Do You Know?: I, the Little Cabinet Elder, Regent of the World

Some local scoundrels took advantage of the court's inability to attend to them and desperately tried to make a living.

Occasionally, when they go too far, there are even small-scale uprisings.

Furthermore, as the emperor, he was bound to be advised once he attended court.

He usually attends court every five days, but since the officials began to remonstrate with him, he has not attended court for nearly ten days.

Even so, quite a few officials still came to the Imperial Study to offer their advice.

There's simply no way to avoid it!

what can we do about it?

This cannot continue indefinitely.

Emperor Zhao Zhen sighed.

Surely we can't really adopt someone from the royal family?

If all else fails, the only recourse is to resort to shamelessness and desperately delay.

Just then, Li Qi, the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, stepped forward and announced: "Your Majesty, Jiang Zhao, a Hanlin Academician, requests an audience."

"Jiang Aiqing?"

Zhao Zhen frowned slightly, then waved his hand dismissively: "Let him in."

In his view, Jiang Zhao was indeed a pragmatic and capable minister who was not only good at political struggles but also often came up with practical solutions to problems.

Only ministers who can simultaneously address people's livelihood and governance while also managing political struggles can possibly get things done.

I wonder if Jiang Qing has come to offer advice this time?

A short while later, Jiang Zhao, dressed in a white brocade robe, entered the imperial study.

"Your subject Jiang Zhao greets Your Majesty." Jiang Zhao bowed.

"No gift."

"sit down."

Zhao Zhen sat upright in the main seat, holding a book, and calmly asked, "What brings you here, my dear minister?"

He did not expect Jiang Zhao to be someone who came to offer advice.

Jiang Zhao took his seat and said, "I have come here with the intention of submitting a memorial concerning the matter of establishing an heir."

"There's no need to say more about advising on establishing an heir; the officials in the court have already offered their advice." Zhao Zhen's expression immediately became much more impatient.

His patience was wearing thin from the constant admonitions.

"The memorial I submitted was actually a proposal to change the method of establishing an heir apparent," Jiang Zhao said calmly, having anticipated this.

"Change the method of establishing an heir?" Zhao Zhen's heart stirred slightly.

Since ancient times, the eldest son of the legitimate wife has been established as the crown prince to inherit the country. Is there any error in this?

“Exactly.” Jiang Zhao stood up and bowed again: “During the Han Dynasty, Emperor Wu established his youngest son Liu Fuling as emperor, but kept it a secret. This was to prevent trouble from the maternal relatives and the imperial clan.”

"Throughout history, the throne has always been inherited by the crown prince. However, there are occasional instances where the heirs of princes die young, which can lead to infighting among the imperial family and even war."

But if a member of the imperial clan is chosen as crown prince, what will become of the monarch? Given this special circumstance, I request that the method of selecting an heir be changed to a secret method.

After speaking, he bowed deeply.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Zhen immediately became interested.

If a member of the imperial clan is made crown prince, where will the monarch be placed?

These words struck a chord with him.

Moreover, what was Emperor Wu of Han's method of establishing an heir?

Zhao Zhen quickly waved his hand: "Bring it here."

Jiang Qing is a pragmatic and capable minister!

These days, he's been receiving advice from ministers on establishing an heir, and it's rare to find one who offers a solution. Even if the memorial is terrible, he'll still take a look.

Not to mention, this person is Jiang Zhao?

In the past, Jiang Zhao also had many insights into the handling of government affairs.

Even if it's bad, it's still above average.

It's above average, not necessarily excellent, but definitely usable!

After the memorial was presented, Jiang Zhao sat down and straightened his posture.

"This memorial reflects my humble opinion, and I hope Your Majesty will forgive me."

It's best to take precautions against these kinds of things in advance.

"In any case, I forgive you for your innocence."

Zhao Zhen held the memorial in his hand and began to peruse it.

Chapter 61 Summoning Members of the Imperial Family to the Capital! (Two Chapters Combined)

The first few sentences are nothing special; they are just standard memorials to the emperor.

until

"Your Majesty may select a virtuous and capable member of the imperial clan to come to the capital for observation over several years. Then, take two imperial edicts, one with the name of the crown prince written on it, place one in the inner court, and keep the other on your person."

When the time comes for the orphan to be returned to Heaven, he may entrust him to civil and military officials and then open the seal to announce it to the world.

Apart from the crown prince, all others were granted official titles and ranks. If the emperor had a son, the imperial edict would be removed and destroyed, and the matter of establishing a crown prince would be null and void.

hiss~!

These few sentences were not long, but they made Zhao Zhen feel a tingling sensation in his heart. He quickly went back and read them carefully again.

Jiang Zhao glanced at him out of the corner of his eye and felt a sense of relief.

Steady!

This secret method of establishing an heir was originally the method used during the Qing Dynasty.

The Qing dynasty emperors were not Confucian emperors, and were less restricted by Confucian thought.

The secret method of designating an heir can certainly be promoted.

In this era of flourishing literature and Confucianism, this method of establishing an heir is destined to be impossible to promote.

However, it is very suitable for dealing with the predicament of "a king having no son".

Special circumstances call for special measures, which can be accepted by both the emperor and his ministers.

In particular, the fact that the edict establishing an heir could be voided would be enough to tempt any emperor.

The memorial was not long, and the secret method of establishing an heir apparent was not difficult to understand; the core content consisted of only a few sentences.

However, Zhao Zhen remained silent for nearly an hour.

He would wander around from time to time, and pause to ponder from time to time.

This method greatly appealed to him.

But there were also things that made him hesitate.

For example: a minister entrusted with the care of the young emperor.

In the past, the crown prince had accumulated power over many years and already possessed considerable influence.

When a monarch entrusts his son to another, it is more about following procedures.

The entrustment of a son to the throne through the secret succession method is different; it is the entrustment of a son by the monarch on his deathbed.

Normally, if the crown prince is not prominent, there is no way for him to accumulate power. Power is concentrated in the hands of the ministers who entrusted the young emperor with the care of the child. The new emperor has to take back power from his ministers.

After a long pause, Zhao Zhen let out a long sigh and ordered, "Go, summon all officials of the third rank and above in Bianjing to the Imperial Study for a discussion."

The crown prince is not prominent and cannot accumulate power, which is exactly what he wants!

As for whether entrusting the young to a will would reduce the power of the new emperor?

People are dead, who cares about the raging flood?

The change was almost visible to the naked eye; Zhao Zhen's posture straightened considerably.

The burden on my shoulders was lifted, and even walking became easier.

Seeing that Jiang Zhao had waited for a full hour, Zhao Zhen couldn't help but exclaim, "You are truly a pillar of the nation!"

"To receive the emperor's bounty and bear his burdens is the duty of a subject," Jiang Zhao quickly bowed and said.

Zhao Zhen nodded without speaking.

As a monarch who ruled the country for a long time, he knew what kind of ministers were good ministers.

I know the answer to everything!

Zhao Zhen waved his hand: "Try the pastries and fruits! Those people will probably take two incense sticks to burn before they all arrive."

After he finished speaking, palace maids presented him with pastries, fruits, and tea.

At the same time, a literate attendant copied the memorial onto a silk cloth about ten feet long, with each character being the size of a fist.

"Your Majesty, I thank you!" Jiang Zhao bowed.

He didn't stand on ceremony and picked up a piece of pastry to eat it politely.

This emperor was known as "Renzong," and he was indeed kind and gentle in his daily life.

Since he has bestowed fruits and pastries upon us, we may as well try them.

To be fair, the pastries from the imperial kitchen were indeed tastier.

After a while, Jiang Zhao had tasted three pieces of pastry before someone entered the Imperial Study.

Fu Bi and Han Zhang!

The two walked in together.

"Your humble servant Fu Bi (Han Zhang) greets Your Majesty!"

One was the head of all officials, and the other was a Grand Academician of the Zizheng Hall. When they saw Jiang Zhao, their expressions were different.

Fu Bi was surprised, somewhat taken aback.

Han Zhang's expression remained unchanged, though his eyes flickered slightly.

"sit down!"

Zhao Zhen then waved his hand.

The two sat down one after another.

Fu Bi remained calm, as if he had long been prepared to retire.

Having no children, he was fearless.

Han Zhang was dressed in a purple robe and jade belt, with a ruddy complexion and an indescribable spirit.

Subsequently, several Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet, Ministers of the Six Ministries, Vice Ministers, Ministers of the Nine Temples, and Directors of the Five Directorates entered the palace.

Once all the officials had arrived, Jiang Zhao, Han Zhang, and Fu Bi rose to their feet.

“These days, the officials have been focusing on advising me on the matter of establishing an heir, but I am so grief-stricken that I have not paid any attention to them.”

The elderly emperor folded his sleeves, his eyes shining, and slowly spoke.

The dozens of high-ranking officials in purple robes had different expressions, but none of them said anything.

Whether it was out of grief that the emperor did not appoint an heir, or whether the emperor never wanted to appoint an heir, or even dared not to, everyone has their own judgment.

“This time, Minister Jiang has submitted a memorial concerning the method of establishing an heir.” Zhao Zhen waved his hand, and two close attendants came out to pull out the memorial that had already been copied.

The fist-sized characters were displayed to dozens of high-ranking officials in purple robes, yet they were clearly visible to everyone.

The eyes of dozens of high-ranking officials in purple robes were focused on the silk cloth, including the Grand Chancellor Fu Bi.

The core message, less than thirty words long, is captivating and enlightening.

Secretly establishing a successor!