My father is Yongzheng, and I am Qianlong?

Chapter 433 How wicked was Emperor Qianlong? He even tormented those who were submissive!
"Your master is wise!"

"How could I not have thought of that!"

"This must be a conspiracy by the Dzungars. The Dzungars are truly despicable and hateful!"

Marsai, the resident minister to Mongolia who was in Beijing to report on his duties, also participated in this hearing and was the first to speak, while many princes and ministers were still in shock.

After all, Longkodo has now been imprisoned until his death, and Ortai has left the capital, so when it comes to the reaction to flattery, no one can match Marseille.

In fact, there should be someone who could rival him, but this person has not yet been born and is also a Manchu nobleman.

Hongli looked at Marseille, who had just left the court, and nodded in satisfaction.

"Hengchen!"

Zhang Tingyu then stepped forward.

"The draft decree states that after Marsai finishes his report on his duties, he need not return to Mongolia, but can work in the Grand Council."

Hongli ordered.

Marse immediately knelt on the ground, tears welling in his eyes: "This servant thanks Your Majesty for Your Great Kindness!"

Because he could finally return to the capital and no longer have to endure loneliness and cold on the grasslands.

Hongli smiled with satisfaction.

Seeing this, Grand Councilor Qingfu also stepped forward: "This servant also thinks so, and was just about to submit a memorial to reflect that this matter is related to the Dzungars, but since Your Majesty has made a clear decision, this servant does not need to submit this memorial."

As Qingfu spoke, he actually took out a memorial from his sleeve, clearly indicating that he had been prepared in advance.

Hongli nodded: "Very good."

But he did not reward Qingfu with anything.

The fact that Qingfu did not rush to submit a memorial suggests that he may have been observing the situation.

But Hongli was certain that this guy also wanted to improve.

It should be noted that both Qingfu and Longkodo are members of the Tong family, and Qingfu has inherited Longkodo's title of First-Class Duke, which was stripped from him, thus making him the true head of the Tong family.

Therefore, Qingfu's political performance was quite similar to Longkodo's; both loved speculation, but were indeed intelligent.

After all, at this time, there are few people who can prepare a statement saying that this matter is related to the Dzungar Khanate.

"Do any of the other officials have any objections?"

Hongli then returned to the dragon throne and inquired about the princes and ministers.

"I have no objection!"

Hongli smiled slightly: "Very good. The cabinet shall draft an edict to severely punish the Dzungars for their divisive behavior. At the same time, it shall also warn the people of the world to have the ability to distinguish right from wrong, not to follow the crowd blindly, and to understand that this is a conspiracy by the Dzungars. Our Qing imperial family does not have so many conflicts, and no member of the imperial family would raise an army to rebel for a position!"

"Whoo!"

Zhang Tingyu, as a Grand Secretary of the Hall of Preserving Harmony, responded on behalf of the cabinet.

The princes and ministers were truly speechless at Hongli's attempt to shift the blame.

Many princes and ministers who had indeed wanted to stir up trouble and say that the fourteenth prince should at least be recalled dared not speak out again.

Because they could not prove that this was not the Dzungars sowing discord, just as they could not prove that the fourteenth prince really intended to rebel.

After all, a proclamation doesn't say much.

Moreover, they also had to worry that if they continued to push them like this, the emperor might simply launch a military campaign against the Dzungars, but before that, he would carry out a legitimate internal purge.

Therefore, the wise princes and ministers chose to remain silent.

“Mr. Ziwa, this Emperor Qianlong is really good at framing people. He actually pinned the blame for our crimes on the Dzungars!”

That evening, on an official boat moored on the Tonghui River.

Luo Qiu brought a glass of water to Mr. Ziwa, who was dressed in plain clothes.

Mr. Ziwa smiled and sighed, "Brilliant! Truly brilliant!"

"indeed!"

"The truth is not important to him; he only cares about whether he can use it to his advantage."

Luo Qiu replied.

"He always does things in unconventional ways, which is indeed different from other emperors."

“Other emperors fear offending foreign barbarians, but he is eager to offend them. Other emperors are afraid that their uncles and brothers will threaten their rule, but he is easily enraged by the slightest disrespect from foreign barbarians. To be precise, even if foreign barbarians are obedient, he will still covet them.”

"The Grand Council has already begun discussions on the matter, as ordered, to send an imperial envoy to Korea."

"It is evident that this emperor also has his eye on the traditionally docile Korea; moreover, he is doing this now that the Dzungars have not shown any disrespect."

"Why did Emperor Qianlong regard those barbaric foreigners as his number one enemy? It's utterly baffling."

"Is it simply because we don't want any foreign barbarians to follow the path of the Qing Dynasty?"

After saying this, Mr. Ziwa drank a glass of water. The coolness soothed his throat and calmed his agitated mind considerably.

Chengdu, Sichuan.

Zhao Hui walked to a dining table with a radiant expression and sat down. After sitting down, he took off the hat ornament on his head and looked at the single-eyed peacock feather on it, which made him smile.

Each time he saw the single-eyed peacock feather, he felt immensely grateful for the Emperor's grace, and his appetite returned. So, Zhao Hui then placed his official hat on the sky-blue hat stand and looked at the large plate of bright red and shiny braised pork belly and the large plate of dark black and deep-colored beef brisket in front of him. His eyes lit up, and he swallowed repeatedly.

But at that moment, Emperor Qianlong's imperial comments on his memorial arrived.

Zhao Hui thought it wouldn't hurt to look at it later, so she picked up her chopsticks.

But upon seeing the single-eyed peacock feather official hat on the table, Zhao Huihai gritted his teeth, put down his chopsticks, washed his hands again, had an incense table set up, and began to burn incense and read the incense.

"How was your stay in Sichuan? What were the local conditions and prices like?"

"When going to Shanxi, there is no need to go to the capital to seek an audience; go directly to Shanxi to assist Liu Tongxun in suppressing the rebellion."

"You must maintain a good relationship with Liu Tongxun. You cannot disregard the rules and regulations of officialdom just because you are a Manchu."

The imperial edict Zhao Hui received was his memorial requesting an audience with the emperor for instruction.

According to custom, officials of the fourth rank or above who were promoted had to request an audience with the emperor to hear his instructions.

Zhao Hui naturally did the same.

However, this time Hongli did not allow him to go to the capital, but only gave him a few instructions.

"This servant has received your grace and command before, and now I have received your holy edict. As I respectfully read it, I am filled with joy and praise. It is a pity that I cannot fully listen to your teachings. I can only wish you boundless blessings."

"This servant is in Sichuan."

When Zhao Hui was writing his secret report to Hongli, he stopped writing at this point, unsure of what to do next.

But after thinking about it, he still felt he should speak according to the truth of his life.

"This servant is doing very well in Sichuan. I have seen abundant harvests and the people are at peace. What is even more delightful is that I have tasted a delicacy called 'Shaobai', as well as 'Huobian' beef and mutton. The scholars and officials of Sichuan especially love it, and this servant has been eating it for three days without getting tired of it."

"Prices in Sichuan have risen slightly, but not enough to burden the people. In Chengdu, rice costs one tael and one mace per shi (a unit of dry measure); salt costs six li per jin (another unit of dry measure)..."

"Your Majesty's decree is my due. I will treat Lord Liu with the utmost respect and join hands to defeat the enemy."

Zhao Hui replied to Hongli in this way, and then, because of Hongli's instructions, she thought about how to befriend Liu Tongxun. After thinking about it, she simply brought some of the Sichuan delicacies that she used to like.

Zhao Hui also heard the rumors that the fourteenth prince was going to rebel.

But for a minister who only wanted to make military achievements, he was not frightened by the rumor; on the contrary, he was excited.

It was as if he couldn't wait for the fourteenth prince to actually rebel.

Jiangnan.

Fu Hui was overjoyed when he learned that he had been promoted to Beizi and granted the title of Beizi.

He immediately sent a memorial to Hongli expressing his gratitude and requesting to return to the capital for an audience.

Meanwhile, Fu Hui also hosted a banquet in Jiangnan for Hong Zhou and a group of officials in Jiangnan.

He walks with a light, airy gait now.

After all, he already had his own title and his own residence.

In the Qing Dynasty, it was quite different for princes to have their own residences.

This made Fukue work even harder in the subsequent land distribution.

"You all need to be serious. I'll be doing surprise checks in disguise, understand?"

Fu Hui was giving instructions to the officials who were involved in the land distribution, but the officials all said they dared not.

Fu Hui curled the corners of her lips, picked up her tea, took a sip, and said, "It's good that you know you wouldn't dare!"

"Your Highness, this is a letter from my maternal uncle. It says that rumors are circulating in the capital that Prince Xun is planning a rebellion, and there are already rebellious people in Shanxi responding to it!"

Just then, Haha Zhuzi Duanrong, who was beside Fu Hui, quickly came to Fu Hui's side and handed her a letter from Nian Xiyao.

After hearing this, Fu Hui just held her tea and remained silent for a long time.

The officials behind him who were involved in the land distribution also had different expressions.

Fu Hui had no choice but to immediately go and find Hong Zhou.

"Fifth Brother, is Fourteenth Uncle really going to rebel?"

After meeting Hongzhou, Fu Hui asked him this question.

Hongzhou stared at the green thumb ring he was constantly turning in his hand, without saying a word.

For Hongzhou and Fuhui in Jiangnan, they did feel a little uneasy after hearing the rumor.

Because, like Hongli, they were, after all, sons of Yongzheng.

If the fourteenth prince were to rebel and succeed, their status would be very different. They might even be in a worse situation than other nephews because they were Yongzheng's sons.

However, Hongzhou did not lose himself in this worry for too long, since the possibility of such an outcome was very small.

"It should be impossible. If Uncle Fourteen wanted to rebel, he would have done so long ago. There was no need to wait until now. The officers and generals of the Eight Banners and the Green Standard Army have been replaced several times over."

Hongzhou stood up at this point and said, "But the Fourteenth Uncle is indeed of a special status. Once this rumor spreads, it is inevitable that some princes and ministers who only want to avoid trouble will be uneasy, and even the Fourth Brother will be uneasy. Therefore, I am afraid that someone will use this rumor to stir up trouble, deny the role of the imperial clan in politics, and take advantage of the Fourth Brother's unease to recall the imperial clan."

Will Fourth Brother recall us?

Fu Hui inquired about Hong Zhou.

(End of this chapter)