My father is Yongzheng, and I am Qianlong?

Chapter 110 Hongzhou Confronts Hongshi

The eighth brother naturally wouldn't stop the tenth brother, he just forced a smile and nodded.

As soon as the tenth prince finished speaking, he rushed over to Hongli, standing behind a pile of python robes, craning his neck as far as he could.

Not long after the tenth brother arrived, the fourteenth brother caught several big fish.

This made the fourteenth prince completely lose himself in the moment, and he was overjoyed.

The tenth brother was itching to try it, so he squeezed behind the fourteenth brother and said, "Fourteenth brother, let me cast a few lines too!"

The fourteenth prince glanced at Hongli.

Hongli nodded.

The fourteenth brother then passed the fishing rod to the tenth brother.

Old Ten sat down with great interest, not caring that the fishing platform chair was still warm, and squeezed his plump body into it.

Hongli also scattered some bait here.

Before long, Lao Shi pulled up a piece, and he was so happy he couldn't stop smiling.

After a while, Lao Shi pulled up another one.

Not long after, Lao Shi pulled up another one.

This made Lao Shi even more excited. He jumped up excitedly, so excited that the red hat on his head tilted to one side.

"Hongli, your bait is amazing! Your tenth uncle has never had such a pleasant fishing experience before!"

Old Ten was so excited that he kept lifting and stomping his feet as if they were on a fire.

"Uncle's bait is truly amazing!"

Narsu then said something.

The twentieth brother chimed in with a laugh, "Twenty-first brother, all the fish in this lake are doomed!"

Even the usually stern-faced Fourteenth Prince smiled and said to Hongli, "Could you tell your Fourteenth Uncle the secret recipe for this bait?"

Hongli nodded.

Old Twenty chimed in, "I'll have one too."

"And I!"

Old Shi was pulling at the fish while also eagerly wanting some.

At this moment, the wife of Prince Yi, who was helping the twenty-first prince entertain the female guests and arrange the banquet, sent a eunuch to say that the banquet could begin, and only then did the guests disperse in twos and threes.

"I haven't had enough fishing yet!"

The tenth brother then said something somewhat sullenly.

"Tenth Brother, let's go fishing after dinner. Don't delay Twenty-First Brother's housewarming banquet."

The sixteenth brother, who had somehow walked over, offered a word of advice at that moment.

Old Ten put down his fishing rod and ran over to Hongli, patting him on the shoulder: "Thanks to Hongli today, I had a great time fishing!"

Hongli smiled and said, "Uncle, you're too kind."

"Uncle Shi can't just take advantage of you for nothing. Here's a jade thumb ring for you. It's a treasure that Guo Luoma Fa acquired back then."

The tenth prince then took the thumb ring off his thumb and gave it to Hongli.

“I dare not refuse such a gift from an elder, so I thank you, Uncle Ten.”

Hongli accepted it.

The tenth prince's maternal family was very prominent; his mother, Guo Luoma, was Ebilun, one of the four regents in the early years of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, so naturally they had no shortage of fine things.

Giving it to Lao Shi now is better than selling it.

The tenth brother waved his hand, saying, "We're uncle and nephew, no need for formalities!"

talking.

The tenth brother looked towards where the eighth brother was.

Then, the tenth brother exclaimed in surprise, "Hey, where's the myna bird?"

"Yes, where's the myna bird?"

The twentieth brother also looked over and saw that the fishing platform where the eighth brother had just been was now empty.

The twenty-first prince hurriedly instructed the eunuch beside him, "Go and ask quickly."

"Wasn't Tangmafa just here a moment ago?"

Narsu couldn't help but say something as well.

"Leaving without saying goodbye is not in Prince Lian's style!"

Puzhao also chimed in with a comment.

Hongli smiled and said, "Eighth Uncle is the chief prime minister, so he must have had some urgent business to attend to and left temporarily."

"Hongli is right!"

The tenth brother chimed in with a similar comment.

The fourteenth brother chuckled coldly, looking at the fishing rods floating on the lake in front of the fishing platform where the eighth brother had just been sitting, and said, "Looks like you left in a hurry!"

"Uncle Ba must have something urgent to attend to."

Hongli guessed the reason, but didn't intend to expose it, so he just said this. Everyone was a little suspicious.

Only the tenth prince echoed, "Hongli is right!"

"Never mind the myna, let's go eat!"

The fourteenth prince was in a great mood and said this.

……

……

Lao Ba didn't actually have anything urgent to do; he just really couldn't stand it anymore.

If he stays any longer, he'll break down, and his persona will crumble.

So, Lao Ba chose to go home.

After returning home, the eighth prince said to the eunuch beside him, "Give the order that I want to eat fish!"

"If you're going to eat fish, just eat fish. Why are you making that face?"

At this moment, the Eighth Prince's wife came over. Seeing that the Eighth Prince looked unhappy, she also became displeased.

Lao Ba didn't say much, he just sat down in his chair and sulked.

Upon seeing this, the Eighth Prince's wife couldn't help but ask, "Did the Emperor upset you again?"

"It's not the Emperor, it's Hongli."

Old Eight was still upset and wanted to vent, so he replied with a single sentence.

Upon hearing this, the Eighth Prince's wife frowned: "Don't you usually like him quite a bit? How come you're still getting upset by him?"

The Eighth Prince couldn't very well say that Hongli had let him have his way, and that a large group of officials were only willing to revolve around Hongli and not around him. He just waved his hand and said, "Let's not talk about it. It's not a big deal."

"I miss my ninth brother a little."

Then, Lao Ba changed the subject.

The Eighth Prince's wife then asked him, "Why did you suddenly mention the Ninth Prince?"

"Only he can help me out."

When Lao Ba thought about how Lao Shi could be attracted to Hongli just by fishing, he sighed and said this.

For the eighth prince, the only way to contact the ninth prince was to hope that on the first anniversary of Kangxi's death, Hongshi would go to Jingling to pay respects to Kangxi, who had been buried in September.

Time flew by, and it was early November of the first year of the Yongzheng Emperor's reign.

Just like in history, Emperor Yongzheng did catch a cold during this period, coughing for several days in a row, and at one point even had a high fever that wouldn't go down, making him unable to get out of bed.

This is naturally frightening for a middle-aged or elderly person over forty.

Fortunately, Emperor Yongzheng had already secretly designated an heir apparent.

Apart from Hongli, Hongshi was still very attentive in asking about the illness, showing great concern.

Although Hongzhou was also attentive, he deliberately controlled the degree of his attentiveness, often waiting for Hongli before going together to inquire about Yongzheng's medicine.

This made it difficult for Hongshi, who had been wanting to talk to Hongzhou alone, to find an opportunity to spend time with him.

He wanted to win over Hongzhou and persuade Yongzheng to let him perform the sacrificial ceremony at Jingling.

Fortunately, when Hongshi went to pay his respects at Li's palace that day, he encountered Hongzhou, who was separated from Hongli.

"Fifth brother!"

After seeing Hongli leave, Hongshi hurried over and called out to Hongzhou.

Hongzhou busied himself making offerings and paying his respects.

Hongshi helped him up: "Fifth brother, it's been a long time since we had a proper talk alone, hasn't it?"

Hongzhou then asked Hongshi, "What does Third Brother want to say to his younger brother?"

Hongshi then turned to the eunuchs following him and said, "You all step back a few steps and don't follow me. I want to have a private talk with my fifth brother!"

"Whoo!"

After the eunuchs distanced themselves from Hongzhou, Hongshi said to Hongzhou, "It's like this, Father Khan is ill, but the anniversary of Khan's death is approaching. I think it would be better for us sons to step forward and ask for permission to hold the memorial service on his behalf. What do you think?"

"Third Brother is absolutely right."

Hongzhou nodded.

Hongshi continued, "As for the fourth and fifth brothers, they are still quite young and may not be able to withstand the wind and snow. Therefore, the third brother is thinking of volunteering to perform the sacrifice on behalf of the Khan. I just don't know if the fifth brother can understand?"

"My third brother's desire to recommend himself stems from his filial piety; how could I not understand?"

Hong Zhou replied.

Hongshi smiled and patted Hongzhou on the shoulder: "I knew Fifth Brother would understand me."

"By the way, Fifth Brother, you shouldn't get too close to Fourth Brother in the future. There are many things you may not know. Many princes and ministers outside have some opinions about him. So, think about it, if you get too close to Fourth Brother, what will they think of you?"

Hongshi also took the opportunity to remind Hongzhou.

Hong Zhou chuckled: "They can watch if they want, or not if they don't. It's that simple. I don't have the Lingyunzhi. Anyone can step on it if they want, or not if they don't."

Hongshi hadn't expected Hongzhou to be so lazy, so he said to Hongzhou earnestly, "Fifth brother, how can you expect them to respect you if you think like this?"

"It's normal for them to look down on me, because I look down on myself too."

(End of this chapter)