Thief Emperor

Chapter 1157 Hereditary Succession
As Du Qian said, some things cannot be rushed.

Moreover, even if the emperor wanted to relinquish power, he would first need to see how well the crown prince had performed over the past year.

During this year, he was away from home and only had access to very important national affairs. As for most of the matters the Crown Prince had handled during this year, he had not yet had time to examine them in detail.

However, the exam papers have already been submitted, and now he has plenty of time to examine the Crown Prince's governance over the past year, bit by bit.

After two days, the emperor took over some important matters from the crown prince and then instructed the crown prince to discuss the regulations for the imperial clan with the Prince of Jin and the Prince of Chu.

Having handed over such important state affairs in one fell swoop, His Highness the Crown Prince was actually quite pleased. He left Ganlu Palace with a light heart and traveled all the way from the Imperial City to Jingzhao Prefecture.

As the Crown Prince, he had his own entourage. Before he even arrived at the Jingzhao Prefecture, Li Zheng, the Prefect of Jingzhao, came out to greet him and bowed respectfully to His Highness the Crown Prince.

"I have met His Highness."

His Highness the Crown Prince stepped forward, took Prince Jin's hand, and said with a smile, "Third Uncle, stop fooling around, let's talk inside."

The two entered the main hall of the Jingzhao Prefecture one after the other. His Highness the Crown Prince took his seat in the main seat, then looked at Prince Jin and smiled: "In the past year, your nephew almost died from exhaustion in the Secretariat. Now that Father Emperor has returned, I have finally been able to get away."

He looked at Li Zheng, coughed, and whispered, "Third Uncle, if Father Emperor discusses with you whether or not to let your nephew take charge of the government, please remember to firmly oppose it."

Prince Jin poured tea for the Crown Prince and asked, "Your Highness, is it really not at all that you don't want to?"

His Highness the Crown Prince took the tea, took a sip, and then looked at Li Zheng. After a moment of silence, he said, "There are some things I can't say directly to Father, but I can say them to you, Third Uncle. If there's a chance, Third Uncle, please speak to Father on my behalf as well."

His eyes flickered: "To be honest, before my father left the capital last year, I did have some ideas about overseeing the country. At that time, I thought that sitting in that position, I could do whatever I wanted."

"Arrange whatever you want for the people around you."

He said quietly, "Third Uncle, as you know, my Eastern Palace is getting bigger and bigger, and the number of people below it is also increasing. In recent years, the number of officials released from outside the Eastern Palace has been increasing year by year."

"I originally thought that after taking charge of politics, I could lend them a hand if needed."

"But this year."

The crown prince said with a wry smile, "It's really exhausting, and I'm starting to feel the strain."

Prince Jin also lowered his head to drink his tea. After thinking for a moment, he smiled and said, "It's because Your Highness can't change the prime minister, nor can you change His Majesty's policies, and you dare not shirk your duties or take a break."

These words were too sensitive, and few people in the entire city of Luoyang dared to say them. The Crown Prince looked at the Prince of Jin and nodded, saying, "That's about right."

"I've recruited some people from the Eastern Palace and those who came from it over the past year, but I don't dare to recruit too many, for fear of displeasing my father."

The crown prince shook his head and said, "Therefore, this job is not suitable. If I continue to do it, I will surely shorten my lifespan."

Prince Jin smiled wryly and remained silent.

The Crown Prince looked at him and continued, "Third Uncle, the main reason I came to see you today is about the Imperial Clan Regulations."

He put down his teacup and said, "Father's idea is for me, Third Uncle, and the Prince of Chu to first agree on a set of rules. In the future, if any member of the imperial clan violates these rules, the Imperial Clan Court will be responsible for the punishment, either stripping them of their title or removing them from their fiefdom."

"Or, the matter could be referred to the Ministry of Justice or other relevant government offices for deliberation."

Prince Jin nodded: "I've heard about it too. It seems that Erlang made a mistake in Chang'an and angered His Majesty."

He paused, then continued, "His Majesty has this temper. Back when the Jiangdong Army was first established, some of his captains and lieutenants committed crimes, forcibly abducting women. They were all old brothers from the anti-bandit squad, and His Majesty directly ordered them to be killed."

"Therefore, the Jiangdong Army was able to obey orders and enforce discipline."

The Crown Prince nodded first, then said, "The necessary regulations should be established, but Erlang... has made great contributions in the Northwest, yet Father Emperor not only did not reward him, but instead punished him so severely. It is too unfair to him."

Prince Jin looked up at the Crown Prince, but did not reply. Instead, he smiled and said, "After I settle things in the yamen, we'll go to the Zong family mansion to find my elder brother."

“We’ve discussed what needs to be discussed. Your Majesty is right. We can’t act lawlessly just because we share the same surname as Your Majesty.”

"The anti-theft team used to have 170 people, but now there are probably only about 50 left. Time has sifted through the sands of time."

"Among these people who have passed away, most of them were unruly."

His Highness the Crown Prince tugged at Prince Jin's sleeve and said with a smile, "Third Uncle, why do you keep talking about the anti-thief team all the time?"

Prince Jin was taken aback, then stood up and sighed, "Perhaps it's because I'm getting old, and I'm starting to miss the old days."

As he spoke, he looked the Crown Prince up and down, feeling quite emotional: "Unbeknownst to me, my nephew, you've grown up so much."

He sighed: "Our generation is getting old."

The prince tugged at his sleeve and said with a smile, "Third Uncle, you're over forty, what's with the old age? Come on, come on."

"It's rare for Father to assign us such a task, so we must complete it as soon as possible." "From now on, I'll just do these easy jobs and enjoy a carefree life."

Prince Jin shook his head and was forcibly dragged out.

"Slow down, slow down, my legs aren't very good this year."

"If Your Highness hurts me, I'll go to Ganlu Palace and try to extort money from your father."

…………

Inside the Ganlu Hall, Eunuch Gu bowed to the Emperor and said, "Your Majesty, Prince Zheng has important matters to discuss with you."

The emperor was reviewing documents from Liaodong when he heard this. Without even looking up, he said without hesitation, "Let him in."

"Yes."

Soon, Prince Zheng, Li Cang, entered the Ganlu Hall with utmost respect. He first glanced at Li Yun, then bowed his head and said, "May Father Emperor be well."

The emperor turned his gaze from the documents to his son and said, "I'm perfectly fine. What important matter do you need to see your father about?"

Prince Zheng lowered his head, holding the wooden box in his hands, and handed it to His Majesty the Emperor. He looked at Li Yun, took a deep breath, and said, "Father, the fleet that went to sea returned a month ago. They... they should have brought back what you asked for, Father."

The emperor was taken aback at first, then suddenly stood up and strode over to King Zheng.

His sudden movement startled Prince Zheng, who almost instinctively stepped back. Fortunately, His Majesty the Emperor quickly approached him and took the wooden box directly.

After opening it, there were two things inside.

A sparsely populated ear of corn and a not-so-plump sweet potato.

Two items lay quietly in the wooden box, appearing before Li Yun.

Emperor Li looked at the two items and remained silent for a long time.

Prince Zheng was startled. He looked at his father and asked cautiously, "Father, are you...are you alright?"

The emperor waved his hand to indicate that he was alright. He looked at his third son, patted him on the shoulder, and said with some excitement, "You did a great job, a great job."

The emperor, holding the wooden box, casually found a place to sit down, examined it carefully, then looked up at Li Cang and asked, "Where's the cotton? Have you found any cotton?"

Li Yun went through many hardships to find another continent, mainly for four things.

Corn, cotton, sweet potatoes, and tobacco.

Nowadays, both of these are food items, so their positioning overlaps somewhat.

King Zheng quickly came to his senses. He squatted down in front of his old father and said, "This was sent from Jiangdong a few days ago. They were vague in their letter, and I don't know if they brought back the cotton."

"Your Majesty, I will immediately send someone to inquire."

Prince Zheng looked at the emperor and said, "Father, rest assured. The people on the fleet said they are confident they can return to the other side of the sea. If they don't bring back what you need this time, just send them again."

His Majesty the Emperor pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "Send someone to inquire as soon as possible to see if they have brought back the cotton seeds. In addition, I will have Xue Gui build large ships in Jiangdong. In the next few years, we will send a group of people from the court to go there and take a look."

"That way, we can get back everything that's rightfully ours."

The previous voyages were all relatively civilian-oriented, since Li Yun couldn't be sure how similar this world was to another.

Now it seems that they are basically the same.

Now that it has been verified, with Li Yun's current capabilities, sending another team there would not be a difficult task, even if the time span is two or three years.

It's alright.

Bringing back what should be brought back is a great thing that benefits the country and its people.

This time, it would be best to bring back the chili seeds from that continent as well.

As he spoke, the emperor looked at Prince Zheng and said, "Third Prince."

King Zheng immediately bowed his head: "Your subject is here."

"I'm entrusting this matter entirely to you. No matter how many years it takes, as long as you get it done and bring back everything I asked for."

The emperor murmured, "I will grant your family hereditary succession without fail."

(End of this chapter)