EBE Chapter 329: Conversation between Father and Son in the Carriage
Chapter 329: Conversation between Father and Son in the Carriage
Chapter 329 Conversation between Father and Son in the Carriage
When I left, I felt that Khalkha was quite far away from the capital, but when I returned to the capital, I don’t know if it was because of my mood or because the road was really easier to travel, but in less than twenty days, the emperor’s carriage entered the capital.
Hongye led the ministers in the capital to the city gate to welcome them, and saw the dusty returning team from afar.
"Your son pays respects to His Majesty the Emperor and respectfully welcomes His Majesty back to the capital. I also pay my respects to the Empress, and wish the Empress good health and happiness."
Yinreng walked out of the imperial carriage, and Buerhe also walked out of the carriage, holding Qier's hand and standing aside. Seeing the people kneeling in front of him, Yinreng personally helped Hongye up: "Everyone, stand up. Everything has been going well in the capital recently. Hongye has lost weight."
Hongye stood up with the force. Seeing his father and mother, who had never been away from him for such a long time since he was born, he felt a mixture of emotions. "Father and mother are also very tired from the long journey. They are both very haggard."
At this time, He Zhu, the eunuch who was accompanying Yinreng, stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, the weather is too hot now. Some of the old ministers can no longer bear it. Let's go into the city first!"
After being reminded, Yinreng looked towards the ministers. It was hot, and these old scholars were wearing dark, thick clothes that wrapped themselves tightly. Under the sun, they had begun to sweat profusely and were even staggering.
Yinreng knew Hongye well enough and was aware that the arrangements for these people were definitely not made by him. Even if he had really arranged for these people to come and greet them, Hongye would have taken good care of them and at least prepared umbrellas to block the sun. It was impossible for him to let them be exposed to the sun.
This scene today was obviously performed for their own benefit. As for the reason, there was no need to think about it. Just look for it from two aspects. One was that they disliked the Crown Prince, or that the Crown Prince had implemented some policy that was not to their liking. This was to first get their attention, and then use this opportunity to complain.
Secondly, it is possible that something went wrong with the younger generation in their family, and during the time when he was away from the capital, Hongye handled the matter impartially and did not offer any protection. They also knew that they were in the wrong, so they wanted to use the fact that they had suffered to cover it up.
Well, these are all old tricks. Yinreng could figure them out with his eyes closed. What's more, those people were people he dealt with frequently. When he was the crown prince, he had seen them taking advantage of their seniority many times. He didn't expect that now that he had handed over the matter to the crown prince, they would still use the same tricks.
If they want to use tricks, then let them do it and see who is more effective. But for now, let them go. Don’t let anything really happen, otherwise it will cast a shadow on my good fortune of returning to Beijing.
Yinreng waved his hand and announced that he would return to Shoukang Garden. Since all the ministers were there, he would hold a dinner party in Wanchun Hall in the evening. Now, as he was a little tired after just returning to Beijing, he took the queen and the prince back to Fengwu Palace.
After letting Hongye get on his imperial sedan chair, Yinreng looked curiously at where the old ministers had been. "What's going on? It wasn't mentioned in the letter."
Hongye sneered, "Hmph, Father, don't worry. Those young people are not doing their jobs all day long. It's okay if they just play around on the streets all day long. Now they have started to bully the common people for no reason and even rob them on the streets. If Hongjing hadn't happened to see them before, they would have really covered it up.
What's most infuriating is that these people are all relatives of martyred soldiers. The pillars of their families sacrificed their lives for the Qing Dynasty. Now, with only orphans and widows left, life is already difficult, and these dandy scoundrels are adding fuel to the fire, disregarding the law. For such people, I will simply detain them and wait for compensation before sending them to the military camp for a few years for training. It's not a big deal."
Yinreng frowned upon hearing this: "Are all the dandies in the capital like this? Have the Eight Banners become so corrupt?"
Hongye shook his head and rejected it: "That's not the case. These are only a part of them. Most of the rest are still good. When we fought against Japan, Korea, and Russia and established the ocean-going fleet, those Eight Banners children all signed up enthusiastically. Now many of them are stationed at the border to defend the Qing Dynasty. The remaining part are basically the youngest sons or children who are not very successful in the family.
Their parents knew their abilities and knew they would be killed if they went to the battlefield, so they kept them in the capital. However, these people were spoiled at home, and after their superior brothers left, they became even more lawless. They took advantage of the time when the son minister was acting as regent to act recklessly.
Because their brothers were away protecting the Qing, I didn't make things too difficult for them. As long as they hadn't done anything harmful, they would only need to pay compensation, be locked up for a few days, and then be sent to the camp for a few years of training. I had previously discussed this with them. If they couldn't bear to train, I would let outsiders teach them.
"I had oversimplified the matter today, thinking they had already been convinced and agreed with my point of view. Who could have imagined such a trick would happen?"
It was only after He Zhu reminded him that he realized that several old guys who were originally arranged to stay in the shade had gone out into the scorching sun, and they were sweating profusely, staggering like they were about to have heatstroke. It was fortunate that He Zhu reminded him early, otherwise the royal family's face would have been lost outside the city today.
Yinreng nodded: "Isn't this a matter that requires my intervention?"
He didn't think the matter was serious. Besides, he had his support behind him. If Hongye wanted to take action, then he could do it. As for those old guys coming to beg for mercy and ask for an explanation, if they dared to come, he would let them know what the wrath of heaven and the dragon's power meant, and what it meant to bully others by taking advantage of one's power.
Aren't they all arrogant? Aren't they bullying others by taking advantage of their power? In this great Qing Dynasty, who could be stronger than this emperor?
Hong Ye shook his head. "I'm sorry to have worried Father Your Majesty. This matter is not your fault. Even if they dared to complain, they only dared to do it secretly and not openly. I despise such opponents. Besides, if they dare to come, I will punish them directly. By then, my eldest son, who is respected by the outside world, will be implicated by these useless people. Then there will be people who will punish them without your help."
"Well, it's okay as long as you know it. How are your younger brothers in the garden doing recently? Have they caused you any trouble?" Yinreng ignored the previous question and turned to care about his three younger sons. He was not concerned about their studies or health, but whether the eldest son in front of him could bear it.
Don’t think that he didn’t notice it just because he just came back. Hongye in front of him looked much more haggard, and it was obvious that he had been worrying a lot recently.
As expected, Hongye looked at his father with a helpless and patient expression: "Father, were we so naughty when we were little? I now sincerely hope that the Crown Princess is pregnant with a girl. A son or something is too annoying."
Yinreng's curiosity was piqued: "What's going on? What did they do to make you look like this? That won't do. If you like daughters, it would be best if you have a second child. It would be better for the Crown Princess to give birth to a grandson this time."
"Ah," Hongye couldn't help but sigh again, "It's not that I don't like boys, but recently I have to take care of government affairs, pay attention to the Crown Princess's pregnancy, and manage Jingyi's mood. I am really exhausted when I meet three naughty brothers."
Yinreng stopped drinking tea and stared at Hongye in front of him, listening to him talk about the triplets. Letters from the palace never stopped coming, but they were mostly brief messages about attending classes on time, eating on time, sleeping on time, and being in good health. There was no detailed information about what they did on a daily basis.
Seeing his father so curious and Hongye really wanting to complain, he told him about the trouble his three younger brothers had been making in the yard during this period.
"For the first two days after Father and Mother left, my younger brothers were quite well behaved and went to and from school on time every day. Plus, the Crown Princess was newly pregnant, so they felt a sense of responsibilities as uncles. During that time, they were always trying to behave and set an example.
But after a long time, seeing that the nephew in the Crown Princess's belly had not been born, they returned to their old ways. In addition, I was quite busy during that time and only visited her once a day. The rest of the time, people around me went to visit her, which further emboldened them.
One time, they skipped class and went to the Pet Garden behind the garden. Hongyan disliked the uncleanness of the little animals and kept wanting to bathe the newborn kittens, even if he got scratched.
Because his fourth uncle liked puppies, Hongying also wanted to raise a puppy. He insisted on dressing the puppies in winter fur clothes even in the hot summer, and even did not let the wolf go.
It was because Laifu was old that they were embarrassed to torment him, otherwise I, his son, would have suffered the same fate. It was a hot day, and when I arrived, the dogs were already lying on the ground, panting. After being released, they dove straight into the pond, fearing that Hongying would catch them again.
As for Hongchen, it's even longer than that. Because the weather is hot, he insists on finding a cool place to sleep. You said he'd sleep here, and he even took a fancy to the big python in the garden, saying that the snake's cool body is perfect for sleeping, and that it will be his bed from now on."
After he finished speaking, Hongye's face was filled with indescribable expression.
Yinreng laughed, but when he saw the prince's face, he quickly held back his laughter. He couldn't laugh at this time, otherwise it would be too unfair to the prince.
"This isn't the most unbearable thing for me. Before, because the Crown Princess was pregnant, someone sent a letter to the garden to visit her, and the Crown Princess received her. But before she even reached the East Palace, she ran into those three little devils in the garden. Then, Hongying's three dogs rushed over and bumped into the women, not only that, but they also ruined their clothes.
They wanted an explanation for this matter, and then Hongying directly told one of the beautiful princesses that he would take responsibility and marry her as the prince's wife, while the other two, who were not as pretty, would be concubines.
I didn't stop them from saying this, and the rumor spread. Later, it was said that the three princesses were trying to commit suicide at home but were stopped. However, Hongying's reputation of being lustful at a young age also spread widely.
Yinreng's pupils trembled. "What? A child of how old is already saying he's lustful? Aren't those people too arrogant?"
Seeing Yinreng angry, Hongye quickly tried to comfort him, "Father, calm down. I have already dealt with this matter and the culprits have been dealt with. There are no more such rumors in the capital now. Everyone knows it was a misunderstanding."
Yinreng finally calmed down: "That's not bad. I can tell from what I heard that your brothers are taking the blame for you. If you don't take action, then I will not be happy."
Hongye lowered his head and said, "Yes, it was my fault that I failed to protect my brother."
Yinreng also felt sorry for his eldest son: "Alright, I know you are also unaware of this, otherwise you would not allow others to bully your younger brothers. You have been really hard-working during this period. You should take a break starting tomorrow. The Crown Princess is about to give birth, so stay with her in the East Palace. Your mother and I are back, and there are some things we can take care of."
"Thank you, Father!" Hongye was so excited that he almost jumped up. He could finally rest for a few days. Children with their father and mother by their side are the luckiest!