Chapter 183 Ideas
Fu Mingyi's return means that His Majesty has also returned.
Zhao Youchen was overjoyed and couldn't wait to return to the palace to see him.
However, he still knew that there were many things he needed to discuss with Fu Mingyi, so he suppressed his racing heart and went into the study with Fu Mingyi, where they sat down.
"How was your trip to Feng County?"
"good."
"Did you see my uncle?"
"I saw them." Fu Mingyi made tea for the two of them, but he seemed a little uneasy.
Zhao Youchen sensed that something was wrong.
"What's wrong?" Several thoughts flashed through his mind.
Has something happened?
Fu Mingyi slowly rubbed the back of his hand, and after a long silence, he said, "If it's about your uncle, there's no need to worry. He's a smart man and knows how to be pragmatic."
Zhao Youchen looked at him strangely: "Then what are you worried about?"
"Thinking back to some old things, there are some things I can't figure out."
This was the first time Zhao Youchen had heard that Fu Mingyi still had things he couldn't understand.
"Grand Tutor, now that you're back, I don't need to guard Chengde Palace all day anymore. Do you know what's being said outside? I'm practically being portrayed as a treacherous minister plotting to usurp the throne!"
Speaking of this, Zhao Youchen got angry.
"And you too. People say that His Majesty and you are competing with each other. You, the Grand Tutor, have quite the influence. His Majesty can't see you, and he won't even see a single foreign official."
At this point, Zhao Youchen smiled.
"However, that Prince Yan is quite composed. He's been going to Chengde Palace every day lately, only offering greetings from the outside and never going in. He's certainly inherited your temperament. If he can help His Majesty in the future…"
Fu Mingyi, look over here.
"Does His Highness Yan go there every day?"
Zhao Youchen nodded.
Fu Mingyi remained calm, took a sip of tea, and then slowly began to rotate the cup while holding its rim.
Zhao Youchen found it even stranger.
"What's wrong with you? Why do you seem so strange no matter what I say?"
Fu Mingyi put down his teacup. "The reason your uncle embezzled state taxes was because he privately recruited soldiers and hid them deep in the mountains. Due to insufficient military supplies, he had no choice but to embezzle state taxes."
Zhao Youchen's eyes widened in shock.
They just said not to worry, and now they've thrown out such a huge bombshell!
Unauthorized recruitment of soldiers was a major taboo in the imperial court. Regardless of the reason, if someone did this, it would essentially be linked to the serious crime of treason.
He had never mentioned this matter before.
How could his uncle do such a foolish thing!
"you……"
Fu Mingyi raised a hand, signaling him to calm down.
"During that chaos, I left him half of a dragon talisman. If he's smart enough, he'll know how to use it. But the Imperial Censor was also there, so he'll definitely return to Nanhua first... So, has there been any unusual activity in Nanhua City these past few days?"
Zhao Youchen thought about it carefully.
"Yesterday, the Prime Minister brought several officials to pay homage to His Majesty, but unfortunately His Majesty was unwell and did not wish to see any of these officials."
Fu Mingyi smiled.
"I'm afraid we'll have to jointly request His Majesty to attend court tomorrow."
Zhao Youchen grew anxious. "How should this matter be handled?"
Fu Mingyi raised an eyebrow, "Recruiting and training soldiers privately, how do you suggest we handle this?"
Zhao Youchen said urgently, "You promised me back then."
Seeing that Fu Mingyi seemed unmoved, he suddenly stood up to leave.
"Fine, if you can't do anything about it, then I'll go and plead with His Majesty..."
"Come back." Fu Mingyi took a sip of tea.
"His Majesty has not returned."
Zhao Youchen was even more surprised.
What are you doing?
Fu Mingyi suddenly asked, "Whenever the military reports submitted by the various prefectures and armies, they always talk in generalities and have nothing new to say. If it weren't for this trip to Feng County, no one would know that they actually privately recruited elite troops."
Zhao Youchen's expression turned even more unpleasant.
Fu Mingyi understood what he meant. His uncle had committed such a serious crime and had been caught red-handed by the censor. Given Wang Xiang and his ilk's temper, this matter was unlikely to end well.
“However, there is a solution.” Fu Mingyi said calmly. “Didn’t I just say that I left half of the Dragon Talisman for your uncle?”
Zhao Youchen had an idea.
"The Dragon Seal, His Majesty's Dragon Seal?"
Fu Mingyi nodded. "Do you know where else you can find a second dragon talisman like this?"
Zhao Youchen quickly shook his head.
"I will go to the palace tomorrow, and His Majesty should be back in a couple of days."
Zhao Youchen was taken aback.
"You mean His Majesty hasn't returned?"
His face instantly darkened.
Where is His Majesty?
"Feng County, Fengqi Gorge".
Zhao Youchen stared wide-eyed. "How could you leave His Majesty there and come back by yourself?"
"If I don't come back, how many days can you manage?"
Zhao Youchen was both anxious and angry.
"What route is His Majesty taking back? I'll go and meet him right away."
"Your Majesty will be escorted back."
"You've really gone too far! You took His Majesty away from the palace without a word before, and now you've put His Majesty in danger, and you came back on your own. What exactly are you trying to do?"
Fu Mingyi looked at him with a half-smile.
"Your Majesty is already thirteen years old, no longer a child."
"His Majesty has never traveled far alone!"
"This time it is."
"If anything were to happen, could you bear the responsibility?"
Fu Mingyi remained silent for a while, his fists clenched tightly in his sleeves.
Zhao Youchen was too lazy to waste words with him. He turned and left, already deciding how many people he would take to find His Majesty.
“If you go to greet them in a grand manner, you will only expose their whereabouts and put His Majesty in danger.”
Zhao Youchen paused, then paced back and forth, feeling agitated.
"Then what do you suggest we do?"
"Zhao Ziyuan's private army and embezzlement of state taxes are matters His Majesty will handle."
Zhao Youchen figured out something different.
"What are you thinking about?" He stared intently at Fu Mingyi, feeling as if he was about to make a move.
"Thirteen years old is neither too early nor too late. In two more years, His Majesty will be fifteen."
Fu Mingyi stood up and walked to Zhao Youchen's side, his voice so low it was almost a whisper, as if it would be blown away by the wind if you didn't listen carefully.
Zhao Youchen's eyes widened immediately upon hearing his whisper.
"How is this possible!"
Fu Mingyi smiled. "Why not?"
Zhao Youchen suddenly seemed to understand something.
"So this time you left His Majesty in Feng County, was it to...make preparations?"
"That's one consideration, but not entirely."
Fu Mingyi looked at the landscape painting on the wall and said calmly, "Over the years, I've taught you everything I needed to. It's time for you to stand on your own."
The mountains are verdant and the clouds are vast and misty; the landscape is so beautiful, yet a weak ruler invites thieves and attracts covetousness.
"Let Your Majesty see the land beneath your feet, understand the lives of the people on this land, let Your Majesty face loyalty and treachery, good and evil, decide life and death, wealth and poverty, and control the fate of the entire country. Only then will Your Majesty feel that you are the master of this country, rather than—cooperating with your subjects."
Zhao Youchen felt that Fu Mingyi's line of thinking was actually correct.
However, this might not be a good thing for him.
"Have you thought it through? The timing isn't really good right now."
“Zhao Ziyuan of Feng County is His Majesty’s first step.”
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