Chapter 87 A Balance of Kindness and Strictness: Yinreng has now become a veritable religious leader…
Yinreng has now become a tutor in name and in fact. Back in the Forbidden City, he could still attend court sessions, but now that he's in the Western Garden, he can't enter Changchun Garden without the Emperor's summons, so court meetings and such have become distant from him. However, the Emperor has officially given him a job: to teach his brothers.
Since there was nothing else to do, Yinreng decided to do his job well.
To be honest, Yinreng knew better than anyone what the Emperor was thinking. Sometimes he even felt a little sad, because two people who knew each other so well could be father and son, or close friends, but they could never be enemies. And he and the Emperor were father and son, close friends, and enemies all at once.
From the moment he was reinstated until now, Yinreng clearly realized that his only obstacle and adversary was the Emperor. Apart from the Emperor, he feared no one else in the world.
Therefore, Yinreng resolved to be a good older brother.
Isn't this exactly what the Emperor outwardly expects? Thinking deeper, if he diligently performs whatever the Emperor asks of him, he is loyal to the Emperor and father, and no one can criticize him. Furthermore, he clearly adopts the role of an elder brother who acts like a father, meticulously and unreservedly teaching his younger brothers, demonstrating his magnanimity. Even more importantly, the more diligently he guides and generously recommends them, the less likely the Emperor is to give them important positions. Because there are already enough loyalists, the Emperor will never tolerate further expansion of the Eastern Palace.
If his younger brothers rebelled against him, the emperor would hate them from the bottom of his heart without him having to lift a finger.
Yinreng smiled slightly, as if victory was assured. However, teaching his brothers did not mean groveling; it required a combination of kindness and severity. Those who submitted should be praised, while the troublemakers, well, he had to subdue them.
"Fourteenth, your studies are far inferior to Thirteenth's." That day, Yinreng commented on the memorials submitted by the Fourteenth. Facing his two younger brothers, who had grown up and had been running their own households for several years, he naturally wouldn't teach them the Four Books and Five Classics. Instead, he directly showed them the memorials submitted by officials from the Six Ministries in recent years and ordered them to discuss their opinions.
The "homework" assigned this time was the cheating scandal in the Jiangnan provincial examinations that occurred last autumn. In his memorial, the Fourteenth Emperor vehemently denounced the chief and deputy examiners who had accepted bribes. He also said that the Emperor should not have spared the Governor-General of Liangjiang, Gali, who arrested the troublesome scholars after the scandal was exposed. Instead, he should have rewarded Zhang Boxing, the Governor of Jiangsu, who exposed the crimes, instead of letting his merits and demerits offset each other because he had made a minor mistake.
Yinreng felt that the Fourteenth Prince was too loyal, while the Thirteenth Prince's words were much more methodical. The Thirteenth Prince started by explaining how to investigate the facts, saying that the Emperor did not listen to one person's opinion, but rather investigated from multiple sources, and then personally adjudicated the case to stabilize public sentiment. The conclusion was that all officials should act in this way.
Upon hearing Yinreng's comments, the Fourteenth Prince's face showed some dissatisfaction: "Compared to the ways of being an official or the ways of doing things, I would rather do things that are straightforward and decisive."
Yinreng chuckled and asked him, "What is something straightforward and straightforward?"
Fourteenth Special Forces replied simply: "To lead troops into battle and expand territory."
"Hmm." Yinreng put down the memorial in his hand, raised an eyebrow at him, and said, "Do you think fighting a war is just about being straightforward?" His expression suddenly changed, and his tone became serious: "An army of tens of thousands, how many of them are Eight Banner soldiers, how many are Green Standard Army soldiers composed of Han Chinese, do you know? How much casualties are in a battle, how to obtain intelligence, and how to command the soldiers, do you know? Furthermore, do you think that just because you are a prince, all the officials under your command will listen to you? If you think that being straightforward can get things done, then you can forget about becoming a great general in this lifetime!"
Fourteen's face turned extremely ugly after being criticized so harshly, but he couldn't utter a single word in rebuttal, because he wasn't stupid; he knew that what was said was true.
Seeing his grim expression, Yinreng softened his tone slightly: "However, those who lead troops must indeed learn to reward and punish with moderation, and to distinguish between gratitude and resentment. Take the thirteenth prince's memorial back and read it carefully. After you have gained some understanding, I will show you the memorial from when Father Emperor led the expedition against Galdan."
Fourteen immediately perked up, his face beaming: "Really?"
Yinreng nodded and said to him, "If you really have insight into the matter of leading troops, then I will submit a memorial to Father Emperor recommending you to lead troops to garrison Miyun Camp."
After this, the Fourteenth Prince was completely convinced and immediately knelt down, saying, "Your subject thanks Your Highness. Rest assured, I will definitely ponder the memorial deeply."
Yinreng waved his hand at him and said, "Alright, stop joking around. Take your thirteenth brother's memorial back and think about it. If there's anything you can't figure out, ask the person in charge. If all else fails, go find your fourth brother. Your own brother would never betray you."
Fourteen couldn't help but purse his lips at the thought of Fourth Master's face. What was he thinking to go to him? Even if he was his own brother, he didn't want to see that dark face or hear those rigidly formal words.
Before long, Fourteenth Prince took the memorial and ran off, leaving only Thirteenth Prince behind. Yinreng said, "We've finally gotten rid of this little rascal."
Thirteen laughed and said, "That's just how Fourteen is. He's straightforward and extremely loyal. I've never seen Fourteen so obedient before."
Fourteenth Prince has always been like this since he was a child. Even before he established his own residence, he didn't like being looked down upon. The more you lectured him or asked him to do something, the more he would defy you. At first, Thirteenth Prince could sense that Fourteenth Prince harbored some ill intentions towards the Crown Prince. Even though Thirteenth Prince tried to smooth things over, it was only a temporary solution. But in the past two months, the Crown Prince has treated them with both respect and gentle persuasion. Now it seems that Fourteenth Prince has finally submitted.
Yinreng said, "Father Emperor asked me to teach you properly, so naturally I will not hold back. Seeing that Fourteenth is enthusiastic about military affairs, Thirteenth, what are your ambitions?"
Thirteen paused for a moment before replying, "Your Majesty's ambition is to serve you and share your burdens."
"Only someone who is adept at handling all situations can share my burdens." Yinreng sighed and pushed a thick stack of folded documents next to his desk forward. "Take a look at these."
Thirteen said yes, and personally took the memorial delivered by the eunuch. He saw that the top of the memorial was clearly signed by the Ministry of Revenue.
——
Fourteenth Brother said he wanted to study the memorial, so he really did. He patiently read the memorial with the imperial approval in vermilion ink and the comments written by his thirteenth brother eight or ten times, and seemed to have figured it out a bit. However, he was still a little unsure, so he wanted to find someone else to help him with his advice.
Thirteen? Forget it then. Thirteen was watching when the Crown Prince reprimanded him, and he'd be too embarrassed to actually confront him with the memorial. As for his own brother, Fourth Prince, that was even more impossible. Fourteen had always hoped that Fourth Prince would treat him like an adult, and he certainly didn't want to lose face in front of his brother.
Who should he turn to? Fourteen was at a loss for words. But before he could think about it further, a servant came to report that Ninth Master had come to see him.
Huh? Aren't we practically begging for people to come?
Fourteenth Brother immediately beamed with joy, and as soon as Ninth Master entered, he started calling him "Ninth Brother, Ninth Brother." Ninth Master knew he wasn't up to any good, but he was also there to gather information, so he reluctantly accepted Fourteenth Brother's obviously ill-intentioned greeting.
Ninth Master said, "It's clear that Father Emperor and the Crown Prince have high hopes for you. We used to have time to drink together as brothers, but now we can't even find you unless they actively seek you out."
Fourteen smiled and invited him to sit down: "Ninth Brother, why does what you said sound a bit sour to me?"
Ninth Master rolled his eyes at him. "Let's go, I've booked a banquet. Shall we go to my manor for a drink?"
Fourteen refused, saying, "It's not that I don't want to give Ninth Brother face, but I really can't get away. The Crown Prince just assigned homework, and if I don't write something and hand it in, the Crown Prince will scold me again."
Oh, so even Fourteen, this firecracker, has the guts to admit he's willing to back down. Ninth Master looked over with a half-smile: "What homework could possibly stump you?"
Fourteenth Prince promptly brought the memorial to Ninth Prince. Ninth Prince opened the memorial and exclaimed, "Oh dear, it's the Jiangnan imperial examination cheating case from last year!" To be honest, Ninth Prince had only heard a little about what happened back then, because the officials involved had nothing to do with him, so he didn't know the specifics. He only knew that the matter had escalated to the point of reaching the Emperor, and that the Emperor himself had adjudicated the case.
After about fifteen minutes, Ninth Prince finally finished reading the series of memorials, but he quickly came up with a plan. However, what he was thinking more about was how capable the Crown Prince was, daring to show these two young princes any kind of memorial.
Fourteen said, "I just don't understand. After the matter blew up, the Governor-General of Liangjiang, Gali, arrested people without distinguishing right from wrong, and afterwards nothing happened. On the contrary, the Governor Zhang Boxing, who reported the fraud, was impeached for privately printing books, but in the end, his merits and demerits canceled each other out."
Ninth Master scoffed, cursing him under his breath for being stupid. "I'm asking you, who is this Ga Li? He's a Manchu, not to mention his mother was once the Emperor's wet nurse. And who is Zhang Boxing? He's a Han Chinese. How can a Han Chinese ride roughshod over a Manchu?"
Seeing that Fourteenth Master frowned, Ninth Master continued, "If it is really found that Gali accepted bribes, wouldn't that be the Manchus oppressing the Han people? What the Emperor wants is peace in Jiangnan, and for all the scholars and candidates in the country to behave themselves and not cause trouble. Do you understand now?"
Fourteenth suddenly realized, and the little inspiration he had just grasped slowly expanded, but he still said, "Even if it's for the sake of the big picture, is it really okay to let that Governor-General of Liangjiang go unpunished?"
Ninth Master couldn't help but roll his eyes: "If the Emperor wants to punish someone, can he escape? But Gali must die, and he absolutely cannot die because of bribery in the imperial examinations. Just watch, his end will not be good."
Fourteen rolled his eyes, thinking that he could finally write something to report to the Crown Prince. He cupped his hands to Ninth Master and said, "I have truly learned a lot. Come, come, let me offer you a cup of tea instead of wine."
Ninth Master accepted the bow without any qualms and then said, "I've asked and I understand now, so can we have a drink together?"
To everyone's surprise, Fourteenth still waved his hand and said, "No, I have to send these to the West Garden of Changchun Garden as soon as I finish writing them." He puffed out his chest and said triumphantly, "When I come back from the West Garden, I'm sure there will be other memorials to read."
Ninth Master felt a pang of jealousy and asked with a particularly unpleasant feeling, "What's the rush? Didn't you dislike reading memorials and doing your homework?"
Because Ninth Prince had given him some pointers, Fourteenth Prince no longer held back and immediately said, "I don't like reading these kinds of memorials, but the Crown Prince said that if I can write something insightful, he'll let me see the Ministry of War's memorials." He lowered his voice, "The Crown Prince also said that he'll recommend me to the Miyun Camp for training in the future!"
Ninth Prince's heart skipped a beat: "Really?" Miyun Camp is one of the military camps in the suburbs of the capital. Can the Crown Prince really recommend Fourteenth Prince to go there? But Fourteenth Prince doesn't seem to be lying, so the Crown Prince really made that promise.
"Well, it seems your luck is finally turning around, kid." Ninth Master punched Fourteenth Master. Having obtained the letter he wanted, he didn't linger and promptly returned to his residence. However, upon arriving home, he first gulped down a large amount of tea.
If the Crown Prince could entrust such an important task to that hothead Fourteenth Prince, he would probably promote someone as sensible as him as well. However, when they were attending to the Emperor at the beginning of the year, the Crown Prince arranged for him and the Tenth Prince to be with the Eighth Prince. Did he think they were siding with the Eighth Prince?
Ninth Master clicked his tongue. Well, he really should keep his distance from Eighth Master from now on.
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Author's Note: Report! Local progress has reached 500,000 words! Hahaha [winking emoji]
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