My father is Yongzheng, and I am Qianlong?

Chapter 209 Severe Punishment, Devastating!
"Okay!"

“Those who secretly formed cliques have all come forward.”

"I knew it! How dare Xie Jishi, a mere censor of Zhejiang Province, disregard my decree and continue to cause trouble and attack Tian Wenjing?"

"So, it turns out he has you, the high-ranking officials of the Eight Banners, backing him up!"

"Who else will speak up for them?"

The clues that Hongli noticed were naturally also noticed by Yongzheng, who even showed great anger.

His entire face was ashen, like a dark cloud pressing down on the sky.

At this moment, Emperor Yongzheng asked all the court officials, and shouted, "All of you, step forward!"

Who knows.

At this moment, Hongli's thirteenth uncle, Yunxiang, stepped forward and said to Yongzheng:

"Fourth brother!"

"Your Majesty, I also plead for Xie Jishi and Li Fu. Although the two are arrogant, I have heard that they are always upright and honest. If they are killed for impeaching Tian Wenjing, who will dare to expose the crimes of powerful officials for you in the future?"

"Punishing officials who speak out against wrongdoing would surely chill the hearts of scholars throughout the land!"

Yunxiang added another sentence.

Many ministers couldn't help but widen their eyes in surprise.

Yunxiang's appearance surprised them.

But Hongli understood, and chuckled to himself.

He knew that his thirteenth uncle and Yongzheng were putting on a show.

Because Yongzheng and Yunxiang did not truly intend to completely break with the bureaucratic group.

After all, new policies still need to be implemented and realized through the bureaucratic system.

Furthermore, Tian Wenjing's policy of requiring officials and gentry to pay taxes and perform corvée labor together was an overly radical one, a strategy that completely stripped away the privileges of the gentry.

Emperor Yongzheng never intended to promote this nationwide; he only wanted to implement it in Henan, so that officials and gentry throughout the land would know that if they were too selfish in the face of major disasters, they would have all their privileges revoked.

Therefore, when Emperor Yongzheng was willing to confront the entire bureaucratic group in order to implement the policy of officials and gentry paying taxes and performing corvée labor together in Henan, Yunxiang, the chief minister of state, also joined in the opposition.

That would be considered reckless.

But Yongzheng was still furious, though his tone had softened considerably: "Li Fu is just a self-proclaimed scoundrel who claims to be upright and honest. How could you all take him seriously?"

"Your Majesty, please forgive me. It is the duty of scholars and officials to value their reputation and integrity, and they have no intention of seeking fame or fortune."

Akdun then replied.

Emperor Yongzheng pointed angrily at Akdun: "You!"

Yunxiang continued to play the role of a reasonable person, advising Yongzheng: "Fourth Brother, Xie Jishi is an imperial censor, and Li Fu is a member of the upright officials. They really cannot be killed. If they are killed, who will dare to supervise the governors and viceroys? It will also allow people like Tian Wenjing to become truly rampant and unscrupulous!"

Yongzheng looked at Yunxiang: "Thirteenth Prince, can't you see that they are a faction? Have you forgotten how the Ming Dynasty fell?"

Xie Jishi then countered, "Since His Majesty accuses us of forming a faction, aren't Ma Qi and Zhang Tingyu also forming a faction by praising Tian Wenjing in the *Jingshi Xinbao*?"

When Xie Jishi mentioned the "Jingshi Xinbao" newspaper, Li Fu also raised his head.

He was also furious when he thought of the "Beijing News".

Originally, the Henan gentry in Beijing planned to widely publish posts to vehemently criticize Tian Wenjing's misdeeds, especially his forced labor of gentry like Fan Gu, who hauled soil and stones on the riverbank like oxen and horses, even to the point of exhaustion.

To know……

The capital region had many civil officials and scholars.

The Hanlin Academy, the Imperial College...

In addition, there were many lower-ranking officials who were literate, such as scribes and calligraphers.
Furthermore, there were also many members of the imperial clan and the Eight Banners who received education in the official schools, charity schools, Gioro schools, and palace schools of the Eight Banners.

Therefore, the literacy rate in the capital city was quite high.

As long as Tian Wenjing's misdeeds are widely publicized in the capital, one-sided public opinion can be formed, making the Eight Banners group, which is the core of the Qing Dynasty, generally resent Tian Wenjing.

In this way, the emperor would eventually have no choice but to compromise.

However, the "Jingshi Xinbao" newspaper had already started publicizing the story in the capital, using numbers, pictures, and easy-to-understand language to explain why Tian Wenjing promoted the policy of requiring officials and gentry to pay taxes and perform corvée labor together in Henan, why he still forced officials and gentry to pay taxes and perform corvée labor together after the land tax was converted into poll tax, and the land annexation problem involved.

This sudden...

Many Manchu bannermen and Han gentry from the lower and middle classes in the capital began to understand and support Tian Wenjing, and there were quite a few of them.

Therefore, Li Fu was also very dissatisfied with the phenomenon of the "Jingshi Xinbao" seizing the high ground of public opinion, knowing that this was taking away the voice of officials and gentry.

Yinzhi was also dissatisfied with the fact that the "Jingshi Xinbao" newspaper was controlled by Yongzheng.

Seeing that even the thirteenth prince had spoken up for Li Fu and Xie Jishi, he also stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, just as Xie Jishi said, if they are considered to have formed a faction, then wouldn't Yunxi, Ma Qi, and Zhang Tingyu also be forming a faction?"

As Yunzhi finished speaking, he gave Ma Qi and the others a provocative look.

He believed he had finally found an opportunity to take revenge on Ma Qi, Zhang Tingyu, and others.

Hongli sighed slightly, thinking that the third prince, Yunzhi, was truly a disgrace to the imperial clan. Not only was he petty, but he also had such low political intelligence that he actually thought it was the right thing to stand up with the thirteenth prince at this time and take the opportunity to indirectly criticize Ma Qi and Zhang Tingyu.

He was unaware that although he was Yongzheng's third brother, he could not compare to Yongzheng's thirteenth brother. Yongzheng ignored his third brother and only showed him dislike.

at the same time!

Yongzheng looked at Hongli: "Hongli, tell me, are Yunxi, Ma Qi, and Zhang Tingyu forming a faction?"

Hongli knew that Yongzheng wanted to question him, and it was clear that he had been brought here today to make him play along, while also testing his political abilities.

"Of course not."

Hongli immediately gave the answer that Yongzheng wanted to hear.

Yongzheng asked, "Why not?"

"Uncle Twenty-One was merely acting on imperial orders to provide Ma Qi and Zhang Tingyu with an opportunity to explain the political situation to the people."

“These manuscripts have all been approved by Khan Ama.”

"It certainly doesn't count as forming a faction."

Hongli replied.

Emperor Yongzheng nodded: "That's right!"

Xie Jishi could only close his eyes and sigh, then looked at Hongli and questioned, "Fourth Prince, isn't it also a form of partisanship that the *Beijing News* only speaks well of Tian Wenjing? Even though it is the Emperor's will to allow officials to discuss state affairs, it cannot be said that they are not forming factions!"

Hongli did not respond to Xie Jishi, but felt angry at Xie Jishi in his heart.

Because Xie Jishi actually dared to question him!
This was clearly because he saw that Yongzheng had just shown fear of him, and thought that he was cowardly and easily bullied, which was why he dared to question him like this.

This made Hongli realize that Xie Jishi had no sense of awe or loyalty to him whatsoever.

For Hongli, there was no need to keep someone who didn't respect him.

But Hongli did not respond to Xie Jishi.

Because if he responds, he will be proving himself to Xie Jishi, which would not only make him lose face, but also fall into Xie Jishi's trap, thus embarrassing Yongzheng.

Xie Jishi blushed when he saw that Hongli did not respond. If it weren't for the fact that the Qing Dynasty was not the Ming Dynasty, he would have rushed forward, grabbed Hongli's robe, and forced Hongli to make a statement.

Seeing that Hongli did not respond to Xie Jishi, Yongzheng asked Hongli, "What do you think should be done with Li Fu and Xie Jishi?"

Hongli immediately bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, although Li Fu and Xie Jishi formed a clique for personal gain, they had no intention of plotting rebellion. Therefore, I humbly request Your Majesty to treat them leniently and spare their lives."

Hongli kept his head down, deliberately making it seem as if he dared not face Yongzheng directly.

Although he could not tolerate Xie Jishi's disrespectful behavior, he would still perform well when it was time to perform.

"How could I lightly kill one person? But not only did these two form a clique, they also sought to kill the court official Tian Wenjing. Their evil must be punished!"

Yongzheng was clearly satisfied with Hongli's answer, but outwardly he still pretended to be helpless.

Hongli kowtowed again: "I beg Father Khan to show leniency and benevolence, and to change the decision to exile him to a more severe punishment!"

He knew that he had not yet become emperor, and Yongzheng had not yet paved the way for his future imperial power. The Grand Council had not yet been established, and the power of the banners had not yet been consolidated. He still had to give the officials hope and let them know that he, the fourth prince, would be a benevolent ruler in the future.

Yongzheng is now giving him a chance to perform.

Therefore, Hongli showed that he was unwilling to offend the bureaucratic group and suggested not to kill him, but to exile him instead.

But in his heart, Hongli wished Li Fu and Xie Jishi were dead, especially Xie Jishi, who dared to question him directly and showed no respect for him.

However, he cannot directly express his desire for Xie Jishi to die yet.

He decided to give Xie Jishi a good beating while Xie Jishi was in exile, for example, by learning from the examples of Northern Song Dynasty civil officials who killed their political enemies, so that Xie Jishi would be on the road to exile without a moment's rest, and eventually be tortured to death. Then he would pretend to sigh for him and say why Heaven would not be lenient this once.

At this moment, Yongzheng also looked at the thirteenth prince, Yunxiang: "Prince Yi, what do you think?"

"As Prince Bao said."

Yunxiang replied.

Yongzheng sighed: "Very well, then we will follow your suggestion and change the proposal to exile and reassign."

"The Holy One is wise!"

The ministers performed a grand ceremony.

Although Li Fu and Xie Jishi were still to be exiled, even the princes and ministers who sympathized with or were part of the same faction as Li Fu and Xie Jishi were in good spirits and felt that this court meeting had been very fruitful.

Because they now realize that Hongli, the fourth prince, not only dares not stand up against powerful figures, but also dares not truly offend the officials and gentry. When many important officials oppose the emperor killing officials who represent their own interests, he knows to speak up for them. Undoubtedly, he will be a timid yet benevolent ruler in the future.

This is absolutely wonderful for them!
After all, they had always hoped for the return of an emperor who was willing to mingle with officials and gentry.

You should know that they have always cherished the memory of Emperor Kangxi's benevolent rule in his later years.

Therefore, they were willing to cooperate with Hongli, showing their support for his suggestion, and agreed to exile the two men.

For them, letting Hongli know that doing this would garner their strong support and endorsement was more important than whether Li Fu and Xie Jishi were exiled.

They needed to encourage Hongli and let him know that it was wise to cater to the mainstream opinions of these officials and gentry.

However, after the court assembly, when Hongli was with Yongzheng in private, he no longer showed the attitude of pandering to the officials. Instead, he genuinely displayed the indignation that an autocratic emperor should have, just like Yongzheng.
“Father, Xie Jishi’s matter this time is a provocation against the imperial power, and we cannot let it go like this.”

(End of this chapter)