Chapter 221 Father-Son Scheme
It was already early May, and the flowers outside were in full bloom, but two stoves were still burning in the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
Yinzhen sat at his desk, diligently writing something, his eyes squinting and his head bowed. He was still wearing a thick cloak. Even though he had recovered from his previous illness, his health was clearly not as good as before. He was afraid of the cold, weak, and sleepy, which was the biggest manifestation of his condition.
Hongzhao saw this and a hint of sadness flashed in his lowered eyes. He composed himself and pretended to be curious as he leaned closer. "What is Father writing? Can you let your son take a look?"
Yinzhen didn't hold back either. When Hongzhao came over, he simply straightened up and put down his pen, intending to take a break. He pushed the writing his subordinate had been doing toward Hongzhao.
Hongzhao took a piece of paper from Bobo. The writing on it still pierced through the paper, but upon closer inspection, one could still see the slight tremor left when the pen was paused. It was a drafted "imperial edict".
"I order all officials to submit congratulatory memorials on the Crown Prince's wedding. Everyone must submit a memorial to offer their congratulations." Yinzhen seemed pleased with his idea, with a satisfied smile on his face. "Not only must you offer congratulations, but you must also compose poems. They must be well-written, and I will reward whoever offers the best congratulations handsomely."
The more he talked about it, the better he felt his idea was. Yinzhen took the paper back from Hongzhao's hand, read it over again from beginning to end, picked up his pen and added a couple more sentences, saying as he wrote, "Today, I will have Su Peisheng draft an edict according to my plan, and issue it out first thing tomorrow morning. I will have them write it out and let me see it."
Hongzhao looked at him like a child and couldn't help but shake his head inwardly. Remembering something else, he leaned forward and said, "Father, please ask your son to go and see Yuqing Palace. I just came back from there. It's all finished. Most of the big and small items inside have been added."
It must be said that being a craftsman in the palace is indeed not easy. For several years, they had to count the bricks they were carrying when they moved them at Yuqing Palace. Now, the higher-ups said they had to speed things up, and in less than two months, they can't even find a speck of dust left.
The newly built palace connects Yuqing Palace and Zhai Palace, making the entire palace and courtyard much more spacious. But even with all that space, Hongzhao can't stay here for much longer now.
Even so, Yinzhen still refused to let him move over now, only saying, "The newly built palace is very dusty. Let it air out for a while. Your wedding is in a month, so you can move over then."
He spoke casually, but he didn't seem to care at all.
Hongzhao understood the situation and naturally wouldn't go against his wishes on such matters. He simply said, "Alright, it's better if we don't move. My son is used to living here, and he can go to court and eat with his father every day. It wouldn't be so convenient if we moved far away."
Yinzhen deliberately put on a stern face as he listened to Hongzhao's words, and gently tapped his arm with the memorial in his hand—"You are the Crown Prince, with heavy responsibilities on your shoulders, how can you only think about convenience?"
Although he was scolding him, Hongzhao could clearly see the smile in his eyes that showed he was happy with his answer.
Hongzhao was used to being free in the Hall of Mental Cultivation. When he was a child, it was common for him to sit on the dragon throne, let alone the dragon's thigh. It was only when he got older that he could no longer act like a child and act cute. But that was limited to him bringing himself a separate stool and placing it next to the dragon throne.
Because the father and son were close together, Yinzhen's gaze swept over his clothes and then fell on the two stoves beside him, a thoughtful look appearing in his eyes.
It's only early summer now, but Hongzhao is wearing a light and thin fabric that's only worn in the height of summer. What else could this be for?
He knew that he was now more sensitive to cold than most people, probably due to his weak constitution. Even now, with the two stoves in the room burning, his fingertips were still cold, but the palace servants coming and going were all covered in sweat. Even Su Peisheng had a handkerchief ready to wipe his hands from time to time, let alone the young and vigorous Hongzhao.
"Su Peisheng, go and fetch my azure cloak."
Yinzhen looked up and gave an order outside. Hearing Su Peisheng's hurried footsteps outside, he turned to Hongzhao and said, "Don't be careless just because you're young. Although it's close to your room, it's still a few steps away. If you catch a cold from the alternating hot and cold weather, you'll become the first groom in the Aisin Gioro clan who can't stand up."
Hongzhao belatedly glanced at his clothes and thought to himself, "So that's what it was all about."
He remembered that azure cloak, which was one of his father's favorite cloaks. The most striking feature on it was the five-clawed golden dragon embroidered with colorful gold thread.
If it were anyone else, they would inevitably kneel down and express their loyalty in such a situation, saying that they dared not wear it and hoped that the emperor would rescind his order. However, Hongzhao did not have such intentions at all.
The reason is simple: that garment was used to wrap him when he was a baby, and he slept under it as an infant. If he only remembers it now and says he's afraid... it seems a bit too late.
He nodded readily, wiping away non-existent sweat from his forehead. "Yes, Your Majesty, I will obey. From now on, I will wear this whenever I go out, no matter how close I am."
...
In the first few days after Yinzhen woke up, he talked to Hongzhao every day, and sometimes he would call on a few trusted ministers to join him, as if he had opened a special "college entrance exam cram school" for the crown prince.
Anyone could see that the Emperor's illness this time was extremely serious. Now that he had finally woken up, he was still shaken and wanted to give the Crown Prince many more instructions.
Ultimately, he was still worried about his son You'er, whose arms were not yet fully mature enough to bear such a heavy burden of the rise and fall of the dynasty.
Now, two months have passed, and it seems that almost everything that needed to be said has been said, so the frequency of the "cram class" has become a little more normal. However, it is still inevitable that Yinzhen will pull Hongzhao aside and give him instructions whenever he thinks of something.
For example, right now.
“You’er, you must remember that the way to govern is to combine kindness with severity. This applies to ministers and servants alike.” Yinzhen dismissed the people in the hall, took Hongzhao’s arm, and spoke in a low, hoarse voice with deep emotion, “The same applies to uncles and brothers.”
"The thirteenth brother goes without saying; he is different from your other uncles."
Hongzhao nodded in agreement, as this had always been the case with his father: the other brothers were the other brothers, and the thirteenth prince was the thirteenth prince; this was perfectly normal.
“Speaking of the Fourteenth Prince alone, he is indeed infuriating, hateful, and extremely wicked.” Yinzhen used three words to vent his anger and cursed him to his heart’s content. But when he turned to Hongzhao, he said, “But after you ascend the throne, you can bestow upon him the title of Prince to show your respect and importance. This will surely make this stubborn man even more devoted to you.”
As Yinzhen spoke, he secretly suppressed the obvious upward curve of his lips. If the Fourteenth Prince heard these words, he would be furious. He was called infuriating, hateful, and extremely wicked, and then immediately followed by the label of being stubborn. He would probably feel uncomfortable even holding the title of Prince.
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