Chapter 50: Hongli Should Be Appointed Crown Prince Without Delay

Yongzheng took the document, glanced through it, and said with a deeply moved expression, "He has indeed copied quite a lot, which shows his sincere and filial heart. He is much better than Hongshi!"

Knowing that once Yongzheng formed a negative impression of someone, it would be extremely difficult for him to be lenient toward any of that person's faults or mistakes, Yinzhi understood that no one's persuasion would work, and that the more one tried to persuade him, the worse things would become.

Therefore, Yinzhi did not say much on Hongshi's behalf and simply continued to sip his tea.

Feeling that Hongshi fell far short of his younger brother, Hongli, in terms of filial piety, Yongzheng's expression grew increasingly cold—so cold that even the Primary Princess stepped back two steps involuntarily.

"Have Su Peisheng bring Hongshi here!"

Suddenly, Yongzheng called out in a stern and forbidding tone.

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Before long, Hongshi arrived.

Hongshi appeared much more respectful than before. The moment he saw Yongzheng, he immediately knelt down. "Greetings, Imperial Father! Greetings, Primary Princess!"

Then, Hongshi stood up and bowed to Yinzhi. "Greetings, Thirteenth Uncle!"

"I heard that you are still making up for the Buddhist scriptures you failed to copy?" Yongzheng asked in a deep voice.

Hongshi's body trembled slightly. "Yes. Your son writes slowly and delayed Imperial Father's affairs. Please forgive me, Imperial Father!"

"You didn't just delay my affairs; you delayed your Imperial Grandfather's!"

"Your Imperial Grandfather passed away so suddenly, and it has a great deal to do with your lack of filial piety!"

Whenever Yongzheng disliked someone, he had a habit of phrasing his words with extreme harshness.

Thus, treating Hongshi the same way now, he directly labeled Hongshi as the chief culprit behind the Kangxi Emperor's demise, practically pointing at his nose and scolding him as an unfilial descendant!

After all, he had long been dissatisfied with Hongshi's behavior over the years.

Moreover, the Kangxi Emperor had once told Yongzheng that Hongshi had behaved improperly when entering the palace for important celebrations, instructing Yongzheng to keep him under strict discipline because Hongshi had done the exact same thing as the former Crown Prince.

The only difference was that Yinreng had fancied a minor concubine, whereas Hongshi had fancied a wet nurse.

Otherwise, the Kangxi Emperor would not have cooperated with Yongzheng by consistently refusing to grant Hongshi the title of Prince, nor would he have temporarily treated Yongzheng with cold indifference, sitting idly by while Yinreng whipped Yongzheng with a horsewhip without uttering a word, or ignoring the fourteenth prince's blatant disrespect toward Yongzheng.

Since this involved family scandal, the Kangxi Emperor had never publicized it.

Later on, it was only when Yongzheng seized an opportunity to bare his heart and question the Kangxi Emperor that the latter revealed the true reason behind his former coldness.

Only then did Yongzheng learn of the matter. He replaced Hongshi's tutor, He Qing, and later, when rebuking Hongshi, exposed this dark secret.

Consequently, Yongzheng had harbored resentment toward Hongshi from a very early age. Especially during times of anxiety and doubt—when he wondered whether the Kangxi Emperor truly had no intention of passing the throne to him—he was all the more inclined to believe that Hongshi had undermined him.

However, Hongshi was unaware that Yongzheng knew about his affair with that particular wet nurse. At present, he only knew that his father had become the Emperor of the Great Qing, and that he himself had become an imperial prince.

If he wanted Yongzheng to change his perspective of him, he had to honestly admit his wrongs, correct his attitude, and abandon his previous erroneous belief that the Fourteenth Uncle had the greatest hope of becoming the Son of Heaven, or that the Eighth Uncle had a higher chance of becoming emperor than his own father.

Yes, Hongshi now deeply regretted his earlier misjudgment.

Therefore, he resolved to sincerely confess his faults to Yongzheng and strive to alter his father's impression of him.

He no longer resented Yongzheng's aloofness toward him; instead, he decided to properly mend his relationship with Yongzheng and demonstrate his filial devotion.

Leaving aside the fact that Yongzheng was now the emperor—meaning that angering him further would result in grave consequences—simply considering the fact that he was now an imperial prince, and effectively the eldest imperial prince, if he could win Yongzheng's favor, he might even have a chance to become the next emperor and attain the Supreme Ruler's throne of the Nine-Five, which he had never dared to imagine before.

Indeed, after Yongzheng ascended the throne, Hongshi's ambitions regarding becoming emperor began to stir.

Naturally, even if he could not become the next emperor, securing a change in Yongzheng's perception would at least make it easier for him to obtain a noble title sooner.

Therefore, even though Yongzheng's words were harsh and made Hongshi's face burn with humiliation, he endured it and kowtowed sincerely to confess his guilt:

"Imperial Father's reprimand is entirely justified. Your son has sinned. Please grant your son a chance to turn over a new leaf!"

As he spoke, tears welled up in Hongshi's eyes, and he continued, "In the past, your son should not have been self-righteous, should not have disregarded the commands of my father and sovereign, and should not have been indifferent to my younger brothers. Now, your son is willing to change. I beg Imperial Father to give me one more chance!"

"I have no time to lecture you now. Go back first and reflect thoroughly on whether you usually possess the proper demeanor of a son." Yongzheng waved his hand dismissively.

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Hongshi withdrew.

After Hongshi left, recalling some of his past words and deeds, Yongzheng was still unable to suppress his anger and said to Yinzhi:

"Short-sighted and crooked in mind! He only knows to come and confess now, as if I wouldn't be worthy of his filial piety if I hadn't become emperor!"

Yinzhi then spoke up, "Compared to Hongshi, Hongli is far more composed, respectful, and lively. While so many imperial princes and grandsons are filled with anxiety over who will inherit the throne, he can still wholeheartedly copy so many Buddhist scriptures for Imperial Grandfather. It is truly rare—even more filial than myself, a son."

"Indeed. When entering the garden tonight, I brought Hongli in with me, and he even shed tears in the carriage."

"Clearly, he was thinking of Imperial Grandfather. The child is sentimental and knows gratitude. Even though Imperial Grandfather only kept him by his side for nearly two years, he has never grown arrogant out of favor."

Like Yinzhi, the Primary Princess knew that one should not directly argue with Yongzheng when he was angry; it was far better to use other means to cheer him up and prevent him from dwelling on dark emotions.

True to his nature, Yongzheng was clear in his loves and hates. When he hated someone, he refused to believe any good of them; when he liked someone, he was eager to believe every good thing about them.

Therefore, hearing Yinzhi and the Primary Princess praise Hongli made Yongzheng feel much better inside, and it reminded him of what the Kangxi Emperor had told him before passing away.

"Did you know? Imperial Grandfather told me on his deathbed that I am no longer young and should designate Hongli as the heir apparent early on."

"However, because of the troubles he experienced with his own succession, Imperial Grandfather did not issue an explicit decree. Now that I think about it, Imperial Grandfather's choice of me is indeed closely tied to Hongli."

Yongzheng wore a solemn expression, a strange sense of gratitude toward Hongli rising spontaneously in his heart, as if the ultimate success of his bid for the throne had been bestowed upon him by Hongli.

One must realize that during his sixty years on the throne, the Kangxi Emperor had indeed mastered the arts of statecraft to perfection, causing immense anguish to many of his sons and ministers.

Even someone as forbearing and astute as Yongzheng had often fallen into confusion and anxiety, and had at one point even resorted to seeking deities and burning incense—much like later officials—to divine whether he would ultimately win the throne.

Thus, Yongzheng inevitably felt that Hongli's appearance was what enabled his successful succession.

Even Yinzhi could not help harboring similar thoughts.

Having just experienced a massive political defeat—if he had not gone all-in on Yongzheng after the first dethronement of the Crown Prince, and if Yongzheng had not succeeded in seizing the throne—he would still be nothing more than an idle prince thoroughly abandoned and placed under house arrest by the Kangxi Emperor.

Therefore, Yinzhi took the initiative to ask Yongzheng, "Then, Fourth Imperial Brother, how do you plan to establish Hongli's status as heir?"

"I plan to let him have the reality of an heir apparent without the title!"

"How is that to be understood?"

"A secret succession! It means letting the world know that I have already chosen an heir and letting them know who it is, without ever making an explicit public announcement!"