Chapter 221: People’s Desire (IV)
Just as Master Chang Dao expected, Huo Chong read what Gao Pang wrote about his observations of the sky and felt that the difference was very limited compared to not writing anything.
According to what was written above, Ziwei had undergone a drastic change, the Emperor Star had fallen, and the luck was shifting, with a tendency to disintegrate.
If all the content about astronomy is hidden and the key words are replaced, it would mean that the entire core of Yongzheng's court was destroyed, interrupting the Qing Dynasty's political consolidation phase.
Without Yongzheng's iron-fisted rectification, the Qing Dynasty's finances and administration would have been in tatters. Of course, it was completely off the track that Huo Chong knew.
As for the disintegration of the Qing Dynasty, Huo Chong really hoped that the Qing Dynasty would explode and fall apart. But how would it disintegrate? Huo Chong's intelligence network only covered most of Shandong and a small part of Hebei. Even if the Qing Dynasty disintegrated, Huo Chong would not know.
Putting away the thing, Huo Chong decided to forget all of this. Although Master Changxin was indeed a man of enlightenment, Huo Chong thought that was just a worldview. As for Master Changxin's method of understanding the world... Huo Chong really couldn't stand it.
At this time in the capital, Old Thirteen suddenly felt a chill on his back for some unknown reason. It was as if something had penetrated his already weak body and taken away a lot of heat from Old Thirteen.
Looking at Hong Zhou who was in tears, Old Thirteen tried to cheer himself up and said, "Hong Zhou, you can't say anything at this moment. No, you should be like your father and remain silent."
"Uncle Thirteen, I only trust you now." Hong Zhou said, wiping away his tears with the back of his hand.
The Thirteenth Brother was sad. Hong Zhou had just said that it was the Eighth Brother who sent people to kill Yongzheng, and then asked the Thirteenth Brother why he announced that the Eighth Brother would be reused in the future.
This statement was definitely not something that the sixteen-year-old Hong Zhou figured out himself, but was told to him by someone close to him. Since Hong Zhou knew everything, it goes without saying that such a message would spread throughout the capital.
The Thirteenth Prince had already thought about this matter over and over again. He felt that it was too much of a compliment to say that it was done by the Eighth Prince. If the Eighth Prince had the ability to manipulate Huo Chong to kill Yongzheng, he would have been able to kill Yongzheng by other means.
Now, everyone who knows Huo Chong a little bit says that it was Yongzheng who forced Huo Chong to rebel. The Thirteenth Brother happened to see in person how Yongzheng decided to get rid of Huo Chong. Now the Thirteenth Brother understands that no one in the entire court has the vision of Yongzheng. No matter what others say, the Thirteenth Brother really feels sorry for Yongzheng.
Yongzheng only needed to hear about Huo Chong's actions to understand that Huo Chong was going to rebel. If other people in the court really had the strength to match their status, they should have seen Huo Chong's ambition long ago.
Thinking of this, Old Thirteen asked Hong Zhou to sit down and asked Hong Zhou about this matter.
Hong Zhou thought for a while, and a look of hesitation appeared on his face.
"Tell it, don't worry. Uncle Thirteen is not testing you, he is just discussing this matter with you."
"Yes, Uncle Thirteen." Hong Zhou replied politely, "Uncle Thirteen, I thought Huo Chong had been planning a rebellion for a long time!"
Old Thirteen was pleasantly surprised. Although Hong Zhou was only sixteen years old, his knowledge was quite good.
With joy, the Thirteenth Elder urged Hong Zhou to explain the reason. Then he heard Hong Zhou explain: If Huo Chong had not prepared for rebellion early, but was loyal to the court as others said , then when the imperial envoy arrived in Zibo County, Huo Chong should have surrendered without any resistance.
Since Huo Chong had defeated the government troops in a very short time, it means that Huo Chong had the strength to kill the government troops. Just imagine, how could a person who is truly loyal to the court have such a strong force in his hands? Training troops is not something that can be completed overnight.
"That's right." Old Thirteen nodded repeatedly.
Seeing that he had received Uncle Thirteen's approval, Hong Zhou continued, "Uncle Thirteen, I think...Aqina is the person behind Huo Chong."
The Thirteenth Old Man shook his head repeatedly, "Hong Zhou, your Royal Father is so wise that even if he didn't notice Huo Chong's whereabouts, he would be able to see through it at a glance. Could it be that your Eighth Uncle is colluding with someone, and your Royal Father doesn't know about it? This matter cannot be wrong."
Hong Zhou looked embarrassed, and obviously could not accept this explanation. However, he did not object, but instead tried to probe: "Thirteenth Uncle, won't they collude now? If... Eighth Uncle said that Huo Chong was pardoned, won't Huo Chong fight for him?"
"No!" Old Thirteen said firmly, "If we do this, Old Eight will lose his reputation and will be condemned by everyone. Even your Fourteenth Uncle will not let him go!"
Hong Zhou thought about it but didn't say anything.
Old Thirteen had to explain the current situation to this sixteen-year-old child. Although this might be useless and even have a bad effect, Old Thirteen had to treat Hong Zhou as an adult in the current situation. Hong Zhou no longer had the opportunity to act like a child. The Qing Dynasty and the future of the Aisin-Gioro family depended on this child.
As Yongzheng's confidant, the Thirteenth Prince knew Yongzheng's true intentions. Rectifying the administration of officials and eliminating the power of the princes were Yongzheng's means rather than his goals. Yongzheng did hate both of them, but Yongzheng's purpose was higher than this simple personal likes and dislikes.
By attacking these people, Yongzheng wanted to hold all power in the hands of the emperor alone, and truly become the kind of emperor with all the power described in history books.
Kangxi was indeed a very heroic emperor, but Yongzheng and the Thirteenth Emperor talked about it privately, and both felt that Kangxi had not gotten rid of the tradition of Jianzhou. In other words, Kangxi used the method of decentralization to ensure his power.
Since he has already taken over the world, he must use the centralized method to control everything in the hands of the only person with power, that is, the emperor. The princes check and balance each other, and the ministers recommend the crown prince.
This is all bullshit.
The emperor is the emperor. His words are the law. A word can make a man live, a word can make a man die.
It is believed that only with such supreme power can the emperor lead the people of the world and realize his grand ambitions.
When telling Hongzhou about Yongzheng's true ambition, the Thirteenth Brother suddenly felt a lump in his throat and tears welled up in his eyes.
The Thirteenth Brother knew that his Fourth Brother Yongzheng believed in him, so his kindness to him was truly from the bottom of his heart. In fact, as long as the ministers could truly understand this, they could also receive such favor.
Isn't Nian Gengyao the role model set by Yongzheng? No matter what others say, Yongzheng's favor for Nian Gengyao has not changed at all. However, Nian Gengyao is narrow-minded after all and cannot bear such favor. In the end, he committed suicide, and it is really no one's fault.
In his tearful eyes, the Thirteenth Old Man suddenly had an idea. If things could happen again, Yongzheng would turn to favor Huo Chong. With Huo Chong's amazing talent and his unparalleled forbearance when he was lurking before. Can Huo Chong become Yongzheng's right-hand man and support Yongzheng's ideals?
"Uncle Thirteen, I understand. I will never mention Uncle Eight again. But so many people are talking about Uncle Fourteen now. Do they really think the Empress Dowager will issue an imperial decree?"
Wiping away his tears quickly, the Thirteenth Old Man explained, "Don't worry. With the wisdom of the Empress Dowager, this will never happen. As I said, your Fourteenth Uncle is also not legitimate!"
The Thirteenth Brother did not say this to comfort Hong Zhou. Legally speaking, Yongzheng was already the emperor. There was no substantive evidence to prove that Yongzheng killed Kangxi and took the throne. The Eighth Brother had no chance in the first place. Even if he managed to escape this time, it was only a short escape.
This is especially true for the Fourteenth Brother. Even if the throne is passed down from elder brother to younger brother, there is still the Thirteenth Brother ahead of the Fourteenth Brother, so it is not easy for the younger brother to take the throne.
"A-choo!" Old Fourteen sneezed. He took out his handkerchief and said in a nasal voice, "My dear, I'm afraid I can't be the emperor."
The Eighth Elder sighed, "Fourteenth Brother, we brothers are lucky to be alive. I don't mean to dampen your spirit. Whether you can become the emperor now depends on whether the Queen Mother is willing to take on the responsibility for you. Even if the Queen Mother is willing to help you take on the responsibility and issues an imperial decree, you will have to do it yourself. I know your love for your brothers. If it weren't for you and Fifth Brother, we brothers would have been killed by our father long ago."
Old Fourteen put away his handkerchief and couldn't help but smile bitterly.
It was September of the 47th year of Kangxi's reign (1708). He had originally wanted to play a trick and let the ministers re-elect the deposed crown prince as the crown prince. But most of the ministers nominated the eighth prince, which ruined Kangxi's plan.
Kangxi was also a person who valued face very much. In a fit of rage, he farted and fell down to cover up his shame. He began to attack the Eighth Prince fiercely. He even angrily accused Yinsi of harboring ambitions and attempting to murder Yinreng. It seemed that he was about to order the Eighth Prince to be dragged out and killed.
At this time, the fourteenth prince Yinzhen stepped forward, knelt down and said: "The eighth prince has no such intention, and we are willing to protect him!"
There was already a son who was regarded as a tool , but he actually disrupted Kangxi's plan with his own ideas. Now another one appeared, making Kangxi so angry that his hair stood on end. Oh... furious.
With great anger towards the bastards, Kangxi drew his sword and was about to kill the fourteenth son Yinzhen. The fifth son Yinqi simply knelt down and hugged Kangxi's thighs tightly.
The princes also knelt down between Kangxi and the fourteenth prince and kowtowed and begged. Kangxi was a little relieved and ordered the princes to beat the fourteenth prince Yinzhen. The fourteenth prince was beaten with twenty boards and had difficulty walking.
Even so, the tragedy of Kangxi killing his two own sons with his own hands was avoided.
When the Eighth Brother brought up the matter again, the Fourteenth Brother did not think that he was trying to instigate something . Because the Fourteenth Brother also understood that he would never attack his own brother. It was like this before, and it is still like this now.
After making sure of his intention, Old Fourteen persuaded him: "My dear brother, I am the governor of the Nine Gates. I will protect you no matter what. Don't worry."
“Haha.” The Eighth Elder laughed bitterly, “Fourteenth Brother, I trust you. But Thirteenth Brother has seen a lot of things. When it comes to kindness, you and I are no match for him.”
The Fourteenth Old Man said angrily, "Don't worry, Brother Eight. I am no worse than him in terms of swordplay, horse riding, and military tactics! If the Thirteenth Old Man dares to touch you, I will fight him to the death!"
Listening to the declaration of the Fourteenth Brother that personal bravery could decide the political struggle, the Eighth Brother simply kept silent. Apart from a bitter smile, the Eighth Brother really couldn't think of how to respond to the Fourteenth Brother's kindness.
