The swansong of the swansong

Chapter 250 Brotherhood Alliance
The funeral rites for the deposed crown princess appeared to be extremely elaborate.

In fact, on the day of the funeral, no one except Yinwu dared to set up a memorial tent in front of the mansion!

Yinwu had already established his persona as someone who valued loyalty and righteousness, and Kangxi was already aware of this.

If that were the case, and Yinwu dared not set up a sacrificial tent, Kangxi would become suspicious.

Upon seeing the funeral procession arrive, Yinwu led Cuiqing and voluntarily stood on the side of the street.

Longkodo, who was leading the way at the front of the procession, saw Yinwu and his wife from a distance. He quickly dismounted, walked over, and offered a deep bow.

"Your humble servant Longkodo greets Your Highness Yu!"

"Get up."

Yinwu instructed Longkodo, "You are a sensible man, so there's no need to say anything more. Just one thing: protect the troops from harm, and I will appreciate your help."

Longkodo bowed and said, "Please rest assured, how could I dare to be negligent in such a big matter? I have already arranged soldiers along the way, and I guarantee that nothing will go wrong."

"Master Long, thank you for everything!" Cuiqing, dressed in linen and performing the meritorious service for her elder sister, knelt down to pay her respects.

Longkodo took several steps back, bowing deeply in return, and said with unusual humility, "My lady, please don't be so disrespectful to this humble servant."

In the Tong family, Tong Guowei and his eight sons each took different sides. However, not one of them supported the deposed crown prince.

Well, the main reason is that the deposed crown prince was too arrogant and completely disregarded everyone else.

Back then, Tong Guowei, as the emperor's only maternal uncle, had to kneel and speak to the deposed crown prince.

Once Yinreng becomes emperor, what will become of him?
Therefore, the entire Tong family sincerely did not want the deposed crown prince to ascend the throne smoothly!
Within the Tong family, apart from Qingfu who never took sides, most supported the eighth brother, while a few supported the eldest or third brother.

Unlike Tong Guowei, who firmly supported Lao Ba, Longkodo's stance kept changing.

Initially, Longkodo was very close to the leader. Later, after Mingzhu's downfall, Longkodo sided with the eighth brother.

Right now, Longkodo is flirting with the fourth brother on one hand, and also hanging around with the eighth brother on the other.

However, according to the fourth brother, Longkodo and the third brother also had close ties.

The Tong family, having mastered Tong Guowei's cunning tactics, took their philosophy of survival—betting on everything—to the extreme.

When the procession carrying the coffin of the deposed crown princess passed by the sacrificial tent, Yinwu took the initiative to kneel down deeply to show his respect.

Cuiqing, with tears in her eyes, knelt on the street, wanting to cry but not daring to make a sound, and kowtowed three times.

The twelfth prince, who was in charge of bringing up the rear, dismounted from a distance and quickly walked up to Yinwu, bowing respectfully.

"Twelfth Brother, thank you for your trouble!" After returning the greeting, Yinwu took the twelfth brother's hand and gently patted the back of his hand.

The twelfth prince understood Yinwu's silent gratitude, and grasped Yinwu's hand tightly, saying with utmost sincerity, "If I can even mess up something like this, then your brother will truly become a useless piece of trash."

At this moment, it was not the time to laugh, so Yinwu could only whisper, "I know what I'm doing!" Afterwards, Yinwu learned that the fourth prince had actually led his fourth wife and Nian Haitang to set up a sacrificial tent on the street.

The deposed crown prince kicked the fourth prince down the steps in front of everyone, which directly led to the fourth prince establishing his own faction and secretly participating in the struggle for the throne.

It's easy to imagine that the fourth prince couldn't possibly be without hatred for the deposed crown prince.
Objectively speaking, the fourth prince was under tremendous political pressure when he openly paid homage to the deposed crown princess.

There is only one reason: Yinwu's importance in the fourth prince's heart is enough to offset the negative impact.

After the deposed crown princess was buried, the palace issued an edict ordering the seventh prince to manage the affairs of the Manchu, Mongol, and Han banners of the Plain Yellow Banner, and the twelfth prince to manage the affairs of the Manchu, Mongol, and Han banners of the Plain Blue Banner.

Unexpectedly, the incompetent Lao Shi, who had never held a post before, was entrusted with an important task: managing the affairs of the Manchu, Mongol, and Han banners of the Plain White Banner.

The fourth prince didn't gain any benefits from this round of personnel changes, so he was a little worried and summoned Yinwu and the thirteenth prince to discuss countermeasures.

The thirteenth prince sat cross-legged on the grand chair and sighed, "The fifteenth prince manages the Bordered White Banner, and the tenth prince manages the Plain White Banner. His Majesty is truly thoughtful!"

The thirteenth prince, who had no rank or duties, had become accustomed to running wild outside, and his behavior increasingly resembled that of an uncultured soldier.

The thirteenth prince no longer addressed himself as "Khan Ama" (King Father) but instead as "Jin Shi" (The Emperor), signifying a complete breakdown in the father-son relationship.

The fourth prince couldn't help but glance at Yinwu, wanting to hear his opinion.
Yinwu said calmly, "Father has always been suspicious. Isn't he doing this to keep a backup plan and guard against me and you, Fourth Brother? Sigh, there are countless similar cases. I've seen them so many times that my eyes are calloused."

The fourth prince couldn't help but chuckle. In his later years, Emperor Kangxi was torn between not wanting to relinquish power prematurely and fearing that his sons would rebel.

Coincidentally, Yinwu held the greatest military power in the capital, so how could Kangxi not try to restrain him?

"Fourth Brother, let me make this clear from the start: if you ever tire of me in the future, don't rack your brains to suspect me, lest it ruin our brotherly relationship. If you ask me, then just send me to guard Barkol, and give me a hundred thousand taels of silver every year, so I can live my carefree and happy life!"

These were originally the words that Yinwu wanted to say, but unexpectedly, the thirteenth prince beat him to it!
The fourth brother waved his hand and said seriously, "What are you talking about? The three of us brothers are destined to be buried together. Everyone has their moments of anger. When I lose my temper, you two should just leave and not see me. I'll come back to drink with you and apologize after I've vented."

Wow, the fourth brother's words were extremely sincere. It was clear at a glance that this was completely different from the tricks he used to bewitch Longkodo!
The thirteenth prince glanced at Yinwu without showing any emotion, then smiled and said, "Fourth brother, you know I'm a straightforward person. I'm just saying this, and you should just take it as a joke. What are you talking about?"

Yinwu coughed lightly to attract the fourth prince's attention, then said in a serious tone, "Barkol is too harsh, not suitable for me at all. As for me, I especially love the beautiful scenery and talented people of Suzhou and Hangzhou. Ah, enjoying beautiful women and fine wine, and while I'm at it, I can keep an eye on those pretentious literati in Jiangnan for you, Fourth Brother. That's something I'm good at!"

"Why are you spouting this nonsense too?" The fourth brother glared at him and said angrily, "If that day ever comes, the three of us will rule the world together and share wealth and honor. Here, fifteenth brother, you can choose any beauty you like, and all the fine wine will go to thirteenth brother. It's settled then!"

The fourth prince's words were extremely blatant, revealing his ambition to seize the throne in the most unreserved way!
The thirteenth brother unfolded his folding fan and said with a smile, "Fourth brother understands me and fifteenth brother best. He loves beautiful women, and I love fine wine. We each get what we need!"

Yinwu smiled, realizing that today's "joke" had essentially drawn up a pre-arranged division of their respective spheres of influence.

The agreement was made in advance, and as long as no one wants to go too far, this love triangle will remain extremely stable!

Back then, when Liu Bang appointed Han Xin as the King of Qi, it was a feigned gesture forced by circumstances, and he would surely settle scores with him later.

Historical evidence shows that, despite his many flaws, the fourth brother was extremely protective of his true friends.

The underlying principle of today's alliance is: in the future, as long as Yinwu and the thirteenth prince do not cross the line and try to seize the throne, the fourth prince can tolerate them!
(End of this chapter)