bullyxtreme Chapter 211 Waste to be revived
Chapter 211 Waste to be revived
Jin Zekang's performance of seeking fame and reputation won the hearts of all the officials in the court.
His father, who was suspicious his whole life, praised him highly.
They even feared that the eighth prince might grow up to be wicked and unworthy of his position, so they gave Jin Zekang a lot of buffs.
First of all, the value of his position as regent has been continuously increasing.
He bestowed upon the emperor a golden whip to strike down tyrannical rulers and court officials, and also granted him the imperial sword to execute without prior approval and to allow him to remain kneeling before the emperor.
In short, the fourth prince's position as regent is a foregone conclusion, while the eighth prince's throne is subject to change.
If one day in the future the regent feels that the eighth prince is an incompetent emperor, he can depose him and install a new emperor.
All the court officials present today are witnesses to the fact that Jin Zekang has become the biggest winner, surpassing even the emperor.
With his last breath, the old emperor summoned the eighth prince as well.
Regardless of whether the child could understand or not, he first made him kowtow to his fourth brother.
The old emperor made it clear: I originally intended for your fourth brother to become emperor, but he said you were smart and wanted you to be emperor.
You must never forget the kindness of your fourth brother and treat him with the same filial piety as your own father.
If you disobey or do not perform well in the future, your fourth brother has the right to depose you, and the court officials can all testify to this.
Royal children are precocious, and the Eighth Prince, who came from a humble background, was especially sensible.
He had also fantasized that if one of his brothers became emperor, he would be treated better, at least he would be well-fed and clothed and not be cheated or bullied by the palace servants.
Unexpectedly, a windfall fell from the sky and the throne landed right on his head.
The little guy was stunned, mechanically kowtowing to his fourth brother while tears streamed down his face uncontrollably.
He didn't actually have much affection for his father, the emperor, since his mother was out of favor and could only see the old emperor a few times a year.
I had seen him, the emperor, holding Xiao Jiu with eyes full of love elsewhere before.
But the wet nurse wouldn't let him make a sound, so she gagged him and dragged him away.
He had asked his mother about it, but all he got in return was her fear, anger, and scolding.
Actually, calling her "Mother Consort" wouldn't be right, as his mother never even reached the rank of Consort; she was just a minor concubine.
She was only brought into the palace after she was raped by a drunken emperor while working as a palace maid and became pregnant.
She had no family background, her mother died early, and she was sold into the palace by her stepmother.
She wasn't good-looking, just plain and unremarkable. She might be considered a pretty girl from a modest family outside, but among the beauties in the palace, she was just an extra.
Lacking talent, she was born a commoner and became a palace maid. She only learned a few words and knew nothing about poetry, songs, music, chess, calligraphy, or painting.
Even her personality is unpleasant; she's always timid and fearful, like a quail.
Not only did the old emperor never think of her again, but even the concubines in the palace couldn't be bothered to consider her a rival.
With such a mother, the Eighth Prince suffered a lot from childhood to adulthood. Everyone was afraid of this cowardly woman, and even the palace maids and eunuchs could not control her.
The only one who could be scolded was the Eighth Prince.
She herself dared not compete for the emperor's favor, nor did she allow her own children to stand out. She even tried to smooth things over and acted as a good person when the Eighth Prince complained.
The Eighth Prince felt sorry for Consort He, his birth mother, and angry at her lack of ambition, yet he was helpless to do anything about it.
She was able to get rid of her wet nurse and replace her with a eunuch thanks to her fourth brother's help.
But he never expected that his fourth brother would actually win him the throne.
Even without the old emperor saying it, he would consider his fourth brother as his closest person.
The old emperor, seeing his two sons' brotherly affection, finally closed his eyes in peace.
The eighth prince, Jin Zeyu, became the new emperor, and until he turned eighteen, the regent, Jin Zekang, took over the administration of the state.
Xiao Yuan, the former director of the Eastern Depot, was reinstated to his original post, granted the title of First-Rank Marquis of Zhenguo, and appointed as a regent minister. He was directly subordinate to the emperor and no longer had to bow to officials.
When the emperor passed away, there was a chorus of weeping, but only two kinds of people truly cared.
One type of crying is "What will I do if you die?", and the other is "You're finally dead."
Although Jin Zekang was the regent, he was still an adult male, and it was inconvenient for him to come and go in the harem, which was full of young concubines.
Therefore, all matters concerning the palace were entrusted to Xiao Yuan and Xiao Ling for their management.
The emperor was still young, and the empress dowager was incompetent. After discussing with Jin Zekang, the two of them drafted a list and solved the problem themselves.
All the concubines who had never served the emperor or had no children were sent back to their homes.
They all gave money, and they didn't care whether the woman wanted to establish her own household and live on her own or marry someone else. If a palace maid with a good relationship was willing to go with them, she could also be taken away.
They're all like flower buds in their late teens or early twenties; there's no need for them to die old in the palace and create more trouble.
Those who had children, whether princesses or princes, were all given an additional rank, at least becoming imperial concubines living alone in their own palace.
Anyway, it's still a long time before the emperor has a harem, so there's no need to waste manpower moving things around.
Apart from the Empress Dowager moving to Cining Palace, only the Sixth Prince and Consort Min's residences were affected; everything else remained unchanged.
The sixth prince was also an unlucky fellow.
When Consort Min was favored by the emperor, she offended someone and was framed.
A perfectly good child was deliberately taught to stutter and become unable to cope, which caused both mother and child to lose favor.
Fortunately, her family was supportive and she was assertive enough to avoid being bullied.
The old emperor simply didn't like him. The sixth prince was seventeen years old and still had no intention of leaving the palace to build his own residence. It was probably just waiting for the emperor to seize some official's property and throw him a mansion.
When the Eighth Prince ascended the throne, Consort Min couldn't sit still and specially asked Xiao Ling to help her pass on a message to the Regent.
It was said that it was inappropriate for someone of his age, around sixty-seven or eighty, to live in the harem any longer.
Many houses have been confiscated recently due to the rebellion. If there is a suitable place, we should at least settle the sixth son.
Their situation was similar to that of the former regent and the eighth prince; they were all pitiful children whom no one cared about.
Now that the fourth prince has become the regent and the eighth prince has become the emperor, it's not unreasonable for her to ask the sixth prince for a place to settle down.
Consort Min's request was not unreasonable. Jin Zekang was not familiar with this brother, but they had no conflicts.
I've investigated before. Apart from being aloof, Lao Liu has no bad habits. He's not even interested in sleeping with palace maids; he only likes to study wooden toys.
Since the Third Prince's residence was also vacant, they simply decided to give it to the Sixth Prince.
Jin Zekang was also good at dealing with people. He used the excuse that the Sixth Prince had not yet been married and there was no one in charge of the mansion to release Consort Min from the palace, allowing her to live out her days in her son's mansion.
Consort Min was so overjoyed that she wept, and mobilized all the officials in her family to sing praises to the Regent.
Having tasted success, Jin Zekang not only reciprocated but also continued his efforts.
Since Sixth Brother likes to study things, let him go to the Ministry of Works for training. The title of Bald Prince doesn't sound good, so let's first make him a Prince of the County.
The Great Jin Dynasty is currently in dire need of rebuilding and is lacking in talent. As the elder brother, he would never let his younger brother be idle.
Subsequently, all the imperial concubines in the harem received a notice that, regardless of which one it was, they could go with their children to live out their old age after they grew up and left the palace to establish their own residences.
Those who gave birth to princesses could also have a princess's residence built to take their mothers out and be cared for.
The Regent's move was a favor to all his younger siblings. Even the concubines who resented him for not choosing their son as emperor quieted down and hurriedly sent messages to their maternal families.
Even though Consort Min has set an example, do you still not know how to learn it?
The Regent is absolutely amazing!
Anyone who dares to spout nonsense will get a beating.
These days, not only Jin Zekang and Xiao Yuan are extremely busy, but Xie Zhuo and Jiang Xinyu have also been drafted into the workforce.
Xie Zhuo is alright; after all, he comes from a prominent family, so it's reasonable for him to help with some official business.
Jiang Xinyu is hilarious; this woman, who can't even handle the power struggles within a household, is actually in charge of the harem.
Jin Zekang burst out laughing and berated her mercilessly, asking her why she had the nerve to do it.
Jiang Xinyu smiled charmingly and turned the teacup into powder.
Why should I? Because I can slap you so hard you won't be able to pry yourself off the wall.
The young emperor's eyes lit up.
Beautiful, cool, and decisive, she's practically his dream mom.