71. Chapter 71
"none"
Qi You sent the furs back to the capital with great fanfare, and of course the prince saw it.
However, Kangxi also adhered to the idea of not airing family disgrace in public, so he scolded Qi You and bought the house with gritted teeth, and gave him silver to pay off his debts.
In the past, Qi You would send New Year and festival gifts back to the palace every year. The gifts were not expensive, they were all local specialties, and the thought behind them was truly great.
The prince thought that these were all New Year gifts sent by Qi You. He waited and waited, but Qi You's festival gifts did not arrive.
Although the prince was not obsessed with Qi You's gift, he felt a little uncomfortable that his share was missing.
The prince was sulking and ordered someone to find out whether Qi You had given the eldest prince any New Year gifts.
During the holidays, the streets were crowded. The eldest prince's residence was bustling with people, but the man had no idea why.
When the prince heard this, he became even more uneasy.
The eldest prince has always wanted to go to Yile, but the prince will certainly not let him do as he wishes.
It is certainly a good thing for the eldest prince that he got into trouble.
But what if the eldest prince achieved something?
The prince knew very well that it was his duty to complete the task assigned to him by Kangxi well, and at most he would receive praise for doing a good job.
Taking the initiative to find things to do means that you have something to do; doing things when ordered to do so means completing the task.
The prince also wanted to go to Yilie and took the initiative to ask for a job.
But he couldn't, and didn't dare.
The prince is the crown prince, so it is possible for him to go to Shunyi and other nearby places, but forget about going to Yile.
The crown prince of a country would voluntarily deliver himself to the enemy. How stupid must a person be to do such a thing?
His status was his armor, but also his bondage. Unlike his brothers, actively seeking work was a struggle for power, which was bound to arouse Kangxi's disgust and suspicion.
The prince frowned slightly and fell into deep thought.
Fuquan made a mistake, and although Kangxi seemed to take their brotherly feelings into consideration, he actually punished him more severely.
Now during the New Year, Fuquan is still in the capital. After that year...
The prince set his sights on the school in Shunyi.
After figuring it out, the prince came to the Qianqing Palace to pay his respects to Kangxi.
The yamen was closed for the New Year, and Kangxi was not so busy. He was drinking tea and reading in the east warm room. When he saw the prince coming, he continued to flip through the book and said, "Sit down."
After the prince thanked him and sat down, Kangxi pointed to the dried fruits on the table and said, "This is what the seventh prince sent back. Try some."
The prince hurried forward, picked up a few hazelnuts, and slowly peeled them in his hands, saying with a smile, "Seventh brother is so thoughtful. He even came so far and still remembered to bring back a New Year's gift for Khan Ama."
Kangxi paused, raised his eyelids and glanced at the prince, then snorted, "This isn't a New Year's gift from him. He collected it from local people and resold it to the Ministry of Internal Affairs. You have to pay for it with silver!"
The prince paused, looked at Kangxi's expression, hesitated slightly, and said tentatively: "Alas, how could Seventh Brother do this? It's okay that Bannermen can't do business, but the local people rarely save up a little to exchange for oil and cigarettes. He took it to make money, which is robbing the people. Such a large sum of money, he is not willing to take it. Khan Ama won't care about him. When other officials see it, they will impeach him and make things more difficult for Khan Ama. But Khan Ama, Seventh Brother is young after all, and he may not be thoughtful. Please don't be angry with him."
Kangxi listened to the prince's words and slowly put down the book in his hand. He was unhappy in his heart, but did not show it on his face.
The last time he fell ill while leading an army in person, the prince did not show any sign of worry when he came to greet him.
The eldest prince wanted to go to Yile, but the crown prince tried to stop him in every way, and Kangxi knew it very well.
Considering that he was his son who had been raised by him since childhood and was also the crown prince, Kangxi did not say much, in the end he took his face into consideration.
Since he knew that Qi You was young, he didn't even say hello to his brother for being in a cold and bitter place, but instead started to criticize him.
It would be bad enough if he ignored the relationship between father and son, but he also ignored the relationship between brothers.
Kangxi took a few sips of tea, suppressing his anger and displeasure. He said calmly, "Seventh Brother isn't doing business, much less competing with the people for profit. He collected these and sent them to the capital, earning some money for the people's daily necessities. He hasn't touched a single cent. The amount of each shipment, the number of furs and kilograms of dried fruit, and each household's share are clearly recorded in the account book, and they were all sent to me."
Qi You is cautious and reliable in his work, and his accounts are always clear. How could he let such a big handle fall into the hands of others?
The prince was secretly annoyed, knowing that he had said something wrong in his haste. He lowered his head and said in shame, "I misunderstood my seventh brother. He has always been loved by Khan Ama, and he is also a filial son. He would never do anything to make Khan Ama embarrassed and worried."
Kangxi smiled and said, "Why doesn't he let me worry about it? He sent me back so many dried fruits and asked me to buy them. He also owed a lot of debts outside and shamelessly asked me for money to pay them back."
The prince was stunned and mumbled, "How could Seventh Brother do this? Why did he owe money?"
Kangxi said worriedly, "He bought grain from outside, but the wasteland over there hasn't been cultivated yet. We almost didn't even get the seeds back from the wheat we planted. This little bastard is really a worry."
The prince pondered for a moment and said cautiously, "Khan Ama, there's no need to be angry. Seventh Brother must have his own plans. It's just that the north is too cold, and farming depends on the weather. No matter how talented you are, if the heavens don't cooperate, nothing can be accomplished. Khan Ama, since some people have accused Seventh Brother of severing the dragon vein of the Jueluo clan, it's better to forget it and recall Seventh Brother to the capital, or to take charge of the school in Shunyi. He will suffer less."
After Kangxi tried to find out the prince's thoughts, he felt indescribable disgust and disappointment.
The prince spoke lightly, sounding as if he was solely concerned for Qi You's benefit. But in Kangxi's eyes, he was hypocritical and inappropriate.
Thousands of Khalkha people were relocated by Qi You to open up wasteland. If he left them alone, they would be taken in by other Mongolian tribes.
The importance of reclaiming wasteland in the north lies in the navy and the military deployment of the imperial court in the Heilongjiang River basin.
After the navy was built, the court would allocate food and fodder to them. Harvests from the reclaimed wasteland in the north could be used to support the navy and border troops, alleviating the financial burden on the Ministry of Revenue and the treasury.
When reclaiming wasteland in the north, we must take a long-term view and not just look at the harvest in one or two years.
Kangxi raised his eyes to look at the prince and said calmly, "Let him toss around for another two years."
The Crown Prince was a little confused about Kangxi's thoughts. His mind raced, and he followed Kangxi's words, saying, "That's right. We don't have much money anyway, so let Seventh Brother do what he wants. Khan Ama, how is Shunyi School? Second Uncle has been away for so long, I don't know how Lin Yicheng is managing it. This is our Jueluo family's school, and we can't let anything go wrong or we'll be laughed at."
Kangxi said casually: "Schools are just like that. They teach and educate people. How can we let people laugh at us?"
"That's right." The prince responded, thought for a moment, and then made up his mind and said, "Khan Ama, I want to go to Shunyi School after the New Year. The school is the hard work of my seventh brother and the face of our Jueluo family. My seventh brother is in the north and can't come back. As his elder brother, I want to go and help him so that he can focus on reclaiming the wasteland."
Kangxi flatly refused, saying, "Your second uncle will go to Shunyi after the New Year. You are the crown prince, how can you leave the capital at will?"
A look of disappointment flashed across the prince's face, but he didn't dare to say anything more and could only respond silently.
Both father and son were unhappy and parted on bad terms.
Qi You in the north was also furious.
After receiving the food on credit, they no longer had to starve for the time being, and Qi You breathed a sigh of relief.
Qi You was not worried that Kangxi would not pay him. If he didn't, he would go back to the capital and personally go to the Ministry of Revenue to ask for the money he had paid back. If the Ministry of Revenue dared to refuse to pay, he had a thousand ways to make them pay back.
It was freezing outside, and everyone was idle. When people have nothing to do, eat their fill, and have nothing to do, they tend to look for things to do.
At the end of the year, Qi You followed his original plan and slaughtered three of the fattest pigs. He also distributed the meat, rabbits, and pheasants he had hunted in the mountains to several villages, stewing them with radish and pickled cabbage. Everyone had a delicious meal.
The village chiefs, who were quite polite, invited the armored men who had taught them farming to come and have a pig-killing dinner. The armored men had brought some wine, and a few of them, who were good friends and had similar tastes, sat around drinking until they were red in the face.
The wine got to their heads, and they were not afraid of the cold. They ran out with wine bags in their hands to find people they knew and chat over drinks.
This group of surveying and mapping students usually have a good time together. Even though their parents came with them, they didn’t stay at home. Instead, they ran to the dormitory that Qi You built for Lin Xiuxiu and the others, sat together, and had a lively pig-killing dinner.
Zhang Song is older and takes care of He Ye and the others, running in and out to add food and firewood, and is busy all the time.
A few drunks wandered over and saw Zhang Song. Someone whistled first and said with a playful smile, "Sister, it's so cold, your face is red from the cold. Come here and let your brother warm you up!"
Zhang Song didn't understand the Mongolian the man spoke, but he could tell from his tone that it wasn't a good thing. He glanced at him, turned around, lifted the curtain, and went into the house.
Seeing Zhang Song ignored him, the man immediately felt embarrassed. His companions started to cry out in surprise and teased him, "Bu Rigude, I'm a scholar, how could I look down on you? You'll be single forever!"
Burigude had been engaged before, but before the wedding took place, Galdan attacked. His fiancée died in the battle, and he has not married to this day.
Burigude had a bad temper to begin with, and when his companions laughed at him, the alcohol rushed to his head. He instantly became furious and cursed: "She is just a stinky woman, and a scholar is just a concubine! I will not believe it today!"
Bayan, the armored man next to him, stared intently at the door Zhang Song had entered through. He licked his lips and said, "You know what, these women are really different from other women."
The others nodded and said, "She has delicate skin and tender flesh, and she is very juicy."
Burigude took a few sips of wine, raised his hand and said, "Come on, let's go inside and see how delicate the skin and tender flesh are."
Bayan rolled his eyes and said, "The general has told us not to do anything rash, or Master Qi will be angry."
Burigude laughed disdainfully and said, "No matter how powerful a woman is, she still has to get married in the future. At worst, if I really like her, I will marry her. Even the Seventh Master won't have any objection! Let's go!" After saying that, he strode into the house first.
Someone took the lead, and several people followed behind, shouting and rushing into the house.
Zhang Song was putting sauerkraut into the pot when the door suddenly slammed open and a cold wind blew in. She was so frightened that her hands trembled and she quickly turned around to look.
Seeing that it was the drunks he had met earlier, Zhang Song's face darkened and he shouted, "What are you going to do?"
The room was hot, so Zhang Song took off his fur coat, revealing his slender waist. Burigude's lustful gaze was fixed on her waist, almost unable to move. He sipped his saliva and said in a lewd tone, "Sister, we're here to drink with you!"
The other people laughed with ill intentions and looked at Lin Xiuxiu, He Ye and the other girls wantonly.
Zhang Bai was a man, and seeing that things were not going well, he immediately jumped off the kang and stood in front of them, angrily saying, "I don't care what you want to do or what you say, you are not welcome here, get out!"
Although the other younger ones didn't understand what was happening, when they saw Zhang Bai stand up, they jumped off the kang and stood in a row in front of him.
Bayan understood Zhang Bai's words, crossed his arms, looked at Burigude mockingly, and said, "He said you are not welcome here and told you to get out!"
Burigude, unable to withstand the provocation, stepped forward and grabbed Zhang Bai by the front of his shirt. A tall and muscular man, almost twice as strong as Zhang Bai, he yanked him to the ground, cursing, "Get lost, you're not even allowed to speak here!"
Lin Xiuxiu was so frightened that her face turned pale. She screamed and shouted, "Help! There are criminals! Help!"
Zhang Song's face turned pale. He put down his pickled vegetables and hurried to support Zhang Bai. Burigu grabbed her arm and, with his foul-smelling mouth, said with a playful grin, "Why bother with him? Come and have a drink with me!"
The room was in chaos. He Ye was smart and quietly slipped off the kang without even having time to put on her outer robe. She grabbed her shoes and ran towards Qi You's yard.
When Bayan saw the door curtain shaking, he was smart enough to rush out and chase after him.
He Ye's heart nearly jumped out of her chest when she heard the noise behind her. She ignored the cold and ran as fast as she could towards Qi You's yard, screaming as she ran, "Seventh Master, help!"
The girl's voice was shrill, and the surroundings were so quiet that some people heard the noise and lifted the door curtains to find out what was going on.
Usually Sabusu often sent meat floss to Qiyou for food. This time, when the New Year pig was slaughtered, he invited the father and son to have dinner and chat together.
Sabusu first talked about some things about the shipyard. After listening, Qi You said, "The shipbuilders all come from Jiangnan. Those who are sick must be taken care of and not work anymore."
Sabusu said yes, "Don't worry, Master Qi. I didn't let the doctors over there go home for the New Year because I was afraid that someone would get sick and have a headache and not even have medicine. But I heard the doctor say that there are not enough herbs, and many kinds of medicine are out of stock."
Qi You said, "I've already asked people who went back to the capital to bring back some medicinal herbs from the Imperial Hospital. The situation will get better in the spring, but for now we can only deal with it for now."
Sabusu was overjoyed and said with a smile, "Seventh Prince is indeed very thoughtful. The doctor said that many people just caught a cold and it's not serious. They will feel better after resting for a while."
Chang De listened to the two people's conversation and interrupted, "People in the south are weak. For example, when Mr. Wu and his friends first came to the north, they all fell seriously ill. Alas, otherwise, Mr. Wu would not have passed away so early."
Sabusu glanced at Qi You, his face darkened as he said, "They are criminals, and they were exiled here because of their own actions. How can we sympathize with them?"
Wu Zhaoqian was implicated in the imperial examination case, a complex situation. Kangxi had always feared these scholars from Jiangnan, and it was impossible to explain their situation in a few words.
Chang De knew he had said the wrong thing and looked very embarrassed. Seeing Qi You still drinking tea with a normal expression, he felt relieved and said with a dry laugh: "Seventh Prince, the weather is so cold, why don't you have a drink too."
Qi You was well aware of how much Kangxi valued Jiangnan. Not only did he go to Jiangnan several times, he also placed his trusted relatives, the Cao and Li families, there.
Qi You was of course clear about Kangxi's actions, which were nothing more than to consolidate the country.
Regarding this group of literati, Qi You respects their practices, but he does not agree with them.
Whether they wanted to overthrow the Qing Dynasty and restore the Ming Dynasty, or were dissatisfied with the Qing Dynasty's rule, it was normal for them to write poems to secretly mock the Qing Dynasty.
But Qi You thought their starting point was a bit empty.
Those who can afford to go to school and have the leisure time to lead troublemakers all come from well-off families.
The common people really don't care who is the emperor. They think that whoever brings them peace and prosperity, whoever keeps them well fed and clothed, and whoever avoids chaos is good.
This group of scholars who were concerned about the country and the people did not donate any money to help the Ming Dynasty overcome its difficulties even when Chongzhen was so poor.
What they wanted was no different from what the bannermen wanted. They wanted hereditary nobility and wealth, and they wanted to be the superior people.
Qi You would not get involved in this muddy water for the time being. Hearing Chang De's abrupt turn of events, he couldn't help but smile and said, "I really don't drink alcohol. You guys can drink, and I'll just drink tea."
As soon as he finished speaking, Degao ran in, frightened and said, "Seventh Master, it seems something happened to Zhang Song and the others. Someone is chasing He Ye!"
Qi You's face darkened instantly, and he jumped off the kang and rushed into the bedroom, put on a thick fur coat, and rushed out. Sabusu and Changde looked at each other, thinking of these foolish and lawless men, and quickly put down their wine glasses and followed behind.
He Ye was young after all, and the road was icy and slippery. She ran too fast and fell, and was caught by Bayan. He was so angry that he grabbed her and slapped her, cursing, "You stinking bitch, how dare you run!"
Gui He led the guards and ran over, shouting angrily, "What are you doing? Let her go!"
When Bayan saw Gui and the others coming, he secretly cried out in his heart, and quickly withdrew his hand, forcing a smile and said, "I was just joking with her!"
Gui Hecai didn't believe Bayan's words. He was familiar with He Ye and the others, so he quickly ran over and pulled her behind him to protect her.
Seeing that He Ye didn't even wear thick clothes, Gui He thought of Qi You's instructions and immediately realized that something was wrong. His face changed drastically and he said to the guard, "Go check on Zhang Bai and the others!"
He Ye was cold and scared, her teeth chattering as she cried out, "They are bullying Sister Song. They want Sister Song to drink with them!"
Bayan scowled at He Ye with a scowl, and was about to start scolding when he saw Qi You approaching, followed by Sabusu and Chang De. He didn't dare say anything more, and with a pale face, he stepped forward to greet them.
Qi You looked at Bayan with cold eyes and said nothing. He said to Gui He, "Take He Ye back to the house quickly."
When the guards rushed into the room, Burigude had already pinned Zhang Song down on the kang and forced wine into her mouth, cursing, "You stinky bitch, you're so shameless! Drink it!"
Zhang Bai was blocked by his companions, and Lin Xiuxiu was also held back by someone, saying dirty words and crying so hard that she almost lost her human form.
The guards' expressions changed immediately, and they shouted angrily, "Stop it!"
The people in the room finally sobered up a bit when they saw Qi You's guards arrive. Burigude let go of Zhang Song, walked to the door, and said with a flattering smile, "Gentlemen, I'm treating her to a drink. I've taken a fancy to her and want to marry her!"
"Bang"!
A gunshot rang out, and Burigude froze in place. He lowered his head, staring at the blood gushing from his leg in disbelief. The pain washed over him, and he fell to his knees.
Bayan, who had followed, was horrified, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets. In front of him, the barrel of a smoking gun was pointed at him.
Qi You narrowed his eyes and pulled the trigger without hesitation.
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