The struggle for the throne among nine princes—I really don't want to be the crown prince.

Chapter 474 In the blink of an eye, an army of 100,000 has gathered.
When Tong Guowei and Li Guangdi went to report to Emperor Qianxi, they also managed to get Zhang Ying involved.

Zhang Ying was actually a hundred times unwilling—why should she get involved in this kind of thing!

But who can blame him when he's the Grand Secretary of the Southern Study?
Tong Guowei and Li Guangdi came to invite him personally; how could he refuse?
Otherwise, if he encounters difficulties in the future, these two will definitely stand idly by and not help him.

Moreover, if you don't participate in such an important event, it's a sign of being isolated, and you're not far from being kicked out of the circle.

Forget it, I guess I'll just have to bite the bullet and go for it!

As soon as they arrived at the entrance of the Qianqing Palace, Tong Guowei saw Liang Jiugong standing there and immediately stepped forward with a smile, "Chief Steward Liang, does His Majesty have time right now?"

When Liang Jiugong saw that it was Tong Guowei—the Grand Secretary and the Emperor's maternal uncle—his face immediately lit up with a beaming smile.

"Lord Tong, please wait a moment. His Majesty is speaking with the Eighth Prince."

"This old servant estimates it will be over soon."

"It's chilly today. Why don't the three of you sit in the west wing first?"

"Have a sip of hot tea and warm yourself by the fire."

As he spoke, Liang Jiugong pointed to a half-open door.

Tong Guowei was stunned:

Huh? I'm a regular at the Qianqing Palace, often coming to report to the Emperor. How come I didn't know there was a rest room here?
However, he was old and had a close relationship with Emperor Qianxi, so he didn't pay much attention to these details.

"Zhang Ying, Guangdi, let's go inside and wait a bit."

Zhang Ying was already afraid of the cold, so she quickly nodded upon hearing this.

The three of them slipped from the chilly palace gates into the warm room, and their expressions immediately relaxed.

Li Guangdi was a quick-witted man with keen eyes and ears. As soon as the eunuch poured the tea, he said with a grateful expression:

"Your Majesty's compassion for us is truly moving!"

When it comes to flattering the emperor, Li Guangdi was never one to lag behind.

After all, a little sweet talk costs nothing, and it can make the boss happy and increase his favor towards you, so why not?

Zhang Ying quickly followed suit: "Your Majesty is merciful!"

Tong Guowei smiled silently to the side. He was fully aware of his companion's petty tricks, but he disdained to engage in them.

He couldn't be bothered to join in the fun.

Even if these two flattered Emperor Qianxi, they were still outsiders in the end.

And what about him?
He was the emperor's maternal uncle; whether you flatter him or not, the relationship speaks for itself.

Just as Tong Guowei was pondering why Emperor Qianxi was suddenly being so considerate, Liang Jiugong casually mentioned:
"Yesterday, the Crown Prince came to see the Emperor and suggested to His Majesty that since it was freezing cold, a warm place should be provided for the officials waiting to be summoned."

"Otherwise, if the ministers catch a cold, it would be an insult to Your Majesty's wisdom."

"Upon hearing this, His Majesty ordered his servants to quickly prepare this side room."

"Please do not hesitate to give any instructions, gentlemen."

After saying this, Liang Jiugong chuckled and left.

Watching Liang Jiugong leave, the three exchanged glances but remained silent.

At the same time, his heart skipped a beat: At a time like this, the Crown Prince still has the leisure to give Emperor Qianxi such advice?

Could it be that... he really didn't take that poem to heart?
Before they could figure it out, Liang Jiugong strode in again: "His Majesty summons the three Grand Secretaries to an audience."

Tong Guowei and the others immediately got up and quickly arrived at the Qianqing Palace.

Emperor Qianxi was drinking tea at the time. When he saw the three of them coming over, he smiled and said, "What happened that made you three come all over?"

As the Grand Secretary, Tong Guowei naturally had to speak first.

He immediately bowed respectfully and said, "Your Majesty, there is something we are truly unsure about, and we have come to ask Your Majesty for your wise decision."

"Your Majesty, please take a look."

As they spoke, they presented the edict from General Fubo.

When Emperor Qianxi took it and looked at it, his brows furrowed subconsciously:
The Crown Prince has actually issued an imperial edict!

Moreover, this brat didn't even give me a heads-up beforehand!
This made him a little uncomfortable.

...But then I thought about it again, and when I gave him the position of "General Fubo", I did give him the right to issue orders independently.

Oh well, although I'm a little unhappy, I can't contradict myself.

As he read the imperial edict, a hint of solemnity appeared on his face.

The contents of the imperial edict were completely unexpected.

"...Now that the imperial court is expanding overseas...those overseas refugees who have been scattered abroad, as long as they sincerely submit, will be forgiven for their past transgressions..."

"...Anyone who leads a hundred men in a single boat to surrender may be appointed as a captain..."

"...whoever leads a thousand men and ten ships to surrender may be appointed as a deputy general..."

"...whoever leads ten thousand men and a hundred ships to surrender can be appointed as a general..."

This is blatantly recruiting pirates!

The imperial court has always exerted considerable effort in cracking down on pirates. Although it is difficult to eliminate them at sea, they are absolutely not allowed to land on land.

As a result, many powerful pirates who were successful at sea could only rule on islands far from the imperial court.

Now the Crown Prince is doing just that, not only is he letting bygones be bygones, but he's even granting official positions based on the number of people and ships they brought with them... This is...

Emperor Qianxi had a vague feeling that this offer of amnesty might work. He didn't speak immediately, but instead turned to the three Grand Secretaries and asked, "Do you three think this edict is feasible?"

Although Emperor Qianxi asked the three people, his gaze first fell on Tong Guowei.

Tong Guowei hesitated for a moment, then said carefully, "Your Majesty, I am not very knowledgeable about maritime affairs, so I am not sure if it will be effective."

"However, I believe that compared to previous dynasties' offers of amnesty, the conditions proposed by the Crown Prince are quite lenient!"

"After surrendering, they are not only given official positions, but also have their fleets under their command. Apart from not being allowed to harass the coast, there seems to be no restriction on their behavior."

"They used to do business at sea without any investment, and now it seems they can do it again."

"We only need to pay a quarter of the revenue to the imperial court each year."

"But this is truly detrimental to the dignity of the imperial court!"

Emperor Qianxi did not respond, but looked at Zhang Ying instead.

Zhang Ying, who came from Jiangnan, had some knowledge of maritime transport. He hesitated for a moment before saying, "Your Majesty, I think the Crown Prince's terms for amnesty are quite attractive."

"They can give you an official position, they won't investigate your past, and they're allowed to retain their own power base."

"For those pirates who spend their lives at sea but yearn for the prosperity of the imperial court, the temptation is considerable."

"However, such a hastily assembled online army is likely to be disorganized and fragmented, with each group acting independently!"

Emperor Qianxi nodded and then looked at Li Guangdi.

Li Guangdi pondered this question for a long time before respectfully bowing and saying, "Your Majesty, I was born in Fujian and am very familiar with the situation in my hometown."

“In Fujian, fertile land is scarce and there are too many people, so many young men go out to sea to make a living.”

"Many of them are ordinary people in their hometowns, but once they get on a ship, they become powerful figures at sea."

"Many people even settled down and made a living on the island."

"However, the sea is rough, the competition is fierce, and the storms are treacherous. Even some of the most ruthless bandits sometimes live in constant fear."

"They were afraid of losing battles, and they were also afraid that someone under their command wanted to overthrow them."

"Furthermore, with the emergence of many Western ships, their living space is being increasingly squeezed."

"They had long harbored the idea of ​​uniting to fight against those Western ships, but no one could convince them to join forces."

"If the imperial court were to offer them amnesty, I believe that most of these people would respond enthusiastically."

Emperor Qianxi nodded slightly. He read the memorial several times and then said, "Guangdi, in your opinion, how many naval troops will the Crown Prince be able to gather with this edict?"

Li Guangdi cautiously replied, "Your Majesty, I cannot say for sure."

"According to my estimation, once the Crown Prince issues this edict, there should be a great many followers."

"It shouldn't be a problem to gather an online army of forty or fifty thousand people."

He paused, then sighed, "After all, the conditions offered by the imperial court are far too lenient for these people."

Emperor Qianxi nodded, his brows furrowing even more: "A navy of forty or fifty thousand men, though disorganized and likely to obey orders but not summons, is still no small number!"

Do you think this will work?

The three scholars looked at each other, none of them daring to speak easily.

After all, this kind of thing is really sensitive.

Finally, Tong Guowei tentatively suggested, "Your Majesty, how about... we send someone to share the Crown Prince's burdens and manage overseas affairs?"

Tong Guowei originally wanted to say that the edict should be repealed.

However, Emperor Qianxi had previously bestowed the titles of "General Who Subdues the Waves" and "Supervisor-General of Overseas Military Affairs" upon the Crown Prince, and also assigned related responsibilities to these two titles.

Going back on your word now and preventing the edict from being issued would be a slap in the face for Emperor Qianxi himself.

This shows that Emperor Qianxi was untrustworthy.

Sending someone to share the crown prince's power might be a viable solution.

Emperor Qianxi waved his hand and said, "The court has never managed the overseas territories. If the Crown Prince wants to cause trouble, let him do so."

"However, these naval forces that have defected are only allowed to gather in Qingqiu."

At this point, Emperor Qianxi pondered for a moment and then instructed, "Liang Jiugong, go and summon the Crown Prince."

Liang Jiugong hurriedly went out and then hurriedly returned: "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince has left the Forbidden City with his men. This servant has already sent people to look for him. Please wait a moment, Your Majesty."

Upon hearing that his eldest son had run away again, Emperor Qianxi was not in a hurry. He simply instructed his three ministers, "Please carefully review this edict again. Are there any flaws?"

"Also, discuss with the Ministry of War how to prevent these people from rebelling if the Crown Prince's offer of amnesty is successful."

"We'll study this in detail after the Crown Prince returns."

The three accepted the order and withdrew.

Walking along the palace path, their eyes were filled with the same shock:

Under normal circumstances, most crown princes stay obediently at home. There are very few people like this crown prince who can cause trouble!

In just one year, the Crown Prince has opened a bank, built a fast track, and grown a huge yield of sweet potatoes. Now he's even recruiting online trolls...!
I initially thought he was just messing around, but now it seems he actually succeeded.

In the blink of an eye, he could gather 50,000 naval troops, and claim to have 100,000. This ability seems to be no less than that of the "General of Heavenly Strategy" Li Erfeng back then!

However, Li Erfeng couldn't resist in the end and seized the crown herself. What will our Crown Prince choose?
　The first update of the day is here! Dear readers, I'd love to see your support and votes at the end of the month!

　
(End of this chapter)