Chapter 6: The Supreme Father and Son

  Passing through a four-pillar, three-bay, arched gate, one can see from afar the majestic steps below the Zheng Wang Fu with two stone lions proudly standing guard. The gate is inscribed with the characters "Zhan Yun", and is known as the Xidan Gate.

  The Zheng Wang Fu faces north and south, with three roads and three advances. In the first advance of the east road, a majestic main hall stands behind the square, looking around, carved beams and painted buildings, green tiles and blue eaves, in the shade of willows and green trees, you can see the layered roof ridges, like waves, one wave after another, surging far away, cannot be seen at a glance. There are hundreds of rooms of various sizes in each courtyard, it is indeed "once entering the marquis's gate, it is as deep as the sea".

  The backyard of Wangfu West Road is called "Huiyuan", which is the best garden in Beijing, with strange rocks, artificial hills and clear springs, pavilions and kiosks hidden among them, and its beauty cannot be described. Ye Zhaoyu lived in the Chufeng Building behind Huiyuan, where the green trees reflected in the pool of water in front of the building, which was crystal clear and serene.

  Xiao Wangye returned to the mansion, and the entire Zheng Wangfu immediately lost its order. Chickens flew and dogs jumped, making a mess everywhere. Eunuchs and servants tiptoed through the inner palace, sending messages to Da Furen and also to the various concubines.

  After Ye Zhaos two younger brothers died young, there was an older sister and a younger sister. The older sister was married to a Mongolian royal family member, while the younger sister was married to Chonggui, son of Grand Secretary Sai Shang'a. However, the younger sisters luck was not good. Last year, Sai Shang'a, as a special envoy, led troops to Guangxi, but unexpectedly, the Taiping Army became more and more violent, entering Hunan like a broken bamboo. Sai Shang'a was dismissed and arrested, his family property also being confiscated. It wasn't until this year that Chonggui was promoted to be in charge of the flag armys document office, finally having a future.

  In short, both sisters were married out, and the entire Wang Fu was left with only Ye Zhao, this one small ancestor, who truly gathered all the pampering in one body. Even if she wasn't Ye Zhao's biological mother, the various consorts treated her extremely well. Although the king had not yet reached his heavenly years, these past few years there hadn't been any sign of the consorts or concubines being pregnant, and it was feared that the hope of having another young prince was extremely slim. It couldn't be helped, they could only rely on this single sprout to inherit the royal lineage.

  Ye Zhaohui returned to the Chufeng Building, changed his clothes, and first went to the inner palace to see his mother. He couldn't avoid being asked about his well-being by Fu Jun, who was worried that he would be disadvantaged in front of the emperor and hurt his son's self-esteem. Then, he also paid respects to the two side consorts, after which Ye Zhaohui went to see the prince, rushing straight to the Guan Yue Garden where the study was located, but unexpectedly bumped into the prince face-to-face at the Moon Gate.

  "Please, Ama'an." Just as Ye Zhao was about to be beaten up, the prince pulled him away by the arm, "Spare him, spare him, child. I apologize for putting you through this. We'll get back at them later and show them what's what! I remember who stabbed us in the back!"

  Looking at the benevolent smile in front of him, Ye Zhao's heart was not moved, that was false. According to historical records, this thirteenth master of Zheng Wang Fu was mediocre and indecisive, although he was later honored as the first of the eight great ministers, he was just a figurehead, and major military decisions were always made by his younger brother, also Ye Zhao's sixth uncle, Su Shun.

  But in Ye Zhao's eyes, he was just a father who doted on his son to the extreme and would dare to pierce through the sky for him.

  Let's just say it's a matter of face, originally it was his own fault that the family was humiliated, but he unfairly blamed the sixth prince Yi, and instead worried that his precious son's face would be lost, hurting his self-esteem, thinking about it is also laughable.

  "Come on, come on, look what I've found for you to play with." The king didn't give him a choice, grabbing Ye Zhaos hand and pulling him into the study.

  But on the desk, a golden and emerald green small bird was jumping in its cage. The prince laughed and said: "This is the top-grade three-yellow finch from Guizhou, how about it? It's dignified to take it out! With this birdcage in hand, one's spirit is different!"

  Ye Zhao couldn't help but laugh and cry, who teaches their child like this? If it weren't for his own second life, he would really be spoiled by him, but his heart felt warm and fuzzy, poor old man.

  "Amma, I want to find a job, can't just idle around and eat for free every day."

  The king seemed as if he didn't dare to believe his own ears, opened his eyes wide and stared at Ye Zhao for a long time. Suddenly, he burst out laughing loudly, laughing so freely, "Ancestors have opened their eyes! Ancestors have opened their eyes! Jingshang has made progress, made progress! Old ancestors, old ancestors, did you all hear? Did you hear what Jingshang said?"

  Looking at the old man's ecstatic and crazy appearance, Ye Zhaohad a guilty conscience. Wasn't he being too uncooperative? However, finding a job didn't require being so pleased, did it?

  "Tomorrow I will enter the palace to see the Emperor." The king's face lit up, and he made up his mind that even if he had to sacrifice his old face, he would still recommend his son as a high-ranking official.

  "Ah Ma, take a look at this first." Ye Zhao pulled out a letter from his sleeve and handed it to the old man with both hands.

  The article was written by Ye Zhao long ago, just like the articles he had been writing over the years. It was kept in his own small study in the west wing of the Wang family's compound on King Street. The compound was purchased when Ye Zhao was 15 years old, and over the years, all the things he had scribbled were moved there. After all, some words could be considered treasonous if scrutinized closely, and it would be quite inconvenient if they were discovered by someone in the Wang mansion.

  Ye Zhaogang had just settled Su Hongniang in the quadrangle courtyard and told Rui Liu that after things were done, people would send her there. However, this was not something that could be done in half a day, so Su Hongniang could only wait there.

  Ye Zhaowas worried that Su Hongniang didn't trust him, wasn't she afraid that he would leave and then lead people to capture her? So at first, he was prepared to meet with Su Hongniang three days later at the Eight Immortals' Residence. Who knew that Su Hongniang didn't say a word, and readily agreed to wait for news in the Four Combined Courtyard? It's really "use people without doubting them, doubt people without using them". But thinking about it, she probably wouldn't have really trusted him either. After he left, what if she had set something up? What if he led people to capture her, how would she respond? This was something that he would never know.

  When Ye Zha returned from Siheyuan, he drew out this article in the study, which analyzed the pros and cons of lifting the ban on Northeast China and its relationship with Tsarist Russia.

  The text says that the Russians have long had their eyes on our land, and in recent years they have gradually encroached upon our northern border. This is because the population of the north is sparse and the land is vast, making it easy for Russian immigrants to take advantage of the situation. To eliminate this hidden danger and ensure the peace and security of our land for generations to come, we must lift the ban on migration, just as Emperor Shunzhi did when he summoned civilians to open up new lands. This will not only provide a barrier for the north but also prevent famine-stricken areas in Zhili and Shandong from becoming hotbeds of trouble due to natural disasters. By doing so, we can kill two birds with one stone and adopt a good strategy for national stability.

  The text translates to: "It is said that the Russian Empire is currently engaged in a large-scale war with Western countries such as England, France, and Austria. Judging from the situation, defeat is inevitable. The people of Russia are barbaric and fond of fighting, and their expansionist nature will not be satisfied until they have conquered more territory. When they are blocked in the West, they will inevitably turn their attention to the East. Time waits for no man; if we do not prepare ahead of time, I fear it will be too late to regret."

  The prince held the letter and looked at it up and down, the more he looked, the more surprised he was. After reading half of it, he couldn't help but raise his head and ask: "Is this article written by you? You said that Russia is at war with England, France, and others? Is it true?"

  "Mother," Ye Zhaoreplied, "how dare Jingxiang speak rashly of state affairs? These things are really true, and they were all told to Mr. Tai'an by his Christian friends."

  Mr. Tai'an is Ye Zhao's Chinese teacher, named Du Wenquan, also known as Tai'an. The old man is clean and high, but his son is a gambler, and in the past few years, he has been reduced to poverty. In recent years, Ye Zhao has taken good care of him and even disciplined his gambler son. Even if Ye Zhao lies and frames him, he wouldn't dare to expose it.

  The king nodded, still knowing that the old man had some knowledge, and then thought that this brocade article was also written by the old man, and the treasure son just copied it.

  "Who would have thought, really who would have thought, that he had actually made enemies of Russia and England and France? This makes things easier, if in the future he really starts trouble, we can ask the English and French barbarians to lend a hand, how could we not defeat him?"

  Ye Zhaoku sighed, England and France? In less than two years, they'll have finished their fight with Russia and then turn around to deal with us.

  "Ah Ma, it seems that there is no hope for them. They are divided among themselves, but to us, the Great Qing, they are all just one breath from the same nostril." For a moment, it was not easy to explain this complex world political situation, so I simply lumped "barbarians" together as the opposing side.

  The prince sighed and said, "These barbarians are all ignorant of etiquette, no wonder they huddle together like snakes and rats."

  Ye Zhao could only nod in agreement.

  The prince shook his head and said, "However, lifting the ban is a serious matter. Don't mention that the emperor won't agree, even I think it's risky. If all the Han people go outside the pass, we banner people will lose our advantage if we're not careful. You see, the Taiping rebels are already eyeing us, and I heard the emperor coughed up blood yesterday. Alas." As he spoke, the prince's brow furrowed deeper, deeply worried about the current situation.

  Ye Zhaonaturally knew that the Taiping Army's northern expedition was not far from Tianjin, Ye Zhao knew it wouldn't work out, his butterfly wings hadn't even flapped yet, these national affairs wouldn't change, so Ye Zhao was determined in his heart. However, the impact of the northern expedition on the capital could be imagined.

  "Ah, it's precisely because our great Qing dynasty is facing a crisis of unprecedented proportions in a thousand years that we cannot be bound by the laws and institutions of our ancestors. If they were alive today, they would certainly not adhere rigidly to established rules."

  The king looked at Ye Zhao in surprise again, and it was unexpected that his son had his own views on politics. However, after the surprise, he couldn't help but feel comforted by his old age. His son wasn't born with a bad temperament, literature and martial arts were just trivial skills, but Jing Xiang had a broad mind.

  "Alright, I'll consider it carefully and look for an opportunity to present it." The king looked at Ye Zhaoyu with a smile, stroking his beard, making Ye Zhaoyu's scalp feel numb.

  "Jingxiang, you're not getting any younger, don't you ever think of settling down?"

  Ye Zhaixin couldn't help but smile wryly to herself, thinking that what was meant to come would eventually arrive and couldn't be avoided. After some thought, she steeled herself and replied: "Auntie, I've heard that Yuan An, the former governor of Huizhou, Ningpo, and Guangdong, has a daughter who is virtuous and clever, with many rumors circulating about her in the streets."

  The king smiled and said, "It's good that you have someone in mind. However, rumors are often false, so we need to investigate carefully." He furrowed his brow: "Hui Zheng? Doesn't he have a daughter who is a palace maid? I think she was promoted to Guiren two years ago?"

  At that time, Lan Gui Ren's reputation was not prominent, and she had just been favored by Emperor Xianfeng, so it's no wonder that the prince didn't know much about her.

  Ye Zhao nodded and said, "It's this Hui Zheng." At that time, Ye Zhao also had a sudden idea, since it was an arranged marriage, who the other party was didn't matter. Being able to establish some connection with Lan Guiren was good too. Although because of his arrival, he had affected the situation in the capital, this Lan Guiren might not be the same as before, but having come to this era, he couldn't help but guard against this woman who would rule half of Qing for decades!

  It can also be considered a kind of reconciliation. Reconciliation is just reconciliation, from the moment when preparing to do things, personal honor and loss are no longer on Ye Zhaos mind.