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After resting for a day in Tongzhou, at around 10:00 the next morning, the Southern Patrol Fleet finally set sail again and headed towards the capital.
Different from the previous hurried trip, hurrying and rushing slowly, after leaving Tongzhou, the Southern Patrol Fleet's sailing suddenly became much slower, and its momentum became much more steady and solemn, showing a leisurely and calm attitude, showing the full expression of an emperor. He was calm and confident, as if the reason why Emperor Deqing returned to Beijing was just because he had run out of fun.
How should I put it? There are some things that everyone knows, but they must pretend not to know. There are also some things that, even if they have become an open secret, must be pretended and whitewashed. This may be called "politics".
However, Tongzhou is only about thirty miles away from the capital, so although the Southern Patrol Fleet sailed much slower, it still arrived in the capital before Chen time!
At this point, after more than four months, Emperor Deqing finally ended his southern tour and returned to the center of the capital.
In order to welcome Emperor Deqing back to the capital, all the court officials who stayed in the capital, starting from Prince Zhu Heyu and Ge Lao Huang Yourong, went out of the city to welcome him. The scene was quite grand.
However, just as the officials were welcoming Emperor Deqing, an intriguing scene suddenly appeared on the court!
But it was said that after Emperor Deqing stepped off the dragon boat, facing the court officials who greeted him, he first briefly summarized his experiences and gains during his southern tour, and then suddenly turned his attention to Prince Zhu Heyu and asked: : "Prince, during my southern tour, you and several elders stayed in the capital to control the central situation together. I arranged this to familiarize you with government affairs and take the opportunity to learn from the experience of these elders... Now it is in the past In a few months, can you gain anything?"
Emperor Deqing's words seemed careless, but in fact they were full of profound meaning.
You should know that during Emperor Deqing's southern tour, Prince Zhu Heyu was the supervisor who stayed in the capital. Huang Yourong, the elder of the court, was the auxiliary governor who stayed in the capital. His official status was naturally higher than that of the crown prince Zhu Heyu, and everything was dominated by the crown prince Zhu Heyu. Huang Yourong, on the other hand, was just a helper.
However, because of Emperor Deqing's words, the situation has quietly changed, and it has become that the prince and several elders "jointly control the central situation", while the main tasks of the prince Zhu and Yu while staying in Beijing to supervise the country It has also become "familiar with government affairs" and "learning experience"!
This way. Naturally, Prince Zhu Heyu does not need to be responsible for the chaotic situation caused by the commercial and tax rectification!
Many discerning people heard the profound meaning of Emperor Deqing, and their expressions changed slightly.
The elder Huang Yourong, who was standing next to Prince Zhu Heyu, turned even paler because of Emperor Deqing's words.
On the other side, after hearing Emperor Deqing's inquiry, Prince Zhu Heyu's expression moved slightly. After hesitating for a moment, he finally answered: "Returning to my father, I have been studying with several elders during this period. Government affairs. I learned a lot and benefited a lot.”
After hearing the answer from Prince Zhu Heyu, Emperor Deqing nodded with satisfaction and said softly: "That's good. The elders are all experienced and experienced in planning the country. You really need to give them more advice." Study... Of course, I know that you have always been diligent, but you can't go too far, and you have to pay attention to your body. There will be a long time in the future. Don't be too tired."
As he spoke, Emperor Deqing's concern and love for Prince Zhu Heyu were beyond words.
Prince Zhu Heyu said, "Thank you very much, Father, for your care. I understand."
After Emperor Deqing nodded. He once again asked Prince Zhu Heyu: "During my southern tour, will the country be at peace? Are there any natural disasters in various places?"
Prince Zhu Heyu replied: "During my father's southern tour, there were no natural disasters anywhere, and the world was at peace."
Emperor Deqing still nodded to express his satisfaction, and then asked: "Is there any accumulated government affairs in the imperial court that have not been dealt with?"
Prince Zhu Heyu replied: "In the past few months, there have been no government affairs in the court that require special attention. My ministers and several cabinet ministers have all handled them in accordance with court practice, and there is no backlog of government affairs."
Logically speaking, Emperor Deqing should ask "whether the situation between the government and the opposition is stable" and "whether the court's decrees are flowing smoothly" at this time.
However, Emperor Deqing seemed to have forgotten all this and stopped asking. He just comforted him for a few words and then turned around and took the Luan Chariot, intending to return to the palace!
However, after Emperor Deqing boarded the carriage, he seemed to have thought of something temporarily, and turned to Prince Zhu Heyu and said: "Prince, please ride with me in the carriage. Regarding the situation in the temple in recent times, I still want to I’ll ask you a few more questions.”
After hearing Emperor Deqing's order, Prince Zhu Heyu naturally did not dare to disobey him. He quickly boarded Emperor Deqing's chariot and drove with Emperor Deqing.
Although Zhu Heyu was the current crown prince, it was an extraordinary honor to be able to ride with Emperor Deqing.
However, since Emperor Deqing stepped off the dragon boat, he actually ignored the elder Huang Yourong next to Prince Zhu Heyu from beginning to end. He didn't even look at him. Instead, he paid attention to Prince Zhu Heyu. There is an obvious intention to maintain.
It can be said that the attitude of closeness and distance is clear at a glance!
Obviously, Emperor Deqing's hint was very obvious, that is - regarding the rectification of business and taxation, Prince Zhu Heyu's behavior was certainly a bit reckless, causing turmoil in the government and the opposition, but I will protect him! As for the scapegoat in this matter... As the auxiliary minister during the southern tour, isn't Huang Yourong the best choice?
Naturally, many smart people saw the deep meaning of Emperor Deqing.
Therefore, when Emperor Deqing left in a Luan chariot, many officials looked at Huang Yourong with meaningful eyes, either full of sympathy or gloating about his misfortune.
As for Huang Yourong at this time, his face was pale and his body was trembling slightly.
Many "Yellow Party" officials also had different thoughts at this time. They were either panicked and at a loss, or they had other thoughts and planned to change careers.
However, even though it is now clear that Huang Yourong will lose power and fall, and the "Yellow Party" will soon fall apart and disappear, Huang Yourong is after all a powerful official who has been running the government and the public for many years, and there are still many "Yellow Party" officials who will never leave him.
As Emperor Deqing's chariot left slowly, Young Master Zhang Cheng, Minister of Household Affairs Lin Wei, Bachelor of Science Huo Zhengyuan, Minister of Industry Chen Dongxiang and others quickly came to Huang Yourong and gathered around him. Maintain Huang Yourong's best dignity.
Among them, Zhang Cheng, Lin Wei and others wanted to discuss ideas with Huang Yourong and tried their best to reverse the situation. As for Huo Zhengyuan, Chen Dongxiang and others, they had ulterior motives.
At the same time, Shen Changmao, who was now a cabinet minister and still ostensibly an ally of Huang Yourong, also came to Huang Yourong and invited Huang Yourong to ride with him!
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ps: Well, the first update today!
If nothing else happens, there will be four to five updates today!
...To be continued.
