57. Chapter 57
"none"
Of course, Kangxi couldn't bring himself to apologize, and Qi You didn't need or dare to accept his apology.
It was really tiring to come this far. Qi You had to take a break and catch his breath, otherwise he would collapse.
More importantly, Qi You wanted Kangxi to see more clearly.
Look clearly at his prosperous times, how fragile and ridiculous they were, and how narrow-minded he was.
After being accustomed to the vastness of the land and sky, the Forbidden City's walls cut the sky into pieces, which is really uncomfortable at first glance.
I haven't been away from the prince's residence for a long time. Even after cleaning, the faint smell of mold still lingers.
Qi You didn't take it too seriously. He had no plans to stay in the capital for these years, and he rarely looked up at the sky. He just liked to gaze into the distance.
Although his view was blocked by the palace, he could always see the vast world outside the walls.
After washing up, Qi You paid his respects to the Queen Mother according to the etiquette, and then went to Jingren Palace.
Dai Jia knew Qi You was coming, and she had been waiting at the palace gates long before. This time, she was even more anxious than before. Besides her anticipation and joy, she couldn't hide her worry between her brows.
As Qi You approached, Dai Jia ran over quickly, took his hand, looked him up and down with tears in her eyes, and said with a choked voice, "You've lost weight again. Good, good, I'm glad you're okay."
To say that he has no regrets or guilt is not absolute. Qi You felt deeply guilty when facing Dai Jiashi.
Now that Dai Jia is a concubine, although Qi You did not tell her too much about the outside world, he never hid anything from her.
If something happened to him, Kangxi wouldn't do anything to Dai Jiashi, given his temper. But as a mother, she would definitely not have it easy.
Dai Jia turned her head, wiped away her tears quietly, and said with a forced smile: "Come on, go inside quickly, it's cold outside."
Qi You didn't feel good either, so he smiled and said okay, then followed Dai Jia into the house.
There was a charcoal brazier in the room. Qi You didn't smell any pungent smell and guessed that it was the best red charcoal.
Seeing that the Ministry of Internal Affairs did not deduct Dai Jia's monthly allowance because of his affairs, Qi You finally felt relieved.
Dai Jia took Qi You and sat down on the couch, looking him up and down, wanting to ask something but seemed unable to open her mouth.
Qi You took the initiative to say: "Enie, I'm fine."
Dai Jia's eyes stopped on the back of Qi You's right hand, her heart suddenly tightened in her throat, she quickly grabbed his hand, and her eyes suddenly turned red again.
Qi You sighed and said with a smile: "Ernie, I'm really fine. I was just accidentally splashed with broken porcelain pieces. Look, the bleeding has stopped long ago. I don't even need to apply ointment."
Dai Jia's tears suddenly flowed, and she sobbed, "You, Guo Luomafa, told me that what you did outside were truly great things for the country and the people. But I have little education, so I don't understand so many things, big or small. When I heard that the Khalkha had started fighting, I couldn't sleep well at night, fearing that something might happen to you. Later, I told myself again and again not to hold you back. Taking good care of myself is the greatest help you can give."
Her lips trembled, and she looked at Qi You's right hand with tears in her eyes, seeing the still red and swollen wound. "I didn't think it was a big deal before, but now I think it's not worth it, really not worth it."
Qi You understood what Dai Jia meant.
What is he working so hard for?
As long as he goes to school and studies according to the rules, and does not fail, it will be fine. Because of his legs, a prince of a county can never run away.
Qi You sometimes feels fragile for a moment, and always feels confused when he wakes up in a strange camp late at night.
Who is he, where is he, what is he doing.
The cliffs ahead aren't scary; the unseen undercurrents below are. One wrong step could drag you into a bottomless abyss.
Will you regret it later?
Qi You felt lost when facing Dai Jia's tears.
He couldn't quite discern his current mood, and instinctively followed his inner thoughts, saying earnestly, "Ernie, it's not like that. I can't just think about myself. We have our descendants to consider as well."
Dai Jia cried for a while, and the congestion in her chest loosened a little. She wiped away her tears, calmed down, and said, "I know everything, I just couldn't figure it out at the moment. You, Guo Luomafa, advised me not to overthink it. You are more prudent than any other minister in the court. If something really happened to you, it would be a huge disaster. What would I be afraid of? If it was a big deal, it would only be because my son is so great, and I would be proud of him."
Both mother and son were trying to reconcile with each other. Qi You couldn't help but feel a lump in his throat. He laughed with all his might and said, "Enie is still amazing. He sees things more clearly than I do."
Dai Jia also laughed and said angrily, "Don't tease me. How could I understand so much? It's only because you write to me every time, chewing things up and telling them to me that I can understand."
After hesitating for a moment, Dai Jia frowned again and asked, "You, Guo Luomafa, said that many officials in the court have impeached you. Have you thought of a response plan?"
Qi You comforted her, "Don't worry, Enie. I have no intention of paying any attention to them. The impeachment depends entirely on Khan Ama's attitude. If Khan Ama wants to pay attention, then he will. If not, then those memorials will be shelved. What those people are best at is assessing the situation. If they see that the situation is not right, they will not dare to speak again."
"That's right." Dai Jia was relieved and asked, "What about your Khan Ama?"
Qi You said calmly, "Khan Ama was furious with me, but now that he's mostly calmed down, he probably won't want to kill me anymore. It's time to summon Li Guangdi and the others."
Dai Jia sighed deeply, patted her chest and said, "That's good, that's good. Let's not worry about anything else. Let's eat first. After you're full, go back and have a good sleep. You've lost weight again. Now that you're back in the palace, you need to replenish your energy."
Qi You agreed, and thought of the supplements given to him by the imperial physician, who said that they were sent by order of Emperor Kangxi himself, he couldn't help but laugh at himself.
*
Palace of Heavenly Purity.
Qi You guessed correctly. After meeting him, Kangxi immediately summoned Li Guangdi, Soetu, Tong Guogang and others, and the eldest prince was also called.
Soetu first talked about the situation in Khalkha. Probably because Tong Guogang was there, he did not add any exaggeration.
He described in detail how Qi You opposed returning to the capital, how he arranged for the refugees to be resettled, how he ordered Tong Guogang to lead the troops to hold back Galdan, and how he was led by Qi You to ask Li Rongbao to send troops.
The letter was brief, but it was Kangxi's first time to fully and carefully understand the situation he faced. Although Li Guangdi and the eldest prince knew the most about Qi You's actions in Khalkha, they were also hearing many of the details mentioned by Soetu for the first time.
Soetu had a good memory and was eloquent, and he described what had happened vividly.
Especially the eldest prince, when he heard how Qi You calmly took out the gun and pointed it at Li Rongbao, he couldn't help but excitedly slammed the table and shouted "good".
Kangxi was listening intently when he was startled by the eldest prince's shout. His face darkened and he glared at him, cursing, "Asshole, you think you're listening to a book!"
The eldest prince apologized with a wry smile, scratched his head in embarrassment, and quickly sat down. He stared at Suo Etu and urged, "Go on!"
Suo Etu ignored the eldest prince and looked at Kangxi, waiting for his order. Seeing Kangxi nodded, he continued speaking.
After recounting how Li Rongbao was forced to send troops, Suo Etu finally added a few words of ulterior motive: "I never imagined that the Seventh Prince would threaten Li Rongbao with the safety of all of us in the delegation. My death is not a pity, but if I were captured by Galdan, where would the Qing Dynasty's reputation be? Not only would the Russian Empire be left to watch me make a fool of myself, but it would also delay peace talks."
Li Guangdi raised his eyelids to look at Soetu, then lowered his eyes again.
Tong Guogang could no longer sit still and angrily said, "If we ignore this, won't Luocha Kingdom be fooled? Lord Suo, the confiscated guns are still here. Everyone has seen that the muskets that Galdan brought with him all came from Luocha Kingdom. They're talking about negotiating with us, but what is the Luocha Kingdom's envoy Golovin doing over there? He's robbing everywhere! He knew long ago that Galdan was coming to attack Khalkha and that the Qing Dynasty's peace delegation could not continue. Is this his attitude towards peace?"
When Soetu heard Tong Guogang picking up Qi You's words to mock him, his face turned ugly. He wanted to refute, but subconsciously looked at Kangxi first.
Kangxi's face looked grim. Soetu quickly swallowed the words that were about to come out of his mouth, wiped his face, and pretended not to hear anything.
The eldest prince was watching from the side, unwilling to miss the opportunity to kick someone when he was down, and immediately said sarcastically: "Uncle is right, the Luosha Kingdom has ulterior motives. Lord Suo, it's such a simple matter, can't you see it? Instead, you blame my seventh brother!"
Suo Etu also knew that he had said something wrong, and hurriedly tried to make amends: "Big Brother, I have absolutely no intention of blaming Seventh Prince. I only described the situation truthfully. Moreover, these words were spoken by Seventh Prince himself. If Big Brother does not believe me, you can go and ask Li Zongguan in person to see if I have exaggerated anything."
Kangxi felt a headache and said in a deep voice, "Don't interrupt me, Boss. Suo Etu, please continue."
Tong Guogang saw that the situation was not right, so he glanced at Suo Etu and said hurriedly, "Your Majesty, I know what will happen next. Lord Suo has been following the Seventh Prince all the way to find Li Zongguan. It must have been very hard. Let Lord Suo rest for a while, and let me tell you."
Tong Guogang's words were very naughty. Qi You and Soetu set out together and rode their horses to the Chahar Governor's Mansion to find Li Rongbao.
If anyone is working hard, it should be Qi You who is working hard.
The eldest prince grinned without hesitation. Li Guangdi sat there with a normal expression from beginning to end, looking at the tea bowl in front of him, as if he could see a flower.
Suo Etu's face turned pale, then red, and then pale again. However, he finally held back his anger, lowered his eyes, and said nothing.
Kangxi glanced at everyone and hummed softly.
Tong Guogang then continued to talk about what happened next. His eloquence was not as good as Soetu's. He only talked about how he followed Qi You's command and how he tried every means to delay Galdan's army. Only he knew the situation at that time.
Now that it was spoken out and everyone heard about the dangers and difficulties Tong Guogang faced, their expressions varied and they were filled with emotion.
Kangxi was stunned by what he heard.
Tong Guogang is brave, Qi You is strategic. One is a military advisor and the other is a charge into battle. They work together perfectly and neither can be missing.
If it were someone else, I don’t know if they could do it.
At the end of his speech, Tong Guogang's mood darkened and his words became stammering. He knew clearly that under the circumstances, he did not dare to make a decision.
Except for Qi You, none of them dared to make a decision.
Tong Guogang said with difficulty: "At that time, the sun had set. Khalkha was colder than the capital. I remember it clearly, the sky was red. They didn't even have a pair of shoes, their clothes were tattered, and they were herded in like cattle and sheep. They blocked the artillery fire to cover Galdan's retreat and let his army retreat first. Everyone was crying, and the crying was miserable. I was a little dazed, as if I was having a nightmare."
Suo Etu lowered his head, and his expression could not be seen clearly. A trace of pity flashed in Li Guangdi's eyes, and he sighed inwardly.
Although the eldest prince did not feel so deeply, he wisely kept silent.
Some things cannot be brought to the table. Tong Guogang did not point it out, and Kangxi could not pursue it at this time.
After a while, Kangxi thought of the memorials that had been filed against Qi You and broke his silence, asking, "If you were in my place, what would you have done in that situation?"
Everyone was startled and lowered their heads quickly. No one dared to answer.
Kangxi's face gradually became ugly.
Qi You said that he didn't care anymore and let the ministers who had participated in the beating take over.
The people in front of him are all his trusted subordinates.
Kangxi knew about such a big thing, and they certainly would not make a decision on their own, so he was still very disappointed.
After a while, Kangxi did not ask any more questions and only said, "Do you have any ideas about what to do next?"
Tong Guogang spoke first, saying loudly, "Galdan is truly abominable. The Qing must have a good fight with him and teach him a lesson. I beg the Emperor to allow me to join the army in the battle!"
The eldest prince hurriedly shouted, "Khan Ama, if there is a war, I will go too. I will definitely defeat Galdan!"
Suo Etu did not mention going to war. Instead, he said, "I believe that the peace talks with Luosha must continue. Next, we must send a letter to Luosha to renegotiate the location and date for the talks."
Li Guangdi finally spoke, and said earnestly: "Your Majesty, why don't you invite the Seventh Prince? I know that I am not as good as the Seventh Prince, and I want to hear his thoughts."
Kangxi was immediately furious and secretly glared at Li Guangdi.
You're really bringing up things that are irrelevant to the topic. Qi You, that bastard, he quits!
However, Kangxi suddenly had an idea and pretended to be nonchalant, grunting and saying, "Indeed, the Seventh Brother is in Khalkha. He knows everything about the Rakshasa Kingdom and Galdan. It's late today, why don't you go find him tomorrow and discuss it with him first, and work out a set of rules together."
Li Guangdi didn't know the truth, so he agreed immediately.
Unexpectedly, the next day Li Guangdi went to look for Qi You excitedly, but he didn't even see his shadow.
Qi You was healing the wound on the back of his hand and was not around.
The author has something to say:
Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or provided nutrient solution between 2022-10-27 21:13:28 and 2022-10-28 21:12:54~
Thanks to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: 30 bottles of braised pork buns; 14 bottles of Zhao Cai Na; 10 bottles of Liu Baiyi, Ai Tong, and Fei Yu; 1 bottle of Sue Ziyue;
Thank you very much for your support. I will continue to work hard!
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