The struggle for the throne during the Jiajing reign

Chapter 146 Hua Zhengwei

"You don't need to pack anything, just go back with Zhao Daban."

"Yes."

Consort Kang looked at Zhao Cheng, who was kneeling on the ground without saying a word, and her tone was less sharp: "I know you resent me and think I have mistreated His Highness, but we cannot be soft-hearted in this palace."

When Zhao Cheng looked up, his face was already streaked with tears: "Your Majesty, let's call it quits. Even if he is a prince, he is still a prince. Prince Jing only has Your Highness as his brother, and he would never mistreat you. Why fight like this?"

He served Prince Yu for more than ten years, watching the prince grow from a frail infant to a child who needed constant medicine, step by step until he reached this day.

He knew Prince Yu well; he was not a man of strong will. If he were to try sexual relations so early, he would surely become addicted and his body would inevitably break down.

Consort Kang's expression did not waver, but instead gradually became more determined: "When the time comes, we will be at their mercy, and they will decide what happens!"

"Imperial Physician Liu is one of our men. Let him prescribe the best tonics. As long as we can give birth to the eldest grandson of the emperor, there will be plenty of time for recuperation later."

Zhao Cheng was at a loss, while Caiyun trembled as she listened, yet felt a surge of joy in her heart. The words "eldest grandson of the emperor" were the clearest she could hear.

In the future, at the very least, I could be like Consort Kang, if I were lucky—

The night was as dark as ink, and the palace lanterns on the palace road swayed in the wind, their faint light illuminating the way. Caiyun was shivering from the cold, and she hadn't had time to change into warm clothes.

"Eunuch Zhao, this servant—"

Zhao Cheng stopped and turned around to take off his trench coat and drape it over her shoulders: "You are a lucky person, and you should also be smart."

"This servant is foolish, but I am willing to listen to you, Father-in-law."

Zhao Cheng finally smiled: "Good, the fact that you can say that shows you're not a stupid, impatient person."

I have a few words of advice for you. First, since Her Majesty has made this arrangement, we servants can only follow it. However, things must be done slowly, especially since His Highness's cold has just subsided and his body is still weak; he must absolutely not have sexual relations with her.

Caiyun's face turned even redder, whether from the cold or embarrassment, it was hard to tell. "Yes, this servant understands."

"Killing the goose that lays the golden eggs and draining the pond to catch all the fish are not sustainable solutions. Your Highness is young and must be indulging in pleasures. You must restrain yourself and let things take their course. Only then will you truly have a life of wealth and honor."

Caiyun nodded repeatedly: "This servant never expected to have such good fortune. I will definitely be careful."

"Fate is also a calamity." Zhao Cheng's tone was deep. "Do you think the imperial grandson is so easy to live? Don't be fooled by the empress's current anxiety. If you really ruin His Highness's health, not only will you lose your life, but your relatives outside the palace will also be doomed."

Upon hearing this, Caiyun almost collapsed to the ground, but fortunately Zhao Cheng was prepared and caught her.

"Please, Father-in-law, save me." Caiyun tightly gripped Zhao Cheng's sleeve, looking at his somewhat aged face.

Zhao Cheng's expression softened, and he gently helped Caiyun stand up straight: "As long as you listen to me, walk steadily, appease His Highness, and give birth to the imperial grandson, then you won't need anyone to save you. In the future, I'll even have to kowtow to you—"

Soon, the two returned to Prince Yu's bedchamber. Zhu Zai was already asleep, and Caiyun stared blankly at his youthful face.

The next day, when Prince Yu woke up, he felt much better and sat up on his own.

But it wasn't his wife or wet nurse who came in to serve him, but rather the beautiful figure that had appeared in his dreams several times.

Caiyun Yun came to the copper basin, added hot water to it, and looked shyly at Prince Yu.

"Your Highness is awake. This servant will attend to you."

"Caiyun, what brings you here? Has Mother come too?"

Prince Yu was startled and was about to get out of bed barefoot, but Zhao Cheng, who had come upon hearing the commotion, stopped him: "The Empress did not come, but she sent Caiyun to serve Your Highness."

"Ah?" Prince Yu looked at the girl with her head down, his heart pounding. "I don't need her to serve me. Let her go back."

He didn't know why he said such contradictory things.

Upon hearing this, Caiyun was at a loss and could only lower her head and weep.

Prince Yu hurriedly said, "No, you stay, you stay."

Seeing his condition, Zhao Cheng knew that some things were beyond his control, so he could only try to delay until His Highness's health improved.

"Really? That's good."

Zhu Zaizhen blew on the millet porridge in the spoon, while Shanggong Zhao Jingxian stood not far away.

The wet nurse sighed, "Consort Kang was too hasty. How could Prince Yu's health allow him to be like this?"

There are few things that can be kept secret in the palace, let alone the sudden appearance of a young and beautiful palace maid serving Prince Yu.

Zhao Jingxian sighed inwardly. Prince Jing had obviously been there earlier, but several months had passed and there was still no beautiful woman serving him in the palace. It was clear that His Highness was able to control himself, and the Consort was even more upright.

After finishing his meal, Zhu Zaizhen said, "The auspicious day for promoting her to the rank of Imperial Concubine has been selected by the Imperial Observatory and the Ministry of Rites. It will be in ten days. The gold book from the Silver Workshop and the ceremonial robes from the Imperial Wardrobe should be prepared as soon as possible. The Palace Attendant should go and urge them to hurry up in the next few days."

"promise."

:

After he left, Zhu Zaizhen shook his head: "Then Father must know too. I wonder what his reaction will be. He'll probably just stand by and watch, right?"

Ma Dezhao nodded upon hearing this: "The matter from last time is still fresh in our minds, and Consort Kang is acting in this manner again. His Majesty must be extremely disappointed."

"No matter what, it's a mistake. Even if she gives birth to a grandson of the emperor, what difference will it make?" Zhu Zaizhen didn't mean to laugh at anyone; he simply didn't quite understand Consort Kang's fighting style.

Although the pressure he exerted was indeed immense, given the emperor's personality, he wouldn't give up until he had completely lost hope in the possibility of immortality.

How much influence can a grandchild who is not even sure if he can stand on his own feet have on his father?

It was still possible to elevate the Qingliu faction to prominence, and to promote Xu Jie to replace Yan Song as the Grand Secretary.

"Imperial Censor Hu, how is the mutton?"

The speaker was a commander of a thousand men. The mutton stewed in the earthenware basin on the table was tender and juicy, with oil floating on the surface of the broth, and the aroma filled the entire simple camp office.

"good."

This was the official residence of a border garrison, its furnishings simple and unadorned. The wooden table was peeling with paint, and swords, spears, and arrows were piled in the corner. A wisp of smoke kept drifting in—

It smells like horse manure.

Hu Zongxian, holding bamboo chopsticks of varying lengths, ate with great relish. Although he was originally from the south, he had clearly become accustomed to the flavors of northern Xinjiang.

He was a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) in the seventeenth year of the Jiajing reign (1548), but failed to enter the Hanlin Academy. He only served as an observer in the Ministry of Justice. Later, he was transferred to a county magistrate's office for two years. After that, he observed mourning for his mother, and then his father also passed away. In total, he observed five years of mourning.

Five years passed in vain, and the personnel in the court changed several times. By the time he returned to the court, he had long lost his backing. With great difficulty, he relied on the connections of his classmates and managed to raise money to bribe Yan Shifan's protégé, who then appointed him as the Supervising Censor of Huguang Circuit.

He had thought he would make a fortune, and all the local officials would flatter him and try to keep him quiet with gold and silver. Just as he was about to set off...

When a mutiny broke out in Xuanfu and Datong, he, a seventh-rank censor with no powerful backing and no money to bribe, was appointed to oversee the two towns of Xuanfu and Datong.

Although the rank of the imperial inspector was low, he was able to govern the powerful and the weak, and was known as the emperor's representative on imperial tours. He could report major matters to the emperor for decision and make immediate decisions on minor matters.

From governors and generals down to soldiers in garrisons, all were within his purview; the weight of his power far exceeded what rank could measure.

But these soldiers are arrogant and domineering. They have a lot of money, but if you don't give it to them, they'll throw punches. If the memorials they write are not correct, they'll threaten that the city's defenses are not good and that Anda's men will sneak into the city at night to kill people. Be careful, or you might get killed by them!

The reason he can still eat meat today is because two months ago, when he braved death and went alone to the military camp where the commander of his own unit had mutinied and detained him. Standing among the chaotic soldiers, he reasoned with them and calmed them down, thus quelling the war. Only then did he earn the respect of the generals of the two towns.

Otherwise, he would have starved to death here. Now he has wine and meat at every meal, and no one threatens him to be careful at night anymore.

Seeing that he was enjoying his meal, the commander was also happy. He raised his hand and poured Hu Zongxian a bowl of strong liquor, saying, "Our food and drink here are simple. I hope the censor will not find it offensive."

"With meat to eat, what more can I ask for? Thank you for your hospitality, Commander Zhang."

Logically speaking, censors should not eat or drink with anyone in the local area and should be self-sufficient.

But logically, he should have received a large sum of gold and silver!

Hu Zongxian doesn't consider himself a greedy person, just someone who wants to get things done, but how can you get things done without money?

He was still hoping to do this job well and save some money to continue using Yan Shifan's connections, but after a quick trip, he found that he couldn't do the job. Most of the soldiers in the two towns were just drawing salaries without working, and the rest were mostly old, weak, sick, or disabled.

Seven or eight out of ten of the border walls had collapsed, half of the watchtowers were unguarded, and even the beacon towers were not equipped with enough smoke signals. It was common for generals to privately employ soldiers, and the soldiers spent half their time farming and building mansions for their generals, without any training.

If this situation were reported truthfully, it would force the court to choose between killing the two garrison commanders and most of the generals, or killing him alone.

It's difficult, and even more worrying. If things continue like this, something terrible is likely to happen to the Ming Dynasty.

If you can't make any merits or money, go back and keep working hard.

Hu Zongxian did not hide his emotions, so the commander also drank a large bowl of wine and then laughed and said, "Don't worry, Imperial Censor Hu. My General Zhao knows that you are in a difficult position, and he also knows that you are a man of action. He has specially prepared a gift to wish Imperial Censor Hu great success."

"This—please excuse my poor attempt." Hu Zongxian wanted to refuse, but he really needed the money.

The commander wiped the wine off his beard and said, "Hey, what's the big deal? The purpose of being an official is to get promoted and make money. Even people without ability try to scheme and plot, let alone someone as capable as you."

The general said that by going through the connections of the young Grand Secretary, with your merit in suppressing this rebellion and your status as a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations), spending three thousand taels of silver should be enough to get you a fifth-rank prefect position in a remote area. What do you think?

"Great!" Hu Zongxian hadn't expected Zhao Qing, the commander-in-chief of Xuanfu, to agree so readily, and he stood up abruptly.

The commander stood up and was a head shorter than him. He grinned and said, "You look taller than the general. You don't look like a scholar who passed the imperial examination. Why don't you spend money to buy a military officer position? I think you're capable of leading troops into battle."

Hu Zongxian stroked his beard and smiled, "I do have some knowledge of military strategy."

Commander Zhang was just trying to flatter him, but the man actually accepted it. It's quite interesting; only someone like that can thrive in the army.

"Very well, then I wish Imperial Censor Hu a successful future as governor-general!"

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