The Imperial Age with the Resurgence of Han Style

Chapter 205 Inheritance
November 1728, 11, Chang'an.

Jia Wang Qi Weijun's mood seemed to have experienced an exciting roller coaster in just five days, from consistent calm to sudden and infinite highs, and then fell into depression.

A few days ago, after handling many complicated government affairs, in order to relax his mood, His Royal Highness took the royal attendants and imperial guards to the outskirts of Chang'an for horseback riding and hunting.

To everyone's surprise, during the hunting process, the horse the prince was riding suddenly went crazy, throwing the prince off guard and falling heavily to the ground. Unfortunately, his head hit another solid rock, and he was immediately bleeding. His face was covered with fluid and he fell into a coma on the spot.

The royal attendants and imperial guards hurriedly brought His Royal Highness back to Chang'an and admitted him to the Royal Medical College. They summoned more than a dozen experts and famous doctors from the hospital to provide immediate emergency treatment.

After a day and night of diagnosis and treatment, His Royal Highness not only failed to wake up, but his breath became even weaker and he fell into a critical state.

After hearing the news, the Prime Minister and many ministers who came over were nervous and lamented, and had to make a decision to pass the news to Nanyu County and inform Emperor Taiping to hear the Holy Judgment.

In this case, the Daqi Empire may fall into a crisis of succession!

For more than ninety years, the imperial throne of Qi has been passed down to three generations, all of which have been stable and stable without any changes.

According to the existing traditional system of eldest son inheritance, whenever the Emperor of Da Qi succeeds to the throne, the emperor's eldest son will be automatically established as the prince and carefully cultivated.

Qi Weijun, the second-oldest King in the family, was suddenly thrust into the spotlight. Some cabinet ministers and ministers discussed privately whether they could consider naming King Jia as his heir if something unexpected happened to the prince.

Taizu claimed the throne, and Taizong was listed as the heir to the empire as the emperor's eldest son; Taizu abdicated, Taizong succeeded, and Emperor Taiping was also established as the prince as the emperor's eldest son; when Taizong died, Emperor Taiping became the emperor, and the emperor's eldest son Qi Weiyuan Sui He was also officially established as the successor of the empire.

More importantly, King Jia's son and daughter-in-law are He Guangyue, the Minister of General Armament of the Army and the General of the Navy (Lieutenant General). From this point of view, he can also get certain military support.

If the father wanted to ensure the smooth transition of the empire and to control the domestic situation more quickly after his death, the Daqi royal family might actually follow the wishes of the cabinet ministers and some ministers and make him the prince and eventually inherit the empire. The position of emperor.

The problem is that there are many affairs in the empire, not just foreign affairs. How can the emperor's eldest grandson support this huge empire with his young age and superficial experience?

How to choose?
Brothers eventually become brothers?

Just when everyone thought that the imperial royal family inheritance would continue like this and maintain the established smooth transition, they did not expect that something unexpected happened to His Highness the Crown Prince. According to vague information from the doctor who rescued him, the prince's brain was severely injured. With current medical methods and technology, it is impossible to treat him. According to pessimistic predictions, he may not survive more than three to five days.

Since he was a child, he had become the crown prince's first backup and the second heir to the empire, and he had some expectations deep in his heart. But when the prince came of age and gave birth to several royal grandchildren, his hopes began to fade away.

Although the emperor's eldest grandson has grown up, he is only twenty-two years old. Apart from three years of poor military experience in the navy, he has almost no experience in handling government affairs.

King Jia once served as a grassroots county official in Daxing Prefecture. He also served as a divisional affairs commissioner in the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and the Ministry of Industrial and Commercial Affairs in the cabinet. He also had experience as an official in the Ministry of Colonial Affairs. When the prince was in charge of the country, he was also appointed to supervise the national tax inspection work of the Directorate-General of Taxation. With his tough attitude and dedication to his work, he was highly praised and recognized by the Prime Minister of the Cabinet.

Our Daqi royal family - well, the inheritance history is a little short - has not set a precedent for the emperor's grandson, because this is not a good sign. The old incident of Zhu Ming and Yongle's calamity will probably make everyone To be taken as a taboo.

After the prince fell from his horse and was seriously injured, King Qi Weijun was first shocked, then sad, and then became extremely excited when he vaguely learned that he had a slight chance to obtain the heir to the empire.

You must know that since Emperor Taiping fell seriously ill last year, his body and energy were no longer able to handle the complicated imperial government affairs normally, so he handed over state affairs to the prince for temporary agency to supervise the country.

But who would have thought that before the prince successfully succeeded to the throne, something unexpected happened, and some cabinet ministers and ministers were actually considering appointing an older prince who was more experienced in politics and business as the new heir to the empire.

So, in order to ensure the development of the empire and the stability of the political situation, can the empire consider temporarily abandoning the tradition of eldest son inheritance and choosing a prince of similar age to succeed?

Obviously, after the prince succeeds to the throne, he will definitely make the emperor's eldest grandson his heir according to the system. Even if something happens to the emperor's eldest grandson and there are several remaining emperors' grandchildren, he, the spare tire who is constantly ranked lower, will not be able to turn.

Or choose the virtuous?

Oh, that's not necessarily true. At least he spent more than three months in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs a while ago, but he only had a superficial taste and did not have a deep understanding of the entire ministry.

But now, the prince is dying and Emperor Taiping is seriously ill. What kind of changes will the empire's succession face?

Everyone thought that after Emperor Taiping died or abdicated, the prince would naturally inherit the throne and become the fourth emperor of the empire. Considering the prince's young age and his many years of experience in government affairs, it will not take long for him to firmly control the entire situation, thus ensuring that the empire can continue to develop smoothly.

This time, the mind that had cooled down suddenly became warm again.

The young master is suspicious!

Of course, the descendants of our Daqi clan have not yet established a vassal state in the mainland and surrounding overseas territories, so a so-called "Battle of Jingnan" will not occur.

But the emperor's eldest grandson is too young. Can he control the situation of such a large empire?

Three days later, the prince finally died.

Just when King Qi Weijun was excitedly meeting cabinet ministers and military generals as the second prince, on the second day after the death of the prince, a telegram from Emperor Taiping came from Nandu Mansion, conferring the emperor's eldest grandson as the grandson. In the near future, we will take the train back to Chang'an.

Qi Weijun felt as if he was struck by lightning. He could only smile miserably behind closed doors in his house.

Inheritance by the eldest son is a ritual that cannot be abolished!
It is conceivable that when the grandson succeeds to the throne and learns what he did when the prince was seriously ill and passed away, he will not let him go easily.

Although there has not yet been any murder of a member of the clan in our country of Qi, he will definitely be feared and dealt with by the new emperor just because he dares to seize the throne.

Even if you don't kill him, finding a remote overseas territory, sending him there and sealing off the vassal vassal is probably something that has a high probability of happening.

So unwilling!

How sad it is to be thrown from the prosperous and prosperous Hanzhou mainland to a barren overseas territory.

While King Qi Weijun of Jia was feeling sorry for himself and panicking in his Chang'an mansion, Emperor Taiping and his grandson were already taking a train from the southern border of the empire to the city of Chang'an.

On November 11, Emperor Taiping's special train arrived in Linzi City. At the same time, he issued an edict ordering the Chang'an garrison and the Imperial Guard to implement a limited curfew in Chang'an. After 14 o'clock every evening, all entertainment service shops will cease operations, and residents It is also prohibited to go out at will.

On November 11, the emperor's special train arrived in Daxing. Dozens of military and political officials including the Prime Minister, the Chief of General Staff of the Army, the Commander-in-Chief of the Army, the Commander-in-Chief of the Gendarmerie, the Chief of the Polling Office, and the Chief of the Black Guards greeted Emperor Taiping at the train station. , after briefly reporting on the situation in Chang'an City, they took a special train and returned to Chang'an together.

At four o'clock in the afternoon that day, the special train entered Chang'an Railway Station. Then, escorted by hundreds of imperial guards and military police, Emperor Taiping and his grandson returned to Taichu Palace.

The next day, the prime ministers of the cabinet, ministers of various ministries, senior military generals, and royal family members gathered in the Yongchang Hall of the Taichu Palace. Emperor Taiping officially announced the canonization of the emperor's eldest grandson Qi Zexuan as his grandson, commander-in-chief of the Imperial Guard, Grand Governor of the Privy Council, and accompanying attendants. By the emperor's side, he listened to political affairs and discussed matters on a daily basis.

On November 11, Chu Chengwei, Yin of Chang'an Prefecture, was transferred to Dongzhou (today's New Zealand and surrounding islands) as the governor of the place. Zheng Shiliang, the former governor of Handong Province, was transferred to the right minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the governor of Chang'an.

Teng Xiguang, former deputy chief of general staff of the Imperial Guard and General Guangwei (major general), was promoted to general (lieutenant general) of the Army Zhenguo and transferred to chief of general staff of the army. He Guangyue, former chief of the General Armament Department of the army and general of the Navy, was transferred to the post of commander of the South Pacific Fleet. Peng Fuxian, Secretary of the Cabinet for Colonial Affairs, was transferred to the post of Governor of Luzon, and his duties were taken over by the Governor of North Ridge Province.

Pan Jixuan, a doctor in the selection department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, was transferred to acting governor of Handong Province.

Wang Bingsen, the former chief executive of the Polling Office, was transferred to the right minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, taking charge of the national reserve force, the police chief, and local rural soldiers.

Luo Kangning, the former secretary-general of the royal family, was transferred to the post of chief of the polling office.

……

This dizzying personnel transfer involved many officials from various ministries, some princes, and even military generals. Some were passed through cabinet orders, and some were directly issued by the emperor, which made people stunned.

But those with a discerning eye can sense something unusual from the transfer process of these officials and military generals.

His Majesty the Emperor ascended the throne for his grandson and began to re-adjust the domestic political situation!

This personnel change should be just the beginning, far from the end. Maybe, in the end, there will be some changes even in the cabinet ministers and the highest levels of the military.

After all, the emperor's grandson is too young. Without the support of His Majesty the Emperor, he may not be able to hold the political situation of the empire!

"Are you afraid?" Emperor Taiping sat tiredly on the sofa, closing his eyes slightly and asked softly.

"My grandson is a little...scared." Qi Zexuan took a deep breath and looked at Emperor Taiping worriedly.

An unprecedented burden placed heavily on his slightly immature shoulders. If there wasn't a bit of panic and worry, it would be a lie.

"No need to be afraid, I still have everything!" Emperor Taiping felt dizzy, biting his lower lip hard, trying to cheer himself up, "In addition, we would like to thank Emperor Taizu for the political structure established. Even if something unexpected happens to the royal family, relying on the cabinet can keep the empire running."

"My grandson is worried that if he doesn't do it well in the future, he will fail the emperor's expectations, and he will even be ashamed of his ancestors." Qi Zexuan said in a low voice.

"Haha..." Emperor Taiping opened his eyes and looked at his grandson lovingly, "It doesn't matter. In this life, there is a time when you do everything for the first time. If you don't have experience at the beginning, let's just learn and live. Go and think about it. Do you still remember what I told you more than ten days ago? At that time, you only need to sit in that seat and quietly watch the actions of the cabinet ministers. If you do a good job, do not hesitate to praise and If you don't do well with rewards, then look for opportunities to replace a more capable cabinet. At the beginning, you don't know anything and have no experience. You may not be able to accurately grasp the context of government affairs, so observe the government with your heart and your heart. To appreciate the decrees issued by the cabinet, carefully observe the public sentiment and public opinion in the country, and the development of various places. Taking a step back, sometimes, although an emperor who does not bother much is not a wise emperor through the ages, he will definitely not know how to do it. He is a foolish king."

"My grandson has taken note of it."

"In the past few days, in addition to the daily observation and discussion of political affairs, those "Zhengshi Lu" need to be studied carefully, especially the words and deeds recorded by Emperor Taizu, which must be carefully understood. What I thought after the observation will be written after writing , hand it over to me for review.”

"Yes, Grandpa Huang." Qi Zexuan.

Since Emperor Taizu, successive kings have had the habit of recording political records. They have secretaries record detailed records of many major affairs they handle, including the background reasons for the affairs, considerations for the decisions made, and subsequent evaluations for future reference. Provide necessary reference and basis for similar transaction processing.

Well, it can be regarded as the emperor's work diary.

For more than ninety years, three generations of emperors have recorded more than ten thick volumes of "Political Affairs Records". Under the arrangement and summary of the Secretary Supervisor, they were organized and summarized according to politics, economy, military, diplomacy, official promotion and appointment, people's livelihood and welfare, and overseas colonization. Affairs, war decisions, policies towards Qin, etc. are all discussed.

This is equivalent to providing a sufficient and detailed "job operation instruction" for subsequent emperors.

When encountering such matters in the future, if there is no more wise and appropriate decision, it should be effective.

"Zexuan, what do you think about your uncle Wang Jia's actions a few days ago?" Emperor Taiping asked calmly.

"The desires of the Nine-Fifth Lord are beyond the reach of anyone."

"how about you?"

"My grandson has also thought about it." Qi Zexuan replied honestly: "But my grandson thinks that he has been thinking about this matter for more than twenty years. What he thinks in his heart is to gain more experience and gain more experience in general affairs in order to plan for the future. "

"Yes, no one expected that your father would encounter an accident and push you into this position ahead of time." Emperor Taiping looked a little depressed and helpless.

The inheritance of the empire is by no means smooth and stable!

"What do you want to do with your Uncle Prince Jia?" Emperor Taiping braced himself and stared at Qi Zexuan closely.

"Everything happened for a reason. It was not for usurpation, but... to seal the vassal overseas."

Emperor Taiping looked at Qi Zexuan and remained silent.

"Don't you want your grandson to avoid future troubles forever?"

"Our Daqi royal family has always been willing to kill, and we have never harmed the clan. My grandson does not want to make an exception." Qi Zexuan looked at Emperor Taiping calmly.

"Among your many uncles, there are many who covet you."

"The emperor also said that our Daqi royal family relies on the clan system established by the two emperors Taizu and Taizong, as well as the political system of mutual checks and balances composed of the cabinet, the imperial court and the military. If the grandson Without any absurd and rebellious behavior, people who seek to usurp us will not appear easily."

Emperor Taiping nodded slightly and waved his hand to let Qi Zexuan go. He closed his eyes and prepared to gather his energy.

On November 11, there was a national mourning for the prince, and the city of Chang'an was deserted.

On December 12, the Prime Minister and all his ministers submitted their resignation to the Emperor. After Emperor Taiping tried to retain him three times, he dissolved the cabinet, and the Imperial Council and the Senate recommended candidates for the new prime minister.

On December 12, Han Qingshan, the former deputy prime minister of the cabinet and minister of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (the great-grandson of Han Yuanli, the first chief minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs during the founding of the People's Republic of China) was elected as the new prime minister, and the formation of a new cabinet began immediately.

On December 12, King Qi Weijun was crowned King of Chen, granted vassal status to Chenzhou (that is, the Newfoundland Island and Acadia region ceded by the Kingdom of England), and died soon after.

On the sixth day of February in the twenty-fifth year of Taiping (1729), Emperor Taiping struggled to support his grandson in handling many government affairs of the empire despite being ill. Finally, he ran out of oil and died in Taichu Palace.

With the unanimous support of many important ministers in the cabinet, relatives of the royal family, and senior generals of the navy and army, Qi Zexuan, the great grandson, succeeded to the throne and changed his reign to Yonglong.

A new era is about to begin.

(End of this chapter)