King Xiang of the Red Chamber

Chapter 639 Father and Son
The emperor is very angry!
As an emperor, he naturally wants to have everything under control, and eliminating unstable factors is the instinct of imperial power.

The struggle between the Crown Prince and Prince Rui is controllable. To be more precise, they are puppets of the Emperor, each playing a role and wrestling with each other.

Zhu Jinghong also has his own role in the emperor's eyes, but now he has become restless and wants to kidnap the army to coerce the emperor and his father, which touches Zhu Xianming's taboo.

Normally, even if he was the emperor’s biological son, Zhu Jinghong would have been dealt with and would not have the chance to stand before the emperor.

"You are threatening me..."

Zhu Xianming's cold words made the scene feel like a cold winter.

Even though Zhu Jinghong had made sufficient preparations, he still couldn't help trembling with fear at this moment, and he knelt down and kowtowed.

As for the eunuchs and guards such as Cheng Ying, they lowered their heads like sculptures. They would not remember what happened today.

"father……"

As soon as Zhu Jinghong opened his mouth, he heard Zhu Xianming scold him: "Call me Your Majesty!"

After a pause, Zhu Jinghong replied: "Your Majesty... I don't know how to coerce, I only know how to protect my king and father!"

Looking at his son who remained calm in front of him, Zhu Xianming had to admit that this son was the most like him among all his sons.

He has a broad vision, a broad mind, the ability to convince others, and is shrewd. With so many advantages gathered in one person, he is the perfect choice to be the emperor.

But the more outstanding Zhu Jinghong was, the more fearful Zhu Xianming became. This was an instinctive reaction as a monarch, and no wise monarch from ancient times to the present could avoid it.

During this trial at the Censorate, Zhu Xianming did intend to take the opportunity to weaken Zhu Jinghong, but he never expected that this kid would turn the table.

So his first reaction was anger, and then he fell into great suspicion, so he first summoned all the generals in the army.

The generals who hold real power now are all his trusted confidants who have followed him in his battles, but Zhu Xianming cannot guarantee that these people will remain loyal after more than ten years.

This is not a lack of self-confidence, but the instinct of an emperor. If he can even doubt his most beloved and trusted son, how can these generals be immune?

So he summoned these generals, explained the rules and duties to them, and played polo together to build relationships with them. Only then did Zhu Xianming feel truly at ease.

So now, it's time for Zhu Xianming to deal with his son.

"Making a scene in the Censorate, is that what you call protecting the emperor and father?"

Zhu Jinghong replied: "The Imperial Guards and the Beijing Camp are the backbone of my father and the foundation of the stability of the country. They must not have any stains!"

With a stern look, Zhu Xianming said, "There can't be any stains. If someone is unclean, they should be removed directly, instead of covering it up and letting it rot like you are doing!"

One can argue both sides of the argument, but the key is who has the final say, and naturally no one can compare to the emperor in this regard.

Therefore, when the emperor said that any stains should be removed to ensure that the government troops were clean and pure, Zhu Jinghong found it difficult to refute.

The conversation was formal now, and there was no point in quibbling.

After a few moments of silence, Zhu Jinghong responded, "Father is right... If that's the case, as the commander of the troops that day, I should be punished with them!"

Hearing this, Zhu Xianming sneered: "Do you really think... that without you, the world will be in chaos?"

So in his opinion, Zhu Jinghong was refusing to give in and was still threatening him with tomorrow's negotiations, which made him even more angry.

Zhu Jinghong replied: "Handsome trials and framing of loyal officials will lead to chaos in the world!"

"Hahaha……"

The emperor burst into laughter, then he stopped laughing and said, "Well... you have guts!"

Zhu Jinghong was really courageous as he refused to give up even after being given the chance twice. Zhu Xianming thought that

Zhu Xianming was of course furious at not being able to subdue his youngest son, but he felt more upset.

Of course, it was not because of Zhu Jinghong's disobedience that he was upset, but now he was the one being put in a difficult position.

Let's punish this kid severely. Not only will I be reluctant to do so, but it will also be difficult to explain to the Queen.

If he doesn't punish him severely, it will not only be more difficult to subdue this kid in the future, but he will also lose face as the emperor.

"There is no smoke without fire. Even if Shen Jinxun and his men have not committed any serious crime, they will inevitably cause trouble to the locals!"

"They must be severely punished to serve as a warning to others!"

Looking at Zhu Jinghong who remained silent, Zhu Xianming continued, "You disrupted the order of the trial and damaged the prestige of the court. You should be severely punished!"

After hearing these words, Zhu Jinghong had to admit that the old man was determined to suppress him.

It has to be said here that it is really difficult for people to put themselves in the emperor's shoes, because if viewed from the emperor's perspective, Zhu Jinghong's behavior could be considered high treason, and if it were a foreign official, it would be a crime worthy of having his property confiscated and his clan exterminated.

"The Prince of Xiang's Mansion will be fined for half a year, and after half a year, you will receive the salary of a county prince!"

He was fined for half a year, and six months later he was awarded the title of Prince. The emperor did not demote his title, which changed Zhu Jinghong's mood.

This is the most vivid interpretation of what it means to hold something important and put it aside.

This time it was Zhu Jinghong who was gambling, and at the same time he was testing the emperor's intentions, and the result obviously made him very satisfied.

Who can take on the old man's world? Especially in the current world with challenges everywhere, Prince Rui can't do it, and the crown prince can't do it even more.

Now Zhu Jinghong can be sure that the emperor also agrees with this in his heart.

"Dad...son!"

"Get out!" Zhu Xianming yelled.

"Yes Yes……"

Although the situation is good, Zhu Jinghong still needs to study carefully the way the father and son get along with each other, and the two must maintain a tacit understanding.

How can we have a tacit understanding? Of course, one person pretends to be stupid and the other continues to pretend to be ignorant. The original mode is the best.

After saluting and taking two steps, Zhu Jinghong asked again: "Then tomorrow..."

Holding up the teacup, Zhu Xianming said coldly: "If you complete the task tomorrow, you will only be grounded for three months. If you fail... you will be grounded for half a year!"

"Yes!" Zhu Jinghong looked helpless.

Zhu Jinghong turned and left. If Zhu Xianming had seen him leave with grievance in the past, he would have smiled knowingly, but now he couldn't smile.

He was still very conflicted. He admired Zhu Jinghong, but was also extremely wary of him. The two coexisted and conflicted with each other.

Serving the emperor is like serving a tiger. The emperor's heart is unpredictable. In fact, the situation is not as optimistic as Zhu Jinghong imagined.

While Zhu Xianming was struggling with his conscience, Cheng Ying reported, "Your Majesty, Dai Quan wants to see you!"

"Call him over!"

"Yes!"

A few breaths later, Dai Quan, who was the chief secretary of the Imperial Household Department and the commander of the Eastern Depot, appeared in front of Zhu Xianming.

"His Majesty!"

Dai Quan said nothing, but handed over an envelope. This was the task assigned to him by Zhu Xianming at noon, and two hours had passed since then.

"Is it complete?"

"Your Majesty, all is complete!"

Zhu Xianming then stood up, walked to the center of the training ground alone, and opened the envelope by himself.

There were more than a dozen pages of paper inside, listing a person's name and position.

If Zhu Jinghong was around, he would be very familiar with the people on the list.

The people on the list either fought with him or had been friends with him when he was in the Dragon Guards. There were nearly 200 people in total, and this was the list of people above the sixth rank. Shen Jinxun and Zhou Shoujun, as well as Hou Jing, Shi Chong and a large number of others, were currently on this list.

Seeing this, Zhu Xianming was deeply shocked, and the words "wings have grown" popped up in his mind.

Withdraw all these people? Zhu Xianming thought about it and shook his head.

On the one hand, the people on the list only had connections with Zhu Jinghong, but they were not going to follow him in rebellion, so it would be too arbitrary to dismiss them directly.

On the other hand, there are too many people involved in the list. Replacing them all would certainly shock the nobles and relatives, and would in turn undermine the emperor's authority.

What's more, many people on the list are still fighting the enemy on the northwest front, and Zhu Xianming must be cautious in order to maintain the overall stability of the court.

If he is not my biological son, I will kill him... Zhu Xianming shouted in his heart.

Zhu Xianming put the list away and put it in his sleeve. Then he looked at Cheng Ying and said, "Send the Crown Prince and Prince Rui here!"

"Yes!"

About half an hour later, Zhu Jinghong returned to the palace. It was almost dark.

The lights in the palace had been turned on. When Zhu Jinghong returned to Yin'an Hall, he saw Baochai sitting in the main hall waiting for him.

"Everyone, go down!" Baochai ordered her attendants.

After the servants left, Baochai motioned for Zhu Jinghong to sit down beside her, and then asked, "How is it?"

Zhu Jinghong replied: "Deduct half a year's salary, and then receive the salary of a prince!"

Looking at her husband who was sitting next to her, Baochai grabbed Zhu Jinghong's sleeve and asked, "Is it too heavy or too light?"

She was not involved in the incident, so she could not understand the situation clearly and could only listen to Zhu Jinghong's judgment.

Zhu Jinghong replied: "The old man still wants to deal with Shen Jinxun and others. He is determined to suppress me..."

"So it's too heavy?" Baochai asked back, with a worried look on her face.

"It can only be said to be moderate. Today, he met with the generals of the imperial army and the Beijing camp. I think he wants to strengthen his control over the military power. It is normal to suppress my influence in the army!"

Baochai knew very well that Zhu Jinghong was challenging the emperor today, so she said with lingering fear: "It's just suppression, not dethronement. I'm afraid it's just for the sake of my mother!"

"Not entirely... The old man still needs me, so he can't abandon me!" Zhu Jinghong said in a deep voice.

Baochai immediately replied: "Can't you give it up now? Who can guarantee that you won't be able to do so in the future?"

Zhu Jinghong was very optimistic, but hearing this sentence still made him feel nervous.

Although he is confident that he can take on the responsibility of the world and is the most suitable successor to the emperor, and it seems that the emperor currently recognizes this, who can guarantee that the emperor will not change his mind?

Even if we take a step back, if the emperor is old and confused, and believes the slander and thinks that he is a great threat, it is not impossible that he must depose him.

Liu Ju was a stable crown prince for more than 30 years, wasn't he? Emperor Wu was wise and powerful in his quest for power, wasn't he? In the end, it all ended in tragedy.

"Baochai...what you said is extremely treasonous!" Zhu Jinghong said with a serious expression.

Baochai replied: "This is the truth. You'd better be careful and don't lose your guard!"

Zhu Jinghong was unable to refute, and he was also shaken at this time.

He could no longer be sure whether he and the emperor were father and son or monarch and subject, or whether they were more father and son or monarch and subject.

He had the answer, but now he wasn't sure.

Then a new question arose in his mind: what would the emperor's mentality be like?

Are you treating me as a tool, so you tolerate me temporarily, or are you treating me as your son as before, who can be trusted and tolerated?

"Royal...Royal..."

After reading it several times, Zhu Jinghong stood up and left. He didn't want to think about these issues any more deeply, as he was afraid that he would come up with more dangerous ideas.

The night passed quickly and Zhu Jinghong's Yishan crown was returned.

Early in the morning, the emperor sent someone to deliver an imperial edict, reprimanding him for disrupting the trial and formally announcing his punishment.

This was an imperial edict, so the news spread quickly, causing a lot of discussion inside and outside the court. Generally speaking, people praised the emperor for being fair and maintaining the dignity of the court.

At the same time, the emperor also issued a second decree, asking the Ministry of Justice, the Censorate and the Dali Temple to re-examine the case and ensure that it was fair and accurate.

Today is February 20th. According to the plan, we are going to negotiate with the Dzungars, and the negotiation time is set for the afternoon.

"What did the old man say to the fourth and sixth sons last night?"

Behind the back garden of Prince Xiang's mansion, Zhu Jinghong and Baochai strolled alone and raised the questions in their mind.

"How would I know!" Baochai replied helplessly.

Zhu Jinghong stopped and turned around to ask, "He wants to suppress me, so he might as well help these two people up?"

Baochai laughed and said, "You have already received the salary of a prince. Do you still need support from a prince and a prince to suppress you?"

"What do you think?" Zhu Jinghong asked calmly.

Power is not gained through titles, but through support from the bottom up.

The Crown Prince and Prince Rui have many supporters, but unfortunately their supporters are not strong enough, or to be more precise, they lack military support.

So no matter how high their titles were, without the emperor's protection, they were not enough to defeat Zhu Jinghong alone.

After thinking it over, Baochai replied, "I think so... Since I punished you yesterday, I will definitely give them a thumbs up!"

However, Zhu Jinghong looked solemn, and then said: "If the old man wants to balance, I'm afraid he will continue to suppress me!"

"Haven't you been punished?"

"You can punish me again!"

Baochai was stunned, then replied: "I can't really demote you to a prince!"

"I'm not afraid of being demoted to a general... I'm just afraid that the old man will hit me in the weak spot!"

At this moment, Zhu Jinghong was really scared, so much so that he felt a little regretful. Perhaps he should not have confronted the emperor, as the consequences were too serious.

After reading the conversation between Firefox and Baochai last night, he now had a more thorough understanding of the problem and admitted that he had been overconfident in the past few days.

"Seven inches?" Baochai looked puzzled, but soon understood what Zhu Jinghong meant.

"Forget it, let's take it one step at a time. You've really pushed me to the limit... I can go and complain to my mother!" Zhu Jinghong replied helplessly.

The couple didn't say anything more, just walked quietly in the back garden.

After lunch, Zhu Jinghong changed into formal clothes and set out to participate in the negotiations.

The negotiation place was set up in Shanglin Garden, right in the camp of the Yulin Guards.

The Dzungar delegation arrived at the beginning of noon and was accommodated in a side room of the headquarters. They had been waiting for almost two quarters of an hour.

"Everyone, please follow me!" A deputy captain appeared at the door.

So the Dzungar people followed them and left. They were taken to the military camp, where tables and chairs for negotiations had been set up.

Looking at the elite soldiers standing on guard around them, the Junggar people felt the pressure and they could only choose to divert their attention.

Then they discovered that the tables and chairs in the venue were arranged in two directions, north and south, and they were taken to the south side.

"Everyone, please take a seat!"

(End of this chapter)