Han Shizu

Chapter 2174 Sejong Chapter 50 Who Will Be the Flower
Although it was summer, the Chongzheng Hall gave people a somewhat gloomy and depressing feeling. The white candles in the hall had not yet been extinguished. The emperor, whose hair had obviously had a few more strands of white hair, sat cross-legged on the throne with his shoulders hunched and his back slightly hunched, silently flipping through some unknown works and articles of Prince Zhangde.

After the prince's death, these things were sealed up for the emperor to read. Liu Jili had written many works during his lifetime, including poems, songs, and political essays, many of which were of great literary value. For Liu Wenji, the most valuable thing was to know the prince through his writings and understand the little-known mental journey of the prince during his lifetime.
After reading it, he was overwhelmed with sadness. The country lost its heir, the father lost his son, no matter which one, it was a major blow to Liu Wenji, who was over 60 years old. After a long time, Liu Wenji raised his hand and gently wiped his red eyes, and told the eunuch Shi Quanbin standing in front of the emperor: "Return these things to the East Palace, and let the scholars and editors of the Hongwen Academy compile the prince's posthumous works into a book as a memorial."

"Yes!" Shi Quanbin responded quickly, feeling inexplicably relieved.

Although the emperor's voice was hoarse and low, it was much more stable and firm than a few days ago. He was obviously recovering from the shock of the death of the crown prince. After all, such a huge empire still needed the support of His Majesty the Emperor, especially at a time when the country was shaken and people were restless, the old emperor could not do without him to preside over the overall situation.

At least, we have to wait until the new crown prince is established.
Shi Quanbin was 41 years old at the time, but he had been working for the emperor for seven or eight years, taking over the position of Zheng Kang, the former head of the eunuchs. From the perspective of the palace and the eunuch supervisors, Shi Quanbin was born out of nowhere. Since the late years of Emperor Taizu, there has been no "inner court chief" as "young" as Shi Quanbin.

After nearly ninety years of development and change, the eunuchs in the Han Dynasty court gradually formed three systems. The first was the Eunuchs' Rear Office, which was responsible for serving the emperor and the nobles in the palace. This group of people was closest to the emperor, empress, and the nobles in the Han Dynasty palace, and their status was far higher than that of other eunuchs.

The second is the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which is in charge of the palace's various supervisory offices. This is a department that is responsible for affairs and is also the main maintainer of the normal operation of the palace. It has great power, complex composition, fierce struggles, and many problems.

The third is the Imperial City Bureau, which is on par with the Wude Bureau. It is a secret supervisory agency composed mainly of eunuchs. It is destined to have a special status within the palace, which is unshakable and easy to produce talents.

Each of the three systems has its own traditions and rules, and even formed a "eunuch family" over the long years. Shi Quanbin is a product of the "eunuch family". His grandfather was Shi Zhiyong, a great eunuch in the palace during the reigns of Emperor Taizong and Emperor Taizong. He was a top eunuch in the Ministry of Internal Affairs and was in charge of the palace's tea and wine warehouse for many years.

Shi Quanbin, who came from the Front Department of the Eunuchs, became the "big boss" of the Back Department of the Eunuchs. This was also an important symbol of the breaking of the boundaries between the three major systems of eunuchs in the empire and the mutual exchange of personnel, positions and power.

Compared with the beginning of Liu Wenji's accession to the throne, the three major systems of the inner court in the 19th year of Jianlong have also undergone great changes. On the one hand, the repressive power of the imperial power has become stronger, and on the other hand, the minions have become sharper. At the same time, the traditionally solidified personnel have also undergone major changes or changes.

Zheng Kang, the former head of the eunuchs, was executed for accepting bribes, exceeding the limits of authority, interfering in government affairs, bullying officials and harming the people, and abusing lives. This was the apparent reason, but the underlying reason was that he had colluded with the former prime minister, Wang Qinruo, and had secretly colluded with him.

At the same time, Cai Jing, the Imperial Envoy who had been in charge of the Imperial City Department for 20 years, was demoted two years ago and then completely disappeared without a trace. The background was Ding Wei begging for his bones. What kind of connection is there is self-evident...

Shi Quanbin was on a mission under the imperial edict. Not long after he left, a eunuch came to report that Chen Wei, the imperial envoy, wanted to see him. Chen Wei also started out as an eunuch in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. His grandfather was named Chen Yanshou, who was originally one of the powerful eunuchs in Nanyue. Because he defected to the Han Dynasty early and was loyal to the court, after Pan Mei pacified Lingnan, he also successfully entered the Han Palace as a "meritorious official" and continued his legacy.

Chen Wei came here to report something important. In the days after the death of Prince Zhangde Liu Jili, there was probably no government office more busy and tense than the Imperial City Office in the entire palace.

On the one hand, he had to thoroughly investigate whether there were any hidden secrets behind the crown prince's death. On the other hand, he was ordered to monitor all movements within the capital. With Liu Wenzhi's shrewdness and foresight, how could he not know the significant impact that Liu Jili's death had on the court.

During this period, thanks to the efficient efforts of the Imperial City Bureau, countless pieces of news came to Liu Wenji, almost drowning him, and every piece of news would cast a shadow over his gloomy heart.

Of course, with the knowledge and experience of an old emperor like Liu Wenji, he could at least take the turmoil in the capital lightly, if not calmly. He had gone through the same thing when he was young, so such a scene was not surprising.

What really made Liu Wenji feel upset was that some people really took advantage of his old age and became unscrupulous and did not know how to restrain themselves. Before Liu Jili's body was cold, people below him were already plotting and colluding to choose a new crown prince for him.

Although it was in the name of consolidating the country's foundation, how could Liu Wenji not be deceived by it? How could he not doubt his inner thoughts? He was too anxious.
This time, Chen Wei brought another story that annoyed Liu Wenji, which was related to Duke of Jinan Liu Jide. Liu Jide was the younger brother of Prince Zhangde Liu Jili, and was also born to Empress Li. In the 15th year of Jianlong, all the princes were promoted to the title of Duke of Jinan.

Although Liu Wenji had very high demands and strict discipline on the princes, he was always very restrained in secret surveillance, and even prohibited the Imperial City Bureau from arbitrarily placing spies on the princes.

But after Liu Jili's death, this bottom line was quickly broken, simply because Liu Wenji needed to pay more detailed and close attention to the situation of the princes, and he required that every move be reported.

This move also reflects some of Liu Wenji's psychology. As a qualified and scheming emperor, even if he has an emotional side, he is more of an emperor with the temperament of being the only one who is self-centered and aloof.

Perhaps when he first learned of the death of Crown Prince Liu Jili, he was already thinking about "what to do" in his subconscious mind, despite being sad.
Chen Wei's secret report was about the behavior of Jinan Duke Liu Jide after the death of Crown Prince Zhangde and during the mourning period. Some of the behaviors were very fatal. For example, when the news of the Crown Prince's death came, Liu Jide was having a banquet with a group of guests. He was happy at first and then sad after hearing the news.

For example, during the funeral, Liu Wenji asked the princes to keep vigil for his brother, but Liu Jide was sleepy and impatient. He then played with his concubines in the mansion and spoke wildly.

For example, after the burial of Crown Prince Zhangde, the court began to call for the appointment of a new crown prince. Liu Jide summoned his staff and guests to discuss how to contact and bribe the ministers in the court to compete for the position of crown prince.
When Liu Wenji learned about this from Chen Wei, although he maintained the habit of an emperor to doubt everything, his mood was obviously affected. His tone became cold, and his eyes stared at Chen Wei coldly and sharply: "Is this true?"

"Every word is true. Jinan Gong has rarely concealed anything in his words and deeds. There are many witnesses who are available for Your Majesty to check at any time!" Chen Wei assured Liu Wenji in a cautious manner.

Hearing this, Liu Wenji was silent. After a long while, he finally spoke in a tired voice: "I know! You can leave now. Record all the actions of the Jinan Mansion, who they associate with, and who responds to them!"

After Chen Wei left, Liu Wenji straightened his body. He seemed to be surrounded by a gloomy aura, and his breath became faster and faster. Finally, he couldn't help but yelled angrily: "Idiot! You want to be the prince too!"

Although he was angry and dissatisfied, Liu Wenji once again deeply realized that the new crown prince was a problem that he and the Han Empire had to face. And this problem accompanied him almost throughout the last years of his reign.

A political vortex quickly formed in the upper echelons of the empire around the nomination of the new crown prince, swallowing up almost all the central court officials. As long as one was in this power field, few could stay out of it.

In this matter, the upper echelons of the Han Empire seemed to have awakened one by one, including those founding dukes and old friends who had prominent family backgrounds but had gradually been marginalized over the years. And this kind of struggle was almost inevitable.

The noble ministers really gave Emperor Liu Wenji more than half a year to relax, hoping that he could recover from the shadow of the pain of losing his father. Therefore, until the spring of the 20th year of Jianlong, when Chai Xirang, the governor of Jingji Province (formerly the Minister of Personnel), submitted a memorial requesting the establishment of a crown prince and the early establishment of the country's foundation, the undercurrent that had been brewing for more than half a year was finally exposed.

Immediately after Chai Xirang, memorials requesting the establishment of a crown prince came flying to Emperor Liu Wenji like snowflakes. These were direct requests, but there were also many indirect and roundabout requests, hinting to the emperor in various forms. Similar memorials could not be contained in ten major cases for the emperor.

Once this trend started, it was difficult to calm it down before a definite result was reached. As the call for "appointing a crown prince" became more and more popular, the court gradually split into three factions regarding the crown prince.

Liu Jiying, Duke of Suiyang, and Liu Weizhen, the eldest grandson of the emperor, were the two core factions. Another faction was "neutral," or, more precisely, they followed the imperial edict. But no matter which faction they were in, they all had the same attitude in the matter of appointing a crown prince. No matter what thoughts and plans they had, the crown prince should be appointed as soon as possible.

The struggle between the supporters of Liu Jiying and Liu Weizhen also formed the first sharp and large-scale political struggle on the issue of succession in the empire since its founding. The impact was so far-reaching that it even led to the corruption of the government for a time.

The two sides, in general, represented the struggle between the two forces that had continued since the time of Emperor Taizu, the struggle between the nobles and the commoners. Those who supported Liu Jiying were of course the military nobles headed by the Yang family, while Liu Weizhen was mostly supported by the commoner bureaucratic group. At the same time, there was also support from the nobles. After all, the Yang family was a big tree that attracted people's jealousy. On the other hand, it was difficult for the Yang family to fully represent the military noble class of the empire.

This also led to a relative balance of power and influence between the two. Therefore, if the ministers were to support the emperor alone, it would be difficult to quickly achieve a result. In fact, from the 20th year of Jianlong to the 22nd year of Jianlong, in order to help the target person to the position, the powerful people of the empire racked their brains and showed their magical powers. From clamoring for support, it quickly evolved into mutual attacks. A large-scale party struggle appeared in this way during the reign of Liu Wenji.
The atmosphere in the court changed. The clean and honest politics that had been maintained for twenty years during the Jianlong era inevitably became more filthy and gloomy, and even spread from the center to the local areas. At the most exaggerated time, even officials from remote counties could not help but participate in the discussion about the prince, and many of them expressed their support in their own way.

Such a situation was far beyond many people's initial expectations. No one could have imagined that the position of crown prince would be delayed for so long. Emperor Liu Wenji bears an unshirkable responsibility for causing such results and impacts.

Because the essence of everything lies in Liu Wenzhi's inner hesitation.

Like other powerful ministers, Liu Wenji also considered between Liu Jiying and Liu Weizhen for the candidate of successor. But it was difficult to make a decisive decision on who to choose in the end, and each of them made Liu Wenji worried.

Liu Jiying is calm, ambitious, and well-educated. He is a standard elite educated in the royal family. Although he has little training, he is still young after all. He is very worth training and has a promising future. There is nothing wrong with his identity.

The only thing that worried Liu Wenji was the influence of Yang's maternal relatives. Just look at the "Sui Yang Faction" organized by Yang's maternal relatives and a group of nobles with military merits. The momentum was so strong that even Liu Wenji could not help but look sideways.

Even though there were many things that were beyond his control, the prosperity of the Yang family had lasted for so many years and even influenced the next generation of emperors. Liu Wenji could not ignore these factors.

Liu Wenji was an old emperor after all, and what worried him most was the weakening of his control. Some of his worries even overwhelmed his rationality.
Liu Weizhen was also nineteen years old when the crown prince died. There was no big problem with his age, but his temperament was more pedantic and cowardly than his father. Although he was just as filial and respectful, he was short-sighted and slow-witted, which made Liu Wenji anxious at one point.

However, there are many supporters in the court and the country, covering many classes and factions. Although the voices are diverse, their intentions are very firm. Especially some stubborn and stubborn ministers of remonstration, they even use the name of "dying remonstration" to maintain the orthodoxy of the empire!

Orthodoxy! Liu Wenji had been fighting for this word all his life, but he never thought that it would be recognized in this way in the issue of succession. It was a bit ridiculous.
The emperor's indecision and the ambiguous signals he sent naturally gave those who were seeking personal gain an opportunity to fish in troubled waters. Once the fight for the throne was established, the struggle would be endless. Although Liu Wenji also used severe measures to suppress the rebellion during this process, he was able to control it on the surface, but the undercurrent remained, and he could not deter the restless people.

As a result, the atmosphere in the central government was very tense during the three years between the 20th and 22nd year of Jianlong's reign. In order to stop the endless and bottom-line fighting between the two factions, Liu Wenzhi had to suppress it with the most brutal means and style since he came to power. A large number of ministers were demoted, including many knowledgeable people, loyal officials and filial sons.

For example, Fan Zhongyan, who had been promoted to the prefect of Luoyang Prefecture under Liu Wenji's strong promotion, was deeply distressed when he saw that the dispute over the crown prince had affected the court and the country and had seriously affected the stability of the country, so he submitted a memorial to advise the emperor.

The words were certainly quite heated, and some of them implied that the ministers in the government hall were just sitting there doing nothing, watching the struggle, and not wholeheartedly advising the emperor and the country. Fan Zhongyan's memorial not only annoyed Liu Wenji, but also angered the prime ministers.

Chen Yaozuo, the Minister of State Affairs, and Lü Yijian, the Minister of Finance, successively submitted memorials to impeach Fan Zhongyan, saying that he was disrespectful to the prime minister and made irresponsible comments on state affairs. Although the charges were weak, Liu Wenji was furious and demoted Fan Zhongyan to the post of Deputy Governor of Longyou Road in the spring of the 21st year of Jianlong.

Thus, Fan Zhongyan started his seven-year official career in Longyou. During those seven years, Fan Zhongyan never relaxed for a moment, always caring about the court and worrying about the emperor. In addition, he accomplished two major things in Longyou.

First, on the basis of Cao Liyong, the Han Dynasty's rule in the Qingtang area was further consolidated, and the influence of the empire's rule was radiated deep into the plateau; second, the Longyou Daozhi was moved westward to Lanzhou. The Longyou Daozhi had always been in Fengxiang Prefecture. Geographically speaking, it was biased towards the east, especially as the Qingtang area was further developed.

It was also from the time when Fan Zhongyan was demoted that important officials of the court were reorganized one by one by Liu Wenji. Chai Xirang was demoted to be the chief official of Gaochang Road, and Lu Yijian was exiled to Liaodong. In the 22nd year of Jianlong, Shangshu Ling Chen Yaozuo was dismissed from his post.

By this time, although the court had calmed down under Liu Wenji's suppression, the struggle for the crown prince was unfolding across the wider empire. Faced with this situation, Liu Wenji was both angry and helpless.

Faced with numerous disputes, Liu Wenji was becoming increasingly exhausted. He also knew clearly that the matter of the crown prince could not be delayed any longer. He had to make a decision, otherwise disaster might arise from a small opportunity.

In the many power struggles of the past dynasties, in those long struggles, the final competition is not about how good you are, but how few mistakes you make. This rule also applies to the fight for the position of crown prince.
(End of this chapter)