After resting in Tongzhou for a day, at 9:00 a.m. the next morning, the Southern Patrol Fleet finally set sail again and headed towards the capital.
Unlike the previous itinerary, which was in a hurry and rushed slowly, after leaving Tongzhou, the speed of the Southern Patrol Fleet suddenly became much slower, and the 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 exhausted his travels.
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 speed of the southern patrol fleet was 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 the prince Zhu Heyu and the elder Huang Yourong, went out of the city to welcome him. The scene was quite grand.
However, just as the officials were greeting 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 cabinet elders stayed in the capital to control the central situation. I arranged this to familiarize you with government affairs and take the opportunity to learn from the experience of these cabinet elders. It has been several months now.
With time, you can gain something”
Emperor Deqing's words seemed careless, but in fact they were full of profound meaning.
You must know that during Emperor Deqing's southern tour, Prince Zhu Heyu was the supervisor who stayed in the capital. The elder Huang Yourong was the auxiliary government who stayed in the capital. His official status was naturally higher than that of Prince Zhu Heyu.
In everything, Prince Zhu Heyu was in charge, while Huang Yourong was just a supporter.
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"
In this way, Prince Zhu Heyu naturally does not need to be responsible for the chaos 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.
I learned a lot about government affairs 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 seeking country. You really need to give them more advice."
Of course, you have to study. I know you have always been diligent, but you can’t go too far. You have to pay attention to your body. There will be a long time in the future. Don’t overwork yourself.”
As he spoke, Emperor Deqing's concern and love for Prince Zhu Heyu were beyond words.
Prince Zhu Heyu lowered his head and said, "Thank you very much, Father, for your care. I understand."
After Emperor Deqing nodded, he asked Prince Zhu Heyu again: "During my tour to the south, will the country be peaceful and will there be any natural disasters?"
Prince Zhu Heyu replied: "During my father's southern tour, there were no natural disasters anywhere, and the world was peaceful."
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 ministers have all handled them in accordance with court practice, and there is no backlog of government affairs."
Logically speaking, at this time Emperor Deqing should ask "whether the situation between the government and the opposition is stable" and "whether the court's decrees are flowing smoothly."
However, Emperor Deqing seemed to have forgotten all this and stopped asking questions. He just comforted him for a few words, then turned around and took the Luan Chai, 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
Let me ask you a few more questions."
After hearing Emperor Deqing's order, Prince Zhu Heyu naturally did not dare to disobey him, 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 of maintenance.
It can be said that the attitude of intimacy is clear at a glance
Obviously, Emperor Deqing's hint was very obvious, that is, the rectification of business and taxation. Although Prince Zhu Heyu's behavior was a bit reckless and caused turmoil in the government and the opposition, I protected him and made him the scapegoat for this matter.
As the auxiliary minister during the southern tour, isn't Huang Yourong the best choice?
Naturally, many smart people saw the profound meaning of Emperor Deqing.
Therefore, when Emperor Deqing was leaving in a Luan chariot, many officials looked at Huang Yourong with meaningful eyes, 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 panic-stricken, at a loss, or had other ideas 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 the chief minister of the cabinet and still ostensibly an ally of Huang Yourong, also came to Huang Yourong, but he invited Huang Yourong to ride with him.
ps: Well, the first update today
If nothing else happens, there will be four to five updates today