The prince is more stable

Chapter 9: Deep Palace Listening
What forced Zhao Hao to write this strange memorial was not a sudden divine intervention on Zhao Xiaoqian's part, but a vague memory from his previous life.

Zhao Xiaoqian could not remember much about the Northern Song Dynasty. In his memory, the Song Dynasty always elevated the literati too high and relegated the military men to the dust.

What impressed Zhao Xiaoqian the most was the reforms during the Northern Song Dynasty, which were truly... turned into a farce by the monarchs and ministers for decades.

This emperor said the new law was good, but the next emperor said the old law was better. The new law and the old law were abolished and restored several times. National affairs were like a joke, and the people were suffering.

Those who supported the reform and those who opposed it, the new and old parties in the court were at loggerheads with each other, the party struggles intensified, and the court was in a state of chaos.

Does the young official have political ambitions?

Of course he did, but his ambitions ran counter to those of the Empress Dowager. During the ten years that the Empress Dowager was in power, the emperor always unconditionally supported her in implementing the old laws and suppressing the new party officials.

But in Zhao Xiaoqian's vague memory, the first thing Emperor Zhezong, who was considered wise in history, did after taking power was to abolish the old laws and restore the new laws.

All I can say is that this official is very patient.

When the Empress Dowager was alive, the Emperor was a staunch supporter of the old laws. However, as he was young and powerless, he immediately turned against her as soon as she died.

I am actually an undercover agent!

That’s right, I’ve been undercover in the evil old party for ten years!

Ten years! Do you know how I spent these ten years?
To this day, even though it has been half a year since the Empress Dowager passed away, he has never revealed any intention to reinstate the new law.

However, Zhao Xiaoqian knew that he was about to take action.

In the next one or two years, the Song Dynasty court almost experienced a major purge. The New Party officials who had been suppressed were reinstated, and countless stubborn Old Party officials were demoted and dismissed from office.

And now, it was the initial period when the government was planning to restore the old and abolish the new, but Zhao Hao jumped out at such a sensitive moment.

A prince actually has almost no status in the court and his presence is very weak, but who can blame this careless father for submitting a flattering memorial?

The emperor was worried about not being able to find a chicken to kill to scare the monkeys, and was worried about how to test the attitude of the stubborn old party. He happened to see Zhao Hao's memorial, which actually contained nonsense like "support the court to continue to implement the old laws".

If not you, who else should I mess with? You brought this upon yourself.

Zhao Xiaoqian could almost imagine the emperor's expression after seeing the memorial. It must have been one of surprise and joy, with laughter reaching up to the sky.

Where did this idiot come from? He is willing to sacrifice himself to be cannon fodder to help me accomplish great things!
I looked at the signature again, oh, my second uncle, then it must be you.

The chess pieces and cannon fodder personally chosen by the Heavenly Family, referred to as the Chosen Ones.

…………

Holding Zhao Hao's freshly prepared memorial in his arms, Zhao Xiaoqian hurried towards the gate of the palace.

When he walked out of the gate, Zhao Zongsheng and officials from the Dali Temple were still waiting, so Zhao Xiaoqian stepped forward and saluted.

Zhao Zongsheng stroked his beard, his eyes full of inquiry: "Is everything arranged?"

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled and said, "Yes, thank you, Grandpa Pu, for your consideration. My father will be out soon."

"How should Zi'an deal with this?"

"My father was involved in this incident for no reason, and I want to redress his injustice."

"Where can I go to complain?"

"Forbidden Palace."

Zhao Zongsheng hesitated to speak, but finally sighed and said, "Go ahead. After your father is sent to the Dali Temple, I will have someone take care of him. Don't let outsiders humiliate and mistreat my relatives from the Great Song Dynasty."

Zhao Xiaoqian had a good impression of the old man. It turned out that family members were reliable.

At this moment, he understood why the ancients had relied so much on the power of their clans for thousands of years.

After bowing again, Zhao Xiaoqian turned around and headed towards the Forbidden Palace.

The palace was some distance away from the imperial palace, but not too far, so Zhao Xiaoqian decided to walk, bringing only a few imperial guards with him.

Zhao Xiaoqian had no time to appreciate the bustling street scenes on the roadside. He was actually a little nervous at this time.

Zhao Hao's trust in his only son has reached an unprecedented level.

Without much hesitation, she chose to entrust her life and property to him.

Both father and son were well aware of the huge storm this memorial would cause in the court.

Misfortune and fortune depend on.

This conspiracy against the palace may be an opportunity for the Chu Palace.

Soon the emperor will be pleasantly surprised to find that the person who has been undercover in the old party for ten years is not only himself, but also the King of Chu and his son.

That’s right, the King of Chu and his son endured humiliation and worked undercover for ten years!

Today is the time to draw the line and show the sword!
The Chu King's lineage and the imperial family will always be comrades-in-arms standing back to back!
After crossing the Imperial Street, Zhao Xiaoqian and the imperial guards soon arrived in front of the palace.

The scale of the Song Dynasty Imperial Palace was actually not very large, and compared with the imperial palaces of other dynasties, it even looked a bit shabby.

The central gate of the imperial palace is the Xuande Gate, where civil and military officials hold court. It is usually not opened.

Zhao Xiaoqian chose the Youye Gate next to the Xuande Gate, which was considered the side gate of the imperial palace.

Outside the Youye Gate, the imperial guards were in armor and on high alert.

Zhao Xiaoqian ordered his guards to halt and stepped forward alone. From a distance, he produced his ivory waist badge, proving his identity. As he walked, he spoke loudly, "I, Zhao Xiaoqian, son of King Hao of Chu, am submitting this petition on behalf of my father. Please, General, present it to the emperor at the steps."

After saying this, he took out the memorial that Zhao Hao had just written from his arms and held it high in his hands.

The imperial guards outside the Youye Gate looked at each other in bewilderment. Court officials often sent memorials to the emperor daily, but to have one delivered directly to the palace, bypassing the prime minister and the six ministries, was unheard of.

According to the rules, this kind of memorial cannot be accepted.

But Zhao Xiaoqian had just revealed his identity. He was the son of the King of Chu, and the King of Chu was the official's uncle.

If my uncle's memorial is rejected by the imperial guards, who will be held responsible if something goes wrong?

So, should we accept this memorial or not?
After hesitating for a long time, a military officer who looked like the commander of the infantry came over, his eyes full of resentment and accusation.

Aren't you just looking for trouble for me?

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled broadly: "Thank you very much, General."

He casually reached into his arms, intending to let the other person deeply feel the warmth of the world, but as soon as he put his hand into his arms, his face changed immediately.

How come you, the prince, don't have a single penny on you?
How can others do things if you don’t give them enough benefits?

In a hurry, Zhao Xiaoqian pulled hard at his waist, took off a jade pendant of fine quality, and stuffed it into the palm of the general's hand.

The general's face suddenly brightened up. While accepting the memorial, he also accepted the jade pendant without leaving a trace.

In order to justify the reward for the jade pendant, the general personally entered the Youye Gate and ran towards the Huangyi Gate of the Inner Palace.

…………

Forbidden Palace, Funing Hall.

Funing Hall was the sleeping hall of officials of all dynasties in the Song Dynasty. Of course, it also had other functions, such as office.

The official Zhao Xu is exactly twenty years old this year. At this moment, he is sitting behind a desk in a side hall, reviewing memorials with a frown on his face.

He had been emperor for ten years, but he had only personally handled state affairs for half a year.

In the previous ten years, all state affairs were decided by the Empress Dowager and her ministers. The memorials submitted to him at that time were already the results of the decision, and he could not change anything at all.

After the Empress Dowager passed away last year, Zhao Xu finally took power and was qualified to review memorials and make decisions on the memorials of his ministers.

And the power of the court was gradually concentrated in his hands during this six months.

It may seem unfilial, but Emperor Zhao Xu was actually more happy than sad about the passing of the Empress Dowager, and the reason is obvious.

However, to the outside world, the emperor still had a sad expression on his face, and the white banners and mourning belts in the palace had not been removed to this day. The emperor's sadness was like a river flowing backwards, and it had not eased for half a year.

The biggest stubborn old man in the court passed away. The young Zhao Xu was ambitious and determined to accomplish something that would far surpass the Han and Tang dynasties. The Song Dynasty would become different in his hands.

What is the purpose of achievement?
Reform is necessary. Only reform is the only way out for the Song Dynasty!
Not only for the sake of the Song Dynasty, but also for the long-term consolidation of his own rule.

Nowadays, conservative forces are mostly in power in the court. How can the officials who have learned the art of ruling allow the forces in the court to show an overwhelming and absolute advantage?

Will his words still be effective in the future?
Therefore, the power in the court must be checked and balanced, and now is the time to promote those New Party officials who have been suppressed for many years and have been frustrated.

Only when both sides fought each other to the point of beating each other's brains out could he, the emperor, sit comfortably.

Zhao Xu drew a small circle on the memorial with a red pen and wrote a few words. He put down the pen and rubbed his eyebrows in annoyance.

An eunuch hurried in with a bow in his hand.

"Your Majesty, Zhao Xiaoqian, the son of the King of Chu, has presented a memorial to the King of Chu outside the palace gates. I humbly request your perusal."

Zhao Xu was stunned. "Prince Hao of Chu? My uncle? Why was his memorial delivered through the palace gate?"

"I didn't know it, but it was Zhao Xiaoqian, the son of the King of Chu, who personally escorted me to the palace gate."

Zhao Xu frowned, feeling somewhat unhappy about this unruly thing.

Moreover, this uncle of the King of Chu... should be being interrogated in the Dali Temple at this time, so how could he suddenly come up with a memorial?
"Present it." Zhao Xu waved his hand.

Zhao Xu unfolded the memorial and glanced at it casually. Then, he gradually opened his eyes wide and his expression became solemn and serious.

After reading it hastily, Zhao Xu suddenly closed the memorial, his expression showing no emotion.

After closing his eyes and thinking for a while, Zhao Xu opened the memorial again and read it carefully again, this time word by word, very carefully.

After a long time, Zhao Xu closed the memorial again, a smile flashed in his eyes.

"This uncle of mine is a wonderful man. I was wrong about him before. Interesting! Haha!"

The eunuch stood quietly by, not daring to say a word.

After a moment, Zhao Xu suddenly asked again, "Who did you just say was the person delivering the memorial outside the palace gate?"

"Returning to the emperor's family, he is the son and only son of King Hao of Chu, Zhao Xiaoqian."

Zhao Xu blinked and searched his mind for a long time, but he still couldn't remember Zhao Xiaoqian's features.

According to seniority, Zhao Xiaoqian is Zhao Xu's cousin, and seems to be two years younger than Zhao Xu.

But Zhao Xu seemed not to have seen this cousin for many years. The most recent memory seemed to be a few years ago in the first month of the lunar year, when Zhao Xu led his ministers and relatives to offer sacrifices at the Agricultural Altar Ceremony and they met briefly.

According to rumors, Zhao Xiaoqian, this cousin, has lived in the deep courtyard of the palace for a long time and has rarely seen outsiders. He has a very eccentric and lonely personality. It is really surprising that he actually delivered a memorial on behalf of his father today.

"Is Zhao Xiaoqian still outside the palace? Summon him into the palace, I want to see him." Zhao Xu ordered.

　I will speed up starting tomorrow. Please collect and provide various ticket data. It is very important. I would like to ask for your help.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)