadn't officially taken place yet, Hongzhao had already completed his transformation. He was now the Emperor of the Qing Dynasty, no longer the Crown Prince.
Now that the new emperor has ascended the throne, it is inevitable that a new era name will be adopted. Hongzhao had already made up his mind about this. He brushed aside the dozen or so proposed era names on the table, picked up his brush without the slightest hesitation, and wrote the two characters "Changhe" in bold, powerful strokes in front of everyone.
Xiao Dezi held up the paper written by the Emperor himself to the crowd. The crowd pondered in silence for a moment before exclaiming in admiration.
"The character 'Chang' itself means prosperity and brightness, while the character 'He' further embodies the broad-mindedness of our Great Qing Dynasty. It is truly worthy of the Emperor's holy decree, and we, your subjects, bow in admiration."
"Your Majesty is wise."
Hongzhao remained expressionless. He only needed to do a little something, and these people would launch into a torrent of praise, quoting classical texts. This had been true when he was crown prince. Now that he was emperor, it was even more so. He was beginning to understand why some emperors would heavily rely on eloquent but treacherous officials. Flattery sounded good when delivered by someone skilled in words, but not so good when delivered by someone inept…
With his eyes swollen like walnuts, Hongshi stumbled into the mourning hall, supported by a servant. At that moment, Hongzhao was discussing matters with his ministers. Upon hearing the noise, everyone turned to look at the door.
It wasn't that Hongzhao deliberately didn't tell him; on the contrary, almost on the very night the Emperor passed away, someone had already gone to the Princes' quarters to inform the Third Prince.
Hongshi was so terrified that he fainted and lay in bed for two days before he could walk again.
As soon as he entered, he collapsed to the ground and began to wail without saying a word. At first, seeing that there were many people around, he knew to tone down his volume. But as he cried, he felt Hongzhao raise his hand and pat his shoulder. Looking up, he met his younger brother's equally bloodshot eyes, and suddenly overwhelmed with grief, he opened his mouth and howled.
"How could this be? How could it be so sudden! Just a few days ago, Father punished me by making me copy books, and now that I've finally finished copying them, he can't even see them!"
So far, what he said was still somewhat sensible. Hongzhao looked behind him and saw that the servant was indeed holding a tall stack of the Classic of Filial Piety. His third brother was not lying. He then said, "Hongzhao, don't be afraid! Father Emperor said that I am the older brother and must think of and take care of my younger brother when something happens."
"Don't worry, your brother will take good care of you. From now on, the eldest brother will be like a father to you, and your third brother will... um!"
Using the clothes as cover, Hongzhao disregarded everything else and directly reached out to cover his incessantly chattering mouth. Hongshi opened his eyes wide innocently and sincerely, wondering why his younger brother wouldn't let him speak.
The good thing about him isn't being stubborn; if he doesn't want me to talk, I won't. I can't stop him from crying, can I?
Hongzhao looked helplessly at his good third brother, then at his father's coffin, and thought to himself, "Father, your punishment seems too lenient. This kid hasn't learned to shut up at all! Punish him for what he did wrong. Next time, you should make him hold the pen in his mouth to copy it."
There were more than just them present now; ministers and historians were also included. If Hongshi were to say anything inappropriate, there would be no way to save him.
Hongzhao gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with warning. Seeing that he knew he would no longer talk nonsense, he quietly let go of his hand and naturally wiped his palm on his clothes. "Since you've brought them all, why don't you burn them in front of Father's spirit tablet? Father will naturally feel Third Brother's filial piety. I will do it with Third Brother."
He emphasized the word "朕" (zhen, meaning "I" or "the emperor"), and it was only then that Hongshi belatedly realized that he had missed the crown prince's ascension to the throne during the past two days. Once he came to his senses, he quickly straightened his posture and bowed to Hongzhao.
"Your Majesty, I am deeply saddened and have acted improperly before the throne. Please forgive me."
"Third Brother, what are you saying?"
Hongzhao was unwilling to do this, but this was the rule he had to follow after ascending the throne. He could show respect to his third brother, but his third brother couldn't really treat him just as an older brother.
The dual identities of younger brother and elder brother, emperor and subject, inevitably required a period of adjustment for them.
The selection of the site for Yinzhen's tomb was something the Thirteenth Prince had painstakingly researched years ago, running around to different places. He chose an excellent feng shui site in the Western Tombs area, and Yinzhen liked the place very much and praised it highly. Because Hongzhao was still young at the time, he was not involved in these matters much, and he knew very little about them.
No one expected that the emperor would pass away after only thirteen years on the throne, so there was no chance to mention it to Hongzhao. Now, Hongzhao has just ascended the throne and is facing such a problem.
He was to personally escort his father's coffin to the Tai Mausoleum with the procession. Similarly, he was also to make plans for his own future mausoleum.
Ironically, he's not even sixteen yet, and he's already starting to think about where he'll be buried after he dies.
As Yunxiang listened to the discussion, it reminded him of an old incident, one that his elder brother had specifically instructed him to do. However, so much time had passed that he had almost forgotten it.
"Your Majesty, when I was selecting a site for the late Emperor, he said that there was a moderately auspicious place next to the Tai Mausoleum, with excellent feng shui and a vast area. He specifically instructed that the place should be preserved and not used for other purposes. The late Emperor and Your Majesty had a deep affection for each other, and he even wanted his mausoleum to be next to Your Majesty."
There has always been a custom of "sons being buried with their fathers" since ancient times. For some reason, Yinzhen abandoned the Eastern Mausoleum and chose the Western Mausoleum. Logically speaking, after Hongzhao's death, he should have been buried in the Western Mausoleum as well.
"So Father Emperor had already thought this through so early on."
Hongzhao looked disappointed, but naturally had no objection to it. Although he didn't understand feng shui and wasn't superstitious, he believed his father was definitely superstitious enough. If his father could say, "Don't touch this place, leave it for my son," then it must be a good place.
"Then let's choose that place. The place chosen by Father Emperor and Uncle Thirteen is naturally good."
Perhaps... if we're buried closer together, we might have the chance to meet again in the next life.
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