My father is Yongzheng, and I am Qianlong?

Chapter 406 Jin Hongzhou and Prince Qin: The Emperor is more hard-hearted than the Retired Emperor!
After Hongli said these words, Ortai trembled even more.

Zhang Tingyu was also dumbfounded, his facial muscles contracted violently, and the mole between his eyebrows was stretched to appear larger.

Needless to say, Fu Nai's face was already deathly pale.

Because the ruthlessness shown by this emperor in ensuring that the certification system is strictly followed has clearly surpassed that of the still somewhat humane Yongzheng.

Ortai, who was responsible for answering Hongli, could only grit his teeth and kowtow, saying, "Your Majesty is wise and enlightened, your servant obeys!"

Hongli did not let Ortai stand up, but looked at Fu Nai: "Fu Nai, Minister of the Imperial Household Department, what do you think should be done?"

Ortai immediately replied, "He should be executed! As a close minister of the emperor, he not only fails to be loyal to the emperor but also implicates the Grand Councilors, attempting to disrupt the court. His wickedness is extreme and rarely seen in the world."

Zhang Tingyu then said, "But Fu Nai is a former retainer of the retired emperor and has served him for many years. Please forgive him, Your Majesty."

After listening, Hongli looked at Ortai again: "What do you think of Hengchen's words?"

“Your Majesty, Hengchen’s words make sense. Considering his service as a guard for the Emperor Emeritus, his merits should be revoked and he may be granted the privilege of suicide.”

Ortai replied.

Hongli sighed, "It seems you'd love for Fu Nai to die!"

Ortai pursed his lips and did not answer.

Fu Naixin's heart was in his throat.

"I'm sure!"

But then, Hongli suddenly dropped a bombshell.

After he said that, Fu Nai fainted on the spot.

Ortai breathed a sigh of relief, and after Hongli told him and Zhang Tingyu to get up and leave, he quickly wiped his forehead.

For him, Fu Nai is better off dead than alive.

Emperor Hongli agreed to Ortai's request but not Zhang Tingyu's, allowing Fu Nai to live. This was also because Ortai's proposed reform of the harem system suited his wishes, and he wanted to give Ortai face so that Fu Nai would not have the opportunity to implicate Ortai.

Having witnessed much of the court's affairs since coming into this world, he knew very well that Zhang Tingyu's praise for Fu Nai was not out of consideration for Yongzheng, but because he knew that only the living Fu Nai could be linked to Ortai.

However, by doing this, Hongli was also sending a signal to Ortai and Zhang Tingyu: only by cooperating with him, the emperor, would he cooperate with them, the ministers.

Hongli believed that both Ortai and Zhang Tingyu were intelligent men, and he didn't need to explain further; they would understand the meaning behind his actions.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have reached this position.

At the same time, he prevented Zhang's faction from having the opportunity to use Fu Nai to commit crimes, also in order to avoid either faction gaining the upper hand over the other.

"In that case, we are short of a Grand Minister of the Imperial Household Department. Who do you think would be suitable?"

Hongli then inquired about the two of them.

"This servant recommends Gao Bin, the Governor-General of the Jiangnan Waterways. Firstly, he is a relative of the master and shares the same bloodline; secondly, he is skilled in planning and will surely be able to manage the Imperial Household Department without any problems."

Ortai then answered.

Zhang Tingyu added, "I recommend Neqin to take on additional duties. Neqin is from the same clan as the retired Emperor's Consort, and is diligent in her duties, honest and upright. She is certainly suitable to take on more responsibilities."

Hongli nodded in satisfaction.

The people recommended by the two were indeed those who were close to him, and could be considered part of the imperial faction, whose interests were naturally tied to him as emperor.

This clearly shows that the two of them understood his thoughts and knew to cooperate with him.

This is the real reason why Hongli hasn't left these two yet.

Sometimes, dealing with smart people does require less effort.

However, even if a smart person finds it comfortable, they cannot completely let their guard down.

After all, the smarter a person is, the better they are at achieving their own goals while complying with the intentions of others.

In Hongli's view, this is why, although both of them recommended people he was willing to promote, they were not the same person.

Undoubtedly, this shows that the two were secretly competing, deliberately recommending people that the other had not recommended, and then trying to win them over.

Because if both sides recommend the same person, the person being recommended will naturally be more likely to remain neutral between the two.

Regardless, Hongli achieved his goal by replacing the head of the Imperial Household Department with one of his own.

"Then let Gao Bin go to the capital to serve as the chief steward of the Imperial Household Department. Before Gao Bin goes to the capital, when it is necessary to take turns, let Prince He take over the duties of the Imperial Household Department."

At this point, Hongli made a decision.

Now that Ortai has lost Fu Nai, he naturally has to make amends to Ortai.

He did this naturally to balance the interests of both sides.

After all, as Zhu Shi suggested, he, as emperor, needed to maintain a balance between the two factions while simultaneously cultivating his own people, but not just cultivate his own people without maintaining a balance. Ortai and Zhang Tingyu both appeared calm and solemn after leaving the Hall of Diligent Governance and Appreciation of the Worthy.

Although Hongli didn't do anything to them, his behavior made them worry about their future.

"Fu Nai, you're really foolish!"

“It is not right for the master to dismiss you all at once, but that does not mean that the master cannot make it clear to me that I must choose between upholding the imperial authority and protecting you.”

"Do you really think I can protect you even if my master asks me directly?"

Ortai then volunteered to supervise Fu Nai's forced suicide, and spoke to Fu Nai about it in front of him.

Fu Nai looked dejected and said, "I didn't expect that Master would be so direct with you, Grand Secretary, and not afraid that you would abandon your post."

"Because my master knows that I, Ortai, don't have the guts!"

Ortai let out a sharp shout, his facial muscles twitching uncontrollably.

Fu Nai has now confirmed that Ortai doesn't have the guts.

All he wanted now was to live, so he pleaded with Ortai, "Your Excellency, could you please go and see the Emperor Emeritus and beg him to save me?"

Ortai's eyes widened, revealing fear.

Then, Ortai immediately waved his hand and said to the man carrying the poisoned wine, "Quickly send him on his way!"

"Your Excellency!"

"Your Excellency, why?!"

"Your Excellency, why won't you go and plead with the Emperor Emeritus on my behalf?!"

Fu Nai was immediately forced to drink alcohol, and he struggled painfully on the ground before dying shortly afterward.

Ortai finally breathed a sigh of relief, and after leaving the Ministry of Justice prison, he said to his eldest son, Orong'an, who was waiting outside to take him home: "Tell the family to keep a low profile and not to mistake the Qianlong era for the Yongzheng era!"

"Don't be fooled by the fact that the current emperor is pardoning members of the imperial family and reinstating disgraced officials; he is a hundred times more hard-hearted than the retired emperor!"

After Ortai said this, Orongan nodded solemnly.

Upon seeing the bloodied corpses of Wenxi and Ningci, who had been beaten to death, Hongli waved his hand and said, "Cremate them to fertilize the fields."

"Whoo!"

Li Yu paused for a moment before responding.

Shortly thereafter, the Grand Council drafted and promulgated a stricter system for managing the imperial harem.

At the same time, the Grand Council also drafted an edict to appoint Gao Bin as the Minister of the Imperial Household Department, and to act as the Minister of the Imperial Household Department together with Prince Hongzhou.

When Hongzhou presented his nameplate to Hongli, Hongli only instructed him: "Choose two reliable head nannies and a head aunt for your eldest niece. She is gentle and kind, just like her mother."

"Don't worry, Fourth Brother."

Hongzhou responded.

Hongli patted him on the shoulder and asked Hongzhou to accompany him to the Imperial Workshop.

Under the influence of Emperor Qianlong, the Imperial Workshops have now become a place for researching and developing new types of carriages and steam power, rather than just making handicrafts for the royal family.

"Four-wheeled carriages with bogies can now be mass-produced. Your humble servant has trained about five hundred craftsmen specializing in the manufacture of various components for such carriages."

Upon arriving at the Imperial Workshop, Hongzhou first introduced the carriages to Hongli.

Hongli nodded after hearing this. He had been paying attention to this matter for many years and knew that it was indeed time to promote horse-drawn carriages.

"I plan to expand and repair the post roads between the capital and Xi'an, so that these easy-to-turn and sturdy carriages can be put to good use, in order to make it easier to completely rule the Western Regions and even advance into Russia to completely eliminate the threat in the future!"

Hongli looked at Hongzhou and said.

Hongzhou's breathing became heavy: "That will require a lot of money and food."

"With the national treasury's annual revenue so high, instead of waiting for corrupt officials to embezzle it through various means, we should quickly turn it into tangible projects that benefit the country and its people."

Hongli smiled and said, "Let's not talk about that for now. The key now is that the officials in various places must be willing to cooperate in doing this, starting with the officials in the capital. So I not only want you to choose a new person to serve the eldest princess, but I also want you to supervise the confiscation of items by the Infantry Commander's Office. Are you willing?"

"Your subject is willing!"

"If the eldest princess is bullied, I, as her fifth uncle, will not tolerate anyone shirking their responsibilities!"

Hongzhou immediately agreed. He now hoped that the carriages he built could soon be traveling on the wide and smooth post roads.

Hongli smiled and nodded. Then, he summoned the Grand Councilors again and instructed them: "Draft an edict: Prince Hongzhou is respectful, friendly, diligent and capable, and has made outstanding achievements in supervising customs. He shall be promoted to Prince and concurrently serve as the Commander of the Infantry!"

(End of this chapter)