Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 974 Prince Regent
Qitate's letter was quickly delivered to Shengjing. Fan Wencheng, as the Grand Secretary of the Internal Secretariat and the emperor's secretary, went to the palace to meet Empress Dowager Zhezhe and report the matter as soon as he received the letter.

Although Zhezhe was the Empress Dowager of the Qing Dynasty, she was also from the Khorchin tribe. Qitat was not only her nephew but also her son-in-law. She had always been very concerned about the affairs of Khorchin.

After reading Qitat's letter, Zhezhe couldn't help but frown. She didn't expect that Agudamu would separate from Tengger and move eastward to Chahar, and would soon become the new ruler of Chahar.

"What do you think about this matter, Mr. Fan?" Zhezhe thought for a moment and asked Fan Wencheng.

Fan Wencheng bowed his head and said, "To answer your Majesty's question, as far as I know, the Shunning King Agudamu is coming with great force, bringing tens of thousands of people and elite troops to the east. In addition, many tribes of the Chahar tribe have surrendered to the Tumed in recent years. Agudamu's aggressive entry into Chahar at this time clearly shows that he wants to become the lord of Chahar."

"Back then, the late emperor united with the Khorchin and other tribes to defeat Ligdan Khan, and finally drove him out of Chahar. This made the Chahar tribes dependent on the Qing Dynasty, and thus Chahar was actually the territory of the Qing Dynasty. But in the following wars, the Tumed joined forces with the Ming Dynasty to advance eastward, and took advantage of the opportunity that the Qing Dynasty could not take care of during the war with the Ming Dynasty to occupy the western part of Chahar. In recent years, they have been eroding step by step, which shows their purpose."

"Now that Agudamu has led his army into Chahar, everyone knows what he wants. Once he is able to gain a foothold in Chahar, it will not be a good thing for the Qing Dynasty. Chahar is located to the west of the Qing Dynasty. It, together with Khorchin and Inner and Outer Khalkha, is a barrier for the Qing Dynasty. In addition, the late emperor had a deep meaning when he recovered the Mongolian tribes and established the Eight Banners of Mongolia based on this. Once Chahar completely falls into Agudamu's hands, the Mongolian tribes will inevitably be in turmoil and collapse."

"In addition, the Khorchin tribe is as close to our Qing Dynasty as brothers, and we are truly a family. The concerns of the Chitat leader are also real. In my opinion, we should unite the Mongolian tribes to prepare for war. We must not let Agudamu gain a foothold in Chahar at any cost. Only in this way can we stabilize the situation in Mongolia and appease the Mongolian tribes."

Fan Wencheng's words made Zhezhe very satisfied. Although Zhezhe was the Empress Dowager of the Qing Dynasty, she was a Mongolian after all, and she was also the daughter of the Khorchin Queen. The Khorchin tribe was her mother's family.

My mother's family came to me for help, I can't just sit there and do nothing, right? Moreover, the Tumed tribe has been aggressive in recent years. Relying on the support of the Ming Dynasty, they have fought many wars with the Qing Dynasty, including the Mongolian tribes affiliated with the Qing Dynasty. Not only have they occupied the western part of Chahar, they are still encroaching on the central part.

Now, Agudamu has gone too far. He led his troops directly into the western part of Chahar and marched towards the central part, showing an attitude of annexing the entire Chahar. The purpose of the other party's doing this is obvious to everyone. Once Agudamu is allowed to gain a foothold in Chahar, the situation in Chahar will change completely. The Qing Dynasty will not only lose control of Chahar, but also face a powerful enemy in the west.

In addition, even if Agudamu did not attack the Qing Dynasty after taking Chahar, what about the Khorchin tribe, which was close at hand? The Khorchin tribe would be the first to bear the brunt of the attack. How could Zhezhe sit back and watch her family fall into such a dangerous situation?
"What Mr. Fan said is very much to my liking. No matter whether it is because of the Mongolian tribes or the plan of the late emperor, Chahar must not fall into the hands of others..." Zhezhe nodded in agreement, and looked very satisfied with Fan Wencheng's answer.

But just as she was about to continue, Fan Wencheng hesitated and said, "Your Majesty, I have something to say but I don't know whether I should say it or not."

"Mr. Fan is not an outsider. If you have anything to say, just speak up."

"Your Majesty, what I said just now is just my personal opinion. I am only a civil official. Your Majesty asked me to help you. But I am not good at military affairs. Once the war starts, the princes in the court need to make decisions. How to form an alliance with the Mongolian tribes and how to use the troops are not my strengths."

Zhezhe was slightly stunned, and immediately understood what Fan Wencheng meant. Fan Wencheng's words were actually to remind Zhezhe that he was only judging the actual situation, and the suggestions he made were just suggestions. As for the decision-making of the government, he, a Han minister, was not qualified to make decisions, and even Zhezhe could not make a decision involving military decisions.

After all, Zhezhe was only the Empress Dowager, not the real emperor. Moreover, the emperor was young, and the government was in the hands of two regent princes. In addition, the political structure of the Qing Dynasty was different from that of the Ming Dynasty. The Qing Dynasty was founded on the Eight Banners, which were the real foundation of the Qing Dynasty. There were many factions in the Eight Banners. Although Zhezhe had a noble status, she did not directly control the Eight Banners. Even though the young emperor Shunzhi nominally controlled the upper three banners, the real control was actually in the hands of others.

This so-called other person is Dorgon, one of the two regent princes. After becoming the regent prince, Dorgon used his power and his strength and influence in the Eight Banners to increase. Now Dorgon has become the actual first-ranked regent prince from the second-ranked regent prince.

The other regent prince, Jirgalang, was no match for Dorgon at all. The reason was very simple. Although Jirgalang was ranked before Dorgon at the beginning, Jirgalang was not Nurhaci's son, but Nurhaci's nephew, and his elder brother was Amin, the second Beile at that time.

How did Amin die? This is no secret in the Qing Dynasty. He was killed by Huang Taiji. Although Huang Taiji valued Jirgalang after Amin's death, because of Jirgalang's loyalty to him, he even made him the leader of the Bordered Blue Banner. However, in fact, he used and guarded against Jirgalang, and never really trusted him.

Moreover, Jirgalang was implicated in the previous rebellion within the Eight Banners and was even punished by Huang Taiji. Later, Jirgalang acted cautiously and showed his loyalty to Huang Taiji, which made Huang Taiji let him go.

After Shunzhi ascended the throne, Zhezhe and others chose Jirgalang as the first regent prince mainly because of his identity and status. Because of Jirgalang's background, he was destined to be no threat to the throne. Moreover, as a member of the Aisin-Gioro clan, Jirgalang was also one of their own, so it was safer to use such a person as the regent prince, and he could also be used to contain Dorgon. But no one expected that Jirgalang might have been frightened by Amin's incident. Originally, they wanted him to contain Dorgon, but he was obviously the first regent but he gave in step by step in the court, with a self-protection mentality, and did not dare to offend Dorgon.

However, Dorgon was different from Jirgalang. After preventing Hauge from succeeding to the throne, his influence within the Eight Banners further increased. In addition, after becoming the regent prince, Jirgalang did not dare to confront him. Dorgon took advantage of the situation and pressed forward step by step. It did not take much effort for him to surpass Jirgalang from the second-ranked regent prince to become the true regent prince. Instead, Jirgalang became a decoration.

Faced with such a situation, Zhezhe was helpless. She was greatly disappointed with Jirgalang, and she never thought that this guy was so unbearable. If she had known this, she would never have chosen Jirgalang as the regent prince. But it was too late to regret now. The matter was done. Dorgon's power was getting bigger and bigger. If Zhezhe had not relied on her status as the empress dowager and had a huge influence within the Eight Banners, she would not have been able to suppress Dorgon.

Now Fan Wencheng's words to Zhezhe were actually a reminder to her that even if she wanted to make a decision, she'd better ask Dorgon's opinion first. As the regent prince, Dorgon had the right to deal with the matter. Although Zhezhe was the empress dowager, Dorgon had the final say in state affairs. Moreover, if Dorgon wanted to use troops to go to war, there was nothing Zhezhe could do if Dorgon disagreed.

A trace of anger flashed across Zhezhe's face. Although she was a little angry, she was helpless. It was her own fault for making the wrong decision by choosing Jirgalang.

Fan Wencheng was right in reminding him that they did need to ask Dorgon's opinion on this matter. Thinking of this, Zhezhe nodded helplessly, and then sent someone to invite Prince Rui Dorgon to the palace to discuss the matter.

Dorgon came quickly and entered the palace in a short while.

"Your servant Dorgon pays his respects to the Empress..." When he saw Zhezhe, Dorgon stepped forward and saluted carelessly, but his posture was nonchalant and the way he greeted with his horseshoe sleeves folded up seemed a bit perfunctory. Zhezhe saw it and her eyelids twitched slightly but she didn't say anything.

"Prince Rui is here, please give him a seat."

“Thank you, Your Majesty…” Dorgon replied after standing up, then sat down on the chair under Zhezhe’s left hand with his legs crossed.

After sitting down, Dorgon looked to the side and saw Fan Wencheng standing there with his hands hanging down, with a smile on his face: "Lord Fan is here too?"

Fan Wencheng stepped forward respectfully and saluted, saying, "Your servant greets His Majesty."

Dorgon waved his hand, ignoring Fan Wencheng, and turned to Zhezhe and asked, "Why did the queen summon me here?"

Zhezhe said, "I just received a report from Korchin about the Mongolian affairs. As the regent prince, Prince Rui naturally wants you to discuss this matter. Mr. Fan, show Prince Rui the report from Korchin."

"Hmm..." Fan Wencheng responded and stepped forward to hand the letter from Qitata to Dorgon with both hands. Dorgon did not read it immediately after taking it, but looked at Fan Wencheng meaningfully, his eyes as sharp as a knife. Fan Wencheng felt a chill on his back, and he stepped aside with his head down without saying a word.

After Fan Wencheng left, Dorgon opened the letter and started reading it. He finished reading it quickly, and after reading it, Dorgon frowned slightly, looking a little unhappy.

"Your Majesty, how come I, as the Prince Regent, only learned about this important event now? Why wasn't this letter delivered directly to me?"

"It's bad!" Fan Wencheng broke out in sweat when he heard this. He knew that Dorgon was expressing strong dissatisfaction. As the regent prince in charge of state affairs, it stands to reason that all matters concerning state affairs must first be approved by the two regent princes before being reported to Zhezhe.

Fan Wencheng received the letter from Korchin first, but he did not report it to Dorgon immediately after receiving it. Instead, he ran to the palace to report it to Zhezhe, which was equivalent to bypassing Dorgon and reporting it directly. If it was someone else, it would be fine, but this was Dorgon! This prince was not an ordinary prince. He said this now, clearly to make trouble for Fan Wencheng. If Fan Wencheng did not follow the regulations and reported it without authorization, Fan Wencheng would be in trouble today.

(End of this chapter)